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The
Life and Times - and Writings of J. Earl Steinhauer
By most standards, Joseph Earl
Steinhauer was a late starter in the world of aviation. Although born in 1897
(June 30), his other adventures and lack of money kept him from getting his
pilot license until 1926 at the age of 29.
As a young boy living in those times in a rural area
(Shillington, Pennsylvania, near Reading), he soon learned from his father about
things mechanical—if something had to be built or repaired, one had to do it
himself. His father owned a hosiery knitting mill until that folded, and he then
got a job with the Pennsylvania Railroad as Superintendent of Overhead Signal
Installation. That necessitated a family move to Lemoyne (near Harrisburg) where
Earl graduated from high school in 1915. Earl then attended Lebanon Valley
College until he quit to work for Harrisburg Pipe and Pipe Bending Co., where
the pay was good for the time. The company was busy making artillery shells for
the British and Earl was boring out shell casings on a big LeBlond turret lathe.
Meanwhile, Earl's father began building houses for a
living which caused Earl to learn quite a bit about home building, such as
surveying and measurements. That prompted him to enroll in a mechanical
engineering course offered by the International Correspondence School of
Scranton, Penn., which he completed in 1916. In the fall of that year, a good
friend wrote Earl that he should apply for a job as a tool maker at the Packard
Motor Car Company in Detroit where he could earn 95 cents an hour for a 12-hour
night shift. Earl got the job but, very soon on the first night, it was very
apparent by the flying debris from his precision lathe that he didn't know
anything about tool making! The company then enrolled him in an apprentice
program at a considerable reduction in pay. To make ends meet, Earl got a second
job playing violin with the pit orchestra at the Majestic Theatre in Detroit.
By 1918 Earl had completed his trade courses and was
bitten by the aviation bug when he was assigned to the dynamometer testing lab
working on Liberty engines and rigging LaPere biplanes that Packard was
building. (Author's note: A LaPere biplane with a General Electric turbocharged
engine reached a then record altitude of 33,113 feet in February 1920.)
Earl's job at Packard was abruptly interrupted when he
was drafted into the Army on November 7, 1918. In his words:
"I was taken to Battle Creek to
Camp Custer and put into leg wrappings, heavy jodhpur type pants that were
seven sizes too big, a shirt three sizes too small, and size 10 shoes for my
size 8-1/2 feet, handed a pick and shovel and assigned to latrine duty. After
three days of Army life came the armistice - talk about celebrating! Camp
Custer was closed and we were . . . . .
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J. Earl Steinhauer |
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Utah
Gliding History, 1927-1950 (Part II - 1933-1938)
POWERED BIPLANE GLIDER - MYSTERY
SHIP, 1932 - A quite unusual (unidentified) photo of what appears
to be a powered biplane glider popped up during examination of stacks of
material in the Kelsey collection - a mystery ship! None of the few known
surviving Utah gliding pioneers have a clue concerning its origin and history.
Help!
U-1 GLIDER - STILL
FLYING, 1983 - On
18 March 1933 the faithful old U-1 primary glider. No. 8068, then flying the
colors of a group totally disassociated with the University since the fatal U-2
crash, was issued another airworthiness certificate. Limited gliding was still
being conducted from the south slopes at the Point-of-the-Mountain.
WENDOVER - GLIDER CLUB ORGANIZED,
1933 -
The
Wendover Glider Club, organized in 1933 at Utah's famed Salt Flats west of Salt
Lake City, by Willis Orgill, Lynn Orgill and Vernon Staker, constructed a Mead
Rhon Ranger primary glider. They paid $89.50 for a complete kit. This craft was
assigned identification number 12761.
Flights were conducted from portions of the immense salt flats and
sagebrush-covered desert surrounding the tiny, desolate gasoline-and-cafe
highway stop at the Utah, Nevada, border. The Orgills operated Wendover's single
cafe.
KELSEY - FIRST VISIT TO
BOWLUS FACTORY,
1933 - Frank Kelsey made his first visit to the Bowlus sailplane factory
at San Femando, California, during the Spring of 1933. Hawley had set up a
modest shop in a barn at the family chicken ranch on dusty Paxton Street. This
operation was on a somewhat grander scale than the Kelsey chicken-coop shop in
Salt Lake City.
Frank's first trip was made on his Harley Davidson motorcycle. Subsequent
trips would be by air when he began working for National Parks Airline, later
absorbed by Western Air Express/Western Air Lines. His employment with this line
provided a source of free passes between Utah and Southern California.
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Rocky Moutain Glider Club's Challenger |
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What's
in a Name
William Shakespeare's famous
line from a Midsummer's Night Dream is hardly expected to \Inlr
be in an article about airplanes, but it fits. This article is about
"nose art" - pictures on an airplane. The Chinese state that one
picture is worth a thousand words. This is a marriage of the picture and the
thousand words. Nose art has become a branch of wartime art; the military has
appointed official artists to depict the emotions of military life in addition
to documentary photographs, this art defines each war just as music defines
its own era. There are many books and calendars of nose art, most depict a
picture. This report presents some pictures but it takes us to the reasoning -
like a trip to a psychiatrists couch, it attempts to depict not just
"what" but also "why." The high point of this art was in
WWII and it brings much the same memories as big band music—who can forget
Glenn Miller and Sentimental Journey as played for the sign off
music of the armed forces radio on some far out hole like Guam? Why would
anyone name an airplane "Miasis Dragon" or "Noah Borshunes"?
Who did it and why?
Nose art has a long history but reached its zenith in
WWII. It is fair to ask where it came from, where it went and why. The Greeks
made a fetish about naming things and led to many of aviation's terms
including the "airplane."
Greek terms then led to Latin and finally to English
so naming is not a new invention. Along the line, a Swedish scientist named
Lennaeus, in the 18th century developed a descriptive nomenclature system for
everything that lives and breaths. These terms describe what "is"
and what "for" - we immediately form a mental picture of a dinosaur
when we read "Triceratops." In my second language an esophageal
diaphragmatic hiatus hernia tells the story but it is not basic English, but
is a mix of Greek and Latin.
The naming art leads the mind to form a picture or an
illustration - it not only names the object, but we use the name to give
ourselves a sense of ownership or control. The Titanic, the Mayflower,
the 20th Century Limited and the Tin Lizzie
create a vision or recollection but also trigger the emotion of feeling. Every
dog, cat or canary that we have has a name and a corresponding character that
we make our own. On a cold wintery morning when the car won't start, we don't
say "Chevrolet Impala or "Mercury Mountaineer"
please start," we say "Betsy, lets get with it." Such terms are
far from just sexy cartoons or jokes, these terms have personal relevance.
Every car, tractor, boat or airplane that comes off a
production line develops its own character or personality. Some cars are
"good" and some are "lemons" - we even have "lemon
laws." Sometimes the name is unprintable but the christening of a ship
can become a major news event.
Sometimes single names or events become generalized
to . . . . . .
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Moonshine Raiders |
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California
Mosquitoes
Several commercial aircraft
operations involving civil-registered Mosquito aircraft originated in
California. These aircraft were imported by Aviation Export Company (AEC) of
Los Angeles. Because all the individual aircraft histories are interrelated,
they qualify for documentation under the above title. The following is a
best-case scenario presented in chronological order as events evolved for each
Mosquito.
N4928V
and H4935U—Except for U.S. registrations N4928V and N4935V and
one published photo of 28V, the subsequent civil history of these two
enigmatic Mosquitoes has baffled researchers. An investigation by
Australian Doug Morrison provides new information on the origins of N4928V
from an aviation veteran who recently passed away.
In the early
1950s, Claire M. Waterbury, a principal of AEC' visited Australia and New
Zealand to investigate acquiring numerous Mosquito aircraft for the
U.S. commercial market.2 During this time period, Richard R. Newman, president
of California Air Charter, also traveled 'down-under' with similar interests.
Both men consulted aviation businessman Morry J.
Lawrence (MJL) for assistance in this endeavor. MJL previously served as chief
accountant for Australia National Airlines' maintenance facility in Perth,
Western Australia, during the Second World War. From the late 1950s until
1964, he managed Aero Service (USA) in Australia. He also established
Sepal Pty Limited, a brokerage firm buying and selling surplus military
aircraft, spare parts, and providing aircraft maintenance.
On behalf of AEC, MJL purchased three surplus Mosquitoes
from RH Grant Trading Company in January 1953. Located at RAAF Base Wagga
Wagga, Forest Hills, NSW, the aircraft comprised FB Mk40s with serials A52-55
and A52-173 (both instructional airframes from the RAAF apprentice training
school) and A52-177. Personnel from Australia Airlines and Butler Airlines
worked part time to refurbish the best aircraft, utilizing the other two
airframes as a parts source. This single Mosquito had an Avro Anson
loop antenna installed above the cockpit canopy, and registered N4928V.
AEC employed Lewis M. Leach Jr. to ferry the Mosquito
to the USA. He flew 28V from Wagga Wagga to Sydney with . . . . .
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XB-TOX, origianally TA 717 |
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The
Al Williams Saga
(He taught Young America how to Fly)
Al Williams excelled in any task he
tackled because of his unbridled enthusiasm. He
left a legacy that stimulated worldwide interest
in aviation and in the importance of
air power.
Most young men are satisfied with proficiency in one
profession during their lifetime; however, Al Williams engaged in a myriad of
professions that included speed record smasher, author and columnist,
world-famous acrobat, inventor, tactician, lawyer, radio personality, research
engineer, baseball player, educator, aircraft designer and U.S. Navy Chief Test
Pilot. His story is contemporaneous with the period of swift and significant
technical advances in the aeronautical sciences to which his remarkable
contributions are truly outstanding and are still commonplace in our time.
Pitcher to Test
Pilot—Alford Joseph Williams, Jr. was born in New York City on July 26,
1896, raised in the Bronx, and graduated from Fordham University with a B.A.
degree at the young age of 19. While at Fordham, Williams was a star pitcher on
the university baseball team, which did not escape the sharp eye of John J.
McGraw, manager of the famous New York Giants, who quickly signed Williams on
the team in 1915.
Two years later the United States entered World
War One and the young ball player left the Giants to become a naval aviator
before he had time to achieve fame as a pitcher. Williams proved so adept at
teaching and flying that he was retained at the Pensacola Naval Air Station as
an instructor until the Armistice. A few months later Ensign Williams became a
U.S. Navy research and test pilot in which capacity he developed combat
aerobatics and worked on improvements for combat aircraft. He became
disillusioned at the slow pace of U.S. fighter plane development. This was
apparently the fault of military leaders and not the U.S. Congress because the
Army generals and Navy admirals rarely spent the full amount that the U.S.
Congress appropriated for aviation. Conditions were soon to improve because a
ray of sunlight burst upon the horizon which was to stimulate renewed interest
in U.S. Military aviation.
Pulitzer Air Races—Joseph Pulitzer
(1847-1911), Hungarian-born publisher of the New York World,
who endowed the school of journalism at Columbia University and created the
Pulitzer Prizes, had the foresight to arrange for five years of airplane races
known as the Pulitzer International Speed Classic. This provided the necessary
stimulus for a healthy U.S. Army-Navy inter-service rivalry in aircraft
development. Delayed by World War One, the races were scheduled from 1920 to
1925 by the deceased Joseph Pulitzer's three . . . . .
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Lt. Alford J. Williams, USN poses with
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Aircraft
History of Eastern Airlines: 1928-1991
Part I - Propeller Aircraft: 1928-1946
Harold Pitcairn's Pitcairn
Aviation, on May 1, 1928, started Contract Air Mail route number 19 (CAM 19)
service with six Pitcairn "Mailwing" aircraft and 41 employees, of
which seven were pilots. CAM 19 was between Hadley Field, New Brunswick, New
Jersey, and Candler Field in Atlanta, Georgia. The Post Office required an all
night operation, so that the northbound mail could connect with the morning
westbound trans-continental flights and the evening eastbound arrivals in New
Jersey would connect with the southbound departures. On December 1, 1928, Pitcairn
took over Florida Airways' inactive (CAM 10) mail route between Atlanta and
Miami. With a new operator, the route was renumbered to CAM 25. With the
connecting of these two routes, Miami to New York area mail carriage went from
the train's almost 48 hours to the mailplane's 16 hours. A route branch from
Daytona Beach, which was on the main line of CAM 25, to Orlando, Tampa and St.
Petersburg was opened on April 1, 1929. Harold Pitcairn was an aircraft
manufacturer. He sold his air mail airline to North American Aviation (Clement
Keys) in July 10, 1929, for $2.5 million and returned to his first love,
building aircraft. Before selling the airline, Pitcairn had authorized the
purchase of three Ford 4AT "Tin Goose''s, his first passenger-carrying
aircraft. North American Aviation changed the carriers name to Eastern Air
Transport (EAT) on January 15, 1930. In June 1930, the air mail route was
extended from the New York area to Boston.
EAT began passenger service on August 18,
1930 between New York's North Beach Airport (now LaGuardia Airport) and
Richmond, VA. stops were made at Camden, NJ (the airport serving Philadelphia),
Baltimore and Washington DC. The first service was with the three Ford Trimotors,
and later two Fokker F-10s leased from Transcontinental Air Tran-sport (TAT).
Business was so good that six Curtiss Condor COs, that carried up to 18
passengers, were added to the growing fleet. Keys also owned Curtiss and started
replacing all non-Curtiss aircraft with ones from his factories. On December 10,
1930, the passenger route was extended from Richmond to Atlanta. Service was
with three newly arrived Curtiss Condors. Then on January 1, 1931, with
the addition of Curtiss Kingbirds the route was extended to Miami and St.
Petersburg. Eastern was the second airline to use stewardesses. They were
introduced on its Curtiss Condor service in January 1931. By the end of
1931, Eastern had almost 500 employees and more than 40 aircraft. On July 15,
1931, Eastern Air Transport bought New York Airways. This expanded EATs routes
to include Atlantic City a fastgrowing passenger destination. The buy out did
not include any aircraft.
Passengers received a real treat in 1932,
when Eastern advertised "From Frost to Flowers in Fourteen Hours." On
January 7, 1933, the service left New . . . . . .
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EAL Lockheed 10B, NC14958
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Room
9 - One Man's Memories of World War II
I
graduated from Riverside High School (Milwaukee, Wl) in 1941. My parents owned a
flat at 3547 N. 13th Street; we lived downstairs and our tenant, Adolph Behrens,
lived upstairs. He was an engineer at Square "D" Company and he helped
me get a job there as a tool and die maker apprentice. It was one of the best
things that could have happened to me as I enjoyed making tools, dies, and gages
for 47 years at Square "D."
On December 7, 1941, my best grade-school friend.
Chuck Gross and his future wife, myself and a girlfriend were on our way to view
the capitol in Madison, Wisconsin. We heard a news flash on the radio that said
Japan had bombed Pearl Harbor. We realized that we would be affected before
long. Some of my friends enlisted right away while others waited until they were
drafted. Then, after getting a few deferments because of my trade, I asked a
girl I knew in the draft office if she would tear up my deferment, which she
did. Right after that, a pilot training program was announced. I again asked the
girl in the draft office for help, this time I asked if she could get me back
off the draft list so I could join the Army Air Corps. She said it was easier to
get on the list than off but somehow she did it. I took the exam for pilot
training, which wasn't that difficult, and that made me eligible to become a
navigator or bombardier if I washed out as a pilot. First, I was sent to Maxwell
Field in Montgomery, Alabama, to get basic training, which included learning to
march and, as a new cadet, be harassed by the upper . . . . .
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