VA-Vol-8-No-10-Oct-1980 by EAA Vintage Aircraft Association

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STRAI G HTBy Brad Thomas AN D LEVEL

The 1980 Annual EAA International Convention was a great success with increased attendance, registered show aircraft, and numbers of campers; but what really makes this fantastic event such an overall suc cess and jells the enthusiasm into a working group of volunteers who enjoy every minute of it? Let's take a look through the eyes of your President as he looks back over those twelve days on the groups of Witt man Field during Oshkosh '80, and in particular our area of involvement, the Antique/Classic Division. Statistically the overall total number of show air craft in attendance rose 12% over 1979, and a new record was established at 1543. The tally of antique and classic aircraft showed an overall increase, with antiques down in number, but with classics up con siderably. Preliminary totals show antiques at 157 and classics at 620. Our hats are off to Art Morgan and Bob Kesel, veterans of parking and flightline safety, who with their volunteers performed their duties in a most pro fessional manner. During a brief jaunt through our parking areas on the first Saturday, we noted im mediately that the show aircraft camping area was completely full, that the show aircraft area north of our Headquarters barn was 90% filled, and that the overflow parking area was rapidly filling . By Sunday afternoon there were no open parking spots in any of the parking areas. We also wish to salute Jack Copeland and Ed Hul bert who worked steadily throughout the week to recruit volunteers for parking, flightline safety, and security under the able direction of David Shaw, Don Odell and Jack Huffman. Our Red Barn Headquarters was always aglow with the smiling faces of Kate Morgan, Janet Kesel and those wonderful ladies who assisted them daily through the week. While listening to many of the conversations, I soon learned that our staff people dispensed sales items, ran an information bureau, became messen gers, and kept smiling the whole time! To watch and listen to AI and Lois Kelch function as our Division Press Relations was a delight. Through the entire week they presented information to the media, arranged for ph~to missions, staged inter views, described our Division activities to the Avia tion Greats, and continually promoted good public relations.

Scrambling from the first Saturday through Thurs day noon were Claude Gray , Dale Gustafson , George York, and Dale Wolford , our Division Judging Chiefs. Along with their fine group of capable assistants , their selections of the award winners was the result of many hours of hard and devoted work that attests to the effectiveness of ou r judgi ng system. Among the many changes noted this year, was the moving of the Antique/Classic forums to the main forum area in the center of the Convention. This made it possible for those who desired to attend suc cessive forums in any of the tents. Under the able direction and planning of Ron Fritz and Jack Winthrop, our forums were again both popular and effective. Ollie' s Woods was the scene of welcome shade for EAAers on Tuesday evening following the air show , when the annual Division picnic, under the able direction of John Turgyan, proved to be an outstand ing event. Antique/Classic Chapter 8, of Grand Rapids, Michigan was in charge of food this year, and it was great! When all of the home-cooked food had been served we had fed over 450 members and guests. Frankly we had underestimated the attendance and several who wanted seconds were disappointed. This social gathering has become one of the most popular attractions for Antique/Classic members attending the Convention . A new function in our area this year was the ad dition of a tent near the Red Barn for use of our mem bership and guests as a hospitality center. OX5er Bob Wallace took it upon himself to see that this area was utilized to the utmost degree. What a sight it was to see a group of over forty OXSers being photographed behind the 1911 Curtiss Pusher in front of the Red Barn! The tales and stories exchanged recalled long lost memories for many in that unique group . Without a doubt the singular, most popular area was a few yards north of the Red Barn where the replicas were parked, namely Bill Turner' s Gee Bee, Jim Younkin ' s Travel Air Mystery Ship, and the Can navo's Spirit of St. Louis. During the early part of the Convention, Paul Stephenson interviewed Bill Turner, Jim Younkin, and Steve and Dave Cannavo, much to the delight of the crowd. At other times interviews were held with the owners of other various antique and classic aircraft attending the Convention. Of special interest was the 1911 replica of Dale and Dean Crites. Placed in front of the Red Barn, it drew crowds of interested persons, and as soon as Paul began to interview Dale, the Curtiss would disappear amid the dense group of interested and admiring guests.

" Aviation Great" day was Thursday , and each of the honored guests was introduced at both the afternoon and the evening programs on the EAA theatre stage. To coincide with this event, the Antique/Classic Parade of Flight was flown on the same day. Under the direc tion of Phil Coulson and Willard Benedict , a fantastic display of representative aircraft dating from the 1911 Curtiss Pusher up through classics of 1955 flew as a part of the afternoon air show. Where else but at Osh kosh would you be able to see three different tri motored aircraft fly in formation: a Ford Trimotor, a Stinson Model A and a Junkers Ju52! The directors of the Parade of Flight had many anxious moments that day with the unsettled weather and other mixed signals . The planning and effective presentation of the Parade of Flight deserves the full appreciation of our membership. In conclusion, a few passing observations of what the EAA I nternational Convention is all about: Tim and Barbara Bowers, flying their 1979 Classic Grand Champion Luscombe 8E from California, with Tim volunteering for a week's work as a classic judge. Jim Gorman, EAA Air Museum Trustee, rolling up his pants legs and directing departing traffic through the water and mud in front of the show plane camping area. Seeing a smile " from ear-to-ear" on John Turgyan as he returned to the parking area after flying Jim Younkin's Travel Air Mystery Ship in a solo fly-by preceeding the air show on the last day. Observing Charlie Schuck being completely cov ered with mud thanks to a propeller biting the wet ground as he was pushing a homebuilt through a soggy area. Watching the cooperation of visitors and photog raphers, who as requested, would move away from the Gee Bee and the Mystery Ship for uncluttered pictures. Arriving at the Red Barn Friday morning early to see the 1911 Curtiss sitting in the middle of a tem porary lake . Realizing the significance of the major awards at the Theatre on Friday evening . And thrilled by the attitude and assistance of the volunteers who make the whole thing work. Summing it all up, a quote from the Daily News, overheard from an EAA volunteer : "Where else but Oshkosh can you take your week's vacation, spend $400, work from dawn to dusk, go home dead tired and sore-footed .. . and have a whole lot of fun? "

Editorial Staff

Tti~ VI~TA(3~ AII2VLA~~ OFFICIAL MAGAZINE

E4A ANTIQUE/CLASSIC DIVISION INC.

Publisher

Paul H. Poberezny

Editor

Gene R. Chase

(Photo by Gene Chase)

OCTOBER 1980

73 year old retired airline captain Lea Abbott flew his repli ca 1970 Curtiss Pusher to Oshkosh '80 from his hom e in Dallas, Texas.

(On The Cover

Associate Editors: H . Glenn Buffington, Edward D. Williams, Byron (Fred) Fredericksen, Lionel Salisbury Readers are encouraged to submit stories and photographs. Associate Editorships are assigned to those writers who submit five or more articles which are published in THE VINTAGE AIR PLANE during the current year. Associates receive a bound volume of THE VINTAGE AIR PLANE and a free one-year membership in the Division {or their efforts. POliCY-Opinions expressed in articles are solely those of the authors . Responsibility for accuracy in reporting rests entirely with the contributor.

Directors

PRESIDENT

Ronald Fritz

W. BRAD THOMAS, JR. 301 DODSON MILL ROAD PILOT MOUNTAIN, NC 27041 9191368-2875 Home

919/368-2291 Office

28% Roosevelt Str eet

VICE· PRESIDENT JACK C. WINTHROP

Robert Kesel 455 Oa krid ge Drive Rochester, NY 14617

Conklin, MI 49463

716/342- 3170 Claude L. Gray. Ir .

%35 Sylvi a Avenue Nort hridge, CA 91324 213/349-13 38

A rthur Morgan 3744 North 51 Boulevard

Milwaukee, WI 53216 414/442- 3631

. Oshkosh '8 0 Grand Champion Cla ss ic, Aeronca Seda n. Photo by Ted Koston .)

(On The Back Cover . .. Buhl "Bull Pup", Grand Champion Antique at Oshkosh '80. Photo by Ray Procha.)

TABLE OF CONTENTS Straight and Level by Brad Thomas. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. AIC News Compiled by Gene Chase .................................... Oshkosh '80 by Gene Chase. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Laird Super Solution At Oshkosh '80 by Gene Chase ... . .. , .......... Aeronca Sedan Grand Champion Classic by Gene Chase ................. Grand Champion Antique by Gene Chase ...... .... .. . ...... ... .. ... .... The Luscombe Built To Take It! by A . T. Stretch ....... . . . ...... . ..... . . . Letters ... . .... ...................................... . .............. ... Calendar Of Events ................................... . .............. . .

Dale A. Gustafson

John R. Turgyan

7724 Shady Hill Drive

ROUTE 1, BOX 111 ALLEN, TX 75002 2141727-5649'

Indi anapolis, IN 46 274

1530 Ku ser Road

3'17/293-4430

Trenlon, NJ 08619 609/585-2747

SECRETARY M . C. "KELLY" VIETS

66 W. 622 N. Madison Avenue

7745 W. 183RD ST. STILWELL, KS 66085 913/681-2303 Home 9131782-6720 Office

NUMBER 10

VOLUME 8

AI Kelch Ceda rburg, WI 53012 414/377-5886

Advisors

TREASURER

John S. Copeland

S,l an Gomoll

Nine Joan n e Drive Westborough, MA 01581

1042' 90th Lane, NE Mil1neapoijs, MN 55434 712/784-1172

617/366-7245

Classic Division , 12 monthly issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE; one year memo bersh ip in the Experimental Aircraft Association and separate membership cards. SPORT AVIATION magazine not included,.

George York 181 Sloboda Avenue

Mansfield, OH 44906 419/529-4378

E. E. " BUCK" HILBERT P.O . BOX 145 UNION , IL 60180 815 /q21-4591

EAA ANTIQUE/CLASSIC DIVISION MEMBERSHIP o NON-EAA MEMBER - $22.00. Includes one year membership in the EAA Antique!

EAA MEMBER - $14.00. Includes one year membership in the EM Antique/Classic Division, 12 monthly issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE AND MEMBERSHIP CARD. (Applicant mu st be current EM member and must give EAA membership number.)

Gene Morris 27 C han d e ll e Drive H am p shire, I t 601 40

312/683-3199

THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE (ISSN 0091-6943) is owned exclusively by EAA Ant ique/Classic Division, Inc.. and is published monthly at Hales Corners , Wisconsin 53130. Second class Postage paid at Hales Corners Post Office , Hales Corners. Wiscons in 53130 . and additional mailing offices. Membersh ip rates for EAA Antique/Classic Division , Inc., are $14.00 per 12 month period of wh ich $10.00 is for the publication of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE. Membership is open to all who are interested in aviation.

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Page 12

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Page 22

Ai.\Jews,

C=p<e

d by Gene Chase

ELECTION OF OFFICERS At the annual business meeting for members of the Antique/Classic Division held on August 9, 1980 at the EAA Convention, Oshkosh, Wisconsin, the re sults of the election were announced. The follow ing incumbents were re-elected for another term: Brad Thomas, President; Kelly Viets, Secretary; and Directors AI Kelch, Morton Lester, and Art Morgan. During the Division Board of Directors meeting on the same date, the total number of directors was in creased to ten with the naming of Ronald Fritz, Robert E. Kesel, and George S. York as new Directors. These three men had previously served as Advisors to the Board of Directors, and thus bring with them, valu able experience to aid in conducting the business of the Division. AVIATION GASOLINE The Associated Press reported that Shell Oil was going out of the aviation gasoline business. In check ing with this oil company it developed that Shell's official policy was to curtail its marketing of all grades of aviation gasoline and turbine fuel by stop ping supplying most of their small dealers as of the end of 1980. By June of 1981 they expected to be supplying aviation gasoline and turbine fuel to only a few selected dealers and we assume these would be FBO's at the larger airports such as Page Airways and Butler Aviation. Shell will continue to produce aviation gasoline and turbine fuel for these dealers and for the military services. In the meantime Shell said it would urge former dealers to find alternate sources of aviation fuel and would help out those dealers temporarily with avia tion gasoline who were having difficulty in finding other sources of fuel. According to Shell this marketing policy was an nounced over 2 years ago and applies to both 80 and 100 octane gasoline. Contrary to one report the restric tion in marketing is not confined to the East Coast but applies nationwide. From Dave Scott's Washington Report

AAA CONVENTION AT BLAKESBURG The Annual Convention of the Antique Airplane Association was held the last week of August at Blakes burg, Iowa. About 350 antique and classic aircraft were in attendance and the event was blessed by good weather. The only rainfall occurred at night on the last Saturday and Sunday. The two big award winners were both new restora tions. The Grand Championship trophy went to the Stinson SR-8 owned by Roy Redman, Kilkenny , Min nesota. LeRoy Brown of Zellwood, Florida took home the Sweepstakes trophy with his Butler Blackhawk . 4th NATIONAL STINSON CLUB FlV-IN From the National Stinson Club Newsletter by Jonsey Paul, Cypress, Texas we learn that this event held annually at Minden, Nebraska was a huge suc cess. It was held July 18 - 20 with 42 Stinsons in at tendance, one from as far away as Nova Scotia. Inclement weather in other areas reduced the at tendance including three newly restored Reliants from Minnesota whose owners had planned to be there . KUDOS FOR FAA (From the Schellville Antique Escadrille Gazette edited by AI Wheeler , EAA 64433 , A/C 5519, EI Sobrante, CA.) We sometimes read, or hear, complaints for ama teu r builders concerning the frustrations and delays experienced in getting timely service from FAA per sonnel for pre-cover inspections, preflight examina tions , annual airworthiness renewal, etc. I would like to place a comment in the other side of the ledger , one commending the Oakland, California GADO of fice personnel on the excellent and timely service they have provided the amateur builders in this area. To cite a recent example, on Thursday, July 17, 1980, Jeannie Williams advised the Oakland office that her Charger , Bill Ewertz ' s Great Lakes and your editor's Pitts Special were due for annual airworthiness re newal. On Tuesday, July 22, just three working days later, Mr. Dell Ott of the Oakland office arrived at Schellville at 7:45 in the morning, with the reqUired paperwork prepared , ready to look at the three air craft! Now I call that a big plus in anybody ' s ledger. CLUB FIFTY An announcement has been received at EAA Head quarters of the formation of Club Fifty open to all those who have flown 50 consecutive years . A num ber of people have flown for 50 years or more but few have an uninterrupted record of this duration . For further information , please contact Mr. M.L.L.

Short , 1776 North Lakewood Drive , Lexington , KY 40502 . Telephone 606/269-2525. PHOTOS FOR EAA PUBLICATION If you plan to take photos for possible use in any of the EAA publications, your chances will be in creased if you use Plus-X film for black and white , and Kodachrome 64 slide film for color. Black and white prints, 5" x 7" or 8" x 10" in size may be sub mitted and in the case of color shots , we must have the original slide to work with. If requested, all ma terials received by us will be returned to the sender. The above is just a guideline, as we can use prints of different sizes, but please don 't send color prints. BORDEN AEROPLANE POSTERS This series of posters by the Borden and Thompson companies depicting aircraft of the 1930s will be dis continued beginning with this issue of The VI N TA G E AIRPL ANE.

OSHKOSH '80

By Gene Chase

(Photos By The Author Unless Oth erwise Noted) Peopl e and planes turned out in reco rd numbers again at Oshkosh. The 28th Annual EAA Convention wa s a rou sin g success with 1547 sh ow plan es regis tered. Thi s includ ed 777 antique and classic aircraft. The total numb er of classics wa s up over last year's event whi le th e count of antiques was down slightl y. Th e Co nvention was a soggy one with th e amount of rain th at fell during th e week equal to twi ce the normal amount for the entire m o nth of August. In spite of th e weather, the dail y air shows went on as sch ed ul ed and p eopl e stayed on in g rea ter numb ers throughout th e week than at pa st Conve ntion s. Ther e were many outstanding eve nt s during the week but th e highlight wa s Aviati o n G rea ts Day , on Thur sday, f ea turing Matty Laird and Jimm y Doolittle. Many other aviation notables were present who were involv ed in air racing during th e 1930s. Al so featured o n thi s day wa s the first public pre

sentation of th e EAA Air Museum Found ati o n 's replica Laird Super Soluti on. The aircraft w as no t quite fin ish ed , but th e lac k of some of th e wing and landing gear fairings did not d eter th e ca m e ra buffs from hav ing a fi eld day , es p ecia ll y when Laird and Doolittl e posed for pictures in and around the p lane. Other vintage racing aircraft on display were St eve Wittman's Bonzo , Bill Turn er 's replica Gee Bee Model Z and Ji m Younkin 's repli ca Trave l Air Mystery Ship. Th e Antique/Classic Divi sio n 's Parade of Flight was also featured o n Aviation Greats Day as a part of the afte rn oon air show. This aerial ex tr avaga nza becomes more popular each year, evoking favorable comment from both pilots and the genera l public. Speaking of th e general public, thi s yea r for the first time th ey were able to att end Antique/ Cla ssic forums. Thi s was made possible by re locat in g th e forum t ent from th e Red Barn area o n the flight lin e to th e gene ral publi c area with th e ot h er forum tents.

GRAND CHAMPION WINNERS Each year the job of judgin g aircraft at O shkos h be co m es in creasingly difficult as more and more p lan es sh ow up with fantastic workmanship and auth enti city. Th e G rand Ch ampi o n Antique Award went to a 1931 Buhl " Bull Pup " own ed by Captain Dan Neuman of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Th e G rand Ch amp ion Class ic Awa rd wa s won by Jim Thompson, Roberts , Illin o i s for hi s 1951 Aeronca Seda n. Other Grand C h amp ion Awards were: Warbird, Kalamazoo Aviatio n History Museum' s FG-1D Co r sa ir ; C u sto mbuilt , Fred Kell e r , Anchorage, Alaska, for hi s VariEze; Roto rcraft , an Avenger Gyrop lane by Frank Marchetti of Chicago, Il li nois; and for th e first tim e at Osh kos h , an U ltrali ght Gra nd Champ ion Award for the Fl edpe II by Gary Evans, of Waukegan , Illin ois .

EAA wa s honored to have th ese Aviation Grea ts attend th e 1980 Conven tion at Oshkosh . Left to right: E. M. " Matty " Laird, Blanche Noyes, Harold Neuman , Bob H all, Eldon Cessna, Eddie Fisher, General Jam es Doo little, H arold Johnson , Tony LeVier, Cliff H enderson, Steve Wittm an, Leon A twood, AI Mena sco and Roger Don Rae. Th e man on the ex treme right is Charles McClure, one of Doolittle 's 8-25 pilots on th e WW " Tokyo bombing raid.

OTHER AWARDS FOR ANTIQUE AND CLASSIC

AIRCRAFT

OUTSTANDING OPEN COCKPIT BIPLANE

Stearman E75N1, N9078H

F. R. and Jeannie Griffin, Minnetonka Beach, MN

ANTIQUE AIRCRAFT

Reserve Grand Champion DeHavilland D.H .82C Tiger Moth , C-FCTN Tom Di etri c h and Frank Evans, Kitchener, Ontario, Canada

OUTSTANDING CLOSED COCKPIT BIPLANE

Waco EGC-8 , NC2334

Gordon Bourland , Jr. , Ft. Worth , TX

OUTSTANDING OPEN COCKPIT MONOPLANE Aeronca C-3, NC13556 E. E. H ilbert, Union, IL

Silver Age (1928 - 1932) CHAMPION Waco ASO ; NC6930 Dean and Dale Crites, Waukesha , WI

OUTSTANDING CLOSED COCKPIT MONOPLANE Fairchi ld 24, NC25323 Edward C. Wegner , Plymouth , WI Customized Aircraft

RUNNER -UP Taylor E-2 Cub, N12607 Robert H. Taylor , Tipp City, OH OUTSTANDING OPEN COCKPIT MONOPLANE Corben Model B, NX5148 Rick Demond Family, Whitmore Lake, MI Contemporary Age (1933 - 1945) CHAMP ION Porterfield LP-65 , N32372 EAA Chapte r 304 , Jackson , MI RUNNER-UP Ryan PT-22 , N49674 Donald D . Johnson, Rockford , IL

CHAMPION - Stampe SV4C, N73NS

Neal R. Sutherland , Birmingham , MI

RUNNER-UP - Spartan C-3, NC705N

Edward C. Wegner, Plymouth, WI

OUTSTANDING - Stearman A75Nl, N69654

Dick Fritz and Jerry Wettelring, Willmar , MN

REPLICA AIRCRAFT

CHAMPION - Ryan NYP, N211NX

Dave and Steve Ca~navo , Lester , PA

Reserve Grand Champion

Cessna 180, N9428C

Douglas and Barbara Trager , Riverside, CA

CLASS I (0 - 80 hp)

Aeronca Chief , NC85829

Elymos L. Nase, Rehoboth Beach, DE

CLASS II (81 - 150 hp)

Rawdon T-l , N5160

May Belle Chastain, Creve Coeur, MO

CLASS III (151 hp and higher)

Cessna 195, N4477C

Raybourne Thompson , Jr. , Houston , TX

CUSTOM CLASS A (0 - 80 hp)

Taylorcraft BC-12D , N96438

Larry W. Haas, La Cygne , KS

CUSTOM CLASS B (81 - 150 hp)

Cessna 140A, N5380C

William H . Copp, Jr. , Lexington, MA

CUSTOM CLASS C (151 hp and higher)

Globe Swift GC-1B , N80715

The International Swift Museum Foundation,

Athens , TN

OUTSTANDING IN TYPE

TRANSPORT CLASS -

MULTI-ENGINE

CHAMPION - Stinson Model A , NC15165

Eugene D. Coppock, Algonquin , IL

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Thi s imma culat e deHavi lland DH82C Tiger Moth from Canada was named Reserve Grand Champ i o n Antiqu e. Owners are Tom D i etrich (in front cockpit) and Fra nk Evan s, Kitchener, Ontario.

This beautiful Cess na 180, N9428C ea rn ed th e Reserve Grand Champion Classic award. It is owned by Douglas and Barbara Trager of Riverside, Ca lifornia. It was one of the gems parked in th e Show Plane Ca mping Area.

CLASSIC AIRCRAFT

Aeronca Champ - Aeronca 7AC, N83607 James W. Monsion, Clio, MI

Beech craft - Beech craft BE-3S B, N CS186C George ne and D o nald M cDon o ugh , Palos Hill s, IL

Pip er J-3 - Pip er J-3 Cub , N C3368 Donald Je nsen , Alb ert Lea, MN

Bellan ca - Bellan ca 14-13-2, N7443 1 Charl es J. Schultz , Davi s, CA

Pipe r - O th e rs - Pip er PA- 15 Vaga bo nd, N4334H Keith Swa lh eim , Sto ughton , WI

Cess na 120/140 - Cess na 140, NC4135N Ri ch and Kathi e Paige, San M ateo, CA

Stin so n - Stin so n 108-3, N6793M James M. Fulford , Appl e Vall ey, MN

Cess na 1701180 - Cess na 170, N3442C James c. Kirby , Mullila Hill, NJ

Swift - Globe Sw ift GC-1A , N80905 Charl es F. H oover , Jr. , St. Paul , MN

Cessna 19011 95 - Cess na 195B, N2161 C John J. Fier , Bourbonnai s, IL

Taylorcraft - Taylo rcraft BC-12D , N C44493 John W . M cD o nald , Windom , KS

Ercoupe - Ercoupe 41 5-G , N3675H LaVern N . Brown, St. Paul , MN

Limited Pro du ction - Moo ney M-1 8L Mite, N 118C A . A . Terr ig no, Bu ena Park , CA

Lu scombe - Lu scombe 8-A , N1850B Steven and Deborah Lund , Flu shing, MI

Most Unique Classic - Super Aero 45, N145SA Jon Svendsen , Waterloo , IA

In ad diti on to th e aw ard winn ers, th ere w ere m any o u tstandin g v i ntage ai rcraft at Os hk os h. Seve ral of th em wer e pa rk ed in th e Sh ow Pl an e Ca mpi ng Area and vi si to rs wh o d id not str o ll u p and down th ose lin es, mi ssed see in g som e hand so m e m achin es . Th e EAA Custo m Built and Vintage Aircra ft Judge's Guid eboo k has beco me a ve ry po pular pu b li ca ti o n and m any co pi es hav e b ee n se nt o u t f r o m EAA H ea d足 quart e r s sin ce it wa s fir st publi sh ed severa l ye ar s ago. It is a guid eb ook for judges, builders, restorers, ex hibit ors, and comp etito rs and it co ntain s th e rul es, obj ectiv es, and stand ard s fo r judgin g at Os hkos h . It's quite o bvio u s that m any resto rers h ave bee n referring to the Guidebook while grooming their aircraft for competition as the quality of workman足 ship and high degree of authenticity has b een steadily ri sin g at th e A nnu al Conve nti o ns at Oshk os h . Fo r th ose int e r es t ed in o btainin g th is p u b li ca ti o n , it ca n b e ord ered f ro m EAA H eadqu art ers fo r $1 .30, p ostpaid . (Photo by Ted Koston)

Navion - Ryan Navion A, N4180K l. C. McClain , Amarillo, 1)(

This very accurate replica of Lindbergh 's Rvan NYP won the Champion Replica Award for owners D ave and Steve Cannavo, Les ter, Penns ylvania.

(Photo by Ted Koston)

1940 Porterfield CP-65 Collegiate restored by EAA Chap足

ter 304, Jackson, Michigan flies over Lake Winnebago

during the Convention. Thi s beautiful restoration won the

Contemporary Age Champion award.

(Photo by Ted Koston)

The Outstanding Open Cockpit Monoplan e award went to thi s Aeronca C-3 owned by E. E. "Buck" Hilbert, Union, Illinois.

Happy Chapter 304 members, Bill Meadowcroft and Earl Scoll, head (or hom e in the Chapter's award winning Porterfield.

The Outstam/ing Aeronca Champ award was g iv en to this Model 7AC owned by James W. Monsion, Clio, MI.

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Dean and Dale Crites' Waco ASO was named the Silver Age Champion. The Crites twins live in Waukesha, Wis足 consin.

Customized aircraft are recognized at Oshkosh . This Stampe SV4C owned by Neal R. Sutherland, Birming足 ham, Michigan was named Champion Antique in this category.

(Photo by Ted Kostoni

Cordon Bourland's Waco fCC-8, NC2334. Cordon's from Ft. Worth, Texas and his beautiful Waco won the Out足 standing Closed Cockpit Biplane award.

Outstanding Beech was this 1950 Bonanza. Owners Ceorgene and Donald McDonough live in Palos Hills, Illinois. 9

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This Ryan Navion Model A garnered the outstanding Navion trophy for its owner, L. C. McClain, Amarillo, Texas.

Making its first appearance ever at an fAA International Convention, this 1955 Czechoslovakian Super Aero 45 won the Most Unique Classic Award for its owner, Jon Svendsen, Water/oo, Iowa.

These Taylor Cubs are first cousins . The f-2 (on the lefl) is owned by Robert H. Taylor, Tipp City, Ohio and the J-2 belongs to Dick and Jeannie Hill, Harvard, Illinois. Robert is the son of C. G. Taylor, designer of both air足 craft.

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

More Oshkosh '80 Photos Continue On Page 19

A most unusual sight - probably the only time in history

that three such trimotors flew in formation - Martin Ca idin 's Ju 52, Island Airlines' Ford Trim%r and Gene Coppock's Stinson A.

the haird Super Solution at.--足 by Gene Chase Photos by Author The Laird Super Solution , powered by a 450 hp P & W R-985 e ngine. Landing gear and wing fairings and other detail work have yet to be comple ted.

The Laird Super Solution replica owned by the EAA Air Museum Foundation made its public debut at the Convention and the Foundation was honored to have on hand the designer and builder of the original plane, E. M. "Matty" Laird, and the pilot who won the 1931 Bendix Race and set a transcontinental speed record in the Laird, General James H. Doolittle. The Museum's Laird, a faithful reproduction of the original was started as a construction project by a group of Florida EAAers headed by Ed Escallon. Matty Laird was close at hand and provided much technical assistance throughout the project.

Matty Laird (left) and Jimmy Doolittle recreate the scene captured originally in a 1931 photo

The replica gradually took shape as the result of many volunteers donating their time and talents in addition to materials and money. In June of 1979 the project was transported to the Museum shop in Frank足 lin, Wisconsin for completion. A more detailed account of the building of the replica, and information concerning the original air足 craft will be forthcoming in a booklet being prepared by George Hardie of the Museum staff. The availability of this booklet will be announced in EAA publications, including Th e VINTAGE AIRPLANE.

When Matty Laird saw the Super Solution at Osh足 kosh, he immediately put his stamp of approval on it. So did other members of the Laird family includ足 ing Matty's wife, Elsie, their son, E. M. Laird III, Matty's brother, Harold laird and his nephew, Chuck Laird. Also on hand to admire the Laird were many EAAers who had played some part in the construction project, and especially those from Florida who virtually lived with the plane for some five years.

The Laird was on display at the Mini Museum tent along with several other Museum aircraft, all under the watchful eyes of the Chairman of the Museum Exhibits, Kelly Viets, his wife Edna, George Pattison, Herb Ford and many other Kansas City Chapter 200 volunteers.

As this is being written, the final touches are being added to the Laird Super Solution in the Museum shop and it will be placed on display in the Museum along with Jim Younkin's Travel Air Mystery Ship and Bill Turner's Gee Bee Model Z . These three replicas 'will join Morton Lester's original Keith Rider R-S "Jack

Some of the Laird family, left to right, E. M. Laird /I (Matty and Elsie's son), E. M. " Matty" Laird, Marilyn Laird (Mrs . E. M. Laird II), Elsie (Matty's wife), Esther Laird, Jeannie Laird Wieland (daughter of Esther and Harold) , and Harold L. Laird (brother of Matty).

Rabbit" in a most unusual exhibit of vintage racing aircraft.

Elsie and Matty Laird pose happily beside the Laird Super Solution.

Matty's nephew Charles L. "Chuck" Laird II, Charles L. Laird IV (Chuck's grandson) and R. E. Westlake of Costa Mesa , California who donated a highly detailed sca le model of Don Taylor's world record setting Thorp T- 18 to the Museum .

FJ~~速~ct~

$~~!l~

by Gene Chase

GRAND CHAMPION CLASSI C

(Pharo by Ted Kaston)

Jim Thompson, Box 102, Roberts, IL 60962 had flown his Aeronca 15AC Sedan, N1491H to Oshkosh in previous years, but the only people who knew were those who parked near him in the transient aircraft parking area. Jim was well aware that he had a bona足 fied classic aircraft, and one with an unusual back足 ground at that , but until it was worthy of being judged he chose to keep it out of the show plane area.

Jim 's Model 15AC was not only the last Sedan built by Aeronca but also the last aircraft manufactured by them. It was completed on October 23, 1951 which was actually 7 months after the production line was shut down. It seems that enough spares still existed at the plant to assemble two more airframes, result足 ing in the creation of N1490H and N1491H. N1490H is no longer on the FAA registry and its fate is unknown.

Jim Thomp son po ses his Aeronca Sedan. This aircraft, N 14 91 H w as th e final machine off Aeron ca's production line.

The Aeronca Sedan originated from a sales/engi neering specification completed in June, 1947. The construction was to be conventional tube and fabric and the powerplant, a Continental C-125. The pro posed selling price was $4500. Every effort was made to plan and design the Model 15AC (15th type, 1st model, powered by Continental) around existing material inventory and in the least amount of time. The engine layout and cowling was developed from the installation on the highly successful Model 7AC Champion. The Model 7AC cabin door was to be used, on the right side only, as on the Champ. The all metal wing with the single lift strut was con figured to facilitate the design of folding provisions on future models. Competition with other four place aircraft of the period made it necessary to increase the engine size to the C-145. This also avoided the possibility of under powering the airframe which grossed at 2050 pounds. The prototype, NX39801 was first flown in January, 1948 with subsequent test flights in February. Ac celerated service tests were conducted in mid-March consisting of 313 landings in less than one week at This Aeronca factory photo is captioned, "Aeronca Fly ing Club. Findlay , Ohio. June, 1953 . " The Sedan is N1461H.

40 different locations. The Model S15AC seaplane ver sion began acceptance testing in May and the Model 15 was approved under type certificate A-802 on Sep tember 23, 1948 . The Sedan was produced from mid-1948 through March, 1951 at which time light aircraft assembly was terminated at Aeronca ' s Middletown , Ohio plant. Including the two examples completed in October, 1951 a total of 561 Sedans were built. These ranged from N1000H through N1491H and included many which were exported throughout the world. Currently the FAA register lists 197 of the model, and it is be lieved that about 100 exist in Canada. Three principal paint schemes were used . The 1948 models left the factory painted red with straw trim and unpainted, natural aluminum wings. In 1949, red paint was also applied to the wings. The 1950 variant was medium blue with straw trim in a revised pattern . Exceptions did exist however, such as the two bright orange and green examples sent to Canada in 1949. Aeronca is currently engaged in the aerospace in dus.try but they still hold the type certificate for the Model 15AC, and their files still contain the design drawings and reports as well as some pieces of sales data.

Jim Thompson's pride and joy is serial number 561 and he has owned it since January, 1967 when he pur chased it from Aeronca. Remember, we said that this plane had an unusual background! Aeronca had re tained title to N1491H for more than 15 years during which time it was used by company officials and a company flying club. It was also used as an instru ment flight trainer as a full IFR panel had been in stalled. When Jim decided to restore his Sedan, he had two choices . He could restore it to the configuration in which it actually left the factory in 1967, with the IFR panel and all, or he could duplicate the configuration of the plane on the date it was manufactured in 1951. Ji m chose the latter. Restoration of the plane was started on April 8 , 1978 when it was disassembled and taken to a friend's 40' x 24' garage where there was ample room to work. The owner of the garage, Don Alexander lived in El liott, Illinois, 14 miles from Jim's home. Jim worked on the project nearly every night and weekend for 2% years and figures he spent $2 ,000 for auto gas alone. Jim speaks very highly of Don Alexander ' s skill, especially in the area of sheet metal work and paint ing. Don had rebuilt several aircraft previously and (Aeronca Factory Ph o to)

Late model Sedan panel with optional Bendix PATR-l0 radio .

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Jim , Jimm y and Bett y Thomp son pose proudly beside their Grand Champion Classic Award winner.

(Photos by Jim Thompson)

The Sedan looked like this when Jim bought it from Aeronca . Colors were white and red. Full IFR panel is shown in upper photo.

(Ph oto b y Ted Kas ton)

Th e ins trum e nt p ane l res to red bac k to o rig in al. The modern radio hides behind the left glove box door. N ote th e interesting comparison of th e control wh eels with those in th e factory photo. All productio n Sedans used Aeronca Chie f control wheels, but none w ere available wh en th e las t two planes were built so special wheels were handcraft ed at th e factory as shown here .

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Jim removes that speck of dust.

was working on a Culver Cadet when work was started on the Sedan. The fuselage, landing gear and tail surfaces were stripped down and sandblasted. Necessary repairs were made such as replacing 14 " of both lower longerons at the tailpost. All tubing was then primed with a dark green, two part epoxy. New formers and " T" type stringers were made of mahogany and pine, then coated with three applica足 tions of a polyethylene varnish. All formers were reinforced with aluminum angles for added strength.

(Ph oto by Jim Thomp son)

All new w ood o n th e fuselage. No te th e aluminum angle stiffeners o n the fo rm ers.

(ph oto b y Jim Th o mpson)

Betty Thomp son did a ver y profess ion al-looking job of installing th e headlin er.

(Ph oto by Ted Koston)

Th e Grand Champion Class ic in flight over fl at Wi sconsin farm land .

(Aeronca Factory Photo)

This was th e second prototype Sedan. Colors w ere red and straw with unp ainted metal wing s. Not e how the paint scheme differs from later models.

Jim credits his wife, Betty for the beautiful interior. She sewed all the panels including the headliner . The materials for the interior were ordered from dealers who advertise in antique automobile publica tions. Jim requested samples of their products, then compared them with pieces of unfaded fabric slipped out from under the baggage compartment. Thus he was able to accurately match the original materials. The woolen fabric for the headliner came from a company in Massachusetts and the "hog hair" type floor covering came from Bill Hirsch in N.ewark, New Jersey. Both of these items were also exact duplica tions of the origi nal. A stroke of luck occurred when Jim learned that Jerry Jackson of Tucker, Georgia owned a Sedan con taining the magnetic compass still sporting the original factory paint. The original control wheels were also finished in this same color and Jerry offered to have paint mixed for Jim by having it matched to the color of the compass . Jerry also provided Jim with the proper paint for the door frames and exposed tubing in the cabin of N1491H. The restoration of the interior included new iden tification plates for the electrical switches, fuel shut off and trim tab indicator. The glove box doors, ash tray faces, and the fascia panels around the instru ments and stall warning light were stripped and re painted with the appropriate wrinkle finish. When Jim decided not to restore the fully instru mented version of the Sedan, he immediately created a problem for himself. He needed a new instrument panel with about half as many holes for gauges and radio equipment. As luck would have it, a friend, Mike Womack of Rescue, California had the exact panel needed for Jim 's 1951 Sedan. It even sported the original wrinkle paint finish and had never been on an airplane! Mike and Jim had been corresponding with each other for quite some time as Mike was restoring the first production model of the Sedan, N1000H . Mike

also needed an instrument panel for his earlier model Aeronca and Jim happened to have this rare item. Needless to say, an exchange was made which bene fitted both parties . Jim sadly added that Mike Womack passed away before the restoration of N1000H was completed. The wheels were completely rebuilt with new brake shoes, drums, cylinders, 0 rings and wheel bolts. Most of the engine cowling was either newly fabri cated or repl aced with new factory pieces. A new windshield was installed. This required more effort than what might be expected, when new nuts had to be manufactured from 7/16" hex stock for the bolts securing the windshield. Jim had been unable to locate the proper size nuts. Back in 1972 a wind storm blew away the hangar which housed N1491H , resulting in damage to the left wing leading edge and tip. The tip was repaired at that time by John Marsh, of Springfield, Illinois , but the leading edge wasn't replaced until the recent restoration. Here again, Don Alexander used his sheet metal wizardry to make the wing panel like new. A new landing light lens was also made, to be installed later. The fuel cells were sent to Goodyear, who originally manufactured them, where they were re-lined , had new nipples installed and were pressure tested . The fuselage, tail surfaces, ailerons and landing gear legs were covered with ceconite. Ji m chose to overlap all edges rather than to sew up envelopes. All tapes were pinked, grade A cotton and where the edges of two tapes were flush, the pinked edges were dovetailed to create a smooth junction. An example of this is where the tapes coveri ng the screws on the tail surfaces meet the trailing edge tapes. For the finish, two coats of clear nitrate dope were brushed on followed by 26 coats of butyrate applied with a spray gun. About every third coat of butyrate was completely rubbed out using #600 sandpaper . A coat of insignia white was applied to the entire aircraft as a common base coat for both the enamel and color dope . All of the Sedans manufactured from late 1950 on, were painted blue with cream trim . Aeronca referred to the cream color as " straw". These are the colors of Jim 's plane and the paint scheme is authentic as well. Bill Pancake of Keyser, West Virginia overhauled the Continental C-145 engine and it looks super sharp painted in its original colors with black cylinders and gray case. Bill delivered and installed the engine on the Sedan. Bill owns an Aeronca Champ and is the person who restored Dave Long 's Aeronca 11CC Super Chief which won Best of Type at Oshkosh 7B.

To add to the authenticity of N1491H Jim applied the original-styl e McCauley decals on the propeller, and all hardware in the plane was replaced with new of the exact type as ca ll ed for in the part s manual and drawings. Where there were discrepancies, Jim called on hi s friend John Houser , a service engineer with Aeronca , for help. John ha s been with Aeronca since before the Sedans were manufactured and has a wealth of knowledge of Aeronca aircraft. John was a big help throughout this project, especia lly because of his personal knowl edge and experie nce with Sedans in general, and with N1491H specifically. John also supplied much of the historical data as presented in this article, for which the author is greatly indebted. As with many restoration projects, credit should be given to several people who become involved. For example, Tom Johnson, of Paxton, Illinois , helped with the re-wiring of the Sedan, including the clever installation of so me modern equipment which in no way detra cts from the original appearance of the plane. Many people have inspected the aircraft with out realizing that it is equipped with a 720 channel Edo-Aire RT-563A radio , a Hush-A-Com, and Whelen wing tip strobe light system. Some of the items which were no longer service able or available, were re-manufactured by Bob Barnes and his father, Woody of Gibson City, Illinois and Bob Young of Oakwood, Illinoi s. Dick Welsh of Is saquah, Washington manufactures fuel sight gauges for Aeronca Sedans and also publishes a newsletter for Aeronca Sedan Club members . Dick found the instrument and stall warning light fascia panels for N1491H. During the two and a half year project, one person who lent a helping hand and kept a close eye on what was going on, was Jim Ross of Paxton, Illinois . Jim is the LA . who signed off the Sedan, and this occurred just in time for Jim Thompson to make two 30 minute test flights on Sunday, the second day of Oshkosh 'B O. On th e followi ng morni ng , Ji m , Betty , and son Ji mmy made the two hour flight to Oshkosh , landing with a total of three hours on the new restoration. Jim has always enjoyed flying his Sedan but now that it's an Oshkosh Grand Champion his enthusiasm for the plane knows no bounds. Let's hope that some of that enthusiasm will be saved for hi s second restoration project, which is another Aeronca . Yes, this was Jim Thompson 's first rebuild project , and if he does as well with his next one, he may take home a Grand Champion Antique award for his 1936 low wing Aeronca LC.

OSHKOSH '80 (Continued From Poge 10)

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Corben Model B owned by the Rick Demond Family, Whitmore Lake, Michigan. This craft won the Outstand足 ing Open Cockpit Monoplane award at Oshkosh '80.

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Gene Morris , Hampshire , Illinoi s in his mint Cu lv er Cadet over a Wisconsin farm near Oshkosh .

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Newly restored Stinson SR-10, owned by Bob Lickteig, Albert Lea, Minnesota . This aircraft was the last civilian gullwing Stinson built. It was manufactured on January 8,

Stan Gomoll and Paulin e Winthrop display a quilt made by Mrs . Gomoll and donated to the Antique/Classic Divi足 sion as first prize in a sweepstakes contest at Oshkosh '80. This has b een a popular fund raising event for th e past several years at Oshkosh. 19

1941.

l GRAND CHAMPION' ANTIQUE byc:n:~~::~-ilill

"""

(Photo by Logan Coombs)

On March 29, 1927 a plane manufactured by the Buhl-Verville Aircraft Company, later reorganized into the Buhl Aircraft Company, was awarded A.T.C Num足 ber 1. Four years later this company produced a sprightly little monoplane which was totally unlike the large biplanes which previously bore the company name . This newest member of the Buhl family was called the "Bull Pup" with a model designation LA-1. It was

a single place shoulder wing craft powered with the 45 hp 3 cylinder Szekely engine. The antique receiv足 ing the highest judging score at Oshkosh '80 was a beautifully restored and extremely authentic, 49 year old Bull Pup. This Grand Champion award winner was restored by Captain Daniel F. Neuman and his wife, of Minneapolis, Minnesota. With a big smile Dan smugly admits that he can ' t lay claim to having restored the Buhl from a basket

Th e Grand Ch ampion Antique a t O shkos h '30. Dan N eu足 man 's 19J I Buh l "B ull Pup " LA- I, NC3 43 Y, Seri al N um 足 ber 137 .

case because the plane had never degenerated to that condition. This well-preserved antique spent most of its life in the Washington, D.C area and it still sports the original factory insta ll ed engine . The total time on the airframe and engine is only 250 hours. The engine has been overhauled three times.

Early production Bull Pups could be purchased with a choice of three wing sizes; short for racing, long for airports at high elevations and the standard 30' panels. Dan's Buhl has the 30' wing as did most of the machines. Dan is the fou rth owner of the plane, having pu r足 chased it from the widow of the third owner in Vir足 ginia. Dan had found out through his friend, Ken Hyde of Warrenton, Virginia that the plane was available. The restoration of the Bull Pup included new cot足 ton fabric covering with Super Flite dope and Super Flite synthetic enamel for the final finish. Another factory option was the wheel size and Dan's plane was equipped with the 7.00 x 4 size. As owners of Taylor E-2 and J-2 Cubs, American Eaglets, etc. know, 7.00 x 4 ti res are vi rtually impossible to fi nd, so Dan opted for the 12" disc wheel which could be fitted

with modern small motorcycle tires. Through some shrewd detective work, Dan located an original pair of 12" Bull Pup wheels on a wheelbarrow owned by farmer David Vernor of Alpena, Michigan. The restoration was completed in the summer of 1978 and Dan flew the Buhl to the National AAA Fly足 In at Blakesburg, Iowa that year where it was awarded the Sweepstakes trophy. Dan has flown the Pup very little as he and his wife are busily engaged in the restoration (for the second time) of their Curtiss Jenny. They hope to fly the Jenny to selected fly-ins in 1981. Dan has a special feeling for his Buhl Bull Pup as it brings back memories of another Buhl he owned in 1940. This was a Model CA-6 Airsedan which will be described in a future article in The VINTAGE AIRPLANE.

(Photo by Dan Neuman)

Instrument panel in the Bull Pup. (Photo by Jack Cox)

THE

LUSCOMBE

BUILT

TO TAKE IT!

by A. T. Stretch

EAA 86368, AIC 3524

Pres ident, Airtex Products, In c.

259 Lower Morrisville Road

Fallsington, PA 19054

Photos from the Author's Collection

The Luscombe Silva ire in flight.

Twent y-o ne p eople p erched on th e Luscombe wing at test s to th e nega ti ve load streng th. Th e wing was de signed to take a positive loa d of 8 V2 tim es th e force of gravit y without distorti on.

Th e Luscombe Silva ire " front office " .

Back in the early thirties, Don Luscombe, an expert in sales and publicity work, redirected his many tal ents to design the venerable 90 hp fabric covered Monocoupe. He then designed the first lightplane with a metal monocoque fuselage, and formed the Lus combe Airplane Gorp., with a factory at Trenton, New Jersey to produce it. The initial model was the Luscombe "90" with a radial engine. This was followed by the Luscombe Phantom, a two place high wing monoplane, powered with a 145 hp engine . This high performance plane was a bit ahead of its time and only a few were made, but it paved the way for the Silvaire Model 8 series. The first to go into successful production was the 1937 Model 8, with a 50 hp engine. This was followed by the 1939 sixty-five horsepower Model 8A, most of which were made in 1946. The wings were a super strong metal structure, covered with fabric to save weight. Luscombe used a photo in its advertising showing twenty-one people sitting on the wings! This was the equivalent of almost 3 G 's negative load at gross! The 8A had no electrical system nor navigation lights and had to be hand propped . " V " wing struts with

jury struts were employed, but in later models single non-welded struts were used. A gravity fed 14 gallon fuel tank was mounted in the top of the fu selage over the baggage compartment, giving a 350 mile range at a claimed cruise speed of 105 mph. Thi s was an op timistic figure , which in fact was nearer 95 mph . It had a gross weight of 1260 Ibs . and an empty weight of 720 Ibs. Wing loading was 8.6 Ibs. and power load ing was 19.4lbs. per horsepower . Everything wa s metal covered except the wings . The 1946 Model 8A listed for $2 ,995 .00 FAF , and the Model 8E sold for $3,995 .00 . The Model 8E was a great improvement with its 85 hp Continental C-85-12 en gine, which gave the 8E about ten miles per hour more speed . However , the landing speed was 52 mph against 37 mph for the 8A and the stall speed was 48 mph against 37 for the 8A. Rate of climb wa s 575 fpm against the 8A rate of 900 ft. With 24 gallons of gas in the wing tanks, the range was about 500 miles. The 8E Model sported wheel pants, full electrical syste m with circuit breakers and starter, and was entirely metal covered. The 8E wing tanks were higher than the single tank of the 8A, which eliminated fuel starvation that oc

curred in the BA during take-off acceleration or in a ste ep climb, when there was less than 5 gallons of fuel in the tank. The BA had a scoop of sorts on the gas cap that was supposed to pressurize the tank , but if you put the cap on backward s, you were in real trouble! Testing of the first Luscombe B was done at Mercer Airport in Trenton , where the factory was lo cated. Dick Washburn ran the taxi tests, and h e tell s th e story of how he accidentally let th e speed build up a little too much and it lifted off the ground. The temptation was too great, so h e took it arou nd the pattern as a lark , thu s becoming the first man to fly the Lu scombe B. Later, as Sales Manager, h e put in several thousand hours flying Lu sco mbes all over the United States, setting up deal erships. Before the sales of aircraft fell off in 1949, 2,463 Lu scombe B Series planes were sold. By thi s time, the factory had been moved to Dallas, Texas. When the all-metal Luscombe went into produc tion, there were very few mechani cs experienced in metal construction. To alleviate thi s problem, Lu s combe established the Luscombe School of Aero nautics to train personnel in metal work. Most gradu ates went on to other aircraft factories or to work for the airlines, but Lucombe hired the cream of th e crop as they were needed , to work on the Luscomb e. No students worked on the produ ction line , contrary to common belief at the time. The writer was the proud own er of a 1946 Lu scombe 8A, which I purchased, used, in 1949 for the sum of only $700.00. I flew it for over a thou sa nd hours. Know ing its rugged strength, I was never afraid of tearing off a wing, and ventured into turbulent conditions which I would not dare to do in any other aircraft. I loved to do aerobati cs in that old bird! I added a self-contained battery in the baggage com partment and wired it for navigati o n lights, retr actab le landing light, radio and instrument lights. For radio s I had an Airboy LF receiver with a 100 ft. trailing an tenna , a VHF receiver and a RCA panel mount ed VHF transmitter. I also added a tu rn and bank , sensitive altimeter and gyro compass so I could do a 1BO in bad weather. I mounted a wind driven generator on the landing gear strut clu ster for power. The Luscombe could be flown hands-off, ju st with the rudder, and aside from the rather cramped cabi n for my six foot two size, it was a pleasure to fly . Her only fault was in cross wind landings; it was a mu st to touch down the up-wind wheel first , or you could swerve off the runway and possibly ground loop . There was no flexibility in the landin g gear to absorb side

Finished Luscombes awaiting deliver y. load s on the down-wind wheel , so it was possib le to shear th e attach bolt at the fuselage in an improp erly executed cross wind landing. Maintenance was minimal. Periodic re placem ent of the " U " shaped hing e bracket s of the rudd e r was necessa ry to eliminate play du e to the hing e pin s

w ea rin g the bra c k et holes. Otherwise it wa s not costly to maintain . After all th ese years, an AD re ce ntl y ca me out callin g for insp ection and /or replace ment of the vertical stabili ze r attach fitting. I g uess so m ethin g had to happ en after 34 yea rs of se rvi ce! Why ca n ' t they make planes lik e th at any more?

THE NEW LUSCOMBE " 50 " A primary training and private owner, two-p lace, cabin ship being produced to sell in th e $1 ,5 00 price range . This airp lane is without competition in th e metal field . Without formal advertising announcement over 3 00 of th ese ships were ordered within a thirt y day period. It is believed th at one thousand of this model could be sold in 1938.

Don Luscomb e designed and built th e Monocoupe Air planes. Before building metal airp l anes h e wa s Vice Pres ident and Genera l Manager of Mono coupe Corpora tion and Pres ident of Lambert Aircraft Engine Company. Approximately one thousand ships w ere built and sold under his sup ervision. H e ha s an unusual knowledge of the civi l m arket and has retained a worldwide acquaint an ceship and clientel.

THE PHANTOM 145 - FOR SUPER SPORT Thi s airplane is purcha sed b y th ose who tak e pride in a fin e materi al possess ion. It is o ne o( th e (as tes t airpl anes in th e world (or its horsepower. Equipped with the ap pointm ents a nd designed to ca rr y th e accessories (ound on th e most exp ens ive airlin ers. Price $6,000.

Photos and Text on This Page Are From a 1938 Luscombe Sales Brochure THE LUSCOMBE " 90" - TWO-PLACE CAB IN AIRPLANE This airplane is ex trem ely easy to fl y, has unusual com fort , and v isibilit y and although it cru ises 120 mil es an hour, it may be put into th e hands of th e amateur. It 0( fers a 700 mile ra nge and gives twent y mil es to th e ga l Ion of gaso line. Pri ce is $3, 975 .

" Li,,{ ,..

LETTERS

D ea r Sirs: This is in answer to yo ur qu es ti o n con cernin g id enti fi ca tion of engin e in th e Trav el Air o n b ack cover of Au g u st iss u e The VINTAGE AIRPLANE . . . I b eli eve i t is the seven cylinder A xelson , a 11 5-1 50 hp e ngin e that Travel Air u sed in their A-4000 M o d el. Th e en gine looks a lot lik e th e earl y m od el Wa rn er , but th e n ea t in st allation pictur ed h e re sure l o ok s lik e th e Ax elson in stallati o n .. . see U . S. Civil Aircra ft , Vo l. #2. Enclosed is a photo I thou g ht you m ight lik e t o have . .. it's th e Travel Air M o d el A-6000. Thi s phot o w as mad e a few month s ago h ere in Al as ka, and o ld N9966 i s still earning h er ke ep with no m ac hin ery available that can reall y repla ce her . N9966 i s al so featured in th e above m ention ed Vol. #2. Sure did enjoy your J. O. Dock ery Story you ran in the last two iss ues of the magazin e . . . Doc w as sort of an old comp etitor of mine down th e r e in Arkansas . The last time I saw him , he gav e me a d em o n stration ride in a new Bellan ca Viking , and I mu st say, Do c held fa st to hi s crop du sting mode ! Si ncerely you rs,

Roy G. Cagl e

8525 Jennifer Drive

Ju n eau, AK 99801

D ea r Ge n e: Th ank you so ve ry mu ch fo r runnin g m y st o ry an d pi ct ures in th e Jul y i ssu e o f Th e VINTA G E AIRPLANE. If it is poss ibl e could yo u se nd m e at leas t th ree m o re copies of th at iss u e? I h ave ju st f ini sh ed p aintin g and p uttin g toge th e r a Sup e r Ac ro Spo rt. H o p e t o f ly it soo n . M y n ex t p ro ject w ill b e a 1943 Staggerw in g Beech . Thi s pl an e be lo n gs to Mr. Jo hn M ecom , wh o o wn s Th e New Or l ea n s Sa ints foo tb all t eam . Thi s w as th e se ni or Mr . Meco m 's fir st p lan e and th ey wa nt it res t o red to like n ew co nditio n . A v ery unu su al thin g h app ened to m y son , Wayn e, rece ntl y. H e and I w ere fl yin g m y T- C raft lat e o n e aft erno o n and as w e p assed o v er o ur h o u se at ab o ut 1,000 fee t , I thr o ttl ed back and h e stu ck hi s h ea d out th e wind o w to ye ll at m y wife ..Wh en h e did , hi s sun glasses bl ew o ff. Th ey land ed in th e ya rd across th e str ee t b etween two tr ees and w ere n o t hu rt ex cep t f o r the ea r pi ece bein g b ent. Wi sh w e could mak e it to th e Co nventi o n , but ca n no t this yea r . M ayb e n ex t year in th e Stagg erwin g . Yours trul y,

Bob M o ore

916 South 12 Str ee t

Nede rl and , TX 77627

D ea r Mr. C hase , W e w e re both surpri sed and pl eased to h ea r fr o m fri e nd s in Mi c hi ga n and h e re in Fl o ri da , th at o ur W aco UPF-7 w as o n th e ba c k cover of The VINTA G E AIRPLANE, July issu e. Th en an o th er surpri se, three co mplim e ntary copi es . W e do th ank yo u very mu ch. A s you may o r may no t kn o w , w e w er e fo rm erl y fr o m Mil an , Mi chi ga n and o ur bu sin ess was kn o wn th ere as "Cu st o m Air craft " . W e m o v ed eve ry thin g t o Fl o rida in Novemb er o f 1977. In Janu ary o f thi s yea r w e mov ed o n to prop erty purch ased so uth of O ca la. In Jun e w e m oved our bu sin ess int o a n ew h an ga r! sh o p th at is al so located o n th e prop erty , al o ng with a pri va te strip , whi ch is sh ared with tw o o th er f ami li es . It is located b etwee n 475A and 1-75. It b ord ers th e north bound Rest Ar ea o n 1-75 and is 4900 feet l o n g. O ur h anga r is go ld and ca n ' t b e mi ssed f ro m th e air. W e w o uld lik e to ex tend an invitati o n to yo u an d your fri end s t o st op in wh en you are in th e area . As

m os t o f o ur w o r k is o n antiqu es, w e fee l you would fin d it w orth yo u r tim e to do so. Th e welco m e m at is always o ut to o u r f ri ends and fe ll ow flye rs. Th ank yo u agai n for th e comp lim enta ry copi es o f Th e VIN TA G E AIRPLA NE . It 's always good to see o n e' s ai rcraf t in p rin t. Sin ce rely, A rn o ld N i eman CUS TO M A IR CRAFT RESTORAT ION, IN C. 3504 S. W . 85 St reet Oca la, FL 32671 Dea r Sirs, I att end ed thi s yea r 's EAA In te rn ati o nal Co nve nti o n for th e ve ry f irst tim e . I flew m y 1947 Cess na 120, C-FDM X fr o m H ali fax , N ova Sco ti a, Ca n ada and regis t ered o n A u g u st 5. I w as th ere fo r three days and th oroug hl y enj oyed every m om e nt o f i t. Sin ce re turnin g h o m e seve ral pe o pl e h av e as k ed if th ere w ere an y oth er class ics registered th at fl ew furth er fro m th e eas t th an I di d. I have not h ea rd of anyon e else, but I w ould appreciate it if yo u coul d co n firm wh eth er o r not m y Cess na 120 can lay cl aim t o h aving f lo wn th e furth es t fr o m th e eas t to Os hkos h in 1980. Yours very trul y, Larry Keddy M e mb er , Chapte r 305, Dartm o uth 41 Wo o dward C res . H alifax, Nova Scoti a B3M 1J6 Ca nad a D ea r Vintage Airpl an e Read ers: I rea ll y e nj oyed readin g J. O . Doc k ery's m em o irs. Th e re sh o uld b e m o re lik e him! Wh i le cl ea nin g o ut th e offi ce h e re, I foun d a not e statin g th at a gu y nam ed Ray Tarr was h ere ab o ut a yea r ago and sa id th at b ac k in 1932 h e own ed th e "Ca liforni a Cub " factory . H e didn 't say wh ere in Cali f o rni a and h e didn ' t have an y ph o to s of th e aircraft . H e lives h ere in Van cou ve r , Ca nada and I h ave hi s ph o ne and address if an yo ne w ants it. D oes an yo n e h av e an y pi ctu res o r m e m o ri es of thi s ai rc raft ? If so le t' s w ri t e it up in the m agaz in e an d surpri se th e o ld guy . A ll th e b es t , To n y Sw ain ex-Waco and n o w T- 6 (Harva rd ) driver TO NY SWAIN PR O DU CTI O N S 2435 Burrard Str eet Van couve r , B.C. V6J 3]3 Can ad a

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

OCTOBER 11 - DAYTON, OH I O - 2nd Annual Tour through the U. S. Air Force Museum at Wright Fi eld sponsored by EAA Chapter 610. For furt h er informatio n , please contact: Col. Bob Taylor , 5855 St. Rt. 40, Tipp City , O H 45371. OCTOBER 16-19 - NEWTON, KANSAS - 4th Annual Int ernati o nal Cessna 120/140 Association Convention. For further information, please co nta ct: Tom Norton , 8117 Hemingway Aveanue , S. , Cot ta ge Grove , MN 55016. Telephone 612 /459-1423. OCTOBER 17-19 - CAMDEN , SOUTH CAROLINA - Fly- In . For further information , plea se contact : Geneva McKiernan, 5301 Fin sb ury Place, Charlotte, NC 28211. NOVEMBER 8 - LANTANA , FLORIDA - 2nd Annual Dixi e Fly-In , in cluding a bar-b-q and many exciting events. For further informa tion , please contact: Sam McKeever , Chairman , 16 Canton Road, Lake Worth , FL 33463. Teleph one 305/965-4575. NOVEMBER 22-23 - MIAMI, FLORIDA - Antique, Classic and Cus tom Built Exh ibit and Fly-I n , at th e Fifth Annual Harvest at the Dade County Youth Fairgrounds. For further information , please con tact: Elizabeth Bookout, 305/823-1837 or Luci e Cogswell at the Histori ca l Association of Southern Fl orida , 854-3289.

AVAILABLE BACK ISSUES

The VINTAGE AIRPLANE

1973 1974 1975 1976

1977 1978 1979 1980 -

March through D ecember All Are Available All Are Available j anuary , March, April , May, August, October, November , December All Are Available january, March through june, August , Oc tober, November February through December january through September

The abov e mentioned back issues are available from Headquarters for $1.25 each, postpaid.

CLASSIFIED ADS

For Sale ACRO II PLANS Th e n ew 2-place ae robati c trainer and sp o rt bi plane. 20 pages of easy to follow, detail ed plan s_ Com plete with isometric drawings , photos , exp loded views_ Plans - $85_00_ Info pack - $4 .00 _ Se nd check or money order to: ACRO SPORT, INC., Box 462 , Hales Corners, WI 53130_ 414 /425-4860_

FLYING AND GLIDER MANUALS 1929, 1930, 1931 1932,1933,

2.50 ea.

SEND CHECK OR MONEY ORDER TO :

EAA Air Museum Foundation, Inc.

Box 469 Hales Corners, WI 53130

Allow 4-6 Weeks For Delivery

Wisconsin Residents Include 4% Sales Tax

Classic owners! ~~'t ~4

DOG DRESS IT UP

WITH A NEW

,q~

INTERIOR!

All Ittms READY -MADE for Ea~y DO·IT·YOURSELF INSTALLATION Seat Upholstery - Wan Panels

Headliners - Carpets - etc.

(Photo by Gene Chase)

Classic aircraft judges hard at work at Os hkosh '8 0.

Ceconite Envelopes and Dopes

-Send for FREE Catalog Fabric Selection Guido - $3.00

,4~P~,JHC. 259 Lower Morrisville lei• • ·liV.III!.1SA' · · • ..-. --'1' FolI.ington, Po. 19054 [_ b.Jt!O",.~~ (215) 295-4115

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