RC Giants
Sal Calvagna
I attended a fantastic Warbirds Over Delaware (WOD)—a Giant Scale IMAA (International Miniature Aircraft Association) event held July 7–10 at Lum's Pond State Park in Kirkwood. Since the deadline for submitting this column falls on the 10th of every month, I am happy that the MA editors extended my deadline so I may report on WOD in this column. For a columnist this is almost as real-time as it gets!
Although WOD began Thursday, July 7, I arrived midday Friday just after a heavy downpour. Flying resumed shortly after and continued through Sunday. Although the rain cooled things slightly, the infamous Delaware summer heat and humidity returned with a vengeance Saturday and Sunday.
There were roughly 160 registered pilots and more than 200 models present. Many of them were works of art, and it is tough to decide which to include in this column. I cannot show all of them; however, I will continue to use the photos I took in upcoming columns. Shown this month are some of the outstanding aircraft at the event. If bigger is better, the biggest airplanes at WOD were some of the best. The three largest belonged to Carl Bachhuber, Paul LeTourneau, and Merlyn Graves. All fall within a special AMA experimental category of models weighing between 55 and 100 pounds. Information about rules and regulations concerning these models can be found in AMA Document 520-A (at www.modelaircraft.org/PDF-files/520-A.pdf).
Paul LeTourneau traveled all the way from Oconto, Wisconsin, with his newly finished 1/5-scale, 160-inch-wingspan Northrop P-61 Black Widow night fighter that he built from enlarged Ziroll plans (19% larger). Two Desert Aircraft DA-100 gas engines turn Air Models 28 x 10 propellers.
Robart custom-made the landing-gear system, and Sierra Precision made the wheels and brakes. The hefty 93-pound P-61 is finished with Stits Poly Tone paint, and it even has operating bomb-bay doors. Paul made many bombing runs and dropped lots of ordnance on the field during the weekend. The model flew beautifully.
The first XP-61 was flight-tested in 1942, was put into production in late 1943, and began its operational history in mid-1944. Although it arrived late in World War II, the P-61 proved to be valuable. It was one of the country's first aircraft specifically designed as a night fighter. It employed innovative slotted flaps, and spoiler ailerons allowed operation from short airstrips with improved handling.
The P-61 has the distinction of being the largest and heaviest fighter to enter service with the US Air Force during World War II. One reason for its size and weight was the heavy radar system it carried. In addition, the first US flight ejections were made from P-61s.
The Northrop P-61 was used in both theaters. In the Pacific, one of the Black Widow squadrons' primary missions was to protect the B-29 base at Saipan from night attacks. In Europe the P-61s were initially staged in England and used to intercept V-1 flying bombs. Northrop built approximately 700 P-61s in several variations.
Merlyn Graves of Cold Stream, Illinois, flew his 170-inch-wingspan Bristol Blenheim Mk IV light bomber that was powered by two DA-100 gas engines. It was beautifully finished in a camouflage pattern using Chevron Perfect Paint. Merlyn made all fiberglass work and canopies by hand.
When I asked Merlyn how he picked the Blenheim as his modeling project, he said his children had given him a Ghost aircraft calendar that featured a Bristol Blenheim. He loved the photo so much he decided to make a model of one.
The Blenheim started life in the mid-1930s as a Bristol Type 142 civil transport. Lord Rothermere, owner of the Daily Mail, ordered a fast, twin-engine private transport that was capable of carrying six passengers and two crew members. He wanted it to be the fastest commercial airplane in Europe.
The Air Ministry took notice of the 142's performance and began tests in 1935. It was altered a great deal to accommodate a bomb load, and the re-engineered aircraft was received in 1937. The Bristol Blenheim was used heavily during the early years of World War II; however, it was vulnerable to enemy fighters. More than 5,500 were built, including the more than 600 manufactured in Canada.
Carl Bachhuber of Mayville, Wisconsin, brought two huge aircraft: a Boeing Stratocruiser that he had last year and a newly completed model of the DC-6 "Independence," on which President Harry S. Truman traveled.
Carl's DC-6 weighs 96 pounds, and he estimates that it is roughly 13% scale. It has a 180-inch wingspan and is powered by four Zenoah G-26 gas engines. He scratch-built the retractions and used Robart brakes on the wheels.
The presidential airlift mission started in 1944 with President Franklin D. Roosevelt's "Sacred Cow": a C-54 Skymaster. President Truman's new private transport was shown for the first time at the Douglas aircraft plant on June 3, 1947. The interior featured mahogany, elk hide, and transparent plastic. The seating capacity was 24, but it was able to accommodate 12 people for sleeping.
Not only is the model impressive because of its size and complexity, but Carl added some extras and put on a little show at the end of his flight. I have tried to capture the essence of this in the photos.
After landing, Carl taxied the Independence up the flightline where the welcoming crowd of spectators had gathered. The model rolled to a stop, safely away from onlookers, and the engines shut down. Using a remote-control Airstair vehicle, another pilot drove the unit up close to the DC-6's rear exit door.
When in place, the rear door was remotely opened, and a smiling Harry S. Truman appeared holding a Chicago Daily Tribune on which the headline reading "Dewey Defeats Truman" was clearly visible. It was certainly a crowd-pleaser!
The last model I'll cover this month belongs to Zain Adam Rathore of Sterling, Virginia. It is a 1/3-scale Balsa USA Sopwith Pup powered by a Zenoah G-80 twin gas engine.
Zain did a great job of building and piloting the Pup. He covered it with Solartex and hand-painted all the markings.
Zain is a member of the Northern Virginia Radio Control Club. Great job!
I will pick up next month with more great models from this show and a design for a stand that you can build. It comes in handy for supporting a Giant Scale fuselage while it's under construction. MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
