Do you get to fly your Citabria much? I'm always ready for a road trip.
Breaking story: Potential Gear-up landing in Detroit
- Thread starter wayway8
- Start date
Do you get to fly your Citabria much? I'm always ready for a road trip.
ctab5060X
Well-Known Member
No I don't. Need to get an annual inspection first. It is sort of overdue. Trying to find a place closer to MEM to keep it. Might fly it more then.
Maurus
The Great Gazoo
Nah, you just get a Geronimo conversion before you have to worry about that.
ctab5060X
Well-Known Member
Did some digging for you Waco...
It did have non feathering constant speed props... AND... this is the kicker, some were built with fixed pitch wooden props!
http://www.ragwingsandradials.com/main/main_message.aspx?db=UC78story
http://www.angelfire.com/mi2/bobcat/index.html
WacoFan
Bigly
I still want one. Not with the fixed pitch wooden props, but I would love an old bamboo bomber.
Now, for a third - the originals Widgeons had 200hp Rangers AND fixed pitch wooden props. That seems to be worse than the original T-50...but nothing is as bad as the Lancer.
As an interesting aside, the Aeronautical Corporation of America (Aeronca) was founded by the Taft family, as in President Taft.
ctab5060X
Well-Known Member
You know... I own a Citabria. Just can't imagine that airframe with two engines. Even after seeing pictures.
ctab5060X
Well-Known Member
Yeah, but a good Twin Beech will still out-run and out-haul
Oh, and the must have locking tailwheel!
WacoFan
Bigly
Yeah, but a good Twin Beech will still out-run and out-haul
Oh, and the must have locking tailwheel!
I love the old Beech 18's. I must say that a Lodestar is higher on my wish list - ever flown one of those? BTW, Dee Howard died recently - like within the week. Here is a good bio - http://homepage.ntlworld.com/m.zoeller/
Everyone who uses reverse thrust this week owes it to Dee Howard to drink a beer in his honor.
ctab5060X
Well-Known Member
Won't be when you see the bill. A former boss of mine almost purchased one just to have it, get a couple of us type rated in it, then resell it. All was well until his mechanics started researching it and found some inspection that was going to take a lot of money each time he wanted to fly it. :banghead:
Man, I must have missed that Dee Howard passed away. Tailwinds always to a great assest to aviation.
WacoFan
Bigly
Lot's of recurring AD's on the Lodestar, or one big one - like a spar or something?
I wonder if this is true of all the older Lockheed twins, and if that isn't a big reason why the Beech 18 was more popular than the Lockheed Electra (the old piston ones)?
ctab5060X
Well-Known Member
Come to think of it, I think it was a recurring AD on the spar. Not sure though. Dang it, might have to call my friend who did the background research.
Lockheed virtually stopped production of the Electra line during WWII, probably to concentrate on other more important areas of war materials (Lightning, anyone?). That probably started it... By the end of the war, the Electra series was gone... obsolete so to speak, but why did the Twin Beech survive?
I think, it was due to sheer numbers. Beech was able to produce an enormous amount of aircraft that were still available and used as transports after the war. Also, not long after, Beech totally redesigned the airplane starting with the high cabin or "Super" 18s (E models). The airframe is versatile, tough, and is the most modified airplane in the world (200+ STCs).
Interesting notes...
The US Air Force retired their C-45 in 1963...
The US Navy in 1972...
The US Army in 1976...
Not bad for a bird designed in the 30s.
WacoFan
Bigly
Not bad at all! The Beech 18 is an amazing machine. Would love to have a polished aluminum 18 with a nice corporate interior. And a person to polish it.
There was some kind of plane, I think a Howard or something, Big round motored twin, looked like an 18 but it wasn't. That thing sat between a couple of hangars at LIT at least twenty or thirty years. I noticed last year some guy had it pulled out of the weeds and had his motorhome set up beside it. He was bringing her back to life. I know he had both engines off and completely went over it. Took him several months, but he flew it out of there. I don't know where it went. It had kind of a turbine nose on it but it wasn't a turbine. I'll bet that you will hear of it again someday as an Oshkosh winner or similar.
