Mystery Aircraft

[toffeez]

Allan

Does that apply to the butterflies you caught?

In the 70's you had the explorer outfit.

Cardboard suitcase included ...

I remember those days.

[Allan Lupton]

I've no idea what that alludes to. Canst elucidate?

[sillohed]

More Help Please

Here is a photo of my old boss getting out of an airplane. Obviously a radial engine. Maybe American. Probably not long after WW2. Any ideas?

[Noyade]

I could well be wrong Ed, but maybe the Culver Dart GK....?



Cheers
Graeme.

[sillohed]

Right

Graeme,
I think you are right on target. The rivet patterns, the fabric skin behind the cockpit, etc. all fit. My first thought was Culver but I couldn't locate one with a round engine. Now I can appropriately mark it in our company archives.

Many thanks,
Regards
Ed

[sillohed]

Culver Dart

Here is a picture of the Culver dart. Graeme, do you know what engine that was? I noticed on the Air Britain site there are two other photos of this airplane N20995 with an opposed engine on it so I presume it was later modified since the pictures are the late 90's and early 00's

[Noyade]

G'day Ed!

I took a hunch on the Culver and had a look at Aerofiles...

You just landed at AeroFiles!

...and found that photo which mentions a "Ken-Royce" engine, which I'm unfamiliar with.

Culver Dart GK [NC20995] (Dan Shumaker coll)

Dart GK 1938 (ATC 674) = 2pO/ClwM; 90hp Ken-Royce; load: 590# v: 130/114/56 range: 490. POP: 25 [NC20990, NC20995, NC20998/20910, NC20915, NC20920/20924, NC20930, NC20932/20936, NC20938/20939, NC20941/20945, NC20947/20948, NC20990, NC20995, NC20998/20999].

Cheers!

[sillohed]

Ken-Royce

Ken-Royce was one of those late 30's engine manufacturers that didn't survive the war or the competition with flat engines. The name actually comes from the owners two sons, Ken and Royce. My boss' friend owned the plane in the picture and was N20941 seen much later in this photo. They mostly went Moose hunting in Canada with it, I think.



I suspect the engine isn't the same since the cowl is quite different but the airplane is still in service.

[sillohed]

Down Under

Graeme,
You will probably recognize this old girl. It was one of our Australian survey planes along with a Mosquito, DC-3 and Aero Commander.

[Noyade]

You will probably recognize this old girl

I think you know more about aviation and aircraft than you're letting on Ed.

Nice info on the Ken-Royce engine mate.

Cheers. Keep those photos coming!

[MReyn24050]

From Wikipedia:-

In the early 1930s Al Mooney was working for the Lambert Aircraft Corporation, builders of the Monocoupe series aircraft. He designed a small two-seat monoplane, the Monosport G. When the company ran into financial difficulties Mooney bought the rights to his design and with K.K. Culver formed the Dart Aircraft Company. The aircraft was renamed the Dart Dart or Dart Model G.
The aircraft was a low-wing monoplane designed to be light with clean lines to enable it to use low powered aero-engines. It had a fixed undercarriage and a tailwheel. The initial version was named the Dart G powered by a 90 hp (67 kW) Lambert R-266 radial engine. That engine was in short supply, so the aircraft was fitted with a Ken-Royce engine and designated the Dart GK. The final version was the Dart GW powered by a Warner Scarab Junior radial engine. Two special aircraft were built with larger engines. In 1939 the company was renamed the Culver Aircraft Company and the aircraft was renamed the Culver Dart.

From Airport-Data.com

Culver Dart Reg No N20941

Construction Number (C/N): GK45

Engine Manufacturer and Model: Warner SS40&50

Certification Class: Standard
Air Worthiness Test: 1955-09-16
Last Action Taken: 2011-05-26
Current Status: Sale Reported

As the aircraft was constructed as a GK it would originally presumably have had the Ken-Roger engine fitted which has subsequently been replaced by a Warner engine.

[l.garey]

It's a Twin Pioneer, but I'm not sure which one.

[sillohed]

Twin Pioneer

I think you know more about aviation and aircraft than you're letting on Ed

Sorry Graeme....you know the old saying "too soon old, too late smart". That is my case. I worked for Aero Service Corporation for 12 years without any knowledge of the company history which was extensive. They were one of the first aerial photo/aerial survey companies in the world starting in 1919. There is a huge collection of their work at the Smithsonian and I have acquired many of their company news letters from 1938 to the early 60's. Aero had an office in Philadelphia and Sydney so there is a wonderful mix of old airplanes. I only flew the post WW2 era stuff. Most of the employees are deceased so I have to dig and dig to get historical information on the company, thus some of my postings since the WW1 stuff which was unrelated. Without the help of you gentlemen I would not have sufficient information to make enquiries about things like engines and registration numbers from the 3 or 4 remaining survivors of the company.

Engine Manufacturer and Model: Warner SS40&50

Mel, if you look at the picture from the 30's with my boss getting out of the plane and compare it to the one in Van Nuys from 2005 you can see that it still has a radial engine but the cowl looks like something from a Cessna 195. Would that suggest the Warner engine as a replacement for the original Ken-Royce?

[MReyn24050]

The following link shows a photograph of another Culver Dart Registration No NC20993 the information on Airport-Data.com states the engine is a Ken-Royce the engine fitted to NC20941 is as stated a Warner, hence the different cowlings.
http://www.airport-data.com/images/a...775/775468.jpg a photograph of another Culver Dart NC20093

Here is a later photograph of NC20995 showing the aircraft has had a horizontally opposed engine fitted. Unfortunately the FAA details for the aircraft does not give the type other than "reciprocating"
FAA Registry - Aircraft - N-Number Inquiry

[sillohed]

British Beer

I know you Brits love your beer....no head, of course! But did this Spit actually carry beer kegs to the troops during the war?

[ian16th]

Apparently true!

SPITFIRE BEER RUNS in WORLD WAR II as MORALE BUILDER | ArmyAirForces

[sillohed]

Need Your Help

Can anyone tell me if this is a Cessna 195 or C-34,C-38 or C-165 or something else?

[albatross]

Re Need Your Help

Not a C-195 for sure.
I think it may be a C-37.

Vintage and Historical Aircraft: Wings Over Kansas

The window below the windscreen beside the fellow in the white shirt is not seen on photos I have found in a quick web search of the C35, C38 or C-165.
Looks like an engine change after a forced landing into some farmer's field.
Someone smarter will probably be along with more definitive knowledge.

[MReyn24050]

Is this the aircraft? Notice it has the same lower windows and the flash below the cockpit windows is very similar:-
History of N25485

The owner states

The original logbook #1 lists not only maintenance, but each flight location and duration.

. It may be possible to contact the owner and discover if during the time it spent in Central America on survey work it had an engine change in the field.

[nacluv]

It's either beer, or an early Upkeep test.