Pander S-4 Postjager

Design and development

The S-4 was designed as a fast mailplane for the service between the Netherlands and the Dutch East Indies. It was a three-seat low-wing monoplane powered by three 420 hp Wright Whirlwind radial engines. It had a conventional retractable landing gear with a tailwheel. The S-4, registered PH-OST, first flew on 6 October 1933.

Operational history

In December 1933 it was decided to fly the initial proving flight of the Postjager to Batavia, Dutch East Indies (now Jakarta, Indonesia), with the aircraft carrying 600 lb of Christmas mail. It set off on 9 December, but lost oil pressure in the starboard engine over southern Italy, and was forced to stop at Grottaglie airfield near Brindisi. The mail was transferred to a Fokker F.XII and a Fokker F.XVIII and flown to the East Indies, while the Postjager waited for a replacement engine to be delivered from the United States. It left Italy of 28 December and arrived in Batavia on 31 December, with a toal flight time of 45 hours. It made the return flight to the Netherlands from 6 January to 11 January. In 1934 the S-4 was entered into the MacRobertson Air Race between London and Melbourne. It left Mildenhall in England on 20 October 1934 and after 36 hours arrived at Allahabad, India. The aircraft was delayed when the landing gear was badly damaged on arrival at Allahabad. It was ready to leave on 26 October but while taxiing for departure it hit a motor car and burst into flames and was destroyed; the crew jumped out and escaped injury.

Specifications

|prime units?=met General characteristics

Powerplant

Performance

• Landing speed: 95 - Flaps down

References

References

1. "The [[Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft]] (Part Work 1982-1985)". Orbis Publishing.
2. (27 October 1934). "Pander machine destroyed".
3. (5 October 1933). "The "Aerial Phost"".
4. (1934). "Jane's all the World's Aircraft 1934". Sampson Low, Marston & company, ltd.
5. (5 November 2016). "Pander S.4 Postjager Trimotor Mailplane".