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STRAIGHT AND LEVEL
As we start a new year, politicians are
going to be giving speeches about the state
of the federal government. I suppose it is
appropriate at this time to discuss the state
of the Antique/Classic Division.
Our membership continues to grow. We
are now reaching approximately 5,600
members, making us the largest group with
our particular interest in the United States.
Through the efforts of all the members and
volunteers who work for the division, we
are in sound financial condition. The divi-
sion pledges a donation to the Museum
Foundation each year. Also, the division
was the prime sponsor of the Air Academy
in its early days and takes pride in having
done so. All chapters are on solid ground
and appear to be very active, and the
number of chapters is growing. The board
of directors and advisors are among the best
people in the world and they are dedicated
to the division. Our relationship with EAA
Headquarters could not be better. Com-
munication is great and I encourage even
more communication among directors, of-
ficers and members. Let us know how you
feel about different issues.
The request for a repairman's certificate
for antique and classic aircraft that was sub-
mitted to the FAA some 10 years ago is
still on hold, but we haven't forgotten it.
When the time is right we will procede
again. The recognition among type clubs
of our division is improving. We look for-
ward to a continued good relationship with
these clubs. All areas are growing and im-
proving. With your input and help, this
trend can continue indefinitely.
Another subject I would like to cover is
the antique and classic criteria. The divi-
sion defines an antique as an aircraft that
was manufactured before December 31,
1945. There are some exceptions to this
rule such as the Monocoupe, Fairchild 24
and the Staggerwing. It is felt that there
were so few of these aircraft manufactured
after 1946, that they in fact should be con-
sidered antiques.
Classic aircraft are those with an original
date of manufacture before December 31,
1955. We also recognize one-of-a-kind rep-
licas such as the Howard, Mr. Mulligan .
There have also been Gee Bee replicas rec-
by Espie "Butch" Joyce
ognized by our division . Several times a
year, we have inquiries asking when a par-
ticular aircraft will become a classic. For
example, someone with a 1957 Bonanza or
even an early Cessna 172 will want to
know. This issue comes up for discussion
from time to time and it is the feeling of
the board of directors at this time that the
dates will not be changed. The door is not
closed on this subject and at some point the
policy could change.
The Antique/Classic Divi sion is unique
in that we have our magazine, THE VIN-
TAGE AIRPLANE. It is the only publica-
tion issued on a regular basis that is strictly
dedicated to the antique and classic move-
ment. I hope the members enjoy this publi-
cation and that it addresses subject matter
you enjoy reading about. Our editorial staff
is small so a good deal of the magazine
concentrates on the Oshkosh Convention.
We are not able to travel for interviews and
to write articles about individual projects
and people . It would be helpful to the staff
if you know of someone or a project that
you would like to see published, to send
some black-and-white photos and write an
article. It does not have to be a polished
piece of prose. That is what we have an
.editorial staff for. If you send the informa-
tion, we will put it in the file and consider
it for inclusion in the magazine.
In the November issue of SPORT AVIA-
TION, our premier publication from EAA
Headquarters, there was a great deal of
space dedicated to the Antique/Classic Di-
vision. Some people did not understand
why the Grand Champion articles appeared
in SPORT AVIATION and not THE VIN-
TAGE AIRPLANE. I personally think that
having the article on the Antique/Classic
Grand Champions in SPORT AVIATION is
an advantage for the division because it in-
forms all the members of EAA what we are
doing . I might even entice some to become
members of our group. Since our members
are interested in human interest and "how-
to" material , I would like to see side articles
about these Champions and how they were
rebuilt . We must depend on the member-
ship to communicate this type of informa-
tion to our headquarters staff. Mark Phelps,
our editor would be most happy to receive
anything along this line . No information is
too trivial to submit. You need not be a
writer, just blow your own whistle and send
us an outline, good information and pic-
tures.
We also have a member service in THE
VINTAGE AIRPLANE that not many people
are using. Let's not forget the "Vintage
Trader" section. A five-dollar classified ad
is a give-away in a publication such as ours.
Your request reaches more than 5,600 in-
terested customers and the more people
start using it , the more successful it will
be. You don't have to have an airplane for
sale. I am sure a number of you have old
parts lying around that you think are of
little use to anyone. There may be another
member who has been trying to find one
of these parts for years . Let's put the word
out in the "Vintage Trader."
In addition, those shops that do antique
and classic rebuilds on a professional basis
should consider a display ad to let the mem-
bership know you exist. The movement is
growing and word-of-mouth isn't always
enough, no matter how good you are. That
special project may be out there waiting to
find you.
I 'would like to remind you that it is not
too early to make plans to attend the EAA
Sun 'n Fun Fly-in at Lakeland, Florida in
April. This is a good opportunity to get
over the cold winter blues and have a good
time. It's an enjoyable event and I would
encourage everyone to participate. They
have a very active antique group in Florida
and you will see a lot of airplanes that nor-
mally don't make it all the way to Oshkosh.
It will also be a good time to meet me . I
will be there supporting the activity. Let's
all think alike and pull together for the good
of aviation. Join us and have it all!
2 JANUARY 1989
JANUARY1989 Vol. 17, No.1
PUBLICATION STAFF
PUBLISHER
Tom Poberezny
VICE-PRESIDENT
MARKETING &COMMUNICATIONS
DickMatt
EDITOR
MarkPhelps
ART DIRECTOR
MikeDrucks
ADVERTISING
MaryJones
ASSOCIATE EDITORS
Norman Petersen
DickCavin
FEATURE WRITERS
GeorgeA. Hardie,Jr.
DennisParks
EDITORiAL ASSISTANT
Carol Krone
STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS
JimKoepnick
Carl Schuppel
JeffIsom
EAAANTIQUE/CLASSIC
DIVISION, INC.
OFFICERS
President VicePresident
Espie"Butch"Joyce M.C."Kelly" Viets
604- Hwy.Street RI.2, Box128
Madison,NC27025 Lyndon,KS66451
919/427-0216 913/828-3518
Secretary Treasurer
GeorgeS.York E.E."Buck"Hilbert
181 SlobodaAve. P.O.Box145
Mansfield,OH44906 Union, IL60180
419/529-4378 815/923-4591
DIRECTORS
RobertC."Bob"Brauer JohnS.Copeland
9345S. Hoyne 9JoanneDrive
Chicago,IL60620 Westborough,MA01581
3121779-2105 508/366-7245
PhilipCoulson WilliamA.Eickhoff
28415SpringbrookDr. 41515thAve.,N.E.
Lawton,MI49065 SI.Petersburg,FL33704
616/624-6490 813/823-2339
CharlesHarris StanGomoll
3933SouthPeoria 104290thLane,NE
P.O.Box904038 Minneapolis,MN55434
Tulsa,OK74105 6121784-1172
9181742-7311
RobertD."Bob"Lumley
DaleA. Gustafson N104W20387
7724 Shady Hili Drive WillowCreekRd.
Indianapolis,IN 46278 Colgate,WI53107
317/293-4430 414/255-6832
ArthurR. Morgan GeneMorris
3744North51stBlvd. 115CSteveCourt,R. R. 2
Milwaukee,WI53216 Roanoke,TX76262
414/442-3631 817/491-9110
DaniefNeuman S.H."Wes"Schmid
1521 BerneCircleW. 2359LefeberAvenue
Minneapolis,MN55421 Wauwatosa,WI53213
612/571-0893 4141771-1545
DIRECTOR EMERITUS
S.J. Wittman
7200 S.E. 85th Lane
Ocala, FL32672
904/245-7768
ADVISORS
JohnA.Fogerty StevenC. Nesse
RR2,Box70 2009 Highland Ave.
Roberts,WI54023 Albert Lea,MN 56007
715/425-2455 507/373-1674
PeterHawks
Sky Way Bid., Suite 204
655 Sky Way
San Carlos Airport
San Carlos, CA 94070
415/591-7191
Copyright ' 1989by the EMAntiquelClassic Division, Inc.All rights reserved.
Contents
2 Straight and LevelJby Espie "Butch" Joyce
4 AlC News/compiled by Mark Phelps
5 Letters to the Editor
8 Members' Projectslby Norm Petersen
10 Time Capsulelby Mark Phelps
Page 12
12 McCabe Airplane: Revisited
16 Greek Treasure/photos by Ted Koston
18 Midwinter Festivallby Norm Petersen
22 Welcome New Members
23 The Forgotten Rockne Crash!
by Lt. Col. Boardman C. Reed
25 Pass ItTo Bucklby E.E. "Buck" Hilbert
30 Vintage Literaturelby Dennis Parks
31 Vintage Trader
35 Mystery Planelby George Hardie Jr.
FRONT COVER ...Rewing up the Continental A-80 on his 1941
Aeronca65TCN31832,sin C9181T,mountedon Federal SC-1 -1650
skis is MarkWarning (EAA 188605) of Oshkosh,Wisconsin.His Co-
pilot in the front seat is another flyer, brother Jon Warning (EM
188606) also of Oshkosh. See Norm Petersen's story of a ski-plane
fly-in on page 18.
(Photo byNorm Petersen)
BACK COVER ...Passengers deplaning from Concorde appearto
be stepping into the past, in the form ofthe front cockpitofthis Gipsy
Moth at EMOshkosh '88. Poignantphoto by the Greekmasterhim-
self, Ted Koston.See moreof his work on page 16.
ThewordsEM,ULTRALIGHT,FLYWITHTHEFIRSTTEAM,SPORTAVIATION,andthelogosofEXPERIMENTAL
AIRCRAFTASSOCIATION INC., EMINTERNATIONALCONVENTION,EMANTIQUE/CLASSICDIVISION INC.,
INTERNATIONALAEROBATIC CLUB INC., WARBIRDSOFAMERICA INC., are registeredtrademarks. THE EM
SKY SHOPPE and logos of the EMAVIATION FOUNDATION INC. and EMULTRALIGHTCONVENTION are
trademarks of the above associations and their use by any person other than the above associations is strictly
prOhibited.
Editorial Policy: Readers are encouraged to submit stories and photographs. Policy opinions expressed in articles
are solely those of the authors. Responsibility for accuracy in reporting rests entirely with the contributor. Material
shouldbesentto:Editor,TheVINTAGEAIRPLANE,WittmanAirfield,3000PobereznyRd.,Oshkosh,WI54903-3086.
Phone:414/426-4800.
The VINTAGE AIRPLANE (ISSN 0091-6943) ispublished andownedexclusivelyby EMAntiquel Classic Division,
Inc., ofthe ExperimentalAircraftAssociation,Inc.andispublishedmonthlyatWittmanAirfield, 3000PobereznyRd.,
Oshkosh,WI54903-3086.SecondClassPostagepaidatOshkosh,WI 54901 andadditionalmailingoffices.Member-
shipratesforEMAntiquelClassic Division,Inc. are$18.00forcurrent EMmembersfor 12monthperiod ofwhich
$12.00isforthepublicationofTheVINTAGEAIRPLANE.Membershipisopentoallwhoareinterestedinaviation.
ADVERTISING- Antiquel ClassicDivision doesnotguaranteeorendorseanyproductofferedthroughouradvertis-
ing. Weinviteconstructivecriticismandwelcomeanyreportofinferiormerchandiseobtainedthroughouradvertising
so thatcorrectivemmeasurescan betaken.
Postmaster: Send address changes to EMAntiquel Classic Division, Inc., Wittman Airfield, 3000 Poberezny Rd.,
Wittman Airfield,Oshkosh,WI 54903-3086.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 3
Compiled by Mark Phelps
EAA OSHKOSH '89-
JULY 28 - AUGUST 3
Plans are already well underway for
the world'slargestandmostsignifi cant
annual aviati on event - the EAA In-
ternationalFl y- in Convention. Accord-
ing to ConventionChairmanTom Pob-
erezny, EAA's 37th annual event will
be held Jul y28- August3at Wittman
Field in Oshkosh, Wi sconsin . Pobe-
rezny says, "We feel EAA Oshkosh
offe rs a forum where homebuilts, war-
birds, antiques, class ics, ultrali ghts ,
li ght planes, aerobati c and all ot herair-
craft can be seen in one pl ace and ap-
preciated for the signifi cant role they
pl ay in our everyday lives. There's
something here for everyone - young
and old, pilot and non-pil ot.
"Last year's Fl y- in was one ofour
mostsuccessfulevent sever,espec iall y
in terms of how smoothl y everything
ran and our overall safety record . As
always , we look forward to continuing
our traditi on of posi tive and healthy
growth as we continue to promote avi-
ati on to an increasingly receptive
worldwide audience."
123.4 and 123.45 ARE ILLEGAL
If you are one of the many pilots
who have been using these easy-to-re-
memberfrequencies for air-to-aircom-
munications , be advi sed that the only
frequencies designated for air-to-air
use are 122.750 for low altitude , and
122.975 for high altitude use. (The
FAA does not define high and low al-
titude) Use of unauthorized frequen-
ciescould net youa$2, 000fine ifyour
radio station license is current and up
to $10,000 if you are out of license.
Check your paperwork!
A LOOK BACK IN TIME
The following is reprinted from the
TwinBonanzaAssociationNewsletter ,
published by Di ck Ward , 19684
Lakeshore Drive,ThreeRi vers, Mi chi -
gan 49093:
Though it doesn't relate directl y to
Twin Bonanzas, it is simpl y too in-
teresting not to tell you about.
Many ofyou know that I restored a
1942 Ryan ST and fl y it around for
di splay, from time to time. This year
at the Kal amazoo Air Show, a seni or
citizen from the neighboring commu-
nity of Sturgis , Mi chi gan stopped by
and was remini sc ing about the 1930s
whenthere wasa Ryanon hi sfield and
how he always loved thi s aircraft. As
the conversation wentalong, he started
talking about the two reels on 16mm
film that were given to him by some-
one who di scovered them in the base-
ment ofa nearby lake house that was
being torn down . There were many
shot s of thi s Ryan as well as many
other earl y aircraft that were taken by
one of the wealthy Sturgis sport sman
pilots of that era. Hi s name was Ed
Spence and he owned the Carbon
Coated Company.
Needl essto say, I had to borrowthi s
fi lm and projectit. WhenI did,I could
hardl y beli eve what I was seeing. Not
onl y was there many airport activity
scenes ofaircraft and peopl e but there
are actual shots of the inside of the
Ryan factory in San Di ego as well as
the Consolidated factory showing the
construction ofthe Stinson Gullwing.
These are not only classic but very
rare.
Other shot s show the 1935 dedi ca-
tion of the Sturgi s Airport with some
very famous aircraft including a GEE
BEE and the Gulfhawk. How about a
seaplane landing on a grass runway?
It' s there !
Due to the delicate condition ofthe
fi lm, I took on the projectoftranspos-
ing thi s over to YHS videotape. Thi s
was made possible through the effort s
ofSandy Fleet ofTempleton , Califor-
nia . For those who don' t know,
Sandy'sfatherwas Reuben Fleetofthe
old Fleet Manufacturing company and
was al so invol ved with Consolidated
Aircraft. Sandy is also very involved
as an originatorofthe new San Diego
AirMuseum,therefore tooka personal
interest in helping with the mechanics
ofthi s project.
The summary ofall this is that the
project is now complete and the film
is preserved on YHS tape . Quality is
superb. One other neat thing about it
is that the gentleman who owned the
film is going to donat e the original
footage to the San Di egoAirMuseum.
They will give it a good home as a
record for future generations.
If anyone is interested in securing a
personal copy ofthis tape, I can have
duplicates made and sent to you. It' s
about a half-hour long. The price is
$28.00. You'll see how it used to be!
VINTAGE HOLIDAY
GREETINGS
Phil Manke(EAA 34386)ofMarke-
san, Wisconsin sent these two photos
ofvintageChristmascards. Hewrites:
"Here's a picture oftwo postcards re-
ceived by Philip StierofSussex, Wi s-
consin in 1913, when about six years
old . He was the owner and pil ot ofa
Pheasant, a Swallow and other early
aircraft. The EAA now has the Pheas-
ant that was once hi s. Although these
postcards are whimsical , some aero-
nauti cal accuracy is evident.
Sincerely,
Phil Manke
CORRECTIONS
The li sting of Oshkosh winners in
the September issue erroneously li sted
Bob LeMieux as the owner of the
award-winning 1939 J-3 Cub. In fact,
JimPrometerofElko,Minnesota isthe
proud owner. Also, Bob LeMieux's
andKenYolk'sStearmansareanN2S-
I and a N2S-3 respectively , not N25s.
4 JANUARY 1989
Letters TO The Editor <D] - ~ - - - - - - . .
'. . . . . . ~ - ~ ; r r
MAILWING MEMORIES
Dear Editor ,
Thank you for the extra copi es of
VINTAGE AIRPLANE with a photo-
graph of my Pitcairn PA-7 on the back
cover. The photograph was taken over
Long Island sometime in the 1960s.
Pete Brucia owned the aircraft between
1959 and 1979. You probabl y recall
that thi s airpl ane was featured on the
cover of the April 1984 SPORT AVIA-
TION. There were other photos and an
articl e I wrote on the inside. [ am en-
closing some snapshots of NC 13 185
shown in the air over Oshkosh and one
on the ground at Robbinsvill e, New
Jersey . The restored airpl ane looks a
hell of a lot better than it did when Pete
Brucia owned it.
Best Regards,
Steve Pitcairn
Jenkintown, Pennsylvania
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 5
[,etiers To The Edi tor 8 "
CESSNA THUMBS UP
Dear Mr. Joyce,
I was verypleased to see the Cessna
140 Oshkosh Fly-in featured as the
lead article in the October VINTAGE
AIRPLANE. Even more meaningful
was my airplane pi ctured in the article
on page 14. The arti cle and my pi cto-
ri al parti cipati on came as a total sur-
pri se and obviously had to do with my
Nnumberbeing 140. Anyonewhopar-
ti cipated in the Fl y- in event I am sure
echos my praise to the organi zers as
well as the incredibl e spirit that was
felt by all ofus. Ithink the arti clecap-
tured all ofthat very well, as well as
bringing usall uptodateonthehistory
of our classic little airpl ane. Once
again , thanks for contri buting to my
fl ying enjoyment by your support of
the EAA in the Antique/Classic Di vi-
sion.
Yours very trul y, I remain ,
R. Lee Harman, M.D., F.A.C.S.
Arlington, Washington.
CESSNABRATION
RETRIBUTION
Dear Mr. Phelps,
Ienjoyed very much your reporting
on the fli ght of the Cessna 1201140
group to Oshkosh. I visited with Art
Morgan during the middl e of Sep-
tember and had heard quite a bit about
the event. Art and I worked together
for 10 years in Aircraft Parking. Ican
certainl y imagine the excitement of
handlingthe 163aircraft. Theorgani z-
ersofthe fli ght aretobe hi ghl ypraised
for their ingenuity of the leading and
trai ling transponder. The pil ots who
parti cipated deserve a hand too.
Enj oyable as is the reporting ofthi s
very hi stori c arri val , it is unfortunate
that you should slip from reporting to
editori ali zing in the articl e. Even the
Cessna company reali zed the
shortcomings of the 120/140 design
and movedahead tothe 150. In answer
to Jack Cronin , there were several
other"all-metal" airpl anes produced at
the same time as the 1201140 that had ,
and have, the same performance. At
least one of these, produced in large
numbers, also provi ded the safety of
tricycle landing gear , outstanding
crosswind capabilities and was stall -
and spin-proof. Whil e you may not
consider these qualities to be ofgreat
value personall y, there are many pil ots
and members of the Anti que/Class ic
Di visionwhodo.Toconcl ude yourar-
ticle by suggesting that the 1201140 is
theanswertotheproblems ofourfoun-
dering industry leaves a bad taste in
themouth ofatleastoneofthatgroup.
Perhapsyouoverl ookedthe Ercoupe
among the all -metal postwar airplanes
because it came on the market in 1940
and achi eveda 100-mphcrui se with an
A-65 engine and 11 0 wit h the postwar
85 Continent al. Anyway, that is
enough nit -picking. Idi d enj oy the ar-
ticle.
As always, Ilook forward to getting
VINTAGE AlRPLANE each month .
NowthatIhavej oinedareli giouscom-
munityand takenapromi seofPovert y,
my contact with fl ying is strictl y
through my monthl y issue. I tried to
convince my Father Superi or that the
real way to practice poverty is to own
an airpl ane but he didn' t quite under-
stand the argument , not being an air-
craft owner.
Gi ve NC2896 1a loving pat for me,
Rev. Thomas Rowl and
Madonna House
Combermere, Ontario
PHANTOM PHAN
Hi Mark,
I wanted to express myappreciationto
you for the Luscombe Phantom story
(Phantom Dreams, November) in THE
VINTAGE AlRPLANE. It was interest-
ing and very well researched and writ-
ten. Thanks for publicizing Luscombe
aircraft.
John Bergeson
Luscombe Associati on
Remus, Michigan
PHANTOM PHLYER
Mark,
Thanks again for the great "Phantom
Dreams" story - you capture my
thoughts well. Your work is well -re-
searched and well -presented, of con-
siderable help in di spellingsomeofthe
Luscombe myths. Hopefull y, you will
have encouraged others to learn more
oftheir airpl anes' hi story. As accurate
as your efforts have been, I must
suggest two correct ions: the photos
were by Randy (Randolph , not Ran-
dall ) Hoopingarner; and, lest the
puri sts lynch me, point out that I did
not remount the tail wheel. It was done
in 1952 , three or four owners ago, in
hi s effort to tame the bird.
Great work!,
Doug Combs
Luscombe Phantom 272Y
Incline Vi ll age . Nevada
FROMTHE BIBLIOPHILE FILE
Dear Mr. Parks,
I very much enjoy your cont inuing
series, "Vintage Literature" in THE
VINTAGE AIRPLANE. I found the
most recent one on aviati on bibliog-
raphi es (October) both interesting and
useful. Bi bliographies are an almost
essenti al tool for a seri ous aviati on li-
brary because there is more and more
and MORE to know about all the ti me .
I remember being a teenager back in
the 1950s when , it seemed, all there
was avai lable in the way ofbooks was
that dreadful book, AIRCRAFT OF
THE 19 14- 19 18WAR- and Icoul dn' t
afford it !
One thought - why not do one of
the "Vi nt age Li terature" columns
about (or a li st of) the top 10 or 20
most rare/expensive/hard-to-find avia-
ti onbooks?ThreecandidatesIthinkof
right away are THE FORD STORY,
by Bill Larkins, THE PAPERS OF
ORVILLE AND WILBUR WRIGHT
by McFarl and, and the two-volumeset
on the Lafayette Escadrill e by Nor-
dhoffand Hall. Anyone ofthese three
wouldgofor$ 1 OO-plusifoneeversaw
it li sted for sale- but theyareseldom
seen! I' ll bet you could round out the
li sttoaneven 10or20inshortorder.
One last thought. A few years ago I
started coll ecting first-edition
magazines . With the mortality rate of
aviati on mags being what it is , first
editi on (Vol. I , No. I) mags may be-
come rare as well as books. A fri end
of mine spent several years searching
forthe fi rstcopyofPOPULARAVIA-
TION to compl ete hi s set. Anyway,
first editi on magazines mi ght make an
interesting column sometime as well .
Thank you again for the continuing
series on vintage literature . It 's niceto
know you are there at the library -
it 's obviously in very capable hands.
Thereare thousandsofus whoarevery
glad to have you there - unfortu-
nately, very few of us have the pre-
sence of mind to actuall y tell you so!
Enough ofthi s already!
Happy landings,
Gary Fisk
Lomita, Cali fornia
6 JANUARY 1989
This is a 1912 photo of a Roberts 4-X engine. The liquid-cooled, four-cylinder powerplant put out 50 hp and weighed 170 pounds. It
is mounted in a Benoist biplane.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 7
by Norm Petersen
This nicely restored 1946 Taylorcraft BC-12D N95598, SIN 7898, has been flown nearly
250 hours since June, 1987, when Lee Eyler (EAA 278108, AlC 11011) bought the aircraft
from John & Glenna Bowden of Lampasas, Texas, who restored the T-craft. Lee reports
the yellow and black airplane is truly a "fun flying" machine.
8 JANUARY 1989
Pretty paint scheme of white, red and blue sets off this Ercoupe 415-G, N94432, SIN
5078, flown by Fritz Bachem (EAA 286998) of Oakland, OR. Photo was taken at the
Cottage Grove Airport in 1987. Note landing lights on main gear fairings.
A most unique airplane being restored in Florida is this 1933 Curtiss-Wright 16-E,
NC12380, SIN 3520, mounted on a pair of 1937 Edo 44-2425 floats. The restorer is
veteran EAA member Weldon (Willie) Ropp (EAA 12331) of Delray Beach, FL. He plans
on having the two-place biplane flying by Sun 'N Fun '89.
A brand new restoration is featured in the photo of Piper "Cub" J-3C65, N9854F, SIN 20581 ,
owned by Dr. Mark Logan (EAA 306273) of 215 Crown Point Road, Springfield, VT 05156.
Mark is on the left and the restorer, Herbert Draper,- Rutland, VT is on the right. The
photo was taken following the first flight in September, 1988. As the airplane logs only
go back 8 years, Mark would like very much to hear from anyone with knowledge of
this airplane before 1980.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 9
The Time Capsule by Mark Phelps
SEVERSKY SEV-3
As the first aircraft from Seversky' s
company, the prototype SEV-3 (NC2106)
was originally built on amphibious floats
at the Edo Corporation on Long Island,
New York. It first flew in June, 1933 and
recorded a top speed of 190 mph. Pow-
ered by a 4S0-hp Wright Whirlwind, 2106
was later converted to wheels and
achieved a top speed of 210 mph with a
18S-mph cruise. It was ultimately sold to
Roberto Fierro of the Mexican Air Force
and served as an unarmed Loyalist re-
connaissance ship during the Spanish
Civil War. A Dewoitine pilot, unfamiliar
with the Seversky was flying the SEV-3 to
Benolas, Spain when he nosed over on
landing. The field had been decimated
moments before by Fascist bombers.
Radtke Collectioo #90
n
BERLINER-JOYCE P-16
The B/J P-16 was a two-place, gull-wing
biplane fighter with a 600-hp Curtiss
" Conqueror" engine. Henry Berliner
teamed with Temple Joyce to produce
the .XP-16 prototype. Berliner had earlier
developed a helicopter that made a few
successful, albeit short flights in 1924.
The P-16 could carry five 25-pound bombs
and the pilot fired two forward-firing .30
calibre machine guns. The airplane also
had a flexible-mount machine gun in the
rear, tandem cockpit. The bulging pro-
tuberence under the belly is an auxiliary
fuel tank.
A 12 page illustrated catalog of the over 1,000 ne9atives in the Radtke Collection is now available from the EAA Foundation Archives for
$3.00 postpaid. Write: EAA Aviation Foundation Library, Wittman Airfield, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3065 or call 1-800-843-3612.
10 JANUARY 1989
Radtke Collection #733
LUSCOMBE PHANTOM PROTOTYPE
The November issue of THE VINTAGE
AIRPLANE featured a story on Linda
Gamble' s and Doug Combs' Luscombe
Phantom, 272Y. Doug says that his air-
plane was the last of about 20 Phantoms,
but was built at the factory from the fuse-
lage of the prototype, shown here. De-
signed to be mass-produced on stretch
presses, the Phantom gave way to the
simpler curves of the Model 8 when the
presses proved to be a failure.

ALEXANDER EAGLEROCK A-4
The A-4 was the Hispano-Suiza (Hisso)
powered Eaglerock - the last of the
series. Earlier Eaglerocks used the ubiq-
uitous Curtiss OX-5 engine. The most sig-
nificant difference in the fuselage was
the nose-mounted radiator on the Hisso
model , contrasting the remote-mount,
OX-5 unit, usually fitted between the main
landing gear. Speaking of landing gear,
how about those enormous Goodyear air-
wheels? The Alexander Aircraft Company
was located in Colorado Springs, Colora-
do and J . Don Alexander served as pres-
ident. J . A. Mclnaney was its sales man-
ager and AI Mooney was in charge of
design and engineering.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 11
TheMeCabeAirplane:
Revisited
McCABEAIRPLANE
ADDENDA
The article on the 19 17 McCabe
Aeropl ane publ ished in October, 1986
VINT AGE AIRPLANE by Gene
Chase has brought fort h a response
from one of our readers.
Mr. c.c. "Ace" Cannon (EAA 11 34,
AIC 7890) of Greenfie ld, IA paid a
visit to the Dawson County Historical
Society Museum in Lexington, NE and
took the enclosed photos of the
McCabe aircraft. His keen eye re-
corded many detail s about the unusual
craft constructed by Ira Emmett
McCabe, who was later to have 133
patent s issued in hi s name.
Mr. Cannon has contributed nearl y
three full pages of caption information
to go along with the photos and we are
indeed indebted to him for such a sub-
stantial effort in learning more about
thi s pioneer aircraft.
Should further information be forth-
coming, you may rest assured that it
will be publ ished in The VINTAGE
AIRPLANE .
Features include well streamlined interplane struts, X-bracing between bays and center
section and soft coaming around cockpit. Exposed aileron cables offered plenty of
drag. Methods of wood fuselage construction would be indeed interesting. Center
section is basically an airfoil fuel tank with a conical sump at the right, rear corner.
12 JANUARY 1989
Overall view from the left rear reveals the radical
position of the wings and the look of a WW I
fighter plane. The 841 number on the wings has
not been explained.
Early photos of the McCabe gliders, one hang glider and one
with a seat and wheeled landing gear. A " bare bones" glider
frame reveals built up ribs and curved wing spars. The last
photo shows the McCabe airplane mounted on a set of floats!
Powerplant is a Thor V-twin motorcycle en-
gine of about 20 HP converted for aircraft use.
Brass wheel rubs on flywheel and drives the
tachometer shaft. Although a 4-stroke engine,
oiling was possibly done with a total-loss
hand pump as on the motorcycle.
Side view of engine reveals magneto and push rod
valve system. Note drilled engine mount for light-
ness and flat pitch on the laminated propeller.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 13
TheMeCabeAirplane:
Revisited
Very husky pivot assembly is the
only mounting for the ailerons. Note
the profound camber of the under
wing surface while the lower surface
of the aileron is flat.
The tailskid is mounted on the bottom
of the fin, giving rise to some rather
wild stick movements during taxi over
rough ground! The cable bracing is
similar in design to the 1910 Curtiss
system.
Landing gear seems to be a little flimsy,
but is well designed and shows good
craftsmanship. It is simple and of ac-
cepted design for the period. Wheels are
about 20 x 2 with the tire of wrapped
hollow core, high pressure type with wire
wheels covered for streamlining.
14 JANUARY 1989
Routing of the aileron cables is appar-
ent along with the right handle con-
trols of what appear to be a "T" handle
throttle, an ignition control and a
choke. Note absence of instruments
in the panel!
Cockpit controls include rudder bar
mounted on firewall and control stick
for ailerons and stabilator. Cable ends
are inserted into a double copper sleeve
and twisted about three turns. For a
thimble, a small spring was threaded
over the loop area before the splice is
made. Regular brass aircraft turnbuck-
les are used for rigging purposes.
Entire empennage pivoted to move
stabilator up and down. Cables are at-
tached to top and bottom of fin. Ply-
wood rudder may not be original, ac-
cording to pictures. Horizontal surface
has camber to produce lift. Elevator re-
sponse at cruise speed must have been
exciting.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 15
GREEKTREASURE
Photos ofOshkosh and the Shawano Fly-Out by the old
master, Ted Koston;
Oshkosh 'SS.
Pan Am pilot at controls.
Passenger is his daughter.
Names unknown .

Bill Rose' s North American SNJ-5 flown by Richard
Laumeyer, Teton Village, WY, with EAA photogra-
pher Ted Koston in rear seat. Photo taken by AlC
photographer Jack McCarthy from Bill Rose's 1944
Grumman "Goose". Oshkosh 'SS.
" From little acorns,
giants grow!"
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 17
FESTIVAL
With the we are
greeted by......ftbtter (wlJh cof-
fee CIIIIt_'1tOger Koplltz of
on the right. That's a
....... Jim Soares with my "chop-
pers" on his tender hands!
John Hatz hosts ski-plane pilots on his Wisconsin
homestead strip.
T he laugh on the other end of the
telephone was unmi stakeable. Identifi-
cation was totall y unnecessary! Onl y
Jim had that genuine bell y laugh - and
he was happy. It was January, 1988,
and the winter was in full swing.
"Remember the invi tati on you made
to fly up to John Hatz's Skiplane Fly- In
next month?" said Jim. "Well , I'm tak-
ing you up on the invi te!"
"It 's a deal," said I.
Thus began one of the more enjoy-
able experiences in the li fe of thi s au-
thor. The person involved was Ji m
Soares (EAA 104408, AIC 2243) of
Belgrade, Montana, a dyed-in-the-
wool airplane "nut" and all -around
ni ce guy with a sense of humor a mil e
long! By profession, Jim runs a custom
welding and machine shop in Bel-
grade, Montana and has an FAA Cer-
tified Repair Station for work on Piper
Super Cub airframes. For fun, he fl ies
an Interstate S-I B I (L-6) which he has
by Norm Petersen
owned for many years . Hi s supreme
desire in li fe is to fly an airplane on
ski s.
At 3:30 Wednesday afternoon,
Feb. 10th I met Jim and hi s lovely wife,
Dorothy, both fresh from Montana, at
the Wittman Field Terminal and took
them over to the local Super 8 Motel
for check- in . They were excited about
bei ng in Oshkosh during the wi nter-
time and havi ng a chance to spend
some time in the EAA museum. Thurs-
Overall view of the runway with many of the ski-planes parked in rows with a Luscombe on
skis just taking off. John Hatz's runway is 2500 feet of beautiful grass covered with snow.
18 JANUARY 1989
The first item for a ski-plane fly-in is to warm the engine! Jim Soares waits with antici-
pation as the small propane heater brings the glue-like oil up to running temperature.
About 15 minutes does the job. Notice Jim has his leather gloves on at this early time.
day and Friday were put to excellent
use in really giving the EAA complex
the once-over with Jim and Dorothy
quite awestruck by what they saw. Fri-
day evening, they joined my wife,
Loretta, and me for a delightful meal
of Alaskan salmon steak - kindly sent
down by George and Ruby Pappas of
Anchorage, Alaska. (It just doesn't get
any better than thi s!) We talked and
visited far into the night with an occa-
sional airplane even thrown in! The
stars were shining brightly as I drove
Jim and Dorothy back to the motel - a
perfect omen for the next day .
Bright and early Saturday morning
Feb. 13th, I stopped by the motel to
pick up Jim and head out to Earl
Grunska's airstrip. The weather was
cold - but nice! Luck was with us!
Arriving at Earl's, we found George
Rotter warming the engine on hi s 85-
hp J-4 Cub Coupe. In just a few min-
utes, we transfered the small propane
heater to my J-3 Cub. A small 12-volt
fan blows the hot air through the stove
pipe & up into the engine compart-
ment. A piece of canvas is draped over
the engine to help hold in the heat.
When we began, you could pull the
prop about a foot, let go, and watch it
return to the original spot! The 30-
weight oil is like rubber at five de-
grees! In about 15 minutes , the engine
was loose and the oil tank was warm.
We quickly disconnected the heater ,
shoved some snow under the skis and
with everybody helping, pushed the
Cub out of the hangar.
A few shots of prime, switch on,
and the 90-hp Continental came to
life, being nursed along with the
primer until it would idle smoothly. A
good warm-up is essential at such
temps so we let the engine idle for
about 10 minutes .
Meanwhile, Geoge and Earl had the
J-4 all ready to go , engine ticking over,
so we proceeded to stuff Jim into the
back seat of the Cub. Now Jim Soares
is not a small man and he had taken
my suggestion and put on every piece
of clothing he owned! Success was fi-
nall y achieved when he put hi s (large)
boots on the rudder pedal s and smiled.
I then handed him a roll of 100-mile-
an-hour duct tape with instructions to
tape up the cracks as we flew along!
This would keep him busy, help us to
keep warm and give Jim something to
laugh about! The entire roll only lasted
about 15 minutes!
We broke the ski s loose (left and
right rudder) and taxied out behind
George's Cub Coupe to the far end of
Earl's landing strip. The bright sun was
shining on the white snow which made
sun glasses a necessity. We swung into
the wind, making the wide turn neces-
ary on skis, and I hit full throttle. The
Cub really came alive in the cold air
and after a short run, was airborne and
climbing into the cool, crisp, winter
air. Jim was totally amazed at the ex-
tremely short takeoff, even with two
big people on board .
We turned northwest on the heel s of
George and Earl in the Cub Coupe and
leveled off at I ,000 feet - not a ripple
in the air. The winter landscape of
Wisconsin was quite a treat to Jim with
the many fields and forests contrasted
against the deep blue sky. Our course
was 320 degrees on the compass which
we solved by following George (let
George do it!)
I could feel occasional tremors go
through the airframe as we droned over
New London. This had me concerned
for a while until I discovered it was
Jim shivering in the back seat! The
small Arctic heater on the manifold
merely kept my feet warm in the front
seat. There was nothing left to warm
the rear seat or its passenger! Jim had
covered nearly all the cracks in the
door/window with duct tape and then
wrapped himself in a blanket I had
Ken Williams (EAA 10866, AlC 513) of Portage, WI takes a close look at a set of wooden
"Northwinci" skis installed on Ted Davis' (EAA 89935, AlC 12403) Stinson 108 from
Broadhead, WI.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 19
taken along. He felt okay, but his feet
were cold!
The J-4 Coupe was off the left wing
as we passed Tigerton and Wittenberg,
making good time with almost zero
wind conditions. Passing what I
thought was the last hi ghway on the
way to John Hatz's airport, I began to
look for other aircraft and some famil-
iar landmarks . Things didn't quite jibe.
Just to be sure, I dropped down to
circle a water tower in the center of a
small town . A complete ci rcl e revealed
no name on the tower! Strange! During
the circle, George's J-4 Coupe had dis-
appeared, my guess was he had spotted
the Hatz airport. We continued to
search the area in bigger and bigger
circles without success. I asked Jim to
c:heck the map in the seat pocket. There
was none there! (I suspected a conspi-
racy of sorts!)
Suddenly, I remembered a group of
pickups and cars parked near a drag
strip plowed out on a lake - just a few
miles back. We retreated to the south
for about eight minutes and soon lo-
cated the pickups. Telling Jim we were
going down, I pulled on carb heat and
we landed on the snow covered ice just
beside the drag strip. Many eyes were
on us! Leaving the idling Cub with Jim
at the controls , I walked over to the
nearest threesome and asked where
John Hatz 's airstrip was. One fellow
said, "About 25 miles due north." I
kind of sheepishl y thanked him and
walked back to the Cub. Jim had that
funny (frozen) smirk on his face. " I
never would have believed this if I
hadn' t seen it with my own eyes! A
Checking out the author' s Cub is veteran pilot Bob Wylie (EAA 78593) of Wausau, WI.
Bob flies a J-4 Cub Coupe on floats and also has a Taylorcraft BL-65.
lost pilot, landing to ask where he
was! "
I calmly explained to Jim that Cub
pilots are never lost - just temporarily
confused. Jim laughed so hard he felt
warm!
Full throttle on the 90 Continental
and the Federal SC-I skis were climb-
ing out of the snow in no time. We
headed due north with considerably
more confidence . Before long, we had
passed over the Merrill-Antigo high-
way and I could pick out Hatz's
airstrip. A white and blue Aeronca
Champ on (on skis) pulled up along
side and the people took our picture
before leading the way in to Hatz's .
A rare and unique set of French made hydraulic wheel skis on Earl Heyrman's Super
Cub from Green Bay, WI. Construction is aluminum and fiberglass. Earl says they work
very nicely.
20 JANUARY 1989
Later, we found out it was Steve
Hartl's Champ from Neosho , Wiscon-
sin.
Following Steve on final , I made
one of those (famous) Petersen land-
ings which even made Jim chuckle in
the back seat. We taxied over to the
aircraft line and parked next to Steve's
Champ. A pretty red & white Super
Cub (flown by Earl Heyrman) parked
next to us as the arrivals were coming
thick & fast.
Now came the big job. We had to
get a frozen Jim Soares out of the back
seat of the Cub! Besides the abundance
of clothes , it was suspected he might
have taped himself into the seat! We
pulled and lifted, shoved and twi sted ,
and finally with much grunting &
groaning, Jim was extracted from the
seat and standing upright on the snow!
Only the lure of steaming hot coffee
and a warm shop caused Jim to pain-
fully put one frozen foot in front of the
other and follow us along the line of
ski-planes to John's shop. Eventually,
we got him warmed up to where he
could talk - we were concerned that
rigor mortis had set in! Hi s first word
was, "potty" - and off he went on a
trot!
A fantastic spread of steaming chili
and goodies was eagerly eaten as Ber-
dina Hatz and other members of EAA
Chapter 640 helped with the big meal.
Besides the 26 ski-planes, many people
had driven in to swell the numbers. It
was quite a gathering of "Eagles". The
camaraderie of this rugged bunch of
pilots is something else and the sheer
joy they receive from flying on skis is
almost infectious. It is a way of life
Refueling a ski-plane requires a IiHle muscle work to get the machine up to the gas
pump. Aeronca Champ on Federal skis is flown by Steve Hartl (EAA 306105, AlC 12315)
from Neosho, WI.
with these people. Even Jim Soares,
who was pretty well thawed out by thi s
time, admitted these Wisconsin people
were the friendliest he had ever come
across. And the feeling among the
group was unanymous: Anybody crazy
enough to come all the way from Mon-
tana to attend John Hatz's Ski-plane
Fly-In couldn' t be all bad!
The lengthening shadows beside the
airplanes meant it was soon time to
head for home. I taxied the Cub to the
(auto) gas pump and refueled for the
trip home. With help from several bys-
tanders , we swung the Cub around and
cleared the area for the next airplane.
After saying goodbye to all the good
people, especially John & Berdina
Hatz, many old friends and a bunch of
new ones, we coaxed Jim into the back
seat of the Cub and I fired up the en-
gine. We taxied out in trail with some
six ski-planes ahead. One by one, they
took off to the west and before long,
it was our tum . I firewalled the throttle
and the Cub responded in the cold air.
In just a few feet , we were airborne
and climbing past the remaining crowd
by John's shop. Many arms were wav-
ing as we turned south over the end of
the strip and headed for home - almost
a lump in the throat.
The beautiful winter scenery slid
past the window as I headed just a bit
southwest to pass over Fremont. Fol-
lowing the Wolf River south of town,
I dropped down to four feet over the
ice and followed the curving river for
about six miles, turning sharply left
and right to stay over the frozen river
and between the trees . Snowmobilers
waved to us as we ffew by, the late
afternoon sun glistening on the yellow
Cub. Jim admitted he had never flown
this close to nature in the wintertime!
It was exhilarating, to say the least!
Exiting the mouth of the Wolf River,
we skimmed over Lake Poygan at four
feet above the frozen surface. Lake
Winneconne was next and before long ,
we climbed to 1000 feet over the shore ,
heading east toward Earl's. Jim felt that
with a bit of luck, we would make it
home just before he froze to death!
George and Earl were putting the J-4
Cub Coupe in the hangar as we circled
and came in for a smooth landing on
the snow-covered runway, the skis
making a "swish" noise to indicate we
were on the ground! (Petersen , you
lucked out again!) Although pretty
well frozen, Jim was grinning from ear
to ear as we taxied up to the hangar
and shut the engine down. I jumped
out and started the pickup to get the
cab warmed up - in case we were able
to extricate Jim from the back seat of
the Cub!
After teasing Jim with thought s of
hot coffee, hot tea, hot tub and a Fin-
ni sh sauna, he made the supreme effort
along with a little pulling and tugging
on our part, and managed to move his
ice-cold body to the cab of the pickup.
The rest of us pushed the Cub into the
hangar and tied it down . I hurried to
the pickup and drove Jim to the motel
with instructions to get in the motel
hot tub.
It must have worked because Jim's
wife, Dorothy, reported that once Jim
was "cooked" for about an hour in the
hot tub, the pale blue color turned to
pink and Jim was his old self again!
She also reported he slept like a baby,
completely exhausted from the tough
job of flying all day.
After a Sunday of going to church,
visiting the Oshkosh area and spending
some more time in the EAA museum,
Jim and Dorothy stopped by Monday
morning to wish us "Good Bye" and
many thanks for a most interesting
visit. Jim was still talking about ski
flying as they boarded the airliner for
Montana! Really great people. We had
concentrated so much fun into such a
short time , it almost hurt to see Jim &
Dorothy leave. But one thing you can
count on - we will be together again!.
Nicely decorated cake complete with a J-3 on skis and the wording, "Ski Fly-In 'SS,
Thanks, John" is presented to a smiling John Hatz by Rick Northrup (EAA 160167) of
Green Bay, WI during the big chili feed. The high esteem this "grass roots" instructor
has generated among his pupils cannot only be seen on their faces, but can be felt in
their quiet expressions of gratitude.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 21
WELCOMENEWMEMBERS
The following is apartial listing of new members who have joined the EAA Antique/Classic Division (through September 18,
1988). We are honored to welcome them into the organization whose members' common interest is vintage aircraft. Succeeding
issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE will contain additional listings of new members.
Abbott, Dudley L.
Homer, Alaska
Allan, Jan
Askrikevagen, Sweden
Alston, JamesS.
Plymouth, Massachusetts
Aman, Gary A.
Akron. Ohio
Ament, Frank
Sandwich, Illinois
Armbrust, Douglas R.
Greensburg, Pennsylvania
Armstrong, S. Stanley
New Smyrna Beach, Florida
Bell Jr.,JamesR.
Roanoke, Texas
Bissonette, BruceE.
EI Paso, Texas
Bodinar,John
Victoria, Australia
Boettcher,James
Enon, Ohio
Bortman, Ralph
Agaura, California
Breand, Andre
Thiais, France
Buchanan,JohnC.
Ada, Michigan
Burson, Dale
Arlington, Texas
Calvert,IanA.
Alexandria, Virginia
Capps,Ron W.
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Carr,Donald A.
Saratoga, California
Case,JamesAltice
Indian River. Michigan
ChapinJr.,Robert W.
Edgewater. Maryland
Conley, Kenneth E.
Cookeville. Tennessee
Coughlin, Timothy J.
Indianapolis, Indiana
Coussens, John
Fort Worth, Texas
Davidson, Donald C.
Nashua. New Hampshire
De Vries, Robert
Jamaica, New York
Dullenkopf, Douglas
Santa Paula, California
Egbert, FrankM.
Los Altos, California
Ehrenstrom, Ingemar
Osterskar, Sweden
ElkinsJr.,WalterL.
Lake Charles, Louisiana
Ellis, T.L.
Emmetsburg, Iowa
Elswick, JamesL.
St. Louis, Missouri
Emerson, D.
Brandon, Manitoba, Canada
Engelen, Antoine
Westerlo, Belgium
Evans, JamesC.
Red Lion, Pennsylvania
Farinha, Christopher
Auburn. California
Ferron, Arthur
Manchester, Connecticut
Foster, Geoffrey E.
Santa Barbara, California
Frumkin, MarkS.
Hazelton. Pennsylvania
Gambrell, Robert
Columbia, South Carolina
Gillespie, Bob
SilverSprings. Maryland
Graver, Gary William
Mountain View, California
GrundemanSr.,FredD.
Scandinavia, Wisconsin
Gygax, Larry
Waukesha, Wisconsin
Hall, Rowland L.
Northfield, Illinois
Headley, ThomasB.
Madison, Alabama
Heard, Dan
Jackson, Mississippi
Henry, William E.
Cumming, Georgia
Holland, William M.
Garrett Park, Maryland
Hollister, Ashley
New York, New York
Holzer, CharlesB.
Brown Mills, New Jersey
Hooper, Clint
Wichita Falls, Texas
Hower, Linn
Idaho Falls, Idaho
Int'l. Civil Aviation Org.
Montreal, Quebec. Canada
Jablonski, Richard A.
Burlington, Connecticut
Kass, Allan
Big Sky. Mountana
Kennedy, Ken
Purcell, Oklahoma
Kess, Raymond P.
Pembine, Wisconsin
Kitts, James
Mansfield, Ohio
Knowles, Bill
Palestine, Texas
Krause, Bobby G.
Kerman. California
Kraynak, Michael G.
Haverhill, Massachusetts
Larsen, Paul E.
Spring Hill, Florida
Lerch, Ralph
Boone, North Carolina
Leuthauser,J.R.
St. Louis, Missouri
Lingl, StephenJ.
Rochester, New York

22 JANUARY 1989
THE FORGOTTEN
ROCKNE CRASH
by Lt. Colonel Boardman C. Reed,
USAF Retired
(EAA 85470, AIC 1069)
Now only dimly remembered by a
few old-timers, what was then known
as "The Rockne Crash" brought about
major changes in American civil avia-
tion. Some ofthe effects ofthe long-
forgotten Rockne Crash are still with
us, even today.
Theairlines,as weknowthem, were
only a very few years old . . . "just
learning to crawl," as it were. Airline
equipment was extremely primitive to
modem eyes. Big biplane airliners-
such as the Boeing 80-As or Curtiss
Condors-were almost as common as
monoplanes. Speedsandaltitudeswere
not much different from light trainers
today. Tail-skids were only beginning
to bereplacedbytailwheels. Windows
slid open for summerventilation, orto
throw your chewing gum wrappers
overboard. Single-engineairlinersflew
scheduled passengers over mountains,
at night . The few adventurous-and
properly dressed!-Iadies and gentle-
men who rode the new airlines were
considered tobe"air-minded"(anyone
rememberthatterm?),andifabusiness
officesenta very importantletter"Via
Air-mail," they would of course al-
ways send a duplicate by rail, "just in
case" ...and some times the 3-cent
surface mail would arrive before the
6-cent air-mail. This was the era of
"TheRockne Crash" ...and this was
airline travel at the very beginning of
theGreatDepression...attheopening
ofthe 1930s decade.
But some things never change ...
then, as now, there were airline mer-
gers, and this particular merger also
had a bearingon the Rockne Crash. A
new but powerful latecomer, Trans-
continental Air Transport (TAT), had
begun operations on July 8, 1929 with
afleetofbeautiful newFordTrimotors
on an "air-rail," 48-hour schedule be-
tween Los Angeles and New York.
Passengers slept in speeding railroad
Pullman cars on the two nights and
flew during the two days. The second
airline was Maddux Airlines, which
began flying smaller and older Ford
Trimotorson November2, 1927outof
Los Angeles.
The third airline wasthe highly suc-
cessful Western Air Express, for 60
years the oldest surviving airline (as
Western AirLines) in America. West-
ern AirExpressbeganoperationsApril
17, 1926 with Liberty-powered Doug-
las openbiplanes, oneofwhich is now
on display in the National Air and
Space Museum. Within 21 months,
WAE was operating luxurious Fokker
Trimotors, first from Los Angeles to
SanFrancisco,andsooneastto Kansas
City. (I once had a flight in Western's
Fokker F-IO, No. NC5358, the third
built). The Fokker F-1Os had a fabric-
covered, welded steel-tube fuselage,
plywood-covered wings with spruce
sparsandribs, andatail skid;themore
numerousF-IOAshadatailwheel. The
Ford Trimotorwas an obviouscopyof
the Fokker, except for its all-metal
construction. At the time, few would
have believed that the beautiful Fok-
kers would be completely extinct, ex-
cept for a couple in museums, within
ten years, while a few rugged Fords
wouldstillbeflyingoverhalfacentury
later ...including EAA's beautiful
NC8407.
Transcontinental Air Transport
(TAT) completed a mergerwith Mad-
dux and Western Air Express and on
October I, 1930 Transcontinental and
Western Air (TWA) came into exis-
tence. (TWA changed its name to
Trans World Airlines in 1945). West-
ernAirExpress,however,retainedone
short route (and later expanded again)
underitsownname.EightoftheirFok-
ker F-IOA SuperTrimotors were soon
transfered to the new TWA, with
'Transcontinental & Western Air,
Inc."replacingtheoldWesternAirEx-
press name, but retaining the colors,
indian-head insignia and other mark-
ings ofWAE. One ofthese, the very
last Fokker F-IOA Trimotor built,
NC999E, brings us to the pointofthis
story . . . The Rockne Crash.
TWA Flight 5, Kansas City to Los
Angeles, March31, 1931 wasreadyto
depart. Captain Bob Fry and copilot
H. Jesse Mathias were in the cockpit,
ready to start the three "Wasp" en-
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 23
gines. Six passengers were manifested ,
only half filling the 12-place cabin . .
. but one had a change of plans at the
last minute. Knute Rockne took his
place .
Knute K. Rockne was a well-known
and highly respected household name
in America through the 1920s. Born in
1888 in Norway, he came to the United
States at the age of five, entered Notre
Dame University at 22, became a
chemistry instructor and assistant foot-
ball coach ... and finally head football
coach in 1918. Rockne quickly became
famous as the greatest football coach
of all time, with his emphasis on good
sportsmanship and tactics such as the
forward pass. His Fighting Irish foot-
ball teams won a spectacular 105
games, losing only 12 others and tying
five . His "Four Horsemen of Notre
Dame" were the greatest and best know
team players in the history of college
football .
It was overcast and humid in Kansas
City when NC999E took off on
schedule at 9:15 a.m. with a total of
eight people on board, including the
pilots. The copilot also doubled as the
steward, serving box lunches, coffee
from a thermos and chewing gum to
help pop the passengers' ears. Captain
Fry held the big Fokker low, maintain-
ing CFR (Contact Flight Rules)
through a fast-moving weather front
east of Wichita, their first stop. It must
have been a rough ride. What we now
call "scud-running" was a normal
routine for airliners as recently as haIf-
a-century ago . .. and just as danger-
ous.
Excerpts from the Department of
Commerce Aeronautics Branch (pre-
decessor of the CAA and FAA) pre-
liminary report, pick up the story. "At
approximately 10:35 a.m. the airplane
radioed to the Wichita radio station to
learn how the weather was at that
point. Wichita replied that the weather
conditions there were satisfactory for
flying and inquired of the pilots as to
whether or not they could get through.
The reports indicate that the pilots did
not respond to this question. At 10:45
the Wichita radio station again radioed
the plane and asked whether or not they
would get through. The pilots replied
to the effect that they did not know."
(From the author's experience, the
old low-frequency radios had unbeliev-
able static [compared to today's air-
craft radios] in a situation like that ..
. and their final reply quite probably
indicates a rapid increase of pilot
stress).
"The examiners found that the
24 JANUARY 1989
watches on three of the occupants had
stopped at times varying between
10:45 and 10:50, indicating that the
crash occurred at perhaps 10:47 or
thereabouts, or approximately two to
three minutes after the last radio com-
munication was received from the
airplane.
"Eyewitnesses to the crash advised
the investigators that the airplane went
into a dive of approximately 55 degrees
and that a section of wing from the
outboard engine was missing. This
wing section was seen in the air float-
ing down somewhat like a piece of
paper and was found approximately a
quarter of a mile away from the
crashed airplane .
'The investigators were advised that
ice had collected on the entering edge
of the airplane wing on the flight in
question, and it is, therefore, assumed
that ice had also collected around the
hub of the propeller. It is possible that
a substantial piece of ice may have bro-
ken loose from the hub and been struck
by one of the propeller blades, result-
ing in the breakage of the blade.
"With one blade thus broken, the re-
sultant shock to the entire structure was
probably transmitted through the brace
struts . .. Such a shock would have
been sufficient to have broken the pro-
peller hub and to have caused the wing
rupture ."
There were other theories about
what caused the wing to break off, and
also subsequent and more complete ac-
cident reports. Readers wishing greater
details and photographs are referred to
American Aviation Historical Society
Journals (Fall/Winter 1983, Summer
1984, Spring 1985, Fall 1986).
The sudden death of Knute Rockne
and seven others in the crash of TWA
Flight 5 on March 31, 1931, in a field
near Bazaar, Kansas , caused not one,
but three very large, separate and dis-
tinct shock-waves in American life.
One shock wave was in the sports
world. Rarely, if ever, has the death
of a sports celebrity caused such uni-
versal grief among American athletes.
Even teams regularly beaten by the
"Fighting Irish of Notre Dame" held
memorial services . Some newspapers
had the story bordered in black.
A second shock wave was in the
larger world of American society.
Knute Rockne, as a football coach,
was amazingly well-known, both by
name and reputation in all walks of
life, something rarely known before or
since, and therefore hard to understand
by later generations. Newspapers some
two years later still speculated on the
causes of his accident, and mourned
Knute Rockne. A movie was made of
his life. There was a Rockne au-
tomobile. And there still is a Rockne
Memorial on the exact spot of the
crash, in a remote, hard-to-find field
near Bazaar, Kansas.
The third shock wave was not as pre-
dictable, perhaps, but infinitely longer
lasting in its effects . . . the field of
commercial aviation. Airplanes had
been crashing from the beginning, and
as they grew larger, there was of
course, a larger loss of life, sometimes
considerably more than was lost in
NC999E. Never before 'The Rockne
Crash" (as it soon came to be known),
however, and not until over half a cen-
tury later has an airliner crash caused
such an impact on commercial avia-
tion, or such a public outcry: A. The
Department of Air Commerce tem-
porarily "grounded" all Fokker
Trimotors , the first general airliner-
grounding by type, in history. The
U.S. Government soon established
new safety rules and regulations for all
civil aircraft that, in greatly expanded
form , even private pilots are still living
with today. B. In a very real way be-
cause of the Rockne Crash-together
with other business problems, the
economic Depression, the stronger all-
metal Ford Trimotors, and the soon-to-
fly more modem Boeing 247-the
Fokker Aircraft Corporation of
America, by then controlled by Gen-
eral Motors, soon disappeared. And C.
Because of the Rockne Crash, the
major airlines feared public resistance
to flying in that type of aircraft. The
term "trimotor" even made the old
Ford airliner suspect. The major air-
lines all wanted new equipment, but
United Air Lines had monopolized the
new Boeing 247 production line. There
was nothing else available. TWA,
badly stung by the Rockne publicity,
asked several aircraft companies for an
entirely new design ... and the rest is
well-known history. A little company
making military fabric-covered, open-
cockpit biplanes out in southern
California got the order with an im-
provement on the little Boeing. It was
simply called the DC-I, and it even
had flaps! And so the great Douglas
Company, with its massive production
of DC-2s through DC-lOs-including
their most famous DC-3s--{)wes its
impetus in a very real way to Knute
Rockne's death . . .
in a forgotten fabric-covered airliner
. . on a rain-soaked Kansas hillside
.. so many years ago .
PASS IT 10
--1]
An information exchange column with input from readers.
by Buck Hilbert
(EAA 21, Ale 5)
P.0. Box 145
Union, IL 60180
Things are heating up here at the
Funny Farm. With the advent of the
winter-ee weather it seems people are
spending more time indoors and think-
ing more about their airplanes. I've had
several calls this month. Jim Morgan
EAA 4229 from the Kansas City area,
an old acquaintance from my Ryan PT
days at the Dacy Airport, called to say
that Andy Anderson at Bates City,
Missouri, another of our "good ole
boys, always there when you need
him," antiquers, is a good source for
parts and stuff. I know Andy and so
does everyone else from the old
school. I'm glad to hear he's still
around and still helping people. Take
it easy on him now, if you're gonna
write to him please include a self ad-
dressed stamped envelope. Also be
serious! At his stage of the game he
doesn't need pen pals or late-night
phone calls. Andy just might be the
source for those Lamb wheel conver-
sions and also the old instruments that
one fel\a wants for his Fairchild 22 pro-
ject.
And; speaking of wants and what
nots, I'm beginning to realize I have
passed up the best deal going. That
"Best" Deal is the Vintage Trader in
our magazine THE VINTAGE
AIRPLANE. Hey, for five bucks a guy
can tell all our members what his needs
are or if he has some surplus to dispose
of. Look back there. I'm going to have
some ads there and I'll tell you why.
Number-one son Robert, (he's a
Classic judge) bought himself a Cessna
170A during the Convention. Now he
has always wanted one, wanted it so
bad he was even willing to purchase it
with a sick engine, so he did it! I
looked it over and found that a cylinder
had shed chrome and that it was all
through the engine. I didn't even want
him to ferry it home after reading the
logs, but he did anyway. Well to shor-
ten up the story, when we split the case
there was nothing but garbage inside .
Thereupon we embarked upon a very
expensive and time-consuming search
in an attempt to find a Continental C-
145 or an early 0-300 with an eight-
bolt flange. I'll bet we've invested bet-
ter than $200.00 in telephone calls, and
what's the date? We haven't hit paydirt
yet! This telephone campaign started
'cause we thought we'd save time.
Well, guess again! I think we'll put
that five dollar ad in Vintage Trader.
Vintage Trader is a direct pipeline to
the really hard-core, interested mem-
bers of our organization. It weeds out
a lot of the speculator types, too, and
gets right to the heart of the matter with
people who have the same interest,
likes and dislikes as you do.
I know! The time involved is a big
stumbling block. With the lead time
for publication being before the fif-
teenth of one month there is no possi-
ble way you'll get any action before 30
or even 45 days, but shucks! We've
been on the phone since the third week
in August and we've contacted less
than one percent of the people who
read THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE. It ' s
looking better to me all the time. I'm
gonna try it!
I'm just home from the October
Board meeting up at HQ. This was an
especially rewarding time because
after each division had its meetings we
met for a huge joint session. More than
100 attending directors and officers
from our division, Warbirds, lAC, The
Museum Foundation and EAA all got
a chance to "kick the gong around."
This sharing of mutual problems and
ideas is the greatest experience we
could hope for. The lAC with its tre-
mendous esprit de corps, the Warbirds
with their elan, the EAAers and their
dreamships, the Museum board guys
from all the divisions, our own Antique
& Classic people, the Ultralighters,
and the Canadians, all in the same
room along with the staff of EAA. It
has to be the highlight of the year. We
are all so busy at the Convention we
haven't time to get together like this.
And it's here we see how great our
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 25
leaders like Tom and Paul Poberezny
are in action. I just wish all of you
could be there! But then again, you
ARE! You'vegot yourdivision offic-
ers and directors who are your reps.
You' ll find their names and addresses
in THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE
masthead. Give them achanceto front
for you if you've got something on
your mind. They'll do it! Our new
president" Butch"Joyceisarealjewel,
too. This past meeting was my first
opportunity to work with him and get
a little insight as to hi s way ofdoing
things.Hemaybeasoft- spokensouth-
ern boy, but he's good!
One of the subjects we kicked
around, with Ben Owen-Tech director
and Fred Cailey-IAC, was a concern
ofeveryone who may fly orown one.
The Citabria-Decathalon series of
airplanes . I haven't exact numbers on
thi s, but there have been several "fat-
al s" as a result of overstressing the
machines. This gives me qualms be-
causeIwasoneofthepeoplewhoshot
down the NPRM when the FAA
wanted a mandatory spar inspection. I
was really in a quandry wondering if
we' d made a mistake defeating the
NPRM.
Well, as it turns out. The "failures"
to date have not been in the area the
NPRM targeted to be inspected, but
just about a foot outboard ofthe wing
attach fitting or outboard of the strut
attach fitting. These have all been the
result ofoverloads, in the opinion of
the FAA investigators . EAA staff
member , Ben Owen, helped me with
thi s investigation, and thi s comes di-
rect from hi s FAA source .
Overloads? What's causing them?
Are the guys trying to make a Pitts
out of a Citabria or a Decath? Well,
maybe! But the two I'm most familiar
with don' t read that way. The final
finding has not beenofficiallyreleased
yet , but Icantell you that the scenario
looks something like this.
Picturenow,a2S0-poundguyin the
front seat. He had to grunt a little get-
tingin didn'the. Hesupportedhimself
with the seat back as he climbed in.
Both feet on the floor with all hi s
weight butted up against it as he slid
down and fastened the belts. And now
they are airborne. We see them do a
niceeasyloop. Atthe bottomthewing
folds and the airplane augers in. No-
body got out! What happened?
Well ,theindicationsontwoofthese
accidentspointtothatseatback. Under
the G loads at the bottom ofthe loop,
it broke! ThethingjustletGO,andthe
pilot or passenger as the case mi ght
26JANUARY 1989
be, fell into the back seat shoving the
rear stick all the way AFT!
What a way to end the scene . . .
Let' s tell all the owners and pilots of
these machinesto fly themwithintheir
limits and to give that seat back a real
once over--often!
VFR DIRECT IN A
TAYLORCRAFT
Dear Buck,
Just read your October column and
wanted you to know I recentl y did my
long cross country (for my private
license) using VFR direct. I had to! I
did it in my ' 40Taylorcraft BL-6S. It
was an experience all right! Six hours
at 1,500 feet, 90-degree temperatures
and I got passed by three National
"Hey,
for five bucks
a guycan
tell what
his needs
are."
Guard helicopters! I wouldn't trade
that experience for ANYTHING!
Sincerely,
Ted Jones
South Haven, Michigan
Hi Ted,
Sure nice ot hear from you, espe-
cially since you do MY kind offly in ,.
I had a T-Cart once, a '46 BC-I. It
only had one door on the passenger
side . It was a little gem to fly but what
a beast to get in and out of, especially
ifthe passenger wasn't a good prop
man. You had to chock it or tie it, prop
it and then crawl in before the passen-
ger could get in. I flew it a lot from
the right side, even though the brakes
were on the left only. Wi sh I had it
now, but then I have a love affair going
with every airplane I see or think
about. If [' d had half as many
girlfriends as ['ve had airplanes, [' d
have been dead years ago!
Over to you,
Buck
Dear Buck,
I enjoyed your column in the
Novemberissue but it leftonequestion
in my mind . Whatare yougoing to do
to correct the sti cking valve problem
in your engi ne, or is Mogas and Mys-
tery Oi l the final soluti on?
Iam not tryi ng to be a wi se guy but
only searching for information as an
A&P mechanic with a recently ac-
quired li cense. I am not familiar wi th
nor were we exposed to the
peculi ariti es ofthe LeBlond engine at
our school.
I also thought it was gratifying to
readaboutthepeoplewhowerewilling
to help in your time ofneed . Maybe it
would be agood ideaforourorgani za-
tion to solicit on a regular basis from
the readers the names of people who
have helped them in theirtime ofneed
and publish these names as a "Good
Samaritan" column. It would be a
small recognition to the personorfirm
who helped out and at the same time
generate some positive newswhen vir-
tually everything we see, read orhear
from the media is so negati ve . It may
alsoencourageotherpeopletobemore
helpful.
Sincerely yours,
Franci s Krieger (A/C 9207)
Hello Fran,
Appreciate your letter and the ques-
tion you ask regarding the final solu-
tion to the dry valve problems on the
LeBlond. This is not the only "old"
engine that suffers the same problem .
The Marvel-Outboard-Two-cycle 50-
to-one mix of seven ounces to 10 gal-
lons offuel, preferably the leaded reg-
ular as used in that day, is the only
solution other than one being used by
some ofthe antiquers as a supplement.
This involves pulling all the valves
at top overhaul and having a specialty
house apply a mollybidinium sulfide
coating to the stems. This coating, ap-
proximately I I 1,000 thick, then acts as
a self lubricant that is heat resistant
and will help prevent sticking and siez-
ing ifthe valve stem runs dry in the
guide. This does not replace the lub-
ricant and I doubt that the FAA would
approve, but it does work. About 12 to
15 years ago, this technology helped a
lot of race cars and high-temp engine
operators.
The latest is to coat the valve stems
with a ceramic dry film plating. This
can only be described as experimental
as well. The ceramic can be applied to
any thickness desired. It does much the
same thing as the mollybidinium sul-
fide , but the ceramic can be built up
to almost any depth (thickness) de-
sired. The valve guide then must be
reamed to the proper clearance.
Sure nice to hear from you. f'm sure
you understand why I can' t recom-
mend or reveal a source for the above
methods . I think your suggestion to put
the "Good Guys" in print where all
would know and meet them is a good
one. Meanwhile , it's always a pleasure
to hear from a fellow mechanic who is
at least interested in learning about
"old world" technology. We are in the
computer age and the $30,000 diag-
nostic interpreter for the computer
readout that they need to tune up a
new Ford or Chevy just ain' t available
for these old airplane engines. We
learn from experience and we try to
pass it on so the next guy will have an
idea where to start.
Over to you,
"Buck"
The foll owing is a section from an
original LeBlond service manual. The
text and diagrams may be of interest to
fans of "old world" engines such as the
LeBlond:
Lubrication System
The oil tank should have
at least two gallons capacity
and should be located in
such a manner as to insure
some air circulation around
it during warm weather. It is
best to locate the bottom of
the tank just above the inlet
to the pump although oil cir-
culation may be maintained
with the tank in a lower pos-
ition, once the pump is
primed.
The line to the pressure
pump should be located near
the bottom of the tank, and
some sort of a trap or screen
should be provided if possi-
ble to prevent particles ofdirt
or metal from reaching the
pump. The scavenging or re-
turn line should either enter
the tank from the top, or
through a stand pipe if it
should prove more conve-
nient to make the connection
at the bottom. A standard 11
4-inch pipe tap is provided in
the gear case to attach a pipe
for venting the oil tank into
the engine. This will insure
against loss of oil from the
tank either in maneuvers or
through expansion.
"I doubt
thatthe FAA
would
approve,
but it
doeswork"
Both pressure and
scavenging oil lines should
be 5/8-inch I. D., being at-
tached to the connections on
the pump through a flexible
hose and clamps. At least
one or more such flexible
connections should be
placed between the pump
and tank at suitable posi-
tions if a metal pipe is used.
Better still is an approved
flexible pipe line which re-
quires nojoints and has even
less possibility of breaking.
This is something that de-
mands careful attention, as a
broken oil line is not only un-
pleasant but may prove ex-
tremely serious at times.
The pressure line to the
gauge is 1I4-inch O.D., a 1/8
pipe thread for a standard
SAE pipe connection being
prOvided at the rear of the
gear case. The gauge should
be able to register pressures
up to 120 psi. The usual care
should be exercised in
eliminating the possibility of
a broken line.
All oil connections should
be made tight to prevent pos-
sible leaks as the pump will
otherwise not function prop-
erly. When the connections
on the pump are placed in a
desirable position and the oil
pressure is found satisfac-
tory, everything should be
safetied by lock wires.
There is no necessity to in-
stall an oil cooler or radiator
as the heat given to the oil by
the engine is not excessive.
The oil will cool itself in the
engine and return line or in
a tank of sufficient capacity if
the required amount of air
circulation is permitted.
Every air-cooled engine
should be equipped with an
oil thermometer as this is the
only simple means by which
the engine temperature can
be recorded in an airplane.
Care should be used when
installing the oil thermome-
ter as it is usually a delicate
instrument. The bulb of the
thermometer is inserted into
the oil sump, and the tubing
should be clipped or taped for
support at several conve-
nient points. The dial should
have graduations from 100
to 212 degrees Farenheit
Prices and reccomendations
on these instruments will be
furnished on request
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 27
"7(J"
LEBLOND "85"
MODEL 5E.
From the LeBlond service manual.
28 JANUARY 1989
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2
9


THREE EARLY CLASSICS OF AERO-
NAUTICAL LITERATURE
By the last decade of the 19th Century
the leadership in aeronautical research had
shifted to the United States. In Europe Li-
lienthal was dead and researchers did little
to share data or co-operate with one
another.
In America under the leadership ofOc-
taveChanuteseriousaeronautical research-
ers were able to keep in contact with one
another. Chanuteandotherleaders,primar-
ily, James Means in Boston and Samuel
Langley in Washington, spread the word
ofprogressin researchthroughpublications
that have become classics of aeronuatical
literature. Thesepublicationsweresomeof
the main source materials used by the
Wright Brothersin theirpursuitofpowered
flight.
When Wilbur Wright communicated
with the Smithsonian Institution in 1899
wishing to avail himselfof"all that is al-
ready known" concerning the problem of
mechanical flight, the institution recom-
mended three books for study.Thesewere:
PROGRESS IN FLYING MACHINES by
OctaveChanute,THEAERO NAUTICAL
ANNUALeditedbyJamesMeansand EX-
PERIMENTS IN AERODYNAMICS by
Samuel P. Langley.
OCTAVECHANUTE
PROGRESS IN FLYING MACHINES
New York, 1894, 308 p. Reprinted by
Lorenz & Herweg, 1976.
This book was a compilation ofa series
of 27 articles that had appeared in the
American Engineer and Railroad Journal
from October, 1891 to November, 1893.
Chanute, one ofAmerica' s leading civil
engineers, was nearly 64 years old when
he took an interest in aeronautics. He col-
lectedeverythinginprintrelatedto thesub-
ject, instituting correspondence with re-
searchers in the United States and in
Europe.
His study and correspondence was
shared through a series ofarticles that ap-
peared in the railway engineering journal
mentioned above. It was these articles that
were latercompiled and edited as his book
in 1894.
When Chanute retired from his profes-
sion as a civil engineer in 1896, he began
his own experiments in manned flight.
With the help of August Herring he de-
veloped a range ofgliders that were flown
from the sand dunes of Indiana east of
Chicagowhereover300flightsweremade.
The main value ofChanute's book was
the detailed survey ofprior developments
onthe road to poweredflight from thelikes
ofHenson and Stringfellow to his contem-
poraries: Hargrave, Lilienthaland Langley.
His concluding chapter was a summary of
the theoriescovered in the book alongwith
his comments on how the information
could be used to "conduce a possible solu-
tion ofthe problem ofaviation."
The two problems he thought to be the
most difficult to solve for successful pow-
ered flight werethedevelopmentofa motor
and the ability for the aircraft to maintain
equilibrium.
JAMES MEANS
THE AERONAUTICAL ANNUAL, Bos-
ton, 1895, 1896, 1897.
Of less technical stature than Chanute,
butimportantin this timeperiodwasJames
Means. Means was a shoe manufacturer
who gave up his business when he had
amassed enough money for his family to
liveon and thendevoted hisenergiestothe
study and promotion ofaeronautics.
Although Means studied bird flight, and
built kites and gliders, his greatest influ-
ence was in disseminating the aeronautical
information provided in his three annuals.
Means believed that by publishing the in-
formation "itmightbringexperimentersto-
gether, thus preventing waste ofeffort."
He collected and edited the most signif-
icant papers he could find on past and cur-
rent developments. His contributors in-
cluded Lilienthal, Chanute, Hargrave,
Langleyandothers. Healsoprovidedaser-
vice by reprintingthe classic. British papers
ofCayley and Wenham.
These volumes, which were also pub-
lished in London, provided valuable data
and encouragement to those seriously in-
terested in heavier-than-airflight. The first
volume of 1895 contained mainly historic
papers. It was sent gratis to known ex-
perimenters around the world and to all
United States public libraries in cities of
over 100,000 population. This in tum
brought in contributions that he used for
the second and third volumes.
When the time came to prepare the
fourth volume Means found that he didn't
have enough material, and as circulation
had mostly been gratuitous, hedecided not
to proceed.
SAMUEL PIERPONT LANGLEY
EXPERIMENTS IN AERODYNAMICS
Washington DC, 1891
The first major figure in American
aeronautics, Samuel P. Langley was
trained in architectureand civilengineering
but later turned to astronomy and as-
trophysics. His interestin aeronauticsdated
from the time he read a paper presented at
a meeting ofthe American Association for
the Advancement ofScience.
From 1887 until his death in 1906 he
was Secretary of the Smithsonian Institu-
tion. Afteryears ofexperiment he success-
fully demonstrated heavier-than-air flight
in 1896 with the flight ofa steam powered
tandem wing model aircraft. A full size
versionofthe"Aerodrome"wascompleted
in 1902 but failed to achieve flight.
He started serious investigation offlight
in 1887, when he constructed a whirling
arm 60 feet in diameter to test flat planes,
in order to "demonstrate experimentally
certainpropositionsin aerodynamicswhich
prove that such flight under proper direc-
tions practicable."
Hiswork is reported in EXPERIMENTS
IN AERODYNAMICS. He concluded that
one horsepower could sustain over 200
pounds in the air at a horizontal speed of
somewhat over 60 feet per second.
The book is important in that it fully
documentsnotonlytheresultsoftheexper-
iments, but the conditions of the experi-
ments . It provides detailed tablesofresults
anddrawingsofboththe testapparatusand
ofthe measuring devices.
Langley's work plotting angle ofattack
ofthe test planes against pressure wasable
to verifyearlierformulas for predicting lift
and drag for lifting planes. He believed his
work "demonstrated that we already pos-
sess in the steam engine as now con-
structed, or in other heat engines, more
than the requisite power to urge a system
of rigid planes through the air at a great
velocity, making them not only self-sus-
taining but capable ofcarrying other than
their own weight."
This he was able to demonstrate in 1896
when his No.5"Aerodrome"flew forover
3,000 feet.
UPDATE on the September VINTAGE
article on aviation bibliographies: Jay Mil-
ler ofAeroFax has announced that he has
copies ofthe Hannibal bibliography AIR-
CRAFT, ENGINES AND AIRMEN avail-
able for sale at $39.95. Write Jay at:
AeroFax, P.O.Box200006,Arlington,TX
76006.
30 JANUARY 1969
MEMBERSHIP
INFORMATION
EAA
Membership in the Experimental
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for one year, including 12 issues of
Sport Aviation. Junior Membership
(under 19 years ofage) is available
at$18.00 annually. Family Member-
ship is available for an additional
$10.00annually.
ANTIQUE/CLASSICS
EAA Member - $18.00. Includes
one year membership in EM An-
tique-Classic Division, 12 monthly
issues ofThB VintageAirplaneand
membership card. Applicant must
bea currentEMmemberandmust
giveEMmembershipnumber.
Non-EAA Member - $28.00. In-
cludes one year membership in the
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monthly issues ofThe Vintage Air-
plane, one year membership in the
EM and separate membership
cards.SportAviationnotincluded.
lAC
Membership in the Intemational
Aerobatic Club, Inc. is $25.00 an-
nually which includes 12 issues of
Sport AerobBtJcs. AlllACmembers
are requiredto bemembersofEM.
WARBIRDS
Membership in the Warbirds of
America, Inc. is $25.00 per year,
which includes a subscription to
Warblrds. Warbird members are
requiredtobemembersofEAA.
EAAEXPERIMENTER
EMmembershipandEAA EXPERI-
MENTER magazine is available for
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included). Current EAA members
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32 JANUARY 1989
S\f\ A\']
THE JOURNAlOF
THE AIRPlANE 19201940
leo Opdycke, Editor
W.W.1 AERO (1900-1919), and SKYWAYS (1920-1940):
our twoJournals,which contain:
informationon current projects historical research
newsof museums and airshow5 workshop notes
technical drawings, data information on paint and color
photographs aeroplanes.engines,parts for sale
scale mOdelling mater i al PLUS:your wantsand disposals
news01 currentpubl icat ions01 all kinds PLUS more...
Samplecopies$4 each.
Publishedby WORLDWAR 1 INC.
15Crescell!Koad. POIl}lllkeepsic. NY
25c perword,20 word mini mum.Send yourad to
The VintageTrader, WIHman Airfield
Oshkosh,WI 54903-2591.
AIRCRAFT:
Chester's GOON, GEE BEE' s, "BULL DOG, "
MONOCOUPE" 110", Culver"Cadet",etc.Plans
catalog $3.00,REFUNDABLE. Vern Clements,AI
C 5989,308 Palo Alto Drive,Caldwell , ID 83605.
(1-89)
(2)C-3AeroncaRazorbacks,1931 and 1934.Pack-
age includes extra engine and spares. Fuselage,
wingsparsandextraprops.Museumquality!$30.000
firm! Hisso 180-hp Model "E". 0 SMOH with prop
and hub and stacks. Best oHer over $10,000. 20
hours on engine. $12,500. No tire kickers,collect
calls orpen pals,please! E.E."Buck"Hilbert,P.O.
Box 424,Union.Illinois60180-0424.
PLANS:
POBERPIXIE- VWpoweredparasol- unlimited
in low-cost pleasure flying. Big,roomy cockpit for
the over six foot pilot. VW power insures hard to
beat3'12 gph atcruise setting. 15large instruction
sheets. Plans- $60.00. InfoPack- $5.00. Send
check or money order to: ACRO SPORT, INC. ,
Box462,HalesCorners,WI53130.414/529-2609.
ACRO SPORT- Single placebiplane capable of
unlimited aerobatics. 23 sheets of clear, easy to
lollow plans includes nearly 100isometricaldraw-
ings,photos and exploded views.Complete parts
and materials list. Full size wing drawings. Plans
plus 139 page Builder's Manual - $60.00. Info
Pack- $5.00.SuperAcroSportWing Drawing-
$15.00. The Technique of Aircraft Building -
$12.00 plus$2.50 postage. Send checkor money
order to: ACRO SPORT, INC., Box 462. Hales
Corners, WI 53130.414/529-2609.
ENGINES
108-hp Lycoming 0-235-C2C engine. 1,985
hoursn on 2,400-hourTBO.Logsavailable. Cur-
rentlyflying ona1973GrummanAA1-B.Magsand
harness not included. $2,500. Contact Mark
Phelps,414/426-4825.
Where The Sellers and Buyers Meet...
12601. USA 191414733679
MISCELLANEOUS:
MiscellaneousOX-5 Parts, SwallowBiplane con-
trol surfaces, PT-19 engine panels, and miscel-
laneous,200 Ibs. small parts,Penguin trainer. Phi l
Stier, 414/394-3431. (1-89)
HaveWeGotAPartforYou!20yearsaccumula-
tion 01 parts for all types of aircraft - antiques,
classics, homebuilts,warbirds.Everythingfromthe
spinner to the tail wheel. AirSalvage ofArkansas,
Rt. I,Box8020,Mena,AR71953,phone501/394-
1022 or 501/394-2342.(3-2/579111)
CUSTOM EMBROIDERED PATCHES. Made to
suit your design, any size, shape, colors. Five
patch minimum. Free random sample and
brochure. Hein Specialties, 4202P North Drake,
Chicago,IL 60618-1113.(c-2/89)
1910-1950 Aviation items for sale - helmets,
goggles, instruments,manuals,everything original
and old. 44-page catalog available, $5.00. Air-
mailed. Jon Aldrich,POB-706,Airport,Groveland,
CA 95321. (1-89/5)
WANTED:
Wanted: Cowling for 1939Pre-warAeronca Chief
S-65C with top exhausts. Need nose bowl , the
baffling thatgoesaroundcylinders,alsolowerone
piece.Need good pants,havejunk now.712/262-
8971 after9:00 p.m.COT.(1-89)
Wanted: Information leading to the location and
recoveryofarebuildableLoeningC2CFlyingBoat.
Letters answered. Bob Foster, Box 175, Wayne,
Maine 04284.(1-89)
Wanted: Vintage motorcycle to go with my 1937
Monocoupe. Letmeknowwhatyou have.Ed,7797
Baseline, Boulder, CO 80303, 303/499-4070. (I I
89-2)
TOOLS:
Tools,hand& powerforallaircraftwork.Ri vet-
ers - Drills - Fasteners - Accessories - Tool Kits.
Everything for the kit builder - 96-page catalog
available. $2.00 (refundablewith first order). U.S.
Industrial Tool & Supply Company, 15159 Cleat
Street, Plymouth, MI 48170. Call toll-free 1-800-
521-4800.(4/89-6)
RE-UVEITI
The fabulous ti mes ofTurner, Doolittle,Wedell
andWittman recreated as neverbefore in this
600-page two-volume series.Printed on high grade
paperwith sharp,clearphoto reproduction.Official
race results 1927 through 1939- more than 1,000
photos- 3-viewdrawings- scoresofarticlesabout
peopleandplanesthatrecapturetheglory,thedrama,
the excitementofair racingduring the golden years.
Vol. I(no. 21-14452) and Vol. II (no. 21-14451)
are sold for $14.95each, with postage chargesof
$2.40forone volume and$3.65 fortwo volumes.
Send yourcheckormoneyorderto: EAA Aviation
Foundation,Attn: Dept. MO,Wittman Airfield,
Oshkosh,WI 54903-3086,414/426-4800. Outside
WisconSin,phone 1-800-843-3612.
Flyhighwitha
qualityClassicinterior
Completeinteriorassembliesfordo-it-yourselfinstallation.
Custom quality at economical prices.
Cushion upholstery sets
Wall panel sets
Headliners
Carpet sets
Baggage compartment sets
Firewall covers
Seat slings
Recover envelopes and dopes
Free catalog of complete product li ne.
Fabric Selection Guide showing actual sample colors and
styles of material s: $3.00.
INC.
259 Lower Morrisville Rd., Dept. VA
Fallsington, PA 19054 (215) 295-4115

Proven Durability on Thousands 01 Alrcralt.
* FAA-STC lor Over 660 Alrcralt Models. * Over 23 Years Service
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VINTAGE AIRPLANE 33
"TheOdysseyofAmeliaEarhart"-
THE BUILDINGOFVOYAGER
$49.95
Thecomplete,in-depthstoryofoneof
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startling reva-
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conclusions reached bythe author. Exciting, in-
triguing,astoryyouwon'tsoonforget.Video/book
conbinationsentin a special.convenient.hand-
some packagefor easy access orstoring. VHS
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Leam the secrets ofthe experts with
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by George A. Hardie, Jr
The manufacturer of thi s aircraft
was well known in the 1930s. The
photo was submitted by George
Goodhead of Tulsa, Oklahoma, date
and location not given. Answers will
be publi shed in the April, 1989 issue
of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE.
Deadline for that issue is February 10,
1989.
The Mystery Plane in the October,
1988 issue brought some interesting re-
sponses . Jack McRae of Huntington
Station, New York identified it as fol-
lows:
"When I saw the October Mystery
Plane I couldn't resist looking it up in
the Civil Register. From January I ,
1935 li st it seems to be the Landis-
Earle, 2 PCLM Ser. No. WI Mfg.
1934; Engine Cirrus 90 HP, George L.
Landis, 4633 Cramer St. , Milwaukee,
Wi s. I couldn't find it in the 1936 Re-
gister so it may not have been around
very long."
John Underwood of Glendale ,
California submitted the following :
"The mystery plane featured in the Oc-
tober issue is the Landis & Earle 101,
built in Milwaukee in 1934. It had a
90 Cirrus and accommodated two side
by side. No washout in the short span
tapered wing must have made for a
worrisome stall.
"R" could have been applied for a
number of uses other than racing, such
as ag work, predator control, topo/sur-
vey, etc."
(Actually "R" stood for Restricted,
which covered a multitude of uses as
John points out. "X" stood for Experi-
mental, and numbers without a letter
prefix were for Unlicensed Identifica-
tion .)
But there's more to the story. Ed
Effenheim , a Milwaukee mechanic-
builder, recalls driving a truck to Fond
du Lac where a wing and other parts
were picked up , probably from a
Pheasant Traveler, a single-place
monoplane being developed by the
Pheasant Company. The wing was cut
in half and a center section inserted to
accommodate a wider fuselage for
side-by-side seating. The new fuselage
was welded at the Milwaukee Parts
Corp. by Earle Blodgett , a partner in
the project (hence the Landis-Earle
name). George Landi s was a photo-
grapher and intended to use the
airplane for aerial photo work . As John
Underwood surmi sed, its performance
was marginal and eventually the
airplane was sold. Cliff Gould of Mil-
waukee remembers the airplane was
unofficially named the "Quivering
Quail." He'd like to locate the present
address of Earle Blodgett since he
worked with him at Milwaukee Parts.
Incidentally , the photos were ac-
quired at a local flea market and given
to the EAA library. No one could inde-
ntify the airplane, so by publishing this
column another mystery was solved.
Additional answers were received
from C.R. Foster, Wayne, Maine.
More on the Viking biplane which
was the Mystery Plane in the July
issue. John Underwood writes:
"Re the Kitty Hawk's "designer":
This was actually an unauthorized
spinoff of the Kinner Airster , produced
here in Glendale during the 1923-27
period. Long story. Suffice to say a
then unknown airwoman, who was
representing Kinner in the Boston area,
was a witness to what Bourdan &
Company were up to and warned Kin-
ner that he should take steps to protect
his designs. Kinner, preoccupied with
hi s engines, took no action, possibly
because he had already sold the Airster
design rights to Crown Coach. The
young lady was none other than
Amelia Earhart.
The Airster had an all-wood air-
frame and Bourdon wanted steel tube
fuselage and a more reliable engine.
Frank Kurt, newly graduated from
MIT, was hired to replicate the Airster.
He was also the test pilot and sales
manager. Frank went on to greater
things under the aegis of Robert Gross,
who reorganized the Bourdan Com-
pany under the Viking label. Seaplanes
were always Frank's great love and he
had a long and distinguished career at
Grumman . Pete Bowers, in his Kitty
Hawk writings, refers to an engineer
named John E. Simmons. No matter.
Simmons or Summers, it was Frank
Kurt who did the deed ."
landis and Earle 1
VINTAGE AIRPLANE 35