THE INSIDE LOOP - 201209

It is not uncommon for a modeler
to gravitate to a certain type or era
of model airplane. Although some
enjoy warbirds,
civilian aircraft, or
jets, it’s clear that
Gary Ritchie enjoys
biplanes.
In the May 2009
issue of Model
Aviation, we had
a story entitled
“Romancing the
S.E.5a” by Gary,
and his model even
graced the cover. If
you missed it, be
sure to visit The
Library, an AMA
Members Only
benefi t, that will
allow you to pour
over the article
or entire issue
at your leisure
when it launches
September 15.
A link to The
Library is on www.
ModelAviation.
com.
This month,
Gary’s beautiful
Tiger Moth
provides us with yet
another cover with
a classic biplane,
and an informative article about his
experiences building and fl ying a 1/5-scale
version of the Tiger Moth XL-716.
I, too, have a fondness for biplanes,
whether it is the S.E.5a or the Tiger
Moth. I have both in my offi ce, ready
to fl y. An electric-powered, foam GWS
Pico Tiger Moth brought me back into
modeling roughly 10 years ago.
A couple of years later I would fl y the
World Tour Tiger Moth with a few of
my fl ying buddies who also had Moths
in their hangars. Little did I know back
Biplanes are cool!
then that the Moth and I would be
reunited at the AMA in Muncie, Indiana.
I saw my fi rst full-scale Tiger Moth
fl y at one of the
coolest places on
earth: Cole Palin’s
Old Rhinebeck
Aerodrome
in Rhinebeck,
New York. The
pilot skillfully
maneuvered
the aircraft and
entertained us all
by dropping a roll
of toilet paper from
the cockpit and
then proceeded to
cut it a few times in
midair as it fell.
Virtually all of the
aircraft I saw that
day were biplanes—
primarily those
fl own in World
War I. Not satisfi ed
to merely watch the
pilots having all the
fun, I bought a ride
in an open-cockpit
1929 New Standard
D-25 biplane.
If I wasn’t hooked
on biplanes before,
that fl ight certainly
carried me down
the path to a solid
appreciation of two-winged aircraft!
I’m still patiently waiting for the
opportunity to take a ride in a full-scale
Tiger Moth. I happen to know an RC
helicopter pilot in Canada who has
access to one; if only I had my passport!
If you are interested in reading more
about me, be sure to check out Jim
Graham’s “Born to Fly” column in
this issue as I go from interviewer to
interviewee.
I hope you enjoy this issue and take
time to visit The Library online.