The Ultimate Aircraft Recognition Hobby Shop

The sleepy, rural town of Tecumseh Michigan has long enjoyed the distinction of being the self-proclaimed "Refrigeration Capital of the World". But as I discovered last week, 2011 may be the year where that exalted status has finally been overtaken by something even more grandiose.

I hereby nominate Tecumseh as the "Obscure Plastic Aircraft Model Capital of the World".

While I was back in Michigan for Christmas, I decided to visit a couple of the small airports in Tecumseh to see if there were any interesting aircraft types lurking about. It is, after all, where I discovered the Andrew Smith AJ-2. That search ultimately proved to be fruitless. But my appetite for unusual aircraft would soon be whet in an entirely different manner.

Drive down the main street of Tecumseh, and you'll find J-Bar Hobbies:

A quick glance at the unassuming exterior provides no clues to what treasures lay hidden within. One might expect to find models of B-17s, P-51s, and F-15s. Maybe even a Mig or two. But even the most seasoned and jaded aviation geek (particularly of the NIFA variety) will be stupefied upon discovering the bounty of such names as Myasischev, Culver, Temco, and Sud-Ouest:

So if you're ever heading into or out of Michigan on US-23 just north of Toledo, consider a 20-minute detour. Or head over to J-Bar's website and do some browsing online.

USAF to Purchase 20 Embraer A-29 Super Tucano Aircraft

As reported by Embraer earlier today, the USAF (in partnership with the Sierra Nevada Corporation) will be acquiring 20 Super Tucanos. The aircraft are said to provide "advanced flight training, aerial reconnaissance and light air support operations".

Photo: Embraer

It won't be the first time Super Tucanos have operated in the US. XE Aviation (formerly Blackwater) has flown N314TG (photo) and displayed it at the 2011 Reno Air Races in Nevada. XE Aviation also has a Pilatus PC-6 registered under N181DA (photo).

Super Tucanos have also been photographed under military registrations, although nobody seems certain whether these are different airframes, or simply N314TG with different markings. Indeed, a thread on Scramble points out that the military registration seems to be a re-purposed MH-53E registration, perhaps to keep the aircraft (and possibly the "Imminent Fury" program) under wraps:

Another photo on Flickr shows the same airframe equipped with what appear to be guns or rocket pods underwing.

Gift Wrapping - Underway

Boeing 787 Wing Flex Animation

After reading Guy Norris' great article on the Boeing 787's wing flex, I thought it would be interesting to animate the three graphics he posted.

Here, we see the 787 wing in three stages - at rest, at a normal 1g load during cruise flight, and at the ultimate load, just before failure:

It's interesting to note that in normal cruise flight, the wing flex is such that the wingtips are above the top of the fuselage.

New Bicycle Wheel Design Not So New

Fast Company Magazine recently featured an interesting new bicycle wheel design by Ron Arad. It utilizes 18 individual strips of steel bent in such a way that shock is absorbed, providing a smooth ride:

It's an interesting design, to be sure. And it sure seemed familiar to me. But I couldn't quite remember what bicycle company had explored the idea previously.

Then it occurred to me...it wasn't a bicycle company that pioneered the use of bent strips of metal as a shock-absorbing wheel technology at all. It was an aircraft parts manufacturer in the 1910s and 1920s. Here is their design:

The Atlas Wheel design never took off. Whether it was due to technical shortcomings or business circumstances is beyond me. But it's interesting to see such an old design philosophy resurrected today. I wish Ron the best of luck with his bicycle application.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Fans Work at the FAA

...judging by the newest arrival fixes in Charleston, SC:

Cessna Citation Commuter Turboprop Concept

A strange thing often occurs when scouring the web for a specific piece of information. That which one seeks remains forever hidden, while new and unrelated discoveries are made.

Some time ago, I made such a discovery. While searching for photos of the elusive Citation turboprop pusher...

...I ran across files describing an even more bizarre variation on the Citation - a 19-passenger commuter turboprop variant. Enjoy...and click the images for larger versions:

Reno Crash - Further Investigation

I've received several emails and comments about the likelihood of a trim tab failure causing the recent crash at Reno. Among them was this:

"I was part of the pit crew. Jimmy was a close personal freind. I've owned Race 9 (Cloudancer) since April'10. It is common practice for air racers to zero the elevator and rudder tabs so there is less drag and less chance of setting up a buzz. I know this sounds strange, but when they are in the valley of speed it takes both hands pushing forward on the stick. And when you are turning especially pylon 7 and 8 where you need 5 to 7g's to make the corner and not bust the spectator deadline you relax the forward pressure so you dont have to pull so hard. 


If you had forward trim set in the act(tab up for down elevator) the forces on the tab would be tremendous while turning. The aircraft pitched up nearly vertical but climbed very little maybe a 100 Feet, this was accompanied by a very loud whump or a burrump sound. The aircraft slowed tremendously. Pictures show a large buckle in the right side of the fuselage, this probably tripped the tailwheel uplock cable and extended the tailwheel. The inboard 2/3's of the trimtab then seperated. Just a comment about bob hannah's tab failure, he said that when he came to he was looking at his feet"

The last comment was in reference to an incident with "Voodoo" several years ago. He lost a trim tab on the course, blacked out during a 10G pull-up and woke up to find himself at 9000 feet

And about that extended tail wheel, clearly visible in a photo shot a second or two before impact - a P-51 checklist emergency gear procedure on Aerofiles sheds some light on how extreme G-forces indeed could have extended the tail wheel:

"If there is any doubt about the tail wheel being down, dive the plane a short distance and pull out with enough acceleration to down the tail wheel."

Here's hoping for a future with the air races, but without accidents like this.

Reno Crash - Trim Tab to Blame?

It is, of course, very early to speculate on the cause of the tragic crash at Reno. A disciplined examination of photos, however, reveals a possible clue.

This photo was shot by Tim O'Brien of the AP and Grass Valley Union just a moment before the crash. A sharp-eyed Russell Farris spotted an elevator trim tab that is either missing or severely deflected. If the trim tab was deflected downward at such an angle, the elevator would have been forced upward with a great deal of force. This would severely pitch the nose upward, likely with enough force to overpower even the strongest pilot.

In such a scenario, the pilot would push forward on the control stick with all his might to arrest the pitch rate. If he was unable to do so, the nose would continue to pitch further and further upward until airframe failure or ground contact occurs.

It's important to bear in mind that at the speed he was flying today, a relatively small control surface deflection would have resulted in an abrupt and extreme load factor ("G-force") on the pilot, making recovery that much more difficult.

Here's hoping the reaction of the public and media doesn't put an end to the Reno Air Races. You can bet that none of today's victims would have wanted that.

Meet MAX

Yep, it's official - the new 737s will be known as the Boeing 737 MAX 7, 737 MAX 8, and 737 MAX 9.

More renderings available at the official 737 MAX site.

PZL M-15 Belphegor

The old-school Lockheed engineers designed and built the SR-71 using slide rules. They were second only to the Belphegor engineers, who used witchcraft and dark forces.

The Belphegor has long been my favorite aircraft. It kills me that there are none in the US, and it kills me that not a single one is flying. It is beyond any common logic how one could opt to restore, fly, and maintain something as trite and mundane as a T-6, T-33, or L-29 when cold-war-era jet-powered Polish biplane crop dusters are there for the taking in eastern Europe and Russia.

Were I to win the lottery, I would acquire and restore one to be used as an Oshkosh partymobile. I would install amphibious floats to further enhance it's massive ramp presence and to enable operation from lakes that would otherwise remain tranquil and serene. The chemical hoppers would be converted into refrigerated beer storage tanks for the aforementioned Oshkosh trips. Skis would be installed for the annual Skiplane Fly-in and Chili Dump up at Pioneer Field:

Although the temptation to paint it an ominous matte black with mysterious red symbols would be nearly irresistible, I would likely paint it in accurate original colors:

Alas, I do not possess the necessary funding to transform such dreams into reality. Instead, my current budget can only sustain the acquisition of an authentic flight manual and control yoke. If anyone can track these items down or acquire them for me, I will gladly pay a fair price. Just contact me at the above link.

Vintage Bellanca Crashes in Stoughton, WI

A Bellanca 14-13 Cruisair Senior has crashed in Stoughton, WI. The classic aircraft, manufactured in 1946, had been on display in Oshkosh for the 2011 Airventure fly-in:

The aircraft is registered to Richard Cross of Brewster, Minnesota. WKOW of Madison reported that a father and son from Minnesota were on board. The father was reportedly taken to UW hospital via ambulance, and the son was taken via Medflight.

Here is a photo of the aircraft (N74260) as it appeared last Friday at Oshkosh:

Here's hoping father and son make a full recovery soon. And here's hoping the media keep in mind that for every general aviation accident, there are tens of thousands of automobile accidents.