Video: Boeing Tests Taildragger Version Of The 787 Dreamliner!

 You'd think a taildragger version of a modern airliner would at least get a really snazzy tailwheel, but nope, they've given it a tailskid! Even weirder, they left the nose wheel on the airplane too!

 Ok, so it's not really a taildragger, but it sure is cool seeing the 'tail dragging' tests that Boeing recently performed on the prototype 787 to determine the minimum unstick speeds, or the slowest speeds that the airplane will leave the ground. This really great video shows a variety of the tests the Dreamliner flight-test fleet has been going thru on the way to certification. Based on what they are showing here, it sure looks like the airplane is doing very well - woohoo!

Video: Kent Pietsch 'Deadstick' Routine At 2010 Reno Air Races

 This is a nicely shot video by youtuber wunkus shows Kent Pietsch doing his 'deadstick' routine from 6,500' in his Interstate Cadet recently at the Reno Air Races. The airplane and tip smoke really look great against the beautiful Reno sky, and placing the prop spinner in the hand of the announcer at the end is a pretty sweet way to end an akro routine with no engine power!

 To learn more about the three very different acts that he flies in the Cadet, check out my podcast interview with Kent Pietsch from a few months back. Kent's a great guy and a great pilot : )

CoolPix - Homebuilt: Fab Focke-Wulf FW 190 Replica At Reno 2010

(click pic for hi-res)

 When I was about 12, I built a 1:48 scale model of the short nose Focke-Wulf FW 190. I painted it in a really good camouflage scheme, and it was actually the only one of the many plastic models I built that I was really pleased with how it turned out. I've been pretty severely attracted to the FW 190 since those days as a kid, so I was very excited to see this one at Reno, shown here in a nice big CoolPix.

 It looks like this one was recently flown for the first time by Steve Hinton and is owned by Frasca International, the flight simulator people out of Urbana, Illinois. If I have my info correct, it's one of the FlugWerk replicas from Germany, and has a Pratt & Whitney R-2800 engine in it. It was raced at Reno by John Malony, but not hard and not as a serious contender. But wow, it was very cool to see it in the air!

 I was impressed with the paint job as the airplane appeared very authentic. Not a 'show plane' paint job, but one you could believe was representing the airplane just as it would have looked in the Luftwaffe. It also looked smaller than I expected by a little bit. The one or two I've seen before were in a museum, and seeing this one out in the open around other warbirds made me realize it's not as big as I had thought. Comparing dimensions to the P-51 Mustang shows that it is indeed a little smaller all the way around.

 The one thing that stirs me big-time about the FW 190 is those long, wide-stance, aggressive gear legs. It's the same thing that makes the Hughes H-1 and the F-8 Bearcat look so stinkin' hot to me. The P-51 is a very beautiful airplane, but its gear legs just don't affect me the way these other aircraft do. I know, I'm a weirdo... but I'm a very happy, aggressive-gear-leg-lovin' weirdo : )

Video: 'Live Airshow TV' Reno Air Races Update: Sunday

2010 Reno Air Races - Picstream #3 Sunday 9.19.10 (14 Pix)

2010 Reno Air Races Unlimited champion Steven Hinton and team Strega

(14 pix)

 The big finale Gold Unlimited race for Sunday was cancelled at the 2010 Reno Air Races for safety reasons due to high winds and accordingly, winners were announced based on race statistics from thru the week. The championship for the second year in a row goes to Steven Hinton and team Strega. Second place went to Rare Bear and third to the P-51 Miss America.

Steven Hinton and team Strega proved thru the week that they were fast and reliable on the race course. Tho I'm sure they would rather have won the 2010 Reno Championship with a race on Sunday, there's no doubt that they earned the right to hold the big trophy. 

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Video: 'Live Airshow TV' Reno Air Races Update: Saturday

2010 Reno Air Races - Picstream #2 Saturday 9.18.10 (14 Pix)

Making the T-6 racer 'Gunslinger' sparkle in the Saturday morning sunshine

  Saturday was a great day at the 2010 Reno Air Races - the weather was ideal and there was a lot great racing to watch too. Like in the picture above, a lot of time is spent by the race teams working on and cleaning up the airplanes. And as I've said before, being in the pit area to see all the work being done is simply amazing.

 The big story for me continues to be the way Jimmy Leeward has kept The Galloping Ghost alive in the Unlimited Class. The race on Saturday was an easy win for the highly modified P-51 Mustang, giving lots of hope to the idea that it can be a real contender. The big test will be the final race of the day on Sunday against the seemingly unbeatable Strega; the 'always-a-contender' Rare Bear; and possibly the very fast Voodoo. However, after pulling up and out of the race on Saturday, Voodoo's ability to race today may be in question.

 Here's a quick batch of pix from the day showing the wide diversity of flying machines, both in the air and on the ground, that make Reno's Stead Field a great place to be in mid September...

The first race of the day on Saturday was Formula One, and here the Biplane Class airplanes are watching as they are getting staged and waiting their turn.

Polar bear, and early A model P-51 that was crashed in Alaska back in 1944. It was eventually recovered and rebuilt, with first flight in 1985. It was a very nice addition the heritage-oriented fighters that were racing.

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2010 Reno Air Races - Picstream #1 Friday 9.17.10 (14 Pix)

Rare Bear humor: "Due to the economy we've had to downsize..."

(14 pix)

 You gotta love when the people who race hardcore in the Unlimited Class at Reno have a sense of humor. I figured this pic of the Rare Bear pedal car was a perfect way to get things started. My Reno 2010 experience is beginning a little late - I arrived late last night and then got started checking things out today: Friday. I didn't see the real Bear early today, but I'm sure she'll be growling soon.

Kevin Eldredge; his Relentless NXT; and a pile of broken engine parts

 The big story so far has certainly been the massive engine failure and mayday experienced by Kevin Eldredge in his Relentless NXT racer. It was great to see him spending some time with the people showing the airplane and the broken pieces. It would've been easy to pack and run, but I think it says a lot that he's not only still here, but putting as much of an upbeat face on this situation as could ever be expected. Be sure to check out his Relentless Reno 2010 blog for more details.

Answering questions from interested people about what happened with the NXT

 Kevin explained that an oil line fitting appears to have failed first, leading to oil loss. When all pressure was lost, the prop went flat which allowed the engine to wildly overspeed. Imagine a high output race engine running at or near full power and then remove almost all the load from it. The extremely high rpm caused the counterbalance on the back of the engine to fail, and in the process of all these things happening, the engine locked up suddenly breaking off the shaft extension and throwing the prop off the airplane. Fortunately, even tho 3 of the engine mount lugs broke off the engine, it stayed attached to the airframe. For this very kind of reason, race engines are set up with safety cables that hopefully will at least keep the engine on the airplane in an emergency so the airplane will remain balanced.

 Kevin is still trying to figure out what his next step is... but with a team called 'Relentless', I gotta think he'll be back at it as soon as he can. We also talked about maybe doing a podcast about the incident before long. Hopefully we'll find a way to work that out as it would be a fascinating event to better understand. Most important, it's great to see Kevin was completely unhurt by this dramatic event.

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GP-5 At Reno 2010: Wooden It Be Great...

(click pic to enlarge)  The GP-5 finally comes to Reno  (photo: SportClass.com)

 The GP-5 is an all-wood racer that was begun in the early 90's by George Pereira, well known for his Osprey and GP-4 homebuilt aircraft. Originally intended to compete against the Unlimited racers (following attempts like Tsunami and the Pond Racer) - but a long and challenging journey ultimately has kept this airplane from ever having a chance to race at Reno. Finally, in 2010, the stars have aligned for the GP-5 to attempt to show the world what it was designed to do... now as a Super Sport class entrant.

 I'll have more details to share once I get out to Reno on Friday. What I do know is that originally the GP-5 was being built around an approximate 500 hp Chevy V-8 engine. All of the primary structure was built of wood, and then the fuselage had foam glued on and shaped to get a nice compound curve. The the foam was then covered by a layer of fiberglass. With a wingspan of 22'-2", this sleek beauty was intended to have a gross weight around 1,800 pounds.

 Early design drawings on the Pereira GP-5 racer

 The drawing above shows the wood structure design as well as the basic concept for engine placement. Projects like this tend to evolve a lot as problems are solved and thinking is changed. The drawing below shows a variation of the engine installation with the V-8 raised slightly (with some cool bumps to make room for the valve covers) and radiators mounted under the engine. The idea at this point was to have an inlet right under the spinner for cooling air. The picture of the actual airplane at top, taken at Reno just a few days ago, shows a scoop more like a P-51 has mounted under the cockpit.

 The GP-5 actually went thru several owners before it was ever completed, so there's no doubt a really interesting story that explains how it looks today. I plan to try to get as much info as possible on it and share those details here soon. But for now, I'm just thrilled to know that the GP-5 is at Stead Field and finally getting its chance to give racing a try. Wooden it be great if the GP-5 was a championship racer!

An early concept for mounting cooling radiators under the engine of the GP-5 racer

Wishing I Was AvGeekin' At Antique Airfield (Blakesburg, Iowa)

Fokker D-VIII replica at the 2010 AAA fly-in  (photo: Rob Bach via Antique Airfield)

 The annual Antique Aircraft Association invitational fly-in at Antique Airfield in Blakesburg, Iowa has been going on since last Wednesday, and the last couple days have had fantastic weather. I was really hoping to be there so I could put up a nice stream of pix of all the fabulous antique and classic era aircraft that have flown in, but the last two years have been a recession with a big 'R' for me and I just couldn't work it in for this year. There's good news tho... you should hop on over to AntiqueAirfield.com right now and check out their stream of pix showing some of what's been going on the last several days.

 This fly-in takes place on an airport straight out the past with a 2,350 foot long grass runway and relatively simple facilities. It's an authentic way to experience some of the most amazing airplanes from the grand history of aviation. Looking at the pictures they've posted so far makes me want to be there all the more. This is real flying!