(Photo by Ted Koston)

THE PRESIDENTS PAGE By E E Buck Hilbert

President Antique-Classic Division

THE 1974 CONVENTION IS HISTORY Numerically it was a sensation a success beyond all conception Our Antiques numbered

173 - our Classics 512 This is more than fifty percent of the total (1345) attending Is there any doubt the Antiques and Oassics have found a home

Each year we learn something We gain experience We make new vows It is sometimes difficult to enact all the ideas to make good the vows but we are going to try There will be a debriefing meeting of all the chairmen and Division heads in the months ahead and this is where you come in

I know what I saw Maybe you saw more than I did Maybe you have a suggestion that will benefit and influence the planning of next years Convention I want that suggestion I need that suggestion Maybe you couldnt help with the nail bending or parking or forums but now is your opportunity to help Put those comments in writing and get them to me Now while they are fresh in your mind Critique us and then offer your suggestions for improvement

Remember though that we had some very earnest hard workers in there this year The gang who helped make our Antique Barn habitable the dog faces who worked so hard to stave off chaos in the parking areas the Barnstormers who gave rides to workers and buddies the Forum speakers who enhanced our knowledge the Judges who bemused and befuddled us and yet pleased some immeasurably our girls at the Barn who worked so hard so long and the EAA staff and volunteer workers who came up early and stayed late paving the way so it could all happen

Red Leader put in one hectic time of it Pauls staff could no way relieve him of those tragic moments he experienced It was too personal Even though we tried How deeply the effect clearly showed

Remember how all of these people and the submerged ones worked hard and long to make the Convention a success and make your suggestions in light of how we can all work together to achieve more more easily for next years Convention

2

~ ~IAbf ARPlA~f

VOLUME 2 - NUMBER 9 SEPTEMBER 1974 TABLE OF CONTENTS

A Vintage View of Oshkosh Jack Cox 4 Antique Grand Champion Winner Bill Hodges 10 Reminiscing With Big Nick Nick Rezich 12 Eat Your Hearts Out Antiquers Gar Williams 17 Old Lady Wind-In-The-Face Lee S Thomas 20 ASFTRSOABP AI Kelch 21 Around The Antique-Classic World 23

ON THE COVER 1974 Grand Champion Fairchild BACK COVER J Robert Pratts Bellanca 14-19 Photo by Ted Koston Photo by Ted Koston

EDITORIAL STAFF Publishe r - Paul H Poberezny Editor - Jack Cox Assistant Ed itor - Gene Chase Assistant Editor - Golda Cox

ANTIQUE AND CLASSIC DIVISION OFFICERS

PRESIDENT shy VICE PRESIDENT E E HILBERT J R NIELANDER JR 8102 LEECH RD P O BOX 2464 UNION ILLINOIS 60180 FT LAUDERDALE FLA 33303

SECRETARY TREASURER RICHARD WAGNER GAR W WILLIAMS JR BOX 181 9 S 135 AERO DR RT 1 LYONS W IS 53148 NAPERVILLE ILL 60540

DIRECTORS

EVANDER BRITT JIM HORNE MORTON LESTER KELLY VIETS P O Box 458 3850 Coronation Rd P O Box 3747 RR 1 Box 151 Lumberton 111-- c 28358 Eagan Minn 55122 Martinsville Va 24112 Stilwell Kansas 66085

CLAUDE l GRAY JR AL KELCH GEORGE STUBBS JACK WINTHROP 9635 Sylvia Ave 7018 W Bonniwell Rd RR 18 Box 127 3536 Wh itehall Dr Northridge Cali f 91324 Mequon Wisc 53092 Indianapolis Ind 46234 Dallas Texas 75229

DIVISION EXECUTIVE SECRETARY DOROTHY CHASE EAA HEADOUARTERS

THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE is owned exclusively by Ant ique Classic Aircraft Inc and is published monthly at Hales Corners Wisconsin 53130 Second Class Permit pending at Hales Corners Post Office Hales Corners Wisconsin 53130 Membership rates lor AntIque Classic Aircraft Inc are $1000 per 12 month penod ot which 5700 is for Ihe subscripllon to THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE All Antique ClaSSIC Aircraft Inc members are required to be members of the parent organ Izat ion the Experimental Ai rcraft ASSOCiation Membership is open to all who are interested in aVIatlon

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

Copyright ~ 1974 Antique Classic Aircraft Inc All Rights Reserved

3

A VINTAGE

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

President Buck Hilbert standing with Dale Crites and his Curtiss in front of the new Antique-Classic Headquarters building Thats the forums tent in the left background

~ ~ ~UUampTHE NUMBERS GAME

685 aircraft were officially registered for judging at Oshkosh 74 under the Vintage classification 512 of these were Classics civil aircraft of any nation built between 1946 and 1954 the remaining 173 were Antiques civil airshycraft built before 1946 These were record numbers for ail EAA fly-in and since this meet is far and away the largest of its kind ever staged anywhere and at anytime we can safely assume that this years crop of Vintage airshycraft was also the largest in history

To play around a little more with the figures there were 41 different Classic types and 53 different Antique types Now this does not include a breakdown of sub types - for instance this accounting lumps all Luscombe Model8s as one type rather than breaking them down into 8As Bs Cs Es Fs all Stinson 108s as one type rather than 108s 108-ls 108-2s 108-3s etc the point in all this being that there was tremendous variety in both the Anshytique and Classic line-ups

O K put on your thinking caps what would you guess was the aircraft type with the greatest number preshysent Did you instinctively think Cub Well if you did you missed the mark for the undisputed leader in the numbers game was the Cessna 170 with 53 of the varishyous sub types (170 170A 170B) parked down in the new Classic area provided this year 4

The second most numerous type was the Cessna 1201 140 senes With 52 examples registered Third was the Luscombe 8 series with 47 bearing in mind that this total includes both pre-war antique and post-war classic models Fourth was the Aeronca 7 series the 01 Champ with 45 And all the way down in fifth place was William Pipers J-3 with 41 mostly solid yellow with a black lightshyning stroke down the sides examples on hand The 41 Cubs also represent a combining of Antique and Classic numbers

If you are old enough to remember the late 40s and most of the 50s the Cub total shouldnt surprise you because you will recall how voraciously the crop dusters were gobbling up all the Cubs they could locate and were breaking them just about at the same rate Its a wonder any are left Also the J-3 is an awfully slow airplane for extended cross country work whereas the Cessna 170 guys and gals think nothing of roaming throughout the hemisphere from the Bering Straights to Tierra Del Fuego

Some other heavily represented types were 37 Taylorshycrafts (all side-by-side models) 35 Ercoupes 34 Swifts 30 Stinson 108s 24 Cessna 1901195s 21 Piper PA-12 Super Cruisers 20 Aeronca Chiefs 18 Bonanzas 17 Navions 15 Stearmans 14 Fairchild 24s and 12 Staggerwings The sprinkling of Bellancas Commonwealths Funks Meyers Mooney Mites Vagabonds Clippers Pacers Seab(ies Aeronca C-2s and 3s Culver Cadets Airmasters Fleets

Howards Monocoupes Porterfields Ryans Spartans Travel Airs Wacos and many more were literally the slice that heig~tened the good taste enjoyed by Vintage aircraft enthusiasts confronted with this vast smorgasshybord of old airplane goodies

THE HAMMER AND TONG CREW

This year the Antique-Classic Division had a number of new facilities and a new parking area In 1973 a tent was utilized as a headquarters but this year the red barn that served as a rustic background for the cover photo of last years Antique Grand Champion - see the November 1973 issue of SPORT AVIATION - was transformed into a pe~manent Antique-Classic Headquarters building Imshymediately after the 1973 fly-in Antique-Classic Division ~resident Buck Hilbert approached Paul Poberezny regardshymg the possible utilization of the bam for this purpose and was given a green light This spring Buck started work on the remodeling delayed somewhat by the need to recover from knee surgery and by wet cold weather Work progressed steadily but it soon became obvious that completion of the work would be a down-to-the-wire proshyposition When early arrivals made their appearance at Oshkosh Buck impressed them into his work crew and shortly the sawdust was really flying The last of the inshyterior paneling was nailed into place just before the official opening day of the Convention - with members already standing in the entrance waiting to be served We dont have the names of all those who worked so diligently to complete the bam on time but each person is to be highly commended

As soon as the last pile of shavings was swept away the gals took over - Edna Viets Dorothy Hilbert Nancy Hall Pauline Winthrop and her daughter Liz (and unshy

doubtedly others this writer does not know about) all really pitched in They signed up new members took reshynewals sold back issues of The Vintage Airplane (a hot item incidentally) sold decals and patches directed ~undreds of hard pressed Convention-goers to the nearest Johns and answered questions until their voices cracked Invaluable seems somehow inadequate to describe the contribution to the success of the fly-in made by these ladies

Immediatley behind the Headquarters building was the foontique-Classic Forums Tent Here Vice President J R Nlelander had a constant stream of aviation experts in to speak on a variety of subjects relating to Antique and Classic aircraft Most of the speakers were the leaders of the type clubs the men who have done so much to foster the interest in preserving the great old aircraft we have grown accustomed to seeing at fly-ins around the country Of special interest this year was the appearance of some of the figures originally responsible for a number of Anshytique and Classic aircraft George Williams chief honcho of the Rearwin Club had Ken Rearwin as his special guest Ken Rearwin was one of two sons of the founder of Rearshywin Aircraft He and his brother Royce are the Ken Royce in the name for the engines that powered most Rearwin models

Another famous personage appearing at the forums area was none other than Fred Weick It would take this entire magazine just to list the contributions to aviation ma~e over ~he course of the past 40 plus years by Fred Welc~ ~e IS perhaps ~est known among Antique and ClassIC airplane enthUSiasts as the designer of the Ershycoupe however his work goes far beyond that - proshypellers stallspin research high lift devices Chief Enshygineer for Pipers Vero Beach facility etc etc Take a look

Th (Photo by Dick Stouffer) e 1974 Reserve Grand ChampIOn antique a Rearwin Sportster restored by Alfred Nagle and Ken

Gatzke of Montelo Wisconsin 5

Grand Champion Classic - a highly polished Swift owned by Ed Gorny of Livermore California

through your Aero Digests or other aviation magazines of the 1930s and see how many articles by and references to Fred Weick you uncover In addition to his appearance at Kelly Viets Ercoupe forum Fred delivered a very signifishycant paper on the seemingly perpetual stalUspin problem at the main EAA forums area This paper will be printed in SPORT AVIATION later in the year

J R Nielander and all those who participated in the Antique-Classic Forum program are to be highly comshymended This educational aspect of the fly-in is all-imshyportant It is the catalyst that triggers the enthusiasm necesshysary for an EAAer to go out scouring the countryside for some old aerial derelict spend months or years researchshying its history and construction spend more years and unspeakable amounts of money restoring it to beautiful condition When he has his project completed and can bring it to a fly-in he hopes for some tangible sign of recognition from his peers of his long and arduous labors - and this is where the awards program come in

The Antique judging committee at Oshkosh 74 was headed by Evander Britt of Lumberton North Carolina and included Pete Covington of Spencer Virginia Dusty Rhodes of Denver Doug Rounds of Zebulon Georgia Kelly Viets of Stilwell Kansas and Fred Weick as an honorshyary judge We understand Fred didnt take his honorary position lightly - he handed in meticulously prepared judging sheets just as was expected of the regular judges No free rides for Fred 6

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

The Classic judging committee was co-chaired by Jim Gorman of Mansfield Ohio and Morton Lester of Marshytinsville Virginia ably assisted by John Engles of Lakeshyland Florida John Parish of Tullahoma Tennessee Dub Yarbrough also of Tullahoma George York of Mansfield Ohio Warren Hall of Burlington North Carolina Harmon Dickerson of St Louis Dale Woffard of Ashland Ohio and Rod Spanier of Riviera Beach Florida

The decisions of these teams of astute authorities on ancient aeronautica are as follows

ANTIQUE AWARDS

GRAND CHAMPION - Dick Buck Tom Leonhardt and Jud Gudeshyhous of Lambertville Michigan for their Fairchild 24R NC-77661

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION - Alfred Nagle and Ken Gatzke Montello Wisconsin for their Rearwin Sportster N-20734

JUDGES CHOICE - R F Slim Johansson SI Charles Missouri for his Waco QDC NC-11470

AWARD OF MERIT - AI Kelch Mequon Wisconsin for his Frankmiddot lin Sport NC-13139

GOLDEN AGE CHAMPION - Bob Frost Greenfield Indiana for his Fleet 2 NC-610M

SILVER AGE CHAMPION - Don Dickinsen Santa Paula California for his Spartan 7W Executive N-17605

WORLD WAR I CHAMPION - Charles Klessig Galesburg North Dakota for his Standard J-1 NC-9477

PRE-WORLD WAR II CHAMPION - Gar Williams Naperville Illishynois for his Cessna C-165 Airmaster NC-25485

WORLD WAR II ERA CHAMPION - Charlotte Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for her Stearman N2S5 N-44JP

MOST UNUSUAL ANTIQUE - Myles Robertson Auckland New Zealand for his DeHavilland Fox Moth ZK-ASP

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - The Classic Judge s Committee Back row left to right Harmon Dickerson Jim Gorman and Morton Lesshyter Co-Chairmen Warren Hall and Rod Spanier Front row left to right John Engles John Parish Dale Wofshyfard George York and Dub Yarbrough

BEST CANADIAN ANTIQUE IN ATTENDANCE - Father John MacshyGillivray Petawawa Ontario for his Miles Hawk CF-NXT

BEST ANTIQUE REPLICA - Dale Crites Waukesha Wisconsin for his 1911 Curtiss Pusher N-1911D

BEST DART - Art Bishop Norton Ohio for his Dart GC NC-31697 BEST FAIRCHILD - Claude Gray Northridge California for h is

Fairchild F24W N-81386 BEST HOWARD - John Turgyan Trenton New Jersey for his

Howard DGA-15P NC-95462 BEST MONOCOUPE - Art Marsden Argos Ind iana for his Monoshy

coupe 90ACL N-18062 BEST REARWIN - Ken Williams Portage Wisconsin for his

Rearwin 7000 NC-25570 BEST STAGGERWING - John Parish Tullahoma Tennessee

for his Beech G-17S N-44G Big Red BEST ANTIQUE STINSON - George Stubbs Indianapol is Indiana

for his Stinson SR10-J NC-21135 BEST TRANSPORT - James Kramer Lake Worth Florida for his

Cessna T-50 NC-69072 BEST WACO - Vince Mariani Findlay Ohio for his Waco VKS-7

NC-31653 BEST RAZORBACK APPLICATION TO AN ANTIQUE - Jim Hall

Rockford Illinois for his Taylorcraft BC-12D N-96275 BEST STEARMAN - Richard Hansen Batavia Illinois for his

Stearman PT-27 N-59448 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA AAA CHAPTER CHOICE AWARD - John

Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for his Travel Air 4000 N-367M TIRED BUTT AWARD - Robert Rust Fayetteville Georgia for

his Aeronca C-2 NC-11276 HEADWIND AWARD - Evander Britt Lumberton N C

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - The Antique Judge s Committee Left to right Kelly Viets Doug Rounds Evander Britt Chairman Pete Covington and Dusty Rhodes

CLASSIC AWARDS

GRAND CHAMPION - Edmund Gorny Livermore California for Swift GC-1B N-2459B

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION - Dave Hamilton Anderson Indishyana for Piper J-3 N-42621

BEST CLASS I CLASSIC - Richard Krumbine Lebanon Pennsylshyvania for his Taylorcraft N-6442N

BEST CLASS II CLASSIC Dutch Brafford Lima Ohio for his Cessna 140 N-89728

BEST CLASS III CLASSIC - Tom and Lela Munden Newhall Calishyfornia for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

BEST ORIGINAL RESTORATION - Stan York Mansfield Ohio for his Taylorcraft L-2M N-47026

BEST CUSTOMIZING RESTORATION - C L Wagner Clark South Dakota for his Aeronca Champ N-1691E

BEST AERONCA CHAMP - Melvin Hill Danville Illinois for N-83633 BEST AERONCA CHIEF - John Pringle Tolono Illinois for N-9715E BEST AERONCA SEDAN - Art Hill Cincinnati Ohio for N-1482H BEST BEECH BONANZA - Leo Storm Lomita California for Nshy

5270C BEST BEECH TWIN -John Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for N-4477 BEST BELLANCA - Scott Twitchell Berkeley California for N-560A BEST CESSNA 1201140 - George Johnson Puyallup Washington

for 140 N-77101 BEST CESSNA 170 - Steven Wilson Arlington Washington for Nshy

3945V BEST CESSNA 190195 - Raybourne Thompson Jr Houston Texas

for 195 N-4477C BEST ERCOUPE - Mitch Cooke Clemmons N C for N-3265H 7

(Photo by Dick Stoufer)

Above - A portion of the Classic display area - Aeroncas and Pipers in fact There were rows and rows and rows like this

(Photo by Lee Fray)

Right - Fred Weick of Vero Beach Florida and the Ershycoupe he designed over three decades ago - both are still going strong

BEST LUSCOMBE 8 SERIES - William Nichols Beloit Wisconsin for N-2126B

BEST MEYERS - E R Curley Broyles Tullahoma Tennessee for N-34360

BEST NAVION - Bruce Hallock Austin Texas for N-5202K BEST PIPER CUB - A Garrison Cantonville Maryland 10r N-20280 BEST PIPER - ALL OTHER - Ray Lemmon Erie Pennsylvania for

PA-12 N-4285M BEST STINSON 108-Ellie Clark Eaton Rapids Michigan for N-9562K BEST SWIFT - Mark Holliday Hastings Minnesota for N-80760 BEST TAYLORCRAFT - Doug and Ruth Anderson Jackson Michishy

gan for N-95957 SPECIAL WORKMANSHIP AWARD - Tom and Lela Munden Newshy

hall California for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

74 IMPROVEMENTS

One of the big improvements for Antique-Classic participation in the 22nd Annual EAA Fly-In Convention was the display parking situation In previous years Antiques and Classics were stretched down the length of the northsouth runway - a long narrow display area that required members to walk nearly a mile to get to the far end This was not an arbitrary placement on the part of EAA officials it was simply the only airport owned land available to display the huge numbers of Antiques and particularly Classics Since last year EAA has purchased the land immediately adjacent to and just west of the north south runway from the control tower to the diagonal road near the south end of the airport This allowed EAA to open up a new parking area south of Ollies Woods for Classics and the entire area north of the woods for both Antiques

and Classics The result was a much more compact parkshying area located much closer to the center of fly-in activishyties The area will be improved each year so as to make your stay at Oshkosh more enjoyable as each fly-in rolls around

Ollies Woods proved to be quite popular this year On Saturday evening President Buck hosted a big AntiqueshyClassic party and a number of smaller groups had cook outs and parties there during the week This grove of trees is right in the center of the Antique-Classic area so is a convenient place to stop for a rest in the shade on those hot afternoons while one is tromping around trying to see all the aircraft

This was really the first year that EAAs Antique-Classic Division was able to run its own show in its own area of the vast Oshkosh fly-in grounds This observer noted that things seem to go quite well A lot more people were seen roaming the Antique and Classic area than in previous years and the Headquarters Red Barn was mobbed all week President Buck Hilbert deserves numerous pats on the back for pulling it all together this year He would like to hear any and all suggestions aimed at improving the Antique-Classic program for next year He and his offishycers and directors worked long and hard at Oshkosh 74 and are already planning better things for the future

Look for color coverage of the Antique-Classic activity at Oshkosh 74 in the November issue of SPORT AVIAshyTION

8

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - Fred Bergs fine reshyproduction of a Fokker D VII

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Charlotte Parishs beautiful Stearman N2S-S

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Above - J P Jordan and K G Hofschneider of Clark New Jersey were back again this year in their beautifully restored Tiger Moth

9

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

ANTIQUE GRAND CHAMPION WINNER

By Bill Hodges

The EAA International Convention and Fly-In Grand Champion Antique for 1974 is a very deserving and outshystanding aircraft - a Fairchild 24R46A Proud owners of N-77661 which carries Serial Number 361 are Dick Buck Jud Gudehous and Tom Leonhardt of Lambertville Michishygan

The owners had been looking for a 4-place airplane and discovered their Fairchild sitting neglected on an airport in Lima Ohio In talking with the owner they discovered that the plane had not been flown in over a year An examshyination showed however that it was ferriable and the purshychase was concluded in July 1970 The Fairchild was flown home and by September it had been completely dismanshytled Everything that could come off did Then the slow process of rebuilding it from the ground up began Everyshything that could be replaced with new parts was and where replacement parts were unavailable they were either reshybuilt to standard specs or built from scratch New parts were available in some degree from Thor Solberg Aviation located in New Jersey However they did have the 200 hp Ranger engine overhauled in Toledo Ohio Stits Poly-Fiber was used for the new cover with urethane enamel for the build up A special mixture of yellow was used for the final color coats

What about the background on the owners of this years Grand Champ

Richard L Dick Buck (EAA 85184) was a radar operashytor in the U S Navy during World War II and was asshySigned to a Destroyer Escort After the war he took flight training under the G 1 Bill and soloed in a Piper J-3 Cub in 1949 Dick owned and flew a Cessna 140A that he had refinished himself prior to going into partnership on the Fairchild Dick has been a bindery and paper salesman for some time now

Jud Gudehous entered the U S Army Air Force in 1942 as an Aviation Cadet and made his way through Stearshymans BT-13s and Cessna Bamboo Bombers before eventually winding up in Consolidated B-24 Liberators as a bomber pilot Jud put in 20 missions over Europe beshyfore World War II ended Jud also owned a Cessna 140 prior to his partnership purchase of the Fairchild Now 54 he is owner of an Optical Laboratory in Toledo Ohio

Tom Leonhardt (EAA 10981) has always been interestshyed in airplanes It wasn t until 1958 at age 33 that the opshyportunity to learn to fly came about however Tom soloed in an Aeronca Champion in Milan Michigan and has been flying ever since Unlike Dick and Jud Tom chose a Luscombe 8A to rebuild and had many pleasant hours in

10

it before becoming involved with the Fairchild Tom is a structural engineer and like Jud owns his own firm

In inquiring about their trip to the Fly-In this year I asked if it were routine or adverturesome The answer was routine other than they did have to puddle jump from one airport to another due to the bad weather around Chishycago at the time

Oh yes the time of restoration took until June of 1974 to complete - 3 years and 9 months

SPECIFICATIONS

Wing Span 36 ft 4 in Length 26 ft 0 in Height 7 ft 7V2 in

Wing Area 1933 sq ft Power Loading 123 Ibhp Wing Loading 122 Ib sq ft Empty Weight 1613 Ibs Useful Load 949 Ibs Gross Weight 2562 Ibs Fuel 60 gals Oil 41 gals Maximum Speed 133 mph Cruising Speed 118 mph Landing Speed 57 mph Service Ceiling 14000 ft Rate of Climb 560 ft min Cruising Range 620 miles

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Above - The 24 and its ancestor the Fairchild 22

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - Instrument panel of the 74 Grand Champion Fairchild 24

11

MY 35 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR Before I get carried away with my love affair I would

like to take this opportunity to thank you all for the treashysures of mail that have reached me since the publication of of the Howard story

The following letter is most precious and I felt it should be shared by everyone

Los Angeles California August 22 1974

Dear Nick Thank you for sending me a copy of the story - article

- about us and our aeroplanes You told it like it was shyand made it very interesting

I will not argue with you about the Howards being one of the greatest Do you know that there are several of them out here still flying As a matter of fact at one time there was a Howard Club - all members owned and

flew the Howard Again thank you very much for everything you wrote

and feel Best personal regards (signed) Mike Howard (Mrs Ben O Howard)

As soon as the Boss allows me a stamp fund Ill try to answer everybody Many letters contain corrections of names photos etc

Let me explain some of these mistakes First Jack Cox should receive a medal of the highest order for his ability and patience in transforming my hieroglyphics into readashyble material (Nick is too modest his material is a pleashysure for me to work with - JBe) His lovely wife Golda has come up with the Rezich Alphabet which helps somewhat but it still takes her two weeks to unscramble the is es ss etc

I love writing to doctors - its my only chance to get

12

REMINISCING WITH BIG NICK Nick Rezich

4213 Centerville Rd Rockford III 61102

even with them Maybe by now you all will understand why some misspelled names sneak in

This past June I made a 5 day whirlwind tour of Calishyfornia visiting some old Howard Aircraft buddies and family friends My first stop was the most significant and the highlight of my trip Sunday morning June 9 dawned sunny and warm in Frisco where I picked up a rental car for my tour to LA An hour and a half out of Frisco I pulled into the Palo Alto Airport where I met Larry Low a gungshyho EAAer and antiquer whom Ihad never met before but knew well from our letter exchanges

Standing in front of his hangar we exchanged family introductions - all but one the one behind the hangar doors I was really getting antsy and it showed as I kept pushing on the locked doors Larry finally got the message and we opened the doors There she stood my love - a majestic lady in all her pomp and glory The last time I held her in my hand was almost 30 years ago to the day With moist eyes I walked up and laid a very gentle hand on the door latch and introduced my wife of 23 years and mother of 3 to my first love affair a Culver Cadet which I bought new 34 years ago NC 20926 Serial Number 106

Larry Low has her dressed up in the latest fashion urethane paint tinted one piece windshield carpeting starter generator nav-com ELT chrome gear landing nav and strobe lights plus one hell of a lot of tender lovshying care After 34 years I could not find a wrinkle in her skin anywhere I thought I had a show stopper when I owned it but you should see it now This fellow Larry has put much effort time and money into this priceless jewel Oh sure I made a pass at him - but he quickly inshyformed me of others that are available but not my love - at any price

This whole affair started back in 1939 when the aviation industry was still reeling from the blow of the depression The surviving companies and some new ones were all pushing new models The route to recovery was paved with many new designs The OX-5 powered machines had all been turned out to the pasture for a graceful and well earned retirement

cockpit check then we headed for my home back in ChishyThe machines of 39 all sported round engines or the cago During the drive Art explained the gear details andnew flat opposed 4s all air cooled Prices ranged from

$99000 for the Cub to $5200000 for the executive Lockshy the flight characteristics By the time we reached home I

heed 12 The most advanced airplane was on the drawing boards in a small plant located in Columbus Ohio

The genius behind the slide rule was AI Mooney who was known to many in the industry as a very bright inshygenious engineer

When Al Mooney announced he was building a 2-place airplane with retractable gear that would cruise at 120 mph top 140 mph have a service ceiling of 17000 feet a cruisshying range of 1050 miles with a 15 gallon aux tank and all this while powered by only 75 h p and selling for under $300000 he lifted many eyebrows - including mine

I anxiously wal~ed to see what this new design of Mooneys would 10 -k like I went to the Columbus Ohio plant on the prete se of buying a Dart hoping to get a glimpse of the new ulver It didnt work After two days all I got was a lot of rumors and no peek-a-boo Before I left I made a deal with a friend of mine to send me a snapshyshop of the prototype as soon as it was rolled out of asshysembly

With the coming of fall and winter came my photo WOW When I saw what that little jewel looked like I made up my mind right then and there - I had to have one I ordered one without even having a ride in one The price was $247500 I received the 6th one built Serial Number 106 NC 20926 A blue and silver paint job was stock

The late Art Carnahan of Monocoach fame was the area dealer and he delivered my new Culver as far as Joliet Illishynois where the snow stopped him I drove in a snow storm to Joliet to pick up Art and view my new jewel There she sat in front of the hangar like a Thompson racer waiting for the starters flag to drop ---------shy

I don t think I knew what the word thrilled meant until that cold evening in Joliet when I opened the cabin door and tried that Culver on for size Art gave me a fast

was ready for the races To knock off ~he chilI of the drive my mother poured

us some of our best hom~made wine which was followed by a fiesta supper After supper and a gallon of wine later

I stuffed Arts pockets with $200000 in fives tens and twenties and put him on a train for the trip back to Bloomshyington lliinois his home town

My first flight in the new Cadet was two weeks later when the weather cleared Up to that time I had been flyshying Travel Airs Pitcairns a Laird Bellancas Stinsons Porterfields Rearwins Cubs Howards etc and from what Art told me none of the above flew like the Cadet My brother helped me roll it out of the hangar pre-flight it and cranked me

As I taxied out I tried to remember everything Art had told me about the Cadets handling It felt good and solid while taxiing and when I got to the runway I was ready I set the tab at zero and poured the coal on The take-off was smooth and straigh t ~

I le ft the pattern and started to climb to altitude for some turns and stalls In the next 20 seconds I learned all about the Culvers sensitive flippers I reached up to trim it for climb so I could concentrate on the gear reshytraction Well When I gave the trim handle the usual husky crank all hell broke loose The nose shot up r pushed forward on the stick and went up against the roof I pulled ~ack and r was pushed a foot down into the cushion A90ther push forward back on the roof r finally got the message and stabilized and started FLYshyINC it

I left the gear down and climbed to 3000 feet where I practiced medium and steep turns slow flight and some stalls The more I flew it the better I liked it Now I trimmed it for hands off and cycled the gear a few times All went well so I headed for Willie Howells airport on

_ (Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nicks Culver Cadet at Howell Airport (on the south side of Chicago) when the racy little two seater was brand spanking new Notice the ground adjustable Freedman-Burnham prop

~ ~IAbf ARPlA~f

VOLUME 2 - NUMBER 9 SEPTEMBER 1974 TABLE OF CONTENTS

A Vintage View of Oshkosh Jack Cox 4 Antique Grand Champion Winner Bill Hodges 10 Reminiscing With Big Nick Nick Rezich 12 Eat Your Hearts Out Antiquers Gar Williams 17 Old Lady Wind-In-The-Face Lee S Thomas 20 ASFTRSOABP AI Kelch 21 Around The Antique-Classic World 23

ON THE COVER 1974 Grand Champion Fairchild BACK COVER J Robert Pratts Bellanca 14-19 Photo by Ted Koston Photo by Ted Koston

EDITORIAL STAFF Publishe r - Paul H Poberezny Editor - Jack Cox Assistant Ed itor - Gene Chase Assistant Editor - Golda Cox

ANTIQUE AND CLASSIC DIVISION OFFICERS

PRESIDENT shy VICE PRESIDENT E E HILBERT J R NIELANDER JR 8102 LEECH RD P O BOX 2464 UNION ILLINOIS 60180 FT LAUDERDALE FLA 33303

SECRETARY TREASURER RICHARD WAGNER GAR W WILLIAMS JR BOX 181 9 S 135 AERO DR RT 1 LYONS W IS 53148 NAPERVILLE ILL 60540

DIRECTORS

EVANDER BRITT JIM HORNE MORTON LESTER KELLY VIETS P O Box 458 3850 Coronation Rd P O Box 3747 RR 1 Box 151 Lumberton 111-- c 28358 Eagan Minn 55122 Martinsville Va 24112 Stilwell Kansas 66085

CLAUDE l GRAY JR AL KELCH GEORGE STUBBS JACK WINTHROP 9635 Sylvia Ave 7018 W Bonniwell Rd RR 18 Box 127 3536 Wh itehall Dr Northridge Cali f 91324 Mequon Wisc 53092 Indianapolis Ind 46234 Dallas Texas 75229

DIVISION EXECUTIVE SECRETARY DOROTHY CHASE EAA HEADOUARTERS

THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE is owned exclusively by Ant ique Classic Aircraft Inc and is published monthly at Hales Corners Wisconsin 53130 Second Class Permit pending at Hales Corners Post Office Hales Corners Wisconsin 53130 Membership rates lor AntIque Classic Aircraft Inc are $1000 per 12 month penod ot which 5700 is for Ihe subscripllon to THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE All Antique ClaSSIC Aircraft Inc members are required to be members of the parent organ Izat ion the Experimental Ai rcraft ASSOCiation Membership is open to all who are interested in aVIatlon

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

Copyright ~ 1974 Antique Classic Aircraft Inc All Rights Reserved

3

A VINTAGE

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

President Buck Hilbert standing with Dale Crites and his Curtiss in front of the new Antique-Classic Headquarters building Thats the forums tent in the left background

~ ~ ~UUampTHE NUMBERS GAME

685 aircraft were officially registered for judging at Oshkosh 74 under the Vintage classification 512 of these were Classics civil aircraft of any nation built between 1946 and 1954 the remaining 173 were Antiques civil airshycraft built before 1946 These were record numbers for ail EAA fly-in and since this meet is far and away the largest of its kind ever staged anywhere and at anytime we can safely assume that this years crop of Vintage airshycraft was also the largest in history

To play around a little more with the figures there were 41 different Classic types and 53 different Antique types Now this does not include a breakdown of sub types - for instance this accounting lumps all Luscombe Model8s as one type rather than breaking them down into 8As Bs Cs Es Fs all Stinson 108s as one type rather than 108s 108-ls 108-2s 108-3s etc the point in all this being that there was tremendous variety in both the Anshytique and Classic line-ups

O K put on your thinking caps what would you guess was the aircraft type with the greatest number preshysent Did you instinctively think Cub Well if you did you missed the mark for the undisputed leader in the numbers game was the Cessna 170 with 53 of the varishyous sub types (170 170A 170B) parked down in the new Classic area provided this year 4

The second most numerous type was the Cessna 1201 140 senes With 52 examples registered Third was the Luscombe 8 series with 47 bearing in mind that this total includes both pre-war antique and post-war classic models Fourth was the Aeronca 7 series the 01 Champ with 45 And all the way down in fifth place was William Pipers J-3 with 41 mostly solid yellow with a black lightshyning stroke down the sides examples on hand The 41 Cubs also represent a combining of Antique and Classic numbers

If you are old enough to remember the late 40s and most of the 50s the Cub total shouldnt surprise you because you will recall how voraciously the crop dusters were gobbling up all the Cubs they could locate and were breaking them just about at the same rate Its a wonder any are left Also the J-3 is an awfully slow airplane for extended cross country work whereas the Cessna 170 guys and gals think nothing of roaming throughout the hemisphere from the Bering Straights to Tierra Del Fuego

Some other heavily represented types were 37 Taylorshycrafts (all side-by-side models) 35 Ercoupes 34 Swifts 30 Stinson 108s 24 Cessna 1901195s 21 Piper PA-12 Super Cruisers 20 Aeronca Chiefs 18 Bonanzas 17 Navions 15 Stearmans 14 Fairchild 24s and 12 Staggerwings The sprinkling of Bellancas Commonwealths Funks Meyers Mooney Mites Vagabonds Clippers Pacers Seab(ies Aeronca C-2s and 3s Culver Cadets Airmasters Fleets

Howards Monocoupes Porterfields Ryans Spartans Travel Airs Wacos and many more were literally the slice that heig~tened the good taste enjoyed by Vintage aircraft enthusiasts confronted with this vast smorgasshybord of old airplane goodies

THE HAMMER AND TONG CREW

This year the Antique-Classic Division had a number of new facilities and a new parking area In 1973 a tent was utilized as a headquarters but this year the red barn that served as a rustic background for the cover photo of last years Antique Grand Champion - see the November 1973 issue of SPORT AVIATION - was transformed into a pe~manent Antique-Classic Headquarters building Imshymediately after the 1973 fly-in Antique-Classic Division ~resident Buck Hilbert approached Paul Poberezny regardshymg the possible utilization of the bam for this purpose and was given a green light This spring Buck started work on the remodeling delayed somewhat by the need to recover from knee surgery and by wet cold weather Work progressed steadily but it soon became obvious that completion of the work would be a down-to-the-wire proshyposition When early arrivals made their appearance at Oshkosh Buck impressed them into his work crew and shortly the sawdust was really flying The last of the inshyterior paneling was nailed into place just before the official opening day of the Convention - with members already standing in the entrance waiting to be served We dont have the names of all those who worked so diligently to complete the bam on time but each person is to be highly commended

As soon as the last pile of shavings was swept away the gals took over - Edna Viets Dorothy Hilbert Nancy Hall Pauline Winthrop and her daughter Liz (and unshy

doubtedly others this writer does not know about) all really pitched in They signed up new members took reshynewals sold back issues of The Vintage Airplane (a hot item incidentally) sold decals and patches directed ~undreds of hard pressed Convention-goers to the nearest Johns and answered questions until their voices cracked Invaluable seems somehow inadequate to describe the contribution to the success of the fly-in made by these ladies

Immediatley behind the Headquarters building was the foontique-Classic Forums Tent Here Vice President J R Nlelander had a constant stream of aviation experts in to speak on a variety of subjects relating to Antique and Classic aircraft Most of the speakers were the leaders of the type clubs the men who have done so much to foster the interest in preserving the great old aircraft we have grown accustomed to seeing at fly-ins around the country Of special interest this year was the appearance of some of the figures originally responsible for a number of Anshytique and Classic aircraft George Williams chief honcho of the Rearwin Club had Ken Rearwin as his special guest Ken Rearwin was one of two sons of the founder of Rearshywin Aircraft He and his brother Royce are the Ken Royce in the name for the engines that powered most Rearwin models

Another famous personage appearing at the forums area was none other than Fred Weick It would take this entire magazine just to list the contributions to aviation ma~e over ~he course of the past 40 plus years by Fred Welc~ ~e IS perhaps ~est known among Antique and ClassIC airplane enthUSiasts as the designer of the Ershycoupe however his work goes far beyond that - proshypellers stallspin research high lift devices Chief Enshygineer for Pipers Vero Beach facility etc etc Take a look

Th (Photo by Dick Stouffer) e 1974 Reserve Grand ChampIOn antique a Rearwin Sportster restored by Alfred Nagle and Ken

Gatzke of Montelo Wisconsin 5

Grand Champion Classic - a highly polished Swift owned by Ed Gorny of Livermore California

through your Aero Digests or other aviation magazines of the 1930s and see how many articles by and references to Fred Weick you uncover In addition to his appearance at Kelly Viets Ercoupe forum Fred delivered a very signifishycant paper on the seemingly perpetual stalUspin problem at the main EAA forums area This paper will be printed in SPORT AVIATION later in the year

J R Nielander and all those who participated in the Antique-Classic Forum program are to be highly comshymended This educational aspect of the fly-in is all-imshyportant It is the catalyst that triggers the enthusiasm necesshysary for an EAAer to go out scouring the countryside for some old aerial derelict spend months or years researchshying its history and construction spend more years and unspeakable amounts of money restoring it to beautiful condition When he has his project completed and can bring it to a fly-in he hopes for some tangible sign of recognition from his peers of his long and arduous labors - and this is where the awards program come in

The Antique judging committee at Oshkosh 74 was headed by Evander Britt of Lumberton North Carolina and included Pete Covington of Spencer Virginia Dusty Rhodes of Denver Doug Rounds of Zebulon Georgia Kelly Viets of Stilwell Kansas and Fred Weick as an honorshyary judge We understand Fred didnt take his honorary position lightly - he handed in meticulously prepared judging sheets just as was expected of the regular judges No free rides for Fred 6

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

The Classic judging committee was co-chaired by Jim Gorman of Mansfield Ohio and Morton Lester of Marshytinsville Virginia ably assisted by John Engles of Lakeshyland Florida John Parish of Tullahoma Tennessee Dub Yarbrough also of Tullahoma George York of Mansfield Ohio Warren Hall of Burlington North Carolina Harmon Dickerson of St Louis Dale Woffard of Ashland Ohio and Rod Spanier of Riviera Beach Florida

The decisions of these teams of astute authorities on ancient aeronautica are as follows

ANTIQUE AWARDS

GRAND CHAMPION - Dick Buck Tom Leonhardt and Jud Gudeshyhous of Lambertville Michigan for their Fairchild 24R NC-77661

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION - Alfred Nagle and Ken Gatzke Montello Wisconsin for their Rearwin Sportster N-20734

JUDGES CHOICE - R F Slim Johansson SI Charles Missouri for his Waco QDC NC-11470

AWARD OF MERIT - AI Kelch Mequon Wisconsin for his Frankmiddot lin Sport NC-13139

GOLDEN AGE CHAMPION - Bob Frost Greenfield Indiana for his Fleet 2 NC-610M

SILVER AGE CHAMPION - Don Dickinsen Santa Paula California for his Spartan 7W Executive N-17605

WORLD WAR I CHAMPION - Charles Klessig Galesburg North Dakota for his Standard J-1 NC-9477

PRE-WORLD WAR II CHAMPION - Gar Williams Naperville Illishynois for his Cessna C-165 Airmaster NC-25485

WORLD WAR II ERA CHAMPION - Charlotte Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for her Stearman N2S5 N-44JP

MOST UNUSUAL ANTIQUE - Myles Robertson Auckland New Zealand for his DeHavilland Fox Moth ZK-ASP

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - The Classic Judge s Committee Back row left to right Harmon Dickerson Jim Gorman and Morton Lesshyter Co-Chairmen Warren Hall and Rod Spanier Front row left to right John Engles John Parish Dale Wofshyfard George York and Dub Yarbrough

BEST CANADIAN ANTIQUE IN ATTENDANCE - Father John MacshyGillivray Petawawa Ontario for his Miles Hawk CF-NXT

BEST ANTIQUE REPLICA - Dale Crites Waukesha Wisconsin for his 1911 Curtiss Pusher N-1911D

BEST DART - Art Bishop Norton Ohio for his Dart GC NC-31697 BEST FAIRCHILD - Claude Gray Northridge California for h is

Fairchild F24W N-81386 BEST HOWARD - John Turgyan Trenton New Jersey for his

Howard DGA-15P NC-95462 BEST MONOCOUPE - Art Marsden Argos Ind iana for his Monoshy

coupe 90ACL N-18062 BEST REARWIN - Ken Williams Portage Wisconsin for his

Rearwin 7000 NC-25570 BEST STAGGERWING - John Parish Tullahoma Tennessee

for his Beech G-17S N-44G Big Red BEST ANTIQUE STINSON - George Stubbs Indianapol is Indiana

for his Stinson SR10-J NC-21135 BEST TRANSPORT - James Kramer Lake Worth Florida for his

Cessna T-50 NC-69072 BEST WACO - Vince Mariani Findlay Ohio for his Waco VKS-7

NC-31653 BEST RAZORBACK APPLICATION TO AN ANTIQUE - Jim Hall

Rockford Illinois for his Taylorcraft BC-12D N-96275 BEST STEARMAN - Richard Hansen Batavia Illinois for his

Stearman PT-27 N-59448 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA AAA CHAPTER CHOICE AWARD - John

Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for his Travel Air 4000 N-367M TIRED BUTT AWARD - Robert Rust Fayetteville Georgia for

his Aeronca C-2 NC-11276 HEADWIND AWARD - Evander Britt Lumberton N C

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - The Antique Judge s Committee Left to right Kelly Viets Doug Rounds Evander Britt Chairman Pete Covington and Dusty Rhodes

CLASSIC AWARDS

GRAND CHAMPION - Edmund Gorny Livermore California for Swift GC-1B N-2459B

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION - Dave Hamilton Anderson Indishyana for Piper J-3 N-42621

BEST CLASS I CLASSIC - Richard Krumbine Lebanon Pennsylshyvania for his Taylorcraft N-6442N

BEST CLASS II CLASSIC Dutch Brafford Lima Ohio for his Cessna 140 N-89728

BEST CLASS III CLASSIC - Tom and Lela Munden Newhall Calishyfornia for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

BEST ORIGINAL RESTORATION - Stan York Mansfield Ohio for his Taylorcraft L-2M N-47026

BEST CUSTOMIZING RESTORATION - C L Wagner Clark South Dakota for his Aeronca Champ N-1691E

BEST AERONCA CHAMP - Melvin Hill Danville Illinois for N-83633 BEST AERONCA CHIEF - John Pringle Tolono Illinois for N-9715E BEST AERONCA SEDAN - Art Hill Cincinnati Ohio for N-1482H BEST BEECH BONANZA - Leo Storm Lomita California for Nshy

5270C BEST BEECH TWIN -John Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for N-4477 BEST BELLANCA - Scott Twitchell Berkeley California for N-560A BEST CESSNA 1201140 - George Johnson Puyallup Washington

for 140 N-77101 BEST CESSNA 170 - Steven Wilson Arlington Washington for Nshy

3945V BEST CESSNA 190195 - Raybourne Thompson Jr Houston Texas

for 195 N-4477C BEST ERCOUPE - Mitch Cooke Clemmons N C for N-3265H 7

(Photo by Dick Stoufer)

Above - A portion of the Classic display area - Aeroncas and Pipers in fact There were rows and rows and rows like this

(Photo by Lee Fray)

Right - Fred Weick of Vero Beach Florida and the Ershycoupe he designed over three decades ago - both are still going strong

BEST LUSCOMBE 8 SERIES - William Nichols Beloit Wisconsin for N-2126B

BEST MEYERS - E R Curley Broyles Tullahoma Tennessee for N-34360

BEST NAVION - Bruce Hallock Austin Texas for N-5202K BEST PIPER CUB - A Garrison Cantonville Maryland 10r N-20280 BEST PIPER - ALL OTHER - Ray Lemmon Erie Pennsylvania for

PA-12 N-4285M BEST STINSON 108-Ellie Clark Eaton Rapids Michigan for N-9562K BEST SWIFT - Mark Holliday Hastings Minnesota for N-80760 BEST TAYLORCRAFT - Doug and Ruth Anderson Jackson Michishy

gan for N-95957 SPECIAL WORKMANSHIP AWARD - Tom and Lela Munden Newshy

hall California for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

74 IMPROVEMENTS

One of the big improvements for Antique-Classic participation in the 22nd Annual EAA Fly-In Convention was the display parking situation In previous years Antiques and Classics were stretched down the length of the northsouth runway - a long narrow display area that required members to walk nearly a mile to get to the far end This was not an arbitrary placement on the part of EAA officials it was simply the only airport owned land available to display the huge numbers of Antiques and particularly Classics Since last year EAA has purchased the land immediately adjacent to and just west of the north south runway from the control tower to the diagonal road near the south end of the airport This allowed EAA to open up a new parking area south of Ollies Woods for Classics and the entire area north of the woods for both Antiques

and Classics The result was a much more compact parkshying area located much closer to the center of fly-in activishyties The area will be improved each year so as to make your stay at Oshkosh more enjoyable as each fly-in rolls around

Ollies Woods proved to be quite popular this year On Saturday evening President Buck hosted a big AntiqueshyClassic party and a number of smaller groups had cook outs and parties there during the week This grove of trees is right in the center of the Antique-Classic area so is a convenient place to stop for a rest in the shade on those hot afternoons while one is tromping around trying to see all the aircraft

This was really the first year that EAAs Antique-Classic Division was able to run its own show in its own area of the vast Oshkosh fly-in grounds This observer noted that things seem to go quite well A lot more people were seen roaming the Antique and Classic area than in previous years and the Headquarters Red Barn was mobbed all week President Buck Hilbert deserves numerous pats on the back for pulling it all together this year He would like to hear any and all suggestions aimed at improving the Antique-Classic program for next year He and his offishycers and directors worked long and hard at Oshkosh 74 and are already planning better things for the future

Look for color coverage of the Antique-Classic activity at Oshkosh 74 in the November issue of SPORT AVIAshyTION

8

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - Fred Bergs fine reshyproduction of a Fokker D VII

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Charlotte Parishs beautiful Stearman N2S-S

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Above - J P Jordan and K G Hofschneider of Clark New Jersey were back again this year in their beautifully restored Tiger Moth

9

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

ANTIQUE GRAND CHAMPION WINNER

By Bill Hodges

The EAA International Convention and Fly-In Grand Champion Antique for 1974 is a very deserving and outshystanding aircraft - a Fairchild 24R46A Proud owners of N-77661 which carries Serial Number 361 are Dick Buck Jud Gudehous and Tom Leonhardt of Lambertville Michishygan

The owners had been looking for a 4-place airplane and discovered their Fairchild sitting neglected on an airport in Lima Ohio In talking with the owner they discovered that the plane had not been flown in over a year An examshyination showed however that it was ferriable and the purshychase was concluded in July 1970 The Fairchild was flown home and by September it had been completely dismanshytled Everything that could come off did Then the slow process of rebuilding it from the ground up began Everyshything that could be replaced with new parts was and where replacement parts were unavailable they were either reshybuilt to standard specs or built from scratch New parts were available in some degree from Thor Solberg Aviation located in New Jersey However they did have the 200 hp Ranger engine overhauled in Toledo Ohio Stits Poly-Fiber was used for the new cover with urethane enamel for the build up A special mixture of yellow was used for the final color coats

What about the background on the owners of this years Grand Champ

Richard L Dick Buck (EAA 85184) was a radar operashytor in the U S Navy during World War II and was asshySigned to a Destroyer Escort After the war he took flight training under the G 1 Bill and soloed in a Piper J-3 Cub in 1949 Dick owned and flew a Cessna 140A that he had refinished himself prior to going into partnership on the Fairchild Dick has been a bindery and paper salesman for some time now

Jud Gudehous entered the U S Army Air Force in 1942 as an Aviation Cadet and made his way through Stearshymans BT-13s and Cessna Bamboo Bombers before eventually winding up in Consolidated B-24 Liberators as a bomber pilot Jud put in 20 missions over Europe beshyfore World War II ended Jud also owned a Cessna 140 prior to his partnership purchase of the Fairchild Now 54 he is owner of an Optical Laboratory in Toledo Ohio

Tom Leonhardt (EAA 10981) has always been interestshyed in airplanes It wasn t until 1958 at age 33 that the opshyportunity to learn to fly came about however Tom soloed in an Aeronca Champion in Milan Michigan and has been flying ever since Unlike Dick and Jud Tom chose a Luscombe 8A to rebuild and had many pleasant hours in

10

it before becoming involved with the Fairchild Tom is a structural engineer and like Jud owns his own firm

In inquiring about their trip to the Fly-In this year I asked if it were routine or adverturesome The answer was routine other than they did have to puddle jump from one airport to another due to the bad weather around Chishycago at the time

Oh yes the time of restoration took until June of 1974 to complete - 3 years and 9 months

SPECIFICATIONS

Wing Span 36 ft 4 in Length 26 ft 0 in Height 7 ft 7V2 in

Wing Area 1933 sq ft Power Loading 123 Ibhp Wing Loading 122 Ib sq ft Empty Weight 1613 Ibs Useful Load 949 Ibs Gross Weight 2562 Ibs Fuel 60 gals Oil 41 gals Maximum Speed 133 mph Cruising Speed 118 mph Landing Speed 57 mph Service Ceiling 14000 ft Rate of Climb 560 ft min Cruising Range 620 miles

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Above - The 24 and its ancestor the Fairchild 22

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - Instrument panel of the 74 Grand Champion Fairchild 24

11

MY 35 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR Before I get carried away with my love affair I would

like to take this opportunity to thank you all for the treashysures of mail that have reached me since the publication of of the Howard story

The following letter is most precious and I felt it should be shared by everyone

Los Angeles California August 22 1974

Dear Nick Thank you for sending me a copy of the story - article

- about us and our aeroplanes You told it like it was shyand made it very interesting

I will not argue with you about the Howards being one of the greatest Do you know that there are several of them out here still flying As a matter of fact at one time there was a Howard Club - all members owned and

flew the Howard Again thank you very much for everything you wrote

and feel Best personal regards (signed) Mike Howard (Mrs Ben O Howard)

As soon as the Boss allows me a stamp fund Ill try to answer everybody Many letters contain corrections of names photos etc

Let me explain some of these mistakes First Jack Cox should receive a medal of the highest order for his ability and patience in transforming my hieroglyphics into readashyble material (Nick is too modest his material is a pleashysure for me to work with - JBe) His lovely wife Golda has come up with the Rezich Alphabet which helps somewhat but it still takes her two weeks to unscramble the is es ss etc

I love writing to doctors - its my only chance to get

12

REMINISCING WITH BIG NICK Nick Rezich

4213 Centerville Rd Rockford III 61102

even with them Maybe by now you all will understand why some misspelled names sneak in

This past June I made a 5 day whirlwind tour of Calishyfornia visiting some old Howard Aircraft buddies and family friends My first stop was the most significant and the highlight of my trip Sunday morning June 9 dawned sunny and warm in Frisco where I picked up a rental car for my tour to LA An hour and a half out of Frisco I pulled into the Palo Alto Airport where I met Larry Low a gungshyho EAAer and antiquer whom Ihad never met before but knew well from our letter exchanges

Standing in front of his hangar we exchanged family introductions - all but one the one behind the hangar doors I was really getting antsy and it showed as I kept pushing on the locked doors Larry finally got the message and we opened the doors There she stood my love - a majestic lady in all her pomp and glory The last time I held her in my hand was almost 30 years ago to the day With moist eyes I walked up and laid a very gentle hand on the door latch and introduced my wife of 23 years and mother of 3 to my first love affair a Culver Cadet which I bought new 34 years ago NC 20926 Serial Number 106

Larry Low has her dressed up in the latest fashion urethane paint tinted one piece windshield carpeting starter generator nav-com ELT chrome gear landing nav and strobe lights plus one hell of a lot of tender lovshying care After 34 years I could not find a wrinkle in her skin anywhere I thought I had a show stopper when I owned it but you should see it now This fellow Larry has put much effort time and money into this priceless jewel Oh sure I made a pass at him - but he quickly inshyformed me of others that are available but not my love - at any price

This whole affair started back in 1939 when the aviation industry was still reeling from the blow of the depression The surviving companies and some new ones were all pushing new models The route to recovery was paved with many new designs The OX-5 powered machines had all been turned out to the pasture for a graceful and well earned retirement

cockpit check then we headed for my home back in ChishyThe machines of 39 all sported round engines or the cago During the drive Art explained the gear details andnew flat opposed 4s all air cooled Prices ranged from

$99000 for the Cub to $5200000 for the executive Lockshy the flight characteristics By the time we reached home I

heed 12 The most advanced airplane was on the drawing boards in a small plant located in Columbus Ohio

The genius behind the slide rule was AI Mooney who was known to many in the industry as a very bright inshygenious engineer

When Al Mooney announced he was building a 2-place airplane with retractable gear that would cruise at 120 mph top 140 mph have a service ceiling of 17000 feet a cruisshying range of 1050 miles with a 15 gallon aux tank and all this while powered by only 75 h p and selling for under $300000 he lifted many eyebrows - including mine

I anxiously wal~ed to see what this new design of Mooneys would 10 -k like I went to the Columbus Ohio plant on the prete se of buying a Dart hoping to get a glimpse of the new ulver It didnt work After two days all I got was a lot of rumors and no peek-a-boo Before I left I made a deal with a friend of mine to send me a snapshyshop of the prototype as soon as it was rolled out of asshysembly

With the coming of fall and winter came my photo WOW When I saw what that little jewel looked like I made up my mind right then and there - I had to have one I ordered one without even having a ride in one The price was $247500 I received the 6th one built Serial Number 106 NC 20926 A blue and silver paint job was stock

The late Art Carnahan of Monocoach fame was the area dealer and he delivered my new Culver as far as Joliet Illishynois where the snow stopped him I drove in a snow storm to Joliet to pick up Art and view my new jewel There she sat in front of the hangar like a Thompson racer waiting for the starters flag to drop ---------shy

I don t think I knew what the word thrilled meant until that cold evening in Joliet when I opened the cabin door and tried that Culver on for size Art gave me a fast

was ready for the races To knock off ~he chilI of the drive my mother poured

us some of our best hom~made wine which was followed by a fiesta supper After supper and a gallon of wine later

I stuffed Arts pockets with $200000 in fives tens and twenties and put him on a train for the trip back to Bloomshyington lliinois his home town

My first flight in the new Cadet was two weeks later when the weather cleared Up to that time I had been flyshying Travel Airs Pitcairns a Laird Bellancas Stinsons Porterfields Rearwins Cubs Howards etc and from what Art told me none of the above flew like the Cadet My brother helped me roll it out of the hangar pre-flight it and cranked me

As I taxied out I tried to remember everything Art had told me about the Cadets handling It felt good and solid while taxiing and when I got to the runway I was ready I set the tab at zero and poured the coal on The take-off was smooth and straigh t ~

I le ft the pattern and started to climb to altitude for some turns and stalls In the next 20 seconds I learned all about the Culvers sensitive flippers I reached up to trim it for climb so I could concentrate on the gear reshytraction Well When I gave the trim handle the usual husky crank all hell broke loose The nose shot up r pushed forward on the stick and went up against the roof I pulled ~ack and r was pushed a foot down into the cushion A90ther push forward back on the roof r finally got the message and stabilized and started FLYshyINC it

I left the gear down and climbed to 3000 feet where I practiced medium and steep turns slow flight and some stalls The more I flew it the better I liked it Now I trimmed it for hands off and cycled the gear a few times All went well so I headed for Willie Howells airport on

_ (Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nicks Culver Cadet at Howell Airport (on the south side of Chicago) when the racy little two seater was brand spanking new Notice the ground adjustable Freedman-Burnham prop

A VINTAGE

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

President Buck Hilbert standing with Dale Crites and his Curtiss in front of the new Antique-Classic Headquarters building Thats the forums tent in the left background

~ ~ ~UUampTHE NUMBERS GAME

685 aircraft were officially registered for judging at Oshkosh 74 under the Vintage classification 512 of these were Classics civil aircraft of any nation built between 1946 and 1954 the remaining 173 were Antiques civil airshycraft built before 1946 These were record numbers for ail EAA fly-in and since this meet is far and away the largest of its kind ever staged anywhere and at anytime we can safely assume that this years crop of Vintage airshycraft was also the largest in history

To play around a little more with the figures there were 41 different Classic types and 53 different Antique types Now this does not include a breakdown of sub types - for instance this accounting lumps all Luscombe Model8s as one type rather than breaking them down into 8As Bs Cs Es Fs all Stinson 108s as one type rather than 108s 108-ls 108-2s 108-3s etc the point in all this being that there was tremendous variety in both the Anshytique and Classic line-ups

O K put on your thinking caps what would you guess was the aircraft type with the greatest number preshysent Did you instinctively think Cub Well if you did you missed the mark for the undisputed leader in the numbers game was the Cessna 170 with 53 of the varishyous sub types (170 170A 170B) parked down in the new Classic area provided this year 4

The second most numerous type was the Cessna 1201 140 senes With 52 examples registered Third was the Luscombe 8 series with 47 bearing in mind that this total includes both pre-war antique and post-war classic models Fourth was the Aeronca 7 series the 01 Champ with 45 And all the way down in fifth place was William Pipers J-3 with 41 mostly solid yellow with a black lightshyning stroke down the sides examples on hand The 41 Cubs also represent a combining of Antique and Classic numbers

If you are old enough to remember the late 40s and most of the 50s the Cub total shouldnt surprise you because you will recall how voraciously the crop dusters were gobbling up all the Cubs they could locate and were breaking them just about at the same rate Its a wonder any are left Also the J-3 is an awfully slow airplane for extended cross country work whereas the Cessna 170 guys and gals think nothing of roaming throughout the hemisphere from the Bering Straights to Tierra Del Fuego

Some other heavily represented types were 37 Taylorshycrafts (all side-by-side models) 35 Ercoupes 34 Swifts 30 Stinson 108s 24 Cessna 1901195s 21 Piper PA-12 Super Cruisers 20 Aeronca Chiefs 18 Bonanzas 17 Navions 15 Stearmans 14 Fairchild 24s and 12 Staggerwings The sprinkling of Bellancas Commonwealths Funks Meyers Mooney Mites Vagabonds Clippers Pacers Seab(ies Aeronca C-2s and 3s Culver Cadets Airmasters Fleets

Howards Monocoupes Porterfields Ryans Spartans Travel Airs Wacos and many more were literally the slice that heig~tened the good taste enjoyed by Vintage aircraft enthusiasts confronted with this vast smorgasshybord of old airplane goodies

THE HAMMER AND TONG CREW

This year the Antique-Classic Division had a number of new facilities and a new parking area In 1973 a tent was utilized as a headquarters but this year the red barn that served as a rustic background for the cover photo of last years Antique Grand Champion - see the November 1973 issue of SPORT AVIATION - was transformed into a pe~manent Antique-Classic Headquarters building Imshymediately after the 1973 fly-in Antique-Classic Division ~resident Buck Hilbert approached Paul Poberezny regardshymg the possible utilization of the bam for this purpose and was given a green light This spring Buck started work on the remodeling delayed somewhat by the need to recover from knee surgery and by wet cold weather Work progressed steadily but it soon became obvious that completion of the work would be a down-to-the-wire proshyposition When early arrivals made their appearance at Oshkosh Buck impressed them into his work crew and shortly the sawdust was really flying The last of the inshyterior paneling was nailed into place just before the official opening day of the Convention - with members already standing in the entrance waiting to be served We dont have the names of all those who worked so diligently to complete the bam on time but each person is to be highly commended

As soon as the last pile of shavings was swept away the gals took over - Edna Viets Dorothy Hilbert Nancy Hall Pauline Winthrop and her daughter Liz (and unshy

doubtedly others this writer does not know about) all really pitched in They signed up new members took reshynewals sold back issues of The Vintage Airplane (a hot item incidentally) sold decals and patches directed ~undreds of hard pressed Convention-goers to the nearest Johns and answered questions until their voices cracked Invaluable seems somehow inadequate to describe the contribution to the success of the fly-in made by these ladies

Immediatley behind the Headquarters building was the foontique-Classic Forums Tent Here Vice President J R Nlelander had a constant stream of aviation experts in to speak on a variety of subjects relating to Antique and Classic aircraft Most of the speakers were the leaders of the type clubs the men who have done so much to foster the interest in preserving the great old aircraft we have grown accustomed to seeing at fly-ins around the country Of special interest this year was the appearance of some of the figures originally responsible for a number of Anshytique and Classic aircraft George Williams chief honcho of the Rearwin Club had Ken Rearwin as his special guest Ken Rearwin was one of two sons of the founder of Rearshywin Aircraft He and his brother Royce are the Ken Royce in the name for the engines that powered most Rearwin models

Another famous personage appearing at the forums area was none other than Fred Weick It would take this entire magazine just to list the contributions to aviation ma~e over ~he course of the past 40 plus years by Fred Welc~ ~e IS perhaps ~est known among Antique and ClassIC airplane enthUSiasts as the designer of the Ershycoupe however his work goes far beyond that - proshypellers stallspin research high lift devices Chief Enshygineer for Pipers Vero Beach facility etc etc Take a look

Th (Photo by Dick Stouffer) e 1974 Reserve Grand ChampIOn antique a Rearwin Sportster restored by Alfred Nagle and Ken

Gatzke of Montelo Wisconsin 5

Grand Champion Classic - a highly polished Swift owned by Ed Gorny of Livermore California

through your Aero Digests or other aviation magazines of the 1930s and see how many articles by and references to Fred Weick you uncover In addition to his appearance at Kelly Viets Ercoupe forum Fred delivered a very signifishycant paper on the seemingly perpetual stalUspin problem at the main EAA forums area This paper will be printed in SPORT AVIATION later in the year

J R Nielander and all those who participated in the Antique-Classic Forum program are to be highly comshymended This educational aspect of the fly-in is all-imshyportant It is the catalyst that triggers the enthusiasm necesshysary for an EAAer to go out scouring the countryside for some old aerial derelict spend months or years researchshying its history and construction spend more years and unspeakable amounts of money restoring it to beautiful condition When he has his project completed and can bring it to a fly-in he hopes for some tangible sign of recognition from his peers of his long and arduous labors - and this is where the awards program come in

The Antique judging committee at Oshkosh 74 was headed by Evander Britt of Lumberton North Carolina and included Pete Covington of Spencer Virginia Dusty Rhodes of Denver Doug Rounds of Zebulon Georgia Kelly Viets of Stilwell Kansas and Fred Weick as an honorshyary judge We understand Fred didnt take his honorary position lightly - he handed in meticulously prepared judging sheets just as was expected of the regular judges No free rides for Fred 6

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

The Classic judging committee was co-chaired by Jim Gorman of Mansfield Ohio and Morton Lester of Marshytinsville Virginia ably assisted by John Engles of Lakeshyland Florida John Parish of Tullahoma Tennessee Dub Yarbrough also of Tullahoma George York of Mansfield Ohio Warren Hall of Burlington North Carolina Harmon Dickerson of St Louis Dale Woffard of Ashland Ohio and Rod Spanier of Riviera Beach Florida

The decisions of these teams of astute authorities on ancient aeronautica are as follows

ANTIQUE AWARDS

GRAND CHAMPION - Dick Buck Tom Leonhardt and Jud Gudeshyhous of Lambertville Michigan for their Fairchild 24R NC-77661

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION - Alfred Nagle and Ken Gatzke Montello Wisconsin for their Rearwin Sportster N-20734

JUDGES CHOICE - R F Slim Johansson SI Charles Missouri for his Waco QDC NC-11470

AWARD OF MERIT - AI Kelch Mequon Wisconsin for his Frankmiddot lin Sport NC-13139

GOLDEN AGE CHAMPION - Bob Frost Greenfield Indiana for his Fleet 2 NC-610M

SILVER AGE CHAMPION - Don Dickinsen Santa Paula California for his Spartan 7W Executive N-17605

WORLD WAR I CHAMPION - Charles Klessig Galesburg North Dakota for his Standard J-1 NC-9477

PRE-WORLD WAR II CHAMPION - Gar Williams Naperville Illishynois for his Cessna C-165 Airmaster NC-25485

WORLD WAR II ERA CHAMPION - Charlotte Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for her Stearman N2S5 N-44JP

MOST UNUSUAL ANTIQUE - Myles Robertson Auckland New Zealand for his DeHavilland Fox Moth ZK-ASP

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - The Classic Judge s Committee Back row left to right Harmon Dickerson Jim Gorman and Morton Lesshyter Co-Chairmen Warren Hall and Rod Spanier Front row left to right John Engles John Parish Dale Wofshyfard George York and Dub Yarbrough

BEST CANADIAN ANTIQUE IN ATTENDANCE - Father John MacshyGillivray Petawawa Ontario for his Miles Hawk CF-NXT

BEST ANTIQUE REPLICA - Dale Crites Waukesha Wisconsin for his 1911 Curtiss Pusher N-1911D

BEST DART - Art Bishop Norton Ohio for his Dart GC NC-31697 BEST FAIRCHILD - Claude Gray Northridge California for h is

Fairchild F24W N-81386 BEST HOWARD - John Turgyan Trenton New Jersey for his

Howard DGA-15P NC-95462 BEST MONOCOUPE - Art Marsden Argos Ind iana for his Monoshy

coupe 90ACL N-18062 BEST REARWIN - Ken Williams Portage Wisconsin for his

Rearwin 7000 NC-25570 BEST STAGGERWING - John Parish Tullahoma Tennessee

for his Beech G-17S N-44G Big Red BEST ANTIQUE STINSON - George Stubbs Indianapol is Indiana

for his Stinson SR10-J NC-21135 BEST TRANSPORT - James Kramer Lake Worth Florida for his

Cessna T-50 NC-69072 BEST WACO - Vince Mariani Findlay Ohio for his Waco VKS-7

NC-31653 BEST RAZORBACK APPLICATION TO AN ANTIQUE - Jim Hall

Rockford Illinois for his Taylorcraft BC-12D N-96275 BEST STEARMAN - Richard Hansen Batavia Illinois for his

Stearman PT-27 N-59448 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA AAA CHAPTER CHOICE AWARD - John

Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for his Travel Air 4000 N-367M TIRED BUTT AWARD - Robert Rust Fayetteville Georgia for

his Aeronca C-2 NC-11276 HEADWIND AWARD - Evander Britt Lumberton N C

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - The Antique Judge s Committee Left to right Kelly Viets Doug Rounds Evander Britt Chairman Pete Covington and Dusty Rhodes

CLASSIC AWARDS

GRAND CHAMPION - Edmund Gorny Livermore California for Swift GC-1B N-2459B

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION - Dave Hamilton Anderson Indishyana for Piper J-3 N-42621

BEST CLASS I CLASSIC - Richard Krumbine Lebanon Pennsylshyvania for his Taylorcraft N-6442N

BEST CLASS II CLASSIC Dutch Brafford Lima Ohio for his Cessna 140 N-89728

BEST CLASS III CLASSIC - Tom and Lela Munden Newhall Calishyfornia for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

BEST ORIGINAL RESTORATION - Stan York Mansfield Ohio for his Taylorcraft L-2M N-47026

BEST CUSTOMIZING RESTORATION - C L Wagner Clark South Dakota for his Aeronca Champ N-1691E

BEST AERONCA CHAMP - Melvin Hill Danville Illinois for N-83633 BEST AERONCA CHIEF - John Pringle Tolono Illinois for N-9715E BEST AERONCA SEDAN - Art Hill Cincinnati Ohio for N-1482H BEST BEECH BONANZA - Leo Storm Lomita California for Nshy

5270C BEST BEECH TWIN -John Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for N-4477 BEST BELLANCA - Scott Twitchell Berkeley California for N-560A BEST CESSNA 1201140 - George Johnson Puyallup Washington

for 140 N-77101 BEST CESSNA 170 - Steven Wilson Arlington Washington for Nshy

3945V BEST CESSNA 190195 - Raybourne Thompson Jr Houston Texas

for 195 N-4477C BEST ERCOUPE - Mitch Cooke Clemmons N C for N-3265H 7

(Photo by Dick Stoufer)

Above - A portion of the Classic display area - Aeroncas and Pipers in fact There were rows and rows and rows like this

(Photo by Lee Fray)

Right - Fred Weick of Vero Beach Florida and the Ershycoupe he designed over three decades ago - both are still going strong

BEST LUSCOMBE 8 SERIES - William Nichols Beloit Wisconsin for N-2126B

BEST MEYERS - E R Curley Broyles Tullahoma Tennessee for N-34360

BEST NAVION - Bruce Hallock Austin Texas for N-5202K BEST PIPER CUB - A Garrison Cantonville Maryland 10r N-20280 BEST PIPER - ALL OTHER - Ray Lemmon Erie Pennsylvania for

PA-12 N-4285M BEST STINSON 108-Ellie Clark Eaton Rapids Michigan for N-9562K BEST SWIFT - Mark Holliday Hastings Minnesota for N-80760 BEST TAYLORCRAFT - Doug and Ruth Anderson Jackson Michishy

gan for N-95957 SPECIAL WORKMANSHIP AWARD - Tom and Lela Munden Newshy

hall California for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

74 IMPROVEMENTS

One of the big improvements for Antique-Classic participation in the 22nd Annual EAA Fly-In Convention was the display parking situation In previous years Antiques and Classics were stretched down the length of the northsouth runway - a long narrow display area that required members to walk nearly a mile to get to the far end This was not an arbitrary placement on the part of EAA officials it was simply the only airport owned land available to display the huge numbers of Antiques and particularly Classics Since last year EAA has purchased the land immediately adjacent to and just west of the north south runway from the control tower to the diagonal road near the south end of the airport This allowed EAA to open up a new parking area south of Ollies Woods for Classics and the entire area north of the woods for both Antiques

and Classics The result was a much more compact parkshying area located much closer to the center of fly-in activishyties The area will be improved each year so as to make your stay at Oshkosh more enjoyable as each fly-in rolls around

Ollies Woods proved to be quite popular this year On Saturday evening President Buck hosted a big AntiqueshyClassic party and a number of smaller groups had cook outs and parties there during the week This grove of trees is right in the center of the Antique-Classic area so is a convenient place to stop for a rest in the shade on those hot afternoons while one is tromping around trying to see all the aircraft

This was really the first year that EAAs Antique-Classic Division was able to run its own show in its own area of the vast Oshkosh fly-in grounds This observer noted that things seem to go quite well A lot more people were seen roaming the Antique and Classic area than in previous years and the Headquarters Red Barn was mobbed all week President Buck Hilbert deserves numerous pats on the back for pulling it all together this year He would like to hear any and all suggestions aimed at improving the Antique-Classic program for next year He and his offishycers and directors worked long and hard at Oshkosh 74 and are already planning better things for the future

Look for color coverage of the Antique-Classic activity at Oshkosh 74 in the November issue of SPORT AVIAshyTION

8

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - Fred Bergs fine reshyproduction of a Fokker D VII

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Charlotte Parishs beautiful Stearman N2S-S

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Above - J P Jordan and K G Hofschneider of Clark New Jersey were back again this year in their beautifully restored Tiger Moth

9

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

ANTIQUE GRAND CHAMPION WINNER

By Bill Hodges

The EAA International Convention and Fly-In Grand Champion Antique for 1974 is a very deserving and outshystanding aircraft - a Fairchild 24R46A Proud owners of N-77661 which carries Serial Number 361 are Dick Buck Jud Gudehous and Tom Leonhardt of Lambertville Michishygan

The owners had been looking for a 4-place airplane and discovered their Fairchild sitting neglected on an airport in Lima Ohio In talking with the owner they discovered that the plane had not been flown in over a year An examshyination showed however that it was ferriable and the purshychase was concluded in July 1970 The Fairchild was flown home and by September it had been completely dismanshytled Everything that could come off did Then the slow process of rebuilding it from the ground up began Everyshything that could be replaced with new parts was and where replacement parts were unavailable they were either reshybuilt to standard specs or built from scratch New parts were available in some degree from Thor Solberg Aviation located in New Jersey However they did have the 200 hp Ranger engine overhauled in Toledo Ohio Stits Poly-Fiber was used for the new cover with urethane enamel for the build up A special mixture of yellow was used for the final color coats

What about the background on the owners of this years Grand Champ

Richard L Dick Buck (EAA 85184) was a radar operashytor in the U S Navy during World War II and was asshySigned to a Destroyer Escort After the war he took flight training under the G 1 Bill and soloed in a Piper J-3 Cub in 1949 Dick owned and flew a Cessna 140A that he had refinished himself prior to going into partnership on the Fairchild Dick has been a bindery and paper salesman for some time now

Jud Gudehous entered the U S Army Air Force in 1942 as an Aviation Cadet and made his way through Stearshymans BT-13s and Cessna Bamboo Bombers before eventually winding up in Consolidated B-24 Liberators as a bomber pilot Jud put in 20 missions over Europe beshyfore World War II ended Jud also owned a Cessna 140 prior to his partnership purchase of the Fairchild Now 54 he is owner of an Optical Laboratory in Toledo Ohio

Tom Leonhardt (EAA 10981) has always been interestshyed in airplanes It wasn t until 1958 at age 33 that the opshyportunity to learn to fly came about however Tom soloed in an Aeronca Champion in Milan Michigan and has been flying ever since Unlike Dick and Jud Tom chose a Luscombe 8A to rebuild and had many pleasant hours in

10

it before becoming involved with the Fairchild Tom is a structural engineer and like Jud owns his own firm

In inquiring about their trip to the Fly-In this year I asked if it were routine or adverturesome The answer was routine other than they did have to puddle jump from one airport to another due to the bad weather around Chishycago at the time

Oh yes the time of restoration took until June of 1974 to complete - 3 years and 9 months

SPECIFICATIONS

Wing Span 36 ft 4 in Length 26 ft 0 in Height 7 ft 7V2 in

Wing Area 1933 sq ft Power Loading 123 Ibhp Wing Loading 122 Ib sq ft Empty Weight 1613 Ibs Useful Load 949 Ibs Gross Weight 2562 Ibs Fuel 60 gals Oil 41 gals Maximum Speed 133 mph Cruising Speed 118 mph Landing Speed 57 mph Service Ceiling 14000 ft Rate of Climb 560 ft min Cruising Range 620 miles

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Above - The 24 and its ancestor the Fairchild 22

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - Instrument panel of the 74 Grand Champion Fairchild 24

11

MY 35 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR Before I get carried away with my love affair I would

like to take this opportunity to thank you all for the treashysures of mail that have reached me since the publication of of the Howard story

The following letter is most precious and I felt it should be shared by everyone

Los Angeles California August 22 1974

Dear Nick Thank you for sending me a copy of the story - article

- about us and our aeroplanes You told it like it was shyand made it very interesting

I will not argue with you about the Howards being one of the greatest Do you know that there are several of them out here still flying As a matter of fact at one time there was a Howard Club - all members owned and

flew the Howard Again thank you very much for everything you wrote

and feel Best personal regards (signed) Mike Howard (Mrs Ben O Howard)

As soon as the Boss allows me a stamp fund Ill try to answer everybody Many letters contain corrections of names photos etc

Let me explain some of these mistakes First Jack Cox should receive a medal of the highest order for his ability and patience in transforming my hieroglyphics into readashyble material (Nick is too modest his material is a pleashysure for me to work with - JBe) His lovely wife Golda has come up with the Rezich Alphabet which helps somewhat but it still takes her two weeks to unscramble the is es ss etc

I love writing to doctors - its my only chance to get

12

REMINISCING WITH BIG NICK Nick Rezich

4213 Centerville Rd Rockford III 61102

even with them Maybe by now you all will understand why some misspelled names sneak in

This past June I made a 5 day whirlwind tour of Calishyfornia visiting some old Howard Aircraft buddies and family friends My first stop was the most significant and the highlight of my trip Sunday morning June 9 dawned sunny and warm in Frisco where I picked up a rental car for my tour to LA An hour and a half out of Frisco I pulled into the Palo Alto Airport where I met Larry Low a gungshyho EAAer and antiquer whom Ihad never met before but knew well from our letter exchanges

Standing in front of his hangar we exchanged family introductions - all but one the one behind the hangar doors I was really getting antsy and it showed as I kept pushing on the locked doors Larry finally got the message and we opened the doors There she stood my love - a majestic lady in all her pomp and glory The last time I held her in my hand was almost 30 years ago to the day With moist eyes I walked up and laid a very gentle hand on the door latch and introduced my wife of 23 years and mother of 3 to my first love affair a Culver Cadet which I bought new 34 years ago NC 20926 Serial Number 106

Larry Low has her dressed up in the latest fashion urethane paint tinted one piece windshield carpeting starter generator nav-com ELT chrome gear landing nav and strobe lights plus one hell of a lot of tender lovshying care After 34 years I could not find a wrinkle in her skin anywhere I thought I had a show stopper when I owned it but you should see it now This fellow Larry has put much effort time and money into this priceless jewel Oh sure I made a pass at him - but he quickly inshyformed me of others that are available but not my love - at any price

This whole affair started back in 1939 when the aviation industry was still reeling from the blow of the depression The surviving companies and some new ones were all pushing new models The route to recovery was paved with many new designs The OX-5 powered machines had all been turned out to the pasture for a graceful and well earned retirement

cockpit check then we headed for my home back in ChishyThe machines of 39 all sported round engines or the cago During the drive Art explained the gear details andnew flat opposed 4s all air cooled Prices ranged from

$99000 for the Cub to $5200000 for the executive Lockshy the flight characteristics By the time we reached home I

heed 12 The most advanced airplane was on the drawing boards in a small plant located in Columbus Ohio

The genius behind the slide rule was AI Mooney who was known to many in the industry as a very bright inshygenious engineer

When Al Mooney announced he was building a 2-place airplane with retractable gear that would cruise at 120 mph top 140 mph have a service ceiling of 17000 feet a cruisshying range of 1050 miles with a 15 gallon aux tank and all this while powered by only 75 h p and selling for under $300000 he lifted many eyebrows - including mine

I anxiously wal~ed to see what this new design of Mooneys would 10 -k like I went to the Columbus Ohio plant on the prete se of buying a Dart hoping to get a glimpse of the new ulver It didnt work After two days all I got was a lot of rumors and no peek-a-boo Before I left I made a deal with a friend of mine to send me a snapshyshop of the prototype as soon as it was rolled out of asshysembly

With the coming of fall and winter came my photo WOW When I saw what that little jewel looked like I made up my mind right then and there - I had to have one I ordered one without even having a ride in one The price was $247500 I received the 6th one built Serial Number 106 NC 20926 A blue and silver paint job was stock

The late Art Carnahan of Monocoach fame was the area dealer and he delivered my new Culver as far as Joliet Illishynois where the snow stopped him I drove in a snow storm to Joliet to pick up Art and view my new jewel There she sat in front of the hangar like a Thompson racer waiting for the starters flag to drop ---------shy

I don t think I knew what the word thrilled meant until that cold evening in Joliet when I opened the cabin door and tried that Culver on for size Art gave me a fast

was ready for the races To knock off ~he chilI of the drive my mother poured

us some of our best hom~made wine which was followed by a fiesta supper After supper and a gallon of wine later

I stuffed Arts pockets with $200000 in fives tens and twenties and put him on a train for the trip back to Bloomshyington lliinois his home town

My first flight in the new Cadet was two weeks later when the weather cleared Up to that time I had been flyshying Travel Airs Pitcairns a Laird Bellancas Stinsons Porterfields Rearwins Cubs Howards etc and from what Art told me none of the above flew like the Cadet My brother helped me roll it out of the hangar pre-flight it and cranked me

As I taxied out I tried to remember everything Art had told me about the Cadets handling It felt good and solid while taxiing and when I got to the runway I was ready I set the tab at zero and poured the coal on The take-off was smooth and straigh t ~

I le ft the pattern and started to climb to altitude for some turns and stalls In the next 20 seconds I learned all about the Culvers sensitive flippers I reached up to trim it for climb so I could concentrate on the gear reshytraction Well When I gave the trim handle the usual husky crank all hell broke loose The nose shot up r pushed forward on the stick and went up against the roof I pulled ~ack and r was pushed a foot down into the cushion A90ther push forward back on the roof r finally got the message and stabilized and started FLYshyINC it

I left the gear down and climbed to 3000 feet where I practiced medium and steep turns slow flight and some stalls The more I flew it the better I liked it Now I trimmed it for hands off and cycled the gear a few times All went well so I headed for Willie Howells airport on

_ (Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nicks Culver Cadet at Howell Airport (on the south side of Chicago) when the racy little two seater was brand spanking new Notice the ground adjustable Freedman-Burnham prop

Howards Monocoupes Porterfields Ryans Spartans Travel Airs Wacos and many more were literally the slice that heig~tened the good taste enjoyed by Vintage aircraft enthusiasts confronted with this vast smorgasshybord of old airplane goodies

THE HAMMER AND TONG CREW

This year the Antique-Classic Division had a number of new facilities and a new parking area In 1973 a tent was utilized as a headquarters but this year the red barn that served as a rustic background for the cover photo of last years Antique Grand Champion - see the November 1973 issue of SPORT AVIATION - was transformed into a pe~manent Antique-Classic Headquarters building Imshymediately after the 1973 fly-in Antique-Classic Division ~resident Buck Hilbert approached Paul Poberezny regardshymg the possible utilization of the bam for this purpose and was given a green light This spring Buck started work on the remodeling delayed somewhat by the need to recover from knee surgery and by wet cold weather Work progressed steadily but it soon became obvious that completion of the work would be a down-to-the-wire proshyposition When early arrivals made their appearance at Oshkosh Buck impressed them into his work crew and shortly the sawdust was really flying The last of the inshyterior paneling was nailed into place just before the official opening day of the Convention - with members already standing in the entrance waiting to be served We dont have the names of all those who worked so diligently to complete the bam on time but each person is to be highly commended

As soon as the last pile of shavings was swept away the gals took over - Edna Viets Dorothy Hilbert Nancy Hall Pauline Winthrop and her daughter Liz (and unshy

doubtedly others this writer does not know about) all really pitched in They signed up new members took reshynewals sold back issues of The Vintage Airplane (a hot item incidentally) sold decals and patches directed ~undreds of hard pressed Convention-goers to the nearest Johns and answered questions until their voices cracked Invaluable seems somehow inadequate to describe the contribution to the success of the fly-in made by these ladies

Immediatley behind the Headquarters building was the foontique-Classic Forums Tent Here Vice President J R Nlelander had a constant stream of aviation experts in to speak on a variety of subjects relating to Antique and Classic aircraft Most of the speakers were the leaders of the type clubs the men who have done so much to foster the interest in preserving the great old aircraft we have grown accustomed to seeing at fly-ins around the country Of special interest this year was the appearance of some of the figures originally responsible for a number of Anshytique and Classic aircraft George Williams chief honcho of the Rearwin Club had Ken Rearwin as his special guest Ken Rearwin was one of two sons of the founder of Rearshywin Aircraft He and his brother Royce are the Ken Royce in the name for the engines that powered most Rearwin models

Another famous personage appearing at the forums area was none other than Fred Weick It would take this entire magazine just to list the contributions to aviation ma~e over ~he course of the past 40 plus years by Fred Welc~ ~e IS perhaps ~est known among Antique and ClassIC airplane enthUSiasts as the designer of the Ershycoupe however his work goes far beyond that - proshypellers stallspin research high lift devices Chief Enshygineer for Pipers Vero Beach facility etc etc Take a look

Th (Photo by Dick Stouffer) e 1974 Reserve Grand ChampIOn antique a Rearwin Sportster restored by Alfred Nagle and Ken

Gatzke of Montelo Wisconsin 5

Grand Champion Classic - a highly polished Swift owned by Ed Gorny of Livermore California

through your Aero Digests or other aviation magazines of the 1930s and see how many articles by and references to Fred Weick you uncover In addition to his appearance at Kelly Viets Ercoupe forum Fred delivered a very signifishycant paper on the seemingly perpetual stalUspin problem at the main EAA forums area This paper will be printed in SPORT AVIATION later in the year

J R Nielander and all those who participated in the Antique-Classic Forum program are to be highly comshymended This educational aspect of the fly-in is all-imshyportant It is the catalyst that triggers the enthusiasm necesshysary for an EAAer to go out scouring the countryside for some old aerial derelict spend months or years researchshying its history and construction spend more years and unspeakable amounts of money restoring it to beautiful condition When he has his project completed and can bring it to a fly-in he hopes for some tangible sign of recognition from his peers of his long and arduous labors - and this is where the awards program come in

The Antique judging committee at Oshkosh 74 was headed by Evander Britt of Lumberton North Carolina and included Pete Covington of Spencer Virginia Dusty Rhodes of Denver Doug Rounds of Zebulon Georgia Kelly Viets of Stilwell Kansas and Fred Weick as an honorshyary judge We understand Fred didnt take his honorary position lightly - he handed in meticulously prepared judging sheets just as was expected of the regular judges No free rides for Fred 6

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

The Classic judging committee was co-chaired by Jim Gorman of Mansfield Ohio and Morton Lester of Marshytinsville Virginia ably assisted by John Engles of Lakeshyland Florida John Parish of Tullahoma Tennessee Dub Yarbrough also of Tullahoma George York of Mansfield Ohio Warren Hall of Burlington North Carolina Harmon Dickerson of St Louis Dale Woffard of Ashland Ohio and Rod Spanier of Riviera Beach Florida

The decisions of these teams of astute authorities on ancient aeronautica are as follows

ANTIQUE AWARDS

GRAND CHAMPION - Dick Buck Tom Leonhardt and Jud Gudeshyhous of Lambertville Michigan for their Fairchild 24R NC-77661

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION - Alfred Nagle and Ken Gatzke Montello Wisconsin for their Rearwin Sportster N-20734

JUDGES CHOICE - R F Slim Johansson SI Charles Missouri for his Waco QDC NC-11470

AWARD OF MERIT - AI Kelch Mequon Wisconsin for his Frankmiddot lin Sport NC-13139

GOLDEN AGE CHAMPION - Bob Frost Greenfield Indiana for his Fleet 2 NC-610M

SILVER AGE CHAMPION - Don Dickinsen Santa Paula California for his Spartan 7W Executive N-17605

WORLD WAR I CHAMPION - Charles Klessig Galesburg North Dakota for his Standard J-1 NC-9477

PRE-WORLD WAR II CHAMPION - Gar Williams Naperville Illishynois for his Cessna C-165 Airmaster NC-25485

WORLD WAR II ERA CHAMPION - Charlotte Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for her Stearman N2S5 N-44JP

MOST UNUSUAL ANTIQUE - Myles Robertson Auckland New Zealand for his DeHavilland Fox Moth ZK-ASP

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - The Classic Judge s Committee Back row left to right Harmon Dickerson Jim Gorman and Morton Lesshyter Co-Chairmen Warren Hall and Rod Spanier Front row left to right John Engles John Parish Dale Wofshyfard George York and Dub Yarbrough

BEST CANADIAN ANTIQUE IN ATTENDANCE - Father John MacshyGillivray Petawawa Ontario for his Miles Hawk CF-NXT

BEST ANTIQUE REPLICA - Dale Crites Waukesha Wisconsin for his 1911 Curtiss Pusher N-1911D

BEST DART - Art Bishop Norton Ohio for his Dart GC NC-31697 BEST FAIRCHILD - Claude Gray Northridge California for h is

Fairchild F24W N-81386 BEST HOWARD - John Turgyan Trenton New Jersey for his

Howard DGA-15P NC-95462 BEST MONOCOUPE - Art Marsden Argos Ind iana for his Monoshy

coupe 90ACL N-18062 BEST REARWIN - Ken Williams Portage Wisconsin for his

Rearwin 7000 NC-25570 BEST STAGGERWING - John Parish Tullahoma Tennessee

for his Beech G-17S N-44G Big Red BEST ANTIQUE STINSON - George Stubbs Indianapol is Indiana

for his Stinson SR10-J NC-21135 BEST TRANSPORT - James Kramer Lake Worth Florida for his

Cessna T-50 NC-69072 BEST WACO - Vince Mariani Findlay Ohio for his Waco VKS-7

NC-31653 BEST RAZORBACK APPLICATION TO AN ANTIQUE - Jim Hall

Rockford Illinois for his Taylorcraft BC-12D N-96275 BEST STEARMAN - Richard Hansen Batavia Illinois for his

Stearman PT-27 N-59448 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA AAA CHAPTER CHOICE AWARD - John

Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for his Travel Air 4000 N-367M TIRED BUTT AWARD - Robert Rust Fayetteville Georgia for

his Aeronca C-2 NC-11276 HEADWIND AWARD - Evander Britt Lumberton N C

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - The Antique Judge s Committee Left to right Kelly Viets Doug Rounds Evander Britt Chairman Pete Covington and Dusty Rhodes

CLASSIC AWARDS

GRAND CHAMPION - Edmund Gorny Livermore California for Swift GC-1B N-2459B

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION - Dave Hamilton Anderson Indishyana for Piper J-3 N-42621

BEST CLASS I CLASSIC - Richard Krumbine Lebanon Pennsylshyvania for his Taylorcraft N-6442N

BEST CLASS II CLASSIC Dutch Brafford Lima Ohio for his Cessna 140 N-89728

BEST CLASS III CLASSIC - Tom and Lela Munden Newhall Calishyfornia for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

BEST ORIGINAL RESTORATION - Stan York Mansfield Ohio for his Taylorcraft L-2M N-47026

BEST CUSTOMIZING RESTORATION - C L Wagner Clark South Dakota for his Aeronca Champ N-1691E

BEST AERONCA CHAMP - Melvin Hill Danville Illinois for N-83633 BEST AERONCA CHIEF - John Pringle Tolono Illinois for N-9715E BEST AERONCA SEDAN - Art Hill Cincinnati Ohio for N-1482H BEST BEECH BONANZA - Leo Storm Lomita California for Nshy

5270C BEST BEECH TWIN -John Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for N-4477 BEST BELLANCA - Scott Twitchell Berkeley California for N-560A BEST CESSNA 1201140 - George Johnson Puyallup Washington

for 140 N-77101 BEST CESSNA 170 - Steven Wilson Arlington Washington for Nshy

3945V BEST CESSNA 190195 - Raybourne Thompson Jr Houston Texas

for 195 N-4477C BEST ERCOUPE - Mitch Cooke Clemmons N C for N-3265H 7

(Photo by Dick Stoufer)

Above - A portion of the Classic display area - Aeroncas and Pipers in fact There were rows and rows and rows like this

(Photo by Lee Fray)

Right - Fred Weick of Vero Beach Florida and the Ershycoupe he designed over three decades ago - both are still going strong

BEST LUSCOMBE 8 SERIES - William Nichols Beloit Wisconsin for N-2126B

BEST MEYERS - E R Curley Broyles Tullahoma Tennessee for N-34360

BEST NAVION - Bruce Hallock Austin Texas for N-5202K BEST PIPER CUB - A Garrison Cantonville Maryland 10r N-20280 BEST PIPER - ALL OTHER - Ray Lemmon Erie Pennsylvania for

PA-12 N-4285M BEST STINSON 108-Ellie Clark Eaton Rapids Michigan for N-9562K BEST SWIFT - Mark Holliday Hastings Minnesota for N-80760 BEST TAYLORCRAFT - Doug and Ruth Anderson Jackson Michishy

gan for N-95957 SPECIAL WORKMANSHIP AWARD - Tom and Lela Munden Newshy

hall California for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

74 IMPROVEMENTS

One of the big improvements for Antique-Classic participation in the 22nd Annual EAA Fly-In Convention was the display parking situation In previous years Antiques and Classics were stretched down the length of the northsouth runway - a long narrow display area that required members to walk nearly a mile to get to the far end This was not an arbitrary placement on the part of EAA officials it was simply the only airport owned land available to display the huge numbers of Antiques and particularly Classics Since last year EAA has purchased the land immediately adjacent to and just west of the north south runway from the control tower to the diagonal road near the south end of the airport This allowed EAA to open up a new parking area south of Ollies Woods for Classics and the entire area north of the woods for both Antiques

and Classics The result was a much more compact parkshying area located much closer to the center of fly-in activishyties The area will be improved each year so as to make your stay at Oshkosh more enjoyable as each fly-in rolls around

Ollies Woods proved to be quite popular this year On Saturday evening President Buck hosted a big AntiqueshyClassic party and a number of smaller groups had cook outs and parties there during the week This grove of trees is right in the center of the Antique-Classic area so is a convenient place to stop for a rest in the shade on those hot afternoons while one is tromping around trying to see all the aircraft

This was really the first year that EAAs Antique-Classic Division was able to run its own show in its own area of the vast Oshkosh fly-in grounds This observer noted that things seem to go quite well A lot more people were seen roaming the Antique and Classic area than in previous years and the Headquarters Red Barn was mobbed all week President Buck Hilbert deserves numerous pats on the back for pulling it all together this year He would like to hear any and all suggestions aimed at improving the Antique-Classic program for next year He and his offishycers and directors worked long and hard at Oshkosh 74 and are already planning better things for the future

Look for color coverage of the Antique-Classic activity at Oshkosh 74 in the November issue of SPORT AVIAshyTION

8

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - Fred Bergs fine reshyproduction of a Fokker D VII

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Charlotte Parishs beautiful Stearman N2S-S

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Above - J P Jordan and K G Hofschneider of Clark New Jersey were back again this year in their beautifully restored Tiger Moth

9

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

ANTIQUE GRAND CHAMPION WINNER

By Bill Hodges

The EAA International Convention and Fly-In Grand Champion Antique for 1974 is a very deserving and outshystanding aircraft - a Fairchild 24R46A Proud owners of N-77661 which carries Serial Number 361 are Dick Buck Jud Gudehous and Tom Leonhardt of Lambertville Michishygan

The owners had been looking for a 4-place airplane and discovered their Fairchild sitting neglected on an airport in Lima Ohio In talking with the owner they discovered that the plane had not been flown in over a year An examshyination showed however that it was ferriable and the purshychase was concluded in July 1970 The Fairchild was flown home and by September it had been completely dismanshytled Everything that could come off did Then the slow process of rebuilding it from the ground up began Everyshything that could be replaced with new parts was and where replacement parts were unavailable they were either reshybuilt to standard specs or built from scratch New parts were available in some degree from Thor Solberg Aviation located in New Jersey However they did have the 200 hp Ranger engine overhauled in Toledo Ohio Stits Poly-Fiber was used for the new cover with urethane enamel for the build up A special mixture of yellow was used for the final color coats

What about the background on the owners of this years Grand Champ

Richard L Dick Buck (EAA 85184) was a radar operashytor in the U S Navy during World War II and was asshySigned to a Destroyer Escort After the war he took flight training under the G 1 Bill and soloed in a Piper J-3 Cub in 1949 Dick owned and flew a Cessna 140A that he had refinished himself prior to going into partnership on the Fairchild Dick has been a bindery and paper salesman for some time now

Jud Gudehous entered the U S Army Air Force in 1942 as an Aviation Cadet and made his way through Stearshymans BT-13s and Cessna Bamboo Bombers before eventually winding up in Consolidated B-24 Liberators as a bomber pilot Jud put in 20 missions over Europe beshyfore World War II ended Jud also owned a Cessna 140 prior to his partnership purchase of the Fairchild Now 54 he is owner of an Optical Laboratory in Toledo Ohio

Tom Leonhardt (EAA 10981) has always been interestshyed in airplanes It wasn t until 1958 at age 33 that the opshyportunity to learn to fly came about however Tom soloed in an Aeronca Champion in Milan Michigan and has been flying ever since Unlike Dick and Jud Tom chose a Luscombe 8A to rebuild and had many pleasant hours in

10

it before becoming involved with the Fairchild Tom is a structural engineer and like Jud owns his own firm

In inquiring about their trip to the Fly-In this year I asked if it were routine or adverturesome The answer was routine other than they did have to puddle jump from one airport to another due to the bad weather around Chishycago at the time

Oh yes the time of restoration took until June of 1974 to complete - 3 years and 9 months

SPECIFICATIONS

Wing Span 36 ft 4 in Length 26 ft 0 in Height 7 ft 7V2 in

Wing Area 1933 sq ft Power Loading 123 Ibhp Wing Loading 122 Ib sq ft Empty Weight 1613 Ibs Useful Load 949 Ibs Gross Weight 2562 Ibs Fuel 60 gals Oil 41 gals Maximum Speed 133 mph Cruising Speed 118 mph Landing Speed 57 mph Service Ceiling 14000 ft Rate of Climb 560 ft min Cruising Range 620 miles

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Above - The 24 and its ancestor the Fairchild 22

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - Instrument panel of the 74 Grand Champion Fairchild 24

11

MY 35 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR Before I get carried away with my love affair I would

like to take this opportunity to thank you all for the treashysures of mail that have reached me since the publication of of the Howard story

The following letter is most precious and I felt it should be shared by everyone

Los Angeles California August 22 1974

Dear Nick Thank you for sending me a copy of the story - article

- about us and our aeroplanes You told it like it was shyand made it very interesting

I will not argue with you about the Howards being one of the greatest Do you know that there are several of them out here still flying As a matter of fact at one time there was a Howard Club - all members owned and

flew the Howard Again thank you very much for everything you wrote

and feel Best personal regards (signed) Mike Howard (Mrs Ben O Howard)

As soon as the Boss allows me a stamp fund Ill try to answer everybody Many letters contain corrections of names photos etc

Let me explain some of these mistakes First Jack Cox should receive a medal of the highest order for his ability and patience in transforming my hieroglyphics into readashyble material (Nick is too modest his material is a pleashysure for me to work with - JBe) His lovely wife Golda has come up with the Rezich Alphabet which helps somewhat but it still takes her two weeks to unscramble the is es ss etc

I love writing to doctors - its my only chance to get

12

REMINISCING WITH BIG NICK Nick Rezich

4213 Centerville Rd Rockford III 61102

even with them Maybe by now you all will understand why some misspelled names sneak in

This past June I made a 5 day whirlwind tour of Calishyfornia visiting some old Howard Aircraft buddies and family friends My first stop was the most significant and the highlight of my trip Sunday morning June 9 dawned sunny and warm in Frisco where I picked up a rental car for my tour to LA An hour and a half out of Frisco I pulled into the Palo Alto Airport where I met Larry Low a gungshyho EAAer and antiquer whom Ihad never met before but knew well from our letter exchanges

Standing in front of his hangar we exchanged family introductions - all but one the one behind the hangar doors I was really getting antsy and it showed as I kept pushing on the locked doors Larry finally got the message and we opened the doors There she stood my love - a majestic lady in all her pomp and glory The last time I held her in my hand was almost 30 years ago to the day With moist eyes I walked up and laid a very gentle hand on the door latch and introduced my wife of 23 years and mother of 3 to my first love affair a Culver Cadet which I bought new 34 years ago NC 20926 Serial Number 106

Larry Low has her dressed up in the latest fashion urethane paint tinted one piece windshield carpeting starter generator nav-com ELT chrome gear landing nav and strobe lights plus one hell of a lot of tender lovshying care After 34 years I could not find a wrinkle in her skin anywhere I thought I had a show stopper when I owned it but you should see it now This fellow Larry has put much effort time and money into this priceless jewel Oh sure I made a pass at him - but he quickly inshyformed me of others that are available but not my love - at any price

This whole affair started back in 1939 when the aviation industry was still reeling from the blow of the depression The surviving companies and some new ones were all pushing new models The route to recovery was paved with many new designs The OX-5 powered machines had all been turned out to the pasture for a graceful and well earned retirement

cockpit check then we headed for my home back in ChishyThe machines of 39 all sported round engines or the cago During the drive Art explained the gear details andnew flat opposed 4s all air cooled Prices ranged from

$99000 for the Cub to $5200000 for the executive Lockshy the flight characteristics By the time we reached home I

heed 12 The most advanced airplane was on the drawing boards in a small plant located in Columbus Ohio

The genius behind the slide rule was AI Mooney who was known to many in the industry as a very bright inshygenious engineer

When Al Mooney announced he was building a 2-place airplane with retractable gear that would cruise at 120 mph top 140 mph have a service ceiling of 17000 feet a cruisshying range of 1050 miles with a 15 gallon aux tank and all this while powered by only 75 h p and selling for under $300000 he lifted many eyebrows - including mine

I anxiously wal~ed to see what this new design of Mooneys would 10 -k like I went to the Columbus Ohio plant on the prete se of buying a Dart hoping to get a glimpse of the new ulver It didnt work After two days all I got was a lot of rumors and no peek-a-boo Before I left I made a deal with a friend of mine to send me a snapshyshop of the prototype as soon as it was rolled out of asshysembly

With the coming of fall and winter came my photo WOW When I saw what that little jewel looked like I made up my mind right then and there - I had to have one I ordered one without even having a ride in one The price was $247500 I received the 6th one built Serial Number 106 NC 20926 A blue and silver paint job was stock

The late Art Carnahan of Monocoach fame was the area dealer and he delivered my new Culver as far as Joliet Illishynois where the snow stopped him I drove in a snow storm to Joliet to pick up Art and view my new jewel There she sat in front of the hangar like a Thompson racer waiting for the starters flag to drop ---------shy

I don t think I knew what the word thrilled meant until that cold evening in Joliet when I opened the cabin door and tried that Culver on for size Art gave me a fast

was ready for the races To knock off ~he chilI of the drive my mother poured

us some of our best hom~made wine which was followed by a fiesta supper After supper and a gallon of wine later

I stuffed Arts pockets with $200000 in fives tens and twenties and put him on a train for the trip back to Bloomshyington lliinois his home town

My first flight in the new Cadet was two weeks later when the weather cleared Up to that time I had been flyshying Travel Airs Pitcairns a Laird Bellancas Stinsons Porterfields Rearwins Cubs Howards etc and from what Art told me none of the above flew like the Cadet My brother helped me roll it out of the hangar pre-flight it and cranked me

As I taxied out I tried to remember everything Art had told me about the Cadets handling It felt good and solid while taxiing and when I got to the runway I was ready I set the tab at zero and poured the coal on The take-off was smooth and straigh t ~

I le ft the pattern and started to climb to altitude for some turns and stalls In the next 20 seconds I learned all about the Culvers sensitive flippers I reached up to trim it for climb so I could concentrate on the gear reshytraction Well When I gave the trim handle the usual husky crank all hell broke loose The nose shot up r pushed forward on the stick and went up against the roof I pulled ~ack and r was pushed a foot down into the cushion A90ther push forward back on the roof r finally got the message and stabilized and started FLYshyINC it

I left the gear down and climbed to 3000 feet where I practiced medium and steep turns slow flight and some stalls The more I flew it the better I liked it Now I trimmed it for hands off and cycled the gear a few times All went well so I headed for Willie Howells airport on

_ (Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nicks Culver Cadet at Howell Airport (on the south side of Chicago) when the racy little two seater was brand spanking new Notice the ground adjustable Freedman-Burnham prop

Grand Champion Classic - a highly polished Swift owned by Ed Gorny of Livermore California

through your Aero Digests or other aviation magazines of the 1930s and see how many articles by and references to Fred Weick you uncover In addition to his appearance at Kelly Viets Ercoupe forum Fred delivered a very signifishycant paper on the seemingly perpetual stalUspin problem at the main EAA forums area This paper will be printed in SPORT AVIATION later in the year

J R Nielander and all those who participated in the Antique-Classic Forum program are to be highly comshymended This educational aspect of the fly-in is all-imshyportant It is the catalyst that triggers the enthusiasm necesshysary for an EAAer to go out scouring the countryside for some old aerial derelict spend months or years researchshying its history and construction spend more years and unspeakable amounts of money restoring it to beautiful condition When he has his project completed and can bring it to a fly-in he hopes for some tangible sign of recognition from his peers of his long and arduous labors - and this is where the awards program come in

The Antique judging committee at Oshkosh 74 was headed by Evander Britt of Lumberton North Carolina and included Pete Covington of Spencer Virginia Dusty Rhodes of Denver Doug Rounds of Zebulon Georgia Kelly Viets of Stilwell Kansas and Fred Weick as an honorshyary judge We understand Fred didnt take his honorary position lightly - he handed in meticulously prepared judging sheets just as was expected of the regular judges No free rides for Fred 6

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

The Classic judging committee was co-chaired by Jim Gorman of Mansfield Ohio and Morton Lester of Marshytinsville Virginia ably assisted by John Engles of Lakeshyland Florida John Parish of Tullahoma Tennessee Dub Yarbrough also of Tullahoma George York of Mansfield Ohio Warren Hall of Burlington North Carolina Harmon Dickerson of St Louis Dale Woffard of Ashland Ohio and Rod Spanier of Riviera Beach Florida

The decisions of these teams of astute authorities on ancient aeronautica are as follows

ANTIQUE AWARDS

GRAND CHAMPION - Dick Buck Tom Leonhardt and Jud Gudeshyhous of Lambertville Michigan for their Fairchild 24R NC-77661

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION - Alfred Nagle and Ken Gatzke Montello Wisconsin for their Rearwin Sportster N-20734

JUDGES CHOICE - R F Slim Johansson SI Charles Missouri for his Waco QDC NC-11470

AWARD OF MERIT - AI Kelch Mequon Wisconsin for his Frankmiddot lin Sport NC-13139

GOLDEN AGE CHAMPION - Bob Frost Greenfield Indiana for his Fleet 2 NC-610M

SILVER AGE CHAMPION - Don Dickinsen Santa Paula California for his Spartan 7W Executive N-17605

WORLD WAR I CHAMPION - Charles Klessig Galesburg North Dakota for his Standard J-1 NC-9477

PRE-WORLD WAR II CHAMPION - Gar Williams Naperville Illishynois for his Cessna C-165 Airmaster NC-25485

WORLD WAR II ERA CHAMPION - Charlotte Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for her Stearman N2S5 N-44JP

MOST UNUSUAL ANTIQUE - Myles Robertson Auckland New Zealand for his DeHavilland Fox Moth ZK-ASP

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - The Classic Judge s Committee Back row left to right Harmon Dickerson Jim Gorman and Morton Lesshyter Co-Chairmen Warren Hall and Rod Spanier Front row left to right John Engles John Parish Dale Wofshyfard George York and Dub Yarbrough

BEST CANADIAN ANTIQUE IN ATTENDANCE - Father John MacshyGillivray Petawawa Ontario for his Miles Hawk CF-NXT

BEST ANTIQUE REPLICA - Dale Crites Waukesha Wisconsin for his 1911 Curtiss Pusher N-1911D

BEST DART - Art Bishop Norton Ohio for his Dart GC NC-31697 BEST FAIRCHILD - Claude Gray Northridge California for h is

Fairchild F24W N-81386 BEST HOWARD - John Turgyan Trenton New Jersey for his

Howard DGA-15P NC-95462 BEST MONOCOUPE - Art Marsden Argos Ind iana for his Monoshy

coupe 90ACL N-18062 BEST REARWIN - Ken Williams Portage Wisconsin for his

Rearwin 7000 NC-25570 BEST STAGGERWING - John Parish Tullahoma Tennessee

for his Beech G-17S N-44G Big Red BEST ANTIQUE STINSON - George Stubbs Indianapol is Indiana

for his Stinson SR10-J NC-21135 BEST TRANSPORT - James Kramer Lake Worth Florida for his

Cessna T-50 NC-69072 BEST WACO - Vince Mariani Findlay Ohio for his Waco VKS-7

NC-31653 BEST RAZORBACK APPLICATION TO AN ANTIQUE - Jim Hall

Rockford Illinois for his Taylorcraft BC-12D N-96275 BEST STEARMAN - Richard Hansen Batavia Illinois for his

Stearman PT-27 N-59448 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA AAA CHAPTER CHOICE AWARD - John

Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for his Travel Air 4000 N-367M TIRED BUTT AWARD - Robert Rust Fayetteville Georgia for

his Aeronca C-2 NC-11276 HEADWIND AWARD - Evander Britt Lumberton N C

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - The Antique Judge s Committee Left to right Kelly Viets Doug Rounds Evander Britt Chairman Pete Covington and Dusty Rhodes

CLASSIC AWARDS

GRAND CHAMPION - Edmund Gorny Livermore California for Swift GC-1B N-2459B

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION - Dave Hamilton Anderson Indishyana for Piper J-3 N-42621

BEST CLASS I CLASSIC - Richard Krumbine Lebanon Pennsylshyvania for his Taylorcraft N-6442N

BEST CLASS II CLASSIC Dutch Brafford Lima Ohio for his Cessna 140 N-89728

BEST CLASS III CLASSIC - Tom and Lela Munden Newhall Calishyfornia for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

BEST ORIGINAL RESTORATION - Stan York Mansfield Ohio for his Taylorcraft L-2M N-47026

BEST CUSTOMIZING RESTORATION - C L Wagner Clark South Dakota for his Aeronca Champ N-1691E

BEST AERONCA CHAMP - Melvin Hill Danville Illinois for N-83633 BEST AERONCA CHIEF - John Pringle Tolono Illinois for N-9715E BEST AERONCA SEDAN - Art Hill Cincinnati Ohio for N-1482H BEST BEECH BONANZA - Leo Storm Lomita California for Nshy

5270C BEST BEECH TWIN -John Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for N-4477 BEST BELLANCA - Scott Twitchell Berkeley California for N-560A BEST CESSNA 1201140 - George Johnson Puyallup Washington

for 140 N-77101 BEST CESSNA 170 - Steven Wilson Arlington Washington for Nshy

3945V BEST CESSNA 190195 - Raybourne Thompson Jr Houston Texas

for 195 N-4477C BEST ERCOUPE - Mitch Cooke Clemmons N C for N-3265H 7

(Photo by Dick Stoufer)

Above - A portion of the Classic display area - Aeroncas and Pipers in fact There were rows and rows and rows like this

(Photo by Lee Fray)

Right - Fred Weick of Vero Beach Florida and the Ershycoupe he designed over three decades ago - both are still going strong

BEST LUSCOMBE 8 SERIES - William Nichols Beloit Wisconsin for N-2126B

BEST MEYERS - E R Curley Broyles Tullahoma Tennessee for N-34360

BEST NAVION - Bruce Hallock Austin Texas for N-5202K BEST PIPER CUB - A Garrison Cantonville Maryland 10r N-20280 BEST PIPER - ALL OTHER - Ray Lemmon Erie Pennsylvania for

PA-12 N-4285M BEST STINSON 108-Ellie Clark Eaton Rapids Michigan for N-9562K BEST SWIFT - Mark Holliday Hastings Minnesota for N-80760 BEST TAYLORCRAFT - Doug and Ruth Anderson Jackson Michishy

gan for N-95957 SPECIAL WORKMANSHIP AWARD - Tom and Lela Munden Newshy

hall California for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

74 IMPROVEMENTS

One of the big improvements for Antique-Classic participation in the 22nd Annual EAA Fly-In Convention was the display parking situation In previous years Antiques and Classics were stretched down the length of the northsouth runway - a long narrow display area that required members to walk nearly a mile to get to the far end This was not an arbitrary placement on the part of EAA officials it was simply the only airport owned land available to display the huge numbers of Antiques and particularly Classics Since last year EAA has purchased the land immediately adjacent to and just west of the north south runway from the control tower to the diagonal road near the south end of the airport This allowed EAA to open up a new parking area south of Ollies Woods for Classics and the entire area north of the woods for both Antiques

and Classics The result was a much more compact parkshying area located much closer to the center of fly-in activishyties The area will be improved each year so as to make your stay at Oshkosh more enjoyable as each fly-in rolls around

Ollies Woods proved to be quite popular this year On Saturday evening President Buck hosted a big AntiqueshyClassic party and a number of smaller groups had cook outs and parties there during the week This grove of trees is right in the center of the Antique-Classic area so is a convenient place to stop for a rest in the shade on those hot afternoons while one is tromping around trying to see all the aircraft

This was really the first year that EAAs Antique-Classic Division was able to run its own show in its own area of the vast Oshkosh fly-in grounds This observer noted that things seem to go quite well A lot more people were seen roaming the Antique and Classic area than in previous years and the Headquarters Red Barn was mobbed all week President Buck Hilbert deserves numerous pats on the back for pulling it all together this year He would like to hear any and all suggestions aimed at improving the Antique-Classic program for next year He and his offishycers and directors worked long and hard at Oshkosh 74 and are already planning better things for the future

Look for color coverage of the Antique-Classic activity at Oshkosh 74 in the November issue of SPORT AVIAshyTION

8

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - Fred Bergs fine reshyproduction of a Fokker D VII

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Charlotte Parishs beautiful Stearman N2S-S

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Above - J P Jordan and K G Hofschneider of Clark New Jersey were back again this year in their beautifully restored Tiger Moth

9

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

ANTIQUE GRAND CHAMPION WINNER

By Bill Hodges

The EAA International Convention and Fly-In Grand Champion Antique for 1974 is a very deserving and outshystanding aircraft - a Fairchild 24R46A Proud owners of N-77661 which carries Serial Number 361 are Dick Buck Jud Gudehous and Tom Leonhardt of Lambertville Michishygan

The owners had been looking for a 4-place airplane and discovered their Fairchild sitting neglected on an airport in Lima Ohio In talking with the owner they discovered that the plane had not been flown in over a year An examshyination showed however that it was ferriable and the purshychase was concluded in July 1970 The Fairchild was flown home and by September it had been completely dismanshytled Everything that could come off did Then the slow process of rebuilding it from the ground up began Everyshything that could be replaced with new parts was and where replacement parts were unavailable they were either reshybuilt to standard specs or built from scratch New parts were available in some degree from Thor Solberg Aviation located in New Jersey However they did have the 200 hp Ranger engine overhauled in Toledo Ohio Stits Poly-Fiber was used for the new cover with urethane enamel for the build up A special mixture of yellow was used for the final color coats

What about the background on the owners of this years Grand Champ

Richard L Dick Buck (EAA 85184) was a radar operashytor in the U S Navy during World War II and was asshySigned to a Destroyer Escort After the war he took flight training under the G 1 Bill and soloed in a Piper J-3 Cub in 1949 Dick owned and flew a Cessna 140A that he had refinished himself prior to going into partnership on the Fairchild Dick has been a bindery and paper salesman for some time now

Jud Gudehous entered the U S Army Air Force in 1942 as an Aviation Cadet and made his way through Stearshymans BT-13s and Cessna Bamboo Bombers before eventually winding up in Consolidated B-24 Liberators as a bomber pilot Jud put in 20 missions over Europe beshyfore World War II ended Jud also owned a Cessna 140 prior to his partnership purchase of the Fairchild Now 54 he is owner of an Optical Laboratory in Toledo Ohio

Tom Leonhardt (EAA 10981) has always been interestshyed in airplanes It wasn t until 1958 at age 33 that the opshyportunity to learn to fly came about however Tom soloed in an Aeronca Champion in Milan Michigan and has been flying ever since Unlike Dick and Jud Tom chose a Luscombe 8A to rebuild and had many pleasant hours in

10

it before becoming involved with the Fairchild Tom is a structural engineer and like Jud owns his own firm

In inquiring about their trip to the Fly-In this year I asked if it were routine or adverturesome The answer was routine other than they did have to puddle jump from one airport to another due to the bad weather around Chishycago at the time

Oh yes the time of restoration took until June of 1974 to complete - 3 years and 9 months

SPECIFICATIONS

Wing Span 36 ft 4 in Length 26 ft 0 in Height 7 ft 7V2 in

Wing Area 1933 sq ft Power Loading 123 Ibhp Wing Loading 122 Ib sq ft Empty Weight 1613 Ibs Useful Load 949 Ibs Gross Weight 2562 Ibs Fuel 60 gals Oil 41 gals Maximum Speed 133 mph Cruising Speed 118 mph Landing Speed 57 mph Service Ceiling 14000 ft Rate of Climb 560 ft min Cruising Range 620 miles

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Above - The 24 and its ancestor the Fairchild 22

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - Instrument panel of the 74 Grand Champion Fairchild 24

11

MY 35 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR Before I get carried away with my love affair I would

like to take this opportunity to thank you all for the treashysures of mail that have reached me since the publication of of the Howard story

The following letter is most precious and I felt it should be shared by everyone

Los Angeles California August 22 1974

Dear Nick Thank you for sending me a copy of the story - article

- about us and our aeroplanes You told it like it was shyand made it very interesting

I will not argue with you about the Howards being one of the greatest Do you know that there are several of them out here still flying As a matter of fact at one time there was a Howard Club - all members owned and

flew the Howard Again thank you very much for everything you wrote

and feel Best personal regards (signed) Mike Howard (Mrs Ben O Howard)

As soon as the Boss allows me a stamp fund Ill try to answer everybody Many letters contain corrections of names photos etc

Let me explain some of these mistakes First Jack Cox should receive a medal of the highest order for his ability and patience in transforming my hieroglyphics into readashyble material (Nick is too modest his material is a pleashysure for me to work with - JBe) His lovely wife Golda has come up with the Rezich Alphabet which helps somewhat but it still takes her two weeks to unscramble the is es ss etc

I love writing to doctors - its my only chance to get

12

REMINISCING WITH BIG NICK Nick Rezich

4213 Centerville Rd Rockford III 61102

even with them Maybe by now you all will understand why some misspelled names sneak in

This past June I made a 5 day whirlwind tour of Calishyfornia visiting some old Howard Aircraft buddies and family friends My first stop was the most significant and the highlight of my trip Sunday morning June 9 dawned sunny and warm in Frisco where I picked up a rental car for my tour to LA An hour and a half out of Frisco I pulled into the Palo Alto Airport where I met Larry Low a gungshyho EAAer and antiquer whom Ihad never met before but knew well from our letter exchanges

Standing in front of his hangar we exchanged family introductions - all but one the one behind the hangar doors I was really getting antsy and it showed as I kept pushing on the locked doors Larry finally got the message and we opened the doors There she stood my love - a majestic lady in all her pomp and glory The last time I held her in my hand was almost 30 years ago to the day With moist eyes I walked up and laid a very gentle hand on the door latch and introduced my wife of 23 years and mother of 3 to my first love affair a Culver Cadet which I bought new 34 years ago NC 20926 Serial Number 106

Larry Low has her dressed up in the latest fashion urethane paint tinted one piece windshield carpeting starter generator nav-com ELT chrome gear landing nav and strobe lights plus one hell of a lot of tender lovshying care After 34 years I could not find a wrinkle in her skin anywhere I thought I had a show stopper when I owned it but you should see it now This fellow Larry has put much effort time and money into this priceless jewel Oh sure I made a pass at him - but he quickly inshyformed me of others that are available but not my love - at any price

This whole affair started back in 1939 when the aviation industry was still reeling from the blow of the depression The surviving companies and some new ones were all pushing new models The route to recovery was paved with many new designs The OX-5 powered machines had all been turned out to the pasture for a graceful and well earned retirement

cockpit check then we headed for my home back in ChishyThe machines of 39 all sported round engines or the cago During the drive Art explained the gear details andnew flat opposed 4s all air cooled Prices ranged from

$99000 for the Cub to $5200000 for the executive Lockshy the flight characteristics By the time we reached home I

heed 12 The most advanced airplane was on the drawing boards in a small plant located in Columbus Ohio

The genius behind the slide rule was AI Mooney who was known to many in the industry as a very bright inshygenious engineer

When Al Mooney announced he was building a 2-place airplane with retractable gear that would cruise at 120 mph top 140 mph have a service ceiling of 17000 feet a cruisshying range of 1050 miles with a 15 gallon aux tank and all this while powered by only 75 h p and selling for under $300000 he lifted many eyebrows - including mine

I anxiously wal~ed to see what this new design of Mooneys would 10 -k like I went to the Columbus Ohio plant on the prete se of buying a Dart hoping to get a glimpse of the new ulver It didnt work After two days all I got was a lot of rumors and no peek-a-boo Before I left I made a deal with a friend of mine to send me a snapshyshop of the prototype as soon as it was rolled out of asshysembly

With the coming of fall and winter came my photo WOW When I saw what that little jewel looked like I made up my mind right then and there - I had to have one I ordered one without even having a ride in one The price was $247500 I received the 6th one built Serial Number 106 NC 20926 A blue and silver paint job was stock

The late Art Carnahan of Monocoach fame was the area dealer and he delivered my new Culver as far as Joliet Illishynois where the snow stopped him I drove in a snow storm to Joliet to pick up Art and view my new jewel There she sat in front of the hangar like a Thompson racer waiting for the starters flag to drop ---------shy

I don t think I knew what the word thrilled meant until that cold evening in Joliet when I opened the cabin door and tried that Culver on for size Art gave me a fast

was ready for the races To knock off ~he chilI of the drive my mother poured

us some of our best hom~made wine which was followed by a fiesta supper After supper and a gallon of wine later

I stuffed Arts pockets with $200000 in fives tens and twenties and put him on a train for the trip back to Bloomshyington lliinois his home town

My first flight in the new Cadet was two weeks later when the weather cleared Up to that time I had been flyshying Travel Airs Pitcairns a Laird Bellancas Stinsons Porterfields Rearwins Cubs Howards etc and from what Art told me none of the above flew like the Cadet My brother helped me roll it out of the hangar pre-flight it and cranked me

As I taxied out I tried to remember everything Art had told me about the Cadets handling It felt good and solid while taxiing and when I got to the runway I was ready I set the tab at zero and poured the coal on The take-off was smooth and straigh t ~

I le ft the pattern and started to climb to altitude for some turns and stalls In the next 20 seconds I learned all about the Culvers sensitive flippers I reached up to trim it for climb so I could concentrate on the gear reshytraction Well When I gave the trim handle the usual husky crank all hell broke loose The nose shot up r pushed forward on the stick and went up against the roof I pulled ~ack and r was pushed a foot down into the cushion A90ther push forward back on the roof r finally got the message and stabilized and started FLYshyINC it

I left the gear down and climbed to 3000 feet where I practiced medium and steep turns slow flight and some stalls The more I flew it the better I liked it Now I trimmed it for hands off and cycled the gear a few times All went well so I headed for Willie Howells airport on

_ (Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nicks Culver Cadet at Howell Airport (on the south side of Chicago) when the racy little two seater was brand spanking new Notice the ground adjustable Freedman-Burnham prop

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - The Classic Judge s Committee Back row left to right Harmon Dickerson Jim Gorman and Morton Lesshyter Co-Chairmen Warren Hall and Rod Spanier Front row left to right John Engles John Parish Dale Wofshyfard George York and Dub Yarbrough

BEST CANADIAN ANTIQUE IN ATTENDANCE - Father John MacshyGillivray Petawawa Ontario for his Miles Hawk CF-NXT

BEST ANTIQUE REPLICA - Dale Crites Waukesha Wisconsin for his 1911 Curtiss Pusher N-1911D

BEST DART - Art Bishop Norton Ohio for his Dart GC NC-31697 BEST FAIRCHILD - Claude Gray Northridge California for h is

Fairchild F24W N-81386 BEST HOWARD - John Turgyan Trenton New Jersey for his

Howard DGA-15P NC-95462 BEST MONOCOUPE - Art Marsden Argos Ind iana for his Monoshy

coupe 90ACL N-18062 BEST REARWIN - Ken Williams Portage Wisconsin for his

Rearwin 7000 NC-25570 BEST STAGGERWING - John Parish Tullahoma Tennessee

for his Beech G-17S N-44G Big Red BEST ANTIQUE STINSON - George Stubbs Indianapol is Indiana

for his Stinson SR10-J NC-21135 BEST TRANSPORT - James Kramer Lake Worth Florida for his

Cessna T-50 NC-69072 BEST WACO - Vince Mariani Findlay Ohio for his Waco VKS-7

NC-31653 BEST RAZORBACK APPLICATION TO AN ANTIQUE - Jim Hall

Rockford Illinois for his Taylorcraft BC-12D N-96275 BEST STEARMAN - Richard Hansen Batavia Illinois for his

Stearman PT-27 N-59448 NORTHERN CALIFORNIA AAA CHAPTER CHOICE AWARD - John

Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for his Travel Air 4000 N-367M TIRED BUTT AWARD - Robert Rust Fayetteville Georgia for

his Aeronca C-2 NC-11276 HEADWIND AWARD - Evander Britt Lumberton N C

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - The Antique Judge s Committee Left to right Kelly Viets Doug Rounds Evander Britt Chairman Pete Covington and Dusty Rhodes

CLASSIC AWARDS

GRAND CHAMPION - Edmund Gorny Livermore California for Swift GC-1B N-2459B

RESERVE GRAND CHAMPION - Dave Hamilton Anderson Indishyana for Piper J-3 N-42621

BEST CLASS I CLASSIC - Richard Krumbine Lebanon Pennsylshyvania for his Taylorcraft N-6442N

BEST CLASS II CLASSIC Dutch Brafford Lima Ohio for his Cessna 140 N-89728

BEST CLASS III CLASSIC - Tom and Lela Munden Newhall Calishyfornia for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

BEST ORIGINAL RESTORATION - Stan York Mansfield Ohio for his Taylorcraft L-2M N-47026

BEST CUSTOMIZING RESTORATION - C L Wagner Clark South Dakota for his Aeronca Champ N-1691E

BEST AERONCA CHAMP - Melvin Hill Danville Illinois for N-83633 BEST AERONCA CHIEF - John Pringle Tolono Illinois for N-9715E BEST AERONCA SEDAN - Art Hill Cincinnati Ohio for N-1482H BEST BEECH BONANZA - Leo Storm Lomita California for Nshy

5270C BEST BEECH TWIN -John Parish Tullahoma Tennessee for N-4477 BEST BELLANCA - Scott Twitchell Berkeley California for N-560A BEST CESSNA 1201140 - George Johnson Puyallup Washington

for 140 N-77101 BEST CESSNA 170 - Steven Wilson Arlington Washington for Nshy

3945V BEST CESSNA 190195 - Raybourne Thompson Jr Houston Texas

for 195 N-4477C BEST ERCOUPE - Mitch Cooke Clemmons N C for N-3265H 7

(Photo by Dick Stoufer)

Above - A portion of the Classic display area - Aeroncas and Pipers in fact There were rows and rows and rows like this

(Photo by Lee Fray)

Right - Fred Weick of Vero Beach Florida and the Ershycoupe he designed over three decades ago - both are still going strong

BEST LUSCOMBE 8 SERIES - William Nichols Beloit Wisconsin for N-2126B

BEST MEYERS - E R Curley Broyles Tullahoma Tennessee for N-34360

BEST NAVION - Bruce Hallock Austin Texas for N-5202K BEST PIPER CUB - A Garrison Cantonville Maryland 10r N-20280 BEST PIPER - ALL OTHER - Ray Lemmon Erie Pennsylvania for

PA-12 N-4285M BEST STINSON 108-Ellie Clark Eaton Rapids Michigan for N-9562K BEST SWIFT - Mark Holliday Hastings Minnesota for N-80760 BEST TAYLORCRAFT - Doug and Ruth Anderson Jackson Michishy

gan for N-95957 SPECIAL WORKMANSHIP AWARD - Tom and Lela Munden Newshy

hall California for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

74 IMPROVEMENTS

One of the big improvements for Antique-Classic participation in the 22nd Annual EAA Fly-In Convention was the display parking situation In previous years Antiques and Classics were stretched down the length of the northsouth runway - a long narrow display area that required members to walk nearly a mile to get to the far end This was not an arbitrary placement on the part of EAA officials it was simply the only airport owned land available to display the huge numbers of Antiques and particularly Classics Since last year EAA has purchased the land immediately adjacent to and just west of the north south runway from the control tower to the diagonal road near the south end of the airport This allowed EAA to open up a new parking area south of Ollies Woods for Classics and the entire area north of the woods for both Antiques

and Classics The result was a much more compact parkshying area located much closer to the center of fly-in activishyties The area will be improved each year so as to make your stay at Oshkosh more enjoyable as each fly-in rolls around

Ollies Woods proved to be quite popular this year On Saturday evening President Buck hosted a big AntiqueshyClassic party and a number of smaller groups had cook outs and parties there during the week This grove of trees is right in the center of the Antique-Classic area so is a convenient place to stop for a rest in the shade on those hot afternoons while one is tromping around trying to see all the aircraft

This was really the first year that EAAs Antique-Classic Division was able to run its own show in its own area of the vast Oshkosh fly-in grounds This observer noted that things seem to go quite well A lot more people were seen roaming the Antique and Classic area than in previous years and the Headquarters Red Barn was mobbed all week President Buck Hilbert deserves numerous pats on the back for pulling it all together this year He would like to hear any and all suggestions aimed at improving the Antique-Classic program for next year He and his offishycers and directors worked long and hard at Oshkosh 74 and are already planning better things for the future

Look for color coverage of the Antique-Classic activity at Oshkosh 74 in the November issue of SPORT AVIAshyTION

8

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - Fred Bergs fine reshyproduction of a Fokker D VII

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Charlotte Parishs beautiful Stearman N2S-S

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Above - J P Jordan and K G Hofschneider of Clark New Jersey were back again this year in their beautifully restored Tiger Moth

9

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

ANTIQUE GRAND CHAMPION WINNER

By Bill Hodges

The EAA International Convention and Fly-In Grand Champion Antique for 1974 is a very deserving and outshystanding aircraft - a Fairchild 24R46A Proud owners of N-77661 which carries Serial Number 361 are Dick Buck Jud Gudehous and Tom Leonhardt of Lambertville Michishygan

The owners had been looking for a 4-place airplane and discovered their Fairchild sitting neglected on an airport in Lima Ohio In talking with the owner they discovered that the plane had not been flown in over a year An examshyination showed however that it was ferriable and the purshychase was concluded in July 1970 The Fairchild was flown home and by September it had been completely dismanshytled Everything that could come off did Then the slow process of rebuilding it from the ground up began Everyshything that could be replaced with new parts was and where replacement parts were unavailable they were either reshybuilt to standard specs or built from scratch New parts were available in some degree from Thor Solberg Aviation located in New Jersey However they did have the 200 hp Ranger engine overhauled in Toledo Ohio Stits Poly-Fiber was used for the new cover with urethane enamel for the build up A special mixture of yellow was used for the final color coats

What about the background on the owners of this years Grand Champ

Richard L Dick Buck (EAA 85184) was a radar operashytor in the U S Navy during World War II and was asshySigned to a Destroyer Escort After the war he took flight training under the G 1 Bill and soloed in a Piper J-3 Cub in 1949 Dick owned and flew a Cessna 140A that he had refinished himself prior to going into partnership on the Fairchild Dick has been a bindery and paper salesman for some time now

Jud Gudehous entered the U S Army Air Force in 1942 as an Aviation Cadet and made his way through Stearshymans BT-13s and Cessna Bamboo Bombers before eventually winding up in Consolidated B-24 Liberators as a bomber pilot Jud put in 20 missions over Europe beshyfore World War II ended Jud also owned a Cessna 140 prior to his partnership purchase of the Fairchild Now 54 he is owner of an Optical Laboratory in Toledo Ohio

Tom Leonhardt (EAA 10981) has always been interestshyed in airplanes It wasn t until 1958 at age 33 that the opshyportunity to learn to fly came about however Tom soloed in an Aeronca Champion in Milan Michigan and has been flying ever since Unlike Dick and Jud Tom chose a Luscombe 8A to rebuild and had many pleasant hours in

10

it before becoming involved with the Fairchild Tom is a structural engineer and like Jud owns his own firm

In inquiring about their trip to the Fly-In this year I asked if it were routine or adverturesome The answer was routine other than they did have to puddle jump from one airport to another due to the bad weather around Chishycago at the time

Oh yes the time of restoration took until June of 1974 to complete - 3 years and 9 months

SPECIFICATIONS

Wing Span 36 ft 4 in Length 26 ft 0 in Height 7 ft 7V2 in

Wing Area 1933 sq ft Power Loading 123 Ibhp Wing Loading 122 Ib sq ft Empty Weight 1613 Ibs Useful Load 949 Ibs Gross Weight 2562 Ibs Fuel 60 gals Oil 41 gals Maximum Speed 133 mph Cruising Speed 118 mph Landing Speed 57 mph Service Ceiling 14000 ft Rate of Climb 560 ft min Cruising Range 620 miles

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Above - The 24 and its ancestor the Fairchild 22

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - Instrument panel of the 74 Grand Champion Fairchild 24

11

MY 35 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR Before I get carried away with my love affair I would

like to take this opportunity to thank you all for the treashysures of mail that have reached me since the publication of of the Howard story

The following letter is most precious and I felt it should be shared by everyone

Los Angeles California August 22 1974

Dear Nick Thank you for sending me a copy of the story - article

- about us and our aeroplanes You told it like it was shyand made it very interesting

I will not argue with you about the Howards being one of the greatest Do you know that there are several of them out here still flying As a matter of fact at one time there was a Howard Club - all members owned and

flew the Howard Again thank you very much for everything you wrote

and feel Best personal regards (signed) Mike Howard (Mrs Ben O Howard)

As soon as the Boss allows me a stamp fund Ill try to answer everybody Many letters contain corrections of names photos etc

Let me explain some of these mistakes First Jack Cox should receive a medal of the highest order for his ability and patience in transforming my hieroglyphics into readashyble material (Nick is too modest his material is a pleashysure for me to work with - JBe) His lovely wife Golda has come up with the Rezich Alphabet which helps somewhat but it still takes her two weeks to unscramble the is es ss etc

I love writing to doctors - its my only chance to get

12

REMINISCING WITH BIG NICK Nick Rezich

4213 Centerville Rd Rockford III 61102

even with them Maybe by now you all will understand why some misspelled names sneak in

This past June I made a 5 day whirlwind tour of Calishyfornia visiting some old Howard Aircraft buddies and family friends My first stop was the most significant and the highlight of my trip Sunday morning June 9 dawned sunny and warm in Frisco where I picked up a rental car for my tour to LA An hour and a half out of Frisco I pulled into the Palo Alto Airport where I met Larry Low a gungshyho EAAer and antiquer whom Ihad never met before but knew well from our letter exchanges

Standing in front of his hangar we exchanged family introductions - all but one the one behind the hangar doors I was really getting antsy and it showed as I kept pushing on the locked doors Larry finally got the message and we opened the doors There she stood my love - a majestic lady in all her pomp and glory The last time I held her in my hand was almost 30 years ago to the day With moist eyes I walked up and laid a very gentle hand on the door latch and introduced my wife of 23 years and mother of 3 to my first love affair a Culver Cadet which I bought new 34 years ago NC 20926 Serial Number 106

Larry Low has her dressed up in the latest fashion urethane paint tinted one piece windshield carpeting starter generator nav-com ELT chrome gear landing nav and strobe lights plus one hell of a lot of tender lovshying care After 34 years I could not find a wrinkle in her skin anywhere I thought I had a show stopper when I owned it but you should see it now This fellow Larry has put much effort time and money into this priceless jewel Oh sure I made a pass at him - but he quickly inshyformed me of others that are available but not my love - at any price

This whole affair started back in 1939 when the aviation industry was still reeling from the blow of the depression The surviving companies and some new ones were all pushing new models The route to recovery was paved with many new designs The OX-5 powered machines had all been turned out to the pasture for a graceful and well earned retirement

cockpit check then we headed for my home back in ChishyThe machines of 39 all sported round engines or the cago During the drive Art explained the gear details andnew flat opposed 4s all air cooled Prices ranged from

$99000 for the Cub to $5200000 for the executive Lockshy the flight characteristics By the time we reached home I

heed 12 The most advanced airplane was on the drawing boards in a small plant located in Columbus Ohio

The genius behind the slide rule was AI Mooney who was known to many in the industry as a very bright inshygenious engineer

When Al Mooney announced he was building a 2-place airplane with retractable gear that would cruise at 120 mph top 140 mph have a service ceiling of 17000 feet a cruisshying range of 1050 miles with a 15 gallon aux tank and all this while powered by only 75 h p and selling for under $300000 he lifted many eyebrows - including mine

I anxiously wal~ed to see what this new design of Mooneys would 10 -k like I went to the Columbus Ohio plant on the prete se of buying a Dart hoping to get a glimpse of the new ulver It didnt work After two days all I got was a lot of rumors and no peek-a-boo Before I left I made a deal with a friend of mine to send me a snapshyshop of the prototype as soon as it was rolled out of asshysembly

With the coming of fall and winter came my photo WOW When I saw what that little jewel looked like I made up my mind right then and there - I had to have one I ordered one without even having a ride in one The price was $247500 I received the 6th one built Serial Number 106 NC 20926 A blue and silver paint job was stock

The late Art Carnahan of Monocoach fame was the area dealer and he delivered my new Culver as far as Joliet Illishynois where the snow stopped him I drove in a snow storm to Joliet to pick up Art and view my new jewel There she sat in front of the hangar like a Thompson racer waiting for the starters flag to drop ---------shy

I don t think I knew what the word thrilled meant until that cold evening in Joliet when I opened the cabin door and tried that Culver on for size Art gave me a fast

was ready for the races To knock off ~he chilI of the drive my mother poured

us some of our best hom~made wine which was followed by a fiesta supper After supper and a gallon of wine later

I stuffed Arts pockets with $200000 in fives tens and twenties and put him on a train for the trip back to Bloomshyington lliinois his home town

My first flight in the new Cadet was two weeks later when the weather cleared Up to that time I had been flyshying Travel Airs Pitcairns a Laird Bellancas Stinsons Porterfields Rearwins Cubs Howards etc and from what Art told me none of the above flew like the Cadet My brother helped me roll it out of the hangar pre-flight it and cranked me

As I taxied out I tried to remember everything Art had told me about the Cadets handling It felt good and solid while taxiing and when I got to the runway I was ready I set the tab at zero and poured the coal on The take-off was smooth and straigh t ~

I le ft the pattern and started to climb to altitude for some turns and stalls In the next 20 seconds I learned all about the Culvers sensitive flippers I reached up to trim it for climb so I could concentrate on the gear reshytraction Well When I gave the trim handle the usual husky crank all hell broke loose The nose shot up r pushed forward on the stick and went up against the roof I pulled ~ack and r was pushed a foot down into the cushion A90ther push forward back on the roof r finally got the message and stabilized and started FLYshyINC it

I left the gear down and climbed to 3000 feet where I practiced medium and steep turns slow flight and some stalls The more I flew it the better I liked it Now I trimmed it for hands off and cycled the gear a few times All went well so I headed for Willie Howells airport on

_ (Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nicks Culver Cadet at Howell Airport (on the south side of Chicago) when the racy little two seater was brand spanking new Notice the ground adjustable Freedman-Burnham prop

(Photo by Dick Stoufer)

Above - A portion of the Classic display area - Aeroncas and Pipers in fact There were rows and rows and rows like this

(Photo by Lee Fray)

Right - Fred Weick of Vero Beach Florida and the Ershycoupe he designed over three decades ago - both are still going strong

BEST LUSCOMBE 8 SERIES - William Nichols Beloit Wisconsin for N-2126B

BEST MEYERS - E R Curley Broyles Tullahoma Tennessee for N-34360

BEST NAVION - Bruce Hallock Austin Texas for N-5202K BEST PIPER CUB - A Garrison Cantonville Maryland 10r N-20280 BEST PIPER - ALL OTHER - Ray Lemmon Erie Pennsylvania for

PA-12 N-4285M BEST STINSON 108-Ellie Clark Eaton Rapids Michigan for N-9562K BEST SWIFT - Mark Holliday Hastings Minnesota for N-80760 BEST TAYLORCRAFT - Doug and Ruth Anderson Jackson Michishy

gan for N-95957 SPECIAL WORKMANSHIP AWARD - Tom and Lela Munden Newshy

hall California for their Stinson 108 N-8083K

74 IMPROVEMENTS

One of the big improvements for Antique-Classic participation in the 22nd Annual EAA Fly-In Convention was the display parking situation In previous years Antiques and Classics were stretched down the length of the northsouth runway - a long narrow display area that required members to walk nearly a mile to get to the far end This was not an arbitrary placement on the part of EAA officials it was simply the only airport owned land available to display the huge numbers of Antiques and particularly Classics Since last year EAA has purchased the land immediately adjacent to and just west of the north south runway from the control tower to the diagonal road near the south end of the airport This allowed EAA to open up a new parking area south of Ollies Woods for Classics and the entire area north of the woods for both Antiques

and Classics The result was a much more compact parkshying area located much closer to the center of fly-in activishyties The area will be improved each year so as to make your stay at Oshkosh more enjoyable as each fly-in rolls around

Ollies Woods proved to be quite popular this year On Saturday evening President Buck hosted a big AntiqueshyClassic party and a number of smaller groups had cook outs and parties there during the week This grove of trees is right in the center of the Antique-Classic area so is a convenient place to stop for a rest in the shade on those hot afternoons while one is tromping around trying to see all the aircraft

This was really the first year that EAAs Antique-Classic Division was able to run its own show in its own area of the vast Oshkosh fly-in grounds This observer noted that things seem to go quite well A lot more people were seen roaming the Antique and Classic area than in previous years and the Headquarters Red Barn was mobbed all week President Buck Hilbert deserves numerous pats on the back for pulling it all together this year He would like to hear any and all suggestions aimed at improving the Antique-Classic program for next year He and his offishycers and directors worked long and hard at Oshkosh 74 and are already planning better things for the future

Look for color coverage of the Antique-Classic activity at Oshkosh 74 in the November issue of SPORT AVIAshyTION

8

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - Fred Bergs fine reshyproduction of a Fokker D VII

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Charlotte Parishs beautiful Stearman N2S-S

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Above - J P Jordan and K G Hofschneider of Clark New Jersey were back again this year in their beautifully restored Tiger Moth

9

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

ANTIQUE GRAND CHAMPION WINNER

By Bill Hodges

The EAA International Convention and Fly-In Grand Champion Antique for 1974 is a very deserving and outshystanding aircraft - a Fairchild 24R46A Proud owners of N-77661 which carries Serial Number 361 are Dick Buck Jud Gudehous and Tom Leonhardt of Lambertville Michishygan

The owners had been looking for a 4-place airplane and discovered their Fairchild sitting neglected on an airport in Lima Ohio In talking with the owner they discovered that the plane had not been flown in over a year An examshyination showed however that it was ferriable and the purshychase was concluded in July 1970 The Fairchild was flown home and by September it had been completely dismanshytled Everything that could come off did Then the slow process of rebuilding it from the ground up began Everyshything that could be replaced with new parts was and where replacement parts were unavailable they were either reshybuilt to standard specs or built from scratch New parts were available in some degree from Thor Solberg Aviation located in New Jersey However they did have the 200 hp Ranger engine overhauled in Toledo Ohio Stits Poly-Fiber was used for the new cover with urethane enamel for the build up A special mixture of yellow was used for the final color coats

What about the background on the owners of this years Grand Champ

Richard L Dick Buck (EAA 85184) was a radar operashytor in the U S Navy during World War II and was asshySigned to a Destroyer Escort After the war he took flight training under the G 1 Bill and soloed in a Piper J-3 Cub in 1949 Dick owned and flew a Cessna 140A that he had refinished himself prior to going into partnership on the Fairchild Dick has been a bindery and paper salesman for some time now

Jud Gudehous entered the U S Army Air Force in 1942 as an Aviation Cadet and made his way through Stearshymans BT-13s and Cessna Bamboo Bombers before eventually winding up in Consolidated B-24 Liberators as a bomber pilot Jud put in 20 missions over Europe beshyfore World War II ended Jud also owned a Cessna 140 prior to his partnership purchase of the Fairchild Now 54 he is owner of an Optical Laboratory in Toledo Ohio

Tom Leonhardt (EAA 10981) has always been interestshyed in airplanes It wasn t until 1958 at age 33 that the opshyportunity to learn to fly came about however Tom soloed in an Aeronca Champion in Milan Michigan and has been flying ever since Unlike Dick and Jud Tom chose a Luscombe 8A to rebuild and had many pleasant hours in

10

it before becoming involved with the Fairchild Tom is a structural engineer and like Jud owns his own firm

In inquiring about their trip to the Fly-In this year I asked if it were routine or adverturesome The answer was routine other than they did have to puddle jump from one airport to another due to the bad weather around Chishycago at the time

Oh yes the time of restoration took until June of 1974 to complete - 3 years and 9 months

SPECIFICATIONS

Wing Span 36 ft 4 in Length 26 ft 0 in Height 7 ft 7V2 in

Wing Area 1933 sq ft Power Loading 123 Ibhp Wing Loading 122 Ib sq ft Empty Weight 1613 Ibs Useful Load 949 Ibs Gross Weight 2562 Ibs Fuel 60 gals Oil 41 gals Maximum Speed 133 mph Cruising Speed 118 mph Landing Speed 57 mph Service Ceiling 14000 ft Rate of Climb 560 ft min Cruising Range 620 miles

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Above - The 24 and its ancestor the Fairchild 22

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - Instrument panel of the 74 Grand Champion Fairchild 24

11

MY 35 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR Before I get carried away with my love affair I would

like to take this opportunity to thank you all for the treashysures of mail that have reached me since the publication of of the Howard story

The following letter is most precious and I felt it should be shared by everyone

Los Angeles California August 22 1974

Dear Nick Thank you for sending me a copy of the story - article

- about us and our aeroplanes You told it like it was shyand made it very interesting

I will not argue with you about the Howards being one of the greatest Do you know that there are several of them out here still flying As a matter of fact at one time there was a Howard Club - all members owned and

flew the Howard Again thank you very much for everything you wrote

and feel Best personal regards (signed) Mike Howard (Mrs Ben O Howard)

As soon as the Boss allows me a stamp fund Ill try to answer everybody Many letters contain corrections of names photos etc

Let me explain some of these mistakes First Jack Cox should receive a medal of the highest order for his ability and patience in transforming my hieroglyphics into readashyble material (Nick is too modest his material is a pleashysure for me to work with - JBe) His lovely wife Golda has come up with the Rezich Alphabet which helps somewhat but it still takes her two weeks to unscramble the is es ss etc

I love writing to doctors - its my only chance to get

12

REMINISCING WITH BIG NICK Nick Rezich

4213 Centerville Rd Rockford III 61102

even with them Maybe by now you all will understand why some misspelled names sneak in

This past June I made a 5 day whirlwind tour of Calishyfornia visiting some old Howard Aircraft buddies and family friends My first stop was the most significant and the highlight of my trip Sunday morning June 9 dawned sunny and warm in Frisco where I picked up a rental car for my tour to LA An hour and a half out of Frisco I pulled into the Palo Alto Airport where I met Larry Low a gungshyho EAAer and antiquer whom Ihad never met before but knew well from our letter exchanges

Standing in front of his hangar we exchanged family introductions - all but one the one behind the hangar doors I was really getting antsy and it showed as I kept pushing on the locked doors Larry finally got the message and we opened the doors There she stood my love - a majestic lady in all her pomp and glory The last time I held her in my hand was almost 30 years ago to the day With moist eyes I walked up and laid a very gentle hand on the door latch and introduced my wife of 23 years and mother of 3 to my first love affair a Culver Cadet which I bought new 34 years ago NC 20926 Serial Number 106

Larry Low has her dressed up in the latest fashion urethane paint tinted one piece windshield carpeting starter generator nav-com ELT chrome gear landing nav and strobe lights plus one hell of a lot of tender lovshying care After 34 years I could not find a wrinkle in her skin anywhere I thought I had a show stopper when I owned it but you should see it now This fellow Larry has put much effort time and money into this priceless jewel Oh sure I made a pass at him - but he quickly inshyformed me of others that are available but not my love - at any price

This whole affair started back in 1939 when the aviation industry was still reeling from the blow of the depression The surviving companies and some new ones were all pushing new models The route to recovery was paved with many new designs The OX-5 powered machines had all been turned out to the pasture for a graceful and well earned retirement

cockpit check then we headed for my home back in ChishyThe machines of 39 all sported round engines or the cago During the drive Art explained the gear details andnew flat opposed 4s all air cooled Prices ranged from

$99000 for the Cub to $5200000 for the executive Lockshy the flight characteristics By the time we reached home I

heed 12 The most advanced airplane was on the drawing boards in a small plant located in Columbus Ohio

The genius behind the slide rule was AI Mooney who was known to many in the industry as a very bright inshygenious engineer

When Al Mooney announced he was building a 2-place airplane with retractable gear that would cruise at 120 mph top 140 mph have a service ceiling of 17000 feet a cruisshying range of 1050 miles with a 15 gallon aux tank and all this while powered by only 75 h p and selling for under $300000 he lifted many eyebrows - including mine

I anxiously wal~ed to see what this new design of Mooneys would 10 -k like I went to the Columbus Ohio plant on the prete se of buying a Dart hoping to get a glimpse of the new ulver It didnt work After two days all I got was a lot of rumors and no peek-a-boo Before I left I made a deal with a friend of mine to send me a snapshyshop of the prototype as soon as it was rolled out of asshysembly

With the coming of fall and winter came my photo WOW When I saw what that little jewel looked like I made up my mind right then and there - I had to have one I ordered one without even having a ride in one The price was $247500 I received the 6th one built Serial Number 106 NC 20926 A blue and silver paint job was stock

The late Art Carnahan of Monocoach fame was the area dealer and he delivered my new Culver as far as Joliet Illishynois where the snow stopped him I drove in a snow storm to Joliet to pick up Art and view my new jewel There she sat in front of the hangar like a Thompson racer waiting for the starters flag to drop ---------shy

I don t think I knew what the word thrilled meant until that cold evening in Joliet when I opened the cabin door and tried that Culver on for size Art gave me a fast

was ready for the races To knock off ~he chilI of the drive my mother poured

us some of our best hom~made wine which was followed by a fiesta supper After supper and a gallon of wine later

I stuffed Arts pockets with $200000 in fives tens and twenties and put him on a train for the trip back to Bloomshyington lliinois his home town

My first flight in the new Cadet was two weeks later when the weather cleared Up to that time I had been flyshying Travel Airs Pitcairns a Laird Bellancas Stinsons Porterfields Rearwins Cubs Howards etc and from what Art told me none of the above flew like the Cadet My brother helped me roll it out of the hangar pre-flight it and cranked me

As I taxied out I tried to remember everything Art had told me about the Cadets handling It felt good and solid while taxiing and when I got to the runway I was ready I set the tab at zero and poured the coal on The take-off was smooth and straigh t ~

I le ft the pattern and started to climb to altitude for some turns and stalls In the next 20 seconds I learned all about the Culvers sensitive flippers I reached up to trim it for climb so I could concentrate on the gear reshytraction Well When I gave the trim handle the usual husky crank all hell broke loose The nose shot up r pushed forward on the stick and went up against the roof I pulled ~ack and r was pushed a foot down into the cushion A90ther push forward back on the roof r finally got the message and stabilized and started FLYshyINC it

I left the gear down and climbed to 3000 feet where I practiced medium and steep turns slow flight and some stalls The more I flew it the better I liked it Now I trimmed it for hands off and cycled the gear a few times All went well so I headed for Willie Howells airport on

_ (Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nicks Culver Cadet at Howell Airport (on the south side of Chicago) when the racy little two seater was brand spanking new Notice the ground adjustable Freedman-Burnham prop

(Photo by Ted Kaston)

Right - Fred Bergs fine reshyproduction of a Fokker D VII

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Charlotte Parishs beautiful Stearman N2S-S

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Above - J P Jordan and K G Hofschneider of Clark New Jersey were back again this year in their beautifully restored Tiger Moth

9

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

ANTIQUE GRAND CHAMPION WINNER

By Bill Hodges

The EAA International Convention and Fly-In Grand Champion Antique for 1974 is a very deserving and outshystanding aircraft - a Fairchild 24R46A Proud owners of N-77661 which carries Serial Number 361 are Dick Buck Jud Gudehous and Tom Leonhardt of Lambertville Michishygan

The owners had been looking for a 4-place airplane and discovered their Fairchild sitting neglected on an airport in Lima Ohio In talking with the owner they discovered that the plane had not been flown in over a year An examshyination showed however that it was ferriable and the purshychase was concluded in July 1970 The Fairchild was flown home and by September it had been completely dismanshytled Everything that could come off did Then the slow process of rebuilding it from the ground up began Everyshything that could be replaced with new parts was and where replacement parts were unavailable they were either reshybuilt to standard specs or built from scratch New parts were available in some degree from Thor Solberg Aviation located in New Jersey However they did have the 200 hp Ranger engine overhauled in Toledo Ohio Stits Poly-Fiber was used for the new cover with urethane enamel for the build up A special mixture of yellow was used for the final color coats

What about the background on the owners of this years Grand Champ

Richard L Dick Buck (EAA 85184) was a radar operashytor in the U S Navy during World War II and was asshySigned to a Destroyer Escort After the war he took flight training under the G 1 Bill and soloed in a Piper J-3 Cub in 1949 Dick owned and flew a Cessna 140A that he had refinished himself prior to going into partnership on the Fairchild Dick has been a bindery and paper salesman for some time now

Jud Gudehous entered the U S Army Air Force in 1942 as an Aviation Cadet and made his way through Stearshymans BT-13s and Cessna Bamboo Bombers before eventually winding up in Consolidated B-24 Liberators as a bomber pilot Jud put in 20 missions over Europe beshyfore World War II ended Jud also owned a Cessna 140 prior to his partnership purchase of the Fairchild Now 54 he is owner of an Optical Laboratory in Toledo Ohio

Tom Leonhardt (EAA 10981) has always been interestshyed in airplanes It wasn t until 1958 at age 33 that the opshyportunity to learn to fly came about however Tom soloed in an Aeronca Champion in Milan Michigan and has been flying ever since Unlike Dick and Jud Tom chose a Luscombe 8A to rebuild and had many pleasant hours in

10

it before becoming involved with the Fairchild Tom is a structural engineer and like Jud owns his own firm

In inquiring about their trip to the Fly-In this year I asked if it were routine or adverturesome The answer was routine other than they did have to puddle jump from one airport to another due to the bad weather around Chishycago at the time

Oh yes the time of restoration took until June of 1974 to complete - 3 years and 9 months

SPECIFICATIONS

Wing Span 36 ft 4 in Length 26 ft 0 in Height 7 ft 7V2 in

Wing Area 1933 sq ft Power Loading 123 Ibhp Wing Loading 122 Ib sq ft Empty Weight 1613 Ibs Useful Load 949 Ibs Gross Weight 2562 Ibs Fuel 60 gals Oil 41 gals Maximum Speed 133 mph Cruising Speed 118 mph Landing Speed 57 mph Service Ceiling 14000 ft Rate of Climb 560 ft min Cruising Range 620 miles

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Above - The 24 and its ancestor the Fairchild 22

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - Instrument panel of the 74 Grand Champion Fairchild 24

11

MY 35 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR Before I get carried away with my love affair I would

like to take this opportunity to thank you all for the treashysures of mail that have reached me since the publication of of the Howard story

The following letter is most precious and I felt it should be shared by everyone

Los Angeles California August 22 1974

Dear Nick Thank you for sending me a copy of the story - article

- about us and our aeroplanes You told it like it was shyand made it very interesting

I will not argue with you about the Howards being one of the greatest Do you know that there are several of them out here still flying As a matter of fact at one time there was a Howard Club - all members owned and

flew the Howard Again thank you very much for everything you wrote

and feel Best personal regards (signed) Mike Howard (Mrs Ben O Howard)

As soon as the Boss allows me a stamp fund Ill try to answer everybody Many letters contain corrections of names photos etc

Let me explain some of these mistakes First Jack Cox should receive a medal of the highest order for his ability and patience in transforming my hieroglyphics into readashyble material (Nick is too modest his material is a pleashysure for me to work with - JBe) His lovely wife Golda has come up with the Rezich Alphabet which helps somewhat but it still takes her two weeks to unscramble the is es ss etc

I love writing to doctors - its my only chance to get

12

REMINISCING WITH BIG NICK Nick Rezich

4213 Centerville Rd Rockford III 61102

even with them Maybe by now you all will understand why some misspelled names sneak in

This past June I made a 5 day whirlwind tour of Calishyfornia visiting some old Howard Aircraft buddies and family friends My first stop was the most significant and the highlight of my trip Sunday morning June 9 dawned sunny and warm in Frisco where I picked up a rental car for my tour to LA An hour and a half out of Frisco I pulled into the Palo Alto Airport where I met Larry Low a gungshyho EAAer and antiquer whom Ihad never met before but knew well from our letter exchanges

Standing in front of his hangar we exchanged family introductions - all but one the one behind the hangar doors I was really getting antsy and it showed as I kept pushing on the locked doors Larry finally got the message and we opened the doors There she stood my love - a majestic lady in all her pomp and glory The last time I held her in my hand was almost 30 years ago to the day With moist eyes I walked up and laid a very gentle hand on the door latch and introduced my wife of 23 years and mother of 3 to my first love affair a Culver Cadet which I bought new 34 years ago NC 20926 Serial Number 106

Larry Low has her dressed up in the latest fashion urethane paint tinted one piece windshield carpeting starter generator nav-com ELT chrome gear landing nav and strobe lights plus one hell of a lot of tender lovshying care After 34 years I could not find a wrinkle in her skin anywhere I thought I had a show stopper when I owned it but you should see it now This fellow Larry has put much effort time and money into this priceless jewel Oh sure I made a pass at him - but he quickly inshyformed me of others that are available but not my love - at any price

This whole affair started back in 1939 when the aviation industry was still reeling from the blow of the depression The surviving companies and some new ones were all pushing new models The route to recovery was paved with many new designs The OX-5 powered machines had all been turned out to the pasture for a graceful and well earned retirement

cockpit check then we headed for my home back in ChishyThe machines of 39 all sported round engines or the cago During the drive Art explained the gear details andnew flat opposed 4s all air cooled Prices ranged from

$99000 for the Cub to $5200000 for the executive Lockshy the flight characteristics By the time we reached home I

heed 12 The most advanced airplane was on the drawing boards in a small plant located in Columbus Ohio

The genius behind the slide rule was AI Mooney who was known to many in the industry as a very bright inshygenious engineer

When Al Mooney announced he was building a 2-place airplane with retractable gear that would cruise at 120 mph top 140 mph have a service ceiling of 17000 feet a cruisshying range of 1050 miles with a 15 gallon aux tank and all this while powered by only 75 h p and selling for under $300000 he lifted many eyebrows - including mine

I anxiously wal~ed to see what this new design of Mooneys would 10 -k like I went to the Columbus Ohio plant on the prete se of buying a Dart hoping to get a glimpse of the new ulver It didnt work After two days all I got was a lot of rumors and no peek-a-boo Before I left I made a deal with a friend of mine to send me a snapshyshop of the prototype as soon as it was rolled out of asshysembly

With the coming of fall and winter came my photo WOW When I saw what that little jewel looked like I made up my mind right then and there - I had to have one I ordered one without even having a ride in one The price was $247500 I received the 6th one built Serial Number 106 NC 20926 A blue and silver paint job was stock

The late Art Carnahan of Monocoach fame was the area dealer and he delivered my new Culver as far as Joliet Illishynois where the snow stopped him I drove in a snow storm to Joliet to pick up Art and view my new jewel There she sat in front of the hangar like a Thompson racer waiting for the starters flag to drop ---------shy

I don t think I knew what the word thrilled meant until that cold evening in Joliet when I opened the cabin door and tried that Culver on for size Art gave me a fast

was ready for the races To knock off ~he chilI of the drive my mother poured

us some of our best hom~made wine which was followed by a fiesta supper After supper and a gallon of wine later

I stuffed Arts pockets with $200000 in fives tens and twenties and put him on a train for the trip back to Bloomshyington lliinois his home town

My first flight in the new Cadet was two weeks later when the weather cleared Up to that time I had been flyshying Travel Airs Pitcairns a Laird Bellancas Stinsons Porterfields Rearwins Cubs Howards etc and from what Art told me none of the above flew like the Cadet My brother helped me roll it out of the hangar pre-flight it and cranked me

As I taxied out I tried to remember everything Art had told me about the Cadets handling It felt good and solid while taxiing and when I got to the runway I was ready I set the tab at zero and poured the coal on The take-off was smooth and straigh t ~

I le ft the pattern and started to climb to altitude for some turns and stalls In the next 20 seconds I learned all about the Culvers sensitive flippers I reached up to trim it for climb so I could concentrate on the gear reshytraction Well When I gave the trim handle the usual husky crank all hell broke loose The nose shot up r pushed forward on the stick and went up against the roof I pulled ~ack and r was pushed a foot down into the cushion A90ther push forward back on the roof r finally got the message and stabilized and started FLYshyINC it

I left the gear down and climbed to 3000 feet where I practiced medium and steep turns slow flight and some stalls The more I flew it the better I liked it Now I trimmed it for hands off and cycled the gear a few times All went well so I headed for Willie Howells airport on

_ (Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nicks Culver Cadet at Howell Airport (on the south side of Chicago) when the racy little two seater was brand spanking new Notice the ground adjustable Freedman-Burnham prop

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

ANTIQUE GRAND CHAMPION WINNER

By Bill Hodges

The EAA International Convention and Fly-In Grand Champion Antique for 1974 is a very deserving and outshystanding aircraft - a Fairchild 24R46A Proud owners of N-77661 which carries Serial Number 361 are Dick Buck Jud Gudehous and Tom Leonhardt of Lambertville Michishygan

The owners had been looking for a 4-place airplane and discovered their Fairchild sitting neglected on an airport in Lima Ohio In talking with the owner they discovered that the plane had not been flown in over a year An examshyination showed however that it was ferriable and the purshychase was concluded in July 1970 The Fairchild was flown home and by September it had been completely dismanshytled Everything that could come off did Then the slow process of rebuilding it from the ground up began Everyshything that could be replaced with new parts was and where replacement parts were unavailable they were either reshybuilt to standard specs or built from scratch New parts were available in some degree from Thor Solberg Aviation located in New Jersey However they did have the 200 hp Ranger engine overhauled in Toledo Ohio Stits Poly-Fiber was used for the new cover with urethane enamel for the build up A special mixture of yellow was used for the final color coats

What about the background on the owners of this years Grand Champ

Richard L Dick Buck (EAA 85184) was a radar operashytor in the U S Navy during World War II and was asshySigned to a Destroyer Escort After the war he took flight training under the G 1 Bill and soloed in a Piper J-3 Cub in 1949 Dick owned and flew a Cessna 140A that he had refinished himself prior to going into partnership on the Fairchild Dick has been a bindery and paper salesman for some time now

Jud Gudehous entered the U S Army Air Force in 1942 as an Aviation Cadet and made his way through Stearshymans BT-13s and Cessna Bamboo Bombers before eventually winding up in Consolidated B-24 Liberators as a bomber pilot Jud put in 20 missions over Europe beshyfore World War II ended Jud also owned a Cessna 140 prior to his partnership purchase of the Fairchild Now 54 he is owner of an Optical Laboratory in Toledo Ohio

Tom Leonhardt (EAA 10981) has always been interestshyed in airplanes It wasn t until 1958 at age 33 that the opshyportunity to learn to fly came about however Tom soloed in an Aeronca Champion in Milan Michigan and has been flying ever since Unlike Dick and Jud Tom chose a Luscombe 8A to rebuild and had many pleasant hours in

10

it before becoming involved with the Fairchild Tom is a structural engineer and like Jud owns his own firm

In inquiring about their trip to the Fly-In this year I asked if it were routine or adverturesome The answer was routine other than they did have to puddle jump from one airport to another due to the bad weather around Chishycago at the time

Oh yes the time of restoration took until June of 1974 to complete - 3 years and 9 months

SPECIFICATIONS

Wing Span 36 ft 4 in Length 26 ft 0 in Height 7 ft 7V2 in

Wing Area 1933 sq ft Power Loading 123 Ibhp Wing Loading 122 Ib sq ft Empty Weight 1613 Ibs Useful Load 949 Ibs Gross Weight 2562 Ibs Fuel 60 gals Oil 41 gals Maximum Speed 133 mph Cruising Speed 118 mph Landing Speed 57 mph Service Ceiling 14000 ft Rate of Climb 560 ft min Cruising Range 620 miles

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Above - The 24 and its ancestor the Fairchild 22

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - Instrument panel of the 74 Grand Champion Fairchild 24

11

MY 35 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR Before I get carried away with my love affair I would

like to take this opportunity to thank you all for the treashysures of mail that have reached me since the publication of of the Howard story

The following letter is most precious and I felt it should be shared by everyone

Los Angeles California August 22 1974

Dear Nick Thank you for sending me a copy of the story - article

- about us and our aeroplanes You told it like it was shyand made it very interesting

I will not argue with you about the Howards being one of the greatest Do you know that there are several of them out here still flying As a matter of fact at one time there was a Howard Club - all members owned and

flew the Howard Again thank you very much for everything you wrote

and feel Best personal regards (signed) Mike Howard (Mrs Ben O Howard)

As soon as the Boss allows me a stamp fund Ill try to answer everybody Many letters contain corrections of names photos etc

Let me explain some of these mistakes First Jack Cox should receive a medal of the highest order for his ability and patience in transforming my hieroglyphics into readashyble material (Nick is too modest his material is a pleashysure for me to work with - JBe) His lovely wife Golda has come up with the Rezich Alphabet which helps somewhat but it still takes her two weeks to unscramble the is es ss etc

I love writing to doctors - its my only chance to get

12

REMINISCING WITH BIG NICK Nick Rezich

4213 Centerville Rd Rockford III 61102

even with them Maybe by now you all will understand why some misspelled names sneak in

This past June I made a 5 day whirlwind tour of Calishyfornia visiting some old Howard Aircraft buddies and family friends My first stop was the most significant and the highlight of my trip Sunday morning June 9 dawned sunny and warm in Frisco where I picked up a rental car for my tour to LA An hour and a half out of Frisco I pulled into the Palo Alto Airport where I met Larry Low a gungshyho EAAer and antiquer whom Ihad never met before but knew well from our letter exchanges

Standing in front of his hangar we exchanged family introductions - all but one the one behind the hangar doors I was really getting antsy and it showed as I kept pushing on the locked doors Larry finally got the message and we opened the doors There she stood my love - a majestic lady in all her pomp and glory The last time I held her in my hand was almost 30 years ago to the day With moist eyes I walked up and laid a very gentle hand on the door latch and introduced my wife of 23 years and mother of 3 to my first love affair a Culver Cadet which I bought new 34 years ago NC 20926 Serial Number 106

Larry Low has her dressed up in the latest fashion urethane paint tinted one piece windshield carpeting starter generator nav-com ELT chrome gear landing nav and strobe lights plus one hell of a lot of tender lovshying care After 34 years I could not find a wrinkle in her skin anywhere I thought I had a show stopper when I owned it but you should see it now This fellow Larry has put much effort time and money into this priceless jewel Oh sure I made a pass at him - but he quickly inshyformed me of others that are available but not my love - at any price

This whole affair started back in 1939 when the aviation industry was still reeling from the blow of the depression The surviving companies and some new ones were all pushing new models The route to recovery was paved with many new designs The OX-5 powered machines had all been turned out to the pasture for a graceful and well earned retirement

cockpit check then we headed for my home back in ChishyThe machines of 39 all sported round engines or the cago During the drive Art explained the gear details andnew flat opposed 4s all air cooled Prices ranged from

$99000 for the Cub to $5200000 for the executive Lockshy the flight characteristics By the time we reached home I

heed 12 The most advanced airplane was on the drawing boards in a small plant located in Columbus Ohio

The genius behind the slide rule was AI Mooney who was known to many in the industry as a very bright inshygenious engineer

When Al Mooney announced he was building a 2-place airplane with retractable gear that would cruise at 120 mph top 140 mph have a service ceiling of 17000 feet a cruisshying range of 1050 miles with a 15 gallon aux tank and all this while powered by only 75 h p and selling for under $300000 he lifted many eyebrows - including mine

I anxiously wal~ed to see what this new design of Mooneys would 10 -k like I went to the Columbus Ohio plant on the prete se of buying a Dart hoping to get a glimpse of the new ulver It didnt work After two days all I got was a lot of rumors and no peek-a-boo Before I left I made a deal with a friend of mine to send me a snapshyshop of the prototype as soon as it was rolled out of asshysembly

With the coming of fall and winter came my photo WOW When I saw what that little jewel looked like I made up my mind right then and there - I had to have one I ordered one without even having a ride in one The price was $247500 I received the 6th one built Serial Number 106 NC 20926 A blue and silver paint job was stock

The late Art Carnahan of Monocoach fame was the area dealer and he delivered my new Culver as far as Joliet Illishynois where the snow stopped him I drove in a snow storm to Joliet to pick up Art and view my new jewel There she sat in front of the hangar like a Thompson racer waiting for the starters flag to drop ---------shy

I don t think I knew what the word thrilled meant until that cold evening in Joliet when I opened the cabin door and tried that Culver on for size Art gave me a fast

was ready for the races To knock off ~he chilI of the drive my mother poured

us some of our best hom~made wine which was followed by a fiesta supper After supper and a gallon of wine later

I stuffed Arts pockets with $200000 in fives tens and twenties and put him on a train for the trip back to Bloomshyington lliinois his home town

My first flight in the new Cadet was two weeks later when the weather cleared Up to that time I had been flyshying Travel Airs Pitcairns a Laird Bellancas Stinsons Porterfields Rearwins Cubs Howards etc and from what Art told me none of the above flew like the Cadet My brother helped me roll it out of the hangar pre-flight it and cranked me

As I taxied out I tried to remember everything Art had told me about the Cadets handling It felt good and solid while taxiing and when I got to the runway I was ready I set the tab at zero and poured the coal on The take-off was smooth and straigh t ~

I le ft the pattern and started to climb to altitude for some turns and stalls In the next 20 seconds I learned all about the Culvers sensitive flippers I reached up to trim it for climb so I could concentrate on the gear reshytraction Well When I gave the trim handle the usual husky crank all hell broke loose The nose shot up r pushed forward on the stick and went up against the roof I pulled ~ack and r was pushed a foot down into the cushion A90ther push forward back on the roof r finally got the message and stabilized and started FLYshyINC it

I left the gear down and climbed to 3000 feet where I practiced medium and steep turns slow flight and some stalls The more I flew it the better I liked it Now I trimmed it for hands off and cycled the gear a few times All went well so I headed for Willie Howells airport on

_ (Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nicks Culver Cadet at Howell Airport (on the south side of Chicago) when the racy little two seater was brand spanking new Notice the ground adjustable Freedman-Burnham prop

it before becoming involved with the Fairchild Tom is a structural engineer and like Jud owns his own firm

In inquiring about their trip to the Fly-In this year I asked if it were routine or adverturesome The answer was routine other than they did have to puddle jump from one airport to another due to the bad weather around Chishycago at the time

Oh yes the time of restoration took until June of 1974 to complete - 3 years and 9 months

SPECIFICATIONS

Wing Span 36 ft 4 in Length 26 ft 0 in Height 7 ft 7V2 in

Wing Area 1933 sq ft Power Loading 123 Ibhp Wing Loading 122 Ib sq ft Empty Weight 1613 Ibs Useful Load 949 Ibs Gross Weight 2562 Ibs Fuel 60 gals Oil 41 gals Maximum Speed 133 mph Cruising Speed 118 mph Landing Speed 57 mph Service Ceiling 14000 ft Rate of Climb 560 ft min Cruising Range 620 miles

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Above - The 24 and its ancestor the Fairchild 22

(Photo by Ted Koston)

Left - Instrument panel of the 74 Grand Champion Fairchild 24

11

MY 35 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR Before I get carried away with my love affair I would

like to take this opportunity to thank you all for the treashysures of mail that have reached me since the publication of of the Howard story

The following letter is most precious and I felt it should be shared by everyone

Los Angeles California August 22 1974

Dear Nick Thank you for sending me a copy of the story - article

- about us and our aeroplanes You told it like it was shyand made it very interesting

I will not argue with you about the Howards being one of the greatest Do you know that there are several of them out here still flying As a matter of fact at one time there was a Howard Club - all members owned and

flew the Howard Again thank you very much for everything you wrote

and feel Best personal regards (signed) Mike Howard (Mrs Ben O Howard)

As soon as the Boss allows me a stamp fund Ill try to answer everybody Many letters contain corrections of names photos etc

Let me explain some of these mistakes First Jack Cox should receive a medal of the highest order for his ability and patience in transforming my hieroglyphics into readashyble material (Nick is too modest his material is a pleashysure for me to work with - JBe) His lovely wife Golda has come up with the Rezich Alphabet which helps somewhat but it still takes her two weeks to unscramble the is es ss etc

I love writing to doctors - its my only chance to get

12

REMINISCING WITH BIG NICK Nick Rezich

4213 Centerville Rd Rockford III 61102

even with them Maybe by now you all will understand why some misspelled names sneak in

This past June I made a 5 day whirlwind tour of Calishyfornia visiting some old Howard Aircraft buddies and family friends My first stop was the most significant and the highlight of my trip Sunday morning June 9 dawned sunny and warm in Frisco where I picked up a rental car for my tour to LA An hour and a half out of Frisco I pulled into the Palo Alto Airport where I met Larry Low a gungshyho EAAer and antiquer whom Ihad never met before but knew well from our letter exchanges

Standing in front of his hangar we exchanged family introductions - all but one the one behind the hangar doors I was really getting antsy and it showed as I kept pushing on the locked doors Larry finally got the message and we opened the doors There she stood my love - a majestic lady in all her pomp and glory The last time I held her in my hand was almost 30 years ago to the day With moist eyes I walked up and laid a very gentle hand on the door latch and introduced my wife of 23 years and mother of 3 to my first love affair a Culver Cadet which I bought new 34 years ago NC 20926 Serial Number 106

Larry Low has her dressed up in the latest fashion urethane paint tinted one piece windshield carpeting starter generator nav-com ELT chrome gear landing nav and strobe lights plus one hell of a lot of tender lovshying care After 34 years I could not find a wrinkle in her skin anywhere I thought I had a show stopper when I owned it but you should see it now This fellow Larry has put much effort time and money into this priceless jewel Oh sure I made a pass at him - but he quickly inshyformed me of others that are available but not my love - at any price

This whole affair started back in 1939 when the aviation industry was still reeling from the blow of the depression The surviving companies and some new ones were all pushing new models The route to recovery was paved with many new designs The OX-5 powered machines had all been turned out to the pasture for a graceful and well earned retirement

cockpit check then we headed for my home back in ChishyThe machines of 39 all sported round engines or the cago During the drive Art explained the gear details andnew flat opposed 4s all air cooled Prices ranged from

$99000 for the Cub to $5200000 for the executive Lockshy the flight characteristics By the time we reached home I

heed 12 The most advanced airplane was on the drawing boards in a small plant located in Columbus Ohio

The genius behind the slide rule was AI Mooney who was known to many in the industry as a very bright inshygenious engineer

When Al Mooney announced he was building a 2-place airplane with retractable gear that would cruise at 120 mph top 140 mph have a service ceiling of 17000 feet a cruisshying range of 1050 miles with a 15 gallon aux tank and all this while powered by only 75 h p and selling for under $300000 he lifted many eyebrows - including mine

I anxiously wal~ed to see what this new design of Mooneys would 10 -k like I went to the Columbus Ohio plant on the prete se of buying a Dart hoping to get a glimpse of the new ulver It didnt work After two days all I got was a lot of rumors and no peek-a-boo Before I left I made a deal with a friend of mine to send me a snapshyshop of the prototype as soon as it was rolled out of asshysembly

With the coming of fall and winter came my photo WOW When I saw what that little jewel looked like I made up my mind right then and there - I had to have one I ordered one without even having a ride in one The price was $247500 I received the 6th one built Serial Number 106 NC 20926 A blue and silver paint job was stock

The late Art Carnahan of Monocoach fame was the area dealer and he delivered my new Culver as far as Joliet Illishynois where the snow stopped him I drove in a snow storm to Joliet to pick up Art and view my new jewel There she sat in front of the hangar like a Thompson racer waiting for the starters flag to drop ---------shy

I don t think I knew what the word thrilled meant until that cold evening in Joliet when I opened the cabin door and tried that Culver on for size Art gave me a fast

was ready for the races To knock off ~he chilI of the drive my mother poured

us some of our best hom~made wine which was followed by a fiesta supper After supper and a gallon of wine later

I stuffed Arts pockets with $200000 in fives tens and twenties and put him on a train for the trip back to Bloomshyington lliinois his home town

My first flight in the new Cadet was two weeks later when the weather cleared Up to that time I had been flyshying Travel Airs Pitcairns a Laird Bellancas Stinsons Porterfields Rearwins Cubs Howards etc and from what Art told me none of the above flew like the Cadet My brother helped me roll it out of the hangar pre-flight it and cranked me

As I taxied out I tried to remember everything Art had told me about the Cadets handling It felt good and solid while taxiing and when I got to the runway I was ready I set the tab at zero and poured the coal on The take-off was smooth and straigh t ~

I le ft the pattern and started to climb to altitude for some turns and stalls In the next 20 seconds I learned all about the Culvers sensitive flippers I reached up to trim it for climb so I could concentrate on the gear reshytraction Well When I gave the trim handle the usual husky crank all hell broke loose The nose shot up r pushed forward on the stick and went up against the roof I pulled ~ack and r was pushed a foot down into the cushion A90ther push forward back on the roof r finally got the message and stabilized and started FLYshyINC it

I left the gear down and climbed to 3000 feet where I practiced medium and steep turns slow flight and some stalls The more I flew it the better I liked it Now I trimmed it for hands off and cycled the gear a few times All went well so I headed for Willie Howells airport on

_ (Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nicks Culver Cadet at Howell Airport (on the south side of Chicago) when the racy little two seater was brand spanking new Notice the ground adjustable Freedman-Burnham prop

MY 35 YEAR LOVE AFFAIR Before I get carried away with my love affair I would

like to take this opportunity to thank you all for the treashysures of mail that have reached me since the publication of of the Howard story

The following letter is most precious and I felt it should be shared by everyone

Los Angeles California August 22 1974

Dear Nick Thank you for sending me a copy of the story - article

- about us and our aeroplanes You told it like it was shyand made it very interesting

I will not argue with you about the Howards being one of the greatest Do you know that there are several of them out here still flying As a matter of fact at one time there was a Howard Club - all members owned and

flew the Howard Again thank you very much for everything you wrote

and feel Best personal regards (signed) Mike Howard (Mrs Ben O Howard)

As soon as the Boss allows me a stamp fund Ill try to answer everybody Many letters contain corrections of names photos etc

Let me explain some of these mistakes First Jack Cox should receive a medal of the highest order for his ability and patience in transforming my hieroglyphics into readashyble material (Nick is too modest his material is a pleashysure for me to work with - JBe) His lovely wife Golda has come up with the Rezich Alphabet which helps somewhat but it still takes her two weeks to unscramble the is es ss etc

I love writing to doctors - its my only chance to get

12

REMINISCING WITH BIG NICK Nick Rezich

4213 Centerville Rd Rockford III 61102

even with them Maybe by now you all will understand why some misspelled names sneak in

This past June I made a 5 day whirlwind tour of Calishyfornia visiting some old Howard Aircraft buddies and family friends My first stop was the most significant and the highlight of my trip Sunday morning June 9 dawned sunny and warm in Frisco where I picked up a rental car for my tour to LA An hour and a half out of Frisco I pulled into the Palo Alto Airport where I met Larry Low a gungshyho EAAer and antiquer whom Ihad never met before but knew well from our letter exchanges

Standing in front of his hangar we exchanged family introductions - all but one the one behind the hangar doors I was really getting antsy and it showed as I kept pushing on the locked doors Larry finally got the message and we opened the doors There she stood my love - a majestic lady in all her pomp and glory The last time I held her in my hand was almost 30 years ago to the day With moist eyes I walked up and laid a very gentle hand on the door latch and introduced my wife of 23 years and mother of 3 to my first love affair a Culver Cadet which I bought new 34 years ago NC 20926 Serial Number 106

Larry Low has her dressed up in the latest fashion urethane paint tinted one piece windshield carpeting starter generator nav-com ELT chrome gear landing nav and strobe lights plus one hell of a lot of tender lovshying care After 34 years I could not find a wrinkle in her skin anywhere I thought I had a show stopper when I owned it but you should see it now This fellow Larry has put much effort time and money into this priceless jewel Oh sure I made a pass at him - but he quickly inshyformed me of others that are available but not my love - at any price

This whole affair started back in 1939 when the aviation industry was still reeling from the blow of the depression The surviving companies and some new ones were all pushing new models The route to recovery was paved with many new designs The OX-5 powered machines had all been turned out to the pasture for a graceful and well earned retirement

cockpit check then we headed for my home back in ChishyThe machines of 39 all sported round engines or the cago During the drive Art explained the gear details andnew flat opposed 4s all air cooled Prices ranged from

$99000 for the Cub to $5200000 for the executive Lockshy the flight characteristics By the time we reached home I

heed 12 The most advanced airplane was on the drawing boards in a small plant located in Columbus Ohio

The genius behind the slide rule was AI Mooney who was known to many in the industry as a very bright inshygenious engineer

When Al Mooney announced he was building a 2-place airplane with retractable gear that would cruise at 120 mph top 140 mph have a service ceiling of 17000 feet a cruisshying range of 1050 miles with a 15 gallon aux tank and all this while powered by only 75 h p and selling for under $300000 he lifted many eyebrows - including mine

I anxiously wal~ed to see what this new design of Mooneys would 10 -k like I went to the Columbus Ohio plant on the prete se of buying a Dart hoping to get a glimpse of the new ulver It didnt work After two days all I got was a lot of rumors and no peek-a-boo Before I left I made a deal with a friend of mine to send me a snapshyshop of the prototype as soon as it was rolled out of asshysembly

With the coming of fall and winter came my photo WOW When I saw what that little jewel looked like I made up my mind right then and there - I had to have one I ordered one without even having a ride in one The price was $247500 I received the 6th one built Serial Number 106 NC 20926 A blue and silver paint job was stock

The late Art Carnahan of Monocoach fame was the area dealer and he delivered my new Culver as far as Joliet Illishynois where the snow stopped him I drove in a snow storm to Joliet to pick up Art and view my new jewel There she sat in front of the hangar like a Thompson racer waiting for the starters flag to drop ---------shy

I don t think I knew what the word thrilled meant until that cold evening in Joliet when I opened the cabin door and tried that Culver on for size Art gave me a fast

was ready for the races To knock off ~he chilI of the drive my mother poured

us some of our best hom~made wine which was followed by a fiesta supper After supper and a gallon of wine later

I stuffed Arts pockets with $200000 in fives tens and twenties and put him on a train for the trip back to Bloomshyington lliinois his home town

My first flight in the new Cadet was two weeks later when the weather cleared Up to that time I had been flyshying Travel Airs Pitcairns a Laird Bellancas Stinsons Porterfields Rearwins Cubs Howards etc and from what Art told me none of the above flew like the Cadet My brother helped me roll it out of the hangar pre-flight it and cranked me

As I taxied out I tried to remember everything Art had told me about the Cadets handling It felt good and solid while taxiing and when I got to the runway I was ready I set the tab at zero and poured the coal on The take-off was smooth and straigh t ~

I le ft the pattern and started to climb to altitude for some turns and stalls In the next 20 seconds I learned all about the Culvers sensitive flippers I reached up to trim it for climb so I could concentrate on the gear reshytraction Well When I gave the trim handle the usual husky crank all hell broke loose The nose shot up r pushed forward on the stick and went up against the roof I pulled ~ack and r was pushed a foot down into the cushion A90ther push forward back on the roof r finally got the message and stabilized and started FLYshyINC it

I left the gear down and climbed to 3000 feet where I practiced medium and steep turns slow flight and some stalls The more I flew it the better I liked it Now I trimmed it for hands off and cycled the gear a few times All went well so I headed for Willie Howells airport on

_ (Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nicks Culver Cadet at Howell Airport (on the south side of Chicago) when the racy little two seater was brand spanking new Notice the ground adjustable Freedman-Burnham prop

cockpit check then we headed for my home back in ChishyThe machines of 39 all sported round engines or the cago During the drive Art explained the gear details andnew flat opposed 4s all air cooled Prices ranged from

$99000 for the Cub to $5200000 for the executive Lockshy the flight characteristics By the time we reached home I

heed 12 The most advanced airplane was on the drawing boards in a small plant located in Columbus Ohio

The genius behind the slide rule was AI Mooney who was known to many in the industry as a very bright inshygenious engineer

When Al Mooney announced he was building a 2-place airplane with retractable gear that would cruise at 120 mph top 140 mph have a service ceiling of 17000 feet a cruisshying range of 1050 miles with a 15 gallon aux tank and all this while powered by only 75 h p and selling for under $300000 he lifted many eyebrows - including mine

I anxiously wal~ed to see what this new design of Mooneys would 10 -k like I went to the Columbus Ohio plant on the prete se of buying a Dart hoping to get a glimpse of the new ulver It didnt work After two days all I got was a lot of rumors and no peek-a-boo Before I left I made a deal with a friend of mine to send me a snapshyshop of the prototype as soon as it was rolled out of asshysembly

With the coming of fall and winter came my photo WOW When I saw what that little jewel looked like I made up my mind right then and there - I had to have one I ordered one without even having a ride in one The price was $247500 I received the 6th one built Serial Number 106 NC 20926 A blue and silver paint job was stock

The late Art Carnahan of Monocoach fame was the area dealer and he delivered my new Culver as far as Joliet Illishynois where the snow stopped him I drove in a snow storm to Joliet to pick up Art and view my new jewel There she sat in front of the hangar like a Thompson racer waiting for the starters flag to drop ---------shy

I don t think I knew what the word thrilled meant until that cold evening in Joliet when I opened the cabin door and tried that Culver on for size Art gave me a fast

was ready for the races To knock off ~he chilI of the drive my mother poured

us some of our best hom~made wine which was followed by a fiesta supper After supper and a gallon of wine later

I stuffed Arts pockets with $200000 in fives tens and twenties and put him on a train for the trip back to Bloomshyington lliinois his home town

My first flight in the new Cadet was two weeks later when the weather cleared Up to that time I had been flyshying Travel Airs Pitcairns a Laird Bellancas Stinsons Porterfields Rearwins Cubs Howards etc and from what Art told me none of the above flew like the Cadet My brother helped me roll it out of the hangar pre-flight it and cranked me

As I taxied out I tried to remember everything Art had told me about the Cadets handling It felt good and solid while taxiing and when I got to the runway I was ready I set the tab at zero and poured the coal on The take-off was smooth and straigh t ~

I le ft the pattern and started to climb to altitude for some turns and stalls In the next 20 seconds I learned all about the Culvers sensitive flippers I reached up to trim it for climb so I could concentrate on the gear reshytraction Well When I gave the trim handle the usual husky crank all hell broke loose The nose shot up r pushed forward on the stick and went up against the roof I pulled ~ack and r was pushed a foot down into the cushion A90ther push forward back on the roof r finally got the message and stabilized and started FLYshyINC it

I left the gear down and climbed to 3000 feet where I practiced medium and steep turns slow flight and some stalls The more I flew it the better I liked it Now I trimmed it for hands off and cycled the gear a few times All went well so I headed for Willie Howells airport on

_ (Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nicks Culver Cadet at Howell Airport (on the south side of Chicago) when the racy little two seater was brand spanking new Notice the ground adjustable Freedman-Burnham prop

the south side of Chicago where I was to keep it As the airport came into sight I dropped the nose and let it boil I went over the office indicating 170 mph and this brought everyone out so I did it again followed by a steep climbshying tum I was really getting my jollies

I dropped the gear checked the lock and started in to land on the 1800 feet of solid runway the Cubs were using With that gang out there watching I couldnt afford to goof the first landing I dragged it in and put it on three point using about 1200 feet The roll out was like a Cub I taxied in shut down and stepped out the hero of the airport I had the fastest newest cleanest most advanced airplane on the airport

I flew that little dude all over the country until I went into the service in June of 1944 My biggest maintenance bill was for wax I would wax it every weekend before flyshying it

I had no intention of selling the Cadet when I went into service I checked Willie Howell out in it and told him to give rides in it until I returned I was home on furlough after completing my basic training when I received a phone call from a fellow from Wellington Kansas He informed me he was in town to buy my Cadet I laughed and told him no way - not for sale and that ended that I thought

The following Sunday I was out to the airport flying the bird when this same fellow from Kansas pulls in with a cab and announces hes come to pick up the Cadet We went through the whole scene again only this time he added the green He started peeling off the Big Ones and when he had $350000 laying there I changed my mind and said OK its yours He still had a fist full left and was willing to part with it

I asked him if he wanted to go through the log books and look the plane over He answered Hell I know this airplane as well as you do I had raced this airplane and never lost to anyone thanks to the help of Sludge Doyle and his Offy factory I had a real hot rod - I was putting out 90 hp with a super thin Freedman-Burnham prop That is why this fellow knew all about my Cadet - he had kept track of it and wanted it for the speed

He turned to Willie and said Fill it up He paid the gas bill threw his bag in the back and said Give me a crank I cranked him up and went to the cockpit to shake his hand and say goodbye As I reached in he handed me a twenty and told me to go have a drink He took off to the west and that was the last I saw of NC 20926 until June of 1974

After I returned from the California visit I bragged so much about myoId Cadet that my son Jim sold his beautishyful J-3 Cub that he soloed in and bought a Culver Cadet Now it will be a battle around our house trying to keep the 01 man out of the kids airplane oh well thats love

My favorite story about the Cadet is a chapter in aviashytion history This particular flight didnt receive the pubshylicity it warranted but BELIEVE-YOU-ME it was historic

It was February 161941 when Dr Cecil Smith and felshylow dentist Dr Joseph Lorenz of Burlingame California took off from Mills Field San Francisco California in a Continental 75 powered Culver Cadet called the Twerp headed for a tour of Central and South America Dr Smith had owned 6 different light planes before buying the Cadet He bought the Twerp for this trip because of its pershyformance and range The only optional equipment bought with the airplane was the 15 gallon aux tank which gave them a cruise range of 1051 miles A Kollsman sensitive altimeter rate of climb and a turn and bank indicator

Their cargo consisted of 12 pounds of maps and papers emergency tools tire pump tie down ropes flotation

gear machette gun and ammunition two gallons of water 15 pounds of beef jerky plus personal luggage consisting of toilet articles socks underwear and cameras yes all that went into the Cadet Oh yes I almost forgot shyboth Dr Smith and Dr Lorenz wore glasses so a spare pair of each was also carried

Now get out your world atlas and ruler and follow this little jewel The first stop out of Frisco was San Diego for their clearance The Twerp was cleared the same as a steamship - Port Bill of Health Cargo Manifest etc The passenger list was eliminated by signing Dr Lorenz on as a crew member The next stop Hermosillo Mexico where they spent the night

Next morning it was on to Mazatlan They covered that leg of 590 miles on 17 gallons of gas Guadalajara was made by nightfall They spent 2 days each in Mexico City Guatemala City and Managua Nicaragua and then flew on to David Panama The next morning after landshying there they phoned (at 700 AM) for permission to enshyter the Panama Canal Zone They received instructions on how to enter the Zone and were given a very explicit route to fly into France Field

It was good that they flew as instructed as they were met at the channel by interceptors and were guided into France Field landing at 930 AM There they were checked thoroughly and were granted permission to fly without cameras over any part of the Zone They left Panama at 200 PM and landed at Turbo Columbia at 430 PM

At Turbo they landed at an emergency field washed by the spray of the Gulf of Uraba and protected from high tides by a dike The only building was a mission where they spent the night as guests of the Catholic Fathers Supper that night consisted of two cans of sausages crackers and beer They did not get much sleep because half the night was spent checking the tie-downs on the Twerp as a raging storm was in progress

The rain belt extends the length of the continent and the doctors concern now was to get to Cali Columbia over 300 miles of the worst jungle in South America where there was at least a hangar for the Twerp With no weather report from Cali they took off at 1000 AM the next morning following the Atrato River until it disapshypeared below the cloud layer they were forced to overfly to clear the fast rising Andes ahead of them After 5 hours they broke out and followed a railroad to a narrow notch in the Andes to Cali

The next leg was to Quito Ecuador When the Twerp left Cali the pilots had been warned not to land outside of military fields To enforce the warning the Cadet was escorted to the border

At Quito the airport was fogged in so they flew on IFR VFR IFR VFR with compass and altimeter as their only means of successfully threading their way through narrow canyons in a blinding rain They pushed on for 500 miles and landed at Guayaquil where the Twerp took on 18 gallons of gas - not bad gas mileage for 500 miles

It was still raining and it appeared that another big storm would hit Guayaquils airport so the Cadet roared off for Talara Peru where they spent the night On Feb~ushyary 27 the dentists took off for Lima This leg was covered in 512 hours then it was on to Arica Chile a 690 mile leg flown in 5 hours and 45 minutes After 11 hours of Culshyver time that day a nights rest and some sight seeing were well earned

The next day however Smith and Lorenz headed southward again down the Pacific Coast of Chile to Antoshyfagasta where they encountered their first mainteshynance problem an oil leak They spent two hours trying

14

N C 2 o 9 2

(Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Nick and a friend indulging in a little clowning for the photographer The insignia is that of the Illinois State Militia Nick once flew missions for the Militia into flood ravaged downstate Illinois landing on roads to deliver blood to hospitals

to locate the source of the leak but failed to find it They tightened everything in sight and took off for Vallenar site of a Pan American emergency strip where they spent the night

The following morning saw further attempts to stop the oil leak and a take-off for Santiago There Pan American mechanics washed down the engine and found the leak shyit was coming from a crack in the oil radiator The mechanics soldered the crack and by noon the next day the Cadet was off for Mendoza Argentina

This short leg of only about 150 miles between Sanshytiago and Mendoza would be the ultimate test of the Culvers performance for it involved crossing the very backbone of the Andes past 23834 feet peak of Aconcagua tallest mountain in South America and through Uspallata Pass This involved the little over-grossed Cadet climbing to 17000 feet for safe passage through the pass The Uspalshylata is probably the windiest and roughest pass in the world - test balloons have recorded winds to 200 mph

Smith and Lorenz received a weather report from PanshyAm that the pass was clear but winds up to 50 mph were blowing and were predicted to increase even more They were advised not to go The two were anxious to try it however so they fired up the Twerp and were on their way

After circling the field to 10000 feet they headed the Cadet for the pass The ride through was one Smith and Lorenz will never forget It was slam bam all the way but they made it The Culver Cadet was one of the first producshytion light planes to cross the Andes and undoubtedly the first ever to make the crossing in a touring configuration that is with a full load of gasoline baggage and both seats occupied When they landed at Mendoza the Cadet was awarded a free hangar for the night in recognition by the local people of the awesomeness of their feat

At noon on March 4 the Cadet zipped acrosss the Rio de la Plata headed for Porto Alegre Brazil After 5 hours of bucking 60 mph headwinds however they landed at the Air France field at Pelotas Brazil for the night The next

morning they were off for Porto Alegre where they filled up on gas and water and went on to Rio There they again had the oil radiator soldered and as an added precaution wired the USA for a new one to be air expressed to Para Brazil

Leaving Rio they headed into the state of Bahia Rio had wired ahead for a supply of gas and at their next stop a tanker with 350 gallons of gas was waiting When they ordered 30 gallons the attendant refused saying the gas was for a Pan Am airliner Smith and Lorenz tried to exshyplain that the fuel was for the Twerp but all the guy would do was shout Pan American Pan American No one ever heard of a light plane being able to fly from Rio into Bahia and only needing 30 gallons of gas

By now the oil radiator had recilly developed a super bad leak - and there were no facilities to fix it The flying dentis ts took off anyway oil leak and all Two hours out over Pernambuco state at 6500 feet - over the jungle - the engine started to go Twenty minutes later it froze The ocean was too distant so the doctor headed for the jungle and its head hunters Frantically looking for a clearing they spotted a sand bar in the distance that looked promising and headed for it wheels up for max glide As they apshyproached the clearing it looked like they could put it in wheels down - so they tried it

The Cadet sailed over the edge of the dearing by a mere 35 feet and settled in on the sand The wheels dug a 4 inch trench for about 50 feet before the left strut broke and the left wing dug into the sand bringing the bird to an instant halt

Smith and Lorenz sat for a few minutes dazed but unshyhurt Finally Dr Lorenz said I believe we have arrived When they climbed out natives appeared from everywhere - no not head hunters but friendly natives Next came the sign language which eventually resulted in the docshytors spending the next several days on horseback and nights in native huts until they reached Barreiriwha where a charshytered plane flew them back to civilization

Today a monument of wood and fabric lays on a sand

15

bar in South America - a tribute to a great airplane the Culver Cadet

Up to the point of the forced landing the doctors had covered some 12000 miles averaging 30 miles to a gallon and at a total flying cost of $30000

HEY PIPER BEECH CESSNA-CAN YOU TOP THAT ON 75 HORSEPOWER PROGRESS BAH

Al Mooney genius How about you Culver owners in the Bay area trying to

see if these two fine pilots are still around and invite them to the next Culver Club get together I promise two most interesting speakers In fact Id like to see som e sort of recognition for these two men maybe in the form of a plaque I would be willing to throw in 20 bucks toward it shyhow about it Culver O wners

Remember there are those that have and those that haven t yet

- Big Nick

(Editors Note If Big Nick has any of you Culver enthusishyasts stirred up as a result of his article you might want to join the Culver Club Write International Culver Cadet Club co Vic Schroeder P O Box 22125 Dallas Texas 75222 for further information)

(Courtesy Nick Rezich) Big Nick poses in front of his Culver and a friend does likewise with his Monocoupe 90A in the backshyground All the photos are from the 1940-44 era

(Photo Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nick left and Larry Low present owner of Nicks old Culver Cadet Larry has done a super restoration on the bird The registration number is now N-281W rather than NC-20926 as when new

(Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Right - Chud Hanell a race driver who worked at Howshyard Aircraft and Big Nick in his Culver 16

(Photo by Gar Williams)

Left - Mel Hefinger of Redondo Beach California restored this beautiful Harlow and has won a roomshyful of trophies with it in the past couple of years

(Photo by Gar Williams)

Above - Watsonville s Grand Champion award for 1974 went to Jim Ricklefs of San Carlos California for this beautifully restored SPAD VII

(Photo by Gar Williams)

Ben Con aster of Huntington Beach California gets some wing walking assistance to the runway for his Fokker Dr I Triplane

EAT YOUR HEARTS OUT ANTIQUERS By Gar Williams

9 S 135 Aero Dr Rt 1 Naperville Illinois 60540

Watsonville - How can one convey the excitement describe the setting detail the airplanes or give full jusshytice to the hospitality without overusing adjectives like FANTASTIC

Watsonville - Undoubtedly known to those who enjoy apples for the product of its many orchards is also known by those of us who fancy old airplanes as one of THE f1yshyins This year the annual Watsonville gathering sponshysored by the Northern California Chapter of the Antique Airplane Association and the Watsonville Chamber of Commerce enjoyed clear cool weather and an accumushylation of Antique Classic and Custom aircraft that rivals even Oshkosh both in quantity and quality The coverage here will specifically be for the Antiques and Classics with the hope that we will see the Customs reported on in SPORT AVIATION

The history of the Watsonville Fly-In goes back some ten years to a point where members of the Northern Calishyfornia Chapter of the Antique Airplane Association were interested in developing a local fly-in This small start

grew slowly until the decision was reached for several chapters of Antiquers to band together to support the gathering - the National West Coast fly-in The rest of the story is history - steady growth with an excellent example of teamwork between the sponsors and the conshytinuing efforts of many individuals For those of us who attended the show for the first time this teamwork as well as individual effort was readily apparent Registration parking policing contests - all very smoothly done

The fly-in officially opened at noon Friday May 17 with a good number of aircraft - Antiques Classics and Cusshytoms already in attendance Actually Airmas ter Airlines had arrived late the previous day and we were quite surshyprised at the turnout that early Travel Airs Stearmans Luscombes Ryans - quantity and quality already had exshyceeded the turnout of what could be considered a typical three day show Opening day saw the expected influx of more ships This year the weatherman came through with continuous severe clear although the winds off the bay nearly made whitecaps on the asphalt runway at times

17

(Photo by Gar Williams)

The Ryan line at Watsonville You can see more Ryans here than at the national events Those Californians are guilty of a clear case of hoarding

In spite of the winds the fly-bys continued and only one case of a scraped wingtip was reported

Friday evening after all the activity on the flightline quieted down the Civil Air Patrol removed their police bonnets and donned white chefs hats for a CAP Hangar Feed in the Armory - a short walk from the flightline This little walk was rewarded with an inexpensive chicken dinner sprinkled with the fellowship of the many anshytiquers in attendance Following the dinner the exodus was directed to the Hotel Resetar and the Early Birds drinkshyfest

Activity along the flightline started shortly after sunshyrise the following morning with the takeoff and fly-bys of Champs Taylorcrafts and less quiet ships like a Mustang and a Hellcat The early morning air was perfect for forshymation flying low passes down the runway as well as trips along the beaches of Monterey Bay Clear cool air was the order of the day Fly-bys - air show - fly-bysshywhat a miserable way to spend a weekend

The Saturday night awards banquet was a real bust The usual happy hour began at 6 PM at the County Fairshygrounds Again the well organized approach was readily apparent with a neat pattern of tables decorations conshysisting of helium filled balloons with small gondolas simushylating the popular hot air balloons and other table decorashytions in the motif of antique airplanes The Armory was quickly filled the happy hour refreshments downed and the buffet lines began for a delicious meal Soon the awards time came and members of both the Northern California

(Photo by Gar Williams)

This fine example of the ever popular Waco RNF is owned by Sam Haley of Union City California

Antique group and EAA Chapter 62 began the presentashytion of the many plaques and trophies Somewhere along the way our attention was drawn to the main entrance shyin bounded three people clad ever so neatly in helmets goggles and NOTHING ELSE In true California trashydition Watsonville 74 was streaked by three beautiful young women Eat your hearts out Antiquers

Once the insuing riot quieted down the awards conshytinued with additional presentations being made by Paul Poberezny from EAA Headquarters and Doug Rounds representing the National AAA organization The culminashytion of the awards program was the presentaton of the Grand Champion Trophy to Jim Ricklefs for his beautiful restoration of an original SPAD

Sunday again dawned clear and cool and by 7 AM the dew-drenched benches at the Lumberjack breakshyfast in Corralitos were being dried by the britches of many hungry people Set in the redwoods several miles north of the airport the breakfast site alone was worth a long trip to visi t

As with many weekend fly-ins the Customs and Anshytiques started to depart early during the day many not staying for the fly-bys and air show It was with great reluctance and a tear in the eye that Bob Zilinsky and I cranked up and headed south towards San Diego startshying the 2200 mile trip home Truly this was one fine weekshyend with many new friends left behind

For you who missed it - eat your heart out - and dont miss it next year

MAJOR AWARDS - WATSONVILLE 74

GRAND CHAMPION - SPAD VII N-1916S James Ricklefs San Carlos California

MAYORS AWARD - Stearman C3R NC-8828 Jack Greiner Boulder Colorado

BEST HOMEBUIL T - Starduster Too N-5464 Chuck Tyler Long Beach California

NATIONAL AAA AWARDS - Fox Moth DH-83 ZKshyASP Myles Robertson Takapuna New Zealand New Standard N-155M George Dray Novato California Harlow PJC-2 N-18978 Mel Heflinger Redondo Beach California Cessna Airmaster N-25485 Gar Williams Naperville Illinois Stearman N2S-2 N-68324 Gary and Terry Woy San Jose California Porterfield N-17029 John Innes Studio City California

NATIONAL EAA AWARDS-Best Custom Built - Starduster Too N-5464 Chuck

Tyler Long Beach California Best Antique - SPAD VII N-1916S James Ricklefs

San Carlos California Best Classic - Spartan Executive N-17605 Don

Dickenson Santa Paula California NATIONAL STINSON CLUB CHOICE - Stinson SR-8

NC-16190 Ernest Fillmore Los Gatos California NATIONAL WACO CLUB CHOICE - Waco VKS-7

N-31656 Dale Miller S Pasadena California STEARMAN RESTORERS ASSN (BILL ADAMS MEshy

MORIAL TROPHY) Vaughn amp Jean Lamb

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

Irv Perlitch s Ford Tri-Motor

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

If a Ryan has to be modified then let it look like this

Books for Buffs from HISTORIC AVIATION

o Amphibian The Story of The Loening Biplaneby

Grover Loening Complete history of the flying shoehorns Photos so good text so detailed and the book a work of art You ll have to have it for your library 10 x 10 250 photos

o Water Flying shyby Franklin T Kurt

~ If you own a float plane or are just interested in III water flying you will want this book Its the first Z all-inclusive book about flying boats float planes

and amphibians Covers operating techniques and history of seaplanes It is masteriully written by a former Grumman engineer from a lifetime of testing designing and instructing in water craft 100 photos 15 draWings $895

o The Ford Air Tours 1925-1931 by Leslie Forden

~ A complete story in text and III photos of the seven crossshyZ country Reliability Tours Proshy

fusely illustrated incorporating much collateral material and an interesting whatever hapshypened to section in the back relating capsule histories agt of Tour participants A must for the enthusiasts reference libshyrary 8V2X 11

o They Call Me Mr Airshow by Bill Sweet

More than an autobiography of - MflARSHOWMr Sweet this book is a lively

account of Bill Sweets associashytion with the greats of the air c

o The book is exciting informashytive and in places riotously

show circuit from the 20s on

tf2 humorous Once you start readshy LO ing you wont be able to put it down o Cessna Guidebook

Mitch Mayborn and Bob Pickett

o$1100 E

o

THEY CAll ME

N

--t $995

~

o

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

Ted Holmans American Eagle

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

What is happening here

Complete like predecessor Stearman Guidebook o Contains photos of every single engine model D built through the Airmaster series and WW I I Bobcat three view drawings of the most significshyant versions reprints of old advertising and comshy cplete serial listings for military Bobcats Anyone owho has ever flown or admired Cessna will want this one

US Civil Aircraft by Joseph Juptner

The antiquers bible Ency shyclopedia of ATC planes giving a complete description history production data periormance specifications with excellent photo coverage Coloriul narrashytives are woven throughout tellshying of successes failures and little-known anecdotes Each volume covers 100 ATCs 300 + photos amp 300 pages

$695

tf2 --- o

I --t ~

X -----

Q)o Vol 1 ATC 1 thru 100 1927-29 $995 D o Vol II ATC 101 thru 200 1929 $995 o Vol IIIATC 201 lhru 300 1929-30 $995 E o Vol IV ATC 301 thru 400 1930-31 $995 Q)

o Vol V ATC 401 thru 500 1931-33 $995 Eo Vol VI ATC 501 thru 600 1933-35 $1195 Vol 6 covers sucn golden age classics as laquo

~ the DC-2 Ryan ST Luscome Phantom Taylor laquo ~ Silver Club and some of the great Stinshy w

sons Fairchilds and Waco models and more

HISTORICAVIATION prints and books for the collector

3850-8 Coronation Rd Eagan Minn 55122

Enc$ (Minn res add 4 tax) Name ____________________________

Address __________________________

City ___________________________ tI

State ____________ llp __________ laquo Postpaid 14 day Money middotback Guarantee laquo

75cent Handling on Orders Under $1000 w

Mail in plain brown wrapper 19

IN RETROSPECT

OLD LADY WIND-IN-THE-FACE By Lee S Thomas

P O Box 1166 Pittsburg Pennsylvania 15230

So she went to Ohio to learn to fly The Depression was just barely started Barr Peat had a little airport called Issouden in honor of the Lafayette Esquadrille (but the French wouldnt recognize the pronunciation) She soloed in a little over five hours like it was in those days Al Litzenberger (you recognize these old names) taught her in a Bird (smaller than a Laird but a honey of a plane to fly) Melba Beard has a nest of Birds even today out in Arizona I hear

Why do people do these things Cliff Balls pilot used to drop her mail over the field - it was only a little detour between Pittsburgh and Cleveland Maybe that tells you something Never heard of Clifford Ball Inc Where you been Ever hear of Capital Ever hear of United

Besides maybe the pilot was lost and just happened to have her mail on his lap (You dont need a map to get to Cleveland) Radio Instruments You kidding Everyshybody got lost You had to cut the engine to hear what the other guy was shouting about (Whats Pittsburghs Cathedral of Learning doing in downtown Akron)

She flew Wacos too and Aeronca C-3s They built a Standard at Bettis Field (shopping center housing develshyopment) to fly Cliffs mail route and she flew the Standshyard It was sort of like a Standard Mailwing but the wing was different A mite unstable some said

Must of been in the light of hindsight The whole world

and life and aviation were unstable at Bettis in those days Ask Karl Voelter Ask Kenny Sholter (He first found his way to Bettis age about 12 As it turned out later he could fly anything)

Her own love was her Monocoupe I hear its still flyshying over in Ohio somewhere and thats 35 years later or more (It has a new paint job though) She took it down to Uniontown (there isnt any airfield at Uniontown now) to tell the Rotary about the new self-starter Everybody went out to the field to marvel Wouldnt start Had to be hand-propped

She took it over to Greensburg (there isnt any airfield at Greensburg now) to pick up a passenger Turned out to weigh about 220 There used to be a ditch at Greensshyburg A good thing to avoid what with the passengers weight pulling the plane around and the baby The baby The baby was not only on the way she was almost there (The doctor told her she could keep flying as long as she felt like it) Of course she avoided the ditch

And you can feel sorry for these tricycle kiddie-car types with their radios and instruments and runways and innocence of forced landings What she knew theyll never know What she felt theyll never feel Well a lot of these older types ladies or gentlemen ask you to sit on this side or that side of them One ear bad it seems

Dont feel sorry for them

20

(Oshkosh Daily Northwestern Photo)

ASFTRSOA8P (Translated AS SEEN FROM THE REAR SEAT OF A BIPLANE)

By AI Kelch 7018 W Bonniewell Rd

Mequon Wisconsin 53092

To Weldon Ropp everyday is a holiday since he has retired from 27 years of flying for National Airlines He flies that little 16E Travel Air and has the kind of fun we all dream of (a long trip in a bipe with no time schedule and no flight plan ala gypsy) His home base is an antique airdrome in Delray Beach Florida There he has his home and hangar on a mile long grass s trip along with several other airplane buffs There is no need for anyone of these guys to ever go to Heaven - theyre already there

Willie as most everyone calls him decided to take that long trip this spring He built a false floor for the front cockpit and proceeded to pile it full of almost everything he owns - two suitcases of clothes two boxes of spare parts such as piston rings exhaust valves exhaust guides intake valve and guides rocker arms gaskets pliers 1 gallon of grease a grease gun several gallons of Marvel Mystery Oil plus a battery charger and tools enough to do a major overhaul With all that and 27 gallons of gas the old Travel Air lifted from his home strip and headed north

The following is Willies personal log of the trip

AN ANTIQUERS FLIGHT LOG Thursday May 23 1974

Flying Depart Arrive Time Fuel Oil

Delray Beachmiddot 815 am Lake Walesmiddot 945 am 130 144 Omiddot Lake Walesmiddot 955 am Ocalamiddot 11 00 am 105 110 1 qt Ocalamiddot 11 55 am Perry Fla 1 15 am 1 20 120 1 qt Perrymiddot 2 00 pm Ozark Ala - 355 pm 1 55 190 1 ql Ozark - 440 pm Clanton Ala - 600 pm 130 150 1 qt

Notes Overnight at Holiday Inn A good stop Airport Manager took me to the motel - an old timer OX-5 man

Friday May 24 1974 Clanton - 8 45 am Starkville Miss -10 20 am 1 35 157 1 ql Notes Starkville has a grass field started many years ago The son showed me

pictures o f his dad s Great Lakes with a Cirrus engine that he bought plus an Aeronca C-3 The Lakes N-308Y is still flying Said they lost track of it after it left Florida

Starkville - 1055 am Grenada - 11 45 am 55 87 0shyGrenada - 12 10 pm Clarksdale Miss shy

1255 pm 45 87 0shyNotes Went to Clarksville to help Chapter 27 (Memphis) with their lAC Contesl

Contest May 25 and 26 Sunday s contest day cal led off due to rain and low ceilings I spend day pulling push rods out and greasing them - a five hour job alone but with plenty of help we did it in two hours plus pull the cowling to see that all the screws and bolts are still in place

Monday May 27 1974 Clarksdale - 1005 am Hayti Mo - 11 45 am 140 160 1 ql Hayti - 1250 p m Sparta III - 220 p m 130 152 1 ql Sparta - 3 00 p m Lincoln III - 430 pm 1 30 150 0shyNotes RON at Holiday Inn - good place to stop

Tuesday May 28 1974 Lincoln - 822 am Lincoln - 8 52 am 30 45 0shyNotes Ceiling too low to even follow roads Lincoln - 12 30 pm DeKalb III - 145 pm 115 120 1 qt DeKalb - 210 pm Bill Dodd s - 240 pm 30 Notes Airplane placed in Bill Dodd s hangar Spend May 29 with my son from

Wonder Lake III - about 20 miles from Dodds Son flies for United

Thursday May 30 1974 Bill Dodd s - 1030 am Burlington Wis -11 OOam 30 Burlington - 11 30 am Hales Corners - 1200 30 140 0shyNotes Was shown the red carpet here Bill Hodges happened to see me fly over

the EAA Museum and alerted Mike Heuer and Gene Chase who crossed paths with me as the airport manager drove me to the Museum Bill showed me the Museum the work shop and the warehouses One cannot believe they build airplanes in a work shop so clean One should have a whole day to spend at the EAA Museum - there is so much to see and read This is a must for everyone

Hales Corners - 215 pm AI Kelch s - 240 pm 25

Friday June 1 1974 Notes With AI Kelch to Waukesha to see Dale Crites and his Curtiss Pusher and

the Waco restoration Had a ride in the 1924 Chevy touring car Back to AIs Took off for Oshkosh so as to be able to say I put the old Travel Air on the runway there This was the second time that I used the radio since leaving

21

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Willie Ropp at Oshkosh - taking a couple of lucky friends up for a joy ride

(Photo by AI Kelch)

Willie Ropp of Delray Beach Florida

Florida The other time was at Clarksdale EAA had a work crew painting plantshying flowers etc Back to AI s

Saturday June 2 1974 Notes To West Bend to put the Travel Air in the hangar with AI s Franklin Sport

Flew the Travel Air 22 hours and 20 minutes never missed a beat

On a Thursday afternoon I got a call at my office He had found my home strip landed and hitch-hiked to town He was having a late lunch when I caught up with him and Willie was wearing that silly smile that is typical of all aircraft drivers and is seen often on pilots immediately after solo flights for pictures with their newly restored aircraft and other achievements I spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying his trip second hand Friday and the rest of the weekend was a visiting fireman type of affair

We flew over to visit Dale Crites at Waukesha Airport to see his newly built Curtiss Pusher which many of you later saw at Oshkosh and we also saw Dean Crites in process Waco Straight Wing and got in on the run up of that wonderful J5 engine - a sound to delight the soul and fill the nostrils with perfume (carbon monoxide to other than airplane buffs)

Saturday afternoon had been scheduled for a visit to Oshkosh At the last minute I couldnt go so Willie went alone He was much impressed with the activity and the enthusiasm of the volunteer help and came back raving about the organizational ability of the whole staff at EAA

Sunday was filled with visits to local airports and prishyvate strips plus a few rides to the onlookers

Monday after an all too short visit I saw Willie off to Florida via commercial He left his Travel Air in my hands and returned several times this summer to continue his meande rings and visit the local fly-ins His agenda has inshycluded attendance at La Rue Oshkosh and Blakesburg Then he will no doubt meander south again with the birds visiting along the way causing me to turn green when everything else is turning brown Just being able to share Willies experience second hand gives me a thrill and something to remember during next winters long no-fly spell Shared experiences with others is a good part of the glue that holds our organization together and makes it such an exciting one The adventure that rubs off at one Oshkosh Fly-In is probably more than the average civilian type can stand in a year Look Willie up at the next fly-in - he is a fun type OF (Old Flier)

22

Around The AntiqueClassic World NORTHROP BETA INFO

In the May issue of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE we featured the rare Northrop Beta as our Golden Oldie of the Month At the end of the article we requested some assistance from our readers in determining what ultishymately happened to the two Betas Member John C Barbery P O Box 108 Bedminster New Jersey 07921 has provided us with copies of his Aircraft Research Data cards on X-963Y and NC-12214

According to Mr Barberys records the C-6 Menasco Buccaneer powered Beta was inspected and approved by the CAA on March 31 1931 for experimenta l license X-963Y issued to expire on October 1 1931 The entry en titl ed Fi nal Disposi tion sim pI y states Washed out at Los Angeles California on August 12 1931 The only listed owner for the aircraft was the factory Northshyrop Aircraft Corporation of Burbank

The Wasp Jr powered Beta NC-12214 lasted a little longer It was initially licensed by the CAA on Septemshyber 1 1931 wi th experimental number X-12214 to expire on March 1 1932 A footnote states that Don Berlin was the chief engineer for this design and that Stearman Airshycraft Corpora tion ran the development and flight tests on the plane The Beta was sold on February 8 1932 to

Kenyon Boocock with the NC license (approval under 2shy401) At this point 12214 had a total time of 40 hours Anothshyer footnote sta tes tha t the Wasp Beta bore an incorrect serial number 1 on its nameplate until May of 1932 when Stearman provided Boocock a new nameplate with the correct serial number 2

12214 was damaged in an accident at Hicksville Long Island on January 16 1933 arid was put in storage On January 16 1933 it was sold to George W Hard of West Sayv ille Long Island A t some point in late 1933 or early 1934 (no date known) the plane was purchased by S tearman in Wichita who rebuilt the Beta for experishymenting with various flap configurations (conventional zap Fowler and Wright types) completing it on May 1 1934 On May 3 1934 title was transferred to United Airshyports East Hartford Connecticu t (apparently for regisshytration purposes only) and two days later on May 5 the aircraft was completely destroyed in an accident at Wichita

So there you are antiquers it would appear that all hope is lost of finding a restorable Beta in someones barn

Our thanks to John Barbery for making this informashytion available

- Jack Cox Editor

ClASSIFIEDS

WANTED - Two wire wheels for 30x5 tires Siemens Halske SH III FOR SALE - Aeronca TAC civil version of the Defender 70 restored 160 hp geared rotary engine Roy Rehm Box 4832 Stateline original aircraft of Aeronca Employees Flying Club Lynwood Nevada 89449 Clark 8200 Meyers Road Middleton Ohio 422-3417

Calendar Of Events

OCTOBER 11-13 - TAHLEQUAH OKLAHOMA - 16th Annual Fly-In spOrisored by Tulsa Chapters of AAA EAA and lAC Homebuilts Antiques and Classics welcome Contact Bert Mahon 3101 South Boston Ct Tulsa Oklahoma 74135

Back Issues Of The Vintage Airplane

Limited numbers of back issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE are available at SOc each Copies still on hand at EAA Headquarters are

1973 - MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

1974 - JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST

23

N C 2 o 9 2

(Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Nick and a friend indulging in a little clowning for the photographer The insignia is that of the Illinois State Militia Nick once flew missions for the Militia into flood ravaged downstate Illinois landing on roads to deliver blood to hospitals

to locate the source of the leak but failed to find it They tightened everything in sight and took off for Vallenar site of a Pan American emergency strip where they spent the night

The following morning saw further attempts to stop the oil leak and a take-off for Santiago There Pan American mechanics washed down the engine and found the leak shyit was coming from a crack in the oil radiator The mechanics soldered the crack and by noon the next day the Cadet was off for Mendoza Argentina

This short leg of only about 150 miles between Sanshytiago and Mendoza would be the ultimate test of the Culvers performance for it involved crossing the very backbone of the Andes past 23834 feet peak of Aconcagua tallest mountain in South America and through Uspallata Pass This involved the little over-grossed Cadet climbing to 17000 feet for safe passage through the pass The Uspalshylata is probably the windiest and roughest pass in the world - test balloons have recorded winds to 200 mph

Smith and Lorenz received a weather report from PanshyAm that the pass was clear but winds up to 50 mph were blowing and were predicted to increase even more They were advised not to go The two were anxious to try it however so they fired up the Twerp and were on their way

After circling the field to 10000 feet they headed the Cadet for the pass The ride through was one Smith and Lorenz will never forget It was slam bam all the way but they made it The Culver Cadet was one of the first producshytion light planes to cross the Andes and undoubtedly the first ever to make the crossing in a touring configuration that is with a full load of gasoline baggage and both seats occupied When they landed at Mendoza the Cadet was awarded a free hangar for the night in recognition by the local people of the awesomeness of their feat

At noon on March 4 the Cadet zipped acrosss the Rio de la Plata headed for Porto Alegre Brazil After 5 hours of bucking 60 mph headwinds however they landed at the Air France field at Pelotas Brazil for the night The next

morning they were off for Porto Alegre where they filled up on gas and water and went on to Rio There they again had the oil radiator soldered and as an added precaution wired the USA for a new one to be air expressed to Para Brazil

Leaving Rio they headed into the state of Bahia Rio had wired ahead for a supply of gas and at their next stop a tanker with 350 gallons of gas was waiting When they ordered 30 gallons the attendant refused saying the gas was for a Pan Am airliner Smith and Lorenz tried to exshyplain that the fuel was for the Twerp but all the guy would do was shout Pan American Pan American No one ever heard of a light plane being able to fly from Rio into Bahia and only needing 30 gallons of gas

By now the oil radiator had recilly developed a super bad leak - and there were no facilities to fix it The flying dentis ts took off anyway oil leak and all Two hours out over Pernambuco state at 6500 feet - over the jungle - the engine started to go Twenty minutes later it froze The ocean was too distant so the doctor headed for the jungle and its head hunters Frantically looking for a clearing they spotted a sand bar in the distance that looked promising and headed for it wheels up for max glide As they apshyproached the clearing it looked like they could put it in wheels down - so they tried it

The Cadet sailed over the edge of the dearing by a mere 35 feet and settled in on the sand The wheels dug a 4 inch trench for about 50 feet before the left strut broke and the left wing dug into the sand bringing the bird to an instant halt

Smith and Lorenz sat for a few minutes dazed but unshyhurt Finally Dr Lorenz said I believe we have arrived When they climbed out natives appeared from everywhere - no not head hunters but friendly natives Next came the sign language which eventually resulted in the docshytors spending the next several days on horseback and nights in native huts until they reached Barreiriwha where a charshytered plane flew them back to civilization

Today a monument of wood and fabric lays on a sand

15

bar in South America - a tribute to a great airplane the Culver Cadet

Up to the point of the forced landing the doctors had covered some 12000 miles averaging 30 miles to a gallon and at a total flying cost of $30000

HEY PIPER BEECH CESSNA-CAN YOU TOP THAT ON 75 HORSEPOWER PROGRESS BAH

Al Mooney genius How about you Culver owners in the Bay area trying to

see if these two fine pilots are still around and invite them to the next Culver Club get together I promise two most interesting speakers In fact Id like to see som e sort of recognition for these two men maybe in the form of a plaque I would be willing to throw in 20 bucks toward it shyhow about it Culver O wners

Remember there are those that have and those that haven t yet

- Big Nick

(Editors Note If Big Nick has any of you Culver enthusishyasts stirred up as a result of his article you might want to join the Culver Club Write International Culver Cadet Club co Vic Schroeder P O Box 22125 Dallas Texas 75222 for further information)

(Courtesy Nick Rezich) Big Nick poses in front of his Culver and a friend does likewise with his Monocoupe 90A in the backshyground All the photos are from the 1940-44 era

(Photo Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nick left and Larry Low present owner of Nicks old Culver Cadet Larry has done a super restoration on the bird The registration number is now N-281W rather than NC-20926 as when new

(Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Right - Chud Hanell a race driver who worked at Howshyard Aircraft and Big Nick in his Culver 16

(Photo by Gar Williams)

Left - Mel Hefinger of Redondo Beach California restored this beautiful Harlow and has won a roomshyful of trophies with it in the past couple of years

(Photo by Gar Williams)

Above - Watsonville s Grand Champion award for 1974 went to Jim Ricklefs of San Carlos California for this beautifully restored SPAD VII

(Photo by Gar Williams)

Ben Con aster of Huntington Beach California gets some wing walking assistance to the runway for his Fokker Dr I Triplane

EAT YOUR HEARTS OUT ANTIQUERS By Gar Williams

9 S 135 Aero Dr Rt 1 Naperville Illinois 60540

Watsonville - How can one convey the excitement describe the setting detail the airplanes or give full jusshytice to the hospitality without overusing adjectives like FANTASTIC

Watsonville - Undoubtedly known to those who enjoy apples for the product of its many orchards is also known by those of us who fancy old airplanes as one of THE f1yshyins This year the annual Watsonville gathering sponshysored by the Northern California Chapter of the Antique Airplane Association and the Watsonville Chamber of Commerce enjoyed clear cool weather and an accumushylation of Antique Classic and Custom aircraft that rivals even Oshkosh both in quantity and quality The coverage here will specifically be for the Antiques and Classics with the hope that we will see the Customs reported on in SPORT AVIATION

The history of the Watsonville Fly-In goes back some ten years to a point where members of the Northern Calishyfornia Chapter of the Antique Airplane Association were interested in developing a local fly-in This small start

grew slowly until the decision was reached for several chapters of Antiquers to band together to support the gathering - the National West Coast fly-in The rest of the story is history - steady growth with an excellent example of teamwork between the sponsors and the conshytinuing efforts of many individuals For those of us who attended the show for the first time this teamwork as well as individual effort was readily apparent Registration parking policing contests - all very smoothly done

The fly-in officially opened at noon Friday May 17 with a good number of aircraft - Antiques Classics and Cusshytoms already in attendance Actually Airmas ter Airlines had arrived late the previous day and we were quite surshyprised at the turnout that early Travel Airs Stearmans Luscombes Ryans - quantity and quality already had exshyceeded the turnout of what could be considered a typical three day show Opening day saw the expected influx of more ships This year the weatherman came through with continuous severe clear although the winds off the bay nearly made whitecaps on the asphalt runway at times

17

(Photo by Gar Williams)

The Ryan line at Watsonville You can see more Ryans here than at the national events Those Californians are guilty of a clear case of hoarding

In spite of the winds the fly-bys continued and only one case of a scraped wingtip was reported

Friday evening after all the activity on the flightline quieted down the Civil Air Patrol removed their police bonnets and donned white chefs hats for a CAP Hangar Feed in the Armory - a short walk from the flightline This little walk was rewarded with an inexpensive chicken dinner sprinkled with the fellowship of the many anshytiquers in attendance Following the dinner the exodus was directed to the Hotel Resetar and the Early Birds drinkshyfest

Activity along the flightline started shortly after sunshyrise the following morning with the takeoff and fly-bys of Champs Taylorcrafts and less quiet ships like a Mustang and a Hellcat The early morning air was perfect for forshymation flying low passes down the runway as well as trips along the beaches of Monterey Bay Clear cool air was the order of the day Fly-bys - air show - fly-bysshywhat a miserable way to spend a weekend

The Saturday night awards banquet was a real bust The usual happy hour began at 6 PM at the County Fairshygrounds Again the well organized approach was readily apparent with a neat pattern of tables decorations conshysisting of helium filled balloons with small gondolas simushylating the popular hot air balloons and other table decorashytions in the motif of antique airplanes The Armory was quickly filled the happy hour refreshments downed and the buffet lines began for a delicious meal Soon the awards time came and members of both the Northern California

(Photo by Gar Williams)

This fine example of the ever popular Waco RNF is owned by Sam Haley of Union City California

Antique group and EAA Chapter 62 began the presentashytion of the many plaques and trophies Somewhere along the way our attention was drawn to the main entrance shyin bounded three people clad ever so neatly in helmets goggles and NOTHING ELSE In true California trashydition Watsonville 74 was streaked by three beautiful young women Eat your hearts out Antiquers

Once the insuing riot quieted down the awards conshytinued with additional presentations being made by Paul Poberezny from EAA Headquarters and Doug Rounds representing the National AAA organization The culminashytion of the awards program was the presentaton of the Grand Champion Trophy to Jim Ricklefs for his beautiful restoration of an original SPAD

Sunday again dawned clear and cool and by 7 AM the dew-drenched benches at the Lumberjack breakshyfast in Corralitos were being dried by the britches of many hungry people Set in the redwoods several miles north of the airport the breakfast site alone was worth a long trip to visi t

As with many weekend fly-ins the Customs and Anshytiques started to depart early during the day many not staying for the fly-bys and air show It was with great reluctance and a tear in the eye that Bob Zilinsky and I cranked up and headed south towards San Diego startshying the 2200 mile trip home Truly this was one fine weekshyend with many new friends left behind

For you who missed it - eat your heart out - and dont miss it next year

MAJOR AWARDS - WATSONVILLE 74

GRAND CHAMPION - SPAD VII N-1916S James Ricklefs San Carlos California

MAYORS AWARD - Stearman C3R NC-8828 Jack Greiner Boulder Colorado

BEST HOMEBUIL T - Starduster Too N-5464 Chuck Tyler Long Beach California

NATIONAL AAA AWARDS - Fox Moth DH-83 ZKshyASP Myles Robertson Takapuna New Zealand New Standard N-155M George Dray Novato California Harlow PJC-2 N-18978 Mel Heflinger Redondo Beach California Cessna Airmaster N-25485 Gar Williams Naperville Illinois Stearman N2S-2 N-68324 Gary and Terry Woy San Jose California Porterfield N-17029 John Innes Studio City California

NATIONAL EAA AWARDS-Best Custom Built - Starduster Too N-5464 Chuck

Tyler Long Beach California Best Antique - SPAD VII N-1916S James Ricklefs

San Carlos California Best Classic - Spartan Executive N-17605 Don

Dickenson Santa Paula California NATIONAL STINSON CLUB CHOICE - Stinson SR-8

NC-16190 Ernest Fillmore Los Gatos California NATIONAL WACO CLUB CHOICE - Waco VKS-7

N-31656 Dale Miller S Pasadena California STEARMAN RESTORERS ASSN (BILL ADAMS MEshy

MORIAL TROPHY) Vaughn amp Jean Lamb

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

Irv Perlitch s Ford Tri-Motor

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

If a Ryan has to be modified then let it look like this

Books for Buffs from HISTORIC AVIATION

o Amphibian The Story of The Loening Biplaneby

Grover Loening Complete history of the flying shoehorns Photos so good text so detailed and the book a work of art You ll have to have it for your library 10 x 10 250 photos

o Water Flying shyby Franklin T Kurt

~ If you own a float plane or are just interested in III water flying you will want this book Its the first Z all-inclusive book about flying boats float planes

and amphibians Covers operating techniques and history of seaplanes It is masteriully written by a former Grumman engineer from a lifetime of testing designing and instructing in water craft 100 photos 15 draWings $895

o The Ford Air Tours 1925-1931 by Leslie Forden

~ A complete story in text and III photos of the seven crossshyZ country Reliability Tours Proshy

fusely illustrated incorporating much collateral material and an interesting whatever hapshypened to section in the back relating capsule histories agt of Tour participants A must for the enthusiasts reference libshyrary 8V2X 11

o They Call Me Mr Airshow by Bill Sweet

More than an autobiography of - MflARSHOWMr Sweet this book is a lively

account of Bill Sweets associashytion with the greats of the air c

o The book is exciting informashytive and in places riotously

show circuit from the 20s on

tf2 humorous Once you start readshy LO ing you wont be able to put it down o Cessna Guidebook

Mitch Mayborn and Bob Pickett

o$1100 E

o

THEY CAll ME

N

--t $995

~

o

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

Ted Holmans American Eagle

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

What is happening here

Complete like predecessor Stearman Guidebook o Contains photos of every single engine model D built through the Airmaster series and WW I I Bobcat three view drawings of the most significshyant versions reprints of old advertising and comshy cplete serial listings for military Bobcats Anyone owho has ever flown or admired Cessna will want this one

US Civil Aircraft by Joseph Juptner

The antiquers bible Ency shyclopedia of ATC planes giving a complete description history production data periormance specifications with excellent photo coverage Coloriul narrashytives are woven throughout tellshying of successes failures and little-known anecdotes Each volume covers 100 ATCs 300 + photos amp 300 pages

$695

tf2 --- o

I --t ~

X -----

Q)o Vol 1 ATC 1 thru 100 1927-29 $995 D o Vol II ATC 101 thru 200 1929 $995 o Vol IIIATC 201 lhru 300 1929-30 $995 E o Vol IV ATC 301 thru 400 1930-31 $995 Q)

o Vol V ATC 401 thru 500 1931-33 $995 Eo Vol VI ATC 501 thru 600 1933-35 $1195 Vol 6 covers sucn golden age classics as laquo

~ the DC-2 Ryan ST Luscome Phantom Taylor laquo ~ Silver Club and some of the great Stinshy w

sons Fairchilds and Waco models and more

HISTORICAVIATION prints and books for the collector

3850-8 Coronation Rd Eagan Minn 55122

Enc$ (Minn res add 4 tax) Name ____________________________

Address __________________________

City ___________________________ tI

State ____________ llp __________ laquo Postpaid 14 day Money middotback Guarantee laquo

75cent Handling on Orders Under $1000 w

Mail in plain brown wrapper 19

IN RETROSPECT

OLD LADY WIND-IN-THE-FACE By Lee S Thomas

P O Box 1166 Pittsburg Pennsylvania 15230

So she went to Ohio to learn to fly The Depression was just barely started Barr Peat had a little airport called Issouden in honor of the Lafayette Esquadrille (but the French wouldnt recognize the pronunciation) She soloed in a little over five hours like it was in those days Al Litzenberger (you recognize these old names) taught her in a Bird (smaller than a Laird but a honey of a plane to fly) Melba Beard has a nest of Birds even today out in Arizona I hear

Why do people do these things Cliff Balls pilot used to drop her mail over the field - it was only a little detour between Pittsburgh and Cleveland Maybe that tells you something Never heard of Clifford Ball Inc Where you been Ever hear of Capital Ever hear of United

Besides maybe the pilot was lost and just happened to have her mail on his lap (You dont need a map to get to Cleveland) Radio Instruments You kidding Everyshybody got lost You had to cut the engine to hear what the other guy was shouting about (Whats Pittsburghs Cathedral of Learning doing in downtown Akron)

She flew Wacos too and Aeronca C-3s They built a Standard at Bettis Field (shopping center housing develshyopment) to fly Cliffs mail route and she flew the Standshyard It was sort of like a Standard Mailwing but the wing was different A mite unstable some said

Must of been in the light of hindsight The whole world

and life and aviation were unstable at Bettis in those days Ask Karl Voelter Ask Kenny Sholter (He first found his way to Bettis age about 12 As it turned out later he could fly anything)

Her own love was her Monocoupe I hear its still flyshying over in Ohio somewhere and thats 35 years later or more (It has a new paint job though) She took it down to Uniontown (there isnt any airfield at Uniontown now) to tell the Rotary about the new self-starter Everybody went out to the field to marvel Wouldnt start Had to be hand-propped

She took it over to Greensburg (there isnt any airfield at Greensburg now) to pick up a passenger Turned out to weigh about 220 There used to be a ditch at Greensshyburg A good thing to avoid what with the passengers weight pulling the plane around and the baby The baby The baby was not only on the way she was almost there (The doctor told her she could keep flying as long as she felt like it) Of course she avoided the ditch

And you can feel sorry for these tricycle kiddie-car types with their radios and instruments and runways and innocence of forced landings What she knew theyll never know What she felt theyll never feel Well a lot of these older types ladies or gentlemen ask you to sit on this side or that side of them One ear bad it seems

Dont feel sorry for them

20

(Oshkosh Daily Northwestern Photo)

ASFTRSOA8P (Translated AS SEEN FROM THE REAR SEAT OF A BIPLANE)

By AI Kelch 7018 W Bonniewell Rd

Mequon Wisconsin 53092

To Weldon Ropp everyday is a holiday since he has retired from 27 years of flying for National Airlines He flies that little 16E Travel Air and has the kind of fun we all dream of (a long trip in a bipe with no time schedule and no flight plan ala gypsy) His home base is an antique airdrome in Delray Beach Florida There he has his home and hangar on a mile long grass s trip along with several other airplane buffs There is no need for anyone of these guys to ever go to Heaven - theyre already there

Willie as most everyone calls him decided to take that long trip this spring He built a false floor for the front cockpit and proceeded to pile it full of almost everything he owns - two suitcases of clothes two boxes of spare parts such as piston rings exhaust valves exhaust guides intake valve and guides rocker arms gaskets pliers 1 gallon of grease a grease gun several gallons of Marvel Mystery Oil plus a battery charger and tools enough to do a major overhaul With all that and 27 gallons of gas the old Travel Air lifted from his home strip and headed north

The following is Willies personal log of the trip

AN ANTIQUERS FLIGHT LOG Thursday May 23 1974

Flying Depart Arrive Time Fuel Oil

Delray Beachmiddot 815 am Lake Walesmiddot 945 am 130 144 Omiddot Lake Walesmiddot 955 am Ocalamiddot 11 00 am 105 110 1 qt Ocalamiddot 11 55 am Perry Fla 1 15 am 1 20 120 1 qt Perrymiddot 2 00 pm Ozark Ala - 355 pm 1 55 190 1 ql Ozark - 440 pm Clanton Ala - 600 pm 130 150 1 qt

Notes Overnight at Holiday Inn A good stop Airport Manager took me to the motel - an old timer OX-5 man

Friday May 24 1974 Clanton - 8 45 am Starkville Miss -10 20 am 1 35 157 1 ql Notes Starkville has a grass field started many years ago The son showed me

pictures o f his dad s Great Lakes with a Cirrus engine that he bought plus an Aeronca C-3 The Lakes N-308Y is still flying Said they lost track of it after it left Florida

Starkville - 1055 am Grenada - 11 45 am 55 87 0shyGrenada - 12 10 pm Clarksdale Miss shy

1255 pm 45 87 0shyNotes Went to Clarksville to help Chapter 27 (Memphis) with their lAC Contesl

Contest May 25 and 26 Sunday s contest day cal led off due to rain and low ceilings I spend day pulling push rods out and greasing them - a five hour job alone but with plenty of help we did it in two hours plus pull the cowling to see that all the screws and bolts are still in place

Monday May 27 1974 Clarksdale - 1005 am Hayti Mo - 11 45 am 140 160 1 ql Hayti - 1250 p m Sparta III - 220 p m 130 152 1 ql Sparta - 3 00 p m Lincoln III - 430 pm 1 30 150 0shyNotes RON at Holiday Inn - good place to stop

Tuesday May 28 1974 Lincoln - 822 am Lincoln - 8 52 am 30 45 0shyNotes Ceiling too low to even follow roads Lincoln - 12 30 pm DeKalb III - 145 pm 115 120 1 qt DeKalb - 210 pm Bill Dodd s - 240 pm 30 Notes Airplane placed in Bill Dodd s hangar Spend May 29 with my son from

Wonder Lake III - about 20 miles from Dodds Son flies for United

Thursday May 30 1974 Bill Dodd s - 1030 am Burlington Wis -11 OOam 30 Burlington - 11 30 am Hales Corners - 1200 30 140 0shyNotes Was shown the red carpet here Bill Hodges happened to see me fly over

the EAA Museum and alerted Mike Heuer and Gene Chase who crossed paths with me as the airport manager drove me to the Museum Bill showed me the Museum the work shop and the warehouses One cannot believe they build airplanes in a work shop so clean One should have a whole day to spend at the EAA Museum - there is so much to see and read This is a must for everyone

Hales Corners - 215 pm AI Kelch s - 240 pm 25

Friday June 1 1974 Notes With AI Kelch to Waukesha to see Dale Crites and his Curtiss Pusher and

the Waco restoration Had a ride in the 1924 Chevy touring car Back to AIs Took off for Oshkosh so as to be able to say I put the old Travel Air on the runway there This was the second time that I used the radio since leaving

21

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Willie Ropp at Oshkosh - taking a couple of lucky friends up for a joy ride

(Photo by AI Kelch)

Willie Ropp of Delray Beach Florida

Florida The other time was at Clarksdale EAA had a work crew painting plantshying flowers etc Back to AI s

Saturday June 2 1974 Notes To West Bend to put the Travel Air in the hangar with AI s Franklin Sport

Flew the Travel Air 22 hours and 20 minutes never missed a beat

On a Thursday afternoon I got a call at my office He had found my home strip landed and hitch-hiked to town He was having a late lunch when I caught up with him and Willie was wearing that silly smile that is typical of all aircraft drivers and is seen often on pilots immediately after solo flights for pictures with their newly restored aircraft and other achievements I spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying his trip second hand Friday and the rest of the weekend was a visiting fireman type of affair

We flew over to visit Dale Crites at Waukesha Airport to see his newly built Curtiss Pusher which many of you later saw at Oshkosh and we also saw Dean Crites in process Waco Straight Wing and got in on the run up of that wonderful J5 engine - a sound to delight the soul and fill the nostrils with perfume (carbon monoxide to other than airplane buffs)

Saturday afternoon had been scheduled for a visit to Oshkosh At the last minute I couldnt go so Willie went alone He was much impressed with the activity and the enthusiasm of the volunteer help and came back raving about the organizational ability of the whole staff at EAA

Sunday was filled with visits to local airports and prishyvate strips plus a few rides to the onlookers

Monday after an all too short visit I saw Willie off to Florida via commercial He left his Travel Air in my hands and returned several times this summer to continue his meande rings and visit the local fly-ins His agenda has inshycluded attendance at La Rue Oshkosh and Blakesburg Then he will no doubt meander south again with the birds visiting along the way causing me to turn green when everything else is turning brown Just being able to share Willies experience second hand gives me a thrill and something to remember during next winters long no-fly spell Shared experiences with others is a good part of the glue that holds our organization together and makes it such an exciting one The adventure that rubs off at one Oshkosh Fly-In is probably more than the average civilian type can stand in a year Look Willie up at the next fly-in - he is a fun type OF (Old Flier)

22

Around The AntiqueClassic World NORTHROP BETA INFO

In the May issue of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE we featured the rare Northrop Beta as our Golden Oldie of the Month At the end of the article we requested some assistance from our readers in determining what ultishymately happened to the two Betas Member John C Barbery P O Box 108 Bedminster New Jersey 07921 has provided us with copies of his Aircraft Research Data cards on X-963Y and NC-12214

According to Mr Barberys records the C-6 Menasco Buccaneer powered Beta was inspected and approved by the CAA on March 31 1931 for experimenta l license X-963Y issued to expire on October 1 1931 The entry en titl ed Fi nal Disposi tion sim pI y states Washed out at Los Angeles California on August 12 1931 The only listed owner for the aircraft was the factory Northshyrop Aircraft Corporation of Burbank

The Wasp Jr powered Beta NC-12214 lasted a little longer It was initially licensed by the CAA on Septemshyber 1 1931 wi th experimental number X-12214 to expire on March 1 1932 A footnote states that Don Berlin was the chief engineer for this design and that Stearman Airshycraft Corpora tion ran the development and flight tests on the plane The Beta was sold on February 8 1932 to

Kenyon Boocock with the NC license (approval under 2shy401) At this point 12214 had a total time of 40 hours Anothshyer footnote sta tes tha t the Wasp Beta bore an incorrect serial number 1 on its nameplate until May of 1932 when Stearman provided Boocock a new nameplate with the correct serial number 2

12214 was damaged in an accident at Hicksville Long Island on January 16 1933 arid was put in storage On January 16 1933 it was sold to George W Hard of West Sayv ille Long Island A t some point in late 1933 or early 1934 (no date known) the plane was purchased by S tearman in Wichita who rebuilt the Beta for experishymenting with various flap configurations (conventional zap Fowler and Wright types) completing it on May 1 1934 On May 3 1934 title was transferred to United Airshyports East Hartford Connecticu t (apparently for regisshytration purposes only) and two days later on May 5 the aircraft was completely destroyed in an accident at Wichita

So there you are antiquers it would appear that all hope is lost of finding a restorable Beta in someones barn

Our thanks to John Barbery for making this informashytion available

- Jack Cox Editor

ClASSIFIEDS

WANTED - Two wire wheels for 30x5 tires Siemens Halske SH III FOR SALE - Aeronca TAC civil version of the Defender 70 restored 160 hp geared rotary engine Roy Rehm Box 4832 Stateline original aircraft of Aeronca Employees Flying Club Lynwood Nevada 89449 Clark 8200 Meyers Road Middleton Ohio 422-3417

Calendar Of Events

OCTOBER 11-13 - TAHLEQUAH OKLAHOMA - 16th Annual Fly-In spOrisored by Tulsa Chapters of AAA EAA and lAC Homebuilts Antiques and Classics welcome Contact Bert Mahon 3101 South Boston Ct Tulsa Oklahoma 74135

Back Issues Of The Vintage Airplane

Limited numbers of back issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE are available at SOc each Copies still on hand at EAA Headquarters are

1973 - MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

1974 - JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST

23

bar in South America - a tribute to a great airplane the Culver Cadet

Up to the point of the forced landing the doctors had covered some 12000 miles averaging 30 miles to a gallon and at a total flying cost of $30000

HEY PIPER BEECH CESSNA-CAN YOU TOP THAT ON 75 HORSEPOWER PROGRESS BAH

Al Mooney genius How about you Culver owners in the Bay area trying to

see if these two fine pilots are still around and invite them to the next Culver Club get together I promise two most interesting speakers In fact Id like to see som e sort of recognition for these two men maybe in the form of a plaque I would be willing to throw in 20 bucks toward it shyhow about it Culver O wners

Remember there are those that have and those that haven t yet

- Big Nick

(Editors Note If Big Nick has any of you Culver enthusishyasts stirred up as a result of his article you might want to join the Culver Club Write International Culver Cadet Club co Vic Schroeder P O Box 22125 Dallas Texas 75222 for further information)

(Courtesy Nick Rezich) Big Nick poses in front of his Culver and a friend does likewise with his Monocoupe 90A in the backshyground All the photos are from the 1940-44 era

(Photo Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Big Nick left and Larry Low present owner of Nicks old Culver Cadet Larry has done a super restoration on the bird The registration number is now N-281W rather than NC-20926 as when new

(Courtesy Nick Rezich)

Right - Chud Hanell a race driver who worked at Howshyard Aircraft and Big Nick in his Culver 16

(Photo by Gar Williams)

Left - Mel Hefinger of Redondo Beach California restored this beautiful Harlow and has won a roomshyful of trophies with it in the past couple of years

(Photo by Gar Williams)

Above - Watsonville s Grand Champion award for 1974 went to Jim Ricklefs of San Carlos California for this beautifully restored SPAD VII

(Photo by Gar Williams)

Ben Con aster of Huntington Beach California gets some wing walking assistance to the runway for his Fokker Dr I Triplane

EAT YOUR HEARTS OUT ANTIQUERS By Gar Williams

9 S 135 Aero Dr Rt 1 Naperville Illinois 60540

Watsonville - How can one convey the excitement describe the setting detail the airplanes or give full jusshytice to the hospitality without overusing adjectives like FANTASTIC

Watsonville - Undoubtedly known to those who enjoy apples for the product of its many orchards is also known by those of us who fancy old airplanes as one of THE f1yshyins This year the annual Watsonville gathering sponshysored by the Northern California Chapter of the Antique Airplane Association and the Watsonville Chamber of Commerce enjoyed clear cool weather and an accumushylation of Antique Classic and Custom aircraft that rivals even Oshkosh both in quantity and quality The coverage here will specifically be for the Antiques and Classics with the hope that we will see the Customs reported on in SPORT AVIATION

The history of the Watsonville Fly-In goes back some ten years to a point where members of the Northern Calishyfornia Chapter of the Antique Airplane Association were interested in developing a local fly-in This small start

grew slowly until the decision was reached for several chapters of Antiquers to band together to support the gathering - the National West Coast fly-in The rest of the story is history - steady growth with an excellent example of teamwork between the sponsors and the conshytinuing efforts of many individuals For those of us who attended the show for the first time this teamwork as well as individual effort was readily apparent Registration parking policing contests - all very smoothly done

The fly-in officially opened at noon Friday May 17 with a good number of aircraft - Antiques Classics and Cusshytoms already in attendance Actually Airmas ter Airlines had arrived late the previous day and we were quite surshyprised at the turnout that early Travel Airs Stearmans Luscombes Ryans - quantity and quality already had exshyceeded the turnout of what could be considered a typical three day show Opening day saw the expected influx of more ships This year the weatherman came through with continuous severe clear although the winds off the bay nearly made whitecaps on the asphalt runway at times

17

(Photo by Gar Williams)

The Ryan line at Watsonville You can see more Ryans here than at the national events Those Californians are guilty of a clear case of hoarding

In spite of the winds the fly-bys continued and only one case of a scraped wingtip was reported

Friday evening after all the activity on the flightline quieted down the Civil Air Patrol removed their police bonnets and donned white chefs hats for a CAP Hangar Feed in the Armory - a short walk from the flightline This little walk was rewarded with an inexpensive chicken dinner sprinkled with the fellowship of the many anshytiquers in attendance Following the dinner the exodus was directed to the Hotel Resetar and the Early Birds drinkshyfest

Activity along the flightline started shortly after sunshyrise the following morning with the takeoff and fly-bys of Champs Taylorcrafts and less quiet ships like a Mustang and a Hellcat The early morning air was perfect for forshymation flying low passes down the runway as well as trips along the beaches of Monterey Bay Clear cool air was the order of the day Fly-bys - air show - fly-bysshywhat a miserable way to spend a weekend

The Saturday night awards banquet was a real bust The usual happy hour began at 6 PM at the County Fairshygrounds Again the well organized approach was readily apparent with a neat pattern of tables decorations conshysisting of helium filled balloons with small gondolas simushylating the popular hot air balloons and other table decorashytions in the motif of antique airplanes The Armory was quickly filled the happy hour refreshments downed and the buffet lines began for a delicious meal Soon the awards time came and members of both the Northern California

(Photo by Gar Williams)

This fine example of the ever popular Waco RNF is owned by Sam Haley of Union City California

Antique group and EAA Chapter 62 began the presentashytion of the many plaques and trophies Somewhere along the way our attention was drawn to the main entrance shyin bounded three people clad ever so neatly in helmets goggles and NOTHING ELSE In true California trashydition Watsonville 74 was streaked by three beautiful young women Eat your hearts out Antiquers

Once the insuing riot quieted down the awards conshytinued with additional presentations being made by Paul Poberezny from EAA Headquarters and Doug Rounds representing the National AAA organization The culminashytion of the awards program was the presentaton of the Grand Champion Trophy to Jim Ricklefs for his beautiful restoration of an original SPAD

Sunday again dawned clear and cool and by 7 AM the dew-drenched benches at the Lumberjack breakshyfast in Corralitos were being dried by the britches of many hungry people Set in the redwoods several miles north of the airport the breakfast site alone was worth a long trip to visi t

As with many weekend fly-ins the Customs and Anshytiques started to depart early during the day many not staying for the fly-bys and air show It was with great reluctance and a tear in the eye that Bob Zilinsky and I cranked up and headed south towards San Diego startshying the 2200 mile trip home Truly this was one fine weekshyend with many new friends left behind

For you who missed it - eat your heart out - and dont miss it next year

MAJOR AWARDS - WATSONVILLE 74

GRAND CHAMPION - SPAD VII N-1916S James Ricklefs San Carlos California

MAYORS AWARD - Stearman C3R NC-8828 Jack Greiner Boulder Colorado

BEST HOMEBUIL T - Starduster Too N-5464 Chuck Tyler Long Beach California

NATIONAL AAA AWARDS - Fox Moth DH-83 ZKshyASP Myles Robertson Takapuna New Zealand New Standard N-155M George Dray Novato California Harlow PJC-2 N-18978 Mel Heflinger Redondo Beach California Cessna Airmaster N-25485 Gar Williams Naperville Illinois Stearman N2S-2 N-68324 Gary and Terry Woy San Jose California Porterfield N-17029 John Innes Studio City California

NATIONAL EAA AWARDS-Best Custom Built - Starduster Too N-5464 Chuck

Tyler Long Beach California Best Antique - SPAD VII N-1916S James Ricklefs

San Carlos California Best Classic - Spartan Executive N-17605 Don

Dickenson Santa Paula California NATIONAL STINSON CLUB CHOICE - Stinson SR-8

NC-16190 Ernest Fillmore Los Gatos California NATIONAL WACO CLUB CHOICE - Waco VKS-7

N-31656 Dale Miller S Pasadena California STEARMAN RESTORERS ASSN (BILL ADAMS MEshy

MORIAL TROPHY) Vaughn amp Jean Lamb

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

Irv Perlitch s Ford Tri-Motor

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

If a Ryan has to be modified then let it look like this

Books for Buffs from HISTORIC AVIATION

o Amphibian The Story of The Loening Biplaneby

Grover Loening Complete history of the flying shoehorns Photos so good text so detailed and the book a work of art You ll have to have it for your library 10 x 10 250 photos

o Water Flying shyby Franklin T Kurt

~ If you own a float plane or are just interested in III water flying you will want this book Its the first Z all-inclusive book about flying boats float planes

and amphibians Covers operating techniques and history of seaplanes It is masteriully written by a former Grumman engineer from a lifetime of testing designing and instructing in water craft 100 photos 15 draWings $895

o The Ford Air Tours 1925-1931 by Leslie Forden

~ A complete story in text and III photos of the seven crossshyZ country Reliability Tours Proshy

fusely illustrated incorporating much collateral material and an interesting whatever hapshypened to section in the back relating capsule histories agt of Tour participants A must for the enthusiasts reference libshyrary 8V2X 11

o They Call Me Mr Airshow by Bill Sweet

More than an autobiography of - MflARSHOWMr Sweet this book is a lively

account of Bill Sweets associashytion with the greats of the air c

o The book is exciting informashytive and in places riotously

show circuit from the 20s on

tf2 humorous Once you start readshy LO ing you wont be able to put it down o Cessna Guidebook

Mitch Mayborn and Bob Pickett

o$1100 E

o

THEY CAll ME

N

--t $995

~

o

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

Ted Holmans American Eagle

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

What is happening here

Complete like predecessor Stearman Guidebook o Contains photos of every single engine model D built through the Airmaster series and WW I I Bobcat three view drawings of the most significshyant versions reprints of old advertising and comshy cplete serial listings for military Bobcats Anyone owho has ever flown or admired Cessna will want this one

US Civil Aircraft by Joseph Juptner

The antiquers bible Ency shyclopedia of ATC planes giving a complete description history production data periormance specifications with excellent photo coverage Coloriul narrashytives are woven throughout tellshying of successes failures and little-known anecdotes Each volume covers 100 ATCs 300 + photos amp 300 pages

$695

tf2 --- o

I --t ~

X -----

Q)o Vol 1 ATC 1 thru 100 1927-29 $995 D o Vol II ATC 101 thru 200 1929 $995 o Vol IIIATC 201 lhru 300 1929-30 $995 E o Vol IV ATC 301 thru 400 1930-31 $995 Q)

o Vol V ATC 401 thru 500 1931-33 $995 Eo Vol VI ATC 501 thru 600 1933-35 $1195 Vol 6 covers sucn golden age classics as laquo

~ the DC-2 Ryan ST Luscome Phantom Taylor laquo ~ Silver Club and some of the great Stinshy w

sons Fairchilds and Waco models and more

HISTORICAVIATION prints and books for the collector

3850-8 Coronation Rd Eagan Minn 55122

Enc$ (Minn res add 4 tax) Name ____________________________

Address __________________________

City ___________________________ tI

State ____________ llp __________ laquo Postpaid 14 day Money middotback Guarantee laquo

75cent Handling on Orders Under $1000 w

Mail in plain brown wrapper 19

IN RETROSPECT

OLD LADY WIND-IN-THE-FACE By Lee S Thomas

P O Box 1166 Pittsburg Pennsylvania 15230

So she went to Ohio to learn to fly The Depression was just barely started Barr Peat had a little airport called Issouden in honor of the Lafayette Esquadrille (but the French wouldnt recognize the pronunciation) She soloed in a little over five hours like it was in those days Al Litzenberger (you recognize these old names) taught her in a Bird (smaller than a Laird but a honey of a plane to fly) Melba Beard has a nest of Birds even today out in Arizona I hear

Why do people do these things Cliff Balls pilot used to drop her mail over the field - it was only a little detour between Pittsburgh and Cleveland Maybe that tells you something Never heard of Clifford Ball Inc Where you been Ever hear of Capital Ever hear of United

Besides maybe the pilot was lost and just happened to have her mail on his lap (You dont need a map to get to Cleveland) Radio Instruments You kidding Everyshybody got lost You had to cut the engine to hear what the other guy was shouting about (Whats Pittsburghs Cathedral of Learning doing in downtown Akron)

She flew Wacos too and Aeronca C-3s They built a Standard at Bettis Field (shopping center housing develshyopment) to fly Cliffs mail route and she flew the Standshyard It was sort of like a Standard Mailwing but the wing was different A mite unstable some said

Must of been in the light of hindsight The whole world

and life and aviation were unstable at Bettis in those days Ask Karl Voelter Ask Kenny Sholter (He first found his way to Bettis age about 12 As it turned out later he could fly anything)

Her own love was her Monocoupe I hear its still flyshying over in Ohio somewhere and thats 35 years later or more (It has a new paint job though) She took it down to Uniontown (there isnt any airfield at Uniontown now) to tell the Rotary about the new self-starter Everybody went out to the field to marvel Wouldnt start Had to be hand-propped

She took it over to Greensburg (there isnt any airfield at Greensburg now) to pick up a passenger Turned out to weigh about 220 There used to be a ditch at Greensshyburg A good thing to avoid what with the passengers weight pulling the plane around and the baby The baby The baby was not only on the way she was almost there (The doctor told her she could keep flying as long as she felt like it) Of course she avoided the ditch

And you can feel sorry for these tricycle kiddie-car types with their radios and instruments and runways and innocence of forced landings What she knew theyll never know What she felt theyll never feel Well a lot of these older types ladies or gentlemen ask you to sit on this side or that side of them One ear bad it seems

Dont feel sorry for them

20

(Oshkosh Daily Northwestern Photo)

ASFTRSOA8P (Translated AS SEEN FROM THE REAR SEAT OF A BIPLANE)

By AI Kelch 7018 W Bonniewell Rd

Mequon Wisconsin 53092

To Weldon Ropp everyday is a holiday since he has retired from 27 years of flying for National Airlines He flies that little 16E Travel Air and has the kind of fun we all dream of (a long trip in a bipe with no time schedule and no flight plan ala gypsy) His home base is an antique airdrome in Delray Beach Florida There he has his home and hangar on a mile long grass s trip along with several other airplane buffs There is no need for anyone of these guys to ever go to Heaven - theyre already there

Willie as most everyone calls him decided to take that long trip this spring He built a false floor for the front cockpit and proceeded to pile it full of almost everything he owns - two suitcases of clothes two boxes of spare parts such as piston rings exhaust valves exhaust guides intake valve and guides rocker arms gaskets pliers 1 gallon of grease a grease gun several gallons of Marvel Mystery Oil plus a battery charger and tools enough to do a major overhaul With all that and 27 gallons of gas the old Travel Air lifted from his home strip and headed north

The following is Willies personal log of the trip

AN ANTIQUERS FLIGHT LOG Thursday May 23 1974

Flying Depart Arrive Time Fuel Oil

Delray Beachmiddot 815 am Lake Walesmiddot 945 am 130 144 Omiddot Lake Walesmiddot 955 am Ocalamiddot 11 00 am 105 110 1 qt Ocalamiddot 11 55 am Perry Fla 1 15 am 1 20 120 1 qt Perrymiddot 2 00 pm Ozark Ala - 355 pm 1 55 190 1 ql Ozark - 440 pm Clanton Ala - 600 pm 130 150 1 qt

Notes Overnight at Holiday Inn A good stop Airport Manager took me to the motel - an old timer OX-5 man

Friday May 24 1974 Clanton - 8 45 am Starkville Miss -10 20 am 1 35 157 1 ql Notes Starkville has a grass field started many years ago The son showed me

pictures o f his dad s Great Lakes with a Cirrus engine that he bought plus an Aeronca C-3 The Lakes N-308Y is still flying Said they lost track of it after it left Florida

Starkville - 1055 am Grenada - 11 45 am 55 87 0shyGrenada - 12 10 pm Clarksdale Miss shy

1255 pm 45 87 0shyNotes Went to Clarksville to help Chapter 27 (Memphis) with their lAC Contesl

Contest May 25 and 26 Sunday s contest day cal led off due to rain and low ceilings I spend day pulling push rods out and greasing them - a five hour job alone but with plenty of help we did it in two hours plus pull the cowling to see that all the screws and bolts are still in place

Monday May 27 1974 Clarksdale - 1005 am Hayti Mo - 11 45 am 140 160 1 ql Hayti - 1250 p m Sparta III - 220 p m 130 152 1 ql Sparta - 3 00 p m Lincoln III - 430 pm 1 30 150 0shyNotes RON at Holiday Inn - good place to stop

Tuesday May 28 1974 Lincoln - 822 am Lincoln - 8 52 am 30 45 0shyNotes Ceiling too low to even follow roads Lincoln - 12 30 pm DeKalb III - 145 pm 115 120 1 qt DeKalb - 210 pm Bill Dodd s - 240 pm 30 Notes Airplane placed in Bill Dodd s hangar Spend May 29 with my son from

Wonder Lake III - about 20 miles from Dodds Son flies for United

Thursday May 30 1974 Bill Dodd s - 1030 am Burlington Wis -11 OOam 30 Burlington - 11 30 am Hales Corners - 1200 30 140 0shyNotes Was shown the red carpet here Bill Hodges happened to see me fly over

the EAA Museum and alerted Mike Heuer and Gene Chase who crossed paths with me as the airport manager drove me to the Museum Bill showed me the Museum the work shop and the warehouses One cannot believe they build airplanes in a work shop so clean One should have a whole day to spend at the EAA Museum - there is so much to see and read This is a must for everyone

Hales Corners - 215 pm AI Kelch s - 240 pm 25

Friday June 1 1974 Notes With AI Kelch to Waukesha to see Dale Crites and his Curtiss Pusher and

the Waco restoration Had a ride in the 1924 Chevy touring car Back to AIs Took off for Oshkosh so as to be able to say I put the old Travel Air on the runway there This was the second time that I used the radio since leaving

21

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Willie Ropp at Oshkosh - taking a couple of lucky friends up for a joy ride

(Photo by AI Kelch)

Willie Ropp of Delray Beach Florida

Florida The other time was at Clarksdale EAA had a work crew painting plantshying flowers etc Back to AI s

Saturday June 2 1974 Notes To West Bend to put the Travel Air in the hangar with AI s Franklin Sport

Flew the Travel Air 22 hours and 20 minutes never missed a beat

On a Thursday afternoon I got a call at my office He had found my home strip landed and hitch-hiked to town He was having a late lunch when I caught up with him and Willie was wearing that silly smile that is typical of all aircraft drivers and is seen often on pilots immediately after solo flights for pictures with their newly restored aircraft and other achievements I spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying his trip second hand Friday and the rest of the weekend was a visiting fireman type of affair

We flew over to visit Dale Crites at Waukesha Airport to see his newly built Curtiss Pusher which many of you later saw at Oshkosh and we also saw Dean Crites in process Waco Straight Wing and got in on the run up of that wonderful J5 engine - a sound to delight the soul and fill the nostrils with perfume (carbon monoxide to other than airplane buffs)

Saturday afternoon had been scheduled for a visit to Oshkosh At the last minute I couldnt go so Willie went alone He was much impressed with the activity and the enthusiasm of the volunteer help and came back raving about the organizational ability of the whole staff at EAA

Sunday was filled with visits to local airports and prishyvate strips plus a few rides to the onlookers

Monday after an all too short visit I saw Willie off to Florida via commercial He left his Travel Air in my hands and returned several times this summer to continue his meande rings and visit the local fly-ins His agenda has inshycluded attendance at La Rue Oshkosh and Blakesburg Then he will no doubt meander south again with the birds visiting along the way causing me to turn green when everything else is turning brown Just being able to share Willies experience second hand gives me a thrill and something to remember during next winters long no-fly spell Shared experiences with others is a good part of the glue that holds our organization together and makes it such an exciting one The adventure that rubs off at one Oshkosh Fly-In is probably more than the average civilian type can stand in a year Look Willie up at the next fly-in - he is a fun type OF (Old Flier)

22

Around The AntiqueClassic World NORTHROP BETA INFO

In the May issue of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE we featured the rare Northrop Beta as our Golden Oldie of the Month At the end of the article we requested some assistance from our readers in determining what ultishymately happened to the two Betas Member John C Barbery P O Box 108 Bedminster New Jersey 07921 has provided us with copies of his Aircraft Research Data cards on X-963Y and NC-12214

According to Mr Barberys records the C-6 Menasco Buccaneer powered Beta was inspected and approved by the CAA on March 31 1931 for experimenta l license X-963Y issued to expire on October 1 1931 The entry en titl ed Fi nal Disposi tion sim pI y states Washed out at Los Angeles California on August 12 1931 The only listed owner for the aircraft was the factory Northshyrop Aircraft Corporation of Burbank

The Wasp Jr powered Beta NC-12214 lasted a little longer It was initially licensed by the CAA on Septemshyber 1 1931 wi th experimental number X-12214 to expire on March 1 1932 A footnote states that Don Berlin was the chief engineer for this design and that Stearman Airshycraft Corpora tion ran the development and flight tests on the plane The Beta was sold on February 8 1932 to

Kenyon Boocock with the NC license (approval under 2shy401) At this point 12214 had a total time of 40 hours Anothshyer footnote sta tes tha t the Wasp Beta bore an incorrect serial number 1 on its nameplate until May of 1932 when Stearman provided Boocock a new nameplate with the correct serial number 2

12214 was damaged in an accident at Hicksville Long Island on January 16 1933 arid was put in storage On January 16 1933 it was sold to George W Hard of West Sayv ille Long Island A t some point in late 1933 or early 1934 (no date known) the plane was purchased by S tearman in Wichita who rebuilt the Beta for experishymenting with various flap configurations (conventional zap Fowler and Wright types) completing it on May 1 1934 On May 3 1934 title was transferred to United Airshyports East Hartford Connecticu t (apparently for regisshytration purposes only) and two days later on May 5 the aircraft was completely destroyed in an accident at Wichita

So there you are antiquers it would appear that all hope is lost of finding a restorable Beta in someones barn

Our thanks to John Barbery for making this informashytion available

- Jack Cox Editor

ClASSIFIEDS

WANTED - Two wire wheels for 30x5 tires Siemens Halske SH III FOR SALE - Aeronca TAC civil version of the Defender 70 restored 160 hp geared rotary engine Roy Rehm Box 4832 Stateline original aircraft of Aeronca Employees Flying Club Lynwood Nevada 89449 Clark 8200 Meyers Road Middleton Ohio 422-3417

Calendar Of Events

OCTOBER 11-13 - TAHLEQUAH OKLAHOMA - 16th Annual Fly-In spOrisored by Tulsa Chapters of AAA EAA and lAC Homebuilts Antiques and Classics welcome Contact Bert Mahon 3101 South Boston Ct Tulsa Oklahoma 74135

Back Issues Of The Vintage Airplane

Limited numbers of back issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE are available at SOc each Copies still on hand at EAA Headquarters are

1973 - MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

1974 - JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST

23

(Photo by Gar Williams)

Left - Mel Hefinger of Redondo Beach California restored this beautiful Harlow and has won a roomshyful of trophies with it in the past couple of years

(Photo by Gar Williams)

Above - Watsonville s Grand Champion award for 1974 went to Jim Ricklefs of San Carlos California for this beautifully restored SPAD VII

(Photo by Gar Williams)

Ben Con aster of Huntington Beach California gets some wing walking assistance to the runway for his Fokker Dr I Triplane

EAT YOUR HEARTS OUT ANTIQUERS By Gar Williams

9 S 135 Aero Dr Rt 1 Naperville Illinois 60540

Watsonville - How can one convey the excitement describe the setting detail the airplanes or give full jusshytice to the hospitality without overusing adjectives like FANTASTIC

Watsonville - Undoubtedly known to those who enjoy apples for the product of its many orchards is also known by those of us who fancy old airplanes as one of THE f1yshyins This year the annual Watsonville gathering sponshysored by the Northern California Chapter of the Antique Airplane Association and the Watsonville Chamber of Commerce enjoyed clear cool weather and an accumushylation of Antique Classic and Custom aircraft that rivals even Oshkosh both in quantity and quality The coverage here will specifically be for the Antiques and Classics with the hope that we will see the Customs reported on in SPORT AVIATION

The history of the Watsonville Fly-In goes back some ten years to a point where members of the Northern Calishyfornia Chapter of the Antique Airplane Association were interested in developing a local fly-in This small start

grew slowly until the decision was reached for several chapters of Antiquers to band together to support the gathering - the National West Coast fly-in The rest of the story is history - steady growth with an excellent example of teamwork between the sponsors and the conshytinuing efforts of many individuals For those of us who attended the show for the first time this teamwork as well as individual effort was readily apparent Registration parking policing contests - all very smoothly done

The fly-in officially opened at noon Friday May 17 with a good number of aircraft - Antiques Classics and Cusshytoms already in attendance Actually Airmas ter Airlines had arrived late the previous day and we were quite surshyprised at the turnout that early Travel Airs Stearmans Luscombes Ryans - quantity and quality already had exshyceeded the turnout of what could be considered a typical three day show Opening day saw the expected influx of more ships This year the weatherman came through with continuous severe clear although the winds off the bay nearly made whitecaps on the asphalt runway at times

17

(Photo by Gar Williams)

The Ryan line at Watsonville You can see more Ryans here than at the national events Those Californians are guilty of a clear case of hoarding

In spite of the winds the fly-bys continued and only one case of a scraped wingtip was reported

Friday evening after all the activity on the flightline quieted down the Civil Air Patrol removed their police bonnets and donned white chefs hats for a CAP Hangar Feed in the Armory - a short walk from the flightline This little walk was rewarded with an inexpensive chicken dinner sprinkled with the fellowship of the many anshytiquers in attendance Following the dinner the exodus was directed to the Hotel Resetar and the Early Birds drinkshyfest

Activity along the flightline started shortly after sunshyrise the following morning with the takeoff and fly-bys of Champs Taylorcrafts and less quiet ships like a Mustang and a Hellcat The early morning air was perfect for forshymation flying low passes down the runway as well as trips along the beaches of Monterey Bay Clear cool air was the order of the day Fly-bys - air show - fly-bysshywhat a miserable way to spend a weekend

The Saturday night awards banquet was a real bust The usual happy hour began at 6 PM at the County Fairshygrounds Again the well organized approach was readily apparent with a neat pattern of tables decorations conshysisting of helium filled balloons with small gondolas simushylating the popular hot air balloons and other table decorashytions in the motif of antique airplanes The Armory was quickly filled the happy hour refreshments downed and the buffet lines began for a delicious meal Soon the awards time came and members of both the Northern California

(Photo by Gar Williams)

This fine example of the ever popular Waco RNF is owned by Sam Haley of Union City California

Antique group and EAA Chapter 62 began the presentashytion of the many plaques and trophies Somewhere along the way our attention was drawn to the main entrance shyin bounded three people clad ever so neatly in helmets goggles and NOTHING ELSE In true California trashydition Watsonville 74 was streaked by three beautiful young women Eat your hearts out Antiquers

Once the insuing riot quieted down the awards conshytinued with additional presentations being made by Paul Poberezny from EAA Headquarters and Doug Rounds representing the National AAA organization The culminashytion of the awards program was the presentaton of the Grand Champion Trophy to Jim Ricklefs for his beautiful restoration of an original SPAD

Sunday again dawned clear and cool and by 7 AM the dew-drenched benches at the Lumberjack breakshyfast in Corralitos were being dried by the britches of many hungry people Set in the redwoods several miles north of the airport the breakfast site alone was worth a long trip to visi t

As with many weekend fly-ins the Customs and Anshytiques started to depart early during the day many not staying for the fly-bys and air show It was with great reluctance and a tear in the eye that Bob Zilinsky and I cranked up and headed south towards San Diego startshying the 2200 mile trip home Truly this was one fine weekshyend with many new friends left behind

For you who missed it - eat your heart out - and dont miss it next year

MAJOR AWARDS - WATSONVILLE 74

GRAND CHAMPION - SPAD VII N-1916S James Ricklefs San Carlos California

MAYORS AWARD - Stearman C3R NC-8828 Jack Greiner Boulder Colorado

BEST HOMEBUIL T - Starduster Too N-5464 Chuck Tyler Long Beach California

NATIONAL AAA AWARDS - Fox Moth DH-83 ZKshyASP Myles Robertson Takapuna New Zealand New Standard N-155M George Dray Novato California Harlow PJC-2 N-18978 Mel Heflinger Redondo Beach California Cessna Airmaster N-25485 Gar Williams Naperville Illinois Stearman N2S-2 N-68324 Gary and Terry Woy San Jose California Porterfield N-17029 John Innes Studio City California

NATIONAL EAA AWARDS-Best Custom Built - Starduster Too N-5464 Chuck

Tyler Long Beach California Best Antique - SPAD VII N-1916S James Ricklefs

San Carlos California Best Classic - Spartan Executive N-17605 Don

Dickenson Santa Paula California NATIONAL STINSON CLUB CHOICE - Stinson SR-8

NC-16190 Ernest Fillmore Los Gatos California NATIONAL WACO CLUB CHOICE - Waco VKS-7

N-31656 Dale Miller S Pasadena California STEARMAN RESTORERS ASSN (BILL ADAMS MEshy

MORIAL TROPHY) Vaughn amp Jean Lamb

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

Irv Perlitch s Ford Tri-Motor

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

If a Ryan has to be modified then let it look like this

Books for Buffs from HISTORIC AVIATION

o Amphibian The Story of The Loening Biplaneby

Grover Loening Complete history of the flying shoehorns Photos so good text so detailed and the book a work of art You ll have to have it for your library 10 x 10 250 photos

o Water Flying shyby Franklin T Kurt

~ If you own a float plane or are just interested in III water flying you will want this book Its the first Z all-inclusive book about flying boats float planes

and amphibians Covers operating techniques and history of seaplanes It is masteriully written by a former Grumman engineer from a lifetime of testing designing and instructing in water craft 100 photos 15 draWings $895

o The Ford Air Tours 1925-1931 by Leslie Forden

~ A complete story in text and III photos of the seven crossshyZ country Reliability Tours Proshy

fusely illustrated incorporating much collateral material and an interesting whatever hapshypened to section in the back relating capsule histories agt of Tour participants A must for the enthusiasts reference libshyrary 8V2X 11

o They Call Me Mr Airshow by Bill Sweet

More than an autobiography of - MflARSHOWMr Sweet this book is a lively

account of Bill Sweets associashytion with the greats of the air c

o The book is exciting informashytive and in places riotously

show circuit from the 20s on

tf2 humorous Once you start readshy LO ing you wont be able to put it down o Cessna Guidebook

Mitch Mayborn and Bob Pickett

o$1100 E

o

THEY CAll ME

N

--t $995

~

o

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

Ted Holmans American Eagle

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

What is happening here

Complete like predecessor Stearman Guidebook o Contains photos of every single engine model D built through the Airmaster series and WW I I Bobcat three view drawings of the most significshyant versions reprints of old advertising and comshy cplete serial listings for military Bobcats Anyone owho has ever flown or admired Cessna will want this one

US Civil Aircraft by Joseph Juptner

The antiquers bible Ency shyclopedia of ATC planes giving a complete description history production data periormance specifications with excellent photo coverage Coloriul narrashytives are woven throughout tellshying of successes failures and little-known anecdotes Each volume covers 100 ATCs 300 + photos amp 300 pages

$695

tf2 --- o

I --t ~

X -----

Q)o Vol 1 ATC 1 thru 100 1927-29 $995 D o Vol II ATC 101 thru 200 1929 $995 o Vol IIIATC 201 lhru 300 1929-30 $995 E o Vol IV ATC 301 thru 400 1930-31 $995 Q)

o Vol V ATC 401 thru 500 1931-33 $995 Eo Vol VI ATC 501 thru 600 1933-35 $1195 Vol 6 covers sucn golden age classics as laquo

~ the DC-2 Ryan ST Luscome Phantom Taylor laquo ~ Silver Club and some of the great Stinshy w

sons Fairchilds and Waco models and more

HISTORICAVIATION prints and books for the collector

3850-8 Coronation Rd Eagan Minn 55122

Enc$ (Minn res add 4 tax) Name ____________________________

Address __________________________

City ___________________________ tI

State ____________ llp __________ laquo Postpaid 14 day Money middotback Guarantee laquo

75cent Handling on Orders Under $1000 w

Mail in plain brown wrapper 19

IN RETROSPECT

OLD LADY WIND-IN-THE-FACE By Lee S Thomas

P O Box 1166 Pittsburg Pennsylvania 15230

So she went to Ohio to learn to fly The Depression was just barely started Barr Peat had a little airport called Issouden in honor of the Lafayette Esquadrille (but the French wouldnt recognize the pronunciation) She soloed in a little over five hours like it was in those days Al Litzenberger (you recognize these old names) taught her in a Bird (smaller than a Laird but a honey of a plane to fly) Melba Beard has a nest of Birds even today out in Arizona I hear

Why do people do these things Cliff Balls pilot used to drop her mail over the field - it was only a little detour between Pittsburgh and Cleveland Maybe that tells you something Never heard of Clifford Ball Inc Where you been Ever hear of Capital Ever hear of United

Besides maybe the pilot was lost and just happened to have her mail on his lap (You dont need a map to get to Cleveland) Radio Instruments You kidding Everyshybody got lost You had to cut the engine to hear what the other guy was shouting about (Whats Pittsburghs Cathedral of Learning doing in downtown Akron)

She flew Wacos too and Aeronca C-3s They built a Standard at Bettis Field (shopping center housing develshyopment) to fly Cliffs mail route and she flew the Standshyard It was sort of like a Standard Mailwing but the wing was different A mite unstable some said

Must of been in the light of hindsight The whole world

and life and aviation were unstable at Bettis in those days Ask Karl Voelter Ask Kenny Sholter (He first found his way to Bettis age about 12 As it turned out later he could fly anything)

Her own love was her Monocoupe I hear its still flyshying over in Ohio somewhere and thats 35 years later or more (It has a new paint job though) She took it down to Uniontown (there isnt any airfield at Uniontown now) to tell the Rotary about the new self-starter Everybody went out to the field to marvel Wouldnt start Had to be hand-propped

She took it over to Greensburg (there isnt any airfield at Greensburg now) to pick up a passenger Turned out to weigh about 220 There used to be a ditch at Greensshyburg A good thing to avoid what with the passengers weight pulling the plane around and the baby The baby The baby was not only on the way she was almost there (The doctor told her she could keep flying as long as she felt like it) Of course she avoided the ditch

And you can feel sorry for these tricycle kiddie-car types with their radios and instruments and runways and innocence of forced landings What she knew theyll never know What she felt theyll never feel Well a lot of these older types ladies or gentlemen ask you to sit on this side or that side of them One ear bad it seems

Dont feel sorry for them

20

(Oshkosh Daily Northwestern Photo)

ASFTRSOA8P (Translated AS SEEN FROM THE REAR SEAT OF A BIPLANE)

By AI Kelch 7018 W Bonniewell Rd

Mequon Wisconsin 53092

To Weldon Ropp everyday is a holiday since he has retired from 27 years of flying for National Airlines He flies that little 16E Travel Air and has the kind of fun we all dream of (a long trip in a bipe with no time schedule and no flight plan ala gypsy) His home base is an antique airdrome in Delray Beach Florida There he has his home and hangar on a mile long grass s trip along with several other airplane buffs There is no need for anyone of these guys to ever go to Heaven - theyre already there

Willie as most everyone calls him decided to take that long trip this spring He built a false floor for the front cockpit and proceeded to pile it full of almost everything he owns - two suitcases of clothes two boxes of spare parts such as piston rings exhaust valves exhaust guides intake valve and guides rocker arms gaskets pliers 1 gallon of grease a grease gun several gallons of Marvel Mystery Oil plus a battery charger and tools enough to do a major overhaul With all that and 27 gallons of gas the old Travel Air lifted from his home strip and headed north

The following is Willies personal log of the trip

AN ANTIQUERS FLIGHT LOG Thursday May 23 1974

Flying Depart Arrive Time Fuel Oil

Delray Beachmiddot 815 am Lake Walesmiddot 945 am 130 144 Omiddot Lake Walesmiddot 955 am Ocalamiddot 11 00 am 105 110 1 qt Ocalamiddot 11 55 am Perry Fla 1 15 am 1 20 120 1 qt Perrymiddot 2 00 pm Ozark Ala - 355 pm 1 55 190 1 ql Ozark - 440 pm Clanton Ala - 600 pm 130 150 1 qt

Notes Overnight at Holiday Inn A good stop Airport Manager took me to the motel - an old timer OX-5 man

Friday May 24 1974 Clanton - 8 45 am Starkville Miss -10 20 am 1 35 157 1 ql Notes Starkville has a grass field started many years ago The son showed me

pictures o f his dad s Great Lakes with a Cirrus engine that he bought plus an Aeronca C-3 The Lakes N-308Y is still flying Said they lost track of it after it left Florida

Starkville - 1055 am Grenada - 11 45 am 55 87 0shyGrenada - 12 10 pm Clarksdale Miss shy

1255 pm 45 87 0shyNotes Went to Clarksville to help Chapter 27 (Memphis) with their lAC Contesl

Contest May 25 and 26 Sunday s contest day cal led off due to rain and low ceilings I spend day pulling push rods out and greasing them - a five hour job alone but with plenty of help we did it in two hours plus pull the cowling to see that all the screws and bolts are still in place

Monday May 27 1974 Clarksdale - 1005 am Hayti Mo - 11 45 am 140 160 1 ql Hayti - 1250 p m Sparta III - 220 p m 130 152 1 ql Sparta - 3 00 p m Lincoln III - 430 pm 1 30 150 0shyNotes RON at Holiday Inn - good place to stop

Tuesday May 28 1974 Lincoln - 822 am Lincoln - 8 52 am 30 45 0shyNotes Ceiling too low to even follow roads Lincoln - 12 30 pm DeKalb III - 145 pm 115 120 1 qt DeKalb - 210 pm Bill Dodd s - 240 pm 30 Notes Airplane placed in Bill Dodd s hangar Spend May 29 with my son from

Wonder Lake III - about 20 miles from Dodds Son flies for United

Thursday May 30 1974 Bill Dodd s - 1030 am Burlington Wis -11 OOam 30 Burlington - 11 30 am Hales Corners - 1200 30 140 0shyNotes Was shown the red carpet here Bill Hodges happened to see me fly over

the EAA Museum and alerted Mike Heuer and Gene Chase who crossed paths with me as the airport manager drove me to the Museum Bill showed me the Museum the work shop and the warehouses One cannot believe they build airplanes in a work shop so clean One should have a whole day to spend at the EAA Museum - there is so much to see and read This is a must for everyone

Hales Corners - 215 pm AI Kelch s - 240 pm 25

Friday June 1 1974 Notes With AI Kelch to Waukesha to see Dale Crites and his Curtiss Pusher and

the Waco restoration Had a ride in the 1924 Chevy touring car Back to AIs Took off for Oshkosh so as to be able to say I put the old Travel Air on the runway there This was the second time that I used the radio since leaving

21

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Willie Ropp at Oshkosh - taking a couple of lucky friends up for a joy ride

(Photo by AI Kelch)

Willie Ropp of Delray Beach Florida

Florida The other time was at Clarksdale EAA had a work crew painting plantshying flowers etc Back to AI s

Saturday June 2 1974 Notes To West Bend to put the Travel Air in the hangar with AI s Franklin Sport

Flew the Travel Air 22 hours and 20 minutes never missed a beat

On a Thursday afternoon I got a call at my office He had found my home strip landed and hitch-hiked to town He was having a late lunch when I caught up with him and Willie was wearing that silly smile that is typical of all aircraft drivers and is seen often on pilots immediately after solo flights for pictures with their newly restored aircraft and other achievements I spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying his trip second hand Friday and the rest of the weekend was a visiting fireman type of affair

We flew over to visit Dale Crites at Waukesha Airport to see his newly built Curtiss Pusher which many of you later saw at Oshkosh and we also saw Dean Crites in process Waco Straight Wing and got in on the run up of that wonderful J5 engine - a sound to delight the soul and fill the nostrils with perfume (carbon monoxide to other than airplane buffs)

Saturday afternoon had been scheduled for a visit to Oshkosh At the last minute I couldnt go so Willie went alone He was much impressed with the activity and the enthusiasm of the volunteer help and came back raving about the organizational ability of the whole staff at EAA

Sunday was filled with visits to local airports and prishyvate strips plus a few rides to the onlookers

Monday after an all too short visit I saw Willie off to Florida via commercial He left his Travel Air in my hands and returned several times this summer to continue his meande rings and visit the local fly-ins His agenda has inshycluded attendance at La Rue Oshkosh and Blakesburg Then he will no doubt meander south again with the birds visiting along the way causing me to turn green when everything else is turning brown Just being able to share Willies experience second hand gives me a thrill and something to remember during next winters long no-fly spell Shared experiences with others is a good part of the glue that holds our organization together and makes it such an exciting one The adventure that rubs off at one Oshkosh Fly-In is probably more than the average civilian type can stand in a year Look Willie up at the next fly-in - he is a fun type OF (Old Flier)

22

Around The AntiqueClassic World NORTHROP BETA INFO

In the May issue of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE we featured the rare Northrop Beta as our Golden Oldie of the Month At the end of the article we requested some assistance from our readers in determining what ultishymately happened to the two Betas Member John C Barbery P O Box 108 Bedminster New Jersey 07921 has provided us with copies of his Aircraft Research Data cards on X-963Y and NC-12214

According to Mr Barberys records the C-6 Menasco Buccaneer powered Beta was inspected and approved by the CAA on March 31 1931 for experimenta l license X-963Y issued to expire on October 1 1931 The entry en titl ed Fi nal Disposi tion sim pI y states Washed out at Los Angeles California on August 12 1931 The only listed owner for the aircraft was the factory Northshyrop Aircraft Corporation of Burbank

The Wasp Jr powered Beta NC-12214 lasted a little longer It was initially licensed by the CAA on Septemshyber 1 1931 wi th experimental number X-12214 to expire on March 1 1932 A footnote states that Don Berlin was the chief engineer for this design and that Stearman Airshycraft Corpora tion ran the development and flight tests on the plane The Beta was sold on February 8 1932 to

Kenyon Boocock with the NC license (approval under 2shy401) At this point 12214 had a total time of 40 hours Anothshyer footnote sta tes tha t the Wasp Beta bore an incorrect serial number 1 on its nameplate until May of 1932 when Stearman provided Boocock a new nameplate with the correct serial number 2

12214 was damaged in an accident at Hicksville Long Island on January 16 1933 arid was put in storage On January 16 1933 it was sold to George W Hard of West Sayv ille Long Island A t some point in late 1933 or early 1934 (no date known) the plane was purchased by S tearman in Wichita who rebuilt the Beta for experishymenting with various flap configurations (conventional zap Fowler and Wright types) completing it on May 1 1934 On May 3 1934 title was transferred to United Airshyports East Hartford Connecticu t (apparently for regisshytration purposes only) and two days later on May 5 the aircraft was completely destroyed in an accident at Wichita

So there you are antiquers it would appear that all hope is lost of finding a restorable Beta in someones barn

Our thanks to John Barbery for making this informashytion available

- Jack Cox Editor

ClASSIFIEDS

WANTED - Two wire wheels for 30x5 tires Siemens Halske SH III FOR SALE - Aeronca TAC civil version of the Defender 70 restored 160 hp geared rotary engine Roy Rehm Box 4832 Stateline original aircraft of Aeronca Employees Flying Club Lynwood Nevada 89449 Clark 8200 Meyers Road Middleton Ohio 422-3417

Calendar Of Events

OCTOBER 11-13 - TAHLEQUAH OKLAHOMA - 16th Annual Fly-In spOrisored by Tulsa Chapters of AAA EAA and lAC Homebuilts Antiques and Classics welcome Contact Bert Mahon 3101 South Boston Ct Tulsa Oklahoma 74135

Back Issues Of The Vintage Airplane

Limited numbers of back issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE are available at SOc each Copies still on hand at EAA Headquarters are

1973 - MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

1974 - JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST

23

(Photo by Gar Williams)

The Ryan line at Watsonville You can see more Ryans here than at the national events Those Californians are guilty of a clear case of hoarding

In spite of the winds the fly-bys continued and only one case of a scraped wingtip was reported

Friday evening after all the activity on the flightline quieted down the Civil Air Patrol removed their police bonnets and donned white chefs hats for a CAP Hangar Feed in the Armory - a short walk from the flightline This little walk was rewarded with an inexpensive chicken dinner sprinkled with the fellowship of the many anshytiquers in attendance Following the dinner the exodus was directed to the Hotel Resetar and the Early Birds drinkshyfest

Activity along the flightline started shortly after sunshyrise the following morning with the takeoff and fly-bys of Champs Taylorcrafts and less quiet ships like a Mustang and a Hellcat The early morning air was perfect for forshymation flying low passes down the runway as well as trips along the beaches of Monterey Bay Clear cool air was the order of the day Fly-bys - air show - fly-bysshywhat a miserable way to spend a weekend

The Saturday night awards banquet was a real bust The usual happy hour began at 6 PM at the County Fairshygrounds Again the well organized approach was readily apparent with a neat pattern of tables decorations conshysisting of helium filled balloons with small gondolas simushylating the popular hot air balloons and other table decorashytions in the motif of antique airplanes The Armory was quickly filled the happy hour refreshments downed and the buffet lines began for a delicious meal Soon the awards time came and members of both the Northern California

(Photo by Gar Williams)

This fine example of the ever popular Waco RNF is owned by Sam Haley of Union City California

Antique group and EAA Chapter 62 began the presentashytion of the many plaques and trophies Somewhere along the way our attention was drawn to the main entrance shyin bounded three people clad ever so neatly in helmets goggles and NOTHING ELSE In true California trashydition Watsonville 74 was streaked by three beautiful young women Eat your hearts out Antiquers

Once the insuing riot quieted down the awards conshytinued with additional presentations being made by Paul Poberezny from EAA Headquarters and Doug Rounds representing the National AAA organization The culminashytion of the awards program was the presentaton of the Grand Champion Trophy to Jim Ricklefs for his beautiful restoration of an original SPAD

Sunday again dawned clear and cool and by 7 AM the dew-drenched benches at the Lumberjack breakshyfast in Corralitos were being dried by the britches of many hungry people Set in the redwoods several miles north of the airport the breakfast site alone was worth a long trip to visi t

As with many weekend fly-ins the Customs and Anshytiques started to depart early during the day many not staying for the fly-bys and air show It was with great reluctance and a tear in the eye that Bob Zilinsky and I cranked up and headed south towards San Diego startshying the 2200 mile trip home Truly this was one fine weekshyend with many new friends left behind

For you who missed it - eat your heart out - and dont miss it next year

MAJOR AWARDS - WATSONVILLE 74

GRAND CHAMPION - SPAD VII N-1916S James Ricklefs San Carlos California

MAYORS AWARD - Stearman C3R NC-8828 Jack Greiner Boulder Colorado

BEST HOMEBUIL T - Starduster Too N-5464 Chuck Tyler Long Beach California

NATIONAL AAA AWARDS - Fox Moth DH-83 ZKshyASP Myles Robertson Takapuna New Zealand New Standard N-155M George Dray Novato California Harlow PJC-2 N-18978 Mel Heflinger Redondo Beach California Cessna Airmaster N-25485 Gar Williams Naperville Illinois Stearman N2S-2 N-68324 Gary and Terry Woy San Jose California Porterfield N-17029 John Innes Studio City California

NATIONAL EAA AWARDS-Best Custom Built - Starduster Too N-5464 Chuck

Tyler Long Beach California Best Antique - SPAD VII N-1916S James Ricklefs

San Carlos California Best Classic - Spartan Executive N-17605 Don

Dickenson Santa Paula California NATIONAL STINSON CLUB CHOICE - Stinson SR-8

NC-16190 Ernest Fillmore Los Gatos California NATIONAL WACO CLUB CHOICE - Waco VKS-7

N-31656 Dale Miller S Pasadena California STEARMAN RESTORERS ASSN (BILL ADAMS MEshy

MORIAL TROPHY) Vaughn amp Jean Lamb

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

Irv Perlitch s Ford Tri-Motor

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

If a Ryan has to be modified then let it look like this

Books for Buffs from HISTORIC AVIATION

o Amphibian The Story of The Loening Biplaneby

Grover Loening Complete history of the flying shoehorns Photos so good text so detailed and the book a work of art You ll have to have it for your library 10 x 10 250 photos

o Water Flying shyby Franklin T Kurt

~ If you own a float plane or are just interested in III water flying you will want this book Its the first Z all-inclusive book about flying boats float planes

and amphibians Covers operating techniques and history of seaplanes It is masteriully written by a former Grumman engineer from a lifetime of testing designing and instructing in water craft 100 photos 15 draWings $895

o The Ford Air Tours 1925-1931 by Leslie Forden

~ A complete story in text and III photos of the seven crossshyZ country Reliability Tours Proshy

fusely illustrated incorporating much collateral material and an interesting whatever hapshypened to section in the back relating capsule histories agt of Tour participants A must for the enthusiasts reference libshyrary 8V2X 11

o They Call Me Mr Airshow by Bill Sweet

More than an autobiography of - MflARSHOWMr Sweet this book is a lively

account of Bill Sweets associashytion with the greats of the air c

o The book is exciting informashytive and in places riotously

show circuit from the 20s on

tf2 humorous Once you start readshy LO ing you wont be able to put it down o Cessna Guidebook

Mitch Mayborn and Bob Pickett

o$1100 E

o

THEY CAll ME

N

--t $995

~

o

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

Ted Holmans American Eagle

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

What is happening here

Complete like predecessor Stearman Guidebook o Contains photos of every single engine model D built through the Airmaster series and WW I I Bobcat three view drawings of the most significshyant versions reprints of old advertising and comshy cplete serial listings for military Bobcats Anyone owho has ever flown or admired Cessna will want this one

US Civil Aircraft by Joseph Juptner

The antiquers bible Ency shyclopedia of ATC planes giving a complete description history production data periormance specifications with excellent photo coverage Coloriul narrashytives are woven throughout tellshying of successes failures and little-known anecdotes Each volume covers 100 ATCs 300 + photos amp 300 pages

$695

tf2 --- o

I --t ~

X -----

Q)o Vol 1 ATC 1 thru 100 1927-29 $995 D o Vol II ATC 101 thru 200 1929 $995 o Vol IIIATC 201 lhru 300 1929-30 $995 E o Vol IV ATC 301 thru 400 1930-31 $995 Q)

o Vol V ATC 401 thru 500 1931-33 $995 Eo Vol VI ATC 501 thru 600 1933-35 $1195 Vol 6 covers sucn golden age classics as laquo

~ the DC-2 Ryan ST Luscome Phantom Taylor laquo ~ Silver Club and some of the great Stinshy w

sons Fairchilds and Waco models and more

HISTORICAVIATION prints and books for the collector

3850-8 Coronation Rd Eagan Minn 55122

Enc$ (Minn res add 4 tax) Name ____________________________

Address __________________________

City ___________________________ tI

State ____________ llp __________ laquo Postpaid 14 day Money middotback Guarantee laquo

75cent Handling on Orders Under $1000 w

Mail in plain brown wrapper 19

IN RETROSPECT

OLD LADY WIND-IN-THE-FACE By Lee S Thomas

P O Box 1166 Pittsburg Pennsylvania 15230

So she went to Ohio to learn to fly The Depression was just barely started Barr Peat had a little airport called Issouden in honor of the Lafayette Esquadrille (but the French wouldnt recognize the pronunciation) She soloed in a little over five hours like it was in those days Al Litzenberger (you recognize these old names) taught her in a Bird (smaller than a Laird but a honey of a plane to fly) Melba Beard has a nest of Birds even today out in Arizona I hear

Why do people do these things Cliff Balls pilot used to drop her mail over the field - it was only a little detour between Pittsburgh and Cleveland Maybe that tells you something Never heard of Clifford Ball Inc Where you been Ever hear of Capital Ever hear of United

Besides maybe the pilot was lost and just happened to have her mail on his lap (You dont need a map to get to Cleveland) Radio Instruments You kidding Everyshybody got lost You had to cut the engine to hear what the other guy was shouting about (Whats Pittsburghs Cathedral of Learning doing in downtown Akron)

She flew Wacos too and Aeronca C-3s They built a Standard at Bettis Field (shopping center housing develshyopment) to fly Cliffs mail route and she flew the Standshyard It was sort of like a Standard Mailwing but the wing was different A mite unstable some said

Must of been in the light of hindsight The whole world

and life and aviation were unstable at Bettis in those days Ask Karl Voelter Ask Kenny Sholter (He first found his way to Bettis age about 12 As it turned out later he could fly anything)

Her own love was her Monocoupe I hear its still flyshying over in Ohio somewhere and thats 35 years later or more (It has a new paint job though) She took it down to Uniontown (there isnt any airfield at Uniontown now) to tell the Rotary about the new self-starter Everybody went out to the field to marvel Wouldnt start Had to be hand-propped

She took it over to Greensburg (there isnt any airfield at Greensburg now) to pick up a passenger Turned out to weigh about 220 There used to be a ditch at Greensshyburg A good thing to avoid what with the passengers weight pulling the plane around and the baby The baby The baby was not only on the way she was almost there (The doctor told her she could keep flying as long as she felt like it) Of course she avoided the ditch

And you can feel sorry for these tricycle kiddie-car types with their radios and instruments and runways and innocence of forced landings What she knew theyll never know What she felt theyll never feel Well a lot of these older types ladies or gentlemen ask you to sit on this side or that side of them One ear bad it seems

Dont feel sorry for them

20

(Oshkosh Daily Northwestern Photo)

ASFTRSOA8P (Translated AS SEEN FROM THE REAR SEAT OF A BIPLANE)

By AI Kelch 7018 W Bonniewell Rd

Mequon Wisconsin 53092

To Weldon Ropp everyday is a holiday since he has retired from 27 years of flying for National Airlines He flies that little 16E Travel Air and has the kind of fun we all dream of (a long trip in a bipe with no time schedule and no flight plan ala gypsy) His home base is an antique airdrome in Delray Beach Florida There he has his home and hangar on a mile long grass s trip along with several other airplane buffs There is no need for anyone of these guys to ever go to Heaven - theyre already there

Willie as most everyone calls him decided to take that long trip this spring He built a false floor for the front cockpit and proceeded to pile it full of almost everything he owns - two suitcases of clothes two boxes of spare parts such as piston rings exhaust valves exhaust guides intake valve and guides rocker arms gaskets pliers 1 gallon of grease a grease gun several gallons of Marvel Mystery Oil plus a battery charger and tools enough to do a major overhaul With all that and 27 gallons of gas the old Travel Air lifted from his home strip and headed north

The following is Willies personal log of the trip

AN ANTIQUERS FLIGHT LOG Thursday May 23 1974

Flying Depart Arrive Time Fuel Oil

Delray Beachmiddot 815 am Lake Walesmiddot 945 am 130 144 Omiddot Lake Walesmiddot 955 am Ocalamiddot 11 00 am 105 110 1 qt Ocalamiddot 11 55 am Perry Fla 1 15 am 1 20 120 1 qt Perrymiddot 2 00 pm Ozark Ala - 355 pm 1 55 190 1 ql Ozark - 440 pm Clanton Ala - 600 pm 130 150 1 qt

Notes Overnight at Holiday Inn A good stop Airport Manager took me to the motel - an old timer OX-5 man

Friday May 24 1974 Clanton - 8 45 am Starkville Miss -10 20 am 1 35 157 1 ql Notes Starkville has a grass field started many years ago The son showed me

pictures o f his dad s Great Lakes with a Cirrus engine that he bought plus an Aeronca C-3 The Lakes N-308Y is still flying Said they lost track of it after it left Florida

Starkville - 1055 am Grenada - 11 45 am 55 87 0shyGrenada - 12 10 pm Clarksdale Miss shy

1255 pm 45 87 0shyNotes Went to Clarksville to help Chapter 27 (Memphis) with their lAC Contesl

Contest May 25 and 26 Sunday s contest day cal led off due to rain and low ceilings I spend day pulling push rods out and greasing them - a five hour job alone but with plenty of help we did it in two hours plus pull the cowling to see that all the screws and bolts are still in place

Monday May 27 1974 Clarksdale - 1005 am Hayti Mo - 11 45 am 140 160 1 ql Hayti - 1250 p m Sparta III - 220 p m 130 152 1 ql Sparta - 3 00 p m Lincoln III - 430 pm 1 30 150 0shyNotes RON at Holiday Inn - good place to stop

Tuesday May 28 1974 Lincoln - 822 am Lincoln - 8 52 am 30 45 0shyNotes Ceiling too low to even follow roads Lincoln - 12 30 pm DeKalb III - 145 pm 115 120 1 qt DeKalb - 210 pm Bill Dodd s - 240 pm 30 Notes Airplane placed in Bill Dodd s hangar Spend May 29 with my son from

Wonder Lake III - about 20 miles from Dodds Son flies for United

Thursday May 30 1974 Bill Dodd s - 1030 am Burlington Wis -11 OOam 30 Burlington - 11 30 am Hales Corners - 1200 30 140 0shyNotes Was shown the red carpet here Bill Hodges happened to see me fly over

the EAA Museum and alerted Mike Heuer and Gene Chase who crossed paths with me as the airport manager drove me to the Museum Bill showed me the Museum the work shop and the warehouses One cannot believe they build airplanes in a work shop so clean One should have a whole day to spend at the EAA Museum - there is so much to see and read This is a must for everyone

Hales Corners - 215 pm AI Kelch s - 240 pm 25

Friday June 1 1974 Notes With AI Kelch to Waukesha to see Dale Crites and his Curtiss Pusher and

the Waco restoration Had a ride in the 1924 Chevy touring car Back to AIs Took off for Oshkosh so as to be able to say I put the old Travel Air on the runway there This was the second time that I used the radio since leaving

21

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Willie Ropp at Oshkosh - taking a couple of lucky friends up for a joy ride

(Photo by AI Kelch)

Willie Ropp of Delray Beach Florida

Florida The other time was at Clarksdale EAA had a work crew painting plantshying flowers etc Back to AI s

Saturday June 2 1974 Notes To West Bend to put the Travel Air in the hangar with AI s Franklin Sport

Flew the Travel Air 22 hours and 20 minutes never missed a beat

On a Thursday afternoon I got a call at my office He had found my home strip landed and hitch-hiked to town He was having a late lunch when I caught up with him and Willie was wearing that silly smile that is typical of all aircraft drivers and is seen often on pilots immediately after solo flights for pictures with their newly restored aircraft and other achievements I spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying his trip second hand Friday and the rest of the weekend was a visiting fireman type of affair

We flew over to visit Dale Crites at Waukesha Airport to see his newly built Curtiss Pusher which many of you later saw at Oshkosh and we also saw Dean Crites in process Waco Straight Wing and got in on the run up of that wonderful J5 engine - a sound to delight the soul and fill the nostrils with perfume (carbon monoxide to other than airplane buffs)

Saturday afternoon had been scheduled for a visit to Oshkosh At the last minute I couldnt go so Willie went alone He was much impressed with the activity and the enthusiasm of the volunteer help and came back raving about the organizational ability of the whole staff at EAA

Sunday was filled with visits to local airports and prishyvate strips plus a few rides to the onlookers

Monday after an all too short visit I saw Willie off to Florida via commercial He left his Travel Air in my hands and returned several times this summer to continue his meande rings and visit the local fly-ins His agenda has inshycluded attendance at La Rue Oshkosh and Blakesburg Then he will no doubt meander south again with the birds visiting along the way causing me to turn green when everything else is turning brown Just being able to share Willies experience second hand gives me a thrill and something to remember during next winters long no-fly spell Shared experiences with others is a good part of the glue that holds our organization together and makes it such an exciting one The adventure that rubs off at one Oshkosh Fly-In is probably more than the average civilian type can stand in a year Look Willie up at the next fly-in - he is a fun type OF (Old Flier)

22

Around The AntiqueClassic World NORTHROP BETA INFO

In the May issue of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE we featured the rare Northrop Beta as our Golden Oldie of the Month At the end of the article we requested some assistance from our readers in determining what ultishymately happened to the two Betas Member John C Barbery P O Box 108 Bedminster New Jersey 07921 has provided us with copies of his Aircraft Research Data cards on X-963Y and NC-12214

According to Mr Barberys records the C-6 Menasco Buccaneer powered Beta was inspected and approved by the CAA on March 31 1931 for experimenta l license X-963Y issued to expire on October 1 1931 The entry en titl ed Fi nal Disposi tion sim pI y states Washed out at Los Angeles California on August 12 1931 The only listed owner for the aircraft was the factory Northshyrop Aircraft Corporation of Burbank

The Wasp Jr powered Beta NC-12214 lasted a little longer It was initially licensed by the CAA on Septemshyber 1 1931 wi th experimental number X-12214 to expire on March 1 1932 A footnote states that Don Berlin was the chief engineer for this design and that Stearman Airshycraft Corpora tion ran the development and flight tests on the plane The Beta was sold on February 8 1932 to

Kenyon Boocock with the NC license (approval under 2shy401) At this point 12214 had a total time of 40 hours Anothshyer footnote sta tes tha t the Wasp Beta bore an incorrect serial number 1 on its nameplate until May of 1932 when Stearman provided Boocock a new nameplate with the correct serial number 2

12214 was damaged in an accident at Hicksville Long Island on January 16 1933 arid was put in storage On January 16 1933 it was sold to George W Hard of West Sayv ille Long Island A t some point in late 1933 or early 1934 (no date known) the plane was purchased by S tearman in Wichita who rebuilt the Beta for experishymenting with various flap configurations (conventional zap Fowler and Wright types) completing it on May 1 1934 On May 3 1934 title was transferred to United Airshyports East Hartford Connecticu t (apparently for regisshytration purposes only) and two days later on May 5 the aircraft was completely destroyed in an accident at Wichita

So there you are antiquers it would appear that all hope is lost of finding a restorable Beta in someones barn

Our thanks to John Barbery for making this informashytion available

- Jack Cox Editor

ClASSIFIEDS

WANTED - Two wire wheels for 30x5 tires Siemens Halske SH III FOR SALE - Aeronca TAC civil version of the Defender 70 restored 160 hp geared rotary engine Roy Rehm Box 4832 Stateline original aircraft of Aeronca Employees Flying Club Lynwood Nevada 89449 Clark 8200 Meyers Road Middleton Ohio 422-3417

Calendar Of Events

OCTOBER 11-13 - TAHLEQUAH OKLAHOMA - 16th Annual Fly-In spOrisored by Tulsa Chapters of AAA EAA and lAC Homebuilts Antiques and Classics welcome Contact Bert Mahon 3101 South Boston Ct Tulsa Oklahoma 74135

Back Issues Of The Vintage Airplane

Limited numbers of back issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE are available at SOc each Copies still on hand at EAA Headquarters are

1973 - MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

1974 - JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST

23

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

Irv Perlitch s Ford Tri-Motor

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

If a Ryan has to be modified then let it look like this

Books for Buffs from HISTORIC AVIATION

o Amphibian The Story of The Loening Biplaneby

Grover Loening Complete history of the flying shoehorns Photos so good text so detailed and the book a work of art You ll have to have it for your library 10 x 10 250 photos

o Water Flying shyby Franklin T Kurt

~ If you own a float plane or are just interested in III water flying you will want this book Its the first Z all-inclusive book about flying boats float planes

and amphibians Covers operating techniques and history of seaplanes It is masteriully written by a former Grumman engineer from a lifetime of testing designing and instructing in water craft 100 photos 15 draWings $895

o The Ford Air Tours 1925-1931 by Leslie Forden

~ A complete story in text and III photos of the seven crossshyZ country Reliability Tours Proshy

fusely illustrated incorporating much collateral material and an interesting whatever hapshypened to section in the back relating capsule histories agt of Tour participants A must for the enthusiasts reference libshyrary 8V2X 11

o They Call Me Mr Airshow by Bill Sweet

More than an autobiography of - MflARSHOWMr Sweet this book is a lively

account of Bill Sweets associashytion with the greats of the air c

o The book is exciting informashytive and in places riotously

show circuit from the 20s on

tf2 humorous Once you start readshy LO ing you wont be able to put it down o Cessna Guidebook

Mitch Mayborn and Bob Pickett

o$1100 E

o

THEY CAll ME

N

--t $995

~

o

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

Ted Holmans American Eagle

(Photo by Robert F Zilinsky)

What is happening here

Complete like predecessor Stearman Guidebook o Contains photos of every single engine model D built through the Airmaster series and WW I I Bobcat three view drawings of the most significshyant versions reprints of old advertising and comshy cplete serial listings for military Bobcats Anyone owho has ever flown or admired Cessna will want this one

US Civil Aircraft by Joseph Juptner

The antiquers bible Ency shyclopedia of ATC planes giving a complete description history production data periormance specifications with excellent photo coverage Coloriul narrashytives are woven throughout tellshying of successes failures and little-known anecdotes Each volume covers 100 ATCs 300 + photos amp 300 pages

$695

tf2 --- o

I --t ~

X -----

Q)o Vol 1 ATC 1 thru 100 1927-29 $995 D o Vol II ATC 101 thru 200 1929 $995 o Vol IIIATC 201 lhru 300 1929-30 $995 E o Vol IV ATC 301 thru 400 1930-31 $995 Q)

o Vol V ATC 401 thru 500 1931-33 $995 Eo Vol VI ATC 501 thru 600 1933-35 $1195 Vol 6 covers sucn golden age classics as laquo

~ the DC-2 Ryan ST Luscome Phantom Taylor laquo ~ Silver Club and some of the great Stinshy w

sons Fairchilds and Waco models and more

HISTORICAVIATION prints and books for the collector

3850-8 Coronation Rd Eagan Minn 55122

Enc$ (Minn res add 4 tax) Name ____________________________

Address __________________________

City ___________________________ tI

State ____________ llp __________ laquo Postpaid 14 day Money middotback Guarantee laquo

75cent Handling on Orders Under $1000 w

Mail in plain brown wrapper 19

IN RETROSPECT

OLD LADY WIND-IN-THE-FACE By Lee S Thomas

P O Box 1166 Pittsburg Pennsylvania 15230

So she went to Ohio to learn to fly The Depression was just barely started Barr Peat had a little airport called Issouden in honor of the Lafayette Esquadrille (but the French wouldnt recognize the pronunciation) She soloed in a little over five hours like it was in those days Al Litzenberger (you recognize these old names) taught her in a Bird (smaller than a Laird but a honey of a plane to fly) Melba Beard has a nest of Birds even today out in Arizona I hear

Why do people do these things Cliff Balls pilot used to drop her mail over the field - it was only a little detour between Pittsburgh and Cleveland Maybe that tells you something Never heard of Clifford Ball Inc Where you been Ever hear of Capital Ever hear of United

Besides maybe the pilot was lost and just happened to have her mail on his lap (You dont need a map to get to Cleveland) Radio Instruments You kidding Everyshybody got lost You had to cut the engine to hear what the other guy was shouting about (Whats Pittsburghs Cathedral of Learning doing in downtown Akron)

She flew Wacos too and Aeronca C-3s They built a Standard at Bettis Field (shopping center housing develshyopment) to fly Cliffs mail route and she flew the Standshyard It was sort of like a Standard Mailwing but the wing was different A mite unstable some said

Must of been in the light of hindsight The whole world

and life and aviation were unstable at Bettis in those days Ask Karl Voelter Ask Kenny Sholter (He first found his way to Bettis age about 12 As it turned out later he could fly anything)

Her own love was her Monocoupe I hear its still flyshying over in Ohio somewhere and thats 35 years later or more (It has a new paint job though) She took it down to Uniontown (there isnt any airfield at Uniontown now) to tell the Rotary about the new self-starter Everybody went out to the field to marvel Wouldnt start Had to be hand-propped

She took it over to Greensburg (there isnt any airfield at Greensburg now) to pick up a passenger Turned out to weigh about 220 There used to be a ditch at Greensshyburg A good thing to avoid what with the passengers weight pulling the plane around and the baby The baby The baby was not only on the way she was almost there (The doctor told her she could keep flying as long as she felt like it) Of course she avoided the ditch

And you can feel sorry for these tricycle kiddie-car types with their radios and instruments and runways and innocence of forced landings What she knew theyll never know What she felt theyll never feel Well a lot of these older types ladies or gentlemen ask you to sit on this side or that side of them One ear bad it seems

Dont feel sorry for them

20

(Oshkosh Daily Northwestern Photo)

ASFTRSOA8P (Translated AS SEEN FROM THE REAR SEAT OF A BIPLANE)

By AI Kelch 7018 W Bonniewell Rd

Mequon Wisconsin 53092

To Weldon Ropp everyday is a holiday since he has retired from 27 years of flying for National Airlines He flies that little 16E Travel Air and has the kind of fun we all dream of (a long trip in a bipe with no time schedule and no flight plan ala gypsy) His home base is an antique airdrome in Delray Beach Florida There he has his home and hangar on a mile long grass s trip along with several other airplane buffs There is no need for anyone of these guys to ever go to Heaven - theyre already there

Willie as most everyone calls him decided to take that long trip this spring He built a false floor for the front cockpit and proceeded to pile it full of almost everything he owns - two suitcases of clothes two boxes of spare parts such as piston rings exhaust valves exhaust guides intake valve and guides rocker arms gaskets pliers 1 gallon of grease a grease gun several gallons of Marvel Mystery Oil plus a battery charger and tools enough to do a major overhaul With all that and 27 gallons of gas the old Travel Air lifted from his home strip and headed north

The following is Willies personal log of the trip

AN ANTIQUERS FLIGHT LOG Thursday May 23 1974

Flying Depart Arrive Time Fuel Oil

Delray Beachmiddot 815 am Lake Walesmiddot 945 am 130 144 Omiddot Lake Walesmiddot 955 am Ocalamiddot 11 00 am 105 110 1 qt Ocalamiddot 11 55 am Perry Fla 1 15 am 1 20 120 1 qt Perrymiddot 2 00 pm Ozark Ala - 355 pm 1 55 190 1 ql Ozark - 440 pm Clanton Ala - 600 pm 130 150 1 qt

Notes Overnight at Holiday Inn A good stop Airport Manager took me to the motel - an old timer OX-5 man

Friday May 24 1974 Clanton - 8 45 am Starkville Miss -10 20 am 1 35 157 1 ql Notes Starkville has a grass field started many years ago The son showed me

pictures o f his dad s Great Lakes with a Cirrus engine that he bought plus an Aeronca C-3 The Lakes N-308Y is still flying Said they lost track of it after it left Florida

Starkville - 1055 am Grenada - 11 45 am 55 87 0shyGrenada - 12 10 pm Clarksdale Miss shy

1255 pm 45 87 0shyNotes Went to Clarksville to help Chapter 27 (Memphis) with their lAC Contesl

Contest May 25 and 26 Sunday s contest day cal led off due to rain and low ceilings I spend day pulling push rods out and greasing them - a five hour job alone but with plenty of help we did it in two hours plus pull the cowling to see that all the screws and bolts are still in place

Monday May 27 1974 Clarksdale - 1005 am Hayti Mo - 11 45 am 140 160 1 ql Hayti - 1250 p m Sparta III - 220 p m 130 152 1 ql Sparta - 3 00 p m Lincoln III - 430 pm 1 30 150 0shyNotes RON at Holiday Inn - good place to stop

Tuesday May 28 1974 Lincoln - 822 am Lincoln - 8 52 am 30 45 0shyNotes Ceiling too low to even follow roads Lincoln - 12 30 pm DeKalb III - 145 pm 115 120 1 qt DeKalb - 210 pm Bill Dodd s - 240 pm 30 Notes Airplane placed in Bill Dodd s hangar Spend May 29 with my son from

Wonder Lake III - about 20 miles from Dodds Son flies for United

Thursday May 30 1974 Bill Dodd s - 1030 am Burlington Wis -11 OOam 30 Burlington - 11 30 am Hales Corners - 1200 30 140 0shyNotes Was shown the red carpet here Bill Hodges happened to see me fly over

the EAA Museum and alerted Mike Heuer and Gene Chase who crossed paths with me as the airport manager drove me to the Museum Bill showed me the Museum the work shop and the warehouses One cannot believe they build airplanes in a work shop so clean One should have a whole day to spend at the EAA Museum - there is so much to see and read This is a must for everyone

Hales Corners - 215 pm AI Kelch s - 240 pm 25

Friday June 1 1974 Notes With AI Kelch to Waukesha to see Dale Crites and his Curtiss Pusher and

the Waco restoration Had a ride in the 1924 Chevy touring car Back to AIs Took off for Oshkosh so as to be able to say I put the old Travel Air on the runway there This was the second time that I used the radio since leaving

21

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Willie Ropp at Oshkosh - taking a couple of lucky friends up for a joy ride

(Photo by AI Kelch)

Willie Ropp of Delray Beach Florida

Florida The other time was at Clarksdale EAA had a work crew painting plantshying flowers etc Back to AI s

Saturday June 2 1974 Notes To West Bend to put the Travel Air in the hangar with AI s Franklin Sport

Flew the Travel Air 22 hours and 20 minutes never missed a beat

On a Thursday afternoon I got a call at my office He had found my home strip landed and hitch-hiked to town He was having a late lunch when I caught up with him and Willie was wearing that silly smile that is typical of all aircraft drivers and is seen often on pilots immediately after solo flights for pictures with their newly restored aircraft and other achievements I spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying his trip second hand Friday and the rest of the weekend was a visiting fireman type of affair

We flew over to visit Dale Crites at Waukesha Airport to see his newly built Curtiss Pusher which many of you later saw at Oshkosh and we also saw Dean Crites in process Waco Straight Wing and got in on the run up of that wonderful J5 engine - a sound to delight the soul and fill the nostrils with perfume (carbon monoxide to other than airplane buffs)

Saturday afternoon had been scheduled for a visit to Oshkosh At the last minute I couldnt go so Willie went alone He was much impressed with the activity and the enthusiasm of the volunteer help and came back raving about the organizational ability of the whole staff at EAA

Sunday was filled with visits to local airports and prishyvate strips plus a few rides to the onlookers

Monday after an all too short visit I saw Willie off to Florida via commercial He left his Travel Air in my hands and returned several times this summer to continue his meande rings and visit the local fly-ins His agenda has inshycluded attendance at La Rue Oshkosh and Blakesburg Then he will no doubt meander south again with the birds visiting along the way causing me to turn green when everything else is turning brown Just being able to share Willies experience second hand gives me a thrill and something to remember during next winters long no-fly spell Shared experiences with others is a good part of the glue that holds our organization together and makes it such an exciting one The adventure that rubs off at one Oshkosh Fly-In is probably more than the average civilian type can stand in a year Look Willie up at the next fly-in - he is a fun type OF (Old Flier)

22

Around The AntiqueClassic World NORTHROP BETA INFO

In the May issue of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE we featured the rare Northrop Beta as our Golden Oldie of the Month At the end of the article we requested some assistance from our readers in determining what ultishymately happened to the two Betas Member John C Barbery P O Box 108 Bedminster New Jersey 07921 has provided us with copies of his Aircraft Research Data cards on X-963Y and NC-12214

According to Mr Barberys records the C-6 Menasco Buccaneer powered Beta was inspected and approved by the CAA on March 31 1931 for experimenta l license X-963Y issued to expire on October 1 1931 The entry en titl ed Fi nal Disposi tion sim pI y states Washed out at Los Angeles California on August 12 1931 The only listed owner for the aircraft was the factory Northshyrop Aircraft Corporation of Burbank

The Wasp Jr powered Beta NC-12214 lasted a little longer It was initially licensed by the CAA on Septemshyber 1 1931 wi th experimental number X-12214 to expire on March 1 1932 A footnote states that Don Berlin was the chief engineer for this design and that Stearman Airshycraft Corpora tion ran the development and flight tests on the plane The Beta was sold on February 8 1932 to

Kenyon Boocock with the NC license (approval under 2shy401) At this point 12214 had a total time of 40 hours Anothshyer footnote sta tes tha t the Wasp Beta bore an incorrect serial number 1 on its nameplate until May of 1932 when Stearman provided Boocock a new nameplate with the correct serial number 2

12214 was damaged in an accident at Hicksville Long Island on January 16 1933 arid was put in storage On January 16 1933 it was sold to George W Hard of West Sayv ille Long Island A t some point in late 1933 or early 1934 (no date known) the plane was purchased by S tearman in Wichita who rebuilt the Beta for experishymenting with various flap configurations (conventional zap Fowler and Wright types) completing it on May 1 1934 On May 3 1934 title was transferred to United Airshyports East Hartford Connecticu t (apparently for regisshytration purposes only) and two days later on May 5 the aircraft was completely destroyed in an accident at Wichita

So there you are antiquers it would appear that all hope is lost of finding a restorable Beta in someones barn

Our thanks to John Barbery for making this informashytion available

- Jack Cox Editor

ClASSIFIEDS

WANTED - Two wire wheels for 30x5 tires Siemens Halske SH III FOR SALE - Aeronca TAC civil version of the Defender 70 restored 160 hp geared rotary engine Roy Rehm Box 4832 Stateline original aircraft of Aeronca Employees Flying Club Lynwood Nevada 89449 Clark 8200 Meyers Road Middleton Ohio 422-3417

Calendar Of Events

OCTOBER 11-13 - TAHLEQUAH OKLAHOMA - 16th Annual Fly-In spOrisored by Tulsa Chapters of AAA EAA and lAC Homebuilts Antiques and Classics welcome Contact Bert Mahon 3101 South Boston Ct Tulsa Oklahoma 74135

Back Issues Of The Vintage Airplane

Limited numbers of back issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE are available at SOc each Copies still on hand at EAA Headquarters are

1973 - MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

1974 - JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST

23

IN RETROSPECT

OLD LADY WIND-IN-THE-FACE By Lee S Thomas

P O Box 1166 Pittsburg Pennsylvania 15230

So she went to Ohio to learn to fly The Depression was just barely started Barr Peat had a little airport called Issouden in honor of the Lafayette Esquadrille (but the French wouldnt recognize the pronunciation) She soloed in a little over five hours like it was in those days Al Litzenberger (you recognize these old names) taught her in a Bird (smaller than a Laird but a honey of a plane to fly) Melba Beard has a nest of Birds even today out in Arizona I hear

Why do people do these things Cliff Balls pilot used to drop her mail over the field - it was only a little detour between Pittsburgh and Cleveland Maybe that tells you something Never heard of Clifford Ball Inc Where you been Ever hear of Capital Ever hear of United

Besides maybe the pilot was lost and just happened to have her mail on his lap (You dont need a map to get to Cleveland) Radio Instruments You kidding Everyshybody got lost You had to cut the engine to hear what the other guy was shouting about (Whats Pittsburghs Cathedral of Learning doing in downtown Akron)

She flew Wacos too and Aeronca C-3s They built a Standard at Bettis Field (shopping center housing develshyopment) to fly Cliffs mail route and she flew the Standshyard It was sort of like a Standard Mailwing but the wing was different A mite unstable some said

Must of been in the light of hindsight The whole world

and life and aviation were unstable at Bettis in those days Ask Karl Voelter Ask Kenny Sholter (He first found his way to Bettis age about 12 As it turned out later he could fly anything)

Her own love was her Monocoupe I hear its still flyshying over in Ohio somewhere and thats 35 years later or more (It has a new paint job though) She took it down to Uniontown (there isnt any airfield at Uniontown now) to tell the Rotary about the new self-starter Everybody went out to the field to marvel Wouldnt start Had to be hand-propped

She took it over to Greensburg (there isnt any airfield at Greensburg now) to pick up a passenger Turned out to weigh about 220 There used to be a ditch at Greensshyburg A good thing to avoid what with the passengers weight pulling the plane around and the baby The baby The baby was not only on the way she was almost there (The doctor told her she could keep flying as long as she felt like it) Of course she avoided the ditch

And you can feel sorry for these tricycle kiddie-car types with their radios and instruments and runways and innocence of forced landings What she knew theyll never know What she felt theyll never feel Well a lot of these older types ladies or gentlemen ask you to sit on this side or that side of them One ear bad it seems

Dont feel sorry for them

20

(Oshkosh Daily Northwestern Photo)

ASFTRSOA8P (Translated AS SEEN FROM THE REAR SEAT OF A BIPLANE)

By AI Kelch 7018 W Bonniewell Rd

Mequon Wisconsin 53092

To Weldon Ropp everyday is a holiday since he has retired from 27 years of flying for National Airlines He flies that little 16E Travel Air and has the kind of fun we all dream of (a long trip in a bipe with no time schedule and no flight plan ala gypsy) His home base is an antique airdrome in Delray Beach Florida There he has his home and hangar on a mile long grass s trip along with several other airplane buffs There is no need for anyone of these guys to ever go to Heaven - theyre already there

Willie as most everyone calls him decided to take that long trip this spring He built a false floor for the front cockpit and proceeded to pile it full of almost everything he owns - two suitcases of clothes two boxes of spare parts such as piston rings exhaust valves exhaust guides intake valve and guides rocker arms gaskets pliers 1 gallon of grease a grease gun several gallons of Marvel Mystery Oil plus a battery charger and tools enough to do a major overhaul With all that and 27 gallons of gas the old Travel Air lifted from his home strip and headed north

The following is Willies personal log of the trip

AN ANTIQUERS FLIGHT LOG Thursday May 23 1974

Flying Depart Arrive Time Fuel Oil

Delray Beachmiddot 815 am Lake Walesmiddot 945 am 130 144 Omiddot Lake Walesmiddot 955 am Ocalamiddot 11 00 am 105 110 1 qt Ocalamiddot 11 55 am Perry Fla 1 15 am 1 20 120 1 qt Perrymiddot 2 00 pm Ozark Ala - 355 pm 1 55 190 1 ql Ozark - 440 pm Clanton Ala - 600 pm 130 150 1 qt

Notes Overnight at Holiday Inn A good stop Airport Manager took me to the motel - an old timer OX-5 man

Friday May 24 1974 Clanton - 8 45 am Starkville Miss -10 20 am 1 35 157 1 ql Notes Starkville has a grass field started many years ago The son showed me

pictures o f his dad s Great Lakes with a Cirrus engine that he bought plus an Aeronca C-3 The Lakes N-308Y is still flying Said they lost track of it after it left Florida

Starkville - 1055 am Grenada - 11 45 am 55 87 0shyGrenada - 12 10 pm Clarksdale Miss shy

1255 pm 45 87 0shyNotes Went to Clarksville to help Chapter 27 (Memphis) with their lAC Contesl

Contest May 25 and 26 Sunday s contest day cal led off due to rain and low ceilings I spend day pulling push rods out and greasing them - a five hour job alone but with plenty of help we did it in two hours plus pull the cowling to see that all the screws and bolts are still in place

Monday May 27 1974 Clarksdale - 1005 am Hayti Mo - 11 45 am 140 160 1 ql Hayti - 1250 p m Sparta III - 220 p m 130 152 1 ql Sparta - 3 00 p m Lincoln III - 430 pm 1 30 150 0shyNotes RON at Holiday Inn - good place to stop

Tuesday May 28 1974 Lincoln - 822 am Lincoln - 8 52 am 30 45 0shyNotes Ceiling too low to even follow roads Lincoln - 12 30 pm DeKalb III - 145 pm 115 120 1 qt DeKalb - 210 pm Bill Dodd s - 240 pm 30 Notes Airplane placed in Bill Dodd s hangar Spend May 29 with my son from

Wonder Lake III - about 20 miles from Dodds Son flies for United

Thursday May 30 1974 Bill Dodd s - 1030 am Burlington Wis -11 OOam 30 Burlington - 11 30 am Hales Corners - 1200 30 140 0shyNotes Was shown the red carpet here Bill Hodges happened to see me fly over

the EAA Museum and alerted Mike Heuer and Gene Chase who crossed paths with me as the airport manager drove me to the Museum Bill showed me the Museum the work shop and the warehouses One cannot believe they build airplanes in a work shop so clean One should have a whole day to spend at the EAA Museum - there is so much to see and read This is a must for everyone

Hales Corners - 215 pm AI Kelch s - 240 pm 25

Friday June 1 1974 Notes With AI Kelch to Waukesha to see Dale Crites and his Curtiss Pusher and

the Waco restoration Had a ride in the 1924 Chevy touring car Back to AIs Took off for Oshkosh so as to be able to say I put the old Travel Air on the runway there This was the second time that I used the radio since leaving

21

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Willie Ropp at Oshkosh - taking a couple of lucky friends up for a joy ride

(Photo by AI Kelch)

Willie Ropp of Delray Beach Florida

Florida The other time was at Clarksdale EAA had a work crew painting plantshying flowers etc Back to AI s

Saturday June 2 1974 Notes To West Bend to put the Travel Air in the hangar with AI s Franklin Sport

Flew the Travel Air 22 hours and 20 minutes never missed a beat

On a Thursday afternoon I got a call at my office He had found my home strip landed and hitch-hiked to town He was having a late lunch when I caught up with him and Willie was wearing that silly smile that is typical of all aircraft drivers and is seen often on pilots immediately after solo flights for pictures with their newly restored aircraft and other achievements I spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying his trip second hand Friday and the rest of the weekend was a visiting fireman type of affair

We flew over to visit Dale Crites at Waukesha Airport to see his newly built Curtiss Pusher which many of you later saw at Oshkosh and we also saw Dean Crites in process Waco Straight Wing and got in on the run up of that wonderful J5 engine - a sound to delight the soul and fill the nostrils with perfume (carbon monoxide to other than airplane buffs)

Saturday afternoon had been scheduled for a visit to Oshkosh At the last minute I couldnt go so Willie went alone He was much impressed with the activity and the enthusiasm of the volunteer help and came back raving about the organizational ability of the whole staff at EAA

Sunday was filled with visits to local airports and prishyvate strips plus a few rides to the onlookers

Monday after an all too short visit I saw Willie off to Florida via commercial He left his Travel Air in my hands and returned several times this summer to continue his meande rings and visit the local fly-ins His agenda has inshycluded attendance at La Rue Oshkosh and Blakesburg Then he will no doubt meander south again with the birds visiting along the way causing me to turn green when everything else is turning brown Just being able to share Willies experience second hand gives me a thrill and something to remember during next winters long no-fly spell Shared experiences with others is a good part of the glue that holds our organization together and makes it such an exciting one The adventure that rubs off at one Oshkosh Fly-In is probably more than the average civilian type can stand in a year Look Willie up at the next fly-in - he is a fun type OF (Old Flier)

22

Around The AntiqueClassic World NORTHROP BETA INFO

In the May issue of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE we featured the rare Northrop Beta as our Golden Oldie of the Month At the end of the article we requested some assistance from our readers in determining what ultishymately happened to the two Betas Member John C Barbery P O Box 108 Bedminster New Jersey 07921 has provided us with copies of his Aircraft Research Data cards on X-963Y and NC-12214

According to Mr Barberys records the C-6 Menasco Buccaneer powered Beta was inspected and approved by the CAA on March 31 1931 for experimenta l license X-963Y issued to expire on October 1 1931 The entry en titl ed Fi nal Disposi tion sim pI y states Washed out at Los Angeles California on August 12 1931 The only listed owner for the aircraft was the factory Northshyrop Aircraft Corporation of Burbank

The Wasp Jr powered Beta NC-12214 lasted a little longer It was initially licensed by the CAA on Septemshyber 1 1931 wi th experimental number X-12214 to expire on March 1 1932 A footnote states that Don Berlin was the chief engineer for this design and that Stearman Airshycraft Corpora tion ran the development and flight tests on the plane The Beta was sold on February 8 1932 to

Kenyon Boocock with the NC license (approval under 2shy401) At this point 12214 had a total time of 40 hours Anothshyer footnote sta tes tha t the Wasp Beta bore an incorrect serial number 1 on its nameplate until May of 1932 when Stearman provided Boocock a new nameplate with the correct serial number 2

12214 was damaged in an accident at Hicksville Long Island on January 16 1933 arid was put in storage On January 16 1933 it was sold to George W Hard of West Sayv ille Long Island A t some point in late 1933 or early 1934 (no date known) the plane was purchased by S tearman in Wichita who rebuilt the Beta for experishymenting with various flap configurations (conventional zap Fowler and Wright types) completing it on May 1 1934 On May 3 1934 title was transferred to United Airshyports East Hartford Connecticu t (apparently for regisshytration purposes only) and two days later on May 5 the aircraft was completely destroyed in an accident at Wichita

So there you are antiquers it would appear that all hope is lost of finding a restorable Beta in someones barn

Our thanks to John Barbery for making this informashytion available

- Jack Cox Editor

ClASSIFIEDS

WANTED - Two wire wheels for 30x5 tires Siemens Halske SH III FOR SALE - Aeronca TAC civil version of the Defender 70 restored 160 hp geared rotary engine Roy Rehm Box 4832 Stateline original aircraft of Aeronca Employees Flying Club Lynwood Nevada 89449 Clark 8200 Meyers Road Middleton Ohio 422-3417

Calendar Of Events

OCTOBER 11-13 - TAHLEQUAH OKLAHOMA - 16th Annual Fly-In spOrisored by Tulsa Chapters of AAA EAA and lAC Homebuilts Antiques and Classics welcome Contact Bert Mahon 3101 South Boston Ct Tulsa Oklahoma 74135

Back Issues Of The Vintage Airplane

Limited numbers of back issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE are available at SOc each Copies still on hand at EAA Headquarters are

1973 - MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

1974 - JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST

23

(Oshkosh Daily Northwestern Photo)

ASFTRSOA8P (Translated AS SEEN FROM THE REAR SEAT OF A BIPLANE)

By AI Kelch 7018 W Bonniewell Rd

Mequon Wisconsin 53092

To Weldon Ropp everyday is a holiday since he has retired from 27 years of flying for National Airlines He flies that little 16E Travel Air and has the kind of fun we all dream of (a long trip in a bipe with no time schedule and no flight plan ala gypsy) His home base is an antique airdrome in Delray Beach Florida There he has his home and hangar on a mile long grass s trip along with several other airplane buffs There is no need for anyone of these guys to ever go to Heaven - theyre already there

Willie as most everyone calls him decided to take that long trip this spring He built a false floor for the front cockpit and proceeded to pile it full of almost everything he owns - two suitcases of clothes two boxes of spare parts such as piston rings exhaust valves exhaust guides intake valve and guides rocker arms gaskets pliers 1 gallon of grease a grease gun several gallons of Marvel Mystery Oil plus a battery charger and tools enough to do a major overhaul With all that and 27 gallons of gas the old Travel Air lifted from his home strip and headed north

The following is Willies personal log of the trip

AN ANTIQUERS FLIGHT LOG Thursday May 23 1974

Flying Depart Arrive Time Fuel Oil

Delray Beachmiddot 815 am Lake Walesmiddot 945 am 130 144 Omiddot Lake Walesmiddot 955 am Ocalamiddot 11 00 am 105 110 1 qt Ocalamiddot 11 55 am Perry Fla 1 15 am 1 20 120 1 qt Perrymiddot 2 00 pm Ozark Ala - 355 pm 1 55 190 1 ql Ozark - 440 pm Clanton Ala - 600 pm 130 150 1 qt

Notes Overnight at Holiday Inn A good stop Airport Manager took me to the motel - an old timer OX-5 man

Friday May 24 1974 Clanton - 8 45 am Starkville Miss -10 20 am 1 35 157 1 ql Notes Starkville has a grass field started many years ago The son showed me

pictures o f his dad s Great Lakes with a Cirrus engine that he bought plus an Aeronca C-3 The Lakes N-308Y is still flying Said they lost track of it after it left Florida

Starkville - 1055 am Grenada - 11 45 am 55 87 0shyGrenada - 12 10 pm Clarksdale Miss shy

1255 pm 45 87 0shyNotes Went to Clarksville to help Chapter 27 (Memphis) with their lAC Contesl

Contest May 25 and 26 Sunday s contest day cal led off due to rain and low ceilings I spend day pulling push rods out and greasing them - a five hour job alone but with plenty of help we did it in two hours plus pull the cowling to see that all the screws and bolts are still in place

Monday May 27 1974 Clarksdale - 1005 am Hayti Mo - 11 45 am 140 160 1 ql Hayti - 1250 p m Sparta III - 220 p m 130 152 1 ql Sparta - 3 00 p m Lincoln III - 430 pm 1 30 150 0shyNotes RON at Holiday Inn - good place to stop

Tuesday May 28 1974 Lincoln - 822 am Lincoln - 8 52 am 30 45 0shyNotes Ceiling too low to even follow roads Lincoln - 12 30 pm DeKalb III - 145 pm 115 120 1 qt DeKalb - 210 pm Bill Dodd s - 240 pm 30 Notes Airplane placed in Bill Dodd s hangar Spend May 29 with my son from

Wonder Lake III - about 20 miles from Dodds Son flies for United

Thursday May 30 1974 Bill Dodd s - 1030 am Burlington Wis -11 OOam 30 Burlington - 11 30 am Hales Corners - 1200 30 140 0shyNotes Was shown the red carpet here Bill Hodges happened to see me fly over

the EAA Museum and alerted Mike Heuer and Gene Chase who crossed paths with me as the airport manager drove me to the Museum Bill showed me the Museum the work shop and the warehouses One cannot believe they build airplanes in a work shop so clean One should have a whole day to spend at the EAA Museum - there is so much to see and read This is a must for everyone

Hales Corners - 215 pm AI Kelch s - 240 pm 25

Friday June 1 1974 Notes With AI Kelch to Waukesha to see Dale Crites and his Curtiss Pusher and

the Waco restoration Had a ride in the 1924 Chevy touring car Back to AIs Took off for Oshkosh so as to be able to say I put the old Travel Air on the runway there This was the second time that I used the radio since leaving

21

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Willie Ropp at Oshkosh - taking a couple of lucky friends up for a joy ride

(Photo by AI Kelch)

Willie Ropp of Delray Beach Florida

Florida The other time was at Clarksdale EAA had a work crew painting plantshying flowers etc Back to AI s

Saturday June 2 1974 Notes To West Bend to put the Travel Air in the hangar with AI s Franklin Sport

Flew the Travel Air 22 hours and 20 minutes never missed a beat

On a Thursday afternoon I got a call at my office He had found my home strip landed and hitch-hiked to town He was having a late lunch when I caught up with him and Willie was wearing that silly smile that is typical of all aircraft drivers and is seen often on pilots immediately after solo flights for pictures with their newly restored aircraft and other achievements I spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying his trip second hand Friday and the rest of the weekend was a visiting fireman type of affair

We flew over to visit Dale Crites at Waukesha Airport to see his newly built Curtiss Pusher which many of you later saw at Oshkosh and we also saw Dean Crites in process Waco Straight Wing and got in on the run up of that wonderful J5 engine - a sound to delight the soul and fill the nostrils with perfume (carbon monoxide to other than airplane buffs)

Saturday afternoon had been scheduled for a visit to Oshkosh At the last minute I couldnt go so Willie went alone He was much impressed with the activity and the enthusiasm of the volunteer help and came back raving about the organizational ability of the whole staff at EAA

Sunday was filled with visits to local airports and prishyvate strips plus a few rides to the onlookers

Monday after an all too short visit I saw Willie off to Florida via commercial He left his Travel Air in my hands and returned several times this summer to continue his meande rings and visit the local fly-ins His agenda has inshycluded attendance at La Rue Oshkosh and Blakesburg Then he will no doubt meander south again with the birds visiting along the way causing me to turn green when everything else is turning brown Just being able to share Willies experience second hand gives me a thrill and something to remember during next winters long no-fly spell Shared experiences with others is a good part of the glue that holds our organization together and makes it such an exciting one The adventure that rubs off at one Oshkosh Fly-In is probably more than the average civilian type can stand in a year Look Willie up at the next fly-in - he is a fun type OF (Old Flier)

22

Around The AntiqueClassic World NORTHROP BETA INFO

In the May issue of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE we featured the rare Northrop Beta as our Golden Oldie of the Month At the end of the article we requested some assistance from our readers in determining what ultishymately happened to the two Betas Member John C Barbery P O Box 108 Bedminster New Jersey 07921 has provided us with copies of his Aircraft Research Data cards on X-963Y and NC-12214

According to Mr Barberys records the C-6 Menasco Buccaneer powered Beta was inspected and approved by the CAA on March 31 1931 for experimenta l license X-963Y issued to expire on October 1 1931 The entry en titl ed Fi nal Disposi tion sim pI y states Washed out at Los Angeles California on August 12 1931 The only listed owner for the aircraft was the factory Northshyrop Aircraft Corporation of Burbank

The Wasp Jr powered Beta NC-12214 lasted a little longer It was initially licensed by the CAA on Septemshyber 1 1931 wi th experimental number X-12214 to expire on March 1 1932 A footnote states that Don Berlin was the chief engineer for this design and that Stearman Airshycraft Corpora tion ran the development and flight tests on the plane The Beta was sold on February 8 1932 to

Kenyon Boocock with the NC license (approval under 2shy401) At this point 12214 had a total time of 40 hours Anothshyer footnote sta tes tha t the Wasp Beta bore an incorrect serial number 1 on its nameplate until May of 1932 when Stearman provided Boocock a new nameplate with the correct serial number 2

12214 was damaged in an accident at Hicksville Long Island on January 16 1933 arid was put in storage On January 16 1933 it was sold to George W Hard of West Sayv ille Long Island A t some point in late 1933 or early 1934 (no date known) the plane was purchased by S tearman in Wichita who rebuilt the Beta for experishymenting with various flap configurations (conventional zap Fowler and Wright types) completing it on May 1 1934 On May 3 1934 title was transferred to United Airshyports East Hartford Connecticu t (apparently for regisshytration purposes only) and two days later on May 5 the aircraft was completely destroyed in an accident at Wichita

So there you are antiquers it would appear that all hope is lost of finding a restorable Beta in someones barn

Our thanks to John Barbery for making this informashytion available

- Jack Cox Editor

ClASSIFIEDS

WANTED - Two wire wheels for 30x5 tires Siemens Halske SH III FOR SALE - Aeronca TAC civil version of the Defender 70 restored 160 hp geared rotary engine Roy Rehm Box 4832 Stateline original aircraft of Aeronca Employees Flying Club Lynwood Nevada 89449 Clark 8200 Meyers Road Middleton Ohio 422-3417

Calendar Of Events

OCTOBER 11-13 - TAHLEQUAH OKLAHOMA - 16th Annual Fly-In spOrisored by Tulsa Chapters of AAA EAA and lAC Homebuilts Antiques and Classics welcome Contact Bert Mahon 3101 South Boston Ct Tulsa Oklahoma 74135

Back Issues Of The Vintage Airplane

Limited numbers of back issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE are available at SOc each Copies still on hand at EAA Headquarters are

1973 - MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

1974 - JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST

23

(Photo by Dick Stouffer)

Willie Ropp at Oshkosh - taking a couple of lucky friends up for a joy ride

(Photo by AI Kelch)

Willie Ropp of Delray Beach Florida

Florida The other time was at Clarksdale EAA had a work crew painting plantshying flowers etc Back to AI s

Saturday June 2 1974 Notes To West Bend to put the Travel Air in the hangar with AI s Franklin Sport

Flew the Travel Air 22 hours and 20 minutes never missed a beat

On a Thursday afternoon I got a call at my office He had found my home strip landed and hitch-hiked to town He was having a late lunch when I caught up with him and Willie was wearing that silly smile that is typical of all aircraft drivers and is seen often on pilots immediately after solo flights for pictures with their newly restored aircraft and other achievements I spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying his trip second hand Friday and the rest of the weekend was a visiting fireman type of affair

We flew over to visit Dale Crites at Waukesha Airport to see his newly built Curtiss Pusher which many of you later saw at Oshkosh and we also saw Dean Crites in process Waco Straight Wing and got in on the run up of that wonderful J5 engine - a sound to delight the soul and fill the nostrils with perfume (carbon monoxide to other than airplane buffs)

Saturday afternoon had been scheduled for a visit to Oshkosh At the last minute I couldnt go so Willie went alone He was much impressed with the activity and the enthusiasm of the volunteer help and came back raving about the organizational ability of the whole staff at EAA

Sunday was filled with visits to local airports and prishyvate strips plus a few rides to the onlookers

Monday after an all too short visit I saw Willie off to Florida via commercial He left his Travel Air in my hands and returned several times this summer to continue his meande rings and visit the local fly-ins His agenda has inshycluded attendance at La Rue Oshkosh and Blakesburg Then he will no doubt meander south again with the birds visiting along the way causing me to turn green when everything else is turning brown Just being able to share Willies experience second hand gives me a thrill and something to remember during next winters long no-fly spell Shared experiences with others is a good part of the glue that holds our organization together and makes it such an exciting one The adventure that rubs off at one Oshkosh Fly-In is probably more than the average civilian type can stand in a year Look Willie up at the next fly-in - he is a fun type OF (Old Flier)

22

Around The AntiqueClassic World NORTHROP BETA INFO

In the May issue of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE we featured the rare Northrop Beta as our Golden Oldie of the Month At the end of the article we requested some assistance from our readers in determining what ultishymately happened to the two Betas Member John C Barbery P O Box 108 Bedminster New Jersey 07921 has provided us with copies of his Aircraft Research Data cards on X-963Y and NC-12214

According to Mr Barberys records the C-6 Menasco Buccaneer powered Beta was inspected and approved by the CAA on March 31 1931 for experimenta l license X-963Y issued to expire on October 1 1931 The entry en titl ed Fi nal Disposi tion sim pI y states Washed out at Los Angeles California on August 12 1931 The only listed owner for the aircraft was the factory Northshyrop Aircraft Corporation of Burbank

The Wasp Jr powered Beta NC-12214 lasted a little longer It was initially licensed by the CAA on Septemshyber 1 1931 wi th experimental number X-12214 to expire on March 1 1932 A footnote states that Don Berlin was the chief engineer for this design and that Stearman Airshycraft Corpora tion ran the development and flight tests on the plane The Beta was sold on February 8 1932 to

Kenyon Boocock with the NC license (approval under 2shy401) At this point 12214 had a total time of 40 hours Anothshyer footnote sta tes tha t the Wasp Beta bore an incorrect serial number 1 on its nameplate until May of 1932 when Stearman provided Boocock a new nameplate with the correct serial number 2

12214 was damaged in an accident at Hicksville Long Island on January 16 1933 arid was put in storage On January 16 1933 it was sold to George W Hard of West Sayv ille Long Island A t some point in late 1933 or early 1934 (no date known) the plane was purchased by S tearman in Wichita who rebuilt the Beta for experishymenting with various flap configurations (conventional zap Fowler and Wright types) completing it on May 1 1934 On May 3 1934 title was transferred to United Airshyports East Hartford Connecticu t (apparently for regisshytration purposes only) and two days later on May 5 the aircraft was completely destroyed in an accident at Wichita

So there you are antiquers it would appear that all hope is lost of finding a restorable Beta in someones barn

Our thanks to John Barbery for making this informashytion available

- Jack Cox Editor

ClASSIFIEDS

WANTED - Two wire wheels for 30x5 tires Siemens Halske SH III FOR SALE - Aeronca TAC civil version of the Defender 70 restored 160 hp geared rotary engine Roy Rehm Box 4832 Stateline original aircraft of Aeronca Employees Flying Club Lynwood Nevada 89449 Clark 8200 Meyers Road Middleton Ohio 422-3417

Calendar Of Events

OCTOBER 11-13 - TAHLEQUAH OKLAHOMA - 16th Annual Fly-In spOrisored by Tulsa Chapters of AAA EAA and lAC Homebuilts Antiques and Classics welcome Contact Bert Mahon 3101 South Boston Ct Tulsa Oklahoma 74135

Back Issues Of The Vintage Airplane

Limited numbers of back issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE are available at SOc each Copies still on hand at EAA Headquarters are

1973 - MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

1974 - JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST

23

Around The AntiqueClassic World NORTHROP BETA INFO

In the May issue of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE we featured the rare Northrop Beta as our Golden Oldie of the Month At the end of the article we requested some assistance from our readers in determining what ultishymately happened to the two Betas Member John C Barbery P O Box 108 Bedminster New Jersey 07921 has provided us with copies of his Aircraft Research Data cards on X-963Y and NC-12214

According to Mr Barberys records the C-6 Menasco Buccaneer powered Beta was inspected and approved by the CAA on March 31 1931 for experimenta l license X-963Y issued to expire on October 1 1931 The entry en titl ed Fi nal Disposi tion sim pI y states Washed out at Los Angeles California on August 12 1931 The only listed owner for the aircraft was the factory Northshyrop Aircraft Corporation of Burbank

The Wasp Jr powered Beta NC-12214 lasted a little longer It was initially licensed by the CAA on Septemshyber 1 1931 wi th experimental number X-12214 to expire on March 1 1932 A footnote states that Don Berlin was the chief engineer for this design and that Stearman Airshycraft Corpora tion ran the development and flight tests on the plane The Beta was sold on February 8 1932 to

Kenyon Boocock with the NC license (approval under 2shy401) At this point 12214 had a total time of 40 hours Anothshyer footnote sta tes tha t the Wasp Beta bore an incorrect serial number 1 on its nameplate until May of 1932 when Stearman provided Boocock a new nameplate with the correct serial number 2

12214 was damaged in an accident at Hicksville Long Island on January 16 1933 arid was put in storage On January 16 1933 it was sold to George W Hard of West Sayv ille Long Island A t some point in late 1933 or early 1934 (no date known) the plane was purchased by S tearman in Wichita who rebuilt the Beta for experishymenting with various flap configurations (conventional zap Fowler and Wright types) completing it on May 1 1934 On May 3 1934 title was transferred to United Airshyports East Hartford Connecticu t (apparently for regisshytration purposes only) and two days later on May 5 the aircraft was completely destroyed in an accident at Wichita

So there you are antiquers it would appear that all hope is lost of finding a restorable Beta in someones barn

Our thanks to John Barbery for making this informashytion available

- Jack Cox Editor

ClASSIFIEDS

WANTED - Two wire wheels for 30x5 tires Siemens Halske SH III FOR SALE - Aeronca TAC civil version of the Defender 70 restored 160 hp geared rotary engine Roy Rehm Box 4832 Stateline original aircraft of Aeronca Employees Flying Club Lynwood Nevada 89449 Clark 8200 Meyers Road Middleton Ohio 422-3417

Calendar Of Events

OCTOBER 11-13 - TAHLEQUAH OKLAHOMA - 16th Annual Fly-In spOrisored by Tulsa Chapters of AAA EAA and lAC Homebuilts Antiques and Classics welcome Contact Bert Mahon 3101 South Boston Ct Tulsa Oklahoma 74135

Back Issues Of The Vintage Airplane

Limited numbers of back issues of THE VINTAGE AIRPLANE are available at SOc each Copies still on hand at EAA Headquarters are

1973 - MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER

1974 - JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY JUNE JULY AUGUST

23