Vintage Airplane - Aug 2005

VOL. 33 , NO. 8

2005

CONTENTS

1

Straight and Level

2

VAA News

3

Friends of the VAA Red Barn 2005

4

Aeromail

6

Reminiscing with Big Nick
The Pylon Club- Part I
by Nick Rezich

10

The First Practical Airplane
Part I: The Wright's dogged pursuit of useful flight
by H.G. Frautschy

16

Trans-Atlantic Moth

COVERS
FRONT COVER: On August 5 , 1904, Orville Wright flew the
Flyer II a total of 356 feet over the grassy hummocks of
Huffman Prairie , outside of Dayton , Ohio. It was the 19th
flight of the summer. Throughout all of 1904, the Wrights
struggled with obtaining consistent, controllable flights. Af­
ter numerous crashes and subsequent revisions to their
Flyer, they would achieve their goal of a truly practical air­
plane in the late summer of 1905. with their Flyer III. See
the first of a two-part article on the Wrights' activities dur­
ing those two years , starting on page 10. This detail is a
part of a larger image from a Library of Congress negative
(the original was a 5"x7" glass plate negative). Library of
Congress, Prints & Photographs Division, (LC-W86-00617)
BACK COVER: M. Randall Mytar's watercolor painting " Fly
Fishing" depicts a father sharing his love for fishing and
ftying with his young son . The artwork was presented with
the 1st place Vintage Category award during the 2005 EAA
Sport Avia tion Art Contest. A very limited number of prints
are available. Contact Mr. Mytar in Sherman Oaks, Califor­
nia, at 818-789-7719 for more information .

Torquil Norman's D.H .' 85 Leopard Moth
by H.G . Frautschy

20

The Forgotten Performers

Production Manager
Classified Ad Manager
Copy Editor

Tom Poberezny
Scott Spangler
H.G. Frautschy
jennifer Leh l
Kathleen Witman
Ric Reynolds
jim Koepnick
Bonnie Bartel
julie Russo
Isabelle Wiske
Colleen Walsh

Pass it to Buck

Director of Advertising

Katrina Bradshaw

Aero nca C-3 N-13000
by Buck Hilbert

Display AdvertiSing Representatives:

Bellanca's record-making airplanes
by Vic Pike

25

The Vintage Instructor
Whether/weather to go, or not
by Doug Stewart

27

Mystery Plane
by H.G. Frautschy

28

STAFF

30

Calendar

32

Classified Ads

Publisher
Editor-in-Chief
Executive Director/Editor
Administrative Assistant
Managing Editor
News Editor
Photography

ortheast: Allen Murray
Phone 609·26S·1 666, FAX 609·265· 166 1 e·mail : al/rl llllllrra)[email protected]
Southeast: Chester Baumga rtn er
Phone 727·573·0586, FAX 727·556·0177 e-mail; ( balllll I I I @\lIilldsprillg.fOlII
Central: Todd Reese
Phone SOO·444·9932, FAX 816·74 1·6458 e-mail: (o< ld@Sp("· /1/lIg.!01II
Mountain & Pacific: Keith Kn owlt on & Associat es
Phone 770-5 16-2743, e- mail: kkllowltulI @!ea(/.urg

GEOFF ROBISON
PRESIDENT, VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION

Summertime in Oshkosh

t's the Fourth of july weekend,
and I am writing this column
from Oshkosh as I sit at my picnic
table in Camp Scholler. I'm here
tending to a number of last-minute
EAA AirVenture logistical items that
needed attention.
I realize that few of you folks
have ever seen the EAA grounds
here in Oshkosh other than dur­
ing EAA AirVenture. It's a typical
summer day here in the upper Mid­
west, and as I look north from my
camper, I can see the large field EAA
uses for car parking, and a little fur­
ther, across the road, is EAA's Pio­
neer Airport. The grass in the field
is tall and turning brown, and you
can see the wind push it around,
making the grass look like waves. In
just a few short weeks, it won't be
nearly as serene.
It is always interesting to observe
the variety of reactions of first-time
pre-convention volunteers who are
among the hundreds who come
here to prepare the grounds for this
world-premier event each year.
In the weeks just prior to EAA
AirVenture the atmosphere here is
nothing short of surreal. There are
few airplanes flying around, little
to no traffic in the campground,
and no buzzing of motor scooters.
The only real noise you may hear
is the humming of the neighbor's
air conditioner, or that wonderful
symphony of noise made by the
Swallow, the Travel Air or, occasion­
ally, the Ford Tri-Motor in the pat­
tern around Pioneer Airport. My
campsite is strategically situated di­
rectly under the pattern at Pioneer
Airport, so it's a lot like living on a

I

busy little community airpark. It's
really quite wonderful!
If you have an opening in your cal­
endar, consider donating that time
to the VAA Division and EAA. Think
about coming early, and staying late,
to experience what this little piece of
heaven is like prior to the main event.
For the uninitiated, few have a real
feel for the massive effort that must
be put forth to prepare the grounds
and arrange for all of the necessary
logistical issues that are required in
preparation for the thousands of
visitors the world's greatest aviation
event attracts each year.
It is often heard around here that
without the volunteers at EAA Air­
Venture, this event would not be pos­
sible. As you know, I have oftentimes
extolled the many virtues of our val­
ued volunteers. Although this is a
true statement about our volunteers,
in this month's column I wanted to
also extend the gratitude of the Vin­
tage organization to the often-forgot­
ten individuals who toll away every
work day of the year to make this lit­
tle piece of heaven more heavenly for
the membership and our volunteers.
Who are these individuals? Why,
they're the many dedicated, hard­
working staff members of the Experi­
mental Aircraft Association and its
divisions. Special thanks to those in­
dividuals who work every day to plan
and implement the untold number
of incidental issues that are required
to be in place to have a successful
and safe event.
The effort is massive when you
consider how many toilets will be
needed, how many T-shirts we need
to have on hand to sell, security is­

sues, or even how much lemonade to
have on hand to keep our volunteers
upright and in forward motion. Be­
lieve me, this list is never ending.
Everybody pulls together every
year to get this huge job done in what
can only be labeled as a professional
and helpful manner. This effort put
forth by the staff is remarkable, and
it is important that we all recognize
their efforts and offer them our sin­
cere gratitude.
Yes, it may be impossible to put on
this world-premier event without all
of the volunteer efforts, but it is im­
possible for me to imagine what this
event would be like without the ever­
important participation and qual­
ity efforts of your EAA staff. Many
thanks to each of you for your dedi­
cation and hard work.
By the time this column hits your
mailbox, EAA AirVenture 200S will
be but a recent memory. Here's hop­
ing it is a safe and successful event.
As I am putting the finishing touches
on this month's column, word
reached my desk today of the loss of
two icons of the air show circuit. The
sad and tragic loss of jimmy Frank­
lin and Bobby Younkin hit the EAA
as well as the vintage family with a
hard blow. This loss will be long felt
by the extended Oshkosh friends and
family of these two fine, professional
gentlemen. Our hearts go out to the
members of their individual families.
Somehow, the show must go on.
Let's all pull in the same direction
for the good of aviation. Remember,
we are better together. join us and
have it all.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE

Dinner and a Murder

EAA staffers Gregg and Trish Deimer
at the 2004 mystery dinner.

Celebrate Aviation's Good 01' Days With EAA
Visitors enjoy the golden age of aviation at Good 0 1' Days 2004.

There's nothing quite like the good 01' days, especially when it
comes to airplanes. On August 20-21, the good folks at EAA's Pioneer
Airport present the Good 01' Days of Aviation, a heartwarming return
to a simpler time of open cockpits, leather helmets, and goggles.
All are invited to experience what airports were like during the early
days. Meet characters from the past, and rediscover the folklore, crafts,
and skills of old-time aviation.
Weather permitting, visitors will see incredible vintage airplanes­
EAA's and those from visiting pilots (as detailed in last month's "VAA
News")-fly throughout both days. Don't miss the afternoon "parade
of flight" and special flight demonstrations, like balloon bursting.
Other weekend features:
• At our large children's activity center kids can play the games that
were popular during the golden age of aviation.
• Original aircraft building skills are kept alive in the restoration
workshops. Watch a 1930 Monocoupe get .restored, and talk to the
craftsmen.
• Send and receive a telegram using Morse code.
• Meet and greet EAA's vintage aircraft pilots. Dressed in period cos­
tume, they'll share their vast flying experiences.
• Create a piece of airmail and see it delivered in one of EAA's vin­
tagemail planes. All materials and stamps are provided.
Airplane rides are available in a variety of vintage aircraft including
the 1929 Ford Tri-Motor, the 1929 Travel Air E-4000, the 1927 Pitcairn
Swallow biplanes, and a replica of Charles Lindbergh's famous Spirit of
st. Louis. Prices start at $25.
That's not all: A variety of vintage automobiles will be on display,
and everyone will have an opportu nity to take a free ride in a prewar
vintage vehicle.
A free shuttle service to Pioneer Airport is available to pilots flying
into Wittman Regional Airport and parking at Basler or Orion FBOs.
2

AUGUST 2005

Visit EAA's Pioneer Airport for a
fabulous buffet d inner on a 1930s
movie set. Rub shoulders with
glamorous movie stars, but watch
out for shady characters! Don 't be
surprised if a terrible murder takes
place during dinner-after which
it'll be up to you and the other pa­
trons to find the culprit.
Tickets, including dinner, are $25
for EAA members, $30 for others.
Reservations are recommended and
can be made online at https://secure.
eaa.orglmuseum/murdermystery.asp or
by calling 920-426-6880.

First Biplane Fantasy Camp
in September
Everything you wanted to know
about biplanes will be discussed at
EAA's first Biplane Fantasy Flight
Camp September 23-25. Included
are three biplane flights from Pio­
neer Airport, with extensive pre­
flight and starting procedures
briefing for groups, simulator flights
in a )-3 Cub from the virtual Witt­
man and Pioneer fields, and various
meal and evening speakers.
The camp also includes two
nights in the EAA Air Academy
Lodge, meals, and VIP tours of the
EAA AirVenture Museum, conven­
tion grounds, collection storage,
Pioneer Airport, Weeks Hangar,
and EAA administrative and sup­
port facilities .
To learn more, visit www.airventure
museum.org.
Continental Gray Engine Enamel
From longtime member Marv

Hoppenworth, the creator of the
original youngster's pedal planes
you see at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh
and at Pioneer Airport (thanks,
Marv!), we have this little tidbit of
restoration information:
"It seems none of the parts-sup­
ply people that I could find have
Continental gray engine enamel. I
hear comments like, 'It is like Pratt
& Whitney gray with blue in it.'
I'm in the process of working on
an A-65 Continental that is going
to be installed on a museum-bound
Cub, and I wanted to get the true
color. I removed the dataplate (l'm
replacing it), and there was Conti­
nental gray, which had been in the
shade for 60 years. Then we took
the case half to our local DuPont
paint dealer and went through the
color charts and came up with a
DuPont color match. The DuPont
number is DA182A. This happens
to be the Centari acrylic enamel
number; this can probably be got­
ten in Dulux enamel, too."

CALL FOR

VAA

HALL OF FAME NOMINATIONS

Nominate your favorite aviator for the EAA Vintage Aircraft Association
Hall of Fame. A huge honor could be bestowed upon that man or woman
working next to you on your airplane, sitting next to you in the Chapter
meeting, or walking next to you at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. Think
about the people in your circle of aviation friends, that mechanic, that
photographer, that pilot who has shared innumerable tips with you and
with many others. They could be the next VAA Hall of Fame inductees-but
only if they are nominated.
The person you nominate can be a citizen of any country and may be
living or deceased, and his or her involvement in vintage aviation must have
occurred between 1950 and the present day. His or her contribution could
be in the areas of flying; design; mechanical or aerodynamic developments;
administration; writing; some other vital, relevant field; or any combination
of fields that support aviation. The person you nominate must be or have
been a member of the Vintage Aircraft Association, and preference is given
to those whose actions have contributed to the VAA in some way, perhaps
as a volunteer; a writer; a photographer; or a pilot sharing stories, preserving
aviation history, and encouraging new pilots and enthusiasts.
To nominate someone is easy. It just takes a little time and a little
reminiscing on your part.
• Think of a person, think of his or her contributions.
• Write those contributions in the various categories of the form.
• Write a simple letter highlighting these attributes and contributions. Make
copies of newspaper or magazine articles that may substantiate your view.
. If you can, have another person complete a form or write a letter about this
person, confirming why the person is a good candidate for induction.
• Mail the form to:
VAA Hall of Fame
H.G. Frautschy

PO Box 3086

Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086

REM E MBER , YOUR "CONTEMPORARY" MAY BE A CANDIDATE­

NOMINATE SOMEONE TODAY!


FAA Honors Buck Hilbert
Veteran pilot and VAA colum­
nist Buck Hilbert was recently
honored by the FAA with the FAA
Master Pilot award for 50 years of
continuous flying. Scott Landsdorf,
FAA Safety Program manager (left),
made the presentation during a re­
cent meeting of the DuPage Pilot's
Association. Our thanks to Ted
Koston for sending us this photo
and the information.
~

Call the VAA office for a form (920-426-6110); find it at www.vintageaircraft.org;
or on your own sheet of paper, simply include the following information:
• Date submitted.
• Name of person nominated.
• Address and phone of nominee.
• Date of birth of nominee. If deceased, date of death.
• Name and relationship of nominee's closest living relative.
• Address and phone of nominee's closest living relative.
• E-mail address of nominee .
• Time span (dates) of the nominee's contributions to aviation. (Must be
between 1950 to present day.)
• VAA and EAA number, if known.
• Area(s) of contributions to aviation.
• Describe the event(s) or nature of activities the nominee has undertaken in
aviation to be worthy of induction into the VAA Hall of Fame.
• Describe achievements the nominee has made in other related fields
in aviation.
• Has the nominee already been honored for his/her involvement in aviation
and/or the contribution you are stating in this petition? If yes, please
explain the nature of the honor and/or award the nominee has received.
• Any additional supporting information.
• Name of person submitting petition.
• Submitter's address and phone number, plus e-mail address.
• Include any supporting material with your petition.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

3

FRIENDS OF THE VAA RED BARN 2005

OUR THANKS TO THOSE LISTED FOR YOUR GENEROUS SUPPORT OF THE VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION'S ACTIVITIES
AND PROGRAMS DURING EAA AIRVENTURE OSHKOSH.

This list includes donors as of July 7, 2005.

Again , thank you for being a Friend of the VAA Red Barn!

DIAMOND LEVEL FRIENDS

Don Abbott, Sanibel, FL
Ted Beckwith, Jr. , Tullahoma, TN
VAA Chapter 10, Claremore, OK
VAA Chapter 11, Glendale, WI
Kenneth Cianchette, Pittsfield, ME
Jacie & Scott Crowell, Bandon, OR
Bud Field, Hayward, CA
Nikki Field, Hayward, CA
Rich Giannotti, Brookhaven, NY
Charles W. Harris, Tulsa, OK
Lynn Jensen, Ashland, VA
Norma Joyce, Greensboro, NC
Butch Joyce, Greensboro, NC
Bob Lumley, Brookfield, WI
Skip Rawson, Rocky Hill , NJ
Ronald Tarrson, Santa Fe, NM
John Turgyan, New Egypt, NJ
James Turrell, Flagstaff, AZ.
PLATINUM LEVEL FRIENDS

D. Ronald Boice, Chandler, AZ.

Buck Hilbert, Union, IL

Ben Scott, Reno, NV

Donald J. Warner, Gilbert, AZ.

GOLD LEVEL FRIENDS

Dean K. Alexander, Chillicothe, OH
Beverly Beckwith , Tullahoma, TN
Jim Gorman, Mansfield, OH
Helen A. Mahurin, Kansas City, MO
Earl Nicholas, Barrington, IL
Steven W. Oxman, Riva, MD
Stephen Pitcairn, Bryn Athyn, PA
Skip Rawson, Rocky Hill, NJ
S.H. · Wes" Schmid, Wauwatosa, WI
SILVER LEVEL FRIENDS

Allen D. Boger, Jr., Argyle, TX
Raymond B. Bottom, Jr. , Hampton , VA
A. J. Hugo, West POint, NE
Edward R. Moore, Daytona Beach, FL
John D. Stewart, Slatington, PA
Jamie Wallace, Frankfort, IL
C. Paul Wilcox, Welaka, FL
Russell Williams, Issaquah, WA
Harrison F. Wood, Upper Saddle River, NJ
4

AUGUST 2005

BRONZE LEVEL FRIENDS

William R. Aikens , Bloomfield Hills, MI
Lloyd L. Austin, Dover, DE
Lawrence A. Bartell , Waukesha, WI
Dave Belcher, Abington, MA
Clifford Belleau, Anchorage , AK
Kent Blankenburg, Groveland, CA
Sandy Blankenburg, Groveland , CA
Stacey & Michael Boggs, Keyser, WV
Denis G. Breining, Austin, TX
Charles B. Brownlow, Weyauwega , WI
Steven L. Buss, Oshkosh, WI
Perry M. Chappano, Columbus, OH
Gene R. Chase, Oshkosh, WI
Geoffrey E. Clark, Portsmouth, NH
Sydney B. Cohen, Wausau, WI
John & Marge Cooke, Galena, IL
John S. Copeland , Northborough, MA
Dan Dodds, St. Anthony, MN
Cheryl & Chris Drake, Lindenhurst, IL
Theodoore Embry, Cleburne, TX
James E. Fischer, Lakeville, MN
David G. Flinn, Lansing, NY
Robert L. Fornesi, Claremont, CA
Henry G. Frautschy, Oshkosh, WI
Mal & Inge Gross, Eastsound, WA
William W. Halverson, Henderson, NV
Carl W. Higgins, Aloona, WI
Mark Holliday, Lake Elmo, MN
Barry Holtz, Fairport,NY
Randy Hytry, Wausau, WI
Peter N. Jansen, Jr., Seattle, WA
Gordon L. Knapp, Tampa, FL
Jimmy Leeward, Ocala, FL
Stan Lindholm, Westlake, OH
Allan W. Lund, Hayward, WI
Thomas Lymburn , Princeton, MN
Pfizer Foundation, Princeton, NJ
William L. Madden , Las Cruces, NM
Jim Matus, Rescue, CA
Marie & Jack McCarthy, Crestwood, IL
W. Timothy McSwain , Randolph, NJ
Gene E. Morris, Westlake ," TX
Roscoe Morton, Frostproof, FL
James S. Moss, Buckley, WA
Boynton (Bud) Nissen, Wright City, MO
George A. Northam , Elmhurst, IL
Anna & John Osborn, Kerrville, TX
Billy & Saundra Pancake, Keyser, WV

John M. Patterson, Lexington, KY
Gary L. Petersen , Walton, NE
Ray Pool, Madera, CA
Tim and Liz Popp, Lawton, MI
Ron Price, Sonoma, CA
Bob & Norma Puryear, Trinity Center, CA
Theodore Reusch , La Verne, CA
Charles Schumacher, Boulder, CO
Arthur F. Sereque , Jr., Woodridge, IL
Jeffrey L. Shafer, Fond du Lac, WI
Peter Sherwin , St. Louis, MO
Colin A. Smith, Henderson, NV
Randolph H. Smith, Cody, WY
David P. Smith, Pacific Palisades, CA
Joseph M. Smokovitz, Tecumseh , MI
Guy A. Snyder, Bartonville, IL
Jim Snyder, Morgantown , WV
L. Dean Spencer, Beadford , IN
Seymour Subitzky, Reston, VA
Carson E. Thompson, Elmhurst, IL
Don Toeppen, Sun City West, AZ.
Robert O. Tyler, Great Falls , VA
Harland Verrill , Flint, MI
Tom Vukonich , Southfield, MI
Donald L. Weaver, EI Centro, CA
LeRoy Weber, Jr. , Rio Vista, CA
D. Jeanne Will iams, Sonoma , CA
Red Hamilton & Marily Boese, Fort Bragg, CA
LOYAL SUPPORTER FRIENDS

Jesse W. Black, Hawick, MN
Edward Brannon, Racine, WI
SMSgt Gary M. Brossett, Clovis, NM
Rene Burdet, Belgrade, ME
Samuel W. Clipp, Pennsburg, PA
Charles Crume, Oak Ridge , TN
Jim Newhouse, Virgil, IL
Philip G. Perez, Fort Worth, TX
Keith Plendl , Hinton, IA
Colonel C.A. "Buz " Rich, Williamsburg, VA
Stephen Sawyer, Brigham City, UT
Mark W. Scott, Bethany, CT
Edward Smith, Sandy Valley, NV
Gary W. Sullivan , Santa Fe, NM
Jim Temple, Granger, IN
Thomas E. Trainor, Troy, MI
Ty R. Zeiner, Marion, KS
VAA Chapter 34, Falmouth, MA

be making final taxi
tests at San Diego one
weekend, and that if
everything went well,
it might fly. So some of
us drove down to Lind­
bergh Field and
parked down
the runway
at the point
where the en­
gineers had
calculated it
would leave
the ground.
I was thrilled
Here's Richard's photograph of the XC-99's first flight.
to see, at the
The XC-99
far end of the runway, the Ryan
I only recently ran across the July Aeronautical Company, where
2003 issue with the article "The Goli­ Lindbergh's plane was built.
"The tremendous, lumbering C-99
ath of the Airways" about the XC-99.
COincidentally, I was culling some made a few high-speed taxi tests,
old slides I'd been saving which in­ then revved up and took off on its
first flight. Just as it passed us , it
cluded the XC-99's first flight.
On page 9 it is reported, "The lifted into the air."
Richard Parvin
XC-99 was first flown on April 18,
1952." Not true. Later, on page 20,
Clearwater, Florida
"The Goliath's first flight was made
on November 24, 1947." 1947 Woodworker Extraordinaire
is correct, but I'm not sure of the
Restoring an antique airplane
month. On page 22, "It was built calls for many different kinds
at the Consolidated factory in Fort of skills. And like most people, I
Worth ...." That's not true.
found myself deficient in some
Actually, it made its first flight categories. Woodworking was the
from Lindbergh Field in San Diego biggest problem, both from an ex­
in 1947. Here's my story:
perience level and having tools to
In 1947 I was a newly graduated make complex parts.
aero engineer and former bomber
My current project is a Fairchild
pilot working at Northrop Aircraft 24W, and it has a lot of wood which
in Hawthorne, California. Although has suffered neglect and exposure to
the industry was going through ma­ the elements.
jor post-war cutbacks, I was thrilled
It would have been convenient
to witness and photograph the first to go to the nearest Fairchild store
flights of three new prototypes that to buy some of these wood parts.
year: the Northrop B-49 Jet Flying
But the Fairchild store is as much
Wing (flying from the Northrop of the past as the hand craftsman­
runway in Hawthorne), the Hughes ship employed to build this old air­
Hercules flying boat (from Long plane back in 1939.
Fortunately I know a young man
Beach Harbor), and the huge XC-99
from the Convair plant in San Di­ who is a furniture maker. In fact,
he's a third-generation wood crafts­
ego. As I recorded the event:
"We had heard that Convair's man and has studied under Amer­
huge C-99 transport plane would ican and European artisans. He

works with hand tools as well as
power tools.
He primarily builds elegant cus­
tom furniture from old-growth,
tight-grained wood, which is highly
figured. His work is like fine art
you'd expect in a known gallery.
So, I felt privileged that he found
it interesting and enjoyable to make
some airplane pieces for me. And,
at a reasonable price!
All I supplied was the aircraft­
grade Sitka spruce and enough of
the old tattered parts to get some
dimensions.
I'd like to share his name and
address with others who might be
"wood challenged" like myself:
Frank Strazza
329 Coastal Lane
Waco, TX 76705
254/71 5-6660
[email protected]
Dal Donner
Clifton, Texas

Dal's experience with Frank Straza
highlights the fact that you can, un­
der FAR 21.303, make a part for your
own aircraft, provided you have what
the FAA considers appropriate infor­
mation (drawings, for example). The
rules also require that if you're having
someone help you produce the part,
that the creation of that part is done
under your direct supervision. Check
with your A&P-IA mechanic and your
local FSDO regarding the appropriate­
ness of the information you have on
hand before attempting to make such
a part.-HGF
......
Feel free to write us here at Vintage
Airplane; send us your kudos, com·
plaints , corrections, or just plain old
good stuff you want to share with every·
body. Send your note to:
Vintage Airplane
Aeromail
PO Box 3086
Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086
You can e·mail your letter at this address:
[email protected]
Be sure to put Aeromail in the subject line
of your message.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

5

REMINISCING WITH BIG NICK
THE PYLON CL.UB-PART I
Nick Rezich

have been a racing nut ever "Daddy, you know what you are- land out of the racing picture, this
since I was knee high to a tail- so why try hiding the truth?" With left Miami as the only remaining
skid, and I still am. Going to that statement I grounded her for a hope to air racing survival. Fortu­
the air races to me was like go­ week and am proceeding with the nately for the Midgets, Miami and
Continental Motors went on with
ing to church-it was very spir­ Pylon Club story.
itual. The "spirit" has never left me,
Air racing faced certain doom the winter races. The Unlimiteds,
but it did turn my life around at one following the 1949 fatal crash of however, were not as fortunate;
pOint, which led to the opening of Bill Odom and the cancellation of they were locked out with no one
the Cleveland Air Races.
willing to sponsor them because
the world-famous "Pylon Club."
In the three short years of post­ they were labeled as dangerous by
I have been asked by many
of the younger generation to tell war air racing, millions of dollars a few blockheads whom sponsors
about the Pylon Club. There is so were invested in racing machines, listened to.
much to tell about the club that which resulted in 400-mph speeds
I could not fathom the thought
I just didn't know where to start. in the Unlimiteds and over 200 of air racing coming to a grinding
When I did start this episode over mph in the Midgets. Mechanical halt after 39 years of struggling to
a month ago and had written over and technical barriers were being become an international sport. I
60 pages I threw them all away be­ smashed that would benefit avia­ had a personal interest and an in­
cause they all read the same-"self­ tion when the black curtain was vestment at stake that I didn't want
centered." I have searched my brain dropped at Cleveland.
to see going up in smoke. My per­
for weeks trying to find words that
No matter what the race pilots sonal interest was in the form of
don't reflect an egomania image. and owners had to say in their de­ a new-design Midget racer I had
The more I wrote, the worse it be­ fense, the news media, FAA, and air­ started, and the investment was a
came. Finally, my daughter solved port management, along with the commitment I had made in Cleve­
my problem.
general public, hollered "Kill! kill! land before the fatal crash of Odom.
After the 50th start, she said, kill!" And kill it was. With Cleve­ I committed myself to a group of
Reprinted from Vintage Airplane January 1975

I

6

AUGUST 2005

owners in Michigan for their sharp
P-51, which wasn't doing well at
Cleveland, to purchase their racer
at the close of the 1949 races.
I managed to get out from under
the-51 after the race cancellation,
but I was determined to build and
race the Midget. These were the
events that set the stage of the Py­
lon Club.
I needed a platform to launch
my campaign to save air racing. It
had to be a platform where I could
reach the public, news media, the
business world, FAA, and other in­
terested parties. How and where?
The "where" was easy-I felt Chi­
cago was the city because Chicago
had been a good racing city, hav­
ing hosted the 1930 National Air
Race, the 1933 American Air Races,
and the International Races, and it
had the airports reqUired for such
an event.
The "how" was yet to be thought
of. I went to Miami for the Conti­
nental Motors' Race only to find
that Miami was following Cleve­
land's decision to drop the air rac­
ing program. Miami had grown to
the point where the winter air races
were no longer needed to attract
the tourist. They also dropped the
AAA Winter Midget Auto Races.
This really made me unhappy.
The loss of another major racing
event coupled with the loss of the
week having fun in the sun was too
much to bear. I went home deter­
mined more than ever that I would
do something for air raCing-other

than talking about it.
The "how" idea came to me while
I was flying the Chicago-Seattle­
Chicago-Burbank run for the non­
scheds. Those lO-hour flights gave
a guy a lot of time to dream, and
dream I did. I came upon the
idea of opening a fabulous "sa_
loon" that I would call a night­
club. This club would have to be
something unusual in order to at­
tract the people I wanted to reach.
I designed a very elaborate saloon
that carried the theme of air rac­
ing to its fullest extent-thus be­
came the "Pylon Club."
When I announced my plan to
my brother Frank, who was my
partner in the Midget, he thought
I had flipped. His reaction to the
idea was, "What the hell do you
know about running a saloon?"­
and, "What are you going to use for
money?" I explained to him that
any dummy can pour a beer and
that I still had the money from the
sale of my Culver Cadet. With that
he shook his head, took a bite out
of his cigar butt, and went back to
welding on the Midget.
My original idea was to locate in
downtown Chicago, but a saloon
keeper friend of mine talked me
out of that idea in a hurry, explain­
ing that, between the coppers and
the gangsters, I wouldn't last six
months unless I put them on the
payroll and they would eventually
own the joint.
I shifted my thoughts to the
Midway Airport area, the eventual

location. The exact location was
3017 W. 63rd Street, which was 2-1/4
miles east of Midway. This location
put me between the A.L.P.A. Head­
quarters and Dr. Fenwick's office,
the doctor who gave most all of the
FAA physicals on the south side.
For the sake of you historians, we
were located just two blocks east of
where Benny Howard built the first
Howard DGA-8.
Flying for Monarch Air Service,
the non-sched kept me out of town
quite a bit, which kept the project
on low burner. Time was slipping
by when fate struck a blow that put
us in high blower.
The non-sched I was working for
hired a new chief pilot from Miami,
where he was flying a Lockheed
"Lobster." We were operating three
DC-3s, three C-46s, and a Lockheed
10. This new guy never even rode
in a C-46, but had lied that he was
type rated in the DC-3 and C-46.
He started out by riding with the
pilots in the DC-3s on the pretense
he was checking them out until
he was able to stagger around well
enough not to kill himself. He then
moved to the C-46, where he met
his Waterloo-which ended up put­
ting the company out of business.
It happened at Midway one
night about 11 p.m. Being the end
of the month, all the captains had
run out of time, but there was one
more schedule to fly so the Head
Honcho decides he would fly the
trip. Larry Crawford Sr. brought the
ship in from Miami and landed on
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

7

a glazed ice runway at Midway with
no problem.
The airplane had no squawks,
so the Honcho fills it with gas and
skulls and files for LGA. He cranked
up and taxied to 31L without los­
ing it on the ice, but about a quar­
ter way down the runway he did
lose it. For takeoff power in the -46
he was using DC-3 settings, and
when he lost it, he pulled off at
about 80 mph. It came off, but not
for long- that over-grossed pig fell
back in, and there was no room to
stop it on the ice. The co-pilot, who
knew how to fly the -46, moved in
and advanced the throttles to max
power. From my house it sounded
like he double clutched it. Now the
Chief Honcho moves in again and
pulls it off, only this time he is off
the runway and headed for John
Casey's house, the airport man­
ager. Before he gets to the house,
John's BT-13 interrupts the flight .
The nose, wings, and engines clear
the BT-13 , but not the tail. He
ripped off the stabilizer and flipper
on one side of the-46, and now it
is hanging on the screaming props
with no tail. The airplane turned
south and settled into the only
open field with outside hay storage
for a perfect vertical decent land­
ing. Everybody got out without
injury and then the -46 very conve­
niently burned.
When the hearings were over
and we found out this clown's real
name and that he was not type
rated in the-46 or DC-3, the insur­
e
AUG U S T 2 0 0 5

ance was cancelled on the carrier
and Monarch went out of the big
airplane non-sched business. And I
was out of a job.

WHEN THE

PAINTER

SHOWED UP

AND I

EXPLAINED

TO HIM WHAT I

WANTED ,

HE , TOO , TOLD

ME I WAS

NUTS.

About three days later myoid
FAA buddy, the late Walter Blan­
ford, called from St. Louis and of­
fered me, Frank, and Monarch Air
Services' original chief pilot, Frank
Arlaskas, a job with Parks Airlines,
which later became Ozark. I stayed
on in St. Louis for a while, but the
Pylon Club idea and air show flying
didn't mix with Parks. So I came
back to Chicago to start work on
the Club.
The building I used turned out to
be one-quarter the size of my origi­

nal plans. This was dictated by the
price of the rent, heat, and light.
The next awakening was the prices
for the decor and insurance.
I licked some of the decor costs
by calling on a former Howard Air­
craft employee, Mike Bernat, who
turned to interior decorating after
Howard closed. We took my origi­
nallayout and shrunk it to fit the
smaller building. We added Mike
Bernat's ideas for the final outcome.
I could save 500 words here if I had
a photo of the interior of the Club.
But believe it or not, out of hun­
dreds of photos taken by maga­
zines, newspapers, customers, and
friends, I do not have a photo of
the place. I'll tell you why later.
You will have to use your imagi­
nation as I try to give you a mental
picture of the place. For the ceiling
we used parachutes with the har­
ness removed. Mike hung them in
clusters, with the top center fa s­
tened to the ceiling and the cano­
pies hanging inverted. At the edges
where the chutes met the walls, we
rolled the surplus and attached it
in a scalloped form . The end result
was a very decorative and highly
insulated acoustical ceiling.
The main theme was carried
into the walls . We divided the
walls into four large sections, each
of which would have a 3-D mural
of the various racing events. Mike
Bernat designed, built, and in­
stalled the four huge cornices that
would frame the murals.
The murals were a major under­

taking and very costly in time and
money. I had 3-D color photos of
Cleveland, Miami, and California
races that I wanted reduced in full
detail on the 20-by-8-foot sections
of wall. At first I thought I could
get them blown up to billboard size
like they use for outdoor advertis­
ing, but when I told them I only
wanted one each they thought I
was crazy or rich or both. When
they quoted me $4,000 and no
guarantee of quality, I scrubbed the
blow-up idea.
I got the bright idea of borrow­
ing a projector to project the im­
age on the wall, and then trace the
whole thing in charcoal to obtain
the detail, and then paint it. The
idea was great, but it didn't work.
My brother Mike solved our prob­
lem by recommending a painter he
knew. He cautioned me, however,
that I would have to keep this guy
sober if I wanted the job to be com­
pleted. When the painter showed
up and I ex plained to him what
I wanted, he, too, told me I was
nuts. We finally reached an agree­

ment on price and
time. Now for my
$5,000 mistake­
the painter asked
if I wanted the
paintings on can­
vas or the wall sur­
faces. I opted for
the wall because
it was cheaper, I
thought, which I
was to regret later.
Next proj ect
was the identifier.
My original plans
called for a bea ­
con on the roof
and a huge neon­
lighted pylon in
front. When I ap­
proached the land­
lord and informed
him I was going
to erect a beacon
tower on the roof,
he flipped and
darn near ran me
out of town. Next to get shot down
was the neon-lighted pylon
First, the building would have
to be beefed up to hold it; next a
special permit from the city was re­
quired, extra insurance, and when
I got the price from the sign com­
pany to build it, I gave up and
opted for a 6-foot script-lettered Py­
lon Club neon sign. I was fast learn­
ing about the saloon business. Here
I am, three weeks away from my
proposed opening date and I am
broke and borrowing-and with six
week's work left to finish.
The sign painter by now has
polished off about three cases of
gin, but was doing one hell of a
good job. I took my chances with
the painter and kept pouring the
gin, and about another case later
he finished the job. BELIEVE YOU
ME, when we finished it was a
CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS-it
was a masterpiece. The only thing
missing was the whine of engines
and the roar of the crowd. We
all sat back to admire Jeff's work
and drank a toast to the master­

piece when I got the brilliant idea
of just one more painting. After
we all destroyed a bottle of booze,
I asked Jeff if he would paint a
panoramic view of racers on the
racecourse at Cleveland on the
window up front facing the street.
By now he was so wrapped up in
the place and so full of enthusi­
asm and booze that he agreed .
This painting turned out to be a
classic. Up until now we had the
window covered so no one could
see in while we were working.
When Jeff started to paint that
window, I had to bar the door. Ev­
erybody wanted in-finished or
not. In the meantime we fixed up
the back bar with a big OX-5 Ham­
ilton prop, which I borrowed from
my brother Mike. A pyramid of Carl
Hubbell's black bordered pre-war
Thompson Trophy winners were
hung on the wall. Red and white
checkered pylons were placed all
over the place, along with trophies
and a whole new slew of photos of
racers, people, and events. Between
the Hubbell paintings and the OX-5
prop hung a beautiful painting of
our Midget racer No. 43. This paint­
ing was a gift from Paul Schaupp,
builder of Mr. Zip No. 27 Midget
racer, from Inglewood, California.
Before we opened formally, we
had a premier showing for the avia­
tion and public press and other se­
lected guests who made the Pylon
Club possible. We named the mu­
rals as follows: the south half of the
west was the Art Chester Wall; this
was a painting of Art Chester taking
off at the San Diego Races minutes
before he was killed.
The north half was the Goodyear
Wall, with a large shot of one of the
Goodyear Pylons with Bill Bren­
nand rounding the bend. North
half of the east wall was the Cleve­
land Wall with a shot of the 1947
finish, and the south half was the
Betty Skelton Wall. This wall had
the shot of Bettys IiI Stinker at Mi­
ami winning the akro title. .......
Next month:
Pylon Club Happenings.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

9

·

THE

~




Part I: The Wright's dogged pursuit of useful flight
H.G.

wo weeks after arriving
home from the windblown
sands of North Carolina's
Outer Banks, the Wright
brothers were working on their next
flying machine. New Year's Day saw
Orville sending the engine casting
patterns to Harry Maltby for changes.
(A few days later he returned the
patterns, saying he couldn't make
the requested Changes.) Casting pat­
terns for the pistons and cylinders
were sent out, with instructions to
make three sets. Charlie Taylor got
to work on a pair of new engines.
At least one was needed for the new
Flyer, since the 1903 Flyer engine's
crankcase was broken when the Flyer
was rolled over by the wind after the
fourth flight on December 17. The
second engine would be used for
tests. By the third week of January
they were sawing wood for n ew up­
rights and ribs, and construction of
the Flyer II was well underway.
The 1904 Wright Flyer II was

T

10

AUGUST 2005

FRAUTSCHY

nearly identical in shape and form
to the 1903 machine, with one im­
portant exception: They changed
the wing camber from 1 in 20 to 1
in 25, flattening out the wing's cross
section, which slightly reduced its
drag, but also its lift. As the sum­
mer months progressed, the heat
and humidity affected the unvar­
nished wooden structure, and the
airfoil further flattened out to about
a 1 in 30 camber. They were count­
ing on the additional speed possible
with the higher-horsepower engine
and the lower drag of the airfoil to
make up for the lower lift generated
by the flatter airfoil.
It didn't work.
For 1905, they'd go back to the
1 in 20 camber. Other changes in­
cluded a revision to the hinge point
for the forward rudder (what we re­
fer to as their elevator), since the
1903 machine's forward rudder was
mistaken ly hinged aft of the cen­
ter of pressure and had a tendency

to snatch the controls from the op­
erator and to move to the full-up or
full-down position when the control
was moved in flight. The location of
the engine was also revised to move
the center of gravity. During the sea­
son, they also installed steel bars
weighing as much as 70 pounds un­
der forward rudder, bringing the to­
tal weight of the machine to about
915 pounds.
Due to the scarcity in Dayton of
spruce long enough for their pur­
poses, the brothers were forced
to use pine for their spars, which
caused a fair amount of frustration
when repairs had to be made. The
pine snapped easier than the spruce,
causing the number of repairs to
be higher. An order was placed for
spruce, but it would be later in the
summer before the wood would ar­
rive at their shop.
There was one pair of parts that
were legaCies from the 1903 Kitty
Hawk Flyer-the propellers. Both

By May of 1904, the Wrights had built a new version of the Flyer they had
tested in Kitty Hawk at the end of the previous year. Desiring a closer location to
their home in Dayton, they gained permission to fly in Torrance Huffman's prai­
rie pasture, just a few miles outside of Dayton. There, they built a hangar shed to
house their airplane, shown in these photographs in its initial 1904 configuration.
Orville leans on the strut while chatting with his older brother Wilbur, standing on
the right. What appears to be a Richards anemometer is mounted to an outboard
wing strut, just behind Wilbur's head. You can clearly see a larger gasoline tank
and a radiator/expansion tank mounted on center-section struts near the horizon­
tal four-cylinder engine. The forward rudder (elevator) is clearly different in plan
form from the 1903 Kitty Hawk Flyer.

airscrews had survived the tumble
over the sand after the fourth flight
on December 17 and were to be used
on the 1904 machine for the very
first trials. It is unclear exactly when
they were removed from the 1904
machine, but it seems likely it was
in advance of this notation made on
August 10, 1904:
"Broke rudder before final landing.
Broke screw" was the entry related to
a 640-foot flight made by w.w. and
noted in Wilbur's Diary E. (In their
diaries, the brothers referred to each
other by their initials.)
On Monday, May 23, 1904, they
invited the press (but no photogra­
phers), their father, and a few friends
for the first flight of the new ma­
chine. It was a tough day for the
brothers. They fully expected they
would, at the very least, be able to
duplicate the distance flown the pre­
vious December. It didn't work out
the way they had planned.
While both had become the

world's most experienced glider pi­
lots over hundreds of glides since
they started flying from the Great
Hill near Kitty Hawk, North Caro­
lina, when they started flying again
in 1904 they had a combined total
of only 98 seconds of powered flying
time-Orville with a total time of
27 seconds, Wilbur with 71 precious
ticks of the stopwatch in his diary/
logbook. This inexperience and the
combined effects of density altitude
and a very narrow performance en­
velope added to their challenges.
After waiting for high winds to
subside on that Monday in May,
they were dismayed to see the wind
die off almost completely. They
placed the Flyer II on the new 100­
foot launching rail they had built,
and one of the brothers (it's not
clear in their diaries which of the
two) settled into the padded leather
hip cradle and grasped the wooden
controls. The engine proved diffi­
cult to start and ran poorly, mis­
firing irregularly. The signal given,
the engine lever was moved over
to the far right and the restraining
clip tripped. With hardly a breath
of wind blowing, the Flyer started
down the track. But the combina­
tion of a much higher density alti­
tude than they had at Kitty Hawk
and the misfiring engine caused the
Flyer to show no propensity to fly;

it unceremoniously ran off the end
of the track.
A few days later, with the weather
still unsettled and rainy, Orville
managed a meager 25-foot hop.
Once again, their father, 76-year­
old Bishop Milton Wright, made the
8-mile trip on the interurban trol­
ley from the west side of Dayton to
Simms Station, across the road from
Huffman Prairie.
The summer of 1904 would be a
real test of the brothers' persistence.
They were somewhat surprised and
very disappointed in the initial tri­
als, and probably a bit embarrassed
as well. Not since the train ride
home from North Carolina in Au­
gust of 1901 had they been more
perplexed and frustrated in their
aerial experiments.
June, July, and August would go
past before they would equal, based
on time aloft, their last flight of 59
seconds on December 17,1903. They
finally did it on Thursday, September
IS, 1904, in a flight that lasted 59-1/2
seconds, according to the stopwatch
and Richard anemometer mounted
on the Flyer. That day's flight was
made easier to accomplish thanks to
one more innovation that was added
to their list of accomplishments that
fall: the construction and use of a
catapult to launch their airplanes.
They didn't have the steady breezes
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

11

In 1904, the Wrights would accumulate 45 minutes of flying time during
105 flights. Most of the flights were measured in seconds, such as this ef­
fort, flight number 30. Wilbur is shown in mid-flight on August 13, 1904.
He would cover 784 feet in 22-3/4 seconds, skimming low over the tall
grass in Huffman Prairie. Two interesting details (see insets) are present in
this image. First, on the left, below the right wing of the Flyer II, a couple
of people can be seen riding in a horse-drawn cart. One can only imagine what they were thinking as
the biplane skimmed the grass. Second, on the far right, it appears Charlie Taylor is the man in shirt­
sleeves with his hands on his hips as the Flyer II clatters by.

they had taken advantage of along
North Carolina's Outer Banks. Rec­
ognizing that much lower average
wind speeds were available in cen­
tral Ohio during the summertime,
the brothers built a longer set of
launching rails, each section mea­
suring 20 feet. At one point, 12 sec­
tions of rail were laid and staked to
the ground for a total of 240 feet,
but it was soon discovered that lay­
ing that much track was not par­
ticularly useful. It took too long to
lay the rail, and often when the last
section was lined up and bolted to
its neighbor, the brothers and Tay­
lor would discover that the wind
had begun to shift. Shortening the
rail helped get the job done sooner,
but consistent launches were only
possible when there was a strong
breeze. Too often attempts in mar­
ginal conditions ended in nothing
more than a short hop. By midsum­
mer, the catapult was ready for a
September 7, 1904, trial.
A 20-foot tall derrick was placed
behind the Flyer, and a 3:1 ratio rope
and pulley block and tackle were in­
stalled. The rope ran from the top of
12

AUGUST 2005

the derrick down to the base and over
another pulley, where it changed di­
rection and ran alongside the rail to
the opposite end of the shorter track
(now 60 feet). There it made a 180-de­
gree turn at the launching end of the
rail, running back to the Flyer perched
on top of its launching truck. There
it was attached to the launching
truck, which had small bicycle hub
wheels that rode on the metal-topped
wooden rail. A second rope attached
to a stake driven into the ground
restrained the Flyer. When a 1,200­
pound weight was dropped 16-1/2
feet, thanks to the 3:1 ratio the end
of the rope attached to the launching
truck would be pulled 50 feet down
the rail, accelerating the Flyer to flying
speed. Each weight the brothers used
tipped the scales at 200 pounds. On a
number of occasions, 1,200 pounds
proved to be inadequate, and the
weight being dropped was increased
to 1,600 pounds.
It is often assumed the Wrights al­
ways launched their Flyers into the
wind, and while it was certainly their
goal, their diaries make clear that
crosswind takeoffs were often at­

tempted and accomplished, simply
due to the vagaries of the wind direc­
tion. Thanks to the rapid accelera­
tion from the catapult, the controls
were effective quickly, giving the pi­
lot the ability to counteract the effect
of the crosswind.
A few weeks after starting to use
the new launching system, they flew
longer and farther than ever before.
On a cloudy Tuesday morning, Sep­
tember 20, 1904, starting with a
crosswind from the left, Wilbur man­
aged a flight of just over a minute
in time, covering 2,520 feet. He also
managed to perform a pair of turns
during the flight, the first to the left
and the second to the right, landing
as he came close to the fence near
the road and the trolley line. Based
on writings by Wilbur in early 1912,
in a disposition related to the Wright
vs. Herring/Curtiss lawsuit, it appears
he may have been attempting the
first circled flight, but turned back in
the opposite direction when he real­
ized his turn's path would put him in
conflict with a tree he depicted in a
diary map of the day's events.
On the next flight, Orville did

even better than that, and an inter­
ested and erudite witness was there
to see the flight.
Sixty-four-year-old Amos Root,
the editor of Gleanings in Bee Culture,
had driven 175 miles to visit friends
in Xenia, Ohio, and made a side
trip to Huffman Prairie to meet the
Wrights. He'd been reading about
them in the few mentions made in
the press up to that date and wanted
to see for himself what was happen­
ing outside of Dayton. As luck would
have it, he arrived on September 20.
Root was no crackpot looking for
a cause. A leading citizen of Medina,
Ohio, he bought the first bicycle in
northern Ohio in the 1870s, and
he purchased a new Olds Runabou t
motorcar in 1903. Root was known
as a fellow who was willing to em­
brace new technologies as soon as
they were viable. He drove the Olds
on a 400-mile tour of Ohio during
the summer of 1904 and drove to
Huffman Prairie in September. Root
had established a successful busi­
ness centered on beekeeping and
is known today as the father of the
modern beehive. His business, A.I.
Root Inc., a company now known as
a worldwide supplier of candles and
beeswax, is still in its original build­
ing in Medina.
The cloudy skies gave way to rain
later in the day, with the breeze
shifting from out of the north­
west to crossing the field from the
northeast. As shown in a diagram
drawn in Wilbur's diary, Orvi lle,
with a right crosswind to compen­
sate for as he started, was launched
off the rail. He pitched the Flyer up
to climb just a few feet, and then
proceeded to do something no one
had ever done with a powered air­
plane-he flew the Flyer IT for one
minute, thirty-five and two-fifths
seconds and flew in a complete
360-degree turn, landing only
because he neared the northeast
boundary of the field!
Root was amazed, and the mo­
ment was not lost on him. In the
January 1, 1905, edition of Bee Cul­
ture, he wrote:

while sitting up. You can eXperience hoW

extended periods could be. Next time you're at home watching television,

try lying on your stomach and watching an entire episode of your favor­

ite sitcom for the entire half-hour- no breaks, no stretching, just you and

your head tilted upward as if you needed to always see where you were

headed. You can bet the brothers looked forward to that power increase!

The other reason was terrain. The Wrights didn't yet have the luxury
of a prepared field that was long and free of obstructions. The terra
firma at Huffman Prairie was once a low swamp, and the field was pri­
marily filled with hummocks of grass about 6 inches tall. A pair of flex­
ible spruce skids could ride along the tops of uneven terrain , soaking up
the shocks and spreading the load along a pair of runners, but a pair of
wheels would have to be set on axles mounted in some sort of shock­
absorbing apparatus, all of which added , you guessed it, weight. And in
case you needed to land in a smaller field , a set of wheels might need
one more device : brakes. A pair of wheels of fered little resistance to
stopping, but a set of skids brought you t o a stop much quicker, wit h
littl e chance of nosing over.
Eventually, the Wrights had the aircraft performance and the fie ld con­
ditions that would allow them to dispense with the ungainly launching rail
and catapult system, but until then, they plied the skies of America and
Europe with a pair of graceful spruce skids.

liThe operator takes his place ly­
VI N TA G E AI R PLA N E

13

dant at one time, when the rope came
off that started it, sa id he was shak­
ing from head to foot as if he had a fit
of ague. His shaking was uncalled for,
however, for the intrepid m anager suc­
ceeded in righting up his craft, and she
made one of her very best flights. "

The Wrights struggled during all of 1904 with controllability issues and fight­
ing the effects of what we have come to understand as density aHitude. Too often,
a flight would end with the Flyer /I darting into the ground, such as this incident
at the end of flight 31 on August 16, 1904. Orville was the pilot. The fellow stand­
ing to the right of the launching rail appears to be Charlie Taylor, the Wrights'
mechanic. Flights ending like this prompted the brothers to create a catapuH sys­
tem, which they started using on September 7, 1904. The addition of the catapuH
meant that flights could be started at a speed that would allow the Flyer to accel­
erate, and the Wrights' flight times immediately began to increase.
The leaves have
fallen , but the excite­
ment of being able to
fly the Flyer /I for over
a minute at a time
was irresistible for the
brothers as they both
learned how to control
their recalcitrant flying
machine, and contin­
ued to refine their de­
sign. This photograph
of flight 85 was taken on November 16, 1904, during a flight in which Orville cov­
ered 1,760 feet in 40-112 seconds.
Consistent flight continued to elude them, even while they were able to keep
the Flyer /I in the air for more than five minutes, sometimes circling the field
four or five times. When they concluded the 1904 flying season on December 9,
they had plenty of scientific work ahead of them. Confident they could solve the
problems, the following spring was spent trying to sell their flying machine and
later, building a new airplane. At the beginning of the summer of 1905, they stood
ready to fly in the air at their will. The Flyer 11/ would test their resolve.

ing flat on his face. This position offers
less resistance to the wind. The engine
is started and got up to speed. The ma­
chine is held until ready to start by a sort
of trap to be sprung when all is ready;
then with a trem endous flapping and
snapping of the fo ur-cylin der engine,
the huge machine springs aloft. When
it tumed that circle, and came near the
starting poin t, I was right in front [of]
it; and I said then, and I believe still,
it was one of the grandest sights, if not
the grandest sight, of my li fe . Im agine
14

AUGUST 2 005

a locom otive without any wheels, we
will say, but with white wings instead,
we will furth er say-a locomotive made
of aluminum . Well now, imagine that
locom otive with wings that spread 2 0
feet each way, coming right toward you
with the trem endo us flap of its propel­
lers, and you have something like what I
saw. The younger brother bade me move
to one side for fear it might come down
suddenly; but I tell you friends, the sen­
sation that one feels in such a crisis is
som ething hard to describe. The atten­

Ve ry be st fli g ht ind ee d ; th e
52nd fli ght th e b ro th e rs m ad e
with th e Flyer II was th e lo n ges t,
in t e rm s o f tim e a nd d ist a n ce,
they had ever m ade.
In 1904, they made a total of 105
fli ghts, most o f th em fairly sh or t,
with limited turns performed within
the confines of the fi eld. More than
once, one of the brothers would land
before turnin g any great am ount,
for fear they would fl y outside the
boundaries of the roughly lOO-ac re
Huffm a n Prairi e. Th ey were still
"feeling out" the amount of turn the
m achine would tolerate, and more
than once the turn ended in an un­
intended landing.
Friday, December 9, saw the end
of th e 1904 flying season, a season
of remarkable progress and madden­
ing problems. The airplan e still was
unstable in pitch, it still had the odd
tenden cy to slide off to the side in
turns, and the power availabl e was
barely enough to sustain the Flyer in
the air. They dismantled the Flyer II,
keeping the hardwa re, engines, and
propellers, but burning the remain­
ing wood and fabric. The in fo rm a­
tion they had gathered in their first
full season of powered flight was put
to use as they bega n construction of
the 1905 Flyer III.
~
Continued next month.
All of the images presented in this
article are available as digital downloads
from the Library of Congress website.
Start your search at www.loc.gov/rr/ print/

catalog.htm/.
Tap the blue "I'm ready to search " but·
ton, and when the next page comes up,
click on the OW" hyperlink, or scroll to the
very bottom of the page. The Wright Broth·
ers Collection is number 57. Once you're
at the search page for the Wright Collec·
tion , just enter a keyword such as "1904"
and a list of images will be presented.
Have fun . There are plenty of interesting
images-more than 300 Wright images
scanned from their original glass plate
negatives are part of the Library of Con­
gress' collection.

Eugene "Geno" Breiner
Newville, PA

_ Graduate of Roosevelt
Aviation School, Long Islanel, NY
_ In 1985, restored Fleet 2,
NC8689 manufactured in 1929

_ 1987: Best Open Cockpit­
Potomac Antique Aero-Squadron
(PAAS), Horn Point, MD
_ 1989: Best Antique
Sentimental Journey to Cub Haven
_ 1992: Grond Champion ­ PAAS

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enjoyed working with AUA, Inc., since 1985 for all my
insurance needs."

- Geno Breiner

.. .

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Torquil Norman's D.H.8S Leopard Moth
H.G.

h ere's always room for im­
provement in an airplane,
and in 1933, Geoffrey de
Havilland saw potential in
his company's D.H.80 Puss Moth. It
was a great airplane, but with a tweak
here and an improvement there ...
The new version would use
the higher-horsepower inverted
Gypsy Major engine of 130 hp ,
with seating for three people and
a spruce and plywood box struc­
ture for the fuselage.
When first flown by the compa­
ny's founder on May 27, 1933, the
D.H.8S Leopard Moth was found to
be 9 mph faster that its sibling, top­

T

16 AUGUST 2005

FRAUTSCHY

ping out at about 137 mph while car­
rying three people. Pleased with the
results, de Havilland came to like the
airplane so much he ordered one for
himself, using it for family touring
around the United Kingdom and on
the continent of Europe in the bliss­
ful days before the clouds of war be­
gan to gather.
Interestingly, a curious debate over
crew placement in Jightplanes was
put to rest in part due to the experi­
ence gained by pilots of the Leopard
Moth. When first conceived, its pre­
decessor, the Puss Moth, had both
the passenger and pilot in the same
cabin, an arrangement that resulted

in a great deal of discussion. Should a
pilot be in the same cabin, where he
could be distracted from the rigors of
flying the airplane? Shouldn't he or
she be positioned in a separate com­
partment or cockpit so that his or her
full attention could be paid to flying
the machine?
If the tandem-seated Puss Moth
dealt that concept a strong blow,
the Leopard Moth , with its two
in the back and pilot up front,
stomped on it, and the side-by­
side D.H.87 Hornet Moth put it to
rest for good . The benefits of hav­
ing the passenger inside the cabin,
where not only his desires could be

JIM KOEPNICK

dealt with, but his help could be of
great benefit, was further enhanced
by the passenger's accessi bility to
flight instruction, which could be
given by leaning over and speak­
ing into the pupil's ear, rather than
shouting into the slipstream or giv­
ing convoluted hand Signals.
The attractiveness of such an ar­
rangement contributed to the Leop­
ard Moth's popularity, with 133 of
them being made in the middle
1930s and almost half of them (60)
being sold to overseas or continen­
tal owners. Buyers from as far away
as Argentina and Japan ordered
Leopard Moths, and when World

War II broke out, 44 of them were
appropriated by the British military
for use in communications work.
Not surprisingly, not all of those
44 D.H.85s re-entered civilian life
after the war; many were lost dur­
ing service, but better than two
dozen were reregistered. One of the
Leopard Moths to survive the war
was originally built for export to
the Continent.
When first built in 1933, D.H.85
serial number 7035 was sold to a
French owner, and it was registered
as F-AMXP. It sat out the war years
in a barn in France and didn't fly
again until after Roger Fiennes re­

covered the airplane in 1990 and
brought it to England, where Ben
and Jan Cooper of the Newberry
Aeroplane Co. restored it. Torquil
Norman, aircraft collector extraor­
dinaire, bought the aeroplane from
Roger before Roger's disappearance
and presumed death in a Tiger Moth
during an attempted crossing of the
English Channel in the late 1990s.
Quite thoroughly restored, with
an engine overhaul performed by
Mike Vaisey of Vintech, the Leopard
Moth is now registered as G-ACOJ
and is kept by Torquil at a small
strip called Rendcomb Aerodrome,
located southeast of Gloucester in
the United Kingdom. Like Geoffrey
de Havilland, Torquil fell in love
with his Leopard Moth, flying as
often as he could. And like many
pilots of old, the lovely handling
qualities of the D.H.85 provided
the opportunity to fly the aero­
plane long distances. Record-breaking
flights from England to Africa and
Australia were made in the 1930s,
and taking inspiration from those
intrepid pilots, Torquil Norman
had Henry Labouchere install a
long-range tank under the back seat
of the Leopard Moth, giving it a
96 U.S. gallon capacity, enough to
keep the Gypsy Major running for
about 11 hours! A couple of warm­
up flights to Italy and France gave
him the confidence in the aircraft
to fly the North Atlantic.
A number of you may recall that
in 1966, Torquil and Henry Labouch­
ere flew a lovely de Havilland Dragon
Fly to Oshkosh. One of the lessons
learned during that flight was that if
one engine failed in the Dragon Fly,
they would wind up in the ocean,
as it didn't have sufficient perfor­
mance to maintain altitude on one
engine with the other shut down
and its fixed-pitch prop presenting
itself to the slipstream completely
unfeathered.
Torquil felt that a single-engine
crossing in the Leopard Moth didn't
present a significantly greater risk
than the flight in the twin-engined
Fly, so he gathered the equipment
VINTAGE A I RPLANE

17

Like many of its de Havilland siblings, the Leopard Moth features foldable wings,
which help maximize available storage facilities.

necessary for such a long trip and
flew to Wick, in far northeastern
Scotland. Donning an exposure suit
and departing with a full 96 gallons
of fuel, he pushed off to Reykjavik,

Torquil Nonnan, aircraft collector
extraordinaire.

18

AUG U S T 2005

Iceland, landing after a 9-l/2-hour
journey. An attempt to fly over the
Greenland ice cap was rebuffed by
clouds, so a run down the east coast
was made, landing in Narsarsuaq, at

the southernmost tip of Greenland .
There he was greeted with beautiful
weat her, with temperatures in the
60s and sunshine.
A long ru n to Goose Bay, Labra­
dor, in Canada gave Torquil a taste
of just about every type of weather
one can expect to encounter, from
solid IFR conditions nearly down
to the sea, to a near gale blowing
along the Canadian coast when he
(';j was getting ready to land. From
~ there he flew down to Sept-lies, on
g the north shore of the St. Lawrence
a:
____-......-::u...._ '"~ Seaway in Quebec, where he says
Electricity for the Moth is supplied by this strut-mounted generator, which is
he enjoyed a marvelous lobster dindriven by a carved impeller. You can see the damage done to it by ice and pre-
ner. Then it was on to the States,
cipitation encountered on the trans-Atlantic trip.
making his way to EAA AirVenture
Oshkosh 1999 after a few stops to
visit friends along the way.
A Hamilton vertical
All in all, he didn't feel the air­
card compass (right)
craft
ever ran up against insur­
supplements the stan­
mountab
le issues during his long
dard British compass
flight,
but
there were times when
mounted at the bottom
the
long
legs
of the Leopard Moth
center of the instru­
were
not
contributing
to the com­
ment panel.
fort of the pilot! Having made the
trip in both the Rapide and the
Leopard Moth, Torquil didn't feel
it was likely he'd repeat his trans­
Atlantic hop, but he certainly has
created a whole new set of stories to
tell his chums at home.
.......

VI N TAGE A I RPLANE

19

THE FORGOTTEN

PERFORMERS

Bellanca's record-making airplanes
VIC PIKE

Clarence Chamberlain on his way to Gennany.

sk anyone in a pi­
lot's lounge what
airplane Charles
Lindbergh flew
across the Atlan­
tic and the reply will be, "Why, a
Ryan, of course." But relatively few
current pilots are aware that two
weeks after Lindbergh's famous
flight, Clarence Chamberlain and
Charles Levine flew a WB-2 Bel­
lanca named Columbia, immediate
predecessor to the Bellanca Pace­
makers and Skyrockets, from Roos­
evelt Field, New York, to Eisleben,
Germany. And few pilots know
that prior to his involvement with
Ryan, Lindbergh unsuccessfully ne­
gotiated with Wright Aeronautical
(who commissioned the WB-2) and
later with Giuseppe Bellanca at his
Columbia Aircraft Co. to purchase
th e very plane used by Chamber­
lain and Levine. Unfortunately
(or fortunately for Ryan) , Charles
Levine, th e financial underwriter
of Columbia Aircraft, manipulated
capriciously to obstruct a sale to the

A

20

AUGUST 2005

unknown airmail pilot, Lindbergh.
From the mid 1920s through the
early 1930s, Bellanca monoplanes
routinely set records for distance,
altitude, and endurance that made
their superlative performance an
expectation. Victories at the Na­
tional Air Races in both 1925 and
1926. An endurance record of 51
hours and 11 minutes in 1927, and
New York to Havana, Cuba, in 1928,
both by the Columbia .
Then it was Maine to Spain by
the North Star in 1929 . At the Na­
tional Air Races in Cleveland that
year, Bellancas took five firsts, three
seconds, two thirds, and two fourths
in seven events. In May 1930 came
the non-refueled endurance record
of 84 hours and 33 minutes in a
Pacemaker powered by a Packard
DR-980 radial diesel engine; this re­
cord was not broken until the 1986
flight of the Voyager.
In July 1930, another record :
New York to Istanbul in the Cape
Cod, nonstop. And still more: an
altitude record of 30,453 feet was

set in 1931 by Bellanca test pilot
George Haldeman.
1931 also saw an around-the­
world flight with Clyde Pangborn
and Hugh Herndon in Miss Veedol,
which culminated in a 4,558-mile,
41-hour and 13-minute leg across
the Pacific Ocean from Sabishiro
Beach, Japan, to Wenatchee, Wash­
ington, which is a story in itself.
This record stood until 1947, when
it was eclipsed by a u.S. Air Force
8-29. Miss Veedol was renamed the
American Nurse and, in 1932, van­
ished on a trans-Atlantic attempt.
These are only a few of the ac­
complishments of this Bellanca se­
ries, and although some of these air­
planes had modifications such as
longer wings, the original design was
a commercial, production aircraft.
Diminutive and shy, Sicilian­
born Giuseppe Bellanca had formal
education in math ematics and en­
gineering and, in a partnership of
three , constructed Italy's first air­
plane in 1909. He immigrated to
America in 1911 and soon assem­

bled a parasol-wing monoplane
powered by a three-cylinder, 30­
hp Anzani engine. After flying this
airplane, Clarence Chamberlain
remarked, "I was thoroughly con­
vinced that Bellanca not only was a
genius, but a hero of a rare sort."
In 1912, Bellanca established
the Bellanca Aeroplane Co., con­
structed a second monoplane, and
opened a flight school. One of his
students was Fiorello LaGuardia,
later New York's famous mayor. In
1916, Bellanca designed the CD
and CE biplanes for the Maryland
Pressed Steel Co. To illustrate his
engineering acumen, the CE (1917)
would cruise at 100 mph
on 90 hp, while the con­
temporary Curtiss IN-4D
Jenny, also with 90 hp,
followed at 65 mph.
The CF monoplane
first flew on June 8, 1922,
and was spectacular for
its era. With an enclosed
cabin carrying four pas­
sengers and powered by
a 90-hp, 10-cylinder An­
zani radial (twin rows of
five cylinders), the CF
cruised at 100 mph for
600 miles and enjoyed
an impressive 12-to-1
glide ratio. With the CF,
Bellanca created a signature airfoil
fuselage profile that continued into
post-war designs.
Airmail pilot William C. Hopson
campaigned the CF in a series of
competitions during the summer
of 1922. He took first place in every
event. Hopson observed, "She was
by far the most remarkable plane I
had ever flown."
Despite the CF's accomplishments,
there was no market for a $5,000
airplane when World War I surplus
models were selling for a few hun­
dred. Fortunately, the CF survived,
has been restored, and is now in the
National Air and Space Museum.
In 1925, Bellanca joined the
Wright Aeronautical Corp., which
put him in close proximity to the
new 200-hp J-4 Whirlwind engines.
This prompted construction of the

conflicts with Wright Aeronautical
in Patterson, New Jersey, he moved
to New York and entered the con­
tentious partnership with Charles
Levine. When that unraveled, Bel­
lanca re-established production in a
rented warehouse on Staten Island.
Bellanca's outstanding airplanes
enticed the state of Delaware, and
particularly the du Pont family, into
courting him to settle there. After a
temporary operation in Wilming­
ton, a factory and airfield were con­
structed at New Castle; stability was
finally achieved.
The rugged construction and
prodigious load-carrying capacity
of these unique airplanes
disbursed their activities
all over the world, where
• they served careers from
distinguished air trans­
port to bush hack. An ul­
timate utilitarian charac­
ter relegated the grand
birds to situations of ex­
pendability that, unfor­
tunately, caused attrition
to eliminate alarming
--=-..-­ ., -<' numbers of them.
Out of the 60 that were
built, only one airwor­
thy example of a Pace­
' - ­_ _ _ _...... u maker CH-300 exists to­
day, NC251M, Serial No.
all-wood WB-1, followed by the steel­ 154. And even this one is currently
tube fuselage WB-2, using the im­ undergOing a complete and to­
proved 220-hpJ-5. The WB-1 was de­ tal rebuild with new fuselage and
stroyed in a crash in 1926, and the wings and a target date for comple­
record-breaking WB-2 Columbia was tion in the summer of 2005.
lost in a hangar fire in 1934.
Throughout the story of this air­
From the WB planes evolved the plane is the striking reality of how
Pacemaker series; first the J-5 Wright many people have been involved. The
powered CH-200 of 1928, then the core history of an old airplane is in­
300-hp R-975 J-6-9 CH-300 of 1929 triguing, but the anecdotal accounts
(also available with the P&W Wasp of the people create something in­
Jr.) and the R-1340 Wasp CH-400 finitely more profound. Aviation is
Skyrocket of 1930, on through the a community, an extended family,
senior Pacemakers and Skyrockets so loosely connected that members
of the later '30s.
remain unacquainted. But the com­
Giuseppe Bellanca's passion was posite connects lives in ways that
to design and build airplanes with are not previously suspected. Keep
the following parameters: "Maxi­ this in mind as you read.
NC251M emerged from the Bel­
mum safety and the greatest possi­
ble efficiency, as measured by speed, lanca factory at New Castle, Dela­
load, and range." His earlier dreams ware, on September 17,1929, to be
seemed perpetually frustrated; after delivered as the first airplane of InVINTAGE AIRPLANE

21

ter-IsIand Airways
(now Hawaiian Air­
lines) of Honolulu.
It served primarily
with sightseeing
flights, while In­
ter-Island's passen­
ger service evolved
around Sikorsky S-3S
amphibians.
On April IS, 1933,
NC251M was sold to
Mr. G. Fowble (pos­
sibly a broker) of
San Bernardino,
California, and
then resold on April PICTORIAL HISTORIES PUB. CO.
NC251M in 1929.
27 to MacMillan Pe­
troleum Corp. of
Los Angeles. Remember "MacMillan "Engine blew up. Ship moored at
Ring Free Motor Oil?" On March 20, Naknek." "Rate of climb reads SOO
1935, it was purchased by Unious feet down in level flight ." "Wind­
"Mac" McGee (McGee Airways) in shield gives pilot cold shower."
Anchorage, Alaska, to begin 15 years "Turn and bank no good. Can't
as a bush workhorse. On April 20, adjust altimeter." (Signed, Satan.)
1935, McGee Airways was sold to "Repaired left wingtip, spliced rear
Star Air Service in Anchorage, which spar. Rebuilt left elevator."
became Star Airlines, which became
Another entry notes, "Flew every
Alaska Star Airlines, which became day from 1-20 to 2-14." With such
casualness, the suspicion is that un­
Alaska Airlines in May 1944.
Steve Mills, chief pilot for Star, was derstatement must be intrinsically
flying a sister Pacemaker, NC259M, characteristic of these bush pilots;
when a fatal crash claimed his life there's no mention of the effort in­
in 1936. After usable parts were sal­ volved in keeping a 1929 airplane
vaged, the remaYJs were burned at flying every day during the rigors of
the site of the accident. In 1995, the an Alaskan winter.
curator of the Alaska Aviation Heri­
The logs include entries by many
tage Museum (and a walking ency­ noted Alaska bush pilots, a few of
clopedia of Alaska aviation history), which were Kenny Neese, Johnny
Ted Spencer, recovered the parts Moore, Don Goodman, Jack El­
and stored them at the museum in liot (who onee swooped down and
Anchorage. Steve's grandson, Dave speared a wolf with his ski), and Bill
Mills, assisted Ted in his efforts.
Lund. Lund stayed with Alaska Air­
Essentially intact, the logs of lines as its number one pilot and
NC251M depict a rich history of pioneered jet flights into Russia
Alaska bush flying in the 1930s during the 1970s, finally retiring
and 1940s, and reading them is like in 19S0.
peering into the Holy Grail. Much
Martha Monsen was the Star
of the story can only be extrapo­ agent in Naknek during the 1930s
lated from the cryptic and frustrat­ and ran a virtual boarding house
ingly taciturn renderings of bush for the pilots during layovers.
pilots who flew thousands of hours Several of Monsen 's sons became
over geography and in weather that pilots, and one, Mel Monsen,
would be considered treacherous to told me of sitting at the supper
most modern pilots.
table as a young lad, caught up
One's imagination expands from in the intrigue of endless conver­
such tersely penciled comments as, sations about bush flying adven­
22

AUGUST 2005

tures. Mel Monsen
related that when
he and his friends
played "bush pi­
lot," there was al­
ways an argument
about who would
be Kenny Neese.
In these early
days, it was usual
for Alaska air ser­
vice companies to
struggle wi th fi­
nancial solvency.
Star was no excep­
tion, and in June
1939, in exchange
for some capital
investment, the
ownership of its entire fleet was
transferred to bankers Thrall and
Williams of Minneapolis, Min­
nesota. In contemporary terms,
these treasures included four CH­
300 Pacemakers, three CH-400
Skyrockets, two Stinson SM-SAs,
a Fairchild Pilgrim 100A, a Cessna
C-34 Airmaster, and a Ford 5-AT-C
Tri-Motor. The arrangement ap­
parently worked , because by Feb­
ruary 1940, everything was back
in Star's legal possession.
In June 1946, Alaska Airlines
performed a field conversion from
wheels to Edo 4665 floats. When
completed, notification was sent to
the CAA with the simple comment
that it was "similar to Bellanca
NC256M." Approval was granted.
From 1929, NC251M flew with
a Wright R-975 J-6-9 of 300 hp, re­
placed or overhauled a number of
times, but a catastrophic failure in
August 1946 prompted Alaska to
convert to a P&W R-9S5-AN-3, Navy
surplus and freshly overhauled. In
May 1947, the plane was returned
to service.
In December 1947, Alaska Air­
lines sold NC25 1 M to Eric Shutte
(pronounced Shoot-ee) and C.V.
Kay. Shutte came to Alaska in the
early 1930s as a pilot and mechanic
for Vern Gorst, founder of Pacific
Air Transport. Kay had been a part­
ner with Shell Simmons in the Pan­
handle Air Transport Co. (Pateo)

out of Juneau in
As predictably oc­
the mid 1930s.
curs in the life cycle
Shutte and Kay
of utility airplanes,
did contract flying
NC251M was show­
for the U.S. Coast
ing tatter and wear
Guard and opened
by the late 1950s; the
a hotel in King
engine found a home
Salmon called Na­
on the nose of an­
knek Sky tel, with
other ship, the wings
NC25 1M providing
were pulled, and it
charter flight ser­
ended up in the back
vices. The business
of Kenmore's storage
suffered a setback
yard. In June 1960,
in 1950 when the
Dick Poet of Aums­
ville, Oregon, pur­
hotel burned, and
chased the airframe
on a trip south, the
Bellanca was dam­
and floats.
aged in an accident Kenmore Air, 1950s. On the float is Bob Munro; Walt Winsman, mechanic;
Poet was an aerial
near Prince Rupert, and Bill Lund, Alaska Airlines pilot, on a day off.
applicator pilot and,
with his wife, Helen,
British Columbia.
Bob Munro of Kenmore Air Har­ more than seven decades and con­ owned Wilderness Airlines in Bella
bor in Seattle salvaged the plane firmed his existence with Bill Whit­ Coola, British Columbia. Dick's me­
with the promise that insurance ney, Kenmore's senior pilot who chanic, Bob Bohanan, completely
would cover the costs. The insur­ flies turbine Otter floatplanes.
refurbished the Pacemaker, includ­
I visited Scott in his large han­ ing new fabric, paint, and an over­
ance company refused, and Munro
took possession of the Bellanca as gar on the Renton Municipal Air­ hauled R-985 from Wesco Air Service
payment. After repairs were com­ port in Washington state where on Boeing Field, which returned it
pleted, NC25 1 M joined the Ken­ he conducts business as Jobmaster to pristine condition.
more fle et. Currently, Kenmore is Co., his aircraft modification firm.
With the rebuild complete on
a world-class floatplane operation, Out front was a beautiful Cessna June 25, 1962, there was the issue
holds the type certificate for Edo 195 on floats, and inside I found of taking the airplane off the Poets'
floats, and has developed many him working on a de Havilla~d grass strip. Straw was spread down
STC'd modifications for de Havil­ DHC-2 floatplane. Looking at the the runway to reduce friction, and
land Beavers and Otters.
man and his environment, I imme­ with Dick in the cockpit, power
From 1955 to 1957, Munro leased diately realized that this was hal­ was fed to the R-985. Sufficient air­
speed was achieved, but the long
NC25 1 M to Bob Hall of Kodiak lowed ground.
I told him my visit was prompted floats prevented rotation and take­
Airways (actually, it was sold and
repurchased for liability protec­ by an understanding that he had off was denied. Bohanan then con­
tion). Kodiak ran scheduled mail once installed floats on a Bellanca structed a two-wheel dolly from
and passenger service to the five Pacemaker, and he replied, "Yes, an old truck axle, and this time,
villages and nine canneries on Ko­ that was in 1957. We replaced a Dick lifted off while the dolly bur­
diak Island. The chief pilot was Gil set of Edo 4665s for some 6470s. ied itself in the brush at the end of
Jarvela, and in a conversation with I can show you the paperwork." the field. After a short test flight,
me, he related stories that riveted He stepped to his fi le and, without he landed on the Willamette River
at Salem. Subsequently, the Poets
my attention: hauling resistant Ko­ glasses, pulled it out.
I inquired of Scott how old he applied for Canadian registration
diak bear cubs in gunny sacks, load­
ing incredible amounts of freight was, and with a sly smile he said, (CF-OQK) and flew to Bella Coola,
in NC25 1M, and patching holes "100 minus three." After a period British Columbia, where the Pace­
in the floats with bubble gum and of time during which Scott gra­ maker began charter service with
ciously shared with me some of his Wilderness Airlines.
spruce twigs.
On June 25 , 1963, a woman,
When the plane was returned incredible flying experiences, I left
to Kenmore, Bob Munro commis­ this icon so that he could return to Mattie Jack, was attacked and badly
sioned Clayton Scott to engineer working on the Beaver. [ felt that I mauled by a grizzly bear at Mud
the installation of Edo 6470 floats had been in the Notre Dame Cathe­ Lake, east of Bella Coola. A call was
to replace the smaller 4665s. I had dral. [We'll have more on Clayton made to Dick for a rescue flight,
heard of Scott and his legendary ca­ Scott in next month's issue of Vin­ and he immediately took off with
continued on page 32
reer in aviation that has spanned tage Airplane.-Ed.]
VINTAGE A I RPLANE

23

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DOUG STE WAR T

Whether/weather to go, or not

here I was, driving along
the turnpike, looking up
at a severe clear cerulean
sky, and rather than find­
ing myself ecstatic at that beauti­
ful sight, words that cannot be re­
peated in this column were form­
ing on my lips. Gosh darn (it was
really a lot stronger said than that),
the briefer said, "VFR not recom­
mended," and now instead of being
up in that sky where I belong, I am
down here, ground bound, driving
to my destination.
I know probably everyone of
us has been in this situation, per­
haps more times than we care or
choose to remember. As the say­
ing goes, "There are old pilots and
bold pilots, but no old, bold pi­
lots. " Many of us are aware that
most aviation accidents, when as­
sociated with weather, tend to be
fatal ones . Thus, if we are not in­
strument rated and current, or fly­
ing an airplane that is not instru­
ment certified, we tend to choose
alternative means of transpor­
tation when the briefer tells us,
"VFR is not recommended."
But does this always have to be
the case? Are there any ways to
make those VFR trips possible and
still remain safe? Are there any
tools we can use to determine if the
forecast is holding true, or if it is
not? For I think we all, both male
and female, would agree that the
weather is like the opposite sex-to­
tally fickle and unpredictable. Let's

T

take a look at the numerous tools
we have for making the go/no-go
decision relative to the weather.
To help determine if the forecast
is going to hold true I usually first
consult the METARS. Check re­
porting stations along your route.
If you are able, get a history show­
ing the reports over the past three
to four hours and see if the reports
are corroborating the forecasts.
(DUATS, WSI, and Meteorlogix are
all great sources for this informa­
tion.) What trend do you see in
the reports? Is the weather get­
ting better or worse or holding the
same? Is it doing what the TAF and
FA said it would?
I'm also sure to compare the ter­
minal forecasts (TAF) with the Area
Forecast (FA). The TAF covers only
a S-mile radius of the aerodrome,
whereas the FA covers an entire
area. Keep in mind that cloud bases
in the TAF are AGL (above ground),
whereas the cloud bases in the FA
are MSL (above sea level).
Next I check the PIREPS (pilot
reports). Do they substantiate the
briefer's warnings? When checking
PIREPS, be sure to take into account
where the report was made (three­
dimensionally), when it was made,
and what type of aircraft the report­
ing pilot was flying. If a 747 reports
light chop along my route, I might
consider leaving the ropes on my
airplane and going to have a frosty
one, whereas if it's a J3 reporting
moderate turbulence I might very

well launch on my own flight.
While we are mentioning PIREPS,
let's not forget that (as in all things
in life) what goes around comes
around. If we are seeking PIREPS in
helping us to make the go/no-go
decision, we should also consider
filing them. It takes only a few mo­
ments to file a PIREP, and in doing
so you are assisting many other pi­
lots in their flight planning.
These are a few of the tools we
can use while still on the ground
to determine if the forecast is hold­
ing true. But what about when we
are already en route? How can we
know whether the weather will be
as forecast?
Obviously, if the forecast was for
severe clear and there are a lot of
clouds forming, you do not need
to be a rocket scientist or a brain
surgeon to know that the forecast
is not holding true. But there are
many other clues that might not
be quite as obvious and that should
warn us that the briefer might have
been wrong.
If we realize that we are having
to fly a heading other than what
we had plotted to track our course,
or if we are experiencing different
ground speeds than what we had ex­
pected, we should understand that
there is a good chance that the en­
tire forecast might be off. After all,
these forecasts are predicated on the
expected movement of fronts and
pressure zones. When they don't
move as anticipated, the winds aloft
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

25

will be different, thus yielding dif­
ferent headings and groundspeeds
than we had planned.
There is something else that can
give us a heads-up about the pos­
sibility of the forecast going south,
and that is the temperatures aloft.
Most aircraft have outside air tem­
perature gauges (OAT), and these
can be very useful tools-ones that
many pilots ignore. An OAT can be
used to corroborate whether the
temperatures aloft are as forecast .
(You do remember that the fore­
cast temperatures aloft are included
with the winds aloft, don't you?)
This can give us an understanding
of whether the fronts are moving at
the speed and direction forecast or
if they might be moving slower or
faster than expected.
Keeping track of the tempera­
tures as you climb can also help you
quickly determine if the lapse rate is
stable. Remembering that the stable
lapse rate is ZOC per thousand feet,
one can make a note of the temper­

ature on the ground prior to takeoff
and then check it as you climb. If it
is less than ZOC per thousand, one
of the major ingredients in the pro­
duction of thunderstorms is pres­
ent, that being an unstable lapse
rate. (The other two are moist air
and a lifting action of some kind.)
Thus the OAT can be a useful tool
in confirming, or refuting, the fore­
cast of thunderstorms.
One could spend a lifetime study­
ing the weather and not get any
closer to predicting what it might
do. And I can't do justice to the sub­
ject in this short article. However,
when it comes to weather I must
say that discretion is the better part
of valor. There are certainly times
when the briefer will give the warn­
ing that VFR is not recommended
and the day turns out to be beauti­
ful. But there are also times when
your beautiful day turns ugly.
Regardless of whether the fore­
cast is for good weather or bad, be
sure to have an alternate plan in

place. Remember to run the PAVE
and CARE checklists that I wrote
about in previous articles to h elp
you make the proper decisions
relative to the weather. Using the
tools I have mentioned above will
help you in checking the enViron­
ment, help in understanding the
consequences of the hazards as­
sociated with some aspects of th e
weather, and aid you in assessing
the realities of what the weather is
really doing.
And when the briefer gives you
that dire warning of "VFR not rec­
ommended," keep in mind that it
is always much better to be on the
ground wishing you were up in the
air than up in the air wishing you
were on the ground. He might be
wrong, and I've offered some tools
to help determine that, but he very
well might be right.
Doug Stewart is the 2004 National
CFI of the Year, a Master CFI, and a
DPE. He operates DSFI Inc., based at the
Columbia County Airport (lBl). ........

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AUGUST 2005

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www.desser.com

BY H.G. FRAUTSCHY

THIS MONTH'S MYSTERY PLANE COMES TO US FROM THE NEWLY ACQUIRED GARNER P.
EMMERSON COLLECTION , DONATED TO EAA BY BOB HIGHLEY OF LAKELAND, FLORIDA.
Send your answer to EAA, Vintage
Airplane, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh,
WI 54903-3086. Your answer needs
to be in no later than September
10 for inclusion in the November
2005 issue of Vintage Airplane.
You can also send your response
via e-mail. Send your answer to
[email protected]. Be sure to
include your n'a me, city, and state
in the body of your note, and put
"(Month) Mystery Plane" in the
subject line.

MAY 'S

May's Mystery Plane came to us
from Harold Swanson.
Here's our only letter concerning
its identity:
Felio Ranger SP-2

MYSTERY

ANSWER

X12211 seems to have its 95-hp
Cirrus upright four-cylinder en gine
as it was reported to have in 1934;
it was reported to have had a Ve­
lie engine when built in 1931. The
owner, Harold G. Felio, is li sted

as residing in Los Angeles at that
time. I learned this while roaming
on www.aerofiles.com last evening.
I already had seen the aircraft in
the British magazine Aeroplane
Monthly that has the same photo
as yours, along with some contem­
porary aircraft, in an illustrated
article in the September 2003 is­
sue with the title "Call That Safe?"
The caption to the photo reads:
"In 1933 Carl Hall and Frank
Nixon tested this propeller cowl­
ing at Compton, California. It was
claimed to 'speed up aeroplanes
from 39 to 140 per cent,' and slow
them 'as much as desired for land­
ing,' the inner'deflectors' serving
as air brakes ."
I hope that you have more in­
formation about this interesting
early try at a ducted propeller.
Jack Erickson
State College, Pennsylvania .......
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

27

E.E. "BUCK" HILBERT

Aeronca C-3 N-13000

've been asked many times,
"Why do you hang onto this
old airplane?"
Several reasons. Mostly, it has
a place in more recent history­
namely the last real Cleveland Air
Race held in 1948 . And probably
another reason is it represents, at
least to me, the memory of the last
of the barnstormers.
To the best of my knowledge, the
last time this little C-3 flew was at
the 1948 Cleveland Air Races.
The airplane belonged to Duke
and Martha Hashner, the owners of
Global Airshows and promoters of
the races that year.
Duke flew this Aeronca C-3 in a
clown act. The airplane was painted
up with a clown face, was all red
and white, and I've been told he
did a remarkable job of entertain­
ing the crowd.
Duke also flew other aerobatic
aircraft in the show, while Martha
was the wing-walker, parachute
jumper, and ticket seller.
Unfortunately, this was the same
year record-holding entrepreneur
Bill Odom crashed a racing P-S 1
into a residential area, resulting in
his death and other fatalities. Be­
cause of this accident, Duke and
Martha were the target of lawsuits
that drove Global Airshows and the
two of them out of business and
into seclusion.
Living on the Quietula Farm
at Cherry Valley, Ohio, the cou ­
ple, now forced to retire from do­
ing their air show routines, turned
Global Airshows into a traveling

I

28

AUGUST 2005

static display show.
The '50s saw the advent of the
shopping center. Global Airshows
would truck its airplanes to the new
shopping center parking lots and
display them in full air show rega­
lia. Martha and Duke would dress
the part, entertain the crowds, and
dreamed of once again being active
air show circuit acts.

The airplane
belonged to
Duke and Martha
Hashner ...
Unfortunately, Duke, suffering
from a brain tumor, lost the ability
to participate and, after a long bat­
tle, passed away. Martha kept the
airplanes, now stored at the farm,
and spent her days tending numer­
ous pet dogs and cats, dreaming
of her barnstorming glory days as
queen of Global Airshows. Martha
passed away in the mid-'60s.
Global Airshows and its derelict
aircraft were sold to Bill Ross and
me a few months before Martha
passed away.
The collection consisted of Mar­
tha's Meyers OTW, Duke's Waco F,
and a Porterfield CP-65 . All were in­

tact and complete, but each needed
restoration. Also in the collec­
tion were pieces and parts of two
Aeronca C-3s, a J-2 Piper, a Taylor­
craft L-2, and a Fairchild 22. Along
with the airplanes came numerous
engine parts, old tools, and propel­
lers, along with the trailers used to
haul the airplanes.
"What happened to the air­
planes?" is the frequently asked
question . Bill Ross was past presi­
dent of the EAA Warbirds of Amer­
ica; owned a P-38, Leroy Grum­
man's personal F3F, and an F6F;
and had his hand in several enter­
prises while involved in Warbirds.
Right at that time he discovered the
Grumman Goose was the best bet
in sport flying, and his attention
was diverted in that direction.
The Meyers and the Porterfield
were restored by Bill and sold. The
project Fairchild 22 and J-2 went to
a couple of our Vintage members
and were restored and are flying.
The Waco F was sold but never did
get flying. The two C-3s came to me
and eventually were restored. One
was sold and one, for those senti­
mental reasons, is still in my han­
gar, disassembled and awaiting the
final engine fix. The L-2 had been a
gas station ornament for years, and
when they took it down the guy
wielding the cutting torch man­
aged to start a fire that ended any
thought of restoration.
Bill Ross moved to Nevada after
he retired from business, and un ­
fortunately, while returning from
one of his business trips, he flew

into a cloud that had a rock in it.
Another reason for "hanging on."
It reminds me of Bill Ross and his
contributions to the Warbirds of
America being part of EAA.
Oh yes, we did get the C-3 fly­
ing, but the engine ate itself up af­
ter about 4S minutes. Time for a
different approach.
I had a set of floats and rigging,
and Brian Van Wagnen and I de­
cided the little C-3 would be a real
hoot to see flying on floats. However,
we wanted a reliable engine, and the
one we had was mostly junk.
Brian tore into it, but the crank
was beyond repair. At great ex­
pense a new one was made, dual
ignition heads were installed, and
a new single-drive dual mag was in­
stalled after modifying the tail case.
It runs, but the vibration was bad
enough to cause distrust. Another
disassembly and recheck as well as
internal component balance were
in the works when tragedy struck.
Brian had a hangar fire and lost
everything he had in the 70-by-90
hangar and its 24-foot lean-to­
his Widgeon project, the Fleet­
wing Seabird, two antique Aeronca
Chiefs, a Piper 180, all his toys,
shop equipment, tools, and, of
course, the building.
The little C-3, stored in another
building, was all that was left. The
floats, rigging, and all the spare en­
gine parts were destroyed in the
fire. A small loss in comparison to
what Brian suffered.
With no hangar, and no shop,
the decision was made to disassem­
ble NC-13000, and bring it back
home, and there it sits. Every day I
walk past it and say to myself, "You
gotta get going!" But the press of
daily living, and the episodes we've
been through in the past couple of
years, have stopped all the progress.
Oh well, what's another couple of
years? After all, it's been grounded
since 1948!
Until then it just sits, and I'm
going fishing. With that, it's "Over
to you."

Come or t e weekend


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Sept. 10-11

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• RV Assembly

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Sept. 10-11

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Sept. 10-11

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Sept. 23-25

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• Electrical Systems

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• Repairman (LSA) Inspection-Airplane

Denver, CO

• Repairman (LSA) Inspection-Airplane

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Columbus, OH

Oct. 1-2

(Columbus State
Community College)

EAA SportAir
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VINTAGE AIRPLANE

29

AUGUST 20--Niles, M[-jerry Tyler Memorial Airport (3TR). VAA

r "~ "

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-<.:

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"t

The (ollowing list o(coming events is (IIrt1ished to Ollr readers as a matter o( it/(or­
mation only and does not constitllte approval, sponsorship, involvement, cot/trolor
direction o(any event (fly-in, seminars, fly market, etc.) listed. To submit an event,
send the information via mail to: Vintage Airplane, PO. Box 3086, OshkoslI, WI
54903-3086. Or e-Illail tl1e information to: vintageaircra([email protected]. In(ormation
shollld be received (ollr months prior to tile event date.

AUGUST 7-Queen City, MO-Applegate Airport 18th Annual Wa­

termelon Fly-In. 2 PM 'til dark. Info: 660-766-2644.
AUGUST 13-Hoquiam, WA-Bowerman Field. Ercoupe Gathering
& Fly-In. All experimental, classic, and vintage aircraft are wel­

come. Excellent restaurant on field. Info: Dick 360-533-5926
AUGUST 19-21-Alliance, OH-Barber Airport (201). 7th Annual

Ohio Aeronca Aviators Fly-In. Join us for a relaxing weekend of
fun, food, friendship and flying. Breakfast served by EAA Ch.
82 Sat & Sun, 7am-llam. Camping on field , local lodging and
transportation available. Forums on Saturday. Info: Brian, 216­
337-5643 or [email protected] or www.oaaf/y-In.com
AUGUST 20--Laurinburg-Maxton, NC-Ercoupe Owners Club Awe­
some August Invitational. North/South Carolina members and
guests. Lunch, awards, Young Eagles Flights. Info: 336-342­
5629 or bandman@netpath-rc. net
AUGUST 20--Newark, OH-Newark-Heath Airport (VTA). EAA Ch.
402 Fly-[n Breakfast. Info Tom, 740-587-2312 or [email protected]

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AU G U S T 2005

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Ch. 35 Corn and Sausage Roa st. 11am-3pm. Rain date August
20. Donations $5 adults, $3 children 12-yrs and under. All you
can eat. Info: Len, 269-684-6566.
SEPTEMBER 3-Marion, [N-(MZZ) Fly/ln Cruise/ln. Info:
www.FiylnCruiseln .com.
SEPTEMBER 3-Prosser, WA-EAA Ch. 391 's 22nd Annual Labor
Day Weekend Prosser Fly-[n. Info: 509-735-1664.
SEPTEMBER S-U-Galesburg, [L-Ga lesburg Municipal Airport.
34'h Annual Stearman Fly-[n . Technical seminars. Aircraft
judging and awards. Aerobatic, formation, short-field
takeoff, spot-landing and flour bombing contests. Dawn
Patrol, lunch-time flyouts, pizza party, stage show, banquet
and more. Info: 309-343-6409 or stearman@stearmanf/yin.
com or www.stea rmanf/yin .com
SEPTEMBER U -Mt. Morris, IL-Ogle County Airport (C55).
EAA Ch. 682 Fly-In Breakfas t. 7am-12pm.
Info: 815-732-7268.
SEPTEMBER 16-17-Bartlesville, OK-Frank Phillips Field (BVO).
49th Annual Tulsa Regional Fly-In. Info: www.tllisaf/yin.com
or Charlie Harris at 918-622-8400.
SEPTEMBER 17-Poplar Grove, IL-Poplar Grove Airport.
Vintage Wings & Wheels Museum. Salu te to WW II Combat
Aviators. Military aircraft display and fly-by. Interviews with
12 WWII veterans of air combat.
Info: www.popiargroveairmotive.com/mllsellnl
SEPTEMBER 17-1S-Rock Falls, IL-Whiteside County Airport
(SQI). North Centra l EAA "Old Fashioned" Fly-In. Forums,
workshops, fly-market, camping, air rally, awards, food &
exhibitors. Info www.nceaa.org
SEPTEMBER 22-25-St. Louis, MO-Creve Coeur Airport
(lHO). Monocoupe Club Fly-In/Reunion. Info: Frank Kerner,
(314) 277-4306 or [email protected] or www.morlOcollpe.com
SEPTEMBER 23-25-Sonoma, CA-Sonoma Skypark (OQ9).
23rd Annua l West Coast Travel Air Reunion . Come to wine
country for the largest gathering of Vintage Travel Airs.
Info: 925-689-8182.
SEPTEMBER 24-0ntario, OR-Ontario Air Faire-Breakfast by
EAA Ch. 837. Large warbird collection, acro airshow, car
show, stage entertainment. Free adm ission. Info: Roger, 208­
739-3979 or [email protected]
SEPTEMBER 24-Topping, VA-Hummel Air Field. 10'h Annual
Car & Air Event. 8am-4pm. Featuring ant ique cars and
planes, plus fire apparatus, tractors & engines, and arts &
crafts. Info: (804) 694-5995 or in([email protected] or
www.wingsandwheeis.lIs.
SEPTEMBER 24-Hanover, IN-Lee Bottom Flying Field (641).
Wood, Fabric & Tailwheels Fly-I n . Info: www.ieebottom.com .
OCTOBER 1-2-Midland, TX-Mid land [nt' l Airport. FINA­
CAF AIRSHO 2005 will commemorate 60th Anniversary
of the end of World War II. Info: 432-563-1000 x. 2231 or
pubiicreiations@caf/7q.org
OCTOBER 5-9-Tullahoma, TN-"1932 to 2005-The Tradition
Lives: Year of the Staggerwing" Staggerwing, Twin Beech 18,
Bonanza, Baron, Beech owners & enthusiasts, Sponsored by
the Staggerwing Museum Foundation, Staggerwing Club, Twin
Beech 18 Society, Bonanza/ Baron Museum, Travel Air Division,
& Twin Bonanza Assn. Info: 931-455-1974

REGIONAL FLY-IN SCHEDULE
EAA Mid-Eastern Fly-In
August 26-28 , 2005
Marion, OH (MN N)
Virginia State EAA Fly-In
October 1-2, 2005
Petersburg, VA (PTB)
www.vaeaa.org

EAA Southeast
Regional Fly-In
October 7-9 ,2004
Evergreen, AL (GZH)
www.serfi. org
Copperstate Regional EAA Fly-In
October 6-9,2005
Phoenix, AZ. (A39)
www.copperstate.org

VINTAGE

Membershi~ Services
AIRCRAFT

ENJOY THE MANY BENEFITS OF EAA AND
THE
EAA VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION
ASSOCIATION


Secretary

Steve Nesse
2009 Highl and Avc .
Albert Lea, MN 56007
507-373-1674
stfles@(/eskmefiia.com

Phone (920) 426-4800

Vice- Preside nt

George Daubner
2448 Loug h Lane
Hartford, WI 53027
262-673-5885

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72 15 East 46th SI.

Tulsa, OK 74 147

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DIRECTORS
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85 Brush H ill Road
Sherborn, MA 01 770
508-65:l-7.157

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David Bennett

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antiquer@i"reach.cul1l

EAA and Division Membership Services
800-843-3612 ........ FAX 920-426-676 1
Mo nday-Friday CST)
(8:00 AM-7:00 PM
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P.O. Box 328

Ha rva rd , IL 60033-0328

8l5-943-7205

di"shao@owc." et

Programs and Activities
EAA AirVenture Fax-On-Demand Directory
......... ___ . ___ . _...... 732-885-67 11
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John Berendt

7645 Echo Point Rd.

Ca nnon Falls, MN 55009

507-263-24 14

Injbfchld@rcOI111t.'Ct.com

Espie " Butch " Joyce
704 N. Regional Rd .
Greensboro, NC 27409
336-668-3650

Robert C. "Bob" Brauer
9345 S. Hoyne
Chicago, IL 60620
773-779-2 105
pllOtopi/[email protected]

Steve Krog

1002 Heather Ln.

Hartford, WI 53027
262-966-7627
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EAA

Dave C lark


Robert D. " Rob" Lumley
1265 Sout h 124th Sl.
Brookfield, WI 53005
262-782-2633
illmpeniiexecpc.com

Membership in the Experimental Aircraft
Assoc iation, Inc. is $40 for one year, includ­
ing 12 issues of SPORT AVIATION. Family
membership is an additional $10 annually.
Junior Membershjp (under 19 yea rs of age)
is available at $23 annually. All major credit
cards accepted for membership. (Add $16 for
Foreign Postage.)

635 Vestal Lane

Plainfield, IN 46 168
3 17-839-4500

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l A Deacon Street
Nort hboroug h, MA 0 1532
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5936 Steve Court
Roanoke, T X 76262
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Lawton, MI 49065

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1429 Kings Ly nn Rd
Stoughton, WI 53589
608-877-8485

rcoll/sonS [email protected]

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8891 Airport Rd, Box C2

Blaine, MN 55449

763-786-:J3 42

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sellemo rris(~lev I

.IIet

[email protected]

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2359 Lefeber Ave nue
Wauwatosa, WI 532 t 3
414 -771- 1545
[email protected]

DIRECTORS

EMERITUS

Gen e C hase
2159 Ca rlton Rd.
Oshkosh, WI 54904
920-23 1-5002

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P.O. Box 424
Union , IL 60180
8 15-923-459 1

[email protected]

b7ac@/1J c. llel

Ronald C. Fritz
15401 Sparta AV('.
Kent City, MI 49330
6 16-678-50 12
rFritzf!!'!1athway,wl.com

Fax (920) 426-48 73


Web Site: www.vintageaircraft.org and www.airventllre.org

Indianapolis, IN 46278

S.H i O@comcas t .llet

P.O. Box 11 88
i{oseville, CA 95678
916-645-8370

~

EAA Aviation Center, PO Box 3086, Oshkosh WI 54903-3086


OFFICERS
President
Geoff Robison
152 1 E. MacGregor Dr.
New Have n, IN 46774
260-493-4724
dlie{7025@\IOI.....om

Directory

E-Ma il: vintageaircraftCti'eaa.org


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920-426-6864
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Benefits
AUA Vintage Insurance Plan. 800-727-3823
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MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION


EAA SPORT PILOT
Current EAA m embers may add EAA
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EAA Membership and EAA SPORT
PILOT magaZine is available for $40 per
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duded). (Add $16 for Foreign Postage.)

VINTAGE AIRCRAFf ASSOCIATION
Current EAA members may join the
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lAC

Current EAA members may join the
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EAA Membership, SPORT AEROBAT­
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in the lAC Division is available for $55
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not included). (Add $15 for Foreign
Postage.)

WARBIRDS
Current EAA m embers may join the EAA
Warbirds of America Division and receive
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EAA Membership, WARBIRDS maga­
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FOREIGN MEMBERSHIPS
Please submit your remittance with a
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Membership dues to EAA and its divisions are not tax deductible as charitable contributions
Copyright ©2005 by lhe EM Vintage I>Jrcraft Association
All righls reserved.
VINlAGE AIRPLANE (USPS 062-750: ISSN 0091-6943) is published and owned exclusively by the EM Vintage I>Jrcraft Association of the Experimentall>Jrcraft Association and is published monthly at EM
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VINTAGE AIRPLANE

31

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BABBITT BEARING SERVICE - rod
bearings, main bearings, bushings,
master rods, valves, piston rings.
Call us Toll Free 1-800-233-6934,
e-mail [email protected] Website
www.ramengine .com VI NTAG E
ENGINE MACHINE WORKS,
N. 604 FREYA ST., SPOKANE, WA
99202
CUSTOM PRINTED T-SHIRTS for your
flying club, flight shop, museum. Free
samples. Call 1-800-645-7739 or 1­
828-654-9711 .

THERE'S JUST NOTHING LIKE IT

ON THE WEB!!


www.aviation-giftshop.com
A Website with the Pilot in Mind
(and those who love airplanes)

Warner engines. Two 165s, one fresh
O .H., one low time on Fairchild 24
mount with all accessories . Also
Helton Lark and Aeronca C-3 project.
Find my name and address in the
Officers and Directors listing and call
evenings. E. E. "Buck" Hilbert.

For Sale - 1939 Spartan Executive,
3500TT, 10 SMOH. 214-354-6418,

www.lpjetservices.com
Airplane T-Shirts

150 Different Airplanes Available

WE PROBABLY HAVE

YOUR AIRPLANE!


www.airplanetshirts.com
1-800-645-7739
Flying wires available. 1994 pricing.
Visit www.flyingwires.com or call
800-517-9278.

THE FORGOTTEN PERFORMERS

ELECTRICAL

CONDUIT

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• MIL SPEC and RFI SHIELDING
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• Original equipment style Braided
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32

AUGUST 2005

the Pacemaker in marginal weather.
Mud Lake is narrow, shallow, and
a half-mile long, and Poet dragged
it twice and then did a touch-and­
go before setting down for th e
pickup. Mattie Jack was loaded on,
and they headed for the ho spital
at Bella Coola. It was dark on ar­
rival, and although landing in the
narrow valley without daylight was
seldom attempted, Dick executed a
safe approach and thwarted a sad
ending to Mattie Jack's life.
The Pacemaker's most serious
trauma occurred on July 25, 1963,
on a takeoff from Nimpo Lake, 70
miles east of Bella Coola. Loaded
with two adults and five children
from the Poets' extended family,
and piloted by Helen's cousin, Bob
Stewart, a wingtip caught the water
in an attempt to un-stick the right
float, and the plane cartwheeled.
The left wing and one float were
torn off, the fuselage was com­
pletely severed immediately behind
the cabin, and everything came to
rest floating inverted. All on board

continued

were wearing life jackets, and the
children were ed u ca ted in float
flying; they tripped their seat belt
buckles, swam out the open end of
the cabin, and popped to the sur­
face. There were no injuries!
Bohanan retri eved the engine;
it was flushed, mounted on th e
nose of a PT-17 Stearman, and sold
to a d entist, Dr. William Stone in
Sandy, Oregon. Forty years later,
the Stearman i s still owned by
Stone, and the same Wasp Jr. is on
the nose.
The remainder of the Pacemaker
stayed on the shore of Nimpo Lake
for a year and then was loaded on
a farm truck by Dick's son-in-law,
Alan Hauan, and returned to Aums­
ville, where it was deposited behind
the Poets' barn. A much more seri­
ous tragedy occurred a short time
later when Dick was involved in the
fatal crash of a DHC-2 float Beaver
when one wing folded.
......

To be continued in the September is­
sue of Vintage Airplane.