VA-Vol-36-No-10-Oct-2008 by EAA Vintage Aircraft Association

GEOFF ROBISON PRESIDENT, VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATON

AirVenture thoughts

114 ultralights, 131 seaplanes, 40 aero batic, and 33 rotorcraft! There were 797 commercial exhibitors and 2,128 foreign visitors from 71 nations; the top three nations were Canada with 492, Austra lia with 229, and Brazil with 186 (and these are the ones who registered!). There were 37,000 campers and 865 on-site media reps (from five different nations)! We had more than 500 volunteers in the Vintage area alone . .. you can just imagine how many volunteers it took overall to accomplish this task. And, was it accomplished! It was simply a magnificent accom plishment ... you have to see It to believe It-not so; yes, you can see It, but you still will not believe it. You will not be lieve it, because it Is not to be believed. A Place Called Oshkosh. It is the largest, cleanest, most beauti As is said, "You have to see it to be fully run aviation spectacle in the world. lieve It!" Indianapolis is called thegreat It is so overwhelming it will bring tears est spectacle in racing. March Madness to your eyes! There is not just something culminates in a Monday night colossus for everyone; there are zillions of things frenzy. The post-season bowl games mes for everyone. From a Pletenpol to a brand merize college football fans. The Super new (perfect) 1928 Boeing 40C to an F-22 Bowl is the greatest thing in all ofprofes Raptor that is so awesome that it is mind sional football. boggling in its performance. In the mean But, none can hold a candle to a place while, Glacier Girl and the only flying called Oshkosh for seven days in late SB2C in the world are sitting on AeroShell July, early August each year. You have to Square ramp, just a few steps away from see it to believe it-not so. You can see Dick Keyt's fabulous (36-plus-year-old it all right, all seven days or even 10-14 (Dennis)) Polen Special experimental. days ifyou count getting there early and And, this is in the daytime . .. folks staying a few days after. But even ifyou like Dick Rutan and Joe Kittinger step see It, all of it, you still can't really and up in the evening at the Theater in the totally believe it. There is so much of it Woods. Dick and Joe have something ... airplanes from Fond du Lac to Ap near 1,000 jet fighter combat missions in pleton (well, almost) .. .more ofanything Southeast Asia between them! And just and everything connected with airplanes across the road from the Red Barn sits than you can ever imagine . .. 540,000 Dick and Patsy Jackson 's 1930 Sikorsky people . .. more than 10,000 airplanes S-39, and next to Addison's 1928 Model ... 2,516 showplanes, including 972 40C Boeing is Al Stix's and John Con homebuilts, 822 vintage, 404 warbirds, ouryer's Glenn Peck-restored and -flown In my column over the past few years you've read my heartfelt at tempts to offer meaningful descrip tions about the event we all know as EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. I have read and enjoyed a number of other members' writings that have also at tempted to share the emotion of this event. When I read Charlie Harris' offering in the August newsletter of VAA Chapter 10, it really struck a chord, and I knew right away it was something that should be shared with all of you, especially those who may have never had the opportunity to visit with us in late July. Here's Charlie's amazing analysis of the 2008 event. Enjoy!

1929 Zenith biplane . .. all three being the only flying examples of their type in the world. Who can't believe this fairy land of make-believe would make Walt Disney blush in disbelief. Harry Houd ini would shrink away in disgrace In the presence ofsuch real magic. And speak ing of magic, while all of this is unfold ing, there Is a guy flying overhead in a real rocket-powered EZ canard compos ite! I'm not kidding . .. I couldn't make this stuff up ifI tried. As I said, you can see it, but you can't believe it. But . .. you still have to see it; it's only the World's Fair ofAirplanes and Who's Who ofAir plane People! Next year's dates are July 27-August 2, 2009. Burt Rutan's and Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic White Knight Two has already committed, and per haps, just perhaps, the most gorgeous, brand-new, last-of-the-breed Gee Bee Q.E.D. on this planet, or in the universe ... just perhaps. Make your plans now; next July will be here before we know It! Thanks for sharing your emotion and excitement about AirVenture Oshkosh, Charlie! EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2009, The World's Greatest Aviation Cel ebration, is July 27 through August 2,2009. Please do us all the favor of in viting a friend to join the VAA, and help keep us the strong association we have all enjoyed for so many years now. VAA is about participation: Be a member! Be a volunteer! Be there!

VOL. 36, No. 10

co I Fe

2008

o E

TENTS

Straight & Level AirVenture thoughts by Geoff Robison

News

Aeromail

AirVenture 2008 A bright spot in aviation, Part I by H.G. Frautschy and Sparky Barnes Sargent

The Regal RNF /I Ask any pilot" by Sparky Barnes Sargent

Light Plane Heritage Clearing the workben ch by Bob Whittier

The Vintage Mechanic Part Two: Ignition system troubleshooting by Robert G. Lock

What Our Members are Restoring Mystery Plane by H.G. Frautschy

Classified Ads

Calendar

STAFF

EAA Publisher Director of EAA Publicati ons Executive Director/Editor EAA Art Director News Editor Photography Advertising Coordinator Classified Ad Coordinator Copy Editor Director of Advertising

Tom Poberezny Mary Jones H.G. Frautschy Olivia P. Trabbold Ric Reynolds Jim Koepnick Bonnie Kratz Sue Anderson Louise Schoenike Colleen Walsh Katrina Bradshaw

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C O VER S FRONT COVER: The Grand Champion Contemporary is thi s 1969 Cessna 172K, owned and

ftown by Stephanie Allen of Mukilteo, Washington . It's shown in formation with her husband's

Beech Bonanza, a previous award-winning restoration . For more on this yea r's EAA AirVenture,

see our artic le starting on page 6. EAA photo by Bonnie Kratz.

BACK COVER: The oldest flying Ford Tri -Motor is an outstanding subject for the discerning eye

of photographer John Slemp. Read more about John' s work on our VAA News page.

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U.S. Central TI me Zone: Gary Worden Specialized Publications Co. 800·444-9932 Fax: 816-741-6458 gary.wordetl@Spc-mag.com

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VINTAGE AIRPLANE

ELT Requirements Clarified The first week of September, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) sent out reminders to U.S. aircraft owners regarding upcoming changes in emergency locator transmitter (ELT) services. As of February I, 2009, sat ellite coverage of 121.5 MHz ELTs will end and only ground-based monitoring will take place. NOAA recommends that aircraft owners transition to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) stan dard digital 406 MHz ELT systems. This caused some confusion among aircraft owners, many who presume they are now required to upgrade to the 406 MHz units. However, there is no requirement in the United States to upgrade to the 406 MHz systems at this time. Installing such a unit is solely an option at the discretion of the air craft owner. Of course, operating with a 121.5/243 MHz ELT after the dead line presents additional risks to pi lots and passengers if a crash occurs, especially in remote areas. Essen tially, someone who crashes while flying without a flight plan will de pend on someone else to: • Recognize they are overdue and notify the authorities to initi ate a search over an indeterminate area, or; • Hope someone hears the 121.5/243 MHz ELT on their radiO, and calls it in. Every moment lost after an air craft crash is a moment closer to a loss of life. While the FAA doesn't mandate the upgrade, it's still an idea worth considering, based on the type of flying you do, and the terrain you regularly fly over. EAA fought to preserve the rights of aircraft owners to choose which ELT system is best suited for their type of flying. News ar ticles, NOAA/SARSAT exhibits in the Federal Pavilion during Air 2

O CTO B ER 2008

Venture, and other efforts have in creased aircraft owners' knowledge and awareness of the differences between the 121.5/243 MHz ELT and the 406 MHz ELT, allowing them to make an informed choice on whether or not to upgrade. EAA said that requiring an upgrade to 406 MHz ELTs, as the FAA proposed several years ago, is too costly a burden to place on recreational! general aviation aircraft owners. For those flying outside the United States: While 406 MHz ELTs are not mandatory for operating in the United States, pilots who fly in ternationally-to Canada or Mex ico, for example-will be required to upgrade their ELTs to the new ICAO standard 406 MHz units af ter February I, 2009. EAA is work ing with Transport Canada to obtain an exemption to this regulation for aircraft transitioning through Can ada to Alaska or those flying from the northeastern part of the United States to the west where the most di rect flight route requires a short tran sition through Canadian airspace. Read a story about ELTs and the upcoming changes at www.AirVenture. org/2008/7sat2/406_mhz.html.

ADIZ Training Required for D.C. Metro Area VFR Pilots The FAA issued a final rule in Au gust ordering "special awareness" training for any pilot who flies un der visual flight rules (VFR) within a 60-nautical-rnile radius of the Ronald

Annual Meetings,

EAA and VAA

The minutes of the annual membership meeting of the Ex perimental Aircraft Association Inc. held August 2, 2008, are avail able in the October 2008 issue of EAA Sport Aviation magazine. During the annual meeting of the Vintage Aircraft Association, the results of the election of direc tors and officers were announced. Elected to two-year terms were: Officers Geoff Robison, President Steve Nesse, Secretary Directors Steve Krog Robert D. "Bob" Lumley Dave Clark John Berendt Espie "Butch" Joyce Jr. Steve Bender Jeannie Lehman Hill Reagan Washington National Air port (DCA) VOR/DME in Washing ton, D.C. The rule becomes effective on February 9, 2009, and involves training developed and provided by the FAA at www.FAASafety.gov. The FAA says its primary focus is to educate the pilot community in an effort to reduce the number of unauthorized flights into the D.C. air defense identification zone (ADIZ) and the flight-restricted zone . EAA and other general aviation or ganizations have voiced opposition to this mandatory training require ment. EAA's Doug Macnair, vice pres ident of government relations, said, "While we wish that this new require ment had not come along, this final rule is the government's measured response to more than 3,000 ADIZ incursions that have occurred." All of the incursions were determined to be non-criminal in nature, but each incursion places an unnecessary bur den on federal, state, and local law enforcement resources.

The mandatory awareness train ing is the least onerous intervention the government can take, Macnair added. "If incursions continue after this training requirement has been in place for a while, we'll have an even more difficult time opposing those who want to greatly increase restricted areas, so it's really up to us to become more vigilant." The rule requires a VFR pilot to complete the free online training course and download a certificate of training completion. That certificate would have to be presented upon re quest to authorized representatives of the FAA, National Transportation Safety Board, Transportation Security Administration, or any federal, state, or local law enforcement officer. EAA and other general aviation organizations have worked tirelessly to minimize the impact of airspace and other operational restrictions on general aviation in the wake of the September II, 2001, terrorist attacks, but the pressure from national secu rity interests for greater restrictions is continual and has in no way dimin ished with the passage of time. EAA will continue to do everything we can to educate top level elected and security officials of the true nature of general aviation and press for rea soned and risk-based approaches to security as necessary.

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Aviation Calendar of Events By simply typing in your ZIP code, you can search the world's largest aviation calendar and find out what aviation events are hap pening in your area. If you or your chapter would like to add an avia tion event to the calendar, you can also easily do so by using an online form . This calendar is a true asset for grassroots aviation! Where are you flying this weekend?

To ease the transition from a printed calendar with a very lim ited number of events to an on line aviation events calendar that is amazing in its scope, Vintage Air plane will continue its printed cal endar of events through December of 2008. Starting in 2009, the cal endar of events will available exclu sively online. Link: www.EAA.org/calendar

Curtiss Robin Club

Upcoming Major Fly-Ins Southeast Regional Fly-In Middleton Field Airport (GZH), Evergreen, Alabama October 24-26,2008 www.SERFI.org Copperstate Regional Fly-In Casa Grande Municipal Airport (CGZ), Casa Grande, Arizona October 23-26, 2008 www.Copperstate.org u.S. Sport Aviation Expo Sebring Regional Airport (SEF), Sebring, Florida January 22-25, 2009 www.Sporl-Aviation-Expo.com

The Curtiss Challenger-powered Curtiss Robin restored by John erry Bowden.

Aero Friedrichshafen Messe Friedrichshafen, Friedrichshafen, Gennany April 2-5, 2009 www.Aero-Friedrichshafen.comlhtmllen Sun 'n Fun Fly-In Lakeland Linder Regional Airport (LAL), Lakeland, Florida April 21-26, 2009 www.Sun-N-Fun.org

Terry Bowden (left, with his fa ther, John, on the right) is the new editor of the Curtiss Robin newsletter.

Jim Haynes wrote to advise us that the Curtiss Robin newslet ter he has edited for 21 years, The Robin Flyleaf, will cease to be published. The good news is that with Jim's blessing, a replacement newsletter will be published by a new editor. The baton has been passed to Terry Bowden. Terry and his father, John Bowden, re stored Curtiss Robin NC82H. Terry's an experienced aircraft mechanic and enthusiastic writer, and we look forward to the new Robin publication. You can con tact Terry at: Terry Bowden 2457 Texas Highway 236 Moody, TX 76557 254-715-4773

Golden West Regional Fly-In Yuba County Airport (Myv), Marysville, California June 12-14, 2009 www.GoldenWestFlyln.org Virginia Regional Festival of Flight Suffolk Executive Airport (SFQ), Suffolk, Virginia May 30-31, 2008 www. VAEAA.org Rocky Mountain Regional Fly-In Front Range Airport (FTG), Watkins, Colorado

TBD www.RMRFI.org

Arlington Fly-In Arlington Municipal Airport (AWO), Arlington, Washington July 8-12, 2009 www.NWEAA.org

EAA A1rVenture Oshkosh Wittman Regional Airport (OSH), Oshkosh, Wisconsin July 27-August 2, 2009 www.AirVenture.org For details on EAA chapter fly-ins and other local aviation events, visit www.EAA.orglevents. VINTAGE AIRPLANE

Back Cover Notes: Th is month ' s back cover introduces a photographer I be lieve we'll see a lot more of in the com ing years. John Slemp is a professional photographer from Atlanta, Georgia , who has been captivated by the images of aviation. His first visit to EAA AirVen ture has triggered a remarkab le set of photographs, many of which you can view on his website at www.Aerographs. com. His photograph of the tai l of the oldest flying Ford 4-AT-B Tri-Motor, re stored for Greg Herrick 's Yellowstone Aviation, shows the captivating nature of the beauty in a man-made structure. You can reach John at the website above or at his studio, 75 Bennett Street NW, Suite H-2, Atlanta, GA 30309, 866-711 8440, or via e-mail at john@johns/emp. com. For a wider view of John's spec tacular work, visit his other website at www.JohnS/emp.com.

EAA Sport Aviation Online Did you know that EAA members have instant access to more than 50 years-that'S 59,000 pages!-of EAA Sport Aviation magaZine? Every page of every issue between 1953 and 2006 has been carefully scanned and ar chived so you can get more out of your EAA membership. Imagine ... • Having instant access to the knowledge and information in tens of thousands of articles. • Searching by keyword, by title, or by author and having results delivered right to your desktop in conve nient PDF format. • Researching your building or restoration project or look

ing up flying qualities of a specific aircraft. _ . and doing a

deep dive into decades worth of aviation

writing. No more stacks of old magazines

cluttering up your garage or workshop.

Visit http://Members .EAA.org, log in

with your user name and password, and

immerse yourself in the history of recre

ational and sport aviation!

Plans are being made to create a similar

online archive of the monthly publications

of EAA's speCial-interest publications, Vin

tage Airplane, Warbirds, NAFI Mentor, and

Sport Aerobatics . As we get closer to that

enhanced member benefit, we'll make an

announcement.

OC T OBE R 2008

News continued on page 31

SEND YOUR COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS TO:

VAA, LEITERS TO THE EDITOR

P.O. Box 3086

OSHKOSH , WI 54903-3086

OR YOU CAN E-MAIL TH EM TO: vintageaircraft@eaa.org

Klemm Memories Upon reading the July 2008 issue, I recognized the Aeromarine-Klemm as a plane in my past (pg. 22). I found my first logbook that my fa ther had prepared for me and found three entries dated October 30, 1938, November 20, and December 5 of the same year. They were in a Klemm that my dad had rented to take me for a rid.e. I was totally surprised to see that the tail numbers were the same. I was 9 years old at the time, and the flights were from Floyd Bennett Field. I am still flying now, and u pon the sale of my beloved Bonanza two months ago, I ordered a SportCruiser light-sport aircraft. I look forward to each issue. R.M. Brann

Our Back Cover Grumman Mallard This letter is regard ing the back cover of Vintage Airplane Vol. 36, No. 8, August 2008 displaying the artwork of Barry Ross. N2442H, serial number J13, is a Grumman Mallard delivered on January 23, 1947. Originally, this Grumman Mallard was first owned by Lord Beaverbrook of Montreal, Can

ada, as CF-FFG. It was sold to Maj . Her bert P. Ho lt, who on June 14, 1948, sold it to Asiatic Petroleum. Asiatic Pe troleum transferred it in April 1951 to New Guinea Petroleum. On January IS, 1955, the plane was re-registered in Dutch New Guinea and returned to Dutch New Guinea Petroleum (NNGP) on August 3, 1960. Dutch New Guinea abandoned the Mallard at Biak, New Guinea, and it was sold in 1962 to East Coast Air-Australia. Later in 1962, the Mallard was trans ferred to Trans Australian Air, who on September 11 , 1963, sold the Grum man to Utah Construction and Mining of New Zealand. Air Pacific Fiji Island bought the Mallard from New Zealand on February 25, 1969. The pilot of Fiji Air landed long on a single engine at Suva, Fiji, and overshot into the jungle about half a mile from the end of the runway. The Ma ll ard was abandoned by Fiji Air and offered for sale, as it was. Crow Inc. bought the plane on March 24, 1971, and my son, Eric Barnum, reg istered it with our home street num ber, N2442H. H stands for our street, Hempstead Street, and 2442, our house number. I removed it from the jungle full of rainwater. The abandoned plane had a 4-inch vine growing through the door and out the copilot window, both of which were left open for the years it was left in the jungle. Upon removal from the jungle, I spent one and a half months restoring it to an airworthy cond ition. I installed 17 ordinary gas barrels manifolded in the interior, a transfer pump, and a 35-gallon barrel of oil and an air pump. I put gauges on the oil tanks and installed one new

engine. I then flew it home to Toledo, Ohio, with an automatic direction finder sitting on the right seat, along with a handheld VHF and HF radio. Dry cell batteries were under the copi lot seat. Two days took me from Fiji to Funafuti and Tarawa. I refueled out of 55-gallon barrels at Tarawa and flew to Johnson Island. I stayed four days at Johnson Island. From there to Hono lulu to Hila, where we stayed two days, then direct to San FranCiSCO, and then on to Toledo, Ohio, in two days. After a total restoration and paint, I sold it to Barnett Leasing on Decem ber 19,1973. Barnett Leasing sold it to Segul Air on May 9, 1975. R.H. Slade of Burlington, Ontario, Canada, bought the plane in July 1978. The Mallard was re-registered as C-GRZI to Sladeco of Dallas, Texas, on January 12, 1979. Siadeco sold it to Chalk's International Airlines on October 25, 1979, who then sold it to Steve Hamilton of Car son City, Nevada. The plane has been registered N2442H from March 1998 to the current date. Mr. Hamilton has completely restored the Mallard to its original state. There's an interesting story of this aircraft, written in German in the logbooks. The plane lost an engine somewhere around New Guinea, where it landed on the water. The pi lots and passengers, for fear of their

lives, taxied several hundred miles on one engine to avoid islands they were passing which were known to be in habited by cannibals. Reference the book Grumman Mal lard by Fred Hotson and Matthew E Rodnia Jr. for details and pictures of ev ery Mallard ever built since 1959. The book was published in Canada, 2006. See www.RBStudioBooks.com for details. ...... Leon E. Barnum VINTAGE AIRPLANE

Glenn Peck, restorer of this massive Zenith biplane, swings around in the Antique parking area. The Zenith, owned by the Historic Aircraft Restoration Museum at Dauster Field in Creve Coeur, Missouri, was presented with the Silver Age Outstanding Open Cockpit Biplane trophy.

he "chink-chink-chink" sound of tent pegs being hammered into the soft sod by early arrivals. The rhythmic "kersplotch" of the condensed dew land ing in the grass outside your tent. An unidentified bird standing in the tree above your tent, sounding his wake up call a few minutes before the guy in the campsite across the street does his best impression of a raspy-voiced, slightly hung-over rooster. The small voices heard from far away as your fellow campers awaken and greet one another while they head to the showers. As you become vaguely aware of morning, the wonderful realization comes to mind that you're camping in Oshkosh, snuggled in your warm sleeping bag in the early morning chill, and there are still a few days left to savor mornings like this. Whoohoo! Time to get crackin'. All those sounds and sensations are just a part of the vis ceral experience that members have when they travel to Witt man Regional Airport for our annual EAA fly-in and convention, EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. There's so much to see and do, it's impossible to do it all, but if you're like most of us, you'll sure do your darndest to try! In the Vintage Aircraft Association area, there are more than 800 showplanes to park, 513 volunteers to coordinate, and thousands of meals to serve to EAA members in the Tall Pines Cafe. Hundreds of questions will be answered at the informa tion and hospitality center in the VAA Red Barn, with gallons of lemonade washing down hundreds of bags of fresh, crunchy salty popcorn popped by volunteers. Nearly 200 new VAA mem bers will be signed up, and across the sidewalk under the big welcome arch, volunteers will help other volunteers by keeping track of the hours they donate. Sandwiches will be made in the VAA volunteer kitchen and consumed by the hungry vol un

teers from the flightline and judging corps. The Type Club Tent will host more than two dozen type clubs during the week, and more than 506 of the airplanes parked in the area will be vis ited by the VAA judges. At the end of the week, the volunteers will whoop and holler during their annual evening appreciation party, and after the aircraft awards are presented on Saturday night, the winners and their friends and family will gather for a reception hosted by VAA for their benefit. As you awaken on the last Sunday morning, the sounds of air escaping from air mattresses and the rustle of tent-flys be ing shaken out will surround you. Tent poles will click and clack as they are folded up and tucked into their skinny sack. You 'll hear the grumble of a Jacobs mounted on a Cessna 195 as it mutters its discontent at having to get up so early. After a stumble or two, it'll settle down to a pleasing "cahrumph, cah rumph, cahrumph " as it warms up to the idea of a flight that morning. The little Lycomings and Continentals will cough a time or two as the throttle is put to them just a bit too early, but like the Jacobs, they'll stretch and warm themselves as the silvery dew gets blasted up the windshield and back along the fuselage. By the next Monday morning, it's almost as if it's been a dream. Were there really that many of us in Oshkosh? It hardly seems possible. Now there are only the airplane ghosts tramped into the sod, and the funny yellow-green colored grass where a tent had been for the past week. But you can be sure of one thing-most of us will be back next year. Here in Oshkosh we'll be waiting for you . Bring your airplane and your tent. We'll do our best to make it a great week in rec reational aviation's hometown. Here are just a few of the great airplanes and people who made this year's convention fantastic. VINTAGE AIRPLANE

Three generations of the Parish family stand in front of the win ner of a Silver Lindy for the Re serve Grand Champion Classic, their Beech 018. From left to right we have Robert Parish; his father, John; and John's grand sons, Mac, Will, and John III. Behind John III is grandmother Charlotte. To her left are John Ju nior and Charles Parish. H.G. FRAUTSCHY PHOTOS

It's the end of the day, and after a fun day of "AirVenturing, " Je rome Pfister (left) and his buddy Merlin Batesel rest under the wing of Merlin's 1947 Luscombe 8F. The guys came to the EAA fly in and convention from Missouri.

Brooks Peterson shows off his uniform du jour on Tuesday eve ning. His Cessna 140, Miss Jacq£, is very distinctive in its color scheme that recalls the mil itary markings used just prior to World War II. Brooks hails from Stockton, California. 8

OCTOBER 2008

EAA is in the process of building a replica of the Bleriot XI English Channel-crossing airplane . EAA mechanic Gary Buettner and a crew of volunteers and staff are making splendid progress, as displayed in one of the tents near the workshop aJea. Thanks to a fortu itous trade , the EAA Bleriot project has this original three-cylinder 25-hp Anzani engine to power it. The freshly overhauled motor was run numerous times during the convention. Ted Mossman , one of EAA's most experienced mechanics, preps the engine for one of the demonstrations .

H.G. FRAUTSCHY PHOTOS

The VAA helped facilitate a series of meetings with the staffers from the FAA's Small Airplane Directorate. Steve Pierce of the Short Wing Piper Club (center, rear) briefs the FAA's Kim Smith, the director of the Small Airplane Directorate (right), and, going around the ta足 ble, VAA Director Emeritus Buck Hilbert and the FAA's David Showers , John Colomy, Carol Giles, Marty Bailey, and Kawehi Lum . VINTAGE AIRPLANE

Four sentinels of the flightline ; this quartet of Staggerwings provided a nice centerpiece of the Antique parking area.

EAA President Tom Poberezny greets Father Tom Roland, a longtime EAAer and pilot who donated his Ercoupe to EAA's col足 lection more than 25 years ago.

Pilot Andrew Smith of Hillsboro , Texas , brought his longtime friend Don Curtis to the south end of the VAA parking area. And rew's been coming to the convention for many years and won an award in 1998.

Jonathan Scholl's attractive Cessna 195 banks away from EAA's Cessna 210 photo ship near Waupaca, Wisconsin. The Cessna Businessliner is still just as capable as it was 50 years ago. Jona足 than 's 195 is the winner of the Class IV (236 hp & Higher) Classic Lindy.

10 OCTOBER 2008

Sparky's Notebook

We asked VAA member and Vintage Airplane contributing editor Marcia "Sparky" Barnes-Sargent to visit with VAAers on the flightline. Here are some of the interesting folks she met.

Father and son, Todd and Taylor Reed, flew their 1941 Piper J-5A Cub (NC41396) from Greensburg, Indiana, to AirVenture this year. While they've both visited AirVenture before, this was their first time flying in with the vintage airplane they've owned for nine years. Todd, who built model airplanes as a youngster, enjoys "the people, sights, and experience of being with all of the aviation nuts who are gathered in Oshkosh," and says with a chuckle, "We belong with them! The J-5A is real fun flying. It carries three (small) people, 25 gallons of fuel, and cruises about 80 mph, making it a reasonable cross-country airplane."

EAA member Ken Kinsler hadn't been to Oshkosh since the early 1970s. He flew his 1946 Aeronca 11AC Chief (N9129E) from Mannford, Oklahoma, to Kansas, where he met up with a buddy who was flying another Chief, and together they com pleted their two-day flight to Wittman Field. It was his first time flying into AirVenture, and he particu larly enjoyed perusing all of the vendor booths and display areas, as well as strolling the flightline, looking at airplanes.

EAA and VAA member Dale Haag flew this 85-hp 1947 Ercoupe 415-CD from Saint Paul, Minnesota, to Wau sau, Wisconsin, and then on to AirVenture as one of a large gaggle of Ercoupes. Haag flies N3308H in mem ory of his father, who rescued the neglected airplane from a field and restored it 15 years ago under the supervision of Dick Nerling. "My father never had a pi lot's license, but one day he found a Tri-Pacer, and my brother and I helped him restore it-then he found the Ercoupe, and he'd always liked those," shares Haag. VINTAGE AIRPLANE

The fantastic restoration of the only flying Boeing 40 mailplane was flown to the con vention by Addison Pemberton . The resto ration's accomplishment was recognized as the Grand Champion Antique of EAA Air Venture 2008. After their arrival , the Pem berton family pauses in the glorious late afternoon sun. From left to right we have son Jay; his wife , Elin; Addison's wife, Wendy; son Ryan; and Ryan 's wife, Taryn. H.G. FRAUTSCHY

Kent Pietsch's air show act with an Interstate Ca detis always entertaining to watch. We ' ll have more on Kent and his remarkable career in a fu ture issue of Vintage Airplane.

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Paul Applegate's beautiful Waco YKS-6 has a color scheme that honors the markings of Wiley Post's famous globe-circling Lockheed Vega, the Winnie Mae. Paul and his family camp with their airplane every year.

12 OCTOBER 2 008

We'li have more coverage of the people and planes of AirVenture in next month's Vintage Airplane.

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The Regal RNF

"Ask any pilot" BY SPARKY B ARNES SARGENT

egal in its burgundy and silver, NC8SSV was proudly poised on the flightline at the Sun 'n Fun Fly足 In at Lakeland, Florida, this year, a noble representative of Waco's fam足 ily lineage. Its current owner, John "Lites" Leenhouts of Jacksonville, Florida, considers himself fortunate to have this 1930 Waco in his pos足 >-- session, and enjoys sharing it with ~ other antique and vintage enthusi足 ~ asts. He acquired it in 2005 and has

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~ The pilot flies from the rear ~ cockpit; two passengers can sit ~ in the front.

14 OCTOB ER 2008

been actively flying it since then, logging 130 hours in it. Manufactured under approved type certificate number 311 in 1930 by Waco Aircraft Company in Troy, Ohio, NC855V was originally equipped with a 110-hp Warner Scarab engine and a wooden Hart zell propeller. The RNF was the first of the Waco "F" series; "R" stood for its Warner engine, "N" signified the wing and fuselage design, and "F" denoted the model series. It was de signed to carry two passengers and 15 pounds of baggage in its front cockpit, while the pilot flew from the rear-yet dual controls gave a single front-seat occupant the op portunity to try his hand at flying this fine machine. The Waco RNF was quite popu lar among pilots of the day, with excellent short-field performance and handling characteristics, along with its sturdy construction . Its welded steel tubing fuselage was neatly faired to shape with wooden formers, and its tail was also built of welded steel tubing. Its wings

were built with spruce spars and spruce/plywood ribs, and the air frame was covered with fabric. The RNF's outrigger gear had oleo spring shock absorption to cushion its landings, and its horizontal sta bilizers were adjustable in flight, via a jackscrew. Two 16-gallon center section fuel tanks gave it a range of around 400 miles. According to aviation historian Joseph Juptner (Vol. 4, U.S. Civil Aircraft Seri es), the RNF, as powered by the 1l0-hp Warner, had a maximum speed of 112 mph, with a cruising speed of 95 mph and a landing speed of 35 mph. Its upper wing spanned 29 feet 6 inches, and its lower wing spanned 27 feet 5 inches . The bi plane measured 20 feet 8 inches long, stood 8 feet 4 inches tall, and weighed 1,150 pounds empty, with a gross weight of 1,897 pounds. The type certificate was apparently later amended for the installation of a 125-hp Warner, with a correspond ing gross weight increase to 1,938 pounds. The RNF was also certifi cated for Edo L floats.

The Waco RNF's popularity ex tended beyond the borders of the United States; there were several fly ing in other countries, as well. Andy Heins of the National Waco Club sheds some light on this topic, stat ing "a total of 181 RNFs were built, although two of these were fuselages only. Of these, the following went to foreign countries: China-I, Ar gentina-3, Norway-2, Canada-I, and Brazil-22." Today, 43 Waco RNFs are listed on the FAA Registry, and Heins indicates that 21 are in flying condition (and his wife, Su san, owns two of those).

Acquiring NC855V In 2005, Leenhouts received a phone call from "Hank" Avery, then owner of NC855V. Avery wanted Leenhouts to make an offer for the Waco . "Hank's health was going down, and he knew I loved the air plane, " shares Leenhouts, explain ing "I'd met him a couple of years before, through a mutual friend, Tommy Hennessey, and had ad mired and shown an interest in his VINTAGE AIRPLANE

Close-up view of the throttle/ brake lever.

Leenhouts demonstrates the braking port ion ofthe throttle/ brake lever.

cockpit," chuckles Leenhouts, "so I asked him how I would know what the engine rpms were, and he told me, 'You'll figure it out, it's not that hard.' He takes off, flies around, and comes back and lands on the grass then says, 'Okay, now taxi.' Well, the brakes are weird, because the brakes are [combined with the throttle le ver] . For throttle, you move the lever fore and aft, and then side to side to activate the brakes-that's the origi nal setup. Then he told me, 'Alright, it's your airplane.' Yeehah, this is go ing to be a fun one-so I run that throttle up and the tail comes up and then we're flying! It's just stick and rudder, seat of the pants flying-I go around the pattern and do six land ings-then he told me, 'You own the airplane!' That was all the flight time I had in it; the very next morn ing, a friend and I flew it from Sil ver Creek to Jacksonville, Florida. We didn't have a GPS; we just flew by dead reckoning-and I've been hav ing fun with it ever since!"

Flying the RNF

Retired U.S. Navy Capt. John "Lites" Leenhouts loves flying his RNF.

Waco-so he called me. As it ended up, I made an offer that I thought he'd turn down, but instead, he told me to come get the airplane." When Leenhouts arrived at Silver Creek Airport in Morganton, North Carolina, to complete the purchase of NC855Y, he'd never even been up 16

OCTOBER 2008

for a flight in it-or any Waco, for that matter. So he was in for a bit of a surprise when he went up for a fa miliarization flight-he noticed as he climbed into the roomy front cock pit that there were no instruments in the panel. "Hank's friend checked me out in it, and he was in the rear

As Leenhouts has logged time aloft in his Waco, he's gained even more appreciation for its fine flying characteristics-and its nostalgia. "The RNF dates to a time when life was so much simpler and so much more enjoyable," he reflects, "with out the complexity of the high-tech world of the 21st century." The RNF's upper and lower aile rons make it a very responsive and nimble airplane, with "a very nice roll rate, and it's very controllable at low speeds, so somewhere around 40 mph it still handles like a dream. It can get airborne in about 300 feet when fully loaded, and it'll fly as far as you want to go at 85 mph. The Hamilton Standard ground adjustable prop was set for climb when I bought the airplane, and it was only cruising around 75 mph. I've adjusted it for speed, and now it flies very comfortably at 8S mph. It 's a very docile airplane; when you stall it, it just kind of mushes down. It's fully aerobatic, and when you push the nose downhill, it'll

Close-up view of the Waco's outrigger gear.

go from 85 mph to 120 mph just about like that," says Leenhouts, snapping his fingers. Historian Joseph Juptner writes the following when describing the RNF: "Just to prove what a good pilot could do with the RNF, Johnnie Liv ingston entered the 'dead-stick' land ing contests at the 1930 National Air Races held in Chicago. With several scores remarkably 'close to the mark,' Livingston came up with 2 first, 2 second, and 2 third place wins in the daily events. In the 'Balloon busting' contests he deftly wheeled the RNF to 3 first place wins with almost the grace of a ballet dancer."

Chain of Ownership It's always interesting to pore through aircraft records and docu ments, and once in a while, a glitter ing gem of history is brought to light. This Waco's early chain of ownership goes like this: On June 6, 1930, Waco Aircraft Company issued a certificate of transfer (bill of sale) for NC855V to Mr. Phil Love, of Lambert Field in St. Louis, Missouri. Love owned the bi plane for barely a month; on July 3, 1930, a record, transfer, and reassign ment form shows that he sold the Waco to Harry H. Knight, of 401 01

Note the clean lines of the RNF.

ive Street, St. Louis, Missouri. Knight's "most convenient flying field" was listed as Curtiss Steinberg Field, St. Louis. Knight owned NC855V a lit tle more than two years, and during that time, he made a few changes to the biplane. He had a metal propeller and Townend ring installed in June 1931. Then on August 25, 1932, an operation inspection report indicated that a 125-hp Warner was installed in place of the original 1l0-hp War ner. The next record, transfer, and re assignment form reveals that Knight sold the Waco to Frank H. Robertson of Robertson, Missouri, on Septem ber 27, 1932; Robertson's "most con venient flying field" was listed as St. Louis Municipal Airport. Upon discovering Love's ad dress of Lambert Field, I became intrigued and decided to invest some time researching the history surrounding Love. It wasn't long before I cautiously surmised that he was the Phillip "Red" Love who was Charles Lindbergh's classmate and buddy, and a fellow CAM-2 air mail pilot. Not only that, but that Harry H. Knight helped fund Lind bergh's trans-Atlantic New York to-Paris flight, and that Robertson was of the Robertson Aircraft Cor-

This RNF began life with a 110 hp Warner, but today it has a 145-hp Warner

poration and also an airmail pilot. It just didn't seem to be a coinci

dence that Robertson's signature on corporate checks made out to C.A. Lindbergh and Harry Hall Knight matched the Robertson signature in NC855V's aircraft records. Mike Gretz, president of the Antique Airplane Association's Airpower Museum, has intently studied Lindbergh's life and times, and corroborated my suppositions. He states, "From the documents and letters I have seen between Phil Love and Lindbergh in the 1920s and '30s, I am convinced that Phil Love was Lindbergh's closest avia tion friend and confidant during the first half of Lindbergh's life .. .1 believe Lindbergh considered Love his equal in all matters aviation ... The trail [of ownership] from Love to Knight to Frank Robertson is the clincher. They were all Lam bert Field buddies of Lindbergh's. Yes, Knight was one of Lindbergh's two most important financial back ers for the flight of The Spirit of St. Louis (the other being Harold M. Bixby). And yes, Frank Robertson was the co-owner of Robertson Air craft Corp., who Lindbergh worked for. Frank and his brother Bill were VINTAGE AIRPLANE

The RNF has two center-section fuel tanks, with a total fuel capacity of 32 gallons. CIl OJ

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This photograph shows NC855V In one of its previous color schemes.

also backers of The Spirit of st. Louis flight. It all ties together very well." Robertson owned NC885V for about three months and then sold it to C.A. Thomas of the then-no table and prosperous Thomas Fruit Co. of Joplin, Missouri, on De cember 21, 1932. At that time, the Waco had 256 hours and 30 min utes of total time. After that, it flew from Missouri to Colorado and then Nebraska, where it was owned by Rapid Air Lines Corporation of Omaha during 1933 and 1934. Its total flight time by September 1933 was 382 hours, and 671 hours by August 1934. The Waco was around Wold-Chamberlain Field in Min 18

OCTOBER 2008

NC855V on the flightline at Wold-Chamberlain Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota, during the 1930s.

neapolis, Minnesota, in September of 1937 and 1938-which is likely around the time that Leenhouts' historical photograph of NC855V was taken as it sat on the ramp, ready to give rides. Another interesting tidbit is that Grimes position lights were in stalled in October 1939, along with a Grimes warning light on the lead ing edge of the upper left wing, and automotive spotlights (for land ing lights) on the lower end of the front struts-and this is nicely illus trated by the historical photograph shared by Andy Heins. NC855V was used for sightseeing rides in Minneapolis in the early

1940s, and it was owned by two fly ing clubs during 1944-first, Milan Flying Service in Minneapolis, and then Rutherford Flying Club in Ru therford, Tennessee. Fast-forward to 1960-the Waco had accumu lated 1,323 hours and 20 minutes of flight time, and that was when owner Robert S. Sherman of Tuc son, Arizona, had another engine installed. The original plywood en gine support ring was replaced with a steel engine mount ring, and a Warner Series SO engine rated at 145 hp at 2050 rpm was installed, along with a Hamilton Standard ground adjustable propeller. NC855V is still powered by this engine.

This black and white photo depicts NC855V with the automotive spotlights that were installed as landing lights on the lower portion of the front struts in 1939.

The next significant transfer of ownership transpired on December 6, 1963, when William C. Hiller of Louisiana sold the Waco to Silver Creek Aviation in Morganton, North Carolina-and ultimately put it in the hands of one Herbert H. Avery. You might say that the 33-year-old biplane had landed at its long-term care facility, for that's where it re mained until 2005. "Hank" Avery was a U.S. Marine Corps captain and pi lot during World War II, and became a prominent citizen and business man in Morganton, North Carolina, in the years following the war. Avery was well-known for his collection of warbirds and antique aircraft, which he kept at Silver Creek Airport. In November 1993, Avery "updated" the Waco by having Catawba Valley Aviation in Hickory install avionics in it; those included a radio, tran sponder, and altitude encoder. One month later, A&P Greg Deal signed off on the installation of a Phoenix wind charger (alternator). Deal had also removed the old cotton fabric (from a re-cover job in 1971), disas sembled the aircraft, primed the air frame, re-covered it with Ceconite, and reassembled it with new hard ware. After logging around 1,800 hours' total time, NC855V was all spruced up and ready to fly through modern-day airspace. That pretty much brings us up toJune 17, 2005, when Leen houts purchased the Waco from Avery's Antique Airplanes Inc. But the other interesting aspect of this

story is just how Leenhouts became involved with aviation in the first place, and the heights to which he has soared since then.

Dreams Take Flight Enamored as he is with vintage and antique airplanes, it's not sur prising that this is the third biplane Leenhouts has owned. First, he had a 1946 Stampe, which he loved fly ing-but he sold it to pay for his daughter's college tuition. He re ally wanted another biplane, and several years later, a Stearman flew into his life-and he still owns that one. His love for biplanes-and jets-started when he was a young ster. "I grew up as a kid who just loved airplanes, and I really wanted a biplane because I just loved that era. I was a small kid and I got beat up a lot, and I always wanted to be bigger than the other guy, but stat ure wasn't going to get me there," laughs Leenhouts good-naturedly, "so I had to do something to set myself apart-to be important, to be bigger than me. When I was about 14, I was down visiting my grandparents in Ft. Worth, Texas, and Caswell Air Force Base had an air show going on. I hitchhiked up there, and that's when I decided I wanted to be a fighter pilot." Leenhouts applied himself in school, went to college, and signed on with the Navy. "I flew A-7 Cor sairs from 1975 up through Desert Storm and was a Landing Signal Officer in my junior officer days," explains Leenhouts energetically, "which gave me the additional op portunity to cross-train in the F-14 Tomcat as well-I qualified in one

week, because that's all the time I had! From 1977 through Janu ary 1986, I flew the A-7 day and night, and the F-14 Tomcat during the day off of several carriers in the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. During that time, I became the Senior Landing Signal Officer for the Atlantic Fleet in Virginia, and I flew off every ship on the Atlantic coast with every Tomcat Squadron for two years-I had a great time; it was a blast! I transitioned to F/A 18 Hornets in 1991, after returning from the Gulf War I." Retired U.S. Navy Capt. Leen houts was the Strike Fighter Wing Atlantic commander; he retired in 2000, after 27-1/2 years with the Navy. He received numerous med als and made 1,645 carrierarrested landings (425 of which were made at night) during his career-the most ever in U.S. history. Today, he is employed by Northrop Grum man Technical Services as an F/A-18 Program Manager for Modification, Repair and Overhaul at Cecil Field Operations in Florida. There's no doubt that Leenhouts has achieved-if not surpassed-his childhood goal of setting himself apart from others. And aviation has been his ticket for the greatest ride of his life-from supersonic to sub sonic, he's happiest aloft, whether he's in front of a screaming jet en gine or behind an old throaty radial, with his worldview framed by fabric covered wings, and the heart-warm ing sound of wind singing through the wires . Hmm-wonder what Love, Knight, and Robertson would think of NC855V's newest owner, if they were still around! ..... VINTAGE A I RPLA NE

Light Plane Heritage

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN

EAA Experimenter

DECEMBER 1991

Clearing the workbench

BY B OB W HITnER

Wheels and Tires In recent Ligh t Plane Heritage columns we have discussed the Klemm lightplane of the 1920s and the Nicholas-Beazley monoplane built in Missouri in the early 1930s. Space limitations did not permit mentioning a number of interest ing points involving these aircraft. So, because there are useful things to know, this month's column will be devoted to them. In the story of Baron von Koenig Warthausen's round-the-world adven ture in a Klemm, we told of incidents in which the slim, high-pressure tires on the ship's wheels sank into soft sand and caused difficulty in taking off. Some readers probably wondered why he didn't equip the plane with fat, low-pressure tires that would not have done this. There are two reasons. When he took off from Berlin to fly nonstop to Moscow, he had no thought in mind of undertaking a round-the-world journey. So he prepared the Klemm only for that flight. And when he made the flight, what are today called "air wheels" were just beginning to appear on the scene in the United States and were either little known or not yet available in Germany. In the earlier Nicholas-Beazley article, mention was made of a por poising action sometimes devel oping when taking off from some unpaved runways. Early NB-8 land-

Goodyear Air Wheels were popular in the early 1930s but had certain dis advantages. Limited space within very small hubs posed a problem when trying to install brakes, and scrubbing action on paved runways led to rapid tread wear. The plane here is a 1931 Brewster Fleet biplane fitted with a 220-hp Continental in place of t he original 100- to 125-hp Kinner.

ing gears were rigid tripod struc tures having no shock absorbers, the softness of the air wheels be ing relied upon to absorb land ing shocks. As one of these planes gained speed, the fuselage and thus the plane as a whole developed a pitching action as the up-to-speed tires "fought" with an uneven run way surface. Other lightplanes that had also adopted these then-new wheels also encountered this prob lem, and rigid gears were soon re placed with ones incorporating shock absorbers. Designers of these planes had decided to use the new air wheels on the basis of enthusiastic pro motional material put out by the

Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, which had developed them and in troduced them in 1929 under the trade name Goodyear Air Wheels. The lesson to be learned from this is that what works well on some test airplanes and under most con ditions may sometimes not work well on other planes or under con ditions not envisioned or tested for by a manufacturer. Obviously the porpoising ten dency will not appear when taking off from paved or smoother unpaved runways. Some of today's ultralights rely solely on the tires on their wheels to absorb landing shocks, and a little thought tells us why it works satis factorily for them . They are much

Editor's Note: Longtime aviation enthusiasts will recognize the byline of Bob Whittier. Bob has been a regular con tributor to EM publications since the founding of the organization, as well as a knowledgeable author fOT other avia tion and boating magazines. Bob's Light Plane Heritage series in EM's Experimenter magazine often touched on aircraft and concepts related to vintage aircraft and their history. Since many of OUI members have not had the opportunity to read this series, we plan on publishing those LPH articles that would be of interest to VM members. Enjoy!-HGF 20

OCTO B ER 2008

At left, the drag ring fitted to the five-cylinder radial engine on a Nich olas-Beazley NB-S. At right, to get best results from the more sophis ticated NACA type of cowling, the fuselage behind the engine must be shaped to match the aft end of the cowling.

In 1923 NACA began to operate this impressive-looking variable-density wind tunnel offering controlled air pressure to obtain uniformity of test results from different models.

An early approach to the problem of radial engine drag was to install a large propeller hub spinner such as on this early Lockheed Vega.

lighter than those old planes that were equipped with rigid landing gears and Air Wheels, and also they take off after such short runs that they do not get into the porpoising condition that sometimes appeared during longer takeoff runs. We can learn other interesting things from a review of the history of airplane tires. Early aircraft were put together from whatever mate rials and components were then available, and they made do with tires originally developed for as sorted light ground vehicles . The vast increase in aircraft produc tion brought on by World War I prompted rubber companies to de velop tires to suit aviation needs. A common feature was smooth tread with no nonskid patterns of any kind. This was reasonable be cause smooth tire surfaces should logically cause minimal air resistance at flying speeds. Also, tread patterns would tend to pick up pebbles and then hurl them backward and up ward to damage fabric-covered wings. And since planes of that time relied on tailskids to slow them down af ter landing, wheel brakes were not installed and therefore tires did not need nonskid patterns. Rubber was so scarce in Germany toward the end of that war that air plane factories were occasionally forced to adopt strange solutions to tire shortages. Sometimes they had skilled rope workers make up "tires" from rope, resembling oversize rope quoits used in the garden game by that name. These were pried onto wheel rims and at least allowed completed warplanes to get into ac tion. A few planes were even fitted with wooden wheels, amounting to ox cart wheels made as lightly and neatly as possible. As the say ing goes, "There's always more than one way to do something!" The period between Lindbergh's daring flight from New York to Paris in May of 1927 and the stock mar ket crash of October 1929 was one of great activity and progress in air craft design and construction. Most airports still had unpaved runways VINTAGE AIRPLANE

Figure i-Air Wheel carcasses ex perience much flexing at the outer edges of their tread areas. On abrasive paved runway surfaces this leads to rapid wear. (Aviation Handbook, 193i, p.486)

with various surfaces such as sod, gravel, sand , clay, and cinders. Smoothness, firmness, and rapidity of drainage varied widely. The slim, high-pressure tires then in common use typically car ried from 40 to 60 pounds of air pressure and could easily sink into soft ground, as illustrated by the well-known slow acceleration of th e Spirit of St. Louis when Lindy took off from a rain-soaked runway. Sometimes when landing cross wind, the tire on the downwind wheel peeled off its rim, wrapped itself around the wheel and axle, and caused the plane to ground lOOp. High-pressure tires could send quite a jolt through a plane's struc ture when it landed on one of the paved runways that began to ap pear in the late 1920s. After a period of development and testing, Goodyear introduced its Air Wheels as an answer to these problems. The fat new tires carried from as little as 7 or 8 to not more than 15 pounds of air pressure, put a big "footprint" onto the ground, and came in several sizes suited to small- and medium-sized aircraft. Goodyear used a 5,400-pound Fok ker Super Universal cabin mono plane fitted with 37-inch Air Wheels carrying only 7 pounds of 22 OCTOBE R 2008

air pressure for test and demonstra tion work. Its original oleo shock struts were replaced with ones of rigid steel tubing for this duty. When aviation people first saw these new tires, they quite under standably thought they would create much more air resistance than the slim and, to them, more air-cleav ing, narrow high-pressure ones. It was true that for a given load carrying capacity, an Air Wheel had more fron tal area. But both wind tunnel and flight tests showed that the new Air Wheels more nearly ap proached an ideal streamline shape and created less drag. The Army's Wright Field in Ohio tested a pair of 22 x 10 Air Wheels against its 30 x 5 high-pressure equivalents and found that the fat ties created 25 percent less drag. A plane originally fitted with 30 x 5 tires cruised 5 miles an hour faster when fitted with 22 x 10 Air Wheels. To be fair, it should be mentioned that some other tests showed neg ligible difference in drag, possibly due to the layout of a test plane's landing gear struts and attendant interface drag properties. Test flights revealed unexpected advantages of Air Wheels, which we have come to refer to simply as "air wheels." Their soft surfaces yielded easily to small bumps in gravel and sod surfaces and rode over them with enough less resistance as to measurably shorten takeoff runs. Test pilots soon observed that they reduced the airplane's tendency to ground loop. However, they also found that when a plane having Air Wheels ran into a sizable puddle on a runway, the effect was somewhat like a bu ll dozer running into a snowbank at an equivalent speed. When Air Whee ls appeared on the scene, rubber-cord shock struts were just beginning to give way to hydraulic or oleo struts. These new struts contained numerous care fully machined metal parts, so they were both heavier and more ex pensive than the shock-cord types. Their advantage lies in the fact that where stretched rubber stores up en

ergy and can release it in the form of bouncy landings, hydraulic fluid suddenly being forced through a small metering orifice dissipates the energy in landing shocks by con verting it into heat. Goodyear pOinted out that since Air Wheels made it possible to dis pense entirely with shock struts, the simple, rigid landing gears possible with them would avoid the man ufacturing cost and service prob lems inherent in the pivoted joints necessary when any kind of shock struts were used. It also noticed that the soft ride afforded by Air Wheels would reduce general wear and tear on all parts of an airframe. When people expressed concern about the possibility of Air Wheels being too bouncy, Goodyear had a ready answer. Although air pressure in them was low, there was a large volume of it. The sudden buildup of pressure attendant to contacting a runway surface would dissipate energy and control bouncing. Several makes of small planes ad opted Air Wheels. But they did not remain popular for long. More and more runways were being paved in the 1930s as depression-time pub lic works projects. In Figure 1 you can see that when an airwheel tire is properly inflated for the load it is to carry, there is considerable flex ing in the shoulder area. Grass is soft and yielding, and the small grains that compose soil tend to displace when a tire presses on them, so planes that operated from unpaved fields did not encoun ter undue tread wear when fitted with airwheels . But the millions of grains of sand in concrete and blacktop pavement are locked in place and are not displaced by tire pressure . So airwheels used regu larly on paved runways tended to wear through to the fabric rather soon at the shoulder areas. The small-diameter characteris tic of airwheel hubs left very little room for brakes. If multiple-disc brakes similar to bicycle coaster brakes were incorporated in the hubs, they would be shielded from

cooli n g air by the fat tires. If the large-diameter drum brakes then commonly used on aircraft were in stalled on the inboard sides of air wheel hubs, their greater diameter would put them at risk of damage in the event of a flat tire. In the first five years of the 1930s, the speed of commercial planes was increasing steadily and streamlin ing became of increased concern. Pants to fit airwheels would have to be correspondingly fa t, bulky, and heavy. Next time you see a J-3 Cub fitted with pants at a fly-in, visual ize how huge similar pants wou ld have to be to cover the airwheels on a larger and heavier plane. And the bulk of airwheels would be a se rious problem on retractable land ing gears. Recognizing these truths, Good year introd u ced what are now called semi-airwheels. This type is wh at we see on everyth ing from Taylorcrafts and Aeron ca Champs up to DC-3s. Their larger h ubs are better adapted to the installation of brakes. They are soft enough to ab sorb landing jolts, yet th eir treads are wi de enough to re~ist sinking into soft grou nd. Deep grooves on th eir trea d areas provide escape ch anne ls for runway water. They don't fl ex so much at their shoul ders, so tread wear is less . Pants to cover them are of acceptable pro portions, and they are slim enough to work acceptably when used on retractable landing gears. They rep resent a happy compromise.

Cowlings In the Nicholas-Beazley article [p ub lis hed in the May 2008 issue of Vintage Airplane], a photo of the plane shows the ship's five-cylinder Genet radial engine fitted with a ring-shaped cowling. Readers whose aero nautica l experience does not go back to the 1930s will find it in teresting to learn something about such cowlings. Introduced in 1909, rotary en gines were much used in aviation up to the end of World War I. A ro t ary engine's crankshaft projects

Figure 2a-Streamlined cones fit ted behind cylinders of a radial en gine. (Aircraft Yearbook, 1.930)

Figure 2b-Radial engine fitted with a Townend ring to usefully reduce drag. (Aircraft Yearbook, 1.935-36)

from the back side of the crankcase and is firmly attached to the fuse lage. The crankcase and the cylin ders mounted on it thus revolve around the stationary crankshaft. The propeller is bolted to the front side of the crankcase and thus is made to rotate with it. The cylinder revolves in a blur that is fascinating and often amazing to watch. In those days foundries had not yet learned how to cast aluminum cylinder heads with many thin, integral cooling fins. So rotary en gine cylinders were machined from solid billets of steel. Lathe work in volved in shaping cooling fins on the cylinder barrels was straightfor ward enough, but fussy milling was needed for fins on cylinder heads. Depth and number of fins was thus quite limited. That is what brought rotary engines into being. It was reasoned t h at the heads on cylin ders spinning at around 1200 rpm would be subject to a rapid and steady airflow. By 1918 engine deSigners realized that England's 23S-hp Bentley ro tary engine represented the limit of development for this type. Air enter ing the back end of the long, hollow crankshaft flowed forward to the crankcase and there encountered such turbu lence getting past the

connecting rods on its way to the cylinders that breathing was choked. Seven or nine cylinders spinning around in the air consumed an ap preciable amount of power. Exhaust fumes and flames exiting directly into the cowling created an ever present fire hazard. Unburned oil exiting with the exhaust added to this and also formed sticky black de posits on hot metal surfaces. So deSigners abandoned rota ries and turned to learning how to make satisfactory finned alumi num cylinder heads for fixed radial engines. The radial engine offered attractive advantages. Both the crankcase and the crankshaft inside it were short and therefore agree ably light yet strong. All cylinders were equally exposed to the flow of cooling air. By the late 1920s, radial engines were reliable and in wide spread use. New monoplanes having less wing drag than biplanes allowed speeds to creep steadily upward. Soon planes were cruising at 100 plus mph. Despite their reliability and light weight, the large frontal area of air-cooled radials created an increasing and worrisome amount of engine drag. An early approach to the problem was to install rather large and sharp nosed propeller hub spinners to give fuselages as a whole a theoretically excellent streamlined shape. But this gave only modest speed increases, on the order of 2 percent. The spin ner on the well-known Spirit of st. Louis is a typical example. Another idea was to install behind each cyl inder a streamlined conical fair ing made from sheet aluminum as shown in Figure 2a. But neither approach addressed the real problem. Radial engines are typically from 33 to 4S inches in diameter. There is enough space be tween the cylinders of three- and five-cylinder radials for some air to slip between them and flow aft, but when there are seven or nine cyl inders, there is an increasing ten dency for a radial engine to act like a solid, flat disc set at right angles II

VINTAGE AIRPLANE

to the airflow. The engi n e tends to do to the air what a cannonball does when dropped into water blast it aside. A radial thus disturbs a column of air roughly twice its own diameter. And t hat is where the worrisome drag is. Much research went into finding a solution. One was the "Townend ring" seen on the Nicholas-Beazley and in Figure 2b. Townend was the name of the English researcher who developed it (and it is not spelled Townsend). In the United States this design is commonly called a "drag ring" or "speed ring." It worked by catching the air shoved outward by the engine's blunt mass and by so doing sub stantially reduced the diameter of the column of disturbed air. It also controlled and guided the air so as to also send a less turbulent flow back to the tail surfaces. In Figure 3a is shown the shape of a typical Townend or drag ring. Note the angle at which it is set-it works very much as does a leading edge slot on a wing. Much work went into finding the best width and angle for a ring to be installed on any particular engine and fuselage combination. A significant advantage of the drag ring was that it could payoff usefully when there were seven or nine cylinders. A neat and sturdy drag ring represented a substantial amount of finicky sheet metal work and so was not cheap. It's anyone's guess why Nicholas-Beazley fit ted these rings to the five-cylinder Genet engines on its modestly priced NB -8s . It coul d have been simply to conceal a somewhat clut tered-looking engine or, by control ling airflow to the tail surfaces, to give better control close to and in stalled flight . Any increase in speed on such a slow and "dirty" plane would have been slight. At the same time Townend was developing his ring in England, the National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics (NACA, and now NASA) was working on the problem in its wind tunnels at Langley Field in Virginia. It developed what came 24

OCTO B E R 2008

Figure 3a-The Townend ring de veloped in England was a simple but useful advance in engine drag reduction.

Figure 3b-The NACA cowling with much wider skirt achieved even better drag reduction. Open ing B in this particular one proved most effective. The forward end of the plane 's fuselage must be shaped to work with the cowl.

to be called the NACA cowling. It has a much longer cord than the Townend ring, as can be seen in Fig ure 3b. The shape and dimensions of the air exiting at its aft end is crit ical to both streamlining and engine cooling, and in the example shown, shape B proves to be the best. As a matter of fact, before cowl flaps came into use, the problem of providing ample air for cooling while sti ll having good streamli n ing led to an obscure but interest ing bit of aviation lore. Because they would have to climb hard and fast to intercept approaching enemy planes, several U.S. Army and Navy fighter p lanes of the early to mid-1930s used Townend rings instead of NACA cowlings . The less-restricted airflow out of a Townend ring was a safeg uard against overheating in long, fu ll power cl i mbs . Well -designe d NACA cowlings cou ld give speed increases typically running from about 8 percent to 13 percent. To get good results from an NACA cowling t he front end of the fu selage ju st behind it has to be

rounded out to match. This is easy enough to do when a new plane is being des igned from scratch. As horizontally opposed four cyli nder lightplane engines became increasingly popu lar in the late 1930s, knowledge gained in work with radial engine cowling inlet outlet ratios, cylinder baffling, and outlet port designs was very help ful in designing good cowlings. The Nicholas-Beazley article men tioned that the designer chose the English RAF 34 airfoil for his wing. That airfoil was seldom used by Amer ican deSigners. We conjectured that it might have appealed to Tom Kirkup because of its gentle stall and/or its small center of pressure travel. As an elaboration on this, it's useful to men tion that in the World War I and early 1920s periods, airfoil research work was done in several different wind tunne ls in Europe and the United States. They varied appreciably in size, speed, turbulence quirks, and sensitiv ity of their measuring instruments. Th is meant that while tests on several airfoil mode ls in any par ticular tunnel would provide useful comparative figures for them, data on a large number of airfoils issued by several different tunnels tended to be conflicting and confUSing. All those tunnels operated at at mospheric pressure. Now this gets us into a highly technical aspect of aerodynamics, but to put it simply there is a factor called "scale effect." This is another reason why confus ing results were produced by testing a small model of a certain wing in one tunnel and a larger one in the same or another tunnel. Compare the flight capabilities of a 24-inch span model airplane with those of a similar model of 48-inch span to get an idea of what this is all about. A wing measuring 8 inches by 48 inches seems twice as big as one mea suring 4 inches by 24 inches, but in fact had four times as much area! In 1923 the NACA put into op eration a variab le-density wind tunnelBy altering the air pressure inside this completely enclosed, recontinued 011 page 39

BY ROBERT GLOCK

Part Two: Ignition system troubleshooting Unless you have the correct tools, timing a magneto to the engine can be frustrating. First, let's review some de tails about the magneto. If the magneto has come from an overhaul facility, it should be ready to install. The overhaul facility should have provided a maintenance re lease tag (commonly called a "yellow tag") and a copy of the work order showing what was done to the magneto. The engine should be set to the proper full advance piston firing position in the number 1 cylinder on the compression stroke. I use a Time Rite (Figure 1) to set the piston location on the Wright R-760 engine at 2S de grees before top dead center. Remove all front spark plugs and rotate the engine until you feel compression on the number 1 cylinder. The master spline on the crankshaft will align the propeller centerline with the centerline of the number 1 cylinder. Move the crankshaft back until the prop makes a 4S-degree angle to the centerline of the number 1 cylinder. By referring to the instructions, choose the correct card and arm assembly for the Time Rite, in this case card 4A and pivot arm "e" with the hook end pointed down. Insert the Time Rite assembly into the front spark plug hole on the number 1 cylinder and rotate the prop to bring the piston through the full top dead center po sition on the compression stroke (Figure 2). Rock the propeller to the left and right of the cylinder centerline. Move the prop back to about the 4S-degree position. Ad just the scale to read zero degrees on the card. The scale card is now positioned to show the piston at top dead center (Figure 3). Slide the pointer up past the timing point, in this case 2S degrees. Move the prop by tapping on the trailing edge with your hand until the pointer reads 2S degrees on the scale card. The engine is set to receive the magneto. Hold the magneto in the "E" gap position and engage it into the magneto drive on the engine accessory case. Move the magneto until the slots are positioned in the center of the attaching studs, install the washers and nuts, and tighten them so the nuts just barely touch the magneto surface. Attach a timing light to the magneto points and tap the magneto until the points just open. Snug down

FIGURE 1

Step 3 Turn the engine in the direc;· . tion of rotation so that the piston goes through the tOP center poSi. tion. This will leave the slide pointer at the highest point of piston travel. This operation takes the place of findi ng tOP dead center, necessary with all other methods of engine timing.

FIGURE 2

FIGURE 3

Step 4

Set the 0° position of the scale opposite the slide pointer refer· ence mark. Be sure (hat the correct scale is used for the engine being timed. VINTAGE AIRPLANE

MAGNETO fOR NO. I CYLiNODl. ROTATION O£TEAloIlte FROId DRIVE £NO

CLO<:kWI$E 1UoGHR0

MINIMIJ',I TENSION 15 OZ . USE GAUGE # 11-1217. NEW MAIN SPRINCS HAVE 20 TO ;2 OZ. TENSION.

TIMING OF MACNe:TO TURN MAGNETO DRIVE SHAFT UNT IL

TIMING MARKS 'A' L ' S ' APPROXIMATElY

COINCIDE. THE DISTRIBUTOR FINGER IS

NOW IN POSITION TO FIRE NO. 1 CYL.

LOOSEN SCREWS "0' AND ADJUST EC'

CENTRIC "P" SO THAT CONTACT POINTS

JUST BEGIN TO OPEN WHEN STRAIGHT

EDGE ' K' PLACED AGAINST STEP OF

CAM COINCIDES WITH TIMING MARKS

" M: DISTRIBUTOR FING£R ELECTRODE

.. D" WI. L NOW BE OPPOSITE DISTRIB"

UTOR BLOCK NO.1 ELECTRODE ' E:'

FIGURE 6

the attach nuts, rotate the prop back, move the pointer to around 35 degrees, and tap the prop toward the firing point. The points should just begin to open at the 25-degree mark. Rotate the propeller in the direction of rotation and adjust the magneto until the points just open at the firing point as specified by the manufacturer of the engine. Another method to set the crank shaft and piston firing position is 26

OCTOBER 2008

by use of a timing disc attached to the crankshaft of the engine. I prefer to use the Time Rite be cause it has been my preference for the past 50 years! If a mechanic has replaced the point assembly, the first step is to set the maximum point gap opening (Figure 4). In the Scin tilla VMN?DF magneto, set the point gap opening to 0.010 inch minimum, 0.012 inch desired, and 0.014 inch maximum. Align the timing marks on the magneto case (B and BB) with timing marks on the large gear (A and AA). When these marks are aligned the points should just begin to open. This is called the "E" gap. This is where the magneto should be engaged into the engine accessory drive. Timing of the Bendix SF? mag neto is very similar to the Scintilla VMN series (Figure 5). The Time Rite setup is the same, but the means of setting the "E" gap on the Bendix is

slightly different. Instructions for the timing of the Bendix SF? mag neto as reprinted from service in structions dated January 1943 are shown. You will need a 6 inch scale or small straight edge to bridge be tween the fixed timing marks on the magneto case (Figure 6). It is also important to locate where the firing finger is pointing because it must be located at the harness lead for the number 1 cylinder. Note that the magneto is turned to align the timing mark" A" on the distrib utor rotor with mark "B" etched on the case. It will be necessary to rotate the magneto shaft through several turns until scale "K" aligns the step on the cam with the tim ing mark "M" etched on the case. Once the magneto "E" gap is set on the number 1 cylinder, the mag neto may be engaged into the ac cessory drive gear. There are two methods to check the "E" gap point opening-use of a timing light or a cellophane strip. Timing lights are rather straightfor ward; simply follow the instructions as to how to set up the lights. If cel lophane is used, cut a piece of the material about 1/4 inch by 1 inch and open the pOints to slide the cel lophane between the points. Pull gently on the cellophane and have someone tap the propeller toward the firing point . When the points start to open, the cellophane will be released from between the points. It's an old trick, but it works. It can be used for field timing of a mag neto, and there will usually be a source for cellophane, as it is still used for wrapping of commodities. Although I never have smoked, cig arette wrappers make a good source for cellophane. As an alternative, use a clean 0.0015 inch feeler gauge in place of the cellophane. If you were in the middle of no where and a magneto decided to cause problems, you will have to ship in a replacement magneto. To field time a magneto without the use of a timing light or piston fir ing position indicator in the num ber 1 cylinder, you might try this.

Remove the spark plug from the number 1 cylinder and rotate the prop until you locate the compres sion stroke . Again, make sure the magneto switch is in the OFF posi tion before moving the prop . The propeller centerline will align with the cylinder centerline; back off the prop about 4S degrees. (This is true for a metal propeller; some wood propellers may be indexed 90 de grees to the crankshaft throw.) Insert a strip of cellophane be tween the points of the good magneto and tap the prop in the direction of rotation until the strip is released. If the specifica tions state that both magnetos fire at the same piston position, the engine is ready to receive the re placement magneto. Insert the cel lophane strip in the points of the replacement magneto and align the timing marks. When the strip is released, this is the "E" gap . Hold the large gear or distributor rotor in this position and install the mag neto. Snug the retaining nuts, rein sert the cellophane strip, and move the magneto in its slots until the strip is released. The engine should run fine at this point. However, if the rpm drop is a little excessive, loosen the retaining nuts slightly and rotate the magneto in one di rection, until the end of the slot is reached . Snug down the nuts and run the engine. If the rpm drop got better, you lucked out and went in the right direction. If the rpm drop got a little worse, you went in the wrong direction. Loosen the retaining nuts and move the mag neto in the opposite direction un til it reaches the limit of the slot . Tighten the nuts and run the en gine again. This concludes our discussion of ignition system troubleshooting. Hopefully most of the important is sues were covered. Remember, there is more than one way to trouble shoot a problem, and I have only presented my experience on this subject. However there is only one way to time a magneto to an engine ~ properly: the right way.

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VINTAGE AIRPLANE

PUERTO RICAN TIGER MOTH Moises M. Ortiz, an EAA, Vintage Aircraft Association, and International Aerobatic Club member, sent us this very nice photo of a de Havilland Tiger Moth owned and flown by Wil liam Norris. The shot was taken next to Patillas Airport on the southeast side of Puerto Rico. The Piper J-3 camera ship was flown by Onel Norris, William's son, with Moises shooting from the back seat.

450

STEARMAN

My dad, Gerry Miller, and I just com pleted the restoration of my 450 Stear man this year, after spending almost three solid years working on her. I've owned NSOOOV since 1999 and put her down in 2005 for a com plete restoration. Items accomplished during the res toration were brand new wings, cen ter section, bird cages, AN hardware, control cables, wiring, navigation and strobe lights, rotating beacon, cockpit sheet metal, firewall, avionics, control system bearings, fabric, and paint. Also new are Redline brakes and a smoke system, along with a 0 since major overhaul Pratt & Whitney R-98S. We accomplished all work, other than the engine overhaul. This is my second complete restoration and my dad's 20th. He has been an airframe and powerplant mechanic since 1951, and has had inspection authorization since the early 1970s. The absolute best part about this experience was the time I spent with my dad. No matter where I look on the airplane when I'm flying it, I can remember exactly what dad and I were doing and talking about at that moment. I'm just so proud of how she turned out and the experience that I gained during the process. Randy Miller, Grand Junction, Colorado www.VintageBiplane.com 28

OCTOBER 2008

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30 OCTOBER 2008

Slick Magneto Service Bulletin

SLICK SB3-0SA Service Bulletin

___.__.____. _._-_ ___--_ _._--_ __._R__ -----_ -----_

Unison Indus ..... ....... _._ .. .. I_.____.. ------- ... ...._..... ... I _ .. .. v. _____• tries, the manufac ------..:::: turer of the Slick brand of magnetos, ...--------_._--- ----,--_.. issued Service Bul letin SB3-08 (now SB-3A) earlier in the year concern .... .. - ... _._ ing an excessive ... _----_ -- ----_ .. -... .. wear problem with ... _ a particular range __ 0"' ~r of magnetos. Fol :fT-l:F-I low-up FAA Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin (SAIB) CE 08-33 was issued in August. SAIBs can be down loaded from the FAA website at www.FAA.gov/ aircraft/safety/alerts/SAIB. Those magnetos affected have shown signs of excessive carbon brush wear. The conduc tive dust from the brush is deposited inside the distributor block and gear junction, which can cause a misfire. Eventually, the brush can wear to the point that contact is lost and the magneto will stop functioning. If a pair of magnetos from the same production lot (or with replacement distributor blocks and gear assemblies from the suspect production lot) is installed, the strong possibility exists that both mags will fail in the same time frame, typically well before the 500 hour time period called out for an inspection in Slick maintenance publications. We urge mem bers who have magnetos that fall within the date range specified to have their magnetos inspected in accordance with the bulletin. The service bulletin affects: • Slick and LASAR magnetos with serial numbers beginning with 0409XXXX through 08080453 . • Slick and LASAR magnetos that have had the carbon brush or distributor block assembly replaced with components packaged between September 1, 2004, and August 14, 2008. You can download a copy of the bulletin on Unison's website at http://UnisonPubs.com/de fault_setup .asp. Normally, technical publications for Unison components are only available by subscription, but in this case, Unison has agreed to make the bulletin available for free. The download link is on the right side of the above web page. ....... .-.-.-----~

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BY H.G. FRAUTSCHY

THIS MONTH'S MYSTERY PLANE WAS SUBMITTED TO US BY MEMBER STEVE MOYER, WHO IS ONE OF OUR VOLUNTEER EAA AIRVENTURE OSHKOSH CHAIRMEN. Send your answer t o EAA, Vintage Airplane, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh , WI 54 903-3 0 86 . Yo ur a n swer ne ed s t o be in no later than November 10 for inclusion in the January 2008 issue of Vintage Airplane. You can also send your response via e-mail. Send your answer to Mystery Plane@eaa.org. Be sure to include your name plus your city and state in the body of your n ote and put (Month) Mystery Plane" in the subj ect line. II

J U LY'S MYSTE RY ANSWER

July's Mystery Plane also came to us from Ted Businger's collection. Our answer comes to us from Wes ley Smith: Anyway - The July 2008 Mystery

Plane is the (or one of the) 1925 (actu ally, 1925-27) Crawford Courier(s) . The Crawford Courier shows up in the records in 1925 . The Crawford Airplane and Supply Co. was located at 300 Mildred Ave., in Venice, Cal-

The Crawford Courier, September 1926, at Eddie Martin's airport in Santa Ana, California. This was Art Goebel's accident with the Courier, during which he cartwheeled the airplane but didn 't ding the prop! Roy Russell photo, Ted Businger collection. 32

OCTO B E R 2008

ifornia, in 1924. By 1925, the loca tion had changed to 350 Washington Blvd . According to www.Aerofiles . com the Courier was powered by a 45-hp Anzani radial, had a span of 19 feet, a useful load of 350 pounds, a maximum velocity of 90 mph, and a stall of around 30 mph. The Cou rier was priced at $1,500, and the con struction number (TW-5) was sold to Crawford's sales manager, Takeo Wa tanabe, whom was apparently hon ored by the use of his initials. Aerofiles specu la tes t hat there could have been four other Couriers (TW-l/TW-4). Indeed, photographic evidence for t his may exist. One NASM Laser Videod isc image (Disc I, Side A, Frame 24,151) shows a (or the) Courier with three men standing in front, arms outstretched, showing the diminutive span . In this photo, the aerodyn amic balances from the u pper wing ail erons appea r to be missing, and have possibly been trun

cated. This could indicate another Courier, or it may have just been a repair following the crash shown in Vintage Airplane. In Frame 24,153, the image is unfortunately in verted, but the legend on the vertical rudder (Courier No. 1) shown on the Aerofiles image may be different (it's im possible to tell with the television set that I used to view the image). Moreover, unlike the Aerofiles image, there is a large circle painted on the port side of the fuselage, which has the letters "SF" above the number 42. In addi tion to this, the image also has the small "circle and star" emblem on the fuselage (ahead of the SF 42 emblem), which is shown on the Aerofiles image. So, there is some evidence for the existence of other Couriers, albeit scant, and debatable.

Mystel}' Plane Extra Henry Crawford Harvey]. Crawford was born in Missouri on November 11, 1889. He began his aviation career in 1900, when he is said to have made his first balloon ascension and para chute descent from his father's balloon. By 1907, Craw ford was making balloon ascensions in conjunction with his brother (or father?), William F. Crawford, in Wapeto, Washington. NASM Laser Videodisc 2, Side B, Frames 6972 and 5980 contain photos of at least one balloon, W.H. Crawford (relationship to Harvey is, again, unclear, as is the middle initial, which is not clearly visible on the television I used to view the image), and two newspaper stories captioned "Balloons Here at Wapeto Park" and "Balloons at Wapeto?" respectively. Crawford supposedly constructed a heavier-than-air aircraft during 1908, but details are lacking to this writer, other than it was appar ently a biplane powered by a 40-hp Elbridge engine that was replaced with a 50-hp Gnome Omega. During 1910 11, Crawford is said to have also built a Curtiss-type pow ered by a 50-hp Call engine. This aircraft is claimed to have been the first built in Washington state. During 1911, Crawford moved from Puyallup, Wash ington, to Los Angeles, California, and had constructed another Curtiss-type. In 1912, he participated in the Dominguez Air Meet, where he won first prize for a dura tion flight of two hours and 20 minutes. During this same time, Crawford constructed an aircraft with William A. Denchie. Notably, this modified Curtiss-type, pOSSibly the same machine he built with Denchie, was fitted with a "boat-like, prow-shaped" nacelle that was used to partially enclose the pilot and passenger. This aircraft is most likely the one mentioned in Aero (V3 N26. March 30, 1912. "Stites Gives Hour Demonstration at San Bernardino," p 518. The text states in part: " ...Crawford in an original bi plane, and an Emerson motor, came to grief early in the afternoon and fell 20 feet, smashing his machine and suf fering numerous bruises ..."). By 1913, Crawford had made quite a name for himself, flying Curtiss-types from Sunset Field in California and all along the west coast. During The Great War, Crawford volunteered for service, but was rejected for what has been described as "minor physical

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reasons" (www.EarlyAviators.com). As mentioned in the Mystery Plane answer, the Crawford Courier shows up in the records in 1925. In 1926, several surplus Crawford aircraft were apparently rebuilt and sold as the Crawford Sport (this may be where the confusion about other Couriers comes in). Courier TW-5 was sold to Watanabe and registered as the Crawford-Watanabe Sport in 1927. In addition to the Sport, there were two other versions: a larger, one place variant with a 95-hp Anzani, which had a span of 22 feet and an overall length of 18 feet. There was also apparently an even larger version that was intended for a transglobal flight. The latter appears to have crashed near Herber, Utah, killing the Japanese pilot, known only by the name Goto. Watanabe, incidentally, was no relation to Fukuo Watanabe (his original name, prior to adoption, was Fukuo Fujishiro), a prominent name in Japanese aeronautics. Other aircraft associated with Crawford include the Commercial, 1925; Runabout, exact date unknown; Flying Armored Car, 1928; Crawford A-I, 1928; Crawford Metal Plane No.1 (also known as the C-1), 1928; the William F. Crawford Special, 1929; Crawford Glider (the last three of the six built were actually powered air craft, deSignated as the Crawford HW, SR-3, and V-40-S in accordance with the powerplants used), 1930; and the Crawford CLM, 1931. Built in 1925, the Crawford Com mercial was a five-place open-cockpit biplane. It was sold to Varney Airlines pilot Roy Warren in 1926 and dam aged "beyond repair" (www.Aerofiles. com) in July of 1928. Powered by a 180-hp Wright-Martin Hisso engine, the "Commercial had a span of 36 feet 4 inches and an overall length of 27 feet 9 inches." The Crawford A-I, built in 1928, was intended for the home built market, and about five were ap parently constructed. According to Aviation (February 6, 1928. "Manu facturers' Specifications on American Commercial Airplanes and Seaplanes as Compiled by Aviation," pp 326 34

OCTOBER 2008

327), the A-I was a two-place high wing (parasol) monoplane powered by an 80-hp Le Rhone rotary radial. The span was 30 feet, and the wing area was 150 square feet, with an over all length of 17 feet 9 inches and a height of 8 feet. The cost was $1,500, the empty weight was 950 pounds, and the maximum velocity was 95 mph, with a cruise velocity of 64 mph and a landing velocity of 47 mph. The service ceiling was 18,000 feet, and the A-I could carry 40 gallons of fuel, giving a range of 500 miles. One A-I, built by Dennis Sullivan of Herkimer, New York, registered his aircraft as the I-OS, creating some confusion. Of particular interest is the 1928 Flying Armored Car. While this air craft was apparently never built, photos of a Junkers 013) F13 appear in connection with the Crawford name on NASM Laser Videodisc 2, Side B. The cowling, apparent long span wing, and lack of a short-chord vertical stabilizer appear to contrain dicate that it could have been a rela tively late-production, imported F13 (most likely it was an F13h, which was built specifically for the U.S. mar ket) and not an early F13, marketed as the Oohn) Larsen J1.6 (some sources claim that JL stood for Junkers Lar sen). Interestingly, Videodisc Frame 5,989 contains a newspaper account of the aircraft, which states in part: "Bremen Prototype Used Here-Ear lier Copy of Airship in Movies." Cer tainly, I have never seen a Junkers F13 used in a motion picture-particularly a U.S. motion picture! Abroad, the Soviets also used the F13 under the designations JU 13 and, later, PS-2, for imported, and Fili built, Junkers F13s. The Soviet gov ernment signed an agreement with Junkers on February 6, 1922, for li cense production of the F13 and built several other Junkers designs under li cense, including the JuG 1 (G24) that was used to locate the crew of the air ship N 4 Italia after it crashed during its ill-fated 1928 polar flight. Taken aboard the icebreaker Krasin, the JuG I, nicknamed the Krasin Med'ved (The Red Bear) and piloted by R.G. Chukh novsky, it was involved in the search

for the missing crew. Another Junk ers, a JU 13, flying from the Soviet icebreaker Malygin, was lost during the mission, as was the Latecoere fly ing boat No. 47 Latham, which car ried the famed arctic explorer Roald Amundsen. These events were com memorated in the 1971 "Italo-Soviet" film The Red Tent, which starred Sean Connery, Peter Finch, Claudia Car dinale, and Hardy Kruger (who also acted in the original version of The Flight ofthe Phoenix). Eventually, it was the Krasinthat was able to rescue most of the Italia's crew, with the exception of Gen. Nobile, who was rescued by Swedish pilot Lt. Einar Lundborg and his observer, Lt. Birger Schyberg, fly ing a ski-equipped Fokker c.v. As I'm certain the readers of Vintage Airplane will know, the Bremen was a modified Junkers J33 (W33 was used for the seaplane version; another des ignation, J-33-L, has also been men tioned for the Bremen: Aviation. April 23, 1928. "German Plane Crosses North Atlantic East to West: Junkers "Bremen" Flies, 2,125 mi. Non-Stop from Ireland to Labrador," pp 1150 1151). While the Bremen (German registration 0 1167) made the first east-west Atlantic crossing in early 1928, it was not a nonstop crossing over the entire route. Interestingly, ap proXimately 10 years and four months after the flight of the Bremen, Doug las "Wrong Way" Corrigan would also land at Baldonnel Aerodrome near Dublin on July 18, 1938 (The Bre men landed in Ireland on April 12, 1928, at 5:38 a.m. local time). After the flight, the Bremen was displayed at an exhibition at Quebec before be ing returned to Germany in Septem ber 1928. After being displayed at the International Aviation Exhibition at Berlin, the aircraft was restored at Des sau before the owner (von Huenefeld) presented the aircraft to the Museum of the City of New York. It was then hung in a foyer of Grand Central Sta tion in New York City before being purchased by the Henry Ford Museum at Dearborn, Michigan (it is currently on loan and is displayed at the Bre men airport in Germany). Of course, the involvement of an

F13h with Crawford, and the Flying ternal construction, inclusive of the Armored Car, is a story yet to be told. drag and brace struts. This was cov According to Aerofiles, the Flying Ar ered by corrugated duralumin sheet mored Car had bulletproof glass and ing, which varied from 20-gauge at shielding around the cockpit, and was the center to 26-gauge at the tips, and to be armed with three unspecified was riveted to the internal spar and machine guns. While never built, the strut structure. The 34-foot wing span aircraft was intended to be used to tapered from a 6-foot 6-inch chord at transport valuable cargo, in the same the center to a 3-foot 3-inch chord at manner as a conventional armored the tips. Incidence of the wing var car. Oddly enough, in 1922, Larsen ied from 2 degrees at the center to 0 built a ground-attack version of the degrees at the tips. No true ribs were basic F13 design, powered by a 400 used in the wing, with the exception hp Liberty V-12 that was armed with of the master ribs," used at either 30 (!) Thompson submachine guns end of each semi-span half, the two (each equipped with a 100-round sections being bolted together at the magazine) firing through the floor. center of the entire wing. False ribs This fate of that aircraft, known as were placed at 2-foot intervals along the JL.12, also remains a mystery the length of each wing half in order (any connection between the Craw to preserve the Junkers airfoil shape. ford Flying Armored Car and the The tapered ailerons, obviously quite JL.12 is apocryphal, at best). In fact, similar to the Junkers F13, were made other than the JL.12, the only other. of 26-gauge duralumin and were riv armed F13s were two that were oper eted to dural tubing that was hinged ated by the Persian (Iranian) air force to the rear spar by three hinges. Like the wing, the mono in 1924. Other military users of the F13 included the Luftwaffe, the So coque fuselage was also of Junk viet air force, the Chilean army, the ers-type corrugated duralumin Afghan air force, and Kuomintang construction. Twenty-gauge duralu in China. Nevertheless, it is interest min was used up to the front of the ing that F13s soldiered on around the pilot's cockpit, with 22-gauge being globe into the mid-1930s, with some used aft to the end of the fuselage. serving as ambulances with the Span Rectangular bulkheads were spaced ish Red Cross, the Japanese Flying at approXimately 26-inch intervals Corps, and the Swedish Red Cross. and were made of 14-gauge duralu The interest in Junkers technol min. The overall length of the Metal ogy led to Crawford's next design, the Plane, inclusive of the empennage Metal Plane No.1, (some sources refer and engine, was 24 feet 9 inches and to this aircraft as the C-l), also built was mounted on a stalky Fokker-type in 1928 (Aviation. August 18, 1928. main landing gear, the original leaf "Crawford Metal Plane: A Parasol spring tail skid being replaced by a Type Monoplane With the Full Canti castering "laminated" (probably con lever Junkers Wing and Powered With centric tubing) tube-type. This gave a 165 hp Gnome Engine," pp 531, the Metal Plane No.1 a maximum 551-554). This aircraft, stated to have height of 8 feet 4 inches. been the first all-metal design built The tail surfaces, like the ailerons, in Southern California, was, like the were made of 26-gauge duralumin A-I, a two-place parasol monoplane. and were riveted to the internal tub Constructed of duralumin, it was reg ing. A partial cowling was attached istered as X-5563 and was test-flown to the Gnome rotary radial and was by Jimmy Angel from Dycer Airport faired to the fuselage sides by partial near Los Angeles. cone-shaped fairings attached to the The Junkers-type construction was fuselage sides. A 9-inch turtle deck most prominent in the design of the completed the construction of the up 214-square-foot wing, which was of per fuselage. The fuselage also housed tapered plan form and had multispar a 22-gallon fuel tank just ahead of the (14-gauge duralumin was used) in passenger's cockpit, and two 15-galII

36 OCTOBER 2008

Ion tanks (a total of 52 gallons) were incorporated into the inner section of each wing semi-span. Access to the front passenger's cockpit was made via a door on the starboard side of the fu selage, as the flat bottom of the wing was mounted only 4 inches above the upper cowling. Thus, visibility was quite restricted from this position. An 8-gallon oil tank was mounted behind the firewall, a definite neces sity with a rotary radial engine. The wing was attached to the fu selage by eight 2-inch steel tube ex ternal brace struts, with iron rivets used at all stress points. All other riv ets used in the aircraft were of dural alloy. The attachments fittings used between the lower spars and fuselage longerons were, like the struts, made of steel alloy. The entire airplane, both internally and externally, was painted with a gray engine enamel. All control surfaces were operated by push-pull tube arrangements, with the exception of the vertical rudder, which was oper ated by 3/32-inch steel wire. Built in a 16-foot garage and a small backyard, the aircraft construction was originally started by Mr. Henry Laurich (the eventual owner), with the engineer ing and final work being finished by Crawford. The cost of the Metal Plane No.1 was about $2,700, and according to Aviation, Crawford is said to have started three types of new aircraft for his new company, based on the Junk ers-type design philosophy. This in cluded a six-place cabin monoplane, which is stated to have already been sold. This airplane was to have used the upturned wingtips of a design sim ilar to those used on the Bremen. A toilet with hot and cold water was also to be incorporated. Of the other two types, one was to be a two-place trainer, and the other, a four-place pas senger-carrying aircraft, possibly re ferred to as the Cabriolet. Of all these projected designs, the only one which was apparently completed appears to have been the Cabriolet, which be came the 1929 William F. Crawford Special (described below). Performance of the Metal Plane No.1 included a VMAX of 148 mph, a Vc of 130 mph, and a Vso of 30 mph.

The take-off distance was said to be 100 feet, and the landing distance 300 feet. The initial climb rate was 1,600 feet per minute, and the service ceiling was 20,000 feet. The gross weight was 2,900 pounds, with a payload of 1,000 pounds and a maximum disposable load of 1,800 pounds, giving an empty weight of 1,100 pounds. In a loaded condition, the wing loading was 13.7 pounds per square feet, and the power loading was 17.6 pounds/hp. Subse quent details of the Metal Plane No.

1 are lacking and, like previous Craw ford designs, faded into the annals of aviation obscurity. But this was not the end of the Crawford story. In the early spring of 1929, new of a high-wing trimotor monoplane, de signed by William F. Crawford (not Harvey) was tested by test pilot Jimmy Angel at Seal Beach, California (Avia tion. March 30, 1929. "Airplane De scriptions: Crawford Monoplane," p 963). Known as the Crawford SpeCial, this aircraft was of relatively conven

tional construction, with the exception of the wing, which had a span of 36 feet and was constructed of diagonally placed, welded chrome molybdenum steel tubing (the interiors being treated with Lionoil, and the exteriors being red metal oxide; the entire airframe was also composed of this material). No drag brace wires were used, the leading edge being made of 3/32-inch plywood, and the trailing edge made of 24-gauge "V" iron. The USA No. 34 airfoil was maintained by wing ribs spaced 1 foot

Something to buy, sell, or trade? Classified Word Ads: $5.50 per 10 words, 180 words maximum, with boldface lead-in on first line. Classified Display Ads: One column wide (2.167 inches) by 1, 2, or 3 inches high at $20 per inch. Black and white only, and no frequency discounts. Advertising Closing Dates: 10th of second month prior to desired issue date (i.e., January 10 is the closing date for the March issue). VAA reserves the right to reject any advertising in conflict with its policies. Rates cover one insertion per issue. Classified ads are not accepted via phone. Payment must accompany order. Word ads may be sent via fax (920426-6845) or e-mail (c/assads@eaa.org) using credit card payment (all cards accepted). Include name on card, complete address, type of card, card number, and expiration date. Make checks payable to EAA. Address advertising correspondence to EAA Publications Classified Ad Manager, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086.

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This VAA Calendar of Events is a fraction of those posted on the newest page on the EAA website. To submit an event, or to view the most up to date list, please visit the EAA website at www.eaa.org/calendar. During 2008, we'll publish this calendar as we transition to an all-web based calendar for 2009. This list does not constitute approval, sponsorship, involvement, control or direction of any fly-in, seminar, fly market or other event. October 3-5 - Camden, SC, USA. VAA Chapter 3 Fall Fly-In. (CON). All Classes Welcome! BBQ on field Friday evening. EAAjudging all classes Sat. Awards Dinner Sat night. Contact: Jim Wilson, Phone: 843-753-7138, Email : eiwilson@homexpressway.net October 3-5 - Oshkosh, WI. The Golden Era of Aviation/ EAA Vintage Biplane & Spirit of St Louis Fantasy Flight Camp. Have you ever fantasized about flying a certain airplane or dreamed about becoming a part of history? Here is a once in a lifetime experience for aviation enthusiasts. Learn about great vintage aircraft and take a ride you'll never forget. Contact: bcampbell@eaa.org, Phone: 920-426-6880, Email : museum@eaa.org October 4 - Syracuse, KS. Syracuse Antique and Classic Fly-In . Syracuse Hamilton Co. Airport (3K3). Lots of antiques, classics, warbirds, experimentals and powered 'chutes. Chamber sponsors chili cookoff and burgers and brats at noon . Great time always had by all! Contact: Steve Phillips, Phone: 620-384-5835, Email: 3K3@pld.com October 4 -5 - Hagerstown , MD, Washington. EAA Chapter 36 Fly-In and Fairchild Reunion . Hagerstown Regional Airport (HGR). This event held on Papa Ramp at Hagerstown Aviation Services, Hagerstown Regional Airport (KHGR). Great fun for young and old. Excellent food , all day long. Start Time: 8 am-4 pm . Contact: Joseph Boyle, Phone: 301-797-1875, Email: joeboyle@myactv.net Oct ober 17-19 - Oshkosh, WI. Ford Tri-Motor Fantasy Flight Camp. EAA's weekend program gets flight enthusiasts up close and flying in this airplane. Contact: bcampbell@eaa .org, Phone: 920-426-6880, Email: museum@eaa.org October 18-19 - Weirwood, VA. Campbell Field Airport 75th Anniversary Fly-In & Campout. Campbell Field Airport (9VG). Come celebrate 75 years of aviation at Campbell Field Airport on the beautiful Eastern Shore of Virginia. The airport was founded by D.M .Keliam in 1933 and has changed little over the past 75 years. Re-live the excitement of grassroots aviation at the last public use grass airport in Virginia. "Come Roll on the Grass" 11:00 am-5:00 pm. Contact: Gordon Campbell, (757) 442 7519, Email: RytoVA@gmail.com October 19 - Hanson, MA. EAA Chapter 279 Fly-in Breakfast. Cranland Airport (28M). EAA Colonial Chapter 279. 8 am-11 am. All you can eat for a $6 donation. Children up to and including 12 years of age are half price if accompanied by an adult parent. Fly, drive, ride or walk in rain or shine, Don't miss it! Antiques, Classics, Homebuilts, Ultralights and all means of flight are welcome! The Best Breakfast on the East Coast. Contact: Carl Patturelli , Email: eaa279@comcast.net October 24 - Oshkosh, WI. 2008 EAA Sport Aviation Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. EAA AirVenture Museum. EAA, its affiliates and divisions honor the newest members of the EAA Sport Aviation Halls of Fame at this festive gala event held at the EAA AirVenture Museum. Phone: 920-426-6880, Email: museum@eaa.orgfor more information including ticket prices . October 25 - Georgetown, DE. Wings and Wheels 2008. Sussex county airport (GEO). Free public admission . Antique/Vintage and Warbirds judging and trophies. Free private aircrew hospitality area. Large antique and hot rod car show, along with food vendors, airplane rides, vendors, and live band. Sponsored as an outreach program of the Delaware Aviation Museum. 10 am-6 pm Contact: Larry Kelley, Phone: 410-991 2356, Email: b25driver@aol.com November 2 - Santa Pau la, CA. First Sunday Open House. Aviation Museum Of Santa Paula (SZP). Aviation Museum of Santa Paula/SZP Airport Open House Display Day. Fly in, display your aircraft for tax credit; come to gift booth for sign off. Museum and private hangars open to amaze you with collections inside. You never know what you might see at SZP! Start Time: 10 am-3 pm Contact: Judy, Phone: 805-525-1109, Email: amszp@verizon.net

OCTOBER 2008

apart along the length of the tapered, externally braced wing (dihedral and incidence of each semi-span panel be ing 0 degrees in both instances) . The maximum chord of the 21O-square-foot wing was 7 feet 6 inches, and the mini mum chord was 3 feet 6 inches. Both semi-span panels were hinged at the upper longerons, the brace struts being attached to the lower longerons. The overall length of the four-place Craw ford SpeCial was 22 feet 6 inches, and the height was 6 feet 9 inches. The empty weight was 1,450 pounds, the gross weight being 2,450 pounds. The engines of the Crawford Special tri-motor were 216-cubic-inch, three cylinder, 40-hp (at 1800 rpm) Szekely SR-3 (Model L) radials, of notoriously questionable reliability; the propellers were of Crawford manufacture. Dur ing flight testing, the aircraft demon strated a maximum speed of 100 mph, with the engines running at 1600 rpm. A cruising speed of 75 mph and a landing speed of 35 mph were also recorded. With an initial climb rate of 1,000 feet per minute, the Crawford SpeCial had a service ceiling of 15,000 feet. The Flightex fabric covering was doped, and painted, with Berry Bros. finishing supplies. The pilot sat alone in the enclosed cockpit, and the pas sengers sat on a bench-type seat at the rear of the cabin. The position of the oil tank was considered to be a bit un usual in that it was placed under the patented one-piece combination hori zontal stabilizer, and elevator (today, we call this a stabilator). In the case of the Crawford Special, the stabilator was hinged at 1/3 chord, the approxi mate location of the center of pres sure. Two SO-gallon fuel tanks were housed in each wing panel, for a total of 100 gallons. Ailerons, and a vertical rudder of conventional design, were used. The main landing gear was com prised of Gross Aero struts and 30 inch by 5-inch wheels. Unfortunately, the fate of the Craw ford SpeCial is unclear to this writer, as are those of the next Crawford de sign: the 1930 Glider, of which the last three were actually powered air craft. Today, they might be loosely classed as ultralights, although their

exact weight is apparently not known (at least to me). Whatever the case, they were powered by a variety of engines, which were used as their designations. These included the Hen derson-powered HW (603W), the Sze kely-powered SR-3 (604W), and the Lawrance-powered (7) V-40-S (infor mation on this engine installation is lacking; the aircraft was registered as 605W). The first three Gliders(IIN, 878N, and 879N) apparently were ac tually nonpowered gliders. Crawford's final design was the CLM (XI2207). This was a large six-place, high-wing cabin monoplane that had a wing-plan form striking similar to the Junkers F13 and J33, and utilized the corrugated Junkers-type construc tion of the Metal Plane No. 1. It had large faired wheels located beneath the enclosed cabin and was powered by a 220-hp Wright Whirlwind. The span of the CLM was 42 feet, and the overall length was 28 feet. This was to be Crawford's last hurrah, however. In 1927 the company had become the Crawford All-Metal Airplane and Motor Manufacturoy, located at 2225 American Avenue (today, Long Beach Boulevard), Long Beach, Seal Beach, California. At this time the Crawford Aeronautical School was also operat ing at Clover Field, Santa Monica, Cal ifornia (the Couriers were flown from this location). In 1929 the company became the Crawford Airplane Co., Venice, Calif. The final name of the company was the Crawford All-Metal Airplane Co. Inc., located at Los Ange les; and in 1930, Crawford joined the Consolidated Aircraft Corporation: "... in construction of flying boats for the Navy... " (www.EarlyAviators .com).De spite all the name changes, and tech nolOgical innovations, the depression of the 1930s spelled the end of Craw ford's aeronautical endeavors . The company entered bankruptcy in 1938, two years after Crawford, a member of The Early Birds organization (mem bership required a solo flight prior to December 17,1916), had attended its annual banquet at Sunset Boule vard in September of 1936 (Harvey also attended the National Air Races in 1936). This was relatively close

to the area where the Crawford Fly ing School had operated more than 20 years earlier. In his latter years, Harvey contin ued to have an interest in aviation, but made his living in the metal-pro cessing business. In 1950, he became associated with the Mojave Smelting Company, at Mojave, California. He passed away at Antelope Valley Hos pital November 8, 1971, and was sur vived by three brothers and one sister (Ed, Jim, and John, and Esther Mc Neilly, respectively). Prior to his death, he was under the care of his friend W.H. Rasmussen, Mojave, Califor nia. His obituary was printed in the January 1972 (No. 78) issue of Chirp, the newsletter of The Early Birds. While I am indebted to www.Aero files. com and www.EarlyAviators.com for much of the Crawford material con tained in this e-mail, I would be remiss if I did not mention the book on Junk ers aircraft: Junkers Aircraft & Engines 1913-1945, by Anthony L. Kay (Put nam). Also, the two-volume set: Ger

man Aircraft in Russian and Soviet Service 1915-1940 and German Aircraft in Rus sian and Soviet Service 1941-1951, by Andrei Alexandrov and Genadi Petrov (Schiffer). Another highly useful book on pre- World War II Soviet aviation and its use of Junkers Aircraft is So viet Aircraft and Aviation 1917-1941, by Lennart Andersson (Putnam). ~

continued from page 24

circulating type tunnel, air viscosity could be controlled to suit whatever tests were being run . Airfoils de veloped by several different atmo spheric-pressure tunnels could thus be tested under controlled condi tions so as to produce uniform and thus more reliable data. It took much time to run tests on hundreds of models and then to pub lish the results. So during the 1920s airfoil choice ranged all the way from using exotic calculations to guess work. Some deSigners simply used airfoils that "looked good" or which they heard had worked well on other planes. Many American airplane com panies in fact developed and used their own airfoils, including Boeing, Curtiss, Fokker, Laird, Loening, Stear man, Pitcairn, and Travel Air. It wasn't until the early 1930s, therefore, that the popular Clark, Goettingen, Eiffel, St. Cyr, RAF, U.S. Army, and U.S. Navy airfoils began to be replaced by NACA ones such as the 2412,4412, and 23012. Airfoil devel opment work still goes on, with so phisticated computers and even more advanced wind tunnels being used to create shapes that although very advanced, would surely surprise and sometimes puzzle the old-timers. ~

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