Monthly Archives: May 2010

Burt Rutans Homebuilt Canards

The Rutan Vari EZ was developed from the Variviggen and pioneered the use of mold less fiberglass construction. By:       Norm Goyer Rutan started working on his first canard design while still a student at Cal Poly in the early 1960s. … Continue reading

Posted in Bird of the Week | Leave a comment

If it Quacks Like a Duck, It is a Canard

By:       Norm Goyer An airplane which has its main lifting surface (wings) in the rear of the aircraft and the secondary lifting surface in the nose is called a canard. Now it gets complicated. The Wright Brothers first aircraft was … Continue reading

Posted in UnderTheRadar | 1 Comment

Zeppelins, What Goes Around, Comes Around

Share Modernized, smaller and lighter Zeppelin NTs are now operating around the world serving as sight seeing platforms. One is based at Moffett Field, south of San Francisco. By:       Norm Goyer I didn’t realize that lighter than air Zeppelins were … Continue reading

Posted in Bird of the Week | Leave a comment

An Essay: Every War Has its Own Great Aircraft

Share By:       Norm Goyer I love to write articles where I can express my own personal thoughts, which I am sure are loaded with prejudices, both pro and con. From the day my mom took me, at eight years old, … Continue reading

Posted in UnderTheRadar | Leave a comment

The Day Japan Bombed Oregon

By: Norm Goyer September 9, 1942, the I-25 class Japanese submarine was cruising in an easterly direction raising its periscope occasionally as it neared the United States Coastline. Japan had attacked Pearl Harbor less than a year ago and the … Continue reading

Posted in UnderTheRadar | 17 Comments

Sopwith Tabloids Drop the First Bombs on Germany

Pilot Howard Pixton flew the Sopwith Tabloid to victory in the 1914 Schneider Cup Trophy Race. By:       Norm Goyer The Sopwith Schneider Tabloid was an unique aircraft that had its share of fame. This tiny biplane did not have any … Continue reading

Posted in Bird of the Week | 2 Comments

RQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper, The Pilot Savers

The much larger Reaper can carry a heavier load of smart bombs and guided missiles. By:       Norm Goyer The most well known UAV (Unmanned Aerial  Vehicle) is the General Atomics MQ-1 Predator. It has served primarily in a reconnaissance and … Continue reading

Posted in Bird of the Week | Leave a comment

History of Pilotless Aircraft

By:       Norm Goyer I flew my first pilotless aircraft in 1937, it had a five foot wing span and a 1/5 hp miniature Brown Jr. gasoline engine. I flew my first ground controlled airplane (UAV)  in 1967 with a 1/5 … Continue reading

Posted in UnderTheRadar | 2 Comments

Bye Bye Biplane, a Rap on Multi-wing Aircraft

By:       Norm Goyer The number of new biplanes manufactured each year can be counted on your fingers. In years past, a trip to any airport would reveal a number of stately biplanes . One of the acknowledged most beautiful aircraft … Continue reading

Posted in UnderTheRadar | Leave a comment

World’s Largest Biplane, Antonov AN-2

The Antonov An-2 was first flown in 1947 and is still being manufactured in limited numbers in China. By: Norm Goyer If you have ever attended any recent air show you probably saw one of these massive Russian biplanes on … Continue reading

Posted in Bird of the Week | Leave a comment