Monthly Archives: November 2024

Distinguished Service Cross, Major George Andrew Davis, Jr., United States Air Force.

Major George A. Davis, Jr., commanding officer, 334th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing, 5th Air Force, Kimpo Air Base, Korea, 1952. The airplane behind Davis is North American Aviation F-86A-5-NA Sabre 49-1272. It is on display at the Fresno Air Terminal, Fresno, California. (U.S. Air Force)
Major George A. Davis, Jr., commanding officer, 334th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing, 5th Air Force, Kimpo Air Base, Korea, 1952. The airplane behind Davis is North American Aviation F-86A-5-NA Sabre 49-1272. It is on display at the Fresno Air Terminal, Fresno, California. (U.S. Air Force)

30 November 1951: Major George Andrew Davis, Jr., commanding the 334th Fighter Interceptor Squadron, 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing, based at Kimpo Air Base, South Korea, led a patrol of eight North American Aviation F-86 Sabre fighters near the Yalu River, dividing Korea from China. This area was known as “MiG Alley” because of the large numbers of Russian-built Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 fighters which were based on the Chinese side of the river.

North American Aviation F-86A Sabres of the 4th Fighter Interceptor Wing, South Korea, circa June 1951. (U.S. Air Force)

At about 4:00 p.m., the American pilots saw a group of nine Russian Tupolev Tu-2 twin-engine medium bombers, escorted by 16 Lavochkin La-11 fighters. The bombers were on a mission to attack Taewa-do Island.

Tupolev Tu-2 medium bomber. NATO reporting name "Bat". Major George Davis shot down three of these and a MiG-15, 30 November 1951.
Tupolev Tu-2 medium bomber. NATO reporting name “Bat.” Major George Davis shot down three of these and a MiG-15, 30 November 1951.
Lavochkin La-11. (AirPages)

Davis led his fighters in an attack, making four firing passes on the bombers. He shot down three of the Tu-2s, when one of his pilots, Captain Raymond O. Barton, Jr., called for help. Barton’s Sabre, F-86A-5-NA 49-292, was under attack by 24 MiG-15s which had arrived to reinforce the bombing mission. Barton later described the battle:

“. . . I broke left again and was going to make another pass when I checked my ‘six o’clock’ to clear for my wingman. All of the sudden the SOB started shooting at me, and only then did I realize that I had attracted far more than one MiG. I turned into them. . . I called for help, and the only response I got was from my roommate, Major George Davis. I’ll never forget his reply. ‘I don’t have enough fuel left either but I’m on the way.’  All the MiGs except one had left the area. I had a huge hole where my left fuel cap had been, but I was still flying. When George reached me, he asked me to make a couple of identifying turn reversals. I reluctantly did and he shot that SOB right off my butt.”

F-86 Sabre Aces of the 4th Fighter Wing, by Warren Thompson, Osprey Publishing Ltd., Oxford, 2006, Chapter 2 at Page 32.

Distinguished Service Cross

Major Davis escorted Captain Barton back to their base, landing with just five gallons of fuel remaining in his tanks.

For his actions, Major George A. Davis, Jr., was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross. (He had also been awarded a DSC in World War II.)

The President of the United States of America, under the provisions of the Act of Congress approved July 9, 1918, takes pride in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross (Air Force) (Posthumously) to Major George Andrew Davis, Jr. (AFSN: 0-671514/13035A), United States Air Force, for extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy of the United Nations while serving as Squadron Commander, 334th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 4th Fighter-Interceptor Wing, FIFTH Air Force, on 27 November 1951, during an engagement with enemy aircraft near Sinanju, Korea. While leading a group formation of thirty-two F-86 aircraft on a counter air mission, Major Davis observed six MIG-15 aircraft headed southward above the group. With exemplary leadership and superior airmanship, he maneuvered his forces into position for attack. Leading with great tactical skill and courage, Major Davis closed to 800 feet on a MIG-15 over Namsi. He fired on the enemy aircraft, which immediately began burning. A few seconds later, the enemy pilot bailed out of his aircraft. Continuing the attack on the enemy forces, Major Davis fired on the wingman of the enemy flight, which resulted in numerous strikes on the wing roots and the fuselage. As Major Davis broke off his relentless attack on this MIG-l5, another MIG-15 came down on him. He immediately brought his aircraft into firing position upon the enemy and after a sustained barrage of fire, the enemy pilot bailed out. Although low on fuel, he rejoined his group and reorganized his forces to engage the approximate 80 enemy aircraft making the attack. Against overwhelming odds, Major Davis’ group destroyed two other MIG-15 aircraft, probably destroyed one and damaged one other. Major Davis’ aggressive leadership, his flying skill and devotion to duty contributed invaluable to the United Nations’ cause and reflect great credit on himself, the Far East Air forces and the United States Air Force.

Having shot down four enemy aircraft during one fighter patrol, Davis’ score of aerial victories during his short time in Korea rose to six, making him an ace for the Korean War. Davis had previously shot down seven enemy airplanes during World War II with his Republic P-47 Thunderbolt. Davis was the first American pilot to become an ace in two wars.

George Davis would soon be credited with another eight victories, making him the leading American ace up to that time. He was killed in action 10 February 1952 in an air battle for which he would be awarded the Medal of Honor.

A Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15bis in a hangar at Kimpo Air Base, South Korea. A defecting North Korean pilot, Lieutenant No Kum-Sok, flew it to Kimpo, 21 September 1953. It was examined and test flown by Air Force test pilot Major Charles E. Yeager. The United States offered to return the airplane, but the offer was ignored. In 1957, the MiG-15 was placed in the collection of the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. (U.S. Air Force).
MIG 15 Red 2057. A North Korean Peoples’ Air Force Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG 15bis in a hangar at Kimpo Air Base, Republic of South Korea. A defecting North Korean pilot, Lieutenant No Kum-Sok, flew it to Kimpo on 21 September 1953. It was taken to Okinawa, examined and test flown by U.S.A.F. test pilots, including Major Charles E. (“Chuck”) Yeager. This MiG 15 is in the collection of the National Museum of the United States Air Force, Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio. (U.S. Air Force).

Raymond Oscar (“R.O.”) Barton, Jr., was born at Omaha, Nebraska, 8 March 1927. he was the son of Major General Raymond O. Barton and Clare Fitzpatrick Barton. He was a 1948 graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. Barton flew 100 combat missions during the Korean War. He is credited with three MiG 15s destroyed and another 7 damaged. R.O. Barton died at Augusta, Georgia, in 2003.

© 2017, Bryan R. Swopes

30 November 1944

Boeing B-17G-75-BO 43-37877 on fire and going down near Merseberg, Germany, 1314 GMT 30 November 1944. (U.S. Air Force)
Boeing B-17G-75-BO Flying Fortress 43-37877 on fire and going down near Merseburg, Germany, 1314 GMT, 30 November 1944. (American Air Museum in Britain UPL 30040)

30 November 1944: In another iconic photograph from World War II, this Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, B-17G-75-BO 43-37877, of the 836th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 487th Bombardment Group (Heavy), was hit by anti-aircraft artillery just after bomb release near Merseburg, Sachsen-Anhalt, Germany, at 1314 GMT, 30 November 1944.

43-37877 was crewed by 1st Lieutenant Lloyd W. Kersten, Pilot; 1st Lieutenant Henry E. Gerland, Co-Pilot; 1st Lieutenant James Hyland, Navigator; 1st Lieutenant Warren R. Ritchhart, Bombardier; Technical Sergeant Arnold R. Shegal, Flight Engineer/Gunner; Staff Sergeant Everett S. Morrison, Ball Turret Gunner; Staff Sergeant Joseph M. Miller, Gunner; Staff Sergeant Maurice J. Sullivan, Tail Gunner.

The B-17 crashed near Halle, Sachsen-Anhalt. Seven of the crew were killed. Two, Lieutenants Hyland and Richart, were captured and held as prisoners of war.

43-37877 was built by the Boeing Airplane Company at its Plant II, south of downtown Seattle, Washington. It was delivered to the United Air Lines Modification Center at Cheyenne, Wyoming, on 31 May 1944. After completion of modifications, on 12 June the B-17 was flown to Hunter Army Air Field at Savannah, Georgia, and then on 3 July, to Dow Army Air Field at Bangor, Maine, where it was positioned to be ferried across the north Atlantic Ocean to England.

On 19 June the new bomber was assigned to the 379th Bombardment Group (Heavy), which was based at RAF Kimbolton (U.S. Army Air Force Station 117), west of Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire. Then on 4 July 1944, B-17G 43-32877 was reassigned to the 836th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 487th Bombardment Group (Heavy) at RAF Lavenham (AAF-137), north of Sudbury in Suffolk, England..

43-37877 was not camouflaged. It was marked with a white letter P in a black square on the vertical fin, indicating the 487th Bomb Group, along with a partial serial number, 333787. The side of the fuselage was marked 2G ✪ E, indicating that it was assigned to the 836th Bomb Squadron. The wing tips, vertical fin and rudder, and horizontal stabilizer and elevators were painted yellow.

Two B-17G Flying Fortresses of the 836th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), sometime between 6 January–14 April 1945. In the foreground, marked 2G-P, is a Lockheed Vega-built B-17G-80-VE Flying Fortress, serial number 44-8768. The farther airplane is identified 2G-M. It may be 44-8312. (American Air Museum in Britain, Roger Freeman Collection FRE 8542)

© 2018, Bryan R. Swopes

28–30 November 1938

Focke-Wulf Fw 200 S-1 D-ACON

28–30 November 1938: The first prototype Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor, D-ACON, flew from Berlin, Germany, to Tokyo, Japan, to demonstrate the long-distance capabilities of the new civil airliner.

The Condor’s flight crew was the same as that which had made a previous Berlin–New York transatlantic flight, 10–11 August 1938. Deutsche Luft Hansa Kapitän Alfred Henke, Hauptmann Rudolf Freiherr von Moreau, of the Luftwaffe, co-pilot; Paul Dierberg, flight engineer; Walter Kober, radio operator. Senior radio operator Georg Khone was an additional crew member. (He had originally been scheduled to make the transatlantic flight.) For this flight there  was a single passenger, verkaufsdirecktor (sales director) Heinz Junge.¹

The Condor took off from Flugplatz Berlin-Staaken at 3:53 p.m., on 28 November, and flew to Basra, Kingdom of  Iraq. The Great Circle distance between the two cities is 2,305 miles (3,710 kilometers)

The Lounge, Basra Airport. (The Builder, February 1935)

After refueling, the Fw 200 took off for its next destination, Karachi Air Port in the Sindh province of the British India (now, Pakistan). The distance for the second leg of the journey was 1,238 miles (1,993 kilometers).

From Karachi, Captain Henke and his crew flew on to the city of Hà Nội, in the Protectorate of Tonkin, Indochine française. The Great Circle distance for the third leg is 2,480 miles (3,991 kilometers).

The final segment was from Hanoi to Tokyo, Japan, a distance of 2,281 miles (3,671 kilometers). The Condor arrived at Tachikawa Airfield in the western part of Tokyo at 10:40 p.m., 30 November.

The total elapsed time for the journey was 46 hours, 18 minutes, 19 seconds. The actual flight time was 42 hours, 00 minutes. The Condor’s average speed from Berlin to Tokyo was 198.308 kilometers per hour (123.223 miles per hour).

Captain Henke and his crew established a Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Speed Over Courses for the journey from Berlin to Hanoi, with an average speed of 243.01 kilometers per hour (150.999 miles per hour).² The total elapsed time, Berlin–Hanoi, was 34 hours, 17 minutes, 27 seconds.

D-ACON arrival Tokyo 30 Nov 22:34:24 (Arawasi)

The Condor’s crew was received by Emperor Hirohito.

The Japanese airline Nihon Koku Yuso Kabushiki Kaisha (NYKK) agreed to buy five Focke-Wulf Fw 200 airliners. The Imperial Japanese navy expressed interest in a maritime patrol version.

The Associated Press news agency reported:

Nazi Airmen Start Berlin to Tokyo Hop

     Berlin, Nov. 28—(AP)—A fast four-motored Focke-Wulf Condor plane took off today for Tokyo with a crew of five and one passenger, to show the orient, especially Japan, Germany’s latest achievements in airplane building.

     With only three stops scheduled en route—at Basra, Iraq; Karachi, India, and Hanoi, French Indo-China—it was expected that the entire distance of 9,300 miles would be covered in from 50 to 55 hours.

     Lufthansa officials, however, declared no record would be sought. They said the flight was intended to return the visit of Japan’s “Divine Wind,” which flew here in April, 1937.

     But no secret was made of the fact that Japan has been negotiating for purchase of German commercial planes, for which reason the big Condor was chosen to show its paces.

     Officials said it would return by way of Batavia, capital of the Netherlands East Indies, and Amsterdam in order to show the Royal Dutch air line that its time of six days between those points can be lowered to four.

     The Germans may make a side -trip to Manchoukuo, where purchase of German planes is also being negotiated.

     It was expected they would be back in Berlin by December 17.

Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune, Vol. XXV, No. 7790, Monday, 28 November 1938, Page 3, Column 1

The flight crew of Focke-Wulf Fw 200 S-1 D-ACON at Berlin, 1 August 1938, after their return from New York City. Left to right, Walter Kober, radio operator; Paul Dierberg, flight engineer; Kapitän Alfred Henke, the aircraft commander; and Hauptmann Rudolf Freiherr von Moreau, co-pilot. Foto: Deutsche Lufthansa AG / 14.08.1938
DLHD5054-1-35

The United Press reported:

Nazi Plane Ends Berlin-Tokyo Hop

(United Press by Radio)

     TOKYO, Nov. 30.—A German Focke-Wulf “Condor” type plane arrived here today after a two-day hop from Berlin. The plane made the trip to survey possibilities of regular passenger service between Berlin and Tokyo.

The Honolulu Advertiser, Vol. 83, 1 December 1938, Page 8, Column 8

The Chicago Tribune reported:

GERMAN FLYERS REACH TOKIO IN 47 HOUR FLIGHT

(Chicago Tribune Press Service.)

     TOKIO, Nov. 30.—Completing an 8,375 mile flight from Berlin to Tokio in 46 hours and 41 minutes, five German airmen and one passenger landed their plane at 10:35 o’clock tonight on Tachikawa army airfield on the outskirts of Tokio. The plane, a four-motor Focke-Wulf Condor capable of carrying twenty-six passengers, left Berlin on Monday.

     The silver colored monoplane made only three stops en route, at Basra, Iraq; Karachi, India, and Hanoi, French Indo-China. It averaged 180 miles and hour, including stopovers. Capt. Alfred Henke said the crew encountered little difficulty. They were in constant radio contact with Japanese stations.

Chicago Tribune, Vol. XCVII., No. 287, Thursday 30 December 1938. Page 22, Column 5

Fw 200 S-1 D-ACON (Bernhard D.F. Klein Collection/1000 Aircraft Photos)

D-ACON was the prototype Condor, designated Fw 200 V1, Werk-Nr. 2000. It had first flown at Neulander Feld, site of the Focke-Wulf plant in Bremen, Germany, 27 July 1937. The test pilot was Kurt Waldemar Tank, an aeronautical engineer and the airplane’s designer.

Tank had proposed the airplane to Deutsche Luft Hansa as a long-range commercial transport for routes from Europe to South America. While British and American airlines were using large four-engine flying boats for transoceanic flight, their heavy weight and aerodynamic drag reduced the practical passenger and cargo loadings. A lighter-weight, streamlined land plane would be faster and could carry more passengers, increasing its desirability and practicality. Also, while the flying boats had to make an emergency water landing if one engine failed during the flight, the Focke-Wulf Condor was designed to be able to remain airborne with just two engines.

D-ACON (Klassiker fer Luftfahrt)

The Fw 200 V1 was an all-metal low-wing monoplane powered by four engines, with retractable landing gear. It had a flight crew of four, and was designed to carry a maximum of 26 passengers. It was 78 feet, 0 inches (27.774 meters) long with a wingspan of 108 feet, 0 inches (32.918 meters) and overall height of 20 feet, 0 inches (6.096 meters). The airliner had an empty weight of 24,030 pounds (10,900 kilograms) and gross weight of 37,479 pounds (17,000 kilograms). This increased to 39,683 pounds (18,000 kilograms) after modification to the Fw 200 S-1 configuration.

Focke-Wulf Fw 200 Condor, 3-view drawing with dimensions. (FLIGHT, The Aircraft Engineer & Airships, Vol. XXXII, No. 1513, Thursday, 23 December 1937, at Page 628.)

As originally built, the prototype Condor was powered by four air-cooled, supercharged 1,690.537-cubic-inch-displacement (27.703 liters) Pratt & Whitney Hornet S1E-G single-row 9-cylinder radial engines with a compression ratio of 6.5:1 and gear reduction ratio of 3:2. The S1E-G was rated at 750 horsepower at 2,250 r.p.m. to 7,000 feet (2,134 meters), and 875 horsepower at 2,300 r.p.m. for takeoff. It was 4 feet, 1.38 inches (1.254 meters) in diameter, 4 feet, 6.44 inches (1.383 meters) long, and weighed 1,064 pounds (483 kilograms).

Brandenburg‘s Pratt & Whitney engines were later replaced by Bayerische Motorenwerke AG BMW 132 L engines. BMW had been producing licensed variants of the Pratt & Whitney Hornet since 1933, and had incorporated their own developments during that time. The BMW 132 had a displacement of 27,72 liters and a gear reduction ratio of 0,62:1, and turned a two-bladed Zweiblatt-Versstellpropeller constant-speed propeller, based on Hamilton-Standard design,  with a diameter of 3,35 m

The Fw 200 V1 had a maximum speed of 233 miles per hour (375 kilometers per hour) at Sea Level. Its cruising speed was 205 miles per hour (330 kilometers per hour) at 10,000 feet (3,048 meters). The airliner’s service ceiling was 20,000 feet (6,096 meters). It could maintain level flight at 13,000 feet (3,962 meters) with 3 engines, and 10,000 feet (3,048 meters) with just two engines running. Its range at cruise speed with a 7,000 pound (3,175 kilogram) payload was 775 miles (1,247 kilometers).

For the Berlin-to-New York flight, the Fw 200’s fuel capacity was increased to 2,400 gallons (9,084 liters).

Fw 200 S-1 D-ACON

On 6 December 1938, while on approach to Manila, capital city of the Commonwealth of the Philippines, all four of D-ACON’s engines stopped. Unable to reach the airfield, the Condor was ditched in Manila Bay. All aboard were quickly rescued. The cause of the engines failing was fuel starvation. One source states that the crew had selected the wrong tanks. Another source says that a fuel line had broken. A third cites a fuel pump failure.

D-ACON 6 Dec 1938

The wreck of the first Condor was recovered, however, the airplane was damaged beyond repair.

D-ACON recovery

¹ Following World War II, Heinz Junge, also known as Heinz Junger, was arrested and prosecuted for mistreatment of Allied prisoners of war. He was convicted and sentenced to five years imprisonment.

² FAI Record File Number 8984

© 2018, Bryan R. Swopes

30 November 1934

Hélène Boucher, Chevalier de la légion d’honneur. (Chevalier de la légion d’honneur. (Bibliothèque nationale de France)
Hélène Antoinette Eugénie Boucher, Chevalier de la légion d’honneur. (Bibliothèque nationale de France)

30 November 1934: While flying her new Caudron C.430 Rafale near Guyancourt, France, Hélène Boucher crashed into a forested area at Voison-le-Bretonneaux. Apparently, the airplane stalled while on landing approach, rolled, and then hit the trees. The airplane was destroyed and Mlle Boucher was critically injured. She died while en route to a hospital at Versailles. She was just 26 years old.

Wreckage of Mlle. Boucher’s Caudron C.430 Rafale, F-AMVB, 30 November 1934. (Lela Presse via avions-bateaux)

Hélène Boucher’s funeral was held at Chapelle des Invalides, the first time that a woman had been so honored. Posthumously, the government of France awarded her the Croix de Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur. She is buried at the cemetery in Yermenonville.

Hélène Antoinette Eugénie Boucher

Hélène Antoinette Eugénie Boucher was born at Paris, France, 23 May 1908. She was the daughter of Charles Léon Boucher, an architect, and Élisabeth Hélène Dureau Boucher. Following World War I, Hélène attended high school at the Lycée Montaigne and then the Collège Sévigné, both in Paris.

Mlle Boucher learned to fly at the Aero Club of Landes, Mont-de-Marsan, making her first flight on 4 July 1930. She quickly earned a tourist pilot license. The Aero-Club de France awarded her its pilot certificate number 182. In 1932, Hélène Boucher qualified for a public transport license.

Mlle Bouchere was awarded Certificate Number 182 by the Aero-Club de France
Mlle Bouchere was awarded Certificate Number 182 by the Aero-Club de France. (Escadrille Féminine Méditerranéenne)

Mlle Boucher participated in a number of international and long distance air races, such as the Raid Paris-Saigon in 1933. She specialized in aerobatics and her performances made her a popular figure at air shows.

On 2 August 1933, flying a two-place 40-horsepower Mauboussin-Peyret Zodiac M.120, Mlle Boucher set a Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) World Record for Altitude at 5,900 meters (19,357 feet).¹

The following year, on 8 August 1934, flying a Caudron C.430, C.450 and a C.530, she set nine FAI world records for speed over the 100 and 1,000 kilometer closed circuits. Mlle Boucher averaged 412,37 kilometers per hour (256.24 miles per hour) over the 100 kilometer closed circuit.² For the 1,000 kilometers she averaged 409,18 kilometers per hour (254.25 miles per hour).³

With crew member Marie-Louise Becker, Boucher flew the C.530, powered by a 140 cheval-vapeur Renault Bengali, to set three records over the 1,000 kilometer circuit at an average speed of 250.09 kilometers per hour (155.40 miles per hour).⁴ She set a fourth 1,000 kilometer record of 250.06 km/h (155.38 mph).⁵

On 11 August 1934, Mlle Boucher set a World Record for Speed over a 3 Kilometer Course of 445.03 kilometers per hour (276.53 miles per hour), flying a Caudron Type Coupe Deutsch, powered by a 6-cylinder Renault Bengali engine.⁶

Hélène Boucher’s Caudron C.430 Rafale, F-AMVB.
Hélène Boucher’s Caudron C.430 Rafale, F-AMVB.

F-AMVB was the second of two specially-built Société Anonyme des Avions Caudron C.430 Rafale racing airplanes, c/n 02/6886. (Rafale means gust: “a brief, strong, rush of wind.”) It was registered 18 October 1934 (Certificate of Registry 3947).

The C.430 was a single-engine, two-place, low-wing monoplane with fixed landing gear. The airplane was constructed of wood, with the fuselage, wings and tail surfaces covered with plywood. Fuel was carried in two tanks in the fuselage, one forward of the cockpit and another placed between the pilot and passenger positions. The wings had no dihedral and were equipped with split flaps.

The Caudron C.430 was 7.100 meters (23 feet, 3.53 inches) long with a wingspan of 7.700 meters (25 feet, 3.15 inches)and height of 1.88 meters (6 feet, 2.02 inches). The total wing area was 9 m² (96.9 square feet). Its empty weight was 480 kilograms (1,058 pounds) and gross weight, 820 kilograms (1,808 pounds). The C.430 had a maximum fuel capacity of 160 liters (42 gallons), and 16 liters (4 gallons of lubricating oil.

The airplane was powered by an air-cooled, normally-aspirated 6.333 liter (386.463 cubic inch) Renault Bengali 4Pei inverted four-cylinder overhead-valve (OHV) engine with a compression ratio of 5.75:1, rated at 130 cheval-vapeur (128.3 horsepower) at 2,300 r.p.m., and 150 cheval-vapeur 148.0 horsepower) for takeoff. This was a direct-drive engine, turning a two-bladed, metal Hélices Ratier variable-pitch propeller. The 4Pdi was 1.28 meters (4 feet, 2.4 inches) long, 0.93 meters (3 feet, 0.6 inches) high and 0.52 meters (1 foot, 8.5 inches) wide. It weighed 135 kilograms (298 pounds).

Renault Bengali 4Pei

This gave the C.430 a cruise speed of 260 kilometers per hour ± 5% (153–170 miles per hour) and maximum speed of 305 kilometers per hour ± 5% (180–199 miles per hour) at ground level. The service ceiling was 5,750 meters ± 250 meters (17,922–19,808 feet) and range was 1,000 kilometers (621 miles).

The remaining Caudron C.430 Rafael, c/n 01, F-PJHB, is in at Musée Régional de l’Air, Angers Loire Aéroport, Marcé, Pays de la Loire, France, painted as Mlle Boucher’s blue and red racer with her registration markings, F-AMVB.

Tombe de l’aviatrice Hélène Boucher. (Bibliothèque de France)
Tombe de l’aviatrice Hélène Boucher. (Bibliothèque de France)

¹ FAI Record File Number 12005

²  FAI Record File Numbers 4496, 12111

³ FAI Record File Numbers 4483, 12110, 12112

⁴ FAI Record File Numbers 4494, 12032, 12033

⁵ FAI Record File Number 14860

⁶ FAI Record File Number 12034

© 2018, Bryan R. Swopes

29 November 1957

Boeing NB-52A 52-003 with a North American Aviation X-15 56 under its right wing at Edwards Air Force Base. (NASA DFRC EC62 0099)
Boeing NB-52A 52-003 with a North American Aviation X-15 under its right wing, at Edwards Air Force Base, 31 December 1961. (NASA)

29 November 1957: The third production Boeing B-52A-1-BO Stratofortress strategic bomber, 52-003, was flown from Boeing’s Seattle plant to the North American Aviation facility at Air Force Plant 42, Palmdale, California, to be modified to carry the new X-15 hypersonic research rocketplane.

Modifications began on 4 February 1958. A pylon was mounted under the bomber’s right wing. A large notch was cut into the trailing edge of the inboard flap for the X-15’s vertical fin. A 1,500 gallon (5,678 liter) liquid oxygen tank was installed in the bomb bay.

The X-15 was attached to this underwing pylon by three standard Air Force bomb shackles. (NASA)
The X-15 was attached to this underwing pylon by three remotely-actuated standard Air Force bomb shackles. (NASA)
To allow clearance for teh X-15's vertical fin, a notch had to be cut in the trailing edge of the inboard right flap. (NASA)
To allow clearance for the X-15’s vertical fin, a notch had to be cut in the trailing edge of the inboard right flap. (NASA)

A station for a launch operator was installed on the upper deck of the B-52 at the former electronic countermeasures position. A series of control panels allowed the panel operator to monitor the X-15’s systems, provide electrical power, and to keep the rocketplane’s liquid oxygen tank full as the LOX boiled off during the climb to launch altitude. The operator could see the X-15 through a plexiglas dome, and there were two television monitors.

NB-52 liquid oxygen panel. (NASA)
NB-52 liquid oxygen panel. (NASA)

After modifications were completed at Palmdale, 52-003 was flown to Edwards Air Force Base, 14 November 1958.

NB-52A 52-003 is on display at the Pima Air and Space Museum, Tucson, Arizona.

A North American Aviation F-100 Super Sabre chase plane follows NB-52A 52-003 prior to launch of an X-15. (NASA)
A North American Aviation F-100F Super Sabre chase plane checks an X-15 as its APUs are activated just prior to being released from NB-52A 52-003. (NASA)

© 2016, Bryan R. Swopes