Vintage Airplane - Dec 2006

Published on February 2017 | Categories: Documents | Downloads: 34 | Comments: 0 | Views: 179
of 44
Download PDF   Embed   Report

Comments

Content

u>
CD

z~

-----­

rAiLW~€€LS

D1 Pave- Bvown


VOL. 34, No. 12

N E
2006

DE

E

BER

CONTENTS
2

VAA News

4

By The Numbers

Getting the markings right

by Marv Hoppenworth


7

Restoration Corner

General restoration techniques

by Stan Gomoll


10

The Prototype 1930 INF

Ted Teach's AirVenture award winner

by Sparky Barnes Sargent


18

The Oldest Chipmunk

Can you fly Canadian?

by Budd Davisson


28

Why I Love to Fly

Explaining the lure of flight

by Hugh B. Horning


32

Book Review

34

The Vintage Instructor

Best glide

by Doug Stewart


36

Mystery Plane

by H.G. Frautschy


38

Classified Ads & Calendar

COVERS
FRONT COVER: The Waco INF is a great favorite of many biplane aficionados , and this one in par­
ticular is even more special ; it's the prototype of the model! See Marcia "Sparky " Barnes' arti­
cle on this award-winning antique biplane , starting on page 10. EAA photo by Bonnie Kratz, EAA
photo plane flown by Bruce Moore in EAA' s C-210 near Green Lake .

BACK COVER: If you can 't be the first one, then be the oldest one flying! This Canadian-built DHC­
1 Chipmunk was the eleventh one built, and spent it's early days in England, being evaluated by
DeHavilland in England. The DHC-l was built to repl ace the beloved Tiger Moth. This one now
resides in Canada, where it flies with UK registration . See Budd Davisson ' s article beginning on
page 18. EAA photo by Bonnie Kratz, EAA photo plane flown by Walt Dorlac in Lance PA32R300.

S TAFF

EAA Publisher
Executive Director/Editor
Administrative Assistant
Managing Editor
News Editor
Photography

Tom Poberezny
H,G. Frautschy
Jennifer Lehl
Kathleen Witman
Ric Reynolds
Jim Koepnick
Bonnie Bartel Kratz
Advertising Coordinator
Sue Anderson
Classified Ad Coordinator
Louise Schoenike
Colleen Walsh
Copy Editor
Director of Advertising
Katrina Bradshaw
Display Advertising Representatives:

Northeast: Allen Murrtt y
Pho ne RS6-220-7180, FAX 856-229-72SR, e-mai l: a/lenlllllrTay(1;)nillllsprillg.t'OIII
Southeast: Chester R;llllnga rtncf
Phone 727-S32-4640, FAX 727-532-4630, e-mail: cblllllllil /(iM llilldspriIlS,,"III
Cent ral: Todd Reese
Phone 800-444-9932, I'AX 816-741-6458, e-ma il : [email protected]
\ iountain & Pacific: John Gibson
Phone 916-784-9593, (.-mai l: io lll1gi bs()II(~.spc- mag.co l1l

VINTAGE AI RPLANE

FAA to STC Holders: No Ethanol
in Auto Fuel
The FAA has issued a special air­
worthiness information bulletin
(SAIB) warning aircraft owners and
operators with auto fuel supplemen­
tal type certificates (STC) to ensure
the fuel they use does not contain
alcohol (ethanol or methanol). The
SAIB reinforces EAA's ongoing efforts
to ensure the availability of compli­
ant autogas by heading off or modi­
fying legislative attempts in several
states to require ethanol in all gaso­
lines sold.
EAA, one of two primary sources of
automobile gasoline STCs for general
aviation aircraft, advocates that, at
the very least, states should exempt
premium grade fuel from ethanol
mandates to ensure a readily avail­
able and safe fuel supply for aircraft.
The FAA cites numerous reasons
alcohol and airplanes do not mix.
Alcohol:
• Adversely affects the volatility of
auto gasoline, which could cause va­
por lock.
. Is corrosive and not compatible
with rubber seals and other mate­
rials used in aircraft, which could
lead to fuel system deterioration
and malfunction .
• Is subject to phase separation,
which happens when the fuel cools
as an aircraft climbs to higher alti­
tudes. When the alcohol separates
from the gasoline, it may carry water
that has been held in solution and
that cannot be handled by the sedi­
ment bowl.
• Reduces the energy content of
fuel. Methanol has approximately
55 percent of the energy content of
gasoline, ethanol 73 percent. More
alcohol equals reduced range.
EAA's auto fuel STC has saved air­
craft owners untold thousands of dol­
lars by allowing them to use auto fuel
rather than more expensive avgas.
The FAA recommends that owners use
2

DECEMBER 2006

automobile gasoline that conforms to
the specifications published in their
airplane flight manual or automobile
gasoline STC flight manual supple­
ment. Those unsure about the pres­
ence of alcohol can perform a simple
test with EAA's auto fuel Alcohol Test
Kit, available by calling 920-426-4843
or e-mailing [email protected].

200j1
/lIRVENTURE
OSHKOSH

~




It's Never Too Early to
Plan for Oshkosh
Aviation's biggest week of the year
takes a year to prepare for, and you
can bet preparations are well under­
way for EAA AirVenture Oshkosh
2007, set to take place July 23-29.
EAA draws the aviation community
together to share the pure joy and
excitement of flight unmatched any­
where in the world.
"All the spirit, innovation, and
dreams of aviation come together in
one place, for one week," said EAA
President Tom Poberezny. "This
is the true magiC of AirVenture:
Whether we come from the pilot
community, industry, or govern­
ment , we are brought together by
our passion for flight."
As we enter the new year, keep up
with the continuing developments
at www.AirVenture.org. Look for many
neW special features, including video
and audio presentations, interactive
sections, plus essentials like admission
rates, housing information, forum pre­
senters, special attractions, and more.
"EAA AirVenture is one of avia­
tion 's most important events for
business, government, and educa­
tion," Poberezny said. "What makes

this event unique, however, is the
fact that it is also aviation's annual
family reunion .
"If you're asked to explain what
EAA AirVenture is, there's only one
good answer-'You gotta be there!'"

Start Out the New Year at a
SportAir Workshop
EAA's SportAir Workshops will hit
the ground running in 2007 with
a large number and variety of ses­
sions located throughout the coun­
try. Now is the time to make plans to
attend before they fill up. And what
better holiday gift is there for the as­
piring homebuilder?
• Oshkosh, Wisconsin-january
27 -28: Learn to successfully build your
aircraft with these courses: Compos­
ites, Fabric Covering, or Sheet Metal.
Other courses include Electrical Sys­
tems and Avionics, and Gas Welding,
plus Introduction to Aircraft Building
and What's Involved in Kit Building
suit those just getting started.
• Lakeland, Florida-February 17­
18: Held at the Sun 'n Fun campus,
learn Composites, Fabric Covering,
and Sheet Metal, as well as Electrical
Systems and Avionics, and What's In­
volved in Kit Building.
• Dallas, Texas-March 3-4: Com­
posites, Fabric Covering, and Sheet
Metal construction methods, plus
Electrical Systems and Avionics, Gas
Welding, and What's Involved in
Kit Building.
• Watsonville, California-March
17 -18 : Com posi tes, Electrical Sys­
tems and Avionics, Fabric Covering,
Sheet Metal, and What's Involved in
Kit Building.
• Detroit, Michigan-April 14-15 :
Composites, Electrical Systems and
Avionics, Introduction To Aircraft
Building, Sheet Metal, and What's In­
volved in Kit Building.
Take the first step toward fulfilling
your dream of homebuilt flight. To learn
more about these and other upcoming

workshops, as well as special EM mem­
ber tuition for the courses, visit www.
SportAir.com or call 800-967-5746.

Lost Swift Cowling
Mark Holliday had a bad night a
while back, and he's willing to share
the event with those of you in the
southeastern United States in the hope
that someone will hear of a new Globe
Swift cowling that's appeared. Here's
Mark's sad tale:
While trailering N78261 north on
Interstate 75 'from Atlanta to Athens
the entire nice original cowl blew off
the airplane, unknown to me until I
was getting off the highway at the Ath­
ens exit. The cowl appeared to be bolted
in place, the handles were latched, and
the camlocks on the top fastened, but
the brackets were bolted only to the
firewall and were not attached to the
cowl. I saw screws through the holes

Ei TEn

where the bracket attaches to the cowl,
but they were apparently too small and
used only to position the cowl; but the
cowl felt solid.
By the time I got turned around and
returned to Atlanta to proceed north
on 1-75 (about a two-hour drive each
way, and it's now about 2:00 a.m.)
looking for the cowl, someone must
have already picked it up. I didn't find
it. I checked with the Georgia State Pa­
trol, and there was no record of any
accidents or their people picking it up.
Could you please run the following ad:
Lost complete original Swift cowl on
northbound 1-75 between Atlanta, GA
and Athens, TN on 10-5-06. Reward for
return or information. Mark 651-270­
1318, or e-mail: [email protected]
If you've got news for Mark, please
contact him at the numbers above, or
call us here at VAA headquarters: 920­
426-4825.

roWINTHE 20

AIRCRAFT

Enter EAA Aircraft Sweepstakes Online
For the first time this year, those eligible to enter the 2007 EAA Aircraft
Sweepstakes can do so online through the EAA AirVenture website . Your chance
to win the grand-prize Aviat Husky donated by Aviat Aircraft Inc., or several other
great prizes, is only a few clicks away!
To enter online, visit www.AirVenture.org/ sweepstakes and follow the link to
EAA's secure site for entry instructions. A minimum $10 donation is required
for each block of 10 entry tickets entered online. The sweepstakes is open
to residents of the United States and Canada (excluding Quebec). See official
rules for complete details at www.AirVenture.org/ sweepstakes.
Other donated prizes for the 2007 sweepstakes include a John Deere trac­
tor, a Bose Wave radio, a Canon digital camera, and a Honda ST1300 motor­
cycle. The big drawing takes place on the last day of EAA AirVenture Oshkosh
2007, Sunday, July 29.

TOMFLOCK
Just as this issue was going
to press, we were advised of the
passing of 1999 VAA Hall of Fame
Inductee Tom Flock of Rockville,
Indiana. Tom was a master re­
storer of Waco aircraft and known
worldwide for his expertise and
outstanding workmanship on a
number of Waco restorations and
a PiperJ-3 Cub. He was a longtime
member of EAA Chapter 83.
A retired farm-implements
dealer, Tom's avocation was an­
tique aircraft, a passion at which
he excelled. During the 1993 Waco
Club fly-in, Tom was awarded the
Bob Poor Memorial Award for ex­
quisite workmanship. His restora­
tions consistently won awards at
fly-ins across the country. He en­
joyed meeting folks from all walks
of life and especially enjoyed giv­
ing rides in his UPF-7. In 1995,
Burt Rutan was speaking at Indi­
ana State University and visited
EAA Chapter 83. The designer of
some of the most amazing aircraft
of the century was delighted when
given a chance to ride in the UPF­
7 with Tom.
Our condolences to his wife,
Carolyn, his children and step­
children, and to his many friends
in vintage aviation, especially
those he knew within the Waco
community.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

3

BY THE

Getting the markings right

BY MARV HOPPENWORTH

veryone who builds
or restores an airplane
is hit with the task of
laying out registration
identification numbers.
Over the last 60 years
they have gone from
24 inches to 20 inches to 12 inches
and whatever on classic and amateur­
built aircraft. May I suggest a current
copy of Federal Aviation Regula t ion
(FAR) Section 45 .1, Subpart C, Nation­
ality and Registration Marks. The FAA­
mandated markings can be traced

back to a 1919 international agree­
ment that detailed the type of mark­
ings for aircraft around the world.
I painted my first set of numbers
on my ]-3 Cub in 1948: NC9245H
in black on yellow. I did quite a few
in those ea rly years. Yo u must hear
about this one set of numbers in par­
ticular. A friend was having me re­
cover the wings of his 1939 Aeronca
Chief. One day we were alerted to
two new cute little yellow airplanes
at the gas pit. Come to fi nd out, they
were the new Piper PA-15 Vagabonds.

My friend drew my attention to the
new little 18-inch numbers on the
wings and asked if I cou ld paint his
wings like that. My answer was , "I
don't know why not." So I proceeded
to layout the set of numbers. Maroon
on white. Two days after I pulled the
tape, we got an advisory circular in
the mail announcing the new mini­
mum size of registration numbers on
the wing was 20 inches!
There was no way I could correct
that except to do it over. I spent the
next two evenings on my own time,

Download the letters at www. VintageA ircra ft. org

[J
4

DECEMBER 2006

with a sharp knife, peeling the ma­
roon letters down to the silver dope
and reworking the white base color.
Then the new size 20-inch numbers
were masked and repainted maroon.
Now you know why I recommend
a current copy of FAR Section 45.1,
Subpart C. There are so many combi­
nations of size, speed, age, etc., that it
is too hard to commit to memory.
Here's another story I have to credit
to experience. Sometime around
1960, my Taylorcraft was due for re­
cover. At that time the FAA was re­
questing registration numbers be put
on the side so that recognizing these
numbers would be easier for fighter
pilots. I did not argue with that. Since
my T-Craft had split colors on the fu­
selage, I masked and painted black
numbers, black above the split-line
and yellow numbers below the line,
surrounded by the black trim color.
This set of numbers, although con ­
trasting in color, washed out to be
unrecognizable at 200 feet. I then had
to lower my trim line about 8 inches
and redo the letters in black-an-yel­
Iowan the lower half. You cannot be­
lieve what a difference that made. We
learn by our mistakes. So we call it ex­
perience. Wisdom comes from learn­
ing from someone else's experience.
Over the years I have observed
many sets of N numbers. I have seen
I/4"s and I/7"s that would tip if you
looked at them long enough. In­
cluded is a layout of what, I think,
numbers should look like. The FAR
calls for "Roman Block." Many print
shops do not even recognize Roman
Block. As you will note, the numeral
1/8" is the "frame" for many of the
numbers and is used in directing
many of the letters of the alphabet
in Roman Block. There is one excep­
tion in width of the letters M and W.
These will be as wide as they are tall,
and the center intersecting bars will
join with a B width just like on the
letter N.
In laying out the numbers, they
should be in a straight line and the
vertical edges should be 90 degrees
to the top and bottom. You can use
the 3-4-5 triangle or multiples of that,
such as 9-12-15 to verify your verti­

cals. Decide where you want to put
your row of numbers. If it is a rect­
angular wing, I suggest you take your
measurements from the trailing edge.
The distance between each letter or
number is to be one-half the width of
the letters. Do not use a ballpoint pen
to make any marks. A soft lead pencil
should be used if you need to make
marks. You may also use short pieces
of tape.

Two days after
I pulled the tape,
we got an
advisory circular
in the mail
announcing the

new minimum
size of
registration
numbers on
the wing was
20 inches!
Pull the masking tape to the full
length of the registration numbers.
Bring the tape down to your marks
and be cautious not to curve the tape.
Do the same for the lower edge. Now
mark on the tape where the vertical
guides will go. Verify that you are still

90 degrees when you get to the last
number. It is suggested that you iden­
tify each number and letter, and mark
it on the tape. Check it against your
registration certificate. An error from
here on would be hard to correct.
We all know that masking tape
never tears where you wish it to, so
I recommend a putty knife about an
inch and a half wide . Place the putty
knife over the spot you want the tape
to tear and pull up. This leaves a sharp
edge with accuracy within about 1/64
of an inch . Where two pieces of tape
converge on an angle of less than 90
degrees, just lay them down, stick­
ing one on top of another. Lift the
two ends together, slip a small piece
of metal under the intersection, and,
using an Exacto knife or a sharp util­
ity knife, cut on the lines formed by
the masking tape. Then lay the tapes
back down. Do not cut directly onto
your painted surface. There are vinyl
tapes that give a nice sharp edge, and
these may be worth the extra cost.
3M "Fineline" masking tape is also
a great product for producing sharp,
clean masked paint edges.
Double-check each number, mak­
ing sure you have closed in and
masked all the corners that should
be treated that way. It is easy to over­
look. Before painting the numbers,
remember to check all the edges by
rubbing down with your thumbnail
and use a lower air pressure when
painting the trim and numbers.
A simple way to put numbers on
the vertical fin and rudder is to lay
out your small numbers using mask­
ing tape sized to match the width of
the bar (B). Example: I-inch mask­
ing tape will give you a letter or
number 6 inches tall. Then mask a
horizontal line above and below the
numbers. This will present you with
a horizontal bar about 12 inches
to 15 inches with 6-inch contrast­
ing numbers. It looks nice and it is
much simpler to make than mask­
ing around little numbers.
Remember, upper right wing and
lower left wing. Yes, it can happen.
I hope that this has given you a bit
of a heads-up on laying out registra­
tion numbers.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

5

AVIATION ROMAN


BLOCK TYPE

BY H. G. FRAUTSCHY


The font shown to the right is based upon the let­

website, there are computer type fonts available for

ter guide published in the December 2002 issue of

use in marking aircraft. The closest version to the

Vintage Airplane, as originally published in Brimm

style used on pre-World War II and postwar aircraft is

and Boggess ' Aircraft Maintenance for the Airplane

commonly designated "AmarilloUSAF. " It is the font

Mechanic. In my research on this subject, at no time

used by the U.S. Air Force to mark its aircraft. The

have I turned up an FAA or Civil Aviation Authority

font is available from TLai Enterprises at www.TLai.

(CAA) document that actually depicted the letters.

com/med_des/amusafhtml. It is available as a free

Only a description in the regulations has been seen in

download on a trial basis and is fairly inexpensive

official documents.

($15) if you want to buy the full letter set.

I have created alternative versions of some of the

This font is very close to that used on civil aircraft

letters (the 2 and 7) as seen in material submitted by

in the 1940s, but there are differences. Research of

Marv Hoppenworth and in period photos of aircraft

your aircraft type will disclose changes you may need

built in the 1930s and 1940s. If members have oth­

to make. For example, the "7" used on Waco aircraft

ers they'd like to see depicted, please let us know.

has the upper right corner of the numeral trimmed at

The letters and numbers are available on the VAA

an angle, where other aircraft manufacturers used a

website at www.VintageAircraft.org. They will be down­

"7" that featured a sharp corner at that point. The

load able in PDF form and as Adobe Illustrator docu­

regulatory requirement for the font's thickness to be

ments. You can download only the letters you need,

1/6 of the height of the character notwithstanding,

or all of them if you wish. Typically, sign shops spe­

variations in thickness seemed to abound as well.

cializing in computer-generated graphics can work

Another option, for those who would prefer to have

with vector graphic artwork, such as Adobe Illustrator,

their artwork generated by a specialist, is to employ

Corel DRAW, FreeHand, etc. Thanks to being created

the services of a company such as Aerographics of

in vector-based computer artwork, these characters

Loveland, Colorado. They can generate graphics in

are scalable to very large sizes. The sign shop can

a variety of styles and outputs. They can be reached

adjust the artwork to your required size with no prob­

at 800-336-9633 or www.Aerographics.com. Be sure

lem, whether you're asking them to make a mask for

to clearly explain your needs, particularly with regard

the numbers or are looking for the entire character to

to the exact configuration of the letters. As you can

apply to the airframe.

see, even for a marking defined by regulation, there's

In addition to the scalable artwork provided on our

6

DECEMBER 2006

plenty of variation!

-.

I-B-I


"r-------,

B

-'

-,

-,

.--------1'2.25
B

-!
H

-I
1.5B

_I

--w

I-B~I-B-I-B-I

.5UJI

Letter Sizes - All Dimensions in Inches
H=24
W=16
B=4
E=2-1/2

AIRCRAFT REGISTRATION

NUMBERS AND LE II ERS


20
13-3/8
3-3/8
2

12
8
2
1-1/4

3
2
1/2
5/16

Universal

Number/Letter Outline


~=0
Z

o

-l

»
G)
rrl

»
::0
'"'0

r

»
z

rrl

"

0

(£)

<

o

1-,

I-I

.758

HGF-ll/ 30/ 06

General restoration techniques

BY STAN GOMOLL

Editor's Note: In this installation of the "Restoration Corner," well-known vintage aircraft restorer Stan Gomoll of Minneapolis, Min­
nesota, discusses general techniques used in renovating tail groups and wings . .. G. R. C. and H. G .F
TAIL GROUPANDWINGS
Tail Group
The types of construction used in air­
craft tail groups falls into three general cat­
egories: steel tUbing, aluminum and wood.
Some of the aircraft utilizing wood construc­
tion in their tail groups are Mooney, Culver,
Waco and Fairchild, to name a few.
Start by laying all the parts on the floor
in plan form. Now is the time to check for
pieces that are missing or may have been
misplaced, such as trim actuator brackets,
hinge pins , brace wires and attaching hard­
ware. Make a list of missing parts along
with a worksheet of the work to be accom­
plished; then when you set the piece aside
awaiting parts or material, you can pick up
where you left off.
Check for ADs or factory service bulletins
that may apply to your aircraft. These could
refer to such things as attach points, hinge
brackets, internal corrosion or wood rot.

Steel Tube Construction
Clean all the parts using soap and wa­
ter, paint stripper or sandblasting. I do not
choose to sandblast unless it is absolutely
necessary, as this process removes the
natural protective coating on the metal. Wire
brushing will clean the surface, but leaves
rust in pitted areas and inside small radius
corners. If you do choose to sandblast, care
must be taken because it will reduce the
thickness of the material and can distort
light sheet metal parts.
After cleaning and removing all the rust,
punch test the tubing using a dull-pointed
punch and hammer. Also check for any
cracks or distortion. A check for misalign­
ment of hinges can be made by standing
the part vertically and running a weighted
string through the holes. When there are
more than two hinge points on a surface,
the alignment becomes more critical.
Replace worn bushings by pulling them
in . A simple puller can be made using a
threaded bolt and socket or a piece of tub­
ing with a large, heavy washer welded on
one end. This works well on straight-type

bushings or roller bearings.
If the trim tab on the control surface is
mounted with bolts or PK screws , it might
be necessary to weld a reinforcement in
this area to prevent cracking of the thin trail­
ing edge tubing.
After each part is repaired and cleaned,
give it a coat of primer. I like to use lac­
quer-resistant zinc chromate or a good ep­
oxy primer.
Adjustable trim tab actuators should
be disassembled, cleaned and re-assem­
bled using a grease with a wide tempera­
ture range . Check cables for condition and
proper clearance from structures . Make a
drawing to be used in accurately locating
the inspection plate holes after the new cov­
ering is installed .
Check and, if necessary, replace the wir­
ing for the navigation light. You might want
to install extra wiring for the possible instal­
lation of a strobe light at a later date.
After all the tail pieces are cleaned , re­
paired and primed, take the time to mount
the complete assembly on the fuselage . It's
much easier to take care of mounting prob­
lems now than after the pieces are covered.
At this time do a complete rigging of all wires
and/or struts for the tai l group, including
hooking up any adjustable trim tabs . Check
for adequate clearance between parts, tak­
ing into consideration the added thickness
of one or more layers of fabric and/or tape.
Also, it's easy to rig the proper travel of trim
tabs and control surfaces at th is time. Use
the FAA or manufacturer's specifications to
determine the proper degrees of travel.

Aluminum Construction
Check for loose rivets, cracked or broken
internal structure, improper repairs and cor­
rosion inside and out. Check for mice or bird
nests, which hold moisture, causing corro­
sion. Check that all drain ho les are open .
If the surfaces are painted, you might want
to strip the paint to check for hidden dam­
age or repairs. Some unscrupulous persons
have been known to cover such areas with
plastic auto body filler.
R EPRIN T ED FROM

8

DECEMBER 200 6

Vintage A irplane

A UG UST 1986

Check to see that all repairs are covered
on Form 337s . It's not uncommon to find
that the proper paperwork has not been
completed.

Wood Construction
The small blade of a pocket knife is a good
tool for checking the condition of wood struc­
ture . The po int should penetrate very little
into the wood . I suggest trying this on a piece
of scrap wood to "get the feel." The blade will
penetrate very easily into decayed wood.
It's advisable to replace all hardware
such asbolts , nuts, washers, etc. as cad­
mium plating wears off and moisture in the
wood can result in rust on these areas ,
which in turn, causes the wood to decay
with a major loss of strength. Even though
the hardware may look good, it should be
replaced. It has probably been installed for
a long time and with the long life of today's
modern fabrics it will be a long time before
the plane is re-covered again.
Pay particular attention to the area
around the attach points. All of the old paint
should be removed down to bare wood so a
good check can be made for cracks and dry
rot. Check all the glue joints and gussets for
strength and/or separation. The old casein
glues deteriorate with age.
Refer to the FAA's Advisory Circular AC
43.13, which describes repairs to wood and
metal structures. The old standby is to fin­
ish the wood with two coats of spar varnish,
as this product has stood the test of time.
To make an internal inspection of tail
pieces covered with plywood and containing
no inspection openings, it may be neces­
sary to cut holes-but first check with your
AI or FAA inspector.
There are a lot of qualified people to an­
swer questions concerning your restoration
project-all you have to do is ask. Available
through EAA Headquarters the year around
are many "how to" manuals. These are also
available at the EAA Sales Building during
each annual Convention at Oshkosh, as are
many educational forums and workshops
covering every aspect of aircraft construc-

tion and restoration. Another good source
of information is local EM and VAA chapter
fly-ins and fly-ins sponsored by the various
type clubs.
As mentioned in previous " Restoration
Corner" articles , there are companies that
sell reprints of aircraft and engine manuals.
These companies advertise in Trade-A-Plane
and several aviation magazines and are well
worth knowing about.
Wings-To remove fabric covering, first
remove the rib stitching by cutting the cords.
If the fabric is secured by metal clips, these
must be removed carefully to prevent dam­
age to the metal ribs . Whether constructed
of wood or metal, most wings are delicate
structures and can be damaged easily. Ei­
ther save the old fabric or make patterns
from which the location of inspection holes
and control cable openings can be deter­
mined when the surfaces are re-covered .
After the covering is removed an evalua­
tion of the condition of the wing is next on
the agenda. Continuing with your worksheet,
make a list of the following items along with
pertinent remarks:
Leading Edge-note wrinkles , cracks,
previous repairs , corrosion or plywood sepa­
ration. Wings are frequently stored with their
leading edges down creating a natural trap
inside the leading edge covering for mois­
ture resu lting in corrosion and/ or wood rot.
Ribs-note previous and/ or unrepaired
damage , wood rot, loose glue joints and
gussets, damage to capstrips cause by wire
or PK screws, ribs misshapen because of
over-taut fabric or bowed due to over-tighten­
ing of drag and anti-drag wires.
Butt ribs-same as above.
Ribs at aileron space-same as above
plus distortion resulting in too little or too
much clearance from the aileron.
Spars-note condition of finish, any
cracks or elongated holes causing loose
bolts at metal fittings. Are the spars straight
and in alignment when sighting down them
length-wise? Are all the ribs the same height
from top of spar? Were previous repairs
made in accordance with Part 43 and prop­
erly noted on a Form 3377
Trailing Edge-note condition. Is it straight
and in alignment with aileron trailing edge?
Aileron Hinge Brackets-check bearings
and bushings for wear. Do bearings rotate
freely? Check security of attachments-are
they bent or cracked?
Drag wires and compression members­
are the wires rusty, broken or loose? Do they
have a heavy build-up of paint applied by
brush? If compression members are wood,

have they shrunk, causing ribs to bow?
Navigation and landing lights-check
mounting brackets for cracks and security,
unnecessary screw holes in the wood , nut
plates or tinneman nuts miSSing or worn out,
and condition of wiring. If the landing light is
retractable , does it operate properly?
Ailerons-check general condition of
structure. Depending on construction ma­
terials , is there rust, corrosion , wood rot,
loose rivets or glue joints? Are hinge attach
points secure? Is the trailing edge straight
and aligned with wing trailing edge? Check
leading edge for cracks and/ or wrinkles­
these are usually visible even through the
finish paint. Some ailerons are counterbal­
anced with lead weights in either the leading
edge or mounted on external arms. Check
these for a good , solid attachment.
A decision must be made at this point
whether to completely disassemble the
wing panels or to restore portions of them.
If you decide to totally restore the wings, be
sure to do one panel at a time, leaving the
other(s) assembled to guide you in re-as­
sembly of the rebuilt unit.
When possible, the route I like to take is
to remove the leading edge covering, drag
and anti-drag wires and compression mem­
bers, leaving the spars and ribs assembled .
This procedure allows a good cleaning and
checking of the structure . I then refinish the
wood with a minimum of two coats of spar
varnish, and the metal parts with a good
primer followed by a good covering with
black enamel. Primer alone does not give
long-term protection. Reassemble the wing
panel using all new hardware.
Aluminum structures can experience
electrolytic action between the aluminum
and steel fittings (dissimilar metalS) , result­
ing in corrosion. The use of cadmium-plated
bolts will neutralize this action.
An advantage in restoring a classic rather
than an antique aircraft is that many new
parts are available from supply houses . If
this describes your project, the next step is
to sit down with catalogs from several sup­
ply houses and make a list of parts needing
replacement and which are available. Get
that order off right away as delivery may
take some time.
A good example of new replacement
parts is a repair kit for the metal ribs and
spars in Piper aircraft. In some cases, lead­
ing edges can be bought preformed or you
can make them yourself.
When re-assembling a wing, to get th e
proper height and fit of the ribs on the spar,
make a pattern off the spar attach points

and the top of the fuselage (high wing mono­
planes or cabin biplanes). Using a wing rib
pattern sawed out of plywood, line up the
leading and trailing edges of the ribs with
nose ribs in place aligned with main ribs.
The ailerons should be in place to assure
proper alignment and clearances.
The t rammeling process comes next.
Don 't be alarmed at the thought of doing
this, as it is simple if done according to the
book. It 's just a matter of tightening the
drag and anti-drag wires in sequence, keep­
ing each bay square and the spars straight.
This must be done before the leading edge
sheeting (if used) is installed.
Wood leading edges are more difficult
to repair or replace. The wood sheets have
to be prebent over a form with a smaller ra­
dius than that of the rib curvature. Start by
soaking the plywood in water overnight, then
clamp it to the form with wide straps . Old
seat belts work well for this.
Do not try to fully bend the sheet at one
time, but tighten the straps gradually. The
use of an electric steam iron set on "full
heat" and applied directly to the wood sur­
face helps to bend the wood without crack­
ing, thanks to steaming action.
It's of utmost importance to trammel
the wing before final installation of the lead­
ing edge sheeting. For holding the sheeting
in place I made a set of clamps that work
great for either wood or aluminum. I cut sev­
eral pieces of 2 x 4 four inches longer than
the height of the spar, then fastened one
end of each strap (seat belt) to one end of
each 2 x 4 . I then weld flat steel plates to
one end of 8" long pieces of l ' 4" threaded
rod and riveted them to the other end of
each strap.
Each clamp is completed by inserting
each rod through holes drilled at the other
end of each 2 x 4 and held in place by large
washers and nuts. These clamps can be
used to secure the leading edge material
to either the form blocks or the wing pan­
els . Care must be taken to not over-tighten
the clamps and damage the leading edge
material. Good clamping pressure can be
attained by positioning the clamps over ribs
about 18-24" apart.
During most restoration projects it is
necessary to make some repairs. These
should always be made in accordance with
FAA manual, "Acceptable Methods, Tech­
niques and Practices-Aircraft Inspection
and Repai r, " FAA AC No. 43.13. This man­
ual is sometimes referred to as "Part 43"
and it should be a mandatory addition to
.......
every restorer's library.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

9

"It jumps off the ground and flies
like it's very light ...
-Ted Teach
/I

10

DECEMBER 2006

ner Airplane & Motor Corporation
Ltd. of Glendale, California.

The Model INF

oU just never know ex­
actly when you'll find
yourself in the an­
tique airplane market­
again. When Ted Teach
went to California to pick up the
freshly overhauled Menasco en­
gine for his Ryan ST project back
in Dayton, Ohio, he really wasn't
thinking about acquiring another
airplane project.
But while he was at the engine

Y

shop, he was enticed into taking a
look at an old Waco biplane. It was
fully assembled, looked nice, and its
engine ran fine-yet the fabric was
deteriorated to the point that all it
took was finger pressure to punch
right through it. Still, there was
something special about NC864V,
something that made it unique. It
held the distinction of being the
prototype model INF, manufactured
by Waco in Troy, Ohio, for the Kin­

Teach believes that Kinner
wanted its share in Waco's biplane
market, and that, ultimately, is how
the INF model came into produc­
tion. "This was an extremely popu­
lar biplane, even in 1930 with the
economy the way it was , and they
were selling like hotcakes-30 of
them in six months! So we think
that Kinner agreed to buy the air­
plane if Waco would design and use
the Kinner engine installation for
this airplane."
Leslie H. Bowman (who would later
become one of the first presidents of
the National Aviation Training As­
sociation) was a test pilot for Kinner
and personally took delivery of the
prototype INF on June 13, 1930. At
that time, the aircraft bore an experi­
mental registration number, since ap­
proved Type Certificate 345 wasn 't
issued until August of that year. For
those who wonder what "INF" means,
Waco's designation is interpreted this
way: "I" represents the 125-hp Kinner
B-5 engine; "N" was used in 1930 to
represent open-cockpit aircraft; and
"F" denotes the aircraft series. Accord­
ing to Teach, the INFs were known as
the "baby Fs" in the Waco "F" series,
since they were smaller than, for in­
stance, the UPFs.
Bowman drew some attention to
the new Waco by flying it in the 1930
National Air Races in Chicago just a
couple of months later. He won $300
by finishing in second place, with a
speed of 118.97 mph, in Event Num­
ber IS-the Men's 450 Cubic Inch. In
November, Bowman flew the Waco in
the National Air Tour, publicly dem­
onstrating the reliability of the aircraft
and its five-cylinder Kinner engine.
The INF became popular with pi­
lots who enjoyed its short take-off roll
and initial climb of 950 fpm, along
with a 90-mph cruise, a touch-down
speed around 40 mph, and its abil­
ity to stop (without brakes) within
235 feet. The 125-hp Kinner burned 8
gph from its 32-gallon center-section
wing tank and had a 3-gallon oil tank.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

11

was also well
liked by those
who appreciated its
aerobatic agility, and it was used for
aerobatic training, as well as in the Ci­
vilian Pilot Training Program. Nearly
SO of these three-place open-cockpit
biplanes were manufactured by Waco
in 1930 and 1931, and they sold for
around $4,400 or more, depending
upon the customer's choice of op­
tional equipment, which included a
ground-adjustable metal propeller,
Heywood starter, navigation lights,
and Hot Shot battery. An engine ring
cowl and wheelpants were also avail­
able for those who desired a sleeker
machine and a bit more speed.

NC864V-Yesterday

Doug Smith, Andrew "Flyboy" King (pilot of the Waco INF for our photo shoot),
Ted Teach, Jack Tiffany, Herman Leffew, and Jerry Pruden.

g
~
~
~

Kinner Airplane & Motor Corpo­
ration owned the prototype INF for
about seven months before selling
it to a woman named Elsie Bala, of
Idaho. Not much is known about her,
except that she retained ownership
of the biplane for about six years. Af­
ter that, several flying schools owned
it during the early to mid 1940s, in­
cluding the United Flying Schools of
America, Incorporated . The Defense
Plant Corporation in Washington,
D.C., also owned it at one time.
It had been in California for a
number of years when Teach bought
it, and although it didn't come with
a complete history (except for what
could be obtained from FAA records),

~ there were a few jewels from the past

~ that accompanied the biplane. A cou­
~ pIe of faded black and white photo­
(J)

The instrument panel and placards
were silk-screened. Note the hand­
stitched leather cockpit coaming.
12

DECEMBER 2006

graphs of the dismantled Waco loaded
onto a trailer are still intriguing to
Teach; the year" 1968" is written on

Around 50 Waco INFs were buiH in
1930 and 1931.

the back of one, along with this statement: "I purchased the airplane for
$100 behind a hangar in northern
California in 1961." Teach wonders
who that person was, and who the
men in the photographs were.
Another interesting item that
yields some history about this Model
INF is a letter that W.T. Homan of
Santa Paula, California, typed on De­
cember 28, 1971, to a Mr. Beichtold.
In part, it says, "About three years
ago I bought INF Waco NC864V Se­
rial Number 326S .... This ship was
new at Mines Field (now Interna­
tional Airport) Los Angeles in 1930
and I find that several of my friends
either learned to fly in it or soloed

The INF has outrigger-style gear legs.

it. Also it has resided in Wyoming,
Montana and Washington."

A wind-driven generator is neatly mounted between the gear legs.

NC864V-Today
Teach called upon some of his avi­
ation friends to help dismantle and
truck the Waco from California to
Ohio, and the group of experienced
aircraft restorers who refer to them­
selves by the moniker "Leading Edge
Aircraft" happily embarked upon the
journey. The restoration process began
in 1998, as soon as the Waco arrived
at Teach's hangar in Dayton. However,
after the wings were covered, prog­
ress on the project slowed down un­

til 2004, when Teach employed Doug
Smith, a young and highly skilled an­
tique aircraft restorer, to work with
him on the project. Smith had previ­
ously worked for him on some other
aircraft projects, so they were eager
to work together to finish the INF. At
first , Teach thought the Waco would
require only new fabric and paint. But
as soon as they removed the old fab­
ric, Ted decided it was time for a more
extensive restoration, as well as any
modifications needed for safe opera­
tions in today's environment.

Pilots through the ages have en­
joyed modifying their aircraft , es­
pecially when those modifications
include adding horsepower. When
Teach purchased the prototype INF
from its previous owner, he found the
gentleman had obtained a field ap­
proval (FAA Form 337) in 1989 and in­
stalled a 160-hp Kinner R-SS in place
of the original 12S-hp Kinner B-S.
While he was contemplating the
difficulties posed by hand-propping
the engine (many fixed base operators
don't allow hand propping-never
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

13

-1

The INF is a three-place biplane-if the front two passengers are small. The gold
pinstripe around the registration number was painted by hand.

I

mind that it's rare to find a line boy
who can perform such a task), he de­
cided to install an electrical system
and starter in the biplane, which re­
quired locating and installing a wind
generator and voltage regulator. Along
with the electrical system came the
addition of a Hobbs meter and clock.

Restoration "Team"
There were numerous pairs of
hands that brought this 1930 Waco to
its current Bronze Lindy-Silver Age
(1928-1936) award-winning status,
and owner Ted Teach was central to
the entire process, logging countless
hours on the project himself. "I did
a fair amount of structural work on
it in my basement," he explains. "It
just took a lot of hours, and Doug's
been at it nearly two years, working
14 DECEMBER 2006

36 hours a week, with 90 percent of
his time on this airplane."
Doug's enthusiasm for restoring old
airplanes was awakened several years
ago when he was working at a flight
school to build time to become an air­
line pilot. "A professor asked me to help
him work on a Champ one summer,
and I did," he says with a smile,' " and
I fell in love with the restoring process,
and that's the path I chose. I restored a
Beechcraft AT-lO with four other gen­
tlemen, and that's now on display at
the National Museum of the U.S. Air
Force. Now I own a Stearman that I re­
stored with a partner while I lived in
South Carolina. I've also helped Jack
Tiffany restore a Cub, and my next
project is Ted's Ryan ST."
Speaking of Jack Tiffany, those who
know him might describe him as the

"instigator" of the Leading Edge Air­
craft-Restorers of Old Flying Ma­
chines group in Spring Valley, Ohio.
The group is basically composed of
Tiffany and his wife, Kate; Herman
Leffew; and Don Siefer (and more
recently, Jerry Pruden). They have
combined their individual talents to
produce many award-winning air­
craft restorations through the years
and were glad to provide assistance
to Teach. "We were just there to give
a helping hand when Ted and Doug
needed it," shares Tiffany, elaborating
that "we did repair some woodwork
in the aileron bay, and Herman and
Kate did the rib stitching. Don primed
the wings and tail group, and then we
took them back to Ted's hangar."
"Jack also helped put this airplane
together and rig it. And here's an

The handcrafted metal wheelpants add a nice finishing touch to this 1930
Waco INF.
Note the attention to detail where the
flying and landing wires join the wing.

interesting note regarding the cor­
rect tension ' for the flying wires,"
says Teach with a chuckle. "It says
to 'tighten all wires to a fair tension .
Make sure they are in a streamlined
position ... .' We got that right from
the book, and that's all it says."
The Waco wasn't the first resto­
ration project for Teach, either. He
learned to fly in 1949 when he was in
high school, and he went on to earn
a degree in aeronautical engineering
from Ohio State. "My hobby has al­
ways been aircraft. I've done a lot of
soaring; I had a glider for 20 years and
did a lot of competitive soaring-it was
wonderful! And then I got interested
in antiques. I bought a Mooney Mite

in 1991, and Doug did a lot of the res­
toration work on that-it was an Osh­
kosh winner about 10 years ago. Back
in 1969, I started a Pitts, and it took a
while to get it done," he says, eyes twin­
kling as he laughs and adds, "I have a
record for building time on a Pitts Spe­
cial-29 years and 11 months! Doug
helped me finish that one, too, along
with Kenny Blalock of Special Products
Aviation in Conway, Arkansas-and it
was an Oshkosh Lindy award winner."
(Editor's note: Teach is also an active
model builder-we ran into him at the
2006 Flying Aces contest in Muncie,
Indiana. He was busy flying in the "Old
Timer Stick" rubber-powered model
airplane event; he won! -HGF)

Finishing Touches
Streamlined wheel pants look good

on most any airplane, and especially
so on the Waco INF. Since pants didn't
come with the Waco when Teach pur­
chased it, he decided to ask Mark Ken­
nison of D&D Auto Restoration in
Covington, Ohio, whether or not he
would be willing to fabricate a pair.
Kennison agreed to squeeze the project
into his schedule, and the end result
exemplifies the quality of his work.
Teach created wooden bucks (three­
dimensional forms) to use in form­
ing the 1/16-inch aluminum sheets to
the correct compound shape. "Mark
made halves and then welded them
together, and he is a genius at moving
sheet metal," declares Teach.
A beautiful paint job is essential for
an award winner. Smith, who sanded
and finish-painted the entire biplane,
used a high-volume, low-pressure
VINTAGE AIRPLA N E

15

Lessons Learned
Each aileron extends all the way to
the wingtip.

(HVLP) gravity-feed paint cup an d
gun, with excellent res u lts. Smith
and Teach selected Randolph's bu­
tyrate dope system for the fabric and
Randolph's Ranthane for the metal
to obtain a good match between the
components, and they retained the
Waco INF's original colors-vermil­
lion on the fuselage, with silver wings
and tail. They also researched the
black trim stripe, according to Smith,
who explains that "depending on
what year your Waco was built, it had
a different design for the stripe, and
we found that the arrow was correct
for 1930."
The instruments were overhauled
and refaced, and the instrument
panel and placards were profession­
ally silk-screened. And with a steady
hand, Bill Kirnec painted the or­
ange pinstripe around the registra­
tion number on the rudder and the
wings. He also hand painted the de­
tailed Waco logo on both sides of
the fuselage. Finally, it all came to­
gether-the engine, airframe, and
FAA paperwork . NC864V was ap­
proved on June 19, 2006, for its re­
turn to airworthiness and flew on
June 25. About a month later, it
made its debut at EAA AirVent u re
Oshkosh 2006.
16

DECEMBER 2006

If you've ever helped restore an air­
plane, you know firsthand that the
successful completion of a project nor­
mally takes longer than anticipated .
Teach reflects, "After all these years,
it's hard to make an estimate of how
long it'll take to finish a project. This
past January, I said 'Doug, I think we'll
have this done the end of the month,'
and in February, I said the same thing.
It was finished mid-June!"
Smith agrees that it's easy to make
an optimistic estimate, especially in
the beginning. "When we first started
on it, we both thought we'd have it
finished in a year, no problem. But
it took two years to finish. The im ­
portant thing in doing something
like this is that if you put in the time,
they come out nice. We could have
had a flying airplane a lot faster and
a lot sooner and, for Ted's sake, a lot
cheaper. But from my standpoint, I
appreciate someone who says I want
a nice airplane and understands that
it's going to cost money, and that it's
going to take time. That's the key to
having a plane look like this-having
an owner who understands that."

A Flying Future
Teach is pleased with his hand­
some Waco INF and is looking for­
ward to flying it frequently. He also
owns and flies a Stearman, and he
thought at first the INF might have
similar flying characteristics. But he

discovered that "it flies nothing like
a Stearman! It jumps off the ground
and flies like it's very light, although
it isn't that light. It has a good cruis­
ing speed at 95 mph, and on grass it
lands and settles right down, but put
it on a hard top and then each land­
ing can be exciting."
While Teach likes working on an air­
craft restoration, he also loves flying the
finished product and sharing it with
those who are appreciative. He says he
enjoys "giving rides, because it's excit­
ing for people. I remember taking some
Young Eagles in my Stearman, and
that usually makes kids pretty happy.
There were 10 of them that Saturday
afternoon, and most had a big smile.
In Monday's mail, I had a thank-you
note from one little kid who had
made the effort to find my address, go
home, buy a card, and write a thank­
you note-he had to have it in the
mail that Saturday night! And that
made the whole thing worth while,
you know?"
Since two small children can fit com­
fortably in the cozy front seat of the
Waco, perhaps one day soon there will
be some lucky youngsters who will have
the opportunity to feel the fresh air in
their faces and see their world framed
by a pair of silver wings as they expe­
rience 1930s-style open-cockpit flying
with Teach, in his Kinner-powered pro­
totype INF. And maybe, just maybe,
Teach will find another thank-you note
in his mailbox.
......

The 2007 official Vintage Airplane calendar is a collection of stunning
air-to-air aviation photography showcasing some of the most remarkable
airplanes of yesteryear. Each month features a classic aircraft that will
be prized by anyone who appreciates the grandeur of aviation. Detailed
narrative descriptions are provided with each image, plus "three-views" of
the featured planes. Each month also provides key events in aviation history,
printed on the actual date of occurrence. This 14xll-inch, full-co lor wall
calendar is the perfect giftfor all VAA members and their families .
To order, mail your check/money order to:

VAA 2007 Calendar c/o Turner Publishing Company

P.O. Box 310 1 • Paducah, KY 42002-3101


- ,

Send me _ _ copies of the VAA 2007 Calendar, Only $15.95 each.
The VAA 2007 Calendar is the 3rd
10 Add $3.95 shipping first calendar; $1 each add'l copy.
Annual Calendar published by the

1 0 Ky residents add 6% sales tax.
Vintage Aircraft Association and

TOTAL ENCLOSED $____________
1
Turner Publishing Company.


EASY TO ORDER

1 Your Name
1
----------------------------------------------------1 Address

By Phone:
1-800-788-3350
OntheVVeb:
I -C-·-- - -- - - - - - - ---S-ta-te- ------------Z-·----­
www.turnerpublishing.com1tty
tp
VisalMastercard Accepted

1 -P-ho- n-e--------------------------E---m- a-i-I -( f-o-r-o-rd-e-r-c-o-n-fi-rm--at-io-n-)L.

__

----------.1

hipmunks are just one of
"those" airplanes; no one
can walk past one and not
have some variation of
"cute" or "just right" pass through
his or her mind. There's something
about its lines that makes it univer­
sally loved. When you pass over the
Canadian/U.S. border headed north,
however, there's an additional ingre­
dient to the airplane's attraction-na­
tional pride.
The Canadians are justifiably proud
of having hacked a nation out of a
wilderness and everything that en­
tails, which in this case includes the

C

18

DECEMBER 2006

Chipmunk. It 's a homegrown prod­
uct, and any serious sport aviation
nut from up there has his eye peeled
for one of two airplanes, or both: a
Canadian-built de Havilland Tiger
Moth or, its descendant, the Chip­
munk. And it was through the simple
process of keeping one's eyes peeled
that the latter-day saga of Chipmunk
No.ll, the world's oldest flying Chip­
munk, began.
"j was scanning an auction web­
site looking for ex-RAF Bulldogs and
happened to click on a link to past
auctions," says James Brooke of Sas­
katoon, Saskatchewan. "As j scanned

through the listing of RAF Bulldogs
[the military version of the Beagle
Pup] sold in the past, j ran into a list­
ing for a Chipmunk. It was buried
clear in the back and caught my eye
because it said the airplane had been
the winner of the King's Cup Race in
1953 and was the developmental air­
plane that had been sent to England
from Canada for the RAF to test to see
if they wanted to adopt it. What was
even more interesting was that the
airplane was listed as having been put
in the auction for sale, but it didn't
show up on their listing as having
been sold. So, j didn't know what to

think. Was it sold, or wasn't it? And,
if so, where did it go?"
Had this been just another Chip­
munk for sale, James would probably
have ignored it. But what few histori­
cal facts were given on the airplane
told him this wasn't just any Chip­
munk. This was the airplane that had
forged the link between de Havilland
of England and its Canadian subsid­
iary and eventually led to the mass
production of the airplane for the
Royal Air Force (RAF).
James says, "As we understand it,
when de Havilland of England de­
cided to build an airplane to replace

7e

s

their Tiger Moth as a basic trainer,
they were busy doing what they prob­
ably saw as more important projects,
fighters and airliners and all that. So,
they assigned the design of the new
trainer to de Havilland Canada.
"De Havilland Canada finished the
design and test-flew serial number 1
for the first time in May of 1946 with
de Havilland England's Pat Filling­
ham at the contro ls. Then in Janu­
ary of the next year, having been sent
over to show the 'mother company,'
serial number 1 was flown in Eng­
land. At the same time in Canada, se­
rial number 2 crashed because of a

delayed spin recovery, destroying the
aircraft and almost killing [the] pilot.
Subsequently, spinning a Chipmunk
has been taken as a training maneu­
ver requiring very special attention.
But, more on that later."
While serial number 1 was being
tested in England, de Havilland Can­
ada (DHC) continued refining the
airplane and produced a small pre­
production batch including serial num­
ber 11, which rolled off the line in April
1947 in Downsview, Ontario. Three
weeks later, serial number II, along
with serial number 10, were shipped
to England for evaluation flights.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

19

plane had, so we continued research­
ing it. We checked the U.K. registry
and found the airplane was listed
to a name in North Yorkshire, Eng­
land: Philip Derry. I called to verify
t h at it was there and, having recog­
nized the last name, Derry, asked him
if he was any relation to John Derry,
the de Havilland test pilot who in­
vented the Derry Turn aerobatic ma­
ne u ver and who was the first U.K.
pilot to break the sound barrier flying
a DH.I08 Swallow. It turned out he
was indeed related, as a great-nephew
severa l times removed. He was exUJ tremely nice and invited us over to
~
~ have a look."
<..l
~
W h en James and his elder son,
~ also a pilot, fo llowed the directions
To cure a quirky spin characteristic, the Chipmunk has a pair of strakes running th rough the English countryside, they
along the fuselage into the leading edge of the horizontal tail. The wood compo· were intrigued at what they found.
nent highlights the craftsmanship that went into this uniquely Canadian airplane.
liThe airplane was located on this

No. 11 was given the U.K. registration
of G-AKDN-the only registration it has
carried for more than S9 years.

James says, " I got together w ith
David Gillespie, and we both liked
the Canadian connection the air -

(/)

20

DECEMBER 2006

The tightly cowled Gipsy Major 10 Mk2 was a bit of a headache as
as r.~u,~"l illn
registration was concerned, so the Chipmunk retains its British registration.

The wing fuel tanks feature the filler
neck and mechanical fuel gauge all in
one unit.
tiny, squishy green airport-Bagby
Field in North Yorkshire. It looked as
if there should be signs saying 'Hob­
bit Crossing.' It was a perfect place for
a Chipmunk."
It was no coincidence that Philip
Derry owned the airplane and his
great -uncle was a famous-in-Eng­
land de Havilland test pilot and the
first supersonic pilot in the United
Kingdom. Philip said he saw the air­
plane in the auction and recognized
it as one his great-uncle had flown
as one of the evaluation pilots before
the RAF adopted the type. Philip con­
tacted the then-current owner and
arranged to have it taken out of the
auction for a private sale. That ex­
plained the curious Internet listing
of being for sale but not being listed
as sold. The strength of Philip's desire
for th e family connection is made

even more evident in the fact that
he isn 't, and never has been, a pilot.
That and the fact that he didn't tell
his girlfriend-soon-to-be-wife that he
had bought the airplane. It was, as he
phrased it, "An impulse buy."
"While I was there," James says,
"Phil let me go through all the test
pilot's notes, which included those
by his great-uncle, which were re­
ally fascinating to read. I was just a
little uncomfortable asking to buy
such a family heirloom. However,
it turned out that the Derry family
also had Canadian connections in
Ontario, and in fact, John Derry had
learned to fly in C:anadian-built Ti­
ger Moths in Canada with the British
Commonwealth Air Training Plan in
the early 1940s, so the idea of the air­
plane being returned 'home' to Can­
ada seemed reasonable to Phil. The

difficulty they had in trying to get
primary flight training locally in the
Chipmunk for Phil and his sons only
added another reason for him to let
the plane go.
"I called David and told him the
airplane could be what we were look­
ing for. It only had 120 hours since
the engine was overhauled and about
3,000 hours total. Plus, the airplane
was in original 1948 condition, essen­
tially how it had left the RAF evalua­
tion trials in 1948 and was the way it
was when it won the King's Cup Race
in 1953. Best of all, it had no military
service, so maybe it wasn't a wreck.
It was pretty much as it was when
shipped to England in 1947. David
was excited, which, if you knew Da­
vid Gillespie, you would know he was
borderline crazy about the idea."
It's one thing to love an airplane,
VINTAGE AIRPL A NE

21

but quite another when it's in Eng­
land and you're in Canada, plus the
airplane is registered in England. Both
areas present their own problems.
James says, "Even before we went
over to retrieve the airplane, it was ob­
vious that re-registering the airplane
in Canada was going to be a paper­
work nightmare, which is exactly the
way it turned out. The shipping of the
airplane had its own headaches, but
they were more manageable."
Moving a foreign-registered air­
plane across the Atlantic is not for
the faint of heart. It would be a ma­
jor challenge for anyone, much less
two private pilots who had no idea

what they were getting into. James is
a mathematics professor, and David is
the creative director at an ad agency,
neither of which prepared them for
what they were about to attempt.
However, enthusiasm almost always
overcomes inexperience.
Their enthusiasm, however, was
further augmented by good fortune:
Tom Coates, an engineer who had
built up his own private de Havil­
land air force over the years and had
shipped numerous airplanes across
the pond, was literally in their back­
yard . He possessed the experience
they were lacking, plus lent them the
special attachment hardware they'd

There Are Chipmunks, and

Then There Is No. 11

In the course of putting their little beauty back in the air, the
David-James team discovered on their airplane a number of items
that differed from the usual Chipmunk. For one thing, it has the
original Canadian-designed "bird cage" canopy that was adopted
on the O.K.-produced airplanes (around 1,100 in total) but wasn't
used on the rest of the Canadian-produced Munks (just more
than 200 produced), which have the distinctive blown bubble. The
rear side panels of their canopy were originally fiat but they were
"bubbled ouf during the RAF evaluation process to allow the pilot
to move his head further sideways.
The landing gear also has a number of characteristics that set
it apart. In the UK. production models, the landing gear legs are
canted forward a few inches to improve stability on the ground
roll, but on Canadian production models the gear is in the origi­
nal position, as on No.n and all early pre-production versions.
Also, the airplane has small, streamlined fairings around the
gear legs, which are found on UK. production models and the
Canadian pre-production models but not on the Canadian pro­
duction machines.
The stall strips on the leading edges of the wings are much
longer than those on Canadian production airplanes, and it has ·
the slab-like spin strakes on the fuselage ahead of the horizontal
stab, which is a feature of all UK. airplanes but not found on the
Canadian birds. As mentioned earlier, spin recoveries were al­
ways a problem, which led to the strake modification and to the
longer-chord rudder and elevator on both the Canadian and UK
production models. In contrast,No.n carries a short-chord rud­
der and elevators, as on the original pre-production aircraft.
22

DECEMBER 2006

need to secure the airframe in the 40­
foot shipping container. He said they
could do it. They felt they could do it.
So they were on their way.
David says, "When my wife, Karen,
James, and I checked in at the airport
to leave, we were each carrying 60
pounds of slings and brackets for pick­
ing up and then securing the airplane
in a shipping container."
"When we got to England," David
says, "we flew the airplane a couple of
times, which was really stressful! We
had already committed to the pur­
chase with a down payment, and we
had to make a 'go/no-go' decision be­
fore we took the next step . Neither
of us had more than an hour's time
in a Chipmunk. I had loads of Pitts
time, but James' tailwheel time was
in Fleet Canucks and Decathlons over
20 years before . But we took a deep
breath and took the plunge.
"When we set about taking it apart,
we quickly found it really wasn't fun.
We thought we had all the right equip­
ment, but we weren 't even close. For
one thing, tools were hard to find be­
cause British standard wrenches didn't
fit a bunch of the bolts. It was a ran­
dom mix of metric, British standard,
and some stuff I'm not sure we know
yet what it is. It took us seven full days

The forward cockpit of the Chipmunk is
short on frills but long on usefulness.

to get it apart and packed in a 40­
foot container. This was also compli­
cated because some of the Chipmunk
shipping brackets wouldn't fit, prob­
ably because this airplane was some­
thing of a prototype and was different
from later airplanes. Finally, we found
a bracket for a TV satellite dish that
would work and modified that. We

also used a lot of big pipe insulation
as bumpers. To make matters worse,
the airplane was in the far back cor­
ner of a packed hangar, so wrestling it
out of there was a chore. By the end,
I think a lot of the locals thought we
were nuts!
"Again, good fortune must have
been looking over our shoulders be­
cause we came to know Graham Fox at
Bagby, who maintained the aircraft for
Phil Derry. He not only gave freely of
his knowledge, but loaned us some of
his people to help at the critical stages.

"It was through Graham that we
came to know the proprietor of Bagby
Airfield, John Dundon, who solved
what appeared to be an immense prob­
lem for us: he moved the wingless air­
plane about a quarter mile across the
soggy grass with his backhoe.
"It seemed as if everyone on the
airport jumped in and helped, and
there was a great spirit of 'getting the
job done' and helping out other air­
craft lovers."
Whatever James and David's
problems, the airplane arrived safely
VI NTAGE AI RPLAN E

23

back at Saskatoon, where they looked
at it closely.
James says, "The airplane was in
good condition, no corrosion or any­
thing like that, although the fab­
ric on the wings could probably use
some work. Actually, as we were to
find out, it needed a lot of work.
What was curious was that as the air­
plane sat in our hangar, the 40-below
weather caused the paint to flake off,
and it left a shadow of the airplane
on the floor in paint chips.
When they got ready to approach
the registration issue, they knew they
had a lot of work to do. Among other
things, the airplane, when built in
Canada, had a Gipsy Major lC engine,
but when it was being prepped for
the RAF trainer competition (the only
other entrant was the Fairey Primer),
the engine was changed to a Gipsy
Major 10 Mk2. This didn't go down
well with Transport Canada, and the
possibilities of getting it re-registered
were getting dimmer and dimmer.
"By that time, we were already
looking at paint schemes, and every

time we thought about changing the
G-AKDN, which is what it was known
as since it arrived in England, to a
Canadian CF number, it just didn't
look right in our minds. The airplane
had originally been natural alumi­
num with some stripes, and it had
been painted perhaps sometime in
the '60s, but we wanted it in its orig­
inal 1947 scheme, which is what it
was wearing when it pioneered the
RAF adoption in 1949.
"Somewhere along the line, while
we were stripping the paint and pol­
ishing the aluminum, which took 200
hours, by the way, we decided the best
way to keep the airplane looking origi­
nal was to leave it registered in England
and fly it here in English registration.
There was simply too much history to
lose by changing the numbers.
"We could only keep it registered
in the U.K. if we were working with
an English-licensed engineer and a
U.K.-approved maintenance organiza­
tion in Canada. Once again, luck was
with us, and we managed to have Tom
Coates' aviation company in Saska­

when an airplane like this Chipmunk that is so complete comes along,
it is terribly tempting to rip everything out and give it at least a fresh
coat of paint before putting it back together. The foregoing is a tough
call, but one thing is certain: once the decision is made to remove, re­
store, and repaint there is no going back.
Airplane restoration. like so many other things, goes through fads. At
one point it's the rage to customize an older airplane, then total origi­
nality, right down to unsafe mechanical systems, reigns, and then 'leave
it as is"comes on the scene and utility is the goal. Everything changes,
but the one constant is that ifan airplane, such as this Chipmunk. isn't
over-restored and is left, as much as possible, in its as-found condition.
no mistake is being made and a later age won't be decrying our actions.
24

DECEMBER 2006

toon approved, and we engaged Gra­
ham Fox to oversee the paperwork and
ultimately come over from England
to conduct inspections. Also, Philip
Derry wanted to maintain his connec­
tion with the airplane, so he's one of
our partners, and we have successfully
preserved the English registration.
James says, "When the aircraft orig­
inally came out of its shipping con­
tainer, in August 2002, and we flew
it, over 55 years had elapsed since it
initially left the country. Although it
flew like a charm, we knew we had our
maintenance work cut out for us. It
was disassembled and worked on un­
til May of 2004, when it underwent
its 'Star Inspection,' which is required
every three years for English-registered
aircraft. It is sort of a super-duper an­
nual. Graham came over and worked
with Tom Coates to do the work.
"The test flight after this inspec­
tion was something really special
because we had George Neal, then
86 years old and still flying his own
Chipmunk, do the flight. George was
the de Havilland Canada Chipmunk
chief production test pilot who did
the very first flight on No. 11 back in
1947. It was a thrilling day for us."
When the project was finished and
the airplane was flying, James and Da­
vid found they had created much more
than simply a wonderful airplane.
"Graham comes to visit quite often,
both for inspections and to go hunt­
ing. Ultimately we expect to host an
extended visit by Phil Derry and his
family, and flying will be on the agenda.
The entire project has been fun with
one of the major side benefits being the
close friendships that have developed.
Those we never expected and have
made it all the more worthwhile."
As the airplane now sits, it's not
only the oldest airworthy Chip­
munk, but also probably one of the
most original, because little has been
changed or replaced since it left for
England so many years ago.
David Gillespie sums it up when
he says, "This airplane is very much a
part of Canadian aviation history, and
the less we do to change the airplane,
the more of that history remains."
We like his way of thinking. ......


Which one will Santa go for first?
A24 - what every experienced pilot wants
Make sure Icom's A24 Nav/Com or A6 Com only is
on your holiday list this year. Reliable quality and
features that any Santa would love to carry along
on all upcoming journeys.

Visit your authorized
leorn dealer today. ~
FliP

P L U S+

THE NAMEPILOTS KNOW AND TRUST. SIMPLY THE BEST.


FliP-FloP PLUS+ is the easy way to toggle between
your last 10 frequencies or pre-program in up to 10
channels for your next trip.. . pilot friendly features
that your Santa will find irresistible!

Airplane f-shirts $16.99 Nylon Sporting Shirt
From hi-wing to bi-wing, how many air­
craft can you name? Made with 100%
pre-shrunk cotton, comes in 2 colors.
Stone Blue
Jade
V07921
SM
V07916 SM
V07922 MD
V07917 MD
V07923 LG
V07918 LG
V07924 XL
V07919 XL

t19.99
Jade
V07920 2X

Autogyro f-shlrt t16.99
Miss Champion autogyro flies past
the Pitcaim hangar and embodies the
words "It's not just a lifestyle•..it's an
Adventure.' Machine washable, made
ultra-cotton.
MD
LG

One size fits most.
V07504 Maroon
V07505 Khaki
'!ftll:lI...,.j\U

Logo Jlankets

t2l50

This soft fleece blanket is the coziest cover-up
you'll find. Machine washable, 80% cotton!
20% polyester, and is a generous 4.5 x 6.5'.
Choose from four beautiful pastel colors.
V07396 Aqua
V07397 Sun
V07398 Columbia Blue
V07399 Pink

Cap

Embroidered VAA logo gives this
navy cap its style.
frts most.
V07257

Mlcroiber Jacket
Touch and understand why the VAA is proud to offer this fabu­
lous jacket! Microfiber enables this jacket to withstand all weather
conditions without damage or loss of function. Ughtweight and water­
repellent with elegant silver wings and tone-on-tone embroidered VAA
logo of distinction.
V07400 SM Blue
V07406 MDGreen
V07410 SM Sun
V07401 MD Blue
V07407 LG Green
V07411 MDSun
V07402 LG Blue
V07412 LG Sun
V07408 XL Green
V07403 XL Blue
V07409 2XGreen
V07413 XL Sun
V07404 2X Blue
V07414 2X Sun

Comfort and versatility are strong style features
of this VAA logo shirt. Made of 100% nylon, mesh
lining and embroidered black logo. Comes in long
sleeve that can be rolled or short sleeve.
Short Sleeve .~
V07078
MD
V07079
LG
V07080
XL
V07081
2X

2.95

Long Sleeve .~6.95
V07082 MD
V07083 LG
V07084
XL
2X

TO ORDER:

1·800·843·3612 or online at http://shop.eaa.org

From u.s. llId Canada, II oChers 920-426-5912

Wotttet1's Kt1it Jacket

*58.95

Feeling like a second skin, this 100% machine-washable
cotton knit top stretches to make the most comfortable
sweater/jacket you will own. Navy collar, navy stripe on
cuff, and navy logo accent the horizon blue jacket. Black
top has silver embroidered logo.
Horizon Blue
Black
V07147
SM
V07151
V07148
MD
V07152
V07149
LG
V07153
V07150
XL
54



, , n i ",t\'l\eS
\.\Wl\'led v.Ua t28.95

The tone-on-tone VAA logo creates a most impressive look to these ultra soft
sweaters. Four deep fall colors are perfect for adding a distinctive look to
jeans or chinos. You'll want to wear it everyday.
Dark Cherry
Dark Denim
Off White
Dark Sage
V07357 MD
V07358 MD
V07359 MD
V07360 MD
V07973 L
V07976 LG
V07979 LG
V07982 LG
V07974 XL
V07977 XL
V07980 XL
V07983 XL
V07975 2X
V07978 2X
V07981 2X ........_ ......V07984 2X

tSl99

This season the VAA offers you the best in fall jackets.
Tone-on-tone embroidered logo looks distinctive on this
luxuriously soft jacket. Double storm flap zipper front,
high collar, elastic wrists and roomy hidden front pockets
that zip shut are only some of this jacket's highlights.
Has micromesh lining for breathability. Choose from
three colors.
Stone
Mango
Blue
V07420 MD
V07425 MD
V07429 SM
V07430 MD
V07421 LG
V07426 LG
V07431 LG
V07422 XL
V07427 XL
V07432 XL
V07423 2X
V07428 2X
V07433 2X

Long sleeve dress shirt made of 60% cotton and
40% polyester is comfortable for the work week.
Front and back darts make this shirt taylored for
a great business look, perfect with pants or
Light Blue (blue logo) Burgundy (khaki logo)
V07807 SM
V07811 SM
V07808 MD
V07812 MD
V07809 LG
V07813 LG
V07814 XL

MeKS fwill Shirt tSl99
Soft 60% cotton/40% polyester
make this shirt easy to care for and
comfortable to wear. Looks great
at casual activities and with a tie
for the work week.
Khaki (green logo)
V07815 MD
V07816 LG
V07817 XL

I Love

you like to fly?/I At times it's
tough to put it into words, and all you seem to be

attempt to explain the remark­

able experience that is personal flight. Hugh Homing as put his thoughts into words, and perhaps he can
help all ofus fill in the blanks when someone asks you, "Hey, what's flying all about?/I-H.G. Frautschy

Horsemen say that
when leaming to ride, the
novice becomes a rider
when he or she is in
control of the horse and
the horse knows it. It is
much the same with a
pilot and his plane. The
student becomes an avia­
tor when he fully controls
the plane and is in con­
trol in any situation.
The Challenge of Flying
Broaden your flight-maneuvering
expertise to handling weather, navi­
gation, radio communications, flight
regulations, emergency procedures,
etc., and you begin to understand why
I, and thousands of others, love to fly:
It is a constant challenge to be your
best ... to anticipate, plan, and ex­
ecute a multiplicity of tasks in an ever­
changing situation.
An instructor once told me you
should learn something from every
flight ... even the briefest, most serene,
and normal of flights. It is something
I try to practice by asking myself after
each sojourn into the blue (or gray) yon­
der: What did I learn from that flight
... or what might I have done more
effectively, more effiCiently, or more
smoothly? Did I do my best?
28

DECEMBER 2006

Sbiving for Proficiency and
Professionalism
Proficiency and professionalism
are the pilot's continuing but never­
perfectly-achievable goals. Apart from
the personal satisfaction one gets by
constant improvement in his flying,
there is another great benefit: the in­
creased assurance of staying alive. Un­
like most vocations and avocations, a
careless attitude or action, a misjudg­
ment, or a mistake can cost you your
life ... quickly and with absolute cer­
tainty. I don't mean to be melodra­
matic or suggest that flying is unsafe,
but it is only as safe as the attitude and
proficiency of the pilot. Federal laws,
regulations, inspections, and periodic
proficiency checks all work to assure
that only properly trained and cur­
rently proficient pilots are granted cer­
tificates (licenses) to fly.

Safety Is Always First
Like many professions that involve
great degrees of knowledge, skill, and
potential danger, the flying fraternity
has generated a number of sayings
that serve as reminders to the veteran
practitioner and as gems of wisdom
to the beginner. One of these sayings
is, "There are old pilots and there are
bold pilots; but there are no old, bold
pilots!" Safety, caution, and conser­
vatism are the bywords of the expe­
rienced pilot. If one follows the rules
and principles of safe flying, it is in­
deed a safe pursuit. This goes all the

way from always using your pre-, dur­
ing-, and post-flight checklists to fol­
lowing the aphorism "When in doubt,
don't!" regardless of whether the
doubt relates to the condition of the
pilot, the plane, or the environment.
A sign sometimes seen at the exits of
airport parking lots reads, "Be careful,
you are now leaving the safety of fly­
ing." How true! Flying is much safer
than driving, bicycling, and other rou­
tine pursuits, according to statistics.

General Aviation's Broad Scope
General aviation, which includes
everything except airline and military
flying, has had an ever-improving
safety record over the past 12 years.
General aviation includes such diverse
commercial flying activities as corpo­
rate transportation, crop dusting, fish
scouting, pipeline inspection, ban­
ner tOWing, flight instruction, char­
ter, cargo, and aerial photography.
General aviation also includes non­
commercial activities, such as recre­
ational, sport, and business owner
pilot transportation. Recreational
and sport flying include aerobatics,
leisure travel, fly-ins, and "Sunday­
afternoon-around-the-patch flying."
Recreational flying interests and activ­
ities also revolve around the types of
planes flown-antiques, classics, war­
birds, homebuilts, gliders, sailplanes,
hang gliders, ultralight aircraft, and
the up-and-coming new group of
sport pilot-eligible lightplanes.

The Technical Versus Aesthetic
Appeals of Flying
As you might surmise, one of the
great challenge-appeals of flying is its
all-consuming involvement and test­
ing of one's physical, intellectual, and
emotional qualities. One must develop
and apply these qualities with disci­
pline, balance, and grace to the three
outside-the-self entities: the aircraft,
the physical environment, and the sit­
uation at hand.
If all this sounds ordered and techni­
cal, don't be misled, because the other
great appeal of flying is the almost over­
whelming sense of freedom and beauty
it bestows ... sometimes bordering on
the spiritual or mystic. There have been
times, when flying alone, that I have lit­
erally burst into song-so moved and in­
spired was I to be as free as the proverbial
bird, soaring in the heavens far removed
from earthly restraints and obstacles.
It is difficult to describe the elation
and awe one feels while flying in an
azure sky, as the red-orange sun is ris­
ing over the hills and valleys filled with
morning mists. Or to be able to see 100
miles in all directions on a crystal clear
day, from the white surf of the ocean
to the purple inland mountain ranges.
The beauty of flight transcends all other
aspects of flying.

Flying Teaches About ute

in General
There are also many benefits that fly­
ing brings to one's life in general, apart
from the obvious quick and convenient
transportation and the kind of plea­
sures already described. Flying teaches,
or at least sharpens, one's abilities in
the areas of observation, preparation,
patience, problem-solving, weighing
options, decision-making, decisiveness,
alertness, concentration, communica­
tion, perspective, self-sufficiency, and
confidence .. .to mention just a few!
Here's one example, on perspective.
When learning to fly by contact or by
pilotage (that is, without radio or instru­
ment navigation as the primary tech­
nique), one uses aerial charts and visual
ground reference to determine present
position and to plan progress toward a
destination. To orient oneself, in seeking

GET THE SKILLS

TO GET IT BUILT

AT EM SPORTAIR WORKSHOPS


GET YOUR HOMEBUILDING PROJECT OFF THE GROUND

BY SIGNING UP FOR EAA'S SPORTAIR WORKSHOPS

DEC 1-3

WPAlM BEACH, Fl • Repairman (lSA) Inspection-Airplane

DEC 2-3

CORONA, CA

JAN 20-22

WPAlM BEACH, Fl • Repairman (ISA) Inspection-Airplane

• RV Assemb~

JAN 26-28 GRIFFIN, GA

• 116Welding

JAN 27-28 OSHKOSH, WI

• Composite Construction • Eledrical Systems & Avionics
• Fabric Covering • Gas Welding • Introdudion 10 Aircraft Building
• Sheel Melal Construction

MAR 9-11

• 116Welding

GRIFFIN,GA

VISIT WWW.SPORTAlR.COM OR CALL 1-800-967-5746 FOR DETAILS

EAA

WORKSHOPS

--- ~ --

EAA SportAir Sponsors:

KLEIN
TOOLS.
www.kleintools.com

.~.
~
www.polyfJber.com

www.alrcQftspruce..com

VINTAGE AIRPLANE

29

to determine present position, one starts
by looking at the big picture-scanning
the distance first for prominent large
landmarks such as mountains, rivers, cit­
ies, etc. and relating these to the charts.
You then narrow down position by look­
ing at more specific detailed landmarks
such as highways, lakes, railroad tracks,
and relating these to the chart. And fi­
nally, you narrow down position by re­
lating a quarry, outdoor movie, bridge,
racetrack, or road intersection to the
chart and pinpoint your position. Such
an approach of always starting with the
big picture and then looking to the de­
tails is a sound one for handling any sit­
uation one encounters in life. Otherwise,
we fall into the dilemma of not seeing
the forest for the trees.
On the other hand, one must not ig­
nore the details. If you're flying at night
on a course where there is a 4,000-foot
mountain, and you let your altitude
drift down to 3,900 feet because of in­
attention or downdrafts, you might be
in for a rude awakening (or in this case,
the opposite of awakening). Closely al­
lied to the principle of being attuned to
one's environment (position) is the cor­
ollary of seeing what is there, not seeing
what you want to be there. It's common
for student pilots to get lost when flying
cross-country for the first time because
they have a preconceived idea of where
they should be. They will strain to find
on the ground the radio tower or lake
that their flight course line on the chart
says should be there. It may not be there
because the plane has veered far off
course or is either ahead or behind es­
timated position because of winds that
have changed or were incorrectly esti­
mated in plotting the course. In life, too,
sometimes we ignore the facts or reality
of the situation and proceed as if things
are the way we expected or wished them
to be, not the way they are.
Not too long ago I had an eye-open­
ing experience that illustrates the im­
portance of seeing what is there rather
than what you expect ... and paying at­
tention to detail. When preflighting the
airplane, you take fuel samples from the
engine gascolator and each wing tank
to test for contamination-either dirt
or water. When water is present, it ap­
pears as a globule at the bottom of the
30

DECEMBER 2006

gasoline in the clear plastic sampling
container. In this instance there was no
globule; just clear liquid, presumably
gasoline. But upon closer inspection, I
found that 98 percent of the clear liquid
was water with only a small surface layer
of gasoline! That was not what I was ex­
pecting, and I almost overlooked it. If I
had concluded from that non-globule
sample that the gasoline was not con­
taminated and taken off, chances are
that amount of water in the fuel would
have caused the engine to quit at a criti­
cal time during takeoff. So, we don't ig­
nore the details and make sure we see
what is really there rather than what we
expect or want to be there.

The Social Aspects of Flying
In addition to the personal challenge
and gratification one gets from the
act of flying, there are also social and
cultural benefits. The most pervasive
of these is the camaraderie that exists
among pilots ... an almost mystical bond
that pilot-author Ernest Gann chose as
the theme for his novel A Band ofBroth­
ers. This camaraderie manifests itself in
many ways on a social level, from mem­
bership and activity in various flying
organizations to participation in fly-ins,
safety seminars, community flying proj­
ects, and just plain hangar flying, where
pilots get together informally to tell tall
tales and discuss airplanes and airman­
ship for hours on end.
Foremost among these social activi­
ties is Oshkosh, the cryptic description
of the world's largest flying event: the
Experimental Aircraft Association's an­
nual international aviation convention
and fly-in, held at Oshkosh, Wiscon­
sin. During the seven-day event, from
the end of July through early August,
some ten thousand airplanes and al­
most three-quarters of a million people
convene on Wittman Regional Airport
to view more than a thousand display
aircraft (antiques, claSSiCS, warbirds,
homebuilts, and ultralights), participate
in up to one hundred aviation forums,
visit hundreds of exhibitor's booths,
and experience a three-hour air show
each day. There are also social gather­
ings each evening at the Theater in the
Woods, in the campgrounds, and in the
aircraft parking areas.

Similar but smaller fly-ins are held
throughout the United States during
the other times of the year. During the
social flying season from roughly April
through October, the flying enthusi­
ast can attend a fly-in or other aviation
event within reasonable distance almost
every weekend. A pilot's range of inter­
ests includes not only the pleasure of
aerial solitude but also the fun of social­
izing with the band of brothers and sis­
ters. And, interestingly enough, one of a
pilot's greatest pleasures is to introduce
or share the love of flying with non-fli­
ers. Few experiences rival that of seeing
the expressions of awe, wonder, and ela­
tion on a youngster's face during a first
flight. EAA's Young Eagles program has
given more than a million and a quar­
ter flight experiences to youngsters the
world over, and more are added to the
world's largest logbook each day.

The Diverse Appeal of Flying
The focus of my flying interests is
the golden age of flying ... the period
of the 1930s through the World War
II years. The romance of the era, as ex­
emplified by the barnstormers, airmail
pilots, racing pilots, early airline pi­
lots, and combat pilots is beyond com­
parison. Perhaps it is because the pilot
(the human factor) was predominant
as opposed to the technological. It also
strikes me that the aircraft of that era
were more diverse and were more works
of art and individuality than mechani­
cal marvels or technical triumphs. This
is a highly subjective and personal view­
point and is in no way disparaging of
the high-tech aerospace and avionic de­
velopments that are so ubiquitous in
contemporary aviation and flying.
There are thousands of homebuilders
who design, construct, or assemble their
own aircraft from original plans or kits,
taking thousands of hours and a num­
ber of years in the process. Building
their own aircraft and flying it is their
source of achievement and reward.
It is just this diversity of interests and
freedom of choice that gives aviation
its broad appeal. There is indeed some­
thing for everyone, and a great part of
the pleasure is in the seeking and find­
ing of those things that constitute your
personal world of flight.
......

NonnaJoyce
Greensboro, NC 27425

• President of AUA, Inc. since 1986
Norma Joyce pictured
with her granddaughter,
Mikaela Ann Kamsch, who
is now 5 years old and
says she just loves flying.

• Post Treasurer for EAA Chapter 8
in GSO, NC
• Vintage Chapter 3 Boord of
Directors and Secretory for 2007

AUA, Inc. wishes you a Joyful Holiday Season!

II

" We thank you for your support and loyalty. In 2007, we look forward to
continue offering you the best insurance coverages, pricing, and service
through your Vintage Insurance Program."

- Norma Joyce

AUA is Vintage Aircraft Association approved. To become a member of VAA call 800·843·3612.

AUA's Exclusive EAA Vintage Aircraft Association Insurance Program
Lower liability and hull premiums - Medical payments included - Fleet discounts for multiple aircraft carrying all risk coverage&
No component parts enCiorsements

Superfljte'tM
_____ ~

System I

BUTYRATE

ESYSTEM
ffJI£----'­
INTAGE
LANES

Classic Finish for Classic Airplanes
Since 1949
MaAY Origiltll Manufacturer's colors are available. Give your Vintage
Aircraft an·award·winning, onginal finish with unlimited color choices.
Covering materials price for standard vintage aircraft approximately $3500
Purchase the entire kit and receive a 10% discount.

H.G.

FRAUTSCHY AND BILL SCHLAPMAN

A Drive in the Clouds-The Story ofthe Aerocar
By Jake Schultz
The story of the Aerocar has been a long time coming, but
it's well worth the wait. Jake Schultz took literally years to re­
search and write this book, which was published this summer
by Flying Books International.
Schultz, an engineer with Boeing, had the good fortune to
become friends with both Molt and Lillian "Neil" Taylor, who
opened up their archive for research into the Aerocar proj­
ects, as well as many other fascinating projects worked on by
Molt Taylor during his long and prolific aviation career. The
book takes the time to fill in many of the details of Molt's life,
things that would all contribute to make the Aerocar, the IMP,
Coot, and other projects come to fruition. Taylor's creation of
the Aerocar was the closest we ever got to full-scale produc­
tion of a road able vehicle, even when aerospace giants such as
Convair got into the act. That was due in part to the incredible
dedication to the concept by Molt and Lillian, who did their
best to bring the Aerocar to life over most of their careers. Side­
bars throughout the book highlight the personal involvement
of many others in the Aerocar projects throughout the years,
including personal remembrances by Carl Gladen, one of the

----'~~~~~~~~~~===~=~=~~=~.J Aerocar's early distributors and the producer of the Aerocar
plastic model. Also detailed are the near-misses as Taylor did
his best to get the Aerocar into production, but a combination
of poor management on the part of one producer, along with
excessively high production cost estimates by others, kept the
Aerocar's production very limited.
There is plenty of new material here to enjoy, and some
you'll shake your head at as you realize that but for a few mis­
guided individuals intent on making quick money, the Aero­
car would have made it into prodUction, and we'd be seeing
it as a vintage airplane, rather than an interesting novelty.
Available in both softbound and a limited edition of hard­
back editions, A Drive in the Clouds~The Story of the Aerocar
(ISBN: 0-9725249-2-4) is available through EAA and other
aviation booksellers, including Historic Aviation (www.His­
toricAviation.com).

Stearman Aircraft: A Detailed History

TO ORDER

1·800·843·3612

From U.s. and Canada, all others 920-426-5912
or online at
eBB.
32

DECEMBER 2006

Ed Phillips has been a prolific writer of aviation history,
having researched and written eight books on the individual
histories of aviation manufacturers that at one time or another
made their mark on Wichita, Kansas. Neatly documented in
this latest book by Phillips: the work accomplished by Lloyd
Stearman, and the aircraft produced by companies associ­
ated with this pioneer aircraft designer and builder. Peppered
with a great number of photos from the period, the book tells
the story of Stearman himself along with many others who
were involved in the Stearman Aircraft Company. From his
work at Swallow aircraft up through the legendary PT series
biplane trainer, Stearman's history as a talented designer is

well documented. A few surprises are in
the pages; for instance, we all know that
the PT series trainers were built in Wich­
ita, but how many of us knew that the
same company also built many of the
Cold War's Boeing B-47 and B-52 bomb­
ers when it became a division of Boeing?
The book is also profusely illustrated
with color photos in Appendix A. If
there is one section of the book I would
like to have seen done better, it's this,
because the color photos suffer from
poor quality control by the printer dur­
ing the layout and printing process,
with a number of them marred by an
excessive amount of magenta ink. In
addition to the color-photo section, a
handy set of reference drawings created
by Kenneth D. Wilson, noted drafts­
man, is published in Appendix E. It's
just what's needed for modelers and en­
thusiasts of the PT series trainers. Also
in that set are Peter Westburg's Stea­
rman 4E drawings.
Hardbound, Stearman Aircraft: A De­
tailed History (ISBN: 1-58007-087-6) is
available from EAA and other booksellers,
including the publisher, Specialty Press:
www.SpecialtyPress.com or 800-895-4585.
Retail price is $39.95 plus shipping.

host of South American countries all
were visited by Lindbergh flying the
Spirit. Organized and funded by the Dan­
iel Guggenheim Fund, Lindbergh's avia­
tion evangelical message was brought
to cow towns and big cities with equal
enthusiasm. Lindbergh exhorted local
officials to invest in airports and the in­
frastructure to boost both aviation and
the local economy.
Each of the tour stops is described in
detail, with nearly every stop also docu­
mented by a photo or two. Cassagneres'
indefatigable work to gather this infor­
mation took great dedication, and he has
patiently woven it into a quite readable
book that is both entertaining and infor­
mative. Included in the book is a fold-out
map with all of the tour flights shown.
You can purchase an autographed
copy of The Untold Story of Lindbergh's
1927-1928 Good Will Tours (ISBN: 1­
57510-125-4) from its author by writing
to him at Ev Cassagneres, 420 Budding
Ridge Road, Cheshire, CT 06410. For
more information, you can give him
a call at 203-272-2127, but be advised
that he cannot accept credit cards. The
cost is $29.95, shipping within the
United States.

The Untold Story ofLindbergh's
1927-1928 Good Will Tours

The Pietenpol Story

By Ev Cassagneres
Wow! Ev Cassagneres' companion
book to his The Untold Story of the Spirit
ofSt. Louis is an equally impressive work,
the compilation of decades of research
begun back in the 1960s. Cassagneres
was fortunate to live in Connecticut,
and after the intercession of a mutual
friend, he and Lindbergh met in 1968,
with Lindbergh giving his support of
Cassagneres' research. This opened up
an entire universe of university and mu­
seum archives. Coupled with a drive for
historically accurate research, the pair
of volumes will go down as the defini­
tive work on the Spirit of st. Louis and
the impact the aircraft and its boyish pi­
lot would have on aviation during 1927
and subsequent years.
This second volume fleshes out the
Good Will Tour embarked upon by
Lindbergh after his triumphant return
to the United States. Eighty cities in the
United States, Canada, Mexico, and a

By Chet Peek
Review by William J. Schlapman
Chet Peek's newest book-The Pi­
etenpol Story-to my knowledge, is the
first and only book available on the life
of B.H. "Bernie" Pietenpol and the Pi­
etenpol Air Camper. He's the pioneer
developer of a very successful auto en­
gine-powered homebuilder airplane.
Created during the Great Depression,
it featured modest cost combined with
reliability to depend upon during the
1930s, when flying was beyond the
reach of most people. With its two­
place cockpit, the Air Camper was just
the ticket for giving airplane rides.
The key that Bernie recognized was
a suitable but reasonable cost engine
available to power a plane for entry­
level flying. When Henry Ford intro­
duced the new Model A car series in
1928, its engine became the answer to
Bernie's search. Chet's book provides in­
formative and exciting pictures of that
period, a time so totally different from

today. As shown by Chet, another en­
abler for the amateur builder was basic
wood construction. Wood was used for
both cost and familiarity to the build­
ers. Chet gives a firsthand report as
he reveals his personal efforts during
his current building of a Pietenpol Air
Camper, which includes the Model A
Ford engine. In fact, he interrupted his
project to write the book.
In the post-World War II era, new
generations of automobiles were de­
veloped and marketed. The Chevrolet
Corvair, powered by a rear-mounted,
air-cooled engine, was introduced in
the late 1950s. Here again, Bernie recog­
nized a special opportunity and in 1960
adapted the six-cylinder, air-cooled Cor­
vair engine to the Air Camper-more
horsepower, less weight. Improved per­
formance! It's all detailed in the chapter
on Corvair Power.
Air Campers were never sold as kit
planes in the currently accepted sense.
Kits offered by Bernie were bundles of
selected woods in appropriate sizes and
specially modified parts for the Model A
engine conversion. Some builders make
convenience or comfort modifications,
but normally they stick closely to the
time-proven plans.
There are active Pietenpol clubs or
groups that extend the pleasures of own­
ing and flying Air Campers. All are cov­
ered in the closing chapters. An annual
gathering at Brodhead, WisconSin-pre­
ceding EAA AirVenture Oshkosh-is
particularly interesting.
In addition to The Pietenpol Story,
Chefs books include The Heath Story,
Flying With 40 Horses, The First Cub, Res­

urrection ofa Jenny, The Taylorcraft Story,
and The Spartan Story. All are avail­
able at EAA and at aviation book outlet
stores. Entertaining, of reference qual­
ity, and historically educational, they're
well worth having, and for those who re­
ally love airplane history-this book is a
must read! Order them and enjoy! .......
For books available from EAA, you
can visit the EAA bookstore at www.EAA.
org and click on the Online Shopping
button on the lower left corner of the
website. Or, you can place your order via
phone with EAA's friendly folks in Mem­
ber Services at 800-843-3612.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

33

BY DOUG STEWART

Best glide
I was in a pilot briefing room, one
dark gray day, getting the weather
from the WSI station when I over­
heard the following conversation be­
tween an elderly gentleman and a
young man who appeared to be in
his 20s. The gray-haired fellow was
saying: " . . . but what about best loi­
ter speed? Wouldn't we want to use
that speed in a glide, once we had
our landing site below us?"
The young man replied: "No! There
is only one speed to use once the en­
gine has failed, and that is the best
glide speed as published in the POH.
That glide speed is also known as the
best lift over drag (LID) speed . It is
that speed alone that will give you
the best glide performance because
that is where the two curves for para­
site drag and induced drag intersect."
I was eager to hear the response to
that. Whereas the term "best loiter
speed" was a new one to me, I cer­
tainly was well familiar with the term
"minimum sink speed" that every
glider pilot is intimately acquainted
with. The graybeard's response was:
"Well, yes, best LID speed will give
you the greatest distance covered in
a glide, but once we are overhead our
chosen landing site, wouldn't we be
more concerned with a maximum
time aloft to allow us to set up for our
pattern and landing?"
The young man was adamant.
"No! There is only one glide speed to
use, and that is, as I said, the best LID
speed as published in the POH." As I
looked at these two folks and took in
34

DECEMBER 2006

their animated discussion, I noticed
that the younger man was wearing a
shirt identifying him as an instructor
with the local flight school. I must
admit that I was taken aback. I had
surely thought the elderly gentleman
was the instructor who was trying
to lead his client, through a Socratic
method, to a better understanding of
the subtleties of what to do when the
engine quits and the airplane sud­
denly turns into a glider.

"No! There is only
one glide speed to
use, and that is, as
I said, the best LID
speed as published
in the POH."
Unfortunately there are many pi­
lots, instructors included, who do
not have a thorough understanding
of what airspeeds to use in a glide.
Certainly best glide speed is an im­
portant one to be familiar with. This
is indeed the airspeed where the re­
sultant penalties of induced drag, a
by-product of lift, and parasite drag,
simply stated the drag resulting from
things in the way of the airflow
around the aircraft, are equal.
This airspeed is typically found in

the pilot's operating handbook (POH)
for the aircraft. But for those of us fly­
ing older aircraft that don't have a
POH (and might not even have much
of an operator's handbook, for that
matter) a published source of this air­
speed might not exist.
If that is the case, then using the best
rate of climb speed (V y) for your aircraft
as your best glide speed will certainly
have you close to your best LID speed.
We would most definitely use this
airspeed if the engine has ceased to
function while we are at altitude and
have some distance to cover as we
glide to a suitable landing site . It is
the glide speed that will allow us to
maximize the distance covered in a
glide. Let us also remember that even
if we have that speed published in a
POH or owner's manual, that speed,
as published, is determined for use
when at maximum gross weight.
Seeing as how too many of the en­
gine failures that pilots experience
come as a result of poor fuel man­
agement, it is certainly reasonable to
think that the aircraft will weigh less
than the certified max gross weight
when the engine stops working .
Keeping this in mind, remember to
reduce that glide speed somewhat to
compensate for the lessened weight.
But let us now say that by us­
ing the best LID speed to maximize
our glide, relative to distance, we
now find ourselves overhead a cho­
sen landing site with plenty of alti­
tude left to lose; do we still want to
maintain that same speed? This is

the question the elderly gentleman
at the start of this article had been
posing. If distance to cover is no lon­
ger an issue, wouldn't our ability to
maximize our time in the air, relative
to altitude, be of greatest concern?
G!ider pilots are very conversan t
with this speed as they seek to maxi­
mize their time in a thermal, and they
refer to it as minimum sink speed. Un­
fortunately, it is a speed that we power
pilots will probably never see in our
POHs. (At least I have yet to see it
there.) A good way to approximate that
speed is to multiply the "clean" stall
speed (V S1) by 1.2. This should afford
most pilots their best minimum sink
speed, maximizing their time aloft.
Let's also consider some of the
other things that we can do to max­
imize (or minimize, if we find our­
selves too high) our glide. Certainly
our configuration will have a major
effect on glide performance. Flaps
(oops, I guess that leaves my Super
Cruiser out) as well as gear (if you
have a retractable gear airplane) can
be used to control our descent rate.
Certainly "getting dirty" will allow
us to descend much more rapidly, if
we find ourselves high. (In fact, my
Cardinal RG will rival a grand piano
in its glide once the flaps are fully de­
ployed and the gear is down.)
However, if we find ourselves get­
ting low on our fi nal approach in the
engine silent mode, saving the flap de­
ployment to the last possible moment
can quite often afford a balloon up
of anywhere from 10 to 30 feet. If we
have already deployed our flaps, either
fully or partially, and realize we might
be coming up short, then cleaning up
the flaps, although initially yielding
a sink, will allow us to accelerate and
perhaps make the field. This would be
similar to the way a glider pilot might
work the spoilers and speed brakes
while on final approach . We can do
the same with our flaps.
I have often had pilots ask me
about bringing the propeller to a stop
to help in maximizing the glide. It
is absolutely true that if we can stop
the propeller, we will get a significant
reduction in drag, which will aid in

maximizing the glide. But let's re­
member that to get the prop to stop
we are going to have to slow down
significantly, typically to an airspeed
of less than 60 knots . To do this we
will obviously need to pitch up, which
will gain us some altitude. But it also
means that we might be flirting aw­
fully close to our stall speed, and if we
inadvertently stall as we endeavor to
stop the prop, the altitude we lose as
we recover from that stall will far out­
weigh any advantages we might have
gained from stopping the prop. There­
fore my advice is to not bother trying
to stop the propeller unless you are re­
ally, really high, and you are positive
you can't get the engine restarted.

Glider pilots are very

conversant with this

speed as they seek

to maximize their

time in a thermal,

and they refer to it as

minimum sink speed.

While we are speaking of propel­
there are some things to consider,
relative to maximizing our glide, if we
have a constant-speed or controllable­
pitch propeller. When everything gets
really quiet and we are at altitude, pull­
ing the propeller control all the way
aft, moving the propeller into course
pitch, will add significantly to the dis­
tance we will cover in a glide, as the
drag of the spinning propeller disc is
reduced in course pitch. This advice is
often fo und in the aircraft POH.
But that is as far as the POH goes.
I have some other advice to offer. If
I find myself in glider mode at alti­
tude, I will indeed pull my prop to
course pitch, but once I find myself
over my chosen landing spot, I will
put the propeller back into flat pitch
(by moving the prop control all the
l!~rs,

way in) . I consider this as akin to put­
ting money in the bank. What I mean
by this is that if I find myself com­
ing up short on final approach, as a
result of the increased drag that the
now-extended gear has created, I can
now pull the prop control all the way
out. As the propeller now "shifts" to
course pitch, the airplane will get
"sucked" ahead to the runway.
I would like to discuss one more
thing relative to flying the traffic pat­
tern when our airplane has become
a glider. When flying with the en­
gine running, we certainly endeavor
to plan our turn from the base leg to
final so that the airplane intercepts
the extended runway centerline at
the completion of our turn. It is what
we have been striving to do from the
day we began learning to land. Now
obviously if we realize that we won't
make it to the runway, if we continue
to the extended centerline on the
base leg and the engine has ceased
working, we turn toward the runway
as soon as that realization hits home.
But what about when we find our­
selves high on the base leg? Certainly
getting as dirty as we can both with
flaps and gear will help. We can also
forward slip to lose altitude. But so
often I see pilots turn final as they
approach the extended runway cen­
terline even when they are way too
high. What says we have to do that?
(All our prior training and condition­
ing is what.) Instead, if you find your­
self high, continue on through the
centerline, and turn back when and as
necessary to get yourself on the proper
glide slope to your intended touch­
down point.
Remember, we have to use all the
possible tools and techniques we have
to get ourselves to a chosen land ­
ing site once the engine has stopped
working. Regardless of whether it's a
dark and gray day or we have ... blue
skies and tail winds.

Doug Stewart is the 2004 National CFI
ofthe Year, a Master Instmctor, and a des­
ignated pilot examiner. He operates DSFI
Inc. (www.dsflight.com). based at the Co­
lumbia County Airport (lBl).
~
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

35

BY H.G . FRAUTSCHY

THIS MONTH'S MYSTERY PLANE PHOTO IS PART OF THE

EAA

COLLECTION.

Send your answer to EAA, Vintage
Airplane, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh,
WI 54903-3086. Your answer needs
to be in no later th an January 15
for inclu sion in the March 2007
issue of Vintage Airplane.
You can also send your response
via e-mail. Send your answer to
mysteryplane@eaa .org. Be sure to
include your name, city, and state
in the body of your note, and put
"(Mont h) Myst ery Plane" in the
subject line.

S E PT E MB E R ' S MY STERY
Here's our first letter about
the September's Mystery Plane:
The subject Mystery Plane
is a Fokker Universal, c/n 421
(NR-1776) . The photo was
taken at Boeing Field, Seat­
tle, Washington, on or before
May 31, 1932. A reference
for this is Peter Bowers ex­
cellent series "The American
Fokkers," in particular Part 2,
published in the AAHS Jour­
nal, Vol.4, No.4, Winter 1966,
pp.253-265. Your photograph
is also published in this arti­
cle. To save you time, I'll quote verba­
tim from Bower's last paragraph on p.
258 and carried over to p. 260. It is an
interesting story.
"The reputation of the widely­
publicized 'Fokker Cantilever Wing,'
which did not apply to this particular
design, almost did one eager distance
36

DECEMBER 2006

flyer in. Nat Browne had acquired a
well-used J-5 Universa l and tried to
fly it non-stop from Seattle to To­
kyo for an established prize. Since it
couldn't take off with enough fuel for
the distance, he decided to take on
fuel from a tanker after takeoff. The
tanker was the Fokker C-5 described

ANSWER


in Part 1. An assistant was to take off
with Browne to handle the refueling,
after which he would depart by para­
chute and leave Browne to go solo
the rest of the way. The Universal still
had to take off with an overload since
the tanker was of rather limited ca­
pacity. In order to get a running start,

Browne had a sloping ramp built at the north end of Boe­
ing Field. To save weight and drag on the plane, he had
previously removed the wing struts and replaced the.!ll
with wires, figuring that the 'cantilever' wing would stand
up under the weight when not in flight. However, the jolt
at the bottom of the ramp on the running start of May 31,
1932, bent the wing downward momentarily and this was
enough to crack the spars. The forward speed and resulting
lift kept the wing from further downward movement and
the wires held it from any noticeable upward movement.
Under such conditions the Universal staggered into the air.
Troubles developed during the refueling. The hose flopped
around in rough air and the nozzle hit the Universal's tail.
In the subsequent maneuvering, the wing folded under
a negative load. Browne and his assistant, Frank Brooks,
bailed out and the Universal crashed into Puget Sound, to
the west of the city of Seattle."
The Fokker C-S used as a tanker was the only Fokker C-V
registered in the United States. Bowers, in Part 1, describes
it as a C-Vc (also known as the CoS), c/n 4127 [439]. It had
its own interesting history.
By the way, Part 1 of Bowers' series included the Fok­
ker B-III [149] that baffled me as the August 2006 Mystery
Plane. It belonged to a Vanderbilt, too.
Jack Erickson
State College, Pennsylvania

AERO CLASSIC
"COLLECTOR S ERI ES"

Vintage Tires
New USA Production
Show off your pride and joy with a
fresh set of Vintage Rubber. These
newly minted tires are F AA-TSO'd
and speed rated to 120 MPH. Some
things are better left the way they
were, and in the 40' s and 50's, these tires were perfectly in
tune to the exciting times in aviation.
Not only do these tires set your vintage plane apart from
the rest, but also look exceptional on all General Aviation
aircraft. Deep 8/32nd tread depth offers above average
tread life and UV treated rubber resists aging.
First impressions last a lifetime, so put these jewels on and
bring back the good times .....
New Gener al Aviatio n Sizes Available:

500 x 5, 600 x 6, 700 x 8

Oesser has the largest stock and
selection of Vintage and Warbird
tires in the world. Contact us
with

DESSER

TIRE & RUBBER COMPANY

And our second letter:
The September 2006 Mystery Plane, is a modified Amer­
ican-built Fokker "Universal" (basically, an "American­
ized" F. VIla) constructed by the Atlantic Aircraft Corp.
(The Atlantic Aircraft Corp., should not be confused with
the Atlantic Aircraft Co., which built a twin-engined "Bat­
tleplane" in 1916. Described in Aerial Age Weekly, volume
4, number 3, October. 2, 1916, pp 68-69, 74.) The Atlan­
tic Aircraft Corp., formed on December 14, 1923, did not
actually begin business until May 1924. It was formed on
the 800-acre grounds of the Wittemann-Lewis Aircraft
Corp., (which it absorbed) at Teterboro, New Jersey (later,
Teterboro Airport), close to Hasbrouck Heights.
The particular Universal shown in the October 2006 Vin­
tage Airplane photo (p. 34) was used by Nate C. Browne
(some sources call him Nat, and spell his surname as:
Brown), and his assistant, Frank Brooks, for their ill-fated
May 1932 flight from Seattle-Tokyo.
Another view of the Brown(e) Universal on its special
launching ramp can be found online in the digital col­
lections of the University of Washington (at Seattle). As
Fokker aficionados will recall, this was not the first time
such a ramp was used. The first time was the Fokker C-2
(an Americanized F.VIIa/3m built by the Atlantic Aircraft
Corp.). America, used for Admiral Richard Byrd's flight
(with Bert Acosta, Bernt Balchen and George Noville) from
Roosevelt Field, Long Island, New York, to just off the
beach of Ver-sur-Mer, Normandy, France, onJulyl,1927.
According to Fokker: A Transatlantic Biography, (Dier­

TelePhone: 800-247-8473 or

~


f{j

323-721-4900 FAX: 323-721·7888

6900 Acco 51., Montebello , CA 90640
3400 Chelsea Ave, Memphis, TN 38106

www.desser.com

WI'VE

••• "OIJ

c••__•

hese are the first tools you need
to buy when you re-cover your
airplane. Anyone who has used them
will tell you they 're the next best
thing to having one of our staff right
beside you. The VHS tape and the
DVD will give you the Big Picture,
and the manual will walk you step
by step through every part of the
process. You're never on your own
when you're using Poly-Fiber.

T

www.po)yfiber.com
e-mail: [email protected]

800-362-3490

continued on page 39
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

37

Something to buy , sell,

or trade?

Classified Wo rd Ads: $5.50 per 10 words , 180 words maxim um, with
boldface lead-in on first line.
Classified Display Ads : One co lu mn wide (2.167 inches) by 1 , 2, or
3 inches high at $20 per inch. Black and white only, and no frequency
discounts.
Adve rt is ing Clos ing Dates: 10th of second month prior to des ired
issue date (i. e. , January 10 is the closing date for t he March issue). VAA
reserves th e right to rej ect any advertising in conflict with its pol icies .
Rates cove r one insertion per issue . Classified ads are not accepted via
phone. Payment must accompany order. Word ads may be sent via fax
(920-426-4828) or e-mail ([email protected]) using credit card payment
(all cards accepted). Include name on card , complete address , type of
ca rd, ca rd number, and expi ration date . Make checks payable to EAA.
Address advertising correspondence to EAA Publications Classified Ad
Manager, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh , WI 54903-3086
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.f/yingwires.com or call
800-517-9278.
THERE'S JUST NOTHING LIKE IT

ON THE WEB!!

www.aviafion-giftshop.com
A Website with the Pilot in Mind
(and those who love airplanes)
Warner engines. Two 165s, one fresh
O.H., one low t ime on Fai rchild 24
mount w ith 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.
A&P I.A.: Annual, 100 hr. inspections.

Wayne Forshey 740-472-1481

Ohio - statewide.

www.aircraftnotes.com: Aircraft
reviews, comments, & ideas
38

D EC EMBE R 2006

BABBITT BEARING SERVICE
- rod bear ings , ma in bea ri ngs ,
bush ings , maste r rods , valves ,
piston rings. Call us Toll Free 1-800­
233-6934 , e- ma il ramremfg @aol.
com Website www. ramengine.com
VINTAGE ENGINE MACHINE WORKS,
N. 604 FREYA ST., SPOKANE, WA
99202
LET BRENCO HELP YOU GET YOUR
IA CERTIFICATE-Brenco has a
25 year history of train ing A&P's to
obtain their Inspection Authorization.
Courses are offered every year in
Battle Creek MI , Columbus OH ,
Kenosha WI and Rockford It. Call
1-800-584-1392 for additional
information
CUSTOM PRINTED T-SHIRTS for your
flying club, flight shop, museum. Free
samples . Call 1-800-645-7739 or 1­
828-654-9711
*WWW.AEROSPACEFACTS.COM
' is the first aerospace website where
you can find relevant information
quick and easy
JUST TRY IT . . .

The following list of coming events is
furnished to our readers as a matter of
information only and does not constitute
approval, sponsorship, involvement, control,
or direction of any event (fly-in, seminars,
fly market, etc.) listed. To submit an event,
send the information via mail to: Vintag e
Airplane, P.O. Bux 3086, Oshkosh, WI
54903-3086. Or e-mail the information
to: [email protected] rg. Information
should be received four months prior to th e
event date.

2007MAJOR
FLy-INS
For details on EM Chapter fly-ins and other local
aviation events, visit www.eaa.orgjevents
U.S. Sport Aviation Expo
. Sebring Regional Airport, Sebring, FL
January 11-14,2007
www.Sport-Aviation-Expo.com
Sun 'n Fun Ry-In
Lakeland Linder Regional Airport (LAL), Lakeland , FL
April 17-23, 2007
www.Sun-N-Fun.org
EAA Southwest Regional-The Texas Ry-In
Hondo Municipal Airport (HDO), Hondo, TX
June 1-2, 2007
www.SWRR.org
Golden West EAA Regional Ry-In
Yuba County Airport (MYV), Marysville, CA
June 8-10,2007
www.GoldenWestRyln.org
Rocky Mountain EAA Regional Ry-ln
Front Range Airport (FTG), Watkins, CO
June 23-24, 2007
I'M'W. RMRR.org

1

~~
:'

Arlington EAA Ry-In
Arlington Municipal Airport (AWO), Arlington, WA
July 11-15, 2007
www.NWEAA.org
EAA AirVenture Oshkosh
Wittman Regional Airport (OSH), Oshkosh, WI
July 23-29, 2007
www.AirVenture.org
EAA Mid-Eastem Regional Ry-ln
Marion Municipal Airport (MNN), Marion, OH
August 25-26, 2007
http://MERFl.info
Virginia Regional EAA Fly-In
Dinwiddie County Airport (PTB), Petersburg, VA
October 6-7, 2007
www.VAEAA .org
EAA Southeast Regional Ry-In
Middleton Field Airport (GZH), Evergreen, AL
October 5-7, 2007
www.SERFI.org
Copperstate Regional EAA Ry·ln
Casa Grande (Arizona) Municipal Airport (CGZ)
October 25-28, 2007
WWW.copperstate.org

,

Your One

STOP Quality Shop

Exhaust Systems
Carb Air Boxes
Structural Assemblies
Clamps & Hardware
Round Engine Exhausts
Engine Mounts
Fuel Cells
Heaters

All Makes & Models

Each Cable is Proof Load Tested
and Prestretched for Stability

www.acomwelding.com

continued from page 37

ikx, Marc, Smithsonian Institution
Press, 1997, p 119. cf: Bowers, Peter
M. The American Fokkers, Part 2)
Nat(e) Brown(e) modified the Fok­
ker Universal by removing the wing
brace struts and replacing them with
wires to save weight. Unfortunately,
all did not go well. After takeoff, the
duo had planned to refuel the aircraft
in flight using a hose, which became
jammed in the rudder, and appar­
ently rendered the aircraft almost
uncontrollable. When it became
clear that the wing was about to fail,
the crew successfully parachuted to
safety, and the aircraft crashed into
Puget Sound.
The concept of aerial refueling
used by Brown and Brooks was by no
means new. It goes back at least as far
as June 1923 when a DH-4 flown by
United States Air Service (USAS) pi­
lots Us. Lowell H. Smith and J. Paul
Richter, stayed aloft over San Diego,
California, for four days, refueled by
another DH-4. Smith, incidentally,
took part in the Trans-global flight of
the Douglas World Cruisers one year
later in 1924. Ironically, the Atlan­
tic Aircraft Corp's first contract was
not for Universals, but for 135 new
welded steel tube fuselages for DH­
4s. Apparently, this contract was a
reward by Gen. William Mitchell in
exchange for Fokker's establishment
of an American company. Something
Mitchell had strongly urged Fokker
to do.

Custom Manufactured!

q /In


1-888-388-8803
1-780-447-5955
Call Today For Our New Catalog

Flight Control Cables


The 1923 refueling endurance re­
cord was surpassed in January1929,
when a Fokker C-2A (named the
Question Mark. A large? was painted
on the side of the fuselage), crewed
by Sgt. Roy Hooe, Lt. Elwood Que­
sada, Lt. Harry Halverson, Capt.
Ira Eaker, and Maj. Carl Spaatz, re­
mained airborne for 150 hours, 40
minutes, 15 seconds. Like the 1923
flight, the Question Mark was refueled
in flight by a hose. However, this
time, from a Douglas C-l Transport
(ATC No. 14), flown by Ross G. Hoyt,
and over Los Angeles.
Between 1926 and 1931, 45 Fokker
Universals were constructed by the
Atlantic Aircraft Corp. at Hasbrouck
Heights, New Jersey; each basic land­
plane version selling for $14,200, and
each seaplane for $16,650, equipped
with twin-Hamilton duralumin
floats. There were numerous versions
of the Universal, equipped with both
Wright J-4 and J-5 engines. They were
widely used in the United States and
Canada for everything from bush
flying and airline flights, to airmail
service. A good description of a Fok­
ker Universal (ATC No.9), and the
subsequent Super Universal (ATC No.
52), and Standard Universal (ATC No.
164), can be found in volumes 1 and
2 of Joseph P. Juptner's U.S. Civil Air­
craft (The Universal is described in
volume I, pp 33-35).
Wesley R. Smith
Springfield, Illinois

*Quick D elivery
*Reasonable Prices
* Certification to MIL-T-6117
& MIL-C-5688A

* 1/16" to 1/4"

* Certified Bulk Cable and

Fittings are Available
~McFarlane·
McFarlane Aviation Products

McF arlane Aviation, Inc.

696 E. 1700 Road

Baldwin City, KS 66006

800-544-8594

Fax 785-594-3922

www.mcfarlaneaviation.com
[email protected]

831

iii

VIs.t I I

1

OIN T ODA Y!

800- 3 22-241 2
AND RECEIVE 12 ISSUES
OF VINTAGE AIRCRAFT
ALONG WITH OTHER

GREAT BENEFITS

VINTAGE AIRPLANE

39

Membershi~ Services
VINTAGE

AIRCRAFT

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

OFFICERS
President
Geoff Robison
1521 E. MacGregor Dr.
New Haven, IN 46774
260-493-4724
[email protected]

Vice~President

George Daubner
2448 Lough Lane
Hartford, W I 53027
262-673-5885
vaa(lyboy<E-111SI1.COlrl

secretary
Steve Nesse

Treasurer
Charles W. Harris

2009 Highland Ave.
Albert Lea, MN 56007
507-373-1674
stllfs@desk,nedia.coln

7215 East 46th St.
Tulsa, OK 74147
918-622-8400

(\Il/[email protected]

DIRECTORS
Steve Bender

Jeannie Hill

85 Brush Hill Road
Sherborn, MA 01770
508-653-7557
sst [email protected]

P.O. Box 328
Harvard, IL 60033-0328
815-943-7205
[email protected]

David Bennett

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

375 Killdeer Ct
Lincoln, CA 95648
916-645-8370
all [email protected]

John Berendt
7645 Echo Point Rd.
Cannon Falls, MN 55009
507-263-2414

Steve Krog
1002 Heather Ln.
Hartford, WI 53027
262-966-7627

[email protected]

[email protected]

Dave Clark
635 Vesta l Lane

Robert D. "Bob" Lumley

Plainfield, IN 46168
317 -839-4500

1265 South 124th St.
Brookfield, WI 53005
262-782-2633

davecpd@iqut'st.net

[email protected]

John S. Copeland
LA Deacon Street
Northborough, MA 01532
508-393-4775

copeland l@jllllO.(Om

Gene Morris
5936 Steve Court
Roanoke, TX 76262
817-491-9110
[email protected]

Phil Coulson

Dean Richardson

28415 Springbrook Dr.
Lawton, MI 49065
269-624-6490
[email protected]

1429 Kings Lynn Rd
Stoughton, WI 53589
608-877-8485

Dale A. Gustafson

S.H. "Wes" Schmid
2359 Lefeber Avenue

7724 Shady Hills Dr.

Indianapolis, IN 46278
317-293-4430
daft'faye@msll.(om

[email protected]

Wauwatosa, WI 53213
414-771-1545

sllschmidCii7nilwpc.COlll

DIRECTORS

EMERITUS

2159 Carlton Rd.
Oshkosh, WI 54904
920-231-5002

E.E. "Buck" Hilbert
8102 Leech Rd.
Union, IL 60180
815-923-4591

[email protected]

[email protected]

Gene Chase

Ronald C. Fritz

15401 Sparta Ave.

Kent City, MI 49330

616-678-5012

rFritz(o/patllwaYIlf:'t.(om

Directory


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

Phone (920) 426-4800

Fax (920) 426-48 73


Web Sites: www_vin tageaircra(t.org, www.airventllre.org, www.eaa.org/memberbene{its

E-Ma il: vintageaircra([email protected]

EAA and Division Membership Services
Flying Start Program ... .... , .. . . 920-426-6847

Library Services/Research ........ 920-426-4848

800-843-3612 .. . . ..... . . .. FAX 920-426-6761
(8:00 AM-7:00 PM
Monday-Friday CSn
Medical Questions.. . .. . .. . ..... 920-426-6112

Technical Counselors . . ......... 920-426-6864
. New/renew memberships: EAA, Divisions
(Vintage Aircraft Association, lAC, Warbirds),
Young Eagles . ....... . ......... 877-806-8902
National Association of Flight Instructors
Benefits
(NAFJ)
AUA Vintage Insurance Plan ..... 800-727-3823
•Address changes
EAA Aircraft Insurance Plan ... .. 866-647-4322
•Merchandise sales
Term Life and Accidental ........ 800-241-6103

· Gift memberships
Death Insurance (Harvey Watt & Company)
EAA Platinum VISA Card . . 800-853-5576 ext. 8884
Programs and Activities
EAA Aircraft Financing Plan .... 866-808-6040
EAA AirVenture Fax-On-Demand Directory
EAA Enterprise Rent-A-Car Program
. .. .. .... ... ..... .. .......... 732-885-6711

..... ... ... . . . . . . . . . ... . .. 877-GA1-ERAC

Auto Fuel STCs ....... .. ... . ... 920-426-4843

Editorial . . . ... .... . . ... ....... 920-426-4825

Build/restore information ...... .. 920-426-4821
Vintage ................ .. .FAX 920-426-6865

Chapters: locating/organizing .... 920-426-4876
• Submitting article/photo
Education ..................... 888-322-3229

• Advertising information
• EAA Air Academy
• EAA Scholarships
Flight Advisors information ...... 920-426-6864
Flight Instructor information ..... 920-426-6801

EAA Aviation Foundation
Artifact Donations ..... . ....... 920-426-4877
Financial Support . .... , .. . , . .. 800-236-1025

MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION
EAA
Membersbip in the Experimental Aircraft
Associa tion , Inc. is H Ofor one year, in d ud­
in g 12 issues of SPORT AViATION. Family
membership is an additional $10 annually.
Junior Membersh ip (under 19 years of age)
is available at $23 annually. All ma jor credit
cards accepted for membership. (Add $16 for
Foreign Postage.)

EAA SPORT PILOT
Curr ent EAA m emb ers m ay a d d EA A
SPORT PILOT m agazi n e for an additional
$20 per year.
EAA M embers hi p a nd EAA SPORT
PILOT magazi n e is avail able for $40 per
year (SPORT AVIATION magazine not in­
cluded). (A dd $16 for Foreign Postage.)

VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION
C u rren t EAA me mb e rs may jo in t h e
Vintage Aircraft Association and rece ive
VIN TA GE AIRPLANE magazine fo r an ad­
dition al $36 per year.
EAA Membershi p, VIN TAGE AIRPLANE
magazine and one yea r membership in the EAA
Vintage Aircraft Association is available for $46
per year (SPORT AVIATION magazine not in­
cluded). (A dd $7 for Foreign Postage.)

lAC

C urrent EAA m e mber s m ay joi n t he
Inte rn a tio nal Aerobatic C lu b, Inc. Divi­
sion and rece ive SPORT AEROBATICS
m agazine for an additio nal $4 5 per year.
EAA M embership, SPORT AEROBAT­
ICS magazine and one yea r m embe rsh ip
in the lAC Div ision is ava il able fo r $55
p e r yea r (SPORT AVIATION m agazine
n ot i nclud e d ). (Add $18 for Foreig n
Postage.)

WARBIRDS
Current EAA m embers m ay join the EAA
Warbirds of America Division a nd receive
WARBIRDS m agazine for an additional $45
per year.
EAA Me mbe rship, WARBIRDS maga ­
z in e a n d one yea r m e m bership in the
War birds Divisio n is ava ilab le for $50 per
year (SPORT AVIATION m agazine n ot in­
cluded). (Add $7 fo r Foreign Postage.)

FOREIGN MEMBERSHIPS
Please sub m it you r remittance wit h a
ch eck or draf t d raw n o n a Un ited Sta tes
bank payable in United States dollars. Add
required Foreign Postage amount for each
rnem bersWp.

Members hip dues to EM and its divisions are not tax deductible as charitable contri butions
Copyright ©2006 by the EM Vintage Aircraft Association, All rights reserved.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE (USPS 082-750: ISSN 0091-6943) is published and owned exclusively by the EM Vintage Aircraft Association of the Experimental Aircraft Association and is published monthly at EM Avia­
tion Center, 3000 Poberezny Rd., PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54903-3086, e-mail: [email protected]. Membership to Vintage Aircraft Association, which includes 12 issues of Vintage Airplane magazine,
is $36 per year for EM members and $46 for non-EM members. Periodicals Postage paid at Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Vintage Airplane,
PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. PM 40032445 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to World Distribution Services, Station A, PO Box 54, Windsor, ON N9A 6J5, e-mail: [email protected]. FOR­
EIGN AND APO ADDRESSES - Please allow at least two months for delivelY of VINTAGE AIRPLANE to foreign and APO addresses via surtace mail. ADVERTISING - Vinlage Aircraft Association does not guaranlee

or endorse any product offered through the advertiSing. We invite constructive criticism and welcome any report of inferior merchandise obtained through our advertising so that corrective measures can be taken.
EDITORIAL POLICY: Readers are encouraged to submit stories and photographs. Policy opinions expressed in articles are solely those of the authors. Responsibility for accuracy in reporting rests entirely with
the contributor. No remuneratior. is made. Material should be sent to: Editor, VINTAGE AIRPLANE, PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Phone 920-426-4800.

EAA® and EAA SPORT AVIAnON®, the EAA Logo® and Aeronautica ™are registered trademarks, trademarks, and service marks of the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc. The use of these trademarks and
service marks without the permission of the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc. is strictly prohibited.

40

DECEMBER 2 00 6

par~nert'
ecognllon
VEHICLE PURCHASE PLAN

Introducing exciting new vehicles

from Ford, Lincoln, Mercury and Volvo.


FORD EDGE

The Privilege of Partnership:
Exclusive Pricing, Exceptionally Simple!
Ford Motor Company, in association with EM, is proud to offer their members the opportunity to save on the purchase
or lease from one of their family of brands - Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, Mazda, Volvo, Land Rover and Jaguar vehicles.
In more ways than one, it pays to be an EM member. Take advantage of the Ford Partner Recognition Vehicle Purchase Plan. The simple way
to save hundreds, even thousands of dollars 011 your next vehicle purchase.
Get your personal identification number (PIN) from the EM website (www.eaa.org) by clicking on the EAAlFord Program logo. You must be
an EM Member for one year to be eligible. ThiS offer is available to residents of the United States and Canada.

Certain restrictions apply. Available at participating dealers. Please refer to www.eaa.org or call 800-843-3612.

~

VOLVO
LINCOLN

MERCURY

JAGUAR

~
~

Sponsor Documents

Or use your account on DocShare.tips

Hide

Forgot your password?

Or register your new account on DocShare.tips

Hide

Lost your password? Please enter your email address. You will receive a link to create a new password.

Back to log-in

Close