GEOFF ROBISON

PRESIDEN T, VIN TAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION

Authority and potentials

inter is now on the ho
rizon here at home.
With the holidays just
around the corner, it
won't be long before
Old Man Winter will be barking at
us yet again. Oh well, my attitude
has always been that "the sooner
it gets here, the sooner it's over." I
clearly remember just a few months
ago reflecting about how long this
past winter seemed to hang around
here in Indiana. It was a long and
brutal one that I sure hope we don't
see repeated.
As I am writing this column, I just
returned from Oshkosh. A bunch
of our Vintage Aircraft Association
(VAA) volunteers always get together
in early October to winterize our
campers that we use throughout the
year when we attend the work parties
and various other EAA events. It's
always a fun and laid-back weekend
lacking the routine hustle and bus
tle of preparing for EAA AirVenture
Oshkosh. Although we didn't have
the best of weather this past weekend,
we sure made up for it in enthusiasm
and a great deal of camaraderie. Many
thanks to all in attendance, especially
Bob Lumley and Georgia Schneider
for preparing a great meal for us all
on Saturday evening at the Aeroplane
Factory on the EAA grounds.
September was a very busy month
for us here at the VAA Chapter 37
hangar. It all started early in the
month during the Labor Day week
end when we hosted New Standard
barnstormer rides during the annual
Auburn-Cord-Duesenberg Auto Festi

val held every Labor Day weekend in

Auburn, Indiana. If you haven't had
the opportunity to ride in a New Stan
dard, you really need to experience
this aircraft. The crew of the New
Standard is a bunch of crazy "wing
nuts," so we had a really good time
hosting them for this event. Many
thanks to "Scooter" and his crazy cast

The world of
sport aviation
continues to face
unprecedented
challenges t~ our
right to fly.
of aviators for a fun-filled weekend.
Our chapter also hosted the 2009
Stinson fly-in at Auburn in mid
October. This was also a fun week
end with good weather and ex
cellent attendance. We topped off
the month by hosting the EAA
B-17 tour at Auburn. Although the
weather was a bit challenging, we
again enjoyed hosting the aircraft as
well as the crew. A good number of
our local B-17 vets again showed up
to share their experiences with hun
dreds of local visitors to the tour.
Thanks for coming, guys. We really
enjoyed our time with you.
Mix that all in with a couple of
Young Eagles events, and you can

see why I use the term "busy." Many

thanks also go out to all of the local
chapter volunteers who supported
us in hosting all of these events. We
simply couldn't do it without you!
The world of sport aviation con
tinues to face unprecedented chal
lenges to our right to fly. It seems
to me as though nearly every layer
of government regulators seems to
think that they aren't doing th eir
job unless they periodically fire a
shot across our bow to make sure we
haven't forgotten about their "au
thority." But recently there was a bill
introduced in the House of Repre
sentatives that will potentially limit
their authority to arbitrarily regulate
those of us who are engaged in this
pleasure we call aviation.
On September 30, a good number
of genera-aviation-minded representa
tives introduced HR 3678, that would
rein in the Department of Homeland
Security's (DHS) absolute power to is
sue security directives that severely
impact aviation. It seems as though
the DHS has ruffled some feath ers
inside the beltway with its incessant
practices of issuing what are referred
to as safety bulletins. A number of
which have included unwarranted
impact on our access to free skies. If
this bill passes the House, it would
effectively limit DHS in its ability to
arbitrarily pass security directives un
less they prove to be in response to an
imminent threat, and then only for a
maximum of 180 days. If such a direc
tive needs to be in place for a period
longer than 180 days, the DHS would
continlled on page 39

VOL. 37, No. 11

ov

2009

CONTENTS

IFe

Straight & Level

Authority and potentials
by Geoff Robison

News

Rotary Dreams-The Restoration

of a Pitcairn PA-I8 Autogiro
The Reserv_e Grand Champion Antique
of EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2009
by H.G. Frautschy with Nick Hurm

16

Miss Champion
Pitcairn-Cierva Autogiro PCA-2
by Carl Gunther and Gene Chase

24

The Vintage Mechanic

Materials & Processes, Part 2
by Robert G. Lock

28

Light Plane Heritage

j1j

The Mummert Cootie

by Jack McRae
32

STAFF

The Vintage Instructor

EAA Publisher
Director of EAA Publications
Executive Director/Editor
Production/Special Project
Photography

All available info

by Doug Stewart
34

Mystery Plane
by H.G. Frautschy

1921

.wMMfJlI

39

Classified Ads

CQQ]]
LAWRANCE ENGINE

COVERS

FRONT COVER: This issue of Vintage Airplane is dedicated to vintage rotorcraft, and
this beautiful example is the 1931 Pitcairn PA-18 Autogiro restored by Jack Tiffany and
the crew at Leading Edge Aircraft in Ohio. Restored over a 9-year period, it is th e only Pit
cairn Autogiro currently flying. Read more about it starting on page 4 . EAA photo by H.G.
Frautschy. EAA Cessna 210 photo plane ftown by Janet Davidson.
BACK COVER : Now a part of the permanent collection of the EAA AirVenture Museum in
Oshkosh , this is Steve Pitcairn 's restored Pitcairn PCA-2 on its final flight on a beautiful
fall afternoon in 2005 before being donated to EAA. Those who were present were treated
to a glorious flight display as Steve said goodbye to the oldest ftying rotorcraft then in
America, restored by Geo rge Townson and maintained by the Posey Brothers (who helped
move Miss Champion to Oshkosh). Read more about it starting on page 16. EAA photo by
H.G. Frautschy.

Advertising Coordina tor

Classified Ad Coordinator
Copy Editor
Director of Advertising

Tom Poberezny
Mary Jones
H.G . Frautschy
Kathleen Witman
Jim Koepnick
Bonnie Kratz
Sue Anderson
Lesley Poberezny
Colleen Wa lsh
Katrina Bradshaw

Display Advertisi ng Representatives:

Specialized Publications Co.
U.S. Eastern Time Zone-Northeast: Ken Ross
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U.S. Eastern Time Zone-Southeast: Chester Baumgartner

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U.S. Central Time Zone: Gary Worden and Todd Reese
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Europe: Willi Tacke

Phone: +49(0)1716980871 Fax: +49(0)8841 / 496012
willi@{lying-pages.com
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

Sully and Skiles New Young Eagles Co-Chairs

Sully Sullenberger (left) and Jeff Skiles, co-chairs of the EAA Young Eagles program.
EAA members expressed surprise and excitement wh en it was announced
September 29 that US Airways Flight 1549 pilots Chesl ey "Sully" Sullenberger
and Jeff Skiles would be the new co-chairs of EANs Young Eagles program.
"Many people have contacted me and said w hat a great choice; it was unex
pected, but what a great choice fo r the next step to lead the Young Eag les pro
gram;' said EAA President/Chairman Tom Poberezny. You can read more about
the new co-chairmen on page 81 of fAA Sport Aviation.
Since vintage aircraft make up the majority of the lightplane general-aviation
fleet, it probably comes as no surprise to learn that the majority of the 1.5 million
Young Eagles flown so far were flown in aircraft built priorto 1971, and one of
the new Young Eagles chairmen expects that trend to continue for him in a very
personal way; you can read an interview with Jeff Skiles and see a slide show
of his "new" Waco YOC in issue No. 3 of Vintage Aircraft Online, the VANs newest
member benefit. You can access it online at www. EAA.org/ vintageaircraft.

EAA Responds Immediately

to Anti-GA Airport Stories
Inaccurateclaims that small airportsreceive
disproportionateamount of federal money
When two national news outlets
recently produced stories critical of
funding for general-aviation (GA)
airports, EAA and other aviation or
ganizations promptly stood up and
set things straight. USA Today and
NBC ran stories on September 17
that claimed smaller airports receive
a disproportionately large amount of
federal funding to upgrade those fa
cilities at the expense of the nation's
commercial hubs.
"This is very upsetting but not un
expected-it's obvious the airlines are
2

NOVEMBER 2009

still trying to fix their broken busi

ness model by inflaming the public
with one-sided media stories," said
Tom Poberezny, EAA chairman/presi
dent. "For several years, the airlines
have tried to shift the burden of sup
porting our nation's airport infra
structure by tossing it on the back of
general aviation. It was wrong before,
and it still is."
What the news o u tlets failed
to report is that aviation fuel taxes
paid by GA annually exceed grants
distributed for all airport improve
ments, yet those funds are perenni
ally raided to ease the FAA's general
budget shortfall. Hub airports also re
ceive three times more federal funds

than do GA airports, and GA users

pay five times more in fuel taxes
than the airlines to support the air
traffic control system, the primary
users of which are the airlines.
"EAA agrees with one item from
the USA Today story-the nation's
small airports are underutilized," Po
berezny said. "If major hub airports
are overcrowded but smaller airports
are ready and eager to serve avia
tion, why would it make any sense
to wage war on small airports? They
are all essential parts of the nation's
transportation system."

EAAer Keys Mexican

ElT Rule Extension
Thanks to coordination efforts
by EAA member Rick Gardner, EAA
791548, of travel service provider Ca
ribbean Sky Tours, the Mexican gov
ernment extended its emergency lo
cator transmitter (ELT) rules through
April 2010 for general-aviation air
craft flying in Mexico. The extension
provides a procedure that will allow
certain U.S. pilots operating 121.5
MHz ELTs to fly into Mexicothrough
April 2, 2010. After that date, all
general-aviation aircraft flying into
Mexico must be equipped with an
operable 406 MHz ELT.
Gardner and his wife, Pia, own
ers and operators of Cancun, Mex
ico-based Caribbean Sky Tours, are
longtime AirVenture and Sun 'n Fun
exhibitors and regularly conduct fo
rums on flying to Mexico, Central
America, and the Caribbean. Rick
Gardner worked directly with the Di
reccion General De Aeronautica Civil
(DGAC, the Mexican equivalent of
the FAA) on the 406 MHz ELT regula
tion for the last two years.
"We have had a very good rela
tionship with the DGAC for many
years and have worked together on
a number of different issues to facili
tate the arrival of visiting general avi
ation aircraft into Mexico," he said.
"We are also on the executive coun

cil of the Mexican Federation of Pi

lots (FEMPPA) and are an authorized
distributor for INEGI, the Mexican
charting office, which allows us to
stay abreast of Mexican aeronautical
issues and products."

VAA Volunteer of the Year Awards

TSA and DHS Merge Border Flight

Crossing Procedures
Two Department of Homeland Se
curity (DHS) agencies recently merged
their border security programs to
eliminate redundancy as well as the
paperwork burden of international
travelers. The Transportation Secu
rity Administration's (TSA) Interna
tional Waiver program will be folded
into Customs and Border Protection's
(CBP) Advanced Passenger Informa
tion System (APIS).
This will satisfy a commitment
made at AirVenture 2009 by TSA's new
general-aviation manager, Brian De
lauter, and CBP's APIS program man
ager, Eric Rodriguez, to improve the
border-crossing procedure for general
aviation pilots through collaboration.
The info merger will allow pilots to
complete only the CBP electronic APIS
paperwork to fly across U.S. borders.
EAA, which has advocated for a less
onerous system, has prepared a guide
on how to navigate the current re
quirements until the new process is fi
nalized. That is available at www.EAA.
org/news/2009/2009-0S-21_cbp.asp.

During the fall board meeting, Jim Swol (right) was presented with a commemora
tive clock and a certificate commemorating his selection as the 2009 Art Morgan VAA
Flightline Volunteer of the Year.
ach year the Vintage Aircraft Association honors two of its own for their service to the VAA
and its members during the annual convention. As it is every year, it's tough to pick just one
person for such an honor, but this year was especially challenging, as we had afantastic group
of volunteers step it up an extra notch during the months prior to this year's amazing event, and
during the convention .
The Art Morgan VAA Flightline Volunteer of the Year comes to us all the way from the state
of Maine. For years we have both marveled and worried at the willingness of the VAA flightline
volunteers to keep going and do whatever was requested of them, and Jim Swol epitomizes that
volunteer work ethic- always on the spot, doing what needs to be done, year after year.
The VAA Behind the Scenes Volunteer of the Year is actually a twosome this year. The way
beyond-the-call-of-duty work spearheaded by these two volunteers made it possible for us to com
plete the Vintage Hangar on time and under budget. Thanks to the work by Archie James and Michael
Blombach, this year's honorees for the award, the 40-plus volunteers who helped finish out the proj
ect were kept busy and focused so that we could all enjoy our new facilities when AirVenture started.
Our sincere admiration and heartfelt thanks to Jim Swol, Archie James, and Michael Blombach
for their hard work. Congratulations, gentlemen!

EAA Share the Spirit Sweepstakes

This new Aviat Husky could be yours.

It's on! The 2010 EAA Share the Spirit Sweep

stakes website is now live, and with it, your chance
to flyaway in the grand prize-a brand new, fully
equipped Aviat Husky A-1 C. To top things off (includ
ing the 50-gallon fuel tank, over and over again!),
the grand prize comes with a full year's worth of fuel
credit from Chevron plus 50,000 points in Chevron's
FlyBuys rewards program. Equipped with a Garmin
GsOO and GNS 430 panel-mount avionics suite and a
set ofWipaire C2200 hydrauliC wheel skis, the grand
prize Husky will take you places you've never been!
But you have to enter, and fortunately there are
many ways to do so. (Entry coupons are included in the November issue of Sport Aviation and will also be included in the
2010 January, March, and May issues of EAA's flagship magazine.) Or you can enter anytime at www.WinAPlane.com.
Other top sweepstakes prizes include a Honda Big Red mUltipurpose utility vehicle, REMOS Pilot Center sport pilot training
certificate, men's Hamilton Khaki X-Wind aviation watch, Canon EOS SOD camera kit with lens, and Bose Wave music system.

VINTAGE AIRPLANE

H.G. fRAUTSCHY

o what would a former high

school track star, Army Spe
cial Ops soldier, and para
chute ace want for a vintage
aircraft? If you're a guy like
Jack Tiffany of Spring Valley, Ohio,
you'd go for the most unusual thing
you could find-an Autogiro.
There was only one problem for
the energetic Tiffany, a Vietnam vet
eran now in his seventh decade; he
couldn't find one to restore. Other
neat projects came and went for
his laid-back confederation of re
storers that bill themselves as Lead
ing Edge Aircraft (liOn the Trailing
Edge of Technology" is its motto). A
Fairchild Kreider-Reisner 21 biplane,
a Fleet 16B, a couple of Davis D
1Ws, and a smattering of Wacos and
other ancient but lovable aircraft
passed through the hangar doors,
but an Autogiro proved elusive. He
searched for one for 28 years.
Enter the third generation of avia
tion fanatics in the Tiffany sphere
of influence. Jack's father had been
an Air Force crew chief, and for Jack,
aviation was a major part of his life.
Later, when he married Kate (an
avowed aviation nut herself, she's

NOVEMBER 2009

served as a volunteer judge at EAA

AirVenture Oshkosh), he got a bo
nus in the bargain, Kate's son, Nick.
The young boy soon became as en
amored as his stepfather with avia
tion, and as a teenager Nick became
quite the aviation sleuth, digging up
tidbits of handy aviation knowledge.
That tenacity would payoff in 1999,
when he came to Jack with the reve
lation that there was an Autogiro out
there that could be restored. In fact,
there were two!
It didn't take long for Jack and
Nick to track down Al Letcher of Mo
jave, California. AI, a longtime col
lector of vintage aircraft, had bought
the remains of a Pitcairn PA-18 from
Ted Sowirka, who had owned it for
43 years. But how it came to be in his
hands is a story that will warm the

Since it is a fixed-spindle system,

the rotor head is relatively simple.
The cables and the bungee cords
attached to them act as limit stops
when the rotor is rotating slowly or
is stopped. To the sides of the rotor
attach hinges are the squarish rub
ber pads that, in combination with
the dampers installed farther out on
each blade, act to dampen and limit
the lead/lag movement of each rotor
blade as it flies around the rotor disc.
To the left is the pre-rotator gearbox,
which engages with the helical spur
gear bolted to the bottom of the ro
tor head. The pre-rotator is used to
spin up the rotor blades to a stable
rpm before the takeoff roll is started.
Having a spun-up rotor allows the
rotor to be started and brought up to
speed without the hazard of taxiing
with a low-speed, unstable rotor sys
tem, and it significantly reduces the
takeoff run.

heart of many a potential restorer

who still has hopes of finding his
own aeronautical Holy Grail.

History
The Pitcairn PA-18 Autogiro was
created by the company after the
firm had created quite a name for it
self with the PCA-2 Autogiro, a large,
expensive craft that was bought by a
few firms for its novel appearance,
which, since it attracted a lot of at
tention, made it a suitable platform
for advertising. But the PCA-2 with
a 300-hp Wright Whirlwind on the
nose and a 4S-foot rotor span was
a big rotorcraft. It could carry three
with ease, and its hulking presence
on the ground made it hard to miss.
(" Autogiro" with a capital A is the
spelling coined by the Cierva Auto-

By necessity, the rotor blades are quite flexible, which require the trailing edge
of each blade to be segmented. This leather patch on the trailing edge covers
one of the slip joints on the trailing edge.

When running, the short stacks on the 160-hp, five-cylinder Kinner-R-55 give
the Pitcairn a distinctive bark in flight.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

After arriving in Jim Hammond's shop, the Pitcairn's pieces

were assembled as much as possible so the restorers
could get a better idea of just what they had.

After 60-plus years, it's not surprising that the blade rub
ber dampers were not usable, so a new set were cast us
ing new urethane rubber material with the correct 90
durometer hardness.

giro Company for aircraft produced

under license; the generic term"au
togyro" applies to all rotary-winged
aircraft with unpowered rotors; the
FAA simply avoids the entire issue
by calling them "gyroplanes.")
What was also needed was a
smaller, more compact version,
something that a well-heeled owner
could purchase and fly. Harold Pit
cairn, the founder of the aviation
manufacturing concern that bore
his family name, had started his firm
in the 1920s building mail-hauling
aircraft renowned for their struc
tural strength and safety with regard
to their ability to protect the pilot in
the event of a crash. Harold's long
time pursuit of the safe operation
8

NOVEMBER 2009

A restorable PA-18 rotor head and pre-rotator gearbox

was obtained from Steve Pitcairn, and thanks to his inter
est in his father's company history, Steve was also able to
supply a set of drawings so Phil Riter could build a new
rotor mast.

The rotors were complete, with steel spars that were

inspected and deemed airworthy. All-new wood com
ponents were used to restore the blades. With the expe
rience of building the first set, the Leading Edge gang
continued to build blades as spares.

of aircraft led him to a collaborative

agreement between his company
and Juan de la Cierva, the inventor
of the Autogiro. Assigned the exclu
sive rights to license and produce
the Autogiro in the United Sates, the
Pitcairn-Cierva Autogiro Company
of America pursued the vision of a
safe aircraft that could be landed
just about anywhere.
Harold Pitcairn wanted that ca
pability to be within reach of any
one who could fly, and a personal
aircraft was just the next logical step
in the progression of the Autogiro.
The first version, the PAA-l, was ba
sicallya scaled-down PCA-2, with
a fixed-spindle rotor system atop a
fuselage powered by a 125-hp Kin

nero One version was built with the

Chevrolair engine and an odd tail
wheel/nose wheel configuration.
The PAA-1 was well-received but
it was considered significantly un
derpowered (25 were built and de
livered in the darkest period of
the Great Depression of the early
1930s), but it wasn't exactly what
Harold wanted. The factory came
up with the next version, a slightly
larger aircraft that was destined to
be just what Harold Pitcairn wanted.
In fact, he liked it so well that in
1932 when he rented a beach house
on the Jersey shore, he used his per
sonal PA-18 as his weekend "com
muter car" to cover the 80-mile drive
in half an hour, rather than battling

ANTIQUE ALERT NOTICE

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the lIaual bulld",r atKI r1.llU\bl. oval' &"arytbllli ill
u.....y. nare ua not maay Iyro, lut tod ay, and
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tar Socta'y with the ma pl to pray_I. _ant.ozr.
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tlt.. o_ur may be tryial to P'l' it la .b~ , but.
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Warna D. Shipp
81.2 Cro'IfD St re.'
Brooklye 11, N. Y.

Fifty-four individual ribs are in each blade,

for a total of 216 ribs in each set of four
blades. Each was routed out using a CNC
machine, and then the ribs are secured to the
tubular steel spar using bolts and a flange.

In 1954, Warren Shipp had spotted the forlorn Pitcairn sitting at a Penn
sylvania airport. Two of his photos and a brief write-up pleading its case
were published in the first issue of American Airman magazine.

increase in horsepower to 160,

pumped out by a Kinner R-5
engine. It still had a fixed-spin
dle rotor system, which meant
that all control of the aircraft
was affected using aerodynamic
controls, that is, rudder, eleva
tor, and ailerons mounted on
the stub wings. Direct control
of the rotor head was being ac
tively worked on at this point,
but it would be months before
the system was perfected so that
Since the original wood parts were sig
it
would allow the dispensing of
nificantly deteriorated after being stored
the stub wings.
outside for many years, they needed a
In March of 1932, serial
complete restoration. A major portion of
number G-65, the fourth PA-18
the wing and aileron rebuild was done by
off the factory line, was deliv
Jan Lavally.
ered as the personal aircraft of
the terrestrial traffic down below. the company preSident, and it was
Landing on the beach in front of also used as a factory demonstrator.
the cottage proved to be a simple Harold Pitcairn had a great deal of
matter, and tucking it neatly on the affection for the little Autogiro as
sand nearby kept it ready for a dash evidenced in a portion of a letter he
back to his office near Philadelphia. sent to his executive vice president,
The PA-18 was also popular with Geoff Childs. "Sunday the weather
new rotorcraft aficionados; deliveries became very bad so I told Chambliss
began in 1932, with 18 being built. to take my machine over to the han
(Nineteen serial numbers are listed gar: Because of the wind direction
in Joe Juptner's U.S. Civil Aircraft, but he was going to take off towards the
it is believed that one airframe had Ch urch. The ground was slippery
two serial numbers in its lifetime.) and the machine was on a slope. He
Debuting at the Detroit Air Show for got into the air before he meant to
a price of $4,940, the new Autogiro and the starter was engaged. This, in
had improved performance thanks addition to all the other conditions
in part to engineering work that re under which he was working made
fined the rotor head, allowing for the machine turn and drift very
smoother rotor operation, and the badly to the right. Before he had

the situation straightened out, he

hit the fence so that my little 'giro is
minus a set of blades. When I came
out of Church, it was standing up
on its nose. I patted it gently and all
it said was 'cheep' 'cheep.lII!
He wouldn't be the first per
son taken in by the charms of the
little Autogiro. This particular PA
18, registered as NC12678, was
kept by Harold until it was sold in
1935. Anne West Strawbridge was
an adventuresome spirit who had
climbed mountains and was an ac
complished artist and author. (A
little side note-on the Web and
in other publications an incorrect
connection was made between Miss
Strawbridge and the Strawbridge &
Clothier department store fortune.
In fact, according to her great grand
nephew, she was the daughter of a
doctor from Maine, whose family
connection to the department story
family is very distant, at best. She
was not the daughter of someone
directly related to the store.)
Her family fortune allowed her to
pursue all sorts of interesting pur
suits. Apprehensive about flying, she
became a convert to the Autogiro
after a flight demonstration, even
after her first PA-18 was crashed by
another pilot, hitting wires near
Wings Field in Philadelphia and kill
ing the pilot and his passenger. In
1935, she bought NC12678. To ex
press her appreciation, she sent a
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

letter to Harold that read, in part:

"Please may I tell you something
of the great pleasure you've given
me in allowing me to buy the blue
autogiro; it was most awfully good
of you and Mr. Ray to take so much
trouble in arranging it and I thank
you ever so much. I am also writing
Mr. Ray. The giro is the loveliest ship
I've ever flown in and I simply have
not words to tell you how much it
10

NOVEMBER 2009

means to me to have her. ..

" . .. There is a beauty of existence
which one enters through flying the
autogiro which is largely a thing of
the spirit and could so easily be lost
through any discourse. (I know you
will understand what I express so in
adequately), but at both factory and
flying field one meets only with the
most courteous kindness, efficiency,
and a vast love of the work and loy

alty to you. May I congratulate you

on your splendid work."z
It seemed the little PA-18 had
once again cast its magic spell on yet
another aviator. Anne Strawbridge
came to name the autogiro Isobella.
In 1936 and 1937, she sent similarly
complimentary letters to Harold Pit
cairn expressing her admiration for
Isobella, and for the instruction be
ing provided by Mr. Lukens, one of

Pitcairn's instructor pilots. She flew

the blue 'giro more than 90 hours
by mid-1937, enjoying the opera
tional peace of mind that the Auto
giro gave her. She wrote later:
"I have been amazed at Mr.
Luken's ability as an instructor.
When he took me on, I could not
have been a more unpromising stu
dent. Now I get into the ship as tran
quilly as into my Ford car-and with

a lot less feeling of risk in the air than

on the highway."3
A couple of explanations are in or
der. The color, as described to me by
Carl Gunther, the archivist of the Pit
cairn Aircraft Association, was dark
blue with a light blue stripe with a
white keyline around the stripe.
The Mr. Ray she refers to in the
letter is Jim Ray, Pitcairn-Cierva Au
togiro Company's vice president

and one of the most accomplished

Autogiro pilots in history.
While there is fascinating mate
rial to learn more about in Auto
giro history, we need to skip a few
years ahead to complete the his
tory of NC12678. It's 1939, and
thanks to the German U-boat men
ace, the British are having a devil of
a time getting their war effort and
nation supplied via convoy across
the North Atlantic. Looking at any
means at their disposal to gain an
advantage in knowing where the
U-boats were lurking, the British
contracted with the Pitcairn-Larsen
Autogiro Company, a successor to
the original company set up by Har
old Pitcairn, to remanufacture the
remaining PA-18s into sub-spotting
Autogiros that could operate from
small decks on ships within the con
voys. Using the PA-18 as a base gave
them a quick start on the creation of
an Autogiro suitable for the purpose.
Technological advances in rotor
and flight control systems, includ
ing the now perfected direct-control
rotor head, gave the remanufactured
aircraft, now called the PA-39, im
proved performance, and the in
stallation of a 16S-hp Warner Super
Scarab gave it added reliability. All
the company had to do was buy back
the remaining PA-18 Autogiros from
the owners, run them through the
remanufacturing process, and then
load them on ships for delivery to
the United Kingdom. That's just
what they did with all of them. All of
them except one. Anne West Straw
bridge's Autogiro wasn't on the list.
There's no record of what conver
sation or letter transpired between
the company and Anne Strawbridge,
but based on her lovely letters to Har
old Pitcairn, I can't imagine it was
anything but a very polite "0h my
goodness, no, I could never sell it"
type of refusal to sell little Isabella so
that it go off to war. In any event, it
was not part of the group to be con
verted to the PA-39 configuration.
Her strong attachment to the little
blue Autogiro is what saved it for res
toration many years later; only two
of the PA-39 Autogiros ever made it
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

11

to England. Three were lost at sea in

a torpedoing of the cargo ship carry
ing them, with at least one remain
ing in the States, where it was used
for research and development work.
There is one PA-39 remaining, re
stored and on display in EAA's Pit
cairn Hangar on Pioneer Airport, a
gift of Harold Pitcairn's son, Stephen.
After civilian flying was banned
for the duration of the war along the
East Coast, Anne never again flew her
beloved 'giro. She died in 1941 at the
age of 58, willing the little rotorcraft
to her brother, John Strawbridge.
A few years later, just after the end
of World War II, the ownership of
the Autogiro flipped back and forth
a few times before being sold to G&A
Aircraft. It was Wind-damaged, and
later, Firestone Aircraft (the successor
to G&A Aircraft) repaired it.
They didn't keep it long (G&A also
operated the remaining PA-39), sell
ing it to Sky Voice Inc. of East Or
ange, New Jersey, on March IS, 1947.
A shoreline advertising company,
Sky Voice planed to pull banners and
eve n put a big speaker in the 'giro
to generate advertising publicity.
There's no record it actually did that
with the Autogiro, but it's fun, if not
12 NOVEMBER 2009

a bit unnerving, to imagine a voice

from the sky exhorting those on the
shore to "Eat at Joes!"
Four years later, the Wyoming
Valley School of Aviation at Wilkes
Barre, Pennsylvania, acquired the
Autogiro after Joseph Budjinski of
the school determined, by query
ing the Civil Aviation Authority,
the most recent registered owner.
Within the next two years the
school folded, and on July 3, 1954,
a flight school on the same field,
Morlin Air Service, sold NC12678 to
Ted Sowirka, who brought the still
mostly complete 'giro to Old Star
Airport near Langhorne, Pennsyl
vania. Most likely it was sold by the
flight school as part of a settlement
for payment, and while such things
happen, if they're not executed
properly, it can cause a big headache
for those who follow, as we'll see
later in this article.
While the rotor blades were
stored in a hangar, the partially re
worked fuselage sat outside. While it
was there, Warren D. Shipp, a transit
policeman from New York City who
had an interest in aviation, and Au
togiros in particular, spotted it sit
ting out in the grass. Shipp, one of

the earliest American Aviation His

tory Association members (No. 14)
sent a couple of photos and a letter
that were published in the first issue
of American Airman magazine (Sep
tember 1957), imploring someone
to save the Autogiro before it was
lost to history. That story helped
Nick Hurm track down the where
abouts of the PA-18. (See the photo
in this article.)
Sometime later, after those pho
tos were taken, a rogue pilfered the
main rotor mast, supporting struc
ture, and the all-important rotor
head and pre-rotator mechanism,
forcing the Autogiro's storage inside
a hangar. Ted still intended to re
store the aircraft to flying condition,
but without the heart of the aircraft,
it proved to be a long-term stor
age situation. While he never got a
chance to restore it, Ted Sowirka's
dedication to keeping the project
as intact as possible saved it for the
next generation of restorers.
By 1996, the registration of the
aircraft has been allowed to lapse,
and the N number has been assigned
to a Cessna 172 made in 1973. Ted
had attempted to get the aircraft re
registered, noting in a letter to the

agency dated July 1996 that

Nearly everything else on
"the aircraft has been stored
the AutOgiro could be built if
by me since 1954 ...."
drawings could be obtained,
The next month Ted sold
but the rotor head isn't some
the project to Al Letcher of
thing one can just whip out
Mojave, California. The next
using a band saw and a lathe.
Thankfully, Jack had been in
year Nick Hurm tracked
the PA-18's whereabouts
regular contact with Steve Pit
to Al Letcher. Jack Tiffany
cairn, Harold Pitcairn's son
first made contact with AI,
and a well-known restorer
checking to see if Al would
and aviation enthusiast.
be willing to part with the
Steve had participated in and
funded the restoration of the
Autogiro. Over the next two
most famous of Pitcairn Auto
years, during a visit to Cal Pilot Andrew King gathered as much written mate
ifornia by Jack, he made a rial as he could regarding flying the PA-18, along with
giros, the PCA-2 Miss Cham
deal to restore the Autogiro spending considerable time interviewing both Steve
pion, and he had a spare PA-18
for Al Letcher. As agreed, Pitcairn and Johnny Miller, who both had extensive
type rotor head that he was
during the restoration Jack experience flying Pitcairn Autogiros.
willing to sell. Steve also had
access to a few of the draw
was also going to create a
ings from the company, so he
clone of the Autogiro. Jack,
was able to fill in the blanks
giddy with the prospect, just
couldn't keep quiet about
for a few of the missing parts,
the find, and word leaked
including the all-important
out during the annual EAA
main rotor mast. Phil Riter,
a master at sheet metal work
fly-in convention that there
and welding, created the new
was indeed a Pitcairn out
2008.
mast and did all of the sheet
there to be restored. Not too
metal work for the cowling,
much later Jack heard from

including the beautiful noseAl that instead of allowing

Jack to restore the PA-18, Al has de

project by helping with the funding bowl covering the Kinner.
What often appear to be little
cided to sell the ship to another vin
to acquire the Autogiro. Within days
tage airplane enthusiast.

a truck and crew consisting of Jack changes in a type design often wind
Jack forthrightly explained that and Kate Tiffany, Herman Leffew, up being big headaches. Somewhere
he didn't think that was fair, and Don Siefer, and Herb Ware were off along the line the little blue Autogi
that he should have the right of first to the Mojave Desert to pick up the ro's Kinner R-5 engine was separated
from the airframe, and it wasn't part
refusal on the purchase. After think
remains of the rotorcraft, still miss
ing for a moment, Al agreed. Jack ing the parts stolen from it so long of the project when it was brought to
then said, "I want it!" and shortly ago. By Thanksgiving of 1999, it was Ohio. That's fine, a Kinner R-5 is rare
thereafter hung up the phone, in Jim Hammond's shop, where Jim to begin with, but the later version,
put all the pieces they had dragged the Kinner R-55, is more common,
happy that he'd come to an agree
ment to buy the Autogiro. He hung back to Ohio into a semblance of having been used on the Ryan PT
up a bit too quickly it turned out. an Autogiro. Soon it was moved to 22. They're nearly identical, with the
R-55 having a number of improve
When Kate asked him how much the Leading Edge shops near Day
it was going to cost, it suddenly ton. The restorers had high hopes ments that make it a more reliable en
struck Jack that he didn't know! He of finishing the aircraft by the end gine, so making the change shouldn't
jumped back on the phone, heard a of 2003, just in time for the 100th be too much of a big deal, right?
Not so fast; in this case, since the
price, gulped, and hung up. When anniversary of the Wright brothers
the subject of the price came up powered flights in Kitty Hawk. But R-55 isn't on the type certificate data
sheet, installing it means that the re
again with Kate after the call, his re
not surprisingly, given the multi
sponse was, in part, "Well, if we sell faceted issues involved, that date storers were making a major altera
the house, the cars ...."
tion to the aircraft. Just getting all the
would come and go before the PA
data and approvals through the en
18 was ready to fly.
Thankfully, that draconian mea
sure wasn't needed. Longtime friend
gineering section of the FAA added
and fellow aircraft restorer Jim Ham
more time than they expected to
The Restoration
mond, whose family owns and op
As I mentioned before, the proj
the project. Like most every Kinner
erates Hammond DrieRite in Xenia, ect was mostly complete, but it did rework done these days, the Kinner
Ohio, became a silent partner in the lack one critical item: the rotor head. was inspected and overhauled by Kin-

Still, you don't know what you

don't know, and not everything that
was available back in 1931 had
surfaced in

VINTAGE AIRPLANE

13

There's plenty more photos

and other goodies on the Pitcairn at

www.vintageaircrafiorglextraslpitcairn

After a fun cross

country from
New Carlisle, Ohio,
to Oshkosh,
the PA-18 Autogiro
spent the summer
months displayed in
EAA's Pitcairn
Hangar located
behind the
museum at EAA's
Pioneer Airport.

14 NOVEMBER 2009

ner engine experts AI and Brad Ball in

Santa Paula, California.
The other obviously critical items
were the main rotor blades. Each
of the blades, as can be seen in the
photos accompanying this article,
are built like a very high-aspect ra
tio wing, with a steel tube spar, over
which are fitted tightly spaced wood
ribs, with plywood leading edges and
stainless steel trailing edges. One un-

usual aspect to their construction is

the requirement for slip joints in the
trailing edge of each blade, neces
sary since the blades flex significantly
in flight. This flexing is important,
soaking up both flight and structural
loads spanwise along the blades as
each blade Circumnavigates the ro
tor arc 140 times per minute, just a
little faster than twice each second.
The rotor blades that had been re
tained with the project were in rough
shape, but the spars were usable, al
lowing the restorers to build up not
only the ribs (all 216 for a set of four
blades, thank goodness for CNC mill
ing machines!), but they had enough
information and parts to create a new
replacement set of rotor blades, and
are confident that their "rotor shop"
can handle their maintenance needs
for years to come.
The rest of the rotorcraft's restora
tion was pretty straightforward, with
the standard repairs being made to a
70-plus-year-old airframe. While the

stub wings were intact, they were re

built almost completely, built up en
tirely of wood. The fuselage needed a
bit of steel tubing replaced, and while
we' ll get a bit ahead of the story a bit
here, one little bit of clever engineer
ing deserves to be highlighted. During
the flight-testing phase of the restored
Pitcairn, a series of mistakes resulted
in a main rotor blade or two, or three,
contacting the top of the vertical fin. It
promptly folded over to the side, with
no damage done to the tail post or the
rest of the fuselage. (You'll get a chance
to read more about the incident in the
upcoming January 2010 issue of EAA
Sport Aviation, in the feature article on
the PA-18 written by Andrew King.)
Once repairs were started, the rea
son why the fin folded so neatly be
came apparent. Pitcairn's engineers,
realizing that it was likely that a com
bination of surface winds, low-rotor
rpm, and taxiing on the ground could
result in a rotor strike in the fin, sim
ply had a set of holes drilled in the tail
post, creating a weaker spot on the
tube just above the top of the fuse
lage. Whack it with a rotor blade, and
voila, the fin flips to the side, damage
is minimal to the fuselage, and if you
were a lucky owner back then, you
could call up the factory and order up
a new fin. If you're a restorer, you get
to break out your jig and torch and
build up a new one yourself!
The Wright brothers' anniversary
in 2003 came and went, and the proj
ect wasn't done yet, but restorers were
. making good progress, and it looked
like the middle of the first decade
might see it flying. But as we all know,
sometimes what you plan isn't what
happens. Paperwork on the repairs and
alterations was taking time, as was the
process of acquiring the use of the orig-

Notes:
1: Chapter 5, page 171, Harold
F. Pitcairn: Aviator, Inventor, and
Developer of the Autogiro, by Carl
R. Gunther, published by Bryn
Athyn College Press
2 Chapter 8, pages 330/331, see
above.
3 Ch apter 8, page 381

inal N
the side of a~~~tLy
172, Jack (an
ter of fact) did his hp(1t.S'It-rr,n
owner that it would be
ated if the original N number
moved back to the Pitcairn. Jack
pay to have the 172 repainted with
~bers, a that

ith th

ing to the FAA records, the last regis

tered owner was Sky Voice. The next
didn't actually execute a bill of
for the aircraft, which meant that
FAA's eyes, Jack and Leading
didn't have a clean pa
establish ownership. Three
np'lATf"L- "heck" ensued for
~~~~~
the rest

crew fi

a
0
see the restoration fly. Johnny Miller,
who had flown his own PCA-2 across
the United States a full two weeks
before Amelia Earhart's flight in the
Beech-Nut gum-sponsored PCA-2, had
been regularly consulted about flying
the Autogiro by Andrew King, who
was slated to be the Pitcairn's pilot.
Johnny died on June 24, 2008, within
days of when the first flights were
scheduled. And Steve Pitcairn, who
had done so much to help the Lead
ing Edge crew, passed away a couple
of months before, in March of 2008.
Andrew King in particular was thank
ful that he'd had the good fortune of
knowing and chatting with both men
about the operation of the Autogiro.
Nearly three years of time was
added to the restoration due to one
significant paperwork issue-accord

es during
Autogiro operation
period of
or brake is re
time from when the
leased and when the rotor has enough
speed for centrifugal force and lift to
keep the blades steady in their respec
tive flight paths as they whirl around
the rotor disc. During early testing,
Andrew was moving down the run
way at low rotor rpm when he heard
the main rotor blades smack the top
of the vertical fin . The blades weren't
damaged, but the fin was neatly laid
over, the built-in fail point having
done its job perfectly. Not too much
later, an old checklist surfaced that
pointed out that no movement of the
'giro should be done unless the ro
tors are stopped, or unless the rotor is
turning at least 6S rpm.
Three weeks later, after repairs were

made, nine years of work, more than

6,000 man-hours of restoration time,
and untold mechanical difficulties
and paperwork hassles were about to
melt away, as mid-summer dawned
with light winds and just a few cirrus
clouds way up in the heavens.
Andrew and the Autogiro were
on J
ready
with a
that

ucky
see just
ore Pitca
giro flying as
the Posey brothers work toward the
completion of the only other PA-18
known to exist, but for me and my
son, Alden, along with EAA photog
rapher Bonnie Kratz and out photo
pilot Janet Davidson, the sight of the
Pitcairn's slowly turning blades rotat
ing over Andrew's head as he sling
winged his way north to Oshkosh past
more than 100 newly constructed
wind turbines firmly anchored to
the ground will be something we'll
never forget. It's a remarkable aircraft
crafted and engineered by some of
the finest engineers of the first half
of the previous century, and restored
by an equally talented group of men
and women who are thrilled to have
been given the opportunity to restore
one of aviation's great aircraft, the
Pitcairn AutOgiro.
.....,.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

15

Steve Pitcairn wipes down Miss Champion

after arrival at Oshkosh '86.

But few aircraft caught and held

the public attention as did the Au
togiro. Called "flying windmills"
by news reporters who had little
understanding of the principles of
autorotational flight, these strange
looking aircraft, invented by a
Spanish engineer named Juan de
la Cierva, captured the hearts and
minds of the air-minded public be
cause of their remarkable perfor
mance coupled with a high degree
of safety. These facts made Auto
giros an ideal means to carry out
nationwide advertising campaigns
by a number of American manufac
turers. The Champion Spark Plug
Company was one of these.
Champion executives were not
slow to see the large amount of
publicity Autogiros drew wherever
they performed across the country.
Nor was the fact that many of the
leaders of American aviation, such
as Charles Lindbergh, Jimmy Doo
little, Frank Hawks, Amelia Earhart,
Clarence Chamberlin, David In
galls, and many others, were beat
ing a steady path to Pitcairn Field

near Willow Grove, Pennsylvania,

where Harold Pitcairn was design
ing and building these phenome
nal aircraft.
It wasn't long before Champion
Vice President M.e. Dewitt showed
up at the Pitcairn Aircraft Com
pany office prepared to do busi
ness. Pitcairn Vice President Edwin
Asplundh promptly led Dewitt out
to the ramp in front of the main
hangar doors where stood an Au
togiro with its engine idling. In the
rear cockpit sat Jim Ray, Pitcairn's
chief test pilot, who motioned De
witt to climb into the front seat.
As soon as Dewitt's safety belt was
fastened, Jim engaged the clutch,
bringing the rotor up to flight
speed, and executed a short, steep
takeoff within the confines of the
fenced-in ramp area.
The demonstration of the Au
togiro's characteristics to which
Jim treated Dewitt included the
usual aerial maneuvers and then
a throttled-back pass at the field
a mere 15 feet above the grass at
a speed of less than 30 miles per

hour, yet under complete control,

and finally a vertical dead-stick
landing from 500 feet on the exact
spot from where they had departed
10 minutes earlier, with a roll of
only 2 or 3 feet. Dewitt, who was
no stranger to flying, climbed out
on the wing as soon as the engine
stopped, and with a big grin on his
face said, "I'm impressed, but can
our pilot do that?" "Who is your
pilot?" Jim asked. "Capt. Lewis A.
Yancey, if he can handle it," re
plied Dewitt. "I know Yancey,"
said Jim. "He'll do fine."
As a matter of fact, "Lon" Yancey,
famed for his trans-Atlantic flight
in a Bellanca in 1929 to Rome, it
aly, had already been receiving Au
togiro flight instruction from Jim
and "Skipper" Lukens, another Pit
cairn pilot, for several days. His
handling of the Autogiro was quite
acceptable. With more experience
he became an accomplished Au
togiro pilot with the capability of
handling the routines Autogiro
demonstrations called for.
Satisfied, Dewitt signed the sales
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

17

The markings were accurately reproduced from the original fabric, except for
Steve's name at the rear cockpit.

agreement. On paper the agree

ment simply states that "in con
sideration of the sum of $15,125
in hand paid, we hereby sell and
transfer unto Champion Spark Plug
Company of Toledo, Ohio, one Au
togiro type PCA-2, Serial Number
8-27, Engine 12563, engine type
Wright Whirlwind J-6, R-975, 300
hp, Dept. of Commerce number
NC1l609, manufactured June 1931
free and clear of liens and encum
brances of whatever kind or nature
this 29th day of June 1931." The
signatures of Asplundh and Dewitt
appeared beside their respective
company names and titles.
Thus was born Miss Cham
pion-the first rotary-wing aircraft
ever selected to lead the Ford Air
Tour. Two days after the Autogi
18

NOVEMBER 2009

ro's delivery at Toledo, Ohio, Capt.

Yancey took off from Ford Airport
with the 1931 National Air Tour.
The Champion Autogiro was the
official tour ship . During the tour,
Miss Champion visited 21 states and
38 cities and towns from London,
Ontario, Canada, to New Orleans,
Louisiana, and from Fort Worth,
Texas, to Kalamazoo, Michigan.
Total mileage was well in excess of
6,500 with her flight log showing
more than 120 hours aloft. Every
where the Autogiro landed it at
tracted wide attention, and easily
won the major share of newspaper
and radio coverage, a fact that visi
bly annoyed a number of the other
pilots on the tour.
After the air tour, the Champion
company put Miss Champion to

work getting publicity for Cham

pion dealers from Maine to Florida.
Her demonstrations of controlled
slow flight, unusual maneuverabil
ity, and near vertical landings at the
annual National Air Races brought
national recognition to this new
and safer form of flight.
In January of 1932, Miss Cham
pion made a flight considered
"risky" for any aircraft, let alone
an Autogiro. Until then no Auto
giro had ever flown more than 25
miles over water. On January 24,
Capt. Yancey flew the Autogiro
from Miami to Havana, Cuba, a
distance of more than 300 miles.
His arrival in Havana was greeted
by enthusiastic crowds, and he was
invited to the presidential palace
by President Machado.
But Yancey had even greater am
bitions. A wire to the Pitcairn Auto
giro Company brought him a week
later a specially designed auxiliary
fuel tank that he mounted in the
front cockpit of his PCA-2, thus
doubling his fuel supply. He then
successfully began his most miracu
lous flight of all from Havana, over
the Cuban wilderness, across the
wide and treacherous waters of the
Yucatan Channel (part of the Gulf
of Mexico), and over the trackless
expanse of the Yucatan jungles to
its capital of Merida, a nonstop trip
of nearly 500 miles, where he was
welcomed by the governor.
It was from the ancient city of
Merida that Capt. Yancey made a
number of flights to the capital of
the Mayan Empire at Chichen Itza,
even landing in front of the famed
Temple of the Serpents-the great
Mayan pyramid. The ability of Miss
Champion to fly slowly and even
"hover" over certain spots helped
the archeologists make new discov
eries that could have taken years
on the ground. Back in the United
States, subsequent flights into the
Yosemite Valley in California and
the crater of Crater Lake, Oregon,
were a piece of cake by comparison.
Miss Champion was not just a
curiosity of her era. Wherever she
flew she engendered confidence in

Champion Spark Plug PCA-2 Pitcairn Autogiro undergoing rotor run-up tests
at the factory-1931.

An interested audience poses with Miss Champion at the Temple ofTigers, Yu

catan, February 1932.

Company pilot Lew Yancey operates Miss Champion out of a clearing in the
jungle of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. This is the Temple of the Soldiers at
Chichen Itza, one of the Mayan ruins then being reclaimed from the rain forest.
At that time (1932) it was 100 miles from the nearest civilization.

the method of flight as a truly safe

form of aerial navigation. She was
a hard worker, too, often towing
advertising banners over the cities
she visited, attracting valuable at
tention to the products her banner
proclaimed. The Champion com
pany declared in a letter to Pitcairn
Aircraft, the builder of its Autogiro,
that the value of the aircraft in in
creasing sales and goodwill toward
its products was beyond estimate.
Miss Champion was one of the
first of her type to appear in the
United States and was retired from
active service, after setting a new
altitude record on September 25 ,
1932, of 21,500 feet, the highest a
rotary-wing aircraft had ever flown .
In her way, Miss Champion had
been a missionary, her clumsy ap
pearance appealing to the imagi
nation of the public and winning
its confidence through her ability
to deliver the goods with complete
safety. She was retired with honor
as a permanent exhibit of Chicago's
Rosenwald Museum of Science and
Industry in the spring of 1935.
After World War II, the museum
had to give up Miss Champion in fa
vor of more timely exhibits from
the recent world conflict, and this
vintage lady was released into the
knowledgeable care of A.K. Miller
of Montclair, New Jersey, who kept
her in his own museum for many
years until he was forced to close it
down and move to other quarters.
Miller couldn't bear the thought of
giving up this magnificent relic of
the pioneering era in American avi
ation, so he disassembled her and
moved her into a barn on his farm
in Vermont, where she gathered
dust for many years.
Meanwhile, Stephen Pitcairn,
(EAA 109260, VAA 4080), son of
Harold Pitcairn, the aviation pi
oneer and winner of the Collier
Trophy for his development of
the Autogiro in this country, had
begun the formidable task of col
lecting and restoring examples of
his father's aircraft . The first to be
completed by Steve was the PA-5
Mailwing, originally built for his
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

19

father in 1928. Next was a PA-7

Sport Mailwing, which won for
Steve the Silver Age Champion
Award at the 1983 EAA convention
at Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
Somewhere along the line Steve
heard about the autogiro owned by
A.K. Miller. After several attempts
to communicate by mail, Steve
went to Vermont to visit Miller,
who was then in his 70s, and fi
nally succeeded in negotiating for
the PCA-2 Autogiro, NCl1609,
some five years later. Steve had it
trucked to his hangar at the Tren
ton-Robbinsville Airport, New Jer
sey, where the restoration process
began in October 1982.
Fortunately, at this time, George
Townson (EAA 251901, VAA 9519)
of Delran, New Jersey, a former
Autogiro pilot and mechanic, was
available for a full-time commit
ment. George's impressive cre
dentials include airframe and
powerplant certificate with an in
spection authorization and ground
instructor certificate with most rat
ings . He holds a commercial fixed
wing ticket and helicopter and
Autogiro ratings along with flight
instruction ratings for these types.
He is an accomplished "practical
20

NOVEMBER 2009

engineer." He is a member of the

Society of Experimental Test Pilots,
making "first flights in several ex
perimental rotorcraft in the 1940s,
including the 'world's largest'" (Pi
asecki XHRP-1, tandem rotor) he
licopter. He built, from scratch, a
small racing plane and a light, tan
dem rotor helicopter.
Before joining Stephen Pitcairn
he had been chief inspector and
director of engineering for a re
gional air carrier. Under his super
vision, Miss Champion was stripped
of her original cover (the logos and
numerals were saved to be cop
ied) , and the painstaking process
of inspection began. Careful nota
tion of items to be worked on were
listed in order of priority. Eighty
five percent of the original parts
were refurbished and reinstalled,
but a few items had to be remanu
factured, since replacement parts
did not exist. Fortunately the origi
nal Pitcairn factory drawings were
in Steve's possession.
One of the most important tasks
in the restoration process was the
rebuilding of the rotor blades. Each
main spar had to undergo rigid X
ray inspection to make sure there
was no corrosion or cracks in the

steel tubes that served as the back

bone of these rotating wings. Then
each rib with its spar-attachment
collar had to be inspected and very
often replaced because of damage,
cracks, or other defects.
It was during this tedious but
crucial part of the job that George
noticed that the airfoil curve of
the ribs actually used in the rotor
blades was slightly different from
the curve called for by the Pitcairn
engineering specifications. Accord
ing to this official document, the
airfoil used was the Goettingen
429. But when George placed one
of the ribs he had removed over
the official drawing, he saw im
mediately that the curve was just
slightly different.
Methodically he checked each
rib throughout the length of the
spar but found the same small but
definite difference. Had someone
made them all wrong, or was this a
planned departure from the origi
nal specs? Knowing the care with
which the Pitcairn people did their
jobs, he reasoned that it was more
likely that this was a deliberate de
sign modification. He reached for
the phone and called Carl Gun
ther, the Pitcairn archivist, and af

ter briefly outlining the problem,

asked him if he knew of anything
in the old Autogiro company re
cords that would confirm or deny
his suspicions.
Requests of this kind were not
new to Gunther, who had presided
over the records for more than 15
years. As a matter of fact he had just
recently set aside several engineer
ing reports that he thought might
be helpful to Steve Pitcairn and his
able restoration chief, and in one of
them he recalled seeing some state
ments made by Paul Stanley, one of
the Autogiro company's key engi
neers, about the design of the rotor
blades used in the PCA-2 Autogiros.
Within a few days, George was
holding in his hands the docu
ments that confirmed his belief
that this was a deliberate design
modification. The new airfoil
proved on testing to be smoother
and more efficient under flight
conditions, but the changes, com
ing on top of so many others as the
Pitcairn team pioneered its way to
new horizons of knowledge, rated
only a single sentence reference
in the official engineering report.
That sentence, however, enabled
George to properly rebuild the four
rotor blades that allowed this un
usual old bird to fly.
Airfoils, critical as they were,
proved to be only one of the fac

tors necessary to the solution of

the rotor problem. Each blade
had to be accurately weighed and
their weights brought to within 2
ounces of each other, and at the
same time the spanwise center of
gravity of all blades had to be kept
within 1/8 inch of each other. In
attention to these details could
cause, at least, an uncomfortable
ride from vibrations.
Finally, in the spring of 1985,
Miss Champion was rolled out of
the hangar to check her engine
and rotor system. As Steve Pit
cairn climbed into the cockpit
to begin this initial testing pro
cedure, George Townson looked
on somewhat apprehensively.
Steve activated the starter for the
nine-cylinder J-6 Wright engine.
The ground-adjustable Hamilton
Standard propeller swung jerk
ily a couple of times and, as the
engine rumbled into a throaty
roar, spun into a full shiny disc
of whirling blades, blowing swirls
of dust behind the Autogiro's up
turned elevators.
Satisfied that all was well so far,
Steve looked over at George, who
gave a little shrug of his shoulders
and made a whirling sign with his
forefinger. Steve reached for the
rotor clutch knob and pulled it
firmly toward him to its lock posi
tion. Slowly the four large overhead

blades began their counterclock

wise spin. Gradually Steve eased
open the throttle, and the rotor in
creased the speed of its rotation.
Soon the blades were standing
straight out at right angles to the
hub. Both men were looking for
signs of increasing vibration that
would indicate some problem with
the rotor. George noticed that one
of the blades seemed to be track
ing a bit lower than the others,
so he gave Steve the sign to cut
power to the engine. As it slowed to
idling speed and the rotor gradually
slowed down, George walked over
and told Steve to shut her down so
he could check the blade settings.
It was while this checking was
going on that a small wrench be
ing used to adjust one of the blades
near its root fell and punctured a
hole in the fabric on the wing be
low. Now a small wrench is not
a heavy object, and both men
thought it strange that a puncture
would result from this trivial event.
George went to his toolbox and
brought back a Maule fabric tester.
Testing the area near the puncture,
he found it below allowable toler
ance. He then tested other areas
on the fabric-covered aircraft. With
only slight variations the result was
the same. The brand new fabric
covering was definitely weak and
would have to be replaced! What a
disappointment, because it meant,
among other things, that the Au
togiro would miss EAA Oshkosh
1985, just one month away.
Although the fabric tested low,
Steve and George decided to make
three short test flights to 700 feet
to check the systems, rotor rpm in
flight, and control response, etc.
These short flights, the first in 51
years for Miss Champion, proved the
excellence of the original design
and the painstaking care George
gave to the restoration. All systems
worked above expectations.
To determine the cause of the
fabric deterioration, samples were
sent to a testing laboratory, along
with a description of what had
happened. When the report came
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

21

back it indicated the particular ni

trate dope formulation had an ex
cess acid condition that resulted in
the serious weakening of the Grade
A cotton fabric. The process of re
covering and painting Miss Cham
pion with a new covering system
was started in September 1985.
Off to Oshkosh '86
Steve would not be denied fly
ing his rare Pitcairn Autogiro to
Oshkosh '86; however, the trip
wasn't certain until the last min
ute. Having only a total of four
hours on the plane, he departed
on Thursday, July 31, hoping to ar
rive at Oshkosh August I, opening
day of the EAA convention.
He battled inclement weather
associated with a warm front until
crossing the Allegheny Mountains
when things began to clear up.
The first leg of his flight was one
hour 45 minutes to a refueling stop
at Carlisle, Pennsylvania, where he
would also check his calculated fuel
consumption. There he landed into
the wind across the runway utiliz
ing the short takeoff and landing
characteristics of the Autogiro. Al
though the plane carries 52 gallons
of fuel, Steve planned his cross
22 NOVEMBER 2009

country legs at a conservative max

imum of 2 hours 15 minutes.
His next stop was Beaver County
Airport, northwest of Pittsburgh,
and from there he flew to Bluffton,
Ohio (between Lima and Findlay).
Unbeknownst to Steve at the time,
a nut had loosened, allowing the
oleo strut on the left landing gear
to separate. The wheel and its "vee"
axle were dangling from the N
strut, and although Steve was talk
ing on UNICOM with the folks at
Bluffton, they didn't recognize the
problem, as they had never seen an
Autogiro before.
The touchdown on the run
way was on the side of the er
rant left wheel at an estimated 8
mph groundspeed. The plane piv
oted to the left, going down on
the left wing, but fortunately not
far enough to ding the ground
adjustable Hamilton Standard
propeller. Due to centrifugal
force holding them out, the rotor
blades didn't contact the runway
until they slowed and were sus
pended by their respective droop
cables. Only the rotor blade tips
touched very lightly, doing mini
mal damage.
The airport owner and manager,

Harold Carey came out on his golf

cart, sized up the situation, and said
he'd call the wrecker from town to
hoist the plane and move it off the
runway. This was accomplished, and
it was moved into a hangar where
it rested on some barrels while the
landing gear was repaired.
Steve contacted George Town
son back home, and he came to
Bluffton to supervise the repair job.
Thanks to the assistance of some
local folks and the availability of a
machine shop and welding facili
ties, the repairs were completed. In
the meantime, Steve's good friends
Wayne Hays and his wife of Rob
binsville, New Jersey, left three days
early on their vacation and brought
to Bluffton the needed materials
from Steve's hangar, including cov
ering material, paint, and an extra
set of streamline wires that had to
be replaced between the two land
ing gear N-struts.
Wayne worked all the next day
(Saturday) patching and painting
the wing and rotor blades, and
by that evening, Miss Champion
was ready for a test flight . Every
thing checked out okay, and Steve
departed on Sunday morning for
Oshkosh.

A refueling stop was

were badly worn. It was deter
Listed here are specifications
made at Valparaiso, Indi
mined that the pins were not
and performance data.
ana, then on to Chicago,
getting enough grease and pos
30 feet
where Steve flew along the Wingspan
sibly the bushings were made
lakeshore with a breathtak Length
from
the wrong material.
23 feet 1 inch
ing view looking up at the
New flying wires were or
13 feet
city's skyscrapers! A final Height
dered for the rotor blades, and
fuel stop was made at Hart Rotor diameter
the previously damaged land
45 feet
ford, Wisconsin, and at 1:30
ing gear was taken apart to
Rotor blade chord
22 inches
on Sunday afternoon, Au
have new pieces made to re
2,233 pounds
gust 3, he touched down at Empty weight
place those which had been
Wittman Airfield-Oshkosh Gross weight
temporarily repaired on the
3,000 pounds
at last! Time en route was
flight to Oshkosh . Not long
Maximum speed
119 mph
10.5 hours.
after its return to New Jersey,
Steve thrilled Oshkosh Cruising speed
the landing gear was more
98 mph
'86 convention-goers with
neatly repaired.
Omph
his demonstration flights Landing speed
on Monday during the Pa Rate of climb
800fpm
Epilogue: Miss Champion
continued
to be the jewel in Steve
rade of Flight and again on Service ceiling
15,000 feet
Wednesday in the aircraft
Pitcairn 's collection for more
52 gallons
than two decades, until he de
showcase preceding the Gas capacity
air show. The short-field Oil capacity
cided
to donate the historic Au
6.5 gallons
takeoff and landing capa
togiro to EAA's collection. It is
290 miles
bilities of this 55 -year-old Cruising range
displayed at various times in
aircraft were most impres Price (fly-away factory) $15,000
both the EAA AirVenture Mu
sive, as were the extremely
seum and EAA's Pioneer Airport
short radius turns while airborne. to a landing. In a Champion com Pitcairn Hangar. Along with the Pit
It was interesting to watch the pany press release the vertical de cairn PA-18 restored by Leading Edge
startup, taxi, and takeoff procedure scent speed was described as "14 Restorations and the Pitcairn PA -39
for the Autogiro. Taxiing is mostly feet per second, slower than a para donated earlier by Steve Pitcairn, it
conventional even without a steer chute." The beautifully restored was a featured attraction during this
able tail wheel (it still has its origi Pitcairn Autogiro would most cer past year's Good aI' Days at Pioneer
nal skid). Steering on the ground tainly have received an award at Airport.-H.G. Frautschy
is strictly by use of brakes, a tech Oshkosh '86, but Steve chose to not
About the PCA-2
nique made somewhat easier be register it for judging.
Pitcairn Aircraft built 20 or more
cause of the wide (13 foot 3 inch)
After Steve's uneventful 9.5-hour
flight home from Oshkosh in Miss Model PCA-2 Autogiros in its plant on
tread of the landing gear.
Prior to takeoff the rotor blades Champion, he began to do some Pitcairn Field, Willow Grove, Penn
are started into rotation by the pi things that time did not permit ear sylvania. These three-place utility air
lot pulling a knob in the cockpit lier. The plane was a little out of rig, craft quickly became promotional
that engages a clutch, gearbox, and and that needed to be corrected. tools for various well-known com
shaft driven by the Wright J-6-9. A The pitch of the Hamilton Standard panies, including the Detroit News
separate tachometer indicates the propeller was set too low, yielding a newspaper, Champion Spark Plug
rotor speed, and when 120 rpm is cruise speed of only 80 mph instead Company, Standard Oil of New York,
reached the rotor drive unit is dis of the 95-98 called for in the specs. Sealed Power Piston Ring Company,
engaged, full power is applied to
Autogiro rotor blades "flap" (mod Beech-Nut Packing Company, and
the Wright, and the pilot takes off. erately) up and down, each pivoting others. The Detroit News Autogiro is
No-w ind takeoff distance is 250 on a pin in a bronze bushing, and by on display at the Henry Ford Museum
feet maximum; however, under the time he got home the bushings in Dearborn, Michigan.
~
certain conditions, it's possible to
make a "jump takeoff" with zero
Bibliography
1. Aircraft Biography, Miss Champion, by Carl R. Gunt her
ground roll.
2. Interview with Stephen Pitca irn
Normal landing approaches are
3. U.S. Civil Aircraft, Vol. 5, by Joseph P. Juptner
made at 20-25 mph forward speed,
4. Pitcairn Aircraft Company broch ure
but it is possible to slow the Auto
5. Champion Spark Plug Company press releases and brochure
giro in the air to zero forward speed
and permit it to descend vertically
VINTAGE AIRPLA NE

23

BY ROBERT G. LOCK

Materials &Processes
Part 2
n the last issue we looked in detail at structural
and nonstructural metallic components of older
aircraft. Now, let's look at other materials and pro
cesses that will be helpful in restoring and main
taining our vintage aircraft.

Control Cable: Aircraft quality control cable is

available in sizes from 1/16 to 3/8 inch in diameter. For
most vintage airplanes, the maxi
mum diameter used is 5/32 inch.
Two types of material are used
to manufacture cable-stainless
steel and carbon steel (which is
coated with pure tin or zinc for
corrosion protection). Either flex
ible or nonflexible type cable may
have been used on th e original
airplane. I suggest you use the
type of cable originally installed;
however, I have substituted cor
rosion-resistant cable for carbon
steel, especially where cables are
subjected to the elements and
corrosion is a problem.
Incidentally, researching the
history of cable invention and
production is very interesting.
On this subject one person's
name comes to the forefrontJohn Roebling, one of the pioneers of the wire rope industry. Interesting reading can
be found at the following websites:
www.InventionFactory.com/history/RHAgen/rstory/
rswar.html
www.globalspec.com/FeaturedProducts/Detail/Loo
5 WireDiv/Specialty_wireJope_honors_legacy_ofJohn_
Roebling/40136/0
Flexible cables may have been used by the factory
when the cable is not required to change direction

drastically. Flexible cable is designated as 7x7. It is

composed of wire rope of six strands of seven wires
each, twisted and laid around a strand center or core
consisting of seven wires.
Extra-flexible cables are designated as 7x19. That is
wire rope of six strands laid around the central core
strand in a clockwise direction. Each strand consists
of 19 wires each. Cable strength data can be found
in FAA AC 43.13-1B, Section 8.
Cable strength data will not be
presented here. After fabrication,
control cables are tested to a proof
load, which is a pull test to 60
percent of rated cable strength for
three minutes.
Cable assemblies are me
chanically fabricated, the most
common being swage-type ter
minals and the Nicopress pro
cess. The Nicopress-type cable
ends may be used as a substitu
tion for the Navy five-tuck wo
ven ends used on most vintage
aircraft. The Nicopress process
is most easily adapted for "field"
manufacture of cables. Swage
cable end fittings require elabo
rate squeezing tooling, which is
hard to find and very expensive.
It's interesting to note that the
newly revised AC 43.13-1B manual has deleted both
the wrapped and soldered and five-tuck woven cable
ends. However, both these deleted methods appear
in the terminated AC 43.13-1A. When I attended
Northrop Institute of Technology back in 1960-1961
to train for my airframe and powerplant (A&P) certifi
cate, we were required to fabricate a five-tuck cable to
length. We made a cable clamp and marlin spike from
scratch out of raw stock, learning how to use hand

When I attended

Northrop Institute of
Technology back in

1960-1961 to train for

my A&P, we were

required to fabricate a

five-tuck cable to length.

24 NOVEMBER 2009

tools and read blueprints. I still have those tools to

this day, although they are a little rusted.
Inspection of control cables should be made at the
100-hour and annual inspections. Most cable wear takes
place where the cables pass over a pulley or through a
fair-lead. To locate broken wire(s) in a strand, run a rag
along the cable. In many cases the cable should be loos
ened so a close inspection can be made of the area that
touches a pulley through full travel. Bending the cable
so that the portion that rubs on a pulley is on the out
side of the bend will help reveal damage.
Corrosion is another common type of damage. It
will show up on carbon steel cables as rust. Replace any
cable that shows signs of damage. Again, A C43.13-1B
is a good guide for cable inspection. Figure 1 shows the
method of detecting broken cable strands, particularly
where cable lays contact a pulley.

Figure 1
Inspect pulleys for wear and ensure that pulleys ro
tate when cable is moved.
Always lube pulleys with a good lubricating oil. Re
place any pulleys that show signs of wear or seizing of
the bearing or bushing. Sudden loss of cable tension
can usually be traced to the cable wearing into a pulley.
Inspect cable ends for wear or slippage. Swage-type
cable ends are painted red at the junction of the termi
nal end and cable so slippage can be detected. Again,
a sudden loss of cable tension should be investigated
immediately. Don't just retension the cable.
Finally, turnbuckles are used in a cable system to
provide a means of tensioning. They actually adjust
the length of the cable. Cable tension on vintage air
craft is relatively small, from 10 to 25 pounds. The rea
son is the pulleys did not have a bearing in the center,
just a bronze bushing. The more tension on a cable,
the "heavier" the control movement. Adjust tension to
give good control response and safety the turnbuckles.

I have found that 10-20 pounds of tension is good for

these type systems.
When installing turnbuckles it is necessary to screw
both threaded terminals into the turnbuckle barrel an
equal amount. It is essential that cable terminals be
screwed into the barrel so that not more than three
threads on the terminal are exposed. Be sure to secure
both cable terminal ends when screwing a turnbuckle;
don't allow cable to twist during this operation.
There are two methods of safety wiring turnbuck
les-single and double wrap. The correct method
for wrapping turnbuckles is shown in AC 43.13-1B,
Figure 7-24. Pay close attention that the correct size
safety wire be used when safetying cable terminals.
This is a most common area where mistakes are made.
AC 43.13-1B gives appropriate wire type and diam
eter for this process. Either copper, brass, stainless
steel, monel, or K monel may be used. NOTE: One
sixteenth-inch and 3/32-inch cables may be single
wrapped only with copper, brass, or stainless steel
safety wire at least 0.040 inch in diameter. For cables
of lI8-inch diameter, single-wrap safeties are made
with 0.040-inch stainless steel safety wire . If a single
wrap safety using copper/brass wire is desired, the
diameter must be 0.057 inch. I've never used or seen
0.057-inch brass wire! However, lI8-inch cables may
be double wrapped and safetied with copper/brass or
stainless steel wire. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES
SHOULD 0.032-INCH DIAMETER WIRE BE
USED TO SAFETY ANY TURNBUCKLE. It might
be wise to do a turnbuckle safety wire check of your
airplane. Figure 2 shows both single- and double
wrap safety of turnbuckle.
Only cable terminal ends and fittings that meet
AN standards should be used in aircraft applications .
AC 43.13-1B gives directions on how to properly
safety a turnbuckle.
And lastly, cables tend to stretch after fabrication,
and it may be necessary to retension the cables after a
few hours of flight. When retensioning cables, always
make the same adjustment to cables that pull against
each other. In other words, if the aileron system has
three turnbuckles, adjust all three the same amount of
turns, and the travel will not be affected; only the ten
sion will increase.
Tubing: Aluminum tubing is commonly used
to fabricate fuel, oil, hydraulic, and instrument sys
tem installations. Alloy 3003 is most easily bent and
flared, followed by 5052, and finally 6061. Since most
vintage restorations require hand-forming and flar
ing, only these alloys should be considered. In the
softest state the code will be an "0," indicating the
annealed condition. An example would be 5052-0.
Alloy 6061 would show a hardness code of -T6 (6061
T6), indicating the tube has been heat-treated and ar
tifiCially aged. It is difficult to bend and flare this tube
type, but not impossible.
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

25

(D) SINGLE WRAP

(B) DOUBLE WRAP

Figure 2

Tube Bending: Alloy 3003-0 tube can be hand

bent, even small radius bends. This tubing should be
used for instrument installations where the pressure is
low and tubing is protected. Alloy 5052-0 tubing can
be hand -bent, but the bend radius must be large to
prevent flattening or kinking of the tube in the bend
radius. Use of hand-bending tools is recommended.
Alloy 6061-T6 can only be bent with a hand-bending
tool using a substantial bend radius. Always check tube
flattening in the bend radius; for fuel lines the maxi
mum flattening is 5 percent of tube diameter.
Tube Flaring: Aircraft tubing is flared to an angle
of 37 degrees. Do not use automotive flaring equip
ment, as the flare angle is 45 degrees. The older aircraft
used AC fittings. While the flare angle is the same, AC
fittings are not interchangeable with AN fittings. Most
modern restorations will convert fittings to AN due
to ease of procurement. Tubing should be flared so as
much of the flared area of the tube as possible seats on
the AN fitting. Always check flared area for cracks, par
ticularly alloy 6061-T6 tubes.
Alignment of tube to fitting is also critical. Misalign
ment will eventually cause leaks at the fitting.
Tube Installations: For instrument installa
tions, use 3003-0 tubing, 1I8-inch (-2) or 3/16
inch (-3) diameter. Some restorers may want to use
5052-0 tube for oil the pressure gauge. For fuel in
stallations, use 5052-0 tubing, most often Vz-inch
(-8) diameter. AC 43 .13-1B gives much information
on fuel systems, particularly the location of support
clamps and fuel line bonding information. Consult
Chapter 8, Section 2.
I don't like using copper tube in aircraft applications
because it will work-harden with vibration . I know all
early aircraft used it for fuel and instrument installa
tions, so if authenticity is the goal, use it. However,
copper tubing may need annealing from time to time.
Anneal by heating and quenching in oil. (Editor's note:
Remember Charles Lindbergh's admonition to the people
26

NOVEMBER 2009

building the Spirit of St. Louis; he required the interruption

of the fuel lines with sections offlexible nlbber hose to soak
up vibration and prevent breaks due to work-hardening of
the tubing material.-H.G. Frautschy)
Tube Fittings: The most common tube fittings
are the AN818 nut and AN819 sleeve. Most aviation
supply company catalogs give a list with description
of all AN fittings needed to complete the project. I
keep a copy of the Standard Aircraft Handbook in my
toolbox for quick reference of the AN code. Since I'm
writing this in Florida, a nearby source for this handy
book is www.Great-Atlanticl.com. Look for part number
TS157642-8. Most suppliers carry this book; you'll find
it very useful.
Low-Pressure Oil System: Dry sump oil systems
use tubing of 1 inch in diameter. The tube can be 5052
0, and special tools are required to bend it to the de
sired shape. After bending, the tube is beaded on both
ends using a beading tool. Be sure to remove all burrs
after beading, and clean the tube before installation.
Tube Installation: After fabrication of necessary
tubing, be sure to clean thoroughly and blow-dry with
compressed air. Assemble with proper hose and clamp
using stainless steel hose clamps. The tube ends should
never touch, as this would allow fragments of alumi
num to enter the oil system. Maximum distance be
tween tube ends is one tube diameter.
Hose: For fuel and oil systems use only Mil-H-6000
hose. It will come in inside diameter sizes, -4 (1/4 inch)
through -112 (lVz inches). The burst pressure for this
type hose is 1,000 psi, and it is resistant to fuel, oil,
and coolants. For pitot/static instrument systems I
have used rubber heater hose or Tygon B-44 type flex
ible plastic tube, but not in antique restorations. For
fuel and oil systems I use stainless steel hose clamps.
Tighten clamps to torque of just 20 inch-pounds and
don't over-tighten.
That's it from here. Let's keep those antiques safe
and flying!
.......

Charles Tippett
Warrenton, VA

Pilot for over 25 years

Certified flight instructor
Chuck Tippett, Wing Walker at
The Flying Circus Aerodrome

Performing at" The Flying Circus Aerodrome" in Bealton, VA

/II have been flying now for over 25 years. I am a Certified

Flight Instructor and let me tell you - not only is the personal,
hometown family feeling of dealing with AUA wonderful, year
after year they find a way to insure my precious airplanes at a
value 'bar none' lower than any other company./I

- Charles Tippet

AUA is Vintage Aircraft Association approved. To become a member of VAA call 8008433612.

Aviation insurance with the EAA Vintage Program oHers:

Lower premiums with payment options - Additional coverages - Flexibility on the use of your aircraft - Experienced agents
O.wine quote request available - AUA is licensed in all states

Light Plane Heritage

PUBLISHED IN

EAA Experimenter MARCH

1989

THE MUMMERT COOTIE

McRAE

EAA 93

BY JACK

mmediately after World War I,

Harvey Mummert was one
of the earliest designers and
builders of homebuilt air
planes. His several original
design lightplanes were built in
his spare time with the help of
friends, while he was employed as
an engineer for the Curtiss com
pany at its Garden City, Long Is
land, plant. All his airplanes in
corporated advanced features and
showed skillful application of ex
cellent design, both aerodynamic
and structural.
Mummert's first lightplane ap
peared in 1921, after two years

of work, and was a very attrac

tive miniature biplane called the
Baby Vamp, which soon came to
be known as the Cootie. The first
flight of the Cootie was made on
July 8, 1921, by the well-known
pilot Bert Acosta. Some diffi
culty was encountered before the
flight when it was discovered that
Acosta had to remove his shoes in
order to get his feet through small
holes in a bulkhead to operate the
rudder bar.
On the first flight the pilot
reportedly held the ship on the
ground for 200 feet before taking
off. When it got off the ground it

was seen to be flying very steadily

and at a speed estimated to be
nearly 100 mph. Acosta, who was
noted for his fondness for aero
batics, proceeded to put the little
biplane through an Immelmann
and many other maneuvers,
reaching 1,500 feet altitude with
out any difficulty. After 15 min
utes of flying he landed smoothly
and reported that liThe machine
has absolutely no tricks and needs
very few minor adjustments."
The engine used in the Cootie
was reported to be a 25-hp Law
rance, which would imply that it
was a surplus Type A engine, as

Editor's Note: The Light Plane Heritage series in EAA's Experimenter magazine often touched on aircraft and concepts
related to vintage aircraft and their history. Since many of our members have not had the opportunity to read this se
ries, we plan on publishing those LPH articles that would be of interest to VAA members. Enjoy!-HGF
28 NOVEMBER 2009

HOWEVER, CLOSE
EXAMINATION OF
THE COOTIE
PHOTOGRAPHS
INDICATE THAT THIS
WAS NOT THE CASE,
AND THAT THE
ENGINE WAS THE
RELATIVELY RARE
LAWRANCE N MODEL,

Harvey Mummert and the Mummert Cootie.

//l

OF WHICH ONLY A
FEW WERE BUILT FOR
THE

U.S. NAVY.

/' I

/ 1

I J' ,

i-

---I

: I \

,\I
--4_\__,
,

used in the Penguin ground train

ers . However, close examination
of the Cootie photographs indicate
that this was not the case, and that
the engine was the relatively rare
Lawrance N model, of which only
a few were built for the U.S. Navy.
The Type N engine had the in
take manifold at the front and the
valve pushrods at the rear, the op
posite of that for the Type A used
in the Penguin s. The N engine
also had advanced features, such
as dual ignition supplied by a bat
tery, dua l carburetors, and a gear
drive to the propeller. Its weight
was only 79 pounds and its width
was much smaller than the Type A.
Its displacement was 120.58 cubic

\ 1

,~ ,

k,

1921

MUMMERT
COOTIE

"d~L~\ I
LAWRANCE ENGINE
!,

J0

"Ifo

SCALE IN FEET

VINTAGE AIRPLANE

29

The Mummert Cootie with a Burnelli RB-l airliner in background.

The Cootie gets a thorough inspection
at a Curtiss Field air show.

The Main Characteristics of the Cootie

Span:

18 feet

Length

12 feet

Chord

31-5/8 inches

Gap

33 inches

Wing area

90 square feet

Weight empty

350 pounds

Gross weight

590 pounds

Maximum speed

100 mph

Landing speed

43 mph

Fuel capacity

12 gallons

Oil capacity

2 gallons

30 NOVEMBER 2009

inches, and it developed 40 hp at

1900 rpm, although it was stated
that the engine speed was limited
to 1500 rpm during the flight test.
The N engine had one bad feature
of the Type A, however, in that it
still had the single-throw crank
shaft, which caused severe vibra
tion and, in one case, reportedly
shook a carburetor off in flight. It
is assumed that Mummert's posi
tion in the Curtiss engineering de
partment gave him access to this
unusual engine.
At that time, Curtiss had just
started building its famous series
of racers using wooden mono
coque fuselage construction with
plywood-covered wings. The Coo
tie u sed these same features, the
fuselage being built of three lay
ers of veneer strips at 45 degrees
to each other, wrapped around
a wooden form and glued, after
which the form was removed and
bulkheads installed where neces
sary. The tail surfaces were also all
wood, including the covering.
The wings, which used th e
R.A.F. 15 airfoil , were each built
as a single unit with no dihedral.
Each wing used nine spars between
the leading and trailing edges. The
spars were of rectangular section,
l,4 -inch wide, and varied in depth
according to their chord wise lo
cation. The maximum thickness
of the wing was only 2 inches.
The upper rear main spar and the
lower front main spar were of the
box type, since they made up part
of the wing truss and had to re
sist axial loads due to the flying
and landing wires. Mahogany ply
wood 1/16-inch thick was used to
cover the wings. This type of con
struction gave a smooth, stream
line shape of great rigidity. The in
terplane struts were of streamline
steel tubing, and the upper wing
was supported by two cantilever
struts at the center of the wing.
The flying wires consisted of a
pair of streamline wires on each
side, running from the fuselage at
the lower front spar to the upper
rear spar at the interplane strut

fitting. The landing wires were a

single wire on each side of the air
plane running from th e lower end
of the front interplane strut to the
top of the rear cabane strut.
Appa rently, afte r flight testing,
two add itional wires were added
on each side, extendin g from the
rear upper and lower interplane
stru t fi ttings to the fi rewa ll bulk
h ead, ju st aft of th e en gine. The
reason for these additi onal wires
is n ot kn own, but they m ay have
been added in an att em pt to ab
sorb some of the engine vi bration,
or possi bl y to re d uce th e effect
of defl ection of the cantilever ca
ban e struts under unsym metrica l
wing loads.
Ailerons we re ins tall ed on the
lower wi n gs only, and ex t ended
for t he full wing span. Th e aile
rons were controlled by a horn at
the airplane centerli n e inside t h e
fuselage with no external fittings.
Th e fin , of u p p e r and lower
sect ion s, was built integral with
th e fu sela ge, an d th e t a il skid
was attached to its lower section.
Elevat o r and rudder cables we re
ke p t i n side the fu se lage w ith
th ei r co ntro l hor n s e ncl osed in
the thicken ed fuselage secti on at
the tail post.
Th e la n ding gear was o f t he
spr eade r b ar type wit h str eam
lin e struts of ash, and with sh ock
cord attaching the axle. Side loads
we re t aken by diago n a l wi res in
the plan e of the rear landing gear
struts, an d anoth er pair of wi res
exten ded to the firewa ll bul khead.
Th e Cootie was u sed for exhi
bition flying at various air shows
h eld at Curtiss Field for severa l
yea rs, and it was flown by su ch
we ll-known pilots as Bert Acost a
and Lloyd Bertaud. Its fina l dispo
sition is not known .
References : Aeria l Age, July 25,
1921; Flight, Jan u ary 19,1922;
Aerosphere, 1939; Skyways, Apr il
1988; Interviews with Curtiss en
gineers of the 1920-30 era. Photos
are fro m the collecti on of Gabe
Baumwart, Curtiss engineer. .......

Harvey C. Mummert: Pilot, Designer, and Manufacturer

Harvey C. Mummert was born in Alliance, Ohio,
on April 4, 1892. He graduated from Mount Union
College, Alliance, and the Case School of Applied
Science in Cleveland.
In 1916 he started work for the Curtiss company
in Buffalo as an engineer, and his signature appears
on some 1916 IN-4 drawings. He apparently made
good as an engineer, and in 1918 he was transferred
to the Curtiss Experimental Engineering plant in Gar
den City, Long Island. Here he had responsible posi
tions in the design and development of the MF Fly
ing Boat and the Eagle eight-passenger tri-motored
biplane in 1919, the twin-engined CJ. NavalTorpedo
monoplane, the PW-8 fighter, and asmall all-metal
seaplane glider designed for the use of Glenn Curtiss.
Harvey Mummert

One of his co-workers describes Mummert as "Avery

mild mannered man with an unusually keen mind and asense of sound practical design:'
Since his days in high school he had been interested in small airplanes, and in the 1921-24 period he
designed and built, in his spare time, three successfullightplanes. These were the 1921 (ootie biplane
with aLawrance engine, the 1923 midwing monoplane of wood monocoque construction using a
Harley-Davidson motorcycle engine, and in 1924 an all-wood low-wing cantilever monoplane, also
Harley-powered, which competed in the 1924 and 1925 National Air Races.Mummert was amember of
the Curtiss Flying Club atthis time, and in 1924 he received Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAil
"Aviation Pilot's"License No. 6169. In 1927 he received Transport Pilot License No. 550.
In 1924 Mummert left Curtiss and became chief engineer for the newly reorganized Mercury Aircraft
Inc. of Hammondsport, New York. During the next 15 years at the Mercury company, Mummert was
responsible for anumber of interesting deSigns, as follows:
1924 - Mercury St. Liberty-powered biplane, awinner of Mail Plane competition held by the Post
Office Department.
1925 - Redesigned Standard J-1to five-seater, C-6A-powered, and as atwo-place trainer. Five sold
to Argentine government.
1925 - Mercury Jr.two-place utility biplane, C-6A engine. Flown by Mummert in 1925 National Air
Races and in the 1925, 1926, and 1927 Ford Airplane Reliability Tours, placing third in 1927.
1926 - TC-11 nonrigid training blimp delivered to Army in 1928.
1927 - Mercury Kitten two-place cabin monoplane of all-steel tube construction. Originally powered
by Mummert-designed two-cycle, four-cylinder opposed-piston engine, later with Warner Scarab.
1929 - Schroeder Wentworth Safety Plane for Guggenheim Safety Competition. Crashed during
qualifying flights.
1929 - Mercury Chic T-2 primary trainer. Approximately 20 built. Flown by Mummert in Ford Na
tional Air Tours, 1930 and 1931 .
1930 - Mercury S. Racer. Flown by Mummert in 1930 All-American Flying Derby, a5,540-mile race.
1931 - Mercury S-1 Racer. Steel tube geodetic construction. Flown by Mummert in National Air
Races and other local air shows.
1938 - Mercury Chic modified and entered in Air Corps Primary Trainer competition at Wright Field.
In 1939, after ashort illness, Mummert died at the age of 47. He had been aprolific, innovative
designer with astrong competitive spirit as demonstrated by his many entries in air races and air tours
flying airplanes of his own design.
References: American Airman, February and March 1961.

VINTAGE AIRP L ANE

31

BY DOUG STEWART

All available info

s I was departing the pat
tern of my home base
airport a few days ago,
heading out to the prac
tice area to do some air work with
a client in my PA-12, I overheard
a pilot announce that he was 10
miles out to the southwest and in
bound for landing. Hearing that, I
knew that I would have to be es
pecially diligent in my "see and
avoid" collision avoidance scan, as
I was headed to the south myself.
But the next thing the pilot said
increased my concern. He asked:
"Uh ... which runway you using
at Columbia County?" Since I
had just announced not only the
runway I was departing on, but
further, the direction of my depar
ture, and since there were several
other planes in the pattern, all
making proper announcements of
what they were doing, I couldn't
help but wonder if this inbound
pilot was using his ears as well as
his mouth.
As the communications con
tinued, my concern increased.
His next communication asked
which way the wind was blowing.
As there is an automated weather
observing system (AWOS) at the
airport, it was obvious that this
inbound pilot had not spent the
time listening to it to find out all
the pertinent information relative
to the ceiling, visibility, wind, and
barometric pressure. At this point
I decided to alter my course to the
southeast and increase my vigi
lance out the window.

32

NOVEMBER 2009

Within a minute or two the in

bound pilot now asked: "Uh . . .
Columbia County ... Uh ... do
you have right- or left-hand traf
fic?" At this point the hackles went
up on the back of my neck. What
was up with this inbound pilot?

Had he done
no planning
whatsoever for

evant parts of FAR 91.103 just for

a moment. lt states: "Each pilot in
command shall, before beginning
a flight, become familiar with all
available information concerning
that flight. This information must
include: (a) For a flight ... not in the
vicinity of an airport, weather re
ports and forecasts, fuel require
ments, alternatives available if the
planned flight cannot be com
pleted ... (b) For any flight, run
way lengths at airports of intended
use ...."
Let's take a look at where we
might go to obtain all that avail
able information, and as well,
how to document that we have
indeed gotten all that informa
tion. Let us also be aware that the
terms "all available information
and "in the vicinity of an airport"
are not defined in FAR Part 1. Thus
there is the potential to incur a vi
olation of these regulations predi
cated upon the interpretation of a
local FAA inspector. Whether their
interpretation stands up, would
remain to be determined by the
National Transportation Safety
Board, but in the meantime, if a
pilot is charged with a violation,
that pilot would have to spend
significant time and expense in
his or her own defense.
Certainly one of the best places
to start is either with a briefer or
by obtaining a direct user access
terminal system (DUATS) brief
ing. Regardless of which source
we use, there is a record kept of
our having gotten that briefing. I
II

his flight?

Had he done no planning whatso

ever for his fl ight? Was he totally
reliant upon others to give him the
information that he needed? Did
he not have a sectional chart or an
Airport/Facility Directory (A/FD) with
him in the airplane that provided
at least some of the information for
which he seemed ignorant? I'm sur
prised he didn't ask the traffic pat
tern altitude as his next question.
And lastly, was he unaware of FAR
91.103, Preflight Action?
Let's review some important rel

can't help but wonder it the pilot

described above had bothered to
get a briefing. Had he come to the
airport yesterday at the same time
of day as he had in the described
scenario, he would have had a
chance to observe some military
aircraft up close and personal, as
our airport was closed for a presi
dential temporary flight restric
tion (TFR) until late afternoon.
Nowhere in 91.103 do we see TFRs
included in "all available informa
tion, /I but I can assure you that
this regulation would be referred
to in the document charging a pi
lot with a violation.
There are certainly many other
resources for obtaining weather
information in addition to flight
service and the DUATS prOViders,
and many of us, myself included,
do indeed use those resources. In
fact I typically look at several dif
ferent Internet websites to obtain
some fantastic weather informa
tion, AviationWeather.gov head
ing the list. For me a picture is
worth a thousand words, and the
graphical information available
on these websites makes my self
briefing much more valuable. But
the question remains, how do we
document that we have been to
those websites? The simplest way
I know is to print out the relative
web pages we have viewed.
It might be difficult to prove that
we have ensured sufficient fuel for
the trip, and I can assure you that
many pilots have been successfully
charged with violation of 91.103
in fuel exhaustion accidents and
incidents. Quite often these viola
tions come about as a result of the
pilot's own admission of negligence
in one way or another. Forewarned
should be forearmed.
Okay, you say that your flight
will be in the vicinity of the airport,
and therefore you might not have
gotten a briefing. But let us all be
aware that the FAA chief counsel
said that "The FAA has no specific,
fixed definition of 'vicinity,' but
instead, interprets its meaning on
a case-by-case basis./I (1-28-92) In

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' ~~9JCd
some situations, anything away
from the traffic pattern might be
interpreted as not in the vicinity of
the airport. All I will say here is that
a word to the wise should suffice.
Let 's go back to that pilot in
bound to my home base. On that
particular day, the wind had been
lightly blowing out of the south
all day long. Had our errant pilot
gotten a briefing he should have
been aware of that fact, even if
he was oblivious to the tail wind
pushing him northward. With the
runway at my home base aligned
03-21, it should have been self-ev
ident that landings that day would
be to the south.
But even if he hadn't been aware
of the southerly winds, a check of
the AWOS prior to reaching "10
miles out" would have informed
him of the winds. Certainly if he
had a current sectional on board,
that frequency would have been
available to him. And the ques
tion about right- or left-hand traf
fic would have been answered on
that sectional as well. If there were
right-hand traffic for either or all
runways, it would be denoted in
the airport data information on
the sectional chart with the nota
tion "RP" and for which runway(s).
Another source for this infor
mation is the Airport/Facility Direc
tory, also known as the little green
book. Perhaps you live in an area
where it is difficult to get a cur
rent copy of the A/FD. And it will
be getting even harder as the gov
ernment cuts back on the number

of fixed base operators and flight

schools that can sell these, as the
government increases the volume
requirements to qualify as a dealer.
If that is your situation, please be
aware that the A/FD is now avail
able in a digital format on the FAA
website. Go to www.NACO.FAA.
gov/index.asp?xml=nac%nline/d_
afd where you can download the
information for the airports of
your intended landings.
There are some pilots who would
consider the term "all available in
formation" as somewhat ambigu
ous and therefore disregard the
need to get as much info as they
can prior to a flight. Failing to do
so might get a pilot in trouble with
the FAA, but more importantly,
not having as much information
as one can possibly have could put
one in an unsafe situation. A pilot
who just "kicks the tires and lights
the fires" without finding out as
much as possible about everything
relative to the flight is being negli
gent in the duties of being a pilot
in command.
So the next time you are beck
oned aloft by blue skies and tail
winds, be sure that you launch
with as much" available informa
tion" as you can get.

Doug Stewart is the 2004 National

Certificated Flight Instructor of the
Year, a NAFI Master Instructor, and
a designated pilot examiner. He oper
ates DSFI Inc. (www.DSFlight.com).
based at the Columbia County Air
~
port (lBl).
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

33

BY H.G. FRAUTSCHY

THIS MONTH'S MYSTERY PLANE COMES TO US FROM WES SMITH .

Send your answer to EAA,

Vintage Airplane, P.O. Box 3086,
Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Your
answer needs to be in no later
than December 20 for inclusion

in the February 2010 issue of

Vintage Airplane.
You can also send your re
sponse via e-mail. Send your
answer to mysteryplane@eaa.org.

Be sure to include you r name

plus your city and state in the
body of your not e an d put
"(Month) Mystery Plane" in the
subject line .

AUGUST'S MYSTERY ANSWER

ur August Mystery
Plane came to us from
the EAA archives. Wes
Smith did the following extensive write-up for us:

Descri bed in the pages of

34

NOVEMBER 2009

Aviation (Lane, D.R . The Thaden

Argonaut: All Metal, Six Passen
ger, High Wing Cabin Monoplane
Is Powered With a Pratt & Whitney
Wasp Engine. February 13, 1928,
pp 386-388), the T-1 was the
brainchild of ex-U.S. Army Signal

Corps pilot (1), and aeronautical

engineer, Herbert von Thaden.
While Thaden's wife, Louise,
is much better-known in avia
tion circles due to her extensive
record-setting flying skills and
contributions to numerous avia

tion organizations, Herbert von

Thaden designed at least three
aircraft between 1928 and 1930.
Constructed at San Francisco
by the Thaden Metal Aircraft Co.,
the T-1 (NX3902) was test-flown at
Crissy Field. The steel framework
was covered with corrugated du
ralumin, which is alleged to have
given the airplane better-than
expected performance. Patented
removable panels (Thaden held
four U.S. aeronautical patents)
on the underside of the wings al
lowed relatively easy, and thor
ough, inspection of the underly
ing structure and fuel tanks. The
box wing spars were covered with
the same corrugated duralumin
as the skin and were permanently
riveted to the upper surface. The
fuselage utilized Thaden's unique
monocoque construction that
employed transverse members
combined with stressed corru
gated skin in place of longerons .
Bulkheads in the cabin and tubu
lar duralumin frames were used
aft of the cabin, but no longitu
dinal members were used aft of
the engine mount. The fuel tanks
(120 gallons, enough for a six
hour duration) were mounted in
the wings above the access pan
els, and the fuel was fed directly
into the carburetor, with no fuel
line entering the cabin. A fire
proof bulkhead separated the en
gine from the cabin for extra pro
tection against fire.
The undercarriage was of a split
oleo-pneumatic type with hinged
tripod strut-work. Each half of
the main gear also incorporated
a Gruss shock absorber, and the
stout-looking tailskid incorpo
rated a pneumatic shock absorber.
Sauzedde wheels and brakes were
fitted to the main gear.
The strut-braced wings had a
span of 53 feet 8 inches, the fuse
lage a length of 35 feet 3 inches,
and the height was 11 feet, which
gave the Argonaut an imposing
physical appearance. The cabin
normally seated six passengers,
but could be arranged to accom

mod ate up to eight persons. The

control surfaces and stabilizers
were of the same construction as
the rest of the airframe. The con
trols were operated by pushrods,
and a control yoke suspended
from the engine mount was used
for longitudinal and lateral con
trol. Conventional rudder ped
als operated the rudder. A wheel,
located to the right of the pilot's
seat, was used to operate the el
evator trim, and the horizontal
stabilizer was ground-adjustable.
The passenger cabin of the T-l
THE STRUT-BRACED
WI NGS HAD A SPAN
OF

53

FEET

INCH ES,

THE FUSELAGE A
LENGTH OF

35

FEET

INCHES, AND THE

HEIGHT WAS

11

FEET, WH ICH GAVE

TH E ARGONAUT AN
IMPOSING PHYSICAL
APPEARANCE.

was insulated and soundproofed

for passenger comfort, and a heat
ing and ventilation system was in
corporated. The seats were made
of wicker, and ample legroom was
provided. An oval entrance door,
located on the left side of the
cabin, allowed ingress into and
egress from the cabin. A unique
aspect of the door was that the
corrugations did not run perpen
dicular to the frame, being angled
instead. A baggage compartment
was located just aft of the cabin,
and windows made of shatter
proof glass gave the passengers a
good view of the outside.
Empty weight of the aircraft
was 2,900 pounds, and a use
ful load of 2,200 pounds could
be carried. The 415-hp Pratt &
Whitney Wasp was originally de
signed as the competitor to the
Wright Simoon. The first engine

was ready by Christmas of 1925,

and after testing in the Wright
F3W-l Apache, it was placed
into production in late 1926. By
early 1927, 12 were being deliv
ered per month. The engine actu
ally displaced 1,344 cubic inches
(rounded off to 1,340 cubic inches
for statistical purposes) and had
a bore and stroke of 5.75 inches.
The T-1 used a Wasp A, of 400-420
hp, and a ground-adjustable Stan
dard propeller. First flown on 15
January 1929, the T-l was found
to have a maximum speed of 135
mph, a cruise of 105 mph, and a
minimum speed of 52 mph.
Thaden drew his engineering
force from Handley-Page in Eng
land, from Ford in Detroit, and
from top American technical
schools. E.T. Todd, associate engi
neer at the Thaden Metal Aircraft
Corp., was, like his peers, required
to have actual aviation experience
as a pilot, a unique aspect of the
company. Organized at San Fran
cisco, R.E. Fisher was company
preSident, with Donald McKee,
as secretary; W.D. Dickey, as trea
surer; W.A. Bechtel, as chairman
of the executive committee; and
E.H. Heller and C.A.A. McGee, as
counsel. Thaden served as vice
president and manager.
Following the 1928 T-l, the T-2
(7074, cln 2) was also constructed
in 1928. Described in Flight (The
Thaden T-2: An American All Metal
Commercial Monoplane. January
10, 1929, P 26), it was broadly
similar to the Argonaut, but was
smaller. Powered by a 150-hp
Comet, it had a span of 39 feet
and an overall length of 26 feet.
Unlike the T-l , the four-place T-2
had a fully cantilevered wing with
trailing edge flaps. The T-2 had
a VMAX of 121 mph, aVe of 90
mph, and a VM1N of 46 mph. The
useful load was 1,180 pounds.
The T-3 was apparently never
built but may have been modified
to become Thaden's last airplane,
the T-4. Constructed in 1930 as
a Group 2 certificated aircraft (2
247), the T-4 was powered by a
VINTAGE AIRPLANE

35

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300-hp Wright J-6 (R-975) radial. lot). In 1988, William V. Thaden, still flying a Staggerwing Beech
The span was 45 feet, the overall Herbert's son, and a group of EAA craft. Herbert von Thaden died a
length was 32 feet 10 inches, the volunteers recovered the remains few years later and was followed
gross weight was 3,800 pounds, of the T-1 and donated them to by Louise, who passed away on 9
and the useful load was 1,435 the Hiller Museum at San Carlos, November 1979. In 1991, astro
pounds. The airspeed range in California.
naut Eileen Collins took Louise
In late December of 2008, I was Thaden's flying helmet into orbit
cluded a VMAX of 135 mph, a Vc
of 110 mph, and a VMIN of 59 approached by Mr. F.T. Lovley, aboard the space shuttle to honor
mph. Two T-4s were built, regis who had acquired the door of the her accomplishments in pioneer
tered as 898M and NC502V (c/n T-1 from the widow of a bush pi women's aviation . Louise Thaden
3 and 4, respectively). During the lot, who had apparently removed was a friend of such noteworthy
course of Thaden's aircraft build it during the T-1's long rest in women in aviation as Amelia Ear
ing, the company had relocated Alaska. Thanks to the efforts of hart, Pancho Barnes, and Blanche
from Oakland and San Francisco Mr. Dan Hagedorn at the Seattle Noyes. Her autobiography, High,
to 1625 Island Ave., Pittsburgh, Museum of Flight, the door was Wide and Frightened, was reprinted
Pennsylvania. By 1929, the com identified and is now back with in 2004.
Wesley R. Smith
pany was renamed the Pittsburgh the Thaden family, who also have
All-Metal Aircraft Co. (Pittsburgh the rudder from the aircraft.
Springfield, Illinois
Metal Airplane Co., Buffington,
In 1967, the Thadens were
H. Glenn. Louise Thaden. Journal comfortably living in High POint,
Other correct answers were re
of the American Aviation Historical North Carolina, and owned the ceived from Tom Lymburn, Princ
Society. V.12 N.4. Winter 1967, Thaden Engineering Co., which eton, Minnesota; Clarence Hes
pp 285-287) and in 1930 became specialized in the development ser, St. Augustine, Florida; Jack
the Metalair Corp., a division of of reinforced plastics. Louise M. Erickson, State College, Pennsyl
the Consolidated Corp . (General Thaden, a charter member of the vania; Doug Rounds, Zebulon,
Aviation Manufacturing Co.). Ac Ninety-Nines (secretary and vice Georgia; and Forrest Lovley, Jor
cording to AAHS, General Motors president from 1931-1932), was dan, Minnesota.
......
acq uired the company in May . , . . - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
of 1931 and merged it into Fok
ker, before moving it to New Jer
sey. By this time, Louise McPhe
tridge had married Herbert
von Thaden and was already a
highly regarded female pilot of
record-setting ability. While in
Pittsburgh, she flew company
"It's all right! There's
executives around in either the
the Pol~-Fiber stamp!
T-2 or T-4, which was known as
Go ahead and g}ve'er
The Tin Goslin.
the
gun!"
While Louise McPhetridge
Thaden's numerous aeronautical
accomplishments are beyond the
scope of this work, she flew the
T-4 (NC502V, race number 46)
You don't have to be a
during the cross-country derby
ma~ician to put the
from Santa Monica to Cleveland
tou~hest, easiest-to-repair fabric coverin~ on your pride
during the National Air Races,
and joy. Just follow the clear detailed instructions in our
placing fifth in the women's divi
entertai~ manual. Before you can say "Hocus-pocus!"
sion. In July of 1930, the Thadens
you'll have a ~or~eous coverin~ job that you can show
had their first child, Bill, while
off and bra~ about for years to come. You don't need
living at Pittsburgh. He was fol
a m~ic wand - all you need is Poly-fiber!
lowed by his sister, Patsy, born
at Kansas City in September
* Friendliest manual around pofyfiber.com
*Toll-free technical support
1933. The T-1 flew on, crashing
information@
at Chitna, Alaska, on 30 March
polyfiber.com
Aircraft CoaUng_
1933 (Nat Brown, subject of a pre
vious Mystery Plane, was the pi

HARRY HOUDINI LEFT

NOTHING TO CHANCE.

And the rest is history.

80C>-361-3490

VINTAGE AIRPLANE

37

EM Calendar of Aviation Events Is NowOnline

EM's online Calendar of Events is the "go-to"
spot on the Web to list and find aviation events
in your area. The user-friendly, searchable format
makes it the perfect web-based tool for planning
your local trips to afly-in.
In EM's onlineCalendar of Events, you can
search for events at any given time within acertain
radius of any airport by entering the identifier or a
ZIP code, and you can further define your search to
lookfor just the types of events you'd like to attend.
We invite you to access the EM online Calendar
of Events at http://www.eaa.orgjcalendar/

Upcoming Major Fly-Ins

U.S. Sport Aviation Expo

Sebring Regional Airport (SEF), Sebring, FL

January 21-24, 2010

www.Sport-Aviation-Expo.com
AERO Friedrichshafen

Messe Friedrichshafen, Friedrichshafen, Germany

ApriiS-ll,2010

www.AERO-Friedrichshafen.coml htmll en
Sun 'n Fun Fly-In
Lakela nd Linder Regional Airport (LAL), Lakeland, FL
Apri l 13-1S, 2010
www.Sun-N-Fun.org
Virginia Regional Festival of Flight

Suffolk Executive Airport (SFQ), Suffolk, VA

May 22-23, 2010

www.VirginiaFlyin.org
Golden West Regional Fly-In and Air Show

Yuba County Airport (MYV), Marysville, CA

June 11-13, 2010

www.GoldenWestFlyln.org
Arlingt on Fly-In

Arlington Municipal Airport (AWO), Arlington, WA

July 7-11, 2010

www.Arling tonFlyln.org
EAA AirVenture Oshkosh

Wittman Regional Airport (OSH), Oshkosh, WI

July 26-August 1, 2010

www.AirVenture.org

Something to buy,
sell, or trade?
Classified Word Ads: $5 .50 per 10 words , 180 words maximum, with boldface
lead-in on first line.
Classified Display Ads : One column wide (2.167 inches) by 1, 2, or 3 inches high at
$20 per inch . Black and white only, and no frequency discounts.
Advertising Closing Dates: 10th of second mont h pri or to desired issue date (i.e.,
January 10 is the closing date for the March issue). VAA reserves the right to reject any
advertising in conflict with its policies . Rates cover one insertion per issue. Classified
ads are not accepted via phone. Payment must accom pany order. Word ads may be
sent via fax (920-426-6845) or e-mail (classads@eaa.or{f) using credit card payment (all
cards accepted). Include name on card , complete address, type of card, card number,
and expiration date. Make checks payable to EAA. Address advertising correspondence
to EAA Publications Classified Ad Manager, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh , WI 54903-3086.

MISCELLANEOUS

Flying wires available. 1994 pricing. Visit www.f1yingwires.

com or call 800-517-9278.
www.AeroList.org - Aviations' Leading Marketplace.
SERVICES

Always Flying Aircraft Restoration, LLC: Annual

Inspections, Airframe recovering, fabric repairs and
complete restorations.
Wayne A. Forshey A&P & LA. 740-472-1481. Ohio and
bordering states

TAiUAlt-!66LS

Colorado Sport International Air Show

and Rocky Mountain Regional Fly-In
Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport (BJC), Denver, (0
August 21-22, 2010
www.COSportAviation.org
COPPERSTATE Regional Fly-In
(asa Grande Municipal Airport ((GZ), (asa Grande, AZ
October 21-23,2010
www.COPPERSTATE.org
Southeast Regional Fly-In

Middleton Field Airport (GZH), Evergreen, AL

October 22-24, 2010

www.SERFI.org
For details on hundreds of upcoming aviation happenings
including EAA chapter fly-ins, Young Eaglesrallies, and
other local aviation events, visit the EAA Calendar of
Events located at www.EAA.org/calendar.
38

NOVEMBER 2009

T -CQAFT TAK60PP

continued from inside front cover

then be required to use the public rulemaking process that

is applicable to all other federal agencies. Seems fair to me!
We need to get behind HR 3678 and contact our represen
tatives to let them know this bill is supported by general
aviation. Locating and communicating with your repre
sentatives can easily be accomplished at www.House.gov/
houseiMemberWWW_by_State.shtm/.
Your EAA Industry and Regulatory Affairs department
has done a good job of getting this information out to
our membership, but the further we spread this type of
news, the better. Please take the time to communicate
with your congressional representatives about this im
portant issue.
Remember, it's time to set your aircraft up for winter
operations. It's time to get that manual out and review
the section on cold-weather operations. Winter flying
can be a lot of fun, but you have to be prepared for it. Be
safe out there.
As always, please do us all the favor of inviting a
friend to join the VAA, and help keep us the strong asso
ciation we have all enjoyed for so many years.
EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2010, The World's Greatest
Aviation Celebration, is July 26 through August l.

A#i5

AERO CLASSIC
"COLLECTOR SERIES"

Vintage Tires
New USA Production

WHAT OUR MEMBERS ARE RESTORING

Are you nearing completion of a restoration? Or is it done
and you 're busy flying and showing it off? If so, we 'd like to
hear from you. Send us a 4-by-6-inch print from a commercial
source (no home printers, please-those prints just don't
scan well) or a 4-by-6-inch , 300-dpi digital photo. A JPG from
your 2.5-megapixel (or higher) digital camera is fine. You can
burn photos to a CD, or if you ' re on a high-speed Internet
connection , you can e-mail them along with a text-only or
Word document describing your airplane. (If your e-mail
program asks if you'd like to make the photos smaller, say
no.) For more tips on creating photos we can publish, visit
VAA's website at www.vintageaircraft.org. Check the News
page for a hyperlink to Want To Send Us A Photograph?
For more Information, you can also e-mail us at vlntageallclaft@
eaa.olg or call us at 920-426-4825.

Show off your pride and joy with a

fresh set of Vintage Rubber. These
newly minted tires are FAA-TSO'd
and speed rated to 120 MPH. Some
things are better left the way they
were, and in the 40's and 50's, these tires were perfectly in
tune to the exciting times in aviation.
Not only do these tires set yo ur vintage plane apart from
the rest, but also look exceptional on all General Aviation
aircraft. Deep 8/32nd tread depth offers above average
tread life and UV treated rubber resists aging.
First impressions last a lifetime, so put these
bring back the good times .....
New General Aviation Sizes Available:

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Oesser has the largest stock and

selection of Vintage and Warbird
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with

DESSER

TIRE & RUBBER COMPANY

li

TelePhone: 800-247-8473 or
323-721-4900 FAX: 323-721-7888
, 6900 Acco SI., Monlebello, CA 90640
3400 Chelsea Ave, Memphis, TN 38106

www.desser.com

VINTAGE AIRPLANE

39

Membershi~ Services Directory

VINTAGE

ENJOY THE MAN Y BE NEFITS OF EAA AND

AIRCRAFT
EAA
's VI NTAGE AIRCRA FT A SSOCIAT ION
ASSOCIATION
EAA Aviation Center, PO Box 3086, Osh kosh WI 54903-3086
OFFICERS
Pres idellt

Vice- Pres ide nt

Geoff Robi son

152 1 E. MacGregor Dr.
New H aven, IN 46774
260-493 -4724

George Da ub n er
N57W34837
Oconomowoc, W I 53066
262-560- 1949

cl1ief7025(g'aoi.col1l

gdallbuer&-eaa.org

Secreta ry

Treasurer

Steve Nesse

Cha rles W. Har ris

2009 H ighl and Ave.

Albert Lea , M N 56007
50 7-373- 1674

72 15 Eas t 46th St.

Tulsa, O K 74 147
9 18-622-8400

s171es2009@/i vt'.C0111

(wh@hvsu.com

DIRECTORS
Steve Bender

85 Brus h H ill Roa d

Sh erbo rn, MA 01770
508- 653-7557

Jea nnie Hill

P.O. Box 328
Harva rd, IL 60033-0328
8 15-943-7205

ss t] ()@cam east.lIet

David Bennett
375 Kill deer Ct
Li nco ln, CA 95648
9 16-645-8370
anl iqllcr@inreacl1.com

Jerry Brown
4605 Hi cko ry Wood Row

Greenwood, IN 46 143
3 17-422-9366
Ibrow'14 906@aol .coln
Dave C lark:

635 Vesta l Lane

Plain field, IN 46 168
3 17-839-4500

davecpd{f1")att.llet
John S. Copeland

Espie " Butch " Joyce

704 N. Regi ona l Rd .
Green sbo ro, NC 27409
336-668-3650
w ;"dsock@'au /.com
Da n Knu tso n

106 Ten a Marie Ci rcle

Locli, W I 5355 5

608-592-7224

/odicllb@cl mrter. llet

Steve Krog

1002 Hea ther Ln.

Hartford, W I 53027

262-966-7627

sskrog@aol .co111

copel and I@jIllICJ.(UnI

Robert D. " Bob" Lum ley

1265 South 124th St.
Brook fiel d, W I 53005
262 -782-2633
Ill l"per@execpc.cOl"

Phil Cou lson

2841 5 Sprin gbrook Or.
Law ton, M I 49065
269-624-6490
rcullisufl 5 16@cs.(om

S. H . "Wes" Schmid
2359 Lefeber Ave nu e
Wa u wa tosa, W I 532 13
41 4-77 1- 1545
sltscilmid@g11lail.col1J

1A Deacon St reet
Nort hborough, MA 0 1532
508-393-4775

Dale A. Gustafso n
7724 Sh ady Hills Dr.

Indian apo li s, IN 46278

3 17-293-4430

da lefayc@msl,.com

DIRECTORS

EMERITUS

E.E. "Buck" Hilbert

Robert C. Brauer
93 45 S. Hoyne
C hicago, IL 60643
773-779-2105
pllOtopi/ot@aol.com

8 102 Leech Rd.

Unio n, IL 60 180
8 15-923-159 1
bllck7ac@smail .com

Ge ne C hase
2 1S9 Carlto n Rd.
Oshkosh , WI 54904
920-23 1-5002

Gene Morris

5936 Steve Co urt

Roan oke, TX 76262

8 17-49 1-9 110

G RCH AC!klla r t er. 1let

sel,enlOrris@C/w rter. l1et

Ro nald C. Fri tz
1540 I Sparta Ave.
Kent C i ty, M I 49330
6 16-678-50 12

Phone (920) 426-4800

Fax (920) 426-48 73

Web Sites: IVWW. vintageaircratr_org, www.airvetltllre.org, www.eaa_orgjmemberbenefits E-Mail: vintageaircra{l@eaa_org

EAA and Division Membership Services (8:00 AM-7:00 PM
Monday-Friday CST)
800-564-6322
FAX 92042&4873
www_ eaa.orgjmemberbenefits
membership@eaa.org
New/ renew memberships ' Address changes Merchandise sales ' Gift memberships
EAA AirVenture Oshkosh
www.airventure_org
888-322-4636
Sport Pilot/Light-Sport Aircraft Hotline 877-359-1232
www.sportpilotorg
Programs and Activities
Auto Fuel STCs
92042&4843
920-426-6570
Education/ Aeroscholars
EAA Air Academy
920426-6880
www_airacademy_org
EAA Scholarships
920426-6823
Rigilt Instructor information
www_eaa.orgjnafi
920426-6801
Library Services/ Research
92042&4848
Benefits
AUA Vinta!(e Insurance Plan
800-727-3823
www_ auaonline.com
EAA Aircraft Insurance Plan
866-647-4322
www.eaa_orgjmemberbenefits
EAA VISACard
800-853-5576 ext. 8884
EAA Hertz Rent-A-Car Program
800-654-2200
www.eaa.orp)hertz
EAA Enterprise Rent A-Car Program
www_eaa_orp)enterprise
877-421-3722
Editorial
920-426-4825
www_ vinta~eaircraft_ or~
VAA Office
FAX 920426-6579

airventure@eaa.org
sportpilot@eaa.org
dwalker@eaa.or
mrobbins@eaa.org
airacademy@eaa_org
scholarships@eaa.org
tdeimer@eaa.org
slurvey@eaa.org

membership@eaa.org
membership@eaa. or~
membership@eaa.or~
vinta~e@eaa.or~

tbooks@eaa_org

EAA Members Information Une

888-EAA-INFO (322-4636)

Use this toll-free number for: information about AirVenture Oshkosh; aeromedical and technical aviation questions;

chapters; and Young Eagles. Please have your membership number ready when calling.

Office hours are 8:15 a.m. - 5:00 p.m_ (Monday - Friday, CST)

MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION
EAA

lAC

Membershi p in the Experimental Aircraft

Association, Inc. i5 $40 for one year, includ
ing 12 iss ues of SPORT AVIATION_ Famil y
membership is an additional $10 annu ally_
Juni or Membership (und er 19 yea rs of age)
is available at $23 annu ally_ All major credi t
cards accepted fo r membership. (Add $16 for
Foreign Postage.)

C urrent EAA m e mbers ma y jo in th e

Inte rn atio n al Ae robati c C lub, In c. Divi
sio n a nd receive SPOR T AEROBATI CS
m agaZine for an additio n al $45 per yea r.
EAA Membership, SPOR T AER OBAT
ICS m agazine and o n e year membership
in th e lAC Div isio n is availab le fo r $5 5
p er yea r (SPOR T AVIATION ma gazin e
n o t includ ed ) _ (Add $18 fo r Fo re ign
Postage.)

EAA SPORT PILOT

Current EAA m embers may add EAA
SPORT PILOT magazine for an additi onal
$20 per yea r.
EAA Me m be rship and EAA SPO R T
PILOT m agazi n e is availab le fo r $40 p er
year (SPORT AVIATION magazine n o t in
cluded)_(Add $16 for Foreign Postage.)

VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION

Current EA A m embers ma y jo in the
Vi ntage Aircraft Assoc iation and receive
VINTA GE AIRPLANE m agazine fo r an ad
ditional $36 per year_
EAA Me mbe rship, VINTA GE AIRPLANE
magazine and one year membership in the EAA
Vintage Aircraft Association is available for $46
per yea r (SPORT AVIATION magazine not in
cluded)_ (Add $7 for Foreign Postage.)

WARBIRDS
Current EAA members may join the EAA
Warbirds of America Division and receive
WARBIRDS magaZine for an additio nal $45
per year_
EAA Membership, WA RBIRDS m aga
z in e and o n e year m e mb ership in th e
Warbird s Division is ava ilable for $55 per
year (SPOR T AVIATION magaZine n ot in
cluded)_ (Add $7 for Fo reign Postage.)

FOREIGN MEMBERSHIPS
Please submit yo ur remittance with a
ch ec k o r draft drawn o n a United States
bank payable in United States dollars_ Add
required Foreign Postage am o unt fo r each
membership_

Members hip dues to EAA and its divisions are not tax deductible as charitable contributions
Gopyright 2009 by the EAA Vintage Aircraft Association, All rights reserved_
VINTAGE AIRPLANE (USPS 062-750; ISSN 0091-6943) is published and owned exclusively by the EAA Vintage Aircraft Association of the Experimental Aircraft Association and is published monthly at EAA
Aviation Center, 3000 Poberezny Rd_, PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54903-3086, e-mail: vintageaircraft@eaa.org. Membership 10 Vintage Aircraft Associalion, which includes 12 issues of Vintage Airplane
magazine, is $36 per year for EAA members and $46 for non-EAA members_ Periodicals Postage paid at Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 and al additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes
10 Vinlage Airplane, PO Box 3086. Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086_PM 40063731 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses 10 Pilney Bowes IMS, Stalion A, PO Box 54, Windsor, ON N9A 6J5_FOREIGN AN D APO
ADDRESSES - Please allow al leasl two months for delivery of VINTAGE AIRPLANE to foreign and APO addresses via surface mail. ADVERTISING - Vintage Aircraft Association does nol guaranlee or endorse
any product offered through the advertising. We invite constructive criticism and welcome any report of inferior merchandise obtained through our advertising so that corrective measures can be taken.
EDITORIAL POLICY: Members are encouraged 10 su bm ~ stories and photographs. Policy opinions expressed in articles are solely those of the authors_ Responsibility for accuracy in reporting rests enlirely
with the conlributor_No remuneration is made. Malerial should be senllo: Ed~o r, VINTAGE AIRPLANE, PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086. Phone 920-426-4800_
EAA and EAA SPORT AVIATION, the EAA Logo and Aaronautica' are regislered tradematl<s, trademarks, and service marks of the Experimenlal Aircraft Association, Inc. The use of Ihese tradematl<s

and service marks wrthout the permission at the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc. is strictly prohibited.

40

NOVEMBER 2009

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