An early Fokker Dr.I Triplane, 115/17 left the Fokker factory in October 1917

First Quarter 2009

Pilot’s Notes PFM CalendarFokker Dr.I Triplane Dick SchenckTeam Vehicles Report Aircraft Projects Update

PILOT’S NOTES

PFM Board Members Steve Freeman Al Sumrall Terry Bledsoe Tom Gaylord

PFM Officers Roger Ritter Sanford Swope Bill Walsh Roger Freeman

Pioneer Flight Museum 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization www.pioneerflightmuseum.org 170 Pershing Lane Kingsbury, Texas 78638

Founder - Roger M. Freeman

Where History Fliesby “Captain Kingsbury”

Welcome to the Pioneer Flight Museum Newsletter. ThePioneer Flight Museum (PFM) is a familiar organization witha new identity. PFM was formally known as Vintage AviationHistorical Foundation. We have changed the name to betterreflect the true vision of the museum and its purpose. Beforewe get into explaining what PFM is all about, let me first thankall the people that have helped build and perpetuate the dreamand allowed PFM to get to where we are today. The names aretoo many to list, but to each person that is a current or formerVAHF member I owe my heartfelt thanks. Without your time,effort, and contributions the organization could not have grownto become the wonderful historic place that it is today. I couldnever convey how much each and every one of you hascontributed to help keep the dream alive and growing.

So, many of you may ask what is PFM all about. Although itis difficult to explain to some, those with dreams of flying orsoaring as a child can explain it. Pioneer Flight Museum is agroup of like-minded individuals that love aviation, particularlyearly aviation! We recognize the importance that aviation hasplayed in defining our being, the society in which we live, aswell as the history of the world! At the Pioneer FlightMuseum our goal is to collect, restore and preserve thoseartifacts that planted the seeds of aviation. However, that onlybegins to explain our purpose. Through the PFM it is our hopethat people of all ages can experience not only the artifacts ofaviation, but become part of the era that molded who we are.To do this, we will educate people about how life was duringthe birth of aviation. Aviation was born to ordinary, every-daypeople that shared a dream. Farmers and ranchers, teachers,grocery store clerks, and teenagers not even out of high schoolbecame leaders in the development of early aviation. As mostknow, two brothers that had a small bicycle shop were the firstto fly. There were no astronauts, test pilots, or CEO’s of largecorporations. There were no books, manuals, instructions, orkits to build an aeroplane. Dreams were put on paper andturned into reality. We hope to share the excitement thosepeople felt as they took the first steps into the air, makinghistory and becoming forever immortalized.

Pioneer Flight Museum’s mission is to be a “LIVINGMUSEUM”, not just artifacts that people can see, but amuseum that has a life of its own. Where people can see earlyaeroplanes, and watch their restoration, feel the smoothness ofthe wood and the silkiness of the fabric that covers theseemingly fragile wings. Hear the early engines cough, thenroar to life creating a breeze behind them, making it difficult tostand upright. Smell the castor oil that helps keep thoseengines running smoothly. Those that come and experience theactual flight of those early aeroplanes will have a much deeperand thorough understanding of what it was like to be one ofaviation’s pioneers. The childhood dreams of long ago willcome rushing back, no doubt putting a smile on their faces.

With that said, it is our hope that the Pioneer Flight Museumwill be a self-perpetuating repository for early aviation artifactsthat preserve a living history of aviation and the era of thosetimes. The Pioneer Flight Museum will cover the periodspanning the Birth of Aviation up to – but not including –WWII. The different eras the PFM will concern itself withwill be The Birth of Aviation, WWI, and the Golden Age ofAviation with a heavy emphasis on World War I. It is ourfeeling that the greatest progress in early aviation was achievedduring the Great War.

The museum has received many donations from generousindividuals around the country. The Pioneer Flight Museumhas also become the curator of the Freeman HeritageCollection, LLC. The Freeman Heritage Collection is onexclusive, perpetual loan to the PFM and we wish to thank theFreeman family not only for their love of aviation, but forallowing the world to share their collection of rare and uniqueitems.

So, who is Captain Kingsbury? Captain Kingsbury is you,someone who loves aviation and shares the dream of flight withothers. Until next time, may you soar with the eagles and nestupon a cloud.

PFM 2009 Calendar

Needs & Disposals

February 11th Rocket Launch (February 13th RainDate)March 17th Rocket Launch (March 19th Rain Date)March 21st Rocket Launch (March 24th Rain Date)

April 4th PFM Members Pot LuckApril 25-26th IMAC (R/C)May 2nd Sky Raider Races (R/C)

May 9th Kingsbury Spring Fly-inMay 16th 2 + Fun Fly (Bi or Tri-plane only) (R/C)May 30th Shupe Memorial Fun Fly (R/C)June 13/14th Annual Dawn Patrol Rally (R/C)September 12th TCF Club Family Fun Day (R/C)

September 26th PFM Members Pot LuckOctober 3rd/4th 9th Annual Rice Memorial (R/C)October 17th 2nd Annual Electric Fun Fly (R/C)October-End Holi Fly (R/C)November 7/8th Randolph AFB Air Show

November 14th Kingsbury Fall Fly-inNovember 15th 2nd Annual Blue Santa Fund Raiser(R/C)

December 5th PFM Members ChristmasParty

Replica Plans 3/4 scale SE5a Project Fuselage is on gear - One wing panel and center section is completed. Sale includes full plans, fuel tank, spar materials and other miscellaneous materials for ribs and tailplanes. Asking $1,500 - all money goes to the Pioneer Flight Museum. Interested parties please contact Roger Freeman at 830-639-4162.

Museum Needs - apply on-line

The Museum seeks a dynamic and motivated fund raiser to pursue corporate and individual donations.

The Museum seeks an enthusiastic and energetic volunteer to develop and source merchandise for the Museum, as well as fulfill retail and on-line orders and maintain inventory.

Fund Raiser

Merchandise/Gift Shop Manager

Newsletter Editor The Museum seeks a volunteer editor for the PFM Newsletter. Must be deadline oriented.

Filled

For Sale

Fokker Dr.I Triplane

In the Spring of 1917 Anthony Fokker was not a veryhappy man. He and his aircraft factory were in dangerof being forgotten by the German Air Service. AnthonyFokker had tremendously enjoyed the fame, notorietyand money that came during the second half of 1915when his Fokker E.I, E.II, and E.III “Eindekkers”, thefirst fighters to enter service with a fixed machine gunfiring through the propeller arc, had dominated theWestern Front. Fokker became a household name aroundthe world.

But the Eindekkers were seriously obsolete by February1916, with new higher performance Allied fighters likethe Nieuport 11 and the British DH-2 ending the “FokkerScourge”. By June 1916 Albatros D.I and D.II biplanefighters replaced the Fokker Eindekkers in squadronstrength and while the Fokker factory produced a seriesof prototype aircraft the German Air Service had orderedvery small quantities as none of these new aircraft couldsurpass the performance of the Albatros fighters. Tomake matters worse his Fokker D.III fighters, despiteseeing limited success in the hands of German aces like

Ltn. Oswald Boelcke and Ltn. Ernst Udet, had beenbanned from combat due to quality control issues in theirmanufacture. Fokker’s future was looking bleak; heneeded a new aircraft… a complete departure from hisprevious efforts!

During the Eindekker months Anthony Fokker hadcultivated friendships with German service pilots and hadgone to great pains to strengthen those relationshipswhenever he could. In addition to Tony Fokkerperiodically going to the Front to talk directly with thepilots, he would invite the aces to drop by the factorywhen they were in Germany on leave and fly his latestprototypes. Fokker used these contacts to understandconditions at the Front and what the pilots wanted in afighting aircraft. Fokker was also a man open to newideas and quick to recognize their merit, even though hewas not an engineer. And aircraft development in WWIwas extremely rapid, new ideas were everywhere!

Tony Fokker was visiting various Jastas on the WesternFront in the Spring of 1917 when he heard about a newBritish scout that had earned the respect of the German

The Pioneer Flight Museum’s Triplane in late February 2008, awaiting engine run and taxi testing

The V.4 prototype was undergoing design as a biplane whenTony Fokker returned from the Front with the German pilot’sopinions about the Sopwith Triplane ringing in his ears.Fokker directed that the V.4 be completed as a Triplane.Note that the aircraft is unarmed and is equipped with unbal-anced elevators and ailerons and lacks interplane struts.Several German pilots home on leave flew this aircraft andprovided additional feedback on its design, including Ltn.Werner Voss.

pilots. The new aircraft, the Sopwith Triplane, had threewings and its ability to climb and maneuver made aceslike Manfred von Richtofen and Ltn. Werner Vossenvious… their Albatros fighters seemed clumsy andoutmoded by comparison. From a forward positionFokker was able to observe a combat against the newSopwith and was allowed to inspect a crashed examplebefore the troops crated it up to send it back to Germanyfor evaluation. Fokker also departed the Front forGermany and upon his arrival at his factory he directedthe redesign of the current prototype to be a Triplane,rather than a biplane. This machine was known withinthe Fokker Werkes as V.4 (the “V” designation indicatedexperimental or prototype).

The resulting design was extremely compact, featuringthree wings of a cantilever design with no externalbracing wires. This was accomplished by utilizing awing with an unusually thick airfoil for the times, an ideaFokker had observed used by his rival, Dr. Hugo Junkers.Indeed, Fokker had already had a thick-section all-plywood wing constructed by a specialist consultant inlate 1916 and had flown an all-wood wing on a prototype(V.1) before the Triplane design was started. Otheraspects of the V.4 Triplane prototype were quiteconventional for Fokker aircraft – fabric covered wings,wire-braced mild steel tube fuselage structures and steeltube tail structures. Best yet for Anthony Fokker, wasthat his new aircraft was powered by an Oberursal rotaryengine. The German Air Service was very partial to thewater-cooled in-line six-cylinder engines they haddeveloped pre-war and they were reluctant to use a rotaryengine, but Fokker owned Oberursal and loved the ideaof making a profit on not only every airframe sold to theGerman Air Service, but every engine as well!

The V.4 performed very well, and the design quickly wasrefined into another prototype, the V.5. The V.5 was thefirst Fokker prototype designed from the start as aTriplane and featured improvements derived from theV.4, like balanced ailerons and elevators and interplanestruts at the wing tips in addition to other slightrefinements. The result was that at the same time theGerman Air Service funded Siemens-Schukert and Pfalzto begin designing Triplane fighter prototypes theGerman Air Service was able to fly Fokker’s refinedprototype, the V.5. Within a week the Germanauthorities placed an order for 20 V.5 (Triplane)prototype fighters, as well as a V.6 prototype, which wasa Triplane modified to be powered by a 160 hp Mercedeswater-cooled in-line six-cylinder engine. After test flyingthe V.6 the German authorities dropped all interest in theV.6 concept!

In early August 1917, the German Air Service tested todestruction the first pre-production airframe, F.I 101/17.Having passed the tests, the next 2 pre-productionaircraft were to be delivered to selected pilots in activeJastas. In late August, F.I 102/17 and F.I 103/17 weredelivered to Rittmeister Manfred von Richtofen (Jasta11) and Ltn. Werner Voss (Jasta 10) at their airfields onthe Western Front. Voss flew his first, Richtofenmaking his initial flight on September 1st, 1917.However, Richtofen scored victories in the new triplanefirst, an R.E.8 observation craft on September 1st forvictory #60, and a Sopwith Pup on the 3rd of Septemberfor #61! Richtofen then went on additionalconvalescent leave (he’d been wounded in combat onJuly 6th), leaving his Triplane to be flown by other Jastapilots. On September 15th Oblt. Kurt Wolff was shotdown and killed by a Royal Navy pilot from 10Squadron.

Ltn. Werner Voss, meanwhile, scored 10 victories in hispre-production Triplane before being shot down in anepic dogfight with SE5a aircraft of 60 and 56 Squadrons,RFC on September 23, 1917. Voss didn’t shoot downany aircraft in his final combat but he managed todamage virtually all of his opponents, some two flightsworth of some of the most experienced RFC fighterpilots on the Western Front! Voss had severalopportunities to break off combat and dart for home, butafter disengaging he always plunged back into the fight.Lt. Arthur Rhys-David eventually shot him down, thoughmodern interpretation of the combat leads experts to

The V.5 prototype was Fokker’s first “clean sheet” triplanedesign and it incorporated many lessons learned from flyingthe V.4. The V.5 is very close to the production version ofthe Triplane and sports balanced ailerons and elevators, guns,and inter-plane struts.

The Pioneer Flight Museum’s Triplane at Air Fair 2002. Just a bare skeleton assembled for display!

believe that Voss died because he fought too long and ranout of fuel, making him a much easier target.

The successes of the early triplanes at the Front lead theGerman Air Service to order another 100 examples inlate September and another 200 in late November 1917.The military designation for the aircraft became Dr.I, the“Dr.” meaning “dreidekker”, or three-wing aircraft.Between the Fokker Triplane’s success and the GermanAir Service’s expressed interest in three-wingedairplanes, the entire German aircraft industry went on aTriplane spree, developing observation planes, bombers,fighters, and seaplanes, all with three wings!

In late October 1917, there were two fatal accidents inFokker Triplanes as a result of the top wing collapsing;one of the pilots killed was a Jasta leader and a Pour leMerite winner, Ltn. Heinrich Gontermann. Gontermannhad been demonstrating the triplane’s maneuverabilityover his own airfield when the top wing collapsed and hecrashed. The German authorities grounded the typewhile an investigation was performed and once again, theresults did not speak well for Fokker’s quality control.The findings recommended reinforcing various wingattachment points and structures, and using a betterquality varnish in the construction of the wings to protectthe wooden structure from rot due to moisture. But evenbefore the final report had been written the pilots at theFront were demanding that the Fokker Triplane bereturned to combat status, which the German militaryauthorities allowed as long as the machine had theimproved wings. The Fokker factory would beresponsible for creating new improved wings for allpreviously manufactured triplanes in inventory, as well asall future production machines. The revised wing wassubmitted for testing in mid-November, and havingpassed, deliveries of Fokker Dr.I triplanes could be

restarted in December 1917.

The delay in triplanes reaching the Front was serioushowever, as that precious window of superiority hadvanished! By the time the Triplane was reaching theWestern Front Jastas in any significant quantity, it wasalready obsolete. At its inception, it was slower thanmost of its adversaries, possessing only climb rate andturning advantages over its opponents. For the Allies,the end of 1917 saw the SE5a reaching Squadronstrength in RFC units, the Sopwith Camel was wellestablished in the RFC and the French were introducingthe SPAD XIII into squadron use. Against suchopponents the Triplane’s performance advantages weresignificantly reduced, if not eliminated. Recognizingthis fact, the German Air Service held a competition inJanuary 1918 to select a replacement fighter. It was atthis contest that the Fokker D.VII was selected andordered into production… but the Dr.I Triplane and theAlbatros D.III and D.Va fighters would have to hold theline until the D.VII reached the frontline Jastas.

Even though the Triplane was essentially obsolete, incapable hands it was still a formidable opponent and washighly respected by Allied pilots, especially if theTriplanes held the altitude advantage! Nearly all thenotable German pilots active between November 1917and May 1918 flew a Fokker Triplane at some point oranother, and a few became passionate devotees of thetype. Rittmeister Manfred von Richtofen scored hisfinal 20 victories in triplanes before being killed in April1918 in a low-level scrap with RFC Sopwith Camels.Captain Roy Brown was awarded credit for shootingdown the Red Baron, but in his combat report he merelyclaimed he had fired at a red Triplane. Captain Brownlost sight of the Triplane after firing his machine guns atthe aircraft and didn’t realize the aircraft had crash-landed. He was also unaware that Richtofen had pilotedthe red Triplane! Victory claims by Australian infantrymachine gunners that claim to have downed the RedBaron are given high credence today. In general, theFokker Triplane was quickly supplanted by the Fokker

D.VII beginning in May 1918. However, triplanescontinued to fly combat and one pilot, Ltn.dR JosefJacobs, continued to fly his Triplane into October 1918when he finally had to retire the aircraft because hecouldn’t find the parts necessary to keep it flying. Thetype had all but disappeared from the face of the earth.

Indeed, after the war, there were only three originalFokker Dr.I Triplane airframes remaining in Germany.One was a Triplane flown by Manfred von Richtofen, thepredecessor to the machine he died in. This aircraftfailed to survive WWII, being destroyed or damaged byaerial bombing with the remains being used as firewoodby Russian troops. One airframe was built up from sparecomponents by Anthony Fokker in 1932 and shippedfrom Holland to Germany for display. The 3rd airframewas also a composite airframe and was assembled fromparts held at Adlershof, the main German aviation testcenter. These latter two airframes were eventuallyrefurbished to flight-worthy status and used in the 1938film “Pour le Merite”. However, after the film wascompleted both aircraft were apparently scrapped aftervarious flying accidents. War materials are considered

expendable and disposable, and the Fokker Dr.I Triplanewas old technology well before the war ended in an agewhen combat airplanes didn’t have an expected servicelife of more than a couple of months. The Fokker Dr.I’scareer had peaked too early in the war to ensure survivaland the limited numbers of Triplanes producedguaranteed few survivors.

The Pioneer Flight Museum’s Fokker Dr.I Triplane

The PFM’s Fokker Triplane replica has been around forquite some time… Roger initially acquired the airframefrom the USAF as partial payment for the Fokker Dr.ITriplane he built for their museum in the early 1990’s.Our airplane is essentially a Ron Sands airframe and ispowered by an 80-hp Le Rhone rotary engine. Early on,Roger made some modifications to improve itsauthenticity, but serious work by the museum’svolunteers to get this airplane flying didn’t start untilNovember 2004.

On the flight line ready to go! Note the spiffy wheel chocks built by PFM volunteer Mike McCormick!

Many, but not all of the volunteers who over the past couple of years have contributed their time and efforts to completethe Museum’s Fokker Dr.I Triplane replica. Photo courtesy of Jo Hunter (www.futurshox.net)

The airplane is finished in a color scheme based heavilyupon Ltn. Paul Baumer’s Triplanes. Ltn. Paul Baumer,known as the “Iron Eagle”, was a dental assistant pre-warbut had earned a pilot’s license just before the war brokeout. He enlisted in an infantry regiment and saw combatin France and Russia, where he was wounded in the leftarm. Baumer then joined the German Air Service as adental assistant, volunteering for flight duty shortlyafterwards. Trained as a fighter pilot he was posted toJasta 5 on June 30, 1917 and joined Jasta 2 (Boelcke) inAugust 1917, where he served the remainder of theconflict. Baumer was made an officer due to his aerialprowess, earning the Pour le Merite in early November1918. Baumer missed three months of duty convalescingfrom a broken jaw suffered in a crash, and after returningto Jasta Boelcke in September 1918 saved his life byusing his parachute. Baumer survived the war with 43victories to his credit. Post-war, Paul Baumer became adentist but continued flying, becoming both a notedaerobatic pilot as well as starting his own aircraftcompany, Baumer Aero Gmbh headquartered inHamburg, Germany. Baumer perished test flying anothercompany’s fighter aircraft in Copenhagen in 1927.

Over the basic Fokker factory finish our machine retains

the earlier German crosses of Baumer’s first Triplanecombined with the fuselage stripe and wingtip bands ofhis last Triplane. On the horizontal tail surfaces thevolunteers liked the longitudinal black and white stripesof Jasta 6 better than the half-black / half-whitehorizontal stabilizer of Baumer’s Jasta Boelcke. Thevolunteers also couldn’t resist the ‘face’ from Ltn.Werner Voss’ famous Triplane. The engine cowling andaxle fairing on the main gear were painted all blackbecause of the copious amounts of castor oil these rotaryengines fling about when running!

As Roger Freeman has gotten more experience flying theairplane he is getting more comfortable with its quirks,but states that yaw stability is very poor and once the taildrops on landing the machine is at the mercy of the windsand the engine’s torque inputs into the airframe. It is avery easy airplane to ground loop and one quicklyappreciates the Fokker factory’s addition of wingtip skidsto the production Triplanes! Even with the 80-hp leRhone engine our Triplane’s performance is good for itsera and it climbs especially well. As with most airplanesfrom the Great War it is tail heavy and requires constantattention to fly.

Dick Schenck - “Der Tripemeister”

The man and his dream machine!

Dick and the completed Triplane - his baby!

The Pioneer Flight Museum lost an ardent supporter,volunteer airplane builder, and good friend on July11th when Dick Schenck passed away at his home inDripping Springs, Texas. Dick appeared at an airshow many years ago and volunteered to help buildairplanes for the Museum. While he worked on theFokker D.VII replica he was most excited about thefollow-on project – the Museum’s Fokker Dr.ITriplane! Enthusiastic and passionate enough thathe was nicknamed “Der Tripemeister” by thevolunteers.

Dick helping Ron and Brad sand and varnish theTriplane’s wings.

Dick had served in the U.S. Army in WWII and justmissed being trained in the field as a Liaison aircraftpilot when his school closed down just as he was to

begin pilot training. Following his participation inconquering Nazi Germany via the Italian Theater,Dick spent his working life with the U.S. PostalService and also moonlighted as a ranch hand. Aman of many talents, Dick was active in the Texas’German communities and enjoyed singing and was aharmonica player of some notable talent.

Dick building ammo chutes for his favorite fighter!

Not that he sang or played harmonica for us! Dickwas always cheerful but purposeful when he came byto work on airplanes at the Museum. While healways brightened everyone’s day Dick came toWORK, and frequently showed more energy thanmany volunteers half his age.

All loved Dick and he will be missed very much.God speed old friend!

Pioneer Flight Museum - Team Vehicles

Currently running vehicles at Kingsbury are: 1917Model T Signal Corps Truck, 1925 Model “TT”Truck, 1927 Model T wrecker, and a 1917 NashQuad heavy transport truck.

1917 Nash Quad

Mike McMains and the new Indian Fuel tanks!

The model 1917 Indian motorcycle with sidecar iscurrently being restored to running condition andshould be running again soon. Museum volunteerMike McMains created new fuel tanks for the Indianafter the originals were found to have terminalcorrosion problems. We hope to begin running theengine within the next month. Another excitingdevelopment is the museum’s acquisition of a 1921Triumph motorcycle. In addition, a 1910 Thormotorcycle is undergoing restoration in the shops.

The 1921 Triumph that is on its way to the PFM from England. This bike will need little work.

Display vehicles are a pre-1925 Model T touring car,1918 US Ambulance, and a 1917 “French”Ambulance. The Museum has plans to return allthese vehicles to running condition. Also underrestoration is a 1918 FWD (Four Wheel DriveCompany) truck while light upgrades to the NashQuad are on-going!

As always, Team Vehicles needs more volunteers andno prior experience is necessary! Currentmaintenance tasks include running the vehicles,operation of the vehicles at workdays and local airfairs, as well as the upgrade and restoration projectsmentioned.

Model T Signal Corps Truck

Project Update - PFM Aircraft Projects

The Museum’s replica Fokker D.VII

T1 fuselage stripped with cleaning underway!

Currently the Museum has several airplane projectsunderway. The largest of these is the restoration toflying condition of two 1918 Thomas-Morse S4C“Scouts”. Both aircraft are originals. Tommy #1 isthe airplane Roger has been flying for some 30 yearsand it was time to be stripped, inspected, repairedand re-covered. Tommy #2 is a sister ship thatErnie Freeman continued restoring and is essentiallycomplete and ready for cover.

Rib stitching a Thomas-Morse elevator

Several other projects are nearing completion orreturn to flight status, the hold-up being engineissues. The airplane project closest to flying is thePietenpol Sky Scout with its Ford Model “A” engine.Our engine has always been troublesome so experts

located in Texas have rebuilt it and the bottom end ofthe engine is nearly ready to go back together!

Another project afflicted by engine woes is theCurtiss Junior. This aircraft is ready to fly, butwe’ve been stymied by the French-built Salmsonradial engine. Believe it or not an expert has beenlocated and the engine has been shipped foroverhaul!

The diminutive Salmson radial

The final aircraft waiting to fly is the Museum’sFokker D.VII. The power plant for our D.VII will bea Gipsy Queen engine. The Museum thought it bestto rebuild the bottom end and the search for bearingshas consumed quite a bit of time. Bearings havebeen located so hopefully this engine can begin theoverhaul process soon.

170 Pershing LaneKingsbury, Texas 78638

Where History Flies

T-1, the Pioneer Flight Museum’s original Thomas Morse S4C “Scout”. This aircraft iscurrently being overhauled after 30 years of flying!