TALESPINNERS - October, 2002

Hangar Flying
with Stu Faber

BIG CHANGE. In the 1940s a number of companies were working to develop versions of Frank Whittle's original jet engine design. The design was more like a typical turbo-charger with a single centrifugal compressor wheel and a single turbine wheel on a single shaft. This made a "fat" engine because the compressed air had to be picked up off the outer part of the compressor case. Engines of that era were used in early fighters like the F9F and F-80 and produced from 3000 to 6000 pounds of thrust. General Electric's new GE90-115B engine made its first test flight on Sept. 18, 02 as the inboard engine on a test B747. Earlier, when tested at the Peebles, OH test facility it developed 115,000 pounds of thrust. Big power change. Early jet designs soon changed from the centrifugal compressor to the axial flow type where the air is compressed as it passes through a series of fan like blades on multiple disks and exhausts through a similar series of fans on a shared shaft. An additional large fan in front is also used to to add additional thrust from air bypassed around the engine. The early engines had over all diameters of around 4 feet while many of the larger new engines have bypass fans around a dozen feet across.

FUTURE AD ? Wall St. Journal, 26 Sep. 02. NTSB is investigating why Lycoming has not alerted the public to the problems with breaking prop gear attach bolts on some 6 cyl engines. About thousand are affected, chiefly those mfg. between mid 1996 and late 1998. About 2000 others have had crankshaft defects. Several fatal accidents have been blamed on the bolts. Some bolts have been shipped as parts for rebuilt engines. They are zinc plated instead of cadmium and break easier. Some Pipers, Cessnas, and Robinson R44 helicopters, were affected.

UNUSUAL. The second week of Sept. while driving through the S.E. part of rural Wisconsin I spotted what appeared to be a Boeing Stratocruiser or KC-97 parked in a field across the street from the "House On the Rock Motel" at the edge of Dodgeville, WI. As it was raining fairly hard at the time I didn't investigate further. It appeared to have been there for some time. Although it was turned so that the engines were not in plain view they looked like radials. A few KC-97s were converted to turboprops. It seems like someone would like to restore such a plane. I saw no evidence of an airport nearby nor does a directory show an airport in the vicinity. It would probably have been partially dismantled to move it there.

SHADES OF OLD TIMES. Volkswagen will offer a "W" type 8 cylinder engine with four banks of two cylinders each in the Passat model. Also a W12 and a W10 turbodiesel. Allison offered a W type in the 1940s and several came even as early as the 1920's. The W8 probably allows more room for a transverse mounting with front wheel drive. Popular Mechanics, Oct 02.

ANOTHER RE-CREATION. If you remember the names Clyde Pangborn and Hugh Herndon you might remember that in 1931, after they had been held for a while as spies, they flew a Bellanca from a beach in Japan in the first non stop crossing of the Pacific Ocean. After dropping their landing gear, once well airborne, to reduce drag they eventually crash landed at Wenatchee, Washington. Some Wenatchee pilots have decided to repeat the flight and are building a replica of the original plane. After the Bellanca family turned down a request for a set of plans, a wreck was found in a swamp in Alaska to use as a pattern. Jigs were built and two fuselages built. Although Wenatchee is a relatively small city people in Wenatchee have raised much of the funds needed. The original plane was named Miss Veedol for a popular brand of engine oil. Long gone, Veedol is no longer available as a sponsor. Spirit of Wenatchee.com

RECORD TRY. A team lead by Maynard Hill, who also holds records for altitude (27,000 ft) and duration (39 hours) for model airplanes, will try again for the transatlantic record for models. An eleven pound plane with a 6.5 ft span, carrying 5.5 gal of fuel, and powered by a 10 cc model engine will try again. The fuel burn is 2 oz per hour for 36 hours duration. The first two planes disappeared over the Atlantic on earlier tries.

Copyright © 2002 by Stu Faber.  All rights reserved.