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8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
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STRAIGHT & LEVEU
Bspie "Butch" Joyce
2 AlC NEWS
4
AEROMAIL
5
THIRTY
FIVE
YEARS
AT THE
OUTER
MARKERI
Dutch Redfield
10
ST. LOUIS - CITY OF FLiGHT/
Scott Langa
14 PERSIMMON AND
SILVERI
H G
Frautschy
18
THE ADVENTURES
OF
YELLOW BIRD/
Cully Caldwell
22
MYSTERY PLANE
H
G Frautschy
5
PASS
IT TO
BUCK
B B "Buck" Hilbert
7
WELCOME NEW MEMBERS
8
CALENDAR
8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
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T
EL
by
ESPIE
BUTCH JOYCE
PRESIDENT,
VINTAGE AIRCRAFT
ASSOCIATION
It s the beginning
ofJuly,
and EAA AirVenture 1999 is
just
down the end of the runway , so to speak. This year
should be once again a great show the entire family should be
able to enjoy.
The weekend
of
June
2
were the dates for the first annual
Vintage Aircraft area work party.
The work weekend was headed up by Bob Brauer, your
new Convention VAA Maintenance Chairman. Bob and the
crew were able to install new windows at the V AA Head
quarters and build a foot bridge across the large ditch
just
south
of
the type club tent (just
to
the northwest
of
the shower
house). There were a number of other projects that got com
pleted during this weekend. My thanks go out to everyone
who helped during this work weekend.
If
you'd like
to
know
how you might be able to assist Bob Brauer in doing Mainte
nance and other projects of that nature, you can contact him
at 3121779-2105 or E-mail [email protected].
Steve Nesse has again put together a great workshop tent
area for your enjoyment and education, hosted by your Vin
tage Aircraft
Association
. Some
of
the most well
known
names in the metal forming and
shaping
industry will be
there. The tent
is
located just south
of
the V AA Headquarters
building. Should you like any further infonnation about this
activity, contact Steve at 507/373-1674.
Located next to the Maintenance tent is one of the most
popular services that the Vintage Aircraft Association pro
vides for its members - the Type Club Headquarters. In the
past this area had been chaired by Joe and Juila Dickey. They
The aircraft parking for the
Vintage
Aircraft area is
chaired by George Daubner, assisted by Geoff Robison, who
is also the Chairman
of
Security for our area . Should you
have
any parking concerns
you
can contact George at
414/673-5885 or [email protected]. You can contact Geoff
at 219/493-4724 or [email protected].
Volunteers are always needed to help us man the different
activities in the Vintage Aircraft area during AirVenture and
our Manpower booth is chaired by Anna Osborn. Anna will
open the booth on Sunday, July 25, for you early arrivals.
Should you like to contact Anna in advance
of the show you
can do so at 803/896-4614 or [email protected].
There will once again be an Association gathering Sunday
night
during EAA AirVenture
at the
EAA
Nature Center.
Tickets for this event can be purchased at the red bam in ad
vance ofthe gathering.
Should you need any assistance or need any information
any time during the fly-in, VAA Headquarters is the place to
come. During the day, there is generally someone there who
can help. Just stop at the information booth and say, "Help "
Should there be something that I might be able to help you
with, contact me at 336/393-0344 [email protected].
There are a couple of
items Tshould pass along
to
you for
information.
As
many of
you know,
each
year for over a
decade we have given out a Participants Plaque, featuring the
convention logo and a photograph
of
your airplane on the
AirVenture
flightline.
A great memento for
you
to take
home and hang on your hangar
wall
or in your den . For
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
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VAANEWS
compiled by H
G
Frautschy
ELECTION REMIN
D
ER
Don't forget to mail in your ballot
for the election
of
Officers and Direc
tors
of
the
EAA
Vintage Aircraft
Association. Included in your June is
sue, just tear it out, fill in the appropriate
blank
s and
send
it on its way
with
a
stamp on it. To be counted, it must be
received no later than July 25, 1999.
PARKJNG AT
OSHKOSH?
We'd all like to make a volunteer's
job a little easier
as
they stand in an or
ange vest directing a line
of
airplanes to
the right spot for parking. You can do
your part by using the highly legible
sign included in this issue
of
Vintage
Airplane. Have it ready to hold up to
the Flight Line Operations volunteers
after you clear the runway at EAA Air-
TH
E C
OV
E R S
FRONT
COVER ..
Ron
Karwacky's
Cessna 195 has been
a
labor
of
love
for over 15
years.
Read how
he
keeps
it
so
bright
in
this month
's
feature,
Persimmon
and
Silver,"
starting
on
page
14 . EAA Photo by Mark
Schaible,
shot
with
aCanon
Eos 1
n
equipped with an 80-200
mm
lens on
Fuji 100
slide film .
EAA Cessna 210
Venture Oshkosh '99. If
you're
flying
an Antique (built prior to Sept. I 1945),
Classic
9/1
45 through 12-55) or Con
temporary (1955 through 1960) into the
Convention, these signs are just the
ticket you need to get
to
the right spot to
park. You can even use them when you
go to other fly-ins
NEED EAA
AIRVENTURE INFO?
If
you're planning to
attend
EAA
AirVenture by flying in , you'll need to
obtain a copy
of
the NOT AM issued by
the FAA. The easiest way is to simply
pull it out of
the June
iss ue of Sport
Aviation- it 's on pages 64A&B. You
can also access it via
EAA's Fax
On
Demand
service. Call 732-885-6711
and be ready to
enter
the Fax number
you wish
to
have a copy of the Fax-On
Demand Directory sent to. Follow the
voice
prompts
for
your
in
st ructions
.
The NOT AM (and the Fax-On-Demand
Dir
ec
tory) is also available on EAA
AirVenture's website at httpllwww ir-
venture.org
We strongly recommend you obtain
your copy
of
the
NOT
AM as
early
as
you can and familiarize
yourself
with
the instructions .
It's
not hard to fly in,
and many pilots consider
it
a lot
of
fun,
but there are a lot of aircraft inbound to
Oshkosh , and it
helps knowing what
yo u' re s
upposed
to be
doing
without
having to rustle through the papers in
the cockpit trying to find the NOT AM.
Keep your eyes outside and follow the
controller's directions , and
we'll
see
you at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh
AIRVENTURE 1999
Plenty to do, and plenty to see The
1999 edition of EAA AirVenture
promises to be a humdinger , with the
Salute to Air Show Legends headlining
is always a sellout, so be sure and get
your tickets early. The picnic starts at 6
p.m. on Sunday, Aug.
1
at the EAA Na
ture Center. A scrumptious buffet-style
turkey dinner will be served. Tickets
cost $8.
VAA Workshops and Forums: In
addition to the regular forums held in
the Forums Plaza, special events will
also take
place
near the V
AA
Head
quarters building, located just east
of
the Theater in the Woods. Be sure and
visit the Type Club tent, where you can
learn
about your
favorite
type
of
air
plane. Right next door
is
the
V
AA
Workshop tent, which will be bustin ' at
the seams with all sorts
of
hands-in
metal shaping going on.
Also
, be sure to take you
children
over the EAA KldVenture, located next
to the new EAA Leadership Center at
the EAA AirVenture Museum. Model
rocketry, airplane models and all sorts
of other activities will take place. Get in
on the
fun
For more information on V AA hap
penings, be sure and stop by the V AA
Headquarters building, and pick up a
copy of the VAA's own daily newslet
ter, Aerograms.
EAA
AirVenture
-
i
t 's the
world
of
aviation
in a
single place
for
one
week a year."
NEW V AA CHAPTER
Congratulations to our newest chap
ter, V AA Chapter 35 in Graner, IN. A
brand new charter was issued to them
placing them in good standing. We look
forward
to
hearing
from
president
Randy Hunt concerning Chapter activi
ties, and remind all other V AA Chapters
that you can submit photos and articles
to
Vintage Airplane. Let us see what
you '
re
up to
http:///reader/full/venture.orghttp:///reader/full/venture.org8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
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MOTHS
AT E IRVENTURE
One
of
the groups we look
forward to
seeing
at E
AirVenture 99 is the DH
Moth
Club,
who
plan on having about a dozen biplanes at the
Convention . Michael Maniatis, chairman
of
the club, sent in these
Moth
photos
to
help
whet
your appetite:
Bill
Weiss
Gerry Schwam
Watt Martin
GEORGE
YORK
1924 1999
George
York ,
EAA 11310, VAA
1085
passed
away
9
Ed
Katzen
Michael Maniatis
George flew the
standard
Navy trainers
of the
day, and
eventually served in the Pacific
theater of operations, first flying
the TBM, then the PBY Catalina
and
finally
he was
flying
the
Martin PBM Mariner out
of
Ok
inawa when the war ended.
Home
to
Mansfield by the fall
of 1946, he enrolled
in
Ashland
College,
and
joined
the
Naval
Reserve. After two years
of
school, he
was employed
by the Gorman-Rupp
pump
company, working around his
class schedule for the last two years
of
college. He served Gorman-Rupp for 38
years , progressing from research engi
Greg
Ross
Bayard upont
the leadership positions, with Jim serv
ing as president and
George
as the
Secretary/Treasurer. George also pub
lished the Staggerwing
News,
and
continued to hold both positions until
his death.
Most
of
you will know George as the
untiring volunteer who for over 20 years
served as the Chairman of Classic judg
ing during the annual EAA Convention
in Oshkosh. A Director of the Division
since 1980, he served as an advisor to
the Board prior
to that.
George also
served
the
Board
as
Secretary from
1988-1991.
We ll miss Georges forthright obser
vations on the state of vintage airplanes,
8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
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RYAN
5T ADDITION
With Reference to page 1 1 of the
May issue of Vintage Airplane, and the
photograph of Ryan ST-A NC14955,
sin 111. In the caption
it
was stated only
four ST models were built, all of them
in
1934. To keep history straight, there
were actually five
of
the
ST's
built, all
with the
Menasco
B-4
(95 hp) from
1934 to 1937. The last one, serial num
ber
155 was sold to
Haller
Aviation,
Pretoria, South Africa,
in
1937.
It
car
ried registration number ZS-AKU.
Only one
of
the original five STs is
in existence. It is serial number 117, NC
14985, presently under restoration in
Dayton, OH. The ST -A in the photogra
phy
no
longer exists, other
than its
paperwork.
Best Regards,
Ev Cassagneres
EAA 311976, VAA 13785
Ryan Aircraft Historian
Cheshire, CT
Ev is right on the button. Joe Jupt
ner s
u s
Civil Aircraft only shows the
US registered Ryan STs but the exported
airplane does not appear.
- H.G. Frautschy
EAA
CAMARADERIE
DearEAA,
Last spring I brought a
neighbor
friend
of
mine , John Leiby, to Sun
'n
Fun '98 at Lakeland, Florida. We set
up a camper and spent about five full
days enjoying the convention, and fly
ing my PA-16 (N5674H), which was
parked in the Antique/Classic parking
area. This was not the first Sun
'n
Fun
for John, but the one that had the most
impact. To add to the excitement, I had
the opportunity
to
fly an air photo shoot
with Jim Koepnick in the EAA photo
ship. The pictures came out fantastic!
John was so impressed with the
EAA, and sport aviation that he asked
me to teach him to fly. Using a Cessna
150 from our local airport, John com
pleted his aviation training by taking his
private pilot check ride on 28 December
1998. The enclosed picture (below) is
John
(white
shorts)
and I
standing
in
front of my PA-16
Clipper.
Now
John plans on fmding an airplane of his
own and getting more involved
in
sport
aviation.
Thanks to the great impression made
by EAA, and all the friendly people in
volved with your organization, another
person has made a commitment to be
ing
involved
in
sport aviation and
attaining a pilot 's license. Next month
is
John's birthday and I have decided to
purchase him a membership
in
EAA.
Sincerely,
Mark W. Johnson,
EAA #327080, VAA 13450
Riverview, Florida
L 16 REBUILD
Dear Sir:
I see
in
April VINTAGE AIRPLANE
(Hooray for the new name) magazine
you printed A Few Questions." Per
haps you could print a few more.
I have restored USA NG L-16A 47
1271 and an starting on US NG L-16A
47-878, back to original factory colors
as best
as
I can determine.
1 Where does the factory data plate
belong?
2) Does anyone have any info on L
16
use
in
Korea?
3) Does anyone have info on these
SIN aircraft? 47-1271
started
in
the
Oregon Army National Guard and went
to CAP
in
Utah. 97-878 started
in
Army
NG
in Fargo,
North
Dakota went to
CAP in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and
was
wrecked. This
was
before CAP
used
N
numbers so this aircraft was
NEVER on the civil register and has no
Airworthiness Certificate.
4) What must I do besides rebuild it
to look like its brother in order to obtain
an Airworthiness Certificate?
Thank you,
Tony Mark!
EAA 377515, VAA 28854
P.O. Box 90
Marydel, MD 21649
Dear Tony
J'lllet the L-i6 experts out there an
swer your markings questions, but I can
add my
two cents worth on the airwor
thiness question. Since it has not been on
the civil register, you will need to have a
FAA inspector peiform a Conformity In
spection. Normally done in these cases
when the aircraft is completely restored,
it would
be
best you confirmed the
FAA s desires by contacting your local
8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
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l ve
ears
tt
Outer Marker
Part
in
our continuing series of Dutch Redfield s
early career
in
aviation
during the
heady years before
WW-II.
When
we
left Dutch last month, he had iust experienced
the thrill of his irst solo in a Bird biplane.
Chapter
Two
t
was during this very early phase
of
my flying career that Salt City A vi
ation began having financial problems
and a
former army pilot that had
no
commercial aviation experience took
over as company
manager
and com
pany pilot from Fred Mc Glynn, who
had resigned.
The flight instruction
that I re
ceived on the Kinner Bird
n
payment
for my work on the Buhl was mostly
given
by the company's new pilot,
Byron Glover, and the training under
standably was somewhat similar
to
that given
military
pilots
,
except
Glover had never instructed.
years was seldom flown.
For my
efforts
on the Buhl major
overhaul I was owed about four hours
flying time, and I was concerned with
the
company dissolving
that I
might
not
receive it.
For some
time I
had
hoped to be able to fly the beautiful
Buhl which I had been very close to.
Glover was aware
of my
longing and
I had let him know that I would trade
the four hours
of
owed flying time on
the Bird for one hour
of
dual instruc
tion on the Buhl, if it could possibly
be arranged.
One November morning he said to
me, Come,
let's
take the Buhl for a
ride ." I
thought perhaps he just
felt
Glover
pulled
the large propeller
through by hand.
Two extra long stacks directed en
gine exhaust far aft along the Buhl 's
belly.
The
exhaust sounds of the big
engine were always beautiful as
it
came to life and idled . Avoiding the
whirling prop, Glover walked around
the lower wing, climbed aboard and
slid into the right front seat
where
I
had previously installed the dual con
trols
in
hopes
I
might
get
a
few
minutes stick time. He said,
Okay,
let's go, you've always wanted to fly
this thing " I guess he had nothing to
lose because he too was soon to be
out
of
a
job,
as was Mc Glynn. But I
8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
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for its time; it was.
There was
a
strong
south
wind
blowing and the grassy field was wet
and green from an overnight
rain
.
The wind did much to mask the much
higher liftoff and landing speeds and
the wet grass covered my bumbling
efforts to achieve and maintain take
off and touchdown alignment. The
control forces and control inputs
necessary to handle this air
plane in the low level
lonely airplane but I was elated as we
jounced over the grassy field.
As we again climbed steeply
into
the increasing wind , I looked back
through the wing brace wires and
struts and down past the trailing edge
of the
shorter tapered lower wing
truck to the airport.
My brother Scotty had a flat-tired
and
battered
Model T Ford sedan
which I was able to buy from him for
$10.00. Barb and I stripped the body
from it, then drove the
chassis
, four
wheels and the engine (there wa s
nothing else left), while seated on a
wooden box that was nailed to an un
secured plank
laid
crossways
across the frame.
Our "car" had no fend
turbulence of the
Buhl Air Sedan CA-G NC8450
as it
was operated during 1933 by Salt City
ers or floorboards and,
Air Service at Amboy Airport near
Syracuse
NY.
s
trong wind,
I
just
flung back rain and
was not prepared
slush during bad
for. With my very
was
padded box.
weather. Also , re
limited experience
member
that
thi s
I
had
become ac
was in the days of
customed to the
horse-drawn milk
fingertip control
wagons with addi
pressures required
tional
hazards that
in flying the Bird
are unknown to the
and the feels
of
flight youth
of
today.
as obtained from a cock
There was room for
pit
position that
two of us to ride on the un
considerably
aft of, not for-
When there were
ward of, the airplane's wings. All
feels and forces
of
the Buhl were very
new
to
me.
We completed about six landings
and they seemed to be getting better.
At
the end of
our
last
landing
roll
Glover unfastened his seat belt and
stepped aft in the cabin. I thought he
was looking for some matches from
his jacket draped over a back seat and
was incredulous when he stepped out
of the airplane. With the prop stream
flopping his pant legs he held the door
and shouted forward.
"Okay
,
she's
all yours. Go ahead and do it " The
door closed with a whump and I was
suddenly all alone as he stepped clear
and stood at the wing tip.
Why Glover took this responsibil
panel and
saw a small
gathering
near the gas
pump alongside Harry Ward's hangar.
News that "Glover was soloing Dutch
Redfield on the Buhl " had gotten
around the airport fast. Many more
experienced aviators
felt
the event
might be worth watching.
I flew a
couple
more "passable"
landings and then taxied back across
the airport toward my friends . As the
prop clattered
the
engine
to a stop I
set the parking brakes and was a very
proud guy. There was much back
slapping and a lot
of
wisecracks. I sa
vored them all.
I am certain that this was the great
three, we rigged a
longer plank
which the weight
of
the two inside oc
cupants held down for the unscheduled
extra passenger. Our grateful rider sat
on the end
of
this board which pro
jected
outside and beyond the frame.
Here he perched between the front and
back wheels with his feet dangling a
few inches above the pavement. This
was a most miserable position for our
extra passenger on sloppy days but he
was afforded some degree
of comfort
from the pants-scorching heat emanat
ing from the
exhaust pipe that
ran
close by.
Later we
were able
to fabricate
something out of wood framing and
chicken wire that vaguely resembled
the streamlining of a racing car body.
8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
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days, a favorite uncle presented me
with a tom and disintegrating raccoon
coat that had somehow stretched to at
least seven feet long. I used aircraft
rib-stitching cord and curved needles
and was able to baseball stitch it back
to a semblance of usability.
Barb
June's
mother somwhere
dug up a
fake raccoon
coat
that bore little re
semblance to the real thing.
With old discarded aviator s hel
mets and heavy gloves, we more than
once
battled our
way to the
flying
field
through wintry drifts
of
snow.
This
was done more , I guess , to be
able
to say that we had done it
and
perhaps prove to ourselves, at least, a
possible display of some kind of alle
giance to the unplowed, snow-drifted
airport, the
dormant hangared ai r
planes behind frozen
hangar
doors
and the snug at-home aviators.
Our
lo
yalty
was
seldom appreci
ated by anyone but o
ld
Bill Churchill,
who ran the airport lunchroom and al
ways seemed able to get there . We
would have a hot bowl of Churchill 's
soup, wa lk through co ld hangars and
then head home with a g low
of
ac
complishment.
A local aviator, Charlie Smith, flew
charters and hopped passeng ers in a
beautiful SM-8A Stinson monoplane.
In his s
pa r
e time he had given
me
some instruction and soloed me on a
Taylor Cub owned
by
Clayt
Welch.
This was in payment for some cleanup
work I had done for Clayt. I enjoyed
this and liked Charlie, but flying this
36-hp light airplane was ju st not like
flying larger plan
es
with the ir open
cockpits and bigger engines.
Charlie asked why I
didn't
talk to
Clayt about possibly looking after his
two airplanes, a Waco F and the Tay
lor Cub. I went to Clayt, he
was
would go back in a year or two, I never
did. May I again say that my com
plete happ in ess with aviation has
never
cause
d me regrets and I
know
now had I delayed a few years that at
later dates my age and
experience
level would have been a hindrance.
The Waco F was a new and lovely
graceful open cockpit biplane that was
far ahead of its time in looks and per
formance. Clayt was very proud of it
and Twas proud to be associated with
Clayt's operation. Thus began an un
ceasing and strong affinity for
Waco
airplanes and open cockpit biplanes. I
later
came
to
operate
three di fferent
Wacos
of
my own.
Flying the F was far different from
the
Bird
which I had been flying the
most, and far different from the Buhl,
the
Waco
10,
the Curtiss Robin
and
the deHaviliand Moth that I also had
some time in.
t
was nimble and very
light and sensitive on the controls and
a very stable airplane that hardly had
to be
more
than
w
ished around. It
would lift
off
the gro und and
fluff
to
flight with a very short roll and then
climb with unabated drive at a very
steep angle. To land the airplane was
pleasant and easy. The lift of its two
hi gh li ft
airfoils
and
th e drag
of
the
wing brac
in
g struts and wires perm it
ted steep
but
slow glides
and
s
hort
,
so f
t touchdowns, as very close to the
ground the wings smoothly and slowly
unloaded their lift.
The
Warner
radial
e ngin e
pro
vided far more power than needed . t
was by far the smoo the st and peppi
est e
ngine that
T
had
yet
flown
behind . The individual
short
stacks
emittin g ex hau s t
se
parately from
each of
the
seven cylinders were
a
delight to the
ears,
from idle to full
throttle
. At
night
the blue-flamed
the flowing airstreams and sounds and
feels of flight, just wasn't the same. I
tolerated it because any kind of flying
was fun and I wished to build up my
flying hours no matter what airplane I
was
flying . The
Cub
always seemed
to
be
going . t was one
of the first
ones built by Taylor Aircraft and the
first light airplane
on the field.
Tn
later years the Cub turned out to be a
very popular
trainer
because it
was
easy
to fly
and could
be
operated
at
low costs.
For Sunday afternoon passenger
hopping,
the
Waco
was an easy air
plane to
sell
rides for because
everybody
seemed to want to ride in
the snappy red and silver Waco. My
success
at
selling
tickets as I wan
dered among the parked cars made me
believe that I was a pretty good sales
man after all.
Clayt
Welch's
business was doing
well and I was wonderfully happy and
content and busy.
One of Cl
ayt's
students rented the
Waco
F
to fly north
to
Quebec
,
Canada, to visit some friends on vaca
tion, planning to
come
back the next
day for a
business
appointment. On
that morning, Clayt rece ived a phone
call from the Quebec airport manager
that hi s Waco had crashed and the pi
lot had been killed.
News got around quickly
and
the
whole airport was saddened and I was
crushed as preparations were mad e to
go
ge t what
was
left of thi s fine air
plane. Clayt, his wife, and I drove up
to Quebec in his 1930 Model A sedan,
towing a small
two-wheeled trail
er
because we had been told that was all
we would need to bring back the few
parts remaining.
t had been a damp, foggy morning
and the pilot was anxious to get back
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Those at the airport could soon
tel
that
he was in real
trouble
by the
sounds
that were coming from the leaded sky.
The Waco s engine screamed, then la
bored,
as
the
airplane
was heard
to
several times dive steeply, apparently
recover, then climb heavily. It was be
ing terribly misflown as vertigo took
over, forcing the pilot into insane air
plane control as he responded to the
now totally misleading
feel
cues of
flight. The Waco could only contribute
spond to the pressures of flight di
rected to elevators, ailerons and rudder
as they are frantically
deflected
into
flowing airstreams. Spatial disorien
tation
compounds into exasperating
befuddledness despite frantic efforts
to
survive,
and the pilot no
longer
knows which way is up.
The Waco and the wide-open
Warner
engine could
be heard
through the
fog
in
screaming
dives
and faltering recoveries, each one
an
overloaded,
under-powered air
plane,
the Cub spun
out of a
low
wing-over. The pilot s passenger was
killed and the
airplane
was demol
ished. Clayt
Welch's
flying service
no longer was.
It
was only a short time following
the
demise of Welch Flying Service
that one ofClayt's former Waco stu
dents, Bill Heffernan, decided that he
might give the flying business a whirl.
Another Waco F was
purchased
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aerodynamic alignment that produce a
good flying
airplane when
the
previ
ous
owner
had
put
it on its back in the
middle of the airport after nosing over
from a vicious ground loop.
We
never
were able
to rig
out
a
wearisome
left
wing heaviness.
Being
very
aware of what
had hap
pened to
Clayt's
Waco and why I was
determined to find out for
myself
a lit
tle
about flying by instruments.
The
second
F
was instrumented similar to
the one in Canada. I waited for cloudy
days with 2000 to 3000 feet
of
clear air
below and on these
days
I
would en
deavor to climb a few hundred feet up
into the
overcast while attempting
to
maintain control. Time after time
I
came falling out of the cloud base but
as soon as visual ground reference was
attained, recovery was simple; then
I
would try again.
After
a
while
I
was able to inter
pret and
mange
the instruments long
enough to fly
straight and level
and
make straight climbs
and
descents of
short
duration . Later I was able
to
make shallow turns of varying
amounts
by
timing with
the
sweep
hand of my wristwatch.
Should some of to
day's
aviators be
aghast at this possible lack
of
concern
for other air traffic, please note
that
there was no airport control tower no
radios
or airways traffic control, and
no one flew
cross-country
on instru
ments anyway. I had the clouds all to
myself because no one else wanted
any part of them.
One winter afternoon
when
practic
ing I
found myself doing pretty
well
and ended
up
climbing
5000 feet
through the thick clouds. We broke on
top and the Waco streaked through the
wispy white
of
the
cloud
tops
and
into
trailing elevators, and the black verti
cal fin
and
its trailing
rudder, now
responding to
trial
movements of my
feet the
empennage
surfaces geomet
rically tied together by the streamlined
tail brace wires.
For 30
or 40 minutes I cavol1ed up
there
alone
in
another world of
un
be
lievable beauty.
I would
roar down
dark valleys with the
Waco's
wing tips
brushing the sides then steeply banked
swooping pull-ups
up
and over the
white
of the billowing
peaks,
with
a
plunge down into the dark valleys on
the other side. Tightly banked
turns
around mountain peaks and loops and
wing overs and stalls close to the peaks
falling
down
the mountain sides on re
covery. And as I looked down, the
plane's
faithful
shadow cavorted
with
us, always
completely
circled by
a
small but
perfect bright rainbow
of
many brilliant
hues.
Such
a
jo y
what
sense of speed, such appreciation of
nimble, responsive
airp
lane being
tightly
maneuvered
in close proximity
of the yielding wispy clouds.
But
the
sun
was getting low and
the cloud tops
below were
changing
to ominous and gray. There had been
no
breaks
and I had not seen
the
ground
for
a
long
time.
When we
had climbed into the clouds, the base
of
the overcast
had been at 2,000
feet. I
was now at 7,000
feet
and
re
alized
that there was 5,000 feet of
cold and wet
cloud to descend
through
. I
was also
acutely
aware
that
[
had to maintain contro
l
of the
airplane while also keeping the en
gine
running smoothly
at
reduced
descent
rpms
in
probable
icing
con
ditions. As we
entered
the cloud
tops
I
swallowed
a
few times as my
attention riveted to the turn needle,
descent heading
and
the pesky left
wing heaviness was
very
bother
some. This was the longest stretch
that
I
had
ever
flown
solely
by
in
struments and my descent was being
made purposely slow.
The
forces
and the feels
of
flight that were send
ing
signals to my
body were
becoming
more and more difficult
to
ignore as the needles
of
flight seemed
to
be telling me one thing, my
body
strapped to the pilot's seat, another.
I
had
to concentrate
very
hard, forc
ing my
control inputs
to
be
in
response
to
the needles
flickering be
fore
me
and not
to
what
my
senses
felt. I
was
not
sure how much longer
I
could
do so and the air was
getting
more turbulent and
upsetting.
I felt
alarm as
I
neared
2,000
feet still
in
the
enveloping cloud mass.
But now
it seemed getting
lighter
and
I
stole
a
glance
over
the
cockpit
coaming. The wings and
struts
could
now
be seen
slicing
through
whiter
wisps of cloud. Suddenly
I
was un
derneath the heavy overcast and in
the clear.
t was snowing
lightly
and
through the reduced visibili ty
I
looked down at roads and buildings
that
appeared
familiar,
yet I
was un
able to identify
them nor my
position.
Here
I was but where was
I?
and
which
way was
the airport? I
was confused because
I
thought
I
should be west of
town,
but nothing
below fit this supposition.
I
circled and circled
trying
to
sort
things
out. t
was with incredulous
disbelief
that
I
finally concluded that
we
had
descended out of
the
overcast
many
miles from
where
I had started
my
climb
and were
now actually east
of
Syracuse instead
of
west. Powerful
upper
air winds had drifted the slow
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out to gawk at the latest aeronautical technology, to marvel at at
tempts to harness the air, and to take inspiration from the heroic
achievements
of
the aeronautical pioneers.
t
was
St
Louis at its
most engaging.
Seemingly oblivious to the danger, Lindbergh climbed into
the Spirit
of
St. Louis in
New
York on the morning
of
May
5,
1927, taxied across the field, and flew toward the Atlantic Ocean
for the longest and most difficult flight up to that point of his ca
reer. His completed plane was 27 feet, 8 inches long, 9 feet, 10
inches tall, and 46 feet wide from the tip of one wing to the tip of
the other. Although he could fly it as fast as 129 miles per hour,
Lindbergh flew slower over the ocean to conserve fuel.
En route, the plane encountered high winds and an electrical
storm and Lindbergh endured the
agony
of keeping himself
awake and alert through
33
grueling hours
of
flight. But when
Lindbergh landed in Paris a day and a half after taking off from
New York, there was enough fuel left in the tanks to fly a thou
sand more miles and Lindbergh announced that the Spirit
of
St.
Louis had flown perfectly. Immediately, Lindbergh and his little
silver plane were surrounded by thousands of fans cheering for
him in his triumph. Together, he and his plane had successfully
completed a flight many had thought impossible.
Today, the original Spirit
of
St. Louis
is
on display at the na
tional Air Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution
in
Washington, D.C But St. Louisans can see a replica of Lind
bergh s plane much closer to home - at the Missouri History
Museum
in
Forest Park. The Missouri Historical Society, Trans
World Airlines, Inc. and Save A Connie, Inc., an organization of
retired TWA pilots and other personnel, have teamed up to re
store
the
replica that
has
been
on loan
from
the Historical
Society to Lambert International Airport since 1975 . Now re
stored, it is on
display
at
the Missouri History Museum and
hangs
in
the Grand Hall
of
the Emerson Electric Center.
THE ORIGI L SP R IT
OF ST LOU S
When Charles Lindbergh became the first person to fly solo
from New York to Paris in 1927, he was instantly heralded as a
hero throughout the world . But Lindbergh insisted that his air
plane, the Spirit
of
St. Louis, receive its fair amount
of
praise for
the feat, because he believed that he could not have made it
if
it
hadn't been for this very special plane.
In deciding to attempt the flight , Lindbergh knew he was un
dertaking a very dangerous task . The
journey
would be long;
Years
of
display in
the
Lambert International terminal
not
to
mention
the
many years before
that
when
the
replica
had been
flown
all combined
to
make a replica in sore need
of
TLC.
The fabric peeled back on
the
wings revealed some
damaged ribs and
the
warped plywood you
see
here.
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To make the Spirit even lighter, Lindbergh directed the
plane's body to be built of welded steel tubes covered with
cloth, and its wings to be built of wood, wire and cloth. He
also
vetoed
the
inclusion
of
many
items found in
some
other planes of the period, including navigation lights, fuel
gauges and a radio. He even decided to make his historic
flight
without
a
parachute.
All
of
these
measures con-
tributed to a plane whose weight was less than the planes of
rival pilots who were anxious to be the first transatlantic
solo flyers . They also made the flight more dangerous .
The replica is accurate in a wide variety
of
ways including the
use of
a wicker seat
for
the aft Lindbergh seat.
The nose of the replica features a second cockpit, used during filming
of the
movie The Spirit
of St
. Louis, starr ing Jimmy Stewart.
The Standard Steel prop
is mounted on
the
crankshaft
of the Wright J-
5 engine, complete
with
the distinctive front-mounted magnetos.
BOUT THE REPLICA
The 2,850 pound airplane that became the replica of the
Spirit
of
St. Louis was built in 1928 by
B
F Mahoney Air-
craft Corporation, the successor to the company which built
the original Spirit of St. Louis, Ryan Airlines of San Diego.
One
of
several Ryan Broughams (this one
is
SIN 153) built
that year by Mahoney, the model was similar in design to
Lindbergh's plane.
The plane was the property
of
several owners before be-
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Loaded
up
on a dolly sans landing gear, wings
and tail, the Spirit of st. Louis replica is rolled
into the Grand Hall of the new Emerson
Electric Center at the Missouri Historical
Society's museum in
St
Louis's Forest Park.
behalf
of
the donors by Wooster Lam-
bert, an investor in the original Spirit
of St. Louis, at a ceremony at Lambert
Field. Almost immediately, the His-
torical Society agreed
to
lend the
replica to the New York World's Fair
commission to exhibit in the Missouri
Pavilion, but plans to fly the plane to
New York City were thwarted.
In order to secure FAA experimen-
tal flight certification so that the plane
could be flown,
the plane
was first
successfu lly test flown at Lambert
Field, explained Smith. After land-
ing, however, winds caused the plane
to tip over,
damaging its nose. As a
result
, it
was
recommended
that
the
plane not be flown.
Despite this setback, the replica was
displayed for a year at the New York
World's
Fair before returning to St.
Louis in November 1965 on a flatbed
truck.
t
was then stored briefly at the
home
of
Joseph Desloge in Florissant,
Missouri.
n
1967, the Missouri His-
torical Society authorized aviation
company
Remmert-Werner
to repair
the replica at a cost of $79,000, and it
was flown downtown in commemora-
tion of the 40th anniversary of
Lindbergh's transatlantic flight.
Following the commemorative
flight , the plane
was
housed in a
hangar
at
McDonnell Douglas
until
Lambert Airport completed its new in-
ternational wing. The replica became
a part of the airport's display in 1975
and has been on loan , annually
re
newed, ever since.
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U
l
P
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(Top) Long and sleek, the Cessna 95 was intended
to
give the busi-
nessman pilot retractable plane performance without the hassles of
maintaining the retraction mechanism. The
trim
color
of
Ron s 95
is
Persimmon.
(Right)
Ron
Karwacky (center)
with two
of
his airport
buddies, Bryan
Rosen
(left) and Mark Holmes.
Big
Ron's Backhoe Service
in the Los
Angeles basin is Ron's business, and to
get away
from the grit of everyday
mak-
ing a living, Ron
heads
out to
the
airport
Cherokee, or any
thing, let alone a
long-legged, tail
wheel equipped
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ofthe 195 , ready and signed off to fly it all
by himself. Most people look at him in
credulous
ly
when he describes the events
after he bought the 195, but to him it was
no
bi
g deal, du e in large part to the attitude
he went into learning how to fly the air
plane and the du al he received from Ted.
While the 195 does not
jump
to the fore
front when you' re thinking of trainers,
it
worked well for Ron, who went on to fl y
the fas t (165 mph),
comfort
able " Busi
nessliner." H
is
taming of what some have
dubbed a beast" proved once aga
in
th at
many airplanes are give n undeserved sec
ond-hand reputation s, rath er than th e
respect they deserve.
Based at the legendary Flabob Airport
near Los Angeles, the 1
95
has been a con-
stant "work in progress" for Ron, never
spend ing much time at a
ll
out
of
service,
even when the dec ision was made to
change out the Jacobs for a new rebuild,
one
of
the last done by Jim McCorklin, Ja
cobs' then shop foreman
ip
Payson, AZ.
This particular 195 actually started out
as
a 190 , powered by a 240 hp Continen
tal. The only difference between the two
models is the engine insta
ll
ed at the fac
tory, and seeing one converted to the 195
is no big surprise. First delivered as a cor
porate airplane,
it
shuttled between the St.
Louis and Kansas City areas for the first
14
years. In 1971 , Norm Goyer, then the
proprietor
of
an FBO in New York state,
did the conversion after a skilled airline
pilot, Edson Raymond, neatly executed a
forced landing with the airplane. The prop
decided
to
depart the engine while
in
YFR on top" flight over the Berkshire
mountains. Landing upillll on a beginners
ski slope during the summer, the damage
done to the Cessna was a small wrinkle
put near the top
of
the rudder when a tree
branch caught
it
as the airplane was swung
around at the top
of
the illll, and a pair of
During
all
of th e
timen he has owned it,
Ron kept polishlng and
maintaining the Cessna,
polishing it first with a
couple
of
brands before
settling on the Nuvite ,
which his friends Kent
and Sandy Blankenburg
a lso
prefe
r to u
se
on
their polished airplanes.
Th e in te rior has re
ceived an equal amount
of
work, much
of
it the
handi wo rk of Ma rk
Holmes. Mark 's bee n
wi th the proj ect for so
long he has done a cou
ple of items twice, like
the seats. The
fi
rst go
a round had vi ny l
covers, bu t n
ow
the
smell
of
cushy leather
upholstery greets you
when
yo
u poke yo ur
nose in th e cabin. Oh,
the creature comforts
Cessna
used
to ad
vertise the
19 195
to
the we ll hee led
busi
nessman:
For those
whose choice
is
unre-
stricted . .. " and
in
other
promotional material
they gushed: The 190
and
195
are all metal,
high wing, single en-
gine planes which
off
er
the utmost n personal
comfort and pleasure
n
cross-country flying.
You can almost smell the leather as you peer inside the sumptuous
cabin
of
the
195 Mark Holmes gets much of
the
credit for how
the
interior looks, including the 3/4 ca rpet and carefully applied
trim
.
The panel of the 195
has
plenty of room for round d ial goodies. As
with so many vintage airplanes, radio placement can
be
a
bit
of
a
challenge ( Now where'd I put that
GPS
? ) but as
the
so lid state
radios available today seem to get smaller and smaller (and run cool-
er) it seems to get a
bit
easier to f ind a spot to shoehorn in a couple
of Com radios and a transponder.
These planes are built of thefinest materi-
als throughout, and in no cas e is any
sacrifice
of
quality madefor price. Instead
they are built with the main thought in
The 195 may have gained a less than
sterling reputation due to the perception
that its size and somewhat limited visibil
ity over the nose combine to make it
a
beast," but
if
you take the time to speak
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~ ~ ~ ~
,
-
-
. .
F
or years I have read with
envy
the articles of pi-
lots
who fly their
light
planes around
the world.
Like
most
who
love flying I
really
enj oy heading out to some dis
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(Photos 1, 2
3 As
you
can see,
it's quite simple to pack
the
Cub
away. The wings and struts hang in carpet slings.
The
tail wheel is removed and the spring is bolted to
an
angle bracket which
is
secured
to the floor
. The
motor
mount
is
bolted
to
a frame which
is
lag bolted
own
. We
attached our engine come-along
to the
u-bolt welded
to
the
top
of the door opening.
In 1987 a
good buddy
of
mine
talked me
into rebuilding our old family Super Cub that
had been sitting for years in the back
of
the
hangar. We were both easing into retirement
and the idea of flying Cubs to Alaska sounded like just
the thing we
needed
to do .
The
following summer
my
wife Marilyn
and
I
had
a
wonderful time exploring
Western Canada and Alaska. Unfortunately my friend
was not able to join us.
When we returned from that trip we rolled the little
plane, now christened Yellow Bird, to its spot in our
hangar. At that
point we
had no further plans
that
in-
all have their special attributes. Taking into consideration
the
performance
requirements as well as other special
needs, we felt we had the perfect aircraft for the task at
hand. Fortunately, when we rebuilt the Cub, we made the
decision to trick it out utilizing certified modifications
which were
available
from Cub Crafters
of
Yakima,
Washington and Atlee Dodge
of
Anchorage. Some
of
the
modifications we made included installing a 160 hp Ly-
coming, beefing up the fuselage and main spar, an
IFR
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costs somewhere between 1,500 and 2,000.
Shipping agents will quote the cost
of
trans-
porting a container to any spot in the world.
They can also provide a container on a per
diem basis.
When an
aircraft
is
flown
in
to
another
country it s normally
just
standard
every
day
procedure. When one s shipped in, that s an-
other
story, as
a totally different group of
bureaucrats and rules must be dealt with. The
shipping agent on the other end takes care of
most
of
the details . The majority
of
the coun-
tries require payment of a temporary import
fee which is calculated on the value you put
on
your
plane.
This
is
supposed
to be re
funded if the plane s shipped or flown out of
the country within a year. Once
you re
there
Most
of the EAA
members at
the 992
Siljansnas Fly-In in Sweden are pictured here,
you can fly to neighboring countries, clearing
along
with
Marilyn and I in the
front
row. There were
also
a
few other
members
n and out just like anybody else. Some places
from other
Scandinavian countries. It was a most hospitable event
require local liability insurance . As to hull
coverage on the plane, that can be a problem.
After getting a quote I decided to take the risk myself.
In September of 1988 we met Yellow Bird in Nairobi.
After putting the plane back in one piece we spent seven
wonderful weeks touring Kenya and Tanzania with side
trips to Rwanda and Eastern Zaire . Like all trips of that
duration you have to expect some
weather
days and un-
foreseen
problems. We were
fortunate
that
everything
went pretty well according to plan and the Cub performed
flawlessly. In places like Africa where the road systems
are not so great, virtually every lodge
or game camp has a
strip right next to their facility, from my point of view a
pilot s paradise.
The
trip to Africa was such a success that we decided
to ship the Cub on to Australia and meet it there the fol-
lowing year. When a plane is shipped in this manner a
contact on the other end must receive it and make arrange-
ments
to
store
it
at
suitable airport. This
is
when
I
discovered that the EAA was much more than a bunch of
enthusiastic pilots here in North America. When I have
contacted the EAA chapter presidents in other countries,
not only did I make new friends, I also had a very reliable
individual representing me. We have found that pilots the
world over, for the most part, are wonderful individuals
and especially those who belong to the EAA.
Now fully retired,
Marilyn and
I
decided
to meet the
Cub once
a
year
some place
in
the world where
it
was
practical and safe to fly a private plane. What followed
were trips to New Zealand, South Africa (where we vis-
ited five adjoining countries), then Chile and Argentina.
In 1992 we
gave our
faithful but
somewhat
rusty con
tainer to the flying club in Valparaiso, Chile and headed
8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
27/40
There have been times I could have used a pacifier during my flying, too
bensen, who at that time was head of
the Danish
Chapter of
the EAA , to
ask for advice on sending the plane
n
to Scandinavia . The outcome was
that we shipped the plane to Bent
who lives in Esjberg, Denmark, then
met it there this
past
July and spent
six weeks touring Denmark, Norway,
Sweden, Finland and Lapland. I ve
never seen so many enthusiastic
EAAers . Everyone went out
of
his
way
to see that we
had
a
good time
and saw as much of
their country
as
possible.
We attended a
fly-in held
at
Sil
jansnas, Sweden which was put on by
local pilots and EAA Chapter 222 out
of
Copenhagen. The weather
was
great and well
over
100 planes were
n attendance. The EAA is definitely
alive
and
well in
that part
of
the
world. One thing that makes it nice
for visitors like us s that Scan-
dinavians communicate among
themselves
in English.
Air
control
is also in
English.
Most every pilot had been to
Oshkosh
or
said they planned
to go in the near future.
Yellow
Bird now
sits
in a
hangar at the Esjberg Air Port
with my
good buddy Bent
looking after it for me. Down
the way
in
another hangar
is
his Aeronca 7C which looks
like it was just delivered from
the
factory
. We plan
to be
back over there in June
with
Russia , Estonia , Latvia ,
Lithuania and Poland
on our
itinerary. No doubt we ' ll have
the chance to meet more nice
EAA members.
If
not, at least
we can spread the word ......
The flight line
of
the Siljansnas Fly-In, with the Yellow Bird in the center.
Recreational aviation
is
alive and well in Scandinavia
The 150 watt Single Side Band HF radio under the
panel was necessary in Africa and
the
Australian
Outback.
In
South America we were often assigned
HF
frequencies when on instrument flight plans. We
also carry an handheld transceiver and
GPS
8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
28/40
l lJtly Mystery Plane
by H.G. Frautschy
That
amphibian
from Bob
Hol -
lenbaugh s past pu b
li
shed in
our
April issue sure didn t stump many
of you
One
of my
favorite aspects
of
this
column is getting letters from regu-
lar
contributors
as well as
people
who
have some personal connection
with the airplane
in
question. In this
Cyclone engine
and
longer wings.
It
was then sold to
one
o f
the
Vander
bilts
. The
third Fokker
amphibian
had
a conventional retractable land
ing
gear
and wing
jloats,
and was
powered by
a
Pratt &
Whitney
Hor
net B
engine, changing the
d esignation
to
a
F-11 AHB.
This
model was
sold
to Mr.
Gar
Wood,
The July Mystery Plane
has
th t
vague 1 think it's a feeling
bout
it.
See
if you can't make
th t
feeling
go
away by looking
it
up
and
then dropping
us
a
note
here t EAA. Send your
answers to:
EAA
Vintage
Airplane,
PO
Box 3086,54903-
3086.
You answers need to be in
no later than August 25 1999
so
they can
be included in
the
October
issue.
famous for speed boat racing
in
the
D
etroit area
in
the
l
ate '20s
and
'30s.
This
plane was the one
dis
pl
ayed
in the April issue.
Mr. Wood traded it in on a large
Grumman amphibian, the dealer be
in g located
at the Detroit
City
Airport
in 1936.
A friend o fmine, Thomas O '
Ma ll
ey
in Warren, OH learned
that
the Grumman
dealer had
this
Fokker
.
Wejlew over
to
Detroit
to
examine this amphibian. It
had
been
very'
we
ll maintained.
A short
time l
ater
Mr.
0
'Malley
purchased the plane and the docu
ments
disclosed
that it had
been
owned
by
Mr. Wood. Upon
arrival
in
Warren,
I
conducted
a very
through inspection
andfound
that
it
had
been very well
cared
for.
I continued to
maintain the
plane
for
a period o f time.
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Here's another view of the April Mystery Plane, Fokker F11AHB , NC 127M. The F-11
identif
ied the 11th model in the American Fokker series
the A meant that
it
was an amphibian ( rather than showing sequence of development, A
B
etc.), and the HB meant that it was powered by
a 575 hp Pratt & Wh itney Hornet B engine. The photo was taken at the same time and place as Bob Hollenbaugh's photo, but from a different
angle. Note the PARKS name on the hangar. Could either of the individua
ls
at the extreme right and left
of
the photo be Bob? Both seem to
be
winding film
in cameras . . . Pete Bowers.
The whereabouts o this plane
today
is
unknown to me.
Roy Williams
McAllen,
TX
And from Kaz Grevera, Sunny
vale, CA,
quoting the wor
ds
written
in
Fokker- The
Man And
The Aircraft
written by Henri
Hegener and published
in
1961:
When Fokker displayed his lat-
est models at the Chicago
Thanks
to
Rich Allen
Lewiston 10 we have this
listing
of the F-11A amphibians built:
In 901
NC7887
Fokker demonstrator, flown with P&W Wasp 400, and Wright Cyclone 500
hp
engines, tested in
both tractor
and pusher configurations, and
as
a
twin
"push-
pull
pair. Sold
to
Harold
G.
Vanderbilt
of
New York. 1929
1937. Used as a flying yacht. Sold and last used for passenger-hopping
at
Revere Beach MA. Destroyed in 1938 hurricane.
In 902 NC148H
Demonstrator. Dismantled.
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c---- - - - - -5O -7
--j
f -----4Z-11 -
- - -
J
FOKKER AIRCRAFf CORP. OF AMERICA
NEW YORK
"F-ll AMPHIBIAN" 6 PASSENGERS
ENGINE - PRATT & WIllT Y "HORNET" OR WRIGHT
"CYCLONE"
rom "The Aircraft Yearbook - 1929"
From 1930
Jane's All
The
World's
Aircraft
Span:
Length:
Wing
Area:
Empty
Weight:
Gross Weight:
High
Speed:
.
Cruise Speed:
Initial Climb:
Range:
A
number of other tidbits
came
in
notes
from
other
members,
including a
men
tion
by
Frank
Goebel
of
Joliet,
IL that the
airplane
was de
signed by Alfred A Gassner,
who later designed
the
Fairchild Baby Clipper
am
phibian. (See
Volume
3,
ATC
222, of Joe Juptner's
U.S.
Civil Aircraft.) Larry Knech
tel wrote
to tell us
that
a
wingless fuselage to one of
the
five
built
was found in
Canada in the '70s, and
was
returned
to
Holland where
it
is
now n
the A viodrome
Mu
seum
at Schiphol Airport,
Amsterdam,
on
loan from the
Western Canada Aviation
Museum
in Winnipeg. The
airplane is c!n 906,
NC339N.
According
to
data sent
in
by
Marty Eisenmann, Alta
59
ft.
.45
ft.
.500
sq. ft.
.4,100Ibs
.63501bs
.112mph
.95
mph
.700
fpm
. .425 miles
started his first year at the school,
following his graduation from high
school
in
the spring of 1939. It spent
the entire winter of '39-'40 in the
hangar being worked
on,
and didn't
flyaway until
later
in
the
year
of
1940, its
destination unknown. (In
the photo from Pete
Bowers
you can
see it is a warm day, with a
couple
of the young men
in
coveralls that
have
the sleeves cut
off.
The
trees
are
in full leaf, too.) The
scuttlebutt
around
the school
was
that
it
was
destined for Catholic missionary
work
in
the Yukon, but that was
never confirmed.
Other correct answers
were re
ceived from:
M .
Bub Borman, D allas, TX;
Charles F. Schultz,
Louisville,
KY;
John
Beebe, White Stone,
VA;
James
T. Rogers, Lynchburg, VA;
William Knox, Woodstock
, GA;
8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
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PASS T TO BUCK
ODDS
N
ENDS
Dear Buck,
t
is with great pleasure
that
I
sit
down to write this letter to you.
My name
is
Walter Jazun and I am a
captain on the 727 for United Airlines
and very glad to report that all those
pretty pictures
of old
airplanes you
left hanging on the walls
of
the ops of
fice all over the Midwest are still there.
Yeah, they have painted some walls
but the frames seem to survive the "en
thusiasm of young managers
throughout the
system
and are
sti II
proudly decorating the otherwise dull
environment. I've
been with United
since 1989
on
different airplanes and
seats and checked out back in 1997 on
the 3-holer.
I
enjoy your writing and
hard work for the Antique division and
have been following your
activities
with EAA for awhile now and can only
thank you for it and encourage you to
keep doing it with the same energy
But the purpose
of
this letter is first
to congratulate you on your recent pur
chase of a Helton Lark and to give you
a couple
of
pictures I have taken
over
the years of the bird.
I am the proud owner of a 1940 Cul
ver Cadet, SIN 141 , NC29272, which
by E.E. "Buck" Hilbert
EAA
#21
VAA #5
P.O.
Box
424,
Union,
IL
60180
of
Houston. Dan
is
a wealth
of info
about the Culver and derivatives and
very enthusiastic fellow. He runs the
Culver club and, indeed, ferried my air
plane from Ocala, FL to Houston, then
Gainesvi lle where I met him and flew
horne with
the
award. He
can be
reached at 281/351-0114 and
he'll
be
glad to talk Culver with you . Please tell
him I sent you.
r
have a box of material I'd be glad
to send you to copy so you can learn
about the bird.
Al
Mooney
sure knew what he was
doing.
I
get my little Culver in that
sweet spot
and cruise a
ll
day long
(between refueling) at 120 mph, all with
75 HP
Someday when you find yourself in
Tucson, stop at the Pima Museum. They
have a pretty light blue Helton Lark
hanging off the rafter.
As you may know, Bob Short, who
worked with Al Mooney on the design,
is still around and has some material , as
well as Mr. Jamison who lives in De-
land, FL, and is the corn roast CEO at
Sun ' n Fun. The museum at Columbus,
OH airport
is
worth a visit also,
in
mem
ory of Foster Lane.
Dear Buck,
I was pleasantly surprised
when
I
opened the
March
issue of Vintage to
see a photo
of
the prototype Aeronca
Champ. This brought back many mem
ories as I helped construct the airplane
in the Aeronca Experimental Shop in
1943 and '44.
The entire airplane was hand built in
the Aeronca Experime ntal
Shop
in
much the same
manner
as homebuilts
are
constructed today . The
fuselage
was built up using the plumb bob and
piano wire technique on a layout table,
cutting
and fitting one tube at a time .
Production jigs and fixtures came later.
The one piece, formed sheet metal
wing ribs characteristic
of
the Model 7
and II were first used on the prototype
and
were
hydropress formed on hand
made Masonite form blocks. Forming
was
done on
a
50
ton Lake
Erie hy-
dropress which is still in
use
in the
Aeronca plant.
Fabrication of the windshield for the
prototype Champ is an interesting
8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
32/40
of Plexiglas was hung on it using fablic
spring clamps. The furnace was closed
and the temperature run up to the form
ing temperature for Plexiglas. Several
of us
ex
perimental mechanics were
standing by with gloves on
our
hands
ready to hand form the Plexiglas over
the form.
The
furnace door was
opened and much to our surprise, there
was our sheet of Plexiglas on the floor
of
the furnace, like a wet dish rag. The
heat had
caused
it to slip out
of
the
spring clamps holding it to the wire.
For a few seconds we all were frozen
in
dumbfound
sh
ock but one
of
the
mechanics standing by had presence
of
mind
to
jump into the furnace, pick up
the hot sheet
of
Plexiglas and slap it on
the form. The rest
of
us immediately
went to
work
pressing it to the form
and s
moothin
g it
out.
Beli
eve
it or
not, that became the windshield for the
prototype 7 AC and we sti ll had
one
sheet
of
Plexiglas left over. This was
quite a learning experience for all of
u
s
The fabrication
of
the nose bowl for
the prototype Champ was another in
teresting experience. A large block
of
white pine
was glued together. We
had a very talented woodworking per
son, "
Doc
Santoro. You can tell by
his name that he was Italian.
I ll
never
forget his attack on the block
of
wood
with a
vengeance.
Broad
chisel
and
mallet
in
hand as he sang Italian opera,
a nose bowl form block took shape.
By the end of the day he was knee
deep in shavings and two days later we
had a completed form block for form
ing
the prototype nose
bowl
on
our
hydropress. Only
a few nose bowls
were formed on this wood block prior
to
production draw dies.
Examining the photo
of
the proto
type
closely one
can
see a slight
Here s Capt. Jazun and his 1940 Culver Cadet. The
other two
shots are of another Helton Lark, one
Walter considered purchasing before deciding upon
the
Culver.
days. I share your opinion regarding
computers.
I'm
still a hold out.
Best regards,
Bob Hollenbaugh
Middletown, OH
The Champ has been a winner for
over 50
yea
rs now, and
shows
little
signs of
letting
up . Thanks for the
into that little cockpit. His problem
was that his feet got pretty hot.
Those guys really enjoyed their avi
ation. Benny Howard had a great heal
of
fun
and humor with
his
airplanes
and
seemed always in good
spirits.
And he kept his good humor even after
he and Mike nearly bought the farm in
the Mr. Mulligan "hard landing" as he
8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
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Fred Morgan .......Nanango, Australia
Lloyd Shepherd..... ... .............. .... ... .... .
..
..
.
..
.. ... .... .....Mulgoa NSW, Australia
Robert Carlson.............
...
...... ... .......
..
.
.
..
.. .
..
.... .Fort McMurray, AB, Canada
Douglas D. Kruger.. ...... ... ........ ........ .
.................. .
..
Edmonton, AB, Canada
Dr. Pat McIver .................................. .
.................
..
...
..
Camrose, AB, Canada
Dennis W N evett .. ....... .... ................ .
...... ..
.
.
.. ..
.
...
.Abbotsford, BC, Canada
Chris Bryant .Mountain, ON, Canada
Jori Aaltonen ....... .Lempaala, Finland
Gilbert Stimpflin .. .... ... .. ..... ... ........... .
.... .... ..... ..... ... ... .... Battenheim, France
Dennis Jankelow ............................... .
.... Sandton, Republic of South Africa
James Gebhard
.
...........
...
... ............ ... .
..
...
.. ........ ..
...
..
...
Singapore, Singapore
Andy Anderson
..
...... ..... Yellville, AR
Charles Niederhaus .... .....Tucson, AZ
Byron G. Cannon ...Apple Valley, CA
Joseph J. Devlin, Jr ................... ........ .
..................... ........Garden Grove, CA
Alan Fischer
..
.........Los Angeles, CA
Leonard
R.
Duncil ....... Titusville, FL
Tom Robson ........... .Jacksonville, FL
Tommy E. Tomaszewski ........ ........... .
. ..
......
..
......................... Sebastian, FL
Howard L Wellins .Coral Gables , FL
Brian
J.
Holte ................Newnan, GA
Tracy M. Martin
..
.........Comelia, GA
John E. Beck ....... ....... .. .. .Newton, IA
Richard Beinhauer .. ....Naperville, IL
Gerald Buttitta ................ Chicago, IL
Geoffrey M Lagioia .
..
....... ............... .
.. ........ .. ................... Morton Grove, IL
George Nathaus ..... .. ..... ..Chicago, IL
Glenn Lightner. .......... .....Wabash, IN
Carl L Schoolcraft ...........Fishers, IN
Tim R. Jones .................Leawood, KS
Ronald Shank ... .... ....Greensburg, KS
Robert Wallace ......
..
.......Carver,
MA
Robert Hampton ..... Grand Blanc, MI
Richard D. Hensley .. .......Livonia, MI
Arman L Kearfott .... ......Onaway, MI
Michael
D.
Laverty
..
..... Harrison, MI
Thomas Lind ........... .. .
..
.Midland, MI
Donald E. Moore ..... .....Brighton, MI
Joseph R. Myers .....Roscommon, MI
Daniel T. Sire ...........Greensboro, NC
Terry P Bryn..................... Dazey, ND
Richard Aaron ..
..
.........
...
..Sussex,
NJ
Charles E. Pittman ...Little Silver, NJ
George T. Meenach ...Los Lunas, NM
Richard P Woodsum ........ ...... ........... .
.............. Truth or Consequences, NM
Michael D. Scott .... ...Smithtown, NY
Richmond A. Gooden ... .......Ada, OH
Scott A. Harbaugh ....Bellevalley, OH
Lisette Roy ................ ...... Burton, OH
Billy
G.
Zumsteg ............Toledo, OH
Keith Wright ......Oklahoma City, OK
Joseph H. Clarke ..... .... .....Dallas, OR
Tom Kingsley .......... .. .. ..Portland, OR
Alan C. Lail. ................ Hillsboro , OR
John Erickson ........State College, PA
Dwight J. Allenson
..
......
...
.Bristol, RI
Jeff
DeGange .................. ..Aiken, SC
Bruce D. Berry ......... San Angelo, TX
Thurmond R. Boyd ...................... .... .
.. ...... .. ... .... .. ...........Lake Jackson, TX
James S. Dixson II ..................... ..
..
.
..
.
...... .... .................. Corpus Christi, TX
Thomas H. Emerson ..Carrollton, TX
8/12/2019 Vintage Airplane - Jul 1999
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Fly
In
alendar
The following list
of
coming events is furnished
to
our readers as a matter
of
information only
and does not constitute approval, sponsorship, involvement, control or direction ofany event
fly-in, seminars,
fly
market, etc.) listed. Please send the information to EAA Au: Golda Cox,
P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. In formation should be receivedfour months prior to
the event date.
JULY 16-18 - COTTAGE
GROVE,
OR - Oregon An
tique Classic Aircraft Club Bi-Annual
Fly-In.
Contact: 5411746-3246.
JULY 16-18
WEST YELLOWSTONE,
MT - 13th an
mull Northwest Mou
ntain Region
Family Fly-
In
,
Safety Conference
and Trade Show at the
Holiday
Inn Conference Center. Sponsored by local EAA
Chapters and the FAA
Flight
S t a n d a r d ~
District
Of
fice. Kit
plane exhibilOrs
and
seminars.
Contact:
Jim
Cooney.
FAA FSDO, 1-800
/
457-9917. www.faa
.
govlfsdolh
ln.
JULY 17 -STURGIS,
SD
- EAA Chapter
39
Fly-In.
Pancake Breakfast and Young
Eagle
rides. Info:
605/347-3356.
JULY 17
-
COOPERSTOWN, NY
- (NY54)
EAA
Chapter 1070
Pan
cake breakfast
and old
Aeroplane
Fly-In. 7a.m. - noon. Info
:
607/547-2526.
JULY 23-25 - WAUSAU, WI - '40s Wing Ding. Events
Sat., Camp starting Friday and stay
'ti
l
Sunday.
Showers
available
. Breakfast at 7a.m.,
Swing-Big
band Dance 6-11 p.m .. DC-3 rides, Air R a / ~ y after
noon and evening concessions. Fly-out to
Tomahawk, WI on Sun.
Info
: John Chmiel 715/848
AUGUST J5
-
BROOKFIELD ,
WJ -
CapilOl Airport.
16th Annual Vintage Aircraji display and Ice Cream
Social. Noon - 5 p.m. Midwest Antique Airplane
Club monthly meeting, and model aircraft will also
be
on
di,play. Y
ou
can purchase a
ride
on
EAA s
Ford
Tri-Motor,
too
Funfor the entire
family.
Info:
Capitol Airport, 414/ 781-8132 or George
Meade
,
Fly-in Chairman, 414
/
962-2428.
AUGUST2
COOPERSTOWN,
NY- (NY54)
EAA
Chapter 1070
Pan
cake breakfast
and old Aeroplane
Fly-Itl.
7a.lI1. - noon. Info: 607/547-2526.
AUGUST 21-SPEARFISH, SD - EAA Chapter 806
Annual
Fly- In . Camping on field.
Cream
Can
Din
ner. Awards.
Poker
run on
Saturday.
SD Aviation
Hall of Fame Induction
Sat.
Email:
SEPTEMBER 3-5 - PROSSER,
WA
-
EAA Chapter
391
16th
Annual Labor Day Weekend Fly-Ill.
Info:
509/786-1034.
SEPTEMBER 3-6 - WELLSVILLE,
PA
-
Footlight
Ranch.
10th annual Labor Day F ~ y I n . Inf
o:
John
Shreve, 717/432-4441 or Email ShreveprtN@aol.
com
SEPTEMBER 5 - MONDOVI, WI - 14th Anllual Fly
III Lag Cabin Ai/port. Info: 715/287-4205.
SEPTEMBER
5 -
NAPPANEE, IN
- EAA
Chapter
938
Sunday
for a
Sundae fee Cream
Social. 12 10 3
p.m.
SEPTEMBER IO-12 TWA
TER
, CALIFORNIA
-
Golden
West
EAA
Fly-In at Castle Airport.
Con
tact: www.lJlljly-in.org.
SEPTEMBER
11-
OSCEOLA , WI -
19th
Annual
Wheels
Wings
Fly-In. Antique car show, book
sale,
pancake breal.fast.
Info: 800
/
947-0581.
SEPTEMBER
1I-12-MARlO
N, OHIO-MERFI
Mid-Eastern Regional Fl
y-
In. Contact: Lou Linde
man,
937/849-9455.
SEPTEMBER
11-12
- EASTON, PA -
EAA
Chapter
70
FAA
Safety Seminar. Annual
Fall Fly-In.
Fly
Market,
plaques
jor
01
aircraft.
Inf
o:
610/588-0620.
SEPTEMBER
12
- MT. MORRlS,
IL
- Ogle County
Airport
(C55). Ogle Co/lIlty Pilots
Association alld
EAA
Chapter
682 Fly-In
Breal-fast,
7a.m. - Noon.
Injo: Bill Sweet
8151734-4320
or the airport phone.
815/734-6136.
SEPTEMBER 17-18 - BARTLESVILLE, OK
Frank Phillips Field. 42nd Annual Tulsa Regional
Fly-In, sponsored by EAA
Chapter
10
, VAA
Chapter
10,
lAC
Chapter
10, AM
Chapter 2 and
the
Green
County Ultralight Flyers.
All
typ
es
of
aircraft
and
airp lane e
nthusiasts
are
encouraged
to attend. Ad
mission is by donation. Info: Charles
W.
Harris
,
918/622-8400.
SEPTEMBER 17-19
-
JACKSONVILLE,
IL
(IJX)
1
5th Annual
B
yro
n Smith
Memorial
Midwest
Stinson
Reul/ion . Info:
Suzelle Selig, 630/904-6964
SEPTEMBER 18 - COOPERSTOWN, NY- (NY54)
EAA
Chapter 1070
Pancak
e breakfast and old Aero
plane Fly-ln. 7am-noon. Info: 607/547-2526
SEPTEMBER 18-19 - ROCK FALLS,
IL
-North
Centra
l EAA
Old Fashion
ed F ~ v - I n . Forums, work
shops,j1y-market. Camping and Air Rall
y.
Inf
o:
630/543-6743 or check our websiste at http://
mem
bers.aol.
com
/nce
aa
SEPTEMBER 25 - HANOVER, IN - Wood, Fabric
and
Tailwh ee
ls Fly-In. Contact
Rich
Davidson
812
/866-5654.
SEPTEMBER
25-26 -
ZANESVILLE, OH -John s
Landing. 8th
al/I/ual
Vintage Aircraft Chapter of
Ohio Fall Fly- II/. Hog roast
Sat.,
Breakfast and
lun
ch both days. Info: Virginia, 740/453-6889 or
call the airport at 740/455-9900.
OCTOBER
1-3 -
HA
YW
ARD,
CA -
West
Coast
Travel
Air Reunion. Hosted
by
Antique aircraft collector
Budfield.
Private
Museum tour,
San Francisco Bay