The Gee Bee Model R Super Sportster is a classic airplane designed by Granville Brothers Aircraft of Springfield, Massachusetts, and built specifically for the 1932 Thompson Trophy Race. The airplane was billed as "the fastest and most maneuverable licensed airplane for its horsepower in the United States", and it kept up to its name winning the 1932 race for pilot Jimmy Doolittle, and setting a new world landplane speed record of 476 km/h. The Gee Bee Model R also had a natural tendency to lift, allowing for the racer to make breakneck turns around pylons while maintaining or gaining altitude as opposed to losing it. This design, although inherently beneficial, provided for some deadly flying experiences for many of her pilots. In fact, the airplane soon earned a reputation as a potentially dangerous machine.