- Welcome to the Airplanes & Rockets Website -
"Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible." Lord Kelvin, 1895

Model Aviation & Aerospace Headline News

Tech Industry Headlines - RF Cafe- Archives -

• Smithsonian Opens Hangar Doors to Pilots

• Reno Air Racing Association 60th Anniversary Airshow

• Alaska Airlines Deals with Boeing MAX 9 Fallout

• 10 All-Time Great Pilots

• PSA Extends $200,000 Recruitment Bonus

• Large Aircraft Automation Studied

• Airlines Vie for Military Pilots

• 2023 Triple Tree Aerodrome Fly-In

• Strangeness of the Holly Hill S. Carolina Aircraft Ban

 Sitemap  |  Homepage Archive

Jets Hit the Deck for U. S. Navy

How New Jets Hit the Deck for U. S. Navy, June 1948 Popular Science - Airplanes and RocketsWorld War II had only been over three years when the U.S. Navy began jet fighter operations from aircraft carriers. Angled decks had not even entered service when the North American FJ-1 Fury jet fighters made the first takeoffs and landing on the straight−deck USS Boxer. The USS Forrestal, our first angled deck carrier, was commissioned in 1951. This story appeared in a 1948 issue of Popular Science magazine. Note the huge clock on deck which was photographed upon being triggered by the airplane hooking an arrestor line, so that a precise lending time would be recorded. The way the picture is taken, it looks like a perspective trick to make a small clock look much larger than it actually was. I like the fact that Lt. Comdr. Robert Elder took a wave−off on a first approach in order to give his skipper, Comdr. Evan (Pete) Aurand the honor of the first−ever jet aircraft landing at sea. Nowadays, computers routinely fly jet−powered drones off of and onto carrier decks...

View-Master: Tour Theatre Projector & Viewer (Repair & Refurbishment)

Supermodel Melanie, View-Master: Tour Theatre Projector & Viewer (Repair & Refurbishment) - Airplanes and RocketsHere is Melanie with her gaf View−Master "Tour Theatre" set that she had as a little girl. She took better care of her stuff than I did, so a lot of her toys and dolls are still around decades later. It came with a Standard 30−watt projector and a hand−held stereo viewer. Also included was a nice case and a few reel sets with various places around the world*. Being a Peanuts fan like me, she had a couple 3−reel sets: "Snoopy and the Red Baron," and Peanuts." We have a "Little Drummer Boy" and "Dennis the Menace" set, too. The others are long gone. I had just a hand−held viewer. See my space program reel sets. The hand−held View−Master viewer that created a 3D scene by using a pair of stereoscopic images fed individually to each eye. One of the Peanuts reels has a frame showing how those stereoscopic images were created using two cameras set up a distance apart so that each had a slightly different perspective on the subject, just as your eyes have. There are 14 frames in each reel, so using two frames per 3D scene, that makes 7 scenes per reel. Replacement 7-14-scene reel selector lever installed on mechanism. Home-brew 7-14-scene reel selector lever. 6-32 bolt is soldered to steel lever, and then the head ground down to provide needed clearance. 7-14-scene reel selector mechanism. Side view of projector reel advance mechanism. Westinghouse RVR115, 120V, 30W light bulb for View−Master Standard projector. The projector, on the other hand, cannot create a 3D image on the screen (or wall). Therefore, a standard 3D reel only has 7 unique scenes on it. Special reels were sold for the projector that had 14 unique scenes on it. As such, the projector designers provided a lever to be positioned for either a 7-scene or a 14-scene reel. We discovered that the lever was missing...

Russia Avangard Hypersonic Glide Vehicle

Russia Avangard Hypersonic Glide Vehicle - RF CafeA lot has been in the news recently about Russia's new hypersonic glide vehicle capable of delivering nuclear (and conventional) warheads across the globe at over than Mach 20 (14,822 mph) in the atmosphere. That's 4.1 miles per second. From a 150 mile high apogee, that's less than 40 seconds from space to target. Not even a high power laser can stop that. The great circle path from Siberia to San Francisco is 5,900 miles, for a flight time of less than a minute after launch phase. Moscow to D.C., (4,900 miles) takes a little less time. Here is a recent interview with Putin on Russia's state of the union regarding social, economic, and military issues - including hypersonic weapons. Oh, and they're not fixing their low birth rate by importing felons, psycho patients and cannibals from the third World. Interestingly, he addresses the rampant embezzlement schemes that U.S. defense contractors and their management perpetrate. Sure, a lot is propaganda, but so is what comes out of Washington.

First German Helicopter Championships

First German Helicopter Championships, March 1969 American Aircraft Modeler - Airplanes and Rockets$25 R/C helicopters are available from Amazon that climb and turn on demand (kinda). For under $60 you get a fully controllable model with counter-rotating rotors that anyone can fly like a pro in after an hour or two of practice. Double that amount and a 3-D-capable, ready-to-fly helicopter is available to you, complete with a spread spectrum radio, gyro stabilization, a brushless motor, and Li-Poly batteries... with a computerized charger. Engineers have labored endlessly to bring this state of the art technology to all corners of the world. It was not that way all so long ago. To wit, take a look at this article from the March 1969 edition of American Aircraft Modeler magazine, that reported on Germany's first ever R/C helicopter competition that was held in the fall of 1968. There were no kits (let alone RFTs), no special heli engines, no gyroscopes, no carbon fiber blades, to "how-to" manuals, not even any reserved frequencies for the newly arrived proportional radio control systems. All helicopters there were designed and built from scratch, and no two looked alike; large number or unique color schemes were not necessary to keep track of a cookie-cutter production craft...

How to Make Scale-Model Planes for Government Use

How to Make Scale-Model Planes for Government Use, May 1942 Popular Science - Airplanes and RocketsWith the entry of the United States into World War II came the need for service members to be trained on many new technologies - among them being airplanes and the ability to identify them quickly. Electronics technicians and airframe and powerplant mechanics were in need, of course, but everyone had to be able to tell friend from foe when airplanes were approaching. In order to assist the war effort, a call went out to civilians to begin producing thousands of models at a 1:72 scale so that at 35 feet away they appeared in size to be that of a full-scale version at about half a mile. Detailed paint jobs were not required - only that the profile from all angles look exactly like the real thing. In fact, the models were painted flat black so as to look like a distant airplane against the background sky. Both Allied and Axis airplane models were needed so that soldiers and sailors could quickly spot a potential danger and decide whether to take cover and prepare to fight, or to continue with business as usual. This article appeared in the May 1942 edition of Popular Science, meaning that it was probably written sometime around February, only a few months after the Japanese attacked our naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941...

A Day in the Life of a Hobby Dealer

A Day in the Life of a Hobby Dealer (November 1962 American Modeler) - Airplanes and RocketsIt's a good bet that many modelers, myself included, have dreamed about owning a hobby shop. How nice it would be to spend our days amongst walls, shelves, and display cases filled with every type of modeling kit and accessory. Melanie and I actually looked into buying one when we lived in Colorado Springs in the early 1990s. It's a good thing we didn't in retrospect, given the way the local hobby shop (LHS) has suffered tremendously since Internet-based purchases have become so popular - especially being tax-free in most areas. There are still big hobby shops left, but they are few and far between. I'm as guilty as the next guy for not doing more to support my LHS, but usually it's for convenience sake more so than price and not paying sales tax. This article from the November 1962 edition of American Modeler magazine, a time when local hobby shops were still the rule rather than the exception, is a humorous "day in the life of a hobby dealer." You can just imagine how plausible the scenario might be...

Planes Race Past Speed of Sound

Planes Race Past Sound; Bump in Floor Shows How, June 1948 Popular Science - Airplanes and RocketsChuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in his Bell X−1 (aka Glamorous Glennis) airplane on October 14, 1947, over the Mojave Desert. Control reversal in the transonic realm (transitioning from subsonic to supersonic speeds) is a phenomenon caused, per most authoritative sources, from the pressure wavefront around the aircraft transitioning from entirely in front of the airplane to some point aft of any leading portion of the airframe. That includes the fuselage nose, and wings and empennage leading edges. Airflow can transition from laminar to turbulent at various distances, thereby altering the aerodynamic forces on the fixed and moving portions of the surfaces. Control reversal can also occur due to control surface deflection causing a twist in the fixed surface which opposes the input intention. Britain's Spitfire exhibited such behavior in high speed dives, and even the human-powered Gossamer Condor reportedly had control reversal due to a flimsy airframe structure to the extent that the solution was to reverse the direction of aileron deflection in order to obtain a proper response. Supersonic airframes are rigid enough to mitigate the flexure problem...

Most Airplane Accidents Happen During Landing

Most Airplane Accidents Happen During Landing - Airplanes and Rockets"Statista's Martin Armstrong reports that data from the airline umbrella organization IATA shows that 53% of all aviation accidents that occurred between 2005 and 2023 happened during the landing process. Landing is a complex process during which pilots have to keep a particularly close eye on instruments, radio traffic and environmental influences. Accidents during takeoff are in second place, although they only account for 8.5% of accidents. This is followed by accidents during the landing approach, during the initial climb or during the cruise flight. The data relates to flights operated by IATA members, which together account for around 94% of all international flights. Despite the increasing volume of headlines, aviation has, overall, become increasingly safer in recent decades. In 2022, for example, only 43 accidents occurred out of 27.7 million flights, resulting in the deaths of 158 people. Most air accidents take place in Africa, South America and the Middle East. After North Asia and North America, Europe is one of the safest regions with the fewest accidents..."

My Red Ryder BB Gun

My Red Ryder BB Gun (as seen in A Christmas Story) - Airplanes and RocketsA Christmas Story has long been one of my favorite Christmas movies. A Charlie Brown Christmas is my favorite animated movie, and It's a Wonderful Life gets the #1 spot for a film, but this runs a very close second. It first aired around Christmas of 1983, so I was 25 at the time - a bit old for Christmas movies you might say... but you'd be wrong. Every year between Thanksgiving and Christmas, Melanie and I watch those three movies, plus Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and A Christmas Carol (the original with Alastair Sim). A Christmas Story was adopted from a story that Jean Shepherd read on his radio show on WOR, in New York, on December 25, 1972. A friend of mine who lived there at the time happened to record the original broadcast on his reel-to-reel tape deck, and a couple years ago he sent me a copy on CD. The movie, of course, expounds on the story, but in this case it adds a lot. Jean Shepard narrates in the background of the movie as Ralphie remembering his childhood...

Thermal-G R/C Club Fly-In, Summer 2010

Thermal-G R/C Club Fly-In, Summer 2010 - Airplanes and RocketsThe Thermal-G R/C Club held its annual summer fly-in on August 15, 2010, at the Erie Tech Center. The day was sunny (a little too warm for me) and quite windy. Because of the wind, most models were grounded, but a few brave souls did some flying, including quite a bit of 3-D stuff. I always get nervous seeing that stuff done so close to the pit area - especially in high wind - but at least up to the point that Melanie and I left, there had been no incidents. Also present were members of the Bean Hill Flyers control line club. Here are a few pictures I took of the flight line...

Airframe & Powerplant (A&P) Mechanic Sample Test

Airframe & Powerplant (A&P) Mechanic Sample Test, March 1967 American Modeler - Airplanes and RocketsThis "Test Your Knowledge" feature appeared in the March 1967 issue of American Modeler magazine, immediately following the "Wanted: A & P Mechanics - Part II" article (I do not yet have Part I). Way back in my younger day during the time I was taking flying lessons and thought a career in flying was the only reasonable path for me, I planned to earn a Airframe & Powerplant (A&P) license. Destiny had other plans, since when I signed up for the Delayed Enlistment program with the U.S. Air Force, no aircraft engine mechanic positions were open, and I ended up in electronics, working on air traffic control radar maintenance (fixing and aligning, not as an air traffic controller). As you can see from the test, a masterful grasp on the theory of engine operation and maintenance was (and still is) required. Back in those days, only the most qualified people were selected to do the job - lives and fortunes depended on it. Today, one of the biggest advantages you can have for getting an aircraft mechanic job is not being a white male of European descent...

Pouring and Covering with Microfilm

Pouring and Covering with Microfilm, February 1971 American Aircraft Modeler - Airplanes and RocketsEven though I have never attempted to build a model covered with microfilm, it is easy to appreciate what a delicate task properly preparing the solution, covering the frame, and handling the delicate airframe is, along with the precision handling required to obtain the correct film thickness and coverage. There have probably been improvements in microfilm solutions and airframe materials and gluing techniques, but ultimately you need to form the film on the wing, tail, and propeller surfaces. This 1971 American Aircraft Modeler magazine article should still be useful for contemporary indoor flyers...

"NASA Spinoff" Technology Transfer Program

NASA Technology Transfer Program - RF CafeEver since the manned space exploration programs began at NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration), controversy over both the financial costs and the cost in lost opportunity for other government funded programs has existed. Many people, myself included, have always championed the efforts and believe the axiom of the whole being greater than the sum of the parts applies to the efforts. Opponents say resources would be better spent here on Earth. In fact, we have always done both. To address the issue, NASA Spinoff was created to publicize the byproducts of the space program that benefit other areas of research, manufacturing, and society. Since at least the 1970s, NASA has published a monthly magazine entitled NASA Tech Briefs to inform the public on their activities, inviting readers to submit ideas and to request information on how to apply NASA research to commercial applications. I have been a regular reader since around 1980...

Lucile M. Wright Air Museum and Planetarium

Lucile M. Wright Air Museum and Planetarium, Jamestown, New York - Airplanes and RocketsJust before Christmas 2015, Melanie and I made a trip to Jamestown, New York, and visited Lucile M. Wright Air Museum (no relation to Wilbur and Orville). Is it located in downtown Jamestown at 300 North Main Street. There are plenty of areas with unmetered parking, so save yourself a couple quarters by driving a block or two to find it. Admission is free. "Lucile Miller Wright was a pioneer aviatrix. She was born in Beatrice, Nebraska and grew up in Billings, Montana. She discovered her love of flying as a young woman. In 1922 she went on her first flight with General Billy Mitchell, who was a personal friend of her father, Henry A. Miller. Mrs. Wright continually battled discrimination in pursuit of her passion...Throughout her career, Mrs. Wright logged 8,000 hours of flying time in the seven planes she owned and 5,000,000 miles in commercial aircraft. During World War II, she was the only woman courier plot in Western New York under the Civil Air Patrol Program..."

Rockets Carry the Mail

Rockets Carry the Mail, June 1948 Popular Science - Airplanes and RocketsIs that Vern Estes in that foxhole preparing to push the launch button? Probably not, but the materials and methods used here in this 1948 issue of Popular Science magazine by amateur rocketeers are a big part of the motivation Mr. Estes had for starting his eponymously named model rocket company in 1958. To wit: "Rocket is driven by 35 pounds of micro grain powder, mostly zinc dust and sulphur, which burns out in four seconds. It climbs to 4,000 feet and reaches speed of more than 400 m.p.h." Handling the explosive and sometimes unstable chemicals required for the rocket engines was extremely dangerous, and resulted in many instances of loss of fingers and eyes, severe burns, and even death. The safety record of Estes engines is borne out by more than sixty years of continuous production. If they were not nearly perfectly safe, lawyers would have put Estes out of business long ago. Even Olympic level stupid has not produced an event capable that anything other than the user's idiocy was responsible for an engine-related accident.

Dancer 1/2A Control Line Model Article & Plans

Dancer 1/2A Control Line Model Article & Plans, February 1971 American Aircraft Modeler - Airplanes and RocketsWebsite visitor Alan M. wrote to request that I scan this Dancer article from the February 1971 edition of American Aircraft Modeler magazine. The Dancer is a beginner's level control line trainer model for 1/2A power that is one of the many "For the Tenderfoot" series. Construction is all simple sheet balsa. Even back in the early 1970s millions of Cox .049 engines had already been produced, so they were readily available at a low price. The Dancer was designed and built by AMA Junior level modeler Dennis Haimerl. A unique feature of the Dancer is use of a leading edge slot to enhance lift and stall characteristics of the flat airfoil of the wing. Such devices are used on STOL (short take-off and landing) airplanes...

Norwegian Wind Energy Kitemill

Norwegian Wind Energy Kitemill - Airplanes and Rockets"Norwegian Wind Energy developer Kitemill has secured more than €2m of funding from Dutch investment entity Expanding Dreams. KiteMill secures E2m for wind energy 'Together with smaller investors and a tax relief grant, the combined package will cover the majority of planned activity for 2024,' according to the company. The company's technology generates power using a tethered glider, which initially launches itself using a small motor-driven propeller. When aloft, the glider pulls against its tether, unwinding it from a drum, whose rotation generates electrical power. Once at its furthest extent, the glider drops towards the drum, allowing the tether to be re-wound with little effort, after which the pull-rewind cycle repeats until the wind stops. Flying certain patterns allows the aircraft to maximize the energy generated during pulling, and the system spends 90% of its time generating power and 10% rewinding the tether, according to the company. 'With this influx of resources, we aim to expedite the development of our current model, KM1, and the forthcoming KM2. These models represent significant advancements in harnessing high-altitude wind..."

Wild Bill Netzeband's Control Line Capers

Wild Bill Netzeband's Control Line Capers (January/February 1963 American Modeler) - Airplanes and RocketsJust as originally intended, a lot of people have contacted me after seeing themselves, a friend, or a family member mentioned in one of these articles published in vintage American Modeler and American Aircraft Modeler magazines. Often, it came as the result of reporting on a modeling event, like the "Mid-America Stunt Championships" covered here in "Wild Bill Netzeband's Control Line Capers" column in the January / February 1963 issue of American Modeler magazine. Do a site-wide search of Airplanes and Rockets to see if your name appears somewhere. Also in the article is a report of Veco's new 35C and also on a game-changing monoline control handle for C/L racing. A comical "Things You Wouldn't Know" section is included to provide the "real" meaning of words used by modelers. Did you know that Bob Violett and Cliff Telford of R/C racing fame did C/L racing as well?

Whizzing on Fizz:- CO2−Powered Cars

Whizzing on Fizz: CO2-Powered Cars, February 1947 Popular Science - Airplanes and RocketsI don't know what aircraft engineers do during their lunch hour these days, but back in 1947 when this article appeared in Popular Science magazine, some of them raced CO2-powered model cars. They're a sort of Cub Scout Pinewood Derby cars on steroids. Split into light and heavy classes (7/8 ounce to 4-1/4 ounces), these aerodynamically shaped crates were carved from balsa blocks and rolled on metal or rubber wheels along a 240-foot string. It was the dawn of the jet age, so building competitive jet-powered models was a natural extension of the work many of them did as avocation / profession. I'm guessing there is more than one Ph.D. in that crowd, but there's a good chance the guy with the fastest car was a technician. BTW, although the venue at first glance appears to be a row of cubicles with their occupants leaning over the walls, cubicles were not a "thing" back in the day. Engineers and draftsmen at large firms typically sat in huge, open rooms filled with drafting tables and test equipment...

5th Annual R/C Soaring NATS

Fifth Annual R/C Soaring NATS (October 1974 American Aircraft Modeler) - Airplanes and RocketsIn 1974, I was flying some of my first R/C gliders - probably a Mark's Models Windward or maybe the Windfree (in that order). During that time, I tried hard to locate a group of sailplane flyers in my area around Mayo, Maryland, but to no avail. The nearest R/C flying field was about 30 miles away in Upper Marlboro, MD, where the PGRC club field used to be. My family's car was held together with chewing gum and bailing wire, so it wasn't often that I could talk my father into driving me out there, and the few times that he gave in to my whining, there were never any gliders present. When I would see articles like this one on the Fifth Annual R/C Soaring Nats in the October 1974 issue of American Aircraft Modeler magazine, my envy level would increase significantly both from the standpoint of way-cool models and R/C equipment (I had second-hand junk, purchased with newspaper route money), but also because of the people lucky enough to have access to such venues...

Ingenuity Blade Strike Ends Mars Mission

Ingenuity Blade Strike Ends Mars Mission - Airplanes and Rockets"The Ingenuity Mars Helicopter made its 72nd and final flight on 18 January. 'While the helicopter remains upright and in communication with ground controllers,' NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab said in a press release this afternoon, 'imagery of its Jan. 18 flight sent to Earth this week indicates one or more of its rotor blades sustained damage during landing, and it is no longer capable of flight.' That's what you're seeing in the picture above: the shadow of a broken tip of one of the helicopter's four two-foot long carbon fiber rotor blades. NASA is assuming that at least one blade struck the Martian surface during a 'rough landing,' and this is not the kind of damage that will allow the helicopter to get back into the air. Ingenuity's mission is over. NASA held a press conference earlier this evening to give as much information as they can about exactly what happened to Ingenuity, and what comes next. First, here's a summary from the press release: Ingenuity's team planned for the helicopter to make a short vertical flight..."

Ducted Fan Saab Draken 210 Free Flight Plane

Ducted Fan Saab Draken 210 Free Flight Scale Plane, Model Annual 1956 Air Trails - Airplanes and RocketsS.C. Smith's cover drawing for this 1956 issue of Air Trails magazine is an enhanced version of Wayne Schindler's ducted fan Saab Draken 210 free flight [semi] scale model airplane. Back in the day, there were no commercially available ducted fan units, so they needed to be designed and fabricated by the builder of the model. The computer optimized ducted fan units we have today are matched to the powerplant, which much more often that not is a brushless motor. I don't know if anyone makes a ducted fan for glow fuel engines anymore. This Saab Draken 210 used a Cox .049 Thermal Hopper glow engine, which was capable of turning 10,000 rpm. 1956 is the year Cox introduced the Babe Bee .049 was introduced, but might not have been available at the time. It could do 13,500 rpm on 15% nitro fuel, so could have added significant thrust to the ducted fan unit. The six-blade, three-inch diameter fan was not enclosed in a tightly fitting duct like modern fans are...

International Miniature Racing

International Miniature Racing, August 1962 American Modeler Magazine - Airplanes and RocketsAh, the simpler times when enjoyment, competition, and industry could be found on a slot car race track in a musty basement. Pre-fab models were rare in the day, and those that could be bought couldn't hold a candle to those hand crafted by young men like the ones in these photos. It was not a pastime only for the younger set, though. Older guys with metal lathes and fine crafting tools created museum quality masterpieces. This "International Miniature Racing" article from the August 1962 issue of American Modeler magazine reports on worldwide interest in slot car racing. I'm always amazed at how many men and boys wore sport coats and ties while participating not just in formal events, but even during everyday activities...

Missy DARA QM Article & Plans

Missy DARA QM Article & Plans, April 1974 American Aircraft Modeler - Airplanes and RocketsAirplanes and Rockets visitor Dave J. wrote to ask that I post this article on the Missy DARA (Dayton Air Racing Association ) quarter midget racer that appeared in the April 1974 edition of American Aircraft Modeler magazine. It is a scale knockoff of the full-scale Miss Dara Formula racer. I offer to do this for people at no charge as time permits. Also, I usually post a scan of the plans, but if you are going to build the model, I highly recommend buying a set from the AMA Plans Service if they are still available. Missy Dara plans do not appear to be available at this time. The AMA will scale the plans to any size you need, so you're not locked into the original wingspan. House of Balsa manufactured a Miss Dara kit back in the 1980s...

Low-Drag Rocket Design

Low-Drag Rocket Design, May 1968 American Aircraft Modeler - Airplanes and RocketsG. Harry Stine was (and in some places still is) a household word (ok, a letter and two words) amongst people who engage in model rocketry. As a degreed physicist, he spent his professional years working in both civilian and government aerospace projects. In his spare time, Mr. Stine contributed mightily to the science, industry, and sport of model rocketry. His monthly columns in American Aircraft Modeler magazine were read and appreciated by enthusiasts hungry for a regular helping of the technical side of the craft, served in layman's terms. A typical article written by him reports on some happenings in the trade show and contest realms, while including a lesson in model rocket design and flight...

Race Car Clinic: Mercedes Benz G.P.

Race Car Clinic: Mercedes Benz G.P., October 1961 American Modeler - Airplanes and RocketsNow here's a term I had never heard before: "desmodromic valve." I thought it was something that Cox made up by borrowing the "drom" part of Thimble Drome. Not so. According to Wikipedia, "In general mechanical terms, the word desmodromic is used to refer to mechanisms that have different controls for their actuation in different directions." It describes the type of valve used in the full-scale Mercedes-Benz W196 Racer. The Cox model uses their famous .049 glow fuel engine. There is an ocean of information available on Cox engines, cars, helicopters, boats, and airplanes. The Cox Mercedes-Benz W196 was a scale model of the real Formula One car that ran in many European Grand Prix races. The mechanical features were quite sophisticated, including a flywheel with integrates fan for cooling the engine, spring-loaded suspension, and an adjustable muffler for desired quietness/power tradeoff, and careful engineering to assure compatibility of hot metal parts against molded plastic. The Cox Mercedes-Benz Racer on occasionally shows up on eBay, but be prepared for a shock price tag compared to the original $20 back in 1961 when this article appeared in American Modeler magazine...

Rocket Trails: Boost Gliders: Winged "Birds"

Rocket Trails: Boost Gliders: Winged "Birds" (July/August 1963 American Modeler) - Airplanes and RocketsRocket-boosted gliders grew in popularity in the early 1960s and then seemed to ebb by the end of the decade. I'm not sure why. Maybe the rocketry purists drove a more timid Boost Glider (B/G) bunch into the background. I remember getting some pretty nice flight out of my Estes Falcon glider. This article from the 1963 March/April edition of American Modeler magazine mentions Vern Estes' efforts to foster the boost glider craze by modifying what I knew as the Gyroc to perform as a glider once the engine cartridge was ejected, rather than recover in its original form by creating a high drag profile via a rapid spin. Rockets, like free flight model airplanes, need a lot of open space if altitudes of more than a few hundred feet are planned. Sure, you can estimate the angle for the launch pad tin hopes of firing upwind enough to allow the rocket to be blown back near the launch location, but I can tell you from personal experience that just a model airplanes can be unexpectedly snatched by a passing thermal and carried away to the hinterlands, so too can a model rocket hanging on a parachute. In fact, since I grew up on the East Coast near Annapolis, Maryland, where large, open spaces are rare, I always configured my parachutes (small diameter or larger with hole in the middle) to bring the rocket back down ASAP. The problem with that is then you don't get to enjoy watching the rocket float down for very long...

The Beautiful Grumman Widgeon

Grumman Widgeon, March 1967 American Modeler - Airplanes and RocketsJust like with the old commercial jingle that went, "Everybody doesn't like something, but nobody doesn't like Sara Lee," I can pretty confidently substitute "seaplanes" for "Sara Lee." The Grumman Widgeon was one of many iterations of their twin engined amphibious airplanes that is immediately recognizable to most people over the age of 40. In fact, the Widgeon was the seaplane that appeared each week on the 1970s television show "Fantasy Island." It was "Ze plane! Ze plane!" that Tattoo would call out at the beginning of each episode. The Marh 1967 issue of American Aircraft Modeler magazine carried a nice article on the Grumman Widgeon's history, along with a fine set of 3-view drawings by Paul R. Matt...

Designing RC Helicopters

Designing RC Helicopters, March 1971 American Aircraft Modeler - Airplanes and RocketsJohn Burkam was one of the few true pioneers in free flight and particularly radio controlled model helicopters. His experiments date back into the 1940s. His rubber-powered Penni Helicopter appeared in the January 1970 issue of American Aircraft Modeler. Also, he covered the 1972 and 1974 helicopter Nationals competitions in American Aircraft Modeler. John was an engineer with the Boeing Company. His attention to detail and lack of fear in tackling design issue with numbers, graphs, and formulas is apparent in his work, although any type of design in previously unexplored or little explored areas of technology requires some degree of seat-of-the-pants guestimates. Both philosophies are present in this article. The "Super Susie" is powered by a Cox .049 Tee Dee engine, has four channels, and weighs in at around 2 pounds. That is pretty remarkable for early 1970s equipment. It's too bad someone doesn't produce an .049-powered R/C copter today...

1955 National Model Race Car Championships

1955 National Model Race Car Championships!, Model Annual 1956 Air Trails - Airplanes and RocketsIs that a way-cool-looking collection of fuel-powered model cars or what? They are fashioned after what full-size Indy (Indianapolis 500) race cars of the era looked like. To be a national champion in the model race race world back in the day (and to some extent today) required skill as a machinist with an excellent knowledge of mechanics, internal combustion engines, and metallurgy. A scan of photos of the winning cars makes that evident. There were no CNC (computer numerical control) milling machines or lathes; the operator made every cut but hand-cranking feeds and measuring lengths and diameters with calipers and dial indicators. Interest, too, is that the engines were started by pushing them with a stick that had the battery contacts for the glow plug at the end so the plug was lit by the stick. Note that these model race cars ran in a circle on a tether (wire or string), so the aerodynamics needed to keep the cars stable while constantly fighting the struggle between centripetal (center-seeking) and centrifugal (center fleeing) forces...

Dumas Pay'N Pak R/C Hydroplane

Dumas Pay'N Pak R/C Hydroplane - Airplanes and RocketsAround 1978, before entering the U.S. Air Force, I built a Dumas Pay'N Pak radio controlled hydroplane (modeled after the Pride of Pay'n Pak unlimited hydroplane). Sadly, this is the only known existing photograph of my Pay'N Pak unlimited hydroplane. As shown in the photo to the right, it is hanging in my room in the barracks at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia (c.1980). The cowling & rear airfoil assembly is not attached for some reason, so you can see the water-cooled engine, flywheel, part of the drive shaft, rudder assembly on the transom, and the plywood hatch over the radio compartment. Like most of my other R/C models, it sported a Futaba radio. Construction was not simple, as I remember it. Interlocking plywood bulkhead members formed the basic inner structure, and the plywood sheeting was epoxied on the bottom, sides, and top. Forming and holding all the compound curves while the epoxy cured without allowing a twist to be built in was a real challenge. The transom is the only totally flat piece on the entire craft. I coated the entire thing with fiberglass resin and managed to get a very smooth and shiny finish using an automotive lacquer paint (sprayed by my friend, Jerry Flynn). I cannot recall which engine I used, but it was a marine type with the water-cooled head. To start the beast, I used a piece of string about 1/8" in diameter, threaded it under the grooved flywheel, and gave it a tug...

Self-Eating Rocket Takes Big Bite of Space Industry

Self-Eating Rocket Takes Big Bite of Space Industry - Airplanes and Rockets"New developments on a nearly century-old concept for a 'self-eating' rocket engine capable of flight beyond the Earth's atmosphere could help the UK take a bigger bite of the space industry. University of Glasgow engineers have built and fired the first unsupported 'autophage' rocket engine which consumes parts of its own body for fuel. The design of the autophage engine - the name comes from the Latin word for 'self-eating' - has several potential advantages over conventional rocket designs. The engine works by using waste heat from combustion to sequentially melt its own plastic fuselage as it fires. The molten plastic is fed into the engine's combustion chamber as additional fuel to burn alongside its regular liquid propellants. This means that an autophage vehicle would require less propellant in onboard tanks, and the mass freed up could be allocated to payload instead. The consumption of the fuselage could also help avoid adding to the problem of space debris - discarded waste that orbits the Earth and could hamper future missions. Overall, the greater efficiency could help autophage rockets take a greater payload into space compared to a conventional rocket..."

Race Cars in Your Living Room

Race Cars in Your Living Room, January 1962, American Modeler - Airplanes and RocketsSurprisingly (or maybe not), electric slot car racing is still fairly popular amongst kids. I say surprisingly because with radio control electric cars being under $10 in some cases, it is a wonder that anyone these days wants anything that confines a car to a specific course or has to plug into the wall to work. Back in the 1950s and 1960s, slot car racing was very popular. I can remember even into the 1970s that some of the bigger hobby shops still had slot car tracks set up where you could rent time on the track for a buck or so an hour. If you didn't have your own car, you could rent one there. My good friend, Jerry Flynn, was a slot car aficionado and would lend me one of his spares. I think the hobby shop we went to was in either Bethesda or Rockville, Maryland. It was quite a drive from our neighborhood around Annapolis. While typing out these words I can remember the smell of the electrical arcing of the motor brushes heating the oil we put on the axels and motor bushings. Ah, those were the days...

Thrills of the Navy Test Pilots

Thrills of the Navy Test Pilots, August 1937 Popular Mechanics - Airplanes and RocketsWhen I think of a Navy (or Air Force, or Army, or Marine, or Coast Guard) test pilot, what comes to mind is a high powered fighter airplane, a bomber, or even maybe a helicopter, but the guys in this 1937 Popular Mechanics magazine article are proving cargo and personnel type seaplanes. Doing so might not be as glorious as the aforementioned types, but it is still no job for the weak of heart or slow of mind. The average lifetime of a test pilot is less than that of "regular" pilots because not only are new, untried concepts tested, but part of the wringing out procedure involves pushing the craft to its limits to determine whether the design goals were met, and to know what the placarded "never exceed" numbers should be. Many a test pilot perished during the final "10-G" stress tests of airplanes during World War I, which is quite a demand from what were usually stick and tissue (spruce and silk, actually) airframes...

C/L F4F-3 Grumman Wildcat Article & Plans

Control Liner F4F-3 Grumman Wildcat Article & Plans, May/June 1963 American Modeler - Airplanes and RocketsIn 1963, when this article was published in American Modeler magazine, it had only been 18 years since the end of World War II, where the Grumman F4F-3 Wildcat earned its place in the history books as the only fighter in the U.S. armed forces' inventory capable of taking on Japan's Zero fighter. None other than the inestimable Walter A. Musciano designed this 38" wingspan control line model fashioned after ace fighter pilot Joe Foss' Wildcat. It used a .29 size engine, but could easily be converted to electric power. Construction is very typical of the day: rugged and heavy, but durable. Some lightening effort is advised if using electric power...

NASA and Lockheed Martin Quiet Supersonic Aircraft

NASA and Lockheed Martin Quiet Supersonic Aircraft - Airplanes andRockets"NASA has unveiled an experimental quiet supersonic aircraft that it claims could pave the way for a new generation of commercial aircraft that can travel faster than the speed of sound. Developed in partnership with Lockheed Martin, the X-59 is the centerpiece of NASA's Quesst mission, which focuses on providing data to help regulators reconsider rules that prohibit commercial supersonic flight over land. For 50 years, the U.S. and other nations have prohibited such flights because of the disturbance caused by loud, startling sonic booms on the communities below. The X-59 is expected to fly at 1.4 times the speed of sound, or 925 mph while generating a quieter sonic thump. At 99.7 feet long and 29.5 feet wide, the aircraft's shape and the technological advancements it houses will make quiet supersonic flight possible. The X-59's thin, tapered nose accounts for almost a third of its length and will break up the shock waves that would ordinarily result in a supersonic aircraft causing a sonic boom...."

Fizz-Wizz CO2-Powered Model Airplane Article & Plans

Fizz-Wizz CO2-Powered Model Airplane Article & Plans, March 1962 American Modeler - Airplanes and RocketsCO2 power for model airplanes gained a lot of popularity in the 1950s and throughout the 1960s and then waned for some reason in the 1970s. The same trend was exhibited in Jetex type engines. CO2 engines run off a cylinder of compressed carbon dioxide gas, which were and still are readily available due to their use in air rifles and pistols. A metal tube feeds the top of the engine cylinder where a metal ball under pressure from the gas seals off the cylinder until the piston pushes up on it. When the port opens, gas pressure forces the piston down to the point where the gas is ejected at the exhaust port. Momentum from the propeller mass swings the piston back to the top of the cylinder where it once again opens the ball valve to start the cycle all over again. CO2 engines are very reliable and easy to start since no ignition is required; however, the power−to−weight ratio is fairly low. This 1962 American modeler magazine article presents plans, and building and flying instructions for the "Fizz−Wizz..."