WINTER 2016 JOURNAL OF THE SHUTTLEWORTH VETERAN AEROPLANE SOCIETY In this issue: Peter Holloway and the Ryan STA Jack Bruce: the historian as artist Shuttleworth goes to RIAT Clayton Wagons Ltd 1 PROP-SWING WINTER 2016 Journal of the SVAS, the Friends of the Shuttleworth Collection REGISTERED CHARITY No. 800095 President: Princess Charlotte Croÿ (Twickel) Vice President: Ken Cox MBE COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: PHOTOGRAPHIC SECTION Kevin Panter Paul Ferguson VICE CHAIRMAN: COMMITTEE MEMBERS Alan Reed Jim Box, Paul Ferguson SECRETARY: Edward Forrest, James Michell Bill Grigg, Neil Thomas TREASURER: John Edser SVAS Contact Details: Answerphone: 01767 627909 MEMBERSHIP SECRETARY: Ron Panter & Rosie Hall Email: [email protected] Web: www.svasweb.org EDITORIAL PANEL Editor: Bill Grigg Shuttleworth Web Site Assistant Editor: Paul Ferguson www.shuttleworth.org PROP-SWING is printed by Character Press Limited, Icknield Way, Baldock, Herts, SG7 5BB, and published at the office of Shuttleworth Veteran Aeroplane Society, Old Warden Aerodrome, Biggleswade, SG18 9EP. We welcome letters and contributions for possible publication. These should preferably be typed. Shuttleworth-related subjects will be given priority. Prospective contributions, and also requests to reprint material from the journal, should be addressed to the Editor C/O Old Warden. PROP-SWING welcomes advertisements, which should be in pdf format. Rates on application for Whole, Half, Third or Quarter page. Discount for three or more identical consecutive insertions. Full page type height is 185mm; full type width is 120mm. Please contact the SVAS at the above address. PROP-SWING is published three times a year (Spring, Summer and Winter). Copy dates are 31st January, 31st May and 30th September. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the Society. Front cover: Peter Holloway’s Ryan STA on finals to R12 on 8th May this year Paul Ferguson 2 Seasons Greetings to all our readers Editorial Bill Grigg s ever, other people have beaten me to it in writing about most of the latest news which is both fortunate in that it saves me the job but unfortunate as it Aleaves me with an editorial to write! One ‘other person’, our new Chairman, Kevin Panter, explains the changes in the SVAS hierarchy in a few pages time. I don’t want to repeat what he says except that, as you’ll realise, the fact that he is our new Chairman means that Ken Cox, who steered the ship admirably from our low membership days in the 1990s to the getting on for 4,000 members in recent times, has retired from that post. We’ll all certainly miss Ken’s presence at the helm but he’ll still be seen around Old Warden in his role as Honorary Life Vice President. Those of you who came to the first air show of this year, although impressed by the Red Arrows, must have been dismayed at the distance of displaying aircraft from the crowd - a result of new regulations imposed by the CAA after the Shoreham accident: small aircraft like the Tiger Moth and Magister were mere specks in the distance and, not ideally, flying over the trees of the copse. Fortunately, Dodge Bailey and Jean-Michel Munn put in a lot of hard work to make carefully researched representations to the CAA and secured agreement to restoring many display routines to close to their former glory. We owe them our heartfelt thanks. You may have been wondering what’s happening to the Granger Archaeopteryx rebuild that’s been appearing on our aircraft status list for years with no apparent progress having been made. Well, the fuselage was finished a long time ago - if you were a member in 2005 you’ll have seen a photo of it in that Summer’s issue of P-S. I recently contacted Richard Granger to find out the current situation and he told me he’s had many more pressing distractions not to mention a health problem, thankfully much improved, to keep him from the rebuild in the intervening years but, “Fear not, the Archaeopteryx is alive and well and, bar the pilot’s harness, the structure is complete. Until December, when all went pear shaped, I was working on the wings and elevons, which are now finished. New controller shafts and extension tubes, bearings overhauled, CONTENTS new wing strut support brackets, repair of all The Ryan STA 4 the damaged woodwork, strengthening where SVAS & Collection News 10 necessary, and all nicely shellacked and awaiting Photo Section selection 15 inspection and covering. So now it is sitting in Aero Workshops 19 my nice warm workshop awaiting the next stage. Vehicle Collection Report 23 I know it is only twelve years into a two year rebuild, but I think the end is in sight. Having made Do You Read Me 28 a fool of myself on many occasions concerning the Jack Bruce as artist 32 completion date, I will most certainly keep you Shuttleworth goes to RIAT 35 posted without actually telling you when, if that is Clayton Wagons Ltd 40 OK with you!” It certainly is, and I eagerly await C & S Agricultural Collection 42 the next instalment. Idle Wonderings 44 3 The Ryan STA – First Impressions Peter Holloway Darren Harbar ome of you may remember my Ryan PT22 G-BTBH, a weird ugly device the appearance of which prompted more questions than its flying qualities (plus Sa few sniggers..) Weird definitely, with its funny bird-like undercarriage and its pop pop poppin’ Kinner radial that sounded like it was going to quit at any time. Flying qualities? Ahem, there’s a subject - despite its Primary Trainer designation, the PT22 remains a far more challenging aircraft than its contemporaries such as the Boeing Stearman and Fairchild Cornell. The high wing loading and unforgiving stall characteristics of the 22 were much more likely than his final Flight Assessment to end a rookie pilot’s training. Developed directly from the earlier STA, virtually everything was lost in the metamorphosis into a rugged trainer. Ruin the looks, add 400 lbs to its empty weight and the fairy became a toad. All that apart, I really liked it. A hoot of a thing! So, what of the fairy? The Ryan ST Series dates back to 1933. The design was clearly inspired by the racing aircraft of the day for which there was a huge public following. Its construction was highly advanced for the period, the fuselage consisting of steel and aluminium frames skinned in Alclad, and with an integral aluminium wing centre section. The wing panels had wooden spars but with Alclad ribs and leading edges. The engine is a Menasco, the various marques fitted ranging from 125-150 hp. The STA was a rich man’s plaything indeed. Few could afford one. 4 Keen to sell the aircraft as widely as possible, some were even sold to Nationalist China with a machine gun fitted. Floatplane versions were also offered. Anyway, you can find all that stuff on the Net. NC 18923 was built in 1939, is arguably the best extant of 76 built and 22 known survivors. It’s also fitted with the rare 139 hp Super Pirate providing a few more useful horses over the standard 125 hp but without the additional weight and reliability issues that seem to plague the 150 hp supercharged version. Aware of the STA, I had never seen one in the flesh. However, there is one in Rocketeer, a terrific 1991 kiddyflick with an air-racing theme, you can order a copy from Amazon for less than a fiver. The flying scenes are just great. Whilst the Gee Bee Sportster takes the lead, there is some glorious footage of a glittering STA rounding the pylons. How was I to know that I would one day own one of the machines in the film. Darren Harbar Leaping ahead to 2011 (crikey, was it that long ago?!) John Munn and I flew the Storch to Hahnweide (see Winter 2011 Prop-Swing – Ed). We routed to Paderborn to connect with our friends at The Quax Club there – a like-minded group of vintage aeroplane enthusiasts. Theirs is a fabulous, ultra modern hangar complex in which the main hangar doubles as a conference and corporate event venue. Imagine the scene – polished floor, empty hangar and THE most beautiful aircraft ever built, EVER, posing in the corner beneath spotlights. It was love at first sight. From every angle the STA looked amazing. My questions fired off thick and fast in the direction of anybody who might know something about it. 5 Keith South It transpired that the owner had bought it from an American who had discovered it languishing in a small museum in Washington State and who had managed to acquire it when the museum closed its doors for the last time, auctioning off all the exhibits. Freeze frame Rocketeer and you will see the aircraft in the background as a static exhibit. It was painted then. A no expense-spared restoration was completed in 2005 by Victoria Air Maintenance in Canada (currently restoring a DH Mosquito to airworthiness). The work included a complete re-skinning of the fuselage and an engine rebuild by the world renowned Al Ball, guru in all things Menasco and Kinner. The aircraft flew occasionally in Canada and was then shipped to Arizona from where, after a further year, it was sold to Germany in order to fund the owner’s next project. Its German owner was obviously struck by such a thing of beauty in the same way as me for, although he only flew it a couple of times, he loved it very much and polished it regularly.