Last month we had the opportunity to examine John Loofbourrow's almost completed
Defiant. Too bad more of you couldn't take advantage of the beautiful summer day
and John's hospitality. Our President, Matt, received the prize for the best
inspection. This is a big airplane, essentially a 4 place pushpull twin engine
Long Ezy. The engines are set up for updraft cooling which has theoretical and
practical advantages but is relatively uncommon. A major advantage is that at
high angles of attack, it is easier to get air in the bottom of the cowl and out
the top than the other way around. And even more so for a pusher where the
turbulence above the fuselage makes it difficult to intake air. It also
ventilates the cowling on the ground reducing heat buildup which causes hot
starting problems. A disadvantage is that cooling air passes over the exhaust
system before the cylinders, OK in winter where it warms a cold engine but a
disadvantage the rest of the time. I think that John will eventually need to
insulate his muffler and exhaust pipes but I wouldn't do it until after flight
tests. Today the material to use is Fiberfrax which is available from Art Hart
in Chester N.J. Go to vintagesteamproducts.com. Most of the November issue of
Popular Science is devoted to aviation stories so I suggest that if you don't
have it, you go to your local library and spend an afternoon reading. One neat
article described a 6 ft wingspan model airplane that crossed the Atlantic from
Newfoundland to Ireland in August. That the engine would run long enough (39 hr)
and the plane could carry sufficient fuel along with a GPS autopilot at an all
up weight of 5 kg is amazing. While you are at the library, find the Toyota
Prius hybrid car advertising insert in Popular Mechanics which describes their
second generation vehicle. They say little about the battery except that it is
NiMH, located under the rear seat, and guaranteed for 8 yr or 100000 miles. The
electric motor is almost as powerful as the gas engine giving excellent
performance. It should sell. At Oshkosh there was a weird VTOL aircraft from AMV
with a Mazda engine that I thought I had taken a picture of but apparently
hadn't. This is one of those pie in the sky things that appear on magazine
covers but....I think he needs much more power. Anyway this strange ducted fan
vehicle which is suprisingly large is pictured in Oct Sport Aviation and Dec
Custom Planes.
Cygnet Chatter Alvin Sager
H.A.R.P. Was what the small sign read as I was driving across Floyd Bennett
N.A.S. A closer look spelled it out...Historic Aircraft Restoration Project. How
could I not track down what was going on. The small signs led me to the large
hangar "B". I still had no clue. I entered a small door, found some
small model planes hanging, some handouts on a table and finally someone to talk
to. A group of volunteers are busy at work in their spare time restoring several
military aircraft. I still had no clue until I found my way to the hangar floor.
It was a bit difficult at first to adjust my vision to wide angle. This huge
hangar had the following airplanes in various states of repair: PBY 5A, C-47,
KC-97, A-4, SNB-5 (twin Beech), SP-2E Neptune, HU-16 (Albatross), Grumman Goose
(I want it), HH-3 Coast Guard helicopter and probably others I missed. There
were also some engines and props set up as static displays.
This project is under the control of the Dept. of the Interior, since the
field is now part of the National Park Service. The group of more than 100
members are all volunteers. I am sure they would welcome anyone who would lend a
hand. Their goal is to bring the planes to a reasonable static display condition
for educational purposes. They give tours to groups, and are open to the public.
For info call 718 338 5986 Mon, Thu, Sat 10a-5p.
