AMA Nats: CL Navy Carrier
Dick Perry
Particularly appropriate for this year's Nats CL Navy Carrier event was the flying site at Fentress Naval Auxiliary Landing Facility. The field dates back to the World War II era when there were a number of small triangular auxiliary fields in the Tidewater, VA, area. Unlike other fields that have been abandoned, Fentress was expanded for use in training Navy pilots, taking some of the traffic away from nearby Oceana Naval Air Station, which is in a more populated area. Those who camped on the field were treated to F-14 Tomcat fighters doing carrier landing qualifications (both day and night) after the model flying ended.
Conditions were good throughout the four days of carrier flying. Temperatures were high with humidity to match, which caused some engine problems, particularly on Class II day when there were quite a few incomplete flights. Wind was light and fairly consistent, creating no real problems even though deck placement on Profile Carrier day required takeoffs and landings on the upwind side of the circle.
Profile Carrier
Profile Carrier competition saw a variety of models entered. Many were scratch-built originals, with a few based on published plans:
- Vought Kingfisher (published in Model Aviation and Flying Models)
- Fairey Spearfish (published in Model Airplane News)
- Grumman Guardian (published in Model Builder)
Kit models included:
- Bearcat and Corsair by GS
- P-51 Mustang and Hellcat by Sterling
- Modified Flite Streak by Top Flite
Pete Mazur posted a 301.7 on the second flight of the day, which remained the top score throughout the competition, although others came close. Pete's Tune-Hill–powered Spearfish recorded the best high and low speeds of the day at 89.7 mph and 7.5 mph (four minutes), both occurring on the same flight.
Marc Warwashana's early flight with his original Grumman Wildcat (Super Tigre S-36 power) resulted in a 299.8 score. Herb Patrick, on his third attempt with his original K&B-powered Guardian, achieved flight speeds of 83.7 mph and 7.8 mph to come within .02 points of Pete's score. Thus, the top three scores in Open Profile fell within a two-point spread.
Junior Profile went to Daniel Swartzendruber, flying a modified Flite Streak with Super Tigre .35 power.
Nats CL Carrier
Jane Johnson captured the Senior honors flying a Sterling Hellcat with a K&B .58. Her high and low of 70.0 mph and 29.9 mph, with 100 landing points, earned a score of 203.9.
For Class I day, the deck was moved to the downwind side of the circle for the prevailing wind direction. The first flight by Marc Warwashana's .40-powered Brewster XSB-A-1 was a strong 355.9, but it did not keep him in first place for long. Within the first hour Pete Mazur posted his final score of 387.6 and had to wait as the other contestants attempted to beat his performance.
Near noon, Glenn Simpson completed a 359.2 flight to move into second place with his MO-1 powered by an OS .40 VRP. Joe Dzialo missed his landing on his second attempt but moved into fourth place with a completed flight on his final attempt.
In the afternoon many flights resulted in only partial scores until the final 15 minutes of competition. Gary Hull used his second attempt to fly his MO-1 into fourth place with a 346.5. On the final flight of the day, Marc Warwashana boosted his score to 379.6 to take over second place.
With two days of flying complete, the standings for the Eugene Ely Award were:
- 1st: Pete Mazur — leading with 387.6
- 2nd: Marc Warwashana — about 10 points behind
- Close contenders: Gary Hull and Glenn Simpson
Class II competition did not start as well as the other two days. Ten flights were attempted before John Castiglioni made the first complete flight with his new Wildcat. His tenure in first place didn't last long: Glenn Simpson managed a high speed of 98.7 mph and a low of 11.6 mph for a 379.6 on the very next flight. Dick Perry's flight of 372.1 moved him into second place, and although many others completed official flights, the top three places remained unchanged.
For his winning Class II flight and his consistently strong performance in the other classes, Glenn Simpson was awarded the Navy Carrier Society's Eugene Ely Award as the top carrier flier at the Nats. The traditional engraved plate was presented at the NCS banquet on Friday evening — a fitting end to three days of good competition and camaraderie.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
