The Y model was a two seat version, just two were built, NR11049 and NR718Y.
NR11049 was built for woman pilot, Maude Tait.
The Tait family were major backers of the Granville Brothers ,so the model Y was considered as a company airplane, and was used by the Granvilles and employees for personal and business trips, This aircraft was also used as
a support aircraft for the R-series racers.
The Granville company was not very sound during this period and air racing was so popular that the model Y was raced often by Maude Tait and Russell Boardman, It rarely finished out of the money since it was so much faster than most of the light airplanes that were racing at that time.
NR718Y was built for E.L Cord Corporation as a test bed for it's Lycoming division for 215 HP, Lycoming R-680 engines.It was later purchased by Art Knapp who hired designer Bob Hall to engineer installation of a Wright Whirlwind, a new windshield and landing gear fairings. The aircraft was raced in 1933 Chicago International Air Races.Florence Klingensmith flew the aircraft in the feature race, but unfortunately a large piece of fabric came off of the inboard section of the right wing, she flew off of the course for a distance, and apparently stalled the aircraft and tragically died.
Noted Gee Bee authority, Henry Haffke, says that the Model Y's won more races and made more money than the better known, purpose built Gee Bee racers.The Model Y's had a 30 ft., wing span,a length of 21 ft,. And weighed around 1,400 pounds in their original configuration with the 215 h.p. Lycoming radials.
Including the Model X that was purchased by Lowel Bayless only 8 Gee Bee Sportsters were built: one Gee bee Model X,a model B, a model C,one Model D and four Model E's.The prototype 'D' and 'E' were retained by the factory for a time and were very successful in production class racing. Unfortunately, the prototype E would be the airplane in which Granny Granville would lose his life in a landing accident in February of 1934 at Spartanburg, South Carolina. He was just 32.
The Gee Bee Sportsters were expensive airplanes,the 'D' cost: $4,980,and the 'E' cost: $5,230, which compared unfavorable with other aircraft.
None of the eight Sporsters survive today,However, there is at the Sport Aviation museum at Oshkosh, Wis the
right wing off of NC72V,serial #8) Bill Sloan, . This wing was originally built for and
installed on NC 856Y . . . the blue and yellow Model E that Zantford
Granville crashed and died in. When the Granvilles retrieved the body and
wreckage, the right wing was all that was salvageable. Later when Don
Walters needed a right wing built for NC72V after flying into a fence, the
wing off 856Y was stripped, recovered, and painted to match Don Walters
Model E.
© 1998 dgraves549@aol.com