CONTROL LINE NAVY CARRIER - 2001/02
As I Announced in the October issue, the
last Mystery Airplane was the Bristol Brigand.
The winner of that contest was Don Boose of
Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Don won a one-year
membership in the Navy Carrier Society.
In the October column, I mentioned that
Rand McNally listed the aircraft as a
shipboard attack aircraft. Although that
reference fulfills the documentation
requirements for anyone who wants to build
a Brigand, I received interesting letters from
a few readers who had experience with that
aircraft or with other aircraft from Bristol.
None of the correspondents recollected the
Brigand serving aboard carriers with the Royal
Navy. One was modified for catapult
operations, but that seems to have been to
validate steam-catapult development rather
than to test the aircraft for carrier service.
The correspondents unanimously doubted
that the Brigand ever made arrested landings.
The Mystery Airplane for this month
may stump those who are most consistent
in their correct answers.
Send me your entry via US Postal Service
or E-mail at the addresses at the head of this
column. I’ll select the winner from among
those who correctly identify the aircraft.
I’ll give you an extra chance to win if
you can describe the circumstances that
qualify this airplane as a legal prototype
for the Navy Carrier events.
CL Navy Carrier
I RECEIVED the first photos of the season from Jim Schneider (Livermore CA). His Profile F8F Bearcat is shown this month. Jim built the model from Brodak kit plans. Modifications include the line-slider and bellcrank on top of the wing. The model uses the Webra 32, which is a capable engine right out of the box. It is also very light, at only 7 3/4 ounces for the bare engine without the throttle. That's even lighter than the Nelson AAC (aluminum-aluminum chrome) Combat engine by approximately one-
Control Line: Navy Carrier
I was pleasantly surprised a few months ago when I received Carrier-related E-mail via the Internet. Receiving E-mail isn't unusual, and most of it is about modeling, so that wasn't out of the ordinary, either. The surprise was that the message was from Lieutenant Mike Danford. He was in the Arabian Gulf on the USS Carl Vinson, flying S-3 Vikings and looking forward to returning to San Diego before the end of 1996. By the time this issue reaches print, Mike should be in Southern California flying Carrier with the San Diego CL club. He was planning to build Melvin Schuette's Curtiss XF-13C for the .15 Carrier event.
Control Line: Navy Carrier
WHEN ONE TRIES to find a word to describe the Control Line Navy Carrier competition, "Great!" is an obvious first choice. "Fantastic!" is still reserved for the meet that matches the two-decks-all-day-long 1976 Dayton Nats (if any meet can match Dayton). The competition in Muncie was exciting, and the camaraderie was outstanding. There were more contestants than we have enjoyed in quite a few years, even though some of the East Coast contingent were unable to attend. In all, there were 22 contestants for the three official classes, with some additional modelers participating in the unofficial events on Saturday. The event averaged more than 50 flights per day for three days of intense competition, with close scoring and some "personal best" performances as highlights.
Control Line: Navy Carrier
This month's column will concentrate on relatively new products that are adaptable to our Navy Carrier events. Most of these products are intended for Radio Control, but that never stopped us before. Northeast Aerodynamics (150 Robinson Rd., Hudson NH 03051; Tel.: [603] 881-5899) manufactures kits in their Profile Warbirds series that are intended for RC sport flying. They are profile models with landing gear. All are modeled after World War II aircraft, and about half of them are eligible for bonus points in Profile Carrier. They produce an F6F Hellcat, an A6M Zero, a P-51 Mustang, and a Bf-109.
