Control Line Scale - 2009/12

December 2009 141
More than 700 Rapides of various designations were
produced. Approximately 200 were appropriated for
civilian use, while 500 known by the RAF as Dominie
saw service in the air forces of Australia, New Zealand,
Canada, and many other countries.
Frank Beatty’s model is a profile version that features
the color-and-markings of a Rapide that Automobile
Association Services used from November
1957 until June 1963. It was owned at the
time by Cartographical Services Ltd. and
based at Eastleigh, United Kingdom.
Frank constructed the Rapide from his
plans, to a scale of 5/8 inch = 1 foot, which
produced a 28.5-inch wingspan. Power is
provided by two Brodak MK II .049
engines.
The model is constructed from sheet
balsa, uses 1/4 x 5/16 maple for the engine
mounts, and 1/64 plywood strengthens the
landing gear and engine nacelle areas.
To get the Automobile Association
Services’ markings the right size for his de
Havilland, Frank had the plate he is to use
for proof of scale blown up to the model’s
exact size. From that, he was able to pick
off and accurately copy the markings.
Frank built his Rapide to be flown in the
1/2A Multi Engine Profile Scale class at the
FRANK BEATTY of Granite City,
Illinois, has a great knack for picking
unique aircraft from the 1930s to model.
This time he has chosen the post-World
War II Rapide known as G-AHKV, which
was the prototype for the de Havilland
D.H.89A Mk 6 and one of the airplanes in
the Dragon family. The “Dragon” name is
taken from the twin-winged dragonfly
insect.
Rapides were generally powered with
two 200-horsepower, six-cylinder, aircooled
engines. They usually had
wingspans of 47.99 feet, maximum speeds
of 135 knots, and maximum service ceilings
of 19,000 feet.
The de Havilland company produced the
Rapide as a six- or eight-passenger aircraft and put it into service in April
1934. Hillman Airways Ltd. was the first British operator to use the Rapide,
in July 1934.
However, the D.H.89A wasn’t put into production until 1937, when the
Royal Air Force (RAF) acquired several of the airplanes. They were
operated by the No. 24 Squadron for VIP transport and communications
duties.
After World War II began, production continued as the D.H.89B Dominie
Mk 1, which was used as a navigation trainer, and the Mk 2, which served as
a communications aircraft for the RAF. At least six Dominies were made
available to the US Army Air Force between December 1942 and August
1944, and the 27th Transport Group used them as communication aircraft.
One of the Rapide’s strangest uses was for advertisement purposes by
Sky Neon Aviation Ltd. The underside of the bottom wing was fitted with
brackets that held neon lighting. The airplanes flown in the evening over
London showed people below the message, “Drink Ovaltine.”
Also included in this column:
• 50th WACO Reunion in
Ohio
• NASA newsletter
The Rapide postwar, by Frank Beatty
[[email protected]]
Control Line Scale Bill Boss
James E. Keller’s great-looking WACO UPF-7 is finished in Army colors given to it before
WW II. Mike Welshans took this picture at the 50thWACO Reunion.
Above: Frank Beatty’s
profile postwar Rapide is
powered by two Brodak
.049 engines and spans 28.5
inches. Beatty photo.
The Rapide’s nacelles provide for engine mounting and a
convenient way to install landing gear and wheels.
Beatty photo.
12sig5.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 10/23/09 10:29 AM Page 141
Broken Arrow 22 Contest at Buder Park in
Saint Louis, Missouri. The event took place
September 26-27; I’ll bring you the results in
an upcoming column.
WACO Reunion: Mike Welshans of
Ferndale, Michigan, reported that he attended
the 50th WACO Reunion at Wynkoop Airport
in Mount Vernon, Ohio. The gathering took
place the weekend of June 25-27, 2009.
This reunion has been held for the past
several years, and it has proven to be a great
opportunity for modelers and their families to
see many WACO biplanes from the 1930s
that are still flying. This year’s event was
successful; 51 well-maintained and
-restored aircraft were exhibited. Mike took
photos of 47 WACOs, since four had left the
weeklong event before he arrived.
For those who are interested in these early
airplanes, there are roughly 150 photos of the
fly-in on John Rees’s Web site. The address
is in the “Sources” listing at the end of this
column. The site also has information about
how you can obtain prints of the highresolution
photos and how much the various
sizes cost.
WACO airplanes make great models. If
you are interested in constructing one,
consider obtaining the Paul Matt three-view
drawings of WACO aircraft from Wind
Canyon Books.
The drawings are available for the
UMF/YMF-5, UPF-7, and YKS cabin
version. They are on two and three sheets
measuring 18 x 22 inches, and they are scaled
to 1/2 inch = 1 foot.
The photo of the WACO UPF-7 that I
have included was one of 600 manufactured
in a Troy, Ohio, factory between 1937 and
1942. James E. Keller of Canton, Ohio, owns
the airplane, which was produced late in
1942. It was featured at the 50th Reunion.
The UPF designation identified the
WACO’s design characteristics. The “U”
identified the 220-horsepower Continental
W-670-6A engine, the “P” identified the
wing and fuselage design, and the “F”
identified the model type or series.
The WACO is another aircraft from the
1930s and ’40s with a strange service record.
The UPF-7 saw service as a pilot trainer at
the Boeing School of Aeronautics in
Oakland, California, in September 1941, a
crop duster, a tow airplane for glider clubs,
an aerobatic trainer, and an aerobatic and
passenger airplane at air shows.
After WW II, WACOs became popular
with antique collectors/owners. Still today,
more than 150 of the original UPFs are still
registered.
Mike Welshans noted that he is willing to
e-mail a few of the photos he took to anyone
who is interested in a specific aircraft, but
the selection would be at his discretion
based on pictures he took. A CD with 230
photographs of the 47 aircraft Mike took
pictures of are available for $12 postpaid.
NASA Newsletter: I compliment Ted
Kraver for the fine job he is doing with
the publication of the National
Association of Scale Aeromodelers’
(NASA) newsletter: Replica. The
coverage of all Scale categories is fine,
and the quality of the many photos and
commentary is great.
If you are not a NASA member yet, I
urge you to join. The $20 (US) and $25
(foreign) memberships entitle you to
receive Replica six times a year and a
copy of the NASA Scale Resource Guide.
You will be helping to support all
categories (RC, FF, and CL) of Scale
aeromodeling.
This organization also provides many
volunteers that host the AMA Scale Nats.
Send your membership fee to NASA
Secretary/Treasurer Bonnie Rediske; her
address is in the “Sources” list.
Please send ideas, notice of upcoming CL
Scale events, contest reports, and
especially photos of CL Scale activity to
me at the e-mail address at the top of this
column or to my street address in the
“Sources” list.
Now that the flying season is finished
for most of the country and building for
the coming year starts for many, why not
send me some information about your new
projects? I am in great need of input and
will be looking forward to hearing from
many of you. MA
Sources:
Frank Beatty
2608 Pontoon Rd.
Granite City IL 62040
Mike Welshans
[email protected]
John Rees
www.reesphotos.com
Wind Canyon Books
(800) 952-7007
www.windcanyonbooks.com
WACO YMF-7 information:
www.aviation-history.com/waco/upf-
7.html
NASA
www.nasascale.org
Bonnie Rediske
128 Darnley Dr.
Moon Township PA 15108
Bill Boss
77-06 269th St.
New Hyde Park NY 11040