VA-Vol-4-No-5-May-1976 by EAA Vintage Aircraft Association

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THE RESTORER' S CORNER

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CHAIRMAN and CO-CHAIRMAN . If you've ever attended Oshkosh you have heard these words spoken over and over and also have seen them in print many times and in many places. What do they mean? Why do we have both a Chairman and a Co-Chairman? Wouldn't just one Chairman be sufficient? The answer is really very simple. We all come to Oshkosh to enhance our knowledge of aviation and to have a good time looking, listen ing, flying and just all around enjoying ourselves. None of us comes just to sit behind a desk, or in a booth, or to just park airplanes, or anyone of hundreds of other jobs which require full time coverage during the conven tion . But if we had just a Chairman for each committee, he would have a full time job and would not have any opportunity to enjoy the convention himself. Therefore, several years ago when the convention started to grow to the size which required full time help on so many different committees, it was decided that each committee would have both a Chairman and a Co-Chairman so that these two could divide the working time between them, and each would have to work only half of the time . They could thus spend the other half enjoying the convention and satisfying their special interests. In theory the Chairman and Co-Chairman system should have been a great success, but in practice it has been somewhat less than fantastic. The cause of this less-than-hoped-for result has not been any fault of the Chairmen and Co-Chairmen. In fact, they have both been working steadily and without relief because they do not get sufficient numbers of members to volunteer to help on their committees. They forego their off-duty periods

by J. R. NIELANDER, JR.

and work one of the unmanned positions on their committee so that you may have the smooth running convention which you have come to expect. The Chairmen and Co-Chairmen have the nucleus of their committees well organized. For instance, the Antique/Classic Division Parking Com mittee operates on three hour shifts starting at 7:00 a.m. and continuing to 9:00 p.m. each day with a two hour break in the schedule at air show time . The Division Headquarters Staff Committee also operates on three hour shifts starting at 8:00 a.m. and continuing to 8:00 p.m . daily. The Division Forums Committee operates from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily. All other committees operate on a "when needed" basis. In the April issue you will find the list of Antique/Classic Division Convention Committees with their Chairmen and Co-Chairmen. They really do need your help during the convention . They are asking you to fill one of the unmanned positions on their committees. They would like to work alongside you so that they can share with you the pride of a job well done and the self-satisfaction that goes with it. They would like to get to know you and to become friends with you. However, they have never had the opportunity to make your acquaintance, and they won't be able to enjoy meeting you unless you take the initiative to introduce yourself. Pick out the committee you would like to work on and drop a short note or post card to its Chairman and volunteer your services . Let him (her) know what day(s) or what time(s) you can be available. They will sincerely appreciate hearing from you, and you will enjoy the convention more than you ever have in the past.

OFFICIAL MAGAZINE

EDITORIAL STAFF

ANTIQUE / CLASSIC DIVISION of THE EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION

MAY 1976

Publisher Paul H. Poberezny

Editor AI Kelch

ANTIQUE AND CLASSIC DIVISION OFFICERS PRESIDENT J. R. NIELANDER , JR . P. O. BOX 2464 FT. LAUDERDALE , FL 33303

VICE-PRESIDENT MORTON LESTER P. O. BOX 3747 MARTINSVILLE, VA 24112

SECRETARY RICHARD WAGNER P. O. BOX 181 LYONS, WI 53148

TREASURER E. E. " BUCK " HILBERT 8102 LEECH RD. UNION , IL 60180

Directors Evander Britt

P. O. Box 458

Lumberton, NC 28358

Kelly Viets

RR1.Box路 151

Stilwell , KS 66085

Claude L. Gray, Jr.

9635 Sylvia Ave.

Northridge, CA 91324

Jack Winthrop

Rt. 1, Box 111

Allen , TX 75002

AI Kelch

7018 W. Bonniwell Rd .

Mequon , WI 53092

Jim Horne

3850 Coronation Rd.

Eagan , MN 55122

William J. Ehlen

Rt. 8 , Box 506

Tampa , FL 33618

George Stubbs

RR 18, Box 127

Indianapolis, IN 46234

VOLUME 4 NUMBER 5

Assistant Editor Lois Kelch Centributing Editors

H. N. " Dusty" Rhodes

Evander Britt

Jim Barton

Claude Gray

Ed Escallon

Rod Spanier

Dale Gustafson

Henry Wheeler

Morton Lester

Kelly Viets

Bob Elliot

Jack Lanning

Bill Thumma

Advisors

The Restorer's Corner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. The Hamilton Metalplane ..... ......... ..... .... .. .. . ..... . .. Vintage Album. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. The Cub Resurrection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. Test Flight .................................... , ............. Whistling In The Rigging ...... .. ...................... .... . .. The U.s. Mail . .......... . . . ...... . ................ .. . . ...... Calendar Of Events . .. .......... .. . ... . .................. .. .. Dues Increase Notice ........................................

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EDITOR'S NOTE:

W. Brad Thomas, Jr.

301 Dodson Mill Road

Pilot Mountain, NC 27041

1 3 8 11 15 16 17 18 18

S.o.S. Send Old Stories

Robert A. White 1207 Falcon Dr. Orlando , FL 32803

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THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE is owned exclusively by Antique Classic Aircraft , Inc. and is published monthly at Hales Co rners, Wi sconsin 53130. Second class Postage paid at Hales Corn ers Post O ffice , Hales Co r颅 ners, Wisconsin 53130 and Rand om Lake Post Office, Rando m Lake, Wisconsin 53075. Membership rates for Antique Classic aircraft. Inc. at $10.00 per 12 month period of wh ich $7.00 is for the publication to THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE . M embership is open t o all w ho are interested in aviation.

ON THE COVER

Postmaster: Send Form 3579 to Antique Classic Aircraft, Inc., Box 229,

Hales Corners, Wisconsin 53130

Business end of Lysdale 's Hamilton Metal路 plane.

PICTURE BOX (Back Cover)

Curtiss Pusher, in its element, a hay field.

(Photo by Gene Chase)

Jack Lysdale's Hamilton Metalplane, Model H-47, tied down at Antique Airfield, Blakesburg, Iowa during the 1975 AAA National Fly-In.

THE

METALPLANE By George Hardie Jr., EAA 500

10324 West Ridge Road

Hales Corners, Wis. 53130

All Photos From The Author's Collection, Except As Noted.

hen Jack Lysdale brought his Hamilton Metal plane to the Fifth Annual National Fly-In of the Antique Airplane Association and Air Power Museum at Antique Airfield, Blakesburg, Iowa, last August, the event brought forth nostalgic memories to many old timers in attendance. To the uninitiated it resembled a "single-engined Ford Trimotor" in appearance, but knowledgeable aficionados recognized the rare bird as a real gem out of the pages of history. It became the hit of the Fly-In. 3

Evidently the judges shared that feeling, for Jack Lysdale collected five trophies to take home - Most Rare Monoplane, Best "Big Plane" Award, Colorado Chapter Choice, South Chicago Chapter Choice and, best of all, the 1975 AAA Grand National Champion Award. This was a fitting climax to Lysdale's long cher ished dream of bringing his Hamilton to the AAA Na tional Fly-In. It was also a just award for almost three years of dedicated restoration work by Jack Lysdale and his associates at his hangar at Fleming Field ,

South St. Paul, Minnesota. Long hours of diligent effort has resulted in a masterpiece of authentic recrea tion of a very historic design. It all began in 1951 when Captain Harry McKee of Northwest Airlines learned of the remains of a Hamil ton located in Alaska. He purchased it from Don Cross at Deering, and brought it to the St. Paul area for restoration. McKee enlisted the help of friends and fellow Northwest employees, and work was started to restore the aircraft as a non-flying exhibit. North

Hamilton Metalplane, Model H-18, being prepared for the flight to Washington, D.C. on April 30, 1927. James McDonnell above the cockpit, Thomas Hamilton stand ing near the propeller.

west Airlines in the early years had flown Hamiltons on their routes. The project dragged along for several years until McKee, discouraged by the lack of progress and mounting expenses, put the aircraft in storage. Jack Lysdale acquired the airplane in December, 1972 and decided to restore it to 100% airworthy condition. This required dismantling the comple te airplane to the basic structure, with the result that the previous restoration work was nullified. Jim Schumacher was placed in charge, with Dick Wille, a local policeman, assisting in his spare time . Dick had previously worked on the plane in 1959-60 when it was a Northwest Airlines employee project. Noel Allard kept a photo graphic record of the progress of the restoration and assisted with the necessary research. After taxi tests, the first flight was made on Augus t 12,1975. Only minor adjustments were required, attest ing to the high quality of workmanship upheld in the restoration process . The airplane is licensed as a Standard Category Aircraft carrying a permanent airworthiness certificate. At the time it arrived at Blakesburg it had been flown a total of 12 hours. Prior to that the plane was last licensed in 1947 and the logs showed a total time of 5,183 hours.

The Lysdale Hamilton, Serial No. 65, was built in 1929 by the Hamilton Metalplane Co., Milwaukee, Wisconsin, a Division of the Boeing Airplane Co . of Seattle, Washington . Originally licensed as NC-875H, Lysdale had the license number changed to NC-879H so that he could finish it in authentic Northwest Air ways colors and number 27 of an actual Hamilton used by the airline . This is an H-47 model, powered with a Pratt & Whitney Hornet engine at 525 hp. It was sold originally to the Ontario Provincial Air Service in 1930, with Cana dian license CF-OAJ, and was used on floats . After serving numerous owners it eventually was stored at Deering, Alaska where Harry McKee found it. The history of the Hamilton Metalplane Co. began when its founder, Thomas F. Hamilton, at the age of 16 built his first airplane in 1910, powered with a rotary engine from an Adams-Farwell automobile. His second design, built the following year, was more successful. In 1915 he established the Hamilton Aero Mfg. Co. at Vancouver, Canada to manufacture a refined version of his biplane for use in training Canadian aviators in World War 1. When the U.S. entered the war in 1917, Hamilton moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin to work for

the Matthews Brothers Woodworking Co. where he was placed in charge of the propeller department. At war's end he purchased the aviation department of Matthews Brothers and set up his own company, Ham ilton Aero Mfg . Co. of Milwaukee, to manufacture propellers and pontoons using much war-surplus stock. The reputation of "Hamilton Propellers of Quality" grew steadily with their use on Army and Navy air craft, airmail planes and even on the Navy dirigible "Shenandoah" . During the war, Hamilton had built pontoons of wood at Matthews Brothers. After he established his own company he developed pontoons of duraluminum for sale to Canadian buyers. From this experience he decided in 1926 to build an all-metal airplane. He hired two aeronautical engineers, James S. McDonnell and James Cowling, Jr., to do the designing . Work was started in a corner of the propeller plant and placed under the direction of William Werner, superintendent. This first design, labeled Model H-18, was a high wing monoplane with a thick cantilever wing and elliptically shaped fuselage. The aluminum skin was unusual in that evenly spaced V-sections were crimped into the flat stock to provide rigidity. This was done by 4

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(Photo by Gene Chase)

Owner Jack Lysdale and the trophies and awards he won at the 1975 AAA National Fly-In. Note the smile of satisfaction!

The crew responsible for the restoration. Left to right are: Noel Allard, Photographer - Researcher; Jack Lysdale, Owner; Jim Schumacher and Dick Willie, Restoration Craftsmen.

workmen in the shop on a hand operated roller. Three wing beams carried the load and were fastened to the fuselage with six chrome vanadium bolts. With the thick section of the wing extending so deeply into the fuselage sides, the cabin windows were mounted in the lower surface of the wing. Arm rests were provided for the four passengers enabling them to look downward in flight. A pilot's compartment provided stick controls for a pilot and co-pilot. The airplane was billed as a combination cabin and mail plane, an interesting sidelight on the marketing problems of that day. First flight was made on April 2, 1927 with Lt. Victor Bertrandias as test pilot. Two days later the airplane was appropriately christened "Maiden Milwaukee" by Hamilton's seven-year old daughter. On April 30 Hamilton and his crew flew to Washington, D.C., where the airplane was exhibited at the Pan American Aero Congress . It was entered in the 1927 National Reliability Tour sponsored by the Ford Motor Co. With Randolph Page as pilot, it placed second with a prize of $2,000. At the National Air Races at Spokane, Washington on September 23-24, with John H. Miller as pilot, it placed third in speed and first in efficiency in the Detroit News Air Transport Race, and tenth in speed and first in efficiency in the race for the Aviation

Town & Country Club of Detroit trophy . Total prize money for these wins was $1850. In spite of the publicity generated by these out standing performances, no buyers appeared at the Ham ilton plant. Even mounting the ship on pontoons failed to attract orders. Evidently the cramped cabin ar rangements and lack of side windows turned off many prospects. At any rate the decision was made to re design the aircraft into a more marketable product. As a first step the airplane business was separated from the propeller operations and the Hamilton Metalplane Co. was incorporated. A building was acquired on Mil waukee's near south side and preparations were under way to launch the new project. At this point, Dr. John Akerman was brought into the company as chief engineer. Akerman had worked on the Ford Trimotor, as had James McDonnell. This may or may not account for the similarity in design and construction of the new Hamilton Metalplane, desig nated Model H-21, to the Ford product. This prototype model was a distinct departure in design configuration from the previou s model. The boxy fuselage accommodated six passengers placed side by side in three rows . A door on the left side of the fuse lage provided access to the two rear seats, while the

door on the right side provided access to the forward four seats and the pilots' compartment which accom modated a pilot and co-pilot. The wing had a center section of constant airfoil form with the two outer panels tapered in section and plan. The skin was the standard corrugated Alclad aluminum as used on the Ford Trimotor. The landing gear was of the split-axle type providing a wide tread. Power was a Pratt & Whitney Wasp of 425 hp with a Hamilton me tal adjustable propeller. The airplane was rushed to completion and exhibi ted at the All-American Aircraft Show in Detroit on April 14-21, 1928. It attracted much favorable atten tion , possibly due to the intense advertising campaign mounted by Hamilton which included large billboard displays around the city, noted as the first use of out door display advertising by an airplane manufacturer in the U.S. In later years Hamilton made the statement that he had invested $300,000 in the design, construc tion and modification of this prototype before going into production. It was sold to Andean National Air lines in Columbia and operated to transport gold from inaccessible areas. One criticism was leveled at the new model by visitors at the aircraft show. The fuselage was too nar

row. This was changed on the production version so that an aisle between the seats provided better acces足 sibility for passengers and pilots. The door on the right side was also eliminated. Production records of the Hamilton Metalplane are very confusing. The new model was advertised as the H-21 "Silver Streak" landplane, with the seaplane version listed as the H-22 "Sea-Dan". Power on both of these models was the Pratt & Whitney Wasp of 425 hp. Later references show an H-43 landplane and an H-44 seaplane. The Handbook of Instructions furnished with each airplane showns an H-45 with a Pratt & Whitney Wasp of 450 hp and the H-47 with a Pratt & Whitney Hornet of 525 hp . Actually, the principal dif足 ference between these two was the more powerful engine on the H-47. Just as confusing is the attempt to determine exactly how many Hamiltons were built. Interviews with several former employees have failed to establish an exact figure. An announcement in the magazine Aviation for February 13, 1928 states that metal was being cut and parts for 25 airplanes were to be made at once, with first delivery scheduled for -March l. An exhaustive search has so far uncovered tentative identification, by serial number and license registration, of 27 airplanes. Some sources list 29 airplanes, but the difficulty is in sorting out those that were sold abroad and those that were returned to the factory for rebuild足 ing and modernization. To illustrate the confusion, Serial No. 58 is listed in the Aircraft Yearbook for 1931 as being licensed under Memo 2-125 dated September 7, 1929 with a wingspan of 60 ft. 5 in. and gross weight 6375 Ibs. This was evidently a special version, since the standard H-47 had a wingspan of 54 ft . 5 in .. and weight of 5865 Ibs. No further clues have been located. The first production models, H-45's, were completed in September, 1928. Two were delivered to Universal Airlines and two went to Northwest Airways. One was delivered to Wien Alaska Airways about the sa m~ time. Other early buyers were D. W. Norris of Milwaukee and C. W. Keller, a big game hunter from Detroit. Scenic Airways in Arizona operated a Hamilton at one time. In May, 1929 Braniff acquired four Hamiltons from Universal Airlines. Isthmian Airways operated Hamiltons in the Panama Canal Zone flying their "transcontinental" route. An H-47 went to the Boeing School of Aeronautics in Oakland, Calif. Northwest Airways eventually acquired a total of nine Hamiltons for their fleet. One of these, Serial No. 48, NC-7523, was destroyed in a hangar fire in February, 1933. Ontario Provincial Air Service in Canada acquired three H-47's on floats. A fourth, Serial No . 68, NC-878H,

crashed June 26, 1930 at Port Arthur, Ontario while being flown by Major J. O. Leach, pilot for Ontario Provincial Air Service. Another of their Hamiltons, Serial No. 67, registered CF-OAI, was lost on August 18, 1931 at Fort Francis, Ontario when the pilot lost speed in a turn and spun in. . Wien Alaska's Hamilton, Serial No. 53, NC-10002, was purchased by Alaskan Airways, fO'rmed by famed Alaskan bush pilots Carl Ben Eielson and Joe Crosson. On November 9, 1929 Eielson took off from Teller, Alaska with his mechanic Earl Borland on a flight to North Cape, Siberia. They were trapped in a s nowstorm

(Photo by Gene Chase)

Rear view of Lysdale 's Metalplane at the 1975 AAA National Fly-In. The Northwest Airways markings and license number are completely authentic.

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'VIetalplane Co . Eastern financiers had been busy putting together giant corpo rations to combine the m an ufact urin g and opera tions of air transports and air lines by merging selected companies. In Connecticu t the Pratt & Whitney Air craft Co. was joined with Sikorsky Mfg . Co., Chance Vought Aviation Corp. and the Boeing Airplane Co. of Seattle to form a part of the Un ited Aircraft & Tr a nsport Corp. The Hamilton Aero Mfg. Co. and the Hamilton Metalplane Co . were acq uired by this gro up to com plete the manufacturing syndicate. The airpl ane company then became known as the Hamilton Meta lpl ane Division of the Boeing Airplane Co., a Division of United Aircraft & Transport Corp. In January, 1930 a further move was made when the Hamilton Aero Mfg. Co. was consolidated with the Standard Steel Propeller Corp. of Pittsburgh, also ac quired by the merger. Shortly afterward

and crashed. Typical of th e flying fra ternity in Alaska, a massive sea rch was organized to find the lost fliers. Finally on January 25 Crosson sp otted a reflec tion in the s now and landed. It was a wing of the Hamilton protruding from the snow, with the rest of the wreckage scattered nearby. Eielson and Borland had been killed in the crash. In honor of the man credited with establishing reliable commercial flying in Ala s ka, the U.S . Air Force Base at Fairbanks bears his name. Probably the most unusual crash in volving a Hamilton occurred on the nig ht of November 24, 1928 . Pilot Joe Doer flinger took off from Chicago in a Uni versal Airlin es Hamilton, bound for Cleveland. He had five passenge rs aboard, a lady and four gentlemen. Near South Bend, Indiana he ran into a blind ing snowstorm. Dropping to 500 ft. al titude he finally located an airway beacon and ducked the clouds all the way to Cleveland. Upon landing the station 7

agen t ru s hed out exclaimi n g, " Jo e, aren ' t you d ea d ?" Doerflinger assured him th a t every thin g was alright. Then the age nt ex plained. Pilot Ed Bassett had taken off from Cl eve land h eaded for Chicago. Since there was room, his wife decided to fly with him . After depositing two passengers at Toledo, Bassett had de laye d take-off waiting for the weather to clea r. Near Brya n , Ohio h e ra n into a sn owstorm and tried to land in a field. Unluckily for him a lone tree blocked his path . The plane hit the tree squarel y with s uch force that th e e n g ine wa s driven to the rear of th e fuselage. All aboard were killed instantl y. Because it was not known that Ba ssett's wife had accompanied him, it was supposed that the crash was Doerflinger. There was a special reason for Mrs. Bassett to ac company her husband tha t night. It was their eighth wedding anniversary. January, 1929 brought a dramatic change to the fortun es of the Hamilton

The first four Hamiltons lined up at Milwaukee County Airport, September, 1928. Model H-18 is in the rear, three Model H-45 's in front . Hamilton Metalplanes under construction at the Park Street plant, Milwaukee, Wis . Fuselages are in the foreground, wing spars in the right rear, assembly left rear.

HAMILTON METAlPlANE Milwaukee, Wisconsin

SPECIFICATIONS AND PERFORMANCE Approved Type Certificate Model

Control wheel and instrument panel in

Interior of a factory-built Hamilton Metalplane looking forward to the pilot's compartment. This one has the standard artificial leather upholstery.

a Northwest Airways Hamilton . Turn and bank indicator in the center, tacho meter to the right.

the Milwaukee plant was closed and operation of the new Hamilton-Standard Propeller Corp, was concen trated at Pittsburgh. Continuing decline in sales forced closing of the Pittsburgh plant and removal to East Hart ford, Connecticut. Meanwhile the Hamilton Metalplane Division was experiencing economic difficulties. Parts for five air planes of the original production batch remained to be assembled and sold. On October 11, 1930 the Park Street plant was closed and operations were moved to the new hangar at Milwaukee County Airport. The re maining aircraft were serviced here, as well as others brought in for repair or modification, In April, 1932 this operation was closed out and dispersed to the Boeing

HAMILTON METAlPlANE Milwaukee, Wisconsin

PRICE LIST COMPLETE JANUARY 1, 1930 HAMILTON METALPLANE LAND CRAFT Model H-45 Landplane . Wasp 425 HP . Model H-47 Landplane, Hornet 525 HP .

$24.500.00 26.000 .00

HAMILTON METALPLANE SEA CRAFT Model H-45 Seaplane. "Wasp " 425 HP motor, including pontoons and all special equipment used in Seaplane operation, no land gear . $29,300.00 Model H-47 Seaplane, " Hornet" 525 HP motor, including pontoons, gears, and all special equipment used in $31,800.00 Seaplane operation . Special equipment referred to above as follows : Seaplane Floats " G" with float Gear $4 ,000.00 Eclipse Electric Starter, complete with Generator 900.00 Additonal charge in exchange of standard two -blade propeller for three-blade propeller . 200.00 Charge for coating of Bitumastic covering for protection of Dural against corrosion where plane 500.00 is used on salt water .

94 H-47

Motor P & W Wasp

420 HP

Weight Empty Useful Load Total Gross Weight Seating Capacity High Speed Cruising Speed Landing Speed Cruising Range Climb At Sea Level Service Ceiling Take Off Run Take Off Time Wing Loading

3,639Ibs. 2,226 Ibs. 5,865Ibs. 8 Incl. Pilot t35 MPH lt5 MPH 50 MPH 675 Miles 850 FPM t3,000 ft . 550 ft. t5 sec. t4.5Ibs. per sq. ft. 13.6Ibs. per HP 34 It. 8 in. 9 ft. 6 in. 54 It. 5 in. 4 ft. 100 in. 44 in. 57 in.

Hornet 525 HP 3,699Ibs. 2,166Ibs . 5,865 Ibs. 8 Incl. Pilot 145 MPH t25 MPH 55 MPH 600 Miles 900 FPM t5,000 ft . 450 ft. 10 sec. 14.5Ibs. per sq . It. to.9Ibs. per HP 34 ft. 8 in . 9 ft. 6 in. 54 ft. 5 in . 4 It. tOO in. 44 in. 57 in.

Power Loading Length Overall Height Overall Span Width At Cabin Cabin Length Cabin Width Cabin Height

H-47 Seaplane Hornet 525 HP 4,318 Ibs . 2,133Ibs. 6,45t Ibs. 7 Inc. Pilot 137 MPH t t7 MPH 55 MPH 550 Miles 800 FPM t5,000 ft . 800 ft . 30 sec . t6 .6Ibs. per sq . ft. t2.2Ibs . per HP 34 It. 8 in . 11 It. 1 in. 54 ft. 5 in. 4 It. 100 in. 44 in . 57 in.

plants at Seattle and Wichita. Thus ended the manu facture of Hamilton Metalplanes. The record of service left by these aircraft is compara tively unknown, but to the pilots who flew them, especially in Alaska and Canada, the Hamiltons were a rugged, reliable airplane of great endurance, We are indeed fortunate to have Jack Lysdale's beautifully restored example to remind us that good airplanes were built in the old days too!

The employees of Hamilton Metalplane Division, Boeing Airplane Co., Milwaukee County Airport 1930.

Total c ost special equipment complete $5,600.00 In figuring delivered price of Seaplane use following : List Price Model H-47 Hornet (land plane) $26.000.00 Deduct credit for landing gear 800.00 Price Landplane less landing gear. Plus special equipment as shown above

85 H-45

$25,200.00 5,600.00 $3t ,800.00

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1. Max Walton 's OX5 Travelair 2000 from Wichita , Kansas. A good place for such a fine exampl to be from .

2. SE5. At now defunct Wings & Wheels Museum. Our museum will soon have a complete SE5 and maybe later we will see a replica flying. 3. A little smoke, the noise of a Kinner, some daisies in the grass and away we go! Harold Johnson's Meye OTW Dayton , Ohio.

Album

. Vintage Machines

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'I Thumma avid airplane early 1920s. ures for many a pic page. tter on page 17.

4. Dudley Kelly's DeHavilland Gypsy Moth with

Wright Gypsy Engine a perennial favorite at fly-ins .

5. 1918 Sopwith Snipe at Air Force Museum, Dayton ,

Ohio . Wouldn 't it be fun out of the cage?

By Chet Peek

1410 Brookdale

Norman, Oklahoma 73069

In the fall of 1970, I decided it couldn't be put off any longer. My pride and joy, E-2 Cub 97 needed a complete restoration. This is the story of that five year project. I'd purchased "old 97" in 1953 for $100.00. After partially restoring it in the patch-up way we did back in those days, I'd flown it for 16 years. Some antiquers may remember seeing it at the Ottumwa fly-in a couple of times in the fifties. It was really a fun airplane and quite a conversation piece . But now the fabric was bad, the engine was weak, and there were some suspicious looking rust spots on the bottom of the fuselage. It needed lots of work, and this time I was determined it would be restored to AUTHENTIC and FACTORY NEW condition. The E-2 Cub is one of the most historically interesting aircraft in the world. It's the direct ancestor of all the Piper series; the Super Cub coming off the Lock Haven assembly line today still has essentially the same di足 mensions and framework pattern as the E-2 . Fewer than twenty of these old planes remain; most of these are modified with later model parts. I believe half the fun in this sort of hobby is the study and research required to bring an old plane back to factory new condition; thus my insistance on authenticity. Two factors helped me in this regard. First, I had

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another E-2, No . 84 . While nearly a bas ket case, it s till was in original condition with some of th e fa bric intact. Second, I received imm eas urable h elp from Mr. Walter Jamouneau, Vice President of Piper Aircraft. H e not only an s w e red numerous mail inquiries, but he granted me a most interesting two hour inter view in hi s o ffic e at th e Lock Haven factory . He actually remembered both of my E-2's and could recount stories about the first owners! What a memory and what a grand gentleman . Here are some random examples of m y efforts to obtain authenticity .

Chet Peek and old 97. Summer of '75 . Ed. Note : Somehow he just looks like an E2 driver.

Finished Job! The day so long coming has arrived al/ is worth it!

Color scheme. The original production book stated " standard paint job, silver fu selage and wings with red trim". Bits of fabric salvaged from No . 84 indicated an arrow shaped, black bordered, red stripe which ended at the door hinge. The exact color of maroon red was se lected by matching the inside of the boot cowl. Presumably it had not faded. The cockpit area was completely red also, as indicated by the remains of No. 84. Instruments. Only four were originally installed . By matching up those from both No. 84 and No. 97 I ended up with : a Stewart-Warner tach, a 41/2 inch diam height meter (WWI surplus) and a U.S. Guage Co . oil pressure and temp. I searched high and low for a switch that only read "off-on" instead of "both" and finally found one. Cowling. The existing cowling had twist fasteners , but the old pictures all showed a wire lacing arrangement. After asking all over town, I finally bought some antique shoemakers equip ment and was able to install the boat hooks properly . More on the sheetmetal work later.

"CUB" insignia. As luck would have it, I'd saved the cover of the fin and rudder from No . 84 with the N-C number as well as the legend "THE CUB, Taylor Aircraft Co ., Bradford, P A." I cut a stencil for the Cub logo and after searching in vain for a stencil cutter with the right sized letters, I cut the rest by hand too. This added up to several weeks of part time work but now my plane carries authentic markings .

List price of E-2 Cub . . .. ...... $1425.00

Dealer cost (less 15%) ... . . .. . . 1211 .25

A-40 engine cost . .. .. .... . . .. . 400.00 Prop . ............. ... ....... . 8.00 Tire ..... .... . .. .. . .. . .. . . . . . . 10.00 Wheel ........ . .......... . . . . 6.00 Instruments, set . . . ....... . . . . 15.00 Fabric, Yd .. ..... . .. . ... . . ... . .20 Dope, gal ... . ... . .. . .. . . . . . . . .80 .10 Accessories: The original Cubs had Steel tube, ft . . ... . ... .. .. . . . . 350 neither carb heat or primer. I didn't in Man hrs to make one plane ... . stall any, and after a year of flying, I'm glad I didn't. They are just extra weight and trouble. While engaged in this research, I re ceived some pricing data that may be interesting to antique fans . These are from the Taylor factory in 1933. 12

But before you restorers all start wishing for the good old days, here is the factory wage rate ... 22c per hr! So much for the research, now back to the story of the restoration. Disassembly at the airport was easy. My wife (of 30 plus years) helped put the wings on top of the car, w e bolted the tail spring to the bumper hitch and off we went. In no time the Cub was back home in the garage ready for work to commence. By spring, I thought, it will be back in the air agai n . But it didn't work out that wa y. We moved four times in the next three years. All I did with the Cub was load it up and move it! Finally, in 1973, we finished building our pres ent home, complete with shop, and the project could get under way again.

37 of Continentals best horses.

Cowl and new A-40 for SIN 84 WB. (Note laced cowl).

Repairs. First the fuselage was stripped of about 10 coats of old primer, and sanded clean . During this pro cess, I noticed some suspicious looking rust pits on the lower longerons. Out came the old ice pick, the poor man's tube tester, and sure enough , they were rusted out, from the inside . This necessitated the replacement of the lower longerons, tail post and assorted other tubing with new 4130. Actually, this was almost as easy as trying to clean up the old rusty tubes. I made a plywood jig to hold everything in place, cut out the old tubing with a disc grinder, and tack welded in the new. And replacing that old 1025 tubing with new 4130 gives you a lot more confidence in the airframe on rough days and rough landings . After finishing the fuselage, I looked over the pile of tail feathers (three sets) and chose the least bent and rusty set for restoration . These, from No . 84, were sand blasted and primed and I'd almost started to cover them when some guardian angel suggested I try to fit them to the fuselage. You guessed it, they didn' t fit. Evidently, in those early days of production , the attachment holes we re not jig drilled, thus each may be a little diffe rent dimension. No proble m though, I picked the original parts for No. 97 out of th e pile, did a little welding, sand ing and straig htening, and they fit. However most o f th e early Cub parts are inter changeable. The door I used came off No. 320 wh ich was built two years later than No . 97, a nd it fit per fectl y . The sa me h old s true of the landin g gear and

wings. The little plywood seats were quite a challenge. They are built up of dozens of pieces of 1/4 inch marine plywood , and must be accurately made since the con trols bolt onto them as well as the fuselag e. Here again, a jig to hold things in line was the answer. When done, these sea ts only weigh about 6 pounds, they are built ultra light like everything else on the early Cubs . You have to keep remembering that the whole plane weig hs only 530 pounds empty! Covering. This was more of a learning process than actual work. I decided to use Stits Poly-fibre and pur chased the necessary supplies from fellow antiquer Don Sharp at Paul's Valley . Spent an evening or two reading the instructions, then confidently waded in . Putting on the dacron was a breeze. No sewing in volved, just cementing. To shrink it you just use a hot iron or a hair dryer. I had some trouble getting the right mix of dope and adjustment of the spray rig, but once that was solved, I ended up with a nice smooth coat of aluminum, which was the original final coat. After lots of masking and spraying, the red trim was on, edged with pencil-wide black stripe. Engine. I just plain lucked out on the engine. For several years I had been corresponding with Robert Thompson of Dayton, Ohio, (Mr. A-40). He finally agreed to overhaul an engine for me so I picked a fair looking one out of the pile and sent it to Dayton. He doesn't overhaul an engine - h e builds a new one! It would take a book to tell the story of his overhauls, so I'll save that for another time. But when he is done, the engine is better than new, and looks it. ,A new name plate, even! He even hung it in the fuselage of his Heath Racer and ran it for four hours to break it in. (see pic). Odds and ends. Throu gh the winter of '74-'75 I finish ed all th e s mall parts, in strume nts , wheels, la nding gear, and shee t metal. The sheet metal work alone took severa l months with a chronology som ething like this: 1. Locate correct .025 alumin u m. None locally, so had some shipped in from Tu lsa. 2. Cu t patterns from old cowling and boot cowl. My batting average was about 500 on this job; one good piece for every ba d piece.

3. Locate an edge bead machine. Found one through the want ads, bought it and edged all the parts. 4. Find crimper and deep throat beader for fire wall. Canvassed all the local tin shops and finally found one who had the old style bench tools. He didn't want to do the work, but he let me use the tools. After three tries, I had a perfect firewall, and felt like a qualified tinsmith! 5. Fit cowl to fuselage. This involved taking it off and on at least ten times, adjusting the fit with poor man's Clecos (stove bolts) and trying it on again. 6. Buy rivet gun and rivet up. 7. Prime and paint. Assembly and inspection: The restoration was eventually finished and assembly only awaited the first warm spring day. One Saturday in March, '75 several EAA friends came over and the plane was moved to a hangar at the Norman airport. Same format, wings on top of car, tail wheel tied to bumper hitch. While I had the help, we hung the wings and Old 97 began to look like an airplane again. Still, plenty of work remained. The windshield couldn't be fitted until after the wings were on, the tail feathers had to be installed and of course all struts, wires and turnbuckles had to be adjusted and safetied. When this was done I started that pretty, new A-40. It ran just as well as Bob said it would. After I had inspected and double checked all controls and fastenings , every thing was ready for my friendly LA., fellow antiquer Warren Smith. Actually, Warren, who has a pristine J-2 Cub of his own, had been a willing and invaluable helper since the start of the project. As each process was completed, he would carefully inspect the parts before allowing the work to continue. When the aircraft welder I had hired failed to show, Warren stepped in and welded the entire fuselage. He insisted on perfection, but so did L On May 3,1975 everything was done. The Cub stood without cowling or inspection covers waiting for War ren's final scrutiny . After a complete "look over" he said "Well, Chet, I think it's ready to go." It took me only a few minutes to snap on the cowling and covers and taxi to the end of the runway.

Flying theE-2. I didn't bother to check anything other than to wiggle the controls, because what can you check on a single ignition engine in a plane without brakes? As I opened the throttle the tail came right up as always and we slowly gained speed. After about a 100 foot run we were off the ground and climbing at a fair rate. I'd intended to fly down the runway and land at the end, but everything was working so well I decided to go around the patch. Had 400 feet at the end of the' runway. Probably would have had more, but without an airspeed I don't like to bring the nose up too far. The little A-40 was purring like a kitten at 2350 rpm and in no time we had made the circuit. It had been years since I had landed the Cub, but no problem. Those incredibly slow, soft, tailwheel first landings are easy. So the restoration was done and Old 97 was back in the air. During the next several weeks there were enough calm days for several more flights. I determined that the new Fahlin prop that I was so proud of must be a cruise model, because 2350 was all the rpm I could twist out of the little engine. Back on went my Sensenich 6923 and the engine turned 2500 as it should. How does an E-2 fly? I'd say lots better than you'd expect. With one person aboard it will act a lot like a 65 hp J-3. It takes off in 100 feet or so, climbs at perhaps 800 fpm and feels light and quick. With a passenger along it's a bit sluggish, but still gets off in a couple of hun dred feet and climbs adequately. I've hauled 180 lb. passengers on fairly warm days, and while it wasn't exactly a skyrocket, we had no trouble getting 1000 ft. in a fairly wide pattern. Cruise is discouragingly slow, between 60 and 65 mph, so you don't take many long cross-country flights. The performance is quite dif ferent fro,m that reported by Gene Smith in the Feb. 76 Air Progress. I'm afraid his one short exposure to the E-2 was not typical. The E-2 now resides in my new hangar on a co-op grass strip near here, it can fly whenever it wants to. This has worked out to about one ten minute flight per month this winter; but the spring fly-ins are coming and we'll be there. I've started the restoration of No. 84; how will a matched pair of E-2's look at Oshkosh?

Old cove r from SIN 84. Cockp it area .

rrrr;p1illJ

test flight 1908 Glenn Curtiss - June Bug

roar went up from the crowd as the engine sput tered and then took hold. had been a long, cold A morning for the more than 500 persons assembled It

especially Joseph Meade, Jr. , President of Mercury Air craft, and the mechanics and other workers who were anxiou s to ground test their reproduction o f Glenn Curtiss' June Bug. The bright - but crisp - 20 degree wea ther on January 10, 1976 proved a n enigma for the 1929 model, 115 horsepower engine on loan from the Glenn Curtiss Museum in Hammondsport, New York. Heaters and blankets warmed the engine sufficiently so that finall y it could be started. Guided to the 1,800 foot airstrip of the Bath-Hammondpsort, New York Airfield, Meade piloted the craft down and back the snowcovered run way at speeds up to 20 miles per hour. In its first ground test last September, the June Bug tested at over 40 mph as it was manipulated around the Bath, New York Fairgrounds track. It had been hoped to more than match that s peed in the latest testing . The testing did disclose several points that will be remedied, and in that the testing was deemed" success ful." Although the wings are still uncovered, construction of the June Bug to date has been approved by the Federal Aviation Administration and fabric will soon be added . Plans are being made to fly this craft during Ham mondsport's Bicentennial Celebration June 23-27, 1976. It is a reproduction of the airplane in which Glenn Curtiss made the first pre-announced, public, powered airplane flight in the United States on July 4, 1908, in Hammondsport, New York . The original was the third of four planes built by the Aerial Experiment Association of which Curtiss was a member, along with Dr. Alexander Graham Bell. Piloting the plane this summer will be Cole Palen of Rhinebeck, internationally known builder and pilot of early aircraft, who owns and operates the "Old Rhine beck Aerodrome." By William M. Fox 15

Hammondsport, NY

..-. ",..

J .. ..

BELOW: A ground test of the June Bug replica was successfully held in Hammondsport, New York . At the controls was Joseph Meade, Jr., President of Mercury Aircraft, Inc. where the replica was built.

IABOVE: Joseph Meade , Jr. talks with well Iwishers after ground testing the replica of Glenn

,H. Curtiss ' June Bug. The replica will be

flown June 23-27, 1976 at the Bath

Hammondsport, New York Airfield.

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WHISTLING IN THE RIGGING Tom Poberezny

1976 EAA Convention Chairman

This year when you attend one of the many local or regional fly-ins or your national Convention in Oshkosh, you will see row after row of beautifully restored antiques, classics, warbirds or a "build-it yourself" custom built aircraft. Thousands of pain staking hours have gone into these labors of love so they can sit proudly on the line or be viewed by many as they participate in the fly-bys . Each year, people say the quality of workmanship can't get any better and each year it does! An integral part of any fly-in event is the recogni tion of this hard work by the owner/builder through the awards program. The awards program, and the judges associated with it, can be the most appreciated or most maligned people in the world, depending on what the results are! This past year, your Antique/Classic Judging Com mittee and Chairman have worked hard in refining the rules and regulations developed in early 1975 to insure the best possible avenues in making the correct selections. An outline of the judging standards ap peared in the April issue of the Vintage Airplane and the May issue of SPORT AVIA TlON . Please be sure to read this information whether you have an airplane or not. It will provide some insight and background into the work that ha s been done to insure that award win ners are not "picked out of the hat!" 1976 will see a few changes regarding who will be eligible to compete for awards at the Annual EAA Convention in Oshkosh:

1. Only EAA and/or AntiquelCiassic members will be eligible for awards. 2. Only those aircraft who indicate on their air craft registration form that they wish to be judged, will be judged. You will note in the May Hotline of SPORT AVIA TION that only EAA members will be allowed to register their aircraft. This action has been necessitated lina (Region 4) and Hartford, Connecticut (Region 5). by the fact that there were individuals attending the Your Headquarters staff has had the opportunity to Convention, using valuable display parking space and make personal contact with officers and directors of in some cases winning awards, who did not join your over 50 EAA Chapters in addition to hundreds of mem organization and support it. bers. These sessions have been found to be quite The men and women of the judging committee will meaningful for they have provided a great deal of input spend long hours this year inspecting many fine air from the "field" in addition to answering questions craft. They will make every effort possible to make the and providing valuable information to EAA'ers who best selection in each category. Give them your support. are heading up activities on it chapter level. On May In fact, if you wish to help, I am sure they will be happy 15th, the Region 6 meeting will be hosted in Chicago. to hear from you. In the fall, EAA Headquarters will be visiting the re Speaking of help, a list of your Convention Chair maining three regions. . men appears on page 11 of the April issue of Vintage One closing note. Over the past few years I have had Airplane. You have heard this before and no doubt you the opportunity to attend or participate in a number will hear it again - If you are going to attend the 1976 of fly-ins, air shows and chapter banquets and meetings. Convention, please offer your services to one of these I have found that EAA'ers, whether their interests lie fine committee chairman. They put in long hours on in homebuilts, antiques, classics, warbirds, aerobatics your behalf, not only at the Convention, but prior to it or just plain " fun flying", are the greatest people in the when much of the planning and coordinating is ac world. I"have seen them pitch in at an air show or fly-in complished. You can make their job easier and every and help someone a long way from home. They have one's visit more enjoyable by helping ... and I think offered food, housing, mechanical assistance and money you will find the 1976 Convention more meaningful to a fellow pilot in need. when you are an active part of making it all happen. This is the "Spirit of '76". This is EAA. Don't ever Enough said. sell yourself short. Thus far two successful Regional Chapter Officers See you at Oshkosh. Meetings have been held in Greenville, South Caro 16

These include photographs I was able to make back in the early thirties, and those that have been added since that time . All negatives are in my possession . Currently I am employed by the General Electric Company, Ground Systems Department here in Daytona Beach. Audio/visual production just happens to be my specialty within the Company. Again, many thanks for your belief in my abilities. Please keep me informed of your wishes and reactions to what I may submit. In this way perhaps I can improve upon what I like to be involved with , the understanding of aviation . Most sincerely, .

Robert G. Elliott

1227 Oakwood Ave .

Daytona Beach , FL 32014

February 27 , 1976 Dear AI : Your telephone conversation was most rewarding to me. It gave me a full understanding of your needs. I wish to accept your nomination as a contributing editor for The Vintage Airplane . Much of my input will be dependent upon others but I hope to circulate the word at an early date. The manner in which you have decided to ask me into this fraternity is to me an honor, and I shall do all I can not to let you down. A capsule resume of yours truly follows : " While in High School in the early thirties I became deeply interested in aviation . It was while helping out around the old Amboy Airport selling tickets for Sunday atter足 noon rides, that I was able to make some early acquaintances in aviation which have kept my interest alive ever since . A nearly five year stint in the Air Force during WW II as a crewman-aerial photographer only served to continue my interest. The military organization was the First Motion Picture Unit at the old Hal Roach Studios. From those days to the present , my vocation has been photography in varied forms . Motion picture production, still advertising, magazine illustration , animals , and perha'ps firstly , aviation-aerials. For some months I have been involved in a series of biographical sketches con足 cerning the aviation pioneers living in Florida. As a member of the Florida Sport Aviation, Antique and Classic Association these opportunities have been most numerous. The tape recorded sessions as well as the narratives and photographs are finding a place in my ever growing files . Aircraft photography is perhaps the

largest and fastest growing file at the moment.

February 11, 1976 Dear Mr. Kelch : It was nice to receive a personal letter from you. I have already found your publication Vintage Airplane very interesting . Many of us who enjoy the old planes, are greatly indebted to those who give so much time, energy and money in the preservation of these fine aircraft. In the twenties , when I was a boy, it was quite a thrill to see a real flying machine settle into a stubble field . If they were able to get the ship turned around , the take off was even more spectacular. Noisy snorts , exhaust fumes and flying debris from the pro足 peller blast all contributed to the magic spell. I still enjoy the excitement of such activity, especially if the machine has an open cockpit, two wings, wire bracing and a helmeted pilot with goggles. In the early forties', I completed a course at the Aeronautical University of Chicago. I went to work for the Glenn L. Martin Company in Baltimore helping to construct B26 medium bombers. I went into the U.S. Navy in 1943 and became an aviation ordnanceman . The planes we serviced were Vought Corsairs and Curtiss Helldivers. After the war, I went into another field and practically lost contact with the world of airplanes . I thought that the old biplanes were gone and rapidly being forgotten . In the early sixties, two flyers from Dayton came screeching out of the clouds over Elwood in open cockpit Waco biplanes . They made some fancy passes then started taking up passengers in the old tradition . A whole new/old world came alive again . I learned about and joined the EAA and the AAA. I have been attending fly-ins and visiting museums collecting photos ever since . Not realizing , for a time , how many old planes were still around , I began to build and to photograph models of th e rare ones . I wanted to straighten out in my own mind the

order in which these planes came into being . Finally , I put my notes and photos into print. I published a small book entitled BIPLANES THEN/NOW. The current price is $2.00 and it is available from the writer at his home address. This booklet is not intended to be a detailed history to enlighten the critic or historian. It is a general history for potential newcomers. I hope to be able to revise and improve it if there is a reasonable demand for it. I am enclosing some copyrighted photos , however, you have permission to use them in Vintage Airplane if you should wish to do so . I suspect that you may be better acquainted with most of the planes and owners than I. When in the future, I run across stories or pictures that I think might be of interest to the membership, I will pass them along . At any rate , thanks for the great job that you people are doing. I enjoy both the EAA and the AAA movements. Best wishes for continued success I remain. Yours truly ,

Bill Thumma

1314 Dulee Drive

Elwood , IN 46036

EAA 30584, AAA M8451 , NC 2107 March 1, 1976 Dear Sirs : Atter a membership of several years in the Antique/Classic Division , I had this year decided to let my membership lapse. That was before I got the January issue - I'm very impressed with the new format. I love to read about the old antique aircraft and their histories, but let us not forget the newer antiques and classics. Particularly the airplanes that taught America to fly. I have made a new years resolution also! I will endeavor to help you with material as the chance presents itself. Find enclosed my check for $10.00 to cover my 1976 dues. Also my 1941 BC12-65 Taylorcraft Delux has 3400 hrs. total time in the log books . I'd be interested in hearing from anyone with a T-Cratt with more time on it. NC29804 is finished as per 1941 Delux color scheme complete with wing numbers. Sincerely Mik Girdley E~A 78331 , NC 1066 March 4, 1976 Dear AI : Preserving aviation history is a very difficult task . It is much like trying to determine the real story of an auto accident from the typically varied accounts of the witnesses; Everyone sees an event in a slightly different manner. For the true historian , the best sources would include

the principals involved in an event, as these individuals had more reason to know the intricacies of an important event in their lives, and perhaps had more reason to reflect on it afterwards. Another good source would be official records of an involved organization, such as the National Aeronautics Association and alike. Aviation perodicals have always had a reputation of high reporting integrity, and excellent information can be found on the pages of such journals as AERO DIGEST and AVIATION. Newspaper reports are notoriously unreliable and should only be used to generate " the color" of a situation. Recently written history should be carefully checked for what references were used , and who, if anybody, authenticated the result . Very important to the aviation historian is to learn and record those of the first generation of aviation, as time will eventually take its toll . Each student of history, after a careful review of all information available , including its references, should draw his own conclusions as to what actually happened! Sincerely ,

Ed Escallon

Orlando , FL

February 27, 1976 Dear 'J.R.': Regarding your request for " contributing " editors, will make sincere effort to submit material in the future to Vintage Airplane. Have been writing for Pilot's Preflight , The Washington sectional since its inception in May 1975, 8th Air Force 's Second Air Division Association and some others on occasion . Am Antique Airplane Ass 'n (12409), OX-5 Club (10366), Silver Wings Fraternity (3091) , member. Do not wish to commit myself to regular contributing since the monthly antique column I do for Pilot's Preflight, Washington sectional is enough to keep me really busy. Rick Rokicki

365 Mae Rd .

Glen Burnie , MD 21061

January 26, 1976 Dear Mr. Nielander: We received our Jan . copy of The Vintage Airplane and both my husband and I thought the new format is very nice. You mentioned wanting a geographical area

contributing editor. We live in

San Jose, Cal. and try to make as many fly-ins

as we can in the far west. We have dual

membership in both EAA and AAA .

What are the requirements and guidelines of a contributing editor?

Sincerely ,

Pat White, NC 500

Calendar of Events May 1-2 - Corona, California - Southern California Regional EAA Fly- In sponsored by EAA Chapters 1, 7, 11 , 92, %, 448 and 494. For infor mation contact Terry Davis , 13905 Envoy Ave., Corona, Ca. 91720 . Phone 714-735-8639. May 2 - Ellington, Conneticut - Ellington Airport. Sponsored by Rockville Rotary Club . Aerobatics, Ground Dis plays, Trophies for Antiques a nd Homebu ilts. Entrance applications available. Call or write jos. E. Shinn, 159 Union St., Rockville, Ct. 06066. Phone: 203-875-8000. (Raindate May 9th) May 15-16 - EAA 14th Annual Fly- In , Ramo na , Ca. Airport. Contact: R. Borden, 2279 East Pasto St., Ra mona , Ca. 92065 . 714-789-0459. No Aerobatic contest \pis year. May 15-16 - Conroe, Texas - 2nd Annual Fly In at Mon tgomery, Texas Airport (40 miles north of Houston), sponsored by EAA Antique and Classic Chapter 2, EAA Chapter 12 a nd EAA Chapter 345 . For information contact Doug Scott, 626 Lakeview Drive, Sugarland, TX 74088. Ph . (713) 494-3791 or Ed Pru ss, 6327 Tall Willow Drive, Housto n, TX 77088 Ph. (713) 466-4490. May 22-23 - Cambridge, Ma ryland - 9th Annual Potomac Antique Aero Squadron Antique Fly- In, Horn Point Aerodrome. May 28, 29, 30 - Wa tsonvill e, California 12th Annual Antiquer Fly-In Air Show. June 4-6 - Merced, California - Merced West Coast Antique Fly-ln. For informa tion contact jim Morr, a Director, Box 2312, Merced, CA 95340 or call 209-723-0929. June 16-20 - 1976 Staggerwingrrravel Air Int e rn a tion a l Convention, s p onso red by Staggerwing Mu seum Foundation a nd Staggerwing Club, Tullahoma, Te nn . Contact John Pa rish, c/o Staggerwing Museum Fo undation , P .O. Box 550, Tullahoma, Tenn. 37388. Phone: 615-455-0691 (business) or 615-455-2190 (home). June 18-20 - Pauls Valley Oklahoma Greater Oklahoma City Antique Airplane Ass n. Fl y- ln. Contact Alan Brakefield, Rt. 3, Box 301A, Okla. City, OK 73127.

June 23-27 - Hammondsport, New York Flight of the june Bug, a replica of the 1908 aircraft built and flown by G lenn H . Curtiss, in conjunction with Bicentennial Celebration. Contact Bill Fox, Pleasan t Valley Wine Co., Hammondsport, New York 14840. Phone: 607-569-212l. June 26-27 - Wisconsin Chapter AAA Grass Roots Fly- In, Clea rwa ter Reso rt , Clearwa ter, WI. June 26-27 - Wellsville Aviation Cl ub, Inc ., Great Well sville Air Show Poker Rall y Air Race. Spot Landing Contests, Flour Bombing, Best in Class Aircraft prizes and trophies. Wellsville Municipal Airport, Wellsville, NY. (Rainda te july 10) . July 3-4 - Gainesville, Georgia - 9th An nual Cracker Fly-ln . Sponsored by North Georgia Chapter of AAA, Antiques, Classics, Homebuilts and Wa rbirds welcome. Contact Bill Davis, 2202 Willivee Pl ace, Decatur, GA 30033. July 10-11 - Annual EAA Chapter 62 Fly-In, Hollister, CA. Contact D. Borg, 6948 Burning Tree, Sa n jose, CA 95119. July 10-11 - 17th Annual AAA Fly-In , DuPage County Airport, West Chicago, Illinois. Phone 312-763-711 4. July 31 - Augu st 8 - O shkos h, Wisconsin 24th Annual EAA International Fly-In Convention . Start makin g your plan s NOW! Aug ust 29-September 6 - Blakesburg, Iowa 6th Annual Invita tional AAA-APM Fly-ln. August 30 - September 3 - Fond du Lac, Wisconsin - 11th Annual EAAIIAC International Aerobatic C hampionships. Spon sored by Inte rna tional Aerobatic Club. September 17-19 - Georgetown, South Carolina - Second An nual Spirit of '76 Fly- In a t Georgetown County Airport, South Ca rolina. Sponsored by Cha pter 543 Antiquel Classics, Warbirds and Homebuilts. For infor matio n contact Herb Ba iley, P.O. Box 619, Georgetown, SC 29440 . (803) 546-2525 days; (803) 546-3357 ni ghts a nd weeke nds.

Back Issues Of The Vintage Airplane 1973 - MARCH, APRIL, MAY, JUNE, JULY, AUGUST, SETPEMBER, OCTOBER, NOVEMBER, DECEMBER, 1974 - JANUARY, FEBRUARY, MARCH , APRIL, MAY, JUNE, JULY, AUGUST, SEPTEMBER, OCTOBER, NOVEMBER, DECEMBER 1975 - JANUARY, FEBRUARY, MARCH, APRIL, MAY, JUNE, JULY-AUGUST, STEMPBER OCTOBER, NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 1976 - JANUARY, FEBRUARY, MARCH, APRIL

DUES INCREASE NOTICE At its April meeting the Board of Directors of the Antique-Classic Division voted to change the dues structure as indicated below. The changes become effective June 1, 1976. EAA MEMBER

NON-EAA MEMBER

$14.00 annually. All rights and privi leges as a full member of the Antique-Classic Divi sion . Receives 12 issues of the official Antique-Classic publication , The Vintage Airplane_ (a) $20.00 annuall y. All rights and privileges as full member of EAA and Antique-Classic Division. Receives 12 issues of the offic ial Antique-Classic publication , The Vintage Airplane. (b) $34.00 annually. All rights and privileges as a full member of EAA and Antique-Classic Division. Re.ceives 12 issues of The Vintage Airplane and 12 issues of Sport Aviation.

Passing of a Great Member: GROVER LOENING September 12, 1888 - March 1, 1976 . " Th e re is a feel ing in aviati on that it has all bee n done, but it has n' t been done. You yo un g men a nd wo men mus t rei oak the thin gs that a re tatlg ht a nd ques tio n w hether they sh o uld be accepted." This morning March 1, 1976, I received word over the tel eph one th a t our great aviation pioneer a nd close fri e nd Grover Loen ing departed on his las t fli g ht. Grover had been hos pitalized in mid-Janu ary as a res ult of a cerebra l hemorrhage and a n operation was performed. All of us had heard of Grover's co ndition a nd were hopeful he migh t s uccess fully s urvi ve, until th e sad news came this morning. It was m y great pleasure alo ng with my wife Elsie, as guests o f EAA and FSAA & CA to attend th eir banquet, Decembe r 6th, during th e Homes tead Fly-In, where G rover gave a very inte res ting lecture with illustrated slid es covering th e work o f Professor Langley a nd th e developm en t of his sca le models an d man carryi ng a ir pla ne, including its subsequ ent removal from th e Smithsonian Ins titution and ship men t to Ha mmond sport, NY, Curtiss Com pa ny Plant, where revisions were made to th e stru cture. Grove r Loening's o utsta nding aviation caree r is o ne of un end ing accomplish ments and he will be m issed bv a ll w ho knew him , but hi s contributio ns to th e advancement o f th e scie nce will li ve on for ever. E. M. (Ma t ty) Laird