ISSUE 53 Spring 1997 – Canadian Museum of Flight

CANADIAN MUSEUM OF FLIGHT
NEWSLETTER ISSUE 53 Spring 1997

British Columbia’s First Homebuilt

By Mark Munzel
from RAA chapter 85’s Newsletter, the Turn and Bank

This article originally appeared in the March Turn and Bank Newsletter. It was felt that due to its historical significance, it was too good to pass up as a museum article, especially with its local significance. It occurs to me that the Victoria Museum of Flight had, and probably still has, a replica of this aircraft on display. -Editor

H OW MANY RAA members, while toiling to produce still more wing ribs for their ABC- 312 Whizbanger sesquiplane project, have stopped to wonder when and where homebuilding began in B.C.? Probably none. Nonetheless, here is the story of B.C.’s first “homebuilt” airplane.

William Wallace Gibson was a hardware salesman in Saskatchewan when the Wright brothers first “slipped the surly bonds” in 1903. One of his pastimes was flying kites, mostly of designs evolved from his own experiments. The success of the Wrights inspired him to start making models of powered aircraft, combining his kite ideas with spring-motor propulsion. By the spring of 1904, he was set on building a full-sized aircraft. But achieving this goal would require money. Gibson moved to Victoria in 1906 and soon earned $10 000 through mining speculation. Thus capitalized, he began work on B.C.’s first homebuilt.

“Gibson had the successful combination of ability, money, passion a patient family, and the willpower to ignore people who mocked his goals”

In Gibson’s era, just as now, enthusiasts started to build many more planes than they completed. They felt the same pressures as builders today do– limited construction skills, lack of money, loss of interest, demands of family. They also had to deal with the prevalent public belief that aviation was a frivolity it had no practical use and was dangerous too. WW. Gibson had the successful combination of ability, money, passion, a patient family, and the willpower to ignore people who mocked his goals. (Like the Victoria residents who would follow Gibson in the street, flapping their arms like wings and making bird noises!)

There were two dominant families of aircraft in North America, circa 1910: those designed by or copied from the Wright brothers, and those designed by or copied from Glen Curtiss. As the Wrights were much more protective of their ideas, Curtiss-inspired aircraft were prevalent. Plans and magazine articles were available to guide would- be aeronauts in constructing a Curtiss knock-off if they could not afford an original from Curtiss’s factory. Early aircraft were simple enough that a factorybuilt one and a well-constructed clone were essentially identical. Lacking any novelty beyond actually being a flying machine, the copy was arguably not a “homebuilt in the modern connotation of the word. But Gibson’s plane was one, for he took no lead from existing designs. He had no access to references on aeronautics or aerodynamics, and so was forced to develop his own ideas through experiments and model testing. After working on the project full-time for two years, he completed his unique craft in 1910. The accompanying photo only begins to portray the originality of the finished Gibson “Twin-Plane.”

The Twin-Plane was a biplane with a difference. The wings were mounted in the same plane, one in front of the other. The span of both was 20 feet, and the maximum chord 8′. A combination of dihedral in the outer panels and anhedral in the inners gave the tapered wings a “W” shape (like an F4U Corsair) when viewed head-on. This was done, in Gibson’s words, to give “automatic lateral stability.” Each wing had a 2″ deep spruce compression spar mounted above it, streamlined in section to reduce drag. Smaller spars at the leading and trailing edges held the ribs in place. Said ribs were made of wood formers with threaded metal rods through them. Torquing the rods would move the formers, to pull the wing’s silk covering taut for fight or to loosen it for storage. Also, each wing was clamped, not fixed, to the “fuselage” so it could be moved fore and aft to optimize the plane’s centre of lift

“Gibson got airborne quickly…unfortunately his landing rollout ended in a stand of oak trees.”

There was no fuselage in the accepted sense. Instead, the engine and pilot’s seat were suspended between two 35-foot long Douglas fir beams. Small steel arms protruded vertically from the beams along their length, to hold guy wires that ran parallel to the beams and attached to their ends. The wires were tensioned with turnbuckles to make the fuselage assembly rigid against bending. Besides the engine and “cockpit,” the fuselage supported the landing gear — bike tires and a metal tube framework and several small struts and fittings, all of streamlined cross-section. An abundance of flying wires connected everything.

Flight control was provided by rudders at the back of the plane and by a large laminated-cedar elevator protruding forward of the front wing. The elevator was hinged where its trailing edge met the fuselage beams. The pilot’s controls were a shoulder yoke for the rudders, a lever which directly raised or lowered the elevator’s leading edge, and a throttle. There were no instruments.

Then there was the engine. Though their products might look different, most modern homebuilders could design and build an airframe like Gibson did. (Granted, they’d have more references and sources of assistance, like their RAA Chapter, to guide them.) W.W. Gibson still has a leg up on modern builders, for he designed his own engine! The Twin- Plane was powered by a 6-cylinder inline motor, with 4 1/2″ bore by 4 1/2″ stroke, two-stroke operation, and air cooling. It ran on a mix of automobile gas and lubricating oil. The engine’s parts were fabricated in the U.S. but only assembled in Victoria, thereby becoming Canada’s first indigenous airplane engine. Power output was 60 hp. max, and uninstalled weight was 210 pounds. The engine drove two 6′ propellers, one bolted to the forward end of the crankshaft and the other counter-rotating at the rear. The latter was run through a gearbox at twice the engine speed. The Cessna 337-style “push-me pull-you arrangement minimized engine/prop torque effects in flight.

The Gibson Twin-Plane would be the second airplane to fly in B.C.; a Curtiss copy flown by American Charles Hamilton was first, in March 1910. The Twin-Plane made an initial “hop” on September 8 of that year, in a field that would later become part of Victoria’s Lansdowne Airport (and still later, the site of Hillside shopping mall). Its only serious flight followed on September 24. Gibson got airborne quickly, but while trying to correct for wind drift he “leaned his rudders the wrong way. Recognizing his error, he cut the throttle and touched down after about 200 feet of air travel. Unfortunately, his landing roll-out ended in a stand of oak trees.

The damage suffered in this accident led to the early demise of B.C.’s first homebuilt. Gibson spent the winter of 1910-11 rebuilding the wreckage into B.C.’s second homebuilt, the “Multi-Plane.” The two silk-covered wings were replaced by dozens of short-chord, cambered spruce ones. The Multi-Plane would also feature ailerons and a “normal” control wheel. This second craft never flew in B.C., though; in the summer of 1911 it made a few flights near Calgary before being written off in another crash. By then, Gibson was out of money and ready to seek new challenges. He eventually moved to the United States and became a successful manufacturer of mining equipment.

Wayne Manning at work on the Vampire’s windscreen

Neither of W.W. Gibson’s designs, nor his innovations like the tensionable wing-ribs, seem to have been imitated by later enthusiasts. The next plane built in B.C. would be a “normal” Curtiss model. But Gibson’s achievement of designing, constructing, and flying an entire airplane by himself, at the dawn of powered flight, deserves recognition. In a world of light airplanes dominated by Glen Curtiss and the Wright brothers, as Cessna and Piper would rule it later, Gibson was an original homebuilder.

Acknowledgment: The best source for the Gibson story, and indeed the best reference on early aviation in Canada, is Canada’s Flying Heritage by Frank H. Ellis, from which this account borrows heavily. A book well worth hunting for at your public library.

INSIDE

B.C.’s First Homebuilt 1
Odds and Ends 3
Nominations for the CMF Board of Directors 4
Around the Museum 5
Donations 6
Aviation Flashbacks 8

HOURS

10 A.M.4 P.M. Daily

ADMISSION FEES

General (Age 16 thru 59).. $4.00
Senior (Age 60 up)…. $3.00
Youth (Age 6 through 15).. $3.00
Family (2 Adult+4 youth). $10.00
Children under 6. .FREE
Museum Members. FREE

ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP DUES

General $35.00
Family $45.00
Seniors. $20.00
Students w/.D.. $20.00

Please check the members expiry date on your newsletter mailing label. Renew by mail, telephone or visiting the museum. We accept cash, cheque, Visa or Mastercard.

The C.M.F.T. is a non profit society dedicated to the preservation of aviation and transportation heritage (Society #32,035). Membership can be obtained by paying the required dues. Charitable status allows for the issuance of tax deductible receipts for donations of artifacts, goods and money. The C.M.F.T. is governed by a board of Directors which is elected by the members at the Annual General Meeting in April.

The CMF Newsletter is published quarterly by the Canadian Museum of Flight and Transportation.

Contributions in the form of articles, news items, letters and photos are welcome, as are comments and criticism. No payment can be made for any manuscripts that are submitted for publication in the CMFT Newsletter. The editor reserves the right to make changes in manuscripts without altering the meaning.

Editor. ..George Gregory
Contributing Editors. …Julia Retallack …Margaret Giacomello
Photographer ………..Larry Niven

All mail and correspondence can be sent to:
Canadian Museum of Flight and Transportation
c/o The Newsletter Editor
Unit 200 5333-216th Street
Langley, B.C.
V2Y 2N3
Tel: (604) 532-0035
Fax: (604) 532-0056
E-Mail: Gacko@msn.com

Canadian Museum of Flight

Directors

Blakely, Ron. 465-1343
Chesney, Joe.. .888-3281
Devisser, John 277-5000
Elgood, Terry. 279-2062
Emerslund, Bill. 298-6374
Kingston, Barry. 826-2712
Krywiak, Ron (Vice President). 433-6240
McWilliams, Ron. 590-0226
Nouch, Veryl (Treasurer). 465-9789
Proulx, George (President). 538-3836
Read, Michael.. .536-7402
Reid, John 271-1899
Rempel, Brian 946-8383
Retallack, Keith (Secretary). 526-4969
Robinson, Jane. ..536-3287

Office/Library: Margaret Giacomello
General Manager – “Gogi” Goguillot

Office phone…………. 532-0035
Fax. 532-0056
E-Mail Address:.. Gacko@msn.com

Executive Committee

President….. George Proulx
Vice President.. Ron Krywiak
Secretary ..Keith Retallack
Treasurer… ..Veryl Nouch

Lifetime Directors

Barry Jackson, N.Vancouver.. ..932-2367
Ron Stunden, Richmond…… ..277-3827
Bill Thompson, Pender Harbour ..883-2445

Committee Information

Magazines, George Proulx. .538-3836
Special Events, George Proulx.. 538-3836
Newsletter Editor, George Gregory. 882-8016
Restoration, Sheila Chmilar. 540-6236
Research, Jerry Vernon……… 420-6065
Photo Archive, Ingwald Wikene 543-9935
Computer Services, Michael Read.. 536-7402
Exhibits, Ron McWilliams…….. .590-0226
Library, Margaret Giacomello .532-0035
Collections, Jerry Vernon……. 420-6065
Transportation, Tony Hudak.. ..590-1855
Hampden Project, Fred Gardham .681-6886
Parts Disposal, Tony Hudak. 590-1855
Keeper of Aircraft, Ron Krywiak. 433-6240

Odds and Ends

UPCOMING EVENTS

CMFT Annual General Meeting April 25, 1997
Langley Hangar RSVP by 4 pm Friday, April 18

THE MUSEUM GIFT SHOP will start bringing in the new inventory for 1997; the inventory for 1996 will be finished up for income tax reasons, so Margaret and George will be kept out of mischief for a while!

Update on the dollhouse built by Art Seller…Art purchased it back from the winners who have moved from the area and couldn’t take it. The plan is to raffle the dollhouse again, so if you were dis appointed because you didn’t win, you have another chance, so buy your tickets today!

Attention Members!

Interested in various airplanes, and can spare some time on Saturdays? Check this out…Rich Vigurs, Youth Programmer for the Murrayville Area is putting together a group of teens who are fascinated with all aspects of aircraft, and enthusiastic about volunteering. A focused individual who is willing to work with teens for two hours a week is needed as a Project Volunteer to help make this program a success. This is your chance to get some – hands-on experience and assist the Museum! Meetings are from 10 am to 12 noon Saturdays. Anyone interested in helping out, please call Rich at 533-6197.

Nominations For The CMF Board of Directors

THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING held on April 25 will allow the Museum’s membership to cast votes for the people they would like to see on the 1997 Board of Directors. Members. please consider this an important part of the Museum’s responsibilities as a regis tered society (#13035 under the Societies Act) and a golden opportunity for members to help set the tone for the 1997/98 term.

The list of nominees, compiled by the Nominating Committee consists of a quick introduction of each potential board member who has been nominated and has agreed to leave their name standing for the election. Please note the years each nominee has been a member.

The CMF membership will cast secret ballots to elect 15 of the 17 nominated for the society’s 15 directors. A Directors’ meeting will then be held to elect an Executive from within the Board.

Three consecutive years is the maximum a member can hold a seat on the board at present. Special thanks from the Museum to outgoing directors Ron Blakely, Bill Emerslund, Veryl Nouch, John Reid and Keith Retallack who have given both their time and effort to the CMF.

And now, the nominees…

Terry Elgood 15 years

Terry is an engineering technician who has designed and built several homebuilt aircraft. He has also served previously as a Director of the Museum. Affiliated with such associations as the Professional Engineers and COPA.

Tony Hudak 15 years

Tony is a past Vice President of the CMF and has been a director for much of his 15 years association with the Museum. He is rebuilding a Cessna 150.

Dan Holliday 1 year

Dan is retired form Shell Canada and has been flying since 1962. He was the President of the Langley Aviation Council for 3 years. He owns a Citabria aircraft and is currently restoring the Cornell aircraft with Ted Harris and Werner Griesbeck

Don Butterly 1 year

Don is a retired marine engineer, who contributed his carpentry skills to the Museum office, and is working on the Link Trainer. He is an avid model builder, and constructed the B-29 model (the second bomber plane on Hiroshima) in the hangar.

Brian Rempel 6 years

Brian is employed with the Canadian Coast Guard and has a home based business. He served on the Museum Board of Directors several years ago, and is building an SE-SA replica.

Milt Lake 1 year

Milt is retired, and works at the Museum on the Vampire and facilities maintenance.

Sheila Chmilar 5 years

Sheila is an elementary school teacher in Surrey. She is at present working with Ron McWilliams on the Vampire and also assists him with the displays around the hangar.

Barry Kingston 8 years

Barry is a retired school vice principal who has built and flown homebuilt aircraft. He presently arranges group tours of school children to the Museum.

Ted Harris 19 years

Many years experience in the RCAF including wartime. In the 1980’s Ted was a volunteer at the Museum; he worked on the Tiger Moth bringing it to flying condition, also the Norseman wings, fuselage, rib stitching, etc. He brought a Cessna 120 back to flying condition and built an RV-6 from scratch to flying condition. At the moment Ted is working with Werner Griesbeck on rebuilding the Museum’s Comell back to flying condition.

Rich Vigurs and crew work or Plaseki’s rotor

George Proulx Incumbent 4 years

George is a retired railway man and a keen scale modeller. he is currently the President of the Museum and manages the giftshop, bingo, and magazine collection.

More Volunteers Required For Gift Shop!

The Gift Shop is one of the Museum’s main revenue producers. More volunteers means more funds for the Museum’s use.

Contact Margaret at 532- 0035 for more details!

Joe Chesney 16 years

Joe is a retired broadcaster and previously owned the CJJC radio station. He is a fixed wing pilot and an avid HAM radio Operator. This is an interest stemming from his time as an air force radio operator. He is also a member of the Langley Airport Association.

Ron McWilliams 6 years

Ron is a warehouse employee with UAP Napa Autoparts. He previously served as a museum director and is currently the Museum’s Hangar Display Coordinator. A current on site project is the work on the Vampire with Sheila.

Jane Robinson 11 years

Jane is a library supervisor and currently serves on the Museum’s Board of Directors; she has supervised some very successful Casino fundraisers for the CMF. She also volunteers with the Museum on a regular basis by substituting in the giftshop.

John De Visser Incumbent 16 years

John is an Aircraft Painter with Canadian Airlines. He is a recreational pilot who enjoys restoring homebuilt aircraft.

Werner Griesbeck 10 years

Werner is a licensed AME and an air traffic controller at the Abbotsford Airport Tower; prior to that, he spent 23 years at the Langley Tower. He is the proud owner of a 1938 Fairchild and a 1941 Porterfield. Spare time is spent on rebuilding antique airplanes and fabric work.

Ron Krywiak Incumbent 19 years

Ron is a ski resort supervisor who loves wreck recovery. He has done some airframe and engine rebuilds and owns some of his own Warbird salvage. He currently works as Keeper of the Aircraft at the Museum.

Michael Read Incumbent 4 years

Michael is a Management Consultant and a sailplane pilot. At present, he volunteers his computer skills to the Museum.

Visit the C.M.F. Giftshop

Besides our selection of books and other aviation paraphernalia, there is a wide selection of mugs with various witty anecdotes and catch-phrases. As well, hand-made mahogany aircraft models of seven different aircraft are currently available, but special orders on most aircraft are being taken. Allow 4 to 6 weeks for delivery.

Attention Collectors!

CMF has material of various nature for sale; they include:

-several gliders in various conditions

-a Bowers Flybaby- less engine

a partially built Taylor “Titch”

-two Lovings “Love”, partially built

a partly completed Thorp T-18

-other assets, also for sale

Phone 532-0035 and ask Gogi for details!

Around The Museum

Milt Like working on the Vampire. It’s starting to shape up very nicely!

THE AIRSHOW TRAILER, near completion by Doug Moan and John Tetrault, is designed and built as a container to haul the Sopwith Camel aircraft to an Airshow and folds out as a gift-shop on-site. This is a challenging project for both Doug and John as they are still working on getting the Camel to fit, since it is an impressive aircraft that will be housed in a big portable structure (beware of any crosswinds)!

Link Trainer

Don Butterly has the Link Trainer nearly operational and plans are to allow young people to fly it for a small fee. John Clark is fine tuning the instruments. There will also be a trained co-pilot going with the kids to tear up the airspace. The link Trainer will get its wings attached when the Vampire is moved out of the hangar.

We’re Looking for a Book Appraiser The Museum has a need of someone knowledgeable in the appraising of books to do some occasional work for our glorious cause on a volunteer basis. Contact Margaret at 532- 0035 for more details!

Young Eagles

An update on the Young Eagles Program, offered by Werner Griesbeck and Mike Davenport…the Young Eagles flights will be offered to CMF member’s children, grandchildren, or acquaintances aged 10 to 17 years. Sign up forms in this newsletter must be completed and returned to Margaret. The first 25 children signed up will be on the list for April 12; if the child cannot attend that flight session then he or she will be automatically signed up for the June flights list. The flights, thanks to a group of volunteer pilots, are an excellent opportunity for the children to learn about flying, and nurtures any dreams of these future pilots to come true.

School groups are starting to come in for visits; members who are working on various projects on site should be aware of this when working on aircraft projects. This is another way for communities within Langley and other outlying areas to become aware of where the Museum is, and to bring other visitors in to enjoy all the displays!

Pitt Meadows Airport Update

Now for a hot item of interest, the Board Meeting held February 28, 1997… the deadline for a new chairman of the Pitt Meadows Wing, which was noon, February 28 and the operational plan for the 1997 season was not met. Therefore, the Pitt Meadows Wing has been disbanded. The small Atco will be sold, the T-33 will be coming to the Langley site (kept outside), and the Brantley craft will be put in storage.

Rich Vigurs and some local youth brush up the Piaseki

Nominees for the CMF Board of Directors

The Annual General Meeting held on April 25 will allow the Museum’s membership to cast votes for the people they would like to see on the 1997 Board of Directors. Members, please consider this an important part of the Museum’s responsibilities as a registered society (#13035 under the Societies Act) and a golden opportunity for member to help set the tone for the 1997/98 term.

Museum activity: Inky Klett with the elevator of the Beech 18 Expeditor.

Donations

Cash
- Don Dines
- Jerry Vernon
- Rod and Wendy MacInnes
- Inky Klett
- Sheila Street
- George Proulx
Large Artifacts
- Harry Richmond
- John Tetrault
Small Artifacts, Photos, Etc
- Goosen, Ken
- Art Seller
- Rick Pollock
- Julie Paciejewski
- Don Butterly
Aircraft Parts
- Bill Kirilenko
- H.C. Van Doren
- Art Bower
- Ron Stunden
- Pat O’Donnell
Tools, Equipment, Etc.
- Darryl McIntosh
- Inky Klett
- David Fraser
- Don Butterly
- Sonny Zlotnik
Books
- Mrs. D.F. McLeod
- Ron McWilliams
- Dick Kendall
- Richard Frankish
- Jacob DeRaadt
- Jerry Vernon
- Roy Willis
Wish List: Items we still need:
- -VHS video camera and cassettes for cataloguing the collection and the recording of Museum events
- -486 or newer CPU type computers with monitor/keyboard/mouse
- -WINFAX modem software and 28,800 bps US Robotics modem
- -Novell 4.1 or lantastic networking software and cabling
- -500 MB 1 GB computer harddrives
- -External CD-ROMs
- -framing and glass for the CMFT photograph collection, for public display
- -materials and chemicals for the work on fabric covered aircraft
- -expertise and materials to seal a water leak in the hangar
- -expertise and materials to repair the roof on the ATCO giftshop/library
- -interest and expertise in fund raising activities
- -expertise to complete the restoration of various aircraft engines
- -portable NAVCOMs
- -aircraft maintenance material for metal aircraft: cleaners, rags,protective agents, etc…..

Support Your Museum

Aviation Flashbacks

Twenty Years Ago (1977)

The Canadian Museum of Flight and Transportation was officially incorporated as a non-profit society.

Twenty-five Years ago (1972)

26 April: The first Lockheed L-1011 Tristar entered scheduled service, with Eastern Airlines

Fifty Years ago (1947)

5 April: The RCAF acquired its first helicopter, a Sikorsky H-S (5-51). This aircraft, RCAF 9601, is now on display at the National Aviation Museum, Ottawa: CMF has a Sikorsky S-51 in storage awaiting restoration. 16 March: The prototype Convair 240 airliner was test flown 21 March: The last Douglas DC-3 to be built was rolled out and delivered to Sabena. This was the 10,654th civilian or military DC-3 built by Douglas since 1935.

Sixty Years Ago (1937)

15 January: The Beechcraft Model 18 (aka C-45, Bugsmasher, etc.) made its first flight. Production continued until 1969. CMF has an ex-RCAF Expeditor on display.

Seventy-five Years Ago (1922)

Laurentide Air Service Ltd., Canada’s first scheduled air service, was established in Montreal. 20 March: The US Navy commissioned its first aircraft carrier, the USS Langley, which featured a flight deck built over the hull of a former collier.

British Aviation:

An acquaintance of Fred Gardham’s sent these pictures of activity in a British Aviation Museum. From the top: a Vanguard freighter, a partially restored Brooklands Wellington; and a complete Avro 504K. The Wellington, he writes, will be finished in camouflage with roundels and serial number; it will be fully and authentically equipped. They are also working on a replica SE5A.

CANADIAN MUSEUM OF FLIGHT NEWSLETTER ISSUE 53 Spring 1997