What is this plane? #15

[howardwhite 6]

Screen grab from a TV show.

HW

[ZigZagMarquis 9]

?? Ford Tri-Motor ???

[lekstrom10k 0]

I get it as the up-dated version of the Tri -Motor called the Bushmaster I believe .The Tri- Motor would have corrugated metal outer skin

[SkydiveJack 1]

Quote

?? Ford Tri-Motor ???

Close. It's a Bushmaster.

[mccurley 1]

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[howardwhite 6]

Considering that (according to lots of web sources) only two Bushmasters were built and one of them -- maybe this one -- crashed in Fullerton, CA in September, 2004, it's unlikely that there will be many more pics like this one.

HW

[stratostar 5]

There was a man from Ottawa Kansas named Chuck Lemaster, Chuck flew the airshows & EAA fly in in his Ford Tri Motor "One More Tri". He was pretty well known for that plane, my dad flew crop dusters for him during this time frame. Chuck was the guy who always found that one more tri motor when everyone said there were no more left.

Chuck sold "One More Tri" in the late 70's and went to Alaska, in the bush some place was a Bushmaster that some people were living in like a trailer. Chuck took it home and rebuilt it to flying condition, and if I remember correct, it was the only one in the world flying at the time, He took it around the fly ins and airshows for a while, I don't know what ever be came of Chuck, he would be in his 80's now @ a guess. I think it is the same one in your post that flew @ WFFC, that Chuck Lemaster found and rebuilt when everyone said there were none to be found.

I have a old newspaper story on him some place, I'll see if I can find it.

you can't pay for kids schoolin' with love of skydiving! ~ Airtwardo

[SansSuit 1]

Quincy 1998

Peace,
-Dawson.
http://www.SansSuit.com
The Society for the Advancement of Naked Skydiving

[councilman24 37]

The local air museum has a tri-motor, not a bushmaster, that they used to give city tours in. They found corrosion in the wings and it's undergoing a complete rebuild. They expect it to be back in the air.

A while back the local demo team tried to get a jump out of it for the museum. We didn't get to far then. When it's flying it's time to try again.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[airtwardo 7]

Quote

The local air museum has a tri-motor, not a bushmaster, that they used to give city tours in. They found corrosion in the wings and it's undergoing a complete rebuild. They expect it to be back in the air.

A while back the local demo team tried to get a jump out of it for the museum. We didn't get to far then. When it's flying it's time to try again.

Do you know which one it is...who owned it last?

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[councilman24 37]

AFAIK the Kalamazoo Aviation History Museum has owned for more than 25 years. When I first moved here in 1980 I think it was being rebuilt. Then for several/many years it flew the city tours. Then it went down for insurance reasons. Then it was back up for either part of a year or year or so. Then went down for the most recent rebuild.

All their website says is

Manufacturer:Ford
Model:C-4A (5-AT)
Popular Name:Tri-Motor

and I can't find a photo of it.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[steve1 5]

When I was a kid, Johson's Flying Service, (in Missoula) had several Ford Tri-motors flying. They were used to fly smoke jumpers and gear and equipment throughout Western Montana and Northern Idaho. My Dad had a lot of hours flying co-pilot in one when he was still a teenager, living with Bob Johnson.

One summer they landed a tri-motor, on floats, on a lake, way back in a wilderness area. It was so heavily loaded they had trouble getting it off the water on take off. This may be a story....but he said the pilot went around the lake a few times to get some waves on the surface of the lake. Some how this helped them get the plane off the water. I'm no pilot, so I don't know if that was even plausable.

I made a jump out of a travel-air, back in the early 70's. It was an antique then. I wonder if any of them are still flying. This was another aircraft owned by Johnson's Flying Service.

There are a few books out, that tell stories of the early days of Bob Johson and his flying service in Missoula.

The following is a another story of my Dad's.....He was flying copilot on a tri-motor with Slim Phillips. They flew to a fire in Idaho somewhere to pick up a load of Smokejumpers. All of the Smoke Jumpers were Conscientious Objectors nearly all the pilots disliked them, because they refused to fight in World War II....They landed the tri-motor on a dirt strip to pick these guys up, off of a fire.

Slim Phillips, had an entire cooler filled with ice cold water melon. My Dad couldn't figure out why old Slim was being so nice to these guys he hated so much.

So, after a hearty meal of watermelon they took off again, headed home to Missoula. The hot air was rougher than hell. About then most all of these Smoke Jumpers started barfing their guts out.

Slim and my Dad sat up front grinning at each other.

"Old" Slim wouldn't let them leave the airport until they had cleaned up the back of his Tri-motor....It wasn't easy being a Conscientous Objector back in those days!....

[rmaden 0]

I had the fortunate opportunity to fly right seat with Chuck in that old "One More Tri". A beautiful experience flying around middle Tennesse. Must have been the middle or late 70's.

[riggerrob 643]

One summer they landed a tri-motor, on floats, on a lake, way back in a wilderness area. It was so heavily loaded they had trouble getting it off the water on take off. This may be a story....but he said the pilot went around the lake a few times to get some waves on the surface of the lake. Some how this helped them get the plane off the water. I'm no pilot, so I don't know if that was even plausable.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

It sounds plausible.
Small waves help break surface suction on floats, the same way steps reduce suction during take-off.
On the other end of the flight, float plane pilots also hate "glassy water" when landing. Glassy water makes it difficult to judge altitude and decide when to flare.
The other reason for circling the lake may have been to extend the take-off run IOW make more runway length for acceleration.
For example, bush pilots will cheerfully take-off, over-loaded, from rivers, but loath the same maneuver from short lakes.

[stratostar 5]

I got a few turns in the right seat too. When I heard about the Bushmaster flying @ WFFC, right away I thought of Chuck and his stories of where to find just "One More Tri".

you can't pay for kids schoolin' with love of skydiving! ~ Airtwardo

[SkydiveJack 1]

Quote

AFAIK the Kalamazoo Aviation History Museum has owned for more than 25 years. When I first moved here in 1980 I think it was being rebuilt. Then for several/many years it flew the city tours. Then it went down for insurance reasons. Then it was back up for either part of a year or year or so. Then went down for the most recent rebuild.

All their website says is

Manufacturer:Ford
Model:C-4A (5-AT)
Popular Name:Tri-Motor

and I can't find a photo of it.

Here are two photos of it. The first was this summer in Alma, MI after it just got back on it's wheels. No wings or engines yet. The second is an in-air shot from a few years ago. My wife is involved with the rebuild team. She has been keeping the paperwork in order and chasing down some hard to find parts. Hopefully it will be back in the air next spring.

[Bsquared 1]

Trimotor exit at an airshow demo in Ohio around 1980. The pic is not backwards, This is one of the few commercial acft with a R/H door. John Conklin took the photo and Jim "Fang" Fangmeyer is in the door.

[Jim_Hooper 4]

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Trimotor exit at an airshow demo in Ohio around 1980. The pic is not backwards, This is one of the few commercial acft with a R/H door. John Conklin took the photo and Jim "Fang" Fangmeyer is in the door.

If memory serves, we (Ten High Bunch) jumped a right-hand door DC-3 at one of the Turkey Meets or Nationals. After hundreds of exits from L/H doors, it felt decidedly awkward. I seem to recall being told that it and others were produced on special order by Douglas for one of the major carriers (American Airlines?) of the early-'40s. Anyone out there who remembers - or knows - of this oddity?
Hoop

[SkydiveJack 1]

If memory serves, we (Ten High Bunch) jumped a right-hand door DC-3 at one of the Turkey Meets or Nationals. After hundreds of exits from L/H doors, it felt decidedly awkward. I seem to recall being told that it and others were produced on special order by Douglas for one of the major carriers (American Airlines?) of the early-'40s. Anyone out there who remembers - or knows - of this oddity?
Hoop

Some years after you left Z-hills we had a right hand door DC-3 for one of the Boogies. I don't remember exactly when. I believe it came out of Colorado. I do remember it was great when we did some 80 way jumps. Two DC-3's in formation with the doors facing each other! Pretty cool! And your right, it was really strange going out the "wrong" side of the aircraft. And you are also correct about American Airlines having it's DC-3's built with the door on the right.

[bozo 0]

There was a right hand door DC-3 at one of the Freak Brothers conventions....early 80s. Its been too long ago and I cant remember whos plane or even the year. I do remember the door though.

bozo
Pain is fleeting. Glory lasts forever. Chicks dig scars.

[piper17 1]

Jim, there was a right-hand door DC3 at a Turkey Meet at the Hills in the mid-70s. I think it was the year that the 10-way team I was on (the Adams Family captained by Dave Adams) won the award for sequential RW (the year it came into being).

"A man can never have too much red wine, too many books, or too much ammunition"...Rudyard Kipling

[JSBIRD 1]

One of the many DC3's at the 1986 Convention had a right hand door. I got 2-3 jumps out of it doing 16 ways.

Yes, that left turn to the open door was a helluva switch for a guy with hundreds of conventional DC3 jumps.

BASE359

"Now I've settled down,
in a quiet little town,
and forgot about everything"

[Jim_Hooper 4]

Quote

Jim, there was a right-hand door DC3 at a Turkey Meet at the Hills in the mid-70s. I think it was the year that the 10-way team I was on (the Adams Family captained by Dave Adams) won the award for sequential RW (the year it came into being).

That's right! And each of the competitive teams kept their beady eyes on the manifest and protest-pencil-fingers twitching in the event others in the running missed being given a round out of it.
Hoop

[skycop 0]

I grew up near Port Clinton Ohio, Keller field was home of Island Airlines, in the mid-70's they flew two tri-motors to Put-in-Bay Island in Lake Erie, along with a beaver. My family knew the pilot (who later crashed one and was seriously injured) I flew right seat a few times, quite a thrill for a kid.

"Just 'cause I'm simple, don't mean I'm stewpid!"

[Zing 2]

I remember that Zhills Boogie. I was down there with a bunch of Michigan jumpers shortly before I moved to Arizona.
One of the boogies we had at Ghoulidge around 1980? or so had a right-hand door DC-3. I'm looking around for a photo or two from that one.
When I was flying DC-3s at Coolidge for Larry Hill, a guy had "The City of Reno" DC-3 parked there and I flew it with him a few times when he was trying to get ready for a type-ride.
He had all the records on the plane from the airlines plus maintenance logs. Trip logs signed by Earnest K. Gann, the total number of gallons of oil and gas the airplane used, how many and when the engines, wings, etc. were changed. Was fun to get to fly a semi-historical airplane.

Zing Lurks