Misceleanous > Misceleanous
Aero museum of Calgary
Happy Days:
I’ve recently returned from a trip to “The Big Country” (Canada) It’s been over thirty years since I fell in love with the Canadian Rockies so my return was something I eagerly awaited.
It turned out that in the intervening years a museum of aviation has been erected just south of Calgary airport. Fortunately my “other ’alf” also has an interest in ‘matters aeronautical’ so we ventured forth.
Now some men might think it’s an advantage having a wife who’s interested in old aeroplanes, but it does have it’s disadvantages. Whenever I went to take a picture of these beasts, ‘she’ was in the shot.
A Sopwith Triplane…….a rickety old bird with not much ‘Go‘.. (The Triplane I mean, not Mandy :oops: )
The Triplane looked positively civilized compared to the next machine. (It’s difficult to actually see it as it blends into the wooded roof structure.) I wasn’t able to establish what name it had or who made it, or even if it ever flew!
Just look at that box stabilizer at the front. It used a ’Pusher prop’ and was just held together with string and good luck, If it did ever fly I don’t think I’d have liked to be in it at the time!
But here’s something more like what I call an aeroplane. A Havard. Powered by a big Pratt & Whitney radial WASP engine with a variable pitch propeller this had a two man crew and was often used as a combat trainer. (I just love big radials.)
But in the main hanger was something else that caught me eye…….No, not the radial engines, but the glider hanging from the roof.
Here’s another shot of it.
Anyone have any idea what it is? I'm no expert but I'd never seen anything like it before. Come on guys, someone must know?
Outside of the main building was an annex of the museum. It’s called the tent hanger because the exhibits were positioned first then a metal girder structure was assembled around them and covered in material covering.
This held two big surprises for me,…….I’ll tell you about them later
Fred:
Very Nice Keith! :clap: :clap:
So that's why you were silent! :D
Hope you had a great time!!
For the glider, not an easy one. An hybrid, between a BG12 fuselage and a Hall CherokeeII wing.
And even better, Wikipedia is saying this:
The Briegleb BG-12 is a single-seat sailplane of wooden construction developed in the United States in the 1950s. It was marketed for homebuilding in plans or kit form, with over 350 sets of plans selling by 1978. The BG-12 is a conventional sailplane design, with a high cantilever wing and a conventional empennage. Later models featured a highly-revised fuselage, a swept-forward tail fin, and an all flying tailplane with balance tabs.
Happy Days:
:shock: My god, I have to hand it to you Fred, you certainly know your gliders.
I really thought I’d ‘have’ you on this one. :wink: You’re absolutely bloody right. :D (DAM! :evil: )
I swear I’ll catch you out one day!!!!!
Well done Mon Ami. :clap:
K.
Happy Days:
So we walked into the Tent Hanger and what I saw took my breath away. There, taking up almost a third of the quite large hanger was a beautiful, all-be-it old, warbird. Let me give you a clue as to which type she was.
Mandy stands 5’ 5” tall, so from the next picture you must realize this plane was a bomber.
Again using Mandy as a gauge, it had a BIG bomb bay.
Was it a Wellington? No.... Was it a Boston? (A-20) No.... Was it a Manchester? No....
So which WWII bomber was it? You’ll have to wait,…… while I tell you about the other delight that was on display………………………………............
The DC-3 (Dakota) needs no introduction. As I’m sure I’ve said before on this forum, I’d love to take a flight in one of these one day. Many are still in use today in some Latin American countries.
Lovely radial engines. (Did I ever tell you, I love big radials.)
Lots of rivets on the tail plane, with an engine nacelle up ahead. (The elevator is just under the camera lens. )
I just go weak at the knees when I’m close to these aeroplanes.
Happy Days:
And so we come to the finale.
My Dad was in the RAF during WWII. Although not aircrew, he often said he felt the British bombers were equipped with little more than pea shooters (.303 machine guns) for defence. Rather like a rhinoceros being armed with a thorn, instead of a horn.
So this bomber has a Big tailplane and barn doors for vertical fin & rudder. ( Alas it doesn’t have radial engines though)
Like I said, this plane has an enormous wingspan.
Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Avro Lancaster! Da Daaar!!
This Lanc’ has taken a little Cessna 118 ‘under its wing’ (Arr, bless the little Cessna )
Oh, I'm too old for all this excietment. Let me go and sit down.....
K.
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