I'm pretty sure you've heard of the Ice Pilots TV show that's been running in Canada on History Television since 2009, but if you're like me, you been a tad frustrated that we haven't had a way to watch the adventures of Buffalo Airways down here in 'land of the free and the home of the brave'. It's actually been even more frustrating since Ice boss Joe McBryan and general manager Mikey McBryan were on hand at Oshkosh 2010 with a DC-3 and DC-4 stirring up attention for the show.
Well, we can fret no more because it's NatGeo to the rescue! Season 1 of Ice Pilots will premiere tomorrow night on The National Geographic Channel. And, while I don't have access to NatGeo with my cable package, I'm looking into an upgrade so I can finally sit at home in a nice warm house and watch semi-crazy people operate 50 to 70 year old airplanes in winter temperatures as low as -30F!
If you're like me and don't speak German... you'll still love this video since it gives some great visual insight into the sweet all-electric flying machine from PC-Aero in Germany. Not only do you see quite a bit of the first flight conducted back on March 19th (with the uber experienced former Scaled Composites engineer/program manager/test pilot Jon Karkow in the pilot's seat), but you see some of the load testing and other behind the scenes work done leading up to the first flight. I admit that I wish I spoke (or at least could understand) German so I could get an explanation of the 'snap' sound that was heard during load testing... tho obviously it wasn't something serious.
The bottom line is that the Elektra One is off to a great start in PC-Aero's quest to eventually fly a two place and even a four place all-electric aircraft. From this summer going forward, it's going to be very interesting watching a wide range of electric powered projects take to the skies from all over the world.
The PC-Aero Elektra One showing a real eagerness to climb on all electric power
My Saturday morning at Sun-n-Fun 2011 started at the commercial exhibits not far from the camping area. This yellow and white biplane stood out right away as something special. Obviously not 'Pitts' special, but very cool nonetheless. It's the Fk12 Comet, a Rotax 912 LSA that promises fun in a way pretty much no other LSA could even dream about. The wings are fabric covered, but the structure underneath is all composite, and the fuselage is mostly welded steel tube with aluminum tube for the aft section. Lots of interesting and innovative thinking in this light, sporty, aircraft!
The American Legend display of modern Cubs included one with no fabric on it so all of the structure was visible. The use of modern materials and a variety of interesting design changes takes the timeless original Cub design even closer to perfection. I'm still dreaming about the one from yesterday on amphibious floats!
After being hit so hard by the tornado on Thursday, the Air Cam display was looking almost back together. I was glad to see they hadn't given up after losing 4 airplanes... hopefully they'll head back home with several new orders on the books to take some of the sting out of a really rough year at SNF11.
French made Fieseler Storch with 245 hp Jacobs engine for sale at barnstormers.com
I saw Kermit Weeks fly the Fieseler Storch at the Fantasy of Flight Museum last year during Sun-n-Fun and was really impressed by how it looked like a lot of fun to fly. It's big, weird, kinda ugly, and a taildragger... those are just the kind of things that make me pretty happy with a flying machine! If you don't know, I used to fly a Polish built PZL-104 Wilga 80 back in the late 1980's (and loved it) so you know I'm not very normal : /
This here Fieseler Storch isn't German built like we typically think of them, instead it's one of the ones built by Morane-Saulnier in France after the War. Instead of the inverted V-8 Argus engine of 240 hp that is also typical of the type, this one has a Jacobs R-755-9 radial that makes 245 hp. I know some of the French Storchs had radials, but I don't know if the Jacobs was what they were putting on them, but regardless, that's the engine on this one. One thing for sure... it must sound purrfect. If I had money and time, I'd be all over this project.
So, if you're looking for an unusual airplane that needs restoration, and one of your goals is to turn heads at any and every airport you stop at, this Fieseler Storch might be just the ticket. Click either of the pictures to click thru to the listing. And if you buy it, please let me know when it's done because I really wanna go for a ride!
This 1947 Fieseler Storch project is not your run-of-the-mill ride!
Click this Piper Cub screenshot to see an awesome video of aviation perfection
I got an email today from a friend with a link to this Piper Cub video from Sleeping Dog Productions... wow, these guys have done a really great job capturing the essence of the Cub. So it was an easy decision to let y'all know about their work. Click either of these two screenshots to go directly to the video on their website. (lots of other great vids there too)
This video does a lot to help explain the kinds of things I've shared over the last two years about what makes the Cub so special. All of my Cub time is actually in a 90hp Clip Wing version, but everything that makes a full span Cub so fabulous is still there in the short wing conversion... and then some in my estimation.
Seeing the joy that people experience in the Cub is exactly why I think we need a real Cub revolution in America. We need lots of flight schools all over the country teaching people to fly in simple, cheap-to-operate original J-3 Cubs that cost $50,000 or less, and that's in good enough shape to work their tail off. With super-low operating costs and more smiles-to-the-hour than any Cessna 150 could ever deliver, a Cub revolution could inject the big missing element in modern General Aviation... pure passion for the simple beauty of flight.
Maybe it's just me, but modern LSA's just can't inspire the same love for flying that a 1940's yellow Cub can. So I'm still hoping someone will spark a nostalgic revolution of authentic Cubs that are affordable, beautiful, and most of all - a perfect joy to fly.
Click this Piper Cub screenshot to see an awesome video of aviation perfection
I first brought up the idea of a Grand Slam homebuilt airplane in the middle of last year. It's the idea of a homebuilt that could very effectively capture four important elements: Affordable - Great Performance (but not too hard to fly) - Easy To Build - Electrifying Looks. The good ole BD-5 was supposed to be that airplane 40 years ago, but a variety of obstacles got in the way. And in my mind, the definitive Grand Slam homebuilt has still never materialized. But now, the Onex from Sonex is beginning to show signs that it's aiming for the fence with the bases loaded!
A few important points here first. There are some really good 2-place homebuilt airplanes that offer great value, performance and looks. You can go way back to the days of the Long-EZ or early Glasair or Lancair designs, or maybe the RV-4 or 6... but bigger airplanes with bigger engines, or maybe relatively high kit cost make all those airplanes either pretty expensive to complete or complicated to build, or maybe both. In my mind, the real Grand Slam is almost surely a single seat airplane cuz that's how you're really gonna keep the costs down. And while there have been many great airplanes that are affordable and maybe easy to build, the ones that combine all four of the elements above are either hard to find or simply don't exist. Of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so you may not agree with my opinion on the looks side of things, but I honestly believe that the Onex from Sonex comes closer than any homebuilt to being that special combination that can be considered a Grand Slam.
The Onex on its first flight on January 27, 2011
And even tho the Onex is still just a prototype, the more I'm seeing about the details of this little 'sport fighter', the more I'm impressed. The video below from a few weeks back (shot from the cockpit) really helps to point to the Onex's game winning plans.
With extremely simple structural design that borrows from the very successful Sonex line, and the overall small size of the airplane, you get affordable knocked out pretty quickly. It's looking like a completed airplane should be possible at about 20K without any hardcore scrounging. The AeroVee (VW derived engine) making 80hp for just under $7,000 goes a long way toward making the airplane both affordable and a great performer. Even tho straight and level cruise is around 135 mph, the Vne on the Onex is 216 mph! And when you take those pleasing lines and great proportions and add some flashy paint like my drawing above, and you've got one hot looking little flying machine.
So watch the video from inside the cockpit and imagine yourself out having some cheap fun on a sweet sunny day. And keep watch for info from Sonex on exact kit pricing and availability... cuz when this Grand Slam clears the fence, avgeeks all over the world will be the winners!
Hot Radial Rocket taildragger recently test flown (photo: Airborne Kustomz)
(4 pix)
First flight: February 19, 2011.
If you've been paying attention at all to AirPigz lately you should know I'm a pretty huge fan of the Radial Rocket. This homebuilt kit airplane is an excellent blending of today's technology with the emotion-inspiring shapes from the golden age of aviation. As I've said before, anytime you bolt a 360 hp radial on the front of a small taildragger, you've got my attention!
This recently completed Rocket owned by Pete Malone from Missouri has a paint scheme that matches the awesome retro shapes... this my friends is exactly what General Aviation is missing: Passion! The paint was done by Airborne Kustomz out of Texas and you can check out some videos of the process at the Airborne Kustomz Radial Rocket page. I hear there's a good chance the airplane will be at Oshkosh this year too. That makes me happy.
This video posted by the claylacyaviation youtube account in late 2010 is an absolutely amazing historical record of a really unique air race: the California 1000. The race took place at the Mojave California airport on November 15, 1970. If you have even the slightest interest in air racing, you must watch this video. It's so worth it just to see a bit of Clay Lacy flying the big DC-7 low and fast around the course! But the whole video is full of great sights and info. And belive it or not, I was fortunate enough to be there as a 9 year old kid. In fact, looking back, 1970 was probably my greatest year ever in the world of aviation spectating. (and of course I have my dad to thank for all that!)
August 1-7 of 1970 was the first year that the EAA Convention and Fly-In took place at Oshkosh (Rockford, Illinois before that) and I was there and of course loved it. Then, September 13-20 was the seventh annual Reno National Championship Air Races, and I was there to see Darryl Greenamyer have trouble with one of the gear legs on his Conquest 1 Bearcat which kept him from being 'super fast', and that opened the door for Clay Lacy to fly his purple P-51 to victory after several years of coming in third. And then I was on hand to see the California 1000 in November where Clay flew the DC-7 Super Snoopy low and fast (about 355 mph indicated), but for this race, they all turned right instead of left due to the winds on that day. And I remember very clearly that Sherman Cooper flew that bright yellow Sea Fury with wild flames on it to win the 1000 mile race without ever stopping for fuel.
The video has a lot of details about the race and some fantastic footage of an event that otherwise is hard to find info on. Please take 7 minutes and watch this sweet piece of air racing history.
Clay Lacy's DC-7 and me on the right as a kid at the California 1000 air race in 1970
With the snow storm in full swing across quite a bit of the country, I figured we could use a quick look at some airplanes-on-skis videos. Nothing incredible here, but still a lot of fun to watch. I flew a Champ on skis back in the day and I remember it really was a ton-o-fun... I'm looking forward to the day when I get to do some ski flying again : )
First flight of the Sonex Aircraft 'Onex' took place on January 27, 2011 (photos: Sonex)
(6 pix and 1 video)
Looking and feeling like a sport fighter, the Onex single seat VW powered homebuilt prototype made its first flight out of Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin on January 27, 2011. The enthusiastic thumbs up from Sonex CEO, Onex designer, and first-flight test pilot Jeremy Monnett revealed that the initial impressions are already living up to the expectations of many, including me. The little all-aluminum LSA has the added benefit of wings that can be folded very easily to allow for a quick and simple way to store the aircraft in a really small space. In my opinion, the 80hp AeroVee Volkswagen powered Onex ushers in a new world of VW powered paradise for homebuilders. Never before has such a simple, clean and great performing airframe been mated to the simple and efficient VW based engine. I'm predicting a real V-dub paradise with this airplane! Watch the first flight video below and listen to how strong that AeroVee sounds!
I also made a bold claim that the Onex just might be able to save General Aviation as we seem to be stumbling into an uncertain future for flying in America. Whether this affordable, easy-to-build, VW powered sportster that has great lines can really have a direct impact on the larger world of GA is uncertain, but I can say with a great deal of confidence that this airplane holds greater promise to draw more people into sport flying than anything we've seen a quite a while.
Thursday, April 21, 2011 at 03:27PM 
Ice Pilots season 1 comes to National Gepgraphic TV starting Friday April 22, 2011
The Buffalo Airways DC-4 in the sunshine and snow
