|
 "A team of cyber-systems researchers, engineers,
optical specialists and roboticists at Zhejiang University, in China, has developed
a navigation system for quadcopter drones that gives them the ability to carry out
precise flight maneuvers autonomously. As reported in the journal Science Robotics,
the group developed a multi-pronged system that allows quadcopter drones to carry
out complex aerobatic maneuvers autonomously, in a safe manner, both indoors and
outdoors. It would be advantageous if drones were able to carry out tasks autonomously
without human intervention. It would allow for flying..."
 At
Tuskegee, Alabama, March 7, Colonel Frederick V. H. Kimble, U. S. A., pinned wings
on the blouses of five young Negro lieutenants, members of the first
graduating class of the Army's first Negro air school. Since last July they
had undergone all the primary and advanced training to which white Army cadets at
Randolph and Kelly fields are subject. Now they are charter members of the Air Force's
99th (all Negro) Pursuit Squadron, established last summer at a $2,000,000 airdrome
near Alabama's famed Tuskegee Institute and now developing into one of the Army's
biggest training bases...
 "Claimed
to be a world first, the demonstration took place at Swinhay House. A McMurtry Spéirling
PURE Validation Prototype 1 (VP1) was driven on to a custom-built platform which
then rotated 180 degrees to invert the stationary vehicle. Relying on the huge 'Downforce
on Demand' created by twin 23,000 RPM fans on the car's undercarriage, the Spéirling
remained firmly attached to the platform and was driven a few feet forward before
the rig rotated it back to ground. 'This demonstration was an exciting proof-of-concept
using a small purpose-built rig, but is perhaps just the beginning of what's possible.
With a longer inverted track or a suitable tunnel, we may be able to drive..."
 Balsa wood was a special thing to me as
a kid. To me, it represented the essence of model airplanes and model rockets. At
the time - the 1960s and 70s - plastic and foam as model components were considered
a sign of cheapness, low quality, amateurishness. It was like having "Made in Japan"
stamped on it. Now, of course, it's a different world where Japan is renowned for
some of the highest quality electronics and cars and the plastic and foam ARFs represent
some of the highest-performing aircraft at the flying field. I have owned a few
of those foamies, but still, at least for my tastes, nothing beats the look, feel
and aroma of balsa. Somehow the tell-tale surface texture of foam, even with a nice
paint job, ruins the authenticity of an otherwise beautifully factory-finished scale
F4-U Corsair or P-38 Lightning. Sorry, that's just the way it is. Sig Manufacturing
was...
 When this
Trans World Airline (TWA) advertisement appeared in the April 29, 1950, issue
of The Saturday Evening Post magazine , the airline industry was transitioning from
relying on amphibious aircraft for long-distance overseas flights to using land-based
planes. These new aircraft, like the 300-mph Skyliners mentioned in the ad, offered
increased speed and comfort, revolutionizing air travel and making it more accessible
to the general public. TWA capitalized on this newfound ability to fly customers
quickly and comfortably to destinations across the U.S. and around the world, emphasizing
the potential for adventure and leisure even within the constraints of a typical
two-week vacation...
 An
April 1942 issue of Life magazine, just four months into WWII, carried
this full-page advertisement celebrating the
Lockheed P-38 Lightning, a revolutionary fighter aircraft hailed as the world'
s fastest - nearing the speed of sound - with unmatched maneuverability, outclassing
enemy planes in combat. Built by Lockheed for the U.S. Army and British RAF, the
P-38 embodied American ingenuity and freedom, flown by daring pilots defending democracy.
The ad positions the Lightning as a symbol of U.S. air supremacy, critical to Allied
victory in WWII, while promoting Lockheed's role in advancing aviation for both
wartime protection and postwar progress. The closing tagline, "Look to Lockheed
for Leadership," reinforces the company's wartime prestige and vision for the future...
 Some of the adventure stories in Flying
Aces magazine were practically full-length novels. The May 1934 issue included
one of Donald Keyhoe's pieces entitled, "Death
Flies the Equator," featuring intrepid G-2 agent, Dick Knight, and his sidekick,
Lothario Doyle, who team up to pit good against evil across the globe. The notorious
"Four Faces" cabal fixed on achieving world domination are a constant challenge
for the wits and wile of our heroic pair. Dick Knight supplies the brunt of required
brainwork while ex-Marine Doyle breaks bones and faces when needed. Both are accomplished
airborne dogfighters, avigators (archaic term for aviator / navigator), and mechanics.
Many of these stories involve fantastic weapons and deception devices, sabotage,
moles, traitors, and incredible feats of flying. They really are "page-turners,"
and the only things that keeps me from reading straight through is wanting to be
able to spread the entertainment across t
 Flettner rotors were at one time believed
to be the next big thing in air-driven propulsion. They would replace cloth sails
on boats and fixed wings on aeroplanes. I remember seeing such fantastic contraptions
in magazines like Mechanix Illustrated and Popular Mechanics back
in the 1960's and 1970's. The nouveau sails and wings were actually built on experimental
vehicles which can be found in a Google search on Flettner rotor. They operate on
the Magnus effect, which is where a lifting force is generated by a spinning sphere
or cylinder moving through the air (or water, or any fluid), thereby causing an
unequal pressure to build on opposite sides. I had a Magnus rotor kite as a kid
in the late 1960's that was made of thin, molded plastic...
 Without
a doubt, Germany has in the past far overestimated its ability to conquer the world
by leveraging its undeniable history of innovation and determination. A success
in the Franco-Prussian War gave it a sense of superiority and invincibility. WWI
and WWII were lost primarily due to the
blitzkrieg strategy later failing to overwhelm and subdue the enemy in short
order, causing protracted wars and diminishing resources from within its domain.
If Germany had instead exploited its technical prowess in world markets, it might
have been an economic superpower today. The native population was/is brilliant.
Today, Germany's leaders are, in acts of self-flagellation and penance...
 During the late 1930s, commercial air transportation
experienced a significant boom, largely fueled by the introduction of the Douglas
DC-3 in 1935. This aircraft, widely recognized for its efficiency and reliability,
revolutionized air travel, making it more accessible and popular than ever before.
The rapid growth of this sector placed an
unprecedented
demand on air traffic control services, as exemplified by the busy operations
at Newark, the world's most active airport at the time. The article from the 1938
issue of Boys' Life magazine further illustrates this, detailing a trip
from Newark to Pittsburgh, where Air Traffic Control, managed by the Bureau of Air
Commerce, played a critical role in ensuring the safe and orderly movement of a
burgeoning number of flights, underscoring the vita...
 In
this October 1964 issue of Radio-Electronics magazine, editor Hugo Gernsback
writes about the historic feat on July 31 of that year, where NASA lunar probe Ranger 7's
RCA-designed television cameras successfully transmitted the
first close-up televised pictures of the moon's surface to Earth after six previous
failed attempts. The unmanned spacecraft traveled 240,000 miles through space over
68 hours to capture 4,316 still images with its six high-resolution cameras. These
images provided crucial information for future manned lunar explorations, revealing
that the dust layer on the moon's surface is likely only 2 to 12 inches deep, and
showing small craters down to sizes of three feet. The success of Ranger 7
marked a significant advancement in lunar exploration technology, paving the way
for further unmanned missions and eventual manned expeditions to the moon...
 Imagine if your path to flying an R/C helicopter
involved first designing, then building, and then troubleshooting the contraption.
That was the burden of pioneers. We have people like
S.S.P. Helicopter
designer Gene Rock to thank for being able to enjoy the state-of-the-art models
that are available today. This article from the August 1972 edition of American
Aircraft Modeler magazine describes the process of machining all the metal
parts for an Enya .45-powered craft. Mr. Rock even designed a very successful mechanical
gyro for keeping the tail under control. If you have ever tried flying an R/C heli
without any type of gyro (I have, on a DuBro Tristar), you will fully appreciate
what a pleasure it is to not have to manually counter torque changes (throttle)
with tail rotor stick input from the transmitter. Around 2008 I bought a Blade MCX2
coaxial rotor helicopter for flying inside, and the gyro is so good on that thing
that you can put it in a full speed pirouette...
 In 1946, Popular Science magazine
highlighted the
burgeoning
potential of helicopters, detailing their versatility and the innovative ways
people envisioned using them, from hunting expeditions and aerial orchestras to
funeral services. The article underscored the helicopter's unique capabilities,
such as vertical take-off and landing, and its proven utility during World War II
in diverse environments. Commercial helicopters were on the cusp of becoming available,
with initial deliveries set to start that year, though primarily for business and
government use due to high costs and complexities in operation. The piece also discussed
the challenges faced by manufacturers, including mechanical complexities like torque
and the need for mass production to reduce costs...
 If
you do a lot of overseas air travel for work (or any other reason), this
en route time map from a 1950 issue of The Saturday Evening Post
magazine might give you a bit of cheering up. Compare the length of time in the
air back during the day of propeller-driven airliners versus what you typically
experience today. United Aircraft published that a trip from New York to London
took 12-½ hours (with favorable winds). The same flight today takes around 7-½ hours,
a 40% reduction. From Seattle to Tokyo was 28-½ hours, and is now 10-½ hours, for
a 63% reduction! Those shorter flight times are due to both faster jet-powered airplanes
and an ability to climb to and cruise at altitudes where jet stream winds are highly
additive. Of course having to endure 10-½ hours crammed into a narrow seat with
the back of the front...
 "Like a bumblebee flitting from flower to
flower, a new insect-inspired flying robot created by engineers at the University
of California, Berkeley, can hover, change trajectory and even hit small targets.
Less than 1 centimeter in diameter, the device weighs only 21 milligrams, making
it the world's smallest wireless robot capable of controlled flight. For a robot
to fly, it must be equipped with a power source, like a battery, and electronics
for flight control, both of which can be challenging to integrate into very small,
lightweight devices. To overcome this issue, Lin and the UC Berkeley team used an
external magnetic field to power the device and control the flight path. The robot
is shaped like a small propeller and includes two small magnets..."
 Being very far-sighted, having a modern
alarm clock next to the bed with large LED numbers is a great convenience for seeing
the time at night. However, I have always hated the electronic alarm sound and neither
do I want music since it tends to put me back to sleep. The old fashioned wind-up
mechanical alarm clocks did the job quite handily, and I missed having such a clock
after many decades of doing without. So, I decided to look for a Peanuts-themed
clock from the 1960s or 70s. This
Snoop alarm clock came up
for bid on eBay, and I picked it up for under $10, probably because the seller said
it did not work. He was correct that it didn't work in its selling condition. However,
I disassembled...
 In this November 1940 issue of the Boy Scouts
Boys' Life magazine, amateur radio operators, or "hams," are described
as having the ability to communicate across vast distances, connecting far-flung
locations such as Goulds, Florida, Cali, Colombia, Cairo, Kenilworth, England, Bombay,
and Brisbane. These operators, licensed by the Federal Communications Commission,
engage in various activities such as talking to distant stations, participating
in contests, and providing emergency communication during natural disasters. With
call letters assigned by international treaty, these stations use a combination
of code and phone to make contact, exchanging reports and QSL cards. The
Radio merit badge
was first offered in 1918 and has been...
 The venerable
Cessna 150 first came
on the scene in 1958. Per Wikipedia, "The Cessna 150 is a two-seat tricycle gear
general aviation airplane, that was designed for flight training, touring and personal
use. The Cessna 150 is the fourth most produced civilian plane ever, with 23,839
aircraft produced. The Cessna 150 was offered for sale in the 150 basic model, Commuter,
Commuter II, Patroller and the aerobatic Aerobat models." The design has changed
considerably since 1958, with two of the most notable changes being the vertical
fin and the rear fuselage behind the cockpit. Note that a photo of the 1958 Cessna
150 is on the cover of this edition.
 LaGuardia Airport was dedicated on October
15, 1939 as the New York Municipal Airport, and opened for business on December
2 of that year. It was built on the site of the old Gala Amusement Park at a cost
of $40 million. This aerial photograph shown here was taken within a couple months
of when LaGuardia first opened since this "Airports:
Biggest and Busiest" article appeared in the March 1940 issue of Boys' Life
magazine. The recent Google map satellite view is below the page scan, and I superimposed
the 1940 runways and taxiways on top of it for comparison. You can see where expansions
were built into the water to accommodate longer runways...
 Long before rechargeable nickel-cadmium
(NiCad) and nickel-metal-hydride (NiMH) batteries were used for starting model airplane
engines, we used standard primary type (non-rechargeable) 1.5-volt dry cells. In
fact, the nominal 1.2-volt-per-cell potential of NiCad and NiMH batteries were barely
high enough to sufficiently light the ignition coils in the glow heads and/or glow
plugs, which were designed for 1.5 volts. Today's glow plugs work just fine on 1.2 V
or 1.5 V. I have written before about how as a kid on a very small modeling
budget, I would often spend a long time flipping the propeller of my
Cox .049 engines while using a single,
worn-out D-cell battery (usually "borrowed" from my father's only flashlight). One
Christmas my parents got me a field kit that included a can of 25% nitro Cox fuel,
a glow head clip...
 During World War I, the United States spent
$1,500,000,000 on military aviation, resulting in the development of various
advanced aircraft designs. This 1937 issue of Flying Aces magazine
mentions a few of them. This was 19 years after the armistice. Although these planes
did not see combat due to the war ending sooner than expected, they showcased American
ingenuity and engineering prowess. Notable examples include the L.W.F.G.2, which
had a top speed of 130 mph and carried seven guns; the Loening monoplane, which
was the fastest two-seater fighter at the time with a speed of 146 mph; and the
Curtiss single-seater fighter, capable of reaching 160 mph. These aircraft laid
the foundation for modern American military aviation...
 While looking through some old issues of
American Aircraft Modeler magazine, I was quite surprised to find that
none other than radio great
Paul Harvey is (or
was) a builder and flyer of radio controlled airplanes. There was a feature article
done by Paul Harvey in one of the issues in the 1974 timeframe. Mr. Harvey then
wrote a regular column titled "Paul Harvey Views." Understandably, the column only
ran for a few months - probably because of his extremely busy schedule. This one
is from the December 1974 edition...
 "In August last
year Nokia and Axiom Space announced they were working to equip the latter's next-generation
lunar
spacesuits with 4G/LTE connectivity for the for NASA's Artemis III mission to
the moon. The idea is that arming the new spacesuit, called Axiom Extravehicular
Mobility Unit (AxEMU), with high-speed cellular-network capabilities means it can
support HD video, telemetry data and voice transmission over multiple kilometers
on the moon. This means the Artemis III crewmembers will then be able to capture
real-time video and communications..."
 Being
a long-time fan of John T. Frye's "Carl & Jerry" technodrama™ series, I
have been intending to attempt a contemporary version which has a Ham radio theme.
Its purpose, as with "Carl & Jerry," is to encourage young people to adopt electronics
as a hobby and even as a career, while using Amateur Radio as an enticement. Ham
radio offers practical experience in electronic theory, fabrication, and operation
in an environment that encourages community service, mentorship, camaraderie, and
self discipline. In the U.S., there are approximately 760,000 licensed amateur radio
operators; worldwide, the estimated number is around 3,000,000. The American Radio
Relay League (ARRL) and the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) track these
statistics. This title of the series is, for now anyway, "Calvin &
Phineas Hamming It Up," and the first adventure is called, "The Phantom QRM."
Call signs are fictitious, chosen to hopefully not step on someone's real call sign.
The boys' names derive from my grandson's name...
|
 One of the first woodworking projects I remember
doing after Melanie and I were married and in our own house was making a
paper towel
holder out of some scrap pieces of oak flooring. The wood was in the basement
of the house, probably from when it was originally installed sometime in the 1950s.
A few pieces were glued together along their tongue and groove edges, and then scraped
and sanded to a smooth, flat surface. The bottom curved relief shape was retained
for character. At some point during our many household moves, the paper towel holder
disappeared - we probably donated it as with ...
 Here is the full set of building instructions
for the beautiful 1970s era
Airtronics Aquila sailplane. A fairly compressive building description was published
in the May 1975 issue of R/C Modeler magazine when the Aquila first appeared,
but these are much more extensive. Aquila kits have not been manufactured for many
years, and some of the ones that appear on eBay are missing the instruction booklet,
so now you can access a copy of the original in its entirety. Photos of the kit
parts and plans can be seen on my main Airtronics Aquila page. You can also see
the 105% Aquila I built from enlarged plans.
 In 1961 when this
Citizen−Ship LT−3 Relayless Receiver promotion appeared in American Modeler
magazine, transistorized circuits were a relatively new thing. Many people were
dubious of the newfangled technology and were leery of the dependability of them.
It didn't take long for the convenience of low weight, small size, higher functionality,
and no need for bulky and heavy high voltage batteries to sway even the most hard
cord tubeist (a word I just made up) toward adopting the format. Even so, the state
of the art had a long way to go to get anywhere close to today's micro- and nano-sized
receivers and servos, with capabilities and reliability levels only dreamed of in
1961. The escapement mechanism featured was powered by a twisted rubber band. A
pulse of current from the receiver caused the control arms to rotate a quarter turn
when a small solenoid released the escapement tab. So, although the receiver itself
was "relayless," the escapement still had one (a relay is a solenoid with make/break
electrical contacts)...
 This week's puzzle features words and clues,
marked with an asterisk (*), regarding a momentous event which took place this week
on
December 17, 1903. As with my hundreds of previous engineering
and science-themed crossword puzzles, this one contains only clues and terms associated
with engineering, science, physical, astronomy, mathematics, chemistry, etc., which
I have built up over nearly two decades. Many new words and company names have been
added that had not even been created when I started in the year 2002. You will never
find a word taxing your knowledge of a numbnut soap opera star or the name of some
obscure village in the Andes mountains. You might, however, encounter...
 In the 1930s, Flying Aces magazine
ran a series highlighting aviation pioneers and heros called "They Had What It Takes."
The March 1937 issue featured
Wiley
Post. He was famous for being the first man to circumnavigate the globe alone,
but what really set him apart from other trail blazers was his having only one good
eye. Mr. Post lost use of his left eye due to a metal shaving being thrown
into it during a drilling procedure. He used the workman's compensation award to
buy a Curtiss Jenney biplane, thus beginning his flying career. The FAA will issue
special waivers for what is termed "monocular vision," when the corrected visual
acuity in the worst eye is less than 20/200. Stereo vision (stereopsis) is considered
lost at that point, but stereo vision is only effective a distances up to about
100 feet, so long distance depth perception is a matter of familiarity with how
objects of known size would appear at various distances...
 Believe it or not, there was a day when
building your own electronics was a good way to save money if your budget was smaller
than your appetite for R/C systems, radios, even TV sets. Heathkit comes to mind
for all us old-timers as a source of pre-kitted products, but like most electronics
companies of yore, they no longer offer kits; it is much cheaper to have complete
systems built overseas. Besides, modern components - resistors, capacitors, ICs,
etc., are far too small for most people to work with successfully. Here is a two-part
article from the April and May 1972 editions of American Aircraft Modeler
magazine showing how it was done with a custom 2-channel digital proportional radio
control system dubbed the
AAM Commander. It
still makes a good read because of the theory of operation that is covered...
 Steve Swinamer, a dweller of the northern
climes of Canada, has a lot of days suited for building model airplanes. He uses
the wintertime indoors days to create magnificent reproductions of vintage .020-
and .049-powered designs. His latest creation is a ½A
Ace Simple Citabria, which
compliments other planes in his squadron like the
Quarter Pint,
the Ace Whizard, and the
Ace Pacer. Thanks again to Steve for making his work available
for inspection ...
 It is hard to imagine how pilots managed
to find their way through fog, rain, sleet, and snow prior to the advent of instruments
that could indicate whether the airplane was flying straight and level or spiraling
toward the ground. Some flyers were good enough in most situations to sense attitude
even without an outside-the-cockpit visual clue. However, it is entirely possible
to enter into a situation where your senses cannot possibly tell the difference
between normal flight and a life threatening scenario. Albert Einstein's General
Theory of Relativity tells us that without knowing otherwise, there is no discernable
difference between gravity and physical acceleration. Therefore, a pilot in solid
Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) conditions where he cannot see the
sky or ground could very well mistake ...
 QST is the official publication
of the Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL), the world's oldest and largest organization
for Ham radio enthusiasts. Many amateur radio operators also have an interest in
astronomy and as such, occasionally articles appear covering topics on amateur radio
astronomy. There are also quite a few articles dealing indirectly with aspects of
astronomy such as Earth-Moon-Earth (EME) communications where signals are bounced
off the moon's surface in order to facilitate transmission (although it is really
more of a hobby achievement). The October 2012 edition of QST had an article
entitled, "Those Mysterious
Signals," which discusses galactic noise in the 10-meter band. Arch Doty (W7ACD)
writes about the low-level background noise that is persistent in the high frequency
(HF) bands. At HF, Cygnus A and Cassiopeia A are major sources of cosmic
noise, for example. Low level signals come from pulsars, quasars, black holes, and
other remote objects that were created during the early formation of our universe.
However, the strongest background noise emanates from the center of the Milky Way
galaxy with a source that is a mere 27,000 years old...
 Ah, 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...
 Being a lover of vintage electronics and
aircraft modeling equipment, I had the bright idea that I would buy a vintage Packard
Bell desktop computer like I had many moons ago and transplant the innards of my
ASUS G750JX Republic of Gamers (RoG) notebook computer into it. After carefully
measuring the notebook computer's outside dimensions and estimating the size of
the various models of PB computers, I settled on a
Packard Bell Legend 406CD and bought it from a guy on eBay. I
wanted the type that actually sits on the desktop, with the monitor sitting on top
of it. The computer arrived as advertised - dirty but in good mechanical condition,
and cleanable. Having never opened the ASUS G750JX ...
 The middle of the last century was a time
ripe with
opportunities
for people with a penchant for innovation, experimentation, designing, and building
high technology products. Aviation, aerospace, land and sea transportation, medicine,
manufacturing, chemistry, physics, astronomy, communications, electronics, mechanics,
nuclear technology, remote exploration of space and the sea, and many other realms
were pushing forward the frontiers of knowledge (or pushing back the frontiers of
ignorance, depending on your viewpoint) at an incredible rate. Both trade and hobby
magazines often featured articles encouraging participation as technicians and engineers
in a field related to hobby interests (Ham radio, model airplanes, boats, and cars,
etc.). Air Trails magazine ran many such pieces, including this 1954 example...
 For
as long as I can remember, The Old Farmer's Almanac (OFA) has included a set of
Mathematical Puzzles in its annual publication. They range in
difficulty from 1 (very easy) to 5 (sometimes quite difficult). Having been a faithful
buyer and reader of the OFA for as long as I can remember, I have spent many hours
toiling with some of the more challenging examples. In fact, there were a lot which
I never did figure out and needed to look up the answers in the back (come to think
of it, I experienced the same dilemma with my college engineering textbooks). Because
quite a few of the Mathematical Puzzles are worthy of an engineer's cerebration,
contemplation, and deliberation, they will all be eventually posted here...
 You might expect this "Flying
Broomstick" article to be about one of the many novelty witch-on-a-broomstick
models that typically appear in September or October issues of model airplane magazines,
but in this case it is simply a contest-worthy Class C rubber free flight job.
The fuselage has a slight resemblance to an old wooden broomstick, but the similarity
pretty much stops there. The hollow tubular fuselage made of rolled 1/16"' balsa
holds 18 strands of rubber. Semi-elliptical shaped wings with a gull type dihedral
give it unique look. Per designer / builder Kukuvich, "Flights of 2 min., 30 sec.,
are common in "dead air" and are accomplished without the help of risers..."
 An Airplanes and Rockets website visitor
asked me to make good on my offer to scan articles of interest to visitors - in
this case one from the 1973 edition of American Aircraft Modeler magazine.
Titled, "Uncle
Sam's Plastic Air Force," it details the ambitious project the military undertook
to provide visual aids to servicemen to help them identify enemy aircraft and, equally
as important, to identify friendly aircraft. This private collection of World War II
plastic identification airplane models is owned by the estate of a former Lt. Commander
in the U.S. Navy who was a Class of 1953 U.S. Naval Academy graduate...
 Just 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?
 This "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...
 On August 26, 2013, Melanie and I toured
the inside of this Consolidated PBY-5A Canso
(PBY-5 is the Catalina) while it was on display at the Erie International Airport.
It was on tour by a crew from Canada, which is appropriate since it was this particular
airplane was manufactured in Canada in 1944 by the Vickers company. World War II
ended before it could ever see combat reconnaissance duty. The PBY-5A has a wingspan
of 104 feet 0 inches and is powered by a pair of 1200 horsepower Pratt & Whitney
R-1830-92 Twin Wasp radial engines. Top speed is 179 mph. It sported six .303 Vickers
machine guns and could carry up to 2000 pounds of bombs and depth charges. Hopefully,
these photos will be of use to scale model researchers...
 Lightweight
lithium
ion polymer (Li-Poly) batteries have made a huge impact on the performance,
and subsequently the acceptance of electric systems as a replacement for the traditional
nitromethane (nitro) and gasoline power systems in model airplanes and helicopters.
Their energy density (Wh/kg is the most common unit of measure), combined with the
relatively new and extremely powerful brushless motors, electric power systems are
rivaling the internal combustion systems in terms of both energy and duration. Development
of both the brushless motors and the advanced battery technologies has been, both
officially and unofficially, a joint venture between government and civilian research
and development efforts. If you keep up with the news headlines for NASA, defense
contractors, green energy researchers, and similar organizations, you have witnessed
the plethora of new vehicles that have been built tested, and in may cased deployed
in the field. These range from micro air vehicles that carry surveillance equipment
for the military, to hybrid and fully electric passenger vehicles, vastly improved...
 Here is yet another of Walter M. Jefferies,
Jr.'s inked masterpieces as it appeared in the July 1954 issue of Air Trails
- Hobbies for Young Men magazine. This 4-view drawing of the experimental
Douglas XF4D−1
Skyray reveals many details of airframe components, fuselage cross-sections,
and panel lines. Per Wikipedia: The Douglas F4D Skyray (later redesignated F-6 Skyray)
is an American carrier-based fighter/interceptor built by the Douglas Aircraft Company.
Although it was in service for a relatively short time (1956–1964) and never entered
combat, it was the first carrier-launched aircraft to hold the world's absolute
speed record, at 752.943 mph, and was the first United States Navy and United States
Marine Corps fighter that could exceed Mach 1 in level flight. It was the last fighter
produced by the Douglas Aircraft Company before...
 Eighty years ago - or for that matter just
twenty-five years ago - it was commonplace for magazine editors to print a "Merry Christmas" message to its readers. Thanks to a host of agitator
individuals and groups, doing so would likely trigger the snowflake gene and cause
a flood of complaints from the offended (often times otherwise uninterested people
who look for good organizations to corrupt). Editorial boards, unnecessarily desperate
to avoid the appearance of racism, sexism, xenophobia, homophobia, and any form
of conjured up defamatory label, usually cave to pressure and change the very nature
of the publication in order to comply with demands. The longtime supporters and
actual readers are made to suffer and have their interests subdued in the process.
Good people rarely stand up ... |
