EDITORIALSTAFF

Publisher
TomPoberezny
VICe-President
February1996 Vol.24,No.2
CONTENTS
1 Straight& Levell
Espie"Butch"Joyce
2 AlCNews/
H.G. Frautschy
4 Aeromail Page9
5 VintageLiterature/DennisParks
9 Swift50thAnniversary/
PhyllisMoses
13 PatCargile'sClipper/
H.G.Frautschy
17 RayJohnson'sHACChief!
NormPetersen
21 PassittoBuck!
E.E."Buck"Hilbert
22 LendLeaseStinson! Page 13
JimNeuman
24 WhatOurMembers
areRestoringlNormPetersen
26 MysteryPlanelH.G.Frautschy
28 WelcomeNewMembers
29 VintageTrader
30 Calendar
Page 17
FRONTCOVER. ..ThePiperPA- 16Clipperfeaturesfourseatsandcancruise
alongat110mphwithits 115hpLycoming0-235sipping6gph.ThisClipper
wasrecentlyrestoredbyPatCargile.Chapin.SC andhisfriends. EAAphoto
byMikeSleineke. Shotwitha CanonEOS-1nequippedwitha 7(}'2OOmmlens.
1/250@ f8 on100!>SAslidefilm. Cessna210photoplaneflownbyBruce
Moore.
BACKCOVER...TheAeronca11ACChiefwasthesporlplaneoffering
presentedbythecompanyinthepost-waryears. RecentlyrestoredbyRay
Johnson.withhelpfromtheganginEMChapter304.thisChiefwaspicked
astheClassI(0-80hp)ClassicChompionatEAAOSHKOSH '95. EAAphotoby
PhilHigh. Shotwitha CanonEOS-1n equippedwitha 7(}'2OOmmlens. 1/500
@ f6.3on 100PSAslidefilm. Cessna210photoplaneflownbyBruceMoore.
Copyright e 1996 bytheEAAAntique/ClassicDivisionInc.Allrightsreset'Ved.
VINTAGEAIRPlANE (ISSN 0091-6943) is published and owned exclusivety by the fAA Antique/Classic Division. Inc. ofthe Experimental
Aircraft Association andis published roonthIy atfAAAviation Center. 3000 Poberezny Rd., P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WISCOIlSOl 54903-3086.
Second Class Postage paid at Oshkosh, WISCOIlsin 54901 and at additional mailing offices. The membe<ship rate for fAA Antique/Classic
Oivisioo,lnc.is$27.00forrurentfAAmembersfor12monthperiodofwi1ich$15.00isforthepubIicatiooofVlNTAGEAIRPlANE. Membership
isopentoaIwho...,nterestedinaviation.
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ADDRESSES- PleaseaI<JwatleasttwomonthsfordeiveIyofVINTAGEAIRPlANEtoforeignandAPOaddressesviaSLffacemail.
ADYERTlSING- AntiqueICIassic Oivisioo doesoot orendorseany productoflered ttYotqlthe advertising.Weinviteconstructive
criticismandwelcomeanyreportofnteriorrnen:ImdiseobtainedttYotql0lI"advertisingsothatcorrectivemeasu-escanbetaken.
EDITORIALPOUCY:Readers...,encouagedto_ storiesandphotographs. Policyopinioosexpressedin articles...,solelythoseofthe
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Materialshouldbesentto:Editor,VINTAGEAIRPlANE,P.O. Box3086, Oshkosh,WI54903-3086. Phone4141426-4800.
The words EM,ULTRALIGHT, FLY WITH THE FIRST TEAM, SPORT AVIATION and the logos of EM,EMINTERNATIONAL
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MarketingaCommunications
DickMatt
Editor-in-Chief
Jock Cox
Editor
HenryG.Frautschy
ManagingEditor
GoldaCox
ArtDirector
MikeDrucks
AssistantArtDirector
SoraA Otto
ComputerGraphicSpecialists
Olivial.Phillip JenniferLarsen
Advertising
Mary Jones
AssociateEditor
NormPetersen
FeatureWriters
GeorgeHardie,Jr. DennisParks
StaffPhotagraphers
JimKoepnick MikeSteineke
CarlSchuppel DonnaBushman
EditorialAssistant
IsabelleWiske
EAAANTIQUE/CLASSICDIVISION,INC.
OFFICERS
President Vice-President
Espie'Butch'Joyce GeorgeDaubne!
P.O. Box35584 2448LoughLone
Greensboro.NC27425 Hortford.WI53D27
91O/393-D344 414/673-5885
Secretary Treasurer
SteveNesse E.E. 'Buck' Hilbert
2009HighlandAve. P.O. Box424
AlbertLea.MN5tlXJ7 Union.IL60180
507/373-1674 815/923-4591
DIRECTORS
JohnBerendt RobertC.' Bob' Blauer
7645EchoPointRd. 9345S. Hoyne
CannonFalls. MN55009 Chicago.IL60620
507/263-2414 312/779-2105
GeneChase JohnS.Copeland
2159CarHonRd. 28-3WilliomsburgCI.
Oshkosh.WI 54904 Shrewsbury.MA01545
414/231-5002 fIJ8/842-7867
PhilCoulson SlanGomoU
28415SpringbrookDr. 104290thLane.NE
Lawton.M149D65 Minneapolis.MN55434
616/624-<>490 612/784-1172
CharlesHarris JeannieHin
7215East46thSt. P.O.Box328
Tulsa.OK 74145 Horvord,IL 60033
918/622-8400 815/943-7205
DaleA.Gustafson RobertD.' Bob'Lumley
7724ShadyHillDr. 1265South 124thSt.
Indianapolis.IN46278 Brook1ield.WI53005
317/293-4430 414/782-2633
RobeltUckleig GeneManis
1708BayOoksDr. 115CSteveCourt,R.R. 2
AlbertLea.MN5tlXJ7 Roanoke.lX76262
507/373-2922 817/491-9110
GeoffRobison GeOfgeYork
1521 E. MacGregorDr. 181 SlobodaAv.
New Hoven.IN46774 Mansfield.OH44906
219/493-4724 419/529-4378
S.H.'Wes' Schmid
2359LefeberAvenue
Wauwatosa.WI 53213
414/771- 1545
DIRECTOREMERITUS
S.J. WlHmon
1904- 1995
ADVISORS
JoeDickey DeanRichardson
55OokeyAv. 6701 ColonyDr.
Lawrenceburg.IN47025 Madison.WI53717
812/537-9354 608/833-1291
STRAIGHT & LEVEL
Those of you who read last
month's Straight & Level will recall
that I talked about the fact that an
event had come to pass that caused
me to realize what a friendship can mean in your life.
How had I come to this realization? It was the impending
loss of my good friend, Brad Thomas. Brad was a past
president of your Antique/Classic Division and a long-
time EAA volunteer and, most of all , he had been a friend
for a long time.
It was some six to eight months ago that Brad called
me and said he bad some bad news. He had lost weight
and was not feeling well, so he went to see his doctor.
They discovered he had cancer. After the lab test there
was what we thought was good news - the type of cancer
Brad contracted had a good track record of being cured
by chemical treatment. After a couple of months of treat-
ment, it seemed he was on the road to recovery and every-
thing was upbeat.
In September, the EAA B-17 tour was coming to Win-
ston-Salem, North Carolina. Brad was very involved with
this visit , in charge of selling rides in the EAA B-17. To
his credit, this B-17 stop came very close to selling the
most rides, if not the most, of any of the stops for the B-17
tour. I went over to Winston on the Friday that the -17 ar-
rived. Brad was there, and while I was talking to him, he
informed me that he had gone that day for his last treat-
ment, but the doctors would not give the treatment to him
- they had discovered his cancer had spread to other
places.
At this point there are a number of individuals who
make the decision to live out their life as comfortably as
they can. Then there are some people who choose to
fight. Even after some thought, I can't tell you what my
decision would be if I were put in that position.
Brad chose to fight, and he did it like no one I had ever
seen fight cancer before. He told me that he had no other
choice but to fight it, because he wanted to go flying with
his friends again.
He went into a coma before his death, certain in his
own mind that he was going to beat his cancer. If his body
had been up to his will, he would have won. Brad has
gone on to the final fly-in to fly with his buddies who have
gone on before him. The other day at a local EAA Chap-
ter meeting, everyone got up and told a Brad story. One
of the guys said that when we go through those pearly
gates, Brad would be there with his parking paddles,
showing us where to park; then we can all go flying to-
gether again. I sure am going to miss my good friend
Brad.
Brad Thomas, owner and operator of Pilot Hosiery
Mills, Inc., Pilot Mountain, North Carolina; U.S. Army
pilot during WW II; speed boat racer, ham radio opera-
tor, aviation promoter, is survived by his wife Ferne;
three daughters, Karen, Marcia, and Elise; two sons,
by Espie "Butch" Joyce
David and Walt. Brad was also a volunteer at EAA
Oshkosh, most recently helping Jerry Strigel, EAA's
VP. of Finance.
One of the better things to happen this fall occurred
during the first part of December. Norma and I traveled
to just north of Key Largo, Florida where we attended the
"Vintage Weekend" held at the Ocean Reef Club. The
weekend was a show for antique boats, cars and airplanes.
The weather was great with sunshine, a temperature in the
mid-80s and a light wind. The Ocean Reef Club is a com-
munity within itself, with a number of restaurants, shop-
ping areas, golf course, beaches, marina, hotel and airport.
You must have prior permission to land at this airport,
but it usually just requires a telephone call. Denny Moore
is the airport manager and is a Swift owner; he was a most
gracious host to all of the airplane people who flew in.
Friday night they held a cocktail party at a private home.
It was very well done, I might add. Saturday was the big
day for viewing and voting for the best boat, car and air-
plane. There were some of the most impressive boats that
I had ever seen. These older wooden boats, some up to 55
feet in length, were restored to new condition. One of the
boat ' s captains had been commanding the same helm for
45 years; he was 83 years old. A highlight on Saturday was
a ride on the original African Queen, from the movie of
the same name. The African Queen is now owned and
operated by Jim Hendricks of Key Largo, FL and is nor-
mally based at the Holiday Inn there.
One of the other highlights was a chance to look over
the area from the air via a ride in Fred Kirk's beautiful
Howard DGA-15. Jimmy Leeward showed up on Satur-
day in his P-51 "Cloud Dancer." We all had a great time.
On Saturday night we all gathered for a cocktail party,
followed by a Maine lobster bake and entertainment.
Sunday morning we got together for eggs, coffee and the
awards. Each person who brought an antique was given
an award for attending, with a "Grand" award given to a
boat, car and airplane that was chosen by a vote of the
viewers. Dr. John Nordt won the Grand Award for his
PT-22. After this, everyone was free to head home. Any-
one who enjoys seeing antiques would certainly enjoy this
weekend at the Ocean Reef.
Weather seems to be dealing us a blow again this year
with all of the snow, wind and flooding. You need to take
extra care protecting your aircraft. Keep a close watch on
your hangars and tiedowns; don't depend on others to
look after your investment. Cold weather also seems to
cause people to rush a preflight inspection. Let's be extra
careful out there.
As an EAA Antique/Classic member you can help
your Division by asking your friends to join up with us.
Let's all pull in the same direction for the good of avia-
tion. Remember we are better together. Join us and have
it all! ...
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 1
for a customer east of the Mississippi to
receive hi s merchandise, and in most
cases there will be a reduction in the
freight charges, particularly on oversized
items. If you live in the Griffin area, a
new store is being added for walk-in traf-
fic.
Poly-Fiber, Inc. , which is owned by
Ron Alexander, was not part of the sale.
Ron, who founded Alexander Aeroplane,
will continue to operate the Alexander
SportAir Center in Griffin, GA, as well as
the Aeroplane Builder's Workshops ,
teaching aircraft building and restoration
ski ll s. T he Workshops are presented
jointly with the EAA. For information
on the Workshops, call 770/467-9490.
You can reach Aircraft Spruce
at these two addresses:
Aircraft Spruce & Specialty West
P.O. Box 424
201 W. Truslow Av.
Fullerton, CA 92632
Phone: 800/824-1930
Product Information : 714/870-7551
Fax: 714/871-7289
Aircraft Spruce & Specialty East
P.O. Box 909
809 S. Pine Hill Rd.
Griffin, GA 30224
Phone: 800/831-2949
Product Information: 770/228-3901
Fax: 770/229-2329
EAA PUBLICATION INDEXES
For many years, John and Alice
Bergeson of Mich igan compiled and
sold an index to EAA monthly publica-
tions. They've discontinued this service,
and have kindly donated the remainder
of their stock to EAA, along with the
computer and program they used to
compile the information. If you' d like
to purchase a copy of the index guides,
they are now available, whi le they last,
from EAA Membership Services. The
guide covering 1953-1989 is $20, plus
shipping and the guide for 1990-1994 is
$10, plus shipping. Call 1-800/843-3612
to order.
A/C NEWS
compiled by H.G. Frautschy
ADDITIONS TO SKY KING
For a number of years, the EAA A via-
tion Foundation has had 44 episodes of
the 1950's television program "Sky King"
available for purchase on videocassette.
Now, in cooperation with Flying Crown
Enterprises, the Foundation's Paul Har-
vey Audio- Video Center has been able
to compile the last existing episodes into
5 new tapes, comprising 20 more of the
programs. These "new" programs have
not been seen by the public in over 30
years. The complete set, 64 episodes, are
believed to be all of the known existing
Sky King programs.
For vintage airplane enthusiasts, Sky
King is a real "bonanza," featuring con-
temporary aircraft of the day, and star-
ring a Cessna T-50 Bobcat and then a
Cessna 310 as Sky' s aerial mount , "Song-
bird" and "Songbird Il. "
Individual tapes can be purchased
from the EAA Aviation Foundation for
$24.95. The entire 16 volume set is priced
the airplane have been completed - in fact, the
replica is now ready for cover. Pat is doing the
construction in the Cessna Restoration Center
in the EAA Air Adventure Museum so that mu-
seum visitors can watch the construction
progress and ask questions if they want. A 112
size radio controlled flying model of the Hardly
Ableson is being constructed by the Oshkosh
R/C Flyers model airplane club. The model,
which will have a wingspan of 10 feet , is to be
flown during the dedication of the Wittman
Hangar at EAA's Pioneer Airport in May of this
year We'll keep you posted on the progress of
both the replica and the model, along with a re-
port on the exhibits planned for the new hangar.
2 FEBRUARY 1996
at $355.95, plus shipping - you save over
$43 over the cost of individual tapes. If
you've already purchased the previously
released 11 tapes, the five new tapes are
available for $110.95, plus shipping. You
can order by calling EAA Membership
Services at 1-800/843-3612. Major credit
cards are accepted.
AIRCRAFT SPRUCE BUYS
ALEXANDER AEROPLANE
In an press release dated January 15,
Aircraft Spruce and Specialty has an-
nounced the acquisition of all the assets
of Alexander Aeroplane. The purchase
of Alexander makes Aircraft Spruce one
of the largest suppliers of aircraft parts
and components in the world. The for-
mer Alexander facility in Griffin, GA will
continue to operate, and the warehouse
inventory in Griffin will be expanded to
include products such as radios, wheels
and brakes, tires, batteries, and many of
the other items stocked by Aircraft
Spruce in their west coast facility.
One immediate benefit will be
the reduction of time it will take
HARDLY ABELSON
TAKES SHAPE ATEAA
Pat Packard is seen as he dili-
gently continues work on his
non-flying replica of Steve
Wittman's "Hardly Ableson"
the first airplane constructed
and flown by Steve in 1923 (see
the August 1995 issue of Vintage
Airplane for more on this air-
plane). All of the major parts of
CULVERS GET TOGETHER AT TULSA FLY-IN
The Culver Aircraft Association's celebration of the 55th anniversary of the
Culver Cadet is held in conjunctio'n with the Tulsa Regional Fly-In. Forums
were held, including one on the care and feeding of the landing gear retraction
mechanism. In the photo below, Culver restorer Mallory Selfridge of Eastford,
CT dreams of the day when his NC37832 will be able to attend a fly-in. Dan
Nicholson, president of the CAA, reports there were 4 Culvers at tbe Tulsa
Fly-In - 3 Cadets and one "V".
Once again, our thanks to Alice and
John for providing an invaluable service.
WITTMAN CRASH
NTSB REPORT RELEASED
The NTSB has published their findings
in the crash of Steve Wittman's 0 & 0
Special, which claimed the lives of Steve
and his wife Paula last April. Briefly, the
cause was attributed to "Aileron-wing flut-
ter induced by separation at the trailing
edge of an unbonded portion of wing fab-
ric at an aileron wing station. The debond-
ing of the wing fabric was a result of im-
proper installation." The flutter induced
by a seemingly innocuous fabric flaw was
severe enough to cause an extremely rapid
and violent failure of the wing structure.
For a detailed explanation of the find-
ings, please read the article on page 7 of
the February issue of Sport Aviation. If
there was ever any doubt in your mind as
to why it was important to exactly follow
the processes set forth in an STC'd cover-
ing procedure, please read tbat article - it
could mean the difference between an
airworthy installation and one that could
have a potential fatal flaw.
AlC SURVEY RESULTS
BEING TALLIED
Our thanks to the over 900 Antique
Classic members who sent responses to
the A/C Survey included in the Decem-
ber 1995 issue. We are in the process of
correlating the information and com-
ments sent in, and we plan to have a re-
port to the members within the near fu-
ture, in either tbe March or April editions
of Vintage Airplane.
Above- Thesethreegentlemenwerethe
awardwinners. Formlefttoright,theyare,
GeneHentsel,Collinsville,TX, (theAI Mooney
Award),Dr.DaveConoley,Midland,TX
(LongestDistance),CharlesHarris,Tulsa,OK
(ClubChoice).
TYPE CLUB INFO
For Taylorcraft owners on the central
east coast, here's a club just for you:
Virginia/CarolinasTaylorcraftOwnersClub
Jack Pettigrew, President
8325 AudleyLn.
Richmond, VA23227
804/266-6672
Newsletter:Quarterly
Dues:$10per year
We also have an update for both the
Ercoupe Owners Club and the Cessna
1501152 Club. Skip Carden called to ad-
vise us that the dues for either club are
$25 per year, not $20 as their older list-
ings quoted. Please make a note of the
changes in your Type Club list in the De-
cember 1995 issue of Vintage Airplane.
A new newsletter has been started by
Ria Donovan for Lockheed lovers:
Lockheed OwnersAssociation
Ria Donovan, Editor
3521 NW.70th 51.
Seattle, WA98117
206/782-2964
206/782-3873 (fax)
Newsletter:Quarterly
Dues: $25 U.S.,$30 Foreign
SUN 'N FUN '96 INFO
Planning a trip to Sun ' n Fun '96? One
new way you can obtain information
about the spring EAA get-together is via
the Internet. An Internet home page bas
been created for information on Sun ' n
Fun activities, and a link has been created
between the EAA and Sun 'n Fun home
pages. You can access it at:
http://lakeland.tsolv.com/-sunfun *'
BRAD THOMAS
We were saddened to hear of the death on December
27,1995 of former Antique/Classic Division president
Brad Thomas of Pilot Mountain, NC. As detailed in the
article about the restoration of his beloved Staggerwing,
N35E, Brad's life was filled with aviation as his passion-
ate avocation, while he was busy earning a living as the
owner of Pilot Hosiery Mills. Brad also served as the
mayor of his home town from 1959 until 1963, and was
the chairman of the Mount Airy-Surry County Airport
Authority at one time.
In aviation, he was just as active - not only did he
serve as the president (and before that, Secretary) of the
Division from 1979 until 1983, he has also served as presi-
dent of Antique/Classic Chapter 3, and as the Chief Classic Judge at EAA Oshkosh
as well. He served as an Division advisor and on the A/C Board of Directors from
1976 until he became an officer in 1979.
The Staggerwing Museum Foundation was another of the many interests Brad
maintained, and his family asks that any donations be made to the Staggerwing
Foundation in his memory.
VINTAGEAIRPLANE3
VINTAGE
Aero Mail
VINTAGE LIT NOTES
DearMr. Frautschy:
Dennis Parks' article on early
Americanaviationmagazinesprompts
theseobservations. Althoughitlasted
butoneyear(12 issues),withouta
doubttheearliestaviationmagazinein
America,possiblytheworld,was one
tilted Aeronautics. It appeared
monthlyduring1893/94. Publishedby
theAmericanEngineerandRailroad
Journal,thismagazinewastheout-
growthofanearliersectiononaero-
nauticswhich hadappearedin therail-
waypublication.
Iam familiarwith thesedetailsbe-
causeIamtheproudownerofseveral
issuesofthisexceedinglyrareperiodi-
cal. It wouldbeinterestingtoknowif
othercopiessurviveelsewhere. Mine
werea fortuitous "find" amongsimilar
publicationsabandonedin a remote
houseonceoccupiedbyoneofour
earliestaviation pioneers-inthe hill
country of eastern Kentucky!
Serendipityatitsbest.
SomeyearsagotheLibraryofCon-
gresspublisheda reviewofall avia-
tion periodicalsin Americawhich had
appeared up tothattime. Thisis said
togivedetailsofpublisher,datesofis-
sueandwhetherit mergedwith an-
othermagazineorsimplyceased to
appear. Although Dennis Parks
doesn'tmention it , I wonderifthe
EAAlibraryhasacopyoranyfurt her
information.
Incidentally,for thoseinterestedin
suchthings,EAAerCharlesGokeyof
2307 BurrellDrive,Louisville,KY
40216 privatelypublishesa newsletter
for theAviation MagazineCollectors
Association.
Verysincerely,
EdwardPeck
Louisville,KY
Dennis Parks advises us that the Boe-
ing Aeronautical Library at the EAA Air
Adventure Museum does have access to a
copy of the Library of Congresses "Aero-
nautical and Space Serial Publications: A
4 FEBRUARY 1996
World List." Over 4500 titles from 76
countries are cataloged in this listing,
published in 1962.
FROM ONE OF OUR 1995
HALL OF FAME HONOREES ...
DearMr.Frautschy:
Thelovelyaward,thetapes,andall
the restoftheceremonywas over-
whelming! And nowI ca n sha re a ll
thiswithall my friends. Won'ttheybe
surprised!
Speakingoffriends, I havetolabel
"Buck" Hilbertas one ofthevery
best-Icouldn'thavedoneitwithout
him!
I thankeveryonein theorganiza-
tion for makingthisall happen;itis
quitea " happening"in mylife,and I
glowall overjustthinkingofit!
NowI mustgooutand sharemy
happinesswith others-especially
thosewho weresuch a greathelp to
me in my timeofneed.
Mayhealthand happinessbewith
everyoneofyoualways.
Sincerely,
JosephP.Juptner
LaguanaHills,CA
LOOKING FOR A FAIRCHILD
Gentlemen:
Forsometime,I have beencoll ect-
ing informationon theFairchildF-24,
my interestfocusingon its useas "UC-
61"duringtheSecond World War.
Theacquisitionofa restoredF-24/UC-
61 is mylong-termgoa\.
In mysearchfor hi storicalandtech-
nicalinformation,I have obtained
manualsfromESSCO,becomeamem-
berofthe Fairchild Cl ub and ofthe
AntiqueAircraftAssociation,corre-
spondedwith KenWakefield(author
of"The FightingGrasshoppers"),con-
tactedpotentialF-24 sell erson bot h
sidesofthe Atlantic,etc. And,yes, I
didcontactin 1994yourassociates at
the "EAA Warbirds of America"
(copyofreplyannexed)and,ofcourse,
followed theadvice received.
Not to mention a review of my
ratherextensivelibraryonthe airwar
1939-1945. Theconclusionis as could
beexpected: the UC-61 is nottheB-
17;interestandinformationboth are
limited...
However, it may be that I have
mi ssedsomethingsignificantin the
wayofbooksand/orarticles. Anyhelp
in thatrespectwould bemuch appreci-
ated.
Also,asmentionedabove,havingin
mindthepossibleacquisitionofsuch
anaircraft,technical advice from cur-
rentownersofF-24swouldbeuseful.
If therearesuch owners/operatorsin
themembership,I wouldlike tocon-
tactthem.
Thankyou for yourassistance.
Sincerely,
J. A. DeKerchove
CP2070AMS
1002Lausanne
Switzerland
Anybody who is interested in helping
J.A. can write him at the above address.
Perhaps someone out there has a lead on a
Fairchild UC-61 or F-24. - H.G.
Frautschy ...
Have an article you'd like to submit?
We're particularly looking for good
technical and "how to" articles.
Share your experieiJces with your
fellow members!
Sendyourmaterialsto:
H.G. Frautschy,editor,
VintageAirplane
EAA
P.O. Box 3086
Oshkosh,WI 54903-3086
Need more information on format,
photos, etc.? Call 414/426-4800and
ask for the VintageAirplaneeditor-
he'll putyou onthe rightpath!
Please.seethe"Editorial Policy" printedin the
boxatthebottomofthe "Contents"page.
VINTAGE
LITERATURE
by Dennis Parks
EAA Library and Archives Director
james Means' Aeronautical Annuals
(1 895-1897)
The Wright Brothers
Search the Li terature
When the Wright brothers decided to
pursue a systematic study of the problem
of mechanical flight , their first step was a
literature search. After exhausting the re-
sources of their local library, Wilbur
Wright wrote to the Smithsonian Institu-
tion in Washington, DC requesting "such
papers as the Smithsonian has published
on the subject, and if possible a list of
other works in print in the English lan-
guage."
He explained to them, "I am an enthu-
siast, but not a crank in the sense that I
have some pet theories as to the proper
construction of a flying machine. I wish to
avai l myself of all that is already known
and then if possible add my mite to help
on the future worker who will attain final
success." (Wilbur Wright to the Smithso-
nian Institution, May 30, 1899.)
The Assistant Secretary of the Smith-
sonian Richard Rathburn replied on June
22,1899, enclosing a list of works related
to aeronautical progress. This List included
the three volumes of the AERONA UT/-
CAL ANNUALS, edited by James Means
of Boston.
The ANNUALS were one of the most
cited early American aviation publica-
tions. James Means, like his contempo-
rary, Octave Chanute, was determined to
spread as much information about me-
chanical flight as possible. His vehicle for
doing so was his series of volumes of the
AERONAUT/CAL ANNUAL.
In the three issues published during the
1890's he edited and issued significant pa-
pers on current developments in aeronau-
tics, prepared by experimenters in the
field. James Means ' interest in flight be-
gan with a sea voyage during which he be-
came fascinated with watching gulls fly.
This led him to consider the possibi lities
James Means, 1853-1920.
.. I
Drawing by Pietro Pezzati.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 5
hi sexperiments. He lacked t he knowl-
edgetogofurther.Theliteratureofothers
could build a bodyofknowl edgetohelp
others. What wasstill alsolackingwas
true " resea rch," the scienti ficmet hod,
A soaring machine designed by James Means, 1894.
HORIZONTAL
AEROPLANE wh ich t he Wri ghtbrothers brought to
(Ta.iIplane) MAIN AEROCURVE
bear sowe ll on the problemofman ned
Tokeep theera-it (Winq)
on a. nor",onta.1
flight.
frame of uml)Tella..Yibs
c.ourse; The firstvolume beginswith Leonardo
e d ~ e of taut corel .
and brac.. 5 with trailinq
da Vinci'streatise uponthe fl ightofbirds
Covered withva.rmshed.
.,ilK ,side., inclined- a nd hi s des ign fo r an orni t hopter.
u.pWard at di\1ed,alangle
V(P.TIC.AL AEROPLANE Le ona rd o re mar ked on t he soa r ingof
otabou.t 105 de,rees.
(FIN)
birds and the powerofwind needed to
To kupthe c.raft
keepbirdsaloft.
headed'101"o the
wind. ,
A reprintofSirGeorgeCaley's" On
AerialNavigation"fromNICHOLSON'S
JO URNAL ofNovember1809,February
andMarch1810as thesecond article. Ca-
ley, the "FatherofBritishAeronautics,"
beli eved thatit wasfutil e for mantoex-
pectto fly byfla ppingartificialwings, an
idealt hat held for a longti me andhin-
deredaeronauticaldevelopment. He also
PLAN
...sPAN 48"
discussedtheaerodynamicsofthecon-
Leoqth 4,3"
caveshapeofbi rd wings and theeffectof
angleofattackonperformance.
The first issuealso includeda reprint
ofFrancis Wenham'sspeechgiven before
the RoyalAeronauticalSocietyin J une
1866. Wenham alsodiscussed bird flight.
L [ ~ [ H WEIG\lT
a dju..ta.bl. bacl<and.- He had discovered the principleofthe
forth onth_ metal rod.
high-aspectwing.
r
Therewerealso manyshort piecesin-
cl udi ngaselectionoflettersbetweenBen-
jamin Fran kl i n a nd Joseph Banks.
Franklin had wit nessedthefirst manned
balloonflightin Franceduring1783.
In aconcl udingeditorial,Meansgives
ELEVATION
detai lsofhis modelgli derdesigns. He
concludesthevolumewith,"Noonedares
,...-----------------'-----, toseta limit to man'sachievement;
we are now only in the earliest
stagesofthescienceofaerial navi-
He stated that the "best lines for
investigators to follow are very clearly
ofmechanicalflight. gation."
marked out." These were:
Heexpanded his interest by collecting 1896sawtheappearanceofthe
aeronauticalliterature,mai nly from Eu- secondvolume. It contained19 ar-
1) Developmentoftheself-
rope. Hesharedhis thoughtsin a few pop- ticles, 16 plates,nowincludingpho-
ularpublications. Onein January1893 ap- tographs, manyillustrationsand
pearinginFRANK LESLIE'S WEEKLY,
propelledaerodrome
158pages. In response tothefirst
(Langley'sterm).
declared his ideathatit was wisertofirst volume ,thisonenowcontained
2) Developmentofthemotorless
developa small unmanned modelthan originalcontributions. Themajor-
risk thelivesofmenand that"any mea- air-sailer. ityofthearticleswereby Lilien-
sureofsuccesswith full-sized apparatus thal,MaximandChanute. Lilien-
mustbe precededbycompletesuccess
3) Thedevelopmentofthemotor.
thal's18pagearticlewasentitled
with flying models."
In 1893 Meansretiredfrom his busi-
nessofshoemanufactureanddevoted
himselffull time toexperimentingwith
modelgliders. By theendof1894, having
builta fairglidermodel,Meansasked
himself"Whatnext?" It occurred to him
thattherewereothersaroundtheworld
who wereexperimentinglikehim,in igno-
ranceofotherswork.Hedecidedtogather
thebestoftheworld' sliteratureandpub-
lish it. This led to thepublicationofthe
AERONAUTICAL ANNUALS, the first
ofwhich appearedin 1895.
Havingnocontributorsfor the first is-
sue,Meansmadeit an historicalvolume.
6 FEBRUARY 1996
Copiesweresenttoeveryexperimenter
hecouldlocateandtopubliclibrariesin
thelargerAmericancities. It was avail-
ableforsale toothersfor$1.00. Produc-
tioncostswerefrom Means'ownpocket
as therewerenoadvertisers.
Therewere16articlesandaneditorial
in thefirst issueof172pages. It alsoin-
cluded16 platesofillustrations. Thetitle
pagedescribedtheannualas being"de-
voted to theencouragementofexperi-
mentwithaerial machinesand to thead-
vancement of the science of aerody-
namics."
Means hadgoneas far as hecouldwith
"Practicalexperimentsfor thede-
velopmentofHumanFlight. "
TheGermanpioneerOttoLilienthal
hadalsostudiedbird flight andpublished
a bookaboutit in 1889. Hedecided that
onehadtoconquertheairby actuallyfly-
ing. Hethusembarkedonglidingexperi-
mentsandin theyearsbeforehisdeath in
agliderduring1896,he madeover2,000
flights.
In this articlehestatedthat"thejour-
neyin theairwithouttheuseofthebal-
loon is absolutelynecessaryin orderto
gainajudgmentas to theactual require-
mentsfor an independentflight." Herec-
ognizedtheneedfor aircraftstabilityand
stated, "It is in the air itself that we have ....,'' ''''''''' ''' ''' ''t.
to develop our knowledge of the stabili ty

of flight. "
I

Plying-Machine Control I

Lilienthal's death saddened Means, es-
peciall y so since he had argued for the use
of flying mode ls fo r experiment ati on,
minimizing the risk to human life.
Hiram Maxim's 30 page article "Natu-
ral and Artifici al Flight " is very interest-
ing. It covers hi s interes t in bird fl ight
and his design and construction of a flying
machi ne.
Unl ike others who worked wi th flying
models and those who experimented with
gliders, Maxim decided to plunge right in
"to make a large machi ne heavier than air
that could lift itself from the earth by dy-
namic energy generated by the machine
itself. "
His machine was not j ust large, it was
huge. Of biplane configuration, the main
planes were 110 feet long, wi th a total
area of 5,500 sq. feet, had a 350 hp steam
engi ne pulli ng twin 17 ft. props, and
weighed 3-112 tons.
His effort was not intended to provide
free fl ight or build a practical airpl ane, it
was j ust to show that his propul sive de-
sign coul d lift a heavier t ha n ai r craft
from the ground. It did just that in 1894.
At a speed above 42 mph, it Lifted clear of
the tracks it was on, but it got fouled on
the retaining guard rails placed above the
supporting rai ls, which were put in place
to prevent a complete takeoff. Breaki ng
through the retaining rails, and lacking di -
rectional controls, it crashed.
Octave Chanute, the great American
gl idi ng pioneer and aviat ion hi st orian,
provided a 15 page article "Sailing fl ight"
in which he examines the considerable lit-
erature on bird fli ght. He did not find in
any of it precise measurements that would
be necessary to test the author's theories
"by numerical examples." He said he was
determined to gather such data for him-
self.
In the remaining short pieces were six
papers related to ki tes, including one by
Alexander Bell on his tetrahedral cellul ar
kites. In an editorial, Means issued an in-
vitation to "Experimenters in all parts of
the world to send in concise accounts of
their experiments."
In the introduction to the third and fi-
nal volume of 1897, Means after bemoan-
ing the loss of Lilienthal, went on to state
that "The advance toward the full solu-
tion of the problem of fl ight whi ch was
made in the year 1896 as greater than that
of any previous year. " He stated that the
"best li nes for investigators to follow are
very clearly marked out." These were:
1) Development of the self-propelled
aerodrome (Langley's term).
2) Development of the motorless air-
sailer.
3) The development of the motor.
This volume of 178 pages included 14
art icles, a miscell any and an editorial.

Invented and Patented by

JAMES MEANS


s
































AA, rod rigidly attached to the frame of the machine. B. C. D. aeata rigidly attached to
rod A. Each of these leats ha. a pai r of loot.rests (not shown in drawi ng ), rigIdly aUached
to it. ' EEEEFF. These memOers are all rigidly attached to the of the machine.
KK. sleeve revolvable about rod A. L. gear, indicated by dotted line, meshing with
Kears M and N. Gear L is rigidly allached to slee\' e K . T, lIexible shaft. 0, P, lateral
rudders movable simultaneous ly ill oppos ite directions. H, longitudina l rudder. S, vertical
rudder .


The above drawing shows the James Means Control arranged for one, two or
three persons. The number of seats and steering handles may be increased as
desired. If there is a single aviator he occupies seat Cj if there are two they
occupy seats Band D, C being vacant.
It is obvious that when the seat C is occupied by a pupil and seats Band D by
expert aviators the pupil may receive instrucfion and at the same time be prevented

Irom making mistakes.
The pupil will profit in a two-fold manner: visually by observing and following
the motions 01 the expert in seat D, also by feeling and following the motions given
to the handles by the two experts.
The movements of the several pairs of handle-bars are necessarily similar and
simultaneous. The balancing motions of the aviator are natural , that is to say, in
actuating the later"l and longitudinal rudders the movement of the handle-bars is in
the direction which the swaying of the aviator's body would take if he sought to
correct by his weight the rolling or pitching.
In examining the drawing it will be seen that there are three kinds of move-
ment of the handle-bars:
(a) Both hands forward or aft. (b) Both hands right or left, and also, (c) the
ordinary bicycle steer which moves the vertical rudder.
d . h
These movements may bt: rna e etl er independently or simultaneously.
To illustrate the former:
S
Both hands aft elevates bow.
Both hands forward depresses bow.
Both hands to t he right elevates port side.
Both hands to the left elevates starboard side.

When it is desited to move all the rudders the number of pos-
sible combinations is infinite.
It will be noticed that the swaying movement of the upper part of the body
assists the rudders by favorably changing the centre of gravity of the whole.
i It is also obvious that if several persons fiy in one machine by this method they
i are not carried as dead weight, but are movi ng harmoniously according to the requirt:-
ments of equilibrium anti they are in position to offer the least possible air-resistance.
This Invention Is patented In the United State&. ' Patents are
i pendln, In forel,n-wuntrlu.

I For Information concerning licenses to manufacture,
please address
k B
i James Bac ay, Boston, Mass., U.S.A.

.." "" """ ""' ''' ''' ''' ''' ''' ''' ''' ''' '''''' ''' ''' ''' ''' ''' "' '''''''''''' '''''''' ''' ''' '', .... ,' ''' ''' ''''''''''''' ''' ''' ''' ''' ''' ".
An Advertisment for Means' Flying Machine Control.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 7
I}
(Above)
Proposed aircraft of Thomas Walker, 1810.
(Right)
The Wenham glider, 1866.
(Below)
A Hargrave Kite, 1893.
There were 18 plates of illustrations and pho-
tos.
The lead article was a 24-page art icle by
Samuel Langley "Story of Experiments in
Mechanical Flight." The article covered
Langley's experiments in powered models
from 1887 to 1896 culminating in the success-
ful flight of Aerodrome No.5. Following
was an article by Chanute " Recent Experi-
ments in Gliding Flight" in which he tells of
the work done along th e Lake Michigan
dunes near Chicago during the summers of
1896 and 1897.
Another article was by Chanute's collabo-
rator , August Herring, called " Dynamic
Flight." Percy Pilcher, a glider experimenter
from England who was to meet the same fate
as Lili e nthal , contributed a paper on hi s
work.
Means in hi s editorial again makes a
strong plea on behalf of flying models for re-
search. "We have reached the stage of ex-
periment where it is necessary to use all pos-
sible persuasion to keep reasonably near
terra firma those persons who have nothing
but the courage of ignorance to equip them
for ventures in the air."
The three volumes of 1895, 1896 and 1897
providing accounts of such famed contempo-
rary experimenters as Lilienthal , Langley
and Chanute represents the best collections
of the results of aeronautical experiments
available at that time, and one of the best of
all time.
Means stated in his first volume, " If this
compilation should happily bring new work-
ers into the field of aeronautical experiment,
the hopes of the editor will be amply ful-
filled. " That such hopes were fulfilled is evi-
denced by a letter from Orville Wright dated
January 5,1908 containing the following:
"The old Annuals were largely responsible
for the active interest which led us to begin
experiments in aeronautics."
The EAA Foundation Library and
Archives is fortunate not only to have photo-
copies of all the annuals, but has been able to
obtain original copies of the 1895 and 1897
editions. ...
8 FEBRUARY 1996
SWIFT
CONVENTION
(Above) Thissmilingthreesomeof
(LtoR) ErinArbeau, DenisArbeau
and Bill Steinareall on theirway
toDentonto enjoythefestivities
atthe50thAnniversaryCelebra-
tion oftheSwiftatDenton,TX.
Denton,Texas September18-24,1995
by Phyllis R. Moses
Fifty years have passed since the first
Globe Swift rolled off the line and out of
the factory door near Fort Worth, into
the bright Texas sunlight. This spectacu-
lar airplane was introduced publicly in
January 1945 amidst oohs and ahs of ad-
miration and praise. The newly re-
designed all metal taildragger, a depar-
ture from its original prototype
wood/tube/fabric composition, had sleek,
modern lines. Now half a century later,
Swift owners and pilots brought them
back to Texas to commemorate their
50th anniversary. A birthday party was
held for a sparkling beauty, as pretty to-
day as she was when she first rolled out
of that factory door.
One of the many things that makes
life rich and exciting is the fulfillment of
ambitions and dreams. It has long been
a dream of Charlie Nelson, founder and
president of the International Swift As-
sociation, to arrange a party for the peo-
ple who built the Swifts to honor them
for their accomplishments. The Associa-
tion was founded in 1968 and is dedi-
cated to the preservation and apprecia-
tion of the Swift airplane.
Following a year of intense planning
and anticipation for this once-in-a-life-
time party in Denton, Texas, the time
came for the reunion but the skies were
heavy with blankets of clouds.
Some came in early, scud running and
deviating through the widespread fronts
that accompanied the seasonal weather
change. By Friday, 98 Swifts were lined
up on the concrete aprons and grass
fields awaiting the festivities. Even
though 300 airplanes had originally been
expected, it soon became apparent that
some planes would not be able to fly all
the way into Texas; consequently, air-
planes were left parked in many cities
and states in safe harbors, waiting for the
weather to break so they could come in
later. Nevertheless, in spite of these de-
lays and postponements, a party atmos-
phere prevailed among those who had
come to celebrate. The plans were all set
to honor the airplanes as well as the 300
plus retired assemblers and workers who
had been responsible for the Swift being
produced. Finally, the big day arrived on
Saturday - the morning dawned clear
and cool; the weather was glorious. In
looking out across the field, those
painted and polished Swifts were a beau-
tiful sight. They sparkled in the sunlight,
their mirror-like finish polished beyond
brightness.
Now after much anticipation, the hour
had come. A typical Texas barbecue
luncheon was served. After that, a spe-
cial program was presented by Charlie
Nelson. He introduced Mr. Robert Mc-
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 9
Culloch, president and founder of
TEMCO (Texas Engineering and Manu-
facturing Company, later known as LTV
- Ling-Temco-Vought) who was involved
when the Globe Aircraft Company went
bankrupt. TEMCO took over the tool-
ing and the contracts to keep the Swift
line going. Mr. McCulloch, in his 90s, is
still going strong. His pride in the com-
pany is evident ; his employees greeted
him enthusiastically and he knew many
by name.
Many events were planned for the re-
tired employees of Globe and TEMCO,
which included up close inspections of
the aircraft, and for those who wanted to
go in the Swift, eager owner/pilots gave
them a tour of the area. A 20 piece nos-
(Left) Dorothy Goulding of Marion, TX
with her Swift, selected as the 1994 Swift
Convention Grand Champion. Dorothy is
one of about 20 women who fly a Swift,
and one of about six who own her own lit-
tle low-winger.
(Below) Four of the five T-35 and T-35A
Buckaroos were at the Convention (the
fourth, owned by Geoffrey Crawford, is
just out of the picture, on the left). The
airplane closest to the camera was do-
nated to the Swift Association by the
country of Saudia Arabia to the Swift Mu-
seum and Foundation, who restored it to
mint condition.
(Left) Robert Dixon, Bud Brown, Bill
Shepard and Mark Holliday brief before
the Saturday airshow.
talgia-type band played songs from that
era; many were eager to get out on the
floor in the hangar and do the boogie-
woogie to Glenn Miller's "In the Mood,"
as well as "Tuxedo Junction" and "String
of Pearls." The old, familiar music trans-
ported them back to those days in the
postwar era when after a long day at
work in the airplane factory, they danced
their cares away.
After lunch, the air show began. The
dramatic opening was an awesome event
featuring a Swift owner/parachutist, Wes
Liu , jumping with an American flag.
The flag, handmade by Swifter Ann
Daly, is 40 feet by 60 feet and was
brought to Texas from New Hampshire
especially for this event by Ann and Wes
in their airplane. Hearts were stirred as
the band played the national anthem and
the parachutist with the flag drifted
slowly down to the runway. Ann, who
usually does the jumping, had injured
her ankle so Wes substituted for her. It
was an enormously patriotic and emo-
tional moment. As the audience stood in
response to the playing of the " Star
Spangled Banner," it was difficult to
hold back the tears of pride.
Among the airplanes that took off in
small groups were three Buckaroos.
These were flown by Robert Dickson,
Jr., Geoffrey Crawford and Kelly Ma-
hon. This military trainer version of the
Swift has become even more rare than
the classic Swift. Only five still exist and
four were at this fly-in. The fifth one,
owned by Bill Vandersande who lives in
Diamond Bar, California, started out
from California but had to turn back be-
cause of the weather. Geoffrey Craw-
ford of California owns the prototype
Buckaroo; another belongs to Robert
10 FEBRUARY 1996
Dickson of Charlotte, North Carolina;
one is owned by Charlie Nelson of
Athens , Tennessee, plus the Saudi
Buckaroo that was restored from parts of
several others that lay rusting and cor-
roding in the hot Arabian desert. They
were discovered by Bill Kientz, then fly-
ing for TWA and based in Saudi Arabia.
He was the key figure in the process that
eventually brought the one they man-
aged to salvage to the Swift Museum at
Athens, Tennessee.
Following the Buckaroo flyby, about
20 Swifts led a "Parade of Flight," taking
off in groups of threes and fours. Then
an aerobatic segment was performed by
Mark Holliday in his 1945 stock Swift.
All would agree that Mark doing triple
loops in this airplane is an incredible
demonstration of what the Swift bird will
do. Mark has owned approximately 45
Swifts, restoring some of them, making
modifications, and retaining some in
their basically stock condition. There is
always a market for a good Swift, so he
usually resells them.
Immediately following Mark's act, a
formation aerobatic team comprised of
Lowell Sterchie, "Magic 1," Michael
Kennedy, "Magic 2," and Dewayne Up-
ton, "Magic 3," known as the "Swift
Magic Team," thrilled the crowds with
their high speed, super tight aerobatic
routines. Their spectacular precision
acts are unique, with names like " Abra-
cadabra," "Top Hat," the "Wizard Scis-
sors," and the "Sleight of Hand." All are
original maneuvers, based upon split-sec-
ond, razor edge timing. Their three iden-
tical Swifts are painted a brilliant black
and red. Put through extraordinary
paces, these airplanes demonstrate their
superb flying qualities and what a rugged
little gal (or guy) the Swift really is.
Bill Shepherd, long-time Swift Associ-
ation member, demonstrated his skill as
well as the airplane's ability in an im-
pressive aerobatic routine in his 200hp
Swift. Following his performance, the
four plane "missing man" formation did
a flyby accompanied by a bugle playing
"Taps." Fittingly, this moving ritual was
done in honor and in memory of all Swift
members who have "gone west."
Then after the breathtaking perfor-
mances of the air show, the final mo-
ments were spent in reviewing the low
passes by the various groups of Swifts
that had participated in the afternoon's
show: the three Canadian Swift birds,
flown by Canadian pilots John Northey,
Rick Scott and Bill Findlay; the three
Buckaroos, and the groups of Swifts that
had initially started the show. It was a
special "thank you" to the audience, es-
pecially the Globe/TEMCO employees
who had come to be honored.
Just for the record, it can be reiter-
ated that Swift owners are fanatical in
their admiration for the airplane. This is
(Above) John and Gay Northey flew their
Swift from Canada to Denton.
(Right) The late Robert McCulloch,
Founder and CEO of TEMCO with his
daughter, Sheila England.
made evident by the amount of money
they are willing to spend on it. The origi-
nal ones cost $3,250.00. Today's prices
range up to $100,000.00 and more! Orig-
inal advertisements describe the Swift in
glowing terms that still hold up today:
"You'll be proud of your new Swift -
and you'll find new comfort and luxury
you've never known in a low-cost per-
sonal airplane - all the conveniences you
enjoy in your car. Plenty of elbow, leg
and head room for two broad shouldered
six footers . Soft, deep foam rubber
leatherette cushions- ultra modern trim
and appointments."
Out of 1,521 Swifts that were origi-
nally manufactured, 800 plus are cur-
rently registered with the FAA. While
not all of them are flyable , the majority
of them are. The Swift has given owners
virtually thousands of hours of enjoy-
ment and pleasure. Those who fly these
airplanes praise their controllability and
ease of operation; their wide gear config-
uration makes landings smoother. A let-
ter that Globe sent to new owners and
prospective customers stated:
"TO ALL PROGRESSIVE AMERI-
CANS: Ahead of you are many hours of
flying pleasure. The more you fly your
new Swift, the more you realize that
SWIFT flying is a stimulating new sensa-
tion that will never grow old. You see,
the SWIFT is designed and built to give
you the airplane you've always wanted.
It's fast and fleet and easy to fly- yet no
light airplane ever built is safer than the
SWIFT. Its sturdy all metal military-
type construction means you won't have
to pamper your Swift to enjoy long years
of trouble free service."
This is just as true today as it was 50
years ago; the proof is in the modifica-
tions, polishing and the loving care that
these owners lavish on their Swifts.
Without question, the pride they feel
about their aircraft is unrivaled. On one
occasion, Mr. McCulloch stated it this
way: "There will always be Swifts, as
long as there is sheet metal." Again,
looking back at old advertisements and
photos, we read: "You can order your
new SWIFT with floats or skis instead of
the regular landing gear. The SWIFT's
balance and controllability are not af-
fected by the use of these special types of
landing gear. There is no appreciable
loss in cruising speed with your SWIFT
equipped with floats or skis. Sturdy, all
metal construction makes the SWIFT
well adapted to dependable, trouble free
service as a seaplane or for operation in
snow covered regions."
The success of the 1995 convention
and birthday party was a result of many
months of planning. However, plans can
be made, minds and hands kept busy
with the preparations, but what actually
lies at the heart of a celebration like this
is the people. People whose hands and
hearts are motivated by their mutual
loves and interests. At this fly-in certain
personalities stand out. Singling out just
a few are those who flew the furthest in
their Swift, Fern and Lynda Villenueve
from Ontario, Canada, Francois Bougie
from Quebec, Win Findlay, Rick and
Tracy Scott and son, Connor were among
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 11
the Canadians represented. Folks flew
in from northern Oregon, Washington
and southern Florida, and as far east as
New York state. Swift owners came
from all over the United States and
Canada as well as France and England.
There are two Swifts now based in Aus-
tralia and one in Germany. The conven-
tion became global in scope very soon.
There was one couple who without
question made a most significant effort to
attend the convention - Jurgen and Con-
nie Harck, Vancouver, British Columbia.
Jurgen has owned his Swift for almost 20
years, and from that time to this he has
been an active Swift Association member.
Just this past year Jurgen developed a se-
rious illness, ALS, also known as Lou
Gehrig' s disease. While his somewhat
fragile health has severely limited his ac-
tivities, he has set certain personal goals.
Subsequently, his major goal was to make
it to the 50th anniversary party, and he
did. Because of his illness most of his
routine activities have been drastically
curtailed. His wife Connie has become
his continuous care giver. At best, travel-
ing that distance is an energy consuming
effort. J urgen credits Connie and her
strength for making this trip possible.
"This particular fly-in was the best I
have ever been to. Everything was won-
12 FEBRUARY 1996
(Above) Bill Stein and his modified swift
negotiate the Guadalupe Pass near EI
Paso, TX enroute to Denton for the Swift
Convention.
(Left) Lana Stroud of Huntsville, AI is also
another lady pilot/owner of a Swift.
derful, the people, the planes, the food. I
cannot describe how very special this is to
me." When asked what he liked best
about it, he replied: "Seeing all the
Globe/TEMCO employees, hearing the
band at the Saturday air show, going to
the meetings and the forums, watching
the planes come in and, of course, seeing
old friends again. You know, these Swift
people are among the best people in the
world. Swift airplanes do attract the
nicest people; they are my long-time bud-
dies; they are family. " Unquestionably,
the pinnacle of Jurgen's experiences at
the fly-in was the ride in the SwiftFire,
flown by Rex King, Houston, Texas. It
was an incomparable experience for Jur-
gen and the memory will remain with him
for a long time to come as a reminder of
his passion for the airplane and his
friends. Most important of all, those who
were with Jurgen at Denton couldn't help
noticing that a happy smile never left his
face; it seemed to personify the determi-
nation that brought him there. Certainly
it was a peak experience for Rex as well
to be able to provide this opportunity for
J urgen to once again take to the air.
Other outstanding personalities attend-
ing the convention were the women who
fly Swifts. Three teams of "his and her"
Swifts came to Denton. The first pair to
arrive were Duane and Dorothy Golding
from San Antonio. A short time later,
Denis and Erin Arbeau flew in from Cali-
fornia. Then Buzz and Barbara Winslow
from Ohio arrived. Other women who fly
the Swift and who attended the fly-in
were: Jeanie Collins, Nancy Seguine,
Bonnie Erickson, Lana Stroud, Amelia
D' Antonio, Emeli Shepherd Saur, as well
as Nanette Haumschild. There are ap-
proximately 20 women who fly the Swift
airplane; they are all experienced pilots.
Now the party's over and the guests
have gone away. However, this party will
not soon be forgotten. There were many
happy retirees of Globe/TEMCO who
had another look at an airplane they
helped to build; pilots and owners had an
opportunity to meet and talk with those
who built it and to thank them for doing a
superb job.
The magic of flight and romance of
yesteryear made a perfect combination
for the successful afternoon. An after-
noon filled with sweet memories, tear
filled reunions and great entertainment.
As the retirees prepared to leave, many
made comments about what fun they had;
seeing coworkers they hadn ' t seen in
many years; renewing acquaintances of
other years, but most of all to see this
beautiful aircraft that had brought them
all together one more time; probably
(sadly for some) the last time.
No one could recall that it had ever
been done before; it may never happen
again, but for one splendid Saturday in
September 1995 a historic event took
place. Builders and the owners celebrated
together. It was a time of remembrance.
Yep, it was some party all right, done
up Texas style. Give folks lots of good
food, bright, blue skies and a "swarm of
Swifts," that's a good enough reason to
get together and have a fly-in. As Char-
lie Nelson said: "This party not only
commemorates the 50th anniversary of
the Swift, but it is our way of saying:
'Here's a toast to the past-with a look
to the future. ' Just wait ' till the next 50
year anniversary!"
EPI LOGUE
After this article was written, Mr. Robert
McCulloch, founder of TEMCO, died No-
vember 30, 1995 at the age of 92. His life
was a testimony to the accomplishment of
the American Dream. He immigrated to
the US from Scotland at the age of 24,
with $20.00, his toolbox and his Bible in
his pocket. He rose through the working
ranks of North American Aviation, setting
production records for the P-51 while he
served as NA's general plant manager.
His ability to bring out the best in people
came to the forefront when he set up his
own company, Texas Engineering and
Manufacturing Co. With the mergers that
created L TV, Mr. McCulloch became the
corporation's CEO. Mr. McCulloch com-
pleted the final sentence in his journal
only one week before his death. He stated:
" I have taken a long time to write this
story and as I come to the end, I have
one expression in my mind - what a great
country the United States of America has
been to me!" ...
PatCargile's
PA-16CLIPPER
by H.G. Frautschy
/t's amazing how many terrific airplanes
have been born out of expediency.
The Piper PA-16 Clipper is exactly that.
B y the middle of 1948, the PA-15
Vagabond, intended to use up the inven-
tory of raw material stocks Piper had on
hand, had been established as a winner.
Sales were up, and it appeared that Piper
might just weather the post -war air-
craft sales slump. Still, a two-
place airplane was not solely what
the market needed at that time,
and Howard "Pug" Piper knew it.
When he and his brother Tony, along
with Walter Jamouneau and Dave Long,
were given the order to design a cheap,
two-place side-by-side airplane that
would use up existing stocks of raw ma-
terials, Pug was thinking about 4 seats
from the very beginning.
He envisioned a design that would al-
low the basic airplane to be expanded,
without a lot of new engineering work.
Slab sided and short winged, the new air-
plane, dubbed the Vagabond, has over
the years become a darling to those who
enjoy the airplanes with the Piper name.
There was plenty of life in the short wing
Piper line, and the next installment
would be quite an improvement over the
~
o
.
~
E
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
utilitarian airplane built to convert in-
ventory material to sales dollars.
Even while the pencils were being
laid to the vellum on the drafting tables
in Piper engineering, thought was given
to methods that could be used later to
spruce up the basic airplane. The first
days of 1948 saw the start of Vagabond
production, and by the time fall had ar-
rived, production had been authorized
and begun on a new version of the
Vagabond, to be called the PA-16 Clip-
per.
The Clipper was the first breath of
"luxury," so to speak, since the eco-
nomic fuel of sales had been drained
from the tanks of the lightplane industry
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 13
in March, 1947. A redesigned landing
gear, with shock cords included for ab-
sorbing the bumps of landing, was incor-
porated, and so was the cabin extension
that had been thought of from the early
design stages of the Vagabond. An extra
1',5-1/2" was built into the fuselage, and
the aft cabin redesigned for a second
bench seat. The right side forward seat's
door was supplanted with a door aft of the
struts on the left side of the fuselage, for
the rear seat passengers use. The engine
compartment also got something new - a
115 hp Lycoming 0-235-C1 engine was
put in the engine mounts. To start it, in-
stead of hopping out and giving the prop a
flip, all you had to do was push the starter
button, located on a bracket under the left
seat cushion. The gross weight was pushed
up to 1,650 lbs., yet the empty weight only
went up 230 lbs . - empty, the Clipper
weighed in a 820 lbs., meaning the little
four-place airplane could haul nearly its
own weight into the sky!
It was able to cruise at a respectable
112 mph, and with one aboard on a cold
14 FEBRUARY 1996
January day, Air Facts editor Leighton
Collins reported an exceptional rate of
climb on takeoff - almost 1,000 feet per
minute. In the March 1949 issue of his
magazine he wrote: " ... for at 80 mph
you are climbing certainly a good solid
1,000 fpm, and with your nose way up
there. Maybe it is all in what you are
used to, but that much climb in a small
airplane is going to be a most invigorat-
ing experience to a lot of pilots."
You could easily fly with two 170
pounders and a full load of fuel (12 gal-
lons up in the fuselage tank, with another
18 in a tank mounted in the left wing)
and still have 280 lbs. left to go ' til you
got to its gross weight. Unless you feed
them too much (ie, teenagers), you could
load up the kiddies in the back seat ,
throw a small bag or two into the bag-
gage compartment and still come out
ahead. The Piper brothers and the engi-
neering staff in Lock Haven knew their
market, and wanted to give them some-
thing they'd want. You could even haul
cargo with your Clipper, by folding down
the rear seat, which gave you room for
400 lbs. of whatever you could fit in the
door. Again, Leighton Collins said it
well: "Other items could be mentioned,
but the point is that as you keep looking
around you keep finding refinements
that you just wouldn't expect in the low-
est price four-place. Not expensive
things - just little things that make you
feel that the man who built the airplane
intended using it himself."
On the instrument panel a Safe Flight
Indicator stall warning came as standard
equipment, along with the required in-
struments for visual flight, an airspeed in-
dicator, altimeter, oil pressure and oil
temp gauges and a compass. The right
side stick could be easily removed if your
flying companion was not inclined to par-
take of your aeronautical adventure -
heck, there was even a little bracket on
the right side of the cabin to keep it in!
Wheel pants and a two-way radio were
available as options, and for an extra hun-
dred bucks, you could buy the Deluxe
edition, complete with nice interior trim
and upholstering, extra foam in the
seat cushions and carpeting, all
wrapped up in a pretty cream col-
ored fabric with a red stripe.
Piper began merrily producing Clip-
pers in Lock Haven in 1949, priced ini-
tially at $2995, the least expensive four-
place airplane on the market. They
managed to put out over 700 of the air-
planes before it was replaced by the P A-
20. The exact number produced has
been published as 726 by two sources,
and 736, including the prototype,
NC4000H, by a third. As an aside, that
first Clipper is still around - Clyde Smith,
Jr., noted Piper restorer and historian, is
'4000H's registered owner.
When the newly revised version of the
PA-16 was put in production, the name
of the airplane was changed as well when
the corporate lawyers for Pan Am let in
be known that the airline was not amused
by Pipers use of the name "Clipper" -
Pan Am had registered the term with the
Patent office as a trademark description
of their aircraft used in overseas flights.
(Above) A panel bedecked with ba-
sic IFR instruments is installed, but
the rest of the cockpit is very origi-
nal, except for the lambswool seat
cushion.
(Right) A pai r of original metal
wheel pants, complete with steps
on top (don't you dare!) distinguish
the Clipper from its older brother
the Vagabond.
Piper was to "cease and desist" from the
use of the name. Rather than argue the
point, Piper simply changed the name.
The new PA-20 would be called the
Pacer. We'll leave the rest of that story
for another article:
Pat Cargile, (EAA 2400696) of
Chapin, SC is one of the fortunate few
who owns one of the 399 PA-16s left on
the FAA registration rolls. He's no
stranger to Piper products - members
may recall the Cub he, his brother Jeff
and their friend John Baker restored as a
surprise gift for Gordon Cargile, Pat and
Jeff's dad. This little Piper was one that
had been simmering in the back of his
mind since he was a yo unger man in
A&P school. He was always on the look-
out for the follow-on version of the PA-
16, the PA-17 Pacer. Later, somebody
told him "Hey, one's got a stick and it's
called a Clipper."
That perked up his ears! An airplane
he remembered from his past, but just
couldn't put his finger on - the Clipper
was what he had been looking for all
these years. Another fellow members
may recall is Donald" AI" Smith, Val-
dosta, GA - remember the gold plated
rocker box covers on his Cub in the May
1995 edition of Vintage Airplane? Al is
a EAA Designee and an A&P, and he
had a Clipper he was willing to sell -
space had become tight , and so Pat had
the solution! For about four years he
tooled around the south in his "Stick
Pacer", having a grand time while cruis-
ing around at 110 mph and only burning
5 to 5-1/2 gph.
By October of 1990, time and rust had
caught up with the little Piper. An AD
concerning rust in the door channels,
along with the results on an inspection of
the lower longerons made the decision
easy - it was time to rebuild the PA-16.
Working in the mezzanine of the cor-
porate hangar owned by his employer,
Pat and his friends got to work stripping
off the fabric. It had been covered in
Razorback, but the plan was to recover
with the Stits (now Poly-Fiber) system.
The mezzanine became a bit too
crowded, and keeping the hangar clean
duri ng the rest of the project would be a
major headache, so a small warehouse
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 15
was rented that was just the right size.
Pat, John Baker and Al Smith pooled
their tools and made a shop area that
was just what was needed.
Everything was removed and
cleaned, including a lot of wing parts
that were replaced. The wings were in
pretty good shape, but parts simply
showed their age. A bent up butt rib
was replaced on each wing, and new
leading edges were installed, along with
a landing light - a flight or two at
evening convinced him that he really
would prefer a light, even if it was not
legally required.
One of the challenges to be met while
rebuilding the Clipper was a dearth of
information regarding that particular
model. The parts manual does not in-
clude any illustrations, just a list of parts
and their quantities. Pat and his bud-
dies would look and make note of any
items that were original. By putting to-
gether this data, along with help from
noted experts like Clyde Smith, Jr. they
were able to pin down the things to keep
the airplane very original appearing.
Still, Pat intended it to be a useful air-
plane for himself, and to that end he
had a list of instruments and radio gear
that he wanted in the panel. The nice
thing about today's elect ronics is that
they don't take up too much panel
space. A good radio, a loran, transpon-
der and a GPS filled out the nav/com
aids, while the flight and engine instru-
ments are comprised of a needle and
ball, attitude gyro, DG, airspeed, tach,
and combination oil pressure/oil temp
gauge, along with a EGT, vertical speed
indicator and ammeter. While it's not
certified as IFR, Pat was toying with the
idea, if for nothing else to help get above
the top of a 3000 ft. overcast or other
"soft" IFR endeavors.
The interior was finished out as close
to original as possible, with a new set of
headliner bows made up by Pat: "You
just start bending it around anything in
the shop, paint buckets, garbage cans,
anything to get the radius to kind of
take your patterns off of the old ones."
A new wool headliner tops out the
upper half of the cabin, while a fabric
interior finishes out sections of the
lower cabin. The seats are covered in
the hickory brown leatherette, but it
used to get Pat so sticky and sweaty dur-
ing the summer fly-in season that this
time he was determined to fix that prob-
lem. A lambskin wool seat cover added
to his cross-country comfort.
All of the sheet metal in the airplane
has been replaced, and if it had a curve
in it anywhere, one man made it possi-
ble. If I'm speaking of metal shaping in
the Southeast, you know I must be talk-
ing about the one and only John Neel of
Georgia Metal Shaping in Griffin, GA.
Everything with a curve, be it radical or
16 FEBRUARY 1996
gentle, went under the hammer at
John's shop. Sometimes, such as when a
nice looking pair of wheel pants looked
pretty good but felt pretty heavy, a bit
of cutting, welding and filing was needed
as well. One of the pieces Pat is most
proud of is the one piece bottom lip on
the lower portion of the boot cowl.
More often than not, you find these
pieces riveted in place.
A new stainless steel firewall was
built by Pat, replacing the original gal-
vanized piece. It weighs only one pound
more than the Piper built part.
Throughout the airplane, Pat was
able to take advantage of the fact that
the Piper J-3, Pacer and the like are
blessed with pretty good support from a
number of sources, most notably the
folks at Univair in Aurora, CO. A new
endless loop trim cable was installed,
and so was a new trim system, with a
Zerk fitting on the torque tube so the
fitting can be greased. New tubing was
installed in the fuel system, and all new
wiring, with the help of Tony Brunson,
his friend and electrical whiz.
The Lycoming engine came out look-
ing good too, with a new set of baffling
and the same treatment the rest of the
airframe got - if it looked bad or even
suspicious, either dimensionally or "just
'cause," it got replaced.
Towards, the end, the Spring of '95
was quickly coming to an end, and the
finish line known as Sun 'n Fun '95 was
fast approaching. Still, it was no time
for rushing the job. A carefully planned
weekend covering party was organized,
but what do you know, when the wing
envelopes were checked against the
wing, they came up three feet short, on
a short wing Piper! Time to panic? No!
A quick call to Alexander Aeroplane
was made, and John was on his way in
his Cessna 140. The gal at Alexander
added the needed fabric to the enve-
lope, and the covering could continue
without a hitch.
The finish is Poly-Fiber Aerothane,
on both the metal and fabric. (All of
the finish is from the Poly-Fiber sys-
tem.) Pat likes that way the two differ-
ent surfaces age well together. All up,
Pat's airplane came in at just over 950
Ibs. , about 100 pounds over the air-
plane's original gross weight, which
didn' t include the wheel pants. In the
middle of the final push, Pat had to
move the airplane up to Columbia, SC,
his new home for a new corporate flying
job he had just started. The front seat
was completed just in time, and after
being reassembled the week before Sun
'n Fun, Pat was ready to head on do,,!n
to Florida that Saturday, w h ~ we
caught up with him. People were point-
ing and murmuring all week. Those
who know the airplane would nod ap-
preciatively, while the rest bubbled over
with questions, which often started with
"I didn't know Pacers came with sticks!"
It was then that Pat got to spend a little
time explaining what he had and where
it came from. Sounds like a pretty typi-
cal fly-in, where pilots get to have fun
talking about their airplanes.
A Clipper is a deceptive airplane,
one of those sleepers that not too many
people will notice, but it certainly war-
rants a second look. Hmmm. A four-
place airplane with a 50 pound baggage
allowance and nice range, while flying
110+ mph and sipping a little less than 6
gph. Sounds pretty useful. Hey Pat,
where can I find one of those? ...
SECOND
TIME
AROUND
Ray Johnson's '47
Aeronca Chief, NC3469E
AbscondingwiththeClassI (0-80
hp)trophyintheClassicAircraftjudging
atEAAOshkosh'95wasa verynice
1947AeroncallACChief,NC3469E,
SIN llAC-1764,flown inbyRayJohn-
son(EAA159826,A/C 5728)andhis
lovelywife,Judy,ofMarion,Indiana.
BelievemewhenIsaythetrophywas
earned.
ThisAeroncaChiefwasoriginally
purchasedinpartnershipwithWilbur
Hostetler(EAA94013)backin1979.
WilburwasRayJohnson'sinstructorand
hadtaughthimthefine artofflyingan
airplanein1978. Together,Rayand
Wilburenjoyedabeautifulpartnership
andloggedmanyhoursinthe65hpChief
until1984. Bythen,theoldgirlwas
showingsignsofagingandwas readyfor
arebuild.
Close up photo, left,reveals two fuel
tank caps, one ahead of the windshield
(15 gallon main tank) and one near the
trailing edge of the wing ( 8 gallon
auxiliary fuselage tank).
Ray and Judy Johnson, below, endured
the detailed restoration, yet continue
to smile when speaking of their
Aeronca Chief.
Underthewatchfuleye
ofJimHowren(A& Pwith
AI),theChiefwas taken
downtothebarebonesand
slowlyrestoredtonewcon-
dition. Thisentireprocess
wascarefullydetailedin
the April 1987 issue of
VINTAGEmagazine,pg.
10. (ThebeautifulChief
wasfeaturedonthefront
coverofthemagazinethat
month.) AtEAAOshkosh
'86, the Aeronca ran off
with the "BestofType"
awardand theJohnson's
andHostetler'swereone
happygroup.
The pretty restored
Aeroncaservedthetwofamilieswellas
theyearswentbyandin1993,Rayand
Judyflew theairplanetotheEAACon-
ventionin Oshkoshandenjoyedareally
rmeweek. OnAugust4,1993,theytook
offfromOshkoshheadingnorthtogo
aroundthenorthendofLakeMichigan
andcomedowntheeasternshoreof
MichigantovisitJudy'sfather,Howard
Henry,atShelby,Michigan. Rayspenta
fulldaygivingridestomanyofthelocal
peopleandtowardsevening,herefueled
theChiefandloadedhisfather-in-lawon
boardforalocalflight.
At2,000feet,theChiefwascruising
by Norm Petersen
alongnicelyat85 mphwhenaloudbang
VINTAGE AIRPlANE 17
was heard and the engine quit. (Num-
ber one cylinder had swallowed a valve).
There was a four-lane highway off to
one side, but Ray knew he couldn't
reach it from 2,000 feet. The only possi-
ble spot below was an asparagus patch
with waist high plants. Ray slipped over
the fence and greased the Chief into the
tiny field. The heavy plants and grass
18 FEBRUARY 1996
(Left) This neatly completed gear instal-
lation features the fiberglass wheel pants
described in the article. Eventually. a re-
stored set of metal whelpants will be in-
stalled to complete the restoration by
Ray and Judy Johnson.
slowed the airplane and Ray kept the
tail down with full aft yoke. Suddenly,
the right wheel hit a large rock and the
right wing dropped into the dirt. It was
the only rock in the field! The right-
hand gear was washed out and there
were wrinkles where they shouldn' t be.
Fortunately, no one was hurt.
Perhaps the hardest part for Ray was
explaining the mishap to his longtime
partner, Wilbur Hostetler. However,
Wilbur calmly assessed the situation
and not wanting to go through another
rebuild, offered his half of the Chief to
Ray for a reasonable price. A buyout
was negotiated on terms favorable to
everyone and Ray and Judy began the
long road to once again owning a flyable
Aeronca Chief.
An offer from members of EAA
Chapter 304 in Jackson, MI, to help
rebuild the Chief was too good to re-
sist - the airplane parts were hauled to
Jackson and the rebuild commenced
under the watchful eyes of Denzel
Williams and Russ Borton, Chapter
304 President. Every weekend, Ray
would drive the 164 miles to Jackson,
MI, and work for two solid days on the
rebuild.
Jeff Perkins of Chapter 304 worked
his magic touch on the metalwork and
Wayne Crawford of 304 handled the
fabric covering details . Luckily, the
entire airplane did not have to be cov-
ered. They were able to remove old
fabric back to the seams and add new
Stits fabric from there. After a care-
full inspection, the right wing needed a
new bottom cover and the left wing
was merely repainted with Stits
Aerothane - the final finish chosen for
this time around (instead of Stits Poly-
tone) using the original colors of
Champion Yellow with Newport Blue
trim.
When the fuselage was uncovered,
it was discovered that more tubes were
bent from the accident than originally
The highly polished McCauley propeller is set off by
the original metal spinner that flows into the cowl
(see story). Metal props were shipped with Aeron-
cas for a short period of time when the wood props
were in short supply. The large spinner originally
faired in a McDowell mechanical starter when the

Chief was first delivered.

,
Magnificent interior caught the judges eye, espe-
cially the original wood grain instrument panel and
the super detailed upholstery, right down to the map
pockets in both doors. The hanging heel brakes on
the pilot' s rudder pedals are visible in this photo.
anticipated. These bent tubes were
carefully heated and straightened with
necessary patches and re-welding
where required. Again, Jeff Perkins
was the master welder and his work-
manship is impeccable. After rebuild-
ing the badly bent right landing gear,
he proceeded to rebuild the left land-
ing gear also, just to be absolutely sure
they were perfectly matched pair.
While all this was going on, the in-
strument panel was sent to "Wood-
grain by Estes" in Florida for re-finish-
ing to original woodgrain design as
used in 1946-47. The results are beau-
tiful. Even the fiberglass wheel pants
were redone to final perfection. Ray
has recently purchased a set of genuine
Aeronca Chief metal wheel pants that
will eventualy adorn the Aeronca. Ray
Johnson's brother-in-law, Butch
Walsh, noted Stinson restorer from
Virginia, hauled the metal McCauley
74 X 43 polished propeller along to his
favorite prop shop for overhaul and
yellow tagging. In addition, Butch lo-
cated a serviceable crankcase for the
A65 engine rebuild.
Back in 1987, when I wrote the orig-
inal article on NC3469E, I mentioned
that the airplane was in dire need of a
metal prop spi nner, as the old one had
torn itself loose and self-destructed.
(Few original Aeronca spinners have sur-
vived the test of time - soft material, cou-
pled with a thin aft bulkhead and no for-
ward mount, meant that most have
sucummbed to excessive cracking. - HGF)
Lo and behold, Ray received a call
from Tom Harvey in Sandborne, NY,
who had a genuine metal spinner for a
metal prop on a Chief and was willing
to sell it to Ray. As Ray says, "The
neat thing about these old airplanes is
the people. As a result of getting to
know Tom, we ended up with a pol-
ished metal prop and the original
metal spinner. Many thanks again,
Tom Harvey."
A new lower cowl was located to
upgrade the bashed in one on the air-
plane. Much work was also accom-
plished under the cowling, polishing,
cleaning, fixing and straightening.
Jeff Perkins built all new engine baf-
fles which make the engine compart-
ment shine like a new airplane. Paul
Cline of Michigan majored the Conti-
nental A65-8 engine back to new con-
dition and it was returned to Jackson
and install ed. Wih everything back
together, things were looking pretty
sharp up front.
The two year restoration was quite
an e motional roller coaster for Ray
and Judy, however, Denzel Will iams
was t he man of the ho ur who held
Ray's hand during the entire two years
and continually added encouragement
- a necessary ingredient in a two year
project.
Other members of Chapter 304
added their expertise to the project,
helping in many, many ways to move
the restoration along. The painting
was done by Jeff Perkins' right hand
man, Kevin, who really knows how to
handle a spray gun. In addition, many
of the smaller parts were painted by
Denzel Williams. The Stits Aerothane
works well in the spray gun and leaves
a bright shiny finish that lasts for years.
Ray said, "We are well pleased with
the overall paint scheme including the
large wing numbers that we did not
have on the 1986 restoration. This
time, Chapter 304 would not allow us
to leave their premises without the
large numbers on the top of the right
wing and the bottom of the left wing,
just as the Chief had in 1947 when it
was built."
Jeff Perkins worked over the nose-
bowl which looked like it had been hit
with a basketball. Without using an
ounce of fille r, Jeff worked out the
dented and wrinkled material until it
was back to its original shape and
VINTAGE AIRPlANE 19
.c
r'"
:c
"-
smooth as a brand new nosebowl. As
Ray mentions, "The guy is a genius with
metal. "
The second time around, Ray learned
that you don't paint all the trim screws.
They are left in their original shiny
plated finish and (very) carefully in-
stalled with all slots lined up with the
"line of flight." To quote Ray, "When
you fly an old Chief, you need to get rid
of all the drag you can."
Eventually, the perky side-by-side
Aeronca was completely assembled with
all the fairing strips installed and numer-
ous small details taken care of, one by
one. On January 7,1995, the time came
for everyone to see if their efforts had
been in vain. The airplane was wheeled
outside and fuel was added to the tank.
A few blades were pulled through on the
propeller to load up the cylinders and
the mag switch was turned on. On the
(Below) Familiar side view of NC3469E
reveals extremely well done original
paint scheme, original Scott tailwheel
and a door handle that actually lines up
with the "line of flight." Both doors fea-
ture sliding windows.
next pull, all four cylinders
fired up and the overhauled
A65 ran like a new engine!
The sweet sound brought
forth many shouts of joy
and happiness and every-
one present felt the tingle
of success run through their tender bod-
ies. What a day!
When queried about the weight of
the finished airplane, Ray explained
that they finished up at 835 Ibs. without
gasoline or oil. This compares to an ad-
vertised weight of 790 Ibs. when new.
However, this was without wheelpants
and metal prop which add about 20 Ibs.
In addition, when Ray and Wilbur re-
stored the Chief the first time, they re-
placed the wing leading edges with .020
aluminum versus the original .016. Sure,
its a bit heavier, but the leading edges
on the airplane are immaculate and pro-
vide a very true airfoil. The Chief
cruises at 85 mph, lands at 60 mph and
stalls at 48 mph. It gets off the ground
nicely and is very respectable in climb,
so Ray and Judy are pleased with the
overall performance.
They would especially like to thank
(Left) Above the green fields of
Wisconsin, the bright yellow Chief
cuts a pretty picture with its 36-
foot wing carrying the 1947 regis-
tration numbers. This was a
deluxe airplane back in 1947 and
sold brand new for $1995.
(Below) The welded handle is
used for moving the Aeronca on
the ground - a strict necessity to
avoid manhandling the airplane by
the stabilizer. Note correct fas-
tening of the tail brace wire with
washer and cotter pin .
all the many, many good people who
helped in the rebuild of the Aeronca
Chief during the two year stint. This
would include the Chapter 304 mem-
bers, Denzel Williams, Russ Borton,
Wayne Crawford, J eff Perkins, Earl
Scott, Steve Mathews and many of Ray
Johnson's relatives in the Jackson area
(both in-laws and out-laws) who spent
hours helping out when it was really
needed. Every single bit of help and as-
sistance is sincerely appreciated as Ray
and July readily admit that without the
extensive help, the restoration could
never have been completed.
One name that continually pops up
when the Johnsons are talkillg about the
Aeronca is Wilbur Hostetler, Ray's part-
ner for so many years and the man who
taught Ray how to fly. To be held in
such high esteem by your friends is an
honor indeed, and Wilbur Hostetler
wears the honor well. Besides being a
pilot and a CFI, he is aviator from the
word "Go" and his enthusiasm is quite
contagious.
A very special "Congratulations" to
Ray and Judy Johnson for having the
tenacity to restore a "bent up" former
Oshkosh award winning Classic airplane
to even better condition than before -
and then go on to win the Class I A ward
at Oshkosh '95. This is quite an achieve-
ment, however, Ray and Judy are very
special people who enjoy a challenge.
Next to the front door of Ray and
Judy's house is a special rock that is
specifically placed to remind Ray of the
rock in the asparagus patch. As Ray
says, "It's not that big of a rock, but it
surely keeps me humble!" ...
20 FEBRUARY 1996
Renewal?
Is there ever such a thing as auto-
matic renewal? We all tend to surge
and wane in our ambition and avoca-
tion. I guess each time Trade-A-Plane
comes, and that's three times a month, I
must buy (dream on Bucky!) at least
five or six airplanes. I'm also fortunate
enough to get most of the Type Club
newsletters. These are a constant
source of renewal. Reading about the
Luscombes , Ercoupes, Cessnas,
Beeches, Aerostars, MaJibus, Aeroncas,
Pipers is renewal enough, but every
once in a while I get a real charge out of
reading a first encounter message. Now
there is a renewal if ever there was one!
When a person finds aviation, when
he falls in love with an airplane, when
he catches the same "airplane disease"
I've had since I was four years old,
that's "renewal!"
Reading about the person's first ex-
perience, the sheer joy of flight , the
feelings expressed in print as he bares
his soul and his innermost feelings, it's
ME all over again! I relate to people
you wouldn't believe.
It doesn't make any difference what
kind of an airplane it is. The whole ex-
perience can happen whether it's a
glider, a jet, an ultralight, an antique, or
a warbird. It happens! It's a friendly
disease, albeit expensive, that one can
never live down. There is no cure! The
only thing that can be done is to
"scratch" that itch often enough to keep
yourself happy, to enjoy having a spe-
cial disease that is so personal, so keen,
so enjoyable, that gives feelings of free-
dom and expression kin to no other.
You want to shout it from on hi gh,
share it with anyone who will li sten,
spread the word and talk, eat , breathe
PASS db
BUCK
by E.E. "Buck" Hilbert
EAA #21 Ale#5
P.O. Box 424, Union, lL 60180
and live aviation. It's a terrible, yet
wonderful disease to have. It sets you
apart from the mundane everyday peo-
ple, puts you in a world where only air-
plane talk is the language you want to
use. It may narrow your worldly sphere,
but it'll sure increase your awareness of
the horizon of flight.
All of this may sound corny to t he
uninitiated, but it happens! I worked
for years to get my neighboring farmer
up for a ride. He gave me every excuse
in the world. I kept after him and one
day caught him in a receptive mood.
We took the old Champ and he rode in
the front seat. He was hooked!
Here was a man approaching 80, on
his first airplane ride! There was noth-
ing I could do with him after that first
experience. Although he never got a li-
cense, he took enough dual from me to
solo the Champ, and each and every
time I got an airplane out, there he was
to help and to lit erall y beg for a ride.
Unti l the day he went west at the age of
83, I had an airport kid on my hands.
I'm sure there are ot hers out there
who have had similar experiences. We
all have known people who made ca-
reer changes after experiencing their
first flight. Should we empat hi ze with
them? You bet! We're all in this to-
ge ther, we a ll love aviat ion and air-
planes, and we are n' t about to take a
back sea t or hide it. We have some-
thing mere mort als don't have! Let's
be proud of that fact! Let 's shout it
out loud and let's tell the world! We're
a fortunate minorit y! Revel in o ur
"airplane disease!" Wallow in it! And
" noi se" it around that we have some-
thing NO ONE can t a ke away fro m
us!
The "survey" sheets are coming in.
I'm getting calls asking about mUltipl e
ownership (yes, make copies a nd fill
out one for each airpl ane if you want
to), and more often than not the guy
wants to know whether he can supply
information other than what the ques-
tionnaire asks. In other words, can he
make remarks or additional comments.
You bet - go ahead and do it! Write
a little explanatory note or include ad-
ditional data if you want to. We'll in-
gest it into the statistics somehow, if I
have to correlate all the information
myself. (No problem.)
An item of interest is that we have
also received comments from " Bob"
Taylor, executive vice president of the
Antique Airplane Association. He
questions the format of the question-
naire, and made several comments as to
validity of the questions and their appli-
cation to " old " airplanes, type clubs
and having fun. His comments about
the type clubs blossoming and then
waning is valid. It goes along with the
renewal theme I've written about.
There are times when renewal isn't pos-
sibl e, when you begin to fee l you are
the lone voice wailing in the wind, when
everyday living takes priority, when one
gets so far into a thing he's out of it.
This happens! Burnout is always a con-
sideration, and one has to admire those
who have hung in there all these years
(take a bow Bill Hodges of the National
Ryan Club) , and maintain a fresh out -
look towards each and every member
who has found aviation for the first
time.
The AAA has done a lot for antique
airplanes and will continue to, I know,
but I can' t seem to convince them to
come on board to make us one unani-
mous voice.
Over to you.
f(
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 21
Lend-Lease
GULLWING
by Jim Newman
One of Fairchild's Finest
Served During World War II
Ifound HalCoonley's articleon the
Stinson Gullwingfascinating,more so
for the reasonthatit saw Briti sh mili-
taryservice-but NOTin theRoyal Air
Forceas Hal andChuck think,and they
can be forgiven for theirsupposition,as
thecommentsand makeupoftheair-
craft'sservice recordwouldeasily mi s-
leadthosenotin theknow.
TheFleet AirArm, (FAAwhen ab-
breviated) in thoseearlydaysofWWII
used theR.A.F.Form700as theirmain-
tenancelog,and in the top right hand
cornerofthatimposing,blue covered
docume ntwas printed" R.A.F.Form
700" so it is ve ry easy for the unin -
formed tosuppose thatan aircraft in
theircarehadservedwith theR.A.F.
The fact thatthelogisfull ofentri es
mentioningFAA,orRoyalNaval Air
Se rvice (RNAS)stations is the real
giveaway. DonibristIe,Abbotsinch,
etc.,informs usofitsservice northof
theborder(ofScotland). Laterin itsca-
reeritwasflown south to near myown
neckofthewoods-NavalAirFighter
SquadronYeovilton,(notYeouiIton)
near thelittl e WestCountry,Somerset
town ofYeovil ,on th e ba nks ofthe
RiverYeo.
Forthose unfamiliarwith ourquaint
ways, Yeovilton is generally pro-
nouncedYOH(Asin "Yoh! Mama... !)
viIton,while theriveris theYeeh-Oh!
If Yeovil isafamiliar name tothose
whose interestleans in the directionof
vintageBritishaircraft,yes, it is the
(Above) During wartime, frills such as
wheel pants or "spats," as they are called
in Britain, were removed. The RN
matelots, doing their best to keep them
in the air, would tell you "Too much
bloody trouble, mate!"
22 FEBRUARY 1996
homeofthe o ld Wes tl and Aircraft
Companya nd birthplaceofthe Wid-
geon, Wapiti ,Lysa nde r ,Whirlwind,
e tc., while H. M.S. Heron (RNAS
Yeovilton) isthecurrenthome ofthe
nottobemi ssedFleet AirArm Mu-
se umshould the reade r find him or ,
herselfin theU.K. There is another
quaintold Britishcustom for you. We
name our "concr e t e s hips" (Royal
Navyshore bases)just like ships and,
during WW II we Briti s h were left
" rollingin the aisles"when the Ger-
mansclaimedtohavesunkone....!!!
In columnthreeofthearticleit states
thattheR.A.F. se ri alnumber was42-
46770,butthatnumberingformat does
notfit in withBritishpractice. Thattail
numberis a USAAFnumber,with the
42 indicatingtheyearofproduction,al-
thoughIdonotclaimto beanexperton
U.S.numberingsystems. Be that the
casethe n I ama littl e mystifi ed as to
why the articlestates that theStinson,
"....wasborn....September30,1943. "
Notto be pickybut , in theBriti sh
military, we did notrefer toouraircraft
as " SIN " or " Serial Number." She
would have been unpretentiouslyplain
"StinsonFK944" no matterwhichser-
vicesheoperatedunderwhetheritwas
theSeniorService, as the RoyalNavy
wasknown, the RoyalAirForceorthe
BombayWelsh!
AlthoughtheStinson nowlooks re-
splendentin herEasternAirlinecolors
it is int erestingtoponderjust howshe
probablylookedin 1943.
Whenshearrived in England,possi-
bly LiverpoolorGlasgow,hercratewas
truckedtoacivilian Maint enanceUnit
(M.U.) whereshewas uncrated,seton
herwheelsandj acked up. She would
nothavebeenalone- far from it. She
had499sisterstokeepheringoodcom-
pany. Sinceshe apparentlycarrieda
USAAFnumbermostlikelyshe arrived
wearingherfactory dressofOlive Drab
FS34087 (pre 1956 FS 595),with white
starsand barson ablueground,and her
tail numberin yell owFS33538,in which
caseshe would immediately have been
res prayed priorto havi ng herBritish
equipmentfitted.
Shewould have beenpaintedin the
FAAtemperateschemeofGreenGrey
FS34258and DarkSea GreyFS36270
on her topand sides,skillfullysprayed
withsoft edgedshadowshadingtoa
cl earl ydefined regulation pattern. Her
undersideswoulddefi ne her roletotrig-
gerhappy Briti sh and American ack-
ackgunnerswhowaitedpoisedtodeal
with any maraudingenemy aircraft. In
an effortto make peaceful progress
aroundthe BritishIslesshewould have
been sprayed a brightTrainerYellow
FS33538onherundersides,signifyinga
trainerorcommunications(Liaison)air-
crafttooneandall.
Roundelsonthe topsurfacesofthe
wingswould have beenred and blue
but ,onthefuselage sidestheywould
have beenred,whiteandblueoutlined
with a narrowyellowcircle, the white
beinge qually narrow. On the lower
surfacestheroundels would havebeen
red,whit eand blue,with a very narrow
whiteandno yellowofcourse.
Herserial numberFK944wouldhave
beenpaintedjustaheadofthestabilizer
in black,six inch tallcharacters while
thelegend ROYALNAVYwould have
beenimmedi atelyabove theserialnum-
berin blackeightinch tall characters
with roundedtops where applicable.
Obviously the larger characterspro-
claimingtowhomshebelonged indi-
cates that the Senior Service was not shy
of bragging about ownership!
The serial number would also have
been painted in black below the wings,
the tops of the characters being adjacent
the leading edge of the right wing but
reversed on the left wing-so that you
could read it coming or going! All
paints would have been semi-matte,
with a slight sheen at this stage of the
war. However, there would have been a
curious anomaly in her number styles,
just as there was on all her sister ships.
While her fuselage numbers and letters
complied with the regular British ser-
vice styles, her large wing numbers were
executed in the US style, square with
the 45 degree corners!
As for the black engine quoted in the
article, well-that was standard for en-
gines and accessories of that period and
nothing to do with night service at all.
Since this was wartime she, along with
her sisters, would be devoid of all frills.
Spats (wheel pants), like white tie and
tails, were out for the duration. In an-
swer to your question the Air Mechanic
checking the tires, without looking up
and pausing only to wipe his cold nose
with the back of his greasy hand would
tell you, "Too much bloody trouble ,
mate!" RN matelots were men of few
words and had little time for ceremony.
Too much trouble for her hard pressed
maintenance crews in that war torn era.
Besides, she would spend much of her
time hopping in and out of often wet
and muddy, grass fields. Gone, too, the
spinner-another time saver if propeller
problems arose.
In her role with the Royal Navy she
quite likely would have been employed
as a " flying classroom, " teaching various
branches of tha t service the skills of
Wireless Operator, Navigator or Aerial
Photographer and, if employed in the
latter role, a little surgery would have
been performed so that like the prover-
bial glass bottomed boat she too, would
have had a large window in the under-
side of her rear cabin through which to
survey all that she over flew. Most likely
there was also a second window in her
lower right corner for more oblique
photography exercises.
She might even have been used as a
squadron "hack," ferrying people hither
and yon, around anyone of the 12 naval
squadrons to which she might have been
attached. If '944 was very lucky she
might possibly have had an easy time
working as an Admiral ' s Barge, (What
an unflattering title for a grand old
lady!), ferrying "scrambled egg and fruit
salad" bedecked admirals to meetings
and junkets and , for her pains , she
would have been coddled and polished
quite unlike a regular squadron aircraft.
That she survived the war is a bless-
ing, for so many wonderful old classics
did not. Only some 350 of her sisters re-
turned home to the land of their birth.
Like their human counterparts many
made the supreme sacrifice, but not for
them a marble memorial or a medal;
they live on only in the memories of you
and me.
Perhaps Captain Chuck Pease will
recall my name. On September 6, 1986
he generously allowed me to relive a lit-
tle of my misspent youth by giving me
stick time in his D. H. Chipmunk WP861
a.k.a. N861 WP, at Louisville, Indiana
some 34 years after I, as a young cadet,
had soloed one for the first time. After
several years of steerable tail wheels I
did find steering on brakes alone quite a
demanding chore . Thank you again ,
Chuck. I salute you for your courage in
turning this glider pilot loose in your
precious machine.
Incidentally- following that flight
my bottom did not feel quite the same
for several weeks, after Chuck informed
me that my derriere had occupied the
same seat as Royalty once had, for '861
was the very same Chipmunk in which
the Duke of Edinburgh, the Queen's
"Pot'n'Pan" (London Cockney slang for
Old Man) had gained his wings.
Now there is something to brag
about! '*
Hal Coonley's Stinson Gul/wing, de-
scribed in his article in the September
1995 issue of Vintage Airplane, would
have looked like this during its wartime
service in Great Britain, as depicted in
this beautiful pen and ink rendering by
member Jim Newman. For an added bit
of fun, he has drawn in three more
British aircraft near the hangars. Can
you identify them? The answers are on
page 28.
Sf
1
~
~ . . . . .
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 23
WHATOURMEMBERSARERESTORING
_______________________________ by Norm Petersen
ground-uprestoration includingmovingthe
mainlandinggearforward andoverhauling
theContinentalC90-12engine. ThePoly-
Fiberprocesswas usedforcoveringandthe
panel was upgraded with a navlcom,
transponderlencoderand GPS. Thetwo
dusterpilotshave been teasingtheirfriends
thattheyplanondustingwith theChamp!
Even theirwiveslike the prettyChampso
muchtheywanttotakeflyinglessons. Con-
gratulationsona very nice lookingrestora-
tion. The FAAregisterhasonly17 Cham-
pion7FC'sremaining.
1957Champion7FC convertedto 7EC
Thesephotosofaconverted Champion7FC,N7541B,
SI N 7FC-44,weresentin by theowners,Jim Looloian
(EAA391421,NC 19513)andJimWebber(EAA427492)
ofArvin,California. TheyreporttheChampwas origi-
nallyownedbyHill'sFlyingServicein Sacramento,CA,
whereit flew 100hourspermonthfor manyyearsas a
trainingaircraft. It lastflew in 1968. In1992,thetwo
Jimsboughttheairplane andspentthreeyearsdoinga
BobMurra's Bellanca14-13-2
Thisprettyblueandwhite1946Bellanca Cruisair14-13-2,N74424,
SIN 1537,is theprideandjoyofBobMurra(EAA506696,AIC 25167)
ofDerby,Kansas. It was totallyrebuilt in 1991 byJeffClausenand
KenMuellerofLincoln,Nebraska. BobMurraboughttheairplanein
1993 and has had a mostenjoyable timeeversince. With a 165
Franklin(sixcylindersmoothness)anda fixed pitchmetalprop,the
Bellancawill haul four peopleat150mphon9.5 gph. Tokeepthepi-
lotin goodphysicalshape,thelandinggearis hand-crankoperatedand
soarethe flaps! TwoadditionsthatJackCoxspottedarediscbrakes
andasteerabletailwheel- twoitems hewished he had hadon his14-
13-2. Bobreportsthereare1583 hoursITon theairplanewith199
hourson a topoverhaulontheFranklin. Thereare17614-13-2Bel-
lancasremainingon theFAAregister.
Steve Kruer'sStinson 108-1
Completewith a fancy white,yellowand red paint
scheme,thisStinson108-1,N8880K,SIN 108-1880,is
the"Sundayafternoonescapevehicle"forSteve
Kruer(EAA441948,A/C 20995) ofFloyds Knobs,In-
diana. TheprettyStinsonwas restoredfrom the
frame upbySteveandhisfather,veteranEAAerMar-
vin Kruer(EAA25462) ,overa periodoffouryears.
All coveringwasdonein Stitsandthefinal colorsare
painted in StitsAerothane. In addition to theair-
frame,theFranklin150hpengine receiveda topover-
haul to bringit upto perfection. With itsoriginal
wheelpantsandsnappypaintscheme,theStinsoncuts
a prettypictureon the ramp. Therearepresently550
Stinson108-1 aircraftremainingon theFAAregister.
24 FEBRUARY 1996
Mark Lund's Piper J-3 Cub
Neatl y parked in the winter sunshine is Piper J-3 Cub,
NC92613, SIN16990, mounted on a set of Federal A1500
skis and waiting for its owner, Mark Lund (EAA 330783)
of Jewell, Iowa, to jump in and go ski flying. This particu-
lar 1946 Cub was restored from a basket case over a five
year period by Mark and hi s brother, Luke, working un-
der the ever watchful eye of veteran EAAer, Don Pell e-
greno (EAA 11853) of nearby Story City, Iowa. (Don re-
stored the Fairchild XNQ military trainer). The Cub
feat ures a Conti nent al A65-8 engine and a wood prop
along wit h or igi nal large wing numbers and small tail
numbers - all properly positioned. The workmanship ap-
pears to be first class and we look forward to seeing the
Cub at Oshkosh (that's a subtle hint, Mark!).
Charles Zinn's Stinson Stinson 108-2
These " before and afte r " photos of a Stinson 108-2,
N9711K, SIN108-2711, were sent in by Charles Zinn (EAA
295035, A /C 15966) of Harrisburg, PA. Havi ng owned the
Stinson for 19 years, Charles reports the teardown and rebuild
required about one and a half years of dedicated work. The
engi ne was rebuilt by Bill Snavely in Florida. The Stits Poly-
Fiber process was used for the recover and the re-
sults speak for themselves. Notice how much cleaner
the airplane looks without the large numbers on the
side of the fuselage. Congrats on a really fine job,
Charles. There are 472 Stinson 108-2's remaining on
the FAA register with a grand total of 2319 airplanes
of the entire 108 series still listed on the register.
Bob Curtin's Tiger Moth
Open cockpit flying at its very best -
this is de Havilland DH-82A Tiger Moth,
N71lJP, SINT-4160, flown by longtime
EAA member Bob Curtin (EAA 168837,
A /C 6280) of Scottsdale, Arizona. Bob
reports the Tiger Moth was damaged in a
hangar collapse at Crystal Lake, IL, in
1984 and was completely rebuilt by Gene
Coppock with Ed Clark, Hawthorne,
CA, rebuilding the Gypsy Major 145 hp
engi ne. Since completion in 1986, Bob
has enjoyed about 140 hours of "wind-in-
the-face" flying with the airplane
presently based at Deer Valley Airpark
in Arizona. The logbooks wend their
way back to 1941 in South Africa. At
present, there are 88 DH-82A's and nine
DH-82C's on the FAA register. Con-
grat ul ations Bob, on flying a very nice
piece of aviation hi story.
Workingonaprojectof yourown? Sendyourphotosalongwithashortstory
aboutyourairplaneto:H.G. Frautschy,EAA,P.O. Box3086,Oshkosh,WI 54903-3086
VINTAGEAIRPLANE25
ystery Plane
by H.G. Frautschy
The February Mystery Plane comes to us
from the Wally Norman collection, part of the
EAA Foundation photo archives. It takes us
back to the time when corrugated airplanes
were king, and were being thought of as the
latest in aeronautical technology. Answers
need to be in no later than March 25, 1996, for
inclusion in the May issue.
Every now and again we receive an answer
that comes from somebody who should know -
the airplane's owner! In this case, it's Roy P.
Williams of McAllen, Texas who writes:
"The Mystery Plane is a Babcock All-Ameri-
can Cadet, Model LC-ll, 2 POLM. See the en-
closed copy of Bureau of Air Commerce 'Unli-
censed Aircraft Identification Mark Assignment'
certificate. You will note that I purchased the air-
craft July 16, 1935 from a Mr . McLaughlin of
Akron, Ohio. Your picture of the Mystery Plane
was taken by the hangar at Akron, Ohio, the same airport that
Goodyear built the big Air Dock in which the Akron and Macon
airships were constructed.
"The plane in question had a Detroit 'Air Cat' 5-cylinder ra-
dial air-cooled engine, 65 hp. Later they were known as
LeBlond engines. Go back about three or four years in the
SPORT AVIATION magazine; you will find a very interesting
article on the evolution of the engines which followed the 'Air
Cat' engine.
"The fuselage is made of plywood. Wings were semi-can-
tilever, with short wing struts. Tail wheel is part of the rudder
which caused the aircraft to be steerable. On the left control
stick was the brake lever which applied braking to both wheels.
You will note also the twin headrests being streamlined. The
aircraft was a bit heavy. My photos show its final day. Numer-
ous parts and the engine were salvaged for another plane.
"To the best of my knowledge only two were manufactured,
and further it is believed these planes were built in Akron. That
26 FEBRUARY 1996
city later was the home where the early Funk brothers aircraft
were created. The Babcock was only a fair flying plane. As I
previously stated, it was in need of more power due partly to its
weight.
"The information which I have provided should clear up the
identity of the Mystery Plane."
The Babcock LC-l1 was built in 1928 by Verne C. Bab-
cock, an Early Bird who was born in Benton Harbor, MI in
1885. Verne came by his aeronautical curi osity quit e natu-
rally - his mother, Della, was a ball oonist in the 1890's. By
the age of 19 he had flown a Wright-style machine
on two fli ght s, the first covering an estimated 180
feet, and the second ending in a wash-out of the
airplane. Undeterred, Verne Babcock continued
his aviation career, gai ning experience in both fly-
ing and building aircraft. He instructed Navy st u-
dents at Pensacola, FL, flying Single float Curti ss
N-9's. Knocking about in the industry, he worked
for a number of fir ms, and then in the late 1920's
he began work on the small two-place, side-by-side
monoplane. In the November 1928 edition of Aero
Digest the engine is li sted as a three cylinder, 55 hp
Clark. A later photo shows the 65 hp Detroit 'Air
Cat' 5-cylinder radial air-cooled engine installed.
Construction was wood, with a plywood coveri ng
for the fuselage, and fabric covered wings and tail
... UNITED STATES OF. AMERICA
In tbe alra'alL DEPA RTMENT O F COMMERCE
UNLICENSED AIRCRAFT IDENTIFICATION MARK ASSIGNMENT 7997
DESCRIPTION OF AIRCRAFT
Model BABCOCK CADET LC-l1 2 POLM
Serial No. 501 Engine LE BLOND
The aircrart described above is an unlicensed aircraft and has been assigned the
number indicated lor identification only. This aircraft is NOT licensed or registered
as airworthy by the Secretary of Commerce.
It is recorded as owned as follo\':s:
WILL IAM P MCLAUGHLIN
2189 23RD ST S W AKRON OHIO
Uoleosooooer. oded 0' expirel
JULY 1 1936
AlJiJtant Direct2!J" _
NOTE.-AI! provWIQIU of lb. Air Corumtret' RO!fUlniom are mad. l put of lb. terms hereof as thou;b
1ITittm bneiA. 9- 28 (ovrn)
surfaces. 19 ft. long, it had a wingspan of 30 ft., and a use-
fulload of 500 lbs. A top speed of 100 mph was claimed,
with a landing speed of 30 mph.
Verne Babcock was active in a variety of other areas, in-
cluding manufacturing early radios for the general public,
and afte r WW II , the des ign and building of catamaran
boats.
Other correct answers were received from Marty Eisen-
mann, Alta Lorna, CA; Charley Hayes, New Lenox, IL, and
Jack McRae, Huntington Station, NY. ...
(Above and Below) Two local smart alecs hammed it up for
Roy Williams' camera while he taking a picture of his broken
Babcock All American Cadet LC-11. Roy didn't know the name
of the local kid who also was getting some stick time in the
broken bird. After buying the Babcock in July of 1935 (see the
copy of the registration) he flew it for a short while. Then, after
what felt like a normal landing, the fuselage fractured on roll
out. Roy said he certainly didn't see any evidence that there
was anything wrong with the airplane that day. and the the
fuselage failure was quite a surprise!
One of the interesting features of the Babcock was the tail -
wheel mounted at the bottom of the rudder (imagine the rudder
hinge loads with this arrangement, similar to the Ford Flivver
tailwheel).
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 27
New
Members
Charles F. Adams Pine Plains, NY
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ThomasA. Yenser Kutztown, PA
Carl Yunker Elba, NY
RobertC. Ziegenhals Wharton,TX
GULLWING
ANSWERS
to the Caption Quiz on page 23:
The three aircraft in the back-
ground of jim Newman 's drawing
are, from left to right, a Fairey Sword-
fish, Fairey Barracuda, and an Air-
speed Oxford.
28FEBRUARY 1996
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1943 G- 44 WIDGEON - 3000 TT, 200
SFOH, 200 SPOH, Oshkosh "Outstanding
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1940 Miles Magister M14A Hawk
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ft. 132 mph. Cruising 123 mph. Initial
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est continuouslyoperated airport in Illinois."
And,doesiteverhavegoodstories! 250 pp
- 133 photos. $19.00 includestax, shipping
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SUPER CUB PA-18 FUSELAGES - New
manufacture, STC-PMA-d, 4130 chromoly
tubing throughout, also complete fuselage
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INC. (J. Soares, Pres.), 7093 Dry Creek
Road, Belgrade, Montana 59714, 406/388-
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Plans - Ragwing Replicas - Ultralight
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This &ThatAboutthe Ercoupe, $14.00. Fly-
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VINTAGEAIRPLANE29
Fly-In
The following list of coming events is furnished to
our readers asamatter of i nformation only and does
not constitute approval, sponsorship, involvement,
control or direction of any event (fly-in, seminars, fly
market, etc.) listed. Please send the information to
fAA, Att: Golda Cox, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI
54903-3086. Information should be received four
months prior to the event date. r/,MHEWMAN
!
FEBRUARY 24-25 - RIVERSIDE, CA - EAA
Chapter 1 Annual Open House/ Fly-In.
Flabob Airport. 25th Anniversary of the
Marquart Charger. 909/686-1] 18.
FEBRUARY 24-25 - MINNEAPOLIS, MN -
Minnesota Sport Aviation Conference and
Flight Expo, Minneapolis Convention
Center, 9 a.m. - 10 p.m. Saturday, 9 a.m. - 6
p.m. Sunday. Aviation speakers, exhibits,
workshops. Sponsored by the Minn. Office
of Aeronautics, FAA and Minnesota pilot
groups and associations. Call 6 12/296-
8202.
FEBRUARY 25 - WARROAD, MN - 18th An-
nual Ski-Plane Fly-In/ Breakfast. 218/386-
1818.
MARCH 1-3 - CASA GRANDE, AZ- 38th An-
nual Cactus Fly-In, sponsored by the Arizona
Antique Aircraft Association. For more infor-
30 FEBRUARY1996
mation call John Engle 602/8]0-9670 for
more information.
MARCH 6-7 - NASHVILLE, TN - Tennessee
Mid-South Aviation Maintenance Seminar.
Contact TN Dept. of Trans., Office of Aero-
nautics, P. O. Box 17326, Nashville, TN
]7217. Call 615/741-]208.
APRIL 13-14 - NACOGDOCHES, TX - East
Texas Airshow ' 96 WW II, A/e,
Experimentals, Aerobatics, Skydivers etc.,
Airport Camping, Concessions, Nearby
Motels (special rates). Contact Bob Dunn,
409/564-7212.
APRIL 14-20 - LAKELAND, FL - 22nd Annual
Sun ' n Fun EAA Fly-In and Convention.
813/644-24] 1.
APRIL 28 - HALF MOON BA Y, CA - Pacific
Coast Dream Machines Fly-In and Show, to
benefit the Coastside Adult Day Health
Cfassics r.
Nitrate/Butyrate Dopes
From AnOld Friend
r.2et urn with us to those both in the air and on the
thrilling days of yesteryear, gro und , and they're also
back to when airplanes had kind to the environment.
those gorgeous satin finishes The icing on the cake is
that looked a foot deep. that they cos t less than
You can still have those other similar products.
same gorgeous finishes with Classic Aero is made here
our Classic Aero nitrate/ in America by Poly-Fiber,
butyrate dopes. Our new whose only business is air-
formulas follow the original craft coatings.
Mil Specs to the letter. Your classic airplane
Classic Aero finishes have deserves a Classic Aero
bee n ex haustively tested dope finish.
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fA 131) I { {VAT I /11/ f7 S ""rern"
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Fly high with a
quality Classic interior
Complete interior assemblies for doityourself installation.
Customqualityateconomicalprices.
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Freecatalogofcompleteproductline.
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Qinext;RODUCTS. INC.
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259LowerMorrisvilleRd.. Dept.VA
Fallsington,PA19054 (215)295-4115
Center. For info call 415/726-2328.
MAY 3-5 - ROANOKE RAPIDS, NC - Annual
Spring Fly-In sponsored by EAA
Antique/Classic Chapter]. All welcome,
major speaker, vintage aviation films, tro-
phies in many categories. For info contact
Ray Bottom, Jr. , 804/873-3059.
MAY 17-19 - COL UMBIA, CA - 20th Annual
Gathering ofLuscombes. Aircraft judging,
spot landing and flour bombing contests,
and the 4th Annual Great Luscombe Clock
Race. For info, contact Doug Clough,
]60/89]-6623 or Art Moxley, 206/ 6]0-
1086.
AUGUST 1-7 - OSHKOSH, WI - 44th Annual
fAA Fly-In and Sport Aviation Convention.
Wittman Regional Airport. Contact John
Burton, fAA, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI
54903-3086. 414/426-4800.
SKYKINGFLIESAGAIN!!!
"Outoftheclearblueofthewesternsky..."
You grew up knowing that famous line
meant it was time to watch Sky King and
Penny fight for truth and justice. Now, a
nearly forgotten friend has returned.
EAA, in cooperation with Flying Crown
Enterprises, has assembled the entire 64
existing SKY KING episodes into a 16
volume video tape library. These shows were saved from a tragic fire and were
hidden away in a vault for years. Each SKY KING volume includes four uncut
episodes complete with a Nabisco advertisement.
To help you select your favorite episodes, we have assembled a SKY KING
episode summary. This collection lists the program titles, together with a
description of each show. Call 1-800-843-3612 to request a copy.
OrderyourSKY KINGvideostoday!!!
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