Video: Seriously Awesome RC XC-142 VTOL (Must See!)

 If you're short on time and just need an under-a-minute avgeek experience, you'll wanna go here instead of watching the video above... but if you like awesome, cool, and truly amazing examples of modern tech being used to make extremely difficult aircraft designs fly great in model form, then please take 15 minutes to watch this.

 The real XC-142 was a remarkably successful VTOL design from the early 1960's. However, even tho it proved capable of vertical takeoffs and landings along with over 400mph maximum speed, mechanical complexities and aerodynamic problems in certain phases of flight prevented it from moving beyond the prototype stage. Five XC-142's were built, and the only remaining example is the one turned over to NASA in 1966. It's on display at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force and I have spend quite a lot of time looking this unique aircraft over on each trip I've made to Dayton.

 The December 2013 video above of the all-electric RC model XC-142 begins with northern California builder and pilot Ran D. St. Clair explaining a little about the design, then sharing some details on the open-source OpenAero2 flight controller software, and then showing the wing pivot process and interconnect with the horizontal tail. The first of the flying begins at the 3:10 mark. The flying footage is very impressive.
 

 As the inflight pic above shows, this model is extremely well built, but the really impressive work is how well the programming has been done to create a very controlled VTOL flying machine. Transitions from vertical to slow-forward-flight and then full-forward-flight and then back to vertical for landing are done with relative ease. The video is also very well done which gives you a really great opportunity to see this remarkable little model at its best.

 And in case you think that little vertical prop in the rear is a nod to the pitch-control tail rotor found on modern electric toy helicopters, think again... the real XC-142 has one there too for pitch control when in vertical mode.

 Bravo Ran D. St. Clair for some very impressive work! 

 
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CoolPix: Ryan SCW At Antique Airfield 2013 (Perfection!)

(click pic for hi-res)  The incredibly beautiful Ryan SCW owned by Russell Williams

 AirPigz is indeed back! I probably won't be posting everyday but you can expect several posts each week. You'll also soon see an update to the look with an exclusive sponsor of AirPigz... it's all pretty exciting stuff : )

 One thing I'd really like to ask of you all... if you like what you see here, if a post specifically connects with you or you thinks it's worthy of sharing with your avgeek friends, then please use the 'email article' feature at the bottom of the post. Or, if you see the link to the post on facebook or twitter, please share it with your followers. The time is right for AirPigz to increase its reach, but that happens most effectively when you let others know about what's going on here. Your help this way would be greatly appreciated!

 The CoolPix here today is of the Ryan SCW owned and flown by Russell Williams from the Seattle area. I had first seen his SCW at the Antique Airplane Association fly-in at Antique Airfield in 2012. It was one of the first airplanes I saw when I arrived onsite, which was the first time I'd been to an AAA fly-in since I was a kid over 40 years ago. But I have been a fan of the relatively rare SCW since I was very young... that long tapered wing is easy to fall in love with! I included some pix of Russell's in that first post about the 2012 event and then later in the year when we connected via facebook, Russell saw that I had an interest in his glistening beauty and offered a ride at the 2013 event. (more AirPigz SCW posts here and here)

 The pic above is from the day I got my ride at Antique Airfield in 2013. What a perfect day and such a wondeful airplane to experience. Russell let me fly it about 10 minutes over the beautiful Iowa contryside on our evening flight... it was everything I had hoped it would be. Thanks Russell! I look forward to seeing you and the SCW at Antique Airfield again : )

AirPigz, Clipped Wing Cubs, And A Phoenix Rising

 After an extended break from daily posting, there's a good chance that I'll be back at it on some sort of regular schedule soon. It's interesting that while in hibernation an opportunity has come along that might be the catalyst for AirPigz to rise up like a Phoenix. So if you've been a fan of AirPigz in the past, keep your fingers crossed that the pieces fit and regularly scheduled avgeekery can begin once again.

 To celebrate I figured it would be appropriate to share this video I found the other day of the exact Clipped Wing Cub that I used to fly when I was a teen. It's the same airplane in the pic I posted when I announced the AirPigz Fequency Change. The short and random video is from a couple years ago, and shows the airplane looking far better than it did when I was flying it back in the early 80's.

 There aren't many flying machines cuter than a Cub with wings that look no longer than the airplane is long (tho they are really still 6 feet longer than the length)

 If things continue to improve in my financial world, there's gonna be an authentic CWC or a homebuilt version with my name on it either this year or next. Money talks... and in my world, money likes to talk about Clipped Wings Cubs!

Smart Aviators Always Play Their Cards Right! (The Flight Deck Playing Cards)

The Flight Deck 'Aces' from the blue airplane deck (the red deck is all airships)

'The Flight Deck' aviation playing cards on kickstarter.com (ends 4-1-14)

 I'd like to suggest that you run (don't walk) over to the kickstarter campaign for The Flight Deck aviation inspired playing cards and support this unique project. I jumped on the chance to go for the $80 reward which is 2 decks of the blue 'airplane' cards and 2 decks of the red 'airship' cards, plus a fabulous pilot's log book inspired case to store 2 decks of cards. But you can get just a single deck of either style of cards for just $12. These high-quality playing cards are a fabulous way for avgeeks to embrace the rich aviation heritage that came out of the 1930's.

 The project is from Paul Roman Martinez in California. You might already know he's also the man behind The Adventures of the 19xx online dieselpunk style comic series. I know Paul from a small project we worked on together and I must say that he has great attention to detail and he's a really nice guy too! He has a genuine interest in the art-deco inspired aviation world of the 1930's and has some mad graphic skills to boot. The quality of the artwork for The Flight Deck is as-good-as-it-gets in my opinion.

More of the reward options available if you get in on the kickstarter campaign

 The kickstarter campaign just started a few days ago and already it's up to the halfway point of reaching the $27,000 funding goal... I have no doubt this is going to be a wild success! However, I really want YOU to get in on it so you'll be able to enjoy these high quality playing cards. Imagine sharing your love for aviation with your friends and family with these classy made-in-the-USA cards. I believe we should always support people who mix avgeek passion with high quality products.

The 'face cards' from the blue airplane deck (the red deck is all airships)

 So play your cards right my avgeek friends, get in on the kickstarter campaign for The Flight Deck: The Dawn of Aviation Playing Cards. These cards are definitely stacked in your favor : )

'The Flight Deck' aviation playing cards on kickstarter.com (ends 4-1-14)

AirPigz Flight 99, Frequency Change Approved - Good Day

The 19 year old me in 1980 (with hair) in my happy-happy-happy place

 Here's the deal: I've put up over 1,300 posts in a little over five years here at AirPigz but I've generated very little revenue for all that work... I'm tired. Very tired. I started this might-make-a-poor-living project while I was as close to bankruptcy as you can get, but fought to avoid that end. The fight was successful, but as previously stated, I'm tired. Very tired. And as it turns out, I can't seem to turn my work here into even a poor living. Fortunately my work as a ceramic tile installer has recovered somewhat after falling off the cliff in 2008, but that work is very labor intensive and it makes me tired. Very tired.

 So I requested a frequency change from the controller (me) and it was approved. I'm not talking radio frequency, I mean posting frequency. In an effort to keep the pig alive, I'm going to change the format to me posting when I have the time, energy, and something very compelling to share. My rather strong 50,000 page views and 35,000 unique visitors each month may drop off wildly, but my push for traffic has always been in the hope that I could use that traffic to generate revenue. Since I have never found a way for that to work out, what does it matter if the traffic drops off.

 Did I mention that I'm tired? Very tired.

 My financial situation has improved significantly in the last five months, but it's all relative. My attempt to get a loan last week for a measly $5K to buy a beautiful Culver Cadet restoration project that was only 6 months of hard work (and an engine) away from being in the air, was denied. It's gonna take a little longer to clean up the last issues of the hardship devastation from the last 5 years, but things are looking up.

 I need to fly.

 So I'm gonna free up some time and passion for finding suitable ways to get myself off the ground regularly now that I have a little cash to make that happen. I'm gonna free up some time and passion to try to push one of my creative make-a-profit projects forward toward success so I can stop being so tired as a tile installer. And I'm gonna free up some time and passion so I can figure out how I can get my butt back into the backseat of a Clipped Wing Cub (or homebuilt version) as soon as possible. The two years I spent as a teenager flying that Cub in the pic above was the best time of my life.

 I'd really like to find the path back there.

 Lastly, I hope you don't mind that I'm taking some time and passion away from AirPigz... for me.

CoolPix: Beautiful Berkut At OSH13... (Remember What Summer Is Like?)

(click pic for hi-res)  Summer, a beautiful Berkut, and Oshkosh 2013. Perfection!

 For those of us who live where winter is wintery, it's been a very wintery winter! In northern Indiana where I live, we've had bitter cold and loads of snow for weeks on end, and it's snowing again this evening. However, the forecast is for above freezing temps for the next several days as winter finally gives us a bit of a break. That gets me thinking about summer, and when I think of summer, I think of OSHKOSH!

 I captured this image of James Redmon's gorgeous Berkut late in the week on Friday when the flightline was showing signs of clearing out, but the extra wide angle lens shows an Oshkosh that's full of life, beautiful clouds and lots of sunshine.

 Ultimately this is another one of my attempts to get you to make plans to be at Oshkosh this summer to experience the world's most amazing collection of aircraft... antiques, classics, ultralights, warbirds, extreme aerobatic, and everything in between. And then there's special attention on the airplanes that have been built by individuals who have the drive and dedication to build an airplane with their own hands. Mix it all up with well over 100,000 of the nicest people on earth and you have the best week of the year, year after year!

Oshkosh 2014: July 28 - August 3

Video: Paine Field 787 Landings... Lots of Them!

 I've been a big fan of the Boeing 787 since the early days of the 7E7, and while the bug-flushing from the program has been very public and teeming with haters, the fact remains that the 787 is a remarkable success already. With 1,031 orders on the books, 121 Dreamliners delivered, and with the production rate up to 10 aircraft each month now, the 787 is pointed squarely at reducing the cost of production and headed toward the break even point.

 The video above is a nice collection of new 787's in various liveries as they operate out of Paine Field during flight tests. In addition to seeing lots of paint schemes, the video is also interesting in that it captures many landings that include having the RAT (Ram Air Turbine) deployed, which can heard sounding like a turboprop airplane is passing by with the 787. The RAT is designed to deploy if power is lost on both engines and it will supply emergency electrical power. It's routine for the system to be tested/deployed during initial flight testing.

 The video can be watched in 1080p HD, and of course it's a lot more enjoyable fullscreen. Enjoy!

Video screenshot: 787 flight testing, including the deployed Ram Air Turbine

Video: Inside Lycoming's Thunderbolt Engines For The 2014 Red Bull Air Races

 I really like the new format in the re-start of the Red Bull Air Races where each race aircraft has an engine and propeller that has been tuned to produce the same performance. For this kind of racing I think putting the emphasis on the pilot's skill is the most interesting way to go. And those standardized powerplants are the incredible American designed and built Thunderbolt customized engines by Lycoming.

 Lycoming has been in the same location since they began building horizontally opposed aircraft engines back in 1929... and hopefully they'll stay right where they are if they remain strong and keep building great engines. It's a really nice American success story.

Screenshot: Red Bull Air Racer and a very hardworking Lycoming Thunderbolt engine 

 The first of the reborn Red Bull Air Races will take place in Abu Dhabi February 28 - March 1 (2014) and from what I can see it will be available to watch on some form of Fox Sports. If I can figure out exactly where it'll be airing I'll post that in a week or so. 

redbullairrace.com

Screenshot: Lycoming Thunderbolt engine production in Williamsport, Pennsylvania

Video: Mutant Offspring Of A Super Cub... The Amazing DoubleEnder!

 With me being very busy with day-job work and having ongoing issues with 'focus', I've never posted anything yet about the very unique DoubleEnder homebuilt bushplane even tho I've known about it for since well back into last year. But since it's on the cover of the latest Sport Aviation magazine I figured today was a good day to post a couple videos of this awesome mutant beast!

 As a guy with loads of homebuilt Breezy time, I really like that the pilot sits forward of the wing on the DoubleEnder, even if just barely... especially since a bushplane with enhanced all-around visibility is a really great idea. The DoubleEnder just looks like a really fun airplane to fly, plus you have the added power and safety of being a centerline twin. It'll sure be interesting to see if their goal to eventually make plans and/or kits available is achieved. I'm guessing there's a pretty good Alaska and worldwide market for such a fabulous flying machine. Find out more at BushPlaneDesign.com.

 I can just imagine a 12 seat version with two 600hp PT-6's on it! Maybe a 300 foot takeoff with 5,000 pounds of friends, food and fuel in a built-like-a-tank taildragger. Now that sounds like some serious fun : )

The twin engine DoubleEnder homebuilt bushplane (photo: BushPlaneDesign.com)

Aero Telemetry And Their Dedicated Hughes H-1 Website (H1Racer.com) - With Video

The real Hughes H-1 Racer which is now at the National Air & Space Museum

 Aero Telemetry has had some great experience with one of the the world's most amazing aircraft... they built the flying RC model of the Hughes H-1 Racer that was used in the Aviator film, and then they built a museum quality version of the H-1, that also flies, for the AMA 75th anniversary back in 2011. And now the fine people at Aero Telemetry have introduced H1Racer.com, a website full of interesting info, images, and video about the real H-1 and the scaled down versions they have Built.

 What else can I say? It's a must-see website and you should go there now!

The big and awesome Aero Telemetry 75th AMA Hughes H-1 flying RC model