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 Maybe it is because my first R/C model airplane
was a 1/2A Skylane, but I have always have a great admiration for
Carl Goldberg,
whose eponymously named company manufactured the kit. Sadly, both the man and his
company are gone now. Mr. Goldberg, whose biology can be found on the Academy
of Model Aeronautics (AMA) website, aptly summarizes his contributions in the following
statement, " 'Mr. Modeling,' title given by American Modeler magazine,
hailed by expert builders and beginners alike as 'Expert Designer.' Carl is typical
of the many designers who have come to the top from the rank of model builders and
flyers and herein represents a host of individuals with similar talents...
 "You'll soon be able to build your very own
International Space Station (ISS), and it won't take half as long as the real
version. Thanks to Lego's upcoming set you can own your own part of the iconic ISS.
The set is due to go on sale on February 1st and comprises of 864 pieces. It comes
complete with three cargo spacecraft, two astronaut minifigures, and a mini NASA
space shuttle. To celebrate its launch, Lego sent the mini ISS made out of Lego
bricks up to the stratosphere by using a giant weather balloon to 'get it as close
to the real ISS.' According to Lego, the team asked NASA experts to approve of the
design of the plastic brick set..."
 "At the CES this year, Hyundai and Uber have
announced their cooperative effort to build
air taxis to be used on the Uber platform Elevate. The two companies also presented
the S-A1, a prototype for such an electrically powered vertical take-off aircraft.
The commercial launch of Uber Elevate is scheduled for 2023. Aircraft from various
manufacturers are to be used there - one of them will probably be Hyundai. The Korean
company only officially presented their 'Strategy 2025' roadmap at the beginning
of December, under which the auto sector is to be converted into 'smart mobility
devices' - including personal air vehicles (PAV). At the CES, Hyundai just presented
a model of the S-A1 aircraft, which has a total of eight rotors - four of these
have two blades and the other four have five rotor blades..."
 There is no such thing as too many 3-view
drawings of the
Supermarine
Spitfire. This is the Mark 2 (Mk 2, or Mk II)version, inked by
Leonard Wieczorek. According to the Wikipedia entry, Supermarine manufactured 24
variants (Mark, or Mk) of the Spitfire which included various combinations of engines
and airframe configurations. A trainer version was amongst them. Some online accounts
claim the Spitfire Mk II, with its 12-cylinder Rolls Royce Merlin engine,
made its maiden flight on March 5, 1936. That means it was functional prior to the
mid-1940 Battle of Britain, the event that put the Spitfire in the history books
as formidable dogfighter in the hands of a skilled and valiant pilot. The Spitfire Mk V
model, put into service in late 1940, was the most-produced, and last unpressurized
version...
 "Airplanes have a lot to learn from birds,
and
PigeonBot is teaching us about the magic of feathered flight. Birds have been
doing their flying thing with flexible and feathery wings for about a hundred million
years, give or take. And about a hundred years ago, give or take, humans decided
that, although birds may be the flying experts, we're just going to go off in our
own direction with mostly rigid wings and propellers and stuff, because it's easier
or whatever. The few attempts at making artificial feathers that we've seen in the
past have been sufficient for a few specific purposes but haven't really come close
to emulating the capabilities that real feathers bestow on the wings of birds..."
Aerospace Companies Compete to Build
Lunar Landers for NASA's Project Artemis
 "Blue Origin, Boeing, and SpaceX are among
those proposing ships to put
astronauts back on the moon by the end of 2024. After 50 years of lamenting
that America had abandoned the moon, astronauts are in a rush again, trying to go
back within five—and NASA has asked aerospace companies to design the lunar landers
that will get them there. The project is called Artemis, and the agency is now reviewing
proposals to build what it calls the Human Landing System, or HLS. In January, it
says, it will probably select finalists. NASA had said a landing was possible by
2028. Then, the White House said to do it by 2024..."
 Our grandparents used to tell us how one
of the most disappointing aspects of growing older was having the lifelong familiar
family, friends, and places disappear. Now that I'm in my sixties, hard as that
is to believe, the scenario is unfolding before my eyes. Department stores like
Montgomery Ward, Woolworth's, Britt's, and Sears & Roebuck are in the dustbin
of history, as the saying goes. I really miss the garden and tool departments of
Sears. Nearer and dearer to my heart are the missing hobby products and distributors.
In the late 1960s when I first really was aware of radio control, a Kraft two-channel
receiver/servo "brick" system was my objet de désir for a simple sailplane. I had
to settle for a used three-channel OS Digital R/C system, and installed it in a
Mark's Model Windward glider. Tower Hobbies,
Hobby Lobby, Hobby Shack, Hobby People, and the like ran multi-page...
 "Virgin Galactic has reached the 'Weight
on Wheels' milestone in the build of its second commercial spaceship. In this milestone,
all major structural elements of the vehicle were assembled, and the vehicle deployed
its main landing gear and carried its own weight for the first time. The milestone
signals strong progress in the manufacture of
Virgin Galactic's space vehicle fleet by The Spaceship Company, VGH's wholly-owned
aerospace development subsidiary. This Weight on Wheels milestone has been reached
considerably faster than it took to get to this stage with the first spaceship in
the Virgin Galactic fleet, VSS Unity, which is currently in flight test. This pace
has been achieved through a more efficient, modular assembly process...
 This website
exists entirely on the support of its visitors by way of a small percentage earned
with your
Amazon.com purchases. It typically works out to less than $10
per month. That barley covers the domain registration and secure server fees. If
you plan to buy items via
Amazon.com, please begin your shopping session from the AirplanesAndRockets.com
website so that I get credit for it. Doing so does not cost you anything extra.
Thank you for your support.
 "Steadicopter,
one of the companies involved in the
Rotary Unmanned Aerial Systems (RUAS) industry, recently unveiled its next generation
Black Eagle 50 advanced lightweight unmanned robotic helicopter. New capabilities
include an inertial navigation system with no dependence on GPS, as well as support
for naval missions. Steadicopter's Black Eagle 50 unmanned helicopter has been upgraded
with several additional new features and is tailored for naval missions with its
robust mechanical and electronic capabilities that support flight in maritime environmental
conditions. The company also recently signed a cooperative agreement with Israel
Shipyards..."
 Founded in 1943, in the midst of World War II,
Revell's staff of talented artists, sculptors, machinists, chemists, engineers,
researchers, instruction writers, and assembly line workers have tuned out multiple
millions of highly detailed scale plastic models of every mode of transportation
ever devised, from every country that devised said modes of transportation.
Revell also made scale scenery and people to compliment the models. They even
made model of things that never really existed, like star ships and submarines that
could explore 20,000 leagues under the sea. I use images from the box tops of many
Revell kits for the Airplanes and Rockets website daily logos. Monogram (founded
in 1945) and Revell merged in 1986...
 "NASA's first large scale, piloted X-plane
in more than three decades is cleared for final assembly and integration of its
systems following a major project review by senior managers held Thursday at NASA
Headquarters in Washington. The management review, known as Key Decision Point-D
(KDP-D), was the last programmatic hurdle for the X-59
Quiet SuperSonic Technology (QueSST) aircraft to clear before officials meet
again in late 2020 to approve the airplane's first flight in 2021. "With the completion
of KDP-D we've shown the project is on schedule, it's well planned and on track.
We have everything in place to continue this historic research mission for the nation's
air-traveling public," said Bob Pearce, NASA's associate administrator..."
 "Drones are usually in the news for bad reasons,
like controversial killings of suspected terrorists in the Middle East, bombings
of Saudi oil facilities or an assassination attempt on Venezuelan President Nicolas
Maduro. What many people may not know is that United Nations peacekeepers use
drones to protect civilians from violence. These drones are different: They
don't carry weapons. I have followed the U.N.'s use of drones since its beginning
in 2013 and have spoken with peacekeepers and U.N. officers who are familiar with
their use. I believe drones have the potential to save lives. But that doesn't mean
they necessarily will..."
 Peter Bowers was a well-known designer and
builder of both full-size and model airplanes. As an aeronautical engineer working
for Boeing in Seattle, he was well qualified for his hobby pursuits of homebuilt
airplanes and competition-class free flight airplanes. He was also an aviation photographer
and historian with many books and magazine articles to his credit. Bowers' most
famous creation is undoubtedly the Bowers Fly Baby monoplane, which won the Experimental
Aircraft Association (EAA) contest in 1962 for the best low-cost, folding-wing plane
that can be towed or trailered from home to and from the airport - the goal being
to avoid expensive hanger or tie-down fees. The Fly Baby was much in the fashion
of a large model as it was constructed almost entirely of wood...
 "Harbour Air's
all-electric-powered de Havilland Beaver took off for an inaugural flight test
just after daybreak December 10 to the cheers of about two dozen people huddled
on a chilly dock in Vancouver, British Columbia, as the distinctive seaplane ushered
in a new era of aviation. Several thousand more also watched online as the yellow-and-navy
magniX-powered seaplane retrofitted with a 750-horsepower magni500 propulsion system
thundered into the air during a live social media broadcast. The fossil fuel-free
aircraft partnership between North America's largest seaplane airline and Redmond,
Washington-based electric propulsion venture magniX was announced in March..."
 "A highly anticipated ASTM International
standard is designed to satisfy the growing demand for better identification and
tracking of unmanned aircraft systems - commonly known as drones. Similar to the
function of a car license plate, the
Remote ID standard supports technology that allows the general public and public
safety officials to identify a drone using an assigned ID, while preserving the
privacy of the drone pilot's personal information. The standard, which will be published
in the coming weeks with the designation F3411, was developed by the ASTM International
unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) committee (F38)..."
This website
exists entirely on the support of its visitors by way of a small percentage earned
with your
Amazon.com purchases. It typically works out to less than $10
per month. That barley covers the domain registration and secure server fees. If
you plan to buy items via
Amazon.com, please begin your shopping session from the AirplanesAndRockets.com
website so that I get credit for it. Doing so does not cost you anything extra.
Thank you for your support.
 Mya Rae Nelson has an excellent article in
the current issue of Fine Woodworking magazine entitled, "The
Science Behind Epoxies." I was surprised to read that epoxy has only been around
since the 1940s, so when
I first used it in the early 1970s, it was only a three decade old technology. As
with cellphones, now that we have epoxy, how did we ever get along without it? Ms. Nelson
uses layman terms to describe the molecular makeup of both the epoxy resin and the
hardener, and describes how the bonds between the resin atoms are broken then reestablished
with the insertion of hardener atoms into the matrix. If you attended classes
for and understood the basics of chemistry, that will help with understanding the
technical side of epoxy curing and strength, but even without the nerd knowledge
you will still gain a better understanding of how this indispensible modeler's brew
works.
 "The Great War triggered a trend toward
big flying
machines. Really big. I had been warned that there wasn't much left of the airplane
that designer Gianni Caproni had intended to be a transatlantic flying boat - the
Noviplano - which had crashed and broken apart concluding its first and final flight,
on March 4, 1921. There wasn't. I'd trekked up into the Italian Alps to the Caproni
museum in Trento only to learn that a small section of the hull and other pieces
from the wreck of the Noviplano were in storage, awaiting conservation. Next I took
the train to the Volandia Museum of Flight, just outside the perimeter fence of
Milan's Malpensa international airport. I was ushered inside to meet Gregory Alegi,
a Yale-educated Italian journalist, defense analyst, and aviation historian..."
 "At one time or another, you've probably
supported your local high school by buying candy. Now you have another option: purchasing
an airplane, built by the students themselves. The students are participants in
a program created in 2016 by the nonprofit
Tango
Flight, which got its start by raising $90,000 in Georgetown, Texas. Since then,
Tango Flight has expanded to five other cities across the country, boosted by funding
from Airbus and local sponsors, such as the Aviation Museum of New Hampshire. 'It's
really amazing to see the aviation community come together and support this,' says
Tango Flight co-founder Dan Weyant. 'Most of the folks in this business recognize
that we are in desperate need to bring younger new folks into it either as a hobby
or as a career..."
 "Researchers in the U.S. have developed a
high speed
digital twin of a custom built drone to monitor its reliability and predict
potential failures. The Dynamic Data-Driven Application Systems (DDDAS) digital
twin project includes researchers from University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin), MIT,
Akselos and drone maker Aurora Flight Sciences. The twin represents each
component of the UAV, as well as its integrated whole, using physics-based models
that capture the details of its behaviour. The digital twin also uses on-board sensor
data from the UAV and integrates that information with the model to create real-time
predictions of the health of the vehicle. 'It's essential that UAVs monitor their
structural health..."
 This is the Sunday, January 30, 1944, "Flyin'
Jenny" comic strip. The Baltimore Sun newspaper, published not far from where
I grew up near Annapolis, Maryland, carried "Flyin' Jenny" from the late 1930s until
the strip ended in the mid 1940s, so I saved a couple dozen from there. The first
one I downloaded has a publication date of December 7, 1941 - that date "which will
live in infamy," per President Roosevelt. Many Americans were receiving word over
the radio of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor while reading this comic at the
breakfast table. I expect that soon there will be World War II themes. "Flyin'
Jenny," whose real name was Virginia Dare (what's in a name?), was a test pilot
for Starcraft Aviation Factory who divided her time between wringing out new airplane
designs and chasing bad guys. She was the creation of artist and storyteller Russell
Keaton...
 Website visitor Barb H. wrote to ask that
I provide her with a copy of the page in the January 1972 issue of American
Aircraft Modeler that her brother, David Downey, had a suggestion of his printed.
It appeared in the "Where
the Action Is: Control Line" column. John Blum wrote the "Carrier and Stunt"
section and mentions David's idea of using a section of neoprene tubing around the
outside of the elevator pushrod in order to minimize flexing under load. The tubing
is to be glued to the fuselage structure in three inch or less interval along its
length. Interestingly, Mr. Downey submitted his entry from Manaus, Amazonas,
Brazil, which today is the seventh largest city in Brazil. The column also has a
report which is funny in retrospect, but was potentially very dangerous at the time...
 An article appeared in the January 2020 issue
of Model Aviation magazine extolling the virtues of
Indoor Free Flight Supply for
their making available an assortment of hard-to-find accessories. Some are specialty
hardware items and others are high precision tools and devices for assisting the
serious indoor free flight competitor gain an edge over others in the challenge.
Examples include all-metal geared winders with a dial indicator tracking the number
of winds, a torque meter, and a contest rubber cutter with micrometer adjustments
and a self-sharpening blade that achieves perpendicular (vs. undesirable trapezoidal)
edges.
 "An Indian software developer and mechanical engineer
combing through high-resolution imagery captured by a NASA spacecraft has located
debris scattered on the lunar surface in September by the crash of the
Vikram lander, India's first probe to attempt a soft touchdown on the moon,
NASA said Monday. A camera mounted on NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has recorded
images of the Vikram spacecraft's target landing site since Indian ground controllers
lost contact with probe Sept. 6 during final descent to the moon. The robotic Vikram
lander was descending toward a landing zone around 373 miles from the moon's south
pole..."
 Most magazines, whether hobby, professional,
news, or otherwise focused, contain a section that features what its readers are
up to. Typically included is some combination of reader comments, photos, editorial
contents, contest reports, etc. Flying Aces magazine's version of that was "With the
Model Builders." There was not much in the way of radio control in 1941 when
this column appeared, so it had free flight and control line models. One photo showed
a guy who was getting ready to go into the Army to fight Hitler's and Tojo's minions
passing his penchant for aeromodeling on to his little sister...
 BlackBird
appears to be an airborne version of Über car ride service. If you need to
quickly get from point A to point B and can't do it by scheduled planes, trains,
or automobiles, hail your ride with Black Bird. I was not familiar with the service
prior to seeing in a news item regarding the FAA being concerned over whether the
pilots and airplanes are properly certified to provide flights. BlackBird believes
its participating pilots know the law and comply as needed. If you elect to use
the service, be sure to inquire whether your escort is fully qualified by the FAA.
 "China has performed a hover and hazard avoidance
test on a model the country's first
Mars rover, while engineers ready the real spacecraft for launch toward the
red planet in mid-2020. Comprising an orbiter, lander and rover, the mission aims
to become the first Chinese spacecraft to reach Mars after lifting off aboard a
Long March 5 rocket - the country's most powerful launcher - during a several week
window opening in July 2020. The mission will launch from the Wenchang space center
on Hainan Island, China's newest spaceport. China invited ambassadors and envoys
from 19 countries..."
 "Airbus Defence and Space has invested in US-based
battery technology company Amprius, to boost the development of new generation batteries
based on silicon nanowire anode technology. The investment will help drive the development
of higher volume production capacity, and cells with higher energy density for programmes
such as the Zephyr
high altitude pseudo satellite and Urban Air Mobility innovation initiatives.
Amprius was the first company to introduce 100% silicon anodes in lithium ion batteries
to the market in 2013. It manufactures the highest energy density commercial batteries
in the industry. The company's products and technology include a 100 per cent silicon
nanowire anode, silicon-graphite composite anodes, lithium-rich cathodes..."
 The
U.S. Navy's
relationship with model aviation used to be very significant, even to the extent
that for many years the service sponsored the Academy of Model Aeronautics' (AMA)
annual National Model Airplane (the Nats) contest. Navy bases served as the venue
for the meets and a large number of Navy personnel provided assistance with organization,
facilities preparation and management, promotion, event management, and awards ceremonies.
The stated purpose was to foster the love of aviation in young men along with a
familiarity with the Navy's environment so that when they came of age, enlistment
- or commission - would be a natural progression...
 "Human forces are relying more on
UGVs, UAVs, and other robotic systems to perform critical and dangerous tasks
plus serve as intelligent machine partners. Machines no longer require the press
of a button to start the power, especially for military missions. Autonomy is coming
rapidly to robots and unmanned machines for military applications. They come in
the forms of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs)
that can function without an operator, with the aid of artificial intelligence (AI)
and environmental sensors. Significant investments by governments on behalf of military
robotic applications are literally driving autonomous robotic technologies full
speed ahead toward the vision of a battlefield where humans and machines team as
partners..."
 "In response
to recent threats of rogue and errant drones launched against airports and other
critical facilities, infrastructure and events, 34 North Drones, a leading commercial
drone service provider, has partnered with IDS North America to offer and install
the
NO-DRONE radar counter drone system for all government and civilian clients
in need of protection. IDS is a leading software company that designs, develops,
and distributes software for air navigation, security, and the defense sector. The
NO-DRONE radar detection system evolved from a proven and existing military battlefield
solution originally tuned to recognize small objects such as incoming mortar, artillery
and rocket fire..."
This website
exists entirely on the support of its visitors by way of a small percentage earned
with your
Amazon.com purchases. It typically works out to less than $10
per month. That barley covers the domain registration and secure server fees. If
you plan to buy items via
Amazon.com, please begin your shopping session from the AirplanesAndRockets.com
website so that I get credit for it. Doing so does not cost your anything extra.
Thank you for your support.
 Beginning
in the mid 1960s, Sears catalogs contained some pretty nice equatorial mount, refractor
telescopes. The f15, 60 mm (2.3") "Discoverer" Model 6305 appeared in
the 1967 catalog for $99.98, which in 2019 money is the equivalent of $763.49 (per
the BLS CPI calculator). Then, in 1970 this f15.5, 90 mm (3.5")
Model 6345 was offered for $499.95, or the equivalent of $3,401.88 (per the
CPI calculator). Yow, I'm guessing not many of those were sold, especially as evidenced
by the lack of available 6345 models that show up on astronomy forums and on eBay.
Although not mentioned in the description, there appears to be a motor drive on
the right ascension axis. Five oculars (0.975" ?) are included along with a special
rotatable prism that holds all five - pretty convenient if it works well. Otherwise,
it has the same set of accessories...
 "In the 1950s, people dreamed of using nuclear
energy to power all manner of transport — from cars to airplanes to airships. In
the U.S. the father of the nuclear reactor, Enrico Fermi, envisioned a
nuclear-powered aircraft, while in the USSR, the chief designer of the Soviet
atomic bomb, Aleksandr Kurchatov, thought nuclear-powered 'heavy aircraft' could
be built. A nuclear-powered bomber seemed a no-brainer since it could theoretically
stay aloft indefinitely, providing an effective deterrent to a nuclear attack. Both
the U.S. and the Soviet Union researched nuclear-powered aircraft, but neither country
developed an active-duty version due to problems inherent in the design. These included
shielding air and ground crews from radiation (see also
A-Power Transport)..."
 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...
 Once upon a time in America, many companies big
and small, privately owned and publically controlled, and even federal, state, and
local governments freely and openly sent
Christmas messages to patrons and subjects, confident that the vast majority
of recipients would gratefully accept the spirit of the intended sentiment. Such
was this 1961 greeting from the Testors company in American Modeler magazine.
I today's easily - or falsely - offended world, only the brave who do not fear retribution
dare to wish someone a Merry Christmas without first ascertaining the likely response.
From the Airplanes and rockets website, "Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good
night!..."
 "An Airbus-backed air racing tournament unveiled
an
electric-powered sports aircraft on Sunday, billed as the world's first, as
the European plane maker seeks to boost its green aerospace technology. Several
companies, including U.S. ride-hailing company Uber Technologies, are working on
electric-powered flying cars, amid increasing concerns about the environmental impact
of fossil-fuel intensive air travel. Last month, Airbus rival Boeing announced a
partnership with automaker Volkswagen's sports car brand, Porsche, to develop a
concept electric flying vehicle capable of transporting people in urban environments..."
 "UPS this week announced the first two revenue-generating
residential deliveries of prescribed medicines to consumers. Its
drone delivered the prescription medications from a CVS pharmacy in Cary, North
Carolina, to a consumer's home, and to a customer in a retirement community, both
on November 1. An M2 drone developed by UPS partner Matternet made the deliveries.
The drone flew autonomously but was monitored by a remote operator who could intervene
if needed. In each case, it hovered about 20 feet above the delivery destination
and lowered its package to the ground using a winch and cable..."
 In this December 1961 issue of American
Modeler magazine, editor Bill Winter laments the termination of Pan American
Airways' (PAA) sponsorship of the popular
PAA-Load contesting event. For the previous 14 years, Pan Am underwrote expenses
and created, monitored, wrote the rules for, publicized, convened contests, and
awarded prizes for an aspect of model airplane building and flying meant to encourage
youngsters to be involved in the design, flying and strategic planning of creating
a platform which would carry large amounts of weight at low power. According the
Mr. Winter, the PAA-Load event might have been too successful for its own good.
As with most kinds of competitions with high participation, dedicated participants
finely tuned their designing, building, and flying skills to the point where newcomers...
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