Letters to the Editor
All letters will be carefully considered; those of general interest will be used. Send to Model Aviation, 1810 Samuel Morse Dr., Reston, VA 22090.
Via Hong Kong
The following are news items from China.
- At the Nation-Wide RC Model Plane Contest held in Chinan City, Henan Province, from April 16–18, 1981, Liu Han Mao, with runs of 174, 168, and 190.09 km/h, surpassed the world record previously set by Krughov of the U.S.S.R. (162 km/h for F3A-53, RC Closed Course Speed). Liu Han Mao also broke the national record with 258.99 km/h for F3A-23 (RC Straight-Line Speed). He equipped his planes with OPS .60 engines.
- Chen Chi Jian won the championship for F1C (FF Power) at the Nation-Wide F1 Model Championships held June 5–9 in Henan Province. He scored 1260+222 in the Pre-Contest and 1440 in the Final Contest. His plane is equipped with a Nelson .15G engine, uses a fiberglass fuselage, and the main wing section is covered with aluminum foil. A multi-function Seelig timer was used.
Please help modelers all over the world to know more about Chinese modeling activities by publishing these pictures and remarks in your magazine.
B. L. Ng President Winning Model & Hobby Supplies Kowloon, H.K.
Can You Identify It?
The enclosed photos show a diesel engine which I acquired in Japan in the early 1950s. It may be an antique if it was manufactured prior to 1950. I trust that one of your readers will recognize this "gem" and provide me with a positive identification or perhaps the address of a knowledgeable source.
The only identification on the engine is "Motori Osam — Made in Italy." A serial number, 60812, is stamped on the starboard mounting lug. There is no other information. Physically, the engine is the size of a .40. It starts easily and turns a 12" prop very well.
Should you have a knowledgeable source on hand, please ask:
- How old is it?
- How do you remove the head?
- What is its displacement?
Finally, is there a good, yet inexpensive, formula for diesel fuel?
Gerard E. McNamara 647 Neff Road Grosse Pointe, MI 48230
Our impression from the engine's design features is that it isn't extremely old, though we couldn't pin down a specific date. One diesel fuel formula for sport flying is equal parts castor oil, kerosene, and ether. Another common recipe is 50% kerosene, 30% ether, and 20% castor oil. Premixed Davis Diesel Fuel is carried by many hobby shops and may be obtained direct from the company: Davis Diesel Development, Inc., Box 141, Milford, CT 06460.
North American Hot-Air Balloon Challenge Cup
Battle Creek World Hot-Air Balloon Championships, Inc. is pleased to announce that the first North American Hot-Air Balloon Challenge Cup will be held in Battle Creek, MI, with flights beginning on July 2, 1983.
The 1983 Challenge Cup is the beginning of an official Balloon Federation of America/Canadian Ballooning Association sanctioned competition. The top 15 hot-air balloon pilots from the U.S. and the 15 best from Canada will vie for individual and team honors during seven balloon launches scheduled (weather permitting) at 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, July 2, 3, and 4, and at 6 a.m. on Tuesday, July 5.
"Most competitive flights are scheduled for Kellogg Regional Airport, although other sites may be chosen for a variety of challenges," indicated Michael Jackson, president of Battle Creek World Hot-Air Balloon Championships, Inc.
Battle Creek is already famous as the site of the Fifth World Hot-Air Balloon Championship, which drew crowds of over 700,000 to the area during June 1981. Spectator and contestant response was so enthusiastic that Battle Creek has been chosen to host the Seventh World Hot-Air Balloon Championship in 1985.
In addition to the thrill of watching over 30 hot-air balloons float into the skies over Battle Creek, numerous activities and attractions are scheduled at the Kellogg Regional Airport during the 1983 Challenge Cup. Scheduled attractions include the 1st Annual Michigan Ultralight Derby, demonstrations of radio-control model aircraft, and smoke balloonist Peter Krieg, who will dazzle audiences with his skills as the pilot of one of the few smoke balloons in the world. This nearly lost art of ballooning thrilled tens of thousands during the 5th World Hot-Air Balloon Championship in 1981. All of this will be capped off with antique autos, a bluegrass festival, and a huge fireworks display.
For more information, write or call Battle Creek World Hot-Air Balloon Championships, Inc., 172 West VanBuren St., Battle Creek, MI 49017; phone (616) 962-4076. For tourist and accommodations information, call the Greater Battle Creek/Calhoun County Visitor & Convention Bureau at (616) 962-2240.
Linda S. Dosh Publicity Chairwoman
Do note that one of the attractions is an RC demonstration. Altogether, it sounds like an interesting event to watch, if you can manage to be there.
What's So Precious?
Regarding the Whitehead article in the March 1983 issue, containing the information that the Smithsonian is contractually prohibited from stating the Wrights were not the first to fly an airplane, under penalty of losing the "1903 Flyer" — what's so precious about this airplane? It never flew!
I have been puzzled for years about this. The Wrights' own documents prove that their original 1903 airplane, which flew at Kitty Hawk, was badly damaged there. It sustained more damage in shipment from North Carolina to Dayton, and the wreckage was further damaged in a flood while it was stored in the Wright basement. Only years later was this airplane dragged out of its limbo and reconstructed by the Wrights, supposedly back to its original configuration. But how much of it is original? How much damage was done by rust, mildew, and dry-rot that could not be repaired? How many parts had been removed from the airplane to be re-used on later Wright aircraft (the Wrights having been noted for their economical ways) and modified or broken?
Conversely, there are ample records that show that Langley's 1903 Aerodrome (labeled by the Smithsonian as a pre-Wright design that failed to fly) has been flown successfully, and in substantially its original configuration. It is true that Glenn Curtiss did modify the Aerodrome quite a bit — but only after flights had been made with it in its original configuration with only a few minor adjustments of the sort that any experimenter would make as a matter of course.
The Wrights did do a lot of pioneering in aviation. But this doesn't make them gods whose pronouncements from Olympus are forever binding on us ordinary mortals. Why not let the Wright-built replica of the 1903 Flyer go to their heirs to do with as they please; replace it with another replica; and let the Smithsonian freely publish all the evidence of man's efforts to fly — including Gustave Whitehead's.
Joe Wagner New Wilmington, PA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
