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YOUR PURCHASE OF THESE BOOKS SUPPORTS THE WEB SITES THAT BRING TO YOU THE HISTORY BEHIND OLD AIRFIELD REGISTERS
Your copy of the Davis-Monthan Airfield Register 1925-1936 with all the pilots' signatures and helpful cross-references to pilots and their aircraft is available at the link. 375 pages with black & white photographs and extensive tables
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The Congress of Ghosts (available as eBook) is an anniversary celebration for 2010. It is an historical biography, that celebrates the 5th year online of www.dmairfield.org and the 10th year of effort on the project dedicated to analyze and exhibit the history embodied in the Register of the Davis-Monthan Airfield, Tucson, AZ. This book includes over thirty people, aircraft and events that swirled through Tucson between 1925 and 1936. It includes across 277 pages previously unpublished photographs and texts, and facsimiles of personal letters, diaries and military orders. Order your copy at the link.
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Military Aircraft of the Davis Monthan Register 1925-1936 is available at the link. This book describes and illustrates with black & white photographs the majority of military aircraft that landed at the Davis-Monthan Airfield between 1925 and 1936. The book includes biographies of some of the pilots who flew the aircraft to Tucson as well as extensive listings of all the pilots and airplanes. Use this FORM to order a copy signed by the author, while supplies last.
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Art Goebel's Own Story by Art Goebel (edited by G.W. Hyatt) is written in language that expands for us his life as a Golden Age aviation entrepreneur, who used his aviation exploits to build a business around his passion. Available as a free download at the link.
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Winners' Viewpoints: The Great 1927 Trans-Pacific Dole Race (available as eBook) is available at the link. This book describes and illustrates with black & white photographs the majority of military aircraft that landed at the Davis-Monthan Airfield between 1925 and 1936. The book includes biographies of some of the pilots who flew the aircraft to Tucson as well as extensive listings of all the pilots and airplanes. Use this FORM to order a copy signed by the author, while supplies last.
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Clover Field: The first Century of Aviation in the Golden State (available in paperback) With the 100th anniversary in 2017 of the use of Clover Field as a place to land aircraft in Santa Monica, this book celebrates that use by exploring some of the people and aircraft that made the airport great. 281 pages, black & white photographs.
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I'm looking for information and photographs of this airplane and its pilots to include on this page. If you have some you'd like to share, please click this FORM to contact me.
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Thanks to Guest Editor Bob Woodling for help researching this page.
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FAIRCHILD KR-31 NC85E
This airplane was a Fairchild KR-31 (nee: Kreider-Reisner Challenger C-2), S/N 244, first manufactured in 1927. At the link is a 2010 article which provides some background. When Kreider-Reisner was taken over by Fairchild in 1929, the Challenger C-2 became the KR-31. It was a three-place biplane powered by a 90HP water-cooled Curtiss OX-5 engine. In the photos below, writing on the rudder describes the airplane as a "1932 model," but we know that it was logged at Willow Grove in 1930. It was probably manufactured in 1929 or 30.
NC85E visited Willow Grove twice. The first time, without fanfare, was Monday, May 5, 1930. The solo pilot was Vernon Gross. He left no other information in the Register, but he identified his homebase as Williamstown, NJ.
The second landing by NC85E was over a decade later, sometime in early April 1941. Solo pilot Jean (Jeanette) Campbell did not specify an exact date. But, she noted her street address as 3038 N. Howard St.
I think it's safe to say that I don't think any other Register airplane was disposed of in as spectacular a way as this one. The story began about 18 months after its last landing at Pitcairn Field. WWII had begun and was spooling up. The nation was organizing to produce supplies and equipment to support the war effort. An article in The Philadelphia Inquirer, September 29, 1942, below, described a wartime Philadelphia scrap metal drive.
The Philadelphia Inquirer PLANE CONTRIBUTED A novel contribution to the drive will be made today in the form of an airplane which will be landed on the Parkway below the Art Museum and taxied to the large scrap pile at Reyburn Plaza. The plane, of 1932 vintage, with a 1918 motor, is being donated by Joseph Campbell [pilot Jeanette Campbell's husband] 3038 N. Howard St., a motorcycle policeman and private pilot, who expects soon to enter the Marine Corps as a commissioned officer. "I won't be able to use the plane," Campbell said. "It might as well go on the scrap pile." Mayor Samuel will accept the plane at Reyburn Plaza. It will yield an estimated 1800 pounds of valuable aluminum. |
The last sentence of the article overestimates the aluminum yield. The fuselage of 85E was welded steel, the wings and stringers were wood; everything covered with fabric. The OX-5 engine would have yielded the most aluminum, but it weighed only 377 pounds dry, including steel cylinder inserts, steel camshaft and steel crankshaft. The engine aluminum plus a few odd fairings would fall far short of 1800 pounds. Regardless, NC85E made a grand entry to the scrap heap, as in the following photographs from the Temple University Digital Collections.
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NC85E was allowed to land on a public city street in Philadelphia, PA. The purpose of the unusual landing was to (advertise?) and to donate the approximately 10-year-old airplane to serve the war effort. The following article appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer, September 30, 1942 that described the transaction.
The Philadelphia Inquirer 10-YEAR-OLD PLANE ADDED TO CITY'S SCRAP PILE - The veteran Fairchild Challenger, the gift of Joseph Campbell, a motorcycle patrolman, pictured on the scrap heap at Reyburn Plaza yesterday after Campbell had landed the 10-year-old craft on the Parkway and taxied it to the pile. PLANE LANDS ON PARKWAY Thousands of persons lined the Parkway yesterday to watch Joseph Campbell, 33-year-old motorcycle patrolman and private pilot, land his 10-year-old plane on the concrete highway and turn it over to the scrap pile. With policemen lining the curbs and traffic halted. Campbell brought the plane to a perfect landing on the Parkway near 22nd St. FLIER CONGRATULATED Among the first to congratulate him as he smilingly stepped out of the cockpit were Conover and James H. Malone, Director of Public Safety. The ship, a 1932 Fairchild Challenger with a 1918 motor, was taxied to the central city scrap depository on Reyburn Plaza, where it was accepted by Mayor Bernard Samuel. FAMILY GREETS HIM Campbell's wife, Jeannette, and daughter, Joan. 10, both of whom have flown many times in the plane, rushed to greet him at the Plaza. Campbell, who lives at 3038 N. Howard St., has been flying 16 years. He expects to enter the Marine Corps as an instructor or pilot. "This is a good old ship," he sighed, as the plane was upended at the heap of old metal. "I hate to see her go but I won't have any use for her anymore.” GLIDING IN FOR PARKWAY LANDING Joseph Campbell, motorcycle policeman, side-slipping to lose speed as he brought his 10-year-old plane down on the Parkway yesterday. He taxied it to Reyburn Plaza where it was added to the city's scrap pile |
The photograph, below, that accompanied the artice showed the plane tipped on its nose with a message to encourage others to donate to the cause.
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Other photos from Temple University are below. This one, op.cit., shows the airplane from the rear starboard quarter. The registration number was cut out of the rudder fabric, perhaps as a souvenir. The photo description at the link states, "A plane landing on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, piloted by Joseph Campbell. After taxiing to Reyburn Plaza, Campbell tipped the craft over the scrap heap."
"I'll wind up being a P40" suggests a wish for a higher (and faster) calling. Note the right tire was already removed from the wheel. Campbell appeared in his police uniform.
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The following, op.cit., shows a frontal view of NC85E with shark mouth anticipating the rudder message. If you look carefully at the news photo above, you can see the port side of the shark mouth. The blank label was affixed to the original photo.
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Finally, this view, op.cit., clearly shows the registration number under the port wing, as well as the extent of the accumulating scrap pile.
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Who knows? Atoms of NC85E might still be flying in an airframe somewhere.
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