Heikkis' Silhouette Challenge

[evansb]

Karlark is correct. The French designed Albessard Tri-Avion. I've also seen it referred to it as a "tandem wing". Your turn.

[Karlark]

Thanks evansb. Here is the next challenge:

[Noyade]

I had the usual suspects lined up Karl, but they all pleaded not guilty. I'm even doubting the country they were from.

I will patiently wait for your timely clue/s.

[SincoTC]

Good afternoon Karl,

This one seems to be a bit of a hybrid (maybe a prototype?), well at least I can't find any photos that match all of the variations from the norm and I wonder if it's an oddball or another license built variant you found while trying to sort out the Tricap the other day??

Basically, it looks like a Caproni Ca.101, but this one has three-blade props instead of the usual two, a very distinctive rudder servo-tab and different side windows.

I have found one head on photo with three-blade props, it's fitted with 240 hp Walter Castor engines, these are more powerful than the usual engines, so maybe needed the extra blade to absorb the power and possibly the rudder required a little help from the servo-tab to cope with asymmetric power. This tab is evident on the twin engine Ca.102, (that had more powerful engines with four-blade props, so this fits in with my theory ). However, the only thing apart from the props that shows in this photo is that it has unspatted wheels, which doesn't match, and I'm beginning to wonder if your photo hasn't been retouched 'coz the rear fuselage looks a little too sleek, lacking that ugly hump of the usual 101's and I've not come across windows that match yours either.

Edit: G'day Graeme, You posted while I was typing and I'm glad to see you haven't found it in one of your books, maybe it isn't even Italian

[Karlark]

Afternoon Graeme and early morn' Trevor,

It is Italian, albeit a very obscure prototype from one of the most well known aircraft companies from that time.

The photograph is from Wikipedia.

[SincoTC]

Thanks Karl,

Two further questions before I hit the sack; it is a tri-motor and it's not by Caproni?

A good challenge to sleep on

[Karlark]

Sleep well Trevor.. it is a Caproni tri-engine... no avoiding the direct questions

[SincoTC]

Good evening Karl,

I've slept well thank you!

Hmm, like I suspected, you've been poking around in the Italian Wiki I always used to imagined it was just an Italian version of the English Wiki, but it seems it has things unknown to the English version, like the Caproni Ca.120 !

Caproni Ca.120 - Wikipedia

Great challenge, but you've been rumbled now!!

Unfortunately, I'll be out a lot this weekend, so I have to ask for an Open House, sorry

[Karlark]

Caproni approximately ca.120 it is!

I'm always curious about those in-between model numbers, and in this case happened across it in the the Italian Wiki.

Open House per SincoTC

[Steamer Ned]

Anniversary

As a regular observer of the sadly declining goings-on in this neck of the woods, I thought it worth mentioning that it was almost exactly one year ago today that LM delivered the news of Heikki's passing. Blue skies.

Ned

[SincoTC]

Anniversary

Thank you very much Steamer Ned, I appreciate your comments very much, especially so as it has prompted you to "break your duck" post-wise

It is in fact exactly one year ago today, so RIP dear Heikki aka RegDep, we miss you greatly!!

I have been unable to post since the weekend due to a medical emergency involving a work colleague, this is still ongoing, so I won't be able to monitor the thread very well, but I simply cannot let t!his day pass with a hanging Open House and my apologies to Karlark for leaving him stuck like this.

I had hoped that someone would pick up the baton and post something, especially as it is now much easier with the silhouette only rule relaxed. I have seen quite a few past players on the active list when I have looked in to see what's going on, but why none want to contribute does leave me puzzled as the number of views is still very high!

Nuff sed, I must go again, but as triplanes are easy meat, let's hope this one starts things moving again

[Karlark]

Yes, +1. I am a noob on SC but was a real noobie posting a few weeks before Heikki left us. Not really knowing him I appreciated his sense of humour and his encouragement to participate. r.i.p. Heikki.

Trevor, you clever dog. You picked one from my secret stash, well not so secret anymore , of Italian aircraft. I believe it is the: Caproni-Pensuti or Breda-Pensuti triplanino



Open house if correct.

[SincoTC]

Good evening Karl

Thanks for echoing my thoughts (and Steamer Ned's too)!

Ii is indeed the Caproni-Pensuti aka Breda-Pensuti triplanino and although it is on your secret" site, I did find it before that on Breguets, an old favourite of mine and it's also on a well used Russian site (see below), unlike your last Caproni, so I thought that there was a good chance that someone would find it even if you weren't about

Pensuti Triplane

I wonder where all those other players who were so active a year ago have gone and why we don't see them anymore?

Karlark had control

Edited to say as per Karl's request, it is Open House

[Karlark]

Here's a silhouette for the open house:

[SincoTC]

Evening Karl.

Dunno if you're still up

Thanks for that Hmm, is that fin the usual shape? Is it a flying-boat? Are what appears to be two white-clad engineers in the foreground or is it smaller than first appears and they're working on it? If so, is it on some kind of launching gear? Another Italian?

Off to work soon and going to be tied up a lot this weekend, but will try and give it some attention, but don't expect too much from me!!

[Karlark]

Good Morning, Yes it is a flying boat, less some tail parts and wing.
Here is the rest of the photo:

[SincoTC]

Morning Karl,

From your last clue, it looks like you were up in the small-hours too

Just having a short lunchtime break, so time for a quick look at it.

I'm wondering if it's a Martin M-130 Clipper??

The position and angle of the break in the fin seem to fit where the horizontal stab was, but why it retains the lower portion of the rudder unless it was blown off? The position of the wing pylon and forward fuselage cockpit/nose look a fairly close match too.

It seems to be draped in camouflage netting and I gather that two of Pan Am's Clippers were impressed into the US Navy, so maybe it's being recovered for repair after damage received in the attack on Pearl Harbor or possibly Philippine Clipper, which is reported to have survived strafing in the attack on Wake island?

[Karlark]

G-day Trevor,

It is not an M-130, but it is a Martin Clipper!

The single example was rejected by the intended user in preference to another aircraft and subsequently was sold to another country. The purchaser carried its own designation for the aircraft, in addition to the Martin designation.

[SincoTC]

Good morning again Karl,

Silly me ! I should have stopped digging at lunch time when I began to doubt where I was heading from a quick goggle, but work beckoned!!

So looking again, it must be the 130's planned successor, the Martin M-156 aka SP-30 known variously as the "Russian Clipper", "Moscow Clipper", or "Soviet Clipper", rejected by Pan Am and bought by Aeroflot!

[Karlark]

That is the one! Martin M-156 Russian Clipper.

SincoTC's control.