Va vol 40 no 1 jan 2012

JANUARY 2012

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A I R P L A N E Vol. 40, No. 1

2012

JANUARY

CONTENTS 2

Straight and Level Geoff Robison

3

News

5

It All Started With a Pony

5

At least you don’t have to clean up after a Monocoupe

by Budd Davisson

11 The Liberating Sky Pioneering black pilots broke barriers and climbed to new heights-Part I

by Philip Handleman

16

Light Plane Heritage Twelve thousand miles in an Avro Avian

by Bob Whittier

20 Just a Long Cross-Counry in an Antique, Right?

A ferry flight adventure

by Bill McClure

27

Type Club Listing

32

The Vintage Mechanic Repair data

by Robert G. Lock

36

The Vintage Instructor Do you know what you don’t know?

Flying is a lifelong learning experience!

by Steve Krog, CFI

38

Mystery Plane

by H.G. Frautschy

39

Classifieds

COVERS

FRONT COVER: Cam Blazer and a few of his friends (along with some new ones he met along the way) restored this Monocoupe 90A, now powered with a 165 hp Warner. Read about his restoration odyssey in Budd Davisson’s article starting on page 5. EAA photo by Jim Koepnick, EAA photo plane flown by Bruce Moore.

BACK COVER: Popular illustrator Barry Ross created this beautiful illustration of a Piper Tri-Pacer climbing away from the Bear Island Lighthouse near Acadia National Park in Maine.

Along the shoreline, the Rockefeller yawl Nirvana cruises serenely along. Prints are available by ordering from his website at http://www.barryrossart.com/. Click on the “Aviation art” link.

20 STAFF EAA Publisher Director of EAA Publications Executive Director/Editor Production/Special Projects Photography Copy Editor

Rod Hightower J. Mac McClellan H.G. Frautschy Kathleen Witman Jim Koepnick Colleen Walsh

Publication Advertising: Manager/Domestic, Sue Anderson Tel: 920-426-6127 Email: sanderson@eaa.org Fax: 920-426-4828 Senior Business Relations Mgr, Trevor Janz Tel: 920-426-6809 Email: tjanz@eaa.org Manager/European-Asian, Willi Tacke Phone: +49(0)1716980871 Email: willi@flying-pages.com Fax: +49(0)8841 / 496012

Classified Advertising Coordinator, Jo Ann Cody Simons Tel: 920-426-6169 Email: classads@eaa.org

For missing or replacement magazines, or any other membership-related questions, please call EAA Member Services at 800- JOIN-EAA (564-6322).

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 1

STRAIGHT & LEVEL Geoff Robison EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, VAA

Looking Ahead and Tightening the Belt

H

appy new year to each and every member of the Vintage Aircraft Association.

Where did 2011 go?

Well, for me it was yet another whirlwind year of adventure and enjoyment of everything aviation. It’s vitally important for the staff and volunteers of VAA to look back and thank the many thousands of individuals who support this organization every year. It’s appropriate to thank those on the EAA staff who work hard every day to sell the Vintage brand to members and potential members.

Many thanks to each of you!

Now, what does 2012 have in store for us? Well, many positive things are on our horizon, but we find ourselves in a financial position where we can no longer avoid the really tough decision about our dues structure. The expense of operating an organization such as ours has experienced many distinct ebbs and tides over the past 10 years or so since we last raised our dues. The reality of the slow but ever increasing rate of inflation has caught up with us, even though we’ve done our best to broaden the income of the division beyond dues revenue.

We are simply no longer in a position to ignore the realities of the rising costs of publishing Vintage Airplane magazine. Ironically, the Vintage board overwhelmingly supported a dues increase, but until recently, we ultimately chose not to implement a dues increase. Be assured that a lot of consternation, discussion, and very careful planning have now led us to implement what I believe to be a well-thought-out plan on what the actual increase should be. The real-

2 JANUARY 2012

ity of all this discussion results in a dues increase of a mere 50 cents per month, or $6 per year. We are all certainly hopeful that the entire membership will understand and support this decision to raise the dues, but realistically, we understand that there will be some who will question the value of staying on board. Please be assured we will understand regardless of your decision, and please do not hesitate to communicate any concerns you may have about this or any other board actions.

Another item that was discussed in the fall board meetings was the need to respond to a number of recent departures from our board of directors.

Through attrition that has naturally occurred over the last couple of years, I felt that the board should begin the process of keeping the board of directors staffed with some new energy through the Advisory Member (“Advisors”) process as allowed by our bylaws. Three active VAA volunteers were carefully selected and agreed to serve as advisors to the board. Please join me and the board of directors in welcoming Ron Alexander, Joe Norris, and Tim Popp to the board of directors. You’ll get a chance to meet these three men here in the pages of Vintage Airplane in a future issue.

A year ago I stated in this column, “I often wonder what government regulatory issues we will be dealing with in a year from now.” Yet again we find ourselves concerned with the funding mechanisms of our country’s aviation system. The hot button concept of user fees will just not go away. The fiscal 2012 federal budget for the FAA has been reauthorized for

just four months of this current budget cycle, which extended the period for debate and negotiation on the remainder of that fiscal period’s budget.

Of course, there are those who continue to push for additional revenues through the implementation of user fees. True to my word, I have personally written a number of my congressional representatives in an attempt to convince them to push for adoption of sensible funding of the airport and aviation trust fund. The current status of this debate resides in H.R. 658, which addresses the remaining period of fiscal 2012, which I am led to believe still does not include funding through user fees. The House and Senate versions of this legislation are currently being resolved in Conference Committee. So let’s all be sure to keep our eyes wide open on this issue and stay in the debate. Let’s all protect our personal right to fly.

The year 2011 has proven to be a banner year for our local VAA Chapter 37 as well as the local EAA Chapter 2 here in northeast Indiana. I am personally bursting with pride in both of these fine examples of what an EAA chapter is really all about. These two chapters provided more than 1,000 Young Eagles rides to the youth of our local communities during 2011.

What an accomplishment! Congratulations to all the local EAA members who made this possible.

Remember, it’s time to run your checklist and buckle your seat belts, because 2012 is shaping up to be yet another exciting year for the Vintage Aircraft Association.

VAA NEWS Cubs to Oshkosh If you’re one of the many Piper Cub pilots who are in the planning stages to make the trip to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Piper J-3 Cub, one of your first stops should be to the website www.Cubs2Osh. EAAChapter.org. Volunteer Rick Rademacher of Urbana, Ohio, is helping his fellow EAA and VAAers plan their trip to Oshkosh by overseeing this special event website, including creating a list of members who wish to bring their Cubs to Oshkosh. That’s where you come in—visit the chapter and sign up as a pilot planning on flying to AirVenture, so we can plan for a sea of yellow Cubs.

While the bulk of the parking for the J-3s will be in the Type Club parking area, the exact parking arrangements where various Cubs will be located is still being worked out, and much of that planning depends on the number of pilots who register to park their airplanes in the Vintage area. We’ll have more on this great anniversary celebration for one of aviation’s great treasures in coming issues, but in the meantime, please visit www.Cubs2Osh. EAAChapter.org to get started!

EAA and Learning for Life Sign Aviation Agreement

EAA President/CEO Rod Hightower and Dr. Diane Thornton, national director for Learning for Life, sign a memorandum of understanding to create joint aviation opportunities for youth.

EAA’s Young Eagles program, the world’s largest youth aviation education initiative, and the school- and careerbased Learning for Life (LFL) program, an affiliate of Boy Scouts of America, have entered into an agreement that will help young people discover and explore opportunities in aviation, including orientation flights in GA aircraft.

Those opportunities will be primarily focused through Learning for Life’s Aviation Exploring program, a handson program that exposes young people to flying and offers aviation experiences as a possible career or for the sheer pleasure of being around airplanes.

Learning for Life school-based programs serve boys and girls from early childhood through 12th grade. Exploring is a worksite-based program for students ages 14 to 21 able to learn about careers through practical application guided by experts in the field.

The agreement will provide students with the opportunity to: •Highlight all aspects of the aviation industry, •Explore career orientation opportunities, and •Enjoy aviation education experiences.

For more information on the agreement and Learning for Life, visit www.SportAviation.org.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 3

See Flabob Express at AirVenture 2012

Classic J-3 Cub Is 2012 EAA Aircraft Sweepstakes Grand Prize

Flabob Express, a DC-3 based at Flabob Airport in Riverside, California, is among the first confirmed aircraft scheduled to appear at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2012, July 23-29. The aircraft will serve as the centerpiece for “a very comprehensive event at AirVenture” by the Flabob-based Thomas W. Wathen Foundation’s educational programs, said Bill Sawin, the foundation’s executive vice president and chief development officer.

Up to 15 students from the Wathen Foundation Charter Middle/High School Aviation Academy & Programs will attend and serve as docents for aircraft tours and make presentations about EAA youth programs.

They will also get involved with KidVenture and interact with the EAA Air Academy campers during AirVenture week. In addition, organizers plan to bring two or three airplanes built and flown by the students.

For links to more information on EAA AirVenture, the plane, Flabob, and the Wathen Foundation, visit www.SportAviation.org.

What Our Members Are Restoring

Are you nearing completion of a restoration? Or is it done and you’re busy flying and showing it off? If so, we’d like to hear from you. Send us a 4-by-6-inch print from a commercial source (no home printers, please— those prints just don’t scan well) or a 4-by-6-inch, 300dpi digital photo. A JPG from your 2.5-megapixel (or higher) digital camera is fine. You can burn photos to a CD, or if you’re on a high-speed Internet connection, you can e-mail them along with a text-only or Word document describing your airplane. (If your e-mail program asks if you’d like to make the photos smaller, say no.) For more tips on creating photos we can publish, visit VAA’s website at www.VintageAircraft.org. Check the News page for a hyperlink to Want To Send Us A Photograph?

For more information, you can also e-mail us at vintageaircraft@eaa.org or call us at 920-426-4825.

4 JANUARY 2012

STEVE CUKIERSKI

See the DC-3 Flabob Express at AirVenture Oshkosh 2012.

Giveaway part of Cub’s 75th anniversary celebration at EAA AirVenture The Piper J-3 Cub, one of the legendary aircraft in aviation history, will take center stage for the next nine months as the grand prize for the 2012 EAA Win the Cub Aircraft Sweepstakes.

The EAA Sweepstakes, one of the longest-running airplane giveaways in the world, annually supports EAA’s aviation education programs. In a change from past years, entry forms will be available beginning this week through EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2012, taking place July 23-29. All prizes will be awarded to winners in random drawings at the EAA AirVenture Museum in Oshkosh at 5 p.m. on September 10, 2012.

The Piper Cub grand prize in 2012 coincides with AirVenture’s commemoration of the Cub’s 75th anniversary. The Sweepstakes Cub is a specially selected model that is restored and maintained to EAA’s high standards, which will make an unmatched piece of flying history and fun for the winner. In addition, the grand prize package includes skis for winter flying, plus sport pilot and/or tailwheel endorsement training, if desired.

“This is your opportunity to win one of the great, iconic airplanes in aviation history that is perfect for fun flying,” said Elissa Lines, EAA’s vice president of business and donor relations. “At the same time, you’ll be joining the rest of the aviation community in supporting EAA’s activities and programs that are helping to create the next generation of aviators.”

Entry forms are available on the sweepstakes website at www.AirVenture.org/sweepstakes. Complete sweepstakes rules are also available at that website.

It All Started With a Pony At least you don’t have to clean up after a Monocoupe BY

BUDD DAVISSON

“Dad said . . .

‘Why would you want that when you could be flying a Tri-Pacer?’”.

JIM KOEPNICK

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 5

JIM KOEPNICK

H

orses are, to many people, as habit forming as airplanes. A disease of the mind. Some breeds are more addictive than others.

Airplanes are very much the same, and if there’s one fact in aviation, it is that once the Monocoupe bug bites, you stay bitten.

“Technically,” says Cam Blazer of Leawood, Kansas, “our Monocoupe actually started with a cigarette, when I was about 10 years old. Not a pony. But, there’s a definite connection. My dad caught me smoking, and he whipped me good. Mom saw what was going on and asked Dad to reason with me, rather than whip. After a day or so, Dad said, ‘If you don’t smoke until you are 21, I’ll give you a pony.’”

“Skip ahead 11 years. In 1957 I was 21 and didn’t smoke. Dad’s construction workers and family knew about the no-smoking deal and would kid about the pony. One day Dad called me at college and asked if I would swap the pony for flying lessons because he had decided he wanted to learn to fly. A deal was struck, and we learned together in an old Aeronca Chief. So

6 JANUARY 2012

DEKEVIN THORNTON

Since he’s from the Kansas City area, we shouldn’t be surprised to see Cam Blazer wearing a baseball cap emblazoned with the Nicholas-Beazley emblem. Cam credits his wife, Marie, with helping him throughout his aviation avocation, and particularly with his latest effort, the Monocoupe Sweet Marie. that $50 pony turned into about $500 worth of flying time.

“As I was working on my private ticket, I came across a 90A Monocoupe that was for sale for $900. I tried to get Dad interested, but he took one look and said, ‘It has ringworm and is leaking oil. Plus it’s old.

Why would you want that when you could be flying a Tri-Pacer?’”

From that point on Cam’s story reads very much the way so many pilots’ biographies do with marriage, family, and career slowing down his flying. But, it didn’t keep him out of aviation.

Doesn’t everyone have tail surface parts as part of the décor?

“When I got married I wasn’t doing much flying, but I’d discovered homebuilt airplanes, and that looked like something I might be able to afford. I got interested in a Sport-Aire II, an Al Trefethen design, and discovered a TWA pilot who lived in my ZIP code was listed as building one. So, I tracked him down and knocked on his door. I spent a lot of time working on his airplane with him, and that led me to Kansas City EAA Chapter 91. I got heavily involved and was even president for a while.

“I was in partnership to build a couple of Pazmany PL-2s, but I had to sell mine as a project, including an Al Trefethen Lycoming O-290G. The engine was $135. Hard to believe!”

By this time, the fits and starts of his aviation career were starting to form a pattern. One he didn’t like.

“I had started a Midget Mustang II when my third child came along, and I had to sell the project to expand the house,” he says.

“This was getting really old, but this time, it didn’t work entirely against me because my wife got a fourth bedroom and the space below it just happened to contain an airplane workshop.”

The next chapter is from one of those “If he didn’t have bad luck, he’d have no luck at all” types of tales.

hospital, I stopped and attended that month’s EAA meeting. I didn’t see any reason to wait another entire month.”

Like we said: persistent.

“I’m glad I went because at the meeting in the ‘wants and wishes’ part, Kelly Viets said his Stinson 108-2 was for sale.

“It was at this point that I realized I came really close to not living long enough to build or own my own airplane, so I bought a Stinson 108-2 that had been restored to

PHOTOS COURTESY CAM BLAZER

The one-piece wing was completely rebuilt by Cam and friends from his church group. He was thankful Ed Sampson was keeping an eye on their progress.

While a complete fuselage, there was plenty to repair on the steel tube fuselage, which was expertly accomplished by D.J. Short at Short Air in Warrensburg, Missouri.

“I was pretty broke, what with the family and all, but my career as a project manager was just starting to take off, so I felt I could afford to build a KR-2 with a Revmaster.

I was doing just fine on that one until I was electrocuted on the job.

My hands and toes took a real beating, and the doctor said if it hadn’t been such a dry day, it would have been the end of my story.

Cam Blazer is nothing if not persistent.

“On the way home from the

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 7

award-winning condition by Kelly Viets. It’s easy to remember the day I bought the airplane, because it was 2 degrees below zero in the hangar when I was inspecting it. That was 1985, and I’ve owned it since.

“In 1996 my son Steve flew his 1940 Taylorcraft to Oshkosh, and I flew the Stinson. He was parked with the Antiques, and I was parked in the Vintage area. The Taylorcraft was sitting next to the Monocoupes, and Steve said we should get a Monocoupe. I had never forgotten that 90A I could have had for $900, so I was more than ready for a ’coupe.

“I found a D145 for sale but couldn’t afford it. Later Steve found a basket case 90A Monocoupe, and we bought it on December 26, 1997.

“If my dad had thought I was nuts for wanting that 90A 40 years earlier, this one would have given him a heart attack. It was a project.

And not a particularly good project, as projects go.

“The fuselage had been stripped and primed, and the tail was in reasonable condition, but the wing, which is a huge one-piece affair, was in terrible condition.

In 1956, the airplane had been ground looped somewhere down around Chicago. The left wingtip got torn up a little, so the airplane was parked out in the weather and mostly forgotten. A wooden wing like that one doesn’t like being out in the weather, and it didn’t take long before it was mostly trash.

“The airplane changed hands a couple of times, each new owner looking for a 90-hp Lambert radial that originally powered it, but with no luck. So, not much was accomplished in terms of rebuilding it other than logging a lot of road miles on trailers. The owner I bought it from in Kansas decided to re-engine it with a 165 Warner, which is significantly bigger and heavier than the Lambert.

The biggest engine certified in the Monocoupe in the factory was the 145-hp Warner, so the 165 was illegal. However, when I bought the

8 JANUARY 2012

remains, the owner said he’d gotten all the proper paperwork and it was a kosher conversion. I’d find out later that wasn’t the case, and it would give me lots of headaches.

The left wingtip got torn up a little, so the airplane was parked out in the weather and mostly forgotten.

“When I got it home, I had neither the time nor the money to jump into it with both feet, so I decided to just do the engine. I had Forrest Lovley in Minneapolis overhaul the engine. My contribution to that part of the project was to clean parts, which pretty much matched my experience level when it came to rebuilding round motors.

“Frankly, I was a little worried about the wings. Being one-piece tip-to-tip units, they are not only heavy, but represent a huge amount of work. I went to visit Ed Samson in his shop to have him build a new wing for me. Ed was thinking of retiring and said he would loan me the patterns and help with questions, if I built the wing myself. He said I would get a great feeling of accomplishment if I did it myself.”

In another part of his life Cam had built a number of small, outboard racing hydroplanes, so he knew his way around a wood shop.

The wing, however, was four times the work of a small boat.

“At the beginning, I barely dipped my toe on the water, preferring to go in little mouse-sized chunks rather than whole hog, so I rebuilt an aileron. I picked on an aileron first because it was small enough that I could see what I was in for without spending too much money. I did okay, so I got serious about the wings in 2004. Every Thursday night some of my church buddies, Walt Calkins, Dan Marvin and Victor Cook, would come over

and build a rib. Ed Samson was our adviser.

“We saved every fitting possible, rebuilt them, and reused them. In fact, that’s the way I approached the entire airplane. I wanted to make it as original to 1936 as possible. The bigger engine put the airplane into the custom air show/ exhibition category, but otherwise it’s a 1936 airplane. To develop a supply of original parts, I bought a donor airplane that had ground looped so hard that the wing was broken clean through, and then it sat outdoors until the fuselage was good only for patterns. It did, however, have an excellent instrument panel and most of the original aluminum fairings, so between the two airplanes, we could put together a full set of fairings. Most of those were beat up and required a lot of handwork to make look good again, but at least they were original. All of the instruments are 1936, and even the radio that you see is a 1936 Lear.”

Per capita, Monocoupes have probably suffered more ground loops than any other type of airplane (a guess), many of which involved a landing gear collapsing from hidden rust inside the tubing.

“The gear tubing is heat treated to 180,000 psi, which is twice that of normal chromoly, so when we rebuilt the gear we had to have it heat treated. But almost no one wanted to touch it, and those that did warped it, and when it was warped it couldn’t be straightened.

So, we annealed it, built a huge jig, TIG welded it and, when it was heat treated in the jig, it came out straight. That was a much bigger project than it sounds like.

“Earlier I had given the fuselage to D.J. Short at Short Air in Warrensburg, Missouri. He’s a magician with steel tube fuselages, and that’s what this one was going to need, a magician. The basic tubing wasn’t too bad, but it is a very complicated little airplane, especially the control system. It has tons of rods and cast aluminum dog-bone fittings

JIM KOEPNICK

that join one pushrod to another or to a bell crank. In truth, it involves a lot of monkey motion to activate the ailerons, and D.J. had to figure all the stuff out and build new parts where we didn’t have the right ones.

And we didn’t do the Frize aileron STC to the airplane because they’ve been known to flutter, and I didn’t want to have to worry about that. When we covered the airplane, we covered straight across the aileron gap to make them more effective. Unfortunately, that means that to take the ailerons off, you have to use a razor blade. “The big engine is set so far back that some parts actually stick through the firewall, which was originally aluminum, but D.J. replaced it with a more fire-safe stainless steel one. To show how far back the engine sits, with no firewall in it, you can sit in the seat and touch the carburetor with your feet. “D.J. also had to fabricate a new cowling. My son Chris was working for D.J., and D.J. showed him the system and let him create the bumps himself. He hammered the rocker arm bumps in place rather than making them separate pieces and riveting or welding them on. He made a female mold that clamped on, and he’d gently hammer the aluminum down into it.

When the aluminum started to change sound, indicating that it was work hardening, he’d anneal it and keep going. It takes a real touch to do that kind of thing and not cause cracks. “D.J.’s ability with aluminum really came in handy

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with the wheelpants. These are original Monocoupe pants and had some serious issues,” Cam says, “but, when D.J. was finished with them, it took very little filler to get them ready for paint. In fact, they were so nice that I hated to paint them.”

Although originality was a key goal of the project, it was also going to be flown a fair amount, and that’s where safety and mechanical reliability had to become part of the equation.

“The original brakes were close to being useless,” he says. “They were mechanical and self-energizing, so we used a set of 6.50 by 10 Cessna 310 wheels and brakes and sized the actuation cylinders so that they were soft and would barely hold the airplane during a run-up. Yes, you want reliable brakes, but on this airplane, you don’t want too much brake.”

The tail wheel is especially intriguing, as it is a tiny little thing with a handle protruding off the back that allows the rudder to steer the tail wheel directly. It is done exactly the way the factory drawings show it.

“The fuselage formers,” he says, “were essentially a moldy jigsaw puzzle: Lots of individual pieces, all of them ratty and dimensioned for the donor airplane, so they didn’t necessarily match my airplane. A lot of head scratching was involved in getting them, and the big wooden cove moldings that run down all four corners of the aft fuselage to the tail, shaped to fit.

There was some serious eyeballing while doing that.

“The seat frames were another problem in that we didn’t have two good ones between two airplanes. So, we used them as patterns. The bottom of the door was also mostly rusted away, and he had to rebuild that.

“One of the bigger problems in restorations like this is finding all the small pieces for the interior.

In this case we didn’t have all the window moldings, some of which are pretty complicated because they were originally stamped out. We

10 JANUARY 2012

made two complete sets of moldings for the little ‘D’ windows before we got the two we needed. The others were a little easier, so we didn’t have to build so many duplicates.”

Cam reports that they covered the airplane using the Superflite system all the way through, with D.J. doing the covering.

He says, “It took three solid weeks, at eight hours a day, to finish sanding it. My contribution to that part of it was in the role of head sander. I really got my arms in shape on the project.”

Every project, no matter how complicated or fraught with problems, eventually gets finished, and this included Cam’s Monocoupe.

“D.J. did the first flight, and although I had a fair amount of tailwheel time, I thought I needed to do a little brushing up. Especially considering the reputation the Monocoupe’s ground handling has.

So, I flew Dick Michel’s Luscombe for a while, with cardboard covering the windshield to simulate the limited visibility that a pilot has in a Monocoupe. Then I went down to St. Louis, where Mel McCullom let me fly his 90AL ’coupe.

“When I started flying my airplane, the visibility, or more correctly, the lack of visibility, was the biggest surprise. On the ground there is nothing but instrument panel and motor in front of you, and you have to look to the sides at a much larger angle than in most taildraggers. There’s just a tiny triangle of windshield visible at each end of the instrument panel. On most runways, as you flare, you actually find yourself looking out the side window behind the front door posts.

“I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that I’m disappointed in the ailerons. They are too heavy with too much system friction, and I’m not convinced the Frize ailerons would be any better. Still it’s an enormous amount of fun to fly, and it’s especially fun to land somewhere and taxi up to the gas pump. It draws spectators like flies.

“I bring it over the fence at about

75 mph, so it doesn’t land particularly fast, and I usually wheel it on, although it does three-point just fine. It cruises at about 120-125 mph at about 10-1/2 gallons per hour, and I have two 14-gallon tanks and a 9-gallon aux tank. It actually has enough range and speed that it’s a workable cross-country airplane.”

By the time Cam Blazer had gotten well into the Monocoupe project, he had risen far up the ranks of his profession, as an engineering project manager, and decided to retire to have more time to work on the airplane.

“Retiring sounded good in theory,” he says, “but it drove my wife crazy. And me, too. So I ‘unretired’ to save our sanity and probably our marriage. Besides, I needed the extra money for the airplane. It’s really ironic to think that I’ve spent my life and built my reputation on doing huge projects, like the $250 million Sprint arena in Kansas City, and bringing it in on budget and on time. The Monocoupe project ran as if I’d never been involved in a project of any kind. It took nearly twice as much time as estimated and went horribly over budget. It went so far over budget that I have purposely never added it all up, so when my wife asks how much it cost, I can honestly say I don’t know. But, I had a huge amount of fun. And, I think I’ve got a pretty neat airplane, which makes it all worth it.”

We think both of his points are important, and we agree with them both: What can be more fun and more important than enjoying yourself while you’re saving history?

A note from Cam to friends and family: “Thanks to everyone who helped with parts, advice, and encouragement over the 12 years of rebuilding. Thanks to John Swander for setting the example with his 1932 Waco UEC 2000 Oshkosh Grand Champion, which is my hangar mate. And, most important, thanks to my wife, Marie. She’s the reason the Monocoupe is known as Sweet Marie.”

The Liberating Sky Pioneering black pilots broke barriers and climbed to new heights PART 1 BY

PHILIP HANDLEMAN

Aiming for the Heavens: AfricanAmericans Blaze a Trail in the Sky Long before the invention of the airplane, idealized notions of the sky suffused Western civilization.

By hurtling from earthly routine into the unencumbered dome of air that encircles our world, poets and dreamers imagined that humanity might rise above itself and achieve ennobling heights. This classical interpretation holds that human flight at its finest is a liberating force that elevates the soul.

An African-American who not only embraced flight as a means to taste the fruits of freedom but also helped to lay the intellectual foundation for the idea within the black community was William J. Powell.

Born in Kentucky in 1899, Powell was raised by a widowed mother who moved the family to Chicago in 1904. A very bright student in school, Powell enrolled in the University of Illinois at Champaign.

When America entered World War I, Powell enlisted in the Army.

He served as a lieutenant in a segregated infantry regiment on the frontlines in France. Victimized by a poison gas attack, he needed a long convalescence.

After the war, he became a successful owner of gas stations in Chicago. In August 1927, his life took a dramatic turn when he went to France to attend an American Legion convention. It was only three months after Charles Lindbergh’s famous Atlantic crossing in the Spirit of St. Louis. Like countless people the world over, Powell was

William J. Powell’s 1934 book, titled Black Wings, was a manifesto that called for African-American involvement in aviation. Here he is pictured at his Los Angeles workshop, far right, hosting famed heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis, second from left. captivated by the historic flight.

Powell ventured to Le Bourget, the airport where the Lone Eagle had landed. While there, Powell paid for an airplane ride and instantly became hooked. Shortly after returning, he sold his chain of gas stations and moved to Los Angeles with the single-minded purpose of becoming a pilot and pursuing a career in the burgeoning field of aeronautics.

In 1934, Powell published a book titled Black Wings, which was a thinly veiled autobiographical account of his introduction to flight.

More importantly, it was a manifesto that called for blacks to enter aviation as a career choice. The book makes clear that Powell saw

flight as possessing the intrinsic power to liberate those who engage in it. His outlook was encapsulated in his statement that “Negroes will never ride as free men and women below the Mason and Dixon Line… until they ride in airplanes owned and operated by Negroes.”

Powell incessantly extolled the benefits available to African-Americans through their participation in the emergent aviation industry. He felt that the sooner blacks joined in, the more prominent would be their role. Unlike in such mature segments of commerce as steel and oil, he argued that there was still room for newcomers in aviation.

Powell’s advocacy included the staging of elaborate air shows fea-

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turing African-American pilots and stunt performers. He even organized an air demonstration team with female black pilots, called the Five Blackbirds. One of the women had been a singer at New York’s storied Cotton Club.

Despite Powell’s undying optimism, the Depression was in full swing and nothing he did, which included the publication of a newsletter and the offering of classes, attracted the financial support his cause needed to actualize its ambition. In the late 1930s, heavyweight boxing champion Joe Louis visited Powell’s modest aviation workshop, but even the tacit endorsement of such a celebrity made little difference. By 1942, Powell was in failing health due to his wartime affliction. He died that year at the age of only 43. Like Moses, he did not get to the Promised Land, but he got to glimpse his adherents’ first steps into it because barely a year before his death the War Department opened flight training to blacks.

It is worth noting that Powell had deep roots in the church, both as a parishioner and proselytizer. In surveying the early involvement of African-Americans in aviation, it is hard to overstate the role of the church. It is not that black pastors believed in flight as a panacea or even as a safe and wise endeavor.

However, in the liturgy and choir music there were the familiar biblical allusions to the angelic abode as a sanctuary of purity, peace, happiness, and freedom. Also, a fervent mantra expressed in resonant sermons proclaimed that one’s dreams were within reach. This positive reinforcement gave encouragement to Powell and youngsters in the pews who yearned to fly.

First Flights and Baptism of Fire: Early Birds and the Black Swallow of Death Two decades before William Powell launched his movement to draw African-Americans into the sphere of flight, small numbers of people from the black community found a

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way to seize the piloting experience.

What these pathfinders lacked in formal philosophical underpinnings they more than compensated for in raw enthusiasm for the new and exciting discipline of aeronautics.

Perhaps it was precisely because aviation was so fresh and devoid of regulatory constraint that the first African-American fliers didn’t feel hamstrung by the biases so readily apparent elsewhere. It was also possible that some of them may have known that the very inventors of the airplane, Wilbur and Orville Wright, had befriended fellow Daytonian Paul Lawrence Dunbar, a leading black poet of the time.

It is not clear who was the first African-American to have piloted an aircraft. By some accounts it was Charles Wesley Peters of Pittsburgh.

He reportedly flew gliders of his own design starting in 1906 and then five years later installed an engine in one to achieve powered flight.

New information has emerged about the flying activity of Emory Conrad Malick. He is said to have built and flown gliders along a stretch of the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania in the same time frame as Peters. Later on, Malick received flight instruction at the Curtiss Aviation School in San Diego and earned his pilot certificate in March 1912, possibly giving him the distinction of being the first African-American to obtain a pilot certificate.

Malick went to work for a couple of Philadelphia-based flying services, one of which specialized in aerial photography. In 1928, he stopped flying in the aftermath of two serious accidents. Although he kept an eye on aeronautical developments, he pointedly refused to fly for the rest of his life. He died in 1958 with his flying experiences as a young man obscured and almost lost to history.

Unquestionably, the leading figure of early black flight was a dashing young man who seemed to have come straight from central casting. Eugene Jacques Bullard was born in 1894, the grandson of

In his youth, Eugene Jacques B u l l a rd e s ca p e d h i s te r ri f ying surroundings in Columbus, Georgia. During World War I, he fought with the 170th Regiment of the French Foreign Legion.

Later, he transferred to the Lafayette Flying Corps and piloted the SPAD in air combat. slaves. He was raised in Columbus, Georgia, where life was harsh and racism overt.

While still in his youth, he literally ran from his surroundings. He stowed himself aboard a ship to Europe, where he made his livelihood as a successful boxer. Just as he landed in Paris, World War I loomed.

Seeing his newfound friends enlist, he was impelled to join the French Foreign Legion. Soon, he was at the front where, for the next few years, he was periodically ensnarled in horrific battles that sometimes involved hand-to-hand combat.

After sustaining a severe thigh wound at Verdun, he transferred to the French air service. He had a knack for flying and was accepted into the ranks of the fabled Lafayette Flying Corps. Composed of rugged American volunteers who were conscious of the Marquis de Lafayette’s contributions in the American Revolutionary War, the Corps sought to return the favor more than a century later. Bullard flew the arrow-like SPAD, sometimes with his escadrille’s mascot, a pet monkey named Jimmy.

Bullard previously served with the 170th Regiment, a crack French infantry unit nicknamed the Swallows of Death. During his short but eventful stint as a pursuit pilot, he adopted a version of his former regiment’s nickname as his sobriquet. He called himself the Black Swallow of Death.

When America entered the war, all American pilots flying for France were to transition to U.S. squadrons, but Bullard was alone in not being permitted to make the switch. Moreover, some prejudiced French army officers goaded him. One refused to return his salute, the ultimate indignity for a member of the uniformed services. Bullard’s outburst in response was deemed insubordination.

Despite his distinguished record in the infantry and the air service, Bullard’s flying days were ended.

He had flown combat for twoand-a-half months. During that time, he claimed two enemy pursuit ships. He was the first African-American to experience air warfare from the cockpit. Sadly, as he fought for liberty aloft, he was denied it on the ground. His experience foreshadowed that of similarly motivated African-Americans of the next generation, for they also were destined to confront the contemporaneous challenges of hostile skies and pervasive prejudice.

Through the interwar years, Bullard remained in Paris, where he felt more at ease. He opened a swanky nightclub and hobnobbed with expatriate artists and performers like Ernest Hemingway and Josephine Baker. When France was invaded, Bullard assisted the underground.

He even tried to rejoin his old regiment. However, he was in his mid-40s and suffered from wounds sustained in the prior war.

Much as his impulses gravitated toward staying, Paris for him wasn’t a viable option at the time. He returned to his native country, virtually penniless. He found America little changed from his frightful childhood in Georgia. Living in a dilapidated tenement in Harlem, Bullard scratched out a living doing odd jobs. His last was in

Bessie Coleman was the first female African-American to obtain a pilot certificate. It was issued by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale on June 15, 1921. Because no airports in Chicago would provide flight training to a black woman at the time, she had sailed to France for instruction.

What these pathfinders lacked in formal philosophical underpinnings they more than compensated for in raw enthusiasm for the new and exciting discipline of aeronautics.

the late 1950s as an elevator operator in Rockefeller Center.

The NBC television network was headquartered in that complex of skyscrapers, and its news division got wind of Bullard’s amazing life’s story.

In addition to being the focus of a straight news report, the one-time pursuit pilot was featured on the network’s Tonight Show with Dave Garroway. Bullard’s many French military decorations were showcased. Included was the Legion of Honor, France’s highest decoration.

A further honor came in 1960.

The imposing president of France, Charles DeGaulle, stopped at an event in New York at which Bullard was in attendance. DeGaulle walked across the room to thank Bullard for his wartime service in France and then physically embraced the old warrior/pilot.

In 1961, Bullard attired himself in the uniform of the French Foreign Legion and laid a wreath at the base of the statue of Lafayette in New York’s Union Square. A few months later, the Black Swallow died of natural causes. For his burial, he had asked that he be clothed in his legionnaire’s uniform and that his coffin be draped

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in the tricolor flag of France. He said that America was his mother and he loved her, while France was his mistress and he loved her, too.

Undaunted Dreamer, Determined Barnstormer: Queen Bess Bessie Coleman was born in rural Texas in 1892. Both her parents were illiterate. Yet, they recognized the value of education and sent their daughter off to the local schoolhouse when she turned 6 years of age. It was a 4-mile hike to the squat one-room building every weekday morning.

Amid the myriad pressures of the day, which included the real threat of lynching, Coleman’s father abandoned the family. Coleman’s mother became a domestic servant, and Bessie herself labored in the cotton fields. In her spare time, Bessie read about successful blacks, notably of the exploits of Harriet Tubman in connection with the Underground Railroad.

The dramatic stories of escape from bondage to freedom gave the young girl reason to believe that there could be a better life. She ached to break away from her stultifying existence. In 1915, she finally left to join an older brother who had moved to Chicago.

Coleman became a hairstylist and manicurist at beauty parlors and barbershops in Chicago’s predominantly black south-side neighborhoods. As a poor black from the Deep South who had arrived in Chicago’s so-called Black Belt, she was part of a surge of migrating blacks from rural locations to the northern metropolises. Her longing for a sense of fulfillment was not cured. The impetus to reach for something out of the mundane came in an unlikely way.

Upon his return from service in a segregated U.S. infantry unit during World War I, Coleman’s brother praised the French women fliers who he had heard about while deployed overseas. In the same breath, he derided black women as not capable of such feats. It was at that moment, in defiance of such brazen stereotyping, that she determined to be the world’s

14 JANUARY 2012

first black female pilot.

The problem was that no flying school in greater Chicago would give instruction to an African-American woman. Undeterred, Coleman opted to go to France to acquire her flight training. She had the encouragement of Robert Abbott, founder and editor of the influential Chicago Defender, one of the country’s foremost African-American newspapers.

Coleman took French classes, applied for a passport, and located a top-notch flight school in France.

In late 1920, Coleman sailed abroad. Upon reaching France, she wasted no time starting her flight training. Her instruction proceeded in a Nieuport Type 82. Seven months after arriving, on June 15, 1921, she was issued her license by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale.

Once back home, Coleman realized that merely flying an airplane wasn’t enough to earn a living as an exhibition pilot. She underwent advanced instruction in aerobatic flight on a second trip to France.

Thusly prepared, she embarked on an adventurous and inspiring new life performing flying displays

across the United States.

Finances were an unending challenge. Living hand-to-mouth like many barnstormers of the golden age of flight, she managed to scrape together enough funds to purchase a war surplus Curtiss JN-4 Jenny. For the next five years, Coleman zigzagged the country, executing stunts at aerial meets. During her showrelated travels, she tried to book herself as a speaker at local black theaters where she could spread her thoughts about flight and about achieving one’s dreams. She also made a point of appearing before groups of youngsters at black schools and churches to relate her message of hope.

The African-American media hailed Coleman as a role model for blacks. Her hometown paper, the Chicago Defender, dubbed her Queen Bess. However, though she enjoyed the freedom of the skies and the fame accompanying her pioneer status, she was never far from reminders of America’s ugly underside. As an example, on Labor Day 1923, Coleman was scheduled to give a flying exhibition at a racetrack in Columbus, Ohio, when

Acknowledgement The author is grateful for the assistance of the Tuskegee Airmen National Historical Museum in Detroit, Michigan.

Sources and Further Reading Carisella, P.J. and Ryan, James W. The Black Swallow of Death: The Incredible Story of Eugene Jacques Bullard, the World’s First Black Combat Aviator. Boston: Marlborough House, 1972.

Hardesty, Von and Pisano, Dominick. Black Wings: The American Black in Aviation. Washington, D.C.: National Air and Space Museum/Smithsonian Institution, 1983.

Hardesty, Von. Black Wings: Courageous Stories of African Americans in Aviation and Space History. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution/ Harper Collins Publishers, 2008.

Powell, William J. Black Aviator: The Story of William J. Powell (Reissue of Black Wings. 1934.). Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1994.

Rich, Doris L. Queen Bess: Daredevil Aviator. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1993.

[The story of African-American aviation in the pre-World War II period continues next month. The achievements of the first black pilots laid the foundation for a series of consequential flights in the 1930s by members of the next generation of black fliers. These flights, in turn, inspired the nation to begin a journey of its own toward an embrace of greater tolerance.

The second and concluding installment will examine the unflagging determination of those daring black aviators who overcame fearful obstacles to bring a new measure of freedom to both the sky and the earth below.]

only a few miles away at the state fairgrounds a huge gathering of the Ku Klux Klan took place.

Airplanes of the post-World War I era were still flimsy contraptions and particularly unforgiving. Regrettably, on May 1, 1926, while on a pre-show flight in Jacksonville, Florida, Coleman’s Jenny flipped over, causing her to plummet to her death. The reason for the anomalous motion was traced to a misplaced wrench that jammed the controls. Coleman’s mechanic died in the same mishap.

Coleman had sought to establish a flight academy for AfricanAmericans. She wanted members of the black community with an interest in aviation to not have to go through the travails she had experienced in search of training. Her dream of racially tolerant flight instruction was dashed at least temporarily with her demise. Nevertheless, her shattering of longaccepted conventions about both blacks and women gave strength to the disenfranchised that they might someday take to the skies.

Thanks to Coleman’s example, Chicago became a hotbed of black flying. Indeed, flying clubs bearing the late pilot’s name sprang up there and elsewhere. Her lasting impact was further evidenced in 1931 when a group of local pilots started the tradition of flying over her grave site in Chicago and dropping flowers in her memory.

Years later, Coleman’s spirit was even more conspicuously honored in the city where, against extraordinary odds, she proudly gave flight to black wings and propagated her dream that anything is possible. Air travelers at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, one of the busiest air terminuses in the world, are touched daily by the legacy of the undaunted pilot. As they scurry across the grounds to make their flights to all corners of the globe, it is hard not to notice that the facility’s main thoroughfare is named Bessie Coleman Drive.

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Light Plane Heritage published in EAA Experimenter February 1993

TWELVE THOUSAND MILES IN AN AVRO AVIAN BY

BOB WHITTIER EAA 1235

Last month we discussed the Avro Avian light biplane of the 1920s. This month we’d like to remark that fliers tend to become so absorbed in the technical aspects of aircraft, they often overlook the wonderful humaninterest stories that abound in aviation. At a time when our young people are so greatly in need of wholesome and inspiring role models, it’s regrettable that many aviation heroes of the past have been largely forgotten.

By telling the story of one of them, perhaps we can remind today’s aviation boosters that in flying’s great heritage, there are many people whose stories are very much worth retelling.

One of the people who worked in the Avro factory in the Hamble section of Southampton, England, during the 1920s was a chap from Australia named Bert Hinkler. Few modern aviation fans will recognize that name, but in his day he was one of the British Empire’s bestknown airmen.

Herbert John Louis Hinkler was born late in 1892 at Bundaberg on Australia’s east coast, 200 miles north of Brisbane. His mother, Frances, was a strong-willed young woman from a family that had pioneered in that area, and his father, John, had come from Germany in search of a better future. Bundaberg 100 years ago was

Extensively modified from its original 1926 Lympne lightplane competition form, the Avro Avian G-EBOV carried Australian airman Bert Hinkler 12,000 grueling miles from England to Australia in February of 1928. a busy town of 3,000 souls, and the commercial center for a sugar cane growing industry that had developed in the area.

As a boy Hinkler was a small child, and even as an adult was a mere 5 feet 3 inches tall. Nonetheless, the healthy life he led in semirural Bundaberg helped him to grow into sturdy manhood, and to have a mind of his own.

Near the grammar school he attended was a lagoon where flocks of a large wading bird called the ibis came to forage. Though ungainly looking on the ground they have

large, long wings that give them magnificent soaring ability. He was fascinated with them and dreamed of joining them aloft.

In the last decades of the 19th century, men like Lilienthal, Ader, Hargrave, Chanute, Pilcher, Maxim, and Langley had been studying and experimenting in the field of mancarrying aircraft. By the time Hinkler was a schoolboy, literature about their discoveries had begun to reach even such odd corners of the world as Bundaberg. He managed to find and devour much of it.

Soon Hinkler was catching birds

Editor’s Note: The Light Plane Heritage series in EAA’s Experimenter magazine often touched on aircraft and concepts related to vintage aircraft and their history. Since many of our members have not had the opportunity to read this series, we plan on publishing those LPH articles that would be of interest to VAA members. Enjoy!—HGF

16 JANUARY 2012

to weigh and measure them. He even killed and skinned an ibis—with the feathers still in place—and worked the skin into a crude model glider. At 14 he was working in a local foundry and had the wherewithal to construct what he optimistically called a mancarrying glider. But no matter how fast he ran, or how hard he flapped its wings, the contrivance never got him up there with the ibises.

Swallowing his disappointment, he continued to work at the foundry and kept up with aviation’s progress. By the time he was 19, in 1911, he was mature and knowledgeable enough to design and build a real glider. It was of tail-first design, and save for the makeshift materials used in its construction, looked rather like today’s hang gliders.

Accompanied by some young friends, he towed it by trailer several miles to an area of sand dunes at the seashore and set it up. To take advantage of the steady wind coming off the Pacific Ocean and to test it prudently, they flew it at the end of a rope much like a kite. Hinkler managed to soar as high as 30 feet with the glider under somewhat uncertain control. But to him, tethered flight lacked the appeal that he knew from his reading that free, propelled flight must offer.

Progress in flying had been so rapid since the Wrights first flew in 1903 that by 1911 there were even correspondence courses in aviation. Hinkler signed up for one and applied himself to it diligently. That was his character—serious, studious, persistent, yet adventurous and ambitious.

Hinkler’s understanding of the scientific and mathematical basis of flight expanded quickly. And like many other young people, he itched to get out of his isolated, boring hometown.

Hinkler’s opportunity came in May of 1912, with the sudden arrival in Bundaberg of a barnstorming American airman by the name of “Wizard” Stone. Operating out of Sydney, he travelled around setting up and exhibiting his Bleriot monoplane. Airplanes at that time were still such a novelty that people would willingly

pay just to look at a real flying machine close up.

It was Hinkler’s chance to see both a real flying machine and a genuine aviator, so he was one of the first to show up at the tent. During demonstration flights the Bleriot experienced wing problems.

Feeling like a deckhand telling the admiral that his fly was open, Hinkler approached Wizard and, as tactfully as he could, pointed out that perhaps the overhead brace wires should be stronger. Wizard looked at the short, serious youth in surprise. But apparently he felt Hinkler’s advice was sound and installed stronger wires. The Bleriot then flew well. And wonder of wonders, right then and there the astonished and thrilled Hinkler found himself hired as mechanic for a tour of Australia.

The two had many adventures and misadventures. Wind and engine trouble often kept the plane from making advertised exhibition flights, and disappointed crowds could become ugly. The year 1913 saw the pair in New Zealand. One day, when 1,000 paying customers showed up to watch a flight, it was so windy that Hinkler was all in favor of the ship remaining in its tent. But the bold and nervous Wizard felt under pressure to fly.

Seventy feet into the air, turbulence upset the Bleriot, a wingtip clipped a tree, and the plane cartwheeled into the ground. The Wizard crawled out of the demolished Bleriot with a broken collarbone and a collection of scrapes. The already much-repaired plane was now obviously beyond further repair. Hinkler was suddenly unemployed, and a few days later he boarded a ship going to Sydney.

While waiting around for Wizard to pay him off, Hinkler hatched the idea of going to England, where he knew from aviation magazines there was more flying activity. He and a buddy were able to get jobs aboard a German freighter bound for Hamburg. Finally, in London in March 1914, he was extremely fortunate to get a job at the Sopwith Aeroplane Works. Although his work in-

volved hours of toil at a workbench, he happily realized he had a foot on the bottom rung of a ladder that soared skyward.

For a young fellow from obscure Bundaberg, it was a heady feeling to be in the middle of intense aviation activity. He looked into learning to fly, but found the price of lessons to be more than he could afford—probably much to the relief of his parents. All through his career and travels, by the way, he kept them well informed of his doings by means of long, detailed, and usually very enthusiastic letters.

War broke out in the fall of 1914.

Hinkler’s aviation experience got him into the Royal Flying Corps.

Because his knowledge of aviation mechanics was far superior to that of most recruits, he was posted to a Royal Naval Air Service costal patrol base at Whitley Bay near Newcastle on the North Sea coast.

His duties there were primarily mechanical, but he often served as gunner on patrol flights and began to develop “air sense.” Always highly inventive, he greatly pleased his superiors by designing a bomb release mechanism that weighed only one pound, compared to the nine for some devices then in use.

In 1916 he was transferred to London and in early 1917 went to an R.N.A.S. base near Dunkirk. He served as gunner aboard two-seaters such as the de Havilland 4 and the huge Handley Page O/400 bombers, which had 100-foot wingspans. His letters home were rich with descriptions of the weird, fascinating, and frightening sensations of riding in gunner’s cockpits of these huge box kites as they twisted and rolled in the darkness of night to avoid German searchlight beams and anti-aircraft fire.

By the time he was sent back to England in September 1917 he had been on 122 flights over the lines, of which 36 were bombing raids. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal (DSM). While on homeward flights in two-seaters, pilots often let him take the controls, and so he began to learn the feel of a plane.

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18 JANUARY 2012

THE AEROPLANE

Back in England he met a hospital sister named Nancy, whom he courted and eventually married. Finally convinced of the value of military aviation, British officialdom on April 1, 1918, combined the R.N.A.S. and the Royal Flying Corps into the Royal Air Force. And at long last, Hinkler was posted to a real flying school.

In July of that year he qualified as a pilot. He wrote bubbling enthusiastic letters home describing what it was like to go skylarking in the fast, nimble, and also tricky Sopwith Camel single-seaters.

He finished the war with an R.A.F. Camel squadron operating on the Italian Front. Flying in that region often involved getting into clouds, some of which contained Alps Mountains.

Now, since qualifying as a pilot, he had been nursing an idea—how great it would be to go home to Bundaberg in an airplane instead of a crowded troopship. While awaiting demobilization in England, he set about to find a way to do just that.

His old employer, Sopwith, had modified a Pup single-seater into a two-seat civilian version called the Dove. By the time Hinkler saw it for the first time, he had already started serious work on planning a route and schedule for a flight to Australia. Sensing the publicity value of such a bold demonstration of an airplane’s capability, and impressed with the thorough seriousness of Hinkler’s flight plan, the Sopwith people told him they’d be happy to work with him if he could find financial backing.

The Dove was powered by an 80hp LeRhone rotary engine, a type designed for a short but merry life on the nose of a combat plane.

Everyone Hinkler approached for backing told him they thought he was bonkers. That’s British slang for crazy as a coot. Among other faults, World War I rotary engines had huge fuel and oil appetites.

The amazing progress made in aircraft design during that conflict had other people thinking of the possibilities of commercial aviation. Early in 1919 the Australian government, for example, posted a 10,000-pound ster-

The Avro Avian and Bert Hinkler at Hamble before leaving for Australia. With Hinkler (center) are Roy Chadwick, chief designer, and R.J. Parrott, general manager of the A.R. Roe and Co. Ltd. ling prize for the first flight from England to its country. It would cost a lot of money to find, buy, and prepare an aircraft for such an undertaking.

Several parties tried. In a memorable flight that started on November 12 and ended on December 12 of that year, Sir Ross and Sir Keith Smith won the prize. Their plane was a war surplus Vickers Vimy bomber powered by two Rolls-Royce Eagle engines of 360 hp each. At that time they were considered very dependable. With a span of 67 feet, the Vimy could carry a good fuel load but at the same time was more manageable than the huge Handley Pages.

That triumph put an end to Hinkler’s hopes of winning the prize.

He went to work for Avro at Hamble. There he became intrigued with the Avro Baby lightplane then being developed. He had the privilege and thrill of taking the prototype up for its first flight. He liked it, became very good at flying it, and in spite of the fact that it was powered by a 35hp Green engine of 1910 vintage, he talked Avro into selling it to him at a price he could afford.

He had written so often to his parents about the idea of flying home to Bundaberg that he had come to feel under obligations to make good.

What appealed to him about the Green engine was that it was so simple that he felt he could repair it in almost any remote place. He overhauled both the plane and its engine, and installed a larger fuel tank of 25

gallons capacity.

And so at daybreak on the dank, chilly morning of May 31, 1920, he took off from Croydon aerodrome and headed for the English Channel.

Over France and the cloud-wrapped Alps he flew, and finally landed at Turin in northern Italy. This nonstop flight of 650 miles took nine and a half hours and set a new lightplane distance record.

Two days later he took off for Rome, where he made the frustrating discovery that an Arab uprising in the Middle East would make it impossible to get permission to fly over that region to get to India and beyond. In a series of shorter flights, he returned to England and his work at Avro.

By now his long experience with aircraft made him a valuable test pilot. He had an ability to discover and analyze shortcomings in new aircraft, which was of great help to designers. He test flew the Avro Aldershot bomber, which was powered by a single 1,000-hp Napier engine. This huge mill had 16 cylinders arranged in banks of four to form an “X” configuration. Because of his short stature, he had to sit on two cushions to reach the controls.

A quirky side of Hinkler’s personality was shown by his habit of wearing a long overcoat and black derby while test flying. One photo shows him wearing what look like platform shoes. He also had a tendency to avoid the press, a trait that sometimes helped and sometimes hurt him.

THE AEROPLANE

Bert Hinkler He saved his money, won some extra in flying competitions, and was finally able to book passage to Australia aboard a steamship. The securely crated Avro Baby went along as freight. Arriving at Sydney, he got the crate out to the airfield and quietly set about assembling and checking the little plane in his usual very careful, skilled manner.

Then on the morning of April 11, 1921, he took off and headed north toward Bundaberg, 700 miles away.

In those days the idea of flying such a distance in a lightplane was unheard of. But several hours later the little silver Avro circled low over Bundaberg, with Hinkler waving excitedly from the cockpit. He landed in a field next to the foundry where he had once worked. Then he taxied along a dirt road and came to a stop at the doorstep of his parents’ house for a reunion with the family he had not seen for nine years.

This accomplishment set world and Australian records for a nonstop lightplane flight, and brought Hinkler much favorable attention.

He looked into Australian civil aviation, but there was so little going on at that time that he felt it best to return to England and Avro. Before departing, he sold the Avro to an

Australian pilot, and after a long, active life, it ended up on display in the Queensland South Bank Museum in Brisbane.

Hinkler flew Avro’s motorcycleengined light monoplane in the 1923 Lympne competitions, and went to the United States in 1924 with the British Schneider cup team.

In 1926 he helped develop the Avro Avian light, two-seat biplane for that year’s Lympne contest. He was its pilot there and was doing well when forced to drop out by fuel tank and engine problems.

In August of 1927 he agreed to go to Riga in Latvia to test fly a new plane. By that time, he had bought and modified the Lympne Avian and decided to fly it there. Leaving Croydon early in the morning and in passable weather, he reached Riga more than 1,200 miles away, late in the afternoon and at the end of 10.5 hours in the air. This and the return flight via Berlin gave him an opportunity to evaluate the long-distance capabilities—capable if not spectacular. The idea of a solo flight to Australia was still in his mind.

The Avian’s original five-cylinder Genet radial engine of 60 hp had been replaced with an 80-hp A.B.C. Cirrus having four cylinders inline.

The original squared-off wingtips had been replaced by new ones of semi-elliptical outline, probably to reduce drag and increase range in long-distance flights. The rudderonly vertical tail had been replaced with a conventional one having both fin and rudder. The front cockpit had had its seat replaced by a large-capacity fuel tank, to give the ship a total fuel capacity of 66 gallons. A somewhat bulgy-looking headrest was installed on top of the fuselage aft of the rear cockpit, and in it was stowed an inflatable rubber raft.

Convinced that he now had a plane thoroughly able and reliable enough for the formidably long flight to Australia, he sought but failed to get financial backing. A number of long-distance flights in 1927 had ended in disaster, and re-

sponsible people with money took a dim view of this kind of activity.

But so strong was Hinkler’s desire to realize his dream that he decided to make the flight on his own meager resources. It would be necessary for Nancy to remain in England because a gas tank occupied the Avian’s passenger cockpit.

The plane had no radio or sophisticated instruments. As in his Turin and Riga flights, Hinkler’s navigation equipment consisted of nothing more than a good compass, an ordinary groundling’s Times Atlas, and a “navigation board” he had invented. This was a crude forerunner of later navigation calculators and could quickly perform simple wind drift figuring. We can only guess at how he solved compass variation problems; perhaps local airmen along his route offered advice.

The morning of February 7, 1928, dawned damp and misty. The Cirrus was started, and while it was warming up, Hinkler and his wife bid each other nervous and thus somewhat perfunctory goodbyes. The Avro taxied out onto Croydon’s turf and took off into a ground fog, which was fortunately soon left behind.

Hinkler retraced his 1921 route to Turin, climbing to a very cold 8,000 feet to get over the cloud-shrouded Alps. After passing Turin he headed down the Italian peninsula. To the right was the coastline, and off to the left were the Apennines, a mountain range running down the spine of Italy. These features formed a corridor that led him south to Rome. After 12 hours and 45 minutes in the Avian’s cold, drafty cockpit, he spotted an airfield at Rome and landed in the dark.

Alas, the field proved to be a military one and a multilingual hassle with the police quickly ensued. But finally things were straightened out and he went to a hotel. Upon returning to the field the following morning, Hinkler was appalled to see that the field had many tall radio towers, which he had very fortunately missed in the dark. continued next month in the February issue

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 19

Just a Long Cross-Country in an Antique, Right?

A ferry flight adventure BY

L

ike many old airplane stories, my tale begins quite a number of years ago, and it involves friends new and old. In fact, it’s a story that is at least as much about people as it is about flying machinery.

Falling for a Pretty Airplane More than a year ago, my friend Mitch Garner sent me an e-mail focusing my attention on an online ad for a nice-looking antique airplane. One of Mitch’s favorite hobbies is helping other people find ways to spend money, and this time he hit the jackpot. The ad was for an airplane I knew well, from about 15 years earlier.

20 JANUARY 2012

BILL MCCLURE

At that time I was a resident at the Fall Creek Airpark in Lebanon, Tennessee, along with another good friend, Ted Beckwith. Ted is a real pilot’s pilot and a fellow antique airplane admirer. He was flying a beautiful Fairchild 24G for an owner who had commissioned the aircraft to be restored by a renowned craftsman, Richard Blazier of Tullahoma, Tennessee. Unfortunately, when the project was completed the owner had some health problems, so he asked Ted to take it home to his hangar to fly it and keep it active.

During that time I frequently visited Ted at his hangar, and I always stopped to admire the Fairchild. I mentally put the sweet flying “24” series as an airplane to put on my

bucket list. Then, and I’m sure you are ahead of me, some 15 years later the airplane in the ad turned out to be the very same plane. It still looked very good.

I am blessed to have a beautiful and understanding wife, Kathleen, who at least semi-understands this airplane obsession of mine. Although I already had two other aircraft—a Baron for fast trips and a 7ECA Citabria for flight training and hamburger runs—I soon found myself on an airliner heading for Twin Falls, Idaho, in early November 2009. We are residents of Falmouth Airpark on beautiful Cape Cod, and Idaho is a long way away. But the Fairchild is an airplane, so I could fly it home in just a few days, right?

Left: “We,” after our arrival in western Tennessee. With the No. 5 piston disintegrating and chewing up the interior of the 145 Warner, it started smoking and dumping oil overboard, particularly down the belly and the port side of the fuselage.

“We” Are on Our Way The price seemed attractive, the airframe looked good, and overall the airplane looked much the same as when I had seen it last. The 24G had a 145-hp Warner Super Scarab installed on the pointy end, and although I am an A&P/IA, I knew little about Warner engines. Compression on each of the cylinders was good during the abbreviated pre-buy inspection, the oil screens were clean, and the logs looked okay, although it was clear that at 600 hours since major, the time was getting long for an “orphan” radial engine. All in all, I was soon the owner of this classic aircraft.

While I had quite a bit of experience in old airplanes, I approached the long trip home with a fair degree of concern. After all, this was a very long ferry flight back to my home and shop, in an unfamiliar airplane.

I really did not know how the airplane would perform, particularly at the altitudes at which we would have to fly on the trip home. I was sure it would be a challenge. But, what the heck, I thought. After retiring from an airline career a year before, I was a little itchy for another air adventure, so away we went. And I mean “we” in the Lindbergh sense.

It was later in the day than I would have liked to get started, but I decided to try to get a couple of hours down the road before nightfall. The weather was good and unseasonably warm for the time of year. I resolved to make the trip as IFR (I follow roads) as possible. Sunset found me at Brigham City, Utah.

A really nice thing about traveling by old airplane is that people just naturally tend to come out to see the bird after you land. Nice folks steered me to a courtesy car and the good motels and restau-

rants in the area. So, I was set, and later that night I was thrilled to find out my granddaughter Chloe had been born that day.

The next day presented what I thought would be the toughest part of the trip. There are few options to get across this great land of ours that do not present the challenge of high terrain. I had hoped to follow the old airmail route across Wyoming and the Rocky Mountains, along Interstate 80, from Provo to Cheyenne and beyond. Flying a Staggerwing I had been blessed to own for 10 years, I had flown the route many years before.

I studied the charts again and remembered the terrain along that course ranged around 7,500 feet or so. I thought we would have to make at least 8,500 feet for the crossing, and as I said, I was not sure how the plane would perform.

Further complicating matters was

that although the ceiling and visibility were unlimited out in the west, as is often the case, there was a wind warning for the Rockies, predicting winds to 50 knots, mostly on our tail. This F-24G was equipped with fuel tanks that were unusually capacious for this model, at a total of 60 gallons. So, with me aboard, my bags and tools, bottles of oil, etc., we were at max gross weight for takeoff.

I knew we would need the fuel to cross Wyoming and continue into Nebraska to escape the winds.

Still, I was wary of the performance available at these weights, and the turbulence and other conditions we might encounter, especially due to the winds. I resolved I would depart Brigham City and climb to 8,500 feet or more and see what the performance and turbulence was like.

If conditions did not seem right, I would abandon the Highway 80

Looking as nice as it did 15 years before, the Warner-powered Fairchild awaits my judgment. By the end of the day it was mine to enjoy and take care of.

A landing into the wind in the large, freshly harvested bean field meant an approach between the two structures in the background.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 21

Using a cruciform brace in the pickup truck’s bed, the tail wheel was secured to the brace with multiple straps for the 60-mile journey back to Charles Baker Airport.

Not quite the way I thought I’d be IFR (I follow roads). plan and proceed across the Four Corners area to Albuquerque. I was determined to leave viable “outs” along the entire trip home.

As it happened, we were able to climb to 8,500 feet, and although there was wind wave activity, I felt we could make it across Wyoming.

I was quite wary of the possibility for downdrafts and realized that this would take great care. Still, in a 74-year-old “wind wagon” sporting a heroic 145 horses, the route was much like flying a sailplane.

With the power set from idle to max cruise rpm, at times we were ascending with little ability to re-

22 JANUARY 2012

sist, and at other times we were sinking with not enough power to arrest it. If nothing else, we were making great time with the strong tail winds. I considered forcedlanding situations and possible areas where we might come down if the power were to fail. I realized the outcome was dicey with that kind of wind on the ground.

A tense three hours later we were going past Cheyenne. The wind was still howling there, so as I originally planned, we pressed on to Sidney, Nebraska, where the wind had subsided to a mere 25 knots. After a tough four-and-a-half-hour flight,

we were back on terra firma. I was completely spent. Again, there were more nice people to meet, especially the FBO owner who also had a Fairchild, who sent me off in his courtesy car and with directions to a restaurant that served, in his opinion, the best beef in the country.

Early the next morning we were off again. We were past the Continental Divide, and the elevation steadily, but slowly, decreased. The terrain was also quite flat now, so I abandoned the roads and “cheated” with the wonder of modern technology contained within my Garmin 496, and headed out in a straight line toward Memphis, Tennessee.

My old friend and fellow antiquer Steve Freeman had just retired from FedEx as an Airbus training captain, and I was eager to get to the retirement party at his hangar at the Charles Baker Airport. While I was happy that the terrain and wind were far less threatening, wouldn’t you just know that the howling west wind had turned to a steady 15 out of the southeast! I soon realized that mathematically it was going to make the Memphis area by nightfall very difficult. A 15-knot head wind slows progress considerably in a 95-knot airplane. At least there was some compensation to the southeast flow. On this early November day, even at 5,500 feet, the OAT was 80° Fahrenheit.

After a fuel stop at Abilene, Kansas, we pressed on to get as far as we could before nightfall. As much as I wanted to make it to the party, I wasn’t going to fly this thing after dark. It wasn’t even close, and Aurora, Missouri, was the end of our day. Again, more nice folks, another offered courtesy car, and directions to a restful evening.

Another early start found us on our way on a beautiful, windless morning. Along our route I noticed the famous Gaston’s Resort in Lakeview, Arkansas, with its own gorgeous grass runway. It was a Sunday, and I was aware of Gaston’s outstanding reputation for brunch, so what was I to do? I

brought it down for a three-point landing on the beautiful turf. Up to this point I had been doing wheel landings, and while the view ahead was somewhat restricted, the characteristics of the old bird were quite benign. The incredibly long Fairchild shock absorbers made the arrival downy soft.

As expected, the brunch was incredible, and after a little fuel, the meal and I tested the lifting ability of those rather large Fairchild wooden wings. I gave silent thanks to those Warner engineers of old as we climbed out of the gorge of the White River.

Two hours of flying found us finally crossing the Mississippi into Tennessee. Steve and some of his friends had been loitering in their planes around the river, to accompany me to Charles Baker, but I was late after my feast at Gaston’s.

By and by, I was meeting many of Steve’s friends and sampled the remnants of his retirement cake.

Uh-Oh Early the next morning, with dew heavy upon the grass, we launched for Tullahoma. The sky was slightly hazy with the sun just above the horizon as we watched for and passed the high radio towers just northeast of Memphis. The rather leisurely cruising speed of the F-24 gives you a lot of time to appreciate the passing scenery, and the farmland of western Tennessee was beautiful that morning.

About a half-hour out I decided to change tanks, turning on the right tank with the “Lindberg valve,” and then off on the left. As I wrote down the time for the fuel switch on my “Howgozit” notepad, I thought I detected a slight change in the sound of the engine, perhaps a trifle more vibration, but mostly just a “change” in the sound to which I had become accustomed. I pondered that for a moment or two and then switched the tanks back to how they previously had been configured. Perhaps there was a bit of water in the fuel in that tank…

that had happened before in other aircraft. My mind started some selftalk as I pondered the problem.

Uh, no, that doesn’t seem to have fixed anything, and if anything, perhaps the vibration is a little more pronounced. Look at the gauges…nothing obvious there. Oh boy, now it’s starting to surge a bit, then more so. Try the mags, no help. Where is the nearest airport? Jackson, Tennessee, is about 35 degrees left, but 15 miles. An eternity in this buggy, but we’ll turn toward it all the same. A little more vibration, more power surging. Start thinking about a decent place to land.

We had been cruising about 1,800 to 2,200 feet AGL, and from our position above the farmland below there were many possible landing sites, but look carefully while flying the airplane for potential hazards in the various fields. That one has a drainage ditch, the next boulders.

Then the smoke started, erupting out of the right side of the cowling and streaming back… first whitish and then a black, oily smoke. I hurried the landing site search and nursed the plane along. The smoke started to fill the cabin, and it was time to get serious. At about 11 o’clock was a longish field, parallel to a decent-sized road with a power line alongside. There were many fields, but that one looked the best.

Okay, chop the switches and fuel… you’re committed now. Fly the plane, concentrate, and rely on stick and rudder flying skills your instructors instilled over the years. Downwind, judge the point for the base turn, not much wind to worry about. Now the base leg, how does it look? High, low, or just right? Seems good, square the turn to final. Think about egress if we flip over. We are coming in between a grain silo and a large processing building; the glide takes us between the two.

Okay, the speed is good, in the slot it seems, and now flare it for the threepoint. Glad I practiced this yesterday at Gaston’s! The long shock absorbers allow the mains to start rolling long before any real weight is placed on the wheels, and the sound tells me the ground is pretty firm. All is going well

enough to use a little energy in the rollout to swing toward the road. In the time it takes to tell it, it is all over.

The plane was upright, undamaged, and the smoke had stopped.

It was so quiet! I sat a moment as a car on Highway 179 blasted past. I jumped out and looked at the Fairchild, and the first thing I did was laugh. From my first flying lesson 42 years ago I heard my instructor telling me to keep an eye out for forced landing locations, and to think about how you would fly an approach to that field. Countless thousands of times over the many intervening years I did just that, and it might have taken a long time, but it finally happened!

Cars continued to drive by, and a good five minutes passed before one stopped and the driver asked if all was okay. I guess planes trailing smoke and landing in farm fields is more common an occurrence out there? The driver told me that the farmer who manages the field, Simon Wengerd, would be along soon, and he was. A very nice fellow, Simon offered much help and

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VINTAGE AIRPLANE 23

Fourteen hours after the forced landing, the Fairchild was safely stored in the back of Steve Freeman’s hangar. had little concern for the oil dripping onto the field after streaming off my damaged airplane, saying he would clean it up by and by. He had seen me pass overhead, trailing smoke. He said I was lucky. The week before they had harvested the soybeans that had been in this field, and the soil had been quite soft and mushy.

There we were, somewhere in western Tennessee, around 60 miles east of Memphis, in a field with a quite unairworthy airplane. If you are ever in a jam like this, I hope you are as fortunate as I was to be in range of one of the best friends a person could have, a fellow like Steve Freeman. We have known each other maybe 25 years, and we were across-the-taxiway hangar neighbors when we lived in Camarillo, California. I called Steve from my cellphone (thanks, Verizon) and told him of my plight.

He asked me where I was, and after a little conversation with my new friend Simon we settled that. Steve told me to hang tight, that help was on the way. I later found out he was just climbing into his truck to drive to Texas when my call came in. All plans changed, and he began to mobilize people, materials, tools, and vehicles to come to my rescue.

24 JANUARY 2012

Simon took me into the small town close by for a sweet roll and coffee, where I hung out for a while awaiting the recovery forces. In a little more than two hours Steve arrived with his brother Chris Freeman, who had been out from California to help celebrate Steve’s retirement. Oh, and did I mention both Steve and Chris are both longtime A&P/IAs? Also arriving were friends of Steve’s from Charles Baker Airport, Ron Spence and Jim Dearborn, both aircraft owners and restorers and FedEx captains as well. We had a convoy of three pickup trucks, a long flat-bed trailer, and the tools and generators to do the job. Ron and Jim didn’t even know me, but they turned out at a moment’s notice to help a fellow aviator in need.

They worked hard and quickly. Sincere thanks, you guys.

So, after a bit of planning, we set to it. First, we towed the plane slowly, tail-first, back to the parking lot of the soybean-processing house I had flown by on the way in. We drained the fuel into many storage cans, which were brought in by the group. Then, the wings were removed and placed on the trailer, as were the tail surfaces. It really helped that most of the fellows

had experience with recovering offairport emergency landings. There was little “learning curve” involved.

The decision was made to tow the plane on its gear, backward, to the airport, with the tailwheel secured into the back of one of the trucks by means of a cruciform frame built out of 2-by-6 stock.

Many straps secured the plane to the truck, and then a call was placed to a friend of Steve’s who is a sheriff, regarding the rather extreme width of the Fairchild wheel base. We had around 60 road miles to backtrack to Baker, and law enforcement agencies were alerted.

Long before sundown we were off, back to Steve’s hangar. While the towing operation is a story in itself, thanks to the efforts of the entire crew we had the F-24 back where it had come from that morning, in time for me to take the crew out for dinner. It was a truly amazing recovery, successfully accomplished by some great friends, old and new. If you are ever in a spot like this, I hope you have these kind of people around to help. We really do have some of the best folks anywhere in this special world of aviation.

Next began a many-month-long effort to overhaul an engine and reinstall it in the old bird. Much was learned about Fairchilds and Warner engines in particular, before the plane was good to go once again.

Many of the fine folks at Baker airport stored parts and pieces during the winter and spring for me, and many thanks to all of them.

Al Holloway of Holloway Engineering in California is an outstanding craftsman specializing in the overhaul of antique aircraft engines, and he was selected to do an overhaul of a 145. The engine installed in this incident is not likely to fly as an individual engine again.

It seems the piston in the No. 5 position actually disintegrated. The wrist pin was found still in its proper place, but the piston was no longer there!

While it cannot be proven, my

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Simon Wengerd, the helpful farmer who tills the western Tennessee field in which I landed, saw the Fairchild trailing smoke while the Warner was disintegrating as I made a forced landing on the recently harvested soybean field. guess is that the piston in question might very well have been an aftermarket unit, although the records were too sketchy to tell for sure. So, the shrapnel from the disintegrating piston was thrown throughout the engine; amazingly there was a great deal of pea-sized aluminum found. Not in the No. 5 cylinder, but in No. 4, after having been sucked through the intake manifold, past the intake valve, and into the No. 4 cylinder!

Unfortunately, debris also ricocheted around inside the case, which is tight enough to begin with. The cylinder bases were “belled out” so that most could not be removed from the case, at least without extraordinary effort.

Al Holloway reported that he had not seen an engine so completely damaged from an in-flight failure as this one!

Eventually the “new” engine was completed, and Steve and I installed it over a period of many days. Previous to this Steve asked if I minded if he reassembled the aircraft, knowing that loose parts tend to disappear. Since I never look a gift horse in the mouth, I readily agreed. He and the good folks at Baker airport worked diligently for me once again. Did I mention the good fortune I had to come down

26 JANUARY 2012

where I did?

Many lessons are to be learned from this incident, I believe. First, any delivery flight of a new-to-you aircraft has an elevated level of risk, particularly when it is an antique or homebuilt on the far side of the country. It is unrealistic to expect the same level of reliability in old antique aircraft, as in newer, more common equipment.

Engines, especially “orphan” engines from defunct manufacturers, are not immune from failure.

Parts have not been made new in many cases for decades, and the supply of NOS (new old stock) parts often are dwindling. There are a few dedicated craftsmen out there like Al Holloway, but the support network is getting tighter all the time.

With some rare machines like these, it is quite difficult for a general aircraft maintenance shop to do detailed inspections and repairs without extensive knowledge of the specific type of aircraft and/or engine. While FAR 43 Appendix D lays down guidelines for performing an annual inspection of most aircraft, it is of necessity quite general and non-specific. Type clubs are a valuable resource for many aircraft, and it is best to do your homework with them and the reference material

they often have available prior to purchasing a more unique machine.

You may wish to download a copy of Best Practices Guide for Maintaining Aging General Aviation Airplanes published by the FAA in 2003 and available on the VAA homepage at www.

VintageAircraft.org.

Still, you may encounter situations such as what happened to me, where a new-to-you aircraft must be ferried long distances.

You must take many factors into account, and by no means assume total reliability in any aircraft, especially one you are only superficially acquainted with.

Indeed, in the “old days,” an emergency off-airport landing story such as this would have been a rather common one. Assess your experience, both as an airman and with this type of airplane, along with factors such as weather, route, and terrain.

In retrospect, my decision to cross Wyoming on such a windy day may have not been the wisest course, as an engine failure as I experienced a few days later could have had a much different outcome that day. Also, proper planning for flight following could prove vital. Although I came down in a rural but not remote area, it could have been a quite different situation elsewhere. I had a PLB (personal locator beacon) Spot locator with me, and friends actually saw my progress stop real-time on their computers, and Google Earth revealed to them the farmland I alighted upon.

Above all, work to maintain your flying skills, and often consider abnormal situations and the best way to handle them. It might be on your next flight, or one many years down the road, but you just might encounter something that earlier planning and consideration helped you to deal with.

And never forget, friends are wonderful things to have. Anyone of us could be either on the helping or receiving end, but we are certainly all better together.

TYPE CLUB LISTING Aeronca Aviators Club Robert Szego P.O. Box 66 Coxsackie, NY 12051 518-731-3131 staff@aeronca.org www.aeronca.org Dues: $32 1-yr, $60 2-yrs; Int’l $37 1-yr, $69 2-yrs Aeronca Aviator, Qtrly Fearless Aeronca Aviators (f-AA) John Rodkey 280 Big Sur Dr. Goleta, CA 93117 805-968-1274 poobahster@gmail.com http://aeronca.westmont.edu Dues: None National Aeronca Association Jim Thompson 304 Adda Street Roberts, IL 60962 nationalaeroncaassociation@yahoo.com www.aeroncapilots.com Auster Club Stuart Bain 31 Swain Court Lake Ronkonkoma New York, NY 1179 631-285-1095 memsec@austerclub.org www.austerclub.org Beech Aero Club P.O. Box 2023 Magnolia, AR 71754-2023 www.beechaeroclub.org T-34 Association, Inc. 880 North County Road, 900-E Tuscola, IL 61953-7560 membership@T-34.com www.t-34.com $50/yr Paper; $25 Electronic Mentor Monitor, Qtrly Bellanca-Champion Club Robert Szego P.O. Box 100 Coxsackie, NY 12051 518-731-6800 staff@bellanca-championclub.com www.bellanca-championclub.com $38 1-yr, $72 2-yrs; Int’l $43 1-y, $81 2-yrs Publication: B-C Contact!, Qtrly

Bird Airplane Club Jeannie Hill P.O. Box 328 Harvard, IL 60033-0328 815-943-7205 Postage donation American Bonanza Society J. Whitney Hickman Exec. Dir. Mid-Continent Airport PO Box 12888 Wichita, KS 67277 316-945-1700 absmail@bonanza.org www.bonanza.org $62/yr. US/Canada ABS Magazine, Monthly National Bücker Jungmiester Club Celesta Price 300 Estelle Rice Dr. Moody, TX 76557 254-853-9067 Bücker Club Website Editor Stephen Beaver sbeaver@columbus.rr.com 614-937-4189 www.bucker.info

This aircraft type club information is listed on our website, www.VintageAircraft.org, throughout the year. We list it here for your added convenience.

These groups can be a great resource for you. A Type Club can save you money, keep you from making mistakes others have already made, show you how to restore, maintain and fly your airplane — in short, provide the equivalent of many years of hard won experience at a very low cost.

Cessna Owner Organization Dan Weiler, Executive Director N7450 Aanstad Rd Iola, WI 54945 1-888-692-3776 www.cessnaowner.org $49.95/yr; or $29.95 Online Cessna magazine: Monthly Cessna Pilots Association John Frank, Exec. Director 3940 Mitchell Rd. Santa Maria, CA 93455 805-934-0493 www.cessna.org $55 US, Canada, Mexico; $70 Int’l CPA Magazine, Monthly E-ATIS Electronic Wkly Cessna T-50 “The Flying Bobcats” Jon D. Larson P.O. Box 566 Auburn, WA 98071 253-670-8218 skykingjon@hotmail.com www.angelfire.com.mi2/bobcat Contact club for dues info Publication: Qtrly

Buhl LA-1 “Bull Pup” Owners Group William R. “Bill” Goebel 894 Heritage Creek Dr. Rhome, TX 76078 940-627-5938 goebelhome@embarqmail.com

Eastern Cessna 190-195 Association Jon Barron 30530 Hwy Perry MO 63462 573-565-2819 john@barronaviation.com $15 initial, then as required Publication: 4/yr

Cessna 150-152 Club Dan & Jo Ann Meler P.O. Box 5298 Central Point, OR 97502 541-772-8601 membership@cessna150152.com www.cessna150152.com $35/yr Internet; $45/yr Print U.S. Int’l see website Publication: 6/yr

International Bird Dog Association (L-19/O-1) Dan Kelly 343 Texas Heritage Dr. LaVernia, TX 78121 830-391-4120 dankelly@gvec.net www.IBDAweb.com $30/yr US and Int’l E-newsletter Monthly

Cessna Flyer Association Jennifer Dellenbusch 2450 N. Lake Ave. #113 Altadena, CA 91001 jen@cessnaflyer.org www.cessnaflyer.org $40/yr

International Cessna 120-140 Association Christian Vehrs, President P.O. Box 830092 Richardson, TX 75083-0092 770-460-6164 president@cessna120-140.org www.cessna120-140.org $25/yr US,Canada; $35/yr Int’l Publication: 6/yr

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 27

International Cessna 170 Assoc.

22 Vista View Lane Cody, WY 82414 307-587-6397 headquarters@cessna170.org www.cessna170.org $45/yr 170 News, Qtrly International Cessna 180-185 Club Bob Warner P.O. Box 306 Van Alstyne, TX 75495 903-482-1805 president@skywagons.org www.skywagons.org $25/yr Publication: 6/yr International Cessna 195 Club Coyle Schwab 632 N. Tyler Rd. St. Charles, IL 60174 630-513-7002 coyle.schwab@sbcglobal.net www.cessna195.org $25/yr Web area for Members Only Corben Club P.O. Box 127 Blakesburg, IA 52536 641-938-2773 antiqueairfield@sirisonline.com www.antiqueairfield.com $18 for 3 magazines Culver Club Brent Taylor P.O. Box 127 Blakesburg, IA 52536 641-938-2773 antiqueairfield@sirisonline.com www.antiqueairfield.com $18 for 3 issues de Havilland Moth & Chipmunk Club David M. Harris 2024 75th St Kenosha, WI 53143 262-652-7043 mothflyer@gmail.com Website coming soon!

Paper Tiger, Electronic Ercoupe Owners Club Carolyn T. Carden, Membership/Editor P.O. Box 7117 Ocean Isle Beach, NC 28469 910-575-2758 coupecaper@aol.com www.ercoupe.org $25/yr Electronic $30/yr Paper US; $35 Paper Int’l Coupe Capers, Monthly Fairchild Club Mike Kelly 92 N. Circle Dr. Coldwater, MI 49036 517-278-7654 hotfoot49@hotmail.com www.fairchildclub.org $20/yr Publication: Qtrly Fairchild Fan Club Robert L. Taylor P. O. Box 127 Blakesburg, IA 52536 641-938-2773 antiqueairfield@sirisonline.com www.antiqueairfield.com $18 for 3 issues. Fairchild Fan

28 JANUARY 2012

International Fleet Club Jim Catalano 8 Westlin Ln. Cornwall, NY 12518 845-534-3947 fleetclub@mac.com http://web.mac.com/fleetclub Contributions Publication: 3-4/yr Funk Aircraft Owners Association Thad Shelnutt 2836 California Ave. Carmichael, CA 95608 916-971-3452 pilotthad@aol.com www.funkflyers.com $12/yr Funk Flyer, Monthly Great Lakes Club Robert L. Taylor P. O. Box 127 Blakesburg, IA 52536 641-938-2773 antiqueairfield@sirisonline.com www.antiqueairfield.com $18 for 3 issues The American Yankee Association (Grumman) Stewart Wilson P.O. Box 1531 Cameron Park, CA 95682 530-676-4292 sec@aya.org www.aya.org $50/yr US & Int’l 1st yr U.S. +$7.50; Int’l +$10 American STAR, 6/yr Canadian Harvard Aircraft Association 244411 Airport Road Tillsonburg, ON N4G 3T9 Canada 519-842-9922 www.harvards.com Hatz Biplane Association Chuck Brownlow P.O. Box 85 Wild Rose, WI 54984 715-572-5881 brownlowod@aol.com www.hatzbiplane.com $20/yr Publication: Qtrly Hatz Club Barry Taylor P. O. Box 127 Blakesburg, IA 52536 antiqueairfield@sirisonline.com www.antiqueairfield.com $18 for 3 issues, Hatz Herald Heath Parasol Club William Schlapman 6431 Paulson Road Winneconne, WI 54986 920-582-4454 Howard Club &,Howard Aircraft Foundation Michael Vaughan, President 6991 N CR 1200 E. Charleston, IL 61920 217-549-6103 mvaughan@consolidated.net www.howardaircraft.org $30/yr Publication: Qtrly

The Arctic & Interstate League Steve Dawson, 262-642-3649 W626 Beech Dr. East Troy, WI 53120 cadet@centurytel.net Wayne Forshey, 740-472-1481 W.A.Forshey@sbcglobal.net Newsletter Qtrly via email Interstate Club Robert L. Taylor P.O. Box 127 Blakesburg, IA 52536 641-938-2773 antiqueairfield@sirisonline.com www.antiqueairfield.com $18 for 3 issues, Interstate Intercom Continental Luscombe Association Al Fisher, President 28725 NE Tolt Hill Road Carnation, WI 98014-8205 president@luscombe-cla.org Mike Culver, Editor 17514 NE 33rd Place Redmond, WI 98052 425-861-8307 editor@luscombe-cla.org www.luscombe-cla.org $25/yr US; $27.50 Canada; $30 Int’l USD The Courant, 6/yr Luscombe Association Steve Krog 1002 Heather Lane Hartford, WI 53027 262-966-7627 sskrog@luscombeassoc.org www.luscombeassoc.org $30 US/Canada; $35 Int’l USD Luscombe Assoc. Newsletter: 6/yr The Luscombe Endowment Inc. Doug Combs 2487 S. Gilbert Rd Unit # 106 Gilbert, AZ 85295 480-650-0883 480-917-0969 484-762-6711 Fax mr.luscombe@luscombesilvaire.info www.luscombe.org Donations.

Online and Print Meyers Aircraft Owners Association Doug Eshelman 1563 Timber Ridge Dr. Brentwood, TN 37027 615-400-3382 president@meyersaircraftowners.org www.meyersaircraftowners.org Postage fund donation Newsletter: 3-4/yr Monocoupe Club Frank & Carol Kerner 1218 Kingstowne Place St. Charles, MO 63304 636-939-3322 monocoupe@sbcglobal.net www.monocoupe.com Dues: 25/yr Western Association of Mooney Mites Michael Harms 14949 Road 216 Porterville, CA 93257 650-279-5587 mharms2011@gmail.com www.mooneymite.com Dues: None

N3N Owners & Restorers Association H. Ronald Kempka 2380 Country Road #217 Cheyenne, WY 82009 307-631-5912 wyn3n@aol.com $10/yr Newsletter: 2/yr American Navion Society Gary Rankin, President PMB 335, 16420 SE McGillivray # 103 Vancouver, WA 98683 May - Oct: 360-833-9921 Nov - April: 623-975-4052 Flynavion@yahoo.com www.navionsociety.org $60/yr US; $64 Canada; $74 Int’l USD The Navioneer, 6/yr Navion Skies Raleigh Morrow P.O. Box 2678 Lodi, CA 95241 209-482-7754 Fax: 209-367-9390 navion1@clearwire.net www.navionskies.com Email newsletter monthly NavionX...for the Navion Aficionado Chris Gardner 1690 Aeronca Lane Fleming Field Airport (KSGS) South St Paul, MN 55075 651-306-1456 www.navionx.org $60/yr Parrakeet Pilot Club Barry Taylor Box 127 Blakesburg, IA 52536 641-938-2773 antiqueairfield@sirisonline.com www.antiqueairfield.com $18 for 3 issues 0f The Parrakeet Pilot Brodhead Pietenpol Association Doc Mosher P.O. Box 3501 Oshkosh, WI 54903-3501 BPAN@tds.net www.pietenpols.org $16/yr Publication: Qtrly Cub Club Steve Krog 1002 Heather Lane Hartford, WI 53027 262-966-7627 sskrog@cubclub.org www.cubclub.org $35 US/Canada; $40 Int’l USD Cub Clues, 6/yr International Comanche Society PO Box 1810 Traverse City, MI 49685-1810 888-300-0082 ics@villagepress.com www.comancheflyer.com $69/yr US, Canada, Mexico More options listed on website The Comanche Flyer, Monthly Piper Apache Club John J. Lumley 6778 Skyline Drive Delray Beach, FL 33446 561-499-1115 captainapache@aol.com www.piperapacheclub.com $36/yr

Piper Aviation Museum Foundation 1 Piper Way Lock Haven, PA 17745 piper@kcnet.org www.pipermuseum.com $20/yr The Cub Reporter Piper Flyer Association Jennifer Dellenbusch 2450 N. Lake Ave. #113 Altadena, CA 91001 jen@piperflyer.org www.piperflyer.org Piper Owner Society N7450 Aanstad Road Iola, WI 54945 866-697-4737 www.piperowner.org $49.95/yr U.S., add $20 Int’l Publication: Monthly Shortwingpipers.org Steve Pierce 196 Hwy. 380 East Graham, TX 76450 940-549-6415 www.shortwingpipers.org Donations: Min $25/yr Online Discussion Forum Short Wing Piper Club Eleanor Mills P.O. Box 10822 Springfield, MO 65808 417-883-1457 E-mail: eleanormills@att.net www.shortwing.org Dues: $40/yr USA & Canada; $50/yr Int’l Publication: 6/yr for Short Wing Piper News Supercub.org PO Box 150 Waldron, MO 64092 816-200-2827 www.supercub.org Donations: Min. $25/yr Online Discussion Forum Porterfield Airplane Club Tom Porterfield 3350 Co Rd U; Hangar A Abernathy, TX 79311 806-328-5347 porterfieldprops@sbcglobal.net www.porterfieldplane.ning.com Rearwin Club Robert L. Taylor P. O. Box 127 Blakesburg, IA 52536 641-938-2773 antiqueairfield@sirisonline.com www.antiqueairfield.com $18 for 3 issues SPARS Society for the Preservation of Skyrangers Wayne A. Forshey 46980 Robin Road Woodsfield, OH 43793 740-472-1481 w.a.forshey@sbcglobal.net david.cohn@somerandom.com International Ryan Club Lynne Orloff P.O. Box 990 Groveland, CA 95321 209-962-4631 ladyryanpilot@yahoo.com www.ryanclub.org $15/yr online community

1-26 Association A Division of the Soaring Society of America Clayton Vickland Secretary Treasurer Arlington, VA 22201 703-527-5302 H 703-626-6741 C sec.treas@126association.org www.126association.org $15/yr (website has add’l options) Publication: 6/yr Stearman Restorers Association stearman800@yahoo.com www.stearman.net $35/yr US The Flying Wire, Qtrly Stinson Historical & Restoration Society P.O. Box 127 Blakesburg, IA 52536 641-938-2773 antiqueairfield@sirisonline.com www.antiqueairfield.com $24 for 3 issues Publication: SHARS International Stinson Club Logan Boles 210 Blackfield Dr. Tiburon, CA 94920 415-383-3262 loganboles@gmail.com www.stinsonclub.org $30/yr Publication: Monthly National Stinson Club All Pre-War Models, 10,105, & V-77 Charlie Gay, President 25 Runway Road Tunkhannock, PA 18657 skyhaven@ptd.net 570-836-3473 voice $20 US & Canada; $25 Int’l Stinson Plane Talk, 4/yr Sentinel Owner & Pilots Association (Stinson L-5) James H. Gray 1951 W. Coolbrook Ave. Phoenix, AZ 85023 602-795-0413 akdhc2pilot@yahoo.com www.sentinelclub.org $22 Electronic $30 US/Canada Print $40 Int’l Print Newsletter: 2/yr Swift Museum Foundation, Inc Charlie Nelson P. O. Box 644 Athens, TN 37371-0644 Headquarters: 423-745-9547 Parts Department: 423-744-9696 Charlie: swiftlychs@aol.com Secretary: swiftlypam@aol.com www.swiftmuseumfoundation.org www.SaginawWings.com $35/yr Publication: Monthly West Coast Swift Wing Gerry or Carol Hampton 3195 Bonanza Dr Cameron Park, CA 95682 530-676-7755 voice & fax av8rgnh@sbcglobal.net $15/yr paper; $5/yr email Publication: Monthly

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 29

Taylorcraft Foundation, Inc. Forrest Barber, President 13820 Union Ave. NE Alliance, OH 44601 330-823-1168 taylorcraft@neo.rr.com President tcraft@taylorcraft.org Web www.taylorcraft.org $20/yr

Travel Air Club Robert L. Taylor P. O. Box 127 Blakesburg, IA 52536 641-938-2773 antiqueairfield@sirisonline.com $18 for 3 issues Travel Air Talks Travel Air Restorers Association Jerry Impellezzeri 4925 Wilma Way San Jose, CA 95124 408-356-3407 clear_prop2003@yahoo.com www.travelair.org $15/yr US; $20 Int’l Travel Air Log, Qtrly

Taylorcraft Owners Club Steve Krog 1002 Heather Lane Hartford, WI 53027 262-966-7627 sskrog@taylorcraftoc.com www.taylorcraft.org $35/yr US, Canada; $40 Int’l USD Taylorcraft News: Qtrly

American Waco Club, Inc. Phil Coulson 28415 Springbrook Dr. Lawton, MI 49065 269-624-6490 rcoulson516@cs.com www.americanwacoclub.com $35 US; $45 Int’l Waco World News, 6/yr National Waco Club Andy Heins 50 La Belle St. Dayton, OH 45403 937-313-5931 wacoaso@aol.com www.nationalwacoclub.com $25/yr US; $30 Int’l Waco Pilot, 6/yr

Other Aviation Organizations Aircraft Engine Historical Society

Int’l Liaison Pilot & Aircraft Association (ILPA)

Sentimental Journey to Cub Haven

4608 Charles Dr. NW Huntsville, AL 35816 256-683-1458 information@enginehistory.org www.enginehistory.org

Bill Stratton 16518 Ledgestone San Antonio, TX 78232 210-490-4572 voice & fax $29/yr; $35 Int’l with Liaison Spoken Here

Kim Garlick or Rita Foley P.O. Box J-3 Lock Haven, PA 17745-0496 570-893-4200 j3cub@kcnet.org www.sentimentaljourneyfly-in.com $12/yr Individual, $17 Family, Publication: 2/yr

American Aviation Historical Society 15211 Springdale Street Huntington Beach, CA 92649 714-549-4818;Wed.10-4 www.aahs-online.org $39.95/yr US, Publication: Qtrly

Int’l Wheelchair Aviators

Beechcraft Heritage Museum

Lake Amphibian Flyers Club

P.O. Box 550 570 Old Shelbyville Hwy Tullahoma, TN 37388 931-455-1974 info@beechcraftheritagemuseum.org www.beechcraftheritagemuseum.org $50/yr; $60 Int’l USD

Cross & Cockade Bob Sheldon, Secretary 14329 S. Calhoun Ave. Burnham, IL 60633 708-862-1014 $20/yr, Publication: 6/yr

Cross & Cockade International Roger Tisdale membership.secretary@crossandcockade.com www.crossandcockade.com $55/yr surface mail; $66/yr airmail Publication: Qtrly Journal

923 W. Sherwood Blvd.

Big Bear City, CA 92314 IWAviators@aol.com www.wheelchairaviators.org $25/yr Marc Rodstein 15695 Boeing Court Wellington, FL 33414 561-948-1262 contact@lakeflyers.com www.lakeflyers.com $62, $72 Int’l with Lake Flyer newsletter

National Association of Priest Pilots (NAPP) Rev. Mel Hemann 127 Kaspend Pl Cedar Falls, IA 50613 319-266-3889 n298mh@cfu.net www.priestpilots.org $25/yr

Kevin Willis, Membership Secretary 1903 B Aviation Drive Corona, CA 92880 contact@deafpilots.org www.deafpilots.org

Reno Air Racing Association

North American Trainer Association

14501 Mt. Anderson St. Reno, NV 89506 775-972-6663 www.airrace.org

Florida Antique Biplane Association, Inc. Larry Robinson 10906 Denoeu Road Boynton Beach, FL 33472 561-732-3250 BeyeView@aol.com $48/yr with The Flying Wire, Monthly

Florida Cub Flyers, Inc. Larry Robinson 10906 Denoeu Road Boynton Beach, FL 33472 561-732-3250 BeyeView@aol.com $48/yr with ub Tales, Monthly

International Fellowship of Flying Rotarians Lynn Miller, Secretary-Treasurer P.O. Box 479 Seabrook, TX 77586 281-474-4260 secretary@iffr.org www.iffr.org $40/yr US

30 JANUARY 2012

P.O. Box 1694 Oldsmar, FL 34677-1694 513-941-8108 www.silverwings.org $25/yr with Slipstream, 6/yr

Society of Air Racing Historians Herman Schaub 168 Marian Lane Berea, OH 44017 440-234-2301 www.airrace.com $20/yr US; $23 Int’l with Golden Pylons, 6/yr

United Flying Octogenarians Bart Bratko, sec’y/treas.

19 Bay State Rd Natick, MA 01760 508-651-8287 bart_bratko@hotmail.com $20yr with UFO newsletter, 4/yr

Vintage Sailplane Association The Ninety-Nines, Inc., International Organization of Women Pilots 4300 Amelia Earhart Dr. Suite A Oklahoma City, OK 73159 800-994-1929 99s@ninety-nines.org www.ninety-nines.org $65/yr, Publication: 4/yr

Deaf Pilots Association

Silver Wings Fraternity

(T6, T28, NA64, NA50, P51, B25) Kathy & Stoney Stonich 25801 NE Hinness Rd. Brush Prairie, WA 98606 360-256-0066 NATrainer@aol.com www.NorthAmericanTrainer.org $50 US/Canada; $60 Int’l USD NATA Skylines, Qtrly

31757 Honey Locust Road Jonesburg, MO 63351-3195 www.vintagesailplane.org $30/yr; $40 Int’l Bungee Cord, Qtrly

Waco Historical Society Waco Aircraft Museum Don Willis, Exec. Dir. 1865 South County Rd. 25A Troy, OH 45373 937-335-9226 M-F 9-noon; Sat-Sun noon-5 Jan & Feb closed except by appt. admin@wacoairmuseum.org www.wacoairmuseum.org $30/yr WACO Word, 4/yr

Women in Aviation, International OX5 Aviation Pioneers ox5news@yahoo.com www.ox5news.com Dues: $30/yr OX5 News, Monthly

3647 State Route 503 South West Alexandria, OH 45381 937-839-4647 www.wai.org $39/yr; $29 students Aviation for Women, 6/yr

Seaplane Pilots Association 3859 Laird Blvd.

Lakeland, FL 33811 863-701-7979 spa@seaplanes.org www.seaplanes.org $45/yr US; $55/yr Int’l with Water Flying, 6/yr

WWI Aeroplanes, Inc. PO Box 730 Red Hook, NY 12571-0730 845-835-8121 ww1aero@gmail.com www.ww1aeroinc.org Skyways and WWI Aero

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J U LY 23 – 2 9, 2012

Vintage Mechanic

THE

BY ROBERT G. LOCK

Repair Data All mechanics are accustomed to using current FAA publication AC 43.13-1B to develop repair data for airframe structures. But did you ever wonder from where that data came? It did not just appear out of the blue, nor was it a revelation from the FAA. The data in the advisory circular had its beginnings as an aeronautics bulletin (AB) and was designated as AB-7H. Before 1926, there was no regulation of aviation because it was a fledgling entity. There were not many airplanes and pilots, and the only â&#x20AC;&#x153;commercialâ&#x20AC;? activity was barnstorming. The airplanes were mostly surplus Curtiss Jennys and Standard J-1 biplanes, which were of wood construction. The pilots were mostly World War I survivors, and they taught others how to fly. In fact, a few pilots were self-taught. They learned how to control an airplane by what we now call onthe-job training.

I once flew with Paul Hansen, a crop-dusting pilot from Seaside, Oregon, who had a couple of Travel Air biplanes modified for dusting and spraying. Paul sprayed cranberry bogs in the area, but ventured out of the area to spray in the Yakima Valley of Washington and Eastern Oregon. He was a Navy pilot, having flown Vought F4U Corsairs, including the F2G and Grumman F8F Bearcats, and he transitioned into the early jets such as the Grumman F9F Panther and F9F-6 Cougar. He was one of my flight instructors for a couple of hours and told the story of how he learned to fly.

He borrowed a Heath Parasol, and the owner said to taxi back and forth in the pasture from fence to fence until he could control the ship on the ground. The next step was to hop the fence and land in the pasture on the other side. Finally the owner told Paul to hop the fence but not land on the other side. He was to try to fly a rectangular pattern, keeping the nose down in turns until he could land in the pasture where he took off. He did, survived, and went on to a flying career!

Such were the days before the government seized control of civil aviation in 1926 and started putting forth regulations for airplanes, aviators, and eventually mechanics.

The first regulations for construction of new air-

32 JANUARY 2012

planes came with the initiation of Aeronautics Bulletin 7A, which set forth certain requirements for design that would evolve into the approved type certificate (ATC). The first ATC was issued in March 1927. With the ATC in place new ships were designed and approvals to manufacture and sell these aircraft to the general public began. There were a few companies that manufactured aircraft to replace the grounded Curtiss Jenny and Standard J-1 ships, the most recognizable being Waco, Travel Air, and Stearman. See Illustration 1.

Illustration 1

As the population of new aircraft and pilots grew, there became a need to regulate those who repaired damaged ships. In the early days of aviation, repairs were made by providing very detailed drawings to the Aeronautics Branch of the Department of Commerce, such as the one shown below. The drawing is a blueprint, the only means to reproduce drawings made on vellum paper with a pencil (and sometimes an inking pen), tee square, triangle, and scale.

Illustration 2 This repair is to a Challenger Command-Aire that was extensively repaired August 1, 1935. The series of blueprint drawings are each embossed with the Department of Commerce, Bureau of Air Commerce seal, which means the repairs were approved. A pencil is placed on the drawing to indicate its size.

This drawing was prepared by the Aeronautical University of Chicago, Illinois, and details a tube splice on a Command-Aire 5C3 horizontal stabilizer. See Illustration 2.

By 1936 the Bureau of Air Commerce was really getting its act together as the aeronautics bulletins grew.

They were cataloged under Aeronautics Bulletin 7, beginning with 7A. Their subjects of regulation were: 7A – Airworthiness Requirements

Illustration 3

7F – Airworthiness Requirements for Aeronautical Components and Accessories 7G – Airworthiness Requirements for Engines and Propellers 7H – Alteration and Repair of Aircraft 7J – Special Requirements for Air Line Aircraft The intent of this column is to acquaint the reader with background information as to how alteration and repair procedures were developed. For this we have to go back to the days before the Civil Aeronautics Administration came into existence.

At the time, repair procedures were developed by the Bureau of Air Commerce, which was still part of the U.S. Department of Commerce. See Illustration 3.

By 1936, 621 approved type certificates had been issued; therefore, a large number of “certificated” aircraft were flying around the country. With many landing strips being unimproved, there were many damaged aircraft. As the paperwork burden grew, there was a need to attempt to standardize some common repairs that were being made to airframes. To trace this story we must go back to 1927 when a young German engineer came to the United States to represent the Heinkel Aircraft Works with an offer to manufacture certain Heinkel training aircraft in the United States. Part of a larger group, this young engineer was Albert Voelmecke (spelling later changed to Vollmecke), and as he surveyed the civil aviation activities in the United States, he decided to stay and obtain a job with a manufacturing company. He settled with Arkansas Aviation in Little Rock, Arkansas, and became its chief engineer.

Mr. Vollmecke spent the next four years with Arkansas Aircraft, later renamed Command-Aire Incorporated, and designed several aircraft for the company. When Command-Aire went bankrupt in 1931, the company eventually ceased to exist, and he was out of work. Married with two children, he sought any work in aviation to keep food on the table and pay the rent. He worked for a company building a network of airway beacons. With the expansion of the Bureau of Air Commerce, in 1933 he took a job with the government to put his engineering skills to use. He was assigned to head a group of engineers to develop repair standards for civil aircraft.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 33

Albert and Bob

as a drawing board with tee square, triangles, a scale, his trusty slide rule, and several pencils with erasers.

There is much more to this story, but weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll save it for another day.

Shift now to 1933, just after Al was hired by the Bureau of Air Commerce and moved his family to Washington, D.C. One of his fi rst assignments was to hear a group that was to design repairs so mechanics could interpret and fabricate them on the large population of certificated civil aircraft that now inhabited the country. He assembled a small group of engineers, and they went to work.

What they produced was Aeronautics Bulletin 7-H, which was the precursor to CAM-18 (Civil Aeronautics Manual 18) and the current AC 43.13-1B. He told me that he had personally designed the steel tube and wood splices, all considered major repairs to primary structure. He said his group engineered the repairs and then took drawings to craftsmen living in the Washington, D.C., area.

The steel tube and wood splices were fabricated using his drawings and then were sent to a lab to be tested to destruction. Below are a few drawings from Aeronautics Bulletin 7-H and the current AC 43.13-1B. Notice how closely they resemble each other. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an interesting story and probably one that has been hidden over all these years, but certainly worth the time to tell. AB-7H evolved into Civil Aeronautics Manual 18, which in turn

In 1982 I met Albert Vollmecke when restoring my 1929 Command-Aire 5C3, which he had previously designed. He came to California to visit my shop and reunite with his airplane. He was 81 years young at that time. During the next 13 years we corresponded, and I made trips to his home in Silver Spring, Maryland, to visit with him and his wife, Maja.

He was an encyclopedia of knowledge, particularly aircraft, having come through the industry at the time of very rapid expansion, particularly the issuance of approved type certifi cates. Whenever I visited, a voice-activated tape recorder was in hand, so questions could be asked and his answers closely monitored. There was no time to make notes on a pad; I just concentrated on what he had to say.

Even though he originally wanted to talk about events of the day and his easy chair was surrounded with such magazines as Newsweek, U.S. News and World Report, and others, he agreed to shift back to the earliest days of government control of aviation and his design of aircraft.

We talked about the approved type certificate process, which he said for his model 3C3 took only 10 working days (two Illustration 4 weeks). He and his entourage traveled to Washington, D.C., and took rooms at Aeronautics Bulletin 7-H, Inner Sleeve Tube Splice the Roosevelt Hotel; his was a suite with AC 43.13-1B, Inner Sleeve Tube Splice. a large dining room table, suitable to use

34 JANUARY 2012

Illustration 5 Aeronautics Bulletin 7-H, Wood Rib Splice AC 43.13-1B, Wood Rib Splice

Illustration 6 Aeronautics Bulletin 7-H, Wood Wing Spar Splice AC 43.13-1B, Wood Wing Spar Splice

AERO CLASSIC evolved into Advisory Circular 43.13-1, -1A, and -1B depending on when it was published.

In the illustrations (4, 5, & 6) note the similarities between the old Aeronautics Bulletin 7-H and the current AC 43-13-1B, Change 1 dated 9-9-98. The original AB-7-H repair designs are from Albert Vollmecke; the AC 43.13-1B repair designs are slight modifications or expansions of the original designs.

Albert A. Vollmecke went on to have a great career in the CAA and the FAA, retiring in 1968 as chief of the Airframe and Equipment Branch. He saw civil and military aviation grow tremendously over his career. He was the government’s connection with Howard Hughes and the HK-1 and met Hughes on several occasions. His stories about this will be good for another day. So this is the background on just a few of the repairs found in the current AC 43.13-1B. Incidentally, Aeronautics Bulletin 7-H can still be found and downloaded from the FAA website.

Al passed away in 1994 at the age of 93 years.

It was an absolute pleasure to have known him over a very brief 15 years. I was not able to spend enough time with him. What a talented and gifted man!

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VINTAGE AIRPLANE 35

Vintage Instructor THE

BY Steve Krog, CFI

Do You Know What You Don’t Know?

Flying is a lifelong learning experience!

S

everal days ago, late in the afternoon, two young pilots stopped at my hangar. Introductions were made, and then both expressed interest in obtaining some tailwheel instruction and earning tailwheel endorsements. I asked each to tell me of their flight experience. One had about 80 hours in a Cessna 172 and an Ercoupe, while the other said he had about 120 hours in the 172 and a Piper Arrow. He added that he knew about everything there was to know about flying a 172.

These enthusiastic young men brought back memories of my early flying days and my good friend Step.

You may recall that I’ve written of my friend “Step” (Stephen DeLay) and our flying adventures together, especially our flight and learning experience on the way to California. Within several weeks of obtaining our private pilot certificates and a round-trip flight to Southern California, we both wanted to get checked out in every different available airplane based at the airport. After all, we were new young “hotshot” pilots and had a piece of paper in our pockets to prove it! But with so little flight time accumulated, “We didn’t know what we didn’t know!” All of our flight training was done in Piper Cherokee PA-28s, -140s, and -180s.

Naturally, we both wanted to fly a high-wing airplane. Al Nelson, Nelson Flying Service, was our first stop. Al, an old barnstormer from the 1930s and, at that point in time, a recently retired crop duster, had a Cessna 172 for rent. It didn’t take long for either Step or me to add that airplane to our respective logbooks.

With the checkout came the opportunity to fly for the local college sky-diving club. Several days later I was called and asked to fly for the club. The old 172 served as the jump plane; the right door was removed, as well as all seats except the pilot seat. After a quick preflight inspection, I jumped into the left seat and three good-

sized guys with full parachute packs piled in on the bare floor in the back. The jumpmaster sat on the floor next to me. Before I could start the engine, though, Al appeared out of nowhere and tactfully asked me to join him in the office. It was there that I learned a valuable lesson, explained in some rather salty language.

Al made it very clear that I must first calculate a weight and balance before flight. No big deal, I thought.

After all, the sky-diving club had done this in the past. Sure there was an extra body on board, but all the seats had been removed, as well as the door. That should about equal out, shouldn’t it? After doing the calculations, I realized a serious error was about to be made. Over gross weight with a far aft CG, I could easily have harmed us all!

In my haste to fly, I didn’t know what I didn’t know. But I learned a valuable lesson that day, and old Al probably saved my life!

The FBO where Step and I learned to fly also had a Piper Super Cub PA-18-150 used for primary training in the Aerial Applicator curriculum. We both wanted to get checked out in the Super Cub, and after much cajoling, the FBO finally relented. Some flight hours and days later, both Step and I were signed off to rent the Super Cub. Several weeks later we rented the Super Cub for one hour, each getting 30 minutes of flight time. After making two full-stall landings, I tried a wheel landing.

It was beautiful, probably the best wheel landing I’d ever made. Then I turned my head to make sure Step recognized my perfect landing. In doing so, the Super Cub decided to teach me a lesson. Instantly I was doing S-turns before exiting the runway. Before coming to a complete stop, the nearly new aluminum prop had become a “Q-tip” prop.

After moving the Super Cub to the shop, the FBO took me into his office and gave me a few minutes to

Al, an old barnstormer from the 1930s and, at that point in time, a recently retired crop duster, had a Cessna 172 for rent.

36 JANUARY 2012

collect myself. I was certain I was about to get the best butt chewing Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d ever had and would be banned from ever renting airplanes from him. In a calm voice he asked what happened, and I explained my stupidity.

Continuing in his calm demeanor, he explained that when landing a tailwheel airplane, never, ever take your eyes off the edge of the runway until the airplane comes to a stop. I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know what I didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know! But I learned a very valuable lesson.

After the discussion, he then took me back to the shop, provided me with the proper tools, and told me to remove the bent prop. Step helped, and we had it off in minutes. Then the FBO provided us with another prop and told us to install it, which we did. I sheepishly went into the FBO office and told him the prop was on, and the airplane was ready for a test flight. He responded, â&#x20AC;&#x153;You broke it, you fixed it, you go test fly it.â&#x20AC;? With Step as my passenger, I proceeded to make three uneventful landings. How they could be so good I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know, because every muscle in my body was shaking during the entire test flight.

In hindsight, the experienced FBO knew exactly what he was doing. It reminds me of this old adage: When you get thrown from a horse, the best thing to do is get right back on the horse and ride! I was back in the air within an hour of damaging the prop. Lesson learned.

Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve taken what these two FBO/pilots taught me and put it into practice in my own flight school. For example, I recently sent a student pilot out for his first full hour of solo flight without first riding around the patch with him. He was instructed to do three takeoffs and landings, then leave the pattern practicing air work, and then re-enter the pattern for three more takeoffs and landings. While the student was away from the airport, a wind direction change occurred.

The student re-entered the traffic pattern for a landing on turf Runway 36, the crosswind unnoticed by him. On touchdown the left wing rose and the onset of a spectacular ground loop was underway. Fortunately, the student recognized the situation, added full power, and lifted off. The second attempt at landing was more the norm, and he taxied back to the hangar. I met him at the airplane and asked if he knew what he had done.

In a shaky voice he responded that the wind must have changed. After giving him a moment or two to regain his composure, I called for mags hot and prepared to spin the prop on the Cub. The student asked what I was doing, and I replied that I was starting the engine so he could complete his flight with three good landings. â&#x20AC;&#x153;But this time look at the windsock on final, confirming the wind direction; then set up for and make a crosswind landing.â&#x20AC;? The three landings were quite good. The student has continued with his flight training and learned two valuable lessons that day. First, he got back in the airplane and calmed his fears. Second, he learned to always look at the windsock. He didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know what he didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know.

But he does now!

Step and I had many fun, and sometimes challenging, flying adventures together during our last year of school. One of the more frivolous flights involved a short flight to an airport about 20 miles away. To make it interesting, we planned to see how many continuous loops we could make in that distance. Beginning over the top of our departure airport and at a safe altitude, we pointed the nose southwest and began doing loops.

At 26 loops we both decided this wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t such a good idea, as we had only covered about two miles horizontally. We didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know what we didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know, but we were learning something new every day.

Had it not been for Step, I may not have chosen to advance my flying career. Alone I wouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have made some of the flights, but together we supported one another and did a lot of flying to expand our flight experience. Those experiences made an indelible impression and made me want to share the thrill of flight with others.

Flying airplanes is a constant learning process. It is vitally important that pilots, young and old, experienced and inexperienced, remember this.

The young pilots mentioned earlier have both made appointments to begin tailwheel training. I hope I can share some of my knowledge and teach them a few things they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t know! Learning together will make us all better, safer pilots.

CONTACT US TODAY! TOLL FREE: TEL: FA X: SALES: VDOHV#VXSHU IOLWH FRP WEB: Z Z Z VXSHU IOLWH FRP Scan this QR code with your smartphone or tablet device to view our complete line RI IDEULFV WDSHV DQG ÂżQLVKHV

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 37

by H.G. FRAUTSCHY

MYSTERY PLANE This month’s Mystery Plane comes to us from the Kinzinger collection of the EAA Library.

Send your answer to EAA,

Vintage Airplane, P.O. Box 3086,

Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Your answer needs to be in no later than February 20 for inclusion in the April 2012 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 plus your city and state in the body of your note and put “(Month) Mystery Plane” in the subject line.

OCTOBER’S MYSTERY ANSWER Dan Schumaker shared the photo that was our subject for the October Mystery Plane, which admittedly was a long shot. We received two answers, one from Wayne Muxlow of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and this one, from Wes Smith of Springfield, Illinois.

“The October 2011 Mystery Plane is the 1913 Martin-Gage (more correctly: Gage-Martin) tractor biplane, constructed by the Gage-McClay Co. The photo was taken at Fairbanks, Alaska, on 4 July 1913. In the picture are Mrs. Lily Martin, and her husband, James Vernon Martin, the first man to fly in Alaska. The aircraft was similar to the 1912-13 Fowler-Gage (Gage-Fowler) tractor and two other machines. One, built for J. Clifford Turpin, and another for Roy N. Francis. Robert G. Fowler used his machine to make the first flight across the Isthmus of Panama.

The Fowler machine is preserved at the National Air and Space Museum with a Curtiss OX-5 in place of the original Hall-Scott A-3. The aircraft was the design of Jay Gage, Griffith Park, Los Angeles, California.”

38 JANUARY 2012

1913 Gage-Martin tractor biplane.

We enjoy your suggestions for Mystery Plane—in fact, more than half of our subjects are sent to us by members, often via email. Please remember that if you want to scan the photo for use in Mystery Plane, it must be at a resolution of 300 dpi or greater.

You may send a lower-resolution version to us for our review, but the final version has to be at that level of detail or it will not print properly. Also, please let us know where the photo came from; we don’t want to willfully violate someone’s copyright.

VINTAGE TRADER

S o m e t h i n g t o b u y, sell, or trade?

Classified Word Ads: $5.50 per 10 words, 180 words maximum, with boldface lead-in on first line.

Classified Display Ads: One column wide (2.167 inches) by 1, 2, or 3 inches high at $20 per inch. Black and white only, and no frequency discounts.

Advertising Closing Dates: 10th of second month prior to desired issue date (i.e., January 10 is the closing date for the March issue). VAA reser ves the right to reject any advertising in conflict with its policies. Rates cover one insertion per issue. Classified ads are not accepted via phone. Payment must accompany order. Word ads may be sent via fax (920-426-4828) or e-mail (classads@ eaa.org) using credit card payment (all cards accepted). Include name on card, complete address, type of card, card number, and expiration date. Make checks payable to EAA. Address adver tising correspondence to EAA Publications Classified Ad Manager, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086.

BOOKS Iowa Takes to the Air Volumes I, II, III apellegreno@yahoo.com

MISCELLANEOUS www.aerolist.org, Aviations’ Leading Marketplace.

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(One size fits most.)

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REALESTATE Green Lake, WI! 100 feet of Lake Frontage for sale on beautiful Green Lake. Great fishing and swimming. 30 miles from EAA grounds.

Call Dan 608 212 9556 Florida keys Tavernaero Airpark 2/2 up and 1/1 down. CBS Construction, Central Air, screened pool, marina, air pad. $750,000 owner/agent 305-304-8393 I’ll trade my completely refurbished building w/ aircraft same value $225K www.kenosha. yolasite.com

SERVICES Always Flying Aircraft Restoration, LLC: Annual Inspections, Airframe recovering, fabric repairs and complete restorations.

Wayne A. Forshey A&P & I.A. 740-4721481 Ohio and bordering states.

Restoration, fabric, paint, fabrications, paperwork. With 53 completed projects, Waco’s, Moth’s, Champs, Lakes, Pitts etc.

Test flights and delivery. Indiana 480-2092680 sales@wildcataviation.com, www. wildcataviation.com

WANTED Wanted for Warner 165 installation. One control Box Type 318 for Eclipse 15V 15A Generator Model 1, Type 308. Contact robert.bishop@ns.sympatico.ca or 902584-3511

Fleece Flyer Hat

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www.shopeaa.com/vaa Telephone Orders: 800-843-3612 From US and Canada (All Others Call 920-426-5912) *Shipping and handling NOT included.

Major credit cards accepted. WI residents add 5% sales tax.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 39

VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION OFFICERS President Geoff Robison 1521 E. MacGregor Dr. New Haven, IN 46774 260-493-4724 chief7025@aol.com

Vice-President George Daubner N57W34837 Pondview Ln Oconomowoc, WI 53066 262-560-1949 gdaubner@eaa.org

Secretary Steve Nesse 2009 Highland Ave. Albert Lea, MN 56007 507-373-1674 stnes2009@live.com

Treasurer Dan Knutson 106 Tena Marie Circle Lodi, WI 53555 608-592-7224 lodicub@charter.net

DIRECTORS

Steve Bender 85 Brush Hill Road Sherborn, MA 01770 508-653-7557 sst10@comcast.net

Dale A. Gustafson 7724 Shady Hills Dr. Indianapolis, IN 46278 317-293-4430 dalefaye@msn.com

David Bennett 375 Killdeer Ct Lincoln, CA 95648 916-952-9449 antiquer@inreach.com

Jeannie Hill P.O. Box 328 Harvard, IL 60033-0328 920-426-6110

Jerry Brown 4605 Hickory Wood Row Greenwood, IN 46143 317-422-9366 lbrown4906@aol.com

Espie “Butch” Joyce 704 N. Regional Rd. Greensboro, NC 27409 336-668-3650 windsock@aol.com Steve Krog 1002 Heather Ln. Hartford, WI 53027 262-966-7627 sskrog@aol.com

Dave Clark 635 Vestal Lane Plainfield, IN 46168 317-839-4500 davecpd@att.net John S. Copeland 1A Deacon Street Northborough, MA 01532 508-393-4775 copeland1@juno.com Phil Coulson 28415 Springbrook Dr. Lawton, MI 49065 269-624-6490 rcoulson516@cs.com

Robert D. “Bob” Lumley 1265 South 124th St. Brookfield, WI 53005 262-782-2633 rlumley1@wi.rr.com S.H. “Wes” Schmid 2359 Lefeber Avenue Wauwatosa, WI 53213 414-771-1545 shschmid@gmail.com

DIRECTORS EMERITUS Robert C. Brauer 9345 S. Hoyne Chicago, IL 60643 773-779-2105 photopilot@aol.com

Charlie Harris PO Box 470350 Tulsa, OK 74147 918-622-8400 cwh@hvsu.com

Gene Chase 2159 Carlton Rd. Oshkosh, WI 54904 920-231-5002 GRCHA@charter.net

E.E. “Buck” Hilbert 8102 Leech Rd. Union, IL 60180 815-923-4591 buck7ac@gmail.com

Ronald C. Fritz 15401 Sparta Ave. Kent City, MI 49330 616-678-5012 rFritz@pathwaynet.com

Gene Morris 5936 Steve Court Roanoke, TX 76262 817-491-9110 genemorris@charter.net

John Turgyan PO Box 219 New Egypt, NJ 08533 609-752-1944 jrturgyan4@aol.com

TM

Membership Services Directory Enjoy the many benefits of EAA and EAA’s Vintage Aircraft Association

TM

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EAA Membership, WARBIRDS magazine and one year membership in the Warbirds Division is available for $55 per year (SPOR AVIATION magazine not included). (Add $7 for International Postage.)

IAC

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Copyright ©2012 by the EAA Vintage Aircraft Association, All rights reserved.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE (USPS 062-750; ISSN 0091-6943) is published and owned exclusively by the EAA Vintage Aircraft Association of the Experimental Aircraft Association and is published monthly at EAA Aviation Center, 3000 Poberezny Rd., PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, Wisconsin 549023-3086, e-mail: vintageaircraft@eaa.org. Membership to Vintage Aircraft Association, which includes 12 issues of Vintage Airplane magazine, is $36 per year for EAA members and $46 for non-EAA members. Periodicals Postage paid at Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54902 and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Vintage Airplane, PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. CPC #40612608. FOREIGN AND APO ADDRESSES—Please allow at least two months for delivery of VINTAGE AIRPLANE to foreign and APO addresses via surface mail.

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40 JANUARY 2012