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Lindbergh Field


Subdeacon Joe

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Some really old smoke belching piston engine aircraft! Back in the middle of the last century I rode one (MATS C-97) from Travis AFB (Cal.) to Tokyo. That was a memorable trip. As I recall it was 39 hours flying time.

 

Blackfoot :)

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Memory lane is right, Joe. As I grew up wanting to fly the piston fighters (both radial and inline), I also read about, watched and yearned for the big radial multi's.

 

My two most memorable trips of the 60s were both coast to coast, once on an R4D/C-47 (refueling at 10 below in Olathe, KS with no heater - thank god for wool pea coats), and then a Super Connie (R7V/EC-121).

 

One thing I remember the most are the SMELLS. Those old radial (military) multi's smelled a strong mixture of avgas, oil, hydraulics and years of SWEAT. The Super Connie was an all time favorite - still is.

 

Thanks,

Harvey

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You like the round engines, eh, Harvey?

 

Fun Stuff

 

DEDICATED TO

ALL WHO FLEW BEHIND ROUND ENGINES

Author Unknown

 

We gotta get rid of those turbines, they're ruining aviation and our hearing...

 

A turbine is too simple minded, it has no mystery. The air travels through it in a straight line and doesn't pick up any of the pungent fragrance of engine oil or pilot sweat.

 

Anybody can start a turbine. You just need to move a switch from "OFF" to "START" and then remember to move it back to "ON" after a while. My PC is harder to start.

 

Cranking a round engine requires skill, finesse and style. You have to seduce it into starting. It's like waking up a horny mistress. On some planes, the pilots aren't even allowed to do it...

 

Turbines start by whining for a while, then give a lady-like poof and start whining a little louder.

 

Round engines give a satisfying rattle-rattle, click-click, BANG, more rattles, another BANG, a big macho fart or two, more clicks, a lot more smoke and finally a serious low pitched roar. We like that. It's a GUY thing...

 

When you start a round engine, your mind is engaged and you can concentrate on the flight ahead. Starting a turbine is like flicking on a ceiling fan: Useful, but, hardly exciting.

 

When you have started his round engine successfully your crew chief looks up at you like he'd let you kiss his girl too!

 

Turbines don't break or catch fire often enough, leading to aircrew boredom, complacency and inattention. A round engine at speed looks and sounds like it's going to blow any minute. This helps concentrate the mind! Turbines don't have enough control levers or gauges to keep a pilot's attention. There's nothing to fiddle with during long flights.

 

Turbines smell like a Boy Scout camp full of Coleman Lamps. Round engines smell like God intended machines to smell.

 

Pass this on to an old WWII pilot (or his son who flew them in Vietnam) in remembrance of that "Greatest Generation."

 

That blatantly stolen from http://www.rb-29.net/html/03RelatedStories/03.10.FunStuff/22.RoundEngines.htm

 

You might also like this clip:

 

 

 

ADDED:

 

Ya know, starting those round engines is a lot like the song, Wabash Cannonball...."Listen to the jingle, the rumble, and the roar..."

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You like the round engines, eh, Harvey?

 

Fun Stuff

 

DEDICATED TO

ALL WHO FLEW BEHIND ROUND ENGINES

Author Unknown

 

We gotta get rid of those turbines, they're ruining aviation and our hearing...

 

A turbine is too simple minded, it has no mystery. The air travels through it in a straight line and doesn't pick up any of the pungent fragrance of engine oil or pilot sweat.

 

Anybody can start a turbine. You just need to move a switch from "OFF" to "START" and then remember to move it back to "ON" after a while. My PC is harder to start.

 

Cranking a round engine requires skill, finesse and style. You have to seduce it into starting. It's like waking up a horny mistress. On some planes, the pilots aren't even allowed to do it...

 

Turbines start by whining for a while, then give a lady-like poof and start whining a little louder.

 

Round engines give a satisfying rattle-rattle, click-click, BANG, more rattles, another BANG, a big macho fart or two, more clicks, a lot more smoke and finally a serious low pitched roar. We like that. It's a GUY thing...

 

When you start a round engine, your mind is engaged and you can concentrate on the flight ahead. Starting a turbine is like flicking on a ceiling fan: Useful, but, hardly exciting.

 

When you have started his round engine successfully your crew chief looks up at you like he'd let you kiss his girl too!

 

Turbines don't break or catch fire often enough, leading to aircrew boredom, complacency and inattention. A round engine at speed looks and sounds like it's going to blow any minute. This helps concentrate the mind! Turbines don't have enough control levers or gauges to keep a pilot's attention. There's nothing to fiddle with during long flights.

 

Turbines smell like a Boy Scout camp full of Coleman Lamps. Round engines smell like God intended machines to smell.

 

Pass this on to an old WWII pilot (or his son who flew them in Vietnam) in remembrance of that "Greatest Generation."

 

That blatantly stolen from http://www.rb-29.net/html/03RelatedStories/03.10.FunStuff/22.RoundEngines.htm

 

You might also like this clip:

 

 

 

ADDED:

 

Ya know, starting those round engines is a lot like the song, Wabash Cannonball...."Listen to the jingle, the rumble, and the roar..."

 

 

 

Yep, Ya got me Joe, guitly as charged and ecstatic to say so. I do so love those birds!

 

I regret I never had the opportunity to fly the single-seat piston engine warbirds (other than the T34B), and I missed the T-28 by a few days. I did have the occasion to pilot twin radial engine birds, and that was wonderful, but not the ultimate.

 

I do have to say watching the video that given the option to fly only one of those birds, I would pick the P-47 radial over the P-51 and P-40 (second choice). :)

 

Thanks for finding and posting these - wonderful!

 

Harvey

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Yep, Ya got me Joe, guitly as charged and ecstatic to say so. I do so love those birds!

 

I regret I never had the opportunity to fly the single-seat piston engine warbirds (other than the T34B), and I missed the T-28 by a few days. I did have the occasion to pilot twin radial engine birds, and that was wonderful, but not the ultimate.

 

I do have to say watching the video that given the option to fly only one of those birds, I would pick the P-47 radial over the P-51 and P-40 (second choice). :)/>

 

Thanks for finding and posting these - wonderful!

 

Harvey

 

You would love to see how many hrs. my mother had in those 'birds' as a WASP ;)

LG

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You would love to see how many hrs. my mother had in those 'birds' as a WASP ;)/>/>

LG

 

 

Neat Lumpy!!

My Mom was one of the "Rosie the Riverters" in WWII, never flew, but produced and repaired them - when she met my Dad who was a Navy pilot.

 

The rest is history (mine). :lol:/>

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Hi Joe ,

 

Thanks for posting the pics . One of the many blessing in my life was Sunday mornings after church my dad would take us over to

 

Washington National now Reagon Airport where my uncle was operations manager and we'd hop in uncle Herbs car and tour the field

 

and I was pretty much as close to heaven as a young boy can get .The Connies were always my favorite . Back then Herb could just

 

drive right in to the hanger at the nort end where the Vice Presidents plane was stored so we could see it up close.

 

All my Uncles are gone now and two of them , my Dad ,and one Grandad are at Arlington but I am blessed with the memories.

 

Train Robber

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