Curtiss Model D

The Curtiss Model D is an early American pusher biplane built by the aviation pioneer Glenn Curtiss and his Curtiss Aeroplane Company, introduced around 1911 as one of the most widely used American aircraft of the pre-First World War era. Built with the propeller mounted behind the pilot in a pusher configuration and the pilot seated in an exposed, open framework with no fuselage covering, the Model D was flown extensively by early American exhibition pilots, aviation schools and the United States Army and Navy, including early tests of shipboard takeoff and seaplane operation that Curtiss used the type to pioneer. Its rugged, adaptable airframe made it a common basis for a range of Curtiss experiments in naval and military aviation during the type's active service life.