Va vol 40 no 3 mar 2012

MARCH 2012

Vintage M

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intage March 2012.indd 1

3/2/12 8:55 AM

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Remember, We’re Better Together!

www.auaonline.com

Aviation insurance with the EAA Vintage Program offers:Lower premiums with payment options Additional coverages Flexibility on the use of your aircraft Experienced agentsOn-line quote request available AUA is licensed in all states

The best is affordable. Give AUA a call – it’s FREE!

Fly with the pros… fly with AUA Inc.800-727-3823

AUA is Vintage Aircraft Association approved. To become a member of VAA call 800-843-3612.

Our L-4 was based in the US During WWII from 1943 to 1945. We bought it early this year and have enjoyed every minute of it. The stearman was built in 1942 during WWII and we have owned it since 1975.

Owning and operating antique aircraft has been a part of our family for 3 generations going back to 1963 when my father Tom bought a Piper Tri-pacer. Our family has owned aircraft ever since. Our aviation roots run deep in this family, and that is why we choose AUA as our agency. They have a long distinguished record of service with the types of aircraft we operate, and understand our problems and concerns.

— Mark Henley

The Henley’s Mark, Tanner, and Johnathan■ Mark is an ATP and has been

a pilot since 1976

■ Tanner is a student pilot who flies every chance she gets

■ Jonathan is 18 and has been a private pilot for one year

TTTTTTTThhhhhhhaaaaaannnnnkkkkkkkssssss AAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!

Vintage March 2012.indd 2 Vintage March 2012.indd 2 3/2/12 8:55 AM3/2/12 8:55 AM

2 Straight and Level Cubs2Oshkosh and FAA funding by Geoff Robison

3 News

6 Friends of the Red Barn

9 Travel Air: Performance and Dependability The excitement of sharing it with people by Sparky Barnes Sargent

14 Breaking Through the Clouds: The First Women’s National Air Derby The story of grassroots aviation pioneers by a grassroots independent fi lm producer by Sparky Barnes Sargent

16 Achtung, Baby! Prague E.114M Air Baby HB-UAF restored to fl ying condition by Stefan Degraef

20 Light Plane Heritage Exploring the Parasol Monoplane by Bob Whittier

28 The Vintage Mechanic Wood defects: Compression failure, shakes, checks, longitudinal cracks by Robert G. Lock

34 The Vintage Instructor A Proud Moment by Steve Krog, CFI

36 Mystery Plane by H.G. Frautschy

38 Classifi eds

28 I Fly With The Best “Wearing” the airplane S. Michelle Souder

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 1

A I R P L A N E M A R C HC O N T E N T S

S T A F FEAA Publisher Rod HightowerDirector of EAA Publications J. Mac McClellanExecutive Director/Editor H.G. FrautschyBusiness Manager Kathleen Witman

Publication Advertising:Manager/Domestic, Sue AndersonTel: 920-426-6127 Email: [email protected]: 920-426-4828

Senior Business Relations Mgr, Trevor JanzTel: 920-426-6809 Email: [email protected]

Classifi ed Advertising Coordinator, Jo Ann Cody SimonsTel: 920-426-6169 Email: [email protected] O V E R S

Vol. 40, No. 3 2012

FRONT COVER: Joe Santana fl ares out as he gets r eady to tickle the grass airstrip at EAA Air-Venture Oshkosh with his T ravel Air 3000. T urn to page nine for Sparky Bar nes Sar gent’s ar ticle on this beautifully r estored example, which was on display during the 2011 salute to the cen-tennial of U.S. Air Mail. V AA photo by H.G. Frautschy .

BACK COVER: An alpine meadow isn’t often the setting for an airplane in the pages of Vintage Airplane, so we we’r e quite pleased to bring you the stor y of a rar e Praga E.114M Air Baby . Ste-fan DeGraef sent us the stor y of this fi ne Swiss-r egister ed example fr om his home in Eur ope. Photo by Edwin Bor remans.

9

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

16

28


AirVenture 2012 is now a mere five months down the road! Wow, there is so much going on right now,

and so much to accomplish before July sneaks up on us yet again. Ev-ery year I tell our Vintage volun-teer group that the goal is to always outdo ourselves from one year to the next. The volunteer work weekends are already completely planned out, and we’re ready to launch into yet another year of accomplishment on the grounds at EAA. It’s going to be another great year at Oshkosh, so I hope you will be able to join us for another exciting event full of avia-tion and excitement.

Planning for the Cubs2Osh-kosh event is already gaining a fair amount of steam. This will certainly be an event to remember. With the exception of the wonderful yearly Sentimental Journey fly-in that takes place in Lock Haven, Pennsyl-vania, I don’t believe you could ever see a bigger fi eld of yellow Cubs; it will be a magnificent thing to see. I have been really impressed with the number of folks who have al-ready committed to participating in the 75th anniversary of the beloved Piper J-3 Cub. It all really makes me want to just go out and buy one! Be sure to stay connected to the of-ficial website (www.Cubs2Oshkosh.org) to stay abreast of the latest in-formation on how to participate in this very special event. As our plans come together, we’ll get the word out via that website and EAA and VAA’s offi cial communications.

Join the forums area on the site and share your enthusiasm for this once-in-a-lifetime event with oth-

ers who are also planning to make the trip. Be sure to click on the “Cubs Location” link and check out the map that shows where all of the Cubs will be coming from. A num-ber of individuals are already plan-ning to hook up with other Cub pilots traveling from the same gen-eral area en route to Oshkosh.

VAA Director/CFI Steve Krog, who owns and operates several Cubs out of the Hartford, Wisconsin, Munic-ipal Airport (HXF), has graciously reached out to the community of Hartford and has already experi-enced a large interest from them desiring to participate as a host com-munity/gathering spot for the many dozens of Piper Cubs en route to AirVenture Oshkosh. Hartford, Wis-consin, is conveniently located 33 miles northwest of Milwaukee and is a convenient short 60-mile fl ight to Oshkosh. Hartford has a grass strip (2,250 feet), and self-serve fuel is available. Several other airports around the country are also plan-ning to host our Cub pilots while en route to Oshkosh, and that infor-mation will be kept updated on the forums area of the Cubs2Oshkosh website. The parking/camping ar-rangements at Oshkosh will be ide-ally located in and around the Type Club parking area. Be assured that EAA and VAA are planning to make your visit to this anniversary event very special. Hope to see you there with your Cub!

There’s fi nally some long-awaited news from inside the beltway re-garding the extensive efforts to get a long-term FAA reauthorization bill through Congress, which would fund the agency for several years.

House and Senate conferees have now managed to work out their dif-ferences and recently finalized the language in the bill. The U.S. Sen-ate overwhelmingly passed the FAA Reauthorization Bill, 75-20, on Feb-ruary 6, so it’s now headed to the president’s desk for signature. If the president signs the bill, the FAA will have its fi rst long-term funding plan since 2007. This will fi nally end the string of 23 short-term funding ex-tensions that have kept the FAA op-erating since 2007, and will allow the agency to plan and implement some of its key projects and initia-tives. EAA and other aviation groups have long worked hard to have lan-guage included that benefi ts GA in a variety of areas, including no user fees or aviation fuel tax increases, funding for airport improvement projects and the NextGen air traffi c control system, as well as progress for vintage aircraft data and airport through-the-fence agreements. This effort toward a full FAA reauthoriza-tion bill was the result of GA groups being stronger together to repre-sent our members and all aviators. But, it’s not all good news for our local airports that may now experi-ence their local share on federally funded airport improvement proj-ects increase from 2.5 percent to 7.5 percent. This is going be painful for some small airports that just simply don’t have those kinds of local funds available to implement a large-scale airport construction project.

Remember, we are better to-gether. Join us and have it all.

2 MARCH 2012

Geoff RobisonEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, VAA

STRAIGHT & LEVEL

Cubs2Oshkosh and FAA funding


VAA NEWS

VINTAGE AIRPLANE 3

SOME VINTAGE AIRCRAFT OWNERS got a big win in the FAA reauthorization bill signed in early February by Presi-dent Obama, as the measure included an EAA-supported provision that authorizes the FAA to release certain type certifi cate and design data for aircraft no longer supported by a manufacturer.

Th e specifi c element of the bill (Section 302) provides that the FAA can release “abandoned” data that is essen-tial to safely maintain and operate vintage aircraft. Th at includes data for aircraft such as those built by long-defunct companies whose type certificates were not ac-quired or maintained. Th ree years is the initial threshold for inactivity. It also gives the FAA the authority to de-clare that data as abandoned, or releasable to the public if aviation safety will be enhanced by the information for aircraft, engines, propellers, and other aircraft appliances.

“Th is is great progress for those who own and restore vintage aircraft and preserve our aviation legacy,” said H.G. Frautschy, executive director of the Vintage Aircraft Association, a special interest group within EAA. “EAA and VAA have been working for many years to eliminate this dilemma for those who want to own, fl y, and display these magnificent aircraft. We have previously sought and implemented policy and regulatory solutions to this dilemma. Each effort has failed under legal pressure on the FAA not to release solutions that could be considered proprietary or intellectual property. It was clear that a leg-islative solution would be required.”

An additional amendment to the reauthorization bill (Section 816) requires the FAA to maintain engineer-

ing data relating to aircraft that were certifi-cated between 1927 and 1939, and precludes the destruction of any such airworthiness and historically significant documentation. Th e amendment also eliminates the ability of type certificate holders from that period to force the FAA to withhold such data under the claims of “trade secrets.” Th e amendment was proposed by longtime EAA member Greg Her-rick, an owner and restorer of numerous vin-tage aircraft, and included in the legislation by Rep. Sam Graves (R-Missouri).

“There are two initial and complementary victories contained in the nearly decade-long eff ort: the preservation and release of histori-cally significant documentation necessary to restore and maintain truly antique prewar air-

craft contained in the Herrick Amendment, and the EAA initiative giving the FAA authority to release the design and airworthiness data for both pre- and post-World War II general aviation aircraft that are no longer supported by a manufacturer,” said Doug Macnair, EAA vice president of government relations.

“These efforts do not give completely unfettered ac-cess to design data,” continued Macnair, “ but they do go a long way toward helping owners of antique and vintage aircraft maintain these beautiful fl ying pieces of history. Th e EAA eff ort also seeks to protect not only owners of aircraft that are no longer supported by a manufacturer, but also those that may not be supported in the future, making this a long-term protection for all general avia-tion owners. We are very grateful to the FAA for their collaboration in this effort and their willingness to in-troduce the original language into the early drafts of the reauthorization bill on behalf of EAA and all who own and fl y vintage aircraft.”

As with all new laws, time will show how eff ective these measures prove to be in obtaining certifi cation and design data for older aircraft. EAA will be monitoring how this process unfolds and is prepared to pursue additional rem-edies should they become necessary. For now, however, owners of vintage aircraft have an opportunity to seek data by filing a Freedom of Information Act request to the FAA (visit the FAA FOIA office website at www.faa.gov/foia) for the information necessary to restore and maintain their aircraft, and those owners have a fi ghting chance of actually obtaining it.

Vintage Aircraft DataNewly signed FAA reauthorization bill allows for release of abandoned data


4 MARCH 2012

User Fees: Good News,Bad News

The possibility of GA user fees just won’t go away, despite more than a decade of congressional opposition from both parties and overwhelming negative responses from the aviation community. Already in early 2012 we have heard good news and bad news on the subject.

First the good ne ws: The final language in the first full FAA reau-thorization bill in five years passed both houses of Congress in early February and was signed by Presi-dent Obama on Feb. 14. It contains no provision for user fees and no in-crease in the aviation fuel tax, which is GA’s fair contribution to FAA’s funding. The reauthorization bill was a goal of EAA’s advocacy efforts, as it stabilizes the agency’s funding and planning through 2015 and al-lows major initiatives such as Next-Gen and airport improvements to move forward.

N o w f o r t h e b a d n e w s : T h e Obama administration’s proposed Fiscal Year 2013 budget includes a $100-per-flight user fee for selected GA aircraft flying within controlled airspace. While the budget proposal would exempt all piston aircraft, mil-itary aircraft, public aircraft, air am-bulances, aircraft operating outside of controlled airspace, and Canada-to-Canada f lights, the plan would create additional financial burdens for GA and require new bureaucracy to administer user fee collection. It also opens the door to an eventual expansion of user fees to other pri-vate aircraft and GA operations.

E AA and fel low GA groups re-sponded immediately to the budget proposal. The leadership of GA cau-cuses in the House and Senate has been alerted to the need to again op-pose the user-fee plan.

User fees is an issue where the concept of “stronger together” is essential. It is the unified strength of aviators and their representa-tive groups such as EAA, AOPA, and others fighting a specific proposal when it emerges in Washington that will prevail.

To nominate someone is easy. It just takes a little time and a little reminiscing on your part.

•Th ink of a person; think of his or her contributions to vintage aviation.•Write those contributions in the various categories of the nomination form.•Write a simple letter highlighting these attributes and contributions. Make copies of newspaper or magazine articles that may substantiate your view.

•If at all possible, have another individual (or more) complete a form or write a letter about this person, confi rming why the person is a good candidate for induction.

Th is year’s induction ceremony will be held near the end of October. We’ll have follow-up information once the date has been fi nalized.We would like to take this opportunity to mention that if you have nominated someone for the VAA Hall of Fame; nominations for the honor are kept on fi le for 3 years, after which the nomination must be resubmitted.

Mail nominating materials to: VAA Hall of Fame, c/o Charles W. Harris, Transportation Leasing Corp. PO Box 470350 Tulsa, OK 74147 E-mail: [email protected], your “contemporary” may be a candidate; nominate someone today!

Find the nomination form at www.VintageAircraft.org, or call the VAA offi ce for a copy (920-426-6110), or on your own sheet of paper, simply include the following information:

• Date submitted.• Name of person nominated.• Address and phone number of nominee.• E-mail address of nominee.• Date of birth of nominee. If deceased, date of death.• Name and relationship of nominee’s closest living relative.• Address and phone of nominee’s closest living relative.• VAA and EAA number, if known. (Nominee must have been or is a VAA member.)• Time span (dates) of the nominee’s contributions to vintage aviation.

(Must be between 1950 to present day.)• Area(s) of contributions to aviation.• Describe the event(s) or nature of activities the nominee has undertaken in aviation to

be worthy of induction into the VAA Hall of Fame.• Describe achievements the nominee has made in other related fi elds in aviation.• Has the nominee already been honored for his or her involvement in aviation and/or the

contribution you are stating in this petition? If yes, please explain the nature of the honor and/or award the nominee has received.

• Any additional supporting information.• Submitter’s address and phone number, plus e-mail address.• Include any supporting material with your petition.

Nominate your favorite vintage aviator for the EAA Vintage Aircraft Association Hall of Fame. A great honor could be besto wed upon that man or woman wor king next to y ou on your airplane, sitting next to you in the chapter meeting, or walking next to y ou at EAA Air-Venture Oshkosh. Th ink about the people in your circle of aviation friends: the mechanic, historian, photographer, or pilot who has shared innumerable tips with you and with many oth-ers. Th ey could be the next VAA Hall of Fame inductee—but only if they are nominated.

Th e person you nominate can be a citiz en of any country and may be living or deceased; his or her involvement in vintage aviation must

have occurred between 1950 and the pr esent day. His or her contribution can be in the areas of fl ying, design, mechanical or aer odynamic developments, administration, writing, some other vital and relevant fi eld, or any combina-tion of fi elds that support aviation. Th e person you nominate must be or hav e been a mem-ber of the Vintage Aircraft Association or the Antique/Classic Division of EAA, and pr efer-ence is given to those whose actions hav e con-tributed to the VAA in some way , perhaps as a volunteer, a restorer who shares his expertise with others, a writer, a photographer, or a pilot sharing stories, preserving aviation history, and encouraging new pilots and enthusiasts.

CALL FOR VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION

Nominations


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 5

EAA Skiplane Fly-InLike so many locations here in the north-

ern half of the United States, the winter has been unusually mild (yes, we consider 25 degrees F to be a mild winter!) and very dry, with little snowfall. Happily, there’s been exactly one Saturday when the annual EAA Skiplane Fly-In at Pioneer Airport could have accommodated skiplanes, and that was Saturday, January 21. With just the right amount of snow on the ground, 33 skiplanes flew in and participated, joining hundreds of attendees on the ground. A last-minute snowfall the day before covered Pioneer’s runway, drawing planes from three states.

Th e gathering was also a celebration of Audrey Poberezny’s birthday, and attend-ees enjoyed celebratory chili, soup, and birthday cake inside one of the Pioneer Air-port hangars.

EAA’s Sweepstakes Cub sporting new TrickAir wheel-penetration skis was a pop-ular participant, prompting several attend-ees to enter the sweepstakes on the spot. A list of attending skiplanes appears at www.SportAviation.org.

Right: Rick Kluver’s Piper J3C-65 painted

up as a NE-1, the Navy’s version of the

L-4. His NE-1 isn’t knock-kneed, it’s just

that the port ski has stuck with its nose

in the same position it was in while the

Cub rested on the ground. When a ski

is stuck in this way, while it’s not the

preferred way to have a ski hang up,

all is well as long as a “wheel landing”

isn’t attempted. Normally, a length of

cable and bungee cord will keep the

tips slightly up in relation to the centerline of the air-

plane, like the position of the starboard ski.

What Our Members Are RestoringAre you nearing completion of a r estoration? Or is it done

and you’re busy flying and showing it of f? If so, we’d like to hear from you. Send us a 4-by-6-inch print fr om a commer cial source (no home printers, please—those prints just don’t scan well) or a 4-by-6-inch, 300-dpi digital photo. A JPG fr om your 2.5-megapixel (or higher) digital camera is fi ne. You can burn photos to a CD, or if you’r e on a high-speed Inter net connection, you can e-mail them along with a text-only or Word document describing your airplane. (If your e-mail program asks if you’d like to make the photos smaller , say no.) For more tips on cr eating photos we can publish, visit VAA’s website at www.VintageAircraft.org. Check the News

page for a hyperlink to W ant To Send Us A Photograph?For more information, you can also e-mail us at [email protected]

or call us at 920-426-4825.

EAA’s grand prize Piper Cub was on hand, complete with a new set of

TrickAir Skis. You can win this Cub this summer when it’s awarded to

some lucky EAA Sweepstakes supporter. For more information, visit the

“Win the Cub” Sweepstakes website at www.AirVenture.org/sweepstakes,

or see the insert in the April issue of Sport Aviation.


Friends of the Red Barn 2012Friends of the Red Barn 2012

6 MARCH 2012

Each year at EAA AirVenture Osh-kosh the largest single space for the display of enthusiasts’ aircraft is the Vintage parking and camping area. For four decades it’s been not only a picturesque scene of the fi nest restored airplanes in this country, but also a gathering place for aviation people and their magnifi cent machines to share knowledge and friendship.

Each day during the convention, we get to see the widest variety possible of airplanes, including a few one-of-a-kind aircraft. Don’t forget the special Type Club parking area, where we host many examples of a particular manufacturer’s airplane. From replica race planes to the American Barnstormers Tour, the amazing colors and outlines of the golden age of aviation are on display for all to see each year. All of this is pos-sible through the efforts of the nearly 500 VAA volunteers, the volunteer VAA board of directors, and the VAA staff.

Their passion is what makes it a great place to be throughout the week of AirVenture, and it’s why so many visitors and aviation enthusiasts come back year after year to work, relax, and enjoy aviation’s premier event. It’s a place to rekindle old friendships and make new ones. A time to relax and enjoy aviation, learn something new, and rub elbows with our fellow aviators. As you can imagine, it takes some fairly substantial fi nancial resources to under-write such an event, and the Vintage area at EAA AirVenture is no exception.

The Vintage Aircraft Association has, by necessity, elected to under-write a portion of its yearlong activi-ties with funds other than members’ dues. The proceeds from this fund pay for all sorts of volunteer activities and improvements to the VAA area, as well as supporting VAA advocacy efforts and educational endeavors. It serves as working capital for improve-ments such as the Vintage Hangar, the VAA Flightline Safety Operations Center as well as for upkeep of many

structures. There’s never a shortage of windows that need caulking, doors that need to be replaced, and roofs that need to be repaired. To be cer-tain, almost all of the labor involved is performed by our dedicated and talented volunteers, but what about the cost of supplies and hardware?

That’s where our Friends of the Red Barn campaign comes in—it provides all of us, who wish, the opportunity to assist in the vital fi nancial support of the VAA’s activities.

We’re most appreciative of the contributions made by hundreds of VAAers who see the tangible benefi ts of supporting their fellow VAA members in this manner. As a critical part of the VAA budget, the fund pays for such diverse items as VAA awards presented during the annual EAA Vintage Aircraft Awards program, special recognition for our many volunteers, and expenses associated with our special displays, fo-rums, and educational areas such as the VAA Workshop and Type Club areas in the Vintage Hangar.

Your annual contribution made in the fi rst half of 2012 will directly ben-efi t this year’s convention activities and VAA programs throughout the year.

Please consider actively participat-ing in the 2012 VAA Friends of the Red Barn Campaign. Your donation may be tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law, and you can enhance your partici-pation if you work for a matching gift company. You can do so by copying and fi lling out the form included on these pages, by fi lling out and sending in the form included in the mailing that will arrive in many of your mail-boxes in April, or by donating online at www.VintageAircraft.org/programs/redbarn.html. If you desire more infor-mation concerning the VAA Friends of the Red Barn Campaign, feel free to call us at 920-426-6110. We’d be happy to speak with you!

Many services are provided to vintage aircraft enthusiasts at EAA

AirVenture Oshkosh. From parking airplanes to feeding people at the Tall Pines Café and Red Barn, volunteers do it all. Some may ask, “If volunteers are providing the services, where is the expense?”

Glad you asked. The scooters for the fl ightline crew need repair and batter-ies, and the Red Barn needs paint, new windowsills, updated wiring, and other sundry repairs, plus we love to care for our volunteers with special recognition caps and a pizza party. The list really could go on and on, but no matter how many expenses we can point out, the need remains constant. The Friends of the Red Barn fund helps pay for the VAA expenses at EAA AirVenture, and it’s a crucial part of the Vintage Aircraft Association budget.

Please help the VAA and our nearly 500 dedicated volunteers make this an unforgettable experience for our many EAA AirVenture guests.

Your contribution now really does make a difference. There are seven lev-els of gifts and gift recognition. Thank you for whatever you can do.

Here are some of the many activi-ties the Friends of the Red Barn fund underwrites:•Red Barn Information Desk Supplies•Participant Plaques and Supplies•Toni’s Red Carpet Express Van and Radio Rental

•Caps for VAA Volunteers•Pizza Party for VAA Volunteers•Flightline Parking Scooters and Sup-plies

•Breakfast for Past Grand Champions•Volunteer Booth Administrative Sup-plies

•Membership Booth Administrative Supplies

•Signs Throughout the Vintage Area•Red Barn’s and Other Buildings’ Maintenance

•Tall Pines Cafe Tent Rental and Kitchen Updates

•Flightline Safety Operations Center•And More!


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 7

VAA Friends of the Red BarnName______________________________________________________________________EAA #___________ VAA #___________

Address______________________________________________________________________________________________________

City/State/Zip________________________________________________________________________________________________

Phone___________________________________________________E-Mail______________________________________________

Please choose your level of participation:

■ Payment Enclosed (Make checks payable to Vintage Aircraft Assoc.)■ Please Charge my credit card (below)

Credit Card Number _____________________________ Expiration Date _________ Signature_________________________________________

*Do you or your spouse work for a matching gift company? If so, this gift may qualify for a matching donation.Please ask your Human Resources department for the appropriate form.Name of Company __________________________________________________________________

■ No badge wanted for this year.■ Yes, prepare a name badge to read:__________________________________________________________________First M. Last (Please print just as you wish your badge to read)

The Vintage Aircraft Association is a non-profi t educational organization under IRS 501c3 rules. Under Federal Law, the deduction from Federal Income tax for charitable contributions is limited to the amount by which any money (and the value of any property other than money) contributed exceeds the value of the goods or services provided in exchange for the contribution. An appropriate receipt acknowledging your gift will be sent to you for IRS gift reporting reasons.

Mail your contribution to:VAA FORB

PO Box 3086OSHKOSH, WI 54903-3086

Become a Friend of the Red Barn.Help the VAA make EAA AirVenture Oshkosh

an unforgettable experience for our many guests.

____ Diamond Plus $1,500.00

____ Diamond Level Gift - $1,000.00

____ Platinum Level Gift - $750.00

____ Gold Level Gift - $500.00

____ Silver Level Gift - $250.00

____ Bronze Level Gift - $100.00

____ Loyal Supporter Gift - ($99.00 or under) $_______ Amount

Diamond Plus$1500

Diamond$1000

Platinum$750

Gold$500

Silver$250

Bronze$100

Loyal Supporter$99 & Under

EAA VIP Center 2 People/Full Wk

VIP Airshow Seating 2 People/2 Days 2 People/1 Day

Close Auto Parking Full Week Full Week 2 Days

Two Tickets to VAA Picnic ★ ★ ★Tri Motor Certifi cate 2 Tickets 2 Tickets 2 Tickets 1 Ticket

Breakfast at Tall Pines Cafe 2 People/Full Wk 2 People/Full Wk 2 People/Full Wk 1 Person/Full Wk

Special FORB Cap ★ ★ ★ ★ ★Two Passes to VAA Volunteer Party ★ ★ ★ ★ ★Special FORB Badge ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★Access to Volunteer Center ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★Donor Appreciation Certifi cate ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★Name Listed: Vintage Airplane

Magazine, Website and Sign at Red Barn ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

✃

★ This star represents qualifying tribute for level of participation.

BRONZE LEVEL AND ABOVE


Copyright ©2012 EAA

What’s on AirVenture bucket list?Go to AirVenture.org/bucket to share your list with others and buy your AirVenture 2012 tickets today. Or call 1-800-564-6322 to speak with an EAA Member Services representative.The World’s Greatest Aviation Celebration | July 23-29, 2012


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 9

T r a v e l A i r :Performance and

Dependabilityby Sparky B arnes Sargent

The excitement of sharing it w ith people!

SPARKY BARNES SARGENT


A gleaming new Travel Air Model 3000 (C-5427, s/n 516) climbed aloft in the summer skies above Wichita, Kansas, for its first flight in 1928. Powered by a water-cooled, 8e-cylinder Hispano-Suiza “Hisso” Model E 180-hp engine, its wings embraced the sky as its “elephant-ear”

ailerons created a distinctive silhouette on the tips of its 34-foot, 8-inch wingspan (lower span 28 feet 8 inches). The new three-place biplane measured 24 feet, 3 inches from its wood prop to tailskid. It carried 42 gallons of fuel and could cruise at 100 mph with a range of more than 400 miles.

A perusal of this Travel Air’s records is a glance back into familiar aviation history. The fi rst document in its airworthi-ness fi le is the manufacturer’s affi davit, which states that the airplane was manufactured on June 7, 1928, in conformity to ATC No. 31 and was signed by Walter H. Beech and notarized by Olive Mellor of Travel Air Manufacturing Co. Inc.

The Travel Air Manufacturing Company of Wichita, Kansas, touted its new biplane as “typical of the proverbial brilliant performance with dependability that characterizes all Travel Air Biplanes” (Aero Digest, April 1928). Two years later, the Travel Air Company Division of Curtiss-Wright advertised the Travel Air as:

“A Plane for Every Purpose—Sportsmen Penetrate the Wilds in Their Travel Airs. In commercial flying, Travel Airs daily ply their way over mail, transport, and business corporation routes. They constitute a major proportion of all commercial planes in service in the United States. And in distance and speed contests, these planes capture firsts with a regularity that is almost monotonous” (Country Life, April 1930).

Speaking of contests, it was pioneering aviatrix Louise Thaden who cheerfully focused the media spotlight on Travel Airs. She was an employee of Douglas C. Warren, the West Coast Travel Air dealer, and her employer encouraged her record-setting efforts.

Louise set a women’s altitude record of 20,260 feet on De-cember 7, 1928, in a Hisso-powered Travel Air (C-5425) at the Oakland Airport. In March 1929, she flew Travel Air C-5426 (sister ship to Joe’s C-5427) and set a solo endurance record of 22 hours, 3 minutes, 28 seconds—again at the Oakland Airport. The biplane was modifi ed for the task, and featured “DC War-

10 MARCH 2012

Wing to fuselage fi t, rear view.

Aft cockpit seat.

Empennage.

Instrument panel.

The 1928 Travel Air was fl own for re-creation scenes for the fi lm.COURTESY JOE SANTANA

COU

RTE

SY J

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COURTESY HEATHER TAYLOR


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 11

ren – Northern California Distribu-tor for Travel-Air” on the fuselage.

Current CaretakerJoe Santana grew up in Sac-

ramento, California, where his neighbor first introduced him to aviation. “He had a homebuilt Stits Playboy at the airport, and he used to let me sit in it,” shares Joe. “After I soloed at 17 and earned my pri-vate that summer, he also took me to my fi rst EAA meeting.”

Joe also spent a lot of time hang-ing around a duster strip just south of Sacramento. That’s where he started learning about the joys of old bi-planes and the pilots who fl ew them. “Back in the early 1970s, my fi rst air-plane was a Luscombe, and I fl ew off a strip at Clarksburg. There was a per-son who restored dusters there, and they were using N3N Stearmans and Travel Airs for dusting. I used to sit around with those guys at the shop, and the old duster pilots used to tell me that a 220-hp Travel Air could outfl y a 450-hp Stearman,” recollects Joe, adding, “I really wanted to get an old biplane, and I decided I wanted a Travel Air, because it cruises fast, fl ies real well, and hauls a good load.”

Finding that Travel Air would take a few decades, though. In the meantime, he tried college after high school, but just didn’t take to scholastic bookwork very well. So he obtained his A&P and CFI and taught fl ying for a while. He worked for a Piper dealer in Sacramento and then started flying DC-3 freight-ers—and even flew as a fish and game warden pilot, using a Beech 18 to plant fi sh in the high Sierras. In 1985, he was hired by Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA). Today, Joe resides in the scenic Shenandoah Valley in Waynesboro, Virginia. He’s captain of an Airbus 320 and enjoys his ongoing long-term career with PSA (now merged with US Airways).

In 2004, his long-held dream of owning a Travel Air became tangible.

Bit O’ HistoryTwenty-seven years before Joe

was born, a brand new Travel Air

(C-5427) was sold to D.C. Warren Company at Oakland Airport in San Francisco. In April 1929, the biplane was sold to W.J. Browne of Stockton, California, and it re-mained in the Golden State for years. In January 1943, the biplane landed in the hands of Harry New-ell of Phoenix, Arizona. It stayed in The Grand Canyon state for nearly three decades.

In 1945, the biplane was con-verted for use in crop dusting and seeding. A hopper, agitator, and gearbox were installed. The elevator controls were modifi ed, and a cen-ter section fuel tank was installed. The Hisso was removed, and a 9-cylinder, 220-hp Wright Whirl-wind J-5A was installed (changing the biplane to a Model 4000).

In 1947, owners Wayne J. Kem-painen and James A. Strand of Farm Aero Service in Phoenix had the Wright J-5A and motor mount removed, and a Lycoming motor mount and Lycoming R680-9 in-stalled, along with a Stearman oil tank and modified exhaust stack that extended over the top wing.

In February 1970, NC5427 landed in the hands of PSA Captain Spen-cer Nelson of San Diego. “Spence was very well-known in the Travel Air world as a restorer,” explains Joe, “and he and PSA mechanics Jim Ward and Harry Somers worked with him to rebuild the biplane.”

After Spence died in a PSA midair collision in September 1978, Jim and Harry continued with their Travel Air West restoration company. They sold NC5427 to Leland Jones of An-chorage [in 1983], with the agree-ment that Travel Air West would continue the restoration work, which they finished in 1991. Jim and Harry put the overhauled Con-tinental W-670 on it and converted it back to standard confi guration.

The biplane required extensive work; the men essentially rebuilt the entire aft fuselage, and replaced the old fi rewall with stainless steel, and installed new 3/8-inch birch plywood floorboards. They fabri-cated and installed a new front in-

strument panel of laminated birch plywood and a new aft cockpit panel of laminated birch and rose-wood, as well as installing new seat belts and a shoulder harness in the aft cockpit.

They replaced all of the wood-work on the fuselage, and fabri-cated new stainless steel control cables. The biplane was finished with Stits Aerothane in an elegant combination of dark green on the fuselage and cream-colored wings.

Joe took note of this handsome Travel Air during his PSA overnights in San Diego, and discovered that it had already been flown 105 hours since its restoration. He bought the biplane from then-registered owner Carolyn Jones of Alaska in Au-gust 2004. “Then I flew it home to Waynesboro,” says Joe, smiling, “and have had the airplane ever since. I’ve probably put 220 hours on it, fl ying it mostly during the summers.”

Flight Transition Despite his fairly extensive fly-

ing time in 2004—including 3,500 hours of tailwheel time—the insur-ance company wanted Joe to log fi ve hours of time with a fl ight instructor in the Travel Air in order to insure it.

“It really worked out great,” shares Joe enthusiastically, elabo-rating, “Captain Dick Doll, who was No. 1 on the PSA seniority list, did some of the flying on the air-plane when it was first restored. Dick started out flying in dusters and raced P-51s at Reno, and I was never senior enough to fly with him on PSA—so I asked him if he’d check me out. He said, ‘Yeah, sure!’ What a pleasure that was! The fi rst time we went out, he flew it from the back seat and put me up front, where there’s just a stick and throt-tle. He said, ‘Let’s go out and makes sure it stalls and falls through okay,’ because it hadn’t fl own for a while. So we flew around for 15-20 min-utes, and he shot a landing with it, and then we taxied back in. Then he puts me in the back seat and he gets in the front—we fl ew the fi ve hours in two days and shot a bunch


of landings. That was a real treat, because he’s such a great guy.”

Exceptionally pleased with his Travel Air, Joe says, “It fl ies great! It lifts off around 55 mph, climbs right out, and cruises about 95-97 mph indicated, at low altitude. I fl y fi nal around 55-60 mph, and it’s pretty straightforward in a crosswind. It originally had a skid, but now it has a tail wheel. The 12-inch mechani-cal brakes are original for that air-plane and work great. They’re ‘good enough,’ and that’s what you want on that airplane. It burns 12 gph at cruise and holds 68 gallons of fuel, with 26 in the center section and 42 in the main tank. The longest leg I’ve fl own is 4 hours and 45 minutes, and it burned about 52 gallons before I landed—and it had 16 gallons left.”

Joe hasn’t had any maintenance challenges with the Travel Air—but it has had a few repairs. Incidents can happen to any pilot, and Joe unabash-edly admits that he “ground looped it at Oshkosh two years ago, so Ted Davis in Wisconsin repaired the lower left wing. That was a good opportu-nity to do some other work, so we had the engine overhauled by Al Holloway in California. We also discovered that one wheel was cracked—which was unrelated to the ground loop—so we replaced that as well. Other than that, the airplane hasn’t had any signifi cant work done since the 1991 restoration by Travel Air West.”

Making Modern-dayHistory

Truthfully, Joe is really a modern-day barnstormer at heart. The rea-son is pretty simple: He derives the most joy from flying his “biplane

built for three” across the country and sharing the experience with others. (And he’s currently trea-surer of the Travel Air Restorers Association.) Of course, sharing starts at home; he’s enjoyed tak-ing his two sons up for early-evening flights in the Shenandoah Valley. (His youngest son, Peter,

has just earned an instrument rating, and his older son, Paul, is a Black-hawk pilot with the National Guard in Iraq.) “The Travel Air is a great air-plane, and we have a lot of fun with it,” shares Joe.

His biplane was featured during the Vintage Aircraft Association’s centennial celebration of the first air mail flight in the United States, which was held during EAA AirVen-ture 2011. Though NC5427 was not owned by Pacifi c Air Transport, it was selected as an example of the type that fl ew the mail. “Andrew King of Virginia called me to see if I was in-terested in bringing the Travel Air for the air mail display at Oshkosh,” ex-plains Joe, “and he was familiar with Pacific Air Transport—their planes were green and cream, and they did have a Travel Air. So my airplane was a good representation of that. We got some original pictures of a Travel Air 4000 that were taken at Pearson Field, which was one of their termi-nals in Vancouver. That’s how we replicated the Pacific Air Transport Air Mail graphics for the fuselage, which we put on just for Oshkosh.”

NC5427 also enjoyed a bit of “movie star status” during AirVenture, when independent film producer and director Heather Taylor’s Breaking Through the Clouds: The First Women’s National Air Derby was screened. (www.BreakingThroughTheClouds.com, see ac-companying movie overview.)

Back in 2009, Joe spent Memorial Day weekend at the Golden Age Air Museum’s airfield in Grimes, Penn-sylvania. Once again, it was Andrew King who had extended a special in-vitation to Joe—to fl y his Travel Air during the fi lming of a documentary

about the First Women’s Transcon-tinental Air Derby of 1929. Andrew was aerial coordinator for the film, and Joe was happy to participate, along with several other antique air-plane owners.

The photo planes were a Breezy and a J-3 Cub. Describing the experi-ence and the fi lm itself, Joe explains, “Heather worked on this fi lm, on her own, for 13 years. She gathered un-believable amounts of archival foot-age about the women and the Air Derby, and includes that in the fi lm. She fi lmed our airplanes because they were similar to ones that fl ew in the Air Derby, and that way she could in-clude current color footage to bring the airplanes to life for the audience. We filmed for a couple of days, and we each fl ew about three hours.”

Built for SharingJoe has been depositing numerous

experiences in his memory bank of favorite Travel Air fl ights since 2004. Though he’s enjoyed them all, there is one particular “annual deposit” that registers at the top of his account.

“Probably the greatest thing we do with this airplane is taking it to the Dirksen’s family farm in Winchester, Indiana. The year before last, I took three people up—and they were in their 30s, but they had never been in an airplane before in their life. We go to the Dirksen’s, and their kids are so excited to have us come, and they treat us so well!

“We get to land in their hayfi eld, and the whole town comes out, and we give rides. I mean, that’s what it’s all about,” shares Joe exuberantly, “and to fl y with Ted Davis, Andrew King, Jim Hammond, Steve Roth, and Bob Coolbaugh is just such a treat. Some of those guys are the best pilots I’ve ever seen, and I’ve been flying for many years. The excite-ment of having the Travel Air is be-ing able to go out every summer and fl y with those guys. That’s what it’s for—we share it with people!” [Note: The Dirksen’s farm is featured in the documentary Barnstorming—Friends Really Can Drop Out of the Sky. Filmed in 2009, it candidly describes the

12 MARCH 2012


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 13

unusual friendship formed be-tween a farming family and aviators who first landed in their hay field in 1999. www.BarnstormingMovie.com]

He also fl ies the Travel Air to Hagerstown, Indiana, for an-other fun gathering—the “Hag-erstown Or Bust” Ford Model T and vintage airplane fl y-in. “Lit-erally hundreds of Model T’s from across the country show up there on the fairgrounds, and they have a nice grass fi eld for the airplanes,” adds Joe, smiling, “We do a balloon bust there, a flour bomb drop, and Ted gives rides in the New Stan-dard. We’ll also fl y to Brodhead, Wisconsin, and Blakesburg, Iowa, for those fl y-ins.”

One thing is certain—when the Travel Air landed in Joe’s hands in 2004, it found a very good home, indeed. It fl ies reg-

ularly, and continues bringing joy not only to its caretaker, but to many others across the coun-try. And it’s still pleasing to the discerning eyes of aircraft judges at fly-ins. That’s quite under-standable, since NC5427 still looks like it’s fresh out of resto-ration—even though it’s been 20 years. This handsome bi-plane received two awards to its credit this past year: the Silver Age (1928-1936) Champion—Bronze Lindy at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, and the Travel Air Type Club Award at the Antique Airplane Association’s annual invitational fly-in. Joe readily credits these awards to the resto-ration efforts of Travel Air West and recently affixed a tasteful brass plaque to the aft portion of the fuselage, as a way of pay-ing homage to Jim Ward and Harry Somers.

Engine assembly.

Fabrication of turtledeck.

Tailfeathers in silver.Heather Taylor with Joe Santana, during the fi lming of Breaking

Through the Clouds.

Applying Poly-Brush.The sun rises and lights up Joe Santana’s Travel Air on the fl ight line at AAA’s fl y-in at Blakesburg, Iowa.

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BONNIE KRATZ

COURTESY HEATHER TAYLOR


14 MARCH 2012

Tenacity, ambition, spirited pas-sion, personal conviction…these are some of the qualities that imbued the 20 participants in the First Wom-en’s National Air Derby in 1929.

Three-quarters of a century later, aspiring filmmaker Heather Taylor

heard about those women pilots who undertook that nine-day race across the country, and instantly felt a connection. Inspired by their ac-complishments, and sharing those same personal qualities, Heather felt an irresistible inner calling to convey

the nearly forgotten stories of those Derby fliers. Those elements, com-bined with a burgeoning technical knowledge of fi lmmaking, led her on a 13-year quest to create a colorful documentary about them.

Heather grew up in an aviation fam-

Breaking Through the Clouds: The First Women’s National Air Derby

Th e story of grassroots aviation pioneers by a grassroots independent fi lm producer

by Sparky B arnes Sargent


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 15

ily, and her direct inspiration to create the documentary arose during a con-versation with the legendary Evelyn Bryan Johnson in Morristown, Tennes-see. Known as “Mama Bird,” Evelyn has logged 57,635.4 hours of flight time. Heather had the opportunity to meet Evelyn, and recalls asking her a few questions about the races and how they began. “As she talked,” says Heather, “something just clicked inside of my gut, and I knew this was the story I had been looking for.” Heather embraced her own challenge and resigned from her position with Discovery Communi-cations in mid-2007, in order to devote her full-time energy to the task.

Filmmaking can be a tedious un-dertaking. In Heather’s case, it was similar to a fi rst-time aircraft restorer tackling a ground-up restoration. Heather shares that the most sig-nificant challenge she encountered while creating this fi lm was likely her own confi dence—or lack thereof.

“I had been in the industry over a decade, had a master’s in produc-ing film and video, but I had never produced my own fi lm,” she admits, adding, “The other signifi cant chal-lenge was finding the right people to help work on the fi lm. But in the end, I met some incredibly talented and gifted people and am grateful for what they brought to the project.”

Though there were times when Heather really didn’t know how she was going to achieve her goal, that wasn’t a deterrent—in fact, it turned her personal resolve into tangible ac-tion. “I’d never written a script…and [eventually realized that] I had to be the one to write the film. [Another challenge] that took years to work through was how to actually begin such a vast subject,” says Heather, elaborating, “I credit story consul-tant Fernanda Rossi with helping me . . . break the project down into siz-able portions and decide what I felt was the most important.”

Breaking Through the Clouds mas-terfully threads modern color footage in with extensive archival footage. The new footage includes the fol-lowing airplanes from the vintage/antique community, which were se-

lected by Aerial Coordinator Andrew King as representative of the types flown in the 1929 Air Derby: 1928 Travel Air 4000 (Joe Santana), 1929 Speedwing Travel Air B9-4000 (Bill Plecenik), 1930 Monocoupe 90 (Bob Coolbaugh), 1928 Monocoupe 70 and 1929 Waco GXE (Paul Dough-erty), and 1930 Fleet 7 (Mike O’Neal).

Ever attentive to detail, Heather ensured that when the audience sees archival footage of Louise Thaden’s Travel Air fl ying, they hear a Wright J-5 engine and not some other en-gine—and she did this as closely as possible with each aircraft.

Watching this documentary makes it easy for viewers to feel as though they have been personally intro-duced to each of the featured women

pilots. The transitional graphics were tastefully done, the clips of the origi-nal pilot licenses added even more historical detail, and the personal in-terviews (especially with Pat Thaden Webb, Margaret Whitman Blair, and Elinor Smith Sullivan) added great depth to the documentary.

Heather offers a bit more insight to the fi lm, and her own personal phi-losophy, by sharing: “Even though the derby happened in 1929, the les-sons, experiences, and courage the women displayed are life lessons for us today, and so I do not think of it as history. Rather, I think the women are role models for us all on how to act when something excites you and captures your imagination.

“Once you fi nd that energy, then you must have the passion and cour-age to follow through to bring these ideas to the forefront. We all have

been given talents and gifts, and it is our responsibility, in my opinion, to nurture, develop, and explore those interests, no matter how irrational it may be. To do so means giving back to the world and making it a better place. The women in 1929 did this with gusto. I can only hope that by exploring my interest in these women and bringing their story for-ward, it will inspire others to take a risk of their own and contribute to the world in their own unique way.”

Most any project comes bear-ing not only cloudy challenges, but the proverbial silver linings, as well. Heather thoughtfully reflects, “One perspective I gained in researching all about these women is that rather than seeing them as icons or legends per se, I realized they were just people too, doing something they felt called to do, and they went and did it. In the end, I love…learning from those who have overcome their own personal obstacles to achieve something.”

Heather eloquently sums up her unique mission in creating her film company, Archetypal Images, with the following statement: “…to produce films that explore and harness that light in the eyes of people who have found their calling in life, and share that sparkle with others who are still searching to fi nd their own passion.”

It is clear that Heather has discov-ered her own calling in life, and her passion for accuracy and authen-tic detail was the catalyst for her to achieve excellence in her work. Breaking Through the Clouds: The First Women’s National Air Derby has re-ceived the National Aviation Hall of Fame’s 9th Annual Combs Gates Award, the Indie Award of Excel-lence, is an IDA/ABC News Video-Source Award fi nalist, and has been offi cially selected for numerous inde-pendent fi lm festivals.

Those of us who treasure aviation history heartily applaud Heather’s ef-forts and extend gratitude to her for having the inner fortitude and vision to bring this documentary to fruition. For more information about the fi lm and ordering details, please visit www.BreakingThroughTheClouds.com.

“I can only hopethat . . . it will inspire others to take a risk of

their own and contribute to the world in their own

unique way.”—Heather Taylor


16 MARCH 2012

Th e T h u n e r s e e , a 12,000 acre lake lo-cated in the Swiss Berner Oberland re-gion, dominates one of the country’s most

stunning flying regions, dividing fertile wetlands on its northern bor-der and various Alpine giants to the south in a most dramatic and eye-catching manner.

In summertime this heteroge-neous airspace is crisscrossed by Switzerland’s most unique pelican-shaped vintage aircraft, made airwor-thy only some few months ago: a blue/white colored Czech-built Praga E.114M Air Baby. This 1947 Air Baby,

registered HB-UAF for more than four decades, is the sole remaining fl ying specimen of its kind and a very welcome member of Switzerland’s vintage aircraft community.

From Its Early Life . . .Praga E.114M Air Baby light-

weight aircraft were manufactured s ta r t ing in 1934 by the Ces -komoravska-Kolben-Danek Praga A.S (aka CKD-Praga) aircraft factory in Prague (Czechoslovakia). Produc-tion ceased during World War II.

Following the German occu-pation and World War II, Praga restarted its aircraft-building ac-tivities immediately after the war’s

end. During this period, ending in 1948, 110 E.114D (with a 75-hp en-gine) and M models (powered by the Walter Micron III 65-hp engine) were produced. The Walter Mik-ron III, developed in the mid-’30s and actually still in production, is a four-cylinder, air-cooled, inverted straight engine, optimized for use in light general aviation aircraft. The British fi rm F. Hills & Sons ac-quired a manufacturing license and built the E.114 as the Hillson Praga at its factory at Trafford Park, near Manchester. In total Hillson built 39 aircraft before World War II. An-other 26 E.114Ms were built by the Rudy Letov company.

Praga E.114M Air Baby

HB-UAF restored

to fl ying status

BY STEFAN DEGRAEF/PICTURES EDWIN BORREMANS

Achtung, Baby!


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 17

The Czech-built Praga E.114M Air Baby c/n 119 was constructed in 1947 and was immediately ex-ported to southern France. After ar-rival at Cannes in November 1947, this factory-fresh single-engined aircraft received its F-BCSN registra-tion. Having spent some 10 years as part of the “Aeroclub du Var” at the French Riviera, the aircraft was sold mid-1957 to a Swiss owner, who based the aircraft at Thun and registered c/n 119 in its new Swiss HB-UAF identity.

Its Swiss fl ying career would only last 14 years. Soon after its last documented fl ight out of Thun on October 24, 1971, the aircraft was

dismantled and stored, predestined to be lost for eternity. In 1982 the remains were purchased by Fritz Moser, who stored the wings of the aircraft in a barn at Suderen, lo-cated close to Thun. The fuselage and engine were stored in Moser’s garage at home.

The peaceful but hibernal sleep of HB-UAF would last some two de-cades, before Fritz Moser and his son, Andre, showed a willingness to restore the aircraft to its former fl y-ing status. The long-lasting inactiv-ity of the aircraft, however, needed an in-depth evaluation of the over-all condition of the wooden struc-ture of the fuselage and wings.

Overall assessment by Max Brug-ger, constructor of a Colibri MB lightweight-built aircraft, proved to be positive and started the lengthy process of overhauling and restor-ing the aircraft’s remains, plus the manufacture of missing parts. Some parts have not been available for de-cades, either in the market or within the vintage aircraft community.

. . . To Its ReincarnationThe restoration started in 2004 and

would eventually last some six years. Its wooden framework surprisingly in good condition, the aircraft was com-pletely stripped down and almost rebuilt from scratch. The original


18 MARCH 2012

Walter Mikron III engine was sent for overhaul and revision to Parma Tech-nic in the Czech Republic. In 1999 this Czech engine company received offi cial approval from the Czech avia-

tion authorities to overhaul and re-pair these types of engines. Some of the parts of the aircraft includ-ing the brakes were rebuilt by Andre Moser. Additional overhaul was per-

formed by the well-known Airla vin-tage aircraft restoration company at Langenthal-Bleienbach aerodrome in northwestern Switzerland, the work performed by Max Brugger. To comply with Swiss general aviation regulations, some modern avionics including a radio, transponder, and an ELT were installed in the wooden dashboard in the cockpit.

With all parts overhauled and re-installed, the aircraft was transported by car to Langenthal for its first flight and airworthiness validation by Gerhard Staude, owner of Airla, and officially licensed by the Swiss Bundesamt fur Zivilluftfahrtl (BAZL) (i.e., Civil Aviation Authority) to de-liver the much desired certifi cate of airworthiness. Pending its fi rst fl ight since its restoration, various taxi tests and aborted takeoff runs were made to check the various characteristics and performances of the engine. Fi-nally on September 9, 2009, Praga E.114M Air Baby HB-UAF made its second very successful and emo-tional maiden fl ight. With no fl ying manuals available, operating this Air Baby proved to be an “on the job” effort. The excellent gliding charac-teristics of the aircraft immediately became apparent, forcing Andre to adjust its landing techniques since the aircraft has no external slats or any kind of air brakes. Nowadays this pristine and unique vintage air-craft is based at Flugplatz Reichen-bach (LSGR), located in the Swiss region of Berner Oberland and close to some of the country’s most stun-ning fl ying areas.

Praga E.114 M

General characteristics

Crew 2

Length 7.05 meters (23.12 feet)

Wingspan 11 meters (36 feet)

Wing area 16.20 square meters (174.375 square feet)

Empty weight 370 kilograms (815.7 pounds)

Max takeoff weight 585 kilograms (1,290 pounds)

Powerplant Walter Mikron III four-cylinder, air-cooled, inverted straight engine (65 hp)

Performance

Maximum speed 187 kph (116 mph)

Cruise speed 165 kph (102 mph)

Range 730 kilometers (454 miles)

Service ceiling 4,300 meters (14,107 feet)

Climb to 1,000 meters (3,280 feet) 6 minutes 40 seconds


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20 MARCH 2012

At any gathering of sport planes, one is likely to see at least a few monoplanes of the “parasol” type. Old-timers will have seen so many of them that they’re likely to take them quite for granted. And new-comers often have such scant knowledge of aviation’s long and in-volved history that to them a Loehle Parasol or Baby Ace is likely to be just another of a thoroughly bewil-dering array of fl ying machines.

Actually, there’s much of inter-est and use that can be said about parasols. But before we explore this subject, a few words of wisdom. As the years go by, more and more of the people active in sport aviation were born during or after World

War II. The many informative books and magazines published between around 1920 and 1940 are becoming increasingly hard for them to locate because both public and technical school libraries tend to discard or store away older literature to make room for new acquisitions. But since the older literature deals with air-craft in the performance range to-day associated with sport flying, much useful knowledge is today, regrettably, out of reach of more and more enthusiasts. [Although, happily, much of this knowledge is being republished on the Internet; for instance, the entire archive of the Brit-ish periodical Flight is now online at www.FlightGlobal.com. Click on the

“Historic” link in the menu at the top of the web page.—HGF]

My own collection of literature goes back to the 1930s, and I refer to it often when writing. Also, I live within an hour’s drive of the aero-nautics library at MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts. When starting work on this article I spent hours there leafi ng through such books as Jane’s All the World’s Aircraft going back to 1909, the U.S. Civil Aircraft Se-

Light Plane Heritagepublished in EAA Experimenter March 1993

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

EXPLORING THE PARASOL MONOPLANEBY BOB WHITTIER

EAA 1235

Figure 1 Above — Parasols have been around for a long time. Far man in France built this one in 1910. The ul-timate in visibility! For some obscur e reason the Gnome r otary engine was mounted ahead of the pr opeller.


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 21

ries by Joseph P. Juptner, and the Aircraft Yearbooks by the Aeronauti-cal Chamber of Commerce. I was quite surprised at the large number of parasol types I found pictured and described in these old books. While many were obscure types, all were interesting to study with the question in mind, “Why did the de-signer do what he did?”

A parasol monoplane is one on which the wing is mounted above and more or less clear of the fuse-lage. The word is derived from the Italian parare, meaning “to ward off,” and sole, meaning “sun.” A lady’s parasol wards off the sun. Because a wing above the fuselage wards off the sun, the French seem to have been the fi rst to apply the word “parasol” to airplanes. Fig. 1 shows a parasol monoplane built by Henri Farman in 1910. He was famous for his biplanes—perhaps he cobbled up this parasol to learn something about the characteristics of monoplanes. Most monoplanes of that time had their wings at-tached to the top longerons of their fuselages, so presumably the word “parasol” was adopted to describe this new arrangement.

When World War I began, air-planes were at fi rst used only for re-connaissance fl ights. The thin wing airfoils then in use obliged the use of shallow and therefore quite fl ex-ible wing spars, so biplane and mid-

wing configurations were popular because these arrangements lent themselves to effectively arranging the many rigging wires needed to achieve structural rigidity.

But such planes soon showed themselves to have unacceptably poor downward visibility for mili-tary observation work. Pusher-type biplanes were tried, with observers riding in the front cockpits of their nacelles to get good downward vi-sion. But objects falling or blowing out of open cockpits could fly back into pusher propellers, and in the fre-

quent crashes of those days, pusher engines could tear loose and fl y for-ward onto unfortunate airmen.

Parasol monoplanes provided the answer. Fig. 2 shows a German-designed, Austrian-built Albatros of 1914. The good downward visibility is obvious. Note also the many brace wires. Bleriot and Morane Saulnier in France brought out similar-looking designs, and two-seaters from the latter company were used by the French throughout that war.

As the outcome of several inci-dents of the wings of wire-braced monoplanes collapsing under the strain of combat fl ight, other coun-tries such as Britain stayed with the more rigidly trussed biplanes. Seek-ing more speed from available en-gines, late in the war the Germans developed monoplane fi ghters such as the Junkers and Fokker Triplanes. The latter had its cantilever wing mounted parasol-fashion above the fuselage to put it out of the way of aiming forward-fi ring machine guns.

As the result of aerodynamic re-search begun during that war and carried on into the 1920s, thicker airfoils came into general use. These allowed the use of deeper wing spars, so multiple brace wires below and above parasol wings gave way to simpler, cleaner wing struts running from fuselage lower longerons out to fi ttings on the undersides of wings.

Strut-braced low-wing mono-planes were also built but had dis-advantages. Struts running from top longerons to fittings on the upper surfaces of wings disturbed airflow and hurt wings’ lifting qualities. Some low wings had struts running from awkward-looking landing gear trusses to fi ttings on the lower sur-faces of wings. Sometimes this ar-rangement brought a plane’s center of drag so far below the propeller thrust line as to bring on trim or longitudinal stability problems.

Browsing through Jane’s volumes from about l920 to 1940 reveals a surprising number of both military and civilian parasol types. Some were handsome and others homely. Practically every European manu-

Figure 2—As shown by this Albatr os of 1914, militar y men quickly r eal-ized their superior downwar d visibility made parasol monoplanes ideal for reconnaissance work. Rotar y engines belched a cloud of castor oil smoke upon being star ted.

While many were obscure types,

all wereinteresting to

study withthe question

in mind,“Why did thedesigner do

what he did?”


22 MARCH 2012

facturer built military observation and fighter planes of this type be-cause of good visibility and simple, sturdy construction. When twin machine guns were mounted in fu-selages, it was necessary to use in-terrupter mechanisms to halt their fi ring when propeller blades passed in front of the guns. Some 1920s parasol fighters moved the guns outboard to where struts met the undersides of their wings. Fairings enclosed the guns and at the same time cleaned up the airfl ow where struts met the wings. This allowed uninterrupted and therefore more deadly gun fi ring.

The more designers studied para-sols, the more advantages they dis-covered. As originally produced, the sleek 1927 Lockheed Vega, Fig. 3, was a high-wing cabin mono-plane. Western Air Express liked its speed but found things to com-plain about. The cantilever wing’s deep spars intruded into cabin

headroom. Because of its shape, the single pilot’s seat up forward intruded into cargo space at the for-ward end of the cabin. Pilots felt it would be hard to get out of the enclosed cabin should they have to take to their parachutes. In a crash, the cargo would come flying for-ward onto them.

Lockheed engineers realized the Vega’s wooden wing and fuselage could easily enough be revised to create the parasol Air Express. Rais-ing the wing clear of the fuselage got its deep spars out of the cabin headspace. Cargo area was increased at the front end of the cabin. Prob-ably lift was increased by separating the underside of the wing’s central portion from the fuselage, thus in-creasing the amount of working wing area. Accustomed to open-cockpit biplanes, pilots had no trou-ble with poor forward visibility in the rearward-located open cockpit. They could bail out of it much eas-

ier and faster. Their weight so far aft balanced the extra 200 pounds of the 425-hp Pratt & Whitney engine that replaced the original Vega’s 220-hp Wright Whirlwind. When a mixed load was to be carried, cargo could be loaded into the front of the cabin with passengers behind it, affording them the best possible safety in a crash.

This mention of the Air Express brings out the point that the para-sol confi guration lends itself to the simple and clean installation of one-piece wings, either strut-braced as in the Pietenpol, Fig. 7, or can-tilever as on the Potez 60, Fig. 19. Such long wings can be awkward in a homebuilder’s basement shop, but in factory-built planes save the weight and cost of center section fi ttings. Cutouts in the top or bot-tom of a fuselage are not needed.

Because the weight of the fuse-lage, engine, occupants, and land-ing gear are all well below a parasol

Figure 3—Ther e are many variations on the parasol theme. High-wing Lockheed V ega, lower left, was r evised to parasol, upper left, to suit an airline’s needs. Exter nally the English Comper Swift, above, looked like a high-wing but str ucturally was a parasol. Its layout facilitated cockpit access. Small engine on long nose balanced pilot’s weight aft of the wing.

Figure 4—The r elationship between center of lift and center of gravity dif fers as between parasol and low-wing monoplanes, and as between level and steep-climbing fl ight. This signifi cantly af fects longitudinal stability .


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 23

wing, what is called “pendulum sta-bility” is good. Looking at a parasol monoplane from ahead or behind, it’s easy to visualize how all this weight below the wing will act to restore an upset plane to level at-titude. But it’s easy to place more importance on this than is justifi ed. If it has been well-designed and its pilot is normally alert, a low-wing plane will not suddenly roll over upside-down.

However, it’s not as well-known as it deserves to be that parasols are very good in regard to longitudinal stability. That is valuable in respect to behavior in steep climbs, stalls, and turbulent air. In Fig. 4A, note the relationship between the cen-ter of gravity (CG) and the center of lift (CL) in this parasol in level fl ight. It is standard practice to po-sition the center of gravity ahead of the center of lift and to balance a plane with a download on the stabilizer. An appreciable nosing down-force, D, is then present. When the engine is throttled or quits, the plane will automatically nose down and begin to glide. In this drawing, the center of gravity’s forward position has been exagger-ated in the interests of clarity.

As this parasol noses up, Fig. 4B, the wing sort of “rotates” backward. This shifts the center of lift back-ward, too, and the force D becomes stronger. More backward stick force is needed to hold the nose up, which is a desirable characteristic.

In level fl ight, a low-wing as in Fig. 4C has about the same force arrangement. But when it noses up, due to its lower position the CL does not rotate aft and so the nosing-down force D in Fig. 4D is therefore considerably less. In many airfoils the CL moves for-ward as angle of attack increases, so in some cases the force D can be significantly reduced. Stick force and stall behavior can be adversely affected. Before designers learned how to deal with this problem, the CL in some low-wings could move ahead of the CG, causing a plane to become so suddenly and

Figure 5—Parasols can be ver y handsome, as shown by this Menasco-powered Fairchild 22 of the early 1930s.

Figure 6—The Ross parasol was not handsome! High-set wing and low-set fuselage facilitated cockpit entr y and exit.


24 MARCH 2012

puzzlingly tail-heavy as to make it rotate backward into inverted posi-tion. This was called “catastrophic instability.” When this appeared while fl ying at low altitude, the re-sult was indeed catastrophic.

Because of this lessened nosing-down tendency with increasing angle of attack, low-wings can be sensitive to load distribution, how fuel happens to slosh back in tanks when climbing steeply, airfoil cen-ter of lift travel, amount of wing dihedral (which affects the verti-cal location of the center of lift), position and weight of the landing gear, and so on. Ride or “feel” in turbulent air can be “jiggly.” In-creasing lightness of rearward stick force when approaching the stall can be a warning that a low-wing is approaching catastrophic insta-bility. Now you understand clearly why we have aeronautical engi-neers and test pilots.

After World War I, some designers looked for ways to improve the per-formance of cheap, surplus Curtiss Jennys. It’s often easy to rebuild a bi-plane into a parasol monoplane. The center section cabane strut fittings are already in place, and fittings where lower wing spars attached to the fuselage can be reworked if necessary to accept parasol lift strut ends. Thick-airfoil monoplane wings installed on Jenny fuselages resulted in worthwhile performance improvement and called the parasol design to the attention of the Amer-ican aviation community.

While surplus Jennys were cheap to buy, they were large and com-plicated airplanes and thus costly to recondition after some years of service. Commercial fliers could include such expenses in the rates they charged customers, but private owners often continued to fly de-crepit Jennys until they crashed.

In 1927 and 1928 there appeared on the American scene 55 to 60 hp Air Cat, Velie, and LeBlond fi ve-cylinder, air-cooled radial en-gines. To provide smaller, simpler, and more economical airframes to take these engines, some design-

Figure 7—Fr ont pits of some ships such as the Pietenpol r equire a step-by-step cockpit entr y/exit technique.

Figure 9—Double-taper ed wing on 1929 Davis helped fr ont cockpit acces-sibility. Note wide, stable landing gear .

Figure 8—This 1934 Czechoslovakian Letov solved the entr y problem by putting the fr ont cockpit ahead of the wing.


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 25

ers brought out neat parasols such as the Davis, Fig. 9, and the Inland Sport, Fig. 10. Open cockpits were then still much in favor, and many designers were still wary of low-wings. These monoplanes needed substantially fewer wing spars/wing-tip bows and ribs than did biplanes.

The depression that followed the stock market crash of 1929 increased designers’ interest in monoplanes, including parasols. Some outcomes of this were the very handsome Fairchild 22, Fig. 5, for affl uent buyers and the low-priced American Eaglet, Fig. 13, Taylor Cub, Fig. 14, and others for less well-heeled customers.

To coax acceptable climb from low-powered airplanes, it’s impor-tant to reduce drag. Open-cockpit parasols like the Eaglet and Cub could be fitted with detachable cockpit enclosures, which helped. And, by making cold-weather fly-ing more bearable, these accessories boosted small airports’ income by encouraging wintertime instruc-tion and rentals. Merely by raising the light superstructure atop fu-selages, some of these ships could easily be changed into high-wing cabin jobs.

In some cases it’s possible to argue at length as to whether a particular ship is a parasol or high-wing cabin plane. The English Comper Swift, Fig. 3, and Corben Super Ace, Fig. 15, are examples. In some planes such as the Ford-engined Pietenpol, Fig. 7, and the Cirrus-engined Westland Widgeon, Fig. 11, the carburetors were posi-tioned so high that in order to ob-tain dependable gravity fuel feed, fuel tanks were mounted in the parasol wings. This weight added to that of the high-mounted wings could raise the center of gravity so high as to aggravate the tendency to lean over in crosswind landings and fast taxiing turns.

Therefore, wide landing gears were favored. The “outrigger” type on the Fairchild 22 and the Inland Sport afforded wide wheel spacing while retaining acceptable load-

Figure 10—Smaller radial engines of 33-36 inch diameter led to wide fuse-lage, side-by-side seating in 1929 Inland Spor t.

Figure 11—Parasols, such as this 1929 English W estland Widgeon, ar e adaptable to folding wings.

Figure 12—Clar ence Chamberlin’s air school built this Kinner-power ed parasol training plane.


26 MARCH 2012

Figure 13—Open American Eaglet could be winterized with detachable, transpar ent side and r ear panels.

Figure 15—Cowling to fi t Ford A engine on Corben Super Ace was extended aft to enclose str uts that sup-ported center of wing.

Figure 17—Sweptback wing of 1960s Kaminskas aerobatic of fered cockpit access and r etained pr oper center of lift location.

Figure 19—One-piece wings ar e easily attached to para-sols such as this Fr ench Potez 60 of the mid-1930s.

Figure 14—Open Cub E-2 and F-2 (shown) could be en-closed same way. Raising the fuselage top fairing cr eated cabin J-2 and J-3.

Figure 16—Ger man school-built A.B. 4 car ried wing on a pylon. V-bottom wood fuselage had fi ve longerons; 20-hp Mercedes power ed the air craft.

Figure 18—Polish S-4 Kania; 125-hp radial engine had great rearview mir ror visibility for glider towing.

Figure 20—Fr ench Bour gois fuselage had thr ee lon-gerons; note the str ut position. Bulkheads and wood veneer for med the covering.


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 27

carrying angles for the various struts. In some parasols such as the smallish Pietenpol, the vertical space between fuselage top and the lower surface of the wing was just scant enough to make front cockpit entry and exit a problem. Pilots instructed passengers in a well-thought-out en-try and exit procedure. Glued wood-to-wood joints are not as strong as are welded ones in steel tubing, and a fuselage is basically a beam that carries engine weight in the front and elevator up-and-down loads at the rear end. To avoid discontinuity in a wooden top longeron caused by a cockpit door cutout, designer B.H. Pietenpol did not incorporate a door in his Air Camper’s fuselage. Large people or ones having arthritic knees sometimes could not get into a Piet. But the welded steel tube con-struction popular in the fuselages of factory-made parasols made the incorporation of door openings a simple matter.

Some parasols had their wings mounted as high as their designers dared, such as on the Ross RS-1, Fig. 6, to facilitate entry and exit. But this could bring on a tendency to tip easily in crosswind landings. In those days flying was often done out of farm fields, which allowed taking off and landing into the wind all the time. But the high-winged, narrow-geared Ross could be a problem on a modern airstrip during crosswind conditions.

The Czech Letov, Fig. 8, had an-other approach to front cockpit access—this cockpit was located ahead of the wing. It worked, but put pilot and passenger unhap-pily far apart. A more common approach to the cockpit access problem was to incorporate a cut-out in the wing’s trailing edge. This could be a modest one as on the Fairchild 22, or a large one as on the S-4 Kania, Fig 18. Such a large cutout can impair a wing’s aerody-namic efficiency, but seemed ac-ceptable in this glider tug that did mostly local fl ying. A rearview mir-ror positioned in the cutout gave a superb view of a towed glider. A

few Pietenpols had hinged fl aps in the trailing edges of their wings. These helped cockpit access yet retained unbroken trailing edge shape in fl ight.

The 1929 Davis had a double-tapered wing employing box spars that were deepest at the point of wing V-strut attachment and ta-pered both toward the tips and the center section as yet another way of improving cockpit access. This design also kept the struts short so as to make them stiff and compara-tively light, and also to reduce drag.

Yet another cockpit access solu-tion was to use swept-back wings as in the Kaminskas aerobatic para-sol, Fig. 17. This puts the center section ahead of the cockpit, while the sweepback positions the wing’s center of lift where it has to be for proper aircraft balance in flight. Many military parasols used this confi guration to keep the center sec-tion ahead of tandem cockpits to fa-cilitate quick exit should it become

necessary to take to parachutes.French air show pilots favored

Morane Saulnier and Dewoitine parasols for yet another reason. When going upward at the begin-ning of a loop, one sees only empty sky in front of the plane’s nose. Then as one goes over the top and starts down, the center section of a parasol (or biplane) facilitates judg-ing attitude in relation to the up-side-down horizon.

We could say many more things and print twice as many photos, if space permitted. But what we’ve been able to cram into the avail-able space should be enough to help you to learn how to under-stand and evaluate parasol mono-planes. The type is very old, but will be with us for a long time to come because of its versatility and adaptability to various sport fl ying requirements. Why, when rain-storms disrupt activities at fl y-ins, people even scurry to get under the wings of parasol monoplanes!

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28 MARCH 2012

Defects in wood structures are critical, and inspec-tion techniques must be developed to locate and iden-tify these structural problems. This data is important to new mechanics who may not be familiar with inspect-ing wood structures, particularly wood wing spars.

This is important when inspecting wood spars in Aeronca, Bellanca, and Champion aircraft. FAA Air-worthiness Directive 2000-25-02 R1 in particular re-quires close inspection of wood wing spars installed in Aeronca 7 and 11 series aircraft and Bellanca Citabria acrobatic aircraft.

One would think that a 65-hp Aeronca Champ or Chief would not experience compression failures in wing spars, but I have seen this defect and feel it is im-portant to expand on the airworthiness directive be-cause compression failures are diffi cult to locate, and in the case of the Champ and Chief, are often mostly hidden because they will form under a wing rib that is nailed to the spar at a critical location.

American Champion Service Bulletin 406 Revision A gives detailed information on the subject. These compression failures can happen if the aircraft ground loops and the wingtip strikes the ground, or they can be caused by over-stressing the spar when pulling some g’s performing spins or other semi-aerobatic or aerobatic maneuvers.

A compression failure is defined as a break across grain lines of the wood caused by very high compressive forces placed on the spar, normally from a high positive g-load on the outer portion of a wing that is unbraced.

An old publication issued in 1943 by the Army-Navy Civil Committee on aircraft design criteria and identi-fi ed as ANC-19 was the bible for mechanics that inspect, maintain, and repair wood structures. Its data should be a regular reference for modern-day mechanics who work with these structures. All the data that is contained in FAA AC43.13-1B is extracted from this reference source.

Illustration 1 is a photo of a compression failure in Sitka spruce; this photo shows the failure almost completely across the entire board. You won’t find anything like this in aircraft unless a very bad acci-

dent occurred. This type damage may have happened when the tree was cut and it fell across another tree or a large rock, which fractured the entire log. In-service compression failures will normally appear on the top fl ange of the spar, and in the case of Aeronca and Bel-lanca spars, directly adjacent to a plywood plate in-stalled at the front and rear strut attachment point. Read on . . .

Illustration 1: Major compression failure in Sitka spruce.

To understand the stress forces carried by a wing spar one must know that the upper third and lower third of the spar width carries all fl ight loads, with the center third of the spar width in a neutral plane. When the wing is positively loaded (positive g), the upper spar fl ange carries a compression load and the lower

BY ROBERT G. LOCK

Wood defects: Compression failure, shakes, checks, longitudinal cracks

THE Vintage Mechanic


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 29

spar fl ange carries a tension load. Therefore, any crack across the grain lines can be dangerous, and if not de-tected, it can lead to complete failure.

Illustrations 2-4 are three photos that show a com-pression failure I found on a Bellanca 7ACA. Illustra-tion 2 is the back side of the front spar. The bright wood to the left of the photo is where a plywood rein-forcement plate was glued to add strength where the front lift strut attaches. To the right of the photo is out-board of the plate and the typical spot where a com-pression failure will form.

The lines are made with a pen to highlight the de-fect. There are some interesting items to observe here. First the crack goes into the upper nail hole that holds the aluminum rib to the spar. The failure is under the wing rib and therefore impossible to visually locate. The failure is about 25-30 percent of the spar width. That is almost a total failure of the upper spar fl ange.

Illustration 2: Bellanca 7ACA, back side of the front spar.

Illustration 3 shows the view looking down on the top of the spar; the crack is clearly visible. This is the only location to spot a compression failure at this loca-tion on the Aeronca and Bellanca series airplanes. The American Champion Company states that an opening should be cut into the fabric to inspect this area to fa-cilitate complete inspection.

Illustration 3: Looking down on the top of the spar.

It will be necessary to remove a small segment of aluminum leading edge to gain complete access to this area. In this view it is very evident as to the defini-tion of a compression failure—a jagged crack across the grain fi bers.

Illustration 4 shows the compression failure on the front side of the spar that has progressed to 15-20 percent of spar width. I took these photos after the spar was removed from the wing in preparation to installing a newly fabricated front wing spar. The bright wood to the right was where a plywood plate was glued to support loads at the front lift strut attach point. To the left of the photo is outboard to the wingtip. There are two parallel pencil lines to allow proper positioning of the wing rib before nailing to the spar. Again, note that the failure is under the rib.

Illustration 4: Compression failure on the front side of the spar.

Illustration 5 shows two inspection openings on the top of the front spar of my Champ wings covered in Poly-Fiber through silver. These openings comply with the recommendations in SB 406, Revision A. When the wings are fi nished, aluminum covers will be screwed in place and sealed with a soft rubber gasket so moisture will not penetrate this critical area.

Illustration 5: Champ spar inspection opening.


30 MARCH 2012

When re-covering a set of Bellanca 7ECA wings, I found a compression failure in the rear spar at the in-board aileron attach point. Unfortunately I do not have a photo of that failure.

Shakes and checks are also on the critical inspec-tion list. Shakes are identified as cracks. Shakes and checks normally can be found at spar ends and are due to moisture entering the wood and causing it to swell. Spar ends are susceptible if the grain is not com-pletely fi lled with varnish—fi lling the end grain nor-mally takes additional coats of varnish because the varnish will penetrate the grain structure and be drawn into the wood fi bers.

Shakes are defined as a longitudinal crack along grain lines, occurring between two annual rings. Thus, looking at a spar end, the opening will be horizontal in the grain. There may be more than one shake in a spar end. AC43.13-1B states that if shakes are visually de-tected, the spar should be spliced or replaced.

Checks are defi ned as cracks across the grain. Thus, looking at a spar end the opening will be vertical and may be parallel to the width of the spar. Below in Il-lustration 6 is a sketch of typical wood defects. In this sketch, defect A is a shake, defect B is a check, defect C is a longitudinal crack, and defect D is a compression failure.

Longitudinal cracks will appear anywhere moisture can enter the internal structure, most generally at ma-

jor fittings such as lift struts and streamline wire at-tachment points. There are times when a shake that begins at the end of a spar will progress outboard and will exit the plywood doubler and form itself into a longitudinal crack. AC43.13-1B states that most lon-gitudinal cracks can be repaired by gluing on plywood plates on both sides of the spar; however, to adequately inspect the spar and glue on such plates, the wing has to be uncovered, and most mechanics will opt to re-place the entire spar or splice in a new section through the damaged area.

This fi nal illustration is interesting from the stand-point of visually inspecting damage. Look closely at the photo in Illustration 7 and you will see two distinct failure modes in wood. First, half of the thickness of the spar has failed due to compressive forces, while the other half has failed due to tension forces. How could this happen, except in an accident? Well, back in 1970, that is what happened to the pilot of a CallAir A-9 agri-cultural airplane. While spraying next to his house, he decided to make a pass over the home to wave at his wife. In a steep left turn, he put the wing into a large tree in his front yard and tore off the outer 6 feet of the front wing spar. He was able to fl y back to his strip and land safely, and I was called to make a repair without removing the wing from the airplane.

Illustration 6: Typical wood defects.

Illustration 7: Compression and tension failure in a spar.


32 MARCH 2012

This photo shows the view looking directly into the fracture of the front spar—there is a bolt-hole where a compression member was attached, and half of the hole is plainly visible. Note that the left side of the wood ap-pears as if it were cut with a knife—that is the side that failed under compression load. The right half of the spar appears jagged with the fi bers pulled apart. That is where the spar failed under tension load. What did the airplane look like you ask? Illustration 8 shows the aircraft and the damaged left wing.

When I fi rst saw the wing I wondered where the rest of the front spar was located and was told it was prob-ably still in the top of the tree. Removing the wing just to make a spar repair was a big job, so I decided to splice the spar while it was still attached to the air-frame. So how did that go? I’ll tell you all about it in next month’s column.

A compression failure is defi ned as a break across grain lines of

the wood causedby very high

compressive forces . . .

Illustration 8: CallAir A-9 spar damage due to an accident.


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 33

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34 MARCH 2012

Today was a great day for this old tail-wheel flight instructor. One of my stu-dents took and passed her checkride and is now a bona fi de pilot. Now, that isn’t a big deal nor different from most anyone else receiving a pilot’s license. But this

one was special to me.About 18 months ago she and her husband came

to me. He was already a pi-lot, and up until this day she was a very good navigator/passenger. But on this day she wanted to begin taking fl ight lessons. I thought this wasn’t anything unusual; over the years I’ve worked with a number of spouses who wanted to learn to fl y.

In th i s case , however , the situation was a bit more challenging. This couple had previously restored an air-plane together, he doing the structural work and she do-ing the fabric. Together they flew it all around the area, proudly showing the plane. Then together they began another aircraft restoration. As it began nearing comple-tion, she made a comment one evening that she might like to learn to fl y, allowing them to each fl y a plane to the area fly-ins. Her husband was quite taken aback by the comment. She had always been a good passenger but was near petrifi ed whenever asked to take the controls.

When they came to me that fi rst day we discussed both her desire as well as her fear. Her husband, very supportive, didn’t want to push too hard for fear of dampening her enthusiasm. I explained that we would take it very slow, and if at any time she felt

uncomfortable with whatever we were doing, she was to tell me so.

The first lesson began with a 30-minute session taxiing a tailwheel airplane around the ramp area and then out to the runway, learning the S-turn method of taxiing while doing so. Quite tentative at fi rst, she soon acquired the feel for the airplane, at least on the ground, and relaxed somewhat.

The fi rst step of confi dence-building now accomplished, we aligned the airplane with the turf runway in preparation for the takeoff. While explain-ing the control stick position and movement, I could feel her tension building. Her grip on the Cub’s control stick was like a vise. To break the ten-sion I told her I could take her pulse simply by placing a fi n-ger on top of my control stick. She laughed and relaxed, but only just a bit.

Throughout the late summer and early fall we flew weekly. Each new maneuver was a challenge, not because it was difficult for her to master but rather because of her anxiety. Each flight required constant reminders to relax and learn to feel the airplane.

It was then that I came to realize part of her anx-iety was brought on by her desire to be a perfec-tionist. She would strive to do everything perfectly, and when a maneuver was less than so, the anxiety would build. It has been said by “seasoned” pilots that flying is a constant learning experience. This thought really hit me between the eyes and caused me to change my teaching technique with her.

Thereafter, we discussed every maneuver before flight, initially setting loose guidelines for each.

BY Steve Krog, CFI

THE Vintage Instructor

A Proud Moment

She had always

been a good

passenger but

was near petrifi ed

whenever asked to

take the controls.


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 35

For example, I would ask her to demonstrate a steep 360-degree turn to the right or left keeping the altitude within plus or minus 200 feet. Once that was accomplished we would tighten the pa-rameters to 100 feet, then 50 feet, and finally 20 feet. Using this method, she learned to relax a bit more, yet she strived for perfection with less self-induced pressure.

When the cold weather and snow fi nally arrived, we decided to put further training on hold until spring.

Spring 2011 arrived, and we resumed our flight training. It was now time to work in the traffi c pat-tern in preparation for solo. Lack of self-confi dence again surfaced, but with encouragement and regular reminders to relax, progress was made. Finally, it was time for me to get out of the Cub and turn her loose for three takeoffs and landings. She argued at fi rst that she wasn’t ready, but I convinced her that she was. Each of the three takeoffs and landings were near perfect.

When she taxied back to the hangar following that fi rst solo, the grin on her face was spectacular! She had transformed from someone afraid of touch-ing the controls to being able to safely and confi-dently fl y the airplane solo! What a milestone. After the traditional cutting of the shirttail, I asked how she felt, and she responded by telling me that her butt cheeks were so tight, she thought the seat cush-ion was still there!

Crosswind takeoffs and landings were next on the agenda, and these came to her almost naturally. Within two hours she had mastered the technique and was ready for the dual and solo cross-country phase. At this point I strongly pushed for getting her written test taken. She had been procrastinating, thinking that she wasn’t ready to take and pass the exam. I set a deadline of the next Friday. If she didn’t have the test taken by then, we would postpone the planned dual and solo cross-country fl ights.

Pressure now dutifully applied, she accepted the challenge. I’ve found over the years that setting deadlines helps students move forward. She called me on that Friday afternoon and in an excited voice explained that she had achieved a 90 percent on the written test. The cross-country training was again back on the fl ight schedule.

Having spent a good many hours navigating for her husband, the cross-country phase of fl ight train-ing was completed in record time. Over the course of three or four days, all dual and solo cross-country fl ights were completed.

At this point it was time to prep for the checkride, and we scheduled fl ights for each of the next three weekends. Every maneuver was perfect or very near perfect. It didn’t make any difference if it was a steep turn, a power-on stall, or a 50-foot obstacle short-fi eld landing. She had everything nailed. It was time

to schedule the checkride for the following Saturday.I spoke with her several times during the week

preceding the fl ight test. Each time it was to bolster her courage and confidence. Nervous, yes, but she was prepared. Finally, checkride day was here, and I think she arrived at the hangar at 5 a.m. for the 9 a.m. appointment. For several hours she paced the hangar, reviewing everything in her mind. The per-fectionist in her rose to the surface once again.

Once the designated examiner arrived and the oral portion of the checkride began, she relaxed a bit. The examiner quite understood and helped put her at ease. The remainder of the checkride went without a fl aw, and the examiner commented so.

Finally, with the new piece of paper in hand proclaiming she was a real pilot, she fi nally be-gan to unwind, but not without a lot of kidding and congratulations.

I’ve been providing fl ight instruction for 40 years and have worked with a number of students, but this student and her accomplishments were very special to me. With great pleasure I watched her transform from a position of timidity and anxiety to one of self-confi dence and achievement.

It proves that anyone with a real desire can over-come most any obstacle, learn to fl y, and enjoy the pleasure of fl ying!

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36 MARCH 2012

Our December Mystery Plane came to us from Wes Smith, Springfi eld, Illi-nois. It was of North American origin. Here’s our fi rst answer:

Th e December 2011 Mystery Plane appears to be the one and only McVean Valkyr V-3 (CF-AQA). Th e photo may have been taken at an air field near Hamilton, Ontario.

The story of this little-known air-plane began in the late ’20s with Hayes Wheels and Forgings of Chatham, On-tario. At the time, the company was not doing too well. Buggies, buggy wheels, and other wooden products for the carriage industry were a thing of the past, and the automobile indus-

Send your answer to EAA, Vintage Airplane, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Your answer needs to be in no later than April 10 for inclusion in the June 2012 issue of Vintage Airplane.

You can also send your response via e-mail .

Send your answer to [email protected] . Be sure to include your name plus your city and state in the body of your note and put “(Month) Mystery Plane” in the subject line.

This month’s Mystery Plane comes to us from the EAA archives;it’s part of our Cedric Galloway collection.

MYSTERY PLANEby H.G. FRAUTSCHY

D E C E M B E R ’ S M Y S T E RY A N S W E R


VINTAGE AIRPLANE 37

try was gradually replacing wooden-spoked wheels with pressed-steel wheels. In order to survive, Hayes Wheels and Forgings needed to de-velop new products.

It so happens that both the c om-pany’s general manager and chief en-gineer, William Kistler and Norman A. Thompson, were aviation enthusiasts. Kistler, who seemingly never soloed despite many hours of training, owned an airplane, an Arrow A-2 Sport two-seat light biplane. Th ompson, who had flown with the Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force during the Great War, owned a Lincoln Page LP-3 light biplane as well as a private airfield and hangar near Chatham. One day, the LP-3 was seriously damaged in a crash caused by a frozen fuel line. Eager to fl y again, Thompson took the welded steel tube fuselage to a local automobile mechanic and talented welder, Philip Alexander. Putting the Lincoln Page back into fl ying condition proved relatively easy, which got both men thinking. If money could be found, it should not be too compli-cated to design and build an airplane from scratch. Kistler readily agreed to fi -nance the project. Here, he thought, was a new type of product that could restore the fortunes of Hayes Wheels and Forg-ings. Th e airplane would be produced by a subsidiary, a manufacturer of wooden wheel hubs and spokes, W. & O. McVean of Dresden, Ontario.

(Th e McVean family had arrived in Dresden around 1870, and it domi-nated the local business community for almost half a century. Its patriarch, Alexander McVean, was a close friend of Canada’s first prime minister, Sir John A. MacDonald. Two of his sons, William and Osgood McVean, eventu-ally took over his company, which be-came W. & O. McVean.)

The airplane designed by Thomp-son was a conventional biplane with side-by-side seating, somewhat simi-lar in concept to the Arrow A-2 Sport. Known as the McVean Valkyr V-2, this two-seat light airplane/basic trainer was designed to fulfi ll the needs of pri-vate pilots and fl ying clubs. It fl ew for the fi rst time on May 4, 1930. Th omp-son was at the c ontrols. Although

somewhat heavier than planned, the Valkyr V-2 proved remarkably suc-cessful and easy to fly. Sadly, no one showed much interest in the new de-sign. Airplanes like the de Havilland Moth, the Avro Avian, and the Curtiss-Reid Rambler were already flying in Canada in some numbers. Registered with some difficulty as CF-AKP on May 14, 1930, by O. & W. McVean, the Valkyr V-2 was sold to Alexander in October 1933. Its pilot throughout the 1930s was Ernest H. Taylor, a young aviation enthusiast who had drawn many of the fi ttings and components of the airplane. Grounded following the outbreak of the Second World War, CF-AKP was destroyed by a hangar fi re in 1940 (some sources say 1946).

Design of another airplane began soon after the fi rst fl ight of the Valkyr V-2. Larger, heavier, more powerful, and better equipped than its predeces-sor, the Valkyr V-3 was a three-seater (two side-by-side seats at the front and a single seat further back). This confi guration had proven very popular with U.S. airplane makers. One only needs to think about classic designs like the Travel Air 2000 or the Waco 10. This being said, it looks as if Kis-tler and Thompson planned to offer a tandem two-seat training version to the Royal Canadian Air Force. Kis-tler, however, left Hayes Wheels and Forgings in the fall of 1930, while the Valkyr V-3 was still under construc-tion. As the economic situation grew from bad to worse, the management of the company reluctantly termi-

nated the project. Convinced that the new airplane had potential, Thomp-son, Taylor, and Alexander asked that the uncompleted airframe be turned over to them. Th is was soon done, and construction started anew at Th omp-son’s airfi eld, near Chatham.

Th e Valkyr V-3 was registered as CF-AQA on February 19, 1931, again with some difficulty, by O. & W. McVean. Thompson test flew the orange and brown biplane around Easter. He quickly realized that the airplane’s flying char-acteristics were not as good as those of its predecessor. Enlarging the rudder helped, but did not solve ever ything. Rumor has it that the Valkyr V-3 would go into a steep dive after being stalled. Worse still, control could only be re-gained after a considerable loss of height.

In September 1931, both Valkyrs took part in a 450-mile air rally, the Tip Top Aerial Derby, sponsored by Tip Top Tailors of Toronto, Ontario. More than 20 air planes, including both Valkyrs, completed this race. Th e Valkyr V-2 actually came in third.

As the economic depression deep-ened, Hayes Wheels and Forgings’

Putting the Lincoln Page back into fl ying

condition proved relatively easy, which

got both menthinking. If money

could be found, it should not be too

complicated to design and build an airplane

from scratch.

THE “STROMBERG SPECIALIST” R.E. “Bob” Kachergius A&P/IA

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situation grew worse and worse. I t eventually closed down all operations. In May 1936, G.B. Stewart and C.W. Burgess of Dixie, Ontario, submitted but did not complete an application to certify the airplane. M.J. Wilson of Cha-tham bought CF-AQA later that year but did not complete the certification procedure. Frank H. Armitage of Ham-ilton, Ontario, bought the Valkyr V-3 at a public auction in August 1936. Th e following year, the 165-hp Continen-tal A-70 engine suffered a midair fail-ure. Armitage chose to replace it with a 200/220-hp Wright J-5 engine. Tom Senior of Brantford, Ontario, bought CF-AQA, possibly in late 1937, and cer-tifi ed the airplane in January 1938. Be-fore long, he realized the Valkyr V-3 was in rather poor shape and decided to dis-pose of it. Over the next few months, Senior apparently sold the airplane two or three times, but the buyers soon re-turned it—and presumably asked for their money back.

Senior finally sold CF-AQA to R.M. Armstrong who certifi ed the airplane in July 1939. Th is young miner and inex-perienced pilot from the Levack mines near Sudbury, Ontario, soon contacted another pilot and experienced amateur airplane builder by the name of L .A. Hottie. Armstrong wanted to know if Hottie could make the Valkyr V-3 air-worthy again. He could indeed.

On November 6, 1939, the Valkyr V-3 stalled while performing some low-level aerobatics near Larchwood, Ontario. It spun into the ground. Arm-strong and his passengers, G. Lennox and F. Church, were killed instantly.

It is worth noting that Ernest H. Taylor later worked for Victory Air-craft at Malton, near Toronto, during the Second World War; he fl ight-tested Avro Lancaster heavy bombers. Taylor went on to become Canadian repre-sentative for the Dassault Fan Jet Fal-con/Falcon 20 business jet.

Renald Fortier, Curator, Aviation His-tory, Canada Aviation and Space Museum

Ottawa, Ontario, CanadaOne other correct answer was re-

ceived from Warren Kelley of Clark-son, Ontario, Canada.

38 MARCH 2012

AIRCRAFT1943 STEARMAN, LIVE AUCTION, Unrestored,

unmodif ied. PT17, A75N1, N56292.

Cont-R670, SMOH=434, TT=1720, San

Jose, Calif., 3/31/2012, Reserve $23,000.

http://www.panzerstearman.net (360)835-

7789.

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Marketplace.

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1/1 down. CBS Construction, Central Air,

screened pool, marina, air pad. $750,000

owner/agent 305-304-8393

SERVICESAlways Flying Aircraft Restoration, LLC:

Annual Inspections, Airframe recovering,

fabric repairs and complete restorations.

Wayne A. Forshey A&P & I.A. 740-472-1481 Ohio and bordering states.

Restoration, fabric, paint, fabrications, paperwork. With 53 completed projects,

Waco’s, Moth’s, Champs, Lakes, Pitts etc.

Test fl ights and delivery. Indiana 480-209-2680 [email protected], www.wildcataviation.com

VINTAGE TRADER

Someth ing to buy, se l l , o r t r ade?

Classifi ed Word Ads: $5.50 per 10 wor ds, 180 words maximum, with boldface lead-in on fi rst line.

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

Adver tising Closing Dates: 10th of second month prior to desir ed issue date (i.e., Januar y 10 is the closing date for the Mar ch issue). V AA reser ves the right to r eject any adver tising in confl ict with its policies. Rates cover one inser tion per issue. Classified ads ar e not accepted via phone. Payment must accompany or der. Word ads may be sent via fax (920-426-4828) or e-mail ([email protected]) using cr edit card payment (all cards accepted). Include name on car d, complete address, type of car d, card number, and expiration date. Make checks payable to EAA. Address advertising correspondence to EAA Publications Classified Ad Manager , P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086.

We enjoy your suggestions for Mys-

tery Plane—in fact, more than half of

our subjects are sent to us by mem-

bers, often via e-mail. Please remem-

ber that if you want to scan the photo

for use in Mystery Plane, it must be at

a resolution of 300 dpi or greater. You

may send a lower-resolution version

to us for our review, but the fi nal ver-

sion has to be at that level of detail or

it will not print properly. Also, please

let us know where the photo came

from; we don’t want to willfully vio-

late someone’s copyright.


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VINTAGE AIRPLANE 39

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40 MARCH 2012

No doubt about it—I’m very privileged. I am surrounded by good pilots. I don’t mean ones who just

know the rules and can make an airplane take off and land to FAA proficiency standards. I mean ones who know how to put the airplane exactly where they want it. They know how to “wear” the airplane, so to speak.

They didn’t get that way by chance. They’ve developed their abilities in untold hours in the sky. They’ve hauled passengers and freight, ferried airplanes, dusted crops, and fl own for a myr-iad of other reasons—the primary one for the sheer joy of fl ight.

They know how to read weather and aren’t afraid to make “no-go” decisions, and I’m sure they’ve all been in the “I shouldn’t have

done that” s i tuat ion at some point . Experience has taught them well. I am fortunate to be in their shadows.

Before taking flight lessons I had been introduced to aviation through good pilots. Through-out my training I was constantly pushed toward proficiency and better judgment. A baby pilot in-deed, but with excellent examples to follow.

These folks encouraged me and shared their wisdom along the way. A number of years later they still do, and I’m still learning. It’s a process that should be never-ending. It’s my responsibility to pass that encouragement and knowledge on as well.

One spring night I flew lead in a loose formation over a Relay for Life rally. On my left was a Super Cub. On my right were a

Monocoupe and a C-172. Those three aircraft were all flown by pilots whose expertise makes my experience a tiny drop in the big aviation bucket. Privileged I was, doing my best to do my part smoothly so they could do theirs safely.

Obviously formation flight re-quires trust, and whether they trusted me I don’t know, but I knew I was in very good hands. How thankful I am that I’m part of an aviation family who’s not afraid to associate with less-experienced pilots, and looks out for each other.

Big name aviators will come and go. Most of them I will never have contact with. That’s okay with me. I am content to know that in my part of the world I fl y with the best. Who can ask for more than that?

I Fly With the Best“Wearing” the airplane

BY S. MICHELLE SOUDER


V E H I C L E P U R C H A S E P L A N

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The Privilege of PartnershipEAA members are eligible for special pricing on Ford Motor Company vehicles through Ford’s Partner Recognition Program. To learn more on this exclusive opportunity for EAA members to save on a new Ford vehicle, please visit www.eaa.org/ford.

Proud Partners with EAA

Keith C. EAA #1030084


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Transcript of Va vol 40 no 3 mar 2012