What's New In Sportsman Pilot?

The Winter (February) 2008 issue of Sportsman Pilot contains the following news items:

Plus in-depth articles on the following aviation people and their aircraft.

 

         (click images for larger view)

Claude Burkhead's Ercoupe Three generations of Burkheads - Claude, Claude, Jr. and Claude III - have owned the same Ercoupe since 1946, passing it down from one generation to the next. Claude, Jr. and Claude III (known as Burke) live in the Raleigh, NC suburbs of Cary and Apex and base the Ercoupe at Cox Field in Apex. The article includes biographical coverage of each Burkhead, the history of the airplane during each Burkhead’s ownership and the details of its recent restoration.

 

 

Jim Frank's F-1 RocketAtlanta ophthalmologist Jim Frank has built a beautiful Lycoming IO-540 powered F-1 Rocket, which his wife, Shelia, has named “Wild Dream.” Born in Jacksonville, IL, Jim grew up being encouraged by his father to continually upgrade his pilot certificates and ratings, which he did - all the way to ATP. Over the years, he has owned a succession of airplanes, including four Mooney Mites and various other Mooney and Beech models, but now he has the homebuilding bug. The article details Jim’s construction of the Rocket, including cutting through a closet wall to get the fuselage out of his apartment. Since completing the Rocket, he has been experiencing withdrawal symptoms, so he has decided to build a Lancair Legacy.

 

John Seibold's 1928 Stinson SM-1John Seibold’s newly restored 1928 Stinson SM-1 was one of the antique airplane sensations at Oshkosh last summer. Its history and restoration are detailed in this extensive article, along with biographical coverage of its restorer, Chuck Wentworth of Paso Robles, CA. John Seibold is collecting examples of aircraft that were once used to fly tourists over the Grand Canyon . . . which he is displaying at his Valle Airport, just south of the Grand Canyon. A 1927 SM-1 was the first tour aircraft purchased by Scenic Airways, and it was Chuck Wentworth and his Antique Aero restoration company’s task to make John Seibold’s recently purchased Stinson look exactly like the original airplane. No hangar queen, the 79 year old airplane was flown to Oshkosh from California and return to Arizona.

 

Craig Jones' Xenos MotogliderCraig Jones of Austin, MN was the first builder to complete a Xenos Motorglider . . . and the first person other than Sonex company personnel to display one at Oshkosh. The manager of research support services at the Hormel Institute in Austin, which works in conjunction with the famed Mayo Clinic on advanced cancer research, Craig was into drag racing for many years, but switched to homebuilding after getting his Private ticket in the early 1990s. He was one of first to purchase a Xenos motorglider kit and the first to complete and fly one - in January of 2007. It’s the best of several worlds, he says: powered flight, motorgliding and soaring . . . as well as the building process, which he really enjoyed.

 

Roland Gilliam's S.E.5aRoland Gilliam, a building contractor from Carthage, NC, has a growing fleet of World War I reproduction fighters, the latest of which is a full scale S.E.5a. The airplane is powered by a Javelin Ford V-6 that fits neatly in the space occupied by a 200 h.p. Hispano-Suiza in the original British versions. Roland has his own airport at Carthage, which he has named the Gilliam-McConnell Airfield in honor of Carthage native James McConnell, who was one of the original seven members of World War I’s legendary Lafayette Escadrille. It includes a popular restaurant, golf driving range, avionics shop and a maintenance shop. The article includes historical coverage of the S.E.5 series.

 

Al Highsmith's Cessna 170BAl Highsmith of Burgaw, NC is one of those lucky guys who lives on a part of the farm on which he grew up and has his own 1,600 ft. grass strip there - where he bases his beautiful Cessna 170B. A machinist at a GE jet engine component manufacturing facility, he learned to fly in 1979, bought a Cessna Aerobat and flew it for a time - until typical family obligations caused him to get out of flying for about 10 years. In 1998 he returned to the fold, bought a 1952 Cessna 170B . . . and with his friend, Jay Caison, began a complete restoration in 2001. Today, he enjoys displaying it at fly-ins - and simply flying it whenever he pleases.

 

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