The Travel Air Type R Hawks flew, was the fourth of a series of five racers and was configured for long-distance racing with longer wings and a full set of instrumentation, features that differentiated the aircraft from the rest of the series. Hawks raced "Texaco 13" as "race No. 28" in the 1930 Thompson Trophy Race at the National Air Races on September 1, 1930, using a set of "racing wings", a pair of shorter wingspan wings fitted out at the factory. Hawks pulled out of the race on the third lap when the engine began to falter at full throttle. It was revealed later that a piece of masking tape placed over the gas cap (for streamlining) caused a loss of pressure.