The Loening Amphibians were a unique adaptation of design for a ?shoehorn? fuselage bi-plane equipped with retractable landing gear. It could virtually operate from anywhere. First ordered by the Army in 1924, it was quickly ordered by the Navy/Marines and finally by the Coast Guard. It was in fact the 1st aircraft purchased by the USCG. Its many variants were acquired in small numbers, but had a major impact in service. It became the major aircraft for use in air survey and exploration into the 1930s. It was used in the Arctic Survey by LCDR Byrd (later ADM) of 1926, the Cuban and Venezuela 1926 surveys, the 1st Alaskan Survey of 1926 by LT Ben Wyatt, the 1926-1927 Pan-American Goodwill Flight by the U.S. Army, the 1929 2nd Alaskan Survey conducted by LCDR Arthor Radford (later Chief of Naval Operations), the 1932 Alaskan Survey of the Aleutians, and 1933 Alaskan Survey of the Aleutians.