va-vol-4-no-6-june-1976

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THE RESTORERS CORNER

Once again it is time for all of us to begin making our plans for participashytion in the annual pilgrimage to the worlds largest aviation event the 24th Annual EAA Convention and Fly-In at Wittman Field Oshkosh Wisconsin from Saturday July 31st through Sunday August 8th 1976 This is the longest EAA convention in history nine days beginning and ending with a full weekend

Your AntiqueClassic Division has already organized a full schedule of activities for antique and classic aircraft and their owners including judging of the exhibit aircraft and the awarding of trophies in a multitude of classishyfications recognition of well known old-timers in aviation as well as outshystanding restorers at either the Interview Circle during the day or the Pavilion Evening Program historical sequence air pageants and forums on the various types of antique and classic aircraft As in the past these forums generally will include information on maintenance problems parts availshyability and substitution modifications specific restoration techniques flight characteristics aircraft availability etc plus additional forums on techniques and procedures of restoration which are applicable to all airshycraft They will usually be scheduled for a 1 hour period and will be held in a large meeting tent located next to the AntiqueClassic Division Headshyquarters Barn The tent will be complete with blackboards rostrum public address system electricity for projection equipment and adequate seating

We are again this year inviting all type clubs to make the EAA Conshyvention one of their annual fly-in activities Due to limited parking space available in the Display Aircraft Parking Area and even more limited manshypower we do not plan to provide special parking rows for each type airshycraft as we have done in the past However we do have the aircraft type signs available so if any type clubs do want their own row(s) we shall be happy to supply the signs but it will be necessary for them to make arrangeshyments directly with the AntiqueClassic Parking Chairman M C Kelly Viets RR 1 Box 151 Stilwell Kansas 66085 before July first and to police their own rows with their own members starting on Wednesday July 28th and continuing through the entire convention period

While on the subject of the Display Aircraft Parking Area we would like to emphasize that the EAA Convention is somewhat different from the average fly-in which most of us usually attend The basic theme of the EAA Convention is EDUCA nON and the AntiqueClassic Division tries to encourage this theme in both its forum programs and its Display Aircraft

by J R NIELANDER JR

Parking Areas We would like to ask your cooperation in using the Display Aircraft Parking Area only for parking those aircraft of which you can be justifiably proud of your work or efforts spent in its restoration reconshystruction or continued Tender Loving Care brand of maintenance This is the area for showing off that which we consider to be excellence in our field and that from which others can learn by close inspection by example and by conversing with the owners and restoers This is the area where he who is planning to restore an antique or classic aircraft can look to see what he can expect to achieve and can thereby be fired with enthusiasm This is the area where photographers can photograph the finest collection of the restorers art This is the area where he who comes just to admire historic beauty on wings can savour the excellence of workmanship

For those who are presently using their airplanes for transportation only and are not planning to restore them until next year or the year after or maybe never we have a very large Member and Guest Parking Area along the E-W runway which is more conveniently located to the action than are many parts of the Display Aircraft Parking Area It would be a big help to your overworked and undermanned Parking Committee if aircraft which fall into this latter category were parked in this Member and Guest Parking Area

Well it had to happen sooner or later Your officers and directors have made it as much later as they possibly could but that old devil inflation finally caught up with us After watching your Division expenses exceed

your Division income for some months your officers and directors had to face the unpleasant task of increasing the membership dues The fact that this was the first dues increase since the Division was founded didnt make them feel any better about it

At the Board of Directors meeting on April 24 1976 they noted a dues increase and restructuring to become effective June 1 1976 Effective that date Division dues will be $1400 per year for EAA members and $2000 per year for non-EAA members The latter will receive the additional beneshyfit of non-subscription membership in EAA This is a full membership in EAA with all of its rights and privileges but minus the subscription to SPORT AVIATlON magazine The officers and directors hope that their action meets with the approval of the majority of you members and that you will understand the need for this increase

EDITORIAL STAFF

Publisher Editor Paul H Poberezny AI Kelch

ANTIQUE AND CLASSIC DIVISION OFFICERS

PRESIDENT J R NIELANDER JR

P O BOX 2464 FT LAUDE RDALE FL 33303

SECRETARY RICHARD WAG NER

P O BOX 181 LYONS WI S3148

Te rm ex p ires Augu st 77

Claude l Gray Jr 9635 Sylvia Avenue

Northridge California 91324

James B Horne 3840 Coronalion Road

Eagan Minnesota 55122

George E Stubbs Box 113

Brownsburg Indiana 46112

Willia m J Ehlen Route 8 Box 506

Tampa Florida 336 18

VICE-PRESIDENT MORTON LESTER

P O BOX 3747 MARTINSVILLE VA 24112

TREASURER E E BUCK HILBERT

8102 LEECH RD UNION IL 601 80

Directors Term ex pires Aug ust 76

AI Kelc h 7018 W Bonniwell Road

Mequon Wisconsin 53092

Evander M Britt Box 1525

Lumberton North Carolina 28358

M C Kelly Viets RR 1 Box 151

Stilwell KS 66085

Assistant Ed itor Lois Kelch

Centributing Editors H N Dusty Rhodes

Evander Britt Jim Barton

Claude Gray Ed Escallon Rod Spanier

Dale Gustafson Henry Wheeler Morton Lester

Kelly Viets Bob Elliot

Jack Lanning Bill Thumma

ADVISORS

W Brade Thomas J r 301 Dodson Mill Road

Pilot Mountain North CAro lina 2704 1

Robert A White 1207 Falcon Drive

Orlando Florida 32803

Jack C Winthrop 3536 Whitehall Drive Dallas Texas 75229

THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE is owned exclusively by Antique Classic Aircraft Inc and is published monthly at Hales Co rne rs Wisconsin 53130 Second c lass Postage paid at Hales Corners Post Office Hales Co rshyners Wisconsin 53130 and Rand o m Lake Post Office Random Lake Wisconsin 53075 Membership rates for Antique Classic aircraft Inc at $1000 per 12 month period of which $7 00 is for the publication to THE VINTAGE AIRP middotANE Membership is open to all whoare interested in aviat ion

Postmaste Send Form 3579 to Antique Classic Aircraft Inc Box 229 Hales Corners Wisconsin 53130

OFFICIAL MAGAZINE

ANTIQUE CLASSIC DIVISION

of THE EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION

JUNE 1976 VOLUME 4 NUMBER 6

The Res torers Corner 1 From Sticks To Airplanes 3 Early Bird Vignette 6 Powder Puff Derby _ 8 Vintage Album 10 The Uptown Swallow 11 Whistling In The Rigging _ 16 Calendar Of Events _ 17 I Remember When 17 Yallers My Color 17 The US Mail 18

JUDGING CORRECTION Exception rule B are aircraft manufactured between years 1950-55

but either model or make are no longer in production These are eligible for judging

1 Models no longer in production but manufactors still in business such as 190-195 170 Cessnas early Bellanca etc

2 Out of production manufactors such as SWift Stinson etc

ON THE COVER PICTURE BOX

A tribute to Women in Aviation See Vintage Album

Flying Returns to the North

(see page 17)

Copyright 0 1976 Antiqu e Classic Aircraft Inc All Rights Reserved 2

A long time before I was even a gleam in my fathers eye my oldest brother was building the reputation of being one of the youngest of the pioneer aviators

As a very young boy Orin Welch wanted to be a radio operator on a ship at sea until he saw one of the first airplanes in the sky He immediatel y wanted not only to fly them but to build the m Hammer a nd nails in hand along with a few boards marked the beginning of his aviation career He built his aero-plane and had some of his friend s push him off the shed s roof while h e was at th e controls A very s uccess ful flight indeed The year was probably 1916 at Orins age of ten Nevertheless he did not lose hi s interes t in avia tion

The last time I re member seeing my brother Orin he was on his way to fl y the Hump I didnt know then a t my age of 15 a nd he a t 36 he was never to return to us Hopefully he found hi s sha ngri-la in the Himashylaya n Mountains

Between 1916 and 1943 I believe Orin contributed much to aviatio n I recall many fam ily discussions about Orins love of fl yi ng He had been flying since he was 12 years old but his scrapbooks revea l from a newsshypaper article that he soloed on November 27 1923 jus t s~ortly after he turned 17 In the same article it reads h e is also quite a stunt fly er

In the early 20s Orin trained ma ny pilots from all

Left The Welch Airplane Company in 1928

over the world and did a lot of barnstorming in southern Ohio and West Virginia He and the family had several a irports and put on many air shows but this did not sa tisfy Orin s appetite for aviation

In the summer of 1927 Orin and the family were to move from Charleston Wes t Virginia to acquire the airport in Anderson Indiana For being a small baby I was a big problem during this move The state of West Virginia had imposed a polio quaran tine a nd no babies were to leave the area Who would think about flying a baby out Orin did naturall y Mom he sa id you and the baby get in the airplane and well fl y her out Thus Ive always claimed the fame of being smuggled over the border

The Welch family took over the Anderson Airport then ow ned by Fred Parker who I believe designed and manufactured the Anderson Biplane The fami ly soon had to relocate the airport but still in Anderson May of 1929 saw dedication of th e Welch Field This was a three-day air event which bro ught many aviation giants to our airport such as Amelia Earhart Ma jor Reed Landis Eddie Rickenbacker Mike Murph y Oswa ld Ryan Clyde Shockley Harry White Willie Goetch Weir Cook Charles E Wilson Antho n y Fokker Freddie Lund and many others

The excitement and gaiety of the month s to follow were short lived however The the n fam o us Welch

Field - the hangar and many airplanes - went up in flames in November 1929 By thi s time Orin had designed and built hi s own airplanes They included the Welch OWl OW2 OW3 and OW4 Then ca me th e little Welch OW5 and several others often misshytaken for the Aeronca C3

Eventually we found ourselves in South Bend Indiana With a lot of experimenting testing sweat a nd no doubt tears the family began mass proshyduction of the Welch airplane during the middle 30s I have many unforgettable impressive memories as a sma ll girl watching the airplane on th e assembl y line They started from little more than plain sti cks and sheets of wood tubing cloth bars of aluminum and sheets of rubber Soon these materials would begin taki ng shape The wood was glued the tubing welded the cloth sewn brushed and sprayed with dope the bars of aluminum melted molded and then made into engi nes the sheets of rubber cut stuck together and baked into tires The entire procedure was pheshynominal Finally from what began as a stick the Welch a irpla ne would roll out of the factory ready for a test hop

Orins contribution to design is worth no ting here The Welch Cushion Wheel was a tubeless tire that Orin had patte nted in th e 30s The tire was made

Below This picture was taken in 1940 Four of the last few Welch airolanes that were manufactured

4

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around an aluminum hub a nd then baked Many nights I would stay up late watching the tires being baked The crucial moment would arrive when the mold cooled and was re moved from the newly baked tire for if there were any blisters or air bubbles the tire would be use less Many days we had more failures than successes

The Welch 02 engine was a 45 horsepower two cylinder engine I don t know how many of these w ere made but I certainly would like to see even a part of the Welch engine I know of two Welch airplanes flying today Another is bei ng rebuilt a nd there is a fourth one lice nsed but I am not certain its flyin g

The company had to s hut down production with the onset of World War II With Orin s experience a nd

knowledge he was needed elsewhere for his country March 13 1943 Orin Welch was officially lost while flying cargo over the Hump It was of course a tragic loss for all of us

For many yea rs I wouldnt go near a n airport or airshyplane Recently I found out that not o nly were his airshyplanes s till flying but that Orin is remembered by those wonderful people that are s till living those wonderful people that gave us this grea t pioneer aviashytion heritage

My childhood love has brought me back into the world of aviation again and I hope in the yea rs to come I can be a part of Keeping the Antiques Flying and Sport Aviation alive

Orin We lch is standing by the prop of the airplane that he used to solo in 1923

IT IS A TRIBUTE TO ORIN

WELCH THAT HIS AIRPLANES

DRAW A CROWD WHERE EVER THEY

ARE SEVERAL HAVE BEEN

ACTIVE AT OUR MEETS

Editors Note

5

Souther California was one of the hubs of prime flying activities in the late 20s and one fledgling at that time was Vera Dawn Walker She learned to fly with Standard Flying School at Los Angeles in an OX-5 Eaglerock in the fall of 1928 and was Dept of Commerce licensed No 5265 January 1 1929 her FAI license No 7169 was issued July 24 1929 She praises the Eaglerock as one of the best training planes of that era her instructor was Lee Flanagin

Between her work as an extra in the movies and real estate sales Vera managed to acquire enough flying time to qualify for and enter the First Womens Air Derby flown Aug 18-26 1929 from Santa Monica to Cleveland She flew amiddot Challenger powered Curtiss Robin christened Miss Los Angeles racing No 113 and was one of the more forshytunate contestants to finish the grueling race Earlier in the year she had coshypiloted the Bach tri-motor 8-passenger Air Yacht on its maiden flight from San Francisco to San Diego then later on down into Mexico

A charter member of the Ninety-Nines when Vera Dawn flew her Transport Pilots test Dec 15 1929 she was the eleventh woman in the country to be so licensed She subsequently worked in the sales field demonstrating and representing different aviation comshy

panies and agencies in Los Angeles Denver and Kansas City

Known as the pint-sized test pilot because of her small stature - an inch short of five feet tall and tipping the scales at 94 pounds Vera flight tested the Panther McClatchie powerplant It was renowned for having far less moving parts in comparison with the convenshytional engines of that day and with it Vera set off for a tour of the (then) fortyshyeight state capitals She says she became the unofficia I forced -la nding-cham pion of the world but did get in lots of extra flying time Carl Lienesch one of the early-day air race directors who now lives at Carson City Nevada recently wrote Vera Dawn always struck me as a sweet little trusting girl who could get herself into the dangest tangles (with an airplane I mean) but could always extricate herself before the bomb went off Vera Dawn wrote of Lienesch Lenny was the managing flight director of the 29 Derby and in full command of flying instructions and he knew of all the troubles some of those gals got themshyselves into He watched and worried over them like an old mother hen Wiley Post was pilot of the manager s plane a Lockshyheed Vega

In the summer of 1930 Miss Walker entered the 1575 mile Dixie Derby from Washington DC with a swing through

Amelia Earhart and Vera Dawn Walker at Denver Spring of 1931 during AEs trans-continental round-trip Pitcairn autogiro demonstration flight

6

Vera Dawn Walker and the Curtiss Robin in which she was an entrant in the First National Womens Air Derby 1929

Dixie to Chicago and the National Air draw at Birimingham and after il carshy the other finished a scant three seconds Races Flying an Inland Sport she enshy buretor overhaul she flew directly to behind May Haizlip both flying identical countered engine trouble the second day Chicago There she entered two of the planes - Warner powered Inland Super out while flying a close second to 25-mile (5 lap) pylon races for 500 cu in Sports Phoebe Omlie It was necessary to with- open ships She won one race and in

Nov 4-18 1929 brought Vera Dawn what she considers the highligh t of her flying career - the First Annual Calishyfornia Goodwill Air Derbv in which twenty-five fliers were ent~red About half of the entrants dropped out howshyever Vera Dawn finished the course and during the tour she learned to fly formashytion with Major Mike Doolin in the lead This Derby was flown up the Coast across the north end of the State and back down the other side of the State She flew a Whirlwind J-5 Swallow which had been flown by Ruth Elder in the 29 Womens Air Derby and was sponsored by James Granger West Coast Swallow Distributor at Clover Field Santa Monica Vera recalls I do remember big crowds meeting the caravan at most of the landshying sites and the tour was under the a uspices of the All-Western Aircraft Show A subsequent flight took her x-c up into Canada

The spring of 1931 she went to Denshyver to fly one of three planes a PampW powered Stinson to Guatemala for a private fl ying service there A big undershytaking for that day all misgivings turned to delight after the flight was underway over varied terrain - desert water uncharted jungle gorges and ravines and a flight over an active volcano One forced landing on a canyon lake beach required a week to retrieve the plane Although she was able to fly enough to validate her license another year it was four years before she regained her health and the flying desire had begun to wane after the Central America episode

In reminiscing of past history Vera reports You know the years play strange tricks on us and quotes Louise Thaden 46 years is a heck of a long time Vera Dawn admits to h aving set no special records during her flying days but flew for the sheer love of flight and the desire to do something different just as so many others did during those formative years Today she ejoys the Arizona sunshine in the Phoenix area and takes an occasional holiday South of the Border

7

ADDENDUM

Durin g a visit wi th Carl Lienesch a nd his w ife Rosemary at Ca rson City April 17 1976 he informed me he fl ew the Union O il Com shypa ny J-5 Travel Air over the 29 Derby race course and Wilev Pos t flew some of the other race offi cia ls Carl headed up the Union O il Avia tion Dept a nd as passengers d uring the race h e carried hi s sis ter Ruth a nd Pa tty Willis Los Angeles fli e r w ho doubl ed as hi s secre tarv

Ano ther interesting note - Neva Paris one of the racers in the San Bernard ino picture was o ne of fo u r persons w ho s ig ned the ca ll shyto -th e -co lo rs le tter p rio r to the time th e Ninety-Nines organized The others were Fay G illis (Wells) Fra nces H arrell (Marsa li s) a nd Margery Brown

29u POWDER PUFF DERBY JULY 9-121976

Left Eight of the 1929 Women s Air Derby contestants with ground escorts at San Bernardino the fi rst stop in the historic air race (Front L to R) Vera Dawn Walker Louise Thaden Maude (Chubby) Miller Ruth Elder and Edith Foltz (Rear L to R) Thea Rasche Margaret Perry and Neva Paris

Below A 1930 National Air Race photo taken shortly after Vera Dawn Walker had won a 25-mile closed course race (L to R) Hoot Gibson and Sally Eilers Hollywood personalities of the era Clema M Granger James E Granger and Vera Dawn Walker

8

W () ~N IN AVIATI()N

Women

Who Sell

Curtiss-W rigIt

new responsibilities a husband a pilots license and a job as a Dallas Texas base

Curtiss-Wright saleswoman at their Alameda Calif

base

Lorraine Defren is the Boston bases salesshy Helen Cox newest woman transport pilot

lady as well as president and orshy is stationed at the home base airport

ganizer of the Womens Wing at Valley Stream L 1 to

and Prop Club of New demonstrate and sell Curtissshy

England Wright products

Frances Harrell transport pilot formerly demonstrated ships for Brownie at

Valley Stream L 1 Now she is selling the flying qualities of

Curtiss-Wright ships all over the country by the sure way in

which she manipulates them with the Curtiss-Wright

Exhibition Company

shy

VintageI~~ (~~ - Men and Th

r+ ~~~-~ ~-v-- -~~ J~ ~ - -

Taken From The Curt

T he up-to-date Curtiss-Wright version of last years maxim Sell the woman sell the plane is Let the

woman sell the plane And so she has and is right briskly at several of the Flying Service bases

At least a dozen women are employed in various sales capacities by Curtiss-Wright They sell not only ships but flying courses and accessories to men as well as to women and by their presence in the industry they undoubtedly have considerable influence in selling the idea of flying to landlubbing members of both sexes

It is quite important in making a sale if she who sells the plane can demonstrate its talking points in person to him or her who buys Most of the women who sell Curtiss-Wright planes have pilots licenses Those who havent are well on their way to getting them Two of the women have transport licenses two have limited commercial licenses and the others are private pilots

Women have sold stocks and bonds real estae and life insurance and automobiles as well as subshyscriptions to magazines and ribbons and hosiery over the counter Now they are selling airplanes eurolying lessons and accessories They are particularly successful in the sale of flying courses Eight of the dozen CurtissshyWright saleswomen learned to fly at Curtiss-Wright Flying Service bases And who other than a graduate of a school is better equipped to tell a prospect about

EDITORS NOTE A tribute to the many w(

W()I~ I~ 4VI4TI()~

Album ~$~~r Vintage Machines ~ r- -- - ~--

~ ~ ~-~~ ~ ~ 7 ~ -- - ~ - ~~ ~~

Wright Review 1930

the merits of his flying alma mater Another point at which women are invaluable is to talk flying togs to prospective women students

It is interesting to note what the former professions of some of these twelve women were before they became flying salesladies One of them was credit manager of a furniture store another taught mathematics and geoshygraphy and still another taught in a high school A fourth is a recent high school graduate One left the University of California to take up flying and still another failed to turn up on registration day at Michigan State College for the same reason Secretarial work was done by some and one of them was an advertising woman Another of the Curtiss-Wright saleswomen turned her back cold on a training school for kindershygarten teachers and one of them taught physical trainshying in a fashionable girls finishing school

It is a far cry from anyone of these professions to sky stuff yet they are all doing it and obtaining excellent results If you have ever been carrying on a nice gossipy chat with one of them and seen the glint in her eyes as she broke off suddenly with So long here comes my Moth prospect you know how bussinesslike and how resolute they can be in the matter of making a sale

Madeleine B Kelly sells for CurtissshyWright Flying Service at the

Alameda base in California

J ane W Willis was a physical traInIng teacher at Denver Colo Then she became the star pupil at the CurtissshyWright base there and now she is

Women

Who Sell

Curtiss-Wright

Betty Russell is just eighteen enough to be a limited commercial pilot She is

011 the Alameda Calif sales staff

Mildred Harrington is using her experishyence as an advertising woman to sell Curtiss-Wright equipment and

courses particularly to the women of Bridgeport Conn

Dorothy Pressler operations clerk at the Oklahoma City base is a licensed

pilot and does her share of Curtiss-Wright sales-talking

n who help make EAA such a success

Air Y~cht

TktU~SwaU~ May 1974 issue of Vintage Airplane has the story of the Swallows

discovery in the uptown section of Chicago See March 1975 issue of Vintage Airplane for the story where they

decided to re-enact the Cuddeback flight that initiated air mail 50 years ago

The January 1976 issue of Vintage Airplane carries the story of the original flight by Cuddeback

This issue carries the GRAND FINALE a successful completion of the re-enactment by Buck Hilbert

By Edward D Williams (EAA 51010) 713 Eastman Drive

Mt Prospect Illinois 60056

11

T he Swallow that Toffinette Hilbert and Schroeder unearthed in a garage in uptown Ch icago has

climaxed its short two year career The restored Swallow biplane on April 6 1976 reshy

e nacted one of the significant flights of aviation hisshytory but not without a lot of luck in completing the res toration of the plane in time and not without conshysiderable flying skill and courage by the pilot in the fli ght itself The flight was made from Pasco Washshying ton to Boise Idaho by E E Buck Hilbert of middot Union Illin ois a United Airlines DC-8 captai n It was made exactly 50 years after a flight from Pasco to Boise to Elko Nevada in a Swallow by Leon D Cuddeback chief pilot for Varney Air Lines Cuddeshybacks fli g ht marked the beginning of p e rm anent scheduled airline service in the United States

Having purchased the Swallow two years before Uniteds 50th birthday there seemed to be a lot of time to compl e te ly restore the Swallow but as it turned out the deadline was jus t barely met The Hilshybert-Toffenetti-Schroeder biplane is a Swallow Comshymercial just about identical to the Swallow Mailplane flown by Cuddeback Edward E McConnell a Fedshyera l Aviation Administration certified ins pector and an a ircraft res to rer specializing mostly in Piper Tri Pacers was assigned the res to ration job With McshyConnell doing mos t of the res toration work by himshyself while Hilbert scoured the country for par ts the work went very slowly Hilbert went to Oakland Calishyfornia to visit Cuddeback and discuss details o f the future re-enactment and Cuddeback strongly recomshymended that Hilbert install at leas t a Wright J-4 or not even attempt the re-enactment The original K-6 enshygi ne was completely out of the question Cuddeback sa id even if one could be found

Hilbert in California located one of the few reshymaining J-4s in existence and traded his OXX-6 for it He then had the J-4 sent to Memphis Tennessee for a complete overhaul and sent to South Bend to get what might be the only existing J-4 engine carburetor in the world He also went to Iowa to get the propelshyler and to the s tates of Vermont Washington Kansas and New York to get miscellaneous but vital parts

The instruments posed less of a problem because the few instruments available to pilots in 1926 didn t fill up much of an instrument panel A much needed re placement was a reliable compass for the one in the Swallow which Hilbert sa id probably told the pilot only if he were in the Northern Hemisphere

It looked for a while like Hilbert would not be f1yshy

ing the Swallow a t all on April 6 1976 because restorashytion work hit several snags as time sped by Hilbert explained that ea rl y biplanes like the Swallow were not mass produced as modern planes in which every part for one plane is identical to the sa me part on anothe r plan e They were a ll pre tty much cus tom made he said So a part that could be used on one Swa ll ow did not necessarilv fit ano ther Swallow

Fee ling the pressure Of the dea dline Hilbert beshyga n spending almost a ll his free time a t Seneca workshying with McConnell He also pressed into service a longtime friend Michael X Drabik of Chicago an EAA member and a retired United Airlines mechanic The a lmost impossible ta sk of loca ting vital parts long since out of any aircraft firm s inventory put the work more behind sched ule

Hilbert ap pea led for he lp to United which asshysigned two more of Hilberts antique-expert friends fulltime to the work at Seneca They were Richard Moen of Dundee illinois a United pilot also flying out of OHare and Michael Branand of River Forest Illinois a furl oughed United pilot who was working as a mechanic a t United s San Francisco Maintenance Center while waiting reca ll to flying status McConshynell Drabik Moen and Branand all hold current FAA airframe and powerplant mechanics licenses

Hilbert had originally planned to complete the restoration at Seneca in time to test fly the Swallow and then fly it to OHare for shipment by United DCshy8F Cargoliner to Boise But the silver and blue plane was rolled out of McConnell s hangar on March 22 too late for any test flying On that day the Swallow was disassembled and trucked up to Chicago about 80 miles to the northeas t On March 23 the 90 mile-anshyhour biplane was loaded into the Cargoliner and flown to Boise at a speed of 8 the speed of sound

The United Cargoliner normally flies daily from Chicago nonstop to Seattle Washington but it was flown March 23 with very little other cargo with a special s top at Boise to accommodate the Swallow

The 32-foot long wings and the tail assembly were loaded easily in the Cargoliners 106 foot long cargo compartment But the 24-foot-long fus elage on its own landing gea r barely clea red the top of the 85 by 140 main cargo door opening Inside the top cylinder of the J-4 engine came within two inches of touching the ceiling of the cargo compartment even after the Swallows tires were partially deflated

Although the DC-8F could have carried 80000 pounds of cargo the Swallow - with an empty weight

of on ly 1570 pounds - and some miscellaneous boxes and cra tes were the only cargo

Previous to the completion of the Swa llow at Seneca Hilbert made a preliminary trip to Bosie to determine what facilities might be available for the Swallow since there was s till some work to be done before it could be flight tested It also needed hanga r space

At Boise Hilbert met with Dean Wilson head of th e Bradley Air Tra nsporta tion Museum owned by Joseph L Terteling Idaho indus tria li s t In a move s tagge ring for its ge nerosi ty Wilson told Hilbert tha t Terteling offered the use of a flat bed truck to transport th e Swallow from the Boise airport on arshyrival in the Cargoliner and the n the use of hangar space in his museum northwest of Boise for reassembly and other work needed for the plane for as long as needed Without these faciliti es the Swallow project would not ha ve been completed in time for the April 6 flight

As it wa s the United crew of Hilbert Moen Brashynand and Drabik worked long hours every day to get the old plane ready Finally six days after its arrival by Ca rgoliner the Swallow was tes t flown by Hilbert on March 29 The J-4 operated perfectly and after a 15 minute flight Hilbert followed with another for 30 minutes

The next da y on one of the tes t flights from Tershytelings private s trip Hilbert was forced to land the Swallow at an abandoned dirt strip nearby because of fuel s tarvation After some readjustments the Swalshylow was flown again the nex t day and what appeared to be a final blow developed

The J-4 was eating itself up and developed conshyside rable roughness in flight forcing Hilbert to set it down as quickly as possible on Tertelings strip Close inspection showed that there were metal parshyticl es inside the e ngine indicating that complete failure would probably occur shortly if the Swallow were flown again with the J-4

But luck was with the Swallow project and again Tertelings people came to the rescue Dean Wilson pointed out that the museums L-13A had a 220 horseshypower Continental engine built in 1942 that weighed about the same as the J-4 and could easily be intershychanged with it Wilson put his crew of 10 museum employees working on the project and the United crew which had been joined by McConnell a few days earlier worked through the night The J-4 had failed and some authenticity was sacrificed but at least Hilshybert now had a more powerful and more reliable enshygine for the flight

12

STURDY SKELETON - Waiting to be covered is the fuselage of the Uptown Swallow E E Buck Hilbert kneels on the front seat while Edward E McConnell who is restoring the old plane hands him the instrument panel

The J-4 engine was something of a historical item in its own right It was one of three that powered the Fokker tri-motor monoplane flown by Adm Richard E Byrd and Floyd Bennett May 9 1926 when th ey became the fir s t men to reach the North Pole by air Hilshybert said his research on the se rial numshyber of the J-4 e ngine showed it to be delivered to Byrd for installa tion on the Fokker airplane the Josephine Ford for the his toric Polar flight

Although there is no record of what finally happe ned to th e Jose phin e Ford the engine turned up with a prishyva te a ntiqu e a ircraft owner in Ca li shyfornia from whom it was ob tained by Hilbert

Hilbert h ad located o nl y three J-4s tha t were o perable and two o f the m were in th e Smithsonian Ins tituti o n He said the J-4 was orig ina lly manushyfactured fo r th e US Navy and that on ly 199 were built It also was the foreshyrunne r o f the eng ine tha t Charles A Lindbergh used to fl y so lo across the Atla ntic

Hilbert had sa id a t tha t time that he considered himse lf ex tremely fortunate as he was not aware of a ny o ther fl yashyble J-4 e ngine in existence Acknowledgshying the his torical value o f the J-4 the Smithsonian loaned the e ngine restorer

FIFTY YEARS APART - Two pilots stand beside their planes ilshylustrating the Similarity between a historic flight made in 1926 and a re-enactment flight made April 6 with the Swallow biplane

This photo at Seneca shows United pilot E E Buck Hilbert with a restored Swallow that made the Pasco-Boise re-enactshyment Flight April 6

13

a parts manual and a manufacturers brochure on the J-4 from its files

Appreciating all that Terteling and Wilson had done for the Swallow project and realizing the hisshytorical significance of his J-4 Hilbert donated it to the museum after it was taken off the Swallow Howshyever a fter its use in the re-enactment flight the Conshytinental 220 was due to be returned to the museum or be put back on the L-13A

The important thing was that the Swallow was able to be test flown immediately with the new enshygine and the re-enactment was only two days away On Sunday April 4 Hilbert ferried the Swallow to Pasco for positioning and he reported that all went well

Although Cuddeback on April 6 1926 had flown from Pasco to Boise and on to Elko the schedule called for Hilbert to fly only the Pasco to Boise leg on April 6 and the Boise to Elko leg on April 7 because of civic celebrations planned on those days by the communishyties involved

Matching as closely as poss ible the details of Cudshydebacks flight Hilbert carried 9285 pieces of mail in six sacks in the front compartment which also can be used as a second cockpit However the weather situation was reversed On Cuddebacks flight he had good weather between Pasco and Boise but ran into thunderstorms between Boise and Elko

For Hilbert the weather on April 6 between Pasco and Boise was terrible but between Boise and Elko

Hundreds of persons greeted E E Buck Hilbert on his wet arrival The most inshyterested of the spectators was Leon D Cuddeback (being escorted under an umshybrella) One can only speculate that he is recalling his flight of 50 years before

The warmth of Cuddebacks greeting to Hilshybert at Boise showed one pilots appreciation of another

the next day was good Hilbert got up at 415 AM on April 6 and went

right to the airport without any breakfast Although hundreds of persons showed up later to watch his take-off at 623 AM Hilbert found himself alone at the airport at first The weather was menacing

I called flight service to get a weather briefing and the FSS man told me I wish I could tell you that the weather will be better than it is Hilbert recalled He said the weather was so bad over the Blue Mounshytains in Oregon that he didn t think 1would get through the pass

By 545 AM special ceremonies with United and Pasco officials got underway and Hilbert fired up the Swallow at 610 AM Rich Moen who propped the plane sa id later he gave it five primes just like the book says and one more for luck and she popped right off

At 623 AM the same time of Cuddebacks takeshyoff Hilbert was off the ground He swung around and made a low pass in front of the crowd waved and headed the 244 miles to Boise

A fleet of photo planes and antique aircraft inshycluding Dick McWhorter and Ed Skeeter Carlson both in Stearman C-3Bs took off to escort him but most of them dropped off soon after as the weather worsened rapidly Within minutes he reached the Blue Mountains which were smothered with low hanging thick clouds

Three planes all with extensive instrumentashytion were still with me Hilbert recalled There was Dan Toeppen in his Cessna 182 Clay Lacy in his Fairchild Turbo-Porter and Jack Loeffler in his Cessna 180 All three are United pilots

Seeing them still with me 1 said to myself What the heck am I trying to navigate for Hilbert said

14

Although the early history of Hilberts Swallow is not known the original factory plate showing its company serial number was still attached to the old biplane before the restoration work began

So I called Toeppen on my portable I thought to myself that I better bring radio and told him to lead and I wo uld thi s thing in soo n o r I wo uld be in follow The n I jus t sat there a nd e nshy trouble so I we nt in and landed joyed myself Hundreds of persons were o n ha nd

Simple as Hilbert makes that sound to gree t Hilbert just as they did with hi s co urage in fl ying a bipla ne 1000 C udd ebac k a nd they ru sh ed towa rd fee t above th e te rra in with wall s of the Swallow as Hilbert taxied in I was mountains and thick w hite clouds all rea lly worried about tha t he sa id around him got him through Hilbert quickly stopped the engine

Once w e go t pa s t th e m o untain s with it ra ining cats a n d dogs a nd and into Treasure Valley it started to the first one to gree t him was Cuddeshyrain and the rain ran down from the top back H e ca me up to me w ith tea rs in o f th e win g rig ht into the cockpit hi s eyes and said By dang it you made Hilbert said Then for the first time i (1

I got cold Hilbert played down hi s own e moshyHilbert sa id the remaind er of the two tions but sa id that The tension on the

h o ur a nd 31 minute fli g ht w as no ground mu st h ave been g rea t beca use sweat as he followed a four-lane highshy they couldn t see my plane until I was way to Boise I found tha t I wa s go ing very close in Bv that time official s to arrive ea rly so I circl ed a whil e to h ad rece ive d womiddotd that m os t o f th e kill time a dis ta nce from the airport but chase a nd escort planes had to la nd beshythe w eather began d eteriorating with ca u se o f th e ba d we ath e r a nd we re a fog bank moving in toward the airport sca tt ered a t va ri o u s airpo rt s be twee n

The Swallow being loaded into the DC-8F at OHare Internashytional Airport on March 23 1976

Pasco and Boise Hilbert la nded about 14 minutes ea rly

as his a rriva l was scheduled for 1010 A M Boi se time a n h our la te r than Pasco time But he had made it and in the process had fa llen in love with the Swallow

Tha t plane is a bea uty he sa id It is o ne o f the nicest old biplanes I have eve r fl own It is smooth a nd respo nsive but has one habit - it won t s tall When yo u ge t d ow n into g round e ffec t it jus t won t sit do wn

Hil be rt a nd C udd e bac k we re ce n shyte rs of a ttractio n at more ce re mo nies a t Bo ise a nd United A irlin es a ft e r Hilbe rt s a rriva l chri s te n ed a Boe in g 727 in Cuddebacks name

Earl y the nex t mornin g Hilbert was o ff aga in thi s time on the 200 mile fli ght to Elko Th e wea the r was be tte r bu t the hig h mountains o n thilt rou te were worth no ting well I had to ge t up to

10500 feet to get over a 9300 foot range Hilbert said Even though he made an unscheduled bathroom s top at Peta n Ra nch a irstrip he arrived ea rly a t Elko

That particular leg however proved to me tha t the men like Cudd eback w ho pio nee red those routes we re g ia nts Hilbert said It was the tou ghest I have ever fl own It w as miles and miles a nd miles of no thing and I never had s uch a feeling of insecurity in my life

Hilbert aga in was greeted by crowds a ba nd and civic officials an d his tory fo r a bri ef two days was re li ved But Hilbert s Swa llow fl y ing days a re s till far from over After a tour of cities that will bring him back to the Midwest a nd then on to Eas tern cities ending in June the Swa llow will be o n exhibit a t the Day ton Air Fair 76 July 24 and 25 a nd then o n to O shkosh fo r the EAA FlyshyIn July 31 - Aug us t 8th

15

WHISTLING IN THE RIGGING by

Tom Poberezny

How do you rate yourself as a pilot Ask yourself the following questions

- How do you rate your pilot ability - What is your knowledge of your airplanes flyshy

ing characteristics - What is your knowledge of aircraft regulations - Do you exercise common sense during pre-flight

and while in the air - Do you respect weather - Are you the pilot-in-command or do you depend

heavily on air traffic control There are numerous questions I could add to this

list but the main purpose is to get you to take a good look at yourself in your role as a licensed pilot

The answers to these questions are going to depend a great deal on the number of hours per year you fly whether you own your own airplane and whether or not you are a professional pilot But I am sure that after a review of your flying activities you probably will rate yourself too low Pilots in many cases are not giving themselves enough credit

A strong case in point is your Annual Convention in Oshkosh Wisconsin Throughout the day you will see a mixture of aircraft in the traffic pattern varying from small business jets and light twins to Bearcats Mustangs Taylorcrafts J-3 Cubs and a host of single engine airplanes The traffic is handled safely and proshyfessionally Common sense by controllers and pilots alike allows Wittman Field to be the worlds busiest airport for one week each year - Without mishap I

am sure there is yet to be a visitor to Oshkosh who has not been completely amazed with the magnitude of traffic and the efficiency with which it flows

Yes credit should go to the FAA Controllers (Wittshyman Tower and Gypsy Controllers) who work long hours They rank with the best in the business exshyemplified by the professional efficient and courteous manner in which they handle the air traffic Instrucshytions are concise and to the point

But what about that pilot up there in that busy traffic pattern He or she must react quickly to constantly changing conditions and insure proper spacing with other aircraft of widely varying flight characteristics and speed ranges The pilot must monitor other traffic and be prepared to extend or shorten his pattern at a moments notice And most important the pilot must be constantly exercising good judgment as to any unsafe situations that may arise

Pilots give yourself enough credit Many of you are better than you think you are For the few who may think they are better than they really are be careful In all cases exercise good common sense Remember you are the captain of the ship Good safe flying technique rests solely on your shoulders Don t ever forget that

Speaking of pilots what is being done today to encourage people to learn to fly or remain in aviation Aircraft rental costs are becoming prohibitive for the non-aircraft owner to learn or remain proficient What enticement is there for aircraft ownership considering all the regulations taxes landing fees and radio reshyquirements which have driven aircraft costs and prices sky high This is not to mention the inconveniences many aircraft owners face trying to get to their aircraft because of overzealous and costly airport security What incentive is there for the Flight Instructor A amp P Mechanic of Fixed Base Operator Hours are long and pay is short I am sure you have not heard of too many A amp Ps or CFIs retiring at age 60 with a full benefit program

Its getting harder and harder to build new airports

because of e nvironmental rules Development of existing airports must compete with highways educashytion and so forth hence in many areas little is done to the local airport Much of it depends on the personal energies of the FBOAirport Manager

I am proud of the work that is being accomplished by EAA members and chapters deSignees the Antiquel Classic Division International Aerobatic Club and Warbirds You are providing a reason to fly utilizashytion of the airplane Through yo ur efforts the public is becoming more aware of aviation Local chapter meetings fly-ins and your enthusiasm has rekindled a strong interest in aviation As I have said before there is hardly an aviation event today where you dont see an EAA cap in the crowd

Much has been accomplished but weve only scratched the surface Your Headquarters staff is conshytinually re-evaluating programs and looking for ways to promote a healthy aviation picture Lets continue what is being done right and take action on what is wrong or not being done at all

To the Federal Aviation Administration I ask What are you doing to foster and promote aviation in the United States I am asking this in a sincere nonshysarcastic manner Take a good look at your policies and regulations and then look at the problems and condition of the aviation industry today

Enough said Its hard to believe that the Annual EAA Convention

in Oshkosh is only 60 days away Though much has been done there still is a great deal of preparation facing all of us for this years event We need volunteers to help prepare the site If you can donate an hour a day or a weekend contact Convention site Foreman Vern Lichtenberg at 414233-1460

For those of you who will be flying non-radio airshycraft to the Convention please keep in mind that no non-radio arrivals will be permitted after 400 p m The reason for this is the air show and the heavy traffic that results after its completion Please plan your flight accordingly

16

Calendar of Events June 16-20 - 1976 Staggerwingrrravel

Air International Convention s pon sored by Staggerwing Museum Foundation and Staggerwing Club Tullahoma Tenn Contact John Parish do Staggerwing Museum Foundation PO Box 550 Tullahoma Tenn 37388 Phone 615-455-0691 (business) or 615-455-2190 (home)

June 18-20 - Pauls Valley Oklahoma shyGreater Oklahoma City Antique Airplane Assn Fly-In Contact Alan Brakefield Rt 3 Box 301A Okla City OK 73127

June 23-27 - Hammondsport New York shyFlight of the June Bug a replica of the 1908 aircraft built and flown by Glenn H Curtiss in conjunction with Bicentennial Celebration Contact Bill Fox Pleasant Valley Wine Co Hammondsport New York 14840 Phone 607-569-2121

June 26-27 - Wisconsin Chapter AAA Grass Roots Fly-In Clearwater Resort Clearwater WI

June 26-27 - Wellsville Aviation Club Inc Great Wellsville Air Show Poker Rally Air Race Spot Landing Contests Flour Bombing Best in Class Aircraft prizes and trophies Wellsville Municipal Airport Wellsville NY (Raindate July 10)

July 3-4 - Gainesville Georgia - 9th Annual Cracker Fly-In Sponsored by North Georgia Chapter of AAA Antiques Classics Homebuilts and Warbirds welcome Contact Bill Davis 2202 Willivee Place Decatur GA 30033

July 10-11 - Annual EAA Chapter 62 Fly-In Hollister CA Contact D Borg 6948 Burning Tree San Jose CA 95119

July 10-11 - 17th Annual AAA Fly- In DuPage County Airport West Chicago Illinois Phone 312-763-7114

July 31 - August 8 - Oshkosh Wisconsin shy24th Annual EAA International Fly-In Convention Start making yo ur plan s NOW

August 29-September 6 - Blakesburg Iowa shy6th Annual Invitational AAA-APM Fly-In

August 30 - September 3 - Fond d u Lac Wisconsin - 11 th Annual EAAIIAC International Aerobatic Championships Sponshysored by International Aerobatic Club

September 17-19 - Georgetown South Carolina - Second Annual Spirit of 76 Fly-In at Georgetown County Airport South Carolina Sponsored by Chapter 543 Antiquel Classics Warbirds and Homebuilt s For inforshymation contact Herb Bailey PO Box 619 Georgetown SC 29440 (803) 546-2525 days (803) 546-3357 nights and weekends

I REMEMBER WHEN It was a warm spring day just like today The tempershy

a ture climbing up to seventy The first warm clear great day when nature comes alive all around you I remember crossing the open fields toward the corner s tore near the railroad tracks Seeing signs of new life beginning in all varieties of wild flowers Dandelions pussy willows and early flight of the bumblebees What a great part of the year this is in the north after the cold days we have all come through during the past winter

Suddenly an awful roar fills the air Glancing overshyhead my eyes fix toward the sound and out of the sky comes an airpla ne twisting and turning all the time straight down The engine sounds like it quit but he continues to turn around seven eight times I notice as he comes closer and closer to the ground during each revolushytion the plane has two wings and it is a brick red color Then just as it seems it would crash the pilot gets control of it and flies along the tracks twisting the airplane in a roll as he flies further away

At first I thought he must be crazy to make an airplane do that but as he appeared again over and over during the summer months he always began his routine over the neighborhood with the roar of the engine and the descending spin Through the year we all began to learn his repertoire of spins loops slow rolls and the like as this young bird exercised his new wings in flight

The year as best I can remember was 1937 and the aircraft must have been an American Eagle which was leased at the local airport called York Tip short for York Township Airport which was operated by the Milshyler brothers just south of Lombard Illinois The pilot was Jack Brissey and the neighborhood was an area called Belmont Station which is just west of Downers Grove Illinois

Jack became a captain forT WA and regrettably died of a heart attack while on approach to Los Angeles Airshyport at the height of his ascending career

I talked to Jack many times after I learned he lived near my home and still attribute my flying fever to his efforts I still have a partial set of an early aeronautic magazine course which he said was All the important parts of learning how to fly To me the air above has never been the same since Jack first made that spin into my life many spring days ago Alfred F Campbell

913 Riedy Road Lisle Illinois 60532 AntiqueClassic Division 109 (Restoring 1946 Ercoupe)

PS If you don t use the story it wont make me feel any different about spring

YALLERS MY COLOR Springtime and dandelions are as synonymous as

apple pie and coffee bacon and eggs Some people hate dandelions How could anyone hate a (Cub yellow) flower like that As soon as the green fields are dotted with dandelions r dream of the days when the sky was full of yellow Cubs Come spring I walk my grass strip daily testing for firm enough ground to ge t the Cub out and literally wallow around in that blue sky full of Spring air Every yellow dotted pas ture just beckons for a touch and go (careful now dont crush the dandelions) full throttle and back you go into that ocean of blue floating on spring green landscape Yep there aint nothin like it nowhere no how

A Cub is just the most flying fun wrapped in a pretty yaller package Some call it an old mans airplane Careful there sonny boy - if it gets to feeling playful it might throw you Guess they forgot to tell you young fellows you fly it dont drive it A gentle touch and it will do anything Stand on its tail for instance do somersaults fly sideways

With a Spring zepher (one of those solid breezes thats like something shot out of a hose) you can fly backwards Just dont get the idea you are going anywhere for that it wont (very fast that is) Yet for those old enough to have learned patience it is contentment A slow sightseeing trip is sheer ecstacy A panorama of interesting sights awaits you A farmer working in the field his wife hangshying out clothes a constant stream of cars passing (forward that is) to watch a bread truck passes making a delivery at the next town and passes again You just smile and wave from your 500 foot perch Looking back the farmers wife is already taking down the wash (dry that is) Better start looking for a field - the planeS tank is as short as mine No airstrip in sigh t Tha t farmer down there has a tractor and that must be gas in those cans on the wagon Nice of him to leave a long strip unplowed (Downwind you say sonny) Whatszat Tractor gas you say sonny Thats dynamite compared to the 70 octane this thing was weaned on Now you see we can just turn around and take off - upwind that is Dont ever get any ideas of trying this on your tricycle - they just aint pasture airplanes Now if you want to go from point A to point B in a hurry just sweat it o ut on your tricycle If you would rather go from point A to point G there is a slice of golden age waiting for you on any little grass patch that has a pretty yellow Cub sitting among those pretty yellow dandelions

When I get too o ld to fly Ill just turn my Cub out to pasture to graze among the dandelions

Percy Bricker (EAA 15612) Saxton Iowa 54110

17

Mr AI Kelch Enclosed check for AntiqueClassic

membership I enjoy your magazine I don t think many of the tricycle pilots

really realize the debt of gratitude they owe the old pioneer pilots that flew new air routes and the risks they went through to perfect the equipment and aircraft they now take for granted

Id like to see a monthly article like the 50th anniversary of Commerical Transshyportation as per Jan 76 issue

There were many distance or endurance flights in the 20s amp 30s I believe some articles of those flights would be of interest to some who were too young to remember or flight records they never heard of

You have a good magazine and I enjoy it Oran Barber 66833 PO Box 244 Safety Harbor FL 33572

March 3 1976 Gentlemen

I received the Jan 1976 issue of The Vintage Airplane and note that it was sent to my bUSiness address Please send all future issues to my home address

Incidentally I was a bit dismayed with the new oblong format of the Jan 1976 issue You are probably not aware of this but many of we AntiqueClassic members have our issues of The Vintage Airplane hardbound for easier reference and long term

preservation and 10 amp behold you have dealt us a low blow Seriously I do hope that you return to the old standard magazine type format I do hope that you take this good natured but serious critique to heart and either return to the old format or retain the present format for quite some time to come (Hopefully return to the old format)

Regards Carmen D Perrotti Jr No 22 38 Mt Hood Terrace Melrose Mass 02176

Editor s Note I have mine bound too We will probably keep this format for some time Info on binding will be forthcoming

January 5 1976 Dear Buck

I never did find any original wheel parts for my J-3 so I am going to get a pair of plastic ones and try to pound out some from aluminum which I hope will turn out well I did some of this sort of thing when I was at the Boeing School in Oakland back in the 1930s

You said in your last note that you wished you were retired Well I will have been away from the airline 4 years next month The first couple of years I just didn t seem to like it and wished I was back at work Gradually I got use to it and now I do like it and enjoy it I have two planes the J-3 with a 90 hp Continental and a good Cessna 170-B with a 145 hp Continental in it This makes it every nice as the engines are alike in so many parts I keep spare cylinders pistons valves etc and I can use them in either plane I have my A and P license and do some of the work myself

I enjoy getting SPORT AVIATION and The Vintage Airplane magazines also the ones from the AAA In some ways I think the AAA is more on the right track than the EAA especially in not trying to have a field day for everyone I suppose there are many pro s and con s

I am also very strong in my opinion that the antique ought to be flown straight and level not wrung out It seems to me this should be a constant theme song I feel so badly when I read now and then about the failure of some antique that was being asked to do something that it probably wasn t designed for in the first place and that many yea rs ago

I also think Wag Aero is on the right track in making the plans available for the CUBy Now wouldn t it be something if we had plans to say nothing about kits for the Wacos Travelairs and so forth That to me is something that would really keep the antique movement alive and bring in the younger builders who are what we must have eventua lly in both the EAA and the AAA Seems to me there

must be some way to get these plans and specifications Id sure like to build a new Bellanca or Fairchild

Personally I enjoy each issue of The Vintage Airplane very much I think the stories are good and I think it is well worth the money In fact I think it is so good that it seems to me it could be sold for a higher price I really like what Tony Bingelis writes in SPORT AVIATION Seems to me if we had something like that in The Vintage Airplane it would help If we had the plans on how to home-build a Waco UPF or some other very good plane and ran it as plans in serial form it would be a way to get EAA members to want the antique magazine enough to join the division There are probably better answers than I can think of but there are answers

Well Buck Ive rambled on and not said much but in closing I want to thank you again for trying to help me find those original pants for my J-3

Yours truly Howard C Holman Wayne Maine 04284

Dear Sirs Thank you very much for your letter

dated Feb 28 1976 We would like to tell you that our work on the VilMA-plane is going rapidly forward As far as we know we aren t short of a single piece to that aeroplane and it is being put together now We look forward to have it test-flown before midsummer 76

We can also tell you that we have taken photos every now and then during the work Unfortunately they all are color We understood that you wanted to have black and white photos or do you have any use of color ones

The opportunity to write an article to your magazine is wonderful and we are more than pleased to be able to send you that story of our VilMA We hope that you can wait to the end of summer because after that we will have some experience and something to write about Then we will send you all the facts history and other things concerning this type - and probably some photos taken when the VilMA is in the air

We enclose with this letter a card showing you what ki nd of aeropl ane it is and how it was painted earlier VilMA is as a type copied from the famous Focke-Wulf Stieglitz The motor is the same one SiemensshyHalske Bramo SH 14 A 4 There are according to my knowledge three Stieglitz s flying around in Finland We look forward to com pair these two types sometime

Wishing you all the very best and a happy Spring

Yours Mr K Mustonen and Mr J Ahlstrom

Dear Sirs Id like to order your Vintage Airplane

magazine for 1976 If it is possible Id like to have also the first numbers of 76

You can send the bill and the magazine to Mr John Ahlstrom Bergmansgatan 5 A 8 00140 Helsingfors 14 FINLAND EUROPE

Very many thanks in advance Johan AhlstrOm

In regard to Breath of Life in Feb 1976 issue of Vintage Airplane

Mr Richard Connoley of Ridgefield Connecticut kept NC 11 Y at Danbury Connecticut during 1940-1941 He flew it regularly on business Its big fuel tanks were a ready source from which to borrow gas when the Cub trainers went dry and Texaco was late with deliveries We washed her down with gunk til the aluminum glistened and nursed sore muscles from pushing in and out of the hangar For details write Cliff Sadler Manager Danbury Airport Danbury Conn 06810

Have photo taken at Danbu ry if you want

Charles Steffens Jr 37 Coleman Road Glastonbury CT 06033

WANTED 1941 Stinson 10-A Mu u ferriable Prefer one with 90 hp Franklin but will consider any including the 1939 model HW-75 Wayne Alsworth Sr Port Alsworth Alaska 99653

FOR SALE Waco SR E Basket Case Cabin biplane with 450 hp PampW engine Blue prints available $27 00 Ted Voorhees 6778 Skyline Drive Delray Beach FL 33446

WANTED Antique wood propeller for my den W N Schultz Jr PO Box 386 Madison NC 27025 919548-9648 days 548-2496 nights

18

EDITORIAL STAFF

Publisher Editor Paul H Poberezny AI Kelch

ANTIQUE AND CLASSIC DIVISION OFFICERS

PRESIDENT J R NIELANDER JR

P O BOX 2464 FT LAUDE RDALE FL 33303

SECRETARY RICHARD WAG NER

P O BOX 181 LYONS WI S3148

Te rm ex p ires Augu st 77

Claude l Gray Jr 9635 Sylvia Avenue

Northridge California 91324

James B Horne 3840 Coronalion Road

Eagan Minnesota 55122

George E Stubbs Box 113

Brownsburg Indiana 46112

Willia m J Ehlen Route 8 Box 506

Tampa Florida 336 18

VICE-PRESIDENT MORTON LESTER

P O BOX 3747 MARTINSVILLE VA 24112

TREASURER E E BUCK HILBERT

8102 LEECH RD UNION IL 601 80

Directors Term ex pires Aug ust 76

AI Kelc h 7018 W Bonniwell Road

Mequon Wisconsin 53092

Evander M Britt Box 1525

Lumberton North Carolina 28358

M C Kelly Viets RR 1 Box 151

Stilwell KS 66085

Assistant Ed itor Lois Kelch

Centributing Editors H N Dusty Rhodes

Evander Britt Jim Barton

Claude Gray Ed Escallon Rod Spanier

Dale Gustafson Henry Wheeler Morton Lester

Kelly Viets Bob Elliot

Jack Lanning Bill Thumma

ADVISORS

W Brade Thomas J r 301 Dodson Mill Road

Pilot Mountain North CAro lina 2704 1

Robert A White 1207 Falcon Drive

Orlando Florida 32803

Jack C Winthrop 3536 Whitehall Drive Dallas Texas 75229

THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE is owned exclusively by Antique Classic Aircraft Inc and is published monthly at Hales Co rne rs Wisconsin 53130 Second c lass Postage paid at Hales Corners Post Office Hales Co rshyners Wisconsin 53130 and Rand o m Lake Post Office Random Lake Wisconsin 53075 Membership rates for Antique Classic aircraft Inc at $1000 per 12 month period of which $7 00 is for the publication to THE VINTAGE AIRP middotANE Membership is open to all whoare interested in aviat ion

Postmaste Send Form 3579 to Antique Classic Aircraft Inc Box 229 Hales Corners Wisconsin 53130

OFFICIAL MAGAZINE

ANTIQUE CLASSIC DIVISION

of THE EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION

JUNE 1976 VOLUME 4 NUMBER 6

The Res torers Corner 1 From Sticks To Airplanes 3 Early Bird Vignette 6 Powder Puff Derby _ 8 Vintage Album 10 The Uptown Swallow 11 Whistling In The Rigging _ 16 Calendar Of Events _ 17 I Remember When 17 Yallers My Color 17 The US Mail 18

JUDGING CORRECTION Exception rule B are aircraft manufactured between years 1950-55

but either model or make are no longer in production These are eligible for judging

1 Models no longer in production but manufactors still in business such as 190-195 170 Cessnas early Bellanca etc

2 Out of production manufactors such as SWift Stinson etc

ON THE COVER PICTURE BOX

A tribute to Women in Aviation See Vintage Album

Flying Returns to the North

(see page 17)

Copyright 0 1976 Antiqu e Classic Aircraft Inc All Rights Reserved 2















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Who Sell

Curtiss-W rigIt



base










Exhibition Company

shy


r+ ~~~-~ ~-v-- -~~ J~ ~ - -

Taken From The Curt







W()I~ I~ 4VI4TI()~


~ ~ ~-~~ ~ ~ 7 ~ -- - ~ - ~~ ~~

Wright Review 1930







Women

Who Sell

Curtiss-Wright








Air Y~cht








11






















12








13

















14
















15


Tom Poberezny






















16





























17









































18






7

ADDENDUM






8


Women

Who Sell

Curtiss-W rigIt



base










Exhibition Company

shy


r+ ~~~-~ ~-v-- -~~ J~ ~ - -

Taken From The Curt







W()I~ I~ 4VI4TI()~


~ ~ ~-~~ ~ ~ 7 ~ -- - ~ - ~~ ~~

Wright Review 1930







Women

Who Sell

Curtiss-Wright








Air Y~cht








11






















12








13

















14
















15


Tom Poberezny






















16





























17









































18

ADDENDUM






8


Women

Who Sell

Curtiss-W rigIt



base










Exhibition Company

shy


r+ ~~~-~ ~-v-- -~~ J~ ~ - -

Taken From The Curt







W()I~ I~ 4VI4TI()~


~ ~ ~-~~ ~ ~ 7 ~ -- - ~ - ~~ ~~

Wright Review 1930







Women

Who Sell

Curtiss-Wright








Air Y~cht








11






















12








13

















14
















15


Tom Poberezny






















16





























17









































18


Women

Who Sell

Curtiss-W rigIt



base










Exhibition Company

shy


r+ ~~~-~ ~-v-- -~~ J~ ~ - -

Taken From The Curt







W()I~ I~ 4VI4TI()~


~ ~ ~-~~ ~ ~ 7 ~ -- - ~ - ~~ ~~

Wright Review 1930







Women

Who Sell

Curtiss-Wright








Air Y~cht








11






















12








13

















14
















15


Tom Poberezny






















16





























17









































18

W()I~ I~ 4VI4TI()~


~ ~ ~-~~ ~ ~ 7 ~ -- - ~ - ~~ ~~

Wright Review 1930







Women

Who Sell

Curtiss-Wright








Air Y~cht








11






















12








13

















14
















15


Tom Poberezny






















16





























17









































18








11






















12








13

















14
















15


Tom Poberezny






















16





























17









































18






















12








13

















14
















15


Tom Poberezny






















16





























17









































18








13

















14
















15


Tom Poberezny






















16





























17









































18

















14
















15


Tom Poberezny






















16





























17









































18
















15


Tom Poberezny






















16





























17









































18


Tom Poberezny






















16





























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va-vol-4-no-6-june-1976

Documents

type aircraft

aircraft availability

classic aircraft

display aircraft parking

exhibit aircraft

aircraft type signs

annual eaa convention

parking areas