va vol 41 no 2 mar apr 2013

MARCH/APRIL 2013

Cub to OshkoshSentimental JourneyThe Cosmic Wind Story

Si lver AgeChampion

Fleet

VintageMar2013.indd 1 VintageMar2013.indd 1 2/12/13 9:44 AM2/12/13 9:44 AM

2014 Mustang

The Privilege of Partnership EAA members are eligible for special pricing on Ford Motor

Company vehicles through Fords Partner Recognition

Program. To learn more on this exclusive opportunity for

EAA members to save on a new Ford vehicle, please visit

www.eaa.org/ford.

The Brood in a Mood Meet the Mustang family a good group with bad intentions. For 2014, they take

to the street meaner than ever, led by the powerful Shelby GT500, which delivers

650 hp and boasts a test track top speed of more than 200 mph. Of course, power

runs in the family and even Mustang V6 produces an incredible 305 hp while

delivering an impressive 31 mpg hwy1 as well. But the advancements are not limited

to the engine compartment. With the 2014 Mustang lineup, cool features are as

abundant as horsepower. It starts with the available Pony projection lamp. When

the unlock button is activated, each side view mirror casts an image of the famous

Mustang Pony on the ground. Other standard features include HID headlamps that

help you see whats destined for your LED taillamps. With so many possibilities,

the thrills just keep coming!1 EPA-estimated 19 city/31 hwy/23 combined mpg, coupe automatic.

VintageMar2013.indd 2 VintageMar2013.indd 2 2/11/13 4:46 PM2/11/13 4:46 PM

EAA Publisher . . . . . . . . .Jack J. Pelton,. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Chairman of the Board

Vice Pres., EAA Publications J. Mac McClellan

Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jim Busha. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . [email protected]

VAA Executive Administrator Theresa Books920-426-6110 . . . . . . . . . [email protected]

Advertising Executive . . . . Jonathan Berger920-426-6886 . . . . . . . . [email protected]

Advertising Director . . . . . Katrina Bradshaw202-577-9292 . . . . . . . . . [email protected]

Advertising Manager . . . . Sue Anderson920-426-6127 . . . . . . . . . [email protected]

Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . Livy Trabbold

VAA, PO Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903

Website: www.vintageaircraft.org

Email: [email protected]

www.vintageaircraft.org 1

Oh, how I long for some warm mild breezes blowing through the hangar door. It has been a wild and wooly winter here in the Midwest. Lots of moisture and an abundance of icy conditions have been going on around here for many weeks. Its not something I would label as brutal, but I am here to tell you that I am looking for some much milder weather here in Indiana, and starting tomorrow would be very nice.

I hope you all have had the chance by now to take a good look at the January/February issue of Vintage Airplane magazine. I am quite happy to report to the membership that the reaction from our members to date has been remarkably positive and very complimentary. Our edi-tor, Jim Busha, as well as his team from the VAA and the EAA publica-tions department deserve a huge pat on the back for all of their eff orts in transforming this magazine into a product that is easily 10 times the quality we have experienced in the past. Jim tells me that the majority of the magic used to make this publication what you see today is being performed by Livy Trabbold of the EAA publications department. Al-though Livy has been assisting us with our magazine for several years now, between her and Jims eff orts these two have had a dramatic im-pact on the product you see in your mailbox today. So, many thanks Livy, and be assured that your eff orts are greatly appreciated!

Th is is certainly not intended to be an indictment of anyone previ-ously responsible for this magazine, but it is all about a new way of thinking about how we can improve on the product. What we really have here now is a product that has been reinvested in. Its actually an at-tempt to raise the bar in the arena of content, presentation, and quality. Th e team, as reinforced by the opinions of dozens of our members, has literally hit a grand slam home run for the product owner/member. My hat is off to Jim Busha and everyone on the team. A job well done by all individuals involved.

Of course, this is not to imply that all of our members are happy about these changes, especially the move to publish the magazine on a bimonthly basis. As is normally the case, a small number of our members seemingly dont care much at all for any change. To these valued members I would reply stick with us, and continue to measure the benefits of this reinvestment I referred to earlier. In just a short period of time I believe you will come to realize the benefits of re-maining a member.

Straight & Level Vintage AirplaneSTAFF

2013:A year of enhanced membership bene ts

GEOFF ROBISONVAA PRESIDENT, EAA 268346, VAA 12606

continued on page 56

VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATIONCurrent EAA members may join the Vin-

tage Aircraft Association and receive VINTAGE AIRPLANE magazine for an additional $42 per year.

EAA Membership, VINTAGE AIRPLANE magazine and one year membership in the EAA Vintage Aircraft Association is available for $52 per year (SPORT AVIATION magazine not included). (Add $7 for International Postage.)

FOREIGN MEMBERSHIPSPlease submit your remittance with a

check or draft drawn on a United States bank payable in United States dollars. Add required Foreign Postage amount for each membership.

Membership ServicePO Box 3086

Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086 MondayFriday, 8:00 AM6:00 PM CST

Join/Renew 800-564-6322 [email protected]

EAA AirVenture Oshkoshwww.airventure.org

888-322-4636

TM


2 MARCH /APRIL 2013

C O N T E N T SVol. 41, No. 2 2013

4No One Ever Met aStranger at the Red BarnCharles W. Harris

MARCH/APRIL24

Fleet FunStan Sweikars storied silver age championTake TwoSparky Barnes Sargent

COLUMNS1 Straight and Level 2013: A year of enhanced membership benefits Geoff Robison

6 News

8 Air Mail

10 How to? Construct a wing rib fixture Robert G. Lock

12 The Vintage Instructor Stall/spin and $%**%%$ Steve Krog, CFI

15 Ask the AME Third-class medical exemption John Patterson, M.D.

16 Good Old Days

20 Type Club Corner Peregrinations of a J-3 Cub Harry Ballance

44 Celestial Breeze The Cosmic Wind story Don Berliner

34Youre Going to Do What Where?Earning my Ford Tri-Motor ratingDonis B. Hamilton

38182 Survivor. . . As if it came out of Tuts tombBudd Davisson



C O V E R SFRONT COVER: Chris Miller captures Stan

Sweikars Fleet over some green Wisconsin

farm elds.

BACK COVER: Radial Engine Cubs? Look for a

feature article in an upcoming issue to learn

more about them. Photo by Phil High.

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

ANY COMMENTS?Send your thoughts to the

Vintage Editor at: [email protected]

MARCH/APRIL 2013

&XEVWR2VKNRVK6HQWLPHQWDO-RXUQH\7KH&RVPLF:LQG6WRU\

Si lver AgeChampion

Fleet

49Sentimental Journey 2012Cub homecomingRoger Thiel

51 The Vintage Mechanic Approaching a restoration project, Part 2 Robert G. Lock

56 Vintage Trader

KOEPNICKPHOTOGRAPH.COM


4 MARCH /APRIL 2013

For one entire grand and glorious week in the late summer of each year, the EAA Vintage Aircraft Associations Red Barn is the epicenter, the heart, and soul of the whole wide world of vintage airplanes. It is the place to be to be a part of and enjoy the finest historic airplanes from our long ago past, which not only have brought us to where we are today but also have constantly inspired us to raise our interest and participation in the vintage airplane movement even higher.

One only has to step across the road from the Red Barn and stroll, endlessly enjoying the view of scores of previous Oshkosh Vintage Grand Champions. Travel only a few more steps toward the south and be spellbound by the rows of rare Wacos, Spartans, Ryans, Howards, Staggerwings, and countless others from prior aviation eraseach finer than its next door neighbor! How can this all be possible, you ask? Its all because of the generous support from Vintage members like you. When one immerses oneself with other vintage airplane enthusiasts, one comes to grasp the emotional import that there is simply no other place in the entire universe that any of us would rather be during the last week in July than the Red Barn area of Wittman Fieldduring EAA AirVenture Oshkosh!

It is an overwhelming human experience when one meets scores and scores of new friends at the Red Barn, and not a single soul is a stranger; every last person is smiling, happy, and thrilled to be a part of something so thoroughly enjoyable that the weight of the outside world is forever removed for the entire weekit simply becomes the best place in the world!

This is A Place Called Oshkosh! Nothing is ever planned or rehearsed; it is simply what happens at the Red Barn. It is the mystical Camelot for old airplanes. It is also the place to be during AirVenture. Experience it for yourself; pull up a chair and sit in the shade of the Red Barn, grab a bag of popcorn, close your eyes, and transport yourself back to the golden age of flight. This is everyday normal Red Barn activities during Oshkosh! Its a place where history comes alive!

The invaluable Friends of the Red Barn fund, with contributions each year by fellow Vintage members, makes all of this supremely enjoyable experience possible. Without the generous contributions provided by these Vintage members annually, very little of what we experience and enjoy would be possible.

Please join us as a contributing member of the Friends of the Red Barn as we provide the most ideal and perfect setting possible for vintage airplane owners, pilots, historians, and dedicated vintage airplane buffs. Consider it a callingas many of us do! And please remember, no one ever met a stranger at the Red Barn!

No One EverMet a Strangerat the Red Barn!Friends of the Red Barn

Charles W. HarrisDir ecto r Emer itus, VAA


CONTRIBUTIONLEVELS

DonorAppreciationCerti cate

SpecialFORBBadge

Access toAir-ConditionedVolunteerCenter

A 6-packof ColdBottledWater!

Two Passesto VAAVolunteerParty

10 Minute Chair Back Massage at AV2013

Breakfast at Tall PinesCaf

Tri-Motor OR HelicopterRideCerti cate

Two Ticketsto VAA Picnic

Close AutoParking

SpecialAir ShowSeating

EAA PHPCenter Access

DIAMOND PLUS $1,500 & higher

X X X X X 2 people, full week

2 tickets X Full week 2 people,full week

2 people, full week

DIAMOND $1,000 - $1,499


2 tickets X Full week 2 people,1 day

PLATINUM$750 - $999


1 ticket X 2 days

GOLD$500 - $749

X X X X X 1 person,full week

1 ticket

SILVER $250 - $499

X X X X X

BRONZE PLUS$150 - $249

X X X X

BRONZE$100 - $149

X X X

LOYALSUPPORTER$99 and under

X

VAA Friends of the Red Barn

Name________________________________________________ ____________ EAA #___________ VAA #___________Address____________________________________________________________________________________________City/State/Zip_______________________________________________________________________________________Phone___________________________________________________E-Mail_____________________________________Please choose your level of participation:

Payment Enclosed (Make checks payable to Vintage Aircraft Assoc.) Please charge my credit card for the amount of: ____________Credit Card Number _____________________________ Expiration Date _________

Signature_________________________________________

Badges for Bronze Level and Above:

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

Certi cates:

Yes, I want a Certi cate No, I do not want a Certi cate for this year.Th e Vintage Aircraft Association is a non-profi t educational organization under IRS 501c3 rules. Under Federal Law, the deduction from Federal Income tax for charitable contributions is limited to the amount by which any money (and the value of any property other than money) contributed exceeds the value of the goods or services provided in exchange for the contribution. An appropriate receipt acknowledging your gift will be sent to you for IRS gift reporting reasons.

Mail your contribution to:VAA FORB

PO Box 3086OSHKOSH, WI 54903-3086

or contribute online atwww.vintageaircraft.org/programs/redbarn.html

____ Diamond Plus $1,500.00 or above ____ Diamond Level Gift - $1,000.00 - $1,499.00 ____ Platinum Level Gift - $750.00 - $999.00 ____ Gold Level Gift - $500.00 - $749.00

____ Silver Level Gift - $250.00 - $499.00 ____ Bronze Plus Gift - $150.00 - $249.00 ____ Bronze Level Gift - $100.00 - $149.00 ____ Loyal Supporter Gift - ($99.00 and under)

All donors at all levels will have their name listed in Vintage Airplane magazine, on VintageAircraft.org, and at the VAA Red Barn during AirVenture.

Special for 2013, all donors for Gold Level and above will be entered into a random drawing for a limited edition, 21w x 18h, signed, numbered print by Randall Mytar shown at right.



6 MARCH /APRIL 2013

Round Engine

Rodeo

VAA Invites All Round Engine Aircraft to EAA AirVenture 13

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The Vintage Aircraft Association is rolling out the red carpet for all round engine aircraft owners at AirVenture 13.

If you own a round engine aircraft, please join us in the VAA area at AirVenture 13 and share your beautiful airplane with thousands who would appreciate seeing and learning more about it.



Vintage News

The Good ol Days are backSTEVE KROG

What Is It?Welcome! Th e Good ol Days are returning, at

least for a week! Th ats right. For one full week from July 29 through August 4, 2013, the U.S. skies will be fi lled with the beautiful rumble of round-engine-equipped airplanes en route to Oshkosh.

The Vintage Aircraft Association (VAA), serving as the official host for this historic event, is invit-ing the round-engine universe to attend and par-ticipate in EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2013.

All owners, pilots, and enthusiasts of round-engine aircraft are formally invited to fly their beautiful airships to Oshkosh and participate in this event, a weeklong gathering to get together with others who share the passion for these fantas-tic old airplanes and engines.

Special handling and parking will be provided to all who fl y their round-engine aircraft to Oshkosh.

The VAA is working on an attractive package of incentives provided to all who fly these beautiful round-engine aircraft to Oshkosh. Watch for fur-ther details.

One full day of AirVenture will be dedicated ex-clusively to the recognition and display of these air-planes in the Vintage area. Period costumes worn by the pilots/owners are suggested and welcome.

Each day of AirVenture a different round-engine make-and-model aircraft will be featured at VAA In Review (in front of the VAA Red Barn and Vintage Hangar).

Interviewer extraordinaire Ray Johnson will conduct a live interview with the featured aircraft owner/pilot.

Guided tours through the round-engine parking area will be conducted by knowledgeable VAA volunteers.

A proposed turf runway for arrival is being de-veloped for those that might want or need to use it.

Rest StopThe weekend prior to the opening of AirVen-

tureJuly 26-28, the Hartford airport (HXF) will serve as a gathering point and rest stop for all.

HXF features two turf runways as well as one hard surface runway.

HXF is located approximately 45 miles due south of OSH.

Fuel, both 100LL and 92 octane auto, will be readily available at a very competitive price.

Food, refreshments, camping, motels, transpor-tation, and entertainment will be available to all.

Last year 154 aircraft and more than 300 people gathered at HXF to partake in the pre-convention weekend activitiesa great relaxing time enjoyed by everyone!

Whats NextStart making plans for attending EAA AirVen-

ture 2013 and playing an active part in all the ac-tivities in the Vintage area.

More information including a website and phone numbers will be available within the next few weeks. In the meantime, if you have questions about AirVenture, call Theresa at 920-426-6110. Questions about Hartford? Call Dana Osmanski at 262-966-7627.


8 MARCH /APRIL 2013

Air Mail

New format feed-backDear Vintage Airplane,

Th is is my favorite magazine to get. I always look forward to it. It seems Geoff is cutting back on the number of issues per year that will be sent out. Th ats too bad, but if it has to be, we can live with it. I really like the articles by Robert Lock. Is it possible to get these to save on a disc? Maybe the compilation of these on a disc could be a profi t center and be sold. Th e International Stinson Club has done this, and it is very useful.

Steve Krogs articles are excellent, too. His piece Wind: When is it too much? makes a good point about practicing in conditions that improve ones abilities. Another article could focus on techniques. I am of the mind that crosswind landings are best done three-point rather than wheelies no matter how hard the wind is blowing, especially the transition from two-point to tail down. Do we slam the tail down? If we baby it down, we ground loop.

I would like to see two articles: an update of the Fairchild 45 situation, and a story on the Antonov AN-2 of which 18,000 were made. Get Budd Davisson to write about the AN-2. Im sure he can fi nagle a ride in one.

Mark DavisA Stinson 108 restorer and pilot

Jim, Just received my January/February issue of Vintage

Airplane, and I want to thank everyone up there for a job well done on the new mag. Contents right on, layout easy to read, lots of interesting how-to, and the magazine is eye-catching and pretty. Give everyone a pat on the back!

Wendell L. Doc Roy, EAA 17804/VAA 19307Fort Collins, Colorado

Hi Jim: You wanted feedback on the new Vintage magazine

format. One word: great! Keep it up. See you at AirVen-ture 2013.

Tony Wright Sr.

To Mike Leone/Budd Davisson Bonanza in a Barn, December 2012, Vintage Airplane

I thoroughly enjoyed your article in Vintage Airplane magazine, December 2012. It brought back many pleasant memories of flying with my father in his Bonanza N8508A when I was 16 years old. You will note that his aircraft was probably on the Beechcraft assembly line three aircrafts before yours.

Th e mechanical similarities are still very clear in my mind. Dad bought Beechcraft Bonanza A-35 N8508A new from the factory with a Continental E-135. Eventually he had it upgraded to 205 hp, and he installed his third engine in it before he traded it in on a J-35 fuel-injected Bonanza. He had done a lot of fl ying with that Bonanza.

I still remember when he fi rst owned the Bonanza; each takeoff was a unique experience with the elec-tric prop. As the plane accelerated on takeoff he had to toggle the electric prop switch to keep the rpm within limits and not over speed. He soon converted to the electric pitchchange control which made life much easier as well as safer.

He also found the need to install a 10-gallon auxil-iary fuel tank behind the rear seat.



A few special order items were installed also. Parachute seat backs on the two front seats and a quick-release door hinge assembly were special factory installations. His three parachute fl ares were also installed.

A water evaporative air cooling (not condition-ing) helped cool off hot summer days as long the ambient humidity was low. I note your rear modern air-scoop which is a good improvement.

Dad traded up to a J-35. I had a total of about 200 hours between the A-35 and the J-35.

In 1972, my wife, Ellie, and I bought a 1967 V-35 which we fl ew for 40 years. We just sold it on Decem-ber 5, 2012, and we were on our third engine.

Our fl ying life has been very fortunate. Many en-joyable family trips, many with our two sons, across the United States, Central America, and Alaska will long be remembered in N798RD.

Th ank you for the memories! My dad taught me a lot about good fl ying and also to love Bonanzas.

Merry Christmas and many happy landings. James D. Sheen Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

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To construct a wing rib, a holding fi xture must be made. It is common to use a fl at board, such as a piece of good pine board that may measure 1x12x72. If no good fl at pine wood can be found, then con-sider using some 3/4 plywood of the same dimen-sions. Hopefully an example of an original wing rib is nearby, however in some cases where there are no ribs available it will be necessary to loft a full size drawing of the rib outline. Coordinates for lofting a rib can be found in airfoil data books or from old NACA data. We wont go into how to loft a wing rib at this time.

First, trace the outline of the rib and all its diago-nal and vertical members. Th en, cut out blanks to

represent the spar dimensions. Th e spar blanks will be placed at the appropriate location in the wing rib. (Figure 1 and Figure2.)

Th e small wood blocks should be drilled in advance of gluing and nailing to the base wood to prevent splitting. Th e blocks will guide cap strips and truss members in their proper location. Left in photo 1, this photo scanned from the ANC-19 book shows the Boe-ing factory worker nailing up a model PT-13/PT-17 wing rib. Th e plywood gussets are precut and are in bins at the top of the table. Th is speeds up fabrication time. I usually cut all the gussets and place them in small cardboard boxes numbered as to their location. Th e spar blanks are precisely located and glued to the

How to?

Construct a wing rib xture

ROBERT G. LOCK

10 MARCH /APRIL 2013

FIGURE 1

FIGURE 2

PHOTO 1


base and they will accurately locate the vertical members on each side of the spar. (Photo 1.) If I anticipate diffi culty sliding the spars through their respec-tive openings, I will leave the vertical member on the rear side of the front spar and the front side of the rear spar out of the rib, slide the ribs on, then insert the two vertical members and glue in place. Th is makes for a good accurate fi t.

In photo 2, a close up of my Command-Aire rib fi xture made from aluminum instead of wood. I once had plans to construct fi ve airplanes, but struggled to build just one. Th e wing rib shown is an original factory part. Th e lower photo is a close up of the forward sec-tion of the rib showing front spar opening and the method (Photo 2) used to make gus-sets. Rather than use triangu-lar or square plywood gussets, the factory chose to use long plywood gussets that bridged from one vertical upright to the next, also reinforcing the cap strips. It took a lot of mahog-any plywood to make these and there was much waste, which in todays market is costly. I re-member the fi rst sheet of 1/16 x 4 x8 aircraft grade mahogany plywood cost me $20.00, but that was back in 1959.

Finally, back in the old days, my father, Leonard (Photo 3) who built most of the wing ribs are assembling the right lower wing on the Command-Aire. Th e wing was assembled and then attached to the fuse-lage to assure proper fi t. Photo 3 shows the right lower wing bolted to the fuselage.


PHOTO 2

PHOTO 3



An eyewitness saw the accident airplane fl ying to-wards the airport from the southwest. Th e airplane ap-peared to be in a steep descent with a slight left turn. A few moments later, the witness saw the airplane in a tight right turn that developed into a spin. Th e airplane rapidly descended towards the terrain.

Th e above statement appeared in a recent pre-liminary NTSB accident report. Unfortunately, the outcome was fatal for both the pilot and passenger. Could it have been avoided? Most defi nitely!

Every student, young or old, receives stall train-ing provided he or she has worked with a good, thor-ough fl ight instructor and designated examiner. However, the only requirement for spin recognition and recovery is verbal discussion between student and instructor; then between the student and exam-iner. Actual spin training was dropped from the FAA Practical Test Standards decades ago. So, how does one know what to do or how one will react when ex-periencing an actual stall/spin entry? More on that in a future article.

Is there any wonder how something like a stall/spin accident continues to occur with regularity? Ac-cording to the most recently published incident/acci-dent statistics, landing accidents including the stall/spin are responsible for a signifi cant percentage of all general aviation accidents.

My experience in fl ying with students, as well as certifi cated pilots, during fl ight reviews provides me with a two-part answer: lack of profi ciency and lack of situational awareness. Even though we suppos-edly spend a great deal of time practicing all types of stalls, including recognition and proper recovery,

many pilots and most new students are still quite ap-prehensive when asked to demonstrate a stall.

On January 2, 2013, an airplane was substantially damaged when it impacted terrain. Th e commercial pilot was fatally injured.

Witnesses reported that the airplane was circling and maneuvering at a low altitude around the beach area when they observed it ascend abruptly. Approxi-mately 150-200 feet above the ground, the airplane appeared to stop, make a sharp turn, and descend at an approximately 55-degree angle. Th e airplane ap-peared to start to level off when it impacted the top of a sand dune.

Th is is but one more example of a fatal stall/spin accident that can be attributed to situational awareness.

Lack of Pro ciencyMore often than not, when conducting a fl ight

review and I ask the pilot to demonstrate a power-off stall with either a shallow bank left or right, the pilot will fi rst glance at me and then tense up. Beads of perspiration begin forming at the temples, and the legs begin to tremble on the rudder pedals. Af-ter a reminder to make a clearing turn, the pilot will slowly reduce power and begin applying light back pressure. If fl ying an aircraft equipped with either a stall warning horn or light, the pilot will usually ini-tiate some manner of recovery as soon as either the horn sounds or light appears. Th e recovery looks like a hard negative g push-over preceding an outside loop followed by smashing the throttle to full power. Once under control in a level fl ight attitude, the pi-lot will fi nally take a breath, hoping that I dont ask

Th e Vintage Instructor

Stall/spin and $%**%%$

STEVE KROG, VAA DIRECTOR AND CFI



for a second stall. Th at was not a stall but rather an imminent stall.

When asked if he or she ever practices stalls, a sheepish look is followed by a comment stating that the last time he or she had done a stall was two years ago during the last fl ight review. Its hard to maintain profi ciency and safe fl ying practices if one only does one or two stalls every two years!

If I encounter this situation, I like to climb to a safe practice altitude and proceed to do several more stalls, fi rst demonstrating how stalls are required to be done if the pilot were taking an FAA checkride in this day and age. Th e procedure is quite diff erent than the way many of us were taught decades ago. Together we then try a few more with me verbalizing each step and the pilot executing the stall and stall recovery. Th is will usually increase the pilots level of comfort and confi dence.

Another maneuver I like to do for confi dence build-ing and profi ciency is a version of the falling leaf. To perform this, well fi rst climb to a safe altitude. At that point the pilot is given full control of the rud-der only, while I have control of the ailerons, eleva-tor, and power. I will set up and establish a power-off stall, then hold the aircraft in this confi guration while the pilot has the responsibility for keeping the air-plane level (wheels down and wings up). Once he gets the hang of it, Ill challenge him to walk the airplane down for 1,000 feet, at which time he takes

over the controls, recovers from the stall, and returns the aircraft to straight and level fl ight. One or two tries at the falling leaf and the pilot usually regains the confi dence and profi ciency to perform stalls when fl ying solo.

Th is maneuver also proves to the inexperienced pi-lot that though in a stall, the rudder control remains eff ective while proving that the aircraft will not fall out of the sky as is so often depicted in movies in-volving airplanes!

One word of caution: Not all of the airplanes we fl y are created equal regarding stall and handling characteristics. Make sure you know and understand your aircraft before trying the falling leaf maneu-ver. Some are much more positively stable than oth-ers. KNOW YOUR AIRPLANE, and if uncertain, seek the direction of experienced pilots fl ying that make and model of aircraft.

Lack of Situational AwarenessIn the simplest of defi nitions, situational aware-

ness is knowing what is going on around you, whether in fl ight or taxiing to the runway. Th is includes activi-ties both in and outside the cockpit. Approximately 80 percent of the stall/spin accidents started from an alti-tude of less than 1,000 feet AGL, the usual traffi c pat-tern altitude. Low-level maneuvers such as buzzing, low passes, and pull-ups account for more than 40 per-cent of the fatal stall/spin accidents.

BONNIE BARTEL



Typical general aviation (GA) aircraft estimate av-erage altitude loss during stalls, assuming proper recovery technique, at between 100 and 350 feet. A NASA study done in the late 1970s proved that the average altitude loss in spins was about 1,200 feet.

Given these average GA fi gures, neither of the pi-lots in the two NTSB reports stated earlier in this article ever had a chance. Both entered into the clas-sic stall/spin situation at low altitudes, the fi rst at approximate pattern altitude, while the second was much lower performing steep turns. Th e pilot in the fi rst example had fl own less than 10 hours in the previous two yearslack of profi ciency is a near cer-tainty. Th e second pilot fl ew more regularly but be-came fi xated with a point of interest on the ground below. As the turns became tighter, the stall speed in-creased and control inputs questionable, resulting in a low-level stall/spinlack of situational awareness. Once the pilot recognized the stall, correct inputs ap-pear to have been made based on eye witness reports. However, he ran out of altitude before the full recov-ery could be made!

As a fl ight instructor trying to teach safe coor-dinated fl ying techniques, I frequently rely on two maneuvers. Th e fi rst is the Dutch roll. It is simple in concept but more diffi cult to perform until it has been practiced. At a safe altitude, point the nose of the aircraft at a prominent landmark. Th en roll the airplane left and right along the longitudinal axis using aileron and rudder while keeping the nose pointed at the landmark. Begin by using 10-20 de-

grees of bank. Aileron and rudder together will turn the airplane yet keep the nose straight for a second or two. Th en apply opposite aileron and rudder un-til youve reached a 20-degree bank in the opposite direction. Th is maneuver really helps develop proper aileron and rudder inputs, whether doing the Dutch roll or performing a turn to a diff erent heading. Th e fi rst time or two you try this, youll fi nd the nose moving 30-40 degrees left and right of the point on the horizon, but keep practicing. Youll soon be able to keep the nose directly on the landmark while roll-ing the airplane left and right.

Th e other maneuver Ive found to be very helpful is performing medium-bank (30-degree) turns left and right for 90 degrees. As you reach the 90-degree point in heading change, roll into a medium-bank turn in the opposite direction for 90 degrees. Do this for a series of a half-dozen turns in each direction while always keeping the ball in the center on the turn co-ordinator. When you can do this in a comfortable and coordinated manner without gaining or losing alti-tude, then increase the bank angle to a steep turn (45 degrees) and try it again. With a little practice youll fi nd that you have regained a good feel for rapid, co-ordinatedand safeturns.

It is the responsibility for all of us to fl y safely. Pro-fi ciency, coordination, situational awareness, and safe fl ight practices can and will prevent accidents such as those described in this article. Th e next time you de-cide to fl y, give the Dutch rolls and 90-degree turns a try. Th ey will make you a better pilot.

With a little practice youll fi nd that you

have regaineda good feel

for rapid,coordinated

and safeturns.KOEPNICKPHOTOGRAPHY.COM


I was asked to write an article for the Vintage Aircraft Association from a medical perspective, but I did not want to regurgitate all the rules and regulations that we all are afraid will ground us at our next medical. Rather I wanted to write an article that involves a topic I am passionate about. Th at is why I support the EAA and AOPA initiative to exempt airmen from the third-class medical and instead use a state-issued drivers license.

First, a little of my own background. I am a urologist, a physician dealing primarily with the surgical diseases of the kidney, prostate, and reproductive system. I have a passion for aviation, especially antique/vintage air-craft. My father and I have built or rebuilt several air-planes starting with a 1931 Waco ASO Straightwing in the 1970s when I was in high school. I fi nally was able to bring it to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh for the fi rst time in its history last year. I am also an aviation medical exam-iner (AME), primarily to assist pilots in our area of Frank-fort, Kentucky. When I arrived, the family doctor and nonpilot that served as an AME had retired, and there was no one within 30 miles to do flight physicals. I ap-plied and was granted authorization after initial training.

Now, the third-class medical is required for all pri-vate pilots who do not fly for hire either passengers or freight. Substituting the drivers license for the third-class medical sounds radical to the lay public because it falsely believes that the medical ensures that the pilot can fl y the airplane when in fact it is the FAA-issued pilot certificate that does that. Doing away with the third-class medical for all intended purposes will end the ma-jority of my fl ight physicals. Most AMEs perform these physicals as a labor of love for aviation and to provide a needed service. Th ose who have a high volume of airmen and perform these physicals for a living do so primarily on airline and commercial pilots. Th ey will continue to be held to a higher standard. Th e riding public pays for that expectation, not so with the private pilot.

Why should it happen? There is now plenty of data

showing that self-certifi cation and the use of the drivers license have worked for sport pilot certifi cation and with no increase in accident or fatality rate. Already the FAA absolves itself of pilot responsibility by stating that each time we fl y we are self-certifying. Th at is, we are safe and competent medically to fl y that day. Th is does not change with the use of the drivers license. Realistically, if the airman is fi t to get in a car and drive to the offi ce, he should be medically fi t to fl y his own airplane. To say otherwise is not to trust our own ability to self-certify.

Most of the current medically grounding conditions are going to limit our ability to drive a car as well. Heart disease (coronary artery disease, angina, myocardial in-farction, heart replacement, valve replacement, and pace-maker), diabetes, psychosis, bipolar disorder, personal-ity disorder, substance abuse, epilepsy, disturbance of consciousness, and loss of nervous system function are all currently disqualifying conditions. Most can now be approved through special issuance. Th e medical and FAA concern is the sudden incapacitation that can occur with these conditions. Interestingly, there were no sport pilot accidents attributable to sudden incapacitation.

Currently the proposal for exemption of the third-class physical applies to aircraft, nonretractable, less or equal to 180 hp, daylight hours only, and carrying only one passenger. Other more broad-reaching requests have already been turned down by the FAA. Th is is a compro-mise step with the hopes that once data is obtained, simi-lar to the experience with the sport pilot initiative, it can then be expanded further.

We need to do everything we can to promote and en-courage general aviation and open it up to a new genera-tion of aviators. Our current environment with barbed wire around all our airports and daily TFRs does nothing but discourage aviation. Th is initiative is defi nitely some-thing that our organization and EAA should be doing and is doing to promote aviation, and we should all get behind it.


Ask the AME

Third-class medical exemption

JOHN PATTERSON, M.D., AME


PGood Old Days


The Cleveland plane makes port. Ford all-metal monoplanes have totaled more than a million miles of safe, swift ying. The public is beginning to y in

preference to other means of transportation.

From the pages of the past . . .



Take a quick look through history by enjoying images pulled from past publications.



Classi ed AdsWhat would you have found . . .

Aero Digest, June 1938




Aero Digest, June 1938AeroDigest, October 1931




As the song goes, Its a Long Way to Tipperary. However, its an even longer way from bucolic Central Georgia to Oshkosh in a J-3 Cub. Th e entire adventure began scarcely a year ago when I heard Rod Hightower, president of the EAA, allow that the year 2012 was the 75th anniversary of the introduction of the J-3 Cub. He stated that he aspired to assemble as many Cubs as possible at AirVenture and, in his words, paint the fi eld

yellow with Cubs. It sounded like a grand idea, but Oshkosh, Wisconsin, was a long way from Williamson, Georgia, in a J-3, traveling at an indicated airspeed of 67 mph. To be sure, it would probably be the larg-est assemblage of Cubs, before or after. I lukewarmly weighed the pros and cons of such an adventure, and the wild and reckless side of me fi nally won out. Maybe I felt as though I owed it to the Cub.

Type Club Corner

Peregrinations of a J-3 Cub

Harry Ballance

Helping to paint the eld yellow, Ballance stands next to the cub he ew to EAA AirVenture 2012.



One should not attribute life to an inanimate ob-ject, such as a machine or airplane. However, when one has owned an airplane as long as I have owned this Cub, it does take on the role of another family mem-ber. Th is, as are all of them, is a unique airplane that I have owned since 1967, and it is simply not the same as another J-3. We have been through a lot of stuff together; some of it bad, most of it good. She has suf-fered a lot of indignities and unmeaning abuse, such as in the course of teaching people to fl y or tailwheel checkouts. She has never complained or let me down. My wife even named her Judy after the line from a Cary Grant movie, Judy, Judy, Judy. At the end of the day, after having fl own many diff erent types of air-planes in my lifetime, if someone said that I could only fl y one airplane, it would be my J-3 Cub. Th ere is just something intangible about the Cub experience that makes it stand tall over all other airplanes. Th ey are diffi cult to enter and exit, they have poor visibility on the ground, they are uncomfortable after a fl ight of any duration, and they are slower than almost any-thing in the sky. However, there is nothing that feels quite as nice as rolling one on in the grass after a well-executed power-off approach. Having said all of that, I felt as though Judy deserved to take a little bit of a trip. Ever since I fl ew her to Atlanta from Dallas, Texas, when I got her, the longest trip she has ever made has been to Lakeland for the Sun n Fun Fly-In. Somehow I sensed that she wanted to fl y north, to cross new states, to see the Ohio and Wabash Rivers, to fl y along the shore of Lake Michigan looking up at the skyscrap-ers of Chicago, and fi nally to participate in a mass ar-rival of Cubs to Oshkosh where she would be among perhaps 150 of her kind.

My planning for the trip was rather minimal. I knew that I would be camping, due to the exorbitant

prices of hotel rooms in the Oshkosh area. Of course, the EAA does not exactly give one good value for their camping fees, either. If one likes to use portable toilets and small showers with minimal hooks and little hot water, I guess the experience was bearable. However, with the amount of money one saves over even a cheesy hotel room, one could buy something really nice for ones wife or airplane. One just has to suck it up with the lack of amenities. I had planned my trip using AirNav.com, which, to me, is a good fl ight planning and airport information tool. I used 80 nm legs, simply because I did not want to feel un-comfortable about fuel on any of the legs, and we had just de-rated my Continental A-65 from an A-75. Ac-cordingly, I had not taken the airplane on any cross-country fl ights suffi ciently long to get a good read on the fuel consumption. I did take the trouble to pur-chase new sectional charts, as well as go by the lo-cal AAA offi ce and get state automotive maps for my route of fl ight. Not that I fl y nap of the earth mis-sions all of the time, but sometimes these automo-bile maps are just plain helpful. My contention is that current sectionals simply do not show adequate detail to make pilotage particularly easy, and the road maps fi ll in the gaps, so to speak.

On the Thursday before the big mass arrival to Oshkosh on Sunday, I flew from Peach State to my first stop, Paulding County Airport. I was greeted by a very nice young man there who acted as an all-purpose employee, from airport manager to line-man to hospitality chairman. He was also a pilot, looking for a flying break. We exchanged pleasant-ries, and one of his questions was how long had I owned the Cub. I suspect that he probably expected a reply along the lines of three or four years, but when I replied 45 years, his countenance changed

Harry Ballance and two interior shots of Judy.



measurably. My take was that he simply did not believe any-body could be aliveand still flyingwho had owned an airplane that long. Continu-ing northward, I crossed the mountains west of Chatta-nooga and made a refueling stop at Jasper, Tennessee. This is a nice little airport, but it is rather unique, in that one has to climb in circles to obtain sufficient altitude to clear the mountains that surround it. My third, and last, stop for the day was at Falls Creek Airport in Lebanon, Tennessee, where I visited my friends Steve and Brenda Sachs, and Judy got to spend the night in their hangar with Steves Stearman and OX-5-powered Waco 10. During the night some fierce storms swept the area, and Judy and I were both happy that she was in a secure hangar.

I was off early the next morning to Bowling Green, followed by Hancock/Lewisport, Kentucky. Shortly after takeoff from Hancock/Lewisport we crossed the Ohio River. Th ere is, to me, when fl ying this type of airplane, a feeling of something positive about crossing the Ohio River. Either going to my destination or returning home, it seems as though I

have made signifi cant progress on my trip. We con-tinued along to Sullivan, Indiana, crossed the Wa-bash River, and then fl ew on to Danville, Illinois. At Danville I encountered two more Cubs, one a Leg-end and the other a beautifully restored J-3 that had just landed. Th ey had come from Fort Payne, Ala-bama. We met a man from the local EAA chapter, Bill Wicker, who arranged for all three Cubs to be hangared that night. Th e guys from Alabama were better prepared for roughing it, in that they had a chase vehicle in the form of a high-end motor home that drove along the way with them. I spent the night in a local Marriott.

Flying Judy in present day and in 1967 (below).


Saturday morning I was off to Kankakee, Illinois, then Campbell Airport just north of Chicago. After a relatively quick turn at both places, I made my way to Hartford, Wisconsin, the intended gathering place for the Cub mass arrival the next morning. Th e gathering of Cubs at Hartford was most impressive. I saw one with a three-cylinder Lenape Papoose engine. Later, at Oshkosh, it was on display with yet another one. I was told that there were only fi ve of them made, and it was interesting to see two of them represented here. Th e Cub Club did a nice job of organizing the as-semblage. Th ey also held a nice supper and presenta-tion afterward. Th e Cub that had fl own the greatest distance was from Oregon, the oldest pilot was 87, and he had also owned the airplane since 1945. It is kind of hard to compete with those numbers. I retired early, in that the fl ying to Oshkosh was supposed to begin at 6:00 the next morning.

I sure did not want to oversleep and miss the big event. Fat chance of that. At shortly before 5:00 there were a few Gators that roared around the camping area and eff ectively awakened most people. Th e lack of time to do what had to be done before I left Hart-ford was somewhat daunting. I had to strike my tent, pack my stuff , load it all in Judy, and be ready to leave at 6:00. Somehow, I managed, as did nearly everyone else there. We were assigned a number, mine being 72, and we took off in that sequence; one airplane be-ing cleared for takeoff as soon as the one preceding

it was established in its climb. Th e object was to keep the airplane in front of you in sight, which, since we were all J-3s, was doable.

I just followed the airplane in front of me, through the dreaded Fisk Arrival, et al. Since I was just following someone, and I did not have to worry about somebody fl ying a Cherokee blindly overtak-ing me, the arrival was pretty simple. We landed to the north, with a 7-knot crosswind right out of the west. While this is okay for a Cub, 90 degrees at 7 knots is pretty limiting for other more skit-tish taildraggers. I suppose that ATC just did not understand this, as there was an east/west runway available. Th e parking was well-organized, and when I parked in my row, I was amazed at how many yel-low Cubs had come to Oshkosh. I was later told that some 150, perhaps more, had been counted. One of the most impressive things I have ever seen in my life was the row upon row of mostly yellow Cubs. Words simply cannot do the sight justice.

Th e entire trip took me four easy days, with groundspeeds being as low as 48 mph to a high of 65 mph. It was 11 legs and 14.6 hours. Returning to Peach State, I managed to do it in seven legs and 11.6 hours. Bear in mind that it is not the destination but the journey. Was the trip fun? A resounding YES. Am I glad I did it? Again, a resounding YES. Would I fl y Judy to Oshkosh again next year? I will probably opt to ride in Rons DC-3.




Fleet Fun

CHRIS MILLER



Stan Sweikars Storied Silver Age Champion

Take Two!This 1929 Fleet Model 2 is an

irresistibly attractive little bi-planeeye candy, if you will. Its radiance arises from deep within its lustrous fabric skin, and this Kinner-powered beauty playfully exudes a friendly spirit of Fly me, Im fun! Th e more you really study its features, the more youll un-derstand that the Fleets natural aura of simplicity belies the very thoughtful and methodical com-ponent designs that comprise its strong aerobatic structure. In fact, its amazing how far ahead of its time it wasand it had numer-ous patents to prove it. All those qualities have beguiled numer-ous pilots into caring for the little biplane for decades. In this case, Stan Sweikar of Wingfi eld Farm in Dameron, Maryland, has lavished NC431K (s/n 154) with singular loving devotion.

Sparky Barnes Sargent



A Storied HistoryNC431K was manufactured

in August 1929 by Consolidated Aircraft Corporation of Buffalo, Ne w York , for F leet A ircraft Incorporated under Approved Type Certificate 131. Eighty-four years later, its one of only 31 Model 2 Fleets listed on the FAA Registry, an airworthy survivor of slightly more than the 200 that were manufac-tured. Sweikars Fleet was fi rst pur-chased by the Cleveland Institute of Aviation. It used it as a training air-craft and owned it until 1934, when it began flying from one owner to another, primarily in the Midwest. Th en in 1948, recounted Sweikar, Henry Lillybeck, whom I met at Brodhead years ago, bought it. He towed it from Chicago to Denver, on its gear, behind his car. He re-built the airplane and got involved in a flat spin with it. NC431K has the original configuration of the small tail, and these airplanes are known to go into flat spins. If you

look at other Fleets, youll see that most of them have been modified with a larger vertical stabilizer.

In 1958, John Richardson of Illinois became caretaker of the Fleet until 1972. His wife, Joan, won a womens aerobatic champion-ship in this plane, recalled Sweikar. Then Buck Hilbert, past presi-dent of the EAA Antique/Classic Division, bought it. He had it re-covered with Razorback fi berglass in June 1973. It looked pretty nice in its Tennessee red with beige wings, but it was heavy. Th en author and pi-lot Richard Bach bought it in April 1975; he put the yellow on it. This Fleet is the one that was featured in his book Illusions. In February 1981, Bach sold it to Bert Mahon at Justin Time Airport in Texas. That airport closed, and the airplane was sold to Newhouse Flying Service in Illinois in 1984. It still had Bachs logo, Great American Flying Circus, on it.

Th e Fleet entered Sweikars care in October 1986, when he bought

it from Newhouse. Th e metalwork was kind of ragged, said Sweikar, an A&P, so I went ahead and redid that and brought it to Oshkosh in 1987, and we won Silver Age. I was coming back to Oshkosh in 1988 and had an eng ine failure near Fredericksburg, Virginia. I had to put it in a tree line on the edge of a swampthe wings got wiped out, but I was fi ne and so were the fuse-lage, prop, and tail group.

Sweikar and his friends disman-tled the biplane and hauled it home, where it evolved into a 24-year res-toration project. (About midway through the restoration, Sweikars project was featured in the August 1998 issue of Sport Aviation .) During all those years, he diverted much of his attention to running his own Chesapeake Seaplanes op-eration and restoring his Cessna 195 during the nonfl ying seasons.

WingsOne of the most intensive and

Results of the crash in 1987.

Far left: Theremains of the

lower wing panels after

the crash.

The new stringers are installed.

Stan Sweikar working on thewing fabric.

Johnny Cook applies the 24-karat gold leaf lettering.

PHOT

OS C

OURT

ESY

STAN

SW

EIKA

R



tedious aspects of the Fleets re-bir th was the ex tensive wing reconstruction. Sweikar made phe-nolic guides per the airfoil section drawings, and then went to a lo-cal shop that had a pr ess brake and pressed the rib caps out. We annealed the 2024 T-3 metal first and then formed the ribs, elabo-rated Sweikar. After making the rib caps, I had to assemble the up-per and lower caps into completed ribs. But think about itback in

the 1920s, most people just used Duralumin for fairings, not struc-tural applicationsso the Fleet design was ahead of its time.

Sweikar then acid etched, alo-dined, and epoxy primed all the ribs. Rightfully proud of his atten-tion to even the smallest details, he invited the author to look inside the wings. Th e interior is as good as the exterior, said Sweikar. If you come over here, you can see the fittings for the wing strut, he proclaimed, popping an inspection plate off the lower side of the lower wing, which

also revealed a beautiful spar that was simply gleaming from three coats of epoxy varnish. All the wing fi ttings were glass-bead blasted and cadmium plated and then painted with silver polyurethane.

Those new spars came fr om Wicks Aircraft, and with a chuckle, Sweikar said, Th e upper one is 28 inches long, and its one piece, lami-nated. Th ey said they used up every clamp in the surrounding counties just for clamping pressure.

The wings also have new lead-ing edges. They are rolled 2024

Did You Know? The loop joint of the landing gear is so designed that there is no sudden change in section, eliminating the possibility of fatigue failure.

The engine mount, having a patented three-point support for the mounting ring, is designed to eliminate all internal stress due to welding shrinkage.

Excerpted from Aviation, May 18, 1929.

Unique Hinge Pin!A s ingle long hinge pin is provided for each aileron and is inserted through a hole in the wing end bow, engaging all hinges when they are in alignment. The end of the pin is bent, attened, and fastened to the tip bow by two screws.Excerpted from Aviation, May 18, 1929.

The neatly nished cockpit.

Gold leaf design nished.

PHOT

OS A

NDY

ZAB

ACK

ANDY ZABACKCHRIS MILLER



CHRIS MILLER

Sandy and Stan Sweikar are happy to be ying in their Fleet again.

SPAR

KY B

ARN

ES S

ARG

ENT



aluminum leading edges, which are challenging to make, he said. Gar Williams, a master restorer in the Midwest, suggested that I go to Wag-Aero because they have an 8-inch roll. So I contacted Wag-Aero and gave them a go-no-go gauge, and they rolled the leading edges for me. The 8-inch sections were then fl ush riveted together, so you cant see where the joints are.

When it eventually came time to install the wings, there were plenty of folks lending a helping hand, in-cluding Mike Roe, Mike Myers, John Eney, Ed Stewart, and Ken Reed.

FuselageSweikar also enlisted Mike Roes

sheet metal expertise on the lower cowling, the center sections trail-ing edge, and the wingtip bows. Mikes a really neat guy, shared Sweikar, and hes just fabulous with metalwork.

A new fuel tank was built during an earlier phase of the project, and Sweikar himself made a new fire-wall, the fi rewall fuselage coaming, and a new headrest fairing. The rest of the sheet metal is original

to the airplane, including the cock-pit coaming and nosebowl, which have the airplanes serial number stamped on them.

While sandblasting the fuselage, Sweikar said he gave a heavy sigh when he discovered some internal corrosion in the tubing: In fact, it started blasting right through the lower longerons, so I wound up re-placing a large portion of them, as well as the tail post.

He followed those repairs with epoxy zinc chromate primer on the fuselage and tail group and then painted them with black polyure-thane. A nice touch inside the cock-pits was the addition of half a dozen triangular wood panels, installed to guard against knees and elbows in-advertently poking the fabric.

Other tasks included varnish-ing the new fuselage stringers, re-placing the fore and aft cockpit f loorboards, and installing new hardware and stainless-steel rudder cables. The new strap-style brass hinges for the rudder and elevator were patterned after the originals, and Sweikar learned how to com-plete a fi ve-tuck Navy splice for at-

taching the new cables on the cast aluminum rudder horn. It wasnt too hard to learn, but then Im also a yachtsman, and basically wire ca-bles are the same as marine line, he said. The cable strands are needle sharp, so you have to be very care-ful and even use sewing thimbles to protect your fi ngertips. Once you know how to go about it, it doesnt take that long. Its just a little time-consuming putting the servingthe cotton wrappingon, and then varnishing the serving.

Landing GearSweikars Fleet originally had a

tail skid and balloon tires, but it has been updated due to a dearth of replacement parts and his desire to be able to fl y the airplane from paved or grass fields. So NC431K has been outfitted with PT-19 wheels and standard tubes, and Hayes hydraulic brakes with Scott master cylinders.

According to Sweikar, those parts are still available new-old-stock WWII surplus, and they work out really well. The Fleet also has spring-oil shock absorbers, which

I look around, and Im older,but the airplane is younger!

Stan Sweikar, owner, pilot, and restorer CHRIS MILLER



was pretty new back in the 1920s. You land on oil and taxi on springs, and its a good system.

Engine and PropThe Fleet was originally pow-

ered by a 100-hp Kinner K-5, but it was converted to a 125-hp B-54 in 1953. Th e B-54 is really the op-timum engine for the airplane, shared Sweikar, and I used copper tubing for the fuel lines, with brass fittingsthats how it was origi-nally. Th e engine was overhauled by Brad Ball in California and is run-ning beautifully. Th e stacks are nice and clean, and its not consuming any oil, which is a real tribute to Brad. This engine has not burned a quart of oil in 74 hours and has not leaked whatsoeverits almost eerie, because its like what Bach wrote about in his book Illusions.

To enhance safety and ease of op-eration, Sweikar installed a Bendix Eclipse Y-150 electric starter for the Kinner, along with an Odyssey battery. He also installed a Fahlin propeller (98-inch diameter, 51-inch pitch), but while f lying it to Oshkosh, discovered that it wasnt the optimum prop for this air-plane. I talked to Sensenich, and the optimum prop is 90-inch diam-eter and 67-inch pitch. So Im not really cruising that fast in the Fleet right now, only about 75 mph. It should be cruising around 85 to 90 mph with no problem, so Ill be changing the propeller soon. Ive ordered a new Sensenich 90-inch-diameter, 67-inch-pitch propeller.

Fabric CoveringSweikars experience re-covering

his 1946 Taylorcraft BCS12D-4-85 f loatplane came in handy while working on the Fleet . And he added a personal touch just be-fore beginning the covering pro-cess; he and his wife and daughter

signed the main spar of the upper wing with the latitude and longi-tude of Wingfield Airstripjust to provide the next restorer with a bit of history. Then he used the blanket method to cover the Fleets 28-foot top wing, commencing the process by rolling a 72-inch-wide bolt of Ceconite 101 down the en-tire length of the wing. (Yes, it took quite a bit of shop space.) Back in 1929, the fabric was attached to the ribs by using a type of sheet metal screw, but Sweikar used wide-head fabric rivets instead. Th ey have a lower profi le than the screws, which have a tendency to loosen up with time, he explained. And I then used dollar patches over the rivets, just like they did

back in 1929; they didnt run fin-ishing tapes completely across the ribs back then.

He did have to extend his paint booth in order to accommodate painting the 28-foot upper wing. I used a regular old high-pressure Binks spray gun and probably wasted a lot of paint , he said, shrugging, but Im not in the busi-ness of restoring airplanes! That Binks equipment really works nice. I sprayed 14 cross coatsand a cross coat is actually two coatsso thats 28 coats. After about the fourth cross coat, I be gan wet sanding the Randolph butyr-ate dope with 400 grit paper, and sanding required approximately seven hours per side on the upper wing alone. Its just a labor of love; its a hobby with me.

Fine Finishing DetailsSweikars wife, Sandy, a talented

seamstress and pilot, created some rather complex leather covers to protect the fuselage fabric from rudder cable wear and also for stra-tegic locations atop the horizontal stabilizer. Contact cement enabled the leather covers to bond easily to the fabric surface. She also used her commercial-grade sewing ma-chine and invoked her ingenuity and experiences sewing marine canvas in order to professionally fashion all of the interior leather work, as well as the all- weather cockpit, engine, and prop covers.

Optional windscreens were originally available for the cock-pits, and Sweikar opted to retain the ones that came with the air-plane when he boug ht it. Each windscreen was originally com-prised of three flat panels; today a wraparound piece of Plexiglas is installed instead. Dzus fasteners facilitate easy removal in case he wants to use a sheet metal cover

1929 Fleet Model 2Manufacturers Speci cations

Length 20 feet 9 inches

Height 7 feet 10 inches

Wingspan 28 feet

Chord 3 feet 9 inches

Airfoil Clark Y expandedto 15 percent

Gap (at C.S.) 54 inches

Stagger 23 inches

Angle of incidence 0 degrees

Dihedral upper 0 degrees

Dihedral lower 4 degrees

Landing gear tread 64 inches

Weight empty 1,022 pounds

Disposable load 560 pounds

Gross weight 1,582 pounds

High speed 113.5 mph

Cruise 90 mph

Minimum speed 40 mph

Climb at sea level 930 fpm

Ceiling 16,000 feet

Gas capacity 24 gallons

Price $5,500

(Derived from Aviation, May 18, 1929, and Aircraft Records.)



for the front cockpit.When Bach owned the biplane

in the 1970s, he put the Great American Flying Circus logo on it, said Sweikar. He also used that on the Travel Air biplanes in the movie Nothing by Chance, where they barn-stormed the Midwest. So I decided to put that logo back on the Fleet, with gold leaf. Johnny Cook, a local artist, did the work; he put a stencil on the fi nished fabric and then ap-plied something like varnish over that. When it got tacky, he laid on the 24-karat gold leaf with a fine, fl uff y brush, and he did a great job. Th eres no protective coating on top of that, and it will not tarnish.

Flight Controls and Flying T he F leet has s ing le land-

ing wires and dual f lying wires, which Sweikar replaced with new MacWhyte wires, including the ter-minal end fork fi ttings, clevis pins, and bolts. For those who might be unfamiliar with the difference between landing and flying wires, Sweikar offered a simple explana-tion: On landing, the wings want to droopso the landing wires help support the wings, and the flying wires keep the wings from folding up in fl ight.

Th e ailerons (lower wing only) are constructed of wood with aluminum leading edges. Th e articulating push-pull control system for the ailerons is just one of the Fleets patented com-ponents. It was very advanced for the time, with no protrusions from the wing, and its really a smooth operating system, said Sweikar. The dual throttle control also has a push-pull rod system, which is routed through both cockpits. The trim system is comprised of a jack-screw, which elevates or lowers the cambered horizontal stabilizer and is activated by manually pulling a cable back and forth in the cockpit.

The instrument panels and in-struments, while not original, are more or less period, according to Sweikar, with the exception of the radio and ignition switch for the electric starter. The modern en-hancements do make a diff erence in empty weight; this Fleet was nearly 170 pounds lighter when it came out of the factory in 1929 than it is today. It did gain some weight, shared Sweikar, but it does have a diff erent engine, hydraulic brakes, a Scott tail wheel, a starter, a battery, and lots of dope. So it all adds up, but it doesnt really hinder the over-all performance.

Describing the Fleet s range, Sweikar smiled and proffered this: Well, in two hours you want to get out of the airplane! Th e Kinner burns around 9 gph, so it does have a good two hours, plus reserve. It fl ies like a Cub with two wings. Itll fl y hands off , but its neutrally sta-bleit doesnt have positive stabil-ity for pitch or roll. When you pitch down, itll just keep going, so you have to be on top of it.

Sweikar hardly looks at the air-

speed indicator while making his three-point landings, but he said the Fleet is supposed to stall around 40 mph, so he keeps his approach speed around 60 mph. The air-speed bleeds off pretty fast, just like all biplanes, said Sweikar. So I use power-off approaches, and it han-dles just fine. My first f light after this restoration was July 1, 2012.

Take Two!Sweikar, smiling and reflecting

about his long-awaited milestone of having the Fleet back at Oshkosh, thoughtfully remarked, Its like a reunion in a way. Its almost like a fl ashback of 1987, but 25 years have lapsed since then. I look around, and Im older, but the airplane is younger! Hopefully itll be a family keeper for a while.

More than three decades ago, Richard Bach wrote the following in his book Illusions: Th e Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah, which featured NC431K: You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it true. You may have to work for it, however. Th at concept became a timeless message that tumbled and swirled through the prop wash of time until gen-tly falling into Sweikars hands and taking form in his workshop. For you see, thats just what happened: Sweikar was given a wish after his 1987 crash, and he worked dili-gently until he fulfi lled the wish to have his award-winning Fleet air-borne again.

And his lengthy restoration ef-forts were also rewarded, in part, by once again receiving the Silver Age (1928 to 1936) Champion Bronze Lindy during E AA AirVenture Oshkosh. To date, the Great American Flying Circus Fleet has logged close to 2,000 hours aloftand will likely log thousands more in the coming years.

Outside Loops!T h e F l e e t ea s i l y a cq u i re d a reputation for i t s s t rong construction and aerobatic capabilities. In July 1930, stunt pilot Paul Mantz climbed in his Fleet Model 2 in San Mateo, California, and proceeded to set a record of 46 consecutive outside loops. His record stood for nearly half a century.

Juptners U.S. Civil Aircraft, Volume 2 and other aviation resources

ANDY

ZAB

ACK


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*Photo provided by Howard E. Thurston



I was headed to Valle Airport, Ari-zona, in the re-mote desert north of Flagstaff in late February 2012 to fl y a 1929 Ford Tri-Motor.

About halfway to the Grand Canyon, truly in the middle of no-where, there is a highway inter-section with three motels, one gas station, and an airport. At the air-port one building is the Arizona branch of the Planes of Fame Air Museum, and the other is where I

was supposed to meet Bryan God-love, chief pilot, designated ex-aminer, and guts of an operation called FordTypeRatings.com.

It was late when I got to Valle. I was met by three friendly, smiling folks: Larry, the mechanic, Bryan Godlove, and Thad Kelly (soon to be my instructor).

We set up shop in the conference room of the terminal building and got the preliminaries, paperwork, and introductions out of the way. I was dog-tired and they took mercy on me, suggesting we begin train-ing fi rst thing the next morning.

Early the next day, I learned that this is a big plane. All elevator and rudder controls are mounted external to the fuselage by huge arms and cables big as hangmans ropes. Big but fairly simple, the

walk around the air plane is straightforward. But everything is located way up in the air. The plane had suffered left wing-tip damage, the repair of which squared off the wingtip.

A form of r udimentar y tai l wheel steering is provided by two huge bungee cords attached to the rudder. Otherwise, directional con-trol on the ground is differential braking and engine thrust.

Three Pratt & Whitney R-985 450-hp radial engines power the Tri-Motor. There are 355 gallons of fuel onboard in three tanks lo-cated between the front and rear wing spars near the center of the aircraft, all of which drain into a common fuel manifold. One note of caution: Avoid signifi cant nose-down attitudes below 90 gallons

Earning my Ford Tri-Motor ratingDonis B. HamiltonEAA Lifetime#234279

Vint age Lifetime # 19053

Youre Going to Do What Where?

God- walk around the airplane is


of fuel, or you will un-port the fuel lines and starve the engines.

After a quick lunch, Thad and I crawled into the cockpit. Starting the engines warm is easy; starting cold is another matter. The drill is to start the front engine first (only one with an alternator). Af-ter six seconds of prime, engage the starter for six blades. Switch the magnetos on and keep priming for three-second bursts every four or fi ve blades. Cold usually results in belches and backfires, so a fire-guard is required.

Taxiing the Tri-Motor is not dif-fi cult, but the sheer size and iner-tia of the airplane make for some awkward moments. Use all three throttles to get the plane r oll-ing, then retard the two outboard throttles leaving the center engine to pull you along, more or less in a straight line. Turning requires

the addition of power on the out-board engine and a jab or two at the inboard brake. Once turning, you use power on the inside engine and perhaps a stab of the outside brake to stop. Lots of inertia and weightplan ahead.

The controls on this airplane are large and require a long travel. The elevator, for example, is a full arms length in throw: nose down to nose up. The rudders move about 24 inches. Th e aileronsoh boy, the ai-leronstake one-and-a-half turns on the wheel each direction. Th ats a lot of movement; gentleness or sub-tlety really dont work well.

During run-up the movement of the prop hub is clearly visible and seems to take a long time, espe-cially if cold. Th ere is no feather.

Line up more or less on the cen-terline. Hold the brakes with the elevator full aft. Run the engines

up to 18 inches and check the en-gine instruments located on the engine pylons outside of the fu-selage. Full power and the control wheel pushed all the way forward gets the tail up in the air quickly. The wing blanks the tail when on the ground.

Lightly loaded, the Tri-Motoraccelerated rapidly and sailed right up to rotation at 80 mph. It seemed to require an awful lot of rudder travel to keep the airplane tracking straight. With liftoff at 80 mph, we continued to 90 mph for the climb.

Air work consisted of 90-, 180-, and 360-degree turns with 30 de-grees of bank in both directions. Turns are done with rudder fi rst, sometimes lots of r udder, fol-lowed by the ailerons. Left turns require a pretty healthy back pres-sure almost immediately. Remem-ber the squared-off left wingtip?




Turns to the right dont require back pressure until about 30 or 40 de-grees into the turn. Now, folks, when you roll that old heifer into a 60-degree banked turn it requires lots of rudder and one heck of a pull. Th e plane is not mean; it is just big and the controls are un-boosted. So raw muscle is required.

After steep turns, we jumped right into the stall series. Stalls in this airplane are really very gentle and straightfor-ward with no tendency to drop a wing or have a sharp break. Approach sta l l s are per for med by easing the power off and holding altitude by

the addition of elevator until the wheel is com-pletely in your chest. A t t h e s t a l l t h e a i r -plane simply develops a higher rate of sink and the nose mushes down, nodding over every once in a while. Relaxation of back pressure and adding power started the plane flying immediately. De-parture stalls are done with slight banked turns and 15 inches of power. Same feel. It is a really docile stalling airplane.

Following stalls, we did engine-out proce-dures. This is where the men are separated from the boys. The airplane demonstrated no mean tendencies, but oh lord,

Hamilton with Thad Kelly.

Cover for a promotional Ford Tri-motor brochure.

With Brian Godlove.



it took one hell of a push on the rudder. According to the opera-tions manual, it is approved proce-dure for the pilot to use both feet on the rudder, and I would have used both except that I couldnt get my long le gs and big f eet around the control pedestal. If the strength goes, there are only two options: Get the fi rst offi cers feet on the rudder or pull the power on the good outboard engine.

Th e loss of an engine drill is the 2/5/2 Procedure. Th e fi rst two is to advance all controls to METO power, and obtain directional con-trol with approximately 5 degrees bank into the good engine and the ball not more than one-half out of the cage.

Next comes the fi ve. After iden-tifying the bad engine, you secure the engine: power off , props to full course pitch, mixture to idle cutoff , mags off, fuel off. Remember the propeller doesnt feather. Th e fi nal two steps are to declare an emer-gency and immediately turn to the nearest airport or suitable landing area. This drill is performed each time that an engine loss is experi-enced or suspected.

After engine-out procedures in the air, we headed toward Wil-liams, Arizona, where we did our pattern work. With all engines running, the approach, at 90 mph indicated, is standard and unre-markable. The only thing the stu-

dent needs to remember is that this is a big airplane; the f lare and touchdown are started much higher than one would normally expect. The old bird was gentle to land, and as soon as the main wheels touched, forward elevator was applied to keep the tail up. When the first officer calls out 50 (mph indicated), a positive pull back on the wheel brings the tail down for the remainder of the rollout.

After a couple of takeoffs and landings, Thad started failing en-gines on departure. After a few one-engine-out approaches, Thad began failing the remaining out-board leaving only the center en-gine. With the center engine, the Tri-Motor is like a big Piper Cuba really big underpowered Cub. As soon as I lost the second engine, I declared, We are committed. There is no doubt about continu-ing any distance with only a single engine in the Ford Tri-Motor. Th e best rate of climb is 250 feet per minute down.

By the time we finished seven takeoff s and landings at Williams, it was getting late and time to re-turn back to Valle. I was completely physically and mentally exhausted.

T he nex t mor ning d awned beautiful, bright and clear, and very cold. Thad and I agreed to meet early for a warm-up fl ight prior to the checkride. After pre-

fl ight and 30 minutes of grinding on those poor starters, we fi nally got all three engines running. Th ad reviewed some of the things I needed to improve on and issues he thought might come up during the checkride.

After the air work, we did pat-terns including balked landings and takeoff s. After the third land-ing, we taxied in, and T had an-nounced he was ready to sign me off for the checkride.

Th e oral was actually easy; virtu-ally everything had been discussed in the course of the preceding day and a half, and I had been provided with a list of likely questions with my orientation packet. Bryan and I soon got in the plane and took off for the air work. I thought ev-erything went very well except two slipups. On the steep turns, I did the fi rst one to the left. I ballooned about 100 feet high and had to work it back down to altitude. Th e second goof came in the pattern when Bryan called for an abort on takeoffI was concentrating so hard that I misinterpreted his sig-nals and was a little slow pulling off the throttles.

I may not deserve a Tri-Motor type rating, but I have it and Im not giving it back. Do you really need a reason to get a type rating in the Ford Tri-Motor? NawI love old airplanes, and the romance of the early airliners draws me.



. . . As if it came out of Tuts tomb

182

KOEPNICKPHOTOGRAPHY.COM

PHIL

HIG

H

Bernie Lewis has been as much a curator as pilot with his survivor C-182.



For sale: 1957 C-182, 2,625 hours

TTAF, 1,230 SMOH engine. Original

paint, interior and panel, only mi-

nor avionics upgrades. $XX,XXX.

Lets say you were looking for an airplane and you saw the ad above. What would you think? First, youd look at the engine time and say, I dont know. Its getting up there.

Then youd see that everything else on the airplanethe paint, up-holstery, and panelis the same as it had been when it came out of the factory 56 years ago, and noth-ing has been changed since. Fifty-six years measured in airplane time is a very long time. And 2,600 hours tells you the airplane hasnt been a hangar queen; a lot of rear ends have scooted across the seats while climbing in. Th ere have been a cou-ple dozen generations of avionics developed since the airplanes birth, and you know that, regardless of what the ad

va vol 41 no 2 mar apr 2013

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