Skip to main content

Full text of "Ryan Reporter"

See other formats 


WHAT'S  IN  IT 
FOR  ME? 


"Peace,"  the  politician  demanded. 

We  have  peace. 
"Abundance,"  the  candidate  promised. 

We  have  abundance. 
"Full  employment,"  the  demagogue  pleaded. 

We  have  full  employment. 

But  even  with  peace,  abundance  and  full  employment  across  the  nation, 
Joe  Worker  wants  to  know  "What's  in  it  for  me?" 

Sure,  he  knows  that  machine  power  has  been  boosted  nearly  fivefold  since 
1910;  that  we  have  doubled  and  redoubled  output  in  our  factories  and 
amazed  the  world  with  the  rich  bounty  of  our  farms. 

Joe  knows  that  although  we  have  less  than  7%  of  the  world's  population 
we  use  54%  of  its  telephones,  ride  in  about  85%  of  its  automobiles  and  have 
a  toe-hold  on  50,000,000  savings  accounts.  Pretty  clean-cut  sort  of  people, 
too,  with  92%.  of  all  bathtubs  on  the  dirty  old  globe.  And  when  we  shuffle 
off  this  mortal  coil,  we'll  leave  behind  about  70,000,000  life  insurance  policies. 

Okay,  so  we've  got  life  insurance  and  lots  of  production.  But  maybe  we'll 
have  another  depression.  And  look  at  the  high  prices!  Where  do  we  go 
from  here? 

That  we  can  answer  straight  from  the  record.  IF  we  maintain  our  level 
of  production  on  farm  and  assembly  line,  IF  we  stay  in  business  the  American 
way,  we  can't  go  anywhere  but  onward!  Promises  don't  count;  propaganda 
doesn't  fill  the  bread-basket.  Your  best  bet  in  forecasting  the  future  is  to 
examine  the  past.  And  here  in  America  we  have  climbed  out  of  the  wilder- 
ness and  cleared  a  path  to  plenty,  with  every  shining,  upward  achievement 
graven  into  imperishable  record  for  the  ages! 

"What's  in  it  for  me?"  is  not  a  selfish  question. 

A  man's  first  duty  is  to  his  family  and  his  children.  And  when  he  properly 
discharges  that  duty,  he  can  better  serve  his  grateful  country.  All  of  us 
here  in  America  are  workers.  We've  had  a  dictatorship  of  the  proletariat 
because  we  workers  also  own  the  businesses,  manage  the  mines,  purchase  the 
stocks,  serve  on  boards  of  directors  and  create  music,  literature,  art  and 
bathtiibs. 

There's  plenty  in  it  for  all  of  us,  if  we  stick  together  in  the  American  way 
of  doing  business! 


ON  THE  COVER 

Modern  and  efficient^  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Company^s  43-acre  Sait  Diego  plant  ac- 
celerates its  peace-time  pace. 


RYAN'S  NEW  MAGAZINE 

No,  it  isn't  new.  This,  the  first  issue  of 
RYAN  REPORTER,  is  more  accurately  a  con- 
tinuation of  our  publishing  endeavors  w^hich 
had  a  necessary  interruption  after  V-J  Day 
when  all  aircraft  manufacturing  activity 
shrunk  to  a  low  level. 

When  the  first  issue  of  the  old  RYAN 
FLYING     REPORTER    made 


back    in     1941,    it 
present  slick  paper 
For   the  first   twc 
cut  on  stencils  and 
graph    machine.    £a 


off  . 


ppearance 
from    the 


laboriously 
Dw^n  mimeo- 


ch  succeeding  year,  how- 
ever, it  constantly  changed  for  the  better.  A 
full  time  editor  joined  the  staff;  w^e  obtained 
better  pictures,  better  art  work;  more  people 
contributed  material.  In  addition  to  the 
monthly  magazine,  we  printed  a  weekly  news- 
paper for  our  8  5  00  employees.  And  then  in 
August  of  1945  publication  was  suspended 
as  our  employment  w^ent  dow-n  to  only  a  tenth 
of  our  w^artime  peak. 

With  the  expansion  of  recent  months,  we're 
off  now^  to  a  completely  new  start  with  a  new 
staff  and  format,  and  lots  of  ideas  which 
w^e^re  sure  will  hold  the  interest  of  our  diver- 
sified  readers. 

The  RYAN  REPORTER  will  strive  to  please 
you  all  .  .  .  employees;  Navion  owners,  dis- 
tributors and  dealers;  stockholders;  top  avia- 
tion editors  and  writers;  Ryan  Metal  Products 
customers;  top  officials  of  the  armed  services; 
San  Diego  civic  leaders,  and  all  who  have  a 
vital  interest  in  Rv.in. 


Charles  M.  Hatche 


JANUARY,    1949  VOL.   I,   No.    1 

PiihlnhcJ  Monthly   By 

Ryan    Aeronautical    Company,   Lindbergh  Field,  San  Diego   12,  California 

news  editor 


.    .     .     Frances  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  editor Robert  F.  Smith,  Na 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographer William  Wagner,  editorial  director. 


«» 


THIS   IS   RYII 


"A  better  place  to  tvork  —  tvhere  craftsmen 
are  protid  of  their  products!" 


From  production  lines  of  the  43 -acre  plant  of 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  flow  a  steady  stream 
of  commercial  and  military  airplanes  .  .  .  guided 
missdes  .  .  .  exhaust  systems  for  transport  and 
cargo  planes  ...  jet  engine  components  for  military 
fighters  and  bombers  .  .  .  rocket  engine  accessories 
.  .  .  major  components  for  aircraft  manufacturers 
.  .  .  and  other  specialized  metal  products. 

Through  the  gates  of  the  Ryan  plant  daily  flow 
thousands  of  employees.  Work  goes  forward  on  a 
multi-shift  basis  to  produce  high  quality  planes 
and  aircraft  metal   products  for   peacetime  com- 


mercial use,  and  for  the  military  services  to  use  in 
keeping  the  peace — for  Air  Power  is  Peace  Power. 

But  Ryan  is  far  more  than  just  640,197  square 
feet  of  production  area,  and  the  people  who  build 
its  products. 

Ryan  is  2,415  skilled  men  and  women  employees 
devoted  to  their  work  and  proud  of  their  associa- 
tion here.  It  is  the  56  employees  with  more  than 
ten  years  service,  the  79 1  who  have  been  here  more 
than  five  years  and  1,5  68  others  who  have  applied 
their  skills  here  for  lesser  periods. 

(Continued  on  next  page) 


Ryan  is  also  the  1,640  owners  who  have  invested 
their  savings  to  provide  the  extensive  buildings,  the 
equipment,  the  tools  required  to  furnish  nearly 
2,500  workers  with  the  facilities  needed  to  give 
them  gainful  employment. 

It  is  the  engineer  on  a  three-weeks-away-from- 
home  business  trip,  who  assures  Ryan  manifold 
customers  of  the  finest  in  service  from  our  prod- 
ucts. It's  the  Metal  Products  sales  representative 
knocking  on  the  purchasing  agent's  door  in  Balti- 
more, Maryland,  seeking  out  the  business  which 
keeps  the  rest  of  us  at  work. 

Ryan  is  the  safety  engineer,  the  insurance  expert, 
the  nurse,  the  personnel  counselor;  who  make  up 
the  human  side  of  business. 

It  is  the  parts  department  clerk  who  comes  down 
at  night  long  after  his  regular  shift  to  ship  a  part 
on  the  night  airliner,  so  Navion  Owner  Smith  of 
Muskogee,  Oklahoma,  may  have  his  plane  ready 
Tuesday  for  an  important  business  trip  to  Monter- 
rey, Mexico. 

It  is  the  electronics  expert  working  behind  closed 
doors,  in  virtual  isolation  from  other  employees, 
and  with  little  recognition,  that  Ryan — and  Uncle 
Sam — may  lead  in  guided  missile  development. 

It  is  the  proud  widow  operating  the  flange  grinder 
who,  in  the  finest  American  tradition,  looks  not 
to  others  for  charity,  but  in  self  reliance  works 
that  her  children  may  have  the  benefit  of  a  secure 
home  and  the  opportunity  for  a  good  education. 

Ryan  is  the  skilled  welder  from  the  production 
line  catching  the  late  plane  for  Seattle  to  be  on 
hand  next  morning  to  help  a  manufacturer  there 
get  his  Ryan  manifold-equipped  cargo  plane  into 
the  sky. 

It  is  also  the  knowledge  that  here  a  good  job  is 
measured  not  only  by  good  wages  for  good  work, 
but  by  a  feeling  of  accomplishment  in  a  job  well 
done. 

Ryan  is  the  small  group  of  technicians  on  the 
desert  sands  of  New  Mexico,  following  the  swift 
flight  of  our  Firebird  guided  missile  as  it  speeds 
through  the  clear,  blue  sky. 

It  is  our  pride  in  the  reputation  we  have  that 
Ryan  is  a  Better  Place  to  Work. 


But  beyond  our  own  doors  and  organization, 
Ryan  is  even  more  than  this. 

It  is  the  1,500  owners  of  Navion  airplanes  .  .  . 
progressive  business  and  professional  men  who  have 
learned  the  value  of  owning  their  own  planes. 
Ryan  is  the  flying  farmer,  the  oil  drilling  contrac- 
tor, the  doctor,  the  manufacturer,  the  salesman, 
who  have  found  they  can  "get  there"  three  times 
faster  by  Ryan  Navion  than  by  surface  travel. 

It  is  the  pilots  of  planes  on  the  Berlin  Air  Lift, 
who  know  they  may  expect  reliable  service  from 
the  Ryan  exhaust  systems  of  their  four-engined 
C-54  planes. 

Ryan  is  the  23  distributors  and  100  dealers  in 
the  United  States  who  sell  and  service  Ryan  Navion 
planes;  it  is  the  7  export  distributors  who  represent 
us  abroad. 

It  is  the  8-year-old  "ahead-of-its-day"  Ryan  ST 
low-wing  monoplane  of  the  Melbourne  Flying 
Club,  which  Australian  aircraft  experts  today  still 
describe  as  "truly  a  modern  masterpiece  of  aero- 
nautical design. 

Ryan  is  the  small  airline  fleet  of  Navion  planes 
owned  by  South  African  Airways,  which  fly  over 
the  vast  expanses  of  the  African  veldt. 

It  is  the  pilot  of  the  new  AJ-1  Navy  fighter — 
powered  by  one  jet  and  two  conventional  engines 
— who  knows  that  Ryan  engineers  and  workers 
pioneered  a  new  field  when  they  were  first  in  the 
world  to  combine  jet-plus-propeller  power  in  the 
famous  Ryan  FR-1  Fireball. 

It  is  the  more  than  150,000  exhaust  systems 
Ryan  built  during  the  war  years  alone;  the  gun 
turrets,  wing  panels,  tail  surfaces,  and  other  war- 
plane  components  we  built. 

It  is  that  greatest  of  radio  personalities,  Arthur 
Godfrey,  Ryan's  proudest  Navion  owner  and  most 
vocal  advocate.  It  is  Gilbert  Cahen  D'Anvers,  whose 
extensive  ranch  interests  require  the  use  of  two 
Navions  in  Paraguay  and  Argentina,  where  a  plane 
is  frequently  the  only  practical  method  of  travel. 

Ryan  is  all  this — and  a  great  deal  more.  To 
faithfully  report  that  story  is  the  purpose  and  ob- 
jective of  the  Ryan  Rcporfcr  and  its  editors. 


THIS  IS  THE 


lUETU  nmm  Mmm 


^Their  reputation  as  untarnished  as  the 
stainless  steel  they  have  mastered!" 


"RECIPE  FOR  SUCCESS:  Take  assorted  metals.  Add 
machines.  Mix  liberally  with  skilled  artisans.  Pour  into  assem- 
bly lines  and  keep  those  lines  moving.  Decorate  and  display  to 
customers.  Follow  up  u'ith  superb  service." 

That's  the  way  we  might  describe  the  Metal  Products  Divi- 
sion of  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  —  were  we  writing  a 
cookbook.  Hov/ever,  the  Metal  Products  Division  might  better 
be  described  as  one-half  of  the  company's  dual  personality, 
competing  in  good  natured  rivalry  with  the  Airplane  Division, 
whose  task  it  is  to  create  and  sell  Ryan  airplanes  —  both  the 
piloted  and  pilotless  types. 

When  it  comes  to  making  and  selling  such  seemingly  un- 
glamorous  items  as  manifolds  and  tail  pipes  and  heat  ex- 
changers. Metal  Products  steps  promptly  to  the  fore.  It  has 
been  stepping  so  promptly  and  so  efficiently  that  Ryan's  total 
business  on  products  allotted  to  this  section  account  for  approx- 
imately half  the  company's  dollar  volume. 


For  a  dozen  years  now,  Ryan  has  maintained  a  position  of 
leadership  in  the  design  and  manufacture  of  heat  and  corrosion- 
resistant  stainless  steels  for  aircraft  use.  Because  of  the  tre- 
mendous temperatures  generated  by  modern  engines,  by  both 
reciprocating  models  and  the  newer  thermal  jet  types,  knowl- 
edge of  the  latest  steels  and  alloys  has  been  vital  to  companies 
competing  in  the  field  of  aviation  metal  products.  Since  pre- 
war times,  when  Ryan  was  working  closely  with  the  Air 
Materiel  Command  in  the  development  of  such  then  advanced 
manifolds  as  those  used  on  the  Douglas  B-19  bomber,  this 
company  has  been  a  major  source  of  supply  for  aircraft  exhaust 
systems  made  of  the  latest  stainless  steel  alloys. 

More  than  150,000  manifold  engine  sets  have  been  pro- 
duced to  date  by  Ryan.  Practically  every  major  aircraft  manu- 
facturer in  the  U.  S.  has  at  one  time  or  another  used  Ryan 
exhaust  systems  as  standard  equipment  on  its  transport  and 
military  planes. 

(Continued  on  next  page) 


During  World  War  II  Ryan  production  lines  fed  exhaust 
systems  and  other  parts  into  such  noted  craft  as  the  Douglas 
C-47  and  C-53;  Douglas  A-20  and  DB-7B  series;  Douglas 
C-54;  Republic  P-47  Thunderbolt;  Lockheed's  series  of  Hud- 
son bombers;  Boeing  B-29;  Grumman  F6F  Hellcat;  North 
American  AT-6;  Consolidated  PBY  Catalina  and  the  Douglas 
B-23. 

In  the  post-war  market,  constant  research  and  experimenta- 
tion plus  a  keen  awareness  of  current  and  future  needs  has 
marked  the  upward  spiral  expected  of  this  company.  As  the 
only  manufacturer  of  jet  and  gas  turbine  components  that 
has  and  is  now  also  designing  and  building  jet  airplanes,  Ryan's 
practical  background  presents  unique  attractions  to  the  mili- 
tary services  in  the  new  age  of  jet  propulsion. 

The  Metal  Products  Division  turns  out  a  heterogeneous 
collection  of  business  which  sometimes  amazes  even  those  in 
the  shops  accustomed  to  work  which  ranges  from  tiny  parts 
weighing  only  ounces  to  huge  fuselage  assembles.  But  whether 
our  craftsmen  are  turning  out  PB4Y-2  anti-icing  kits  or 
Boeing  B-50  collectors;  North  American  short  stacks  or  Aero- 
bee  Sounding  Rockets;  McDonnell  tail  pipes  or  AiResearch  heat 
exchangers,  you  can  bet  every  machinist  and  welder  and  in- 
spector is  giving  his  best. 

"Before  you  can  sell  a  product  you  must  make  it.  Before 
you  make  it  you  must  have  the  skill.  And  after  you  have  the 
contract  you  must  continue  to  improve  your  products  and 
provide  the  service  to  keep  them  flying."  That  about  expresses 
the  philosophy  which  guides  the  men  and  women  in  the  Metal 
Products  Division.  Included  in  their  ranks  are  salesmen,  scien- 
tists, researchers,  draftsmen  —  workers  of  special  techniques, 
all  fired  with  determination  to  make  good  so  that  Ryan  can 
continue  to  lead.  The  Division  operates  as  a  tactical  team 
drawing  upon  all  of  Ryan's  varied  resources. 

Evidence  of  that  team's  success  is  the  steady  flow  of  exhaust 
systems  leaving  our  benches  and  presses  for  such  world-famous 
planes  as  the  Boeing  Stratocruiser,  the  Superfort  and  the  Strato- 
freighter. 


Ryan  is  literally  "flying  round  the  world"  every  day,  its 
exhaust  systems  gracing  such  craft  as  the  Douglas  C-J4  Sky- 
master,  now  doing  such  noble  work  on  the  Berlin  airlift,  the 
Douglas  DC-6  and  C-74  Globemaster;  Consolidated-Vultee's 
"240"  airliners;  Northrop's  B-3  5  Flying  Wing;  Lockheed's 
P2V-2  Neptune,  pride  of  the  Navy,  and  the  Fairchild  Packet 
Flying  Boxcar,  giving  a  vital  boost  to  freighting  between 
Western  Europe  and  Berlin. 

With  the  entire  field  of  thermal  propulsion  practically  ex- 
ploding into  proportions  undreamed  of  a  few  years  ago,  Ryan 
already  has  undertaken  all  of  the  major  assemblies,  except 
controls  and  fuel  pumps,  for  the  Menasco  AJ-20  ram-jet 
engine,  and  is  currently  busy  with  the  Air  Force-Navy  spon- 
sored Aerobee  high  altitude  sounding  rocket.  Extensive  pro- 
duction for  General  Electric  on  the  TG-190  engine  also  has 
begun  and  will  continue  at  a  substantial  rate.  Experimental 
work  which  may  lead  to  greater  things  has  included  projects 
for  Westinghouse,  Allison,  Giannini,  Marquardt,  Kellogg, 
Flader,  Menasco,  Ranger,  Wright  Aeronautical,  General  Tire 
and  Rubber,  and  Pratt  and  Whitney,  among  others — organiza- 
tions noted  in  many  fields  though  new  in  thermal  engine 
design  and  production. 

Occupying  an  important  section  of  Ryan  assembly  lines  is 
the  current  contract  for  rear  fuselage  sections  for  the  great 
130,000-  pound  Boeing  Stratocruiser  and  its  equally  impressive 
running  mate,  the  Stratofreighter.  Evidence  of  John  van  der 
Linde's  airplane  production  department's  versatility  is  the 
smoothness  with  which  Ryan  coordinated  its  facilities  with 
huge  new  Boeing-designed  jigs  to  expedite  construction  of 
the  aft  sections  of  the  Boeing  sky  queens. 

While  the  Metal  Products  division  is  represented  to  the  out- 
side world  by  Sam  Breder's  selling  group,  the  massive  resources 
of  all  the  Ryan  plant  are  in  constant  action  through  the 
vigilant  control  of  such  proven  administrators  as  Vice-presi- 
dent and  Treasurer  George  C.  Woodard,  Chief  Engineer  Harry 
A.  Sutton,  Chief  Inspector  A.  S.  Billings,  and  scores  of  others. 

One  of  the  high  men  on  the  totem  pole  of  any  plant  is  the 
(Con filmed  on  page  16) 


1      -wif^^'*   ^ 


THIS  IS  THE 


AIRPLOe    DIVISIOI 

^'Kyan  planes  and  products  are  built  by  men  tvho  have 
pioneered  in  nearly  every  field  of  flight^' 


Like  a  champion  boxer  who  packs  a  potent  punch  in  either 
right  or  left  hand,  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  has  stepped 
into  the  battle  against  post-war  aviation  problems  with  two 
powerful  weapons,  its  Airplane  Division  and  its  Metal  Products 
Division. 

The  Airplane  Division  is  a  hard-hitting  unit  well  equipped 
to  cope  with  Ryan's  growing  volume  of  business  in  Navion 
commercial  planes,  Army  liaison  craft,  guided  missiles,  target 
planes  and  specialized  engineering  studies.  Its  equipment  is  air- 
craft "savvy,"  industriousness  and  vision.  It  uses  that  knowl- 
edge and  foresight  in  surmounting  a  variety  of  problems  not 
likely  to  be  faced  in  any  other  aircraft  factory  anywhere. 

Typical  of  Airplane  Division's  driving  pace  is  its  record  of 
over  700  Navions  sold  or  contracted  for  during  1948.  Of  these, 
70  per  cent  are  for  the  commercial  market  and  30  per  cent 


for  the  military  services,  with  production  lines  recently  con- 
centrating on  completion  of  the  L-17B  military  versions. 

"Had  someone  told  me  in  1939  that  we'd  be  selling  more 
than  500  personal  airplanes  in  one  year,  I'd  have  told  that  man 
he  was  crazy,"  says  Earl  D.  Prudden,  vice-president,  who  heads 
up  commercial  Navion  sales.  "But  there's  still  a  vast,  untapped 
field  in  which  future  sales  of  private  planes  can  be  made, 
which  offers  a  real  challenge  and  promise  for  the  future." 

The  importance  of  military  orders  was  highlighted  when  the 
company  in  mid-year  1948  contracted  with  the  U.  S.  Air  Force 
for  158  mihtary  Ryan  Navion  L-17B  liaison  planes  plus  spare 
parts  equivalent  to  about  60  additional  planes. 

To  be  used  by  Army  Field  Forces  and  National  Guard  here 
and  by  occupation  forces  abroad,  the  planes  have  been  manu- 
(ConthiJted  on  next  page) 


5 


factured  on  the  same  production  lines  as  the  commercial 
Navions.  Because  of  their  rugged  construction  and  ability  to 
operate  out  of  small  fields,  they  afford  wide  opportunity  for 
use  in  personnel  movement,  general  communication  assign- 
ments and  light  transport. 

Ryan  planes  and  products  sell  because  they  are  built  by  men 
who  have  pioneered  in  nearly  every  field  of  flight,  aircraft 
engineering  and  construction.  Ryan  was  first  in  the  field  with 
a  specially  designed  airmail  plane  in  1926;  first  to  turn  out 
monoplanes  in  quantity;  first  to  produce  low-wing  primary 
trainers  for  U.  S.  Army  use;  first  to  design  and  fly  jet-plus- 
propeller  airplanes,  and  first  to  give  the  U.  S.  Navy  a  jet  pro- 
pulsion plane. 

Experience  in  manufacturing  has  kept  pace  with  the  rapid 
strides  made  by  the  design  and  engineering  sections  of  the  Ryan 
company.  With  more  than  43  acres  of  plant  layout,  embracing 
every  sort  of  machine  tool  requisite  to  engineering  for  the 
future,  Ryan  is  able  to  stay  ahead  in  production  for  today 
while  working  out  new  techniques  with  latest  type  metals  and 
"Buck  Rogers"  devices. 

Because  of  actual  operating  experience  dating  back  to  1922, 
Ryan  kiious  when  it  speaks  of  private  or  commercial  air- 
craft operations.  Its  flight  and  technical  training  school  was 
one  of  the  first  nine  selected  by  the  U.  S.  Army  for  primary 
training  and  expanded  during  World  War  II  into  a  tremendous 
outfit,  including  three  separate  schools  which  turned  out  10,000 
Army  pilots.  At  present  Ryan's  Airplane  Division  gains  valu- 
able practical  experience  by  operating  a  unique  700-mile  cross- 
country Navion  shuttle  service  transporting  both  cargo  and 
personnel  for  an  important  new  mihtary  development  project. 

Knowledge  of  servicing  problems  which  may  confront  both 
private  owners  and  commercial  operators  is,  with  Ryan, 
founded  upon  continuous  sales  and  follow-up  service  policies 
initiated  in  1922. 

While  commercial  airplane  sales  bulk  large  upon  the  horizon, 
this  Division  drives  equally  hard  upon  such  fascinating  projects 
as  the  Guided  Missile  development  and  the  still  unnamed  con- 
fidential Navy  undertaking.  Still  another  project,  Ryan's  new- 
est and  likely  to  be  one  of  its  most  important,  is  the  XQ-2 
target  craft,  a  pilotless  jet  plane  less  than  half  the  size  of  a 
standard  fighter. 

Award  of  this  contract  represented  a  distinct  triumph  for 
the  company.  Chief  Engineer  Harry  A.  Sutton's  technicians 
created  a  superb  design  and  a  set  of  specifications  which  won 
over  those  of  16  competing  firms.  All  concerned  with  the  de- 
sign, engineering  and  bidding  for  the  XQ-2  contract  may  feel 
genuine  satisfaction  with  their  effort  and  unselfish  cooperation. 


To  be  used  for  interception  problems,  aerial  gunnery  and  anti- 
aircraft firing,  the  XQ-2  will  be  powered  by  a  new,  small  but 
powerful  jet  engine  built  by  one  of  the  companies  for  whom 
Ryan  is  manufacturing  stainless  steel  parts. 

Engineering,  incidentally,  prides  itself  upon  the  principle 
of  coordination  and  team  work.  Chief  Engineer  Sutton  epito- 
mizes the  spirit  of  this  alert  group  of  highly  skilled  men  and 
women,  saying:  "We've  a  lot  of  people  up  here  who  know 
what  to  do  and  how  to  get  it  done.  For  example,  on  the  XQ-2 
project  we  had  the  finest  cooperation  from  everyone — Roe 
Tuttle,  project  engineer;  Robert  Johnston  in  aerodynamics; 
Richard  White  in  charge  of  structural  work;  Harold  Hasen- 
back  in  setting  up  the  control  system  details;  Cart  Laffoon  on 
the  powerplant — and  so  right  down  the  line." 

A  separate  and  responsible  engineering  study,  now  under 
process  for  the  Navy,  has  given  Ryan  scientists  many  a  puzzle 
to  solve.  But  solving  them  is  a  pleasure  to  every  individual  on 
the  job  because  of  the  advanced  nature  of  the  project.  Under- 
way for  well  over  a  year,  the  study  will  consume  further 
months  now  that  funds  have  been  provided  for  continuation 
of  the  project. 

Airplanes  —  guided  missiles  —  target  planes  —  confidential 
projects  • —  these  are  the  end  product  and  these  are  the  things 
you  see.  But  no  metal  or  drawing  board  or  service  promise 
could  mean  anything  without  people  such  as  Ryan  has  tested 
through  the  years.  Men  like  Walter  O.  Locke,  Assistant  to  the 
President,  and  responsible  for  materiel  and  contract  administra- 
tion, who  has  spent  1 8  years  with  the  company.  Customers 
know  they  can  rely  on  Sam  C.  Breder,  military  aircraft  sales 
manager,  who  has  racked  up  14  years  with  Ryan.  Our  projects 
are  in  good  hands  when  men  like  Sam  Beaudry,  project  engineer 
for  the  guided  missile  program,  are  on  the  job,  or  Roe  Tuttle, 
of  XQ-2  esteem,  or  William  T.  Immenschuh,  submerged  be- 
neath a  blanket  of  silence  on  the  confidential  Navy  project. 

Navion  military  and  commercial  customers  are  confident 
of  the  class  of  their  ship  because  they  can  count  on  the  skill 
of  Dave  Williams,  Navion  project  engineer,  to  back  up  his 
points.  Earl  Prudden  and  William  P.  "Doc"  Sloan,  who  have 
spent  20  years  and  10  years,  respectively,  boosting  Ryan,  head 
up  the  sales  group. 

With  the  Ryan  company,  sale  of  an  item  to  its  big  family 
of  customers  doesn't  close  the  transaction.  From  there  on  out 
service  is  what  counts.  In  the  airplane  division  are  capable 
old-timers  like  Walter  K.  Balch,  who  has  climbed  in  14  years 
here  to  the  post  of  Airplane  Service  Manager.  His  equivalent 
in  the  Airplane  Spare  Parts  section  is  Manager  Mel  Thompson, 
who's  had  16  years  with  Ryan's  seasoned  crew. 
(Confinucd  on  page  1 8 ) 


T.  Claude  Ryan  Awarded 
Presidential  Certificate 

"Yours  was  a  back-breaking,  heart- 
breaking, man-killing  job;  to  organize  and 
carry  through  that  miracle  of  production 
without  w^hich,  at  the  best,  the  successful 
conclusion  of  the  war  would  have  been 
indefinitely  delayed.  Your  Government  can 
never  express  to  all  w^ho  w^ere  responsible, 
in  any  real  measure,  the  gratitude  ow^ing 
for  the  job  done  by  your  industry.  The 
ultimate  satisfaction  must  come  from  the 
record.'' 

These  words  by  Assistant  Air  Force 
Secretary  Eugene  M.  Zuckert,  spoken  from 
the  heart,  accompanied  the  award  to  T. 
Claude  Ryan,  president  of  the  Ryan  Aero- 
nautical Company  of  the  Presidential  Cer- 
tificate of  Merit  signed  by  Harry  S.  Tru- 
man and  Supreme  Court  Justice  Owen  J. 
Roberts,  chairman  of  the  Medal  for  Merit 
Board.  Presentation  of  the  honor  con- 
cluded a  December  meeting  of  the  Aircraft 
Industries  Association  board  of  governors 
at  Arrowhead  Springs,  attended  by  Ryan 
and  Sam  C.  Breder,  Sales  Manager. 

The  Certificate  calls  particular  attention 
to  the  contribution  of  the  company's  sub- 
sidiary organization,  Ryan  School  of  Aero- 


Etigette 

M 

Tucker 

t 

nc 

utics, 

which  t 

rained  many  thoi 

.sar 

ds  of 

A 

r  Force  pilots 

du 

ring  w 

irtime  a 

t  s 

chools 

in 

San 

Diego    a 

nd 

Hemet 

,    Calif. 

a 

nd    at 

T 

icson, 

Ariz. 

"I  an 

1  proud 

to 

receive 

this  aw 

ard 

from 

tl 

c    Ait 

Force 

in 

which, 

as    an 

Av 

iation 

T.  Ciande  Ryafj 

Cadet  28  years  ago,  I  received  my  first 
sound  aeronautical  training,**  Ryan  said  in 
accepting  the  presentation.  "But  I  am 
prouder  still  of  the  loyal,  skilled  men  and 
women  at  Ryan  who  made  this  honor  pos- 
sible.'* 


Reportedly  being  tested  for  use  in  a  netv  long-range  bomber  now  under  development, 
the  huge  Wright  T-3  5  Typhoon  gas  turbine-propeller  engine  shoivn  above  in  the  nose 
of  a  B-17  Fortress  developed  tremendous  poiver  on  recent  test  flights.  Kyan  built  the 
T-S5  exhaust  system,  shown  in  the  circle.  The  first  engine  of  this  type  in  this  country, 
the  General  Electric  TG-100,  jvas  installed  by  Ryan  in  its  XF2R-1  ''Dark  Shark"  Fireball 
fighter  plane  built  for  the  Navy, 


"FLYING  LAB"  TESTS  POWER 
OF  WRIGHT  T-35  TYPHOON 

Air  Force  disclosure  of  the  T-3J  Ty- 
phoon, Wright  Aeronautical  Corporation's 
powerful  new  gas  turbine-propeller  en- 
gine, stirred  particular  interest  among 
Ryan  workers  who  produced  the  newly 
designed  turbine  exhaust  system,  largest 
stainless  steel  structure  of  its  kind  ever 
built.  Again,  Ryan  has  had  an  important 
role  in  the  development  of  new  power 
plants. 

The  T-3  5  Typhoon  utilizes  many  prin- 
ciples of  the  thermal-jet  engines  used  in 
operational  fighters  and  bombers  now  in 
military  service.  Instead  of  relying  only 
upon  thrust  of  gases  from  the  exhaust, 
however,  the  T-3  5  provides  a  two-way 
harnessing  of  gas  turbine  power  to  drive 
a  propeller  and  at  the  same  time  boost 
with  jet  thrust.  About  three-fourths  of 
the  power  is  absorbed  by  the  propeller 
shaft  through  a  series  of  turbine  wheels, 
the  remainder  being  supplied  by  thrust  of 
the  jet  exhaust  stream. 

Although  no  exact  data  have  been  re- 
leased concerning  specific  performance 
characteristics  of  the  T-3  5  engine,  it  is 
believed  capable  of  10,000  h.p. 


BOEING  FORE  AND  AFT 


BULLETIN:  A  $1,500,000  increase  in  Ryan's  order  from  Boeing  Aircraft  Company  for 
C-97  Stratofreighter  assemblies  has  just  been  received.  The  new  order,  ■which  practically 
doubles  Ryan's  original  contract,  results  from  an  Air  Force  decision  to  increase  by  23  the 
number  of  Boeing  Stratofreighters  which  can  be  used  on  the  Berlin  Air  Lift. 

Ryan  will  build  rear  fuselage  sections  and  all  floor  beams  for  the  additional  order. 


Characteristic  huge  Boeing  fin  dwarfs  visitors  inspecting 
new  Stratocruiser  on  airliner's  recent  visit  to  Ryan  plant 
in  San  Diego. 


That  Ryan-made  exhaust  manifold  directly  above  Ryan 
superintendent  of  Airplane  Production  John  van  der  Linde 
looks  pretty  slick.  With  van  der  Linde  are  (L-R)  Virgil 
Kelley,  Boeing  flight  engineer  (  white  sleeves)  ;  Boeing  flight 
test  engineer  Harry  Carter;  CAA  flight  engineer  Roy  E. 
Peterson  and  Boeing  project  pilot,  Robert  B.  Lamson. 


Take  it  from  Joe  Small,  Ryan's  energetic  assistant  sales 
manager  of  metal  products,  the  spectacular  new  Boeing  Strato- 
cruiser, for  which  Ryan  is  building  the  rear  fuselage  sections 
and  the  exhaust  system,  is  good.  It  must  be,  to  get  Joe  out  of 
bed  at  5  a.m.  of  a  frosty  morn.  But  there  was  the  130,000 
pound  passenger  liner  waiting  at  Lindbergh  Field,  and  the 
invitation.  So  Joe  forced  his  200  pounds  reluctantly  into  the 
pre-dawn  chill,  went  aloft  for  several  hours  of  sightseeing, 
and  returned  genuinely  impressed  with  the  plane  chosen  by 
six  major  airlines  for  1949  operations. 

"The  Arabian  old-timers  can  have  their  fl)'ing  rugs,"  Joe 
said.  "I'll  take  one  of  these  four-engined,  low-wing,  two-deck, 
altitude-conditioned  long  range  transports.  And  those  lovely, 
lovely  Ryan  manifolds!  Makes  those  3  500  horsepower  Pratt 
and  Whitney  engines  gems  to  behold." 

Ryan  skill  will  play  an  important  part  in  the  future  of  the 
Stratocruisers.  In  addition  to  supplying  the  manifolds  for  the 
engines  which  breeze  the  big  ship  effortlessly  along,  Ryan  is 
busy  on  a  substantial  contract  to  supply  the  after  fuselage 
sections.  John  van  der  Linde's  artisans,  working  on  huge  Boeing 
designed  jigs,  have  for  weeks  been  fashioning  fuselage  sections 
comprising  the  area  between  the  lower  deck  lounge  and  the 
(Continued  on  page  14} 


POWER   LINE   PATROL 


A  normal  three  weeks  power  line  inspec- 
tion trip  completed  in  five  hours  is  typi- 
cal of  the  utility  of  the  Navion  personal- 
business  plane,  which  Aircraft  Service 
Company  of  Boise  has  demonstrated  to 
Idaho  industrialists,  mining  and  lumber- 
men, farmers  and  businessmen. 

Faced  with  the  problem  of  patrolling 
the  new  13  8,000-volt  line  between  Idaho's 
Hagerman  Valley  and  the  company's  main 
operation  at  Boise,  Idaho  Power  Company 
frequently  calls  on  the  Navion  for  fast 
inspection  trips. 

Piloted  by  Glenn  E.  Higby,  and  with  a 
power  company  technician  in  the  co- 
pilot's seat,  the  Navion  has  proven  highly 
satisfactory.  Higby  reports: 

"The  high  cruising  speed  allows  us  to 
quickly  reach  and  return  from  patrol 
areas.  Excellent  visibility  and  perfect  con- 
trol at  our  relatively  slow  patrolling  speed 
of  75  miles  an  hour,  together  with  the 
roominess  and  comfort  of  the  cabin,  pre- 
vent the  pilot  and  observer  from  becom- 
ing fatigued. 

"Visibility  is  actually  so  good  from  the 
air  that  we  can  look  for  specific  troubles. 


Wings  across  the  hills 
banish  drudgery  from 
potver  line  inspection 


Without  Ryan  Navion  planes  Idaho 
Poiver  Company  inspectors  would  find 
this  country  rough  going. 


like  broken  insulators,  damaged  cross- 
arms,  and  large  birds  such  as  eagles  which 
may  have  struck  and  shorted  a  Hne  and 
are  still  on  the  pole.  We  also  watch  for 
grass  or  forest  fires  that  may  endanger 
the  pole  line.  Observation  from  one  side 
of  the  pole  hne  is  all  that  is  necessary  to 
spot  defects.  Because  at  our  low  inspec- 
tion altitude  the  Navion's  wing  Is  below 
the  level  of  the  pole  line,  we  obtain  an 
excellent  view.  The  most  efficient  and  easy 
way  to  observe  is  to  take  a  line  of  sight 
about  45  degrees  off  the  nose  of  the  plane. 
The  Navion's  curved  windshield  allows 
unobstructed  vision  for  the  job. 

"Our  normal  cruise  on  patrol  is  with 
the  propeller  in  full  low  pitch,  flaps  one- 
fourth  down  for  greater  stability  at  slow 
speed  and  in  gusty  air,  and  75  mph  indi- 
cated speed.  Because  of  the  Navion's  per- 
fect response  to  controls,  and  large  reserve 
of  power,  we  are  able  to  follow  ground 
contours  accurately;  a  very  important 
consideration  if  proper  line  inspections  are 
to  be  made.  For  these  reasons  we  have  no 
hesitance  in  cruising  at  or  below  the  level 
of  the  transmission  lines  on  all  but  the 
(Continued  on  page  19) 


HERE'S     THE 


'/h  conference"  Sam  Breder,  Metal  Products  Sales  Manager,  with  Office  Manager  joe  Richert   (center)   and 
Assistant  Sales  Manager  Joe  Small 


"The  Ryan  factory  will  have  plenty  of  business  after  the 
war  if  Sam  Breder  and  his  gang  have  anything  to  do  with  it. 
And  they're  likely  to  have  a  lot  to  do  with  it." 

Some  unsung  prophet  wrote  that  paragraph  way  back  in 
the  December  1944  issue  of  the  company  magazine,  then 
titled  "Flying  Reporter."  The  war  is  over,  Ryan  IS  getting 
plenty  of  business,  and  Sam  and  his  sales  gang  ARE  having 
a  lot  to  do  with  it. 

For  some  aviation  companies  World  War  II  and  its  attendant 
business  expansion  was  a  sort  of  shotgun  marriage,  followed 
by  a  financially  hysterical  honeymoon.  Not  so  at  Ryan.  Ex- 
emplifying the  company's  policy  of  solid  performance  and 
sound  business  practices,  the  high-flying  Metal  Products  Sales 
and  Service  group  headed  by  Sam  C.  Breder  is  not  only  making 
hay  while  the  sun  shines,  but  mowing  while  the  clouds  roll  by. 

Everybody  in  his  organization  seems  to  have  absorbed  some- 
thing of  Sam's  enthusiasm  for  the  sales  game.  Stick  your  head 
inside  the  door  and  note  the  busv  hum,  the  unlunriod  but  effi- 


cient activity  going  on  at  every  desk.  From  Breder's  office 
at  one  end  of  the  department  to  Assistant  Sales  Manager  Joe 
Small's  domain  at  the  other,  all  hands  turn  to  with  dispatch 
and  high  regard  for  their  work. 

"Work?"  Sam  asks.  "Not  selling.  This  game  is  fun!" 

And  the  way  Metal  Products  sales  people  play  the  game 
it's  anything  but  boring.  All  day  long,  and  sometimes  at  night 
when  emergencies  come  along,  there's  a  hustle  and  bustle  with 
telegrams,  teletype  messages,  airmail  letters  and  long  distance 
telephone  call  notations  strewn  all  over  the  place. 

Every  modern  method  of  transportation  and  communica- 
tion is  utilized  in  amplifying  sales  opportunities  pin-pointed 
by  Ryan  representatives  across  the  nation.  Where  aircraft 
products  are  needed,  there  you'll  find  a  Metal  Products  sales- 
man. Jack  C.  Zippwald,  while  sporting  no  gray  hairs,  is  the 
dean  of  the  sales  engineers  working  under  Breder  and  Small. 
He  is  Southern  California  sales  representative.  We  almost  said 
that  Jack  was  Los  Angeles  area  deputy,  since  that  city's  limits 
include   so   much   of   Southern   California   anvwav.   But    we're 


1 L  E  S     P I  mi  R  E 


''Our  customers  knotv  our  tvord  is  good!" 


sticklers  for  accuracy  —  and  so  is  Jack. 
His  friendly,  easy  manner  is  genuine  and 
:he  loud  jackets  he  occasionally  wears 
cover  good,  hard  muscles.  He  packs  around 
plenty  of  choice  ideas  on  how  to  market 
more  Ryan  products;  ideas  founded  on 
years  of  practical  experience  in  Ryan 
shops. 

Jimmy  Stalnaker,  another  man  up  from 
Stalnaker  the  ranks,  and  well  grounded  from  time 

spent  in  our  engineering  department,  is  the  man  who  meets 
the  customers  in  the  Dayton,  Ohio,  area.  Faced  with  neces- 
sity for  checking  in  on  the  important  civilian  and  govern- 
mental installations  of  his  district,  and  up  against  the  hardest 
type  of  competition,  Jimmy  regularly  comes  in  with  consistent, 
reliable  performances. 

In  the  bustling  New  York  area  is  Claude  H.  Whitehurst, 
who  came  into  our  fold  only  last  summer  but  who  has  the 
esteem  of  all  Ryan  salespeople.  Claude  has  a  lot  of  territory 
to  cover,  and  some  thorny  problems  in  presenting  West  Coast 
manufactures    to    customers    three    thousand    miles    removed. 


But  Claude's  production  chart  shows  a  happy  faculty  of  stay- 
ing in  the  higher  altitudes. 

But  wait  a  minute.  The  road  staff  roster  is  far  froni  com- 
plete if  we  omit  the  names  of  head  man  Breder  and  Joe  Small. 
Last  year  Sam  spent  130  days  on  the  road  and  in  strange 
hotels  —  even  after  20  visits  a  hotel  is  still  a  strange  place  — 
making  five  trips  to  the  East  Coast,  a  pair  to  Seattle  and  mis- 
cellaneous jaunts  elsewhere. 

Small,  too,  is  familiar  with  the  mechanics  of  traveling,  the 
bounciness  of  busses  and  the  time-saving  convenience  of  aerial 
conveyances.  He  makes  the  Seattle  run 
as  a  regular  part  of  his  routine,  then 
changes  pace  with  assaults  upon  the  Ft. 
Worth  domain.  Between  times  he  finds 
himself  checking  salesmens'  routing  and 
reports,  signing  requisitions  and  totting 
up  sales  data  in  Breder's  absence.  Joe  pro- 
cesses all  business  turn-in  up  to  the  point 
where  the  item  is  firmly  stashed  away  as 
an  order. 

(Cont'nincd  on  page  15) 


Metal  Products  poiv-wo-w: 
(L-R)  Jack  C.  Zippwald, 
Sales;  Frenchy  Foushec, 
Jr.,  Field  Service  repre- 
sentative; Harry  A.  Good- 
in  of  Engineering  Depart- 
ment; Ralph  Haver,  Metal 
Products  Engineer;  Frank 
Voll,  Coordinator. 


FLYING  THE  RANGE 


"One  day  I  simply  decided  to  learn  to 
fly  myself,"  says  E.  M.  "Tex"  Anderson, 
Jr.,  owner  of  the  A  Bar  A  Ranch  near 
Medina,  Texas. 

A  cattleman  from  the  wide  open  spaces 
of  the  Lone  Star  State,  Tex  has  owned 
planes  for  years,  but  not  until  he  made 
this  decision  did  he  discover  the  real  won- 
ders of  flying.  "Piloting  myself,  I  knew  I'd 
have  an  unlimited  amount  of  fun,  get  my 
work  done  just  as  well  and  save  the  ex- 
pense of  a  pilot.  As  it  turned  out,  I've 
done  even  better,"  Tex  explains. 

The  A  Bar  A  boss  first  used  a  two-place 
Ercoupe  to  qualify  for  his  private  pilot's 
certificate.  This  small  ship  seemed  just 
right  until  his  whole  family  decided  that 
"Pop"  was  a  reliable  character  at  the  con- 
trols. Then  they  felt  the  time  had  come  foi 
them  to  go  along,  too.  That's  where  an  ail- 
metal  Navion  appeared  on  the  scene. 

Looking  for  a  four-place  plane,  the  air- 
minded  Texan  made  the  rounds  of  aircratt 
sales  offices  in  the  vicinity  of  San  Antonio. 

"After  trying  out  everything  I  could 
find,  I  was  pleased  to  go  back  to  the 
Navion,  which  had  been  my  real  choice 
from  the  time  I  first  flew  one  with  Moody 
Monroe  and  Jimmy  Witt,  Navion  dealers 
in  San  Antonio,"  Tex  confides. 

"Taking  delivery  on  a  Navion  from 
these  boys,  I  was  pleased  at  how  easy  I  was 
able  to  check  out.  You  see,  I  don't  believe 


in  cute  tricks  or  unorthodox  operations 
with  aircraft.  I  look  upon  flying  as  sane 
and  sensible  transportation  that  gets  me 
where  I'm  going  and  saves  me  money  while 
doing  it. 

"The  fact  that  this  is  the  best  behaved 
plane  you  could  ever  find  suits  me  per- 
fectly, as  I'm  naturally  lazy  and  want  to 


fly  the  easiest  and  safest  way  there  is.  The 
Navion  does  everything  but  get  down  on 
its  knees  and  beg  for  forgiveness  if  it  does 
something  wrong.  This,  coupled  with 
strong  construction  makes  it  without  a 
doubt  the  safest  airplane  for  the  average 
pilot." 

(Coiithiucd  on  next  page) 


H_H 


''Then  and  Noit"  along  the  famous  old  Cbisbolm  Trail.  (L.  to  R.) 
Rollic  Goodnight,  82;  "Pistol  Pete^'  Eaton,  89;  and  Starr  Nelson, 
S3,  oldest  FlyiKg  Fartfier,  all  former  trail  drivers,  help  load 
Hereford  calf  aboard  E.  M.  'Trv"  Anderson''s  Nation  at  Gaines- 
villc,  Texas.  Tex''s  iiife,  Kay,  and  ranch-band,  Koyce  fackson 
(in  cabin),  made  the  trip  iiitb  Tex  and  the  calf  from  Gainestilie 
to  Dodge  City,  Kansas. 


FLYING  THE  RANGE 

(Continued  from  page  12) 

What  does  a  Navion  do  on  the  A  Bar  A? 

Well,  for  sure,  this  tame  and  gentle 
aircraft  is  a  far  cry  from  the  wild  bronc 
and  the  rambunctious  dogie.  The  sturdy 
ship  takes  its  place  alongside  such  depend- 
able ranch  equipment  as  tractors,  trucks, 
combines,   jeeps   and   balers. 

Tex  himself  is  on  the  go  almost  every 
day.  If  he  isn't  flying  off  to  Fort  Worth, 
Dallas  or  San  Antonio,  he's  got  his  Navion 
on  the  range  checking  his  registered  Here- 
fords,  or  his  750  sheep,  and  keeping  watch 
of  the  oat  and  hay  stands  which  mark 
the  property. 

In  times  of  emergency,  the  Navion 
makes  sky  tracks  for  places  like  Houston 
to  obtain  cattle  vaccine  and  other  items 
badly  needed  on  a  busy  ranch. 

"Like  the  morning  last  year,"  Tex  re- 
calls, "when  I  had  a  combine  to  break 
down.  Nearest  repair  parts  were  in  San 
Antonio — 60  miles  away.  While  the  boys 
tore  down  the  combine,  I  phoned  ahead 
to  the  parts  man  to  meet  me  at  the  airport 
with  what  we  needed.  Then  I  flew  to  the 
city  in  the  usual  20  minutes.  Using  the 
plane  this  way,  we  had  the  combine  run- 
ning again  with  only  an  hour  and  a  half 
down  time,  when  it  could  have  been  many 
hours  otherwise. 

CALF    FLIES    THE    CHISHOLM    TRAIL 

"The  flight  I  got  the  biggest  kick  out 
of,"  Tex  says,  "was  the  one  sponsored  by 
the  Flying  Farmers  we  made  this  fall  along 
the  famous  old  Chisholm  Trail  with 
'Texas  Malcolm  Blanchard.'  To  put  you 
straight,  I'd  better  explain  that  Texas 
Malcolm  Blanchard  is  a  90-pound  regis- 
tered Hereford  calf.  Texas  is  the  state  he 
was  born  in,  Malcolm's  our  breeding,  and 
Blanchard  denotes  his  ancestors. 

"I  couldn't  have  made  this  flight  if  it 
hadn't  been  for  the  Navion.  There  just 
isn't  room  enough  in  any  other  four- 
place  plane.  To  make  the  calf  comfortable, 
we  removed  the  back  seat  back  rest  and 
covered  the  baggage  compartment  floor 
and  rear  seat  with  a  tarp.  Some  old  rug 
padding  on  the  floor  made  Blanchard  a 
soft  cushion. 

"After  my  wife,  Kay,  Royce  Jackson 
- — -one  of  the  boys  at  the  ranch — the  calf, 
and  myself  took  off  for  Fort  Worth,  the 
white-faced  little  fellow  lay  down  and 
rode  easy  as  could  be.  For  his  nourishment, 
we  took  along  four  quarts  of  milk,  nipples, 
water  and  a  little  prepared  feed." 

The  trip  up  the  Chisholm  Trail  from 
Gainesville,  Texas,  to  Dodge  City,  Kansas, 
made  calf  travel  history.  In  the  rough  and 
ready  days  sixty  years  ago,  when  cowmen 
rode  herd  the  hard  way,  the  trip  took  six 
months.  A  dogie  grew  into  a  husky  steer 
by  the  time  he  reached  Dodge  City.  But 


Texas  Malcolm  Blanchard  covered  the 
route  in  1948  in  a  Navion  in  less  than 
three  hours. 

Once  in  Dodge  City — at  the  'end  of 
the  Trail' — the  precedent-setting  Hereford 
was  auctioned  off  at  a  meeting  of  Texas, 
Oklahoma  and  Kansas  Flying  Farmers. 
$410  raised  from  his  sale  went  to  the  Na- 
tional Heart  Fund. 

Tex  Anderson  readily  admits  that  he's 
extremely  enthusiastic  over  flying  and  his 
Navion.  Much  of  his  time  regularly  goes 
to  the  activities  of  the  Texas  Flying 
Farmers.  One  of  Tex's  biggest  thrills  came 
last  July  when  he  piloted  his  Navion  to 
first  place  in  the  Texas  Handicap  Air 
Race,  sponsored  in  Dallas  by  the  Texas 
Private  Flyers  Association,  of  which  he's 
a  member. 

NAVION  OPERATES  ECONOMICALLY 
One  of  the  first  questions  discerning 
farmers  and  ranchers  ask  Tex  is  how  much 
it  costs  to  run  his  Navion.  The  genial 
rancher  replies,  "I  can  fly  my  Navion  for 
less  than  it  costs  to  operate  my  station 
wagon.  Here's  an  example  of  this   low- 


cost  travel:  Three  of  us  flew  from  the 
ranch  to  Cleveland,  Ohio — 1,500  miles — 
for  $14  a  piece.  That's  less  than  one  cent 
a  passenger  mile. 

"Whenever  you  try  to  figure  how  much 
it  costs  to  operate  an  airplane  you  also 
have  to  consider  what  it's  saving  you  in 
other  expenses.  I've  found  my  ranch  work 
has  been  stepped  up  considerably  with  the 
help  of  the  Navion.  More  of  my  time  is 
spent  on  the  ranch  now  because  it  takes 
me  less  time  to  accomplish  business  that 
must  be  done  in  distant  cities." 

The  Navion  is  part  of  the  way  of  life 
on  the  A  Bar  A.  All  activities  are  keyed 
to  an  accelerated  pace  set  by  the  150  mph 
plane.  As  Tex  says,  "The  only  thing  I  use 
my  car  for  is  to  drive  from  the  house  to 
the  hangar.  I  even  use  the  Navion  to  visit 
my  neighbors.  Some  of  these  folks  don't 
have  landing  strips,  but  I  take  the  Navion 
in  anyway,  putting  it  down  on  almost 
every  type  of  terrain. 

"I  now  can  do  what  a  few  years  back 
seemed  incredible — travel  between  Chi- 
cago and  my  ranch  in  one  day's  time!" 

—Robert  F.  Smith 


Higher  Performance,  More  Comfort 
Feature  '49  Ryan  Navion 


Higher  performance  and  still  greater  comfort,  expected  to  contribute  to  even  greater 
o^vner  satisfaction,  are  the  outstanding  features  of  the  1949  Ryan  Navion,  complete 
details  of  which  will  be  announced  in  the  February  issue  of  Ryan  Reporter. 

In  all,  some  2  9  major  improvements  have  been  added  to  this  year's  model.  Production 
is  now  under  way,  and  first  deliveries  are  scheduled  to  bs  made  to  Ryan  Navion  dis- 
tributors in  February, 


Aerodynamic  refi 
all-round  performance 
is  increased,  yet  the  ne 


md  a  more  pow^erful  engine  give  the  *49  Navion  its  higher 
nd  greater  speed.  Take-offs  are  shorter  and  the  rate  of  climb 
Navion  retains  the  slow,  short  landings  for  w^hich  it  is  famous. 


Too,  there's  even  more  luxurious  comfort  than  in  the  past  in  the  generously  propor- 
tioned and  tastefully  appointed  cabin.  There's  more  room,  softer  seats,  many  refinements 
in  detail.  The  still  quieter  cabin,  the  new  heating  and  ventilation  system,  help  make  the 
'49  Ryan  Navion  the  "luxury  liner"  in  the  personal  plane  field. 

Many  new^  and  exclusive  mechanical  refinements  have  been  added  this  year.  There  is 
more  and  still  bettsr  standard  equipment  which  places  the  Ryan  Navion  in  a  class 
w^ith  the  most  modern  commercial  airlines.  You  can  fly  your  '49  Ryan  Navion  with 
even  greater  confidence. 

Watch  for  complete  details  in  the  February  Ryan  Reporter.  Meantime  owners  should 
get  in  touch  with  their  Ryan  Navion  distributor  or  dsaler  and  arrange  now^  to  get  on 
the  priority  list   for  a  demonstration   and  early  delivery. 


CHARLIE  MCCARTHY'S  PARENT 
BUYS  NEW  RYAN  NAVION 


Mortimer  Snerd  may  act  stupid  on 
Edgar  Bergen's  radio  program,  but  he's 
a  smart  lad  when  it  comes  to  travel. 
Mortimer  always  snaps  up  every  chance 
he  gets  to  fly  in  Bergen's  new  Ryan 
Navion,  but  finds  himself  crowded  out 
on  most  flights  by  Bergen's  wife,  baby 
girl  and  nurse. 

"A  favorite  jaunt  of  ours  is  from  Los 
Angeles  to  Palm  Springs,"  says  Edgar, 
shown  here  with  T.  Claude  Ryan.  "We 


need  only  45-50  minutes  to  fly  a  trip 
that  used  to  require  three  tiresome 
hours  by  road." 

Noyv  that  he  has  more  time  for  public 
appearances,  Bergen,  a  real  Navion  en- 
thusiast, intends  to  use  his  plane  exten- 
sively in  jaunts  about  the  Southwestern 
States.  Not  only  will  Edgar  fly  himself 
and  co-stars  Mortimer  Snerd  and  Char- 
lie McCarthy,  but  his  advance  men  also 
Tvill  go  by  Navion  when  making  ar- 
rangements and  preparing  publicity. 


BOEING  FORE  AND  AFT 

(Continued  from  page  S  } 
tail  fin.  Ryan  thus  quite  literally  has  a 
hand  in  producing  both  airplane  and  en- 
gine, since  Ray  "Butch"  Ortiz  and  his 
craftsmen  in  the  manifold  department 
have  for  months  been  turning  out  parts 
for  the  rugged  Pratt  and  Whitney  power- 
plants. 

What  Joe  didn't  know  when  he  accepted 
the  flight  bid  was  that  his  four-hour  jaunt 
was  a  test  run.  In  a  nice  bit  of  understate- 
ment he  mentioned  the  exhilaration  the 
passengers,  including  himself,  received 
when  the  pilot  made  ten  or  twelve  "power 
take-offs,"  a  simulated  maneuver  which 
combines  all  the  thrill  of  take-off  and 
landing  except  actual  touching  of  wheels 
for  firm  contact  with  the  ground. 

"I'd  have  been  even  more  exhilarated," 
Joe  confessed,  "had  I  known  the  plane  was 
carrying  the  heaviest  load  lifted  to  date 
by  good  old  Model  377!" 

Southern   Californians    and    Ryan    em- 


ployees got  their  first  long  look  at  the 
Stratocruiser  late  last  month,  when  the 
flight  test  crew  brought  it  South  from 
Seattle  for  a  week  of  checking  in  what 
they  graciously  described  as  "San  Diego's 
clear,  sunny  weather." 

Riding  out  the  tests  were  Ed  Wells, 
Boeing  vice-president  and  Chief  Engineer; 
Chief  Project  Pilot  Robert  H.  Lamson; 
James  Allison,  CAA  flight  test  engineer; 
Boeing  flight  engineers  Virgil  KcUey  and 
Harry  Carter;  M.  E.  Erickson,  Boeing 
service  department  representative,  and 
CAA  flight  test  engineer  Roy  E.  Peterson. 

Aside  from  the  natural  interest  such 
doughty  Ryan  technicians  as  John  van  der 
Llnde,  Bert  Bowling,  Gene  Wilcox  and 
Joe  Small  would  display,  several  hundred 
oth;r  Ryanites  made  inspection  trips 
through  the  two-decker  when  Pilot  Lam- 
son brought  it  across  Lindbergh  Field  so 
all  who  wished  could  have  a  pre-view. 

Pan-American  World  Airways  will  fly 
it  across  the  Atlantic  along  with  Scandi- 
navian Airways  Svstem  and  British  Over- 


seas Aircraft  Corporation.  New  York  to 
London,  non-stop,  will  require  about  11 '/z 
hours  elapsed  time.  Across  the  Pacific, 
United  Air  Lines  will  fly  Stratocruisers  to 
the  Orient,  and  Northwest  Airlines  will 
place  them  on  their  Great  Circle  Orient 
route. 

Main  deck  will  accommodate  up  to  80 
passengers.  It  is  connected  by  a  spiral 
staircase  with  a  flossy  lower  deck  lounge. 
Seating  arrangements  will  vary,  according 
to  specifications  of  the  different  airlines, 
but  all  will  feature  luxurious  sleeping 
berths  (foam  rubber  mattresses!),  figure 
designed  chairs,  large  dressing  rooms, 
warm-wall  radiant  heating,  and  a  com- 
plete air-conditioning  system  which  should 
assure  top  comfort  under  all  circum- 
stances. 

Cruising  speed  is  340  mph  between 
15,000  and  30,000  ft.  Four  3  500  HP 
P  W  engines  assure  ample  power,  the 
Wasp  "Majors"  augmented  by  General 
Electric  turbosuperchargers  which  aid 
greatly  in  transport  of  larger  loads  faster 
and  further  than  those  of  its  predecessor, 
the  B-29  Superfort.  Range  is  about  4200 
miles. 

Ryan  is  also  building  the  rear  fuselage 
sections  and  exhaust  systems  for  the 
freighter  prototype  of  this  plane,  the  ex- 
perimental job,  XC-97  having,  in  1944, 
set  a  record  of  approximately  6  hours  for 
a  Seattle-Washington,  D.C.,  non-stop  run. 

Sutton  New  Chairman 
of  Missile  Committee 

Further  recognition  of  Ryan  Aeronaut- 
ical Company's  pre-eminence  in  guided 
missile  research  and  engineering  was  dem- 
onstrated with  the  appointment  of  Harry 
A.  Sutton,  Chief  Engineer,  to  Chairman- 
ship of  the  Committee  for  Guided  Mis- 
siles of  the  U.  S.  Research  and  Develop- 
ment Board,  an  independent  Government 
agency. 

Sutton  also  was  selected  as  a  consultant 
to  the  committee.  His  appointment  points 
up  Ryan's  leading  position  in  the  guided 
missiles  field,  and  heightens  interest  in 
the  company's  other  research  contracts. 
The  board  is  headed  by  Dr.  Karl  Compton, 
president  of  the  Massachusetts  Institute 
of  Technology,  and  reports  to  Secretani- 
of  Defense  James  Forrestal. 

Although  the  position  will  not  inter- 
fere with  his  key  responsibilities  at  Ryan, 
Sutton  will  be  called  to  Washington  from 
time  to  time  to  help  solve  particularly 
complicated  problems  connected  with 
guided  missile  development. 


HERE'S  THE  SALES  PICTURE 

(Continued  from  page  11 ) 
From  the  time  incoming  business  be- 
comes an  "order"  it  is  taken  on  down 
the  hne  by  efficient  Joe  J.  Richert,  office 
manager.  His  five  years,  with  Ryan  have 
been  thorough,  and  his  work  reflects  a 
high  order  of  conscientiousness.  Joe  has 
the  heaviest  volume  of  paper  work  across 
his  desk  of  anyone  in  the  office.  But  it 
bothers  him  not  at  alh  Entrusted  with 
intcr-departmental  expediting  or  timing. 
Joe  sees  to  it  that  his  papers,  which  accent 
speed  rather  than  volume,  linger  only 
brietly.  He  doesn't  have  any  letter  boxes 
upon  his  desk. 

""Why  should  I?"  Joe  asks.  "Soon  as 
a  letter  hits  that  desk  it's  due  for  a  ride. 
Sorta  hard  to  work  on  a  dispatch  inside 
a  letter  box." 

Like  every  team  in  top  brackets,  Breder's 
band  have  versatility  to  spare.  What, 
for  instance,  would  Metal  Products  sales 
do  without  the  sparkle  of  "Frenchy"  Fou- 
shee,  Field  Service  representative  and  gen- 
eral handyman  of  the  division.  Or  think 
of  the  gloom  that  would  settle  were 
Frank  VoU,  office  coordinator,  a  member 
of  some  other  team.  Frenchy,  whose  par- 
ents hopefully  christened  him  Clarence, 
Junior,  and  probably  are  the  only  per- 
sons who  call  him  Clarence,  won  the 
distinction  of  being  one  of  the  youngest 
foremen  ever  appointed  at  any  major 
U.  S.  aircraft  factory,  when,  at  22,  he 
was  chosen  to  lead  Ryan's  then  newly 
organized  Manifold  Development  depart- 
ment in  April  of  1943. 

Foushee,  knowing  how  the  parts  are 
put  together  and  why,  finds  it  no  trick 
to  dash  a  few  hundred  miles  and  help 
unscramble  some  operational  snarl.  One 
of  those  rare  young  men  who  have  the 
knack  of  practical  knowhow  and  ability 
to  whip  through  blueprints  at  sonic  speed, 
Frenchy  packs  an  additional  personality 
quotient  which  aids  in  smoothing  ruffled 
feelings. 

Frank  Voll's  ability  in  bringing  people 
and  apparently  impossible  schedules  to- 
gether is  reassuring.  Frank  knows  what 
it  is  to  be  in  the  middle  when  a  cus- 
tomer wants  something  day  before  yes- 
terday and  the  shop  people  are  convinced 
that  they  rate  at  least  a  week  on  a  job 
easy  to  spoil.  But  he  just  goes  right  on, 
like  old  man  river,  coordinating  unyield- 
ing metals,  time  and  men  into  a  some- 
how suddenly  satisfying  job  done  on 
time  —  and  right. 

Breder's  slogan:  "Let's  face  the  prob- 
lem and  whip  it  now,  not  tomorrow!" 
underlines  all  Metal  Products  sales  force 
activities.     Sam's    vitality    allows   him    to 


mock  his  5  6  years.  "But  1  never  fool 
with  this  game  of  selling,"  he'll  tell  you. 
"It's  a  grand  business,  but  never  a  snap." 

"How  do  you  account  for  Ryan's  steady 
upswing  in  the  trade?"  he  is  often  asked. 

"Our  customers  know  that  our  word 
is  good,  and  that  our  integrity  is  backed 
by  the  ability  to  deliver!" 

Sam  assayed  his  primary  problems,  im- 
mediately after  the  war,  as  essentially  a 
task  of  getting  down  to  size  for  future 
work,  and  placing  the  right  people  in  the 
right  territories.  An  immediate  challenge 
was  sharpening  techniques  and  sales  plan- 
ning to  keep  abreast  of  customer  needs. 

"We  had  quite  a  time  in  that  war 
period  and  right  afterwards,"  Sam  con- 
tinued. "There  was  quite  a  spasm  of  price- 
cutting,  wild  delivery  promises,  'short 
cuts'  and  dumping  practices  which  were 
flung  into  an  already  churned  up  field. 
I  think  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company 
proved  itself  by  keeping  to  solid  ground 
and  never  failing  in  its  obligations." 

Sam  was  born  in  Buffalo,  N.Y.,  and 
was  graduated  from  St.  Mary's  College. 


He  leaped  into  one  of  the  roughest  sales 
fields  known,  that  of  rubber,  and  did  well 
for  himself  during  his  12  years  in  that 
pursuit.  He  climbed  to  area  managership 
with  a  Goodyear  subsidiary,  came  out 
to  the  West  Coast  as  Pacific  Coast  man- 
ager, and  put  a  sales  wallop  into  the 
Spreckels  outfit  until  the  death  of  the 
senior  Spreckels.  Sam  is  an  old-timer 
in  aviation,  and  one  of  the  best-known 
men  in  the  business,  having  joined  the 
U.  S.  Army  and  done  a  neat  job  as  an 
Air  Corps  pilot  in  World  War  L  Sam 
never  got  across  the  pond,  winding  up 
at  Mineola,  N.  Y.,  after  months  of  train- 
ing in  Texas. 

The  interval  with  rubber  companies 
was  spread  out  a  bit,  broken  in  1927 
when  he  joined  the  Ryan  establishment. 
He  parted  company  for  awhile  in  1929, 
but  returned  to  his  major  lifetime  career 
here  in  1936.  He  sees  a  continuing,  happy 
sales  future  behind  his  uncluttered  desk. 

Sam's  creed?  "My  religion  is  honest 
dealing  —  and  a  lot  of  it!" 

— Charles  M.  Hatcher. 


ONE  DOZEN  HOURS  TO  MEXICO  CITY 


Shoivn  above  is  Francisco  Waltz,  a  partner  of  Ryan  Navion's  distributor  firm  of 
Morgan  and  Waltz  of  Mexico  City,  preparing  to  enter  his  new  Ryan  Navion  plane  at 
Eldorado  betiveen  Gnaymas  and  Mazatlan  on  a  recent  flight  to  the  southern  capital  with 
Bill  Brotherton,  Ryan  Navion  export  sales  coordinator.  Their  journey  across  eight 
Mexican  states,  uith  landings  on  sugar  cane  field  clearings,  open  pastures  and  at  the 
great  Mexico  City  modern  airport,  ti'as  faultless,  the  plane  handling  easily  under  all 
conditions  at  altitudes  from  sea-level  to  7500  ft.  Elapsed  flight  time  was  only  11  hours, 
3  0  minutes.  During  Bill's  visit  he  and  distributors  Morgan  and  Waltz  met  with  Ryan 
Navion  oivners  and  prospective  oiiners  to  plan  improved  servicing  facilities,  meeting, 
among  other  top-flight  Federal  District  residents,  Cardenas  Rodriguez,  Con 
General  of  the  Mexican  Air  Force. 


n 


This  Flying  World 

•  Flying  over  some  of  the  most  rugged  terrain  in  the  world,  six  Lockheed  P2V 
"Neptunes"  from  the  U.  S.  Navy*s  Photographic  Squadron  One  completed  a  summer- 
long  project  which  called  for  photo-mapping  of  30,000  square  miles  of  Alaskan  territory. 

Object  of  the  undertaking  was  to  determine  ship  navigation  possibilities  of  the 
Alaskan  "panhandle"  from  Skagway  to  the  South,  although  photographs  taken  on  the 
survey  should  also  prove  useful  in  military  analyses. 

LOCKHEED  NEPTUNES,  TOO,   USE  RYAN  MANIFOLDS. 

9The  world's  first  knoivn  pttlsejet-poii'ered  helicopter,  designed  by  Roy  Marquardt, 
has  completed  flight  tests  successfully.  Simple  in  design,  the  new  M-14  "Whirlajet"  is 
reported  to  be  capable  of  tivice  the  payload  of  conventional  helicopters  for  short  dis- 
tances. Its  powerplant  differs  from  other  helicopters  in  having  its  thrust  delivered  by 
two  pulsejet  engines,  one  mounted  on  each  iving. 

Gross  iveight  of  the  experimental  craft  is  1,000  lbs.,  and  rotor  diameter  is  29  feet. 
Elimination  of  internal  combustion  engines  contributed  to  material  lightening  of  plane, 
ivhile  action  of  the  jet-propelled  rotor  does  a-way  -with  necessity  for  torque-countering 
devices  such  as  the  auxiliary  tail  rotor. 

RYAN  MAKES  VITAL  PARTS  FOR  MARQUARDT  JET  ENGINES. 


•  "Growing  preference  of  t 
'fares    instituted    last    fall    were 
percent   increase   in   the   total 
the  total  for  the  same  month 


isatlantic   travelers  for  winter  flying"  and   the  30-day  cxc 
ttributed    by    American    Overseas    Airlines    as    factors    in 
mber   of   passengers    flown    to   Europe   in    November,    1948 
1947. 


BIG,    SAFE   C-34's    USED    BY   AMERICAN    OVERSEAS    AIRLINES    CARRY    RYAN 
EXHAUST  SYSTEMS,  TOO. 


•  KLM  Royal  Dutch  Airlines,  have  put  fiv 
3ckholm  route.  Nine  other  Convairs  are  on 
all  KLM  short-haul  routes. 


Convairliners  into  service  on   their  Amsterdam- 
order  and  will  gradually   replace  slower  aircraft 


ON  THE  CONVAIR-LINER,  TOO,  RYAN  EXHAUST  SYSTEMS  ARE  STANDARD 
EQUIPMENT. 

•  Six  additional  HRP-1  transport  helicopters  were  delivered  to  the  Naval  Air 
Services  during  November  by  the  Piasecki  Helicopter  Corp.,  bringing  to  1  5  the  number 
delivered  out  of  an  order  for  20.  Three  of  the  HRP's  will  be  assigned  to  the  Coast 
Guard,  five  to  the  Marine  Corps,  and  the  remainder  to  the  Navy,  with  the  exception 
of  one  model  —  No.  19  —  which  will  be  loaned  to  the  Air  Force  for  helicopter  towing 
experiments  at  Wright-Patterson  AFB,  Dayton,  Ohio.  The  company  will  soon  go  into 
production  of  the  HRP-2,  an  all-metal  version  of  the  "Rescuer." 

RYAN  STAINLESS  STEEL  EXHAUST  SYSTEMS  AND  SHROUDS  ARE  STANDARD 
ON   THE  PIASECKI  "RESCUER." 

9  Brightening  the  European  winter  gloom  was  announcement  by  the  U.  S.  Air  Force 
that  transport  planes  of  the  U.S.A.F.  and  Military  Air  Transport  Service  have  flown 
409,25  6  tons  of  food,  fuel  and  other  important  supplies  into  blockaded  Berlin  since 
beginning  of  "Operation  Vittles"  on  June  26. 

Superb  performance  of  both  personnel  and  aircraft  is  indicated  by  the  airlift's  safety 
record  shoiving  a  record  of  only  1}  deaths  (as  of  mid-December)  for  more  than 
24,000,000  miles  floun  and  165,000  hours  of  flight  time. 

RYAN-MADE  EXHAUST  SYSTEMS  ARE  PART  OF  THE  FINE  EQUIPMENT  OF 
THE  C-54's  ON  THE  AIR-LIFT. 

•  Considerable  care  is  being  taken  by  Pan  American  Airways  to  train  the  captains  who  will 
skipper  the  new  Boeing  Stratocruiser-class  Clippers.  First  unit  of  six  pilots  has  been  selected 
from  the  Pacific-Alaska  division.  Three  of  them  are  now  finishing  in  New  York  a  final  course 
on   the   Dehmcl    flight   simulator,   which    reproduces    flight    conditions    of   the   B-377. 

RYAN'S  SKILL  COUNTS  IN  PRODUCING  REAR  FUSELAGE  SECTIONS  AND 
EXHAUST  SYSTEMS  FOR  THE  STRATOCRUISERS. 

•  Reduction  by  more  than  100%  of  time  required  for  landing  big  airliners  is  believed 
both  feasible  and  safe  by  Curtiss-Wright  experts  following  successful  demonstration 
of  "negative  thrust"  landing  techniques  by  a  Douglas  DC-4  using  reversible  pitch 
propellers.  Test  Pilot  Herbert  Fisher  dropped  his  plane  from  a  cruising  altitude  of 
15,000  feet  to  a  gentle  landing  in  2  minutes  5  5  seconds,  almost  two  full  minutes  ahead 
of  a  second  plane  which  began  its  normal  let-down  at  the  same  time  from  the  same  height. 

Use  of  the  reversible  propeller  "drop-away"  is  expected,  when  fully  operational, 
to  aid  airlines  in  high  altitude  flight.  Its  value  in  emergency  landings  and  military 
tactics   also  was  stressed   by   the  Curtiss-Wright   observers. 

RYAN-MADE    EXHAUST    SYSr£MS    HELP    MAKE    THE    DC-4    A    CONTINUING 

SUCCESS. 


METAL  PRODUCTS 
DIVISION 

(Continued  from  pa^e  4) 
man  in  charge  of  manufacturing.  In  this 
spot  —  and  a  hot  spot  it  can  be  —  is 
James  L.  Kelley,  Works  Manager.  Hit- 
ting the  ball  under  Kelley  are  G.  E.  Bar- 
ton, production  manager;  Larry  C.  Mar- 
tin, production  engineering;  S.  M.  Fraser, 
manager  of  the  Standards  and  Estimating 
group,  and  D.  H.  Palmer.  Occupying 
another  hot  spot,  well  under  control,  is 
Bob  Clark,  head  of  Scheduling  and  Pro- 
duction control.  Clark  combines  years  of 
experience  with  youth  to  get  results. 

One  of  the  busiest  men  in  the  whole 
plant  is  Ralph  L.  Haver,  Chief  Metal 
Products  engineer.  Working  under  the 
Chief  Engineer's  office,  Haver  is  prac- 
tically a  symbol  for  continual  motion. 
He  is  liaison  man  between  the  engineers 
and  the  sales  representatives;  he  must 
know  what  the  customers  want,  design 
it,  help  build  it,  help  expedite  it,  and 
then  stand  by  for  any  and  all  squawks. 
Ralph  is  ably  assisted  by  a  staff  of  design 
engineers  including  Ted  Hacker  and 
Harry  Goodin.  Ted  has  been  with  the 
company  seven  years;  Harry  for  nine  and 
a  half  years  of  fruitful  endeavor.  They 
draw  up  original  designs  or  work  from 
customer  plans  with  equal  facility. 

Ryan's  Metal  Products  Division  is  con- 
stantly accelerating  its  output  and  im- 
proving its  standards  in  three  current 
main  efforts  (a)  exhaust  systems  (b)  jet 
engine  components  and  (c)  major  air- 
frame assemblies.  Ryan  service  envisions 
a  dynamic  3 -point  plan  to  provide  the 
best  in  each  line.  First  of  all  R^an  offers 
engineering  and  design  consultation  from 
the  earliest  stages,  immediately  available 
both  here  and  wherever  aircraft  and 
guided  missile  manufacturers  may  call. 

Second,  Ryan's  superior  production  ex- 
perience, resulting  from  better  than  a 
decade  of  leadership  in  design  and  manu- 
facture of  exhaust  systems  and  other 
stainless  steel  parts,  assures  customers  not 
only  advanced  techniques  from  a  plant 
crammed  with  latest  machine  tools  and 
highly  skilled  workers,  but  on-time  deliv- 
eries resulting  from  sustained  pride  in 
organization  and  years  of  unparalleled 
know-how. 

And  finally,  an  impressive  part  of  Ryan 
performance  is  the  consistency  of  its  fol- 
low-through service.  A  service  depart- 
ment staffed  with  men  specially  trained 
and  equipped  by  long  practical  experience 
as  well  as  a  desire  to  serve,  goes  a  long 
way  towards  assuring  perfection  in  opera- 
tion of  Ryan  products. 


"MR.  SMITH?  AIRPLANE  NUMBER 
NC91687  IS  CALLING  YOU!" 

"Mr.  Smith,  this  is  the  San  Francisco  Marine 
Operator.  I  have  a  call  for  you  from  airplane 
NC91687." 

With  this  startling  phone  message,  what 
recently  had  started  out  to  be  a  perfectly  rou- 
tine morning  in  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany's Public  Relations  office  in  San  Diego 
suddenly  changed  into  a  noteworthy  occa- 
sion. 

Unable  to  believe  that  he  was  being  cut  in 
on  one  of  the  wonders  of  this  generation — 
air-to-ground  telephone — Bob  F.  Smith,  busy 
promoter  for  Ryan's  four-place  Navion,  uncer- 
tainly asked  "What?  You  must  mean  a  long 
distance  call  from  San  Francisco." 

"No,"  said  the  operator,  "I  mean  this  is  a 
call  from  an  airplane  in  flight.  Please  do  not 
attempt  to  break  into  the  other  party's  con- 
versation. Wait  until  he  says  'over.'  Then  you 
can   talk." 

With  this,  a  man's  voice  came  over  the 
phone,  loud  and  clear.  "This  is  Jim  Chese- 
brough  of  Burlingame,  California.  You  folks 
■wrote  me  asking  how  I  used  my  Navion,  so  I 
thought  I'd  call  and  let  you  know.  Over." 

Catching  his  cue,  the  now  composed  Public 
Relations  man  jumped  right  in  with,  "Hello, 
Mr.  Chesebrough.  What  are  you  doing  on  this 
flight?  Where  are  you  going?  And  what  sort 
of  installation  do  you  have  in  your  plane  for 
this  telephone  business?  Over." 

"Right  now  I  am  five  minutes  out  of  Palo 
Alto,  California,  and  on  my  way  to  Monterey 
to  join  my  family  for  the  holidays.  The  equip- 
ment which  makes  the  call  possible  weighs 
just  29  pounds.  Installed,  it  costs  $210." 

About  here,  Smith  let  his  excitement  get 
the  best  of  him  and  started  talking  before 
Chesebrough  gave  the  "over"  signal.  His  well- 
meant  efforts  going  for  nothing,  he  fell  back 
and  waited  for  the  four  letter  "open  sesame." 

"This  Marine  Telephone  procedure,"  Chese- 
brough continued,  "was  originally  designed 
for  fishing  boats  and  yachts,  but  has  become 
equally  useful  for  flying  businessmen  and  pro- 
fessional people  who  can  make  all  sorts  of  im- 
portant arrangements  by  phone  before  arriv- 
ing at  their  d3stinations.  For  example,  -(vhen  I 
finish  talking  to  you,  I'll  call  my  wife  to  let 
her  know  when  to  meet  me  at  the  airport." 

By  now.  Smith  fully  appreciated  the  fact 
that  Chesebrough's  plane  was  nearly  5  00  miles 
from  San  Diego  and  that  this  was  indeed  an 
unusual  experience  —  certainly  one  to  be 
shared.  Before  signalling  the  final  "over,"  he 
called  in  Bob  Schmelzer,  Ryan  advertising 
account  executive,  and  Bill  Wagner,  Public 
Relations  Manager,  ^vho  had  been  in  a  huddle 
in  an  adjoining  office,  to  take  their  turns 
making  history. 

Although  the  surprise  of  receiving  their 
first  telephone  call  was  a  bit  disconcerting, 
the  P/R  men  held  up  -well  enough  to  find  out 
from  Chesebrough  that  Fred  A.  Becker  of  the 
Palo  Alto  Airport,  progressive  Ryan  Navion 
distributor  in  the  San  Francisco  Bay  area,  had 
installed  the  aviation  radio  equipment  ^vhich 
linked  Navion  NC91687  to  their  office  in  San 
Diego. 


Strictly  Personnel 


ATypical  of  the  reception  accorded  Ryan  products  is  a  message  received  by  Sam  C. 
Bieder^  Ryan  Metal  Products  Sales  Manager  front  K.  F.  Mnndt^  Manager  of  Engineering 
and  Manufacturing  for  AEROJET.  Referring  favorably  to  production  of  sounding 
rockets  by  this  company,  and  acceptance  of  Ryan  workmanship  by  AEROJET  and  Army 
Ordnance  inspectors,  the  dispatch  reads  in  part:  "We  appreciate  the  fine  workmanship 
and   cooperation  displayed   by  Ryan  Aeronautical   Company  in   this   achievement." 

AResponsibility  for  direct  supervision  of  the  General  Electric  jet  engine  project  was 
placed  squarely  upon  the  extensive  shoulders  of  Ray  ''Bittc/j^'  OrtiZj  already  superin- 
tendent of  manifold  production,  in  a  recent  alignment  of  manufacturing  personnel, 
Joe  Love  was  assigned  temporarily  the  duties  of  Manifold  Production  Superintendent 
to  give  "Butch"  an  assist  on  the  double  play. 

AWith  discontinuance  of  third  shift  Sheet  Metal  department  operations,  L.  H.  Stehiancr, 
formerly  third  shift  supervisor,  has  assumed  position  as  Assistant  Foreman  on  second  shift  in 
department   100,  in  charge  of  drill  presses,  saws,  routers,  and  sheet  metal  bench  section. 

^Tivo  Ryan  men  hit  the  front  pages  of  a  San  Diego  newspaper  last  month.  Art  S. 
"Bill"  Billings,  Ryan  Chief  Inspector,  being  quoted  on  the  recent  acquisition  of  a  new 
manager  for  the  San  Diego  baseball  club,  tvhile  William  P.  "Doc"  Sloan,  assistant  to 
Vice-president  Earl  Prudden,  was  given  a  substantial  play  in  Neil  Morgan's  San  Diego 
Journal  coltumty  CROSSTOWN. 

AOrganizational  changes  in  the  Fabrication  section  show  the  following  supervisory 
appointments:  O.  H.  Nelson  to  be  Assistant  Foreman,  1st  shift;  D.  S.  Whetstine,  to  be 
night  foreman;  F.  D.  Farris,  to  Assistant  Foreman  on  the  2nd  shift,  and  A.  W.  Har- 
rington, to  be  assistant  foreman,  2nd  shift,  in  charge  of  engine  lathes,  turret  lathes 
and  grinders. 

Other  changes  were:  Cass  Gitrney,  appointed  Assistant  Foreman,  1st  shift,  Dept.  105; 
W.  L.  Cash,  to  be  Assistant  Foreman,  1st  shift,  Dept.  103;  W.  S.  Stringer,  appointed 
Night  Foreman  in  charge  of  all  operations  on  second  shift  in  Sheet  Metal  departments, 
and  R.   W.   Booth,  Sr.,  appointed  Assistant  Foreman,   2nd  shift,  Dept.   105. 

AAll  large  press  operations,  including  hydro  presses,  crank  press  and  stretch  press, 
are  noiv  under  Drop  Hammer  department  supervision,  -with  accompanying  supervisory 
changes:  J.  H.  Leary,  appointed  Assistant  Foreman,  1st  shift;  W.  C.  Truckan,  Assistant 
Foreman,  1st  shift;  Adolph  Bolger,  appointed  Night  Foreman  in  charge  of  operations 
on  2nd  shift  in  Drop  Hammer  Dept.,  and  E.  J.  Lillis,  appointed  Assistant  Foreman  on 
the  2nd  shift,  for  drop  hammer  operations. 


vho 


the  pla 


A.Martiu    Mullius, 
"Head   Nurse." 

"Back  in  my  U.  S.  Navy  days,"  he  relates,  "We 
batches  of  WAVES  their  physical  exams.  My  share 
and  throat — hence  the  term  "Head  Nurse." 


first   aid    station,    has 


ere  entrusted  ■> 
the  job  was  li 


definition    for   his   title 


'ith  the  task  of  giving  new 
nited,  alas,  to  eye,  ear,  nose 


LBrand  new  face  and  lots  of  new  Southern  Hospitality  may  be  found  at  the 
)n  Desk  in  Jim  Bunnell's  personnel  office.  Lorraine  Jenkins,  up  from  Dallas, 
Texas,  has  taken  over  duties  and  typewriter  from  Mary  Lou  Schinkez,  who  went  back 
to  Jackson,  Michigan,  and  a  white  winter.  Married  to  a  native  San  Diegan,  Mrs.  Jenkins 
opines  she'll  like  this  little  ole'  Yankee  Ryan  place  no  end. 

^Science  teachers  of  San  Diego  schools  sat  up  in  their  seats  and  asked  for  more 
tvhcn  Bill  Brotherton,  export  sales  representative,  finished  his  speech  before  them  at  a 
meeting  in  the  County  schools  vocational  building  recently.  Questions  were  throtvn 
at  him  for  nearly  an  hour  after  he  completed  his  discourse  on  ''Jet  Power." 

ASMALL  WORLD  DEPARTMENT:  A  Canadian  air  transport  operator  came  to  San  Diego 
recently  to  take  delivery  on  a  new  Ryan  Navion.  At  the  company  gates  the  visitor,  Eus/icc 
Bou'hay,  of  Airdrie,  Alberta,  met  Ryan  guard  Hugh  Eldridge,  of  Santee,  a  San  Diegan  since 
1942.  It  turned  out  that  Eldridge  also  had  lived  in  Airdrie.  Further  conversation  developed 
the  fact  that  Bowhay  and  Eldridge  had  many  mutual  friends  in  Airdrie,  one  family  proving  to 
be  relatives  by  marriage  of  the  Ryan's  gate  sentinel. 

AHonors  were  well  distributed  in  Ryan's  annual  golf  tournament.  Winner  of  the 
first  flight  trophy  was  Eddie  Carvajal,  of  Sub-Assembly,  Clint  Hillis  of  Inspection 
grabbing  the  runner-up  spot.  Snagging  the  trophy  in  the  second  flight  w^as  D.  H.  Palmer, 
plant  engineering  chief,  while  Ralph  Haver  had  to  be  content  with  his  shiny  second- 
place  medal.  James  R.  Roth,  Personnel  Dept.,  beat  out  Ralph  Ramsey,  purchasing  depart- 
ment, in  the  third  flight, 

ARyan^s  always  classy  baseball  team  tvill  ivind  up  the  second  round  of  its  play  in 
the  San  Diego  County  Baseball  Matiagers  Association  Winter  League,  already  victors  in 
the  first  round  and  slugging  away  for  the  second  championship. 


17 


'OLD  ACQUAINTANCE"  NOT  FORGOTTEN --TEN-YEAR  PINS  AWARDED 


Recognition  of  long  and  loyal  service  with  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  was  accorded 
5  0  "Old-Timers,"  all  10-year  veterans,  at  a  dinner  and  entertainment  given  by  T.  Claude 
Ryan,  President,  during  the  Holiday  Season.  Earl  D.  Prudden,  Vice-President,  and  Will 
Vandermeer,  Engineering  Laboratory  supervisor,  were  presented  pins  signifying  20  and 
i5  years,  respectively,  with  the  company. 

Awarded  their  10-year  pins  at  the  dinner  by  T,  Claude  Ryan,  center,  were  the  follow- 
ing (above,  left  to  right):  Jack  Zippwald,  Joe  Love,  William  Fauhvetter,  Jack  Weyer, 
Robert  Johnston,  Earl  Prudden,  (20  years),  Ray  Ortiz,  Harold  Ringer,  Will  Vandermeer, 
William  Thayer,  Adolph  Bolger,  Dyke  Warren,  Louis  J.  Riley,  Albert  Jueschke,  George 
M.  Lane  and  Louis  A.  Speier.  A.  M.  Weidinger  and  Hoxvard  Craig,  also  eligible,  could 
not  attend. 

Others  at  Ryan  who  wear  10-year  pins,  and  most  of  ivhom  tvere  at  the  dinner, 
are  W.  O.  Locke,  M.  E.  Thompson,  J.  van  der  Linde,  M.  W.  Kelley,  E.  A.  Oberbauer, 
W.  K.  Balch,  S.  C.  Breder,  W.  C.  Cattrell,  E.  P.  Fauhvetter,  C.  R.  Harper,  J.  E.  Castien, 
D.  N.  Beebe,  J.  V.  Rose,  Roy  Ryan,  R.  E.  Clark,  B.  S.  Morroiv,  J.  Litell  and  C.  R.  Cline. 

Others  past  the  decade  mark  are  B.  A.  Averett,  W.  D.  North,  W.  H.  Adams,  H. 
Engler,  C.  F.  Bennett,  F.  S.  Dever,  G.  M.  Wilcox,  J.  F.  Butler,  R.  C.  McCollum,  P.  H. 
Stillman,  N.  H.  Edward,  E.  P.  Pederson,  E.  D.  Sly,  C.  A.  Lehton,  Wm.  Wagner,  F.  Tom- 
rell,  A.  I.  Park,  G.  W.  Lowe  and  Carl  F.  Nesbitt. 


USAF  Orders  Five  More 
Ryan  Liaison  Planes 

Five  more  Ryan  Navion  L-17B  liaison 
planes,  in  addition  to  the  158  on  which 
work  is  now  nearing  completion  at  the 
San  Diego  plant,  have  been  ordered  from 
the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company,  officials 
have  disclosed. 

The  new  order  was  placed  through  the 
Air  Force's  Air  Materiel  Command  at 
Wright  Field.  The  planes  are  understood 
to  have  been  ordered  for  use  in  Greece. 
They  will  be  added  onto  the  end  of  the 
present  production  contract,  which  is  for 
National  Guard  and  Army  Field  Forces 
planes.  The  latter  group  are  for  use  by 
occupation  forces  in  Europe  and  Asia,  as 
well  as  in  the  continental  United  States. 

An  order  for  spare  parts,  special  tools 
and  ground  handling  equipment  for  use 
with  the  5 -plane  fleet  for  Greece  has  also 
been  placed.  A  similar  order  in  connection 
with  the  original  15  8-plane  contract 
called  for  spare  parts  equivalent  to  ap- 
proximately an  additional  60  airplanes. 


Flyaway  deliveries  of  the  Ryan  Navion 
L-17Bs  for  the  Field  Forces  and  National 
Guard  have  been  under  way  since  mid- 
December.  First  deliveries  were  to  the  Air 
Materiel  Command  at  Wright  Field,  to 
National  Guard  headquarters  at  Washing- 
ton, D.  C,  and  to  the  Chief  of  the  Army 
Field  Forces  at  Fort  Monroe,  Virginia. 

Following  this  first  assignment,  large 
groups  of  10  to  30  planes  went  to  the 
Fourth  Army  at  San  Antonio  and  the  Sec- 
ond Army  at  Fort  Meade,  Maryland.  The 
First,  Third,  Fifth  and  Sixth  armies  are 
also  to  receive  Ryan  Navions. 

After  delivery  of  these  Field  Forces 
planes,  deliveries  to  American  occupation 
forces  abroad  will  begin,  with  the  largest 
group  going  to  the  Commander-in-Chief 
of  Field  Forces,  European  Command,  in 
Germany,  and  a  slightly  smaller  number 
to  the  Far  East  Command  in  Japan.  Other 
shipments  will  include  that  to  the  joint 
Brazilian-U.  S.  Military  Commission  in 
Rio  de  Janeiro. 

The  final  complement,  comprising  34 
Ryan  L-17Bs,  is  scheduled  for  delivery  to 
stations  designated  by  the  National  Guard 
Bureau. 


WORK  STARTS  ON 
G.  E.  JET  OROER 

A  multi-million  dollar  volume  produc- 
tion order  for  exhaust  cones,  burner  as- 
semblies, combustion  chambers  and  other 
specialized  jet  engine  parts  has  recently 
been  received  by  the  Metal  Products  Divi- 
sion. 

The  jet  engine  components  have  been 
ordered  by  General  Electric  Company  for 
their  J-47  (TG-190)  model,  which  is 
going  into  mass  production  because  of 
the  important  role  this  power  plant  will 
play  in  the  expanding  Air  Force  program. 

Preliminary  work  on  the  huge  new  or- 
der was  started  at  Ryan  several  months 
ago,  and  a  major  re-arrangement  of  plant 
facilities  is  nearing  completion  in  order 
to  provide  necessary  manufacturing  and 
assembly  areas  for  the  J-47  jet  engine 
components.  A  sizeable  investment  has 
been  made  in  new  equipment  for  the  Gen- 
eral Electric  order,  including  a  new  hydro- 
press,  spot  welders,  vertical  turret  lathes 
and  other  machine  tools  which  are  now 
being  installed. 

As  the  Ryan  Metal  Products  Division 
swings  into  line  production,  the  delivery 
schedule  will  be  stepped  up  to  match  the 
expanding  requirement  for  the  J-47  jet 
engines.  The  present  program  calls  for  a 
several-years  uninterrupted  production 
schedule. 

Negotiations  with  General  Electric  and 
the  Air  Force  for  Ryan  to  undertake  much 
of  the  stainless  steel  parts  manufacture 
for  the  J-47  were  begun  many  months 
ago.  Since  that  time  the  total  production 
schedule  has  been  increased  several  times. 

Ryan  officials  are  not  permitted  to 
name  the  exact  dollar  value  of  the  con- 
tract or  reveal  detailed  production  sched- 
ules, but  can  state  that  the  program  will 
be  a  major  factor  in  the  work  of  the 
Metal  Products  Division  for  several  years. 

AIRPLANE  DIVISION 

(Continued  from  page  6) 
Tremendous  demands  will  be  made  upon 
our  aviation  resources  by  the  whirlwind 
advance  of  modern  aeronautical  science. 
Conquest  of  sonic  barriers,  creation  of  new 
metals  and  materials  with  which  to  handle 
awesome  new  thermal  power  plants  and 
rocket  devices — these  and  other  challenges 
will  be  hurled  at  Ryan,  as  at  all  other  avi- 
ation companies  with  sight  to  look  ahead 
and  intelligence  to  comprehend  the  world 
of  tomorrow.  And  because  Ryan  has  a 
truly  modern  plant  and  because  Rvan 
workers  are  loyal  and  industrious  as  well 
as  skilled,  the  aeronautical  industn,-  can 
look  to  Ryan  for  continuing  leadership. 


POWERLINE  PATROL 

(Coiit'mncd  from  page  9 } 
more  mountainous  sections.  As  we  usually 
fly  only  thirty  to  forty  feet  away  from 
the  line,  binoculars  are  not  at  all  neces- 
sary; and  our  two-way  radio  can  be  used 
through  C.A.A.  radio  stations  for  any 
emergency  messages. 

"We  find  that  our  fuel  consumption  is 
approximately  six  and  one-half  gallons  per 
hour  on  this  work  (including  going  to 
and  from  the  power  line),  which  gives  us 
a  long  cruising  range. 

"The  advantages  of  air  patrol  are  great, 
of  course.  I  do  not  believe  the  Idaho  Power 
Company  has  made  a  single  ground  patrol 
in  the  past  year  and  a  half.  An  airplane 
can  patrol  in  five  hours  the  same  lines  that 
would  require  three  weeks  for  proper  in- 
spection by  truck.  This  is  of  the  greatest 
importance  on  an  emergency  patrol  where 
the  location  of  trouble  must  be  quickly 
found.  Many  miles  of  the  lines  in  Southern 
Idaho,  especially  across  farm  lands,  cannot 
be  patrolled  on  ground,  except  by  foot. 
Aircraft  patrol  is  also  particularly  effec- 


tive in  rugged  mountainous  areas  where 
other  means  of  travel  are  ordinarily  slow 
and  difficult. 

"It  was  during  the  heavy  storms  this 
winter  that  patrolling  in  the  Navion  was 
responsible  for  some  remarkable  emergency 
duty.  For  example,  lines  were  out  of  order 
from  Boise  to  McCall,  Cascade,  New 
Meadows,  and  Horseshoe  Bend,  towns  in 
Southwestern  Idaho.  Flying  with  an  emer- 
gency transmitter  that  was  tuned  to  the 
frequency  of  radios  in  the  power  com- 
pany's line  trucks,  two  power  company 
men  and  myself  patrolled  for  hours  over 
the  lines.  We  were  in  radio  communica- 
tion with  crews  on  the  ground,  and  re- 
layed our  reports  to  Boise.  We  also  relayed 
messages  from  the  Boise  headquarters  to 
the  ground  crews  who  were  using  snow- 
shoes  and  skis  to  work  their  way  along  the 
lines. 

"Quite  suddenly  the  boys  in  the  plane 
with  me  spotted  the  break  in  the  power 
line  that  had  shut  off  Cascade  and  McCall. 
The  ground  crews  had  started  along  the 
line  approximately  thirty  miles  from  the 


break.  Following  our  directions,  they  pro- 
ceeded directly  to  the  spot  where  the  line 
was  down,  saving  themselves  a  long  trek 
on  snowshoes,  and  getting  power  back  on 
for  the  two  towns  at  least  twenty-four 
hours  earlier  than  could  have  been  done 
otherwise. 

"There  are  two  other  advantages  the 
Navion  patrols  have  which  aren't  apt  to 
occur  to  the  average  person.  One  is  the 
ability  to  spot  hazardous  conditions.  On  a 
recent  patrol  of  the  Upper  Salmon-Cald- 
well  13  8,OOff-volt  line,  for  example,  we 
spotted  and  photographed  a  hay  derrick 
dangerously  close  to  the  company's  trans- 
mission lines.  Because  hay  derricks  are  used 
extensively  in  the  thousands  of  fields  in 
the  Snake  River  Valley,  we  plan  to  keep 
close  tab  on  them  on  our  future  patrol 
flights." 

"The  other  advantage  is  fast  cruising  to 
and  from  the  patrol  area  —  something 
that's  possible  in  a  plane  so  well  designed 
as  the  Ryan  Navion  which  has  both  ideal 
slow  flight  characteristics  and  high  cruis- 
ing speed." 


r^iiiF---  3 


^ 


ik 


i^ 


^ 


NEW  HYDRO-PRESS  TO  SPEEO 
GENERAL  ELECTRIC  PRODUCTION 

Bringing  additional  speed  and  efficiency  to  the  company's 
already  versatile  array  of  powerpress  machinery,  a  massive 
2  50-ton  Fastraverse  System  hydraulic  press  has  been  placed  in 
plant  operation.  It  was  obtained  especially  for  the  new  General 
Electric  jet  engine  components  project,  but  will  also  be  avail- 
able for  other  manufacturing  operations. 

The  new  press  towers  1 6  feet  above  the  pile  re-inf orced  pave- 
ment supporting  it;  measures  7  feet  3  inches  in  length  and  five 
feet  in  width.  It  will  accommodate  any  drawn  part  up  to  4  by 
6  feet,  handles  tough  stainless  steel  with  the  ease  of  a  3 -year-old 
re-shaping  papa's  derby,  and  turns  out  its  work  smooth- 
trimmed. 

Durward  H.  Palmer,  plant  engineering  chief,  supervised 
installation  work,  which  began  in  November.  Working  opera- 
tions on  the  machine  will  be  supervised  by  Ray  McCollum, 
foreman  of  the  drop-hammer  department.  A  double-action 
press,  the  Fastraverse  has  two  rams  driving  from  the  top,  an 
outer  and  inner  set,  its  continuous  cycle  enabling  swifter  pro- 
duction. Fully  automatic,  semi-automatic  and  manual  controls 
afford  a  wide  range  of  pressures  for  stainless  steel,  inconel  and 
dural  stampings. 


19 


With  Men  Who  Sell  Navions 

STAND  UP  AND  CHEER  DEPARTMENT.  As  winner  of  the  Haire  Award  for 
outstanding  achievement  in  airport  planning,  management,  operation  and  serv- 
ice, Bradley  Field,  home  of  Aircraft  Service  Company,  rates  the  congratulations 
of  everyone  in  the  Ryan  Navion  organization.  John  Bradley,  Les  Randolph, 
Ray  Williams,  Glenn  Higby  and  the  rest  of  the  ASCO  staff  earned  Bradley  Field 
top  honors  in  the  classification  "Close  in,  in  town,  or  resort  air  porks  and  air 
harbors."  400  airports  were  in  the  notional  competition. 

FOUR  NEW  RYAN  NAVION  DOMESTIC  DISTRIBUTORS  help  send  1949  off  to  a 
flying  start.  The  appointment  of  Northern  Air  Service,  Inc.,  in  Grand  Rapids  and 
Boker-Eberle  Aviation  Corporation  in  Detroit  puts  the  Navion  program  on  solid  footing 
in  previously  unossigned  Michigan  territory.  Chet  Hall  is  head  man  at  North  Air 
Service,  and   Paul   Eberle,  soles  chief  of   Baker-Eberle. 

North  Atlantic  Airways,  Inc.,  Beverly,  Massachusetts,  now  represents  America's 
finest  postwar  four-place  plane  in  Greater  New  England.  Bob  Wolcott  guides  the  des- 
tinies of  NorLontways  .  .  .  Buffalo  Aeronauticol  Corporation,  Buffalo,  New  York,  with 
F.  Leslie  Morsden  at  the  controls,  hos  distributor  responsibility  for  the  important 
Western  half  of  New  York. 

WALTER  K.  BALCH,  RYAN  AIRPLANE  SERVICE  MANAGER,  has  completed 
details  for  the  second  series  of  Ryan  Navion  Service  and  Maintenance  classes. 
The  first  class,  designed  for  distributors'  representatives,  began  at  the  factory 
Monday,  January  17th.  The  second  ond  third  classes,  for  dealer's  representa- 
tives, will  cover  the  same  material,  and  will  start  iS"UB''y  ^W^*^  February 
14th   respectively.   Each  class  will    run   five  days.       Of  •/  ^ 

MEXICO  AND  WESTERN  CANADA  are  now  well  represented  in  the  Ryon  Navion 
program  by  Morgan  &  Walti  and  Chinook  Flying  Service,  respectively.  Morgon  & 
Waltz  is  the  newly-appointed  distributor  for  Mexico  and  the  Central  American 
countries  of  Honduras,  British  Honduras,  Costa  Rica,  El  Salvador,  Guatemala  and  Nica- 
ragua. Francisco  Woltz  and  Bill  Morgan,  well-known  business  and  aviation  figures  in 
Mexico,  are  partners  in  this  new  organization.  Chinook,  under  president  Franz 
McTovish,  will  operate  from  headquarters  in  Calgary,  Alberta,  to  cover  Canada's  four 
western  provinces — British  Columbia,  Alberta,  Saskatchewan  and  Manitoba. 

LES  BOWMAN'S  DONE  IT  AGAIN!  A  conscientious  reporter  could  spend  full 
time  following  the  footsteps  of  Les  Bowman,  president  of  General  Aeronautics. 

The  sales-wise  Texan's  latest  achievement  was  winning  the  first  place  trophy 
in  0  Navigation  Contest  from  El  Paso  to  Chihuahua  City,  Mexico.  Piloting  his 
Ryan  Navion  demonstrator,  Les  made  it  to  Chihuahua  just  30  seconds  ahead  of 
his  ETA.  His  ET  was  I   hour  55  minutes.  His  clocked  time;  1  hour  54'  2  minutes. 

HARRY  WHITE,  PRESIDENT  OF  PALO  ALTO  AIRPORT,  reports  a  209-mph  average 
speed  in  his  Ryan  Navion  on  a  recent  flight  between  Polo  Alto  and  Los  Angeles.  Harry 
says  that  at  times  his  speed  was  235  mph.  He  flew  the  350-mile  trip  in  just  1  hour 
and  35  minutes.  Wind  at  10,000  feet  was  75  mph  from  360°. 

YOU  CAN'T  FOOL  THE  KIDS.  Genial  George  E.  Haddaway,  Editor  of  Southern 
Flight,  wrote  to  chief-Novion-mon,  T.  Claude  Ryan,  this  month  .  .  .  "My  six- 
year-old  boy  started  in  school  last  September.  Being  on  the  skinny  side,  we 
worry  about  him  eating  proper  food  for  lunch  away  from  home.  His  momma 
asked  him  last  night  what  he  had  for  lunch.  He  responded  .  .  .  Navion  beans!" 

DO  YOU  KNOW  THAT  the  United  States  is  divided  into  25  distributor  territories  for 
sales  of  the  Ryan  Navion  .  .  .  that  the  only  exception  is  Southern  California  where 
these  seven  Factory  Dealers  operate  directly  under  the  Ryon  factory:  Bakersfield  Air- 
park, Bokersfield;  Clover  Leaf  Aviation,  Santa  Monica;  Conejo  Valley  Airport,  Cam- 
orillo;  NeoAir,  Inc.,  Van  Nuys;  John  B.  Rudy  Company,  Glendale;  Signal  Aviation 
Corporation,   Long   Beach;   and  Skymotive,    Inc.,   Los  Angeles. 

ONCE  OVER  LIGHTLY  .  .  .  Items  picked  up  in  a  fast  runover  of  distributor- 
dealer  newsletters  and  memoranda  .  .  .  Hunters  marooned  on  Bruce  Meadows 
in  the  Idaho  Primitive  country  recently  hove  Glenn  Higby  of  the  Aircraft  Service 
Company  to  thank  for  their  rescue.  Glenn  Navioned  in  with  200  pounds  of 
bedding  and  supplies  to  tide  the  boys  over  until  they  could  make  their  way 
out  .  .  .  Chet  Moulton,  Idaho  State  Director  of  Aeronautics  made  the  trip  with 
Glenn  from  Boise  .  .  .  Ted  Royce,  General  Aeronautics'  enterprising  sales  pro- 
moter, has  compiled  a  mailing  list  of  500  good-prospect  farmers  and  300  air- 
minded  oil  men.  Specially  designed  releases  keep  these  people  fully  conscious 
of  the  advantages  of  Ryan  Novion  business  transportation.  While  disploying 
the  Ryan  Navion  at  the  recent  Home  Builders  Show  in  St.  Paul,  Van's  Air  Service 
executives,  B.  G.  Vandre  and  Lloyd  Von  Camp,  sow  the  Ramos  twins  perform 
their  famous  acrobatic-balance  act.  Impressed,  they  invited  the  boys  to  enjoy 
a  Ryan  Navion  flight.  The  twins  took  them  up  on  the  offer,  and  reciprocated 
the  hospitality  by  posing  for  a  series  of  unusual  publicity  pictures  which  you 
should  be  seeing   in   regional  aviation  magazines  soon. 


^anZ       o>^ 


'SZ      05o      ?5>- 


2  3 


3S; 

o   —  I 


Sin 


i 
3  ?  z 


5 

H-l> 

0 
<  0  c 

5  2  > 

0    0    H 

—  a  » 

7>5 

«  hS 

°iO 

;i< 

-> 

>< 

"Sc       S  J' 


<? 


9?! 


:S       SSz       ^5:;; 


1 11. 
;  I  > 


P?55  5J' 


2.  >       10  -o  . 


<  -«  > 


o  o  H 


THE  RYAN  AERONAUTICAL  COMPANY 
LINDBERGH     FIELD 
SAN  DIEGO  12,  CALIFORNIA 

Return   Postage  Guaranteed 

POSTMASTER:  If  addrcs 
address  is  known,  noi.fy  s 
for   which    is   guaranteed. 


Form    3(47,    postage 


436 

K.D.P0:!3F0RD 

4557  te:^?.a:e  dr. 
san  diego  4.  calif 


Sec.  562,  P.  L.  &  R. 

U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego,  California 
Permit  No.  437 


§toml©§§  §t©©l 
Fabirieatoir 

for  th© 

Aiir©iraft  aed 

Aircraft  Ee^iee 
ledestry 


RMHIl  Metal  Products 

DIVISION    OF    RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY      •      LINDBERGH    FIELD      •      SAN    DIEGO,     CALIFORNIA 

Exhaust    Systems      •      Turbo-Jet    and    Ram-Jet    Components 


AIR  POWER  YARDSTICK 


AVIATION  WEEK  magazine,  leading  trade  publication,  recently 
summarized  the  present  status  of  American  Air  Power,  comparing  the 
recommendations  of  various  governmental  committees  with  proposals  by 
President  Truman  contained  in  his  1950  budget  message. 

As  summarized  below,  the  potential  production  under  the  1950  budget 
will  be  far  below  that  outlined  under  the  5 -year  plan  proposed  by  the 
last  Congress  and  passed  by  the  overwhelming  vote  of  345  to  3  in  the 
House,  and  74  to  2  in  the  Senate. 


AIR  COORDINATING  COMMITTEE  1945 

Annual  minimum  to  "cooperate  in  maintenance 
of  world  peace" 


PRES.  TRUMAN'S  AIR  POLICY  COMMISSION   1948 
Recommended  for  calendar  year  1949 


60 
56 


CONGRESSIONAL  AVIATION  POLICY  BOARD  1948 

"Strength  necessary  to  prevent  the  loss  of  a  war"  /^'i 

requires  annually     vJ>_7 


MILLION 
POUNDS 


MILLION 
POUNDS 


MILLION 
POUNDS 


"Initial  strength  to  mount  promptly  ...  a  successful   "|  "I  "I   MILLION 

air  offensive"  requires  annually  XX  J.  POUNDS 


STANFORD  UNIVERSITY  SURVEY  1948 

Annual  minimum  to  provide  base  for  expansion 


80 


MILLION 
POUNDS 


-5  A     MILLION 

PROVIDED  BY  PRES.  TRUMAN'S  1950  BUDGET  J4    pounds 


Representative  Carl  Vinson,  Chairman  of  the  Armed  Services  Com- 
mittee, is  leading  the  fight  to  retain  the  70-group  Air  Force,  and  has 
recently  taken  a  strong  position  on  the  need  for  the  5 -year  program. 

"I  know  of  no  development  that  should  change  the  decisions  arrived 
at  by  the  Congress  last  Spring,"  he  said.  "The  Congress  meant  to  en- 
dorse a  long  term  program  then.  I  believe  we  should  now^  take  action 
to  remove  w^hatever  doubt  may  remain  as  to  what  we  intended  doing 
last  Spring. 

"Certainly  the  five-year  program  is  the  minimum,"  he  continued,  "and 
I  am  going  to  insist  that  the  Congress  adhere  to  it  and  take  action  to 
make  that  program  as  fixed  and  definite  as  can  be  done  under  our  Con- 
stitution." 


ON  THE  COVER 

Nexv  Ryan  Nation  for  '49  features 
higher  performance  and  still  more  com- 
fort for  even  greater  owner  satisfac- 
tion. Companion  plane  is  military  L-17B 
Ryan  Nat-ion. 


HE  S 

/ 

Hu 
of  its 
signa 
year 
than 

Gr 
he  do 
ming 
being 
ucts 

IGNS  IT: 

ndreds  of  Ryan  workers  and  i 
customers  recognize  his  gall 
ure.     He's    married,     has    on 

old  son.  Has  been  with  Rvan 

5    years. 

iduate    of    Oregon    State    Co 

tes  on  hunting,  fishing  and  s 
But  mostly  his  time  goes 
office  manager  of  the  Metal  1 

Sales   department. 

Meet  Joseph  J.  Richeri 

jping 
e     17 

lege, 

into 
'rod- 

FEBRUARY,    1949                                                                                                                                                         VOL.  I,   No.    : 

Published  Monthly  By 
Ryan    Aeronautical   Company,   Lindbergh  Field,  San  Diego   12,  California 

r Frances  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  editor Robert  F.  Smith,  Navion  news  editor 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographer William  Wagner,  editorial  director. 

Ijikrmn, 

Charles  M.  Hatcher,  edito 

Young  Stviss  pilot  proves  that  8,400 

-miles  over  mountains  and  sea 

is  easy  when  you  go   .    .    . 

Just  twelve  months  following  his  first  airplane  ride,  Bernie 
Dardel,  youthful  pilot-member  of  a  Swiss  exporting  firm, 
landed  his  new  four-passenger  Ryan  Navion  at  Buenos  Aires, 
Argentina,  after  a  spectacular  8,400-mile  flight  from  San 
Diego,  California.  Although  he  had  logged  only  195  flying  hours 
before  leaving  the  States,  Dardel  reported  no  trouble  whatever 
during  the  16-day  trip. 

Mountains  that  baffled  the  Conquistadores  proved  only  thrill- 
ing scenic  panorama  for  Dardel  as  he  crossed  the  towering 
Andes  70  miles  east  of  Santiago,  Chile.  His  Navion  winged  its 
way  at  15,700  ft.  altitude  through  mountain  passes  and  as  con- 
fidently skimmed  the  wave-tops  off  the  coast  near  Antofagasta, 
Chile. 

Dardel  left  San  Diego  on  his  father's  birthday  anniversary. 
He  took  Francisco  Waltz,  Ryan  Navion  distributor  at  Mexico 
City,  with  him  as  far  as  the  Mexican  capital. 


. . . .  BV  M\m  TO  BUEIOS  HUES! 


.^i^::^:^. 


MEXICO  CITY^«      V^ /      J  ' ^T~i> 

acapulCo«^^,mixtepec  ^^  "^H;— ^ 


FLIGHT  mH 
m  DIEGO 

BUMOS  AIRES 
8,400  JULES 


"After  my  Navion  got  a  2  5 -hour  check  in  Mexico  City," 
Dardel  wrote,  "I  took  off  for  Acapulco.  Acapulco  is  probably 
the  most  wonderful  place  I  have  ever  seen." 

There  appeared  to  be  no  Mexican  radio  stations  broadcasting 
for  aircraft,  Dardel  reported,  except  the  Mexico  City  tower, 
which  answered  all  his  calls.  He  flew  without  incident  over  the 
remaining  Mexican  coast  Une,  and  made  one  stop  each  in  El 
Salvador  and  Nicaragua  before  landing  at  an  extremely  damp 
field  at  David,  Panama. 

"Had  no  troubles  with  authorities,  and  a  pilot  drove  me 
through  a  dirty  town  to  a  very  nice  hotel.  When  I  entered  the 
dining  room  that  night  a  bell  boy  ran  after  me  to  tell  me  that  I 
was  not  allowed  to  have  dinner  without  a  jacket.  To  think  that 
outside  the  hotel  some  people  were  without  trousers — and  me 
not  having  dinner  without  a  jacket;  crazy  town." 

Dardel  changed  his  original  itinerary  south  of  Panama  be- 
cause of  advice  that  the  coastal  route,  although  mostly  prime- 
val jungle  for  about  700  miles,  was  a  safer  choice  than  the  in- 
land route.  This  caused  an  immediate  question  of  gasoline,  so 
he  purchased  three  5 -gal.  cans  for  refilling  along  the  way.  He 
left  the  main  Panama  airport  with  an  overloaded  plane  and 
one  hope — that  the  engine  wouldn't  quit.  It  didn't,  and  about 
200  miles  from  Panama  City  he  landed  at  Jaque  to  refill  his 
gas  tanks. 

"Radio  communications,"  Bernie  said,  "were  a  great  help  as  I 
was  in  contact  with  the  Balboa  (Panama)  station  for  over  300 
miles.  Along  the  beach  southwards  there  are  all  kinds  of  planes 
(Continued  on  page  9) 


GUIDED  MISSILES  SPAN  NEW 


With  $2,000,000  in  contracts  for  guided  missile  -work,  Ryan  Aero- 
nautical Company  plays  an  active  though  necessarily  closely  guarded 
role  in  the  field  of  pilotless  aircraft.  This  non-technical  article  reveals 
some  interesting  basic  principles  about  this  new  and  challenging  field. 


By  Sam  B.  Beaudry,  Project  Engineer 
Guided  Missile  Development 


(Official   V.  S.   Naty   Photo) 
Navy   Aerobee    rocket   for   which   Ryan    now 
makes  stainless  steel  parts 


Late  in  the  summer  of  1944  a  howling 
monster  hardly  bigger  than  a  torpedo 
hurtled  across  the  English  Channel  and 
fell  upon  a  startled  London.  Before  winter 
came,  more  than  5000  persons  had  been 
killed,  23,000  houses  destroyed  and  hun- 
dreds of  thousands  of  buildings  damaged, 
all  at  a  cost  to  the  Germans  of  about  8,000 
V-1  "buzz  bomb"  guided  missiles.  In  ef- 
forts to  combat  the  new  menace,  nearly 
1500  Allied  aircrewmen  gave  their  lives. 

Yet  this  V-1  weapon  was  a  device  car- 
rying only  1800  pounds  of  explosive  at  a 
laggardly  speed  of  400  m.p.h.  Within  a 
short  time  of  the  start  of  this  hideous  new 
form  of  warfare,  the  V-2,  a  liquid-pow- 
ered rocket  missile,  was  added  to  the  en- 
emy's repertoire.  Carrying  better  than 
1500  pounds  of  explosive  at  a  speed  of 
3  500  m.p.h.,  this  later  "flying  bomb"  was 
of  really  supersonic  calibre,  making  detec- 
tion and  countermeasures  almost  impas- 
sible. Only  by  attacking  launching  sites 
were  defending  airmen  able  to  take  some 
measure  of  counter-action. 

As  if  the  old  fighting  equipment  were 
not  bad  enough,  each  new  war  creates  a 
new  weapon,  or  an  adaptation  of  some  an- 
cient principle.  The  Marines  used  most  ef- 
fectively in  the  Pacific  a  liquid  fire  which 
would  have  seemed  quite  familiar  to  the 
defenders  of  Constantinople  centuries  ago. 
The  Germans,  in  putting  the  rocket  prin- 
ciple to  work  in  their  V-2's,  enlarged  upon 
a  cruder  rocket  used  by  the  English  against 
Americans  at  Ft.  Henry,  Baltimore,  in  the 
Revolutionary  War.  (Remember  "the 
rockets'  red  glare"  from  the  Star  Spangled 
Banner?) 

Guided  missiles  may  dominate  the  next 
w.ir,  if,  Heaven  help  us,  one  does  begin. 
During  the  latter  part  of  World  War  II 
the  Nazis  succeeded  in  developing  some 
138  missiles,  accessories  and  modifications, 


their  greatest  success  coming  in  the  fields 
of  long-range  bombardment  and  anti-air- 
craft defense.  According  to  Lt.  Col.  Keith 
McCutcheon,  USMC  aeronautical  engi- 
neering expert,  later  with  the  Pilotless  Air- 
craft Division  of  the  Navy's  Bureau  of 
Aeronautics:  "The  missing  link  in  the 
German  development  was  in  suitable  guid- 
ance and  control  of  the  missiles  after 
launching,  so  in  the  strict  sense  of  the 
word  they  were  not  guided  missiles  but  ar- 
tillery projectiles  with  extended  range." 

Simplest  basic  category  of  guided  mis- 
siles, which  describes  the  location  of  the 
launching  device  and  the  target,  includes: 
(1)  surface-to-surface;  (2)  air-to-sur- 
face; (3)  surface-to-air;  and  (4)  air-to- 
air.  Other  important  factors  in  classifying 
guided  missiles  are  types  of  propulsion; 
methods  of  guidance  and  control;  range 
and  speed;  launching  system,  and  type  of 
warhead. 

Obviously  an  explosive,  to  be  effective, 
must  reach  its  destination — and  at  a  speed 
which  should  make  it  impossible  to  inter- 
cept. Guided  missiles  depend  for  their 
propulsion  upon  some  form  of  jet  drive. 
Jets,  by  now  becoming  familiar  to  the 
man-in-the-street,  are  roughly  divided 
into  rocket,  turbo,  ram  and  pulse  groups. 

Rockcfs  carry  all  their  fuel  aiiJ  oxygen 
within  the  body  of  the  rocket  itself,  and 
if  necessary  could  operate  in  a  vacuum  or 
beyond  the  earth's  atmosphere.  Automatic 
devices  control  combustion — and  speed — 
by  regulating  the  flow  of  liquids.  The 
"motor"  combines  a  combustion  chamber 
and  an  exit  nozzle.  Chemical  reactions  pro- 
duce large  volumes  of  high  temperature 
gas  in  the  combustion  chamber,  and  these, 
when  discharged  through  the  nozzle,  de- 
velop enormous  velocity  and  thrust. 
Rockets  are  handicapped  by  the  fact  that 
they  must  carry  their  own  oxygen,  for  at 


HORIZONS 


A  1400-mile  area 
stretching  from  Mexico 
into  Wyoming,  which 
dramatically  shows  the 
curvature  of  the  Earth, 
is  shown  in  this  photo 
taken  at  an  altitude  of 
57  miles  from  an  Aero- 
bee  rocket  fired  from 
White  Sands  Proving 
Grounds. 

(Official     U.     S.     Navy 

Photo    uith    artist's 

dra  iving    of    missile 

added) 


the  altitudes  at  which  they  operate  there 
is  no  oxygen,  or  sufficient  oxygen,  in  the 
atmosphere  to  sustain  the  fire  of  combus- 
tion. 

The  German  V-2,  probably  still  unsur- 
passed as  an  operational  missile,  delivered 
on  London  a  one-ton  bomb-load,  but 
weighed  31,400  lbs.  at  launching.  It  re- 
quired 800  lbs  of  fuel  and  11,000  lbs  of 
liquid  oxygen.  The  weight  of  a  projectile 
naturally  increases  with  range,  thus  re- 
quiring more  fuel,  which  in  turns  re- 
quires more  weight  which  demands  more 


power  which  again  calls  for  more  fuel — 
a  sort  of  mathematical  dog-chasing-tail 
situation.  Range  limit  of  V-2  rockets  is 
believed  to  be  about  450  miles  with  pres- 
ent types  of  fuel  and  construction  mate- 
rials. 

Turbo- jet  powered  missiles  utilize  a  gas 
turbine  to  drive  an  axial-flow  or  centrifu- 
gal-flow air  compressor  mounted  on  a 
common  shaft.  Air  is  sucked  into  the 
openings  of  the  powerplant,  and  com- 
pressed at  high  temperature.  Fuel  is  intro- 
duced into  the  chamber  and  the  resulting 


mixture  ignited,  providing  the  hot  con- 
tinuous blasts  which  roar  backwards 
through  the  exhaust  nozzles  to  provide  the 
forward  thrust. 

Kaw-jets,  best-known  primarily  Amer- 
ican development  in  the  international  jet 
power  race,  offer  effective  propulsion  at 
from  1200  to  2  500  m.p.h.  They  have  no 
moving  parts.  There  are  only  three  essen- 
tial parts;  a  diffuser,  combustion  chamber, 
and  exhaust  nozzle.  They  have  no  means 
of  compressing  air  before  receiving  it  into 
(Continued  on  page  14) 


RYAi  PRODUCTS  AID  m\l 
RAM-JET  DEfELOPMEiTS 

Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  metal  products  played  an  im- 
portant part  in  two  American  aerial  achievements  recently 
completed,  the  setting  of  a  new  record  for  pilotless  aircraft  and 
the  propulsion  of  a  standard  fighter  plane  by  ram-jet  power 
alone. 

Longest  flights  ever  made  by  pilotless  aircraft  powered  with 
ram-jet  engines,  major  components  for  which  were  manufac- 
tured by  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company,  were  recently  an- 
nounced by  the  Navy.  Piloted  by  remote  control  and  tracked 
by  radar,  several  sustained  runs  of  more  than  ten  minutes  were 
made  by  the  Gorgon-IV,  the  Navy's  almost  wingless  guided 
missile. 

Since  the  ram-jet  "flying  stovepipe"  has  no  static  thrust  and 
must  be  given  an  initial  velocity  of  around  300  m.p.h.  before 
it  can  begin  to  operate,  the  Gorgon-IV  was  taken  aloft  under 
(Conthiiicd  on  juii^e  17) 


Navy's   ram-jet 
powered  Gorgon-IV. 


first  flight  on   ram- 
jet pouer  alone. 


NAVIONS  BRING  IN  THE  SHEAVES 


Neighbors  and  their  planes  cooperate  to  set 
ne-w  crop  records  on  von  Glahn  ranch 


A  host  of  harvesting  records  fell  by  the  wayside  on  this 
season's  Annual  Harvest  Day  on  the  Elmer  C.  von  Glahn 
Ranch,  14  miles  southwest  of  Corcoran,  California  in  the  center 
of  the  Tulare  Lake  Basin.  More  than  200  persons  worked  with 
27  harvesting  machines  and  6  Navion  airplanes  to  harvest  more 
than  30,000  tons  of  grain. 

This  formidable  combination  of  modern  machinery  and  ex- 
perience accounted  for  a  prodigious  total  of  700  tons  (600 
acres)  of  barley  harvested  per  day. 

While  the  larger  harvesters  were  cutting  2  5 -foot  swathes 
across  the  4  8,000-acre  ranch,  the  six  all-metal  Navion  planes 
were  busy  doing  jobs  which  in  former  days  had  required  the 
efforts  of  a  legion  of  farm-hands  and  a  fleet  of  vehicles. 

With  fire  a  constant  harvest-time  hazard,  one  Navion  was 
kept  on  constant  patrol  for  telltale  signs  of  smoke. 

Another  of  the  150-mph  planes  shuttled  back  and  forth  be- 
tween the  main  von  Glahn  office  in  Corcoran,  the  ranch  head- 
quarters, and  a  dozen  different  harvest  camps  in  the  Lake  Basin, 


transporting  men  charged  with  the  direction  of  the  harvest  to 
points  where  they  were  needed  most. 

A  third  Navion  was  held  in  ready  reserve  to  rush  mechanics 
and  spare  parts  to  broken-down  harvesters  and  other  equipment 
needing  special  attention. 

A  trucking  company  used  a  Navion  to  direct  traffic  to  proper 
sections  and  generally  supervise  the  operations  of  27  giant 
trucks  and  semi-trailers. 

Two  other  Navions,  owned  by  neighboring  ranchers,  were 
utilized  for  observation  of  the  entire  harvest  operation  and  for 
careful  inspection  of  particular  phases  of  the  huge  maneuver. 

1948's  record  harvest  on  what  is  one  of  the  largest  and  most 
productive  ranches  in  the  entire  West  is  a  logical  achievement 
in  the  career  of  Elmer  von  Glahn.  Specialist  and  pioneer  in  the 
full  utilization  of  up-to-date  mechanical  equipment  in  agri- 
culture, von  Glahn  declares  that  he  couldn't  do  without  his 
Ryan  Navion  in  the  present  scope  of  his  ranching  operations. 
(Coiitiiiucd  on  page  12) 


.^mMtht^U^-''^--.     w^ 


IT'S    MOI 


Moving  day  at  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany conies  virtually  every  day.  A  housewife 
is  dismayed  if  she  must  pack  up  twice  in  a 
half-dozen  years.  Durward  H.  Palmer,  chief 
of  Ryan's  Plant  Engineering  department,  by 
contrast,  calmly  undertakes  major  moving 
operations  on  a  practically  continuous  sched- 
ule. In  an  industry  so  fluid  as  the  aircraft 
business,  today's  perfect  assembly  line  may 
need  complete  revision  tomorrow.  New  con- 
tracts for  ever-changing  types  of  aircraft 
and  aircraft  components  may  require  switch- 
ing around  of  whole  shops  to  meet  changed 
patterns.  The  undertaking  is  a  sort  of 
mechanical  problem  child,  which,  at  R)'an, 
as  been  channeled  into  good  behavior. 

"Plant  Engineering,"  says  Palmer,  "aims 
at  two  targets:  first,  maintenance  of  machin- 
ery and  equipment  of  the  plant  in  satisfac- 
tory condition  at  minimum  cost;  second,  the 
construction  and  installation  of  new  equip- 
ment and  facilities." 

To  accomplish  both  aims,  the  department's 
130  men  and  women  have  been  divided  into 
carefully  coordinated  task  forces.  Each  group 


IH    DH 


is  assigned  specific  responsibilities,  proper  equipment  and  bal- 
anced personnel. 

Palmer  works  closely  with  the  Plant  Layout  department,  an 
important  section  of  the  Production  Engineering  division.  Each 
detail  involving  shift  of  machinery  or  shop  departments  is 
studied  closely  by  both  units.  When  Plant  Engineering  is  noti- 
fied of  an  impending  change  in  the  physical  layout  of  one  of 
the  production  departments,  Palmer  obtains  a  plant  layout  and 
calls  a  conference  of  his  foremen.  Next  follows  a  check  of  all 
facilities  so  that  proper  gas,  compressed  air,  water  and  electrical 
inlets  and  outlets  may  be  prepared.  Then  come  careful  cost  esti- 
mates and  time  schedules,  with  crews  organized  with  due  con- 
sideration for  skills  and  labor  required. 

But  a  machine  shop,  for  instance,  just  isn't  moved  over- 
night. Undue  interruption  of  production  in  any  important  sec- 
tion of  the  plant  could  cause  serious  delays  in  delivery  schedules. 
With  work  proceeding  on  a  multi-shift  basis,  Plant  Engineering 
must  plan  the  movement  of  every  item  with  meticulous  care, 
timing  transfer  of  smaller  equipment  for  night  hours.  Bulk 
operations  are  set  for  week-ends.  A  complete  moving  job  may 
require  weeks. 

Preparations  for  beginning  work  on  Ryan's  multi-million- 
dollar  General  Electric  jet  engine  component  contract  affords 
a  cross-section  of  typical  Plant  Engineering  responsibilities  in 
large  scale  plant  moving  operations.  As  part  of  the  re-arrange- 
ment of  machinery  and  shops  Palmer  found  it  necessary  to 
(a)  move  airplane  sub-assembly  departments  to  the  mezzanine 
of  the  sub-assembly  building;  (b)  move  Navion  Parts  Stores 
and  Upholstering  department;  (c)  move  Experimental  depart- 
ment to  Final  Assembly  building;  (d)  enlarge  the  tooling  de- 
partment; (e)  move  Machine  Shop  to  the  area  vacated  by  the 
Experimental  department;  (f)  locate  and  lay  out  General 
Electric  assembly  department  between  Machine  Shop  and  Sheet 
Metal  Assembly;  (g)  re-arrange  heat  treat  and  stainless  steel 
processing — well,  we  could  go  on  for  some  time, 'just  as  Plant 
Engineering  did. 

Mechanical  Maintenance  people  are  the  machinists,  plumbers 
and  journeymen  of  many  trades  who  magically  transform  an 
empty  floor  space  to  a  crowded  shoproom  between  Saturday 
and  Monday.  They  are  led  by  Otto  A.  Schulte,  foreman,  who 
follows  each  moving  job  from  preliminary  memo  to  final 
clean-up.  Schulte  and  his  men  are  as  versatile  as  a  juggler  with 
seven  arms;  can  whip  you  up  a  husky  working  platform  or  re- 
pair a  plant  whistle.  They  make  quick  work  of  such  assign- 
ments as  moving  Experimental  to  the  Final  Assembly  building 
and  shifting  the  Machine  Shop  into  Experimental's  old  location. 
(Continued  on  page  13) 


"A  place  for  everything,  and  everything  in  its  place"  appears 
to  be  the  theme  behind  this  discussion  between  Plant  Engineer- 
ing chief  Durtvard  H.  Palmer,  (right)  Bill  Kupilik  (center) 
assistant  foreman,  Welding  and  Pre-Jig,  and  Archie  "Red" 
Hammock,  manifold  production  department  coordinator. 
That's   a   shop   layout   they^re   checking. 


^'Moving  day"  is  only  one  of 

-many  problems  confronting 

Ryan's  resourceful  Plant 

Engineering  Department 


RYAN  MANIFOLDS -UP  FRONT  SINCE  1927! 


Controlling  the  roaring  mechanical  horses  of  aircraft  engines, 
which  snort  fire  and  exhaust  gases  as  they  hurtle  across  the 
skies,  is  the  constant  problem  confronting  powerplant  engineers. 
The  unglamorous  but  vital  exhaust  system  is  one  of  the  answers 
to  the  problem,  channeling  heat  and  gases  away  from  the  engine 
while  adding  speed  and  comfort  to  the  plane. 

Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  for  two  decades  has  been  in  the 
van  of  manifold  design  and  construction,  building  efficient 
manifolds  for  its  Ryan  Brougham  5 -passenger  plane  as  early 
as  1927. 

Always  planning  ahead,  including  current  research  work  in 
the  new  realm  of  jet  propulsion,  this  organization  is  the  only 
major  airframe  factory  which  is  also  a  mass  producer  of  ex- 
haust manifold  equipment,  and  a  recognized  leader  in  the 
manufacture  of  stainless  steel  engine  and  aircraft  components. 

Development  of  extremely  high-horsepower  aircraft  engines; 
the  use  of  exhaust  gases  for  turbo-supercharging,  cabin  heating, 
carburetor  warming  and  for  added  speed  through  jet  thrust; 
plus  the  need  for  flame  dampening,  has  accented  the  importance 
of  this  equipment  to  the  proper  functioning  of  the  whole  engine 
assembly. 

Efficient  design  of  manifolds  begins  with  the  time  layout  of 
a  new  plane  is  started  and  consideration  is  first  given  to  the  en- 
tire powerplant  arrangement.  There  are  three  general  types  of 
exhaust  system:  (1)  the  universal  joint  type,  originated  at 
Ryan  with  characteristic  ingenuity,  which  is  composed  of  two 
or  more  sections  bolted  rigidly  together  and  mounted  on  the 
engine  mount  ring  or  inner  cowl  by  means  of  a  series  of  links. 
The  manifold  is  connected  to  the  engine  through  use  of  uni- 
versal or  "Ryan  ball  and  socket"  joints,  which  absorb  the  con- 
tinuous engine  movement  and  vibration.  (2)  The  conventional 
slip  joint  type  manifold  composed  of  individual  sections 
mounted  cantilever  on  engine  exhaust  ports  and  connected  by 
"collars."  (3)  Short  stacks  or  ejector  stacks. 

When  Ryan  entered  the  exhaust  manifold  field  a  generation 
ago,  pilots  often  were  temporarily  blinded  with  flame-glare 
from  the  then  commonly  used  short  stacks,  and  cabin  passen- 
gers were  threatened  with  carbon-monoxide  blown  back  from 
the  engine.  Ryan  was  the  first  manufacturer  of  airplanes  to  in- 
clude exhaust-warmed  cabin  heaters  as  standard  equipment. 
First  manifolds  were  made  of  sheet  tubing  iron  and  from  flex- 
ible tubing,  crude  forerunners  of  today's  highly  efficient  stain- 
less steel  systems  which  are  stamped  from  sheet  metal  and 
welded  into  any  desired  shape. 

Ryan  innovations  in  connection  with  its  steadily  expanding 
exhaust  system  production  included  establishment  of  a  more 
efficient  "flow  production"  system  of  manufacturing,  use  of 
drop  hammers  as  flexible  production  tools,  and  adaptation  of 
new  welding  techniques  to  stainless  steel  fabrication.  Ryan  has 
become  the  largest  user  of  stainless  steel  in  the  aircraft  industry, 
swallowing  shipments  of  large  18-8  and  19-9  steel  sheets  by  the 
carload.  During  World  War  II  it  was  the  largest  manufacturer 
of  exhaust  manifolds  in  the  world. 


Ryan's  famous  five-place  '^Brougham"  of  20  years  ago  included 

among    its    many    advanced    construction    features    a    flexible 

collector-ring    type    exhaust    system^    made    of    flexible    and 

straight  iron  tubing,  for  its  Wright  J-5  engine. 


Archie  "Red"  Hammock,  metal  products  division  coordinator, 
and  Herb  Simmer  take  a  final  look  at  the  B-50  stainless  steel 
exhaust  system  shown  here,  one  of  four  such  Ryan  manifolds 
on  each  Superfortress  bomber,  and  an  impressiic  contrast  to 
the  1927  type  shoun  above. 


Announcing  the  new 


for 


STILL  HIGHER  PERFORMANCE  FOR  '49 

Cruising  speed,  up  to 155  mpli 

Take-off  distance 

over  50'  obstacle,  down  to  .     .     .  875  ft. 
Landing  distance 

over  50'  obstacle,  down  to      .     .     875  ft. 

Ceiling 15,600  ft. 

Climb  (first  minute),  up  to       ...     900  fpm 

Above  performance  hos  been  demonstrated  on  standard 
'49-type  Ryan  Navion.  Take-off,  landing  and  climb  figures 
are  with  zero  wind,  sea  level  and  full  gross  load  of  2750  lbs. 


Featuring  29  dramatic  new  improvements  for  '49 


Higher  performance  highlights  29  exciting  new  advancement^ 
quieter,  still  more  dependable,  safe  and  useful  Ryan  Navioi 


New.'  GREATER  SPEED  AND  PERFORMANCE  in  the  vastly  improved 
'49  Ryan  Navion.  New  205  h.p.  engine  rating  plus  sleek  new  landing 
gear  fairings  and  doors  speed  the  Ryan  Navion  through  the  air  at  a 
new,  faster  155  m.p.h.  cruising  speed.  Sensationally  shorter  take-off 
run  of  only  560  ft.,  and  only  875  ft.  take-off  to  clear  a  50-ft.  obstacle. 
Normal  landings  are  made  under  50  m.p.h.  with  average  loads. 


New!  STILL  MORE  ROOM  AND  COMFORT  in  the  tastefully  appointed 
cabin.  Wider  foam-rubber-cushioned  rear  seat  with  limousine-type 
folding  center  arm  rest,  plus  high,  rolled  head  rest,  assures  hours  of 
relaxing  comfort  on  the  longest  flight.  Four  individual  side  ash  trays, 
recessed  arm  rests,  soothing  upholstery  colors  bespeak  thoughtful 
planning  for  you.  You'll  always  ride  comfortably  in  a  Ryan  Navion. 


New!  INSTRUMENT  AND  CONTROL  PANELS  arranged  for  easier 
"scanning."  Manifold  pressure  and  dampened  fuel  gauges  now  in- 
cluded. Panel  and  gear  position  lights  can  be  dimmed.  Standard  panel 
cutouts  adapt  to  gyro  installation  without  costly  alteration.  New  con- 
trol panel  features  knobs  which  simulate  mechanism  they  activate  for 
positive  identification.  Partial  flap  settings  and  key-ignition  are  new. 


New!  EXCLUSIVE  dual  FUEL  SYSTEM  places  the  Ryan  Navion  with 
modern  airline  and  military  aircraft  for  dependability.  Engine-driven 
vane-type  pump  provides  proper  fuel  supply  under  all  normal  oper- 
ating conditions.  An  electrically  driven  auxiliary  fuel  pump  is  also 
provided.  Pumps  operate  together  or  independently.  No  personal  air- 
plane can  be  flown  with  more  confidence  than  the  1949  Ryan  Navion. 


2.  MINIMUM  TAKE-OFF 

560  FT TOTAL  875  FT, 

OVER  50'  OBSTACLE 


3.  VHF  RADIO  AND  NEW, 
SMALLER   ANTENNA 


4.   CORROSION-PROOF 
ENAMEL  FINISH 


5.   SOUND-PROOFED, 

WEATHER-PROOFED  CABIN 


6.  HIGH  REAR  SEAT 
HEAD-REST 


7.   SIX  INCHES  ADDITIONAL 
WIDTH  IN  REAR   SEAT 


8.  HARMONIZING  INTERIOR 
UPHOLSTERY 


9.  RECESSED  ARM  RESTS 


10.   LIMOUSINE-TYPE 
CENTER   ARM  REST 


13.  MORE  LUGGAGE  ROOM  (whan 
ufing  auxiliary  fuel  tank) 


14.  UNDER-SEAT  AUXILIARY 
TANK  (OPTIONAL- 
RANGE  UP  TO  800  Ml.) 


in  the  roomier, 
for  1949! 


TO  THOSE  who  would  take  to  the  skies  this  year,  we  proudly  present  the  new  Ryan  Navion. 
Luxury-liner  in  the  personal  plane  field,  it  is  a  thoroughly  proven  postwar  airplane. .  .now, 
even  more  versatile  and  powerful  than  ever  before.  Now,  even  faster,  roomier,  more  comfort- 
able. We  invite  you  to  see  the  new,  1949  Ryan  Navion  soon.  Check  its  29  new  features  for  '49. 
Compare  it  "against  the  field."  You  are  sure  to  agree  that  this  year  "It's  Ryan  Navion  Again." 


New  .'more  accessible,  roomier  luggage  space.  Even  easier 
to  load  luggage!  Just  fold  forward  one  or  both  of  the  hinged  rear  seat 
backrests!  Want  to  work  while  flying?  Your  portfolio  is  at  your  finger- 
tips. Auxiliary  tank  (optional  equipment)  is  built  under  rear  seat,  so 
luggage  space  is  all  luggage  space.  You  can  carry  up  to  180-lbs.  in 
the  20-cubic-foot  compartment . . .  that's  eight  men's  two  suiter  bags! 


New!  POWERFUL  VHP  RADIO  adds  the  ultimate  touch  to  worry- 
free,  fatigue-free  flight.  VHP  transmitter  covers  6  channels:  assures 
instant  contact  at  distances  up  to  100  miles  while  flying  at  10,000  ft. 
Clear,  reliable  reception  of  standard  broadcasts,  four-course  ranges, 
marker  beacons.  Standard  tower  frequency  clearly  marked  on  dial. 
You  "get  through"  while  sending.  High  fidelity  reception  is  assured. 


New/  VENTILATING  AND  HEATING  SYSTEM  provides  living  room 
comfort.  Still  more  draft-free  fresh  air  is  now  channeled  to  every 
comer  of  the  cabin.  Ryan  exhaust  system  specialists  have  designed 
an  efficient  combination  heater-muffler  which  is  now  standard  equip- 
ment. Engine  noise  in  cabin  is  materially  reduced.  Simple  temperature 
controls  keep  the '49 /?.va/!  A'a  V70/I  cabin  "just  right "  for  every  occupant . 


New/  perfected  "all  around"  sound  insulation  cradles  the 
Ryan  Navion  cabin  in  a  thick  blanket  of  noise  and  heat-repelling 
Thermo-Cousti  Fiberglas.  This  insulation  material  is  all-around  .  .  . 
on  canopy,  cabin  sides  and  firewall . . .  shuts  out  both  noise  and  heat. 
Engineexhaust  is  nowmuffled,  and  discharged  under  the  wing.  Thicker 
windshield  deadens  propeller  noise ;  Plexiglas  filters  out  sunburn  rays. 


27.  NEW  VENTILATION  SYSTEM 

36.   IMPROVED  STANDARD 
PANEL  AND  MORE 
INSTRUMENTS 


25.  NEW  205   H.P.  ENGINE 


24.   DUAL  FUEL  SYSTEM 


23.   IMPROVED  CONTROL  PANEL 


22.  VIBRATION-FREE,  GEAR 
TYPE  HYDRAULIC  PUMP 


21.  MUFFLER  AND  HEATER 
STANDARD  EQUIPMENT 


16.  LANDING  GEAR  DOORS 
AND  FAIRINGS 


Big/  Rugged/  Fast/  Safe  and  Easy-to-Fly 

Ryan  Navion  offers  Plus  Features  which  make  it 

America's  outstanding  business  and  personal  plane 


MORE  ROOM.  Exclusive  Ryan  Navion  canopy  rolls  back  a  full  I'^i-h. 
to  provide  easier  entrance  and  exit  for  both  front  and  rear  seat  pas- 
sengers. . .  there's  plenty  of  head  room  for  all . . .  you  can  conveniently 
change  seats  in  flight  if  you  wish.  And  the  generous  cabin  accom- 
modates four  big  people  comfortably  .  .  .  with  lots  of  room  to  stretch 
out  and  relax.  Front  seats  adjust  to  individual  requirements.  Can- 
opy locks  partially  open  for  best  ventilation  on  ground.  For  half-ton 
cargo,  three  seats  are  quickly  removed:  canopy  can  be  slipped  off. 


MORE  SPEED— MORE  PERFORMANCE  in  the  more  versatile  more  use- 
ful new  Ryan  Navion ..  .fast,  "big  plane"  cruising  even  in  rough  air 
without  sacrificing  safety  and  comfort . . .  short,  smooth  landings  and 
quick  take-offs  when  fully  loaded,  even  from  improvised  or  high  al- 
titude fields. You  get  there  three  times  faster  than  by  surface  travel... 
at  costs  comparing  favorably  with  your  automobile.  Owners  say,"No 
other  plane  combines  so  well,  such  an  intelligently  chosen  and  well- 
engineered  combination  of  features  as  the  Ryan  Navion." 


.040 


RUGGED  CONSTRUCTION.  Rhino-tough  heavy  gauge  all-metal  skin 
that's  dent  and  wrinkle  resistant  for  unsurpassed  durability  and 
structural  integrity. . .for  easy  maintenance  and  permanent  beauty. 
Rugged  tricycle  landing  gear  features  oversize  wheels  and  tires,  husky 
deep-stroke  hydraulic  shock  absorbers.  Wide  wheel  tread,  powerful 
equalized  hydraulic  brakes  and  big,  steerable  nosewheel  make  for 
easy  ground  handling...  large,  slotted,  full-deflection  flaps  for  short, 
pillow-smooth  landings  on  rough  fields  even  in  strong  cross  winds. 


SAFE,  EASY-TO-FIY.  Patented,  inter-connected  ailerons  and  rudder 
give  selective,  "two-control  after  take-off".  ..  your  Ryan  Navion 
literally  flies  itself  over  long  periods.  Gentle  and  well  behaved,  the 
amazingly  stable  Navion  "forgives"  most  anything  short  of  fool- 
hardiness.  Smooth  riding,  always  .  .  .  positive,  yaw-free,  directional 
stability.  The  stall-  resistant  wing  gives  full  aileron  control  even  below 
stalling  speed  for  maximum  safety  in  slow  flight  and  landings. 
Seven  big  windows  wipe  out  blind  spots ;  give  wonderful  visibility. 


FLY  . . .  AND  BUY. . .  THE  '49  NAVION  NOW!  Discover  the  comfort,  confidence  and 
satisfaction  that  comes  with  a  Ryan  Navion. 'Write  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company,  San 
Diego,  California.  Arrange  to  take  your  next  business  trip  FREE.  No  obligation. 

Available   in   four   new,  still   more  beautiful  colors  v^ith  harmonizing  interiors.  Fine  synthetic 
enamel  finish  is  completely  corrosion-proof;  stays  beautiful  and  insures  low  maintenance  cost 


TAMPICO    RED 


ITALIAN    CREAM 


NO  OTHER   PLANE  COMBINES 
SO  MANY  FEATURES  SO  WELL 


RYAN   AERONAUTICAL   COMPANY  •  SAN    DIEGO,  CALIFORNIA  •  RELY   ON    RYAN 


BY  NAVION  TO 
BUENOS  AIRES 

(Continued  from  page  1 ) 

which  ran  out  of  gas  and  made  emer- 
gency landings — even  a  B-24.  About  100 
miles  out  of  Tymaco,  Colombia,  nearest 
airport,  the  weather  turned  bad  and  I  had 
to  sneak  along  the  coast  through  rain  and 
fog  at  300  ft.  altitude  the  rest  of  the  way. 

"Passing  the  Equator,  my  last  stop  was 
Guayaquil.  Here  I  rested  and  checked  my 
motor,  changing  oil  and  refilling  the  shock 
absorber  with  air.  It  was  good  I  had  with 
me  a  fire  extinguisher,  which  is  also  a  tire 
inflator  because  there  weren't  many  places 
where  I  could  get  air,  and  when  they  had 
air  there  wasn't  enough  pressure. 

"Left  Guayaquil  at  daybreak  and  fol- 
lowed the  coast  to  Talara,  airport  of  entry 
to  Peru.  Here  I  got  the  cheapest  gas  of  the 
whole  trip — about  10  cents  a  gallon."  His 
next  stop  was  Trujillo,  Peru,  and  here  Dar- 
del  came  nearest  to  grief  of  anywhere  on 
his  trip. 

"At  Trujillo,  I  landed  on  a  beautiful 
runway,  but  no  gas  was  available  there.  So 
I  took  off  again  and  went  to  another  air- 
port, which  was  just  a  plain  gravel  field.  I 
think  any  other  plane  than  a  Navion 
would  have  broken  the  landing  gear,  but  I 
made  it  without  trouble.  To  be  honest,  the 
Navion  made  it,  not  me!" 

Most  exciting  part  of  the  trip  came  af- 
ter Dardel  left  Antofagasta,  Chile. 

"I  left  Antofagasta  by  sunshine,  but 
the  further  south  I  went  the  lower  went 
the  overcast — and  me  too.  Finally  I  flew 
at  about  30  ft.  in  rain  and  fog,  buzzing 
along  the  coast,  missing  islands  by  a  couple 
of  feet.  After  I  got  scared  enough  I  headed 
west  into  the  ocean  and  up  through  the 
overcast,  praying  the  motor  would  con- 
tinue to  work." 

"At  about  8,000  ft.  I  was  on  top,  but 
where  I  was  exactly  I  did  not  know.  So  I 
flew  the  course  indicated  by  my  Lear  radio, 
thinking  all  the  time  how  I  would  make  a 
let-down  through  that  overcast,  knowing 
that  underneath  were  mountains.  Sud- 
denly an  open  valley  was  ahead  of  me — 
and  thank  God  it  was  the  valley  with  Val- 
lenar  in  it,  the  airport  where  I  had  in- 
tended to  land.  Sometimes  it  is  a  wonder- 
ful feeling  to  stand  with  your  feet  on  the 
ground! 

"From  Vallenar  I  flew  straight  over 
mountains  and  valleys  at  10,000  ft.  alti- 
tude to  Santiago  de  Chile.  After  talking 
with  two  Zonda  pilots  from  the  Argentine 
Airline  who  offered  to  stay  in  radio  com- 
munication with  me  while  flying  over  the 
Andes,  I  left  Santiago  about  30  minutes 
ahead  of  them  and  climbed  to  15,700  feet 
at  the  entrance  to  a  valley  through  the 
Andes.  The  highest  part  of  this  valley 
is  the  Pass  La  Cumbre  at   11,000  ft.  Be- 


fore and  after  this  pass  the  valley  is  very 
deep  and  narrow.  There  are  six  turns  of 
about  60  degrees  each,  and  it's  better  not 
to  make  a  false  turn  because  the  moun- 
tains all  around  are  high  and  close.  On  the 
bottom  of  the  valley  is  a  railroad  track  and 
a  highway  to  follow. 

"Actual  time  in  those  mountains  was 
only  40  minutes.  After  the  last  turn  of 
the  valley  the  Argentine  pampas  was  in 
sight.  Hurray!  I  made  it!  It  was  the  same 
day,  just  one  year  ago,  that  I  had  had  my 
first  flight  instruction  at  Del  Monte  Avia- 
tion in  Monterey,  California. 

"Next  morning,  in  Buenos  Aires,  I 
landed  at  AeroParque,  the  airport  in  town, 
and  was  met  by  some  friends  and  Mr. 
Daniel  Tiphaine  and  Mr.  Rogelio  Tiphaine 
from  the  Tider  S.R.L.,  Ryan  Navion  Dis- 
tributors in  Argentina,  who  sold  me  my 
plane. 

"On  the  trip  down  gas  was  available 
everywhere,  but  mostly  at  91  octane,  not 
80.  I  had  to  pay  my  bills  most  of  the  time 
in  dollars.  Credit  cards  were  not  necessary. 
It  was  good  to  carry  my  own  oil  supply, 
because  100  weight  oil  was  not  available 
anywhere.    My    Lear    transmitter    was    a 


great  help.  The  stations  stand  by  mostly 
on  3105  Kc,  the  PAA  Stations  on  2870.  A 
great  help,  too,  was  the  U.S.  Air  Force  ra- 
dio facility  chart  for  South  American 
area,  showing  all  transmitting  and  receiv- 
ing  frequencies." 

For  benefit  of  others  who  may  wish  to 
make  the  same  trip  later,  Dardel  notes  fur- 
ther that  American  World  Aeronautical 
charts  which  he  used  on  the  trip  were 
quite  exact.  Weather  reports,  he  com- 
mented, were  most  of  the  time  correct. 

"When  I  left  the  States,"  Dardel  said, 
"I  had  a  total  of  only  195  hours  flying 
time,  but  the  trip  seemed  very  easy  to  me. 
I  left  San  Diego,  California,  16  days  be- 
fore my  landing  in  Buenos  Aires.  I  flew  a 
total  of  13  days  and  logged  68  hours  flying 
time  over  a  distance  of  8,400  miles.  I  did 
not  have  any  trouble  with  my  Navion 
during  the  whole  trip  and  on  the  100-hour 
inspection  in  Buenos  Aires  nothing  was 
found  damaged  on  my  airplane!" 

The  impressive  jaunt  ended  on  an  addi- 
tional happy  note. 

"The  whole  trip,"  Dardel  summed  up, 
"including  gas  and  hotel  bills,  cost  me 
only  $390!" 


New  Flader  Turbo-Jet  Engine  Small,  But  Powerful 


Resembling  a  stove  pipe  about  six  feet 
in  length,  but  capable  of  pow^ering  a 
medium  weight  executive  airplane  at 
250  m.p.h.,  a  new  light-weight  turbo- 
jet engine  J-5  5,  designed  by  Frederic 
Flader,  Inc.  for  military  purposes,  is 
now^  under  production  for  the  U.  S.  Air 
Force.  Flader  is  one  of  the  firms  for 
■which  Ryan's  Metal  Products  Division 
builds  jet  engine  parts. 

The  engine  exerts  an  imposing 
amount  of  thrust  for  its  size,  being 
rated  at  770  thrust  lbs.  at  take-off  and 
700  lbs.  cruising.  Of  gas-turbine  design, 
the  J-55-FF-1  handles  15.4  lbs.  of  air 
per  second  at  a  compression  ratio  of 
2.85  at  sea  level  for  static  thrust.  It 
cruises  at  about  26,000  r.p.m.  w^ith  a 
tailpipe  gas  temperature  of  1170  de- 
grees. 

Some    idea    of    its    practicability    for 


commercial  planes  and  special  purpose 
aircraft  is  seen  in  its  low^  net  w^eight  of 
3  00  lbs.,  including  basic  engine,  shortest 
standard  tailpipe,  starter,  fuel  pump 
and  engine  controls.  One  model  shows 
an  overall  length,  with  standard  tail- 
pipe, of  79  in.,  overall  diameter  of 
15.75  in.,  and  exhaust  cone  diameter 
of  8.7  5  in. — a  set  of  dimensions  of  inter- 
est because  of  the  claim  made  for  it 
that,  if  released  for  other  use  by  the 
military  and  found  practicable  for  com- 
mercial planes,  it  could  increass  present 
cruising  speeds  for  a  5-place  plane  by 
about   100  m.p.h. 

Aero  Digest  magazine  recently  dis- 
cussed this  engine  briefly,  stating  that 
its  size  and  performance  suggested  that 
it  was  designed  primarily  for  use  in  con- 
nection with  the  Air  Force's  important 
pilotless  aircraft  program. 


We  Fly  Navions 

'RED'  FODREA,  ACCOUNTANT  for  the  Martin  Construction  Company  in  Idaho,  be- 
lieves he  has  the  prize  example  of  a  business  airplane  saving  valuable  time.  By  Navion, 
he  gets  from  Stibnite,  Idaho,  to  Boise  in  55  minutes.  Winter  driving  between  the  two 
places  takes  him  32  hours. 

"WE  WOULD  LIKE  TO  GO  ON  RECORD  that  we  are  highly  satisfied  with  the 
Ryan  Navion  we  purchased  from  Pretoria  Light  Aircraft  Company  in  South 
Africa.  We  especially  like  its  performance  and  economical  operotion,  and  find 
it  most  suitable  for  charter  work.  We  strongly  recommend  the  plane  to  private 
and  commercial  owners."  This  is  an  excerpt  from  a  letter  written  by  Rhodoir 
Charter  Services  of  Bulawayo,  Southern  Rhodesia,  which  expressed  complete 
owner  satisfaction  after  350  trouble-free  hours.  Vic  Diamond,  Managing  Direc- 
tor of  Rhodoir,  says  his  pilots  operate  the  Navion  from  the  most  unbelievable 
fields  in  the  Southern  Rhodesian  bush.  The  pilots  declare  that  had  they  not  been 
flying  the  Navion,  they  wouldn't  even  have  attempted  some  of  the  landings 
they've  made. 

FLYING  ICE  CREAM  MAN  Henry  Hancock,  Orlando,  Florida,  carries  three  cartons  of 
cold  bricks  and  ice  cream  on  his  commuting  flights  between  Columbia,  Mississippi  and 
Orlando.  "This  way,"   Hancock  soys,   "my  friends  and   family  always  appreciate  my 

arrival." 

GOOD,  GODFREY!  An  honor  he  well  deserves  was  awarded 

lost  month  to  that  popular  Ryan  Navion-owner,  Arthur  God- 

l     IK.  19^^ frey.   During   a   nation-wide   broadcast,   the    National    Flight 

I  •I'V'^M  System  presented  him  a  gold  cup  for  being  the  private  pilot 
K  ""^rii  ml  *'^°  '^"^  ^^^  most  during  the  post  year  to  promote  personal 
H  yffe'^  -7  fl'/ing    in    America.    Said    Godfrey,    in    accepting    his    trophy 

II  ''^-?**7  from     Notional     Flight's     President,     Dick     Powell,     another 
Navion  owner:  "The  education  and  very  lives  of  our  children 

are  being  influenced  by  aviation.  It  is  important  that  all  of  us  take  steps  now 
to  acquaint  ourselves  with  the  flying  phase  of  America's  future  way  of  life." 

"135  MILES  ON  4.5  GALLONS  OF  GAS,  and  I  con  do  it  again!"  J.  Ernest  Bertrand, 

Oakley,  Kansas,  sent  the  Ryan  Reporter  this  Christmas  reminder  of  the  record  he 
established  with  his  Navion  in  the  Flying  Farmers  Efficiency  Race  held  at  Hutchinson, 
Kansas.  Bertrand's  closest  competitor  used  6.5  gallons  for  the  distance.  (Ed.  Note: 
Further  evidence  of  the  amazing  economy  to  be  gained  from  efficient  flying  and  taking 
full  advantage  of  the  breaks.) 

PENNSYLVANIA  OWNER  MAKES  OPERATING  COST  STUDY.  Often  wondered 
how  close  the  operating  costs  of  your  Navion  compare  with  figures  compiled  by 
the  factory?  W.  E.  Wells,  Porkerford,  Pennsylvania,  did,  and  went  to  work 
making  a  detailed  cost  study  of  the  first  176  hours  put  on  his  Ryan  .Navion. 
His  per  hour  figures  for  gasoline,  oil,  and  maintenance,  and  those  prepared  by 
Ryan  statisticians  compare  as  follows:  Wells,  $5.28;  Ryan,  $5.20. 

SANTA  CLAUS,  CALIFORNIA,  is  a  real  community  founded  by  a  retired  contractor 
known  to  his  neighbors  as  "Santa  Clous"  Auger.  Santa  purchased  a  Navion  last  sum- 
mer, appropriately  painted  it  crimson,  and  this  year  flew  to  various  Southern  California 
communities  to  appear  at  children's  Christmas  parties. 

"FARMERS  NOTICE  THINGS  LIKE  THIS,"  says  a  flying  farmer  who  wrote  us  an 
eye-witness  report  of  how  the  8  Navions  tied  down  at  Dodge  City,  Kansas,  held 
their  ground  without  injury  during  a  75  m.p.h.  gale  which  struck  that  city  this 
winter  .  .  .  "The  windstorm  thot  struck  Dodge  City — where  Texas,  Oklahoma, 
ond  Kansas  Flying  Farmers  were  meeting — sold  some  Navions.  Out  of  95  air- 
planes tied  down,  most  that  weren't  actually  damaged  (16  were)  were  jostled 
around  by  the  wind.  You  could  see  the  changes  in  their  tie-down  positions.  But 
as  for  OS  I  know,  not  a  Navion  moved.  Most  Flying  Farmers  agreed  that  the 
Navions  would  have  withstood  the  wind  with  only  the  brakes  set  and  no  tie- 
downs." 

TAKES  A  LOT  TO  KEEP  A  GOOD  MAN  DOWN  .  .  .  Even  a  broken  shoulder  doesn't 
prevent  Dick  Graves  from  using  his  Navion  to  fly  back  and  forth  between  Boise,  and 
his  home  in  McCall,  Idaho.  He  pilots  from  the  right  front  seat,  using  his  left  hand! 

BUYING  AND  SELLING  CATTLE  ALL  OVER  THE  U.  S.,  the  Cline  Cattle  Com- 
pany uses  o  Navion  as  regular  transportation.  Brothers  Bill  and  Dick  Cline  pilot 
the  plane,  and  their  dad,  W.  S.  Cline,  is  ar\  enthusiastic  passenger.  Bill  reports 
that  the  Navion  comes  in  extra-handy  for  checking  on  cattle  in  pasture,  as  well 
OS  showing  them  while  there.  So  accustomed  ore  the  steers  to  getting  "coke" 
thrown  to  them  by  Bill  and  others  in  the  Navion,  they  eagerly  run  up  to  the 
plane  whenever  it  lands,  thereby  providing  the  buyers  inside  an  excellent  close- 
up  look  at  them. 

DIXIE  BROADCASTING  SYSTEM,  New  York  City,  owns  a  Navion  which  is  used  by 
executive  John  Perry,  Jr.  The  hord-working  plane  makes  at  least  twenty  business  trips 
a  month  on  routes  that  reach  out  all  over  the  country.  The  Dixie  people  are  high  'in 
their  praise  of  the  Navion  as  an  advertising  medium  and  a  life-saver  in  emergencies. 


RYAN  NAVION  BIG  HELP  TO 
MEXICAN  POWER  COMMISSION 

"In  Mexico,  we  find  that  one  hour's 
travel  in  a  Navion  is  worth  seven  hours 
by  car." 

With  this  declaration,  Luis  Norona 
Torres,  Chief  Pilot  for  the  Comision  Fed- 
eral de  Electricidad,  Mexico's  national 
power  authority,  begins  his  description 
of  the  advantages  of  operating  a  four- 
place  plane  like  the  Ryan  Navion  in  his 
mountainous  country. 

This  twenty-year  veteran  of  some  of 
the  world's  toughest  flying  points  out 
that  where  aircraft  manufacturers  in  the 
United  States  calculate  their  four-place 
planes  are  roughly  three  times  faster  than 
the  automobile,  in  Mexico  where  high- 
way travel  is  much  more  arduous  (and 
frequently  impossible),  the  multiple  is  far 
higher. 

"As  a  matter  of  fact,"  Norona  advises, 
""in  such  places  as  the  vicinity  of  Lake 
Catemaco  in  Vera  Cruz  State,  where  the 
Comision  is  going  to  build  a  huge  power 
plant,  the  one-to-seven  figure  is  an  ex- 
tremely modest  one.  To  reach  the  Lake 
from  the  next  town,  Tlacotalpan,  I  need 
only  twelve  minutes  in  a  Navion.  The 
only  other  way  to  get  there  is  by  horse. 
That  takes  two  days,  not  counting  time 
lost  when  your  mount  sinks  in  swamp 
up   to  his  belly  two  or  three  times. 

"'Then,  on  the  Yucatan  Peninsula,  you 
either  fly  from  one  side  to  the  other,  or 
don't  cross  at  all.  A  giant  jungle,  teem- 
ing with  lions,  reptiles,  massive  taran- 
tul.-c  and  wild  boar,  rises  as  a  barrier 
between  one  coast  and  the  other. 

(Continued  on  next  page) 


(Continued  from  page  10) 

"Similarly,  from  the  southern  coastal 
states,  the  only  route  to  Mexico  City  is 
the  air  one.  When  you  live  in  those 
states,  you  either  fly  or  stay  at  home. 

"And  in  the  important  states  of  Chia- 
pas, Tabasco,  Oaxaca,  Guerrero,  Quin- 
tana  Roo  and  Michoacan,  there  are  prac- 
tically no  vestiges  of  passable  highway. 
A  plane  is  just  about  the  only  transpor- 
tation." 

Noroiia  pilots  the  Comision's  all-metal 
Ryan  Navion  to  points  all  over  the  Re- 
public from  its  base  at  the  Municipal 
Airport  in  Mexico  City. 

The  plane's  principal  use  is  transport- 
ing electrical  engineers  and  other  execu- 
tives and  employees  of  the  Comision. 
Various  contractors  working  on  electrifi- 
cation projects  are  also  flown. 

The  manner  in  which  the  Navion  per- 
forms on  typical  take-offs  from  its  home 
base  at  Mexico  City  continually  fortifies 
Norona's  confidence  in  the  plane.  When 
taking  off  from  the  7,300-foot  high  air- 
port with  four  passengers,  the  Navion 
climbs  over  a  surrounding  10,000-foot 
ridge  within  1 J  minutes. 

"The  advantage  of  its  150  mile  per 
hour  speed  wasn't  the  only  reason  we 
selected  the  Ryan  Navion,"  explains  No- 
rona.  "In  Mexico,  we  nearly  always  fly 
at  a  minimum  of  8,000  feet,  frequently 
going  up  to  1 5,000  and  more  to  get  out  of 
the  basin  of  the  country's  central  plateau 
or  fly  over  the  weather.  With  its  15,600- 
foot  service  ceiling  and  excellent  high 
altitude  performance,  the  Navion  is  the 
plane  that  best  meets  our  needs." 

PLANT  SAFETY  RECORD  GOOD 

Romping  home  first  among  the  larger 
departments  of  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany in  last  month's  safety  competition, 
Manifold  Assembly  Line-up  and  Jig  de- 
partment demonstrated  conclusively  that 
it  has  ( 1 )  workman  "know-how"  and  a 
spirit  of  cooperation  plus  (2)  good  ruper- 
vision.  Its  130  workers  reported  only  72 
first  aid  cases  and  lost  but  36  man-hours 
during  December  for  a  flossy  average  of 
only  1.56  hours  lost  per  1,000  man-hours 
worked! 

Electrical  Maintenance  department  es- 
tablished a  mark  of  1.01  man-hours  lost 
per  1,000  worked  to  lead  all  departments, 
but  had  only  17  employed  compared  with 
the  130  men  and  women  in  Manifold 
Assembly. 

Grand  totals  for  the  entire  plant 
showed  an  average  of  2.47  man-hours  lost 
per  1.000  worked  with  a  total  of  1105.5 
man-hours  lost. 

Supervisors  Joe  Love  and  Cliff  Scates, 
and  their  group  working  with  them  were 
credited  by  Plant  Safety  Engineering  for 
conscientious  adherence  to  safety  regu- 
lations. 


With  Men  Who  Sell  Navions 

OFFICIAL  PRESENTATION  OF  THE  1949  RYAN  NAVION  will  highlight  the  first 
annual  meeting  of  Ryan  Navion  distributors  in  San  Diego,  February  28  and  March  I  . 
In  addition  to  seeing  the  wraps  lifted  off  the  new  model,  distributors  will  discuss  the 
entire  sales  and  service  picture  during  their  two-day  stay  at  the  factory.  Outstanding 
personalities  from  the  Ryan  Navion  progrom  have  been  lined  up  to  spark  the  conclave, 
so  that  every  distributor  may  go  home  with  new  ideas  as  well  as  his  new  demonstrator. 

PAT  ON  THE  BACK   DEPARTMENT.  Clover  Leaf  Avia- 
tion,   Jon    Holl,    Frances    Longford    and    Robert    Young's 

direct-factory  dealership  in  Santa  Monica,  California,  was 
recently  awarded  an  exclusive  contract  as  supplier  of 
rental  aircraft  in  two  categories  to  CAA  personnel  operat- 
ing out  of  the  Authority's  6th  Regional  Headquarters 
(Region  covers  California,  Arizona,  Nevada  and  Utah). 
West  Coast  aviation  publications  report  that  this  is  the 
first  time  contracts  in  both  Categories  I  (2-passenger 
planes)  and  II  (4-or-more  passenger  planes  with  cruis- 
ing speed  of  130  mph  or  higher)  have  been  awarded  to  a  single  contractor 
within  the  region. 

WOMEN  SELL  RYAN  NAVIONS,  TOO.  No  slight  is  intended  the  ladies  by  the  title  of 
this  column.  The  outstanding  part  which  women  are  playing  in  Ryan  Navion  sales  and 
service  is  well  recognized.  Here  are  just  a  few  of  the  feminine  standard  bearers: 
Cloro  E.  Livingston,  owner  of  Dorado  Airfield,  Dorado,  Puerto  Rico;  Elynor  Rudnick, 
owner  of  Bokersfield  Airpark,  Bokersfield,  California;  Tereso  McEwon,  office  whiz  for 
Toth  Aircraft,  Kansas  City;  Frances  Nolde,  publicist  for  Aviation  Consultants,  Read- 
ing, Pa.;  and  Pat  Potemon,  Ryan  Navion  ferry-pilot  deluxe. 

DANIEL  TIPHAINE,  MANAGER  OF  TIDER,  S.R.L.,  Argentine  distributor,  visited 
the  Ryan  factory  lost  month  as  part  of  an  extended  business  tour  around  .the 
U.S.  Bringing  the  latest  news  from  his  port  of  the  Americas,  Tiphaine  told  Ryan 
Export  Sales  Coordinator,  William  Brotherton,  "The  Ryan  Navion  is  the  plane 
for  Argentina.  Most  of  our  people  are  in  some  way  engaged  in  ranching,  where 
operations  from  rough  fields  are  the  rule  rather  than  the  exception." 

FOR  DIRECT  MAILING  TO  BUSINESSMEN,  Jim  Hobstetter,  Southern  Ohio  Aviations 
go-getting  president,  is  planning  a  special  reprint  of  several  hundred  copies  of  the 
travel  Analysis  section  of  the  Ryan  Navion  Sales  Kit.  Jim  believes  this  particular  sec- 
tion "hits  the  economic  aspects  of  business  air  travel  right  on  the  button." 

SERVICE  THAT  LIVES  UP  TO  THE  NAME  has  been  assured  Navion  owners  in 
the  territories  of  Page  Aviation  Service,  Polo  Alto  Airport,  Thunderbird  Aviation 
Corp.,  Morgan  Gr  Waltz,  John  B.  Rudy  Co.,  and  Clover  Leaf  Aviation,  who  sent 
representatives  to  the  opening  session  of  the  current  series  of  Ryan  Navion  Ser- 
vice and  Maintenance  classes  at  the  factory.  L.  D.  Wilborn,  Wm.  B.  Freet,  John 
King,  Federico  P.  Guerrero,  Quote  Dodson  and  Warren  Johnson,  respectively, 
carried  the  colors  of  these  organizations  during  the  week-long  period  of  class- 
room study  and  production  line  instruction. 

BOB  HEWITT,  FRANK  KANE,  BILL  MARTIN  and  other  Mallard  Air  Service  execu- 
tives invite  everyone  in  the  Ryan  Navion  organization  to  visit  the  Notional  Sportsmen's 
Show  being  held  in  New  York  the  latter  part  of  February.  They've  worked  hard  to 
make  the  Ryan  Navion  Exhibit  the  Show's  outstanding  feature.  Dates  for  the  Show 
coincide  with  the  unveiling  of  the  1949  Navion  at  the  Distributor's  Meeting  in  San 
Diego,  and  the  Mallard  promoters  have  made  "29  Major  Refinements  in  '49"  a  key- 
note of  their  participation  in  the  sportsmen's  celebration. 

FLAT  RATE  WORK  ON  NOTHING  BUT  NAVIONS   is  the 

service  policy  followed  by  General  Aeronautics,  Fort  Worth, 
Texas.  Says  Les  Bowman,  president  of  this  top-selling  dis- 
tributor for  1948,  "After  14  months  experience  with  the 
policy  in  practice,  we  find  that  the  Navion  is  the  only  plane 
in  America  to  which  we  could  adapt  this  procedure,  and  be 
accurate  enough  to  hold  our  prices  constant  and  be  assured 
of  a  fair  profit." 

WHO'S  AN  OLDTIMER?  A  chance  glance  at  a  20-year  old  file  copy  of  the  magazine. 
Air  Transportation,  reveals  that  the  1928  list  of  Ryan  Airplane  Distributors  included 
Rankin  Flying  Service,  Portland,  Oregon.  This  company  was,  as  you've  probably  judged, 
the  forerunner  of  Rankin  Aviation  Industries,  current  Ryan  Navion  distributor,  still 
going  strong  in  that  same  area. 

THEY'RE  NEITHER  TOO  YOUNG  NOR  TOO  OLD  ...  to  travel  in  a  Ryan 
Navion,  that  is.  The  John  B.  Rudy  Co.,  direct-factory  dealer  in  Glendale,  Cali- 
fornia, proved  the  truth  of  this  lost  month  when  they  gave  Mrs.  Jomimo  White, 
91,  her  first  plane  ride.  Mrs.  White,  grandmother  of  Dick  White,  (purchasing 
agent  for  the  Rudy  Co.,  took  to  Navion  travel  with  hearty  enthusiasm,  it  is 
reported.  A  hatful  of  favorable  newspaper  publicity  was  showered  on  the  Rudy 
Co.  for  this  sharp  piece  of  promotion. 


11 


shown  in  front  of  one  of  the  Army'^s  sturdy  Ryan  Navion  L-17B  liaison  planes  with 
T.  Claude  Ryan,  President  of  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  (left)  and  Sam  Breder, 
Sales  Manager  (right),  are  Lt*  Col.  Arthur  Anderson,  Army  Field  Forces  Representative; 
Major  Charles  Haydocky  visiting  Pentagon  inspector,  and  Major  Richard  Long,  Field 
Forces,  Wright  Field,  Ohio.  Recent  deliveries  to  the  Army  were  part  of  an  order  of  163 
military  Ryan  Navion  airplanes  purchased  through  the  Air  Force  for  the  Army  Field 
Force  and  National  Guard, 


T^V 


^ 


ik 


fi 


ik 


NAVIONS  HELP  BRING  IN  THE  SHEAVES 

(Continued  from  page  5) 


This  busy  executive  who  heads  an  oil 
company  and  owns  warehouse  properties 
in  addition  to  his  ranch  responsibihtics, 
looks  upon  this  year's  all-time  harvest  as 
the  natural  outgrowth  of  his  long  effort 
to  successfully  utilize  airplanes  in  busi- 
ness. 

He  now  believes  that  his  1948  harvest 
record  speaks  for  the  high  degree  of  util- 
ity he  has  obtained  from  his  aircraft.   In 


his  Ryan  Navion — his  eighth  and  favorite 
plane — he  thinks  he's  found  a  post-war 
airplane  designed  with  the  combination  of 
safety,  performance,  and  ease-of-operation 
which  must  be  incorporated  into  a  piece 
of  ranch  equipment.  The  Navion  is  versa- 
tile enough  to  do  the  rough  work  that 
goes  with  harvesting  and  provide  com- 
fortable transportation  for  daily  business 
trips  to  metropolitan  business  centers. 


NEW  SCIENCE  BUILDING 
NEAR  RYAN  SOON  READY 

That  graceful  concrete  structure  which 
has  been  a-building  these  many  weeks  on 
the  strip  of  filled  land  between  Navy's 
Sonar  School  and  the  U.  S.  Coast  Guard 
across  from  Ryan's  northerly  domain  will 
be  headquarters  for  San  Diego  Section, 
Institute  of  Aeronautical  Sciences.  Aside 
from  main  quarters  in  New  York  City, 
only  one  other  such  I.A.S.  building  exists, 
although  Los  Angeles  is  busy  putting  one 
up. 

The  Institute  of  Aeronautical  Sciences 
is  a  national  organization  facilitating  in- 
terchange of  technical  ideas  among  aero- 
nautical engineers  here  and  abroad.  Mem- 
bers of  the  Institute  include  some  of  the 
keenest  minds  in  the  country. 

Ryan  people  are  prominent  in  the  San 
Diego  Section.  William  T.  Immenschuh, 
project  engineer  of  the  current  Navy 
Confidential  undertaking,  is  Correspond- 
ing Secretary  and  member  of  the  Execu- 
tive Committee.  Earl  D.  Prudden,  vice- 
president,  is  a  member  of  the  I.A.S.  Ad- 
visory Management  Committee.  Richard 
P.  White,  Ryan  engineering  department's 
structures  head,  is  Chairman  of  the  Mem- 
bership Committee,  and  Joel  M.  Whitney, 
aerodynamics  section,  serves  on  the  Con- 
tributors Committee. 

The  $165,000  building,  financed  by 
local  aircraft  companies  and  the  Fleet 
Foundation,  will  seat  3  50  persons.  Fa- 
cilities include  auditorium,  library,  lecture 
room,  kitchen  and  dining  room,  lounge, 
stage  and  projection  room.  Completion  is 
scheduled  for  March  1. 


i 

~T- 

: 

^ 

K 

'^Um^^^^^  ^           ^^^i 

-^ 

[^".  ^.  ""^'p 

i^SWI^TT^ 

j^ 

^Fl!3&*^:^- 

^1 

fe^^^^ 

9RKE 

^ 

^^^^^HK_/^Kff^^ a  ^^^H| 

i 

u 

« 

■  '//MM 

iSS-^ 

wy 

■A 

^^^■^^ 

2^ 

Elmer  C.   loii  Glahn   receives  plenty  of  barieil   lime  iisshlaiiee  from   these  TiiLtie  L.ike  Basin  neighbors  and  their  \.i.  ^oi^>.  iivi;.  i.   ....    ...   :.,s.'j/ 

are  oivners:  Percy  Whiteside,  Mrs.  Whiteside,  Wesley  Hansen,  von  Glahn,  L.  A.  Hansen.  Phil  Hansen.  Clyde  Sitton.  Harold  Dyer.  L.  B.  Hill. 
Everett  Salyer,  Bert  Huff,  and  Mrs.  Huff.  Six  of  the  hard-working  planes  are  in  the  air  almost  constantly  when  harvesting  is  at  its  peak. 
Represented  in  this  group  of  Nation  owners  are  a  publisher,  petroleum  operator,  trucking  firm  owner,  machine  shop  manager  and  seieral 
ranchers.  Percy  Whiteside,  owner  of  the  Corcoran,  California.  Airport,  where  this  picture  was  taken,  points  out.  "Nine  Navions  in  our  com- 
munity of  2,S00  means  there  is  one  for  every  300  people.  That's  real  Naiion  concentration." 


12 


NEW  JET  ENGINE  TEST  CELL 

Terrific  engine  speeds  und  unusual  operating  conditions  are 
expected  in  jet  engine  static  testing  for  some  of  Ryan  Aeronau- 
tical Company's  projects  this  year.  A  new  concrete  and  steel 
test  cell,  designed  by  William  T.  Immenschuh,  project  head, 
and  Charles  Rose,  both  of  the  Ryan  engineering  department, 
has  just  been  completed.  Work  began  in  November. 

Among  a  host  of  special  design  features  are  steel  doors  so 
hinged  that  they  can  be  automatically  closed,  in  emergency, 
from  within  the  test  cell  instrument  room.  Fire-fighting  equip- 
ment includes  10  extinguishers  which  can  be  released  in  salvo 
or  all  at  once.  Fuel  is  piped  into  the  operating  area  from  drums 
outside  the  building. 

Located  near  the  older  and  smaller  conventional  test  cell  at 
the  northeast  corner  of  the  company  property,  the  new  struc- 
ture embodies  latest  safety/strength  factors.  Walls  are  of  12- 
inch  reinforced  concrete  throughout  except  where  turbine 
wheels  and  compressors  will  be  affixed.  Here  the  concrete  is 
18  inches  thick  and  covered  by  a  steel  plating  1-inch  thick. 
Glass  observation  windows  are  bullet-proof  and  1-inch  thick. 


Affording  little  bint  of  the  complex  facilities  iihich  haie  been 
incorporated  jvithin  the  interior  is  this  photo  of  the  neiv  Ryan 
concrete   and    steel    jet    engine    test    cell    during    construction. 


ik 


^ 


ik 


IT'S  MOVING  DAY 

(Continued  from  page  7) 

Schulte  divides  his  team  into  two  groups, 
one  for  maintenance  and  one  for  construc- 
tion. He  has  (>7  workers  of  varied  skills  in 
his  force. 

One  of  Plant  Engineering's  most  impor- 
tant jobs,  Palmer  believes,  is  preventive 
maintenance.  "The  heat  treat  furnaces 
used  to  give  us  headaches,"  he  explained. 
"The  burners  in  the  furnaces  would  go 
along  fine  for  awhile,  then  drop  off  inches 
back  from  the  tip. 

"This  would  allow  flame  to  burn 
through  the  insulation,  causing  material  to 
melt  down  so  that  the  fire  would  then 
burn  through  the  sides.  Rebricking  would 
be  required,  an  expensive  process,  since  a 
complete  rebricking  job  costs  as  much  as 
$2  500.  The  solution?  Just  a  simple  but 
rigid  set  of  checks  and  inspections.  Since 
we  began  them,  we  haven't  had  any  fur- 
nace damage  whatever,  other  than  normal 
wear  and  tear." 

A  card  system  has  been  set  up  in  each 
department  for  routine,  repetitive  main- 
tenance checks.  Everything  requiring  spe- 
cial care  or  likely  to  fail  suddenly  is  given 
regular  attention.  Card  indices  are  simpli- 
fied, however.  Palmer  feeling  that  too 
much  paperwork  would  hamper  true  econ- 
omy. A  complete  index  of  all  shop  and 
office  equipment  and  furniture  is  main- 
tained, since  the  department  is  charged 
with  purchase  or  construction  of  most  of 
the  plant's  equipment.  Whether  you're 
working  on  a  hydraulic  press  or  at  a  type- 
writer. Plant  Engineering  will  "  have  your 
number." 

In  addition  to  Mechanical  Maintenance, 
which  handles  the  big  "moving  day"  jobs, 
the  Plant  Engineering  department  includes 


the  Carpenter  and  Box  shop;  Electrical 
Maintenance;  Automotive  Service  and 
Janitor  Service. 

Ryan  products  must  arrive  at  their 
destinations  in  good  condition  and  ready 
for  service.  To  help  insure  safe  delivery 
the  Carpenter  and  Box  Shop  turns  out 
hundreds  of  containers  each  month,  using 
an  average  of  8  500  board  feet  of  Ponderosa 
pine  and  2  500  feet  of  Tek-boarding  each 
week.  To  make  the  multitude  of  boxes, 
large  and  small,  and  to  construct  the 
tables,  benches,  desks,  platforms  and  bins 
needed  at  Ryan,  assistant  foreman  Ed.  W. 
Carson  has  what  he  flatly  declares  is  "the 
best  gang  of  workers  in  the  plant." 

Like  all  craftsmen,  his  carpenters  enjoy 
their  varied  tasks;  work  to  close  tolerances. 
"On  one  set  of  wood  blocks,"  Carson  said, 
"the  carpenter  was  finishing  to  1/100  of 
an  inch." 

Another  Ryan  plant  engineering  service, 
which  runs  so  smoothly  its  excellence  is 
taken  for  granted,  is  Electrical  Mainten- 
ance. Led  by  Charles  H.  "Whitey"  Lehton, 
the  17  men  of  this  group  work  in  multiple 
shifts  to  keep  all  electrical  functions  of 
the  plant  operating  efficiently.  There  is 
plenty  for  them  to  do.  Miles  of  wiring, 
most  of  it  in  overhead  conduits,  lace  to- 
gether the  dozens  of  plant  divisions,  sup- 
plying both  power  for  machines  and  light 
for  vision.  One  thing  Lehton  will  tell  you: 
that  lighting  in  the  Final  Assembly  build- 
ing which  may  give  you  a  bilious  appear- 
ance comes  from  mercury-vapor  lamps, 
which  afford  one  of  the  most  efficient 
forms  of  lighting. 

Old-timers  in  the  section  include  Cliff 
Whaley,  Bill  Salmon,  Frank  Elliot.  H.  H. 
Solomon,  Archibald  "Scotty"  Robb,  Don 
Toby  and  Clarence  Furbish.  Trouble 
shooters  are  ready  on  any  shift  to  replace 
fuses  or  repair  electrical  damages,  second 


shift  electricians  handling  all  routine  bulb 
replacements  and  minor  details.  Cliff 
Whaley,  with  Ryan  since  1940,  is  in 
charge  of  electrical  supervision  on  Ryan's 
new,  highly  technical  spot  welding  equip- 
ment. 

When  Ryan  customers  find  a  smart 
looking  station  wagon  at  the  airline  ter- 
minal to  meet  them,  or  Ryan  products  be- 
gin their  outward  journey,  vehicles  from 
Automotive  Service  can  be  relied  upon. 
C.  R.  Arrowsmith,  assistant  foreman,  and 
Milt  Johnson,  lead-man  of  the  4-man  day 
shift,  treat  their  trucks  and  cars  of  the 
highway  equipment  group  with  tender  re- 
spect due  high  priced  horsepower.  Trucks 
vary  from  6/2 -ton  3  5  ft.  semi-trailer  to 
'/4-ton  pickups.  Other  vehicular  equip- 
ment includes  automotive  car-loaders,  3- 
wheel  Buda  "chore-boys,"  putt-putts,  a 
big  "cherry-picker"  crane,  and  even  a 
rugged  tractor.  Every  service  from  engine 
reboring  to  fender  repair  is  available  in  the 
completely  equipped  garage. 

Most  of  us  are  impressed  by  obvious  ac- 
complishments of  mechanical  mainten- 
ance experts  or  baffled,  perhaps,  by  the 
sleight  of  hand  of  electricians.  We'd  be  dis- 
tinctly unhappy,  however,  were  we  to  be 
neglected  by  Walter  Russ  and  his  26  co- 
horts of  the  Janitor  Service  section,  who 
are  on  the  job  night  and  day.  In  a  plant 
the  size  of  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company 
the  janitor  service  comes  on  a  large  scale. 
Take  hand  towels,  for  instance.  Stretched 
out  in  one  long  roll,  the  paper  towels  used 
at  Ryan  each  month  would  allow  you  to 
dry  your  hands  from  San  Diego  to  San 
Francisco.  Ryan's  janitors  are  always  on 
the  lookout  for  ways  to  provide  better 
service  at  lower  cost.  Example  of  jani- 
torial thrift:  Russ  re-threads  all  worn 
broom  and  mop  handles  and  has  bought 
nary  a  new  one  since  taking  his  post. 


13 


On  The  Side  Lines 


STRAIGHT-SHOOTING.  George  Wood- 
ord,  Ryan  vice-president,  snagged  an- 
other billiard  victory  recently  in  a  San 
Diego  Club  Monday  Night  Rapid-Fire 
billiard  3-cushion  tournament,  defeating 
fellow  Son  Diego  clubman  Hilary  Klingen- 
smith  I  3  to  12  in  what  the  club's  maga- 
zine "San  Diego  Club  Life"  described  as 
a  "bang-up  game."  Woodard's  billiard 
prowess,  sharpened  in  months  of  con- 
sistent club  play,  will  be  put  to  test  in  a 
forthcoming  SDC  annual  round-robin 
tournament. 

WINNERS.  Potricia  Dew  and  Lucille 
Croddock,  both  of  the  Metal  Products 
soles  office,  proved  they  know  how  to 
coll  0  spade  a  spade  and  make  it  stick 
for  0  small  slam  when  they  powered  in  to 
tie  for  third  place  in  Son  Diego's  Indus- 
trial Bridge  tournament  recently. 

Their  score  in  the  duplicate  contract 
matches  was  253 '/2.  Closeness  of  play 
throughout  was  indicated  by  the  fact  that 
the  winners  scored  only  259  and  the  sec- 
ond place  team  257.  Games  were  grouped 
in  rubbers,  ten  each  over  two  nights'  com- 
petition. 

IN  THE  BASKET.  They  may  be  rock- 
ing along  at  the  bottom  of  the  heap  this 
season,  but  you  can  bet  your  lost  frayed 
shekel  that  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany's entrant  in  the  Son  Diego  city  bas- 
ketball league  has  never  quit  fighting  for 
0  moment  since  the  first  game.  If  you  like 
0  hard-fought  cage  gome,  be  sure  to  drop 
in  at  the  Municipal  gymnasium  in  Balboa 
park  some  Monday  evening  at  9  p.m.  be- 
fore March   14,  end  of  the  season. 

Rating  a  big  hand  for  their  persever- 
ance ond  unquenchable  spirit  ore  Joe 
Basson,  manifold;  Bill  Dungon,  sheet 
metal;  Jerry  Lowe,  tooling;  Cem  Long, 
shipping;  Hardy  Paine,  dispatching; 
Amundo  Arais,  receiving;  Dick  Rand, 
inspection;  Hank  Carvojel,  wing;  Jock 
Chappel,  machine  shop;  Rudy  Nova, 
wing  and  H.  E.  "Spike"  Adams,  shipping. 

BOWLERS.  Competition  sharpened 
among  the  16  teams  entered  in  the  Ryan 
Winter  Bowling  League  after  the  distrac- 
tions of  the  holiday 
season  were  put  be- 
hind. The  "Friendly 
Five"  squad  led  going 
into  the  lost  week  of 
January,  with 
the  "Bumpers"  gome- 
ly  hanging  on  in  lost 
place. 

High  team  gome  for 
the  season  to  date  was 
'Jets,"  with  high  team 
series  held  by  the  "Scolywags."  Maurice 
Clancy  was  tops  with  high  individual 
game  and  high  individual  series.  Among 
the  women  bowlers  Kay  Rizzo  and  Merle 
Dunfee  were  tied  for  best  high  game 
score,  and  Hazel  Marker  enjoyed  1  st  spot 
in  season's  high  individual  women's  series. 
Eloise  Hansen,  member  of  the  "Bumpers" 
team,  brought  at  least  a  little  consola- 
tion to  the  squad  by  taking  high  indi- 
vidual series  for  women  for  the  week  end- 
ing January  24. 


rolled    by    the 


Team  rosters  in  order  of  January  stand- 
ings include: 

I.   FRIENDLY    FIVE 

Clip  J.  Quinn,  Edward  Frank,  John  Mor- 
quardt,  Harlan  E.  Branch  and  William  C. 
Oxiey. 

2.   SCALYWAGS 
Hazel  Marker,   Ellen  Jorvey,   Lucille   Kin- 
ner,  Grace  White  and  Frances  Lone. 

3.   TOOLING 
Charles   Rice,    Earl    Keeney,   Arthur   Tor- 
Q^rsen,  Tom  Hule  and  Toby  Sandoval. 

4.   SPLITS 

Carl  Nesbitt,  Merlyn  K.  Deoring,  George 
Zwicker,  Mellville  Payne  and  Fred  H. 
Wallbrink. 

5    JETS 
Elmer   George,    Richard    Evilsizor,    Rupert 
Evilsizor,  Robert  Happersberg  and  Robert 
Rhoodes. 

6    CRAGGS 
Floyd  Cravens,  James  R.  Roth,  James  W. 
Bunnell,  Floyd  King  and  Maurice  Cloncy. 

7.   WOODSHOP 
Louis   E.   Plummer,    Fred  Aydelotte,  Wil- 
liam Courval,  Dennis  Miller  and  Maurice 
W.  Hutchinson. 

8.   HAMMERHEADS 
Jeoffrey  Conrad,  Paul  A.  Lane,  Ray  Mc- 
Collum,    John    D.     Kinner    and    Urbal    J. 
White. 

9.   E.  0.   FIVE 
Dick   Volstadt,    Ed    Baumgorten,    Howard 
Ensley,  Lou  Dunfee  and  Charles  Staup. 

10.   RASCALS 
Dee     Castoberry,     Floyd     Beasley,     Ernie 
Simonson,  Bud  Peffley  and  Joe  Basso. 

n.  SHIPPING 
Ray  Antrim,   C.    E.    Long,    Ida   Clements, 
Herb  Louden  and  Joe  McCoy. 

12.   SPARES 
Dot   Brunold,    Kay   Rizzo,    Merle   Dunfee, 
Charlotte  Kiesel  and  John  Bain,  Jr. 

13.   FLAME   THROWERS 
Charles  Gandy,  Bernard  A.  Moore,  Miguel 
Sanchez,  Harold  Stone  and  Russell  Eckort. 

14.   ALLEY  CATS 
Beverly    Volstadt,    Wanda     Dougherty, 
Kothey   Pepper,    Robert   Butts   and    L.    D. 
Hibbord. 

15.   SEVEN   ELEVEN 
L.    G.    Cragg,    Harry    Zuehlsdorf,    Robert 
Barry,    Emerson   R.   Akey   and    Fred    Fer- 
guson. 

16.    BUMPERS 
Eloise     Hansen,     Ruth     Robinson,     Dottie 
Barry,  Zito  McGee  and  Mary  Cravens. 

AT  THE  ALLEY.  Ryan  bowlers  ore 
helping  keep  the  bowling  alleys  in  Alomo- 
gordo.  New  Mexico,  warm  despite  below- 
freezing  weather,  according  to  Sam  B. 
Beaudry,  Ryan  project  engineer,  who 
spent  several  days  in  the  little  town  near 
the  Hollomon  Air  Force  Base. 

The  Ryanites  ore  anything  but  clique- 
minded  in  their  hardwood  competition, 
and  contribute  their  pin-talents  to  sev- 
eral city  teams.  Listed  among  the  olley- 
enthsuiasts  ore  M.  E.  Davidson,  Sam 
Beaudry,  Bob  Mawson,  Bob  Shaver  and 
Doug  Hounscll. 


GUIDED  MISSILES  SPAN 
NEW  HORIZONS 

(Continued  from  page  3 ) 

the  combustion  chamber,  so  the  ram-jets 
must  be  accelerated  by  some  form  of 
booster  or  aircraft  lift  to  speeds  sufficient 
to  build  up  proper  operating  pressure  at 
the  intake.  This  is  roughly  300  m.p.h. 

Pulse-jets  are  simply  designed  power- 
plants,  such  as  used  in  the  V-1  "buzz 
bomb,"  in  which  combustions  occur  in  a 
series  of  explosions.  The  combustion 
chamber  is  filled  with  air  which  flows  past 
a  spring-flap  valve.  Fuel  is  injected  and  ig- 
nited, the  ensuing  explosion  closing  the 
valve  and  driving  burning  gases  out  rear 
nozzles.  As  pressure  falls  off,  the  valves 
reopen  and  the  cycle  repeats. 

The  term  "guided"  missile  is  still  vague. 
One  definition  lists  it  as  a  missile  which, 
after  launching,  is  directed  toward  a  tar- 
get by  other  than  natural  forces.  Guidance 
problems  are  the  heart  of  the  entire  pro- 
gram, and  the  nation  first  achieving  a  posi- 
tive and  practical  means  of  controlling  the 
weapons  in  flight  may  well  dominate  the 
international  scene. 

"Both  the  target  and  missile  must  be 
tracked,"  Lt.  Col.  McCutcheon  recently 
wrote  in  the  Marine  Corps  Gazette.  "The 
tracking  data  must  be  computed  into  di- 
rections for  the  missile,  and  the  computed 
directions  must  be  transmitted  to  the  mis- 
sile and  corresponding  corrections  applied 
to  the  control  surfaces." 

Ways  and  means  for  carrying  out  the 
tracking  and  control  vary,  he  explained. 
One  classification  lists  four  basic  systems: 
( 1 )  preset,  in  which  the  action  of  the 
missile  is  established  before  launching  and 
cannot  be  changed  later,  as  in  the  German 
V-1  and  V-2;  command,  in  which  con- 
trols within  the  missile  are  operated  by  di- 
rections which  originate  from  outside  the 
missile,  demonstrated  by  the  drone  planes 
used  at  Bikini  and  more  extensively  by  the 
Navv  for  target  practice;  along-the-uay, 
in  which  the  missile  carries  equipment  ca- 
pable of  delecting  deviations  from  some 
kind  of  path  or  route  through  space,  ex- 
amples of  which  are  shown  daily  in  "beam- 
riding"  transport  aircraft  flights,  and 
homing,  in  which  the  guided  missile  pos- 
sesses some  ability  to  fix  upon  a  property 
of  the  target  and  follow  it. 

A  macabre  example  of  "homing"  re- 
sulted early  in  the  war  in  Russia  when  the 
Soviets  trained  dogs  to  get  their  food  only 
under  tanks  and  armored  vehicles — no- 
where else.  When  the  habit-pattern  had 
been  firmly  fixed,  the  Russians  strapped 
explosive  to  the  dogs;  fitted  the  charges 
with  detonators  which  would  set  off  when 
any  upright  metal  rod  touched  the  un- 
derside of  a  tank.  Packs  of  the  dogs,  so 
(Continued  on  next  page) 


14 


GUIDED  MISSILES  SPAN 
NEW  HORIZONS 

(Continued  from  page  14) 
equipped,  were  restrained,  until,  half- 
starved,  they  were  finally  released  near 
German  tank  parks.  A  more  ordinary  ex- 
ample of  "homing"  is  the  flight  of  pigeons 
to  long-distant  cotes. 

Lt.  Col.  McCutcheon  gives  an  "easy" 
way  to  determine  type  of  guidance  sys- 
tem. He  cites  the  questions:  "What  is  the 
path  to  the  target?"  and  "What  correc- 
tions need  to  be  applied  to  follow  that 
course?" 

"If  both  these  questions  are  answered 
within  the  missile,  it  is  a  target  seeking 
system,"  he  explains.  "If  they  are  both 
answered  outside  of  the  missile,  either  in 
an  accompanying  aircraft,  or  a  ship  or  on 
the  ground,  it  is  a  command  system;  if  the 
first  question  is  answered  outside  of  the 
missile  and  the  second  one  within,  it  is  a 
course-seeking  system."  Actual  guidance 
of  the  missile  may  be  considered  in  three 
general  phases:  launching,  mid-course  and 
attack. 

Launching  the  missile  constitutes  an  ex- 
tremely difficult  problem.  The  terrific 
heats  generated  as  the  rocket  forces  ignite 
require  carefully  planned  launching  areas 
with  types  of  catapult,  ramp  or  rail  de- 
signed to  suit  the  particular  guided  mis- 
sile. The  launching  site  may  be  a  ground 
station,  aboard  a  ship  at  sea,  or  on  an  air- 
plane in  flight.  Some  speculation  has  even 
been  reported  concerning  stratospheric 
platforms  floating  beyond  the  Earth's 
gravitational  pull. 

During  the  war,  the  Germans  brought 
out  such  devices  as  the  "Fritz-X,"  an  ar- 
mor-piercing radio-or-wire-guided  bomb 
which  sunk  the  Italian  battleship  "Rome"; 
the  HS-293,  glide-bomb  with  a  six-mile 
range  which  brought  distress  to  allied 
shipping  in  the  Mediterranean,  and  a  vari- 
ety of  anti-aircraft  rockets  for  ground- 
to-air  use. 

The  United  States  brought  out  the 
Azon  bomb,  a  1,000  pounder  of  conven- 
tional type  with  radio-controlled  tail  sur- 
faces which  helped  the  bomb  achieve  an 
accuracy  about  10  times  as  great  as  that 
of  ordinary  bombs.  We  also  developed  the 
GB-8,  a  2,000  pound  glide-bomb  which 
proved  useful  against  U-boat  pens;  the 
"Weary  Willie,"  a  stripped  B-17  or  B-24 
which  was  loaded  with  TNT  and  guided 
by  "mother"  aircraft  through  drone 
equipment;  the  "Bat,"  an  air-launched, 
radar-homing  glide-bomb  equipped  with 
wings.  The  "Bat,"  carrying  a  1,000  pound 
warhead,  proved  most  successful  of  U.S. 
war-time  guided  missiles  and  was  effective 
against  the  Japs. 

Whole   families   of   guided   missiles   are 
(Continued  on  page  1 6) 


Strictly  Personnel 


BIG  MOVE.  Transfer  of  two  portions  of 
fabrication  superintendent  Herb  Rasp's 
sheet  metal  assembly  department  has 
been  completed.  Moved  over  to  the  Air- 
plane Division  was  Sheet  Metal  Aluminum 
Assembly,  while  Sheet  Metal  Stainless 
Steel,  the  other  half,  was  placed  in  the 
hands  of  Ray  Ortiz,  Manifold  Production 
Superintendent, 

APPOINTED.  Another  demonstration 
of  the  leading  position  attained  by  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company  was  afforded  by 
appointment  recently  of  James  L.  Kelley, 
works  manager,  to  the  position  of  vice- 
chairman  of  the  Manufacturer's  Commit- 
tee of  the  Son  Diego  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce. 

One  of  Kelley's  first  duties  in  his  new 
appointment  was  to  assist  in  welcoming 
the  distinguished  industrialist,  James  F. 
Lincoln,  to  San  Diego  and  the  Ryan  plant. 
The  civic  honor  will  not  interfere  with 
Kelley's  duties  at  Ryon. 

A  GOOD  SKATE.  His  name  is  Helmuth 
"Curley"  Richie.  He  works  as  a  bench 
machinist  in  the  machine  shop.  His  cards 
read:  "Original  free  style  rhythmic  trick 
roller  skating,  boogie-woogie  or  classic 
routine."  And  if  you've  seen  him  perform 
for  exhibitions,  socials  or  charity  bene- 
fits, you'll  likely  agree  the  man  is  really 
original — and  good. 

Richie  doesn't  claim  any  "champion- 
ships" in  roller-skating.  But  he  does  stake 
out  0  claim  to  unusual  techniques  in  a 
hobby  which  keeps  him  supple,  alert,  and 
above  all,  amused.  He  has  skated  in  rinks 
in  30  States  across  the  country,  beginning 
his  career  on  wheels  in  Tampa,  Flo.,  only 
IVi  years  ago.  Richie  likes  both  his  full 
time  work  as  a  machinist  and  his  hobby 
on  hardwood.  The  maple  wheels  of  his 
skates  wear  out  within  five  months,  he 
estimates,  but  his  shoes  go  even  faster, 
the  leather  scuffing  through  on  the  sides. 

"Might  almost  call  me  a  rolling  stone," 
he  admits.  "But  at  least  there's  no  moss 
hanging  around."  He  has  been  with  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company  for  six  months  and 
l-hinks  the  place  is  tops.  Richie  formerly 
worked  at  Ranger  Aircraft  Co. 

PAYS  A  VISIT.  Leonard  Larson,  as- 
sistant to  the  president  of  Morquordt  Air- 
craft Company  of  Venice,  showed  par- 
ticular interest  in  the  metal  products  and 
engineering  departments  during  a  recent 
visit  to  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company 
plant.  Morquordt  has  called  frequently 
upon  Ryan  for  stainless  steel  products  in 
connection  with  several  late  jet-engine 
developments. 

Larson  was  flown  bock  to  the  northern 
plant  by  William  P.  "Doc"  Sloan,  Navion 
soles  executive. 

NEW  JOBS.  Appointment  of  one  new 
assistant  foreman  for  each  shift  in  the 
sheet  metal  assembly  department  was  an- 
nounced late  last  month  by  Herb  Rasp, 
fabrication  superintendent. 

Emil  Magdich  is  the  new  assistant  fore- 
man for  the  first  shift;  Wade  A.  Stein- 
ruck  assistant  foreman  for  the  second 
shift. 


OCEAN  CRUISERS.  Brief  but  instruc- 
tive first-hand  experience  with  aircraft 
carrier  operations  was  afforded  1  8  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company  members  of  the 
Institute  of  Aeronautical  Sciences  recently 
on  a  one-day  cruise  aboard  the  U.S.S. 
Boxer  as  guests  of  the  Navy's  1  1  th  Novol 
District  public  information  department. 

Among  those  visiting  the  big  flat-top 
were  T.  Claude  Ryan,  Earl  Prudden,  E.  O. 
Baumgarten,  John  Burgeson,  Albert  Cor- 
das,  Clyde  Cordner,  William  Immen- 
schuh,  Robert  Johnston,  John  Loney, 
Stewart  Matson,  William  Occonicof,  Rich- 
ord  White,  Joel  Whitney,  Melvin  Wilson, 
Robert  Close,  Herman  Braosch,  Raymond 
Pyle  and  John  Debevoise. 

NO  CLAY  PIGEONS?  An  intriguing 
spore  time  hobby  of  Don  Coates,  Ryan 
Machine  Shop  lead  man  come  to  light 
recently  when  a  lucite  cose  containing 
half  0  dozen  attractive,  hard-glazed  fig- 
urines was  placed  on  display  temporarily 
in  the  Personnel  office.  Inquiry  developed 
that  Don  knows  all 
about  figurines  and 
glazing  and  kiln-fir- 
ing and  pottery  tech- 
niques, having  helped 
produce  more  than 
300  sets  of  dainty 
original  clay  minia- 
tures for  sole  OS  on 
t .     _  ^         off-hours    project    last 

year. 
During  the  day  Don  heads  up  a  first 
shift  group  of  seven  drill  press  operators, 
intent  upon  machining  tolerances  and 
shiny  metal  surfaces.  Week-nights,  how- 
ever, from  7:30  p.m.  until  the  witching 
hour,  he  hunches  intently  as  any  storied 
elf  of  Hens  Andersen  fame  over  his  din- 
ing room  table.  Brushes  and  modeling 
knives  comprise  his  working  tools;  skill 
and  imagination  fortify  his  technique. 

"Main  differences  between  cheap  store 
models  and  hand-crafted  figurines,"  Don 
soys,  "ore  the  number  of  firings,  the  in- 
tensity of  blaze  in  firing,  originality  of 
design  and  artistry  of  hand-pointing. 
Good  china  or  pottery  should  hove  a 
sonority  or  "ring"  and  should  be  very 
smooth  to  the  touch." 

"How  come  those  little  gadgets  cost 
so  much?"  he  was  asked. 

"Workmanship  PLUS,"  was  Coote's 
reply.  "That  PLUS  means  four  separate 
firings,  a  fine  glaze  spray,  special  plat- 
ing with  IS-korot  gold,  and  hand  point- 


VISITOR.  General  Electric  company's 
newly  appointed  Son  Diego  representa- 
tive, Walter  Brees,  was  a  Ryan  visitor 
recently,  looking  over  plant  facilities  with 
Sam  Breder,  Joe  Small,  Jimmy  Stalnaker 
and  Joe  Richert. 

Mr.  Brees  will  act  as  coordinator  and 
expediter  between  General  Electric  and 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  on  the  new 
multi-million  dollar  G-E  jet  engine  con- 
tract. 


15 


This  Flying  World 

•  To  save  the  lives  of  more  than  a  million  starving  sheep  and  cattle  on  isolated  snow- 
bound western  ranges,  the  first  "haylift"  in  history  was  launched  late  last  month  by 
the  U.S.  Air  Force. 

Feed  "bombs"  of  hay  and  cotton-seed  cake  were  dropped  across  the  blizzard  area  of 
Nevada  in  first  operations,  sixteen  Fairchild  C-82  "Packets"  taking  off  at  ten-minute 
intervals  from  McLellan  Airbase  at  Sacramento,  Calif.,  against  weather  conditions  which 
brought  temperatures  as  low  as  3  2  degrees  below  zero  at  Elko,  Nev.,  and  40  below  at 
Carlin. 

RYAN   EXHAUST   SYSTEMS   ARE   STANDARD   ON   THE   C-82    "PACKETS." 

•  Aircraft  carrier  tests  of  the  Martin  AM-1  attack  plane  were  successfully  concluded  on 
the  U.S.S.  Kearsarge  recently,  the  single  engined  "Maulers"  bringing  aboard  the  heaviest 
concentrations  of  torpedoes,  rockets  and  machine  guns  yet  incorporated  in  this  type  of 
carrier-based  aircraft.  A  group  of  technical  observers  from  the  Navy  and  the  Martin 
company  wrere  aboard  for  exercises  in  v/hich  planes  from  VF-174,  regularly  assigned  to 
Naval  Air  Station,  Quonset  Point,  R.I.,  were  tested  over  a  period  of  several  weeks. 

The  Martin  Mauler  vi^eighs  nearly  22,500  pounds,  v/ilh  a  pay-load  of  better  than  7,000 
pounds  for  fuel  and  armament.  It  has  a  range  of  better  than  2,000  miles,  maximum  speed 
of  "more  than  300  m.p.h."  and  is  powered  by  a  Pratt  and  Whitney  R-4360-4  engine. 
RYAN  MANIFOLDS  HELP  THE  MARTIN  MAULERS  GIVE  TOP  PERFORMANCE. 

9 British  Commonwealth  Pacific  Airlines  recently  purchased  four  Douglas  DC-6  air- 
planes specially  designed  for  use  on  the  British  company's  Trans-Pacific  routes.  They  are 
scheduled  to  enter  service  early  in  March.  Comfort  of  passengers  has  been  highlighted, 
the  planes  offering  37  sleeper  berths  among  their  accommodations  for  4S  passengers  and  a 
Crete  of  nine. 

RYAN  JET-THRUST-ASSIST-TYPE   EXHAUST    SYSTEMS   GIVE    THE   DC-6 
EXTRA   SPEED   AND   PERFORMANCE. 

•  Disclosure  that  for  some  time  "it  has  been  modifying  B-29's  and  B-50's  to  enable  those 
aircraft  to  be  refueled  in  the  air"  was  made  by  the  U.S.  Air  Force  recently  foUowfing  pub- 
lication of  details  of  the  second  non-stop  round-trip  flight  between  Fort  Worth,  Tex.,  and 
Honolulu.  The  flight  was  made  by  a  B-50  bomber  of  the  Strategic  Air  Command,  utilizing 
for  the  first  time  on  such  a  hop  the  air-to-air  refueling  technique.  Elapsed  flying  time  was 
just  over  40  hours. 

B-29  type  aircraft,  especially  modified  as  air-borne  fuel  tankers,  made  three  refueling 
contacts  with  the  B-50  during  the  long  flight.  As  a  further  test,  a  substantial  load  of  bombs 
was  carried  to  a  mid-way  point  on  the  trip.  More   than  an  hour's  fuel  remained  in  the 
B-50's  tanks  upon  return  to  Ft.  Worth. 
RYAN  EXHAUST  SYSTEMS  ARE  IMPORTANT  FACTORS  IN  B-50  RELIABILITY. 

•  Exhaust  systems  on  the  Pratt  and  Whitney  R-2  800-C  engines  which  power  the  fleets 
of  Douglas  DC-6  airliners  around  the  world  are  the  first  of  the  jet-thrust-assist-type 
to  be  used  on  modern  commercial  airlines.  During  the  war  Ryan  pioneered  in  design  and 
manufacture  of  the  predecessors  of  the  present  manifolds,  then  called  "spaghetti-stack" 
assemblies,  producing  them  in  quantity  for  Douglas  A-2  0  B's.  Ryan  also  made  short  jet- 
assist  stacks  for  use  on  A-20C's,  A-20G's  and  A-20H's. 

Approximately  the  same  thrust  as  an  additional  400  horse-power  is  reported  to  be 
added  by  the  new  manifolds.  The  weight  of  the  entire  exhaust  system  for  one  engine  on 
the  DC-6  type  aircraft  is  only  112  pounds. 

RYAN  EXHAUST  SYSTEMS  HELP  THE  DC-6   DELIVER   FINE  PERFORMANCE 

•  "Safety  in  the  Air"  is  more  than  a  slogan.  American  Airlines  completed  on  December 
31,  1948,  a  total  of  3,933,000,000  passenger  miles  without  a  passenger  fatality.  Safe  pas- 
senger miles  flown  since  the  Airlines'  last  fatal  accident,  on  March  3,  1946,  exceeded  all 
passenger  miles  flown  in  the  company's  previous  20-year  history. 

Pan-American  Airways  Latin  American  Division  completed  a  period  of  3V2  years  in 
which  its  planes  flew  almost  2  billion  passenger  miles  without  a  fatality  to  passengers  or 
crewmen.  Their  airplanes  during  1948  carried  668,622  passengers,  plus  an  estimated 
28,471,422  pounds  of  cargo  for  a  new  record  volume.  Passenger  miles  flown  during  the 
year  totaled  554,314,370. 
RYAN  STAINLESS  STEEL  EXHAUST  SYSTEMS  ARE  USED  ON  BOTH  AIR  LINES. 

•  Arrangements  sanctioning  production  in  Canada  of  the  Fairchild  C-82  Packet  were 
approved  by  the  U.S.  Government  in  recent  negotiations  between  the  Fairchild  Engine 
and  Airplane  Corp.  and  Canadair,  Ltd.,  Canadian  aircraft  manufacturer.  Representatives 
of  the  tivo  firms  met  in  Montreal  to  settle  final  details.  {The  U.S.  Munitions  Board  stated 
that  it  interposed  no  objections  to  the  license  agreement  provided  that  the  C-S2  is  built 
in  plants  controlled  by  Canadair,  that  all  sales  of  the  troop  transport  be  confined  to  the 
United  Kingdom,  and  that  precautions  be  taken  to  prevent  the  C-82  falling  into  hands 
of  potential  enemies  of  this  country.) 

An  additional  stipulation  that  the  license  not  interfere  with  production  of  the  C-82  in 
this  country  afforded  no  difficulty  since  Fairchild  is  now  busy  with  the  new,  improved 
version  of  the  Packet,  the  C-119B.  It  has  orders  for  99  of  the  latter,  at  a  cost  of 
$80,800,000. 

RYAN  COLLECTORS  AID  PERFORMANCE  OF  BOTH  THE  C-82  AND  C-119B. 


GUIDED  MISSILES  SPAN 
NEW  HORIZONS 

{Continued  from  page  1 ') ) 

reported  under  development  in  industrial 
laboratories  under  supervision  of  the 
armed  services  and  the  National  Advisory 
Committee  for  Aeronautics.  Most  are  un- 
der strict  security  wraps,  including  those 
in  aircraft  plants,  but  the  "Tiamat,"  a 
14-foot,  600-pound  rocket  reaching  con- 
trolled sub-sonic  speeds,  has  been  described 
along  with  the  "Gorgon,"  Navy  developed 
missile  with  a  seeking  head. 

Writing  in  Flying  Magazine,  Richard 
G.  Naugle,  project  engineer  with  the  Air 
Material  Command  at  Wright  Field,  Ohio, 
recently  highlighted  development  of  mis- 
siles suitable  for  launching  by  aircraft.  A 
guided  missile,  he  feels,  is  extremely  dan- 
gerous from  the  viewpoint  of  a  bomber. 
Smaller,  faster  than  a  fighter  plane,  far 
more  elusive,  it  defies  even  radar-tracking 
equipment  and  automatic  turrets  spewing 
proximity-fused  cannon  shells. 

Naugle  pointed  out  that  guided  missiles 
can  be  built  more  cheaply  than  modern 
fighter  aircraft,  and  "operate"  much  more 
economically.  They  require  only  small 
handling  crews,  and  can  be  launched  either 
from  aircraft  or  ground  stations  on  de- 
fense, or  from  planes  traveling  at  super- 
sonic speeds  on  offense.  Fighters,  which 
may  not  themselves  be  able  even  to  catch 
a  guided  missile,  can  launch  the  deadly 
objects.  The  missiles'  effectiveness  is  mul- 
tiplied when  hurtled  from  a  plane,  its 
range  being  that  of  the  fighter  plus  its 
own,  with  added  warhead  efficiency.  The 
fighter  (or  bomber,  for  that  matter) 
would  act  as  the  launching  device,  ex- 
tending range  and  mobility  and  acting  as 
mother  plane  to  guide  and  control  the  ex- 
plosive bundle  rather  than  to  carry  rela- 
tively inefficient  machine  gun  bullets  and 
gravity  bombs. 

Perhaps  the  next  war  will  find  both 
bomber  and  fighter  planes  carrying  guided 
missiles.  Tremendous  problems  will  face 
the  defense  forces  to  enable  long-range 
interception  and  prevent  attacking  units 
from  coming  within  range  for  launching 
practically  unstoppable  missiles. 

The  Japs  in  World  War  II  produced  a 
guided  missile,  but  were  unable  to  create 
electronic  devices  for  its  control,  so  were 
forced  to  rely  upon  human  fanatics  for 
steering.  Even  with  so  crude  a  combina- 
tion, however,  the  Japanese  served  notice 
with  their  Baka-bombs  and  Kamikazes 
that  a  determined  attack  with  "expend- 
able" aircraft  or  missiles  was  hard  to  stop 
and  disastrous  in  effect. 

Regardless  of  problems,  swift  develop- 
ment of  the  entire  guided  missile  field  is 
certain,  with  all  the  nations  of  the  world 
pouring  wealth  and  brains  into  the  re- 
search race. 


16 


Shouu  above,  intently  observing 
a  ivelding  operation  ivhile  visit- 
ing the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany plant  recently,  is  James  F. 
Lincoln,  eastern  industrialist 
famed  for  his  advanced  and  high- 
ly successful  labor-management 
policies.  He  is  President  of  the 
Lincoln  Electric  Co.,  of  Cleve- 
land, Ohio. 


RAM-JET  DEVELOPMENTS 

(Continued  from  page  4) 
the    wing   of   Northrop's    rugged    "Black 
Widow"  night  fighter  (whose  engines  are 
equipped  with  Ryan-made  exhaust  mani- 
folds) . 

Skilled  Ryan  workmen  turned  out  the 
deceptively  simple  looking  stainless  steel 
aft  sections  for  the  Marquardt  ram-jet  en- 
gine used  in  the  Gorgon-IV.  The  big  Webb 
power  roller  was  used  for  a  series  of  manu- 
facturing operations  in  Manifold  Assem- 
bly. Joe  Love,  foreman,  followed  through 
on  the  sheet  metal  work,  assisted  by  G.  T. 
Bell,  Sammy  Gilbert  and  Joe  Basso. 

Ram-jct  propulsion  of  standard-type 
fighter  aircraft  was  demonstrated  by  the 
U.  S.  Air  Force  at  about  the  same  time  the 
Navy  was  conducting  its  test  runs  with 
the  Gorgon-IV.  These  tests  also  used  ram- 
jets manufactured  by  the  Marquardt  Air- 
craft Company,  incorporating  Ryan  stain- 
less steel  components.  In  the  Air  Force 
tests  ram-jet  engines  provided  sole  power 
in  spectacular  flights  of  a  Lockheed  F-80 
"Shooting  Star,"  climaxing  three  years  of 
experimentation. 

On  the  historic  "Shooting  Star"  flight, 
ram-jets  at  the  wing-tips  were  "cut-in" 
and  the  airplane's  jet  engine  in  the  fuselage 
shut  off  after  the  plane  had  exceeded  300 
m.p.h.  Flames  sometimes  shot  out  30  to 
40  feet  behind  the  wing-tips. 

Both  20-inch  diameter  ram-jets  and  30- 
inch  models  have  been  used,  the  former 
type  in  the  Navy's  Gorgon-IV.  The 
powerplants  contain  no  moving  parts 
other  than  the  fuel  pumps,  and  have  ex- 
tremely powerful  thrust  for  their  size. 

The  ram-jet  is  capable  of  tremendous 
speeds  once  it  has  been  launched  or 
dropped  into  space  around  the  300  m.p.h. 
mark,  at  which  the  "ram"  of  air  is  suffi- 
cient for  compression. 


What  The  Other  Man  Thinks 

LET'S  KEEP  UP  THE  INSTALLMENTS 

(During   debates   on   the   Supplemental   National    Defense    Appropriation   Act   of 
1948,  leaders  of  both  parties  in  both  Houses  of  Congress  emphasized  the  need  for 
a  long-term  program  to  provide  adequate  air-power  for  this  country.   Speakers 
made  clear  that  enactment  of  the  appropriation  usually  referred  to  as  the  70-group 
Air  Force  Bill,   was   only  the  FIRST  step  towards   an  adequate   long-range  air 
defense  program.  Comment  by  a  prominent  Democrat  from  the  President's  home 
state  stresses  this  point:) 
"Any  businessman  will  tell  you  that  he  can  produce  results  more  quickly,  and  handle 
the  job  more  eilicienlly,  if  permitted  to  go  ahead  and  make  permanent  long-range  commit- 
ments at  the  start  and  thereby  save  both  time  and  money.  Why  not  follow  business-like 
procedures  here  and  secure  more  quickly  and  effectively  the  air  power  we  so  urgently 
need  and  which  in  the  near  future  we  may  need  even  more  desperately? 

".  .  .  This  is  at  least  a  first  installment.  We  are  making  the  first  down-payment  and 
will  have  to  moke  payment  on  subsequent  installments  later  on.  And  in  the  meantime  we 
will  pay  through  the  nose  in  unnecessary  delay  and  additional  costs  as  the  installment 
buyer  always  does." 

— Representative  Clarence  Cannon  (D.,  Mo.) 

WHAT  FLOOR,  PLEASE? 

Jobs,  like  elevators,  start  at  the  bottom.  It's  up  to  you  to  call  your  floor. 

About  a  generation  ago  the  143  men  who  today  manage  50  of  the  country's  largest 
businesses  came  back  from  a  war  and  went  to  work.  Most  of  them  had  to  start  at  the 
bottom  of  their  respective  careers  and  show  what  they  could  do.  Twelve  started  work  for 
less  than  $5  a  week;  43  for  less  than  $10  weekly.  Another  group,  numbering  81  aspirants, 
received  between  $10  and  $25  a  week.  Only  eight  drew  more  than  $25.  Average  weekly 
wage  was  $13.40  for  all  143  men. 

A  low  starting  wage  proved  only  a  challenge  to  the  leaders  of  today.  The  leaders  of 
our  industry  25  years  from  today  will  be  men,  who,  like  today's  top  executives,  possess 
ambition,  foresight,  loyalty  and  willingness  to  plan  and  to  work  hard. 

What's  YOUR  floor? 

A  UNION  MAN  SPEAKS  OUT: 
"I'm  not  going  to  protect  smoll  cliques  of  men  whose  interests  are  promoted  and  propa- 
gated by  the  Daily  Worker  and  the  Communist  Party." 

— Phillip  Murray 

Congress  of  Industrial  Organizations 

DEFINING  THE  SYSTEM 

"Someone  has  asked  me  to  try  briefly  to  define  the  "Profit  System."  It  can't  be  done 
because  there  never  has  been  any  such  system,  is  not  now,  nor  ever  will  be. 

"There  is,  however,  a  "PROFIT  AND  LOSS  SYSTEM,"  with  which  we  are  all  familiar 
— one  that  entails  both  an  opportunity  for  profit  and  a  chance  of  loss.  It  is  true  that  men 
engage  in  business  hoping  to  make  a  profit,  but,  unfortunately,  their  hopes  are  not  always 
realized,  and  all  too  often  there  is  a  loss  instead. 

"PROFIT  in  industry  is  what  is  left  after  materials,  labor,  taxes  and  all  other  expenses 
have  been  paid.  It  represents  a  reward  for  human  imagination,  planning,  skill  and  hard 
work.  LOSS  is  the  deficit  which  arises  because  the  planning  has  been  faulty,  or  insuf- 
ficient skill  has  been  exercised,  or  there  has  not  been  enough  hard  work,  or  a  combina- 
tion of  all  three. 

"When  savings  are  invested,  there  is  no  guarantee  they  will  earn  a  profit — in  fact  no 
assurance  that  the  investor  will  not  lose  part  or  all  of  his  savings.  That  is  our  quarrel 
with  the  'planned  economists' — according  to  them,  everybody  is  supposed  to  win  all  of 
the  time.  This  just  can't  be  done." 

— George  Peck,  Editor 
"The  American  Way" 

PIPERS  MUST  BE  PAID 
"As  long  as  we  fool  ourselves  into  the  habit  of  asking  for  more  Government,  we'll  see 
more  and  more  added  to  the  payrolls  and  we'll  pay  higher  and  higher  taxes.  Certainly 
the  more  of  it  we  set  up  the  more  we  have  to  pay  for. 

"What  we  need  constantly  to  remember  is  that  the  Government  has  not  a  cent  to  spend 
except  what  it  collects  from  you  and  me  and  our  neighbors." 

— George  S.  Benson,  President 
Harding  College 

WHAT  ARE  YOUR  CHANCES  IF  THERE  ARE  NO  PROFITS? 

"Some  people  claim  that  1948  corporation  profits,  which  will  amount  to  about  $20 
billion,  are  too  high.  But  if  we  cut  the  total  volume  of  profits  drastically  we  shall  do  so  at 
our  national  peril. 

"Almost  two  thirds  of  all  profits  today  are  going  to  rebuild  and  improve  plants  and 
equipment.  More  than  $13  billion  of  this  year's  profits  are  being  plowed  back.  They  are 
going — as  a  large  proportion  of  profits  have  always  gone — to  buy  for  workers  better  tools 
to  work  with,  better  surroundings  in  which  to  work.  They  are  making  possible  better 
products,  and  more  of  them,  for  all  of  us." 

— James  H.  McGraw,  Jr.,  President 
McGraw-Hill  Publishing  Co.,  Inc. 


17 


RYAN    AERONAUTICAL   COMPANY 
LINDBERGH     FIELD 
SAN  DIEGO  12,  CALIFORNIA 

Return   Postage  Guaranteed 

POSTMASTER:     If     addressee     has     removed,     and     new 
address   is   known,   notify   sender  on   Form    3547,   postage 

D.    N.    BEEBE 

3375    PSMLZR'A.'y    STREET 

SAN    DIEGO,    CALIF. 

Sec.  562,  P.  L.  &  R. 

U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego,  California 
Permit  No.  437 

RMHn  Metal  Products 

DIVISION    OF    RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY      •      LINDBERGH    FIELD      •      SAN     DIEGO.     CALIFORNIA 

Exhaust    Systems      •      Turbo-Jet    and    Ram-Jet    Components 


SsesaB  1^57  eassai3o  saiiQ  ^5<M£S  QH^ 


IDeS  a  Iksetoses  aisaEG  &3  03^^ 


ON  THE  COVER 

Leo  Gross,  operator  on   newly  installed 
Billiard    vertical    turret    lathe,    adjusts 
cutting  tool  prior  to  finishing  operation 
on   new  G-E  fixture. 
(See  story  on  Page  $)  


HE  SIGNS  IT: 


By  night  you  may  reach  him  on  ham 
radio  call  W6-DBV.  By  day  you'll  find 
him  deep  in  requisitions  as  Ryan's  alert 
purchasing  agent. 

Studied  electrical  engineering  and 
business  administration  at  Oregon  State, 
and,  lucky  man,  makes  a  hobby  of  one 
and  a  vocation  of  the  other.  At  Ryan 
since  1940;  has  lived  in  San  Diego  since 
1912.  Dwells  at  3430  Dumas  Street 
^'here  he  stocks  up  on  U.  S.  Commemor- 
ative postage  stamps. 


1 

Meet  Richard  Douglas  Maw 


MARCH,    1949  VOL.   I,   No.    3 

Published  Monthly  By 
Ryan    Aeronautical   Company,   Lindbergh  Field,  San  Diego   12,  California 


Charles  M.  Hatcher,  editor Frances  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  editor Robert  F.  Smith,  Navion  news  editor 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographer William  Wagner,  editorial  director. 


FIRST  OFF  THE  LINE! 


There  were  plenty  of  happy  smiles  around  Ryan  Aeronau- 
tical Company  last  month  when  the  first  huge  Ryan-manu- 
factured rear  fuselage  assembly  destined  for  Boeing  Strato- 
freighter  production  lines  was  fastened  securely  on  a  flat  car 
near  the  assembly  building  and  hastened  on  its  way  to  Seattle. 
Delivery  nine  days  later  marked  successful  completion  of  the 
first  phase  of  a  challenging  operation  which  will  call  for  output 
by  Ryan  before  19  50  of  nearly  twice  as  many  assemblies  as  had 
been  originally  planned. 

Ryan  teamwork,  ingenuity  and  manufacturing  resourceful- 
ness were  tested  when  the  company  received  an  additional 
Boeing  contract  for  23  C-97  Stratofreighter  fuselage  assemblies 
on  top  of  a  previous  order  for  27  of  the  units,  the  entire 
order  to  be  delivered  within  approximately  the  same  time  limit 
as  originally  scheduled  for  the  first  27! 

Complete  cooperation  of  all  departments,  sparked  by  morale 
reminiscent  of  war-time  enthusiasm,  was  the  answer  to  word 
that  the  company  had  embarked  upon  an  expanded  program. 
Production  hourly  personnel  "turned  on  the  heat,"  each  man 
and  woman  on  the  project  coming  through  splendidly. 

(Continued  on  page  14) 


Boeing  representatives  nouf  have  their  own  office  and  per- 
sonnel at  Ryan.  Below  (L-R)  are  Jay  Morrison,  Boeing  rep- 
resentative; Ruth  Wallbrinkf  Ryan  employee  assigned  as 
secretary;  Robert  Harper,  engineer;  Howard  Ensley,  in- 
spector; Louis  Hibbs,  material  liaison  and  Robert  Ellis, 
inspector. 


Finishing  touches  are  applied  to  first  Boeing  rear  fuselage  assem- 
bly in  huge  jig.  Second  unit   (upper  right)   starting. 


Ill   mid-air  on  its  move  from  assembly  jig  to  flat-car,  first  Boeing 
rear  fuselage  section  dwarfs  workmen  handling  slings. 


Snugged  -down  for  its  trip  to  Seattle  where  it  will  join  the  famous 
Boeing  Stratocruiser/Stratofreighter  production  lines. 


Still  greater  oivner  satisfaction  has  been  assured  with  29  major  improvements  in  the  1949  model  Ryan  Nai'ion, 


FOR  '49:  HIGHER 


From  the  moment  you  step  into  the 
cabin  of  the  1949  Ryan  Navion  you'll 
notice  the  added  comfort  and  conven- 
iences which  have  been  built  into  this 
year's  model,  qualities  which  caused  one 
veteran  pilot,  after  his  first  flight  in  the 
new  plane,  to  exclaim:  "This  is  the  quiet- 
est, most  comfortable  personal  plane  in 
which  I've  ever  flown!"  Then,  when  you 
arrive  at  your  destination,  you'll  discover 
the  increased  performance  of  the  new 
Navion,  which  has  whisked  you  more 
quickly  and  restfuUy  across  the  miles  than 
ever  before.  Your  journey  will  have  been 
made  faster,  more  comfortable  and  more 
useful  by  the  29  major  improvements  in- 
corporated into  the  1949  model  Ryan 
Navion. 

A  year  ago,  when  Ryan  took  over  the 
Navion  project,  it  analyzed  owner  reac- 
tions   and    came   out    with   a   vastly    im- 


Limoiisine-type  center  arm  rest  and 
greater  seat  width  are  new  comfort 
features  of  the  redesigned  rear  seat  in 
the  generously  proportioned  1949  Nav- 
ion cabin. 


proved,  more  comfortable  plane  which 
still  retained  the  basic  Navion  ruggedness, 
stability,  ease  of  flying,  roominess  and 
amazing  short  field  performance. 

Again  following  a  policy  of  giving 
consideration  to  owner  preferences,  Ryan 
offers  another  greatly  improved  model  for 
1949.  The  first  thing  noticed  about  the 
new  Navion  is  the  addition  of  landing 
gear  doors  and  fairings  as  standard  equip- 
ment. This  streamlining,  plus  the  205 
h.p.  engine  rating  of  the  Continental  en- 
gine gives  increased  performance,  high- 
lighted by  cruising  speeds  up  to  155 
m.p.h.,  and  900-f  t.  climb  the  first  minute. 

Even  more  striking  is  the  sensational 
short  field  performance.  Extensive  engin- 
eering flight  tests  were  made,  including 
demonstrations  to  eastern  aviation  writers 
List  fall,  to  provide  accurate  take-off  and 
landing  performance  figures. 


With  full  gross  load  of  2750  pounds, 
no  wind,  sea  level,  the  1949  Navion  will 
get  off  in  560  feet  and  clear  a  50-ft. 
obstacle  in  only  875  feet! 

With  its  extremely  effective  slotted 
flaps,  which  can  be  lowered  a  full  43 
degrees,  the  Navion  can  land  over  a  50- 
ft.  obstacle  in  875  feet.  Landing  roll 
after  touch-down  is  only  400  feet  and 
landing  speed  with  full  gross  load  in 
still  air  is  54  m.p.h. 

In  a  score  of  ways,  Ryan  has  further 
improved  the  already  widely  recognized 
comfort  and  roominess  of  the  generously 
proportioned,   tastefully  appointed   cabin. 

Newest  feature  is  the  greater  comfort 
provided  for  rear-seat  passengers.  Arm 
rests,  which  formerly  extended  three 
inches  out  from  the  cabin  sides,  have  been 
replaced  by  recessed  ones,  giving  an  effect- 
ive additional  six  inches  of  room  in  the 
seat.  A  new  limousine-type  folding  cen- 
ter arm  rest,  which  can  be  pulled  out  from 
the  back  rest,  divides  the  rear  seat.  Also 
new  is  the  folding,  divided  rear  seat  back 
rest  which  makes  possible  more  conven- 
ient baggage  stowage  and  provides  access 
to    the    luggage    compartment    in    flight. 


Ne-wly  styled  rear  seat  back  rest  divides 
to  permit  easy  "in-fiight"  access  to  20 
cu.ft.  baggage  compartment.  Auxiliary 
gas  tank  nests  out  of  sight  under  rear 
seat. 


The  all-wool  upholstery  has  been  re-ap- 
portioned for  more  pleasing  interior  de- 
sign, and  Naugahyde  synthetic  leather  is 
incorporated  at  wear  points.  Front  seats 
adjust  to  individual  requirements. 


With  its  exclusive  sliding  canopy,  which 
rolls  back  a  full  thirty  inches,  entrance 
and  exit  in  the  '49  Navion  for  both  front 
and  rear  seat  passengers  is  very  easy  and 
without  stooping  or  wedging  into  the 
cabin.  The  canopy  can  be  left  open  on 
the  ground  and  while  taxiing  to  keep  the 
cabin  cool  and  comfortable  and  need  not 
be  closed  until  just  prior  to  the  start  of 
the   take-off  run. 

Soundproofing,  ventilation  and  cabin 
heating  have  also  been  improved,  and 
for  noise  level  the  '49  Ryan  Navion  sets 
a  new  standard  for  comfort  and  relaxa- 
tion while  flying. 

Two  important  changes,  in  addition  to 
greater  use  of  soundproofing  materials, 
have  been  incorporated  to  reduce  still 
further  the  cabin  noise  level.  The  heavier 
gauge  windshield  now  provided  materially 
reduces  noise  and  vibration.  The  new 
Ryan  combination  dual  muffler  and  heater 
system,  provided  as  standard  equipment, 
exhaust  the  engine  gases  through  the  cowl 
gill  beneath  the  fuselage.  This  effectively 
aids  noise  reduction  not  alone  by  the  muf- 
fling, but  also  because  the  exhaust  gas 
(Continued  on  page  15  ) 


Piloting  the  1949  Ryan  Navion  is  more  pleasant  than  ever.  Technical  improvements  such  as  fairings  for  main  gear  strut 
wellsy  doors  for  the  nose  gear,  and  engine  exhaust  through  cowl  gill  to  carry  noise  away  from  the  cabin,  are  only  part  of 
sweeping  refinements  added  to  the  ruggedness,  stability  and  grace  which  has  always  been  characteristic  of  Navion  design. 


strictly  Personnel 


STEADY  OLD-TIMER.  One  of  those  in 
steadiest  attendance  at  all  Ryan  Foreman's 
Club  meetings  is  Frank  L.  Walsh,  honorary 
member. 

Walsh  was  the  first  foreman  to  be  retired 
under  the  Ryan  Retirement  Trust  Plan,  leav- 
ing job  problems  behind  him  on  January  1  5th 
last  year  after  eight  busy  years  with  the 
company.  During  his  service  in  the  Ryan 
organization,  Walsh  worked  up  steadily 
through  the  ranks  in  the  Small  Parts  depart- 
ment, taking  a  turn  at  all  three  war-time 
shifts,  and  moving  to  position  of  night  fore- 
man and  assistant  foreman,  day  shift.  Now 
that  he  has  no  use  for  an  alarm  clock,  Walsh 
finds  plenty  to  keep  him  occupied  around  his 
home  at  1  062  Law  Street,  Son  Diego. 

UP  THE  LADDER.      Wolter  P.  Jaeger,  who 

has  been  plugging  along  steadily  in  the  Sheet 
Metal  Bench  Section  of  the  Fabrication  Divi- 
sion since  September,  1940,  was  recently 
promoted  to  the  position  of  Assistant  Fore- 
man, in  charge  of  second  shift  operations. 

ANOTHER  RUNG.  Taking  another  step  up 
the  ladder  in  February  was  Arthur  E.  Torger- 

sen,  formerly  leadman  in  the  Tool  Design  and 
Manufacturing  department.  Art  was  pro- 
moted to  the  position  of  Assistant  Foreman 
in  charge  of  Jigs  and  Fixtures.  He  has  been 
with  Ryan  for  a  total  of  seven  years. 


CLUB-MEN.  Invited  to  hear  General  K.  B. 
Wolfe,  U.  S.  Air  Force,  give  the  principal 
speech  before  a  meeting  of  the  Lockheed 
Aircraft  Corporation's  Management  Club  re- 
cently were  James  L.  Kelley,  Ryan  Works 
Manager,  and  Ralph  Flanders,  President  of 
the  Ryan  Foremen's  Club.  Kelley  was  personal 
guest  of  H.  E.  Ryker,  Lockheed  Vice-Presi- 
dent in  charge  of  manufacturing,  and  Flan- 
ders was  guest  of  the  President  of  the  Lock- 
heed Management  Club. 


EPICURE.  Monkey  meat, 
even  the  choicest  morsels, 
may  be  unappetizing  to 
most  of  us,  spoiled  as  we 
are  by  daintier  pieces  from 
the  more  familiar  pig  or 
steer. 

But  Leslie  L'Hollier,  buy- 
er in  the  Purchasing  De- 
partment, will  tell  you  without  hesitation 
that  the  best  chow  he  ever  hod  wos  a  por- 
tion of  monkey  meat  served  him  with  approp- 
riate seasoning  as  port  of  a  native  dinner  he 
and  a  hardy  band  of  shipmates  purchased 
during  a  "liberty"  trip  ashore  in  a  secluded 
port  in  Haiti,  West  Indies.  Les  refused  to 
discuss  what  type  of  refreshments  he  con- 
sumed prior  to  the  dinner  to  account  for  his 
decision  that  the  meal  was  delicious.  "I  was 
too  durned  busy  later  that  afternoon,"  he 
said,  "getting  bock  to  the  ship  safely  with  a 
pair  of  voodoo  drums  I  picked  up — by  acci- 
dent, that  is!" 

As  you  may  have  guessed,  Les  wos  once  o 
member  of  Uncle  Sam's  sea-going  service, 
and  missed  little,  if  anything,  during  his  ten 
years  in  blue  uniforms. 


Spectacular  performance  of  an  Air  Force  B-5  0  bomber  which  flew  non-stop  around 
the  world  in  only  94  hours  brings  smiles  to  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  executiies 
Sam  Breder  (left)  Sales  Manager,  and  T.  Claude  Ryan,  President,  because  of  the  part 
the  company's  products  played  in  the  flight.  Ryan  exhaust  systems,  which  are  standard 
equipment  on  Boeing  B-5  0's,  were  important  factors  in  the  plane's  faultless  performance. 


CLIMBING.  It  was  onward  end  upward  for 
several  members  of  the  Experimental  depart- 
ment last  month.  Larry  C.  Mortin,  Manager 
of  Production  Engineering,  onnounced  that 
Kenneth  K.  Krull,  Foreman,  hod  been  pro- 
moted to  Superintendent  ond  placed  in  full 
charge  of  oil  Experimental  operations.  At  the 
some  time  Olof  H.  Ingalls,  Assistant  Fore- 
man, was  promoted  to  Foremen  in  charge  of 
Fabrication  and  Tools;  Charles  H.  Stoup, 
manufocturing  engineer,  was  placed  in 
charge  of  Assembly  Operations  and  Richard 
W.  Mocomber,  manufacturing  engineer,  was 
given  charge  of  Experimental  Production  En- 
gineering and  Production  Control. 


AUTHOR  AGAIN!  Appear- 
ing in  the  April  issue  of  the 
McGraw  -  Hill  publication 
"The  Welding  Engineer," 
prominent  trade  journal,  is 
on  article  by  Steve  Dever, 
Manufacturing  Engineer  in 
the  Production  Engineering 
department,  which  further 
illustrates  Ryan  Aeronauti- 
cal Company's  leading  po- 
sition in  many  fields  of  the  aviation  industry. 
Dever's  article  is  titled  "Techniques  for 
Spot  Welding."  Able  to  describe  interestingly 
as  well  OS  foctuolly  the  normally  hard-to- 
read  processes  involved  in  using  modern  en- 
gineering techniques,  Dever  has  written  num- 
erous other  articles,  both  for  the  former  Ryan 
Flying  Reporter  and  for  magazines  published 
nationally. 

VISITOR.  Dr.  Eric  E.  Heiman,  publisher 
and  Editor  of  one  of  the  world's  outstanding 
aviation  magazines,  was  o  visitor  recently  to 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company's  plant.  His  pub- 
lication, "Interavia,"  a  large  slick-paper 
French- English-German -Spanish  four-lan- 
guage monthly  is  beautifully  illustroted  and 
contains  absorbing  technical  discussions  and 
feature  articles  providing  wide  variety  of 
interest  for  both  layman  and  aviation  scien- 
tist.  It  is  published  in  Geneva,  Switzerland. 

SEE  HERE,  DO  THERE.  Distinguished  For 
East  visitor  to  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company 
last  month  was  G.  S.  Subramoniam,  deputy 
director  of  aviation  licensing  and  troining 
for  the  government  of  India  at  New  Delhi. 
An  aeronautical  engineering  with  post-grad- 
uate study  in  England  and  half-o-yeor  of 
work  at  Vickers  there,  Subramoniam  ex- 
pressed keen  interest  in  U.  S.  manufocturing 
methods  on  his  tour  of  the  Ryan  plant  with 
William  P.  Brotherton,  Novion  Export  Sales 
Manager.  Subramoniom  spent  two  months 
with  C.A.A.  officials  in  Washington,  D.C., 
studying  American  airport  regulotions.  Port 
of  his  duties  in  India  has  been  the  training 
of  airport  managers  and  technicians. 

STEP  UP!  Friends  lost  month  hod  occasion 
to  congratulate  Charles  C.  Hasty,  since  1945 
a  member  of  the  Plant  Engineering  deport- 
ment. 

Announcement  was  made  by  Durword  H. 
Palmer,  Plant  Engineer,  of  Hosty's  promotion 
to  the  post  of  Departmental  Assistant  to  the 
Plant  Engineer. 


VERTICAL  TURRET  LATHE  SPEEDS 
G.  E.  JET  CONE  ASSEMBLIES 

The  massive  Bullard  vertical  turret  lathe 
in  Ryan's  Jet  Cone  Assembly  department 
looks  like  a  mechanical  wonder.  After 
you  see  it  work  for  a  while  you're  sure 
of  it.  You'll  see  its  portrait  on  the  front 
cover  of  this  issue  of  Ryan  Reporter. 

No  ordinary  bit  of  equipment  is  this 
lathe.  Towering  ten  feet  above  the  floor, 
and  weighing  more  than  2  5,000  pounds, 
it  would  cramp  any  average-size  living 
room.  In  spite  of  its  mastodonic  steel 
muscle,  however,  the  machine  is  quick, 
versatile  and  accurate  with  fine  tolerances. 

Most  notable  feature  about  the  lathe 
which  was  purchased  especially  for  the 
General  Electric  order,  is  its  54-inch  table 
or  chuck.  Of  high-quality  steel,  this  huge 
circular  section  rotates  at  speeds  up  to 
120  r.p.m.  on  roller  bearings,  and  re- 
sembles somehow  those  large  whirling  cir- 
cular platforms  to  which  carnival  cut- 
ups  hilariously  attempt  to  cling.  When 
parts  are  clamped  to  the  top  of  the  main 
disk  it  is  called  a  table;  when  the  four 
jaws  provided  with  the  table  are  used  it 
becomes  a  chuck. 

VERSATILE  MACHINE 

"It's  surprising  the  variety  and  quality 
of  work  the  machine  will  do,"  commented 
its  operator,  Leo  Gross,  machinist  who 
came  to  Ryan  about  six  months  ago  after 
20  years  of  all-round  machine  shop  ex- 
perience. "Practically  all  the  fixtures  for 
the  General  Electric  jet  engine  compon- 
ents job  have  been  done  on  this  Bullard. 
Incidentally,"  he  continued,  "an  almost 
unlimited  number  of  'cuts'  plus  repeats, 
can  be  set.  One  GE  part  alone  needed 
approximately  80  cuts  on  one  set-up." 

A  score  of  controls,  not  counting  the 
clamps,  enable  machinists  assigned  to  this 
machine  a  wide  field  for  their  talents. 
The  lathe's  turret  head  is  capable  of  a 
24-degree  turn  for  conical  jobs,  and  its 
hex  head  on  overhead  rail  is  used  for 
turning  all  sorts  of  angles,  and  for  bores 
as  well  as  for  facings.  Up  to  '/2-inch 
cuts  may  be  taken  in  steel  surfaces;  more 
on  other  materials.  Coolant  oil  is  spun 
upon  the  turning  surfaces  at  cutting  tool 
contact  point  from  a  sump  holding  ap- 
proximately 100  gallons  of  the  liquid. 


On  The  Sidelines 


GOING     DOWN!       "Down 
went  McGinty   to   the   bot- 
tom of  the  sea!"  Just  sub- 
stitute the  name  of  Charles 
"Chuck"    Moelter,    loft    re- 
producer    in     Photo     Tem- 
plote  Reproduction  depart- 
ment,    and    you'll     find     o 
man  who  is  almost  as  much 
Vi\k''      '  .fiMM   °^  home   underwoter  as  on 
[  \(kli'!l  cBirti'lll^  shore.  Moelter  has  explored 
ocean    bottoms    from   Cali- 
Moelter  fornia  to  the  Philippines. 

Moelter  and  the  1  3  other  members  of  the 
Mantaray  club  at  La  Jolla 
spend  most  of  their  spare 
time  diving  and  spearing 
fish  at  depths  of  as  much 
as  45-50  feet  along  the 
rocky- ledged  beoches  of  the 
Jewel  City.  To  qualify  for 
the  club  an  applicant  must 
bring  up  three  abalones 
from  not  less  than  20  feet 
down,  in  one  dive.  Moelter 
organized  the  club  about 
eight  years  ago. 

Member  of  the  old  and  well  publicized 
"Bottom  Scratchers"  group,  a  companion 
diving  club  which  affords  its  members  the 
same  sport  and  requires  similar  high  quali- 
fication standards,  is  Bill  Bafzloff,  of  the 
experimental  laboratory.  As  underwater 
swimmers  of  proven  ability,  both  Botzloff 
and  Moelter  stress  the  health  and  recrea- 
tion values  in  the  year  round  sport.  (Yep, 
year  round!  Moelter  claims  that  one  member 
of  his  club  caught  a  110-pound  Grouper 
during  the  worst  of  the  recent  "unusual"  cold 
spell.) 

An  affiliate  of  the  Mantoray  swimmers 
and  frequent  associate  on  their  swim  stunts 
is  David  Ryan,  son  of  T.  Claude  Ryan,  presi- 
dent of  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company. 


BRAWN.  Got  any  old  pianos  that  need  lift- 
ing? 

If  you  need  somebody  with  muscle  and  a 
knack  for  hoisting  heavy  objects  into  the  air. 
Bill  Lowronce  is  your  man.  Bill  works  by  day 
as  a  machine  ports  lay-out  man  in  the  Ma- 
chine Shop  here  at  Ryan.  In  his  spare  time 
he  goes  around  setting  new  State  and  Pa- 
cific Coast  A.A.U.  weight-lifting  records. 

Way  back  in  1941,  while  Lowronce  was  in 
his  first  year  at  Texas  Tech  college,  he 
grunted  himself  into  the  New  Mexico  State 
collegiate  and  open  championship  in  the 
132-lb.  featherweight  division.  Since  then 
he  has  captured  State  of  California  and  Pa- 
cific Coast  A.A.U.  featherweight  champion- 
ships in  1944,  1946,  1947  end  1948.  In 
1947  he  was  winner  of  third  place  in  the 
national  championships.  He  won  the  national 
title   in    1948. 


Botzloff 


There  are  three  Olympic  lifts  in  this  field 
of  competition:  the  military  press,  two-hand 
snatch  and  two-hand  clean  and  jerk.  Bill 
holds  three  California  records  in  the  feather- 
weight division  with  a  21  1-lb.  effort  in  the 
snatch  lift,  a  271 -lb.  mark  in  the  clean  and 
jerk,  and  a  record  of  678  pounds  for  all  three 
lifts.  He  hopes  to  set  a  new  record  in  the  mil- 
itary press  next  competition. 

He's  married,  has  two  children  and  lives 
at  4820  Pendleton  St.,  Pacific  Beach.  For 
practice  he  teaches  weight-lifting  at  the 
Armed  Services  YMCA  two  evenings  each 
week.  He's  been  with  Ryan  for  half  a  year. 

Slogan  for  success?  Bill  says:  "Just  be 
sure  to  carry  your  own  weight  every  day." 


Unveiling  of  the  1949  Ryan  Navion  keynoted  the  meeting  of  Ryan  Navion  Distributors 
held  at  the  factory  this  month.  The  21  attending  distributors  and  their  associates 
swelled  the  conclave's  registration  to  55.  Conferences  and  factory  tours  filled  out  the 
two-day  program.  Most  of  the  distributors  were  content  with  studied  glances  during 
their  first  look  at  the  new  model,  but  Les  Bowman,  of  General  Aeronautics,  Texas,  and 
Bill  Eberhart,  of  Louisiana  Aircraft,  wasted  no  time  in  scrambling  into  the  modernized 
cabin  for  a  firsthand  appraisal  of  the  improved  panels  and  interior. 


Monument  Valley  Airport,  scenic  and  isolated,  is  a  short,  high  altitude  strip  where  Barry  Goldwater    (on   wing   walkway)    sometimes 
lands  his  Navion  during  the  flight  from  Phoenix  to  Rainbow  Lodge  on  the  Arizona-Utah  line.  All  landings  on  this  },000-foot  strip  are 

made  up  hill,  toward  towering  red  sandstone  mesa. 


mm  suoRT(S)  story 


Goldwaters,  fashionable  Phoenix  specialty  store,  gives  the 
immediate  appearance  of  being  so  well  organized  that  just 
about  any  problem  which  comes  along  can  be  handled  success- 
fully. However,  even  to  these  up-to-date  Arizona  merchants, 
the  job  of  meeting  a  last-minute  Friday  afternoon  order  for 
7  J  dozen  pairs  of  men's  shorts  should  pose  a  problem  .  .  . 
especially  when  the  important  garments  are  needed  by  the 
following  Monday  morning,  and  the  shelf  stock  is  exhausted. 

At  first  you  may  think  such  an  order  impossible  to  fill;  and 
when  you  learn  that  the  nearest  source  of  supply  is  Los  An- 
geles, 400  miles  distant,  you  feel  sure. 

But  Barry  Goldwater,  owner  of  this  center  of  desert  fashion, 
gives  no  sign  of  shedding  tears  over  a  big  order  possibly  lost. 
In  fact,  he  and  his  able  assistants  take  the  situation  right  in 
stride. 

After  calling  in  the  order  ahead  by  long  distance  telephone, 
Goldwater   picks   up   his   briefcase  on    the   run   for   Phoenix's 


Sky  Harbor  Airport.  There  he  taxies  out  his  Navion  for  the 
round  trip  flight  to  Los  Angeles  that  by  next  afternoon  will 
see  him  home  with  the  goods.  By  Saturday  night,  the  shorts 
will  be  neatly  packaged  for  the  promised  Monday  morning 
delivery. 

This  emergency  trip  exemplifies  the  manner  in  which  Gold- 
waters  and  scores  of  other  merchants  all  over  the  U.  S.  utilize 
personal-business  airplanes  in  their  operations.  Goldwater's 
Los  Angeles  flight  took  just  2^4  hours  while  by  truck  or  train, 
the  whole  business  would  have  required  well  over  10  hours 
travel  time,  much  of  this  on  blistering  desert  highways. 

Because  he  flew  to  Los  Angeles  himself,  Goldwater  was  able 
to  handle  all  contacts  with  the  supplier.  This  important  func- 
tion wasn't  left  to  rest  on  the  weary  shoulders  of  a  worn-out 
truck  driver.  Goldwater  also  personally  expedited  the  order  and 
saw  to  the  plane's  loading. 

"This,  however,  is  just  one  example  of  the  use  we  have  had 


Goldtvater's  Arizona  fashion  center  and 

resort  schedule  its  activities  to 

plane's  speedy  pace 


for  the  Navion  in  running  our  stores,"  recounts  Goldwater. 
"We  fly  weekly  between  Phoenix  and  Prescott,  where  we  have 
another  store,  and  twice  monthly  go  by  Navion  to  Los  Angeles 
and  other  marketing  centers  to  order  supplies." 

The  Goldwaters  people  have  found  that  their  Navion,  besides 
saving  time,  does  away  with  many  former  inconveniences. 
Flight  reservations  and  schedules,  for  example,  no  longer 
hamper  them  in  reaching  their  Los  Angeles  buying  office. 
Too,  they  put  to  full  advantage  the  plane's  remarkable  flexi- 
bility in  cargo-load  on  flights  to  the  coast. 

Their  stylish  Branding-Iron  material,  which  is  cut  and 
tailored  in  Los  Angeles,  is  flown  from  Phoenix  to  the  coast 
city  in  2%  hours.  When  tailoring  of  blouses  made  from  this 
material  is  completed,  the  finished  shirts  are  Navioned  back 
to  Phoenix.  This,  Goldwaters  executives  advise,  makes  delivery 
dates  to  Phoenix  customers  certain.  About  1,200  yards  of  the 
material  are  flown  at  one  time. 

"Antsy  Pants,"  men's  white  shorts  trimmed  with  prints  of 
large  red  ants,  are  another  Goldwaters  exclusive  flown  from 
Los  Angeles  in  the  Navion.  Such  personalized  air  shipment 
is  the  only  means  the  store  has  found  for  keeping  up  with 
pressing  demands  from  all  over  the  world  for  this  unusual 
item. 

The  Navion  is  also  used  for  calling  on  customers  who  live 
at  ranches  and  lodges  way  off  the  highways.  Because  he  has 
been  able  to  get  his  Navion  in  and  out  of  practically  any  field 
he  has  ever  come  across,  Barry  Goldwater  makes  deliveries  to 
some  customers  who  are  nearly  completely  isolated. 

Says  Goldwater,  "It  is  in  the  home-delivery  department  as 
well  as  in  cargo  flights  between  our  stores  in  Phoenix  and 
Prescott,  and  to  the  coast  with  material,  that  we  appreciate 
the  Navion's  spacious  645  lb.  cargo  capacity.  We  have  found 
that  we  can  easily  fly  as  much  cargo  as  we  can  stuff  into  the 
plane." 

When  asked  for  specific  examples  of  the  time  his  Navion 
saves  for  his  company,  Goldwater  cites  two  comparisons.  To 
drive  between  Phoenix  and  Prescott  takes  3  hours.  By  Navion, 
it's  40  minutes.  To  points  in  Northern  Sonora,  Mexico,  where 
the  store  has  customers  on  large  cattle  ranches,  going  by  car 
means  12  hours  arduous  travel;  but  in  the  Navion,  as  little 
as  1  Vz  hours. 

"When  I  say  the  Navion  saves  our  company  time,  I  mean 
it,"  Goldwater  explains,  "because  14  of  our  executives  pilot 
the  plane,  including  my  brother,  Bob  Goldwater,  our  adver- 
tising manager  Bob  King,  as  well  as  our  auditor,  credit  man- 
ager, buyer  of  men's  wear,  shoe  buyer,  and  even  both  sales- 
men in  the  men's  department." 

Another  use  of  the  Goldwaters'  plane  is  in  flying  to  Rain- 
bow Lodge,  a  colorful  resort  hidden  away  on  the  Utah-Arizona 
border,  about  280  air-miles  from  Phoenix.  From  the  lodge, 
guests  set  out  on  pack  trips  to  visit  the  famous  Rainbow 
Natural  Bridge.  The  airport  at  Rainbow  was  dragged  out  of 
the  sands  of  the  Indian  country,  and  is  only  2,000  feet  long 
and  50  feet  wide. 

(Continued  on  page  1 6) 


Barry  Goldwater  and 
Bill  Wilson  (R)  chat 
tvith  a  young  Navajo 
girl  who  lives  near 
Rainbow  Lodge.  The 
Navion  is  the  first  air- 
plane she  has  seen. 


Leader  in  western  fash- 
ion, Goldwater  special- 
izes in  such  smart  des- 
ert creations  as  Brand- 
ing Iron  blouses  and 
Arizona  Denim  skirts 
shou/n  here. 


Executive  Bob  Gold- 
tvater  loads  his  com- 
pany's Navion  in  Phoe- 
nix ivith  the  famous 
Branding  Iron  material 
for  delivery  to  the 
Prescott  store. 


DIaude    Ryan    Reports   On 

BllSIIESS  RESULTS  FOR  194$ 


Excerpts  from  the  Annual  Report  to  Stockhold- 
ers, to  which  the  Editor  has  added  the  explanatory 
information  printed  in  italics. 


This  eighteenth  annual  report  covers  the  fiscal  year  ended 
October  31,  1948.  Considerable  progress  may  be  noted  by 
comparing  operations  and  conditions  with  those  of  the  preced- 
ing year.  All  financial  statements  have  been  certified  by  Arthur 
Young  &  Company,  Certified  Public  Accountants. 

SALES  AND  EARNINGS 

Sales  volume  for  1948  was  $7,948,41 1  and  resulted  in  a  profit 
of  $588,603  before  provision  for  federal  taxes  on  income.  Net 
profit  remaining  after  deducting  federal  income  taxes  of 
$232,000  was  $3  56,603  or  approximately  90  cents  profit  per 
share.  This  compares  to  a  net  loss  in  the  prior  year  of  $127,659, 
or  approximately  3  1  cents  loss  per  share. 

Note  that  40%  of  the  $588,603  earned  tvas  paid  out 
in  income  taxes  for  support  of  activities  of  the  Federal 
Government — G.  /.  benefits,  European  Recovery,  na- 
tional defense,  operation  of  the  Department  of  Labor, 
the  hundreds  of  commissions  and  bureaus  at  Washington, 
and  an  almost  endless  number  of  government  agencies 
and  functions. 

On  the  nearly  $8,000,000  of  business  done  last  year, 
the  net  profit  of  $356,603  represented  4V2%  of  gross 
sales.  This  compares  xvith  a  natioiml  profit  average  for 
American  business  of  5.6%.  Many  people  do  not  realize 
there  is  such  a  very  narrotv  margin  above  cost  on  tvhich 
business  operates. 

Since  the  Ryan  Company  is  oivned  by  some  162  5  peo- 
ple, the  average  "profit"  tvas  just  under  $220  for  each 
oivner.  For  purposes  of  comparison,  the  average  tvage 
for  each  of  the  hourly-paid  Ryan  workers  last  year  tvas 
$3252.  But  each  otvner  of  the  Ryan  business  did  not 
take  his  $220  profit  in  cash  as  is  explained  later. 

FINANCIAL  CONDITION 

The  following  summary  reflects  the  comparison  of  the  finan- 
cial position  at  the  year  end  with  that  of  the  preceding  year: 


1948  1947 

Current  Assets   $5,865,663  $3,958,410 

Current   Liabilities   2,635,890  848,109 

"Working  Capital  $3,229,773  $3,110,301 

Fixed  Assets — at  Cost  $2,676,820  S2, 374,859 

Fixed  Assets — less  depreciation  794,087  622,541 

Other  Assets  128,568  141,978 

Net  Worth $4,152,428  S3, 874,820 

Net  Shares  Outstanding  393,843  401,593 

Book  Value  Per  Share $10.50  $   9.64 

Working  Capital  Per  Share  $    8.20  $   7.74 

Attention  is  directed  to  the  increases  in  both  current  assets 
and  current  liabilities.  Inventories  of  raw  materials  and  work- 
in-process  increased  from  $1,819,3  52  at  the  start  of  the  year 
to  $4,182,594  at  the  year  end,  and  at  December  31st  stood  at 
slightly  in  excess  of  $5,100,000.  This  increase  in  inventories 
reflects  the  increasing  volume  of  operations  which  occurred  in 
the  last  half  of  the  fiscal  year,  and  the  larger  proportion  of 
work  being  performed  on  a  contract  basis  directly  and  indi- 
rectly for  the  Mihtary  Services. 

Sales  for  the  year  do  not  fully  portray  the  level  of  production 
activities  reached  in  the  last  quarter.  Production  input  against 
firm  orders  for  this  quarter  was  at  an  average  rate  about  50<~f 
greater  than  the  average  deliveries  for  the  same  period.  Capital 
requirements  for  this  expanding  volume  of  business  were 
financed  through  commercial  bank  loans.  Arrangements  were 
made  for  a  bank  loan  of  three  million  dollars.  At  October  31, 
1948,  the  amount  borrowed  was  $1,3  50,000  and  at  December 
31,  1948,  had  been  increased  to  $2,600,000.  It  is  anticipated 
that  upon  completion  of  delivery  of  the  order  for  Ryan  Navion 
military  liaison  planes,  the  loan  will  be  materially  reduced. 
However,  at  the  present  rate  of  operations,  it  will  be  necessary- 
Co  continue  to  utilize  a  substantial  amount  of  bank  credit. 

Though  the  Ryan  company^s  basic  financial  structure 
is  very  sound,  fetv  business  corporations  hate  sufficient 
cash  on  hand  to  finance  inventories  of  raw  materials  and 
tvork-in-process   during   a   period   of   expanding   opera- 

(Continued  on  page  1 0 ) 


mi 

$  4J3Z.2I6 


$3I6»544 


HOW  EACH  DOLLAR  OF  THE 
$7,946,411  TOTAL  INCOME  WAS  SPENT 


tions,  such  as  we  are  now  going  through.  Accordingly, 
just  like  the  individual  tvho  must  borrow  money  to  buy 
a  house,  the  company  finds  it  necessary  to  go  to  commer- 
cial banks  for  loans  to  keep  the  business  operating.  Later 
the  company's  income  from  the  larger  business  volume 
tve  are  now  doing  ivill  permit  repayment  of  the  money 
ive  have  borrowed.  At  the  end  of  the  financial  year,  the 
company  had  cash  of  only  $400,000  on  hand  to  finance 
ivork  on  our  $11,700,000  backlog  of  orders.  Thus,  it 
was  necessary  to  borrow  from  banks  to  meet  payrolls 
and  pay  for  stainless  steel,  aluminum  sheet  stock  and  the 
hundreds  of  material  items  we  must  buy  each  month. 


DIVIDENDS 

A  cash  dividend  of  ten  cents 
per  share  was  paid  in  March  of 
1948.  A  cash  dividend  of  ten 
cents  per  share  has  been  declared 
payable  March  10,  1949,  to 
stockholders  of  record  as  of  Feb- 
ruary 22,  1949.  The  capital  re- 
quirements for  the  performance 
of  business  on  hand  necessitates 
the  continuation  of  a  conserva- 
tive dividend  policy.  Increasing 
business  volume  requires  funds 
principally  for  financing  inven- 
tories and  to  some  extent  for 
necessary  additional  equipment. 


The  1 0  cents  per  share  divi- 
dend paid  to  stockholders 
during  the  year  represented 
an  average  cash  income  of 
only  $25  for  each  of  the  162  5 
orvners.  The  balance  left  from 
the  $220  average  "profit" 
was  $195.  This  amount  was 
retained  in  the  business  be- 
cause the  company  requires 
as  much  cash  as  possible  to 
finance  new  equipment  and 
current  operations,  which  on 
the  present  expanding  scale, 
make  jobs  and  security  possi- 
ble for  more  people. 


ness — "plou^ed  back"  to  help  pay  for  these  new  machines 
and  equipment.  Note  that  this  required  an  investment 
by  the  owners  of  the  company  of  $230,000  more  than 
their  total  profit  for  the  period.  The  money  over  and 
above  earnings  for  the  period  vjas  available  to  buy  new 
equipment  only  because  profits  from  the  tvar  years  had 
been  put  into  the  business  instead  of  taken  out  in  cash 
dividends  by  the  owners. 

In  recent  years  it  has  been  possible  to  pay  only  a  con- 
stantly decreasing  share  of  business  profits  to  stock- 
holders in  cash  dividends.  For  all  corporations  in  the 
country,   1939  dividends  -were  76%  of  profits,  but  by 

1947  the  stockholders'  share 
had  dropped  to  3  8%,  and  for 

1948  is    estimated    at    about 
3  6%. 

As  a  result,  businesses  find 
it  difficult  to  raise  needed 
funds  by  selling  securities,  be- 
cause the  millions  of  people 
who  ordinarily  provide  such 
investments  refuse  to  risk 
their  savings  tvithoiit  hope  of 
adequate  cash  return. 

Business,  therefore,  finds  it 
necessary  to  retain  a  large 
portion  of  earnings  for  expan- 
sion and  to  replace  equipment 
and  facilities  that  wear  out. 

Only  by  keeping  the  Ryan 
plant  and  machinery  modern 
can  we  expect  to  get  the  vol- 
ume of  business  tvhich  pro- 
vides jobs  for  all  of  us. 


AIRPLANE  DIVISION 


"Only  by  keeping  the  Ryan  plant  and  machinery  modern  can 
we  expect  to  get  the  volume  of  business  which  provides  jobs  for 
all  of  us." 

The  Billiard  turret  lathe  on  our  front  cover  and  the  Hole 

Wizard  sboivn  above  are  among  many  new  equipment  items 

purchased    with    profits    which    owners    "plow    back**    into 

the   business. 


For  the  three  years  since  the 
end  of  the  war,  total  net  profit 
after   taxes   amounted   to    $529,- 

263.  Dividends  since  the  war  end,  including  the  one  just  de- 
clared, have  amounted  to  $329,395.  Equipment  assets  have 
been  increased  $759,072  during  the  same  period  which  is 
$229,808  more  than  the  net  profit  for  the  three  years. 


Equipment  assets — that  means  turret  lathes,  jigs  and 
fixtures,  boring  machines,  heat  treat  furnaces,  ivelding 
equipment,  etc. — have  been  added  in  the  amount  of  more 
than  three-quarters  of  a  million  dollars  since  the  ivar. 

While  total  profits  since  the  war  have  been  slightly 
over  half-a-million  dollars,  $200,000  of  this  amount  plus 
$23  0,000  out  of  prior  earnings  has  been  put  into  the  busi- 


The  descriptions  of  the 
tvork  of  the  company's  Air- 
plane Division  and  of  the  Met- 
al Products  Division  tvhich 
appeared  in  the  Annual  Re- 
port largely  duplicate  those 
which  appeared  in  the  Janu- 
ary issue  of  Ryan  Reporter, 
and  are  therefore  not  repeated 
here.  Hoivever,  sotne  portions 
rvhich  may  be  of  special  inter- 
est follotv: 


The  company's  guided  missile  project,  on  contract  with  the 
United  States  Air  Force,  has  been  on  an  increased  scale  of 
activity  and  substantial  progress  was  made  during  the  year, 
justifying  considerable  confidence  in  its  future  prospects. 

A  design  developed  by  the  company's  Engineering  Depart- 
ment for  a  high-speed,  jet-propelled,  pilotless  target  airplane  for 
the  United  States  Air  Force  won  a  competition  in  a  field  of 
sixteen  entries  representing  the  country's  principal  aircraft 
manufacturers.  The  contract  was  awarded  this  company  for 
the  engineering,  development  and  manufacturing  of  an  initial 

(Continued  on  page  12) 


10 


GLASS    TIME    FOR    SERVICE    EXPERTS 


Service  specialists  from  8  Ryan  Na- 
vion  Dealers  convened  in  San  Diego 
last  month  for  the  fourth  session  of 
the  Ryan  Factory  Service  and  Main- 
tenance School.  Walter  K.  Balch, 
Ryan  Service  Manager,  and  Jack  Lu- 
cast,  Field  Service  Representative, 
conducted  a  course  designed  to  equip 
dealer  organizations  with  improved 
techniques  for  handling  Navion  ser- 
vice, and  to  help  them  better  under- 
stand service  publications.  3  5  distrib- 
utor and  dealer  representatives  have 
received  this  factory  training  during 
the  past  year. 


Registration   initiates    neck   of   clas 


for  all  on  final  assembly  li, 


Studying  engine  build-up  at  fuselage  assembly  line. 


The  climax!  Students  eagerly 
examine  the  29  dramatic  ivt' 
provements  in  the  1949  Ryan 
Navion.  Dealer  representatives 
present:  Bob  Waiters,  Conejo 
Valley  Airport;  Kenneth  Myers, 
Cliff  Hyde  Flying  Service;  Eldon 
Maxn/ell,  Jack  Riley  Aviation; 
Samuel  Hollist,  Bozeman  Avia- 
tion Service;  Roger  Gault  and 
Mace  Crafty  Jr.,  Gault  Aviation 
Inc.;  Bob  Nicholas,  Ragsdale 
Flying  Service;  E.  C.  Tunnelly 
Parker  ^  Huett;  and  H.  J.  Reid, 
Gativay  Aerial,  Inc. 


Ryan   carburetor   expert,   Don   Osborne,   explains   flow   bench. 


BIGGEST  EVENT  OF  THE  NATIONAL  SPORTSMEN'S  SHOW  held  lost  month   in  the 

Grand  Central  Palace  in  New  York  City,  was  the  televised  aviation  program  starring 
Arthur  Godfrey  and  originating  at  the  Ryan  Navion  display  of  Mallard  Air  Service. 
The  Mallard  boys  said  they  were  going  to  do  something  big  at  the  Sportsmen's  Show, 
and  with  the  help  of  Ryan  Navion-owner  Godfrey,  certainly  came  through  100%  on 
their  pledge. 

"HOWARD  AIRCRAFT  IS  A  SWELL  OUTFIT.  Their  ser- 
vice is  grand  and  they  are  accommodating."  This  hearty 
tribute  from  a  satisfied  Ryan  Navion  owner  compliments  one 
of  )  948's  top-selling  Ryan  Navion  distributors.  Rex  Howard, 
energetic  President,  directs  the  destinies  of  this  Peoria,  Illi- 
nois organization.  Les  Scott,  newspaper  publisher  in  Lacon, 
Illinois,  this  month  accompanied  the  Howard  prexy  on  a  San 
Diego-Peoria  flight  in  Rex's  1949  Ryan  Navion  demonstrator, 
gathering  information  for  a  story  on  personal  flying  to  appear 
soon  in  Mid-western  publications. 

MAXINE  WHITESIDE,  CHIC  RYAN  NAVION  SALESWOMAN,  is  carrying  on  her  own 
one-woman  campaign  to  get  California  women  thinking  of  personal  flying  in  the  same 
terms  as  they  do  automobile  or  train  travel.  While  helping  her  husband,  Percy,  sell 
Ryan  Navions  and  operate  their  own  airport  in  Corcoran,  California,  Maxine,  who  flies 
extensively,  makes  it  o  point  to  dress  smartly  on  all  her  flights,  encouraging  women  to 
associate  flying  with  becoming  suits  and  dresses  rather  than  slacks  and  other  less 
flattering  apparel. 

FROM  CAMAGUEY,  CUBA,  Bornobe  Sanchez,  Assistant  Manager  of  Componio 
Gonodera  Tinima,  giant  cattle  ranch,  sends  commendation  for  the  service  and 
courtesies  he  has  received  from  Clara  Livingston's  Dorado  Airfield.  Soys  Navion- 
owner  Sanchez,  "Miss  Livingston  did  a  great  deal  toward  introducing  me  to  the 
Navion.  I  am  very  grateful  for  all  her  kindnesses.  I  only  wish  her  operation  at 
Dorado,  Puerto  Rico,  were  in  Cuba,  so  I  could  more  fully  utilize  its  fine  facili- 
ties." 

THAT  THE  RYAN  NAVION  IS  FAMILIAR  TO  COLORADANS  can  be  credited 
largely  to  aggressive  advertising  campaigns  which  hove  spearheaded  the  activities  of 
Mountain  States  Aviation.  Horry  Combs  and  Lew  Hoyden,  the  Rocky  Mountain  dis- 
tributorship's top  executives,  placed,  for  example,  a  half-page  ad  in  the  doily  La 
Junta  Tribune-Democrat,  offering  Ryan  Navion  business  flights  anywhere  in  the 
nation.  Typical  of  the  favorable  response:  "Would  like  trip  to  Dallas.  If  plane  will  do 
the  job,  will  buy."  Another:  "My  wife,  five-year-old  daughter  and  myself  wish  to  fly 
to  Casper,  Wyoming.  We  are  financially  able  to  talk  Navion  .  .  .  the  type  of  busi- 
ness I'm  in  necessitates  my  buying  such  a  plane." 

TALL  TALES  ABOUT  WHALES.  William  P.  "Doc"  Sloon,  Assistant  to  Ryan 
■Vice-President,  Earl  D.  Prudden,  this  month  was  checked  out  for  his  Whale- 
master's  Rating.  During  3  flights  between  San  Diego  and  Los  Angeles,  he  sighted 
19  of  the  huge  mammals  making  their  way  South  "The  largest  of  the  group 
appeared  20  to  30  feet  long,"  Doc  says.  "One  group  included  calves.  Once,  the 
biggest  fellow  of  the  bunch  jumped  half  out  of  the  water.  If  1  kept  the  Navion 
above  1,000  feet,  they'd  move  right  along,  spouting,  submerging  and  coming 
back  up.  If  I  brought  the  plane  lower  than  that,  they'd  sound." 

THIS  COLUMN'S  FEBRUARY  BOUQUET  to  Bradley  Field  for  its  victory  in  the  1948 
Hoire  Award  competition  brought  a  cheerful  reminder  from  Don  Hood,  President  of 
the  Aircraft  Soles  Company,  Ryan  Navion  dealer  in  Indianapolis,  Indiana,  that  Bob 
Shank  Airport,  site  of  Don's  operation,  won  the  Hoire  Trophy  in  1946.  Bob  Shank  Air- 
port and  Bradley  Field  hove  also  been  included  in  the  National  Aeronautic  Associa- 
tion's list  of  airports  awarded  the  1948  Certificate  of  Good  Operation  Practice.  Among 
other  Ryan  Navion  centers  numbered  in  this  elite  group:  Krotz  Field  (St.  Louis  Flying 
Service),  St.  Louis;  and  Clementon  Airport  (Clementon  Aviation,  Inc.),  Clementon, 
New  Jersey. 


MEXICO  AND  THE  OTHER  COUNTRIES  OF  CENTRAL 
AMERICA  ore  in  for  some  high-geored  aircraft  merchandis- 
ing during  1949.  Francisco  Walti,  principal  partner  in 
Morgan  &  Waltz,  distributor  for  these  areas,  has  announced 
details  of  the  March  flight  he  will  moke  to  major  cities  of 
the  Southern  republics,  from  Mexico  to  Panama.  He  plans  to 
appoint  dealers  at  each  important  stop  on  his  route.  Morgan 
&  Woltz'  main  offices  ore  in  Mexico  City.  Waltz  reports 
that  Ryan  Navion  owners  in  Mexico  ore  his  best  salesmen. 
Ranging  from  bankers  to  engineers  and  ranchers,  they  fly 
under  some  of  the  most  difficult,  high-altitude  conditions. 


REPORT  ON  BUSINESS 
RESULTS  FOR   1948 

(Continued  from  page  10) 
quantity.    This    project    was    in    its    first 
phase  of  work   during  the  latter  part  of 
the  year  and  is  beUeved  to  have  very  good 
prospects  in  the  future. 

The  engineering  and  study  contract 
with  the  United  States  Navy  for  work  on 
an  advanced  type  airplane  design,  which 
was  in  effect  the  prior  year,  was  continued 
and  increased  in  scope. 
METAL  PRODUCTS  DIVISION 
Since  the  introduction  of  jet  engines  as 
a  primary  power  source  for  miHtary  air- 
craft, the  company,  because  of  its  special- 
ization in  the  design  and  fabrication  of 
heat-  and  corrosion  -  resistant  stainless 
steels,  has  progressively  expanded  its  jet 
engine  components  business. 

The  production  of  exhaust  systems  and 
allied  products  of  stainless  steel  for  con- 
ventional aircraft  engines  increased  in 
scale  during  the  last  part  of  this  year  after 
having  dropped  some  during  the  earher 
period  due  to  fluctuation  in  airplane  prime 
contract  requirements. 

The  manufacture  of  rocket  power 
plants  and  parts  is  an  increasingly  import- 
ant activity  of  the  Metal  Products  Divi- 
sion. This  work  is  performed  for,  and  in 
collaboration  with,  other  organizations 
specializing  in  development  work  in  this 
field. 

EMPLOYMENT  AND 
EMPLOYEE  RELATIONS 
The  number  of  employees  of  the  com- 
pany as  of  October  31,  1948,  had  reached 
2  300,  and  as  of  this  date  is  approximately 
2600. 

The  only  strike  in  the  company's  his- 
tory (except  for  a  short  work  stoppage 
of  welders  in  1939)  occurred  between 
June  16th  and  July  28th,  1948.  This  re- 
sulted from  a  failure  to  reach  an  agree- 
ment following  demands  made  bv  the 
U.A.W.-C.I.O.  The  principal  factor  pre- 
venting earlier  settlement  was  insistence 
by  the  Union's  international  representa- 
tive and  committee  on  a  higher  wage  rate 
increase  than  that  granted  at  that  time  by 
other  aircraft  plants  in  the  area.  A  settle- 
ment was  finally  made  on  the  basis  pro- 
posed by  the  company.  The  strike  was  a 
very  regrettable  and  unfortunate  experi- 
ence, particularly  for  the  large  number  of 
loyal,  fair-thinking  employees  who  suf- 
fered hardships.  The  strike  was  costlv  to 
the  company  and  vastly  more  costly  rela- 
tively to  the  employees  thrown  out  of 
work  for  such  a  long  period.  The  plant 
operated  throughout  the  strike  period  with 
a  reduced,  but  steadily  increasing  force. 
The  strike  was  conducted  in  a  peaceful 
m.inner,  free  from  instances  of  violence. 
which  is  very  much  to  the  credit  of  all 
(Continued  on  next  page) 


REPORT  ON  BUSINESS 
RESULTS  FOR  1948 

(Continued  from  page  12) 
concerned.  It  is  sincerely  hoped  that  this 
will  be  the  only  instance  of  this  kind  in 
the  company's  history  and  it  can  be  if 
reason  and  straight  thiniting  will  prevail. 
GENERAL 

The  level  of  business  volume  by  your 
company  will  be  affected  for  the  current 
year  and  thereafter  to  a  considerable  de- 
gree, as  it  will  with  all  aircraft  companies, 
by  the  procurement  program  of  the  Mili- 
tary Services.  The  minimum  program  rec- 
ommended by  any  of  the  important  studies 
made  for  the  President  and  the  Congress 
for  peacetime  requirements  for  our  coun- 
try would  require  enough  production  to 
maintain  a  healthy  aircraft  industry.  Last 
year.  Congress  authorized  the  first  phase 
of  a  five-year  program  to  provide  these 
minimum  requirements.  However,  as  of 
this  date,  there  appears  to  be  some  doubt 
in  respect  to  the  carrying  through  of  the 
full  program  as  a  result  of  the  President's 
budget  proposal  recommending  a  serious 
cut  in  the  air  strength  levels.  The  action 
of  Congress  this  year  in  respect  to  this 
vital  subject  will  be  of  great  importance 
to  our  country,  as  well  as  to  the  aircraft 
industry. 

The  character  of  our  company's  activi- 
ties with  the  balancing  effect  of  its  divers- 
ity of  products  gives  it  some  advantage  in 
meeting  the  large  fluctuations  in  the  air- 
craft procurement  that  affect  this  indus- 
try. 

The  personal-business  type  plane  market 
for  the  immediate  future  is  difficult  to 
predict.  Ryan  Navion  sales  for  1948  were 
quite  satisfactory.  The  volume  of  sales  for 
all  makes  in  this  field  fell  off  during  the 
closing  months  of  the  year  to  a  greater 
degree  than  the  normal  seasonal  trend.  A 
new,  1949  model  Ryan  Navion,  further 
refined  and  improved,  is  being  introduced 
around  March  1st.  Production  is  sched- 
uled to  conform  as  closely  as  possible  with 
the  market  trends  as  they  develop  during 
the  year. 

The  company's  guided  missile  and  jet 
target  planes  are  scheduled  to  be  manu- 
factured in  moderate  volume  during  the 
year.  Production  volume  during  1949  on 
jet  engine  parts,  exhaust  systems  and 
major  aircraft  assemblies,  is  expected  to 
be  at  a  considerably  higher  rate  than  1948, 
based  on  business  booked  and  in  prospect. 

It  is  desired  to  here  acknowledge  and 
express  appreciation  for  the  excellent  work 
of  each  and  every  company  executive  in 
guiding  the  company's  operations  during 
the  past  year,  and  for  the  capable  and 
devoted  work  of  all  of  its  loyal  workers. 

T.  Claude  Ryan 
San  Diego,  California 
February  16,  1949 


THE  DENNIS  SULLIVANS — well-known  Chicago  attorney  and  his  charming  wife — 
are  Navion-owners  who  are  as  versatile  os  the  plane  they  fly.  Anxious  to  pass  on  their 
experiences  as  pilots  and  private  aircraft  owners,  they  have  generously  contributed 
several  interesting  articles  to  such  popular  aviation  magazines  as  Air  Facts  and  Sky- 
ways. When  Mr.  Sullivan's  pressing  legal  duties  permit,  they  gather  material  on 
enjoyable  vocation  flights  to  distant  winter  playgrounds  like  Coronodo,  California. 

^^^  FLYING  STARS.      The  personal   flying  activities  of  an   im- 

^^^^^  pressive  array  of  motion  picture  and  radio  favorites  are  feo- 

^^^Hfl^B^  tured   in  Skyways  Magazine's   February   issue.   Such   familiar 

wff^^^^^  Navion-owning  stars  as  Arthur  Godfrey,  Brian  Donlevy,  Dick 

Haymes,  Edgar  Bergen,  Frances  Longford  and  Jon  Hall,  are 
highlighted  in  this  group  of  pilots  who  ore  doing  so  much  to 
increase  the  acceptance  of  private  flying  as  safe  transporta- 
tion by  people  everywhere.  Actor  Gene  Raymond  is  another 
flying  star  helping  to  popularize  the  Navion.  Both  Raymond 
t-js.  and  Donlevy  have  been  featured  with  their  Ryan  Novions  in 

recent  four-color,  full-page  ads  for  The  Blotz  Beer  Company. 
Donlevy 

5,880  MILES  FLOWN  IN  12  DAYS  of  routine  business  activity!  This  astounding 
record  has  been  set  for  other  Navion  owners  to  shoot  at  by  W.  Perry  Smith  of  Columbia, 
S.  C.  Called  the  "Flying  Studebaker  Dealer"  by  his  friends.  Smith  started  out  from 
Columbia  for  Miami,  Florida,  on  New  Year's  Eve.  He  and  his  wife  followed  an  airpath 
that  took  them  as  far  south  as  Havana,  Cuba.  In  the  course  of  the  flight,  they  sold 
cars,  unraveled  legal  snarls,  attended  an  automobile  show,  witnessed  the  Orange  Bowl 
Football  Game  and  Miami  Air  Races,  and  participated  in  a  Florida  Alligators  Party. 

"WE  USE  A  NEW  RYAN  NAVION  in  our  business  ...  and  in  the  flying 
we've  done,  are  very  well  satisfied  with  the  plane  and  its  performance.  We 
utilize  the  Navion  for  transporting  Company  officials  to  building  sites;  for  fly- 
ing payrolls,  rushing  correspondence  and  other  assorted  duties.  As  our  field  of 
operation  becomes  more  extensive,  we  will  be  finding  more  and  more  uses  for 
our  plane" — write  Robert  F.  Johnson  Cr  Associates,  General  Contractors  and 
Constructors,  Portland,  Oregon, 

GOOD  NEWS  FOR  CORPORATION  AIRCRAFT  OWNERS.  The  CAA  has  announced 
that  you  may  use  the  designation  EXECUTIVE  while  utilizing  ground-air  radio  con- 
tact. This  designation,  radioed  to  control  towers,  indicates  you  ore  flying  business 
aircraft  on  a  business  trip,  and  should  be  handled  as  promptly  as  possible.  Only  one 
stipulation:  Aircraft  using  the  "Executive"  title  must  be  equipped  for  instrument 
operations. 

MAURICE  BALCOM  AND  ERIC  MOE,  Ellensburg,  Washington,  potato  farmers, 
report  that  a  hustling  Navion  is  flagship  for  their  4-plane  fleet  of  high-flying 
form  equipment.  Standout  among  the  Novion's  many  applications  is  a  com- 
muting run  set  up  for  their  foremen  between  Ellensburg  and  Bakersfield,  Cali- 
fornia— some  1 ,000  miles  away — to  familiarize  the  spud  specialists  with 
methods  used  by  other  successful  growers  and  shippers. 


ANXIOUS  TO  SEE  THE    1949   RYAN    NAVION,  Andre   De  Toth, 

motion  picture  director  and  Navion  owner,  was  a  February  factory 
visitor.  He  mentioned  that  besides  himself,  his  famous  wife,  actress 
Veronica  Lake,  enjoys  piloting  their  Navion.  Only  recently  she  fig- 
ured prominently  in  the  news  for  an  unusual  Hollywood  to  New 
York  Navion  flight.  Debunking  the  theory  that  personal  flying  is  a 
"Man's  World,"  Miss  Lake  made  the  trip  with  two  women  passen- 
gers, and  no  help  from  any  moles  other  than  line-boys  ot  the  air- 
ports along  their  route. 


TWO  DOCTORS,  AN  ELECTRICAL  ENGINEER,  and  a  druggist,  all  neighbors  in 
Indianapolis,  Indiana,  hove  teamed  up  in  owning  a  Navion.  For  Drs.  C.  B.  Faus- 
set,  and  H.  L.  Egbert,  the  plane  allows  speedy  colls  on  patients,  mokes  possible 
attendance  at  important  clinics,  meetings  and  conventions.  Paul  Bradley  the 
engineer,  and  Rex  Brock,  the  druggist,  also  use  the  plane  in  their  work,  and  for 
pleasure  travel,  too. 

NAVION  SENDS  SALES  SAILING.  "The  first  two  sales  contests  which  we  helped 
promote  with  our  Navion,  increased  the  sole  of  our  Good  Luck  Oleomargarine  in  some 
instances  as  high  as   1,300%,"   reports  Emil  Locher,  Jr.,  partner  in  Luthy  &  Lociher, 

wholesale  jobbers  of  fruit  and  produce  in  Peoria,  Illinois.  L.  &  L.  also  uses  the  Navion 
as  fast  worehouse-to-fields  transportation. 

FARMER  FLIES  IN  A  BIG  WAY.      7  planes  work  for  Darrel  G.  Dikeman  on  his 

5,000-acre  form  near  Syracuse,  Kansas.  A  pair  of  Novions  head  the  group,  per- 
forming duties  that  range  from  hauling  repair  ports  for  combines  to  delivering 
winter  moil  to  snowbound  neighbors.  "The  Novion's  a  workhorse,"  soys  Dikeman. 


13 


BEHIND  THE  BOEING  SCENE  AT  RYAN 


Ryan-made  floor  beams  lend  extra 
strength  to  the  famous  Boeing  C-97 
Stratofreighter  for  -which  this  com- 
pany is  also  making  rear  fuselage 
sections  and  other  components. 
Beams  similar  to  these  were  built 
into  the  first  rear  fuselage  assembly 
recently  shipped  to  Seattle. 


An  11 -foot  bulkhead  for  one  of  the 
Boeing  rear  fuselage  sections  is  as- 
sembled in  a  specially  designed  jig. 
This  particular  bulkhead  uas  incor- 
porated in  the  first  fuselage  assembly 
shown  being  loaded  on  the  flatcar. 
Page  1. 


A  fair  estimate  of  the  tremendous 
cargoes  ivhich  may  be  transported 
into  Berlin  ivhen  the  big  Boeing  C-97 
Strato  freighters  begin  operational 
flights  is  easy  upon  sight  of  one  of 
the  huge  cargo  doors  (shoun  left). 
Expert  assemblers  are  aligning  ribs 
before  skin  is  attached. 


FIRST  OFF  THE  LINE! 

(Continued  frcmi  page  1 ) 

Driving  himself  every  minute  was  Jorge 
Litell,  Foreman,  Boeing  Airplane  Assembly 
department,  coordinating  his  schedule 
closely  with  Airplane  Superintendent  John 
van  der  Linde.  He  and  his  assistant  day 
foremen,  Ray  Doherty  and  Jerry  Jack- 
son kept  on  the  alert  every  minute  to 
see  that  nothing  held  up  the  big  pro- 
gram. Typical  of  the  fine  spirit  which 
marks  the  Boeing  assembly  job  was  the 
work  of  Doug  Beebe,  Foreman  of  the 
second  shift  and  his  assistants,  Bill  Leitch 
and  R.  W.  "Rosie"  Barthol.  These  men, 
sometimes  staying  up  all  night  to  insure 
completion  of  some  particular  important 
phase,  contributed  greatly  to  the  success- 
ful outcome  of  the  first  operations.  Play- 
ing an  extremely  important  part,  too,  were 
Boeing  representatives  who  plunged  whole- 
heartedly into  the  drive. 

Pow-wows  were  plentiful  and  prayer- 
ful at  the  beginning.  First  stage  of  the 
operation  was  adequate  planning.  Pro- 
duction charts  were  acquired  from  Boeing 
for  comparison;  thorough  analysis  of 
Ryan's  own  production  records,  man- 
power availability  and  material  stocks  had 
to  be  checked.  Quantities  of  new  stock 
had  to  be  guaranteed;  new  tools,  jigs  and 
fixtures  were  a  necessity;  more  skilled 
craftsmen  had  to  be  added  to  Ryan's  ex- 
perienced array. 

Bill  Wiley,  Scheduling  and  Loading 
Supervisor,  working  with  Ralph  Flanders, 
broke  out  stacks  of  estimating  sheets, 
some  of  them  six  feet  by  four  feet  in 
over-all  dimensions.  Conferences  in  the 
office  of  Bob  Clark,  head  of  ScheduEng 
and  Production  Control,  centered  on  prob- 
lems of  material  requisitioning,  procure- 
ment dates,  shop  layouts,  equipment,  fab- 
rication requirements,  sub-assembly,  as- 
sembly and  processing  methods,  and  ship- 
ment in  time  to  meet  customer  needs. 

To  Seattle  on  many  trips  went  experts 
like  Don  Wright,  Assistant  Supervisor, 
Tool  Planning  department;  Joe  Williams, 
Supervisor  of  Material  Control  depart- 
ment, and  Harry  T.  Brew,  Traffic  Mana- 
ger. Operations  began  to  hum.  Material 
drummed  up  from  many  sources  by  Joe 
Williams  and  his  assistant,  Frank  Delaney, 
poured  in.  Biggest  headache,  Delaney  re- 
ports, was  getting  proper  supply  of  the 
smallest  parts,  a  certain  type  of  rivets. 

Special  Boeing-designed  assembly  jigs 
took  form  as  John  van  der  Linde  and 
Jorge  Litell  set  up  production  lines  for 
each  of  the  rear  fuselage  components. 
Output,  already  accelerating,  is  expected 
to  triple  between  this  summer  and  the 
first  of  the  year.  Working  closely  on 
allied  problems  to  get  the  program  off 
to  a  flying  start  were  Larry  Martin,  Man- 
(Continued  on  next  page) 


14 


It  looks  somewhat  like  a  small  com- 
mercial dishwashing  machine.  But  the 
recently  installed  Pangborn  Hydro- 
finish  liquid-honing  machine  which 
holds  down  a  convenient  location  in 
Ryan's  new  Jet-Cone  Assembly  depart- 
ment is  used  for  putting  a  high  polish 
on  stainless  steel  parts  instead  of  dishes 
— a  glitter  that  means  extra  thrust  and 
speed  for  completed  aircraft  later. 

Main  factor  in  obtaining  the  required 
satiny  finish  on  stainless  steel  or  Inconel 
parts  for  the  GE  jet  turbine  parts  is 
proper  mixture  of  a  prepared  abrasive 
in  ratio  of  5  0  pounds  of  grit  to  5  0 
pounds  of  water  plus  Yi  pound  of  rust 
inhibitor  and  Yz  pound  of  sur-flow^,  a 
compound  designed  to  keep  solids  from 
"settling"  too  quickly.  Constant  agita- 
tion of  the  mix  is  essential,  care  being 
exercised  to  guard  against  improper 
starting  or  stopping  of  the  machine  dur- 
ing the  day.  Valves  on  pipes  below  the 
honing  compartment  allow^  the  operator 
to  manipulate  streams  of  water  and 
abrasive  w^hile  using  his  hands  for  turn- 
ing parts. 


FIRST  OFF  THE  LINE! 

(Continued  froin  page  14) 

ager  of  Production  Engineering,  and  Don 
Walker,  General  Supervisor  of  Dispatch- 
ing. 

Considerable  ingenuity  in  planning  for 
shipment  of  the  fuselage  sections  was 
displayed  by  Charles  C.  Hasty,  recently 
promoted  to  be  Departmental  Assistant  to 
D.  H.  Palmer,  Plant  Engineer.  Hasty  and 
Brew  found  San  Diego  officials  of  the 
Santa  Fe  railway  helpful  with  transporta- 
tion, but  tunnels  between  San  Diego  and 
Seattle  presented  some  new  "curves."  A 
last-minute  check  by  Brew  revealed  a 
tunnel  repair  in  Oregon  which  would  have 
forced  return  of  the  car,  but  drastic 
"adjustments"  by  Hasty  and  his  crew 
enabled  the  dispatchers  to  flag  the  load 
out  on  time.  The  fuselage  unit  skimmed 
through  the  tunnel  with  a  full  inch  and 
a  half  to  spare. 


RYAN  NAVION  FOR  '49 

(Continued  from  page  }) 

and  noise  are  carried  beneath  the  fuselage 
and  away  from  the  cabin. 

A  new  exterior  air  scoop  on  the  right 
hand  side  of  the  engine  cowl  has  been 
provided  to  "ram"  fresh  air  into  the  cabin 
ventilating  system,  vastly  increasing  the 
quantity  of  fresh  air  passing  into  the  cabin 
and  exhausting  from  outlets  beneath  the 
rear  seat  which  empty  into  the  wing 
fillet.  The  new  heater-muffler  provides 
adequate  cabin  heat  from  the  engine  ex- 
haust even  in  the  most  adverse  weather, 
and  eliminates  the  additional  installation 
and  operating  costs  of  a  gasoline-burning 
heater  system. 

A  major  improvement  in  the  Ryan 
Navion  last  year  was  the  dual  fuel  system 
with  two  independent  pumps,  one  engine 
driven  and  the  other  an  auxiliary  with 
electric  drive.  Now  a  still  better  system 
is  standard,  with  the  main  pump  a  vane 
type  instead  of  the  rubber  diaphragm 
pulse  type.  One  of  the  most  expensive 
fuel  systems  which  can  be  provided  in 
the  personal-executive  class  of  plane,  the 
Ryan  dual  pump  set-up  gives  the  maxi- 
mum in  reliability. 

An  additional  feature  of  the  '49  fuel 
system  is  the  new  20-gallon  auxiliary  tank, 
available  as  extra  equipment,  which  can 
be  installed  beneath  the  rear  seat.  Range 
up  to  800  miles  at  economy  cruise  set- 
tings is  possible  with  the  extra  gasoline 
tank.  It  is  now  placed  in  a  location  which 
avoids  taking  up  valuable  cargo  or  bag- 
gage space,  and  keeps  the  airplane  eg. 
well  forward. 

The  Continental  engine  being  installed 
in  the  '49  Ryan  Navion  now  has  a  205 
h.p.  approved  take-off  rating  and  incor- 
porates some  important  changes  designed 
to  improve  operation.  Engines  for  the  '49 
model,  again  have  the  silver  alloy  thrust 
bearing  which  provided  utmost  reliability, 
and  in  addition  includes  a  new  steel  cam- 
shaft and  other  recent  refinements. 

A  new  RCA  receiver  and  6-channel 
VHP  transmitter,  standard  equipment  for 
'49,  gives  greatly  improved  radio  com- 
munication over  longer  distances.  The 
Ryan  Navion's  radio  equipment  is  well 
ahead  of  that  provided  as  standard  by 
other  planes  in  this  class  of  personal- 
business  plane. 

Both  the  standard  and  gyro  instrument 
panels,  and  the  control  panel,  have  been 
completely  redesigned  for  improved  ap- 
pearance and  for  easier  reading,  operation 
and  identification.  More  standard  instru- 
ments have  been  provided,  including  rate 
of  chmb  indicator,  dampened  fuel  gage 
and  outside  air  temperature,  in  addition 
to  the  manifold  pressure  gage. 

The    standard    instrument    panel    cut- 


outs have  been  designed  so  the  complete 
Gyro  group  can  be  installed  with  mini- 
mum alteration.  The  redesigned  control 
panel  includes  several  new  control  knobs 
which  have  been  changed  to  make  them 
more  sensitive  to  the  pilot's  feel  for  easier 
identification.  The  new  flap  control  is 
in  the  shape  of  an  air  foil  section  and 
Incorporates  a  setting  for  partial  flap  con- 
trol so  that  flaps  may  be  set  to  any  de- 
sired position  between  retracted  and  fully 
lowered. 

Four  new  corrosion-proof  synthetic 
enamel  finishes  have  been  selected  for  the 
1949  models.  They  are  softer  tones  and 
more  pleasing  than  last  year  when  Ryan 
was  the  first  company  to  offer  an  all- 
metal  personal  plane  completely  painted 
without  extra  charge.  A  new  contrasting 
striping  design  is  used  this  year.  It  gives 
a  more  sweeping,  graceful  appearance  both 
in  flight  and  on  the  ground.  The  new 
colors  for  '49  are  Italian  Creme,  Royal 
Maroon,  Lucerne  Green  and  Riviera  Blue. 

Scoring  solidly  on  the  target  of  even 
greater  comfort,  performance  and  relia- 
bility, the  1949  Ryan  Navion  enters  the 
new  sales  season  with  added  values  to 
strengthen  its  already  fine  reputation  as 
America's  best-to-buy,  easiest-to-fly  per- 
sonal-business plane. 

NEW  METAL  PRODUCTS  SALES 
BOOST  RYAN  ORDER  BACKLOG 

Ne\s'  orders  for  stainless  steel  metal 
products  totalling  more  than  $750,000 
were  added  to  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany's backlog  recently,  Sam  Breder,  Sales 
Manager,  disclosed  upon  return  from  a 
business  trip  to  New  York,  Washington 
and  other  eastern  cities. 

Prominent  in  the  new  business  columns 
was  an  award  from  Continental  Motors 
Company  for  manifolds  for  their  automo- 
tive engines.  Continental's  810  h.p.  12- 
cylinder  model  engine  was  developed  for 
the  Army's  new  General  Patton  tanks, 
which  develop  up  to  50%  more  speed  than 
the  General  Sherman  tanks  of  World  War 
II. 

Lockheed  put  in  an  order  for  exhaust 
manifolds  for  the  Navy's  record-setting 
long-range  patrol  plane,  the  P2V3 -Nep- 
tune, the  second  large  order  from  this 
company  this  year.  From  the  Glenn  L. 
Martin  Aircraft  Company  came  an  order 
for  exhaust  systems  for  the  new  carrier- 
borne  torpedo-bomber  plane,  the  Martin 
Mauler  AM-1,  already  dubbed  "Able 
Mable"  by  Navy  aviation  personnel.  The 
Mauler  carries  a  greater  load  of  explosives 
aloft  than  any  other  single-engined  carrier 
plane,  with  improved  speed  and  range  to 
match  its  terrific  firepower. 


It  may  look  like  a  Buck  Rogers  death-ray  ueapoa,  but  the  efficient  electric  port- 
able  spotueUer   sbou/n   here  with   Don    Ecklnnd  at   the   controls  is   just   another 
mechanical   helper  in   Jet    Cone   Assembly    department. 

Hanging  from  the  overhead,  the  machine  resembles  a  fearsome  Buck  Rogers 
gun,  complete  with  trigger  section,  long  projecting  "barrels"  and  appropriate 
accessories.  A  portable  tack-welder  of  unusual  design,  the  new  device  speeds 
production  in  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company's  Jet  Cone  Assembly  depart- 
ment. Its  working  jaws  or  welding  electrodes  are  hollow  barrels  of  heavy  brass 
about  2  inches  in  diameter,  extendmg  22;/,  inches  from  the  grip  area  to  allow 
work  in  places  normally  difficult  or  impossible  to  reach  by  electric  weld.  Because 
the  barrels  may  be  adjusted  at  will,  they  can  straddle  both  sides  of  curved  cones, 
reach  down  into  hidden  interiors  and  apply  the  "heat"  to  remote  parts  from  a 
wide  variety  of  positions. 

No  shock  can  be  received  by  workmen  because  the  major  contact  areas  of 
the  electrodes  are  of  copper,  providing  a  line  of  lesser  resistance  for  the  current. 
A  transformer  transfers  the  440-volt  input  into  lower  voltage  at  the  electrodes 
with  correspondingly  higher  amperage — and  greater  heat. 

Another  efficient  electric  machine  installed  recently  in  the  same  department 
is  the  Thomson-Gibb  2  50-KVA  seam- welder  which  is  particularly  useful  for 
welding  curved  parts  and  tubular-shaped  pieces  such  as  Airesearcli  heaters  for 
the  Fairchild  C-82  Packets  and  flange  turns  in  the  McDonnell  Aircraft  Company 
tail  cone  product.  A  54-inch  throw  is  provided  at  the  contact  area  to  allow 
handling  of  large  parts.  To  cool  both  the  processed  parts  and  the  exterior  of 
the  electrodes  two  streams  of  cold  water  are  thrown  continuously  at  point  of 
contact  upon  the  metal  being  worked,  a  pump  returning  the  water  for  re-use. 

Twenty  other  electric  welders  contribute  further  to  the  efficiency  of  plant 
welding  operations.  Typical  of  these  is  the  Federal  Press-Type  spot-welder 
installed  at  about  the  same  time  as  its  bigger  cousin,  the  seam-welder.  A  con- 
denser discharge  type  machine,  it  has  a  capacity  of  71  "spots"  per  minute  and 
can  work  two  .080  thickness  sheets  of  aluminum  alloy  per  minute.  It  operates 
on  DC  current,  three-phase,  and  is  electronically  controlled. 

No  filler  metal  is  used  for  any  of  the  welding  operations,  the  concentrated 
heat  through  the  electrodes  "liquefying"  the  small  areas  of  metal  directly 
between  the  contact  points  into  a  solid  weld.  Electrodes  themselves  are  hollowed 
inside  to  allow  a  flow  of  cooling  water  within  their  shafts. 


NAVION  SHORT  (S)  STORY 

(Continued  from  page  7) 

Despite  the  shortness  of  the  field  and 
the  6,000-foot  altitude,  the  Navion  takes 
off  with  a  load  of  three  people,  in  three- 
quarters  of  the  usable  distance. 

The  Goldwaters  consider  this  Rainbow 
Lodge  strip  at  the  base  of  Navajo  Moun- 
tain, the  most  remote  landing  field  in 
the  United  States,  and  the  least  accessible 
to  civilization.  Tlie  nearest  railroad  is 
175  miles  away,  and  it's  120  miles  to  the 
closest  paved  road. 

Horse  shoes,  saddles  and  other  needed 
equipment  have  been  flown  into  the  lodge 
on  many  occasions.  In  one  emergency, 
the  lodge's  electric  light  plant  was  kept 
operating  because  Barry  Goldwater  was 
able  to  Navion  in  with  critical  repair 
parts  and  tools. 

"Flying  to  the  lodge  from  Phoenix 
takes  less  than  2  hours,"  Barr)'  says.  "Con- 
sider this  against  the  14-hour  automobile 
trip  required.  Because  we  have  no  tele- 
phone there  and  the  only  mail  service  is 
by  our  own  pick-up  from  a  country  post- 
office  20  miles  away,  the  urgent  necessity 
of  having  our  own  plane  for  getting 
needed  supplies  and  equipment  into  the 
lodge  is  readily  apparent.  Perishable  foods 
are  particularly  important  items  that  are 
best  transported  in  the  Navion.  And 
when  guests  desire  it,  we  fly  them  in, 
too." 

When  severe  winter  brings  hardships 
to  Navajo  Indians  living  in  the  more 
remote  sections  of  Arizona,  the  Gold- 
waters'  Navion  goes  to  work  as  a  depend- 
able relief  plane.  Flying  in  food,  clothing 
and  Christmas  gifts  to  the  needy  Navajo 
children,  Barry  carries  loads  of  over  700 
pounds  in  the  plane.  In  preparation  for 
these  mercy  flights,  he  takes  out  the  back 
seat,  converting  the  Navion  into  a  roomy 
half-ton  aerial  truck. 

"There's  a  recreational  side  to  our  fly- 
ing, too,"  he  adds.  "Our  favorite  fish- 
ing spot  is  near  Guaymas,  Mexico.  We 
fly  there  in  less  than  3  hours,  which  is 
9  hours  shorter  than  the  highway  route. 
My  brother,  Bob,  uses  the  Navion  during 
the  summer  to  commute  to  Colorado 
Springs  where  he  maintains  a  home,  just 
as  I  commute  by  Navion  to  La  Jolla, 
California,  my  family's  summer  retreat." 

"We  like  our  Navion  better  every  dav, 
because  we  can  do  things  with  it.  To- 
day, for  instance,  the  plane  is  at  our 
store  in  Prescott.  Tomorrow,  it  will  be 
flown  to  Dallas,  and  from  there  to  Phoe- 
nix, by  way  of  Wichita — all  in  the  inter- 
est of  business." 

— Robert  F.  Smith. 


A  whole  generation  has  been  born,  edu- 
cated and  made  familiar  with  a  new  world 
on  wings  since  James  L.  Kelley,  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company's  Works  Manager, 
started  with  the  U.  S.  Signal  Corps  as 
a  civilian  aircraft  production  specialist  in 
1917.  Airplanes  were  fragile  things  then, 
many  of  them  little  more  than  flying 
crates  of  fabric,  sticks  and  wire  propelled 
by  sputtering  engines.  Even  in  their  in- 
fancy, however,  these  predecessors  to  the 
jet  planes,  rockets  and  guided  missiles  of 
today  required  in  construction  a  wide 
knowledge  of  aeronautics  and  efficient  fac- 
tory production  methods. 

Just  this  sort  of  knowledge  distin- 
guishes Ryan's  Works  Manager.  Kelley 's 
record  of  active  participation  in  aircraft 
production  is  easily  one  of  the  longest 
and  most  solidly  founded  in  the  industry. 
The  lessons  Kelley  learned  during  his  years 
of  great  and  continuing  responsibility  in 
varied  posts  proved  of  vital  importance 
during  the  demanding  war  years  when 
his  instinct  for  doing  the  right  thing  at 
the  right  time  won  him  wide  respect  and 
recognition.  Much  of  the  credit  for  the 
phenomenal  Consolidated  B-24  and  PBY 
production  records  deservedly  belongs  to 
Kelley,  who  headed  up  both  production 
programs. 

One  of  Kelley 's  early  positions  was  with 
the  Army's  Bureau  of  Aircraft  Produc- 
tion in  field  work  for  the  Air  Corps  at 
McCook  Field,  the  predecessor  of  the 
world-famous  Wright  Field  experimental 
base.  Subsequent  responsible  jobs  included 
that  of  Senior  Aircraft  Inspector.  Dur- 
mg  this  time  he  was  also  frequently  en- 
gaged on  experimental  projects. 

In  1929  Kelley  left  the  Civil  Service  for 
a  position  as  Superintendent  in  charge 
of  production  with  the  Consolidated  Air- 
craft Company  of  Buffalo,  N.Y.  By  the 
time  Consolidated  made  its  trans-con- 
tinental hike  to  San  Diego  in  193  5  he 
had  become  Factory  Manager,  and  was 
one  of  the  Company's  directors.  Later 
he  became  Division  Manager  for  the  ex- 
panded company,  and  held  that  billet  until 
he  ran  into  a  siege  of  illness.  At  this  time 
he  resigned  as  Division  Manager  for  lighter 
staff  duties. 

The  years  between  1917  and  1947  pro- 
vided Kelley  with  all  the  problems  and 
production  battles  that  even  his  Irish  sys- 
tem could  ask.  Aircraft  models  are 
brought  out  in  prototype  almost  with- 
out pause,  requiring  a  continuous  expert 
balancing  of  current  production,  new  ex- 
perimentation and  modification.  Mix  into 
this  situation  the  necessity  for  training 
workers  to  observe  the  finest  of  precision 
methods  within  extremely  close  tolerances 
— and  headaches  begin. 

The  necessity  of  developing  new  metals 
and  ways  to  machine  those  metals,  plus 


44 


EVERYBODY 


HERE'S 
KELLEY!" 


the  constant  fight  against  normal  tech- 
nical obsolescence  makes  it  easy  to  under- 
stand why  aircraft  industry  production 
managers  develop  determined  chins  and 
strong  backs. 

Kelley  says  he  wouldn't  choose  any 
other  kind  of  job. 

Kelley  came  to  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany as  Works  Manager  in  1948,  and  has 
settled  into  his  new  position  with  energy 
renewed  during  an  effort  to  put  up  with 


the  ease  of  retirement.  He's  a  "move- 
around"  man,  and  keeps  just  about  all 
his  "paper-work"  and  data  handy  within 
the  covers  of  a  medium-sized  black  loose- 
leaf  notebook. 

With  Ryan's  works  manager,  good  pro- 
duction demands  imagination,  sound  plan- 
ning, attention  to  detail,  and  one  hell  of 
a  lot  of  hard  work,  including  his  own. 

He's  married,  has  three  children,  and  is 
a  soft  touch,  he  says,  in  golf. 


17 


RYAN   AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY 
LINDBERGH     FIELD 
SAN  DIEGO  12,  CALIFORNIA 

Return  Postage   Guaranteed 

POSTMASTER:  If  addressee  has  removed,  and  new 
address  is  known,  notify  sender  on  Form  3547,  postage 
for  which   is  guaranteed. 


27990 

R.  K.  bhait: 

40  71  HAJ.:JE:: 

3AN  DIEGO,  CALalF 


Sec.  562,  P.  L.  6C  R. 

U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego,  California 
Permit  No.  437 


SPEAKING  OF  SHORT-FIELD  PERFORMANCE! 
THE  '49  RYAN  NAVION  IS  IN  A  CLASS  BY  ITSELF! 


PERFORMANCE  SHOWN  IS  WITH 
NO  WIND,  FULL  2,750  POUNDS 
GROSS    WEIGHT   AT   SEA    lEVEt 


DON'T  WORRY  if  that  smooth,  concrete  runway  is 
miles  from  where  you  want  to  go.  A  Ryan  Navion  will  take 
you  into  short,  rough  strips . . .  and  out  again,  with  ease 
and  safety.  Think  of  it!  Navion  lands  at  only  54  m.p.h.  with 
full  gross  load.  Its  high-lift,  full-deflection  flaps  lower  43° 
to  make  possible  slow,  steep  approaches.  Only  875  feet 
are  needed  to  clear  a  50-ft.  obstacle— both  on  landing  and 


take-off.  Navion  s  husky  205  h.  p.  engine  will  give  you 
900-ft.  of  altitude  in  your  first  minute  of  flight!  Perform- 
ance like  this  is  mighty  important  to  the  man  who  wants 
a  rugged,  versatile  plane  with  plenty  of  utility  that'll  get 
him  there  and  put  him  down  right  where  he's  needed. 
Yes,  Navion  s  short-field  performance  is  a  big  reason 
why  it's  the  growing  favorite  among  businessmen  pilots. 


WIDE  WHEEL  TREAD  and  high  ground  clear- 
ance...big,  steerable  balanced  nosewheel  and 
oversize  tires  enable  you  to  set  the  Navion 
down  smooth  as  velvet  on  rough,  soft  fields, 
even  in  cross  winds.  Big,  equalized  hydraulic 
brakes  ease  ground-handling.  Deep-stroke 
hydraulic  shocks  are  real  heavyweights. 


SAFE,  AND  EASY-TO-FLY,  the  155  m.p.h. 
Navion  has  amazing  stability,  is  gentle  and 
well-behaved. .  ."forgives"  pilot  error  short 
of  tbolhardiness.  It  features  "two  control 
after  take-off" . . .  yet  you  have  rudder  when 
you  want  it.  Stall -resistant  wing  gives  ail- 
eron control  beiow  stalling  speed  for  safety. 


BIG  AND  RUGGED,  the  thick-skinned,  all- 
metal  Navion  represents  highest  structural 
integrity  in  aircraft  design.  Low  mainten- 
ance cost  and  permanent  beauty  are  assured. 
Send  now  for  colorful,  free  brochure  which 
gives  complete  details  on  all  29  dramatic 
advancements  in  Ryan  Navion  for  "49. 


NO   OTHER    PLANE    COMBINES 
SO  MANY  FEATURES   SO  WELL 


u\,^\.rv 


-v..;,<iO^ 


.^: 


AiPmniLo  a©4i© 


Better  Gliml),  Sliorter  Take-Off  Witli  New  Metal  Prop 

Installation  of  Hartzell's  new  all-metal,  hydro-selective  pitch  propeller  as 
optional  equipment  has  increased  even  more  the  performance  of  the  1949  Ryan 
Navion,  which  has  already  been  substantially  improved  over  that  of  last  year's 
model. 

Approximately  10'/^  improvement  in  take-off  and  climb  performance  has 
been  shown  in  exhaustive  tests  at  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  factory. 
Equipped  with  the  new  metal  Hartzell  propeller,  the  1949  Ryan  Navion  climbs 
at  the  rate  of  1000  feet  per  minute  in  comparison  to  the  900  feet  per  minute 
of  the  standard  model  with  full  275  0  pound  gross  load,  no  wind,  at  sea  level. 
The  1948  model  Navion  climbed  830  f.p.m..  but  did  not  have  the  present  205 
h.p.  engine  take-off  rating.  Under  similar  load  and  wind  conditions,  the  metal- 
propellered  Navion  will  clear  a  50-foot  obstacle  in  only  800  feet,  compared  to 
an  87 5 -foot  run  for  the  standard  model. 

A  noticeable  increase  in  speed  beyond  the  155  m.p.h.  cruising  speed  of  the 
standard  model,  plus  a  higher  ceiling,  has  been  reported.  Like  most  metal  pro- 
pellers, the  Hartzell  operates  more  smoothly,  with  no  chance  for  change  in 
balance  because  of  possible  warping  or  moisture  pick-up.  Then,  too,  metal 
blades  are  more  durable  than  wood  or  metal-tipped  propellers,  are  not  so  subject 
to  possible  damage  when  flying  in  rain,  and  require  less  all-round  maintenance. 

Where  ground  collisions  or  belly  landings  cause  major  damage,  metal  propellers 
can  be  straightened  and  used  as  entirely  satisfactory  after  rework  by  the  pro- 
peller factory. 


ON  THE  COVER 

Two    Nations    on    Soldier    Bar,    a    U,    S, 
Forestry   landing   strip    located   high    in 
the  mountains  of  the  Primitive  area  of 
Idaho. 
(See  story  on  Page  3)  


HE  SIGNS  IT: 


Escaped  from  Ohio  winters  via  trail- 
er in  December  1940.  Was  assistant 
controller  for  one  of  world's  largest  re- 
tail food  department  stores  before  com- 
ing West. 

Joined  Ryan  School  of  Aeronautics 
on  January  7,  1941,  as  Assistant  Sec- 
retary and  Assistant  to  the  Controller. 
Today  enjoys  to  full  his  work  as  Assist- 
ant Secretary  and  Assistant  to  the  Con- 
troller for  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company. 

Likes  flying  and  woodwork,  too.  He's 
married;  has  three  children,  all  girls. 


Meet  Dale  H.  Ockerman 


APRIL,    1949  VOL.   I,   No.   4 

Published  Monthly  By 
Ryan    Aeronautical   Company,   Lindbergh  Field,  San  Diego   12,  California 


Charles  M.  Hatcher,  editor Frances  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  editor Robert  F.  Smith,  Na 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographer William  Wagner,  editorial  director. 


THE  "FlYISli  DIITCHMM" 


If  you  aren't  careful,  you'll  find  your 
first  impression  of  John  van  der  Linde 
has  fooled  you.  The  tall,  easy-going 
Dutchman  never  seems  hurried,  seldom 
looks  worried.  As  Superintendent  of  Air- 
plane Production  he  faces  a  host  of  prob- 
lems daily,  but  he  solves  them  so  easily 
you'd  think  things  sort  of  ran  by  them- 
selves. 

John  is  a  true  "old-timer,"  not  only 
with  Ryan  but  in  aviation.  From  the  day 
he  saw  his  first  barnstorming  "crate"  in 
Java  while  still  a  youngster,  he  knew  he 
wanted  to  work  with  airplanes.  His  father, 
a  physician  in  the  Royal  Netherlands  civil 
service,  educated  John  to  be  an  architect. 
But  John,  whose  full  monicker  is  Haym 
Jan  van  der  Linde,  said  "to  heck  with 
that!"  He  didn't  get  around  to  aircraft  all 
at  once,  however.  First  he  went  through  a 
technical  school  in  Java,  then  worked  for 
a  wholesale  company  where  he  did  every- 
thing from  clerking  to  selling.  He  even 
sold  motorcycles,  winning  a  third  place  in 
a  twenty-four  hour  endurance  run. 

Actual  aviation  experience  began  for 
John  van  der  Linde  when  his  family  de- 
cided upon  San  Diego  as  an  ideal  place  in 
which  to  live  after  his  father's  retirement. 
(Continued  on  page  7) 


T.  Claude  Ryan,  President  of  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company,  discusses  with 
John  van  der  Linde,  his  "fai'orite  co-pilot"  of  20  years  ago,  some  of  the  many 
advanced  features  incorporated  in  Ryan^s  pioneering  FR-I  "Fireball"  Navy 
fighter  ivhich  proved  the  practicability  of  using  both  propeller  and  jet  thrust. 

Van  der  Linde   (on  top  of  wing)   played  an  important  part  in  rebuilding  the 

first  "Clondster"  plane  built  by  Donald  Douglas  in   1925   for  Ryan  Airlines, 

Inc.    Ship  originally  had  three  open  cockpits;   was  rebuilt  in  Ryan  shops  as  a 

cabin  plane  for  ten  passengers. 


John  van  der  Linde  chucked  a  career 
in  architecture  to  make  his  tvay 
in  early  air  industry 


MOUNTAIN  FLYING:  A/a^iom  X>te^<ittcd 


All  Photos  and  Cover  BY  GLENN  E.  HIGBY 


short  field  performance  and 

ruggedness  of  Navions 

aid  mountain  flyers 


Mountain  flying  sounds  dangerous,  and  it  can  be,  without 
the  right  airplane  and  pilot  "know  how."  But  mountain  pilots 
of  the  Aircraft  Service  Company,  operating  the  year  round 
out  of  Boise,  Idaho,  have  proved  that  their  Navion  flights  are 
not  only  safe,  but  efficient  and  economical. 

Glenn  E.  Higby,  Chief  Pilot  for  the  company,  is  enthusiastic 
about  his  work  despite  the  rugged  terrain.  "In  our  own  moun- 
tain flying,"  Higby  declares,  "we  make  extensive  use  of  Na- 
vions. We  operate  over  extremely  rough 
terrain,  and  demand   a   plane  with  quick 
take-off  and  short  landing  characteristics, 
and  above  all,  stability  in  flight  and  rug- 
gedness on  small  rough  fields. 

"The  continued  success  of  the  many 
pilots  who  follow  the  rules  of  mountain 
flying  and  seek  advice  from  experienced 
mountain  pilots  proves  beyond  a  doubt 
that  mountain  flying  do's  and  don'ts  are 
invaluable.   Fundamentals  of  safe  moun- 


Strip  at  Stibnite  mine,  6,539  feet  above 
sea  level,  is  open  year-round,  very  often 
when  roads  are  blocked  with  ivinter 
snows.  While  Navion  is  loaded  for 
flight  to  Boise,  work  progresses  on  neiv 
smelter. 


tain  flying  are  (a)  good  pilot  judgment, 
(b)  refusing  to  take  chances  with  the 
weather,  (c)  a  good  airplane  and  a  thor- 
ough knowledge  of  it,  and  (d)  a  strict 
observance  of  mountain  flying   rules. 

"We  have  little  else  but  short,  rough 
fields.  Many  of  them  are  not  level,  slop- 
ing not  only  up  and  down  the  runway, 
but  across  the  runway.  Many  of  these 
fields  are  located  so  that  landings  can  be 
made  in  only  one  direction,  and  take-offs 

in  the  other,  regardless  of  wind  direction.  Very  little,  if  any, 
maintenance  is  done  on  them.  Occasionally  the  Forest  Service 
will  drag  the  weeds  and  grass." 

MERCY  FLIGHT  SUCCESSFUL 

Higby  describes  a  winter  "mercy"  flight  by  which  a  load 
of  supplies  was  transported  in  and  dropped  on  Bruce  Meadows 
about  80  miles  north  of  Boise,  where  several  hunters  were 
stranded.  It  was  decided  to  use  a  Navion  to  drop  the  food 
supplies  and  a  bedroll. 

"With  a  storm  moving  in,  it  was  hard  to  say  how  long  it 
would  be  before  we  could  drop  any  more,"  Higby  relates. 

"We  loaded  the  supplies,  with  the  weather  nearly  past  the 
point  where  we  could  take  off.  In  view  of  the  5000  ft.  altitude 
at  McCall,  Idaho,  and  the  snow  condition  on   the  runway,   I 

(Contimied  on  page  13  ) 


j.uk    Liu  CI-.,   another    mountain    flyer,    with   Navion    on   Yellow 

Pine  Field  high  in  the  million-acre  Idaho  primitive  area.  Strip 

is  typical   mountain   variety — short  and  rough. 


Pilot  Higby  lands  on  macadam  highway  at  6,S00-foot  altitude 

despite   strong    ivind   to   enable   Emmons   Coleman   of   Bradley 

Mining  Co7npany  to  supervise  repair  of  overturned  truck. 


PRE-PLANNING 


Here  is  story  of  Ryan  Manifold 

^^knoTV-how"  from  dratving 

board  theory  to  practice 


of  prime  importance  in  development  of  new  mani- 
fold is  the  design  and  construction  of  precision  tools 
with  which  to  build  them.  Looking  over  a  jig  draw- 
ing  in  the  Tooling  department  are  (L-R)  Horace 
"Wally"  Wallen,  Tool  Engineer;  Paul  Sauter,  Fore- 
man of  Tool  Manufacturing  and  Design,  and  Floyd 
A.   Cox,  Supervisor  of  Tool  Planning. 


End    product,    a     manifold    for    Lockheed^s    record- 
setting    PZV    combat    patrol    planes,    calls    for    many 
skills  and  long  experience. 


Ryan  exhaust  systems  help  these  Navy  "Neptunes" 

establish  new  marks  for  efficiency  and  long-distance 

flying. 


Harry  A.  Goodin,  Engineering  department  (left) 
and  Jack  Zippwald,  Southern  California  Sales  Rep- 
resentative for  Ryan,  checking  some  engineering 
data,  exemplify  close  coordination  between  Metal 
Products  Sales  and  Engineering  departments. 


MEANS  SUCCESSFUL  MANIFOLD  DESIGN 


Back  in  the  fall  of  1947  the  Navy's  multi-purpose  P2V 
combat  patrol  plane,  the  "Truculent  Turtle,"  took  off  from 
Perth,  Australia.  It  startled  the  world  by  staying  aloft  for 
5  5  hours  without  refueling,  finally  landing  at  Columbus,  Ohio, 
with  a  brand  new  distance  championship  of  11,236  miles! 
That  record  for  a  non-refueled  flight  still  stands. 

The  story  of  the  Lockheed  P2V  performance  is  a  team  story 
— one  which  was  achieved  only  through  highly  efficient  func- 
tioning of  men,  aircraft  and  engine  components.  The  succes- 
sors to  that  record-busting  "Truculent  Turtle"  are  maintain- 
ing its  reputation  for  endurance  and  efficiency.  And  Ryan- 
made  exhaust  systems  are  important  factors  in  their  continu- 
ing successes. 

Besides  carrying  off  the  heat  and  gas  from  engine  combus- 
tion, Ryan  exhaust  systems  put  hot  air  to  work  by  channeling 
it  into  carburetor  and  cabin  heating  devices;  by  transforming 
its  energy  into  jet  thrust  for  added  speed;  by  piping  heat  to 
wing  and  tail  surfaces  to  combat  icing,  and,  in  military  air- 
craft, heating  guns  and  control  surfaces. 

EARLY  PLANNING  NEEDED 

"First  step  in  the  creation  of  any  manifold-to-be,"  we  learn 
from  Charles  M.  Byrne,  Chief  Metal  Products  Engineer,  "be- 
gins with  the  customer's  need  for  a  particular  system  adapted 
to  the  engine  installation  in  the  plane  under  design.  To  develop 
an  exhaust  system  of  highest  efficiency  and  with  best  main- 
tenance characteristics  for  long  service  life,  the  manifold  de- 
sign must  be  undertaken  at  the  same  time  initial  layouts  are 


Good  planning  means  good  production.  Here  (L-R)  Ray  Ortiz, 
Superintendent  of  Manifold  Production;  G.  E.  Barton,  Production 
Matiager;  Ralph  Flanders,  Supervisor  of  Scheduling,  Ordering  and 
Stores,  and  Bob  Clark,  Schedules  and  Prodtiction  Control.  Manager, 
debate  some  plans. 


made  for  the  powcrplant  as  a  whole.  Proper  pre-planning 
eliminates  excess  weight  and  inefficiency  which  might  occur  if 
the  manifold  were  merely  an  afterthought — as  it  was  in  earlier 
days." 

At  present  there  are  three  general  types  of  exhaust  systems. 
One  is  the  universal  joint  type  commonly  referred  to  as  the 
Ryan  "ball  and  socket"  design,  which  is  composed  of  two  or 
three  sections  bolted  rigidly  together  and  mounted  on  the 
engine  mount  ring  or  inner  cowl  through  a  series  of  links.  The 
manifold  is  connected  to  the  engine  through  the  use  of 
patented  universal  or  "ball  and  socket"  joints  which  absorb 
engine  movement,  vibration  and  expansion. 

A  second  type  is  the  conventional  slip  joint  manifold  com- 
posed of  individual  sections  mounted  cantilever  on  the  engine 
exhaust  ports  and  connected  by  means  of  collars  which  act  as 
expansion  joints.  The  third  type  is  the  short  or  ejector  stack.  ■ 
Used  mainly  on  military  aircraft,  and  on  DC-6  and  Convair- 
Liner  powerplants,  this  type  consists  of  individual  stacks  for 
each  cylinder  or  pair  of  cylinders. 

As  early  as  possible  a  decision  is  reached  on  basic  design.  In 
the  Lockheed  P2V  order,  the  process  begins  with  contact  be- 
tween Jack  Zippwald,  Southern  California  sales  representative 
for  Ryan,  and  the  Lockheed  Aircraft  Company.  A  formal 
request  is  then  sent  by  Lockheed  describing  exactly  what  is 
(Continued  on  page  11) 


Photo-loft  reproduction  technicians  Glenn  Wilds  (left)  and  Dave 
Monesmith  set  aluminum  original  template  into  place  on  grilled 
photo  reproduction  rack  preparatory  to  ^'taking  its  pictttre"  for  later 
transfer  to  sensitized  cold  rolled  steel  plates  of  same  size.  Plates 
later  form   templates   for  plaster   modeling    operations. 


a 


With  The  Greatest  of  Ease!" 


^'W heel-only-after  take-off"  control  makes  cross-country 
flying  a  luxury  cruise  due  to  Navion's  unique  system 


BY  WILLIAM  P.  SLOAN 

Assistant   to   the   Vice-President 


Proving  popular  with  veteran  pilots  and  fledglings  alike,  the 
unique  "two-control"  coordinating  system  of  the  Ryan  Navion 
is  adding  still  further  pleasure  to  flight  hours  in  the  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company's   luxurious   personal-business  plane. 

Basic  principal  of  the  Navion's  automatically  coordinated 
system  is  a  patented  inter-connected  aileron  and  rudder  con- 
trol. This  permits  flying  with  wheel  control  only,  or  choosing 
the  conventional  three-control  system  merely  by  using  the 
rudder  pedals  in  the  normal  way. 

The  great  advantage  of  this  automatic  coordination  is  that 


rudder  during  climb  immediately  after  take-off  for  light  torque 
effect,  or  in  particularly  turbulent  air. 

Combined  with  its  exceptional  inherent  stability,  the  Nav- 
ion's "wheel  only  after  take-oflf"  control  system  makes  cross- 
country flying  a  restful,  mile-easy  cruise.  Full  control  of  the 
airplane  is  also  possible  by  using  the  rudder  pedals  only  since 
the  aileron-rudder  linkage  provides  the  necessary  coordination. 
This  leaves  the  pilot's  hands  free  for  extended  periods  to  ar- 
range maps  and  navigational  equipment,  unhampered  by  both- 
ersome wandering  from  course  and  the  concentration  otherwise 
necessary  to  maintain  level  flight. 


while  the  two-control  "wheel-only"  system  has  been  demon- 
strated as  the  simplest  and  most  relaxing,  allowing  perfectly 
coordinated  banked  turns  up  to  60  degrees,  the  Navion  arrange- 
ment has  the  additional  advantage  of  normal  three-control 
when  the  pilot  wants  it.  In  the  Ryan  Navion  system,  the  rud- 
der pedals  become  effective  by  slight  pressure  on  the  spring- 
loaded  inter-connected  hook-up. 

This  extra  directional  control  is,  of  course,  particularly  use- 
ful for  take-offs  and  landings  involving  operation  from  rough 
fields  and  in  cross-winds.  It  is  also  general  practice  to  use  the 


One  Ryan  Navion  pilot  with  more  than  300  flying  hours 
logged  since  taking  delivery  of  his  plane  reports  that  he  never 
touches  the  rudder  after  take-off,  and  believes  that  he  has  no 
more  than  4  hours  total  "rudder  time"  logged  on  the  plane. 

With  the  business  man  in  his  forties  definitely  established  as 
the  principal  user  of  the  personal-business  class  of  plane,  surveys 
show  that  these  men  have  a  definite  preference  for  simplified 
control.  They  are  interested  in  a  safe,  easy-to-fly,  stall-and-spin 
resistant  plane  in  which  there  is  no  necessity  or  desire  to  learn 
{Continued  on  page  12) 


THE  "FLYING"  DUTCHMAN 

(Continued  from  page  1 } 
He  was  20  years  old  when  he  first  saw 
San  Diego  in  1922,  and  full  of  youthful 
enthusiasm  for  his  first  job — helping  to 
rebuild  single-seat  war  surplus  planes  into 
two-place  jobs.  For  each  week's  toil  he 
earned  1  '  2  hours  flying  time  as  pay. 

"Darned  good  pay,  too,"  John  declares. 

Van  der  Linde's  quickness  to  learn,  the 
ease  with  which  his  skilled  hands  mastered 
both  engine  and  aircraft  ailments,  his  en- 
thusiasm— these  qualities  prompted  Haw- 
ley  Bowlus,  then  Chief  Mechanic  for  the 
newly  organized  Ryan  Flying  Service,  to 
offer  him  work  as  his  assistant.  When 
Bowlus  later  organized  the  Bowlus  Sail- 
plane Company  John  moved  up  to  be 
Chief  Mechanic  for  Ryan. 

Aviation  was  no  place  for  specialists  in 
those  days.  John  could  do  many  things 
beside  tune  engines,  piling  up  more  than  a 
thousand  flying  hours.  Young  T.  Claude 
Ryan,  president  of  the  Ryan  Flying  Ser- 
vice, found  him  a  good  man  at  the  stick. 

"He  was  my  favorite  co-pilot,"  Ryan 
declares.  "John  always  knew  what  he  was 
doing." 

The  Ryan  "shop"  was  then  a  not  too 
impressive  shed,  and  the  twenty-five  em- 
ployees, including  the  boss  himself,  had 
to  be  men  of  all  trades.  But,  from  the  first 
day,  John  has  continued  to  climb.  He  was 
the  first  man  in  San  Diego  to  earn  a  CAA 
(then  Department  of  Commerce)  air- 
craft and  engine  license.  His  number  was 
486.  Only  recently  he  received  his  1949 
renewal. 

Flying  was  all  right  as  part  time  work, 
but  John  preferred  actual  tinkering  to 
piloting.  "Active  flight  is  too  dull,"  he 
claims.  "Just  like  another  furrow  to  a 
farmer, — that's  having  to  fly  every  day." 
There  were  thrills,  though.  One  of  these 
came  during  the  period  in  which  Charles 
A.  Lindbergh  was  getting  ready  for  his 
famous  transatlantic  solo  hop  in  1927. 
The  youthful  pilot  of  the  Spirit  of  St. 
Louis  went  out  for  a  test  flight  and  be- 
came "overdue"  in  a  heavy  fog.  John  and 
J.  J.  "Red"  Harrigan,  now  employed  as 
an  Inspector  in  the  Sheet  Metal  depart- 
ment, went  out  to  look  for  him.  "My  big- 
gest thrill,  believe  me,"  said  John,  "was 
when  we  found  him!  His  plane  zipped  by 
our  plane  wingtip  to  wingtip,  headed  in 
opposite  directions,  with  only  inches  to 
spare!  Whoosh!  We  came  right  on  back 
to  the  field." 

John  went  to  another  aircraft  company 
between  1929  and  1936,  returning  to 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  in  May  of 
the  latter  year  under  the  Foreman  of 
Final  Assembly.  Three  or  four  months 
later,  John  moved  into  the  Foreman  billet, 
holding  it  until   1939.  Promoted  to  Gen- 


FOREMEN'S  CLUB  ANNUAL  DINNER  DANCE 


Business  problems  gave  way  to  laugh- 
ter and  the  smooth  strains  of  accordion 
and  violin  last  month  as  the  Ryan  tore- 
men's  Club  staged  its  annual  dinner- 
dance.  Scene  of  festivities  -was  Casper's 
Rancho,  the  lights  were  low,  spirits 
high,  and  a  good  time,  as  the  country 
newspapers  used  to  put  it,  was  had  by 
all. 

Greeted  at  the  door  (upper  right) 
with  free  corsages  for  the  ladies  were 
(l-r)  Frank  Voll,  of  Metal  Products 
Sales  office,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Earl  Beebe, 
guests,  and  Mrs.  Volt. 

Spotlighted  during  the  evening  was 
M.  W.  "Buck"  Kelly,  foreman  of  Air- 
plane Sub-Assembly,  who  put  past  pro- 
fessional band  experience  to  good  use  in 
a  session  with  the  drum  sticks — wooden 
drum  sticks,  that  is. 


eral  Foreman  of  Aircraft  Assembly  in  that 
year,  he  continued  to  turn  out  a  high  or- 
der of  production  and  was  made  Superin- 
tendent of  Airplane  Production  just  be- 
fore the  Pearl  Harbor  debacle. 

During  his  years  with  Ryan,  John  at 
one  time  or  another  also  held  successfully 
the  post  of  Superintendent  of  Fabrication 
as  well  as  other  departmental  assignments. 
He  was  Night  Superintendent  of  Produc- 
tion for  the  company  over  one  period  of 
fourteen  months.  In  his  present  position, 
van  der  Linde  has  met  successfully  every 
test  of  war  and  postwar  problems. 

A  recent  accomplishment  of  his  depart- 
ment was  the  establishment  of  facilities 
for   large-scale   production   of   rear   fuse- 


lages for  the  famous  Boeing  Stratofreight- 
ers,  and  prompt  delivery  of  first  units. 

John's  hobbies?  "My  two  boys  and  the 
back  yard.  I  sort  of  like  the  back  country 
and  the  desert  for  week-end  trips,"  he 
says.  "But  no  long-distance  traveling.  I 
went  all  around  the  world  before  coming 
to  San  Diego  and  here  I  want  to  stay."  He 
and  Mrs.  van  der  Linde,  also  of  Dutch 
parentage,  live  at  45  50  Fifty-sixth  Street; 
prefer  a  quiet  social  life. 

Just  about  everybody  at  Ryan  knows 
van  der  Linde  and  everyone  who  knows 
him  likes  and  admires  the  tall  Dutchman 
who  knows  so  much  about  aviation,  and 
talks  so  little  about  his  own  Hvely  part 
in  its  history. 


HI,  MORT 


MISSILE  RECOVERY  PARTYI 


PAPER  WORK  AND  PHONE  CALLS 


PIOIEMG  WITH  Rt 


To  you,  a  passenger  in  a  Ryan  Navion  at  9,000  ft.  altitude, 
Alamogordo  is  a  dusty  little  town  huddled  forlornly  upon  the 
western  foothills  of  the  Sacramento  mountains  in  eastern  New 
Mexico.  Ranchers,  you  are  told,  come  into  town  on  Saturday 
night  for  groceries  and  gossip;  cowboys  hitch  their  ponies  two 
to  a  parking  meter  before  their  big  weekends.  Except  for  the  ship- 
ment of  cattle  and  lumber  products,  there  isn't  much  going  on. 
The  alkali  desert  which  stretches  barren  miles  westward  to  the 
jagged  peaks  of  the  San  Andreas  is  forbidding  and  apparently 
lifeless. 

But  take  a  closer  look.  To  the  north  lie  the 
glaring  white  gypsum  deposits  which  are  known 
the  world  around  as  White  Sands,  New  Mexico. 
Miles  to  the  southwest  are  strange  looking  tow- 
ers, gaunt  metal  structures  designed  to  launch 
the  roaring  V-2  rockets  which  may  change  the 
course  of  human  events  some  dav.  The  Navv's 


They  like  it  tht 

despite  rug 

hours  a\ 


TELEMETERING   REQUIRES  GOOD   TECHNICIANS 


r  HOME  ON  THE  RANGE 


McDANIEL  IN  THE    (PARTY)    DEN 


I  mmU  EXPERTS 


famed  Aerobees,  parts  for  which  are  manufactured  by  Ryan,  are 
also  launched  from  this  same  area,  just  east  of  Las  Cruces,  as  are 
many  other  missiles  under  development. 

HOLLOMAN  —  EXPERIMENTAL  BASE 
Your  Navion  noses  down  gently  for  a  landing  on  a  long  paved 
strip  which  emerges  from  a  dusty  haze  just  south  of  the  dry 
lake  of  drifted  white  sands.  You  read  the  signs  on  the  wooden 
buildings  behind  the  aircraft  hangars:  "HoUoman  Air  Force  Base." 
Here,  you  know,  are  scientists  and  technicians  of  many  aircraft 
companies  and  from  U.  S.  defense  organizations. 
As  your  Navion's  prop  comes  to  a  stop,  a  grey 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  sedan  pulls  up 
near  the  wing  of  the  plane  and  familiar  Ryan 
faces  beam  at  you  and  pilot  "Ace"  Morton. 
They  are  part  of  a  close-knit  band  of  experts 
who  are  on  advance  base  duty  for  science  as 
well  as  for  their  company. 

(Continued  on  page  10 ) 


in  Alamogordo 
\i  life,  long 
secrecy 


GOOD  BOWLERS   NEED  GOOD  SCOREKEEPERS 


NEVER   UNDERESTIMATE   A   WOMAN'S   HAND 


Virtually  unknown  to  the  general  public  and  only  obscurely 
recognized  by  many  Ryan  Aeronautical  workers,  is  this  de- 
tachment of  technicians  whose  devotion  to  Ryan's  guided 
missile  project  is  unquestioned.  The  missiles  are  designed  and 
built  at  the  company's  43 -acre  San  Diego  plant,  then  sent  to 
Alamogordo  for  the  actual  firing  and  flight  testing.  These 
technicians  are  led  in  the  field  by  Robert  Shaver,  Field  Test 
Supervisor,  who  reports  to  Sam  B.  Beaudry,  Project  Engineer 
assigned  to  guided  missile  development. 

It  isn't  hard  to  understand  why  the  government  selected 
this  particular  area  for  top  secret  experimentation.  Monotonous 
deserts  rimmed  by  bald  brown  mountains,  a  hundred  sweeping 
miles  of  sagebrush  visible  from  any  knoll — these  lend  no  en- 
chantment  to   those   whose   duty  places   them   so   far  off   the 


AROUND  THE  FESTIVE  BOARD 


beaten  track.  Alamogordo's  population,  almost  doubled  since 
the  advent  of  "the  Bomb,"  still  musters  only  7,000  hardy 
souls.  And  without  an  MD  surgeon  in  town  it  is  just  as  well 
that  the  bodies  of  Alamogordo's  citizens  are  as  hardy  as  their 
souls.  Language-wise,  most  of  the  inhabitants  speak  Spanish 
as  easily  as  English.  They  depend  upon  El  Paso,  Los  Angeles 
and  Albuquerque  newspapers,  along  with  the  radio,  for  infor- 
mation. 

RYAN  SHOP  NOT  BIG,  BUT  BUSY 

First  hand  reaching  up  to  help  you  from  the  plane  belongs 
to  Bob  Shaver.  After  unloading  and  stowing  on  a  trailer  the 
valuable  cargo  you  brought  from  San  Diego,  everyone  heads 
for  a  squat,  one-story  building  prominently  identified  as  the 
home  of  the  "Ryan"  project.  Clearance  through  Air  Force 
Security  is  established  and  after  a  trip  around  the  base,  vou 
follow  some  of  the  daily  routine  in  the  Ryan  shop. 

The  building  looks  better  than  adjoining  structures,  perhaps 
because  some  of  the  Ryan  men  dug  up  some  paint  and  slapped 


on  a  couple  of  coats  recently.  A  number  of  electric  heaters 
thaw  out  the  lingering  chill.  At  benches  lining  the  walls  little 
groups  become  absorbed  in  detailed  operations.  Mysterious 
gadgets  are  opened  for  investigation  and  check;  highly  re- 
stricted technical  material  is  worked  over,  adjusted,  made 
ready.  An  alert  young  officer,  project  officer  for  the  Air  Force, 
checks  through  paper  work  at  his  desk  opposite  Shaver,  chats 
with  Ryan  specialists  as  they  work,  discusses  with  Ed  Sly 
results  of  a  previous  test. 

"Wanta  go  out  on  the  range  and  see  where  the  last  test  was 
made?"  Ed  asks. 

You  unwarily  assent  and,  with  Bill  Berry  who  works  with 
Sly,  jauntily  climb  into  a  seat  next  to  Ed,  who  is  driving  the 
weapons  carrier.  After  a  run  of  several  miles  you  find  yourself 
in  the  middle  of  what  appears  to  be  the  most  for- 
lorn spot  in  the  world.  Ed  stands  on  the  left  run- 
ning board,  driving  with  one  hand,  the  car  in  low 
gear.  Berry  perches  high  to  your  right.  They're 
searching  for  something  you  can't  discuss.  For 
about  three  hours  you  bounce  crazily  through 
every  motion  a  bad-tempered  bronco  could  have 
devised  in  his  meaner  moments.  Then,  late  in  the 
afternoon,  they  find  what  they  were  looking  for. 
Ed  wheels  the  truck  back  to  base,  the  cold  wind 
bringing  water  to  your  eyes.  Within  minutes  of 
your  return  the  day's  chores  are  cleaned  up.  All 
hands  pile  into  the  assorted  vehicles  used  for 
transportation,  and  the  jaunt  "home"  to  Alamo- 
gordo begins. 

TOWN  NOT  INSPIRING 
First  view  of  the  town  leaves  you  thoroughly 
unenthusiastic,  the  original  adobe  buildings  of  the 
southern  section  looking  as  if  a  good  gale  would 
crumble  everything   to  dust.   You  whiz   past   the 
mercantile  center  almost  before  a  pointed  finger 
indexes  it  for  you,  and  swing  into  a  modern  auto 
court  where  the  single  men  of  the  Ryan  unit  pitch  camp.  The 
accommodations  prove   to  be  comfortable  enough.   The  four 
single  men  are  Milton  "Dave"  Davidson,  Douglas  "The  Hound" 
Hounsell,  Charles  "Meatball"  Mead  and  Steve  Anderson.  Mar- 
ried men  in  the   group  include  Bob  Shaver,  Ed  Sly,  Mickey 
McDaniel,  Guy  Towle,  William  "Wild  Bill  from  Tucumcari" 
Berry,   Charles   McNeil,   Robert   Mawson   and   Ray  Reynolds. 
The  Ed  Slys  and  Charles  McNeils  are  newly  wed;  find  living 
accommodations  a  simple  matter  without  children  to  provide 
for,   and  relieve  the  tedium  with  frequent  trips  to  adjoining 
communities.  Townfolk  speak  highly  of  the  entire  Ryan  group 
and  its  share  in  civic  life. 

Housing  for  the  other  civilian  families  is  a  more  serious 
matter.  Few  rental  accommodations  for  families  are  practical 
in  so  small  a  place,  and  Ryan  people  make  the  best  of  what  is 
available.  Families  of  Army  personnel  live  in  quarters  on  the 
base. 

After  youve  washed  off  some  of  the  dust  and  put  on  your 
other  clean  shirt,  you  ask  Shaver  about  entertainment  possi- 
iContiniicd  on  page  14) 


10 


PRE-PLANNING  MEANS 
SUCCESSFUL  MANI- 
FOLD DESIGN 

(Continued  from  page  5  j 

wanted  and  asking  for  price  quotations 
and  design  proposals.  These  are  received 
and  considered  by  the  Ryan  Metal  Prod- 
ucts sales  department  headed  by  Sam 
Breder. 

Breder  turns  the  matter  over  for  fur- 
ther discussion  of  details  to  Assistant  Sales 
Manager  Joe  Small  and  Zippwald,  who 
confer  with  metal  products  engineers.  The 
Engineering  department  studies  Lockheed 
preliminary  drawings  carefully,  then  pre- 
pares design  proposals  and  bid  drawings. 
At  the  same  time,  Standards  and  Estimat- 
ing department  under  Stewart  M.  Eraser 
prepares  a  complete  cost  estimate  for  the 
quantity  of  manifolds  desired.  The  paper 
work  then  goes  back  to  the  Sales  depart- 
ment for  submission  to  the  customer.  Eor- 
tunately  only  a  small  portion  of  the  total 
paper  work  need  be  forwarded  since 
enough  vellum,  sketch  paper  and  blue- 
print stock  is  eventually  used  to  cover 
half  a  basketball  court. 

Upon  acceptance  of  the  Ryan  design 
proposals  and  preliminary  cost  estimates 
the  drawings  are  returned  for  further 
conclusive  conferences  between  Ryan 
Metal  Products  engineers  and  Lockheed 
representatives.  A  purchase  order  follows. 
In  turn,  Ryan  Sales  department  writes  a 
re-affirmation  of  this  company's  inten- 
tions, prices  and  the  specifications  to  be 
followed. 

Einal  approval  secured,  the  Metal  Prod- 
ucts engineering  department  then  makes 
working  drawings.  When  the  customer's 
final  O.  K.  is  received,  the  drawings  are 
released  to  the  shop.  But  all  this  is  just  a 
beginning. 

Meanwhile  the  production  departments 
which  will  be  concerned  with  the  pro- 
posed new  order  have  been  kept  informed 
of  negotiations.  While  detail  work  in  En- 
gineering continues,  preparation  is  ac- 
celerated in  Production  Engineering,  un- 
der Larry  C.  Martin;  Standards  and  Esti- 
mating under  "Stu"  Eraser;  Plant  Engi- 
neering under  Durward  H.  Palmer.  All 
cooperate  closely  with  Bob  Clark's  Sched- 
uling and  Production  Control  department, 
so  that  drawings,  tools,  equipment,  ma- 
terials and  man-hour  requirements  can  be 
expedited. 

Preparations  to  insure  an  adequate  sup- 
ply of  all  necessary  materials  are  being 
completed,  meanwhile,  in  the  Material 
Control  and  Purchasing  departments.  As 
soon  as  Production  Engineering  decides 
upon  its  material  needs,  it  forwards  a  de- 
tailed bill  of  materials  to  Material  Control. 
Here  Joe  B.  Williams,  General  Supervisor, 
and  his  force  act  to  check  existing  stocks. 


determine  requirements  for  any  unusual 
items  and  forwards  purchase  requisitions 
to  the  Purchasing  department.  Usually 
great  quantities  of  steel  such  as  are  used 
in  manifold  production  are  bought  in  car- 
load lots  in  regular  increments  during  the 
fiscal  year. 

The  Purchasing  department,  under  R. 
Douglas  Maw,  acts  promptly  upon  Wil- 
liams' requisitions.  Thorough  negotiations 
are  undertaken  with  vendors.  "Our  aim," 
declares  Maw,  "is  to  obtain  the  best  quality 
of  material  at  the  right  times  and  in  ade- 
quate amounts  at  the  most  advantageous 

FORMER  RYAN  PILOTS 
STILL  FLYING  HIGH 

Hitting  the  headlines  frequently  these 
days  are  two  former  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Company  and  Ryan  School  men,  whose 
jobs  are  flying  the  largest  commercial  and 
military  passenger  transports  in  the  United 
States.  They're  John  B.  Fornasero  and 
Philip  N.  Prophett. 

Fornasero  is  now 
chief  of  flight  test 
for  Boeing  Airplane 
Company,  and  earn- 
ing high  praise  in 
connection  with  his 
skill  in  Stratocruis- 
er  /  Stratof reighter 
shakedowns.  From 
1928  until  1937, 
however,  he  was  one 
of  Ryan's  busiest  leaders,  acting  as  chief 
instructor  for  the  Ryan  School  of  Aero- 
nautics; as  chief  test  pilot  for  the  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company  and  as  one  of  the 
aerial  godfathers  of  the  famous  Ryan  S-T 
sport-trainer  plane.  Later  he  was  chief 
engineering  inspector  for  CAA  at  La- 
Guardia  Field,  New  York,  and  with  Fair- 
child  Aircraft  and  Engine  Corporation, 
prior  to  joining  Boeing. 

Prominently  iden- 
tified with  the  huge 
Convair  XC-99,  larg- 
est land-based  pas- 
senger plane  in  the 
world,  Phil  Prophett 
came  to  the  Ryan 
School  of  Aeronaut- 
ics as  a  student  in 
1937,  continued  as  a 
top  flight  instructor 
for  three  years,  then 
went  to  Convair  where  he  has  consistently 
demonstrated  his  skill  in  aircraft  handling. 
At  Convair,  he  worked  under  Russell 
Rogers,  who  was  test  pilot  on  the  first 
XC-99  flight,  going  along  on  that  hop  as 
co-pilot.  He  was  first  pilot  on  the  recent 
flight  of  the  XC-99  from  San  Diego,  Cal- 
ifornia   to  Fort  Worth,  Texas. 


Fornasero 


Prophett 


prices."  That,  as  might  be  surmised,  takes 
some  doing. 

In  Production  Engineering,  Floyd  Cox, 
Tool  Planning  Supervisor,  works  with 
tooling  experts  to  decide  on  numbers  and 
types  of  tools  the  job  will  need. 

"Types  of  materials,  pre-determined  by 
customer  and  Ryan  engineers  in  consulta- 
tion, are  important  factors  in  design  and 
procurement  of  tools  because  of  varying 
hardnesses  of  materials  and  inherent  dif- 
ficulties in  working  different  metals,"  Cox 
explains. 

"When  needs  have  been  settled,  Horace 
"Wally"  Wallen  and  his  Tool  Design  de- 
partment execute  the  actual  design  and 
ordering  of  the  tools,  and  Paul  Sauter's 
tool  shop  makes  all  those  which  are  manu- 
factured in  our  plant."  Cox  further  em- 
phasizes the  necessity  for  ingenuity  in  this 
department  to  avoid  designing  too  many 
special  jigs  and  fixtures  not  adapted  to 
general  production  use. 

Tool  planning  sets  up  the  technical 
aspects;  gives  instructions  for  shop  pro- 
cedures. It  also  decides  on  instructions  for 
actual  tooling,  equipment  which  may  be 
needed  and  which  new  or  additional  han- 
dling fixtures  will  be  required  from  Plant 
Engineering.  The  master  plan  for  shop 
orders  has  gone  to  Production  Control 
where  Ralph  Flanders  and  his  assistants 
confer  with  all  activities  concerned  before 
laying  out  schedules.  The  flow  of  work 
has,  in  succession,  fallen  upon  engineering, 
tooling,  production  and  plant  engineering 
in  coordination  with  Production  Control. 
Control  now  increases  its  participation 
when  Flanders  receives  from  Cox  the 
"ditto  masters"  or  "operation  sheets." 

Flanders  usually  has  a  handful  of 
purple-printed  cards  on  his  desk.  He  holds 
up  a   sheaf. 

"These  operation  sheets,"  he  says,  "form 
the  manufacturing  plan.  Working  cards 
are  made  up  on  the  ditto  machines,  listing 
the  exact  sequence  of  operations  and  all 
other  information  the  workers  and  inspec- 
tors will  need.  It's  a  really  detailed  data 
sheet." 

With  the  manufacturing  plan  available, 
Flanders  next  develops  schedules  and  re- 
leases shop  orders.  The  manifold  process 
then  divides  into  two  further  phases — 
production  and  dispatching.  The  produc- 
tion sequence  includes  actual  creation  of 
the  manifold  from  template  to  finished 
exhaust  system;  the  dispatching  group 
controls  schedules  and  produces  the  mul- 
titude of  reports  necessary  to  keep  parts 
and  materials  flowing  efficiently  on  time. 
Up  to  this  point,  paper  work  has  pre- 
dominated the  scene,  except  for  tooling. 
Transfer  of  drawn  and  written  specifica- 
tions to  templates  and  conversion  into 
plaster  models  and  metal  dies  is  the  next 
step,  to  be  discussed  in  a  later  issue. 

— Charles  M.  Hatcher 


11 


THE  GREATEST  OF  EASE 

(Coiitinuctl  from  page  6) 
acrobatic  flying.  A  significant  percentage 
of  new  owners  are  pilots  who  have  gradu- 
ated from  Ercoupes  into  Navions  because 
they  feel  so  much  "at  home"  with  the 
latter's  selective  two-control  system.  The 
added  relaxation  the  pilot  enjoys  by  not 
having  to  keep  his  feet  on  the  rudder  has 
been  favorably  commented  on  by  this  class 
of  owner. 

As  one  owner  puts  it,  "The  Navion's 
two-control  feature  after  take-off  appeals 
to  all  Ercoupe  pilots,  and  there  are  plenty 
of  them  like  myself  who  can  afford  to 
buy  a  bigger  plane." 

Connection  between  ailerons  and  rud- 
der is  so  arranged  that  when  the  wheel  is 
turned  to  move  the  aileron  surface,  and 
bank  the  plane  to  right  or  left,  a  limited 
movement  of  the  rudder  will  automatic- 
ally be  accomplished  to  effect  a  coordi- 
nated turn. 

While  it  was  formerly  thought  that 
some  initial  instruction  in  two-place 
planes  was  necessary  before  pilots  cov-id 
learn  to  fly  the  larger,  faster  four-place 
planes  with  flaps  and  retractable  landing 
gears,  that  is  no  longer  the  case,  according 
to  experience  gained  in  the  Ryan  Navion. 
Many  sales  are  now  being  made  to  owners 
with  no  previous  flying  experience,  who 
are  then  taught  to  fly  the  Navion  without 
instruction  in  any  other  plane. 

A  typical  example  is  Howard  C.  Mus- 
selman  of  Pacific  Installation  Co.,  refrig- 
eration contractors  of  Seattle,  Washing- 
ton, who  soloed  his  Navion  after  only 
seven  hours  instruction.  The  amazing  fact 
in  this  case  is  that  Musselman  had  no  pre- 
vious training  in  any  other  type  ship. 
Musselman  was  instructed  from  the  very 
first  flight  in  use  of  retractable  gear,  flaps, 
controllable  pitch  propeller  and  radio.  He 
had  owned  h!s  Navion  only  nine  days 
wh:n  he  soloed.  The  Navion  was  chosen 
by  his  company  because  of  its  safe  flight 
characteristics  at  low  speed  and  its  adapta- 
bility to  small,  rough  fields,  Musselman 
said. 

Another  case  involves  the  Navion  used 
on  Porter  and  Sons  10,000-acre  "A  D 
Ranch"  near  Clovis,  New  Mexico.  R.  C. 
Porter,  son  of  Cecil  Porter,  was  the  only 
member  of  the  family  with  any  flying  ex- 
perience prior  to  their  purchase  of  their 
Navion.  The  father,  however,  was  soloed 
in  it  in  a  little  over  six  hours  total  instruc- 
tion time.  Robert  Ray,  20,  Cecil  Porter's 
son-in-law,  was  soloed  in  four  hours  and 
45  minutes,  also  without  previous  train- 
ing. Two  other  sons,  Robert,  18,  and  Jack 
Porter,  16,  were  about  ready  to  solo  at 
last  report. 

The  Ryan  Navion's  coordination  system 
includes  two  cables  and  spring  assemblies, 
interconnecting  the  aileron  and  rudder 
cables  on  each  side  of  the  airplane.  At  the 


rudder  cable  end  of  each  coordinating 
control  unit  is  a  large  coiled  spring, 
through  which  the  rudder  cable  passes.  A 
fairlead,  secured  to  the  coordinating  unit 
and  sliding  over  the  rudder  cable,  prevents 
the  spring  from  riding  on  the  rudder 
cable. 

In  addition  to  these  springs,  light  ten- 
sion springs  on  each  side  are  provided  to 
take  up  any  coordinating  slack.  Steel  balls, 
swaged  onto  the  cables  at  fixed  positions. 


provide  the  interconnecting  points,  except 
at  the  aft  end  of  the  coordinating  cables. 
There,  threaded  cable  fittings  connect  to 
a  clip  engaging  the  large  spring. 

The  Ryan  Navion  may  be  flown  from 
either  set  of  dual,  side-by-side  wheel  and 
rudder  type  controls.  Adjustability  of  the 
right  seat  allows  complete  freedom  of 
movement  for  non-pilot  passengers  with- 
out control  interference. 


NAVION  TAKES  OFF  WITH  3375  PASSENGERS . . . 


. , .  Baby  Turkeys,  That  Is! 


Even  in  these  days  of  giant  airliners  a 
plane  that  carries  more  than  three  thou- 
sand "passengers"  is  bound  to  attract  at- 
tention. That's  why  we're  writing  about 
Wallace  N.  Lindskoog,  of  Turlock,  Cali- 
fornia, who  has  carried  a  "passenger-load" 
of  3,375  aboard  his  four-place  Ryan  Nav- 
ion. 

"Ninety  per  cent  of  our  business  flights 
— and  business  flying  is  about  the  only 
kind  we  do — are  made  to  deliver  turkey 
poults.  We  put  nearly  three-and-a-half 
thousand  of  them  into  the  Navion  with 
case,"  he  explains. 

"But  this  gets  us  a  little  ahead  of  our 
story,  for  we  actually  start  things  out  by 
picking  up  eggs  with  the  plane,  and  flying 
them  back  to  our  turkey  hatchery  at  Tur- 
lock where  they  are  processed.  The 
hatched-out  poults  are  later  delivered  by 
plane  to  the  customers'  brooders. 

"After  I've  loaded  the  Navion  com- 
pletely full  of  boxes,  I  can  still  climb  into 
the  cabin,  drop  comfortably  into  the 
pilot's  seat,  reach  up,  close  the  hatch,  and 

go- 

"Since  using  the  Navion  as  a  turkey- 
liner,"  Lindskoog  asserts,  "we've  increased 
both  the  radius  of  our  operations  and  the 
quality  of  our  service.  I  can  honestly  say 
the  Navion  has  placed  me  far  ahead  of  my 
competitors  in  service  rendered  to  cus- 
tomers. 


"Before  getting  our  plane,  we  used  to 
steer  clear  of  small  orders,  but  now  that 
we  save  so  much  time  with  our  flying 
service,  we  take  care  of  the  little  business 
as  well  as  the  big,  and  discover  that  small 
orders  into  big  ones  often  grow." 

Lindskoog  is  frequently  asked  if  it  isn't 
troublesome  and  expensive  to  haul  his 
poults  from  the  hatchery  to  the  airport 
when  it  comes  time  to  load  them  aboard 
the  plane. 

"This  presents  no  problem,"  the  air- 
minded  turkey-raiser  replies.  "We  have 
our  own  landing  strip  right  by  the  hatch- 
ery. We  take  off  away  from  town  and 
land  towards  town. 

"This  necessitates  many  downwind 
take-offs  and  landings.  There  is  a  barn 
right  at  the  end  of  the  runway.  Conditions 
aren't  exactly  ideal,  but  a  "forgiving'  air- 
plane like  the  Navion  fits  the  bill. 

"You  can  see  that  with  the  aid  of  our 
1,700-foot  private  field,  we  can  taxi  along- 
side the  hatchery  buildings  themselves 
and  load  the  poults  aboard  easy  as  you 
please. 

"I  used  to  say  that  I  just  didn't  have 
the  time  to  make  many  business  trips 
which  seemed  desirable.  Now  that  I  have 
my  own  airplane.  I  not  only  make  all  those 
trips,  but  also  feel  well-equipped  to  handle 
any  emergency  situation  which  may  arise." 


12 


MOUNTAIN  FLYING: 
NAVIONS  PREFERRED 

(Co)itinucd  from  page  3  ) 
had  serious  doubts  whether  we  could  take 
off  with  the  load  we  now  had,  which  in- 
cluded Chester  A.  Moulton,  State  of  Idaho 
Director  of  Aeronautics,  myself,  and  2  50 
pounds  of  supplies  and  bedding.  To  make 
matters  worse,  we  had  a  90  degree  cross- 
wind  from  the  left  of  about  10  miles  per 
hour.  I  thought  that  I  knew  what  a 
Navion  would  do,  but  that  take-off  was 
really  a  surprise  to  me. 

"I  dropped  about  one-half  flaps,  and 
applied  full  power.  As  the  plane  began  to 
roll,  I  pulled  the  wheel  clear  back  and  the 
nose  wheel  rose  out  of  the  snow  and  the 
plane  began  to  pick  up  speed  rapidly.  In 
about  100  feet,  it  was  no  longer  breaking 
through  the  lower  crust,  and  in  approxi- 
mately one-half  of  the  field  it  pulled  itself 
into  the  air.  The  length  of  take-off  was 
about  1200  to  1500  feet.  This  was  amaz- 
ing to  me,  because  I  had  seen  a  lot  of 
planes  use  nearly  all  of  this  runway,  when 
there  was  no  snow,  to  get  off  the  ground! 

"I  know  of  no  other  modern,  4-place 
airplane  with  which  I  would  have  tried 
this  take-off! 

RACING  A  STORM 

"Once  in  the  air,  we  had  to  outrun  the 
storm,  which  had  already  begun  to  pass 
over  our  heads,  and  the  ceiling  was  rapidly 
dropping  to  the  ground.  The  storm  was 
moving  at  an  approximate  speed  of  50 
m.p.h.  When  we  took  off,  all  we  could  see 
was  a  light  area  under  the  storm  to  the 
southeast  of  us.  Fortunately  the  marooned 

(Continued  on  page  16) 


BYRNE  HEADS  METAL  PRODUCTS  DIVISION 


If  Charles  M.  Byrne, 
Ryan's  new  Chief  Engineer 
of  the  Metal  Products 
Division,  looks  husk) 
enough  to  play  a  bruising 
game  of  football,  it's  no 
illusion.  He  played  in  all 
major  sports  at  Case  School 
of  Technology  in  Cleve- 
land, Ohio,  earning  letters 
in  football,  basketball  and  swimming. 

Byrne  tackled  his  subsequent  engineer- 
ing career  as  dynamically  as  he  did  full- 
backs on  the  gridiron.  Within  a  short 
time  following  his  graduation  from  Case 
he  had  managed  to  (a)  complete  an  addi- 
tional course  of  engineering  studies  at 
Iowa  State  College,  (b)  acquire  a  sub- 
stantial practical  education  in  working 
the  materials  and  processes  he  would  later 
figure  with  on  paper,  and  (c)  climb  to 
the  position  of  Resident  Chief  Engineer 
of  the  first  aircraft  company  for  which 
he  worked. 

From  the  day  he  chose  aeronautical 
engineering  as  a  career,  Byrne  put  his 
plentiful  energies  to  filling  in  all  possible 
gaps.  To  understand  the  difficulties  of 
making  engineering  drawings  practicable 
to  the  man  in  the  shop  and  in  the  field, 
he  went  through  several  years  of  shop 
assignments.  Here  he  learned  what  goes 
on  in  the  modeling  shop,  the  foundry, 
drophammer    department,    all    processing 


departments,  inspection 
and  in  scheduling.  Ex- 
tremely important  in  his 
later  work  was  a  Supervi- 
sorship  in  Cost  and  Esti- 
mating where  he  came  to 
be  familiar  with  methods 
and  standards. 

Byrne  has  designed  com- 
ponents for  pretty  nearly 
everything  in  the  aircraft  powerplant  field 
from  rocket  propulsion  units  to  conven- 
tional reciprocating  jobs.  He  even  went 
outside  the  aviation  field  on  one  occa- 
sion to  produce  a  neat  stainless  steel  beer 
barrel,  a  harder  job  than  the  uninitiated 
might  believe. 

Ryan's  new  Metal  Products  Chief  En- 
gineer participated  in  design  of  component 
parts  for  the  first  jet  engine  to  be  put  into 
production  in  this  country,  the  General 
Electric  1-16.  He  followed,  in  subsequent 
work,  with  the  General  Electric  J-33,  and 
studied  turbo-jet  designs  of  half-a-dozen 
different  types. 

His  familiarity  with  General  Electric 
jet  design  and  procedures  aided  him  great- 
ly in  design  and  engineering  work  on  his 
first  assignment  with  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Company,  that  as  Project  Engineer  on 
General  Electric  jet  engine  parts.  His  ap- 
pointment to  his  present  position  followed 
when  Ralph  Haver  was  named  Assistant 
to  the  Chief  Inspector  recently. 


SEAM-WELDER  EXPEDITES  TRICKY  JOBS 

One  of  a  battery  of  electric  welding  machines  aiding  the 
Ryan  production  crew  to  set  new  and  better  standards  in  weld- 
working  heat-and-corrosion  proof  metals,  this  Thomson-Gibbs 
2  50  KV  seam- welder  produces  consistent  welds  which  resist 
600  pounds  or  more  separation  pull. 

The  electrodes  by  which  the  seam-welder  creates  the  tre- 
mendous heat  necessary  to  "liquidate"  the  small  portions  of 
metal  directly  between  the  upper  and  lower  copper  nodules 
are  hollow,  with  a  flow  of  water  within  their  points  to  keep 
them  from  overheating. 

This  machine  can  handle  large  parts,  a  54-inch  "throw"  at 
the  contact  areas  allowing  movement  of  bulky  sections.  Design 
of  the  seam-welder  makes  it  particularly  useful  in  working 
tubular  pieces  and  curved  or  normally  inaccessible  areas. 

This  particular  piece  of  equipment  was  installed  recently  in 
the  Jet  Assembly  department,  and  has  proven  extremely  useful 
in  expediting  work  on  jobs  such  as  the  AiResearch  Heaters  for 
Fairchild  C-82  Packets  and  on  McDonnell  Aircraft  Company 
tail  cone  products. 


13 


JWRfEBIMienJifi^ihofgeli] 


Sfej^SsIa}Q 


RYAN  NAVION  DISTRIBUTORS  ARE  STILL  TALKING  about  their  recent 
meeting  at  the  Ryan  factory.  Typical  of  pleased  comments  were  those  of 
Charles  Tot-h,  president  of  Toth  Aircraft  &  Accessories  Company,  Kansas  City, 
Missouri:  "I  really  enjoyed  the  distributors  meeting  and  came  away  with  new 
enthusiasm  and  the  feeling  I  hod  learned  very  much  from  the  ideas  expressed 
there."  Charlie  adds,  "During  a  most  comfortable  trip  bock  from  the  factory,  my 
son  Jim  and  I,  covered  approximately  1,450  miles  in  9  hours  22  minutes  flying 
time,  averaging  olmost  1  70  mph  part  of  the  time." 

WOMAN'S  WORLD.  Add  lovely  Nora  McCaffree  to  your  list  of  oir-gols  contributing 
to  the  success  of  Ryan  Novion  soles  and  customer  satisfaction.  Blonde  wife  of  "Mae" 
McCaffree,  headman  of  Oskoloosa  Airways,  Inc.,  Nora  handles  the  instruction  and 
charter  phases  of  the  business.  Charter  flights  as  for  away  as  Tennessee  and  the 
Pacific  Coast  ore  part  of  her  high-geared  schedule.  Biggest  thrill  this  year?  Taking 
delivery  with  Mac  on  Oskaloosa's  first  '49  Ryan  Novion,  of  course. 


CAROLINA  AERONAUTICS,  headed  by  Hugh  A.  Eudy,  for- 
mer regional  soles  manager  for  Stinson,  is  spearheading  its 
1949  Ryan  Novion  sales  campaign  with  concentrated  mail- 
ings to  doctors,  dentists  and  automobile  dealers  in  North  and 
South  Carolina  and  Tennessee.  First  '49  Ryan  Novion  sole 
by  this  southern  distributor  was  mode  to  W.  Perry  Smith 
Motors  Company,  Inc.,  Columbia,  South  Carolina,  Studeboker 
dealer.  Organized  with  headquarters  in  Hendersonville,  North 
Carolina,  Carolina  Aeronautics  currently  is  setting  up  within 
its  territory  a  Ryan  Novion  dealer  network  composed  of  out- 
standing aircraft  soles  and  service  centers.  W.  B.  Coxe  of 
Greenville,  S.  C,  received  the  initial  dealer  appointment. 


Eudy 


PROSPECTS  FOR  1949  RYAN  NAVION  SALES  in  South  America  were  boosted  sev- 
eral notches  this  month  with  the  announcement  of  distributor  appointments  for  Brazil, 
Venezuela,  and  Chile.  Newly-signed  to  sales  and  service  contracts  within  these  coun- 
tries are  Dias  Henriques  &  Cia.  Ltda.,  C.  Adrianxa  y  Cia.,  and  Salinas,  Fabres  y  Cia., 

respectively. 

"SUCCESS  STORY"  reads  the  headline  of  Humble  Oil  Company's  full-page 
advertising  tribute  in  SOUTHERN  FLIGHT  Magazine  for  March  to  Monroe  & 
Witt,  Ryan  Novion  dealers  in  San  Antonio,  Texas.   Moody  Monroe  and  Jimmy 

Witt,  successful  directors  of  this  prominent  dealer  organization,  rote  congratula- 
tions from  fellow  members  of  the  Ryan  Navion  program  for  their  work  in 
Navion  sales  and  service  in  the  South  Texas  area. 

C.  E.  "JIM"  KENEALEY,  Manager  of  Bakersfield  Airpark,  direct- factory  dealer  in 
California's  Son  Joaquin  Valley,  provides  this  month's  promotion  "Special."  His  trim, 
attractively-covered  booklet  titled  "The  Air  Charter  Story"  colorfully  describes  his 
organization's  exclusive  use  of  Ryan  Novions  for  charter  work.  Other  features  of  this 
handsome  moiling  piece  ore  a  list  of  charter  rotes  and  simple  principles  for  weather 
forecasting. 

THREE  CHEERS.  "I  would  like  to  compliment  you  on  your  excellent  dealer, 
Turgeon  Flying  Service,  Inc.  at  Sky  Harbor  Airport,  Northbrook,  Illinois.  They 
certainly  did  a  wonderful  job  on  our  Navion  ...  an  expert  piece  of  work  if  I 
ever  sow  one.  It  is  quite  a  revelation  when  someone  knows  the  product  they  ore 
working  on  and  con  tune  it  up  so  well.  In  an  airplane,  it's  core  for  the  little 
things  which  counts."  M.  C.  Stoddard,  President,  Stoddard  Manufacturing  Co., 
Mason  City,   Iowa. 

AVIACION  URUGUAYA,  one  of  South  America's  leading  aviation  magazines,  cur- 
rently carries  a  full-page  Ryan  Navion  advertisement,  sponsored  by  Miller,  Medeiros  & 
Bastos,  distributor  in  Montevideo.  Such  well-placed  advertising  is  one  of  the  effective 
methods  which  M.  M.  &  B.  has  utilized  to  keep  the  world's  outstanding  four-place 
plane  in  the  forefront  of  Uruguayan  private  aircraft. 

TEXAS  RYAN  NAVION  DEALERS  met  at  the  Ryan  factor/  lost  month  to  take 
delivery  of  their  first  1949  model  Novions  and  to  confer  on  soles  and  service 
policies.  Leading  the  group  was  Leslie  H.  Bowman,  president  of  General  Aero- 
nautics, Inc.,  distributor  for  the  Texas  area.  Attending  besides  Les  and  his  right- 
hand  man.  Bill  Fate,  were:  Cliff  Hyde,  Houston;  Don  Lynch,  Houston;  Moody 
Monroe,  San  Antonio;  Jimmy  Witt,  Son  Antonio;  Roger  Gault,  Corpus  Christi; 
Bobbie  Ragsdale,  Austin;  Norman  Hoffman,  Midland;  Charles  Macmillon,  Edm- 
burg;  Bill  Mueller,  El  Paso;  Erb  Mann,  Dallas;  Jock  Riley,  Shreveport;  and  Bob 
Fitzgerald,  Shreveport, 


PIONEERING  WITH  RYAN 
MISSILE   EXPERTS 

(Continued  from  page  10) 
bilities.  He  grins. 

"Well,"  he  drawls,  "if  you  like  to  bowl, 
there  are  some  good  alleys.  If  you  like  to 
ride,  there  are  horses.  If  you  hunt  or  ski, 
there  are  plenty  of  mountains.  There's 
even  a  swimming  pool  on  the  base.  In 
town,  should  you  care  to  snug  down  a 
snort,  there  are  short-snort  spots,  and  two 
cinemas,  no  less — one  in  English  and  one 
in  Spanish.  Otherwise  we  mostly  visit  with 
each  other  and  curl  up  with  a  good  book." 

Davidson  spoke  up.  "You  oughta  see 
the  swell  ham  radio  sets  that  McDaniels 
and  Reynolds  have  fixed  up.  Mac's  call  is 
W6-FGE.  He  built  everything  except  the 
receiver.  Reynolds  maintains  contact  with 
the  coast  on  call  W6-PNW,  although  he 
has  his  troubles  getting  through  regularly 
to  Southern  California. 

WORK?  IT'S  A  PLEASURE 

How  about  the  work,  you  ask.  Several 
speak  at  once. 

"We  really  get  a  bang  out  of  it.  No 
kick  on  that  end." 

You  look  unconvinced. 

"No  kidding,"  Shaver  savs.  "Usually 
we  turn  to  some  time  before  8  a.m.  and 
wind  up  at  5  p.m.  But  comes  time  for  test- 
ing on  our  project  in  the  field — and  we're 
all  up  at  4  a.m.  From  then  on,  until  the 
test  is  finished,  we  just  stay  right  with  it. 
This  gang  likes  to  finish  a  job,  and  finish 
it  right,  before  they  knock  off." 
(Continued  on  next  page) 


Ryan^s  ivork  on  the  ncu  General  Eiec- 
Iric  jet  engine  cone  assembly  comes  in 
for  some  close  inspection  by  (I.  to  r.) : 
Walter  Brees^  San  Diego  representative 
for  the  General  Electric  Company;  Fred 
Coffer  of  Ryan  Metal  Products  sales 
department;  Albert  Kornmann,  Plan- 
uing  Engineer  for  the  General  Electric 
Lockland  Division  and  Rod  McDonough, 
Ryan^s  new  eastern  territorial  sales  rep- 
resentative. 


14 


PIONEERING  WITH  RYAN 
MISSILE   EXPERTS 

(Continued  from  page  14) 

"You  like  your  work,  hey?" 

"Yep,"  Ed  Sly  replies.  "We  know  how 
important  it  is." 

You  think  of  the  hundreds  of  buildings 
which  comprise  the  sprawling  Holloman 
Air  Force  Base,  the  uncounted  vehicles 
and  testing  machines  and  the  millions  of 
dollars  worth  of  equipment  being  utilized 
with  concentrated  energy  by  hundreds  of 
technicians  in  this  area.  There's  an  urgency 
and  a  lift  to  it  all. 

You  nod  your  head.  "Yes,  I  guess  you 
fellows  do  like  your  work." 

SOME  FUN,  TOO 

In  the  evening  you  find  someone  has 
rigged  a  party.  It  proves  to  be  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Guy  Towle  who  are  hosts.  Nobody  is 
stiff  or  formal.  Towle's  rangy  spotted  dog, 
posing  for  snapshots  with  genuine  aplomb, 
soon  makes  any  newcomer  feel  at  ease.  The 
Reynolds'  little  girl  and  McDaniel's  two- 
year  old  boy  romp  on  the  rug  with  the 
patient  pooch.  At  one  end  of  the  room 
someone  has  set  up  a  big  table.  Towle 
breaks  out  cards  and  chips.  The  game  be- 
gins, while  the  women  discuss  whatever 
they  usually  discuss.  During  the  evening's 
conversation,  you  find  out  that  Ed  Sly  and 
Bob  Shaver  are  two  of  the  town's  best 
bowlers,  Ed  having  a  particularly  sub- 
stantial bulge — on   the   bowling  scores. 

Doug  Hounsell,  you  learn,  is  considered 
one  of  the  community's  leading  social 
lights,  with  long  Navy  Chief  petty  officer 
experience  to  bolster  his  talents.  Close 
behind  him  on  the  Casanova  charts  are 
"Dave"  Davidson  and  Charley  Mead.  The 
three  provide  rugged  competition  for  the 
youth  of  Alamogordo,  when  they  find 
time.  Steve  Anderson,  the  other  single  man 
of  the  unit,  is  just  as  active  in  another 
field,  acting  as  Sunday  school  teacher  in 
the  Methodist  church  in  Alamogordo. 

About  11  p.m.  someone  notices  the 
fragrant  whiffs  of  coffee  and  refreshments 
coming  from  the  kitchen  and  the  merits 
of  two-pair  as  against  three-of-a-kind  are 
forgotten.  The  party  ends  early,  so  that 
next  day's  work  will  come  easily.  You 
sort  of  look  forward  to  that  next  day's 
experience. — Charles  M.  Hatcher. 


The  record  seems  to  show^  that 
free  enterprise  is  the  only  system 
of  government  in  the  world  that 
is  not  on  trial.  If  it  is  on  trial, 
^vhy  is  America  being  called 
upon  to  save  the  world  from 
economic  chaos? 

— Walter  S.  Gifford. 


SIX  NAVIONS  were  among  40  privote  plones  flown  in  a  group  from  Portland,  Oregon, 
to  Death  Valley,  California,  last  month.  Members  of  an  organization  called  Inter- 
national Air  Tours,  the  Oregon  flyers  were  headed  by  senior  pilot  W.  T.  Peters, 
64-year-old  Portland  arc  welding  distributor.  Says  Navion-owner  Peters,  "Through  our 
flights,  like  this  one  to  Death  Valley  and  lost  year's  to  Mexico  and  Alaska,  we  believe 
we  are  demonstrating  the  safety  and  utility  of  a  private  plane  in  private  hands." 

JOHN  CALVERT,  star  of  the  current  motion  picture  success, 
"Devil's  Cargo,"  this  month  flew  his  Navion  to  the  factory 
for  0  special  red  and  white  point  job.  Calvert  recently  used 
his  plane  to  tour  57  cities,  not  missing  a  single  engagement 
during  the  junket.  Now  on  location  at  Yermo,  California,  in 
the  Mojave  desert,  he  flies  the  138  miles  between  there  and 
Hollywood  twice  daily,  houling  film  back  to  the  studios  with 
him  each  night.  "I've  always  flown  a  good  deal,"  Calvert 
comments,  "but  since  obtaining  my  Navion,  I  do  so  much 
of  my  troveling  by  air  that  I've  practically  dispensed  with 
other  methods  of  transportation." 

CAMPUS  NAVION.     Were  it  not  for  their  ever-ready  Navion,  the  Truman  T.  Metxels, 

of  Chicago,  Illinois,  would  find  it  difficult  to  visit  their  three  sons,  who  ore  enrolled  at 
three  leading,  but  widely  separated  college  campuses.  The  proud  parents  reach  Dart- 
mouth in  Hanover,  N.  H.,  Illinois  University  ot  Urbana  and  Knox  at  Golesburg,  Illinois, 
the  boys'  alma  maters,  with  speed  and  ease  by  Navion.  Another  enjoyable  family 
flight  is  between  Chicago  and  their  farm  near  Hattiesburg,  Mississippi. 

PRECIOUS  CARGO.  An  important  factor  in  the  success  of  the  Miller  Roofing 
and  Insulation  Co.,  Inc.,  Elmira, 'New  York,  is  President  C.  E.  Miller's  use  of  a 

'49  Ryan  Navion  to  transport  from  city  to  city  a  squadron  of  charming, 
specially-trained  salesgirls.  Canvassing  communities  door-to-door,  the  girls 
prepare  the  way  for  salesmen  who  follow  with  order  blanks  for  Miller  products. 

NEW  NAVY  SECRETARY  KNOWS  NAVION.  Don  A.  Kimball,  newly  appointed 
Assistant  Secretary  of  the  Navy  for  Air,  enjoyed  Navion  business  flights  aplenty  while 
at  his  former  post  as  General  Manager  and  Executive  Vice  President  of  Aerojet  Engi- 
neering Corporation  at  Azusa,  California.  The  Aerojet  people,  long-time  Navion 
owners,  use  their  plane  for  executive  transportation  and  in  connection  with  their  JATO 
work. 

COAST  TO  COAST  IN  14  HRS.  55  MIN.  with  a  '49  Ryan  Navion  was  the 
experience  of  Manuel   M.    Lynn,   hosiery   mill    operator,    and   Otto    L.    Formigli, 

orchitecturol  stone  and  cement  products  manufacturer,  who  lost  month  flew  from 
San  Diego  to  New  Jersey.  Their  overage  speed  for  the  cross-country  trip  was 
175  mph. 

"SUNDAY  FLIERS"  ore  what  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Dale  Soule  of  Susonville,  California,  con 
be  aptly  called.  After  a  week  of  duties  as  Dodge  and  Plymouth  distributor  for  three 
Northern  California  counties,  Soule  enjoys  taking  his  wife  and  three  youngsters  in  the 
family  Navion  for  a  cross-country  outing  topped  off  with  Sunday  dinner  a  hundred 
miles  or  more  from  home.  Says  the  pleased  Mrs.  Soule,  "When  I  discovered  having 
our  own  plane  would  mean  Sunday  out  of  the  kitchen  for  me,  I  was  more  easily  con- 
vinced that  we  should  buy  a  Navion." 

COLDWATER,  MICHIGAN,  IS  HEADQUARTERS  for  the  Foundries  Materials 
Co.,  whose  president,  Douglas  J.  Strong,  explains  thot  business  operations  require 
frequent  flights  in  the  company's  Navion  to  South  Dakota,  Montana,  Kentucky, 
Arizona  and  Tennessee.  On  a  recent  trip  between  Coldwater  and  Minneapolis — 
520  miles — the  Navion  averaged  close  to  200  mph,  completing  the  stretch  in 
2  hours,  35  minutes. 

"FROM  THE  WOODS  TO  FINISHED  LUMBER,  and  the  Ryan  Navion  helps  all  the 
way,"  is  how  Dick  Holt,  pilot  for  the  Midway  Lumber  Company,  Portland,  Oregon, 
describes  his  employer's  operations  and  use  of  a  business  plane.  The  Murphy  Brothers 
— Harry,  General  Superintendent;  Peter,  Woods  Foreman;  and  Ed,  Mill  Foreman — 
owners  of  the  company,  put  the  Navion  to  work  on  such  jobs  as  lost  year's  one-month 
8,000-mile  sales  tour.  When  there's  a  moment  free  from  business,  the  Murphys  like 
nothing  better  than  Novioning  to  Vole,  Oregon,  for  duck  hunting. 

5,475  PASSENGERS  FLOWN  1,512,155  passenger  miles  without  on  injury,  is 
the  record  reported  by  the  Wall  Street  Journal  regarding  Val-Air  Lines,  Inc.  of 
Mercedes,  Texas.  For  nearly  two  years  Val-Air  has  been  using  a  fleet  of  7 
Navions  to  fly  a  550-mile  route  in  the  Rio  Grande  Valley  and  has  completed 
95 '-'o  of  its  runs,  which  are  on  a  regular  scheduled  basis.  Having  to  this  date 
operated  entirely  intra-stote,  Val-Air  is  now  asking  CAB  permission  to  cooperate 
with  major  scheduled  carriers  through  the  sole  of  tickets  and  reservations.  Such 
a  tie-in,  their  officials  estimate,  would  boost  business  about  30%. 


Mcdonough  new  eastern  sales  representative 


New  eastern  territory 
sales  representative  for 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany's Metal  Products 
Division  will  be  Rod 
McDonough,  Jr.,  for  the 
past  13  years  affiliated  with 
the  Wright  Aeronautical 
Corp.,  Sam  Breder,  Sales 
Manager,  announced  re- 
cently. He  will  cover  territory  formerly 
handled  by  Claude  Whitehurst,  who  has 
been  called  back  to  take  a  position  in  the 
Engineering  department  of  the  Ryan 
plant.  Whitehurst  will  act  in  a  liaison 
capacity  between  engineering  and  sales, 
where  his  experience  in  both  fields  will 
be  utilized  fully. 

McDonough's  background  with  Wright 
Aeronautical  Corp.  was  one  of  consistently 
broadening  experience.  He  began  in  1936 
as  an  engine  tester,  running  dynamometer 
and  propeller  engine  trials,  and  was  pro- 
moted the  next  year  to  be  Test  Engineer 
on  development  testing  of  full  scale  en- 
gines. In  193  8  he  became  a  Service  En- 
gineer, with  an  opportunity  to  combine 
practical  experience  with  aircraft  engines 
in  operational  service  with  customer  con- 
tact work. 

During  the  next  two  years  McDonough 
s;rved  energetically  with  West  Coast  air- 
craft manufacturers,  naval  and  military 
installations,  airlines  and  engine  overhaul 
companies.  Part  of  his  contacts  involved 


installation  problems,  ex- 
perimental instrumenta- 
tion, production  flight 
tests  and  "trouble  shoot- 
ing." 

In  1940  McDonough  was 
transferred  East  for  air- 
line contact  assignment  at 
La  Guardia  Airport,  and 
later  was  assigned  to  han- 
dle Wright's  medium  tank  engine  project 
for  the  company's  military  liaison  section. 
When  XB-29  aircraft  started  test  flying 
he  was  placed  in  charge  of  the  Wright 
Service  Division's  activity  project. 

McDonough  found  the  undertaking  he 
liked  best  when  he  was  promoted  in  1944 
to  be  Engineering  representative  assigned 
to  the  Washington  office  of  Curtiss- 
Wright  Corp.,  where  he  became  Assistant 
to  the  Manager.  In  this  spot,  as  representa- 
tive of  both  Wright  Aeronautical  Corp., 
and  Curtiss-Wright  Propeller  Division,  his 
duties  involved  considerable  sales  engi- 
neering and  service  contact  work. 

McDonough  was  graduated  from  Stev- 
ens Institute  of  Technology  in  1933,  with 
a  Mechanical  Engineering  degree.  On  the 
side,  he's  an  experienced  sailor,  to  whom 
sailing  comes  naturally.  His  great-grand- 
father was  the  famous  Commodore 
Thomas  Macdonough,  commander  of  the 
Lake  Champlain  naval  battle  of  August, 
1812,  and  later  skipper  of  the  U.S.S.  Con- 
stitution, known  as  "Old  Ironsides." 


87    96 


SMITH  NAMED  PLANE  DIVISION'S  CHIEF  ENGINEER 


Bruce  Smith,  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany's  new    Chief   Engineer   of   the   Air- 
plane   Division,    is    a    practical    man    who 
likes  to  pin  things  down  to  hard,  uncon- 
trovertible facts. 
While  a  stickler 
for    facts,    how- 
ever,   he    is    a 
quick     man     on 
repartee    with    a 
penchant     for 

^^L      ^^S^^^^fc,      '•°  I^ysn  a  wealth 
^^^^^L        A^^^H  experience 

through  20  years 
in  the  aircraft 
engineering  busi- 
ness. With  Consolidated  Vultec  Aircraft 
Corporation  during  most  of  the   12  years 


Bruce  Smith 


he  has  been  on  the  West  Coast,  Smith  is 
thoroughly  familiar  with  the  intricacies 
of  aircraft  design  and  engineering.  He  was 
Chief  Design  Engineer  for  9  years  at  Con- 
vair,  and  before  that.  Chief  Engineer  at 
the  Travelair  Aircraft  Corporation. 

Before  he  concentrated  on  the  engineer- 
ing phase  of  aviation  he  learned  the  facts 
of  airborne  life  as  a  "plain  old  hamburger 
pilot  ranging  around  over  Kansas  and 
Texas  in  a  Jenny."  Favorite  sport  now  is 
hunting.  Prior  to  1942,  it  used  to  be  sail- 
ing. Then  after  he  had  struggled  for 
months  to  get  a  war-time  ticket  which 
would  permit  him  to  up  anchor,  the 
authorities  carefully  explained  that  the 
ticket  was  just  for  the  boat,  and  that  he. 
Smith,  would  have  to  procure  another  one 
for  himself.  Since  then.  Smith  has  ignored 
the  call  of  the  wind. 


MOUNTAIN  FLYING: 
NAVIONS  PREFERRED 

(Continued  from  page  1}) 
hunters  were  in  this  direction,  and  all  we 
had  to  do  was  stay  on  deck  and  outrun 
the  storm,   which   had   about   a   ten   mile 
edge  on  us. 

"We  took  a  direct  course  from  McCall 
to  Bruce  Meadows,  which  is  over  some 
pretty  rugged  country.  This  didn't  give 
us  much  time  to  get  there  and  drop  the 
supplies.  Time  being  of  the  essence,  we 
decided  to  drop  the  200  pounds  of  sup- 
plies, which  were  in  a  large  mail  sack,  in 
the  sack  all  at  once.  The  sack  being  about 
two  feet  in  diameter  necessitated  us  open- 
ing the  canopy  full  open  and  slow-flymg 
the  airplane  at  about  75  m.p.h.  and  drop- 
ping the  sack  on  the  wing  and  letting  it 
slide  off! 

"When  the  sack  hit  the  wing  there  was 
a  thud  that  really  made  me  thankful  for 
the  Navion's  rugged  construction.  Inci- 
dentally, when  the  sack  fell  on  the  wing, 
it  stalled  out  that  portion  of  the  wing 
and  caused  the  right  wing  to  drop,  but 
aileron  quickly  righted  it  even  at  that 
slow  speed. 

"It  takes  a  lot  of  confidence  in  a  plane 
to  open  the  canopy  wide,  slow-fly  about 
50  to  100  feet  ofF  the  ground,  and  drop 
supplies  out  when  the  air  is  as  turbulent 
as  it  was  there  just  ahead  of  the  storm 
and  at  an  altitude  of  65  00  feet!  After  we 
dropped  the  supplies,  we  had  to  take  a 
circuitous  route  southeast  and  gradually 
head  back  west  to  get  ahead  of  the  storm 
to  get  back  to  Boise.  We  were  able  to 
bring  the  hunters  ample  supplies  and  bed- 
ding until  the  storm  blew  over,  thanks 
to  Navion!" 

Higbv  describes  graphically  some  of  the 
"airports"  from  which  he  and  other 
mountain  pilots  operate  with  confidence 
in  their  Navions. 

"An  example  is  Soldier  Bar,  a  U.S.  for- 
estry strip  located  at  4190  foot  altitude 
on  Big  Creek  about  8  miles  upstream  from 
the  middle  fork  of  Idaho's  Salmon  river. 
The  nearest  town  of  any  size  is  Salmon, 
about  45  miles  east.  This  forestry  strip  is 
a  natural  shelf  on  the  side  of  the  moun- 
tain, about  800  feet  above  the  level  of 
Big  Creek.  Deer  and  elk  are  hunted  in  the 
immediate  vicinity.  In  addition  to  serving 
as  a  forestry  strip  for  aid  in  firehghting, 
planes  are  flown  in  for  hunting  and  fish- 
ing, and  to  bring  in  supplies  to  a  nearby 
ranch." 

The  extensive  Aircraft  Service  Com- 
pany operations  include  a  substantial  and 
continuing  business  —  that  of  serving  a 
mine  at  Stibnite.  Business  trips  between 
the  Stibnite  mine  and  the  outer  world  are 
important. 

The  strip  at  the  Stibnite  field  is  filled 
and  graded,  and  during  the  winter  time  a 
(Continued  on  next  page) 


16 


MOUNTAIN   FLYING: 
NAVIONS  PREFERRED 

(Contimted  from  page  16) 
rotary  snow  plow  is  used  to  keep  it  clear. 
It  is  open  the  year  round,  very  often  when 
the  roads  are  blocked.  The  runway  is  2  50 
to  300  feet  wide  and  2,600  feet  long. 
Altitude  of  the  field  is  6,5  3  9  feet. 

Navion  all-round  utility  is  underlined 
in  a  further  example  given  by  Higby. 
"Emmons  Coleman,  Equipment  Super- 
visor for  Bradley  Mining  Company,  re- 
ceived a  telephone  call  informing  him 
that  one  of  the  company's  trucks  had  run 
off  the  road  and  turned  over.  He  called 
on  me  to  fly  him  over  so  he  could  super- 
vise the  removal  of  the  wreck.  The  only 
landing  field  was  10  or  15  miles  away  and 
with  no  facilities  to  get  up  to  the  truck 
— so  we  landed  on  the  macadam  highway! 

"Even  at  an  altitude  of  6500  feet  and 
with  a  strong  gusty  wind,  this  is  an  easy 
feat  for  the  Navion.  This  flight  took  us 
50  minutes  and  would  have  taken  ap- 
proximately six  hours  by  road.  As  soon  as 
the  truck  was  removed,  we  were  back  in 
Boise  within  an  hour.  I  don't  mind  tell- 
ing you  that  I  would  not  attempt  to  land 
on  this  road  under  those  conditions  with 
any  other  type  of  plane!" 

• — Robert  F.  Smith 


Captain  Michael  J.  Strok,  liaison  of- 
ficer for  Army  Field  Forces,  discusses 
with  T.  Claude  Ryan,  President  of  the 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company,  details  of 
the  Army  Field  Forces'  contract  for  163 
L-17B  Navions,  some  of  which  -were 
ordered  for  the  National  Guard. 

Capt,  Strok  was  Chairman  of  the 
Wright  Field  Acceptance  and  Evalua- 
tion Board  which  examined  thoroughly 
the  prototypes  of  the  L-17C  and  L-17B 
aircraft,  initiating  changes  and  follow- 
ing through  on  the  entire  project.  He 
has  since  been  transferred  to  the  Army 
Field  Forces. 

During  his  visit  to  the  Ryan  plant 
recently,  Capt.  Strok  held  several  con- 
ferences with  Walter  O.  Locke,  Ryan 
Contract  Administrator,  Eddie  Molloy, 
Assistant  Contract  Administrator,  and 
Walter  K.  Balch,  Manager,  Airplane 
Service  department.  Strok  fle-w  here  in 
an  L-17A  intended  for  modification. 


NEW   B.A.R.R.   All 

those  initials  mean 
Bureau  of  Aeronau- 
tics Resident  Rep- 
resentative. And 
Lt.  Joseph  McCabe, 
USNR,  has  been 
just  that  at  Ryan 
since  March  third 
when  he  relieved 
Comdr.  E.  H.  C. 
Fredericks.  Prior  to  his  present  assign- 
ment McCabe  had  completed  a  valu- 
able three  years  of  experimental  study 
and  flight-testing  at  the  Naval  Air 
Development  Station  at  Johnsville,  Pa. 

McCabe  compiled  a  brilliant  com- 
bat record  during  the  years  1942- 
1945  in  New  Guinea,  Dutch  East  In- 
dies and  the  Philippines,  spending 
most  of  his  time  in  the  Navy's  Black 
Cat  squadron.  He  participated  in  the 
"big  push"  for  Leyte,  winding  up  with 
a  Distinguished  Flying  Cross,  an  Air 
Medal  with  two  gold  stars,  Presiden- 
tial Unit  Citation  and  other  lesser 
awards. 

At  the  University  of  Southern  Cali- 
fornia he  was  in  the  upper  bracket  of 
trackmen,  doing  the  quarter-mile  in 
around  48  seconds  and  the  half-mile 
in    less   than    2    minutes    regularly. 

CHANGE.  Art  C.  Collins,  formerly 
third  shift  Assistant  Foreman,  was 
given  supervision  of  drill  press  and  all 
burr  bench  operations  on  the  second 
shift.  Herb  Rasp,  Superintendent  of 
the  Fabrication  Division  announced 
upon  notice  of  discontinuance  of  all 
third  shift  operations  in  the  Machine 
Shop. 

TAKES  A  LOOK.  Among  the  distin- 
guished visitors  to  the  Ryan  plant  last 
month  were  General  Electric  Com- 
pany's Albert  "Al"  Kornmann,  Plan- 
ning Engineer  of  the  Lockland  Divi- 
sion, and  Walter  Brees,  General  Elec- 
tric's  local  representative. 

Kornmann  displayed  special  interest 
in  the  new  Jet  Assembly  department 
now  engaged  in  producing  jet  cone 
assemblies  for  his  company.  He  com- 
mented favorably  upon  the  impression 
created  by  the  first  units  turned  out 
by  the  shop,  and  upon  tooling  and 
other  preparations  in  evidence  for 
continued  acceleration  of  this  pro- 
gram. 

NEW  JOB.  Ralph  Hover,  for  years 
Chief  Engineer  of  the  Metal  Products 
Division,  last  month  was  appointed 
Assistant  to  the  Ryan  Chief  Inspector, 
Art  "Bill"   Billings. 

Haver's  long  experience  with  both 
engineering  and  production  problems 
OS  well  as  his  design  background  gives 
him  a  substantial  running  start  on  his 
new  duties. 


VISITOR  FROM  THE  SOUTH.  That 
large,  distinguished  looking  man  in 
the  uniform  of  the  Chilean  Air  Force 
seen  in  Export  Sales  Manager  Bill 
Brotherton's  office  and  around  the 
plant  early  this  month  was  Lt.  Eduordo 
Sepulveda,  here  to  take  delivery  of  a 
Ryan  Navion  for  a  fellow  countryman. 

Lt.  Sepulveda  found  kindred  spirits 
in  Lt.  Joseph  McCobe,  Bureau  of 
Aeronautics  Resident  Representative  at 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company,  and  Lt. 
Comdr.  O.  D.  Beck,  BAR  Attached  to 
Convair.  All  hove  hod  extensive  ex- 
perience in  flying  the  same  type  of 
amphibian  planes  and  settled  on  the 
PBY  OS  their  favorite,  for  over-water 
flying. 

The  Navion  token  bock  to  Chile  by 
Lt.  Sepulveda  was  the  first  Ryan  Na- 
vion to  be  registered  in  that  country, 
and  marks  another  step  in  the  con- 
tinued expansion  q^^Javion  soles  in 
Latin  America. 


96 


GOOD-BYE  CLEVELAND.  That's  what 
Russ  Christopher  I  right  I ,  who  sparkled 
last  year  as  one  of  the  best  pitchers 
on  the  Cleveland  Indians'  roster,  said 
when  he  joined  the  inspection  force  at 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  recently 
under  Art  "Bill"  Billings.  Christopher, 
forced  to  withdraw  from  regular  base- 
ball at  the  peak  of  his  career  because 
of  a  heart  condition,  has  been  assigned 
OS  on  inspector  of  welding. 

In  the  photo  below,  Russ- checks  a 
typical  small  part  job  with  Frank 
Yager  who  operates  one  of  a  battery 
of  electric  spot-welders. 


ENGINEERS.  Ryan's  important  XQ-2 
project  has  a  new  pair  of  hands  on 
the    controls,     David    C.    Mendenholl, 

veteran  of  14  years  experience  in 
aeronautical  engineering,  having  been 
appointed  Project  Engineer  lost  month. 

Mendenholl  come  to  Ryan  from  the 
Beech  Aircraft  Corporation  where  he 
gained  considerable  design  and  experi- 
mental background  with  a  radio-con- 
trolled plane  project. 

Assisting  Mendenholl  on  the  XQ-2 
Project  is  Rollin  "Chink"  Lee,  whose 
wide  knowledge  of  aeronautical  engi- 
neering includes  nearly  10  years  con- 
tinuous  service   with   this   company. 


K.D.PONSFORD 
4557  TERRACE  DR. 
SAN  DIEGO  4,  CALIF, 


Sec.  562,  P.  L.  &  R. 
U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego^  California 
Permit  No.  437 


RMnn  Metal  Products 

DIVISION    OF    RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY      •      LINDBERGH    FIELD      •      SAN     DIEGO,     CALIFORNIA 

Exhaust    Systems      •      Turbo-Jet    and    Ram-Jet    Components 


Br^-^ar 


Sill 


jg5^!PS*»*^^ 


Late  last  year  the  General  Electric 
Company  placed  a  large  order  with  Ryan 
for  the  manufacture  of  turbojet  com- 
ponents used  to  power  GE's  model  J-47 
(TG-190)  engine,  which  drives  such 
planes  as  the  F-86,  B-47  and  B-45.  The 
importance  of  this  engine  to  the  military 
services'  strategic  plans  is  illustrated  by 
the  large  orders  placed  by  the  Air  Force. 

Planning  in  Ryan's  Metal  Products 
Division  began  from  scratch,  machinery 
was  moved  around,  new  equipment  added 
and  entire  departments  shifted  so  that 
room  could  be  made  on  the  production 
floor  for  the  department  which  has  come- 
to  be  known  as  Jet  Assembly. 

Now,  four  months  later,  a  progress 
report  can  be  made  on  this  newly  created 
section,  under  Foreman  Archie  Ham- 
mock: It  is  progressing  smoothly,  turn- 
ing out  exhaust  cone  assemblies,  combus- 
tion chambers  and  transition  liners  at  a 
steady  clip,  and  the  entire  process  is  a 
model  of  efficient  handling,  due  to  Ryan 
foresight  and  exhaustive  planning. 

Last  April  5th,  General  Electric  and 
Air  Forces  officials  toured  the  Jet  Assem- 
bly lines  to  observe  production,  which, 
by  the  way,  is  ahead  of  schedule.  They 
commented  on  how  pleased  they  were  with 
the  progress  Ryan  has  made  to  date  and 
left  San  Diego  assured  that  their  require- 
ments for  the  J-47  were  being  met  in 
every  way. 

The  highly  technical  work  of  building 
the  jet  cone  components  begins  in  the 
Fabrication  department,  where  the  flat 
sheets  of  stainless  steel  are  cut  and 
punched  to  specifications  for  forming  the 
cones.  From  Fabrication,  parts  are  trucked 
to  the  Jet  Assembly  and  rolled  on  a 
set  of  slip  rolls  into  the  exact  conical 
shape.  After  this  rounding  both  the  inner 
and  the  outer  cones  are  seam-welded  by 
Ryan's  own  automatic  heli-arc  machine 
method.  Then  the  welded  edges  are  ground 
down.  The  gleaming  cones  are  next  fitted 
into  an  assembly  fixture  and  flanges  are 
spot  tacked  at  either  end.  After  the  spot 
tacking  process  the  cones  move  to  a  re- 
sistance seam-welding  machine  for  fin.il 
welding  of  the  flanges. 

Four  struts,  which  fit  neatly  inside  the 
hollow  outer  cone  are  tack-welded,  then 
spot-welded  for  added  strength.  Four 
thermo-couplings  are  then  arc-welded  on 


Watching  Earl  Casner  drill  tie  rod  holes  on  the  inner  jet  cone  are:  <  L.  to  R.  i 
Pat  Carter  and  Charles  Byrne  of  Ryan;  Claude  Auger,  Chief  Engineer  of  G.  E.'s 
Lockland,  Ohio  branch;  Paul  Nichols,  production  manager  at  Lockland;  Fred  Cof- 
fer, Ryan  and  Walter  Brees,  G.  E.  San  Diego  representative.  Radial  press,  shown 
in    picture,    was    newly    purchased    for    assembly    to    handle    precision    work    on    cones. 


Precision  Jet  Parts 


Jet  Assembly  builds 
stainless  steel  components 
for  G,  E.'s  new  ]-47  engine 


General  Electric  and  Air  Force  inspection  party  which  recently  visited  plant: 
(Front)  W.  R.  Trovers,  G.  E.;  Major  Alcott;  James  Stalnaker,  Ryan;  D.  D.  Law- 
son,  G.  E.;  Colonel  Mohler  and  Colonel  Andrews  of  Air  Materiel  Command;  K.  F. 
Houseman,  manager  of  G.  E.'s  Lockland,  Ohio,  plant  and  Major  Scott.  (Rear I 
Sam  Breder,  Ryan;  Richard  Davis,  G.  E.;  H.  W.  Chandler,  G.  E.  production  mana- 
ger   at    Lynn,    Mass.,    and    Lt.    Barry.    Ahead-of-schedule    work    pleased    visitors. 


the  cones  and  one  of  the  BuUard  vertical 
lathes,  which  Leo  Gross  operates,  now 
finishes  the  flanges. 

A  drill  jig  bores  80  bolt  holes  in  the 
edges  of  the  flanges  for  attaching  the  ex- 
haust cone  to  the  engine,  after  which  the 
outer  cones  are  cleaned  in  preparation  for 
installation  of  inner  cones.  These  inner 
cones  are  the  parts  with  the  odd  futuristic 
design.  Their  sharply  pointed  tips  iinmc- 
diately  catch  the  eye  of  anyone  casually 
passing  through  the  Jet  Assembly  for 
they  look  like  giant-size  versions  of  those 
inverted  ornaments  one  fills  with  nuts  or 
candy  to  hang  on  a  Christmas  tree. 

After  the  inner  cones  are  secured  to 
the  outer  cones  by  tie  rods,  the  bushings, 
hub  air  cooling  tube  and  deflector  assem- 
bly are  installed  and  arc-welded  into 
place. 


The  combustion  chambers  which  Ryan 
builds  for  General  Electric,  require  a  sep- 
arate manufacturing  process.  These  round, 
louvered  tubes  are  approximately  3  feet 
long  and  8  inches  across,  and  are  capped 
at  each  end  by  a  half  sphere  of  metal.  The 
chambers,  which  eventually  will  be  fitted 
into  the  exhaust  cones,  are  rounded  and 
welded  in  the  Jet  Components  Depart- 
ment. After  rounding  they  are  returned 
to  Fabrication  where  the  many  small 
louvers  are  pierced  into  them  and  formed 
on  the  punch  presses.  Following  this  they 
are  returned  to  Jet  Assembly  for  welding 
and  finishing. 

The  transition  liners,  which  guide  the 
gases  of  the  turbojet  against  the  turbine 
blades,  are  the  third  part  Ryan  manufac- 
tures for  the  TG-190.  "Scoop-shaped"  is 

(Continued  on  page  16) 


Struts     are     spot-tacked     to     outer     cone 
by  Don  Ediund    (left)    ond  Don  Plummer. 


lor  Air  Power 


Some  of  iet  parts  Ryan  builds  laid 
out  for  better  view.  Actuolly  the 
components  fit  into  J-47  engine  in 
compact     form     around     inner     cone. 


On  the  average  of  once  each  week, 
come  rain,  snow,  sleet  or  desert  heat, 
Ryan  Navion  factory  test  planes 
have  been  getting  a  workout  over 
one  of  the  toughest  flight  proving 
grounds  in  the  country.  The  course 
which  gives  the  sleek,  personal-busi- 
ness planes  their  gruelling  workout  is  the  750-mile  route  from 
San  Diego  to  Alamogordo,  New  Mexico,  which  Ryan  engineer- 
ing test  pilot  Asa  D.  Morton  flies  when  he  hauls  personnel  and 
equipment  to  Holloman  Air  Force  Base  at  the  White  Sands 
Testing  Ground.  Here,  in  the  New  Mexico  wastelands,  Ryan's 
guided  missile  project  work  has  been  taking  place. 

Not  merely  content  with  flying  Navion  test  models  only 
over  San  Diego  and  nearby  sea-level  areas,  the  company  feels 
new  models  and  new  flying  equipment  deserve  more  of  a  test 
before  they  are  ready  for  the  public.  As  improvements  are  made 
on  the  Navions  at  the  factory,  they  are  concurrently  tested 
during  "Ace's"  flights  to  the  desert  and  back.  The  approved 
modifications  for  the  fuel  system  were  first  tried  on  a  Navion 
flying  this  proving  ground.  Also  tested  recently  were  the  new 
Aeromatic  propellers  with  altitude  compensating  control  and 
the  auxiliary  fuel  tanks  for  longer  range  operation.  Before  new 
radio  equipment  was  selected  for  the  1949  Ryan  Navion  model, 
tests  were  made  with  three  different  installations  in  planes  Mor- 
ton was  currently  flying  on  the  New  Mexico  run. 

The  adverse  flying  weather  and  terrain  encountered  in  the 
regular  hops  to  Alamogordo  and  back  give  the  Navion  the 
kind  of  rough  treatment  needed  to  prove  design  refinements 
and  new  equipment.  "Ace"  Morton  says  he  flies  over  some  of 


Mountains,  desert  heat  and 

rough  -weather  give  Ryan 

planes  a  tough  test  ground 


America's  most  unusual  terrain,  in- 
cluding four  mountain  ranges  and 
through  weather  which  varies  from 
hot  and  dry  in  Tucson  to  unusual 
conditions  of  snow  and  hail  over 
the  Laguna  or  Organ  Mountains. 
When  Morton  makes  the  trip 
with  a  Navion,  the  plane  has  to  perform  well,  for  in  one  trip 
he  is  liable  to  encounter  hail  and  sleet  over  any  mountain  range, 
snow  over  Las  Cruces,  New  Mexico,  and  rain  between  El  Paso 
and  Alamogordo. 

On  the  round  trip  of  1,500  miles,  from  San  Diego  to  Alamo- 
gordo and  back,  "Ace"  says  the  Navions  burn  an  average  of 
only  ten  gallons  of  gas  per  hour;  this  at  steady  ground  sjjeeds 
of  150  m.p.h.  or  more.  The  trip,  one  way,  usually  takes  only 
four  to  five  hours,  depending  on  favorable  or  adverse  winds. 
There  is  always  a  refueling  stop  at  Deming,  New  Mexico.  At 
this  last  stop  Morton  clears  through  communications  channels 
for  Alamogordo.  The  White  Sands  Testing  Grounds  are  re- 
stricted, remember,  and  this  last  stop  is  important. 

Fortunately,  Navion's  heating  system  is  practically  fool 
proof,  for  recently  Morton  flew  in  sub-zero  weather  the  entire 
trip,  at  8,000  to  9,000  elevation,  but  the  cabin  of  the  plane 
remained  an  even  72  degrees.  Even  in  this  extreme  weather 
there  was  little  carburetor  ice,  due  to  the  pressure-type  car- 
buretor which  is  standard  equipment  on  all  Navions. 

High  winds,  some  up  to  95  miles  per  hour,  are  often  met 
over  the  peaks,  but  the  structural  integrity  of  the  Navion  is 
equal  to  the  turbulence  they  set  up,  as  it  is  equal  to  the  hazards 
(Continued  on  page  14) 


SAN  DIEGO 


Proving  Ground  for  Navions 


Douglas  DC-6  Gets  Added 
Speed  from  Exhaust  Thrust 

For  the  past  two  years,  airline  passengers,  both  here  and 
abroad,  have  enjoyed  the  luxury  accommodations  and  speed  of 
the  Douglas  Aircraft  Company's  huge  DC-6  super-airliners. 
Already,  150  of  these  5  2 -passenger  transports  have  been  put 
in  service  by  domestic  and  overseas  operators,  including  United 
Air  Lines,  American  Airlines,  Braniff,  KLM  Dutch  Airlines, 
Philippine  Air  Lines,  British  Commonwealth  Pacific,  Nor- 
wegian Air  Lines  and  FAMA,  the  Argentine  company. 

No  small  part  of  the  successful  operation  of  these  planes 
has  been  due  to  the  specially  designed  manifold  systems  on 
their  four  engines;  manifolds  which  Ryan  created  to  harness 

(Continued  on  page  4) 


Monifolds  for  many  of 
America's  largest  air- 
liners, including  DC-6, 
move  down  the  assembly 
line  at  Ryan.  Note  the 
network  of  lines  over- 
head to  carry  acetylene, 
electricity,  water,  gas 
and  oxygen  to  numerous 
production     operations. 


the  energy  in  the  exhaust  gases  to  help  provide  a  claimed  in- 
crease in  speed  of  from  8  to  1 5  miles  per  hour  through  jet 
propulsive  thrust. 

The  use  of  this  jet  principle  in  the  engine  exhaust  system 
helps  give  the  DC-6  a  normal  cruising  speed  of  315  m.p.h. 
This  type  of  manifold  was  the  first  of  its  kind  to  be  installed 
on  a  modern  commercial  aircraft  and  produces  approximately 
the  same  thrust  as  an  additional  400  horsepower  engine. 

During  the  war  Douglas  and  Ryan  engineers  worked  together 
to  provide  a  similar  system  for  military  planes,  which  gave  the 
Douglas  A-20  light  bomber  its  "extra  punch"  for  high  combat 
performance. 


Reaching  out  to  tap  the  18  cylinders  in  each  of  the  2100 
horsepower  Pratt  and  Whitney  engines  of  the  DC-6,  Ryan's 
ingeniously  built,  corrosion-resistant  steel  manifolds  coil 
backwards  from  the  exhaust  ports  to  make  productive  use  of 
what  otherwise  would  be  wasted  blasts  of  the  flaming  gases. 
Some  idea  of  the  size  and  complexity  of  this  manifold  system 
is  demonstrated  by  the  fact  that  if  uncoiled,  the  manifold  tube 
lengths  would  measure  approximately  40  feet  per  engine,  or 
160  feet  for  the  entire  plane.  The  gases  are  channelled  from 
the  engine  through  eight  exhaust  outlets,  placed  on  the  out- 
board side  of  each  engine  to  decrease  the  sound  level. 

The  reason  for  labelling  this  type  of  exhaust  svstem  "jet 
(Continued  on  page  17 ) 


At   the    Douglas   plant   workmen    check   one    of   the    four 
large     Pratt    &    Whitney     2100-horsepower     engines 
used    on    the    DC-6.    Note    Ryan-built    manifold 
In     this     picture.     It     adds     8     to     15     miles 
per     hour     to     planes     by     use     of     new 
jet      propulsive      thrust      principle. 


And  finds  time  to  play 
golf,  listen  to  good 
music  and  blotv  a  bugle 


The  books  on  a  man's  shelves  are  said  to  reflect  his  person- 
ality. The  books  in  his  bookcase  at  the  office  must,  by  logical 
deduction,  tell  a  great  deal  about  the  job  he  does.  In  Giles  E. 
Barton's  case  his  shelves  in  the  Production  Manager's  office 
display  such  diverse  titles  as  "Metal  Processing"  and  "Motion 
and  Time  Study"  and  range  in  subject  matter  from  "Problems 
in  Industrial  Accounting"  to  "Management  of  Labor  Rela- 
tions." 

These  titles  would  indicate  that  the  position  of  Production 
Manager  demands  a  wide  scope  of  knowledge,  and  in  G.  E. 
Barton's  case  the  job  has  the  man  to  fit  it. 

He  started  in  the  aviation  industry  as  the  result  of  a  fluke. 
Unlike  many  aviation  engineers  and  executives,  who  flew 
Jennys,  or  dreamed  of  designing  the  plane  of  the  future.  Barton 
paid  scant  attention  to  the  aircraft  industry  and  its  problems 
until  six  months  before  his  graduation  from  the  University  of 
Cincinnati. 

This  University's  educational  system  requires  that  the  stu- 
dent alternate  going  to  school  for  one  month  with  working 
at  his  profession  in  an  outside  company  for  the  next  30  days. 


HE  KEEPS 

PRODUCTION 

MOVING 


Barton  worked  for  many  corporations  during  his  college  days, 
among  them  the  Cincinnati  Milling  Machine  Company  and 
Remington  Rand.  The  last  month  before  graduation  he  had 
a  temporary  position  with  the  Aeronautical  Corporation  of 
America,  builders  of  the  Aeronca  personal  plane.  His  month- 
long  job  was  re-designing  the  2-cylinder  engine  for  this  air- 
craft. The  design  was  well  thought  of,  and  consequently  "Bart" 
was  offered  a  job  with  the  corporation.  As  Barton  candidly 
explains,  "It  was  1934,  and  even  though  I'd  written  a  mechan- 
ical engineering  thesis  on  heating  and  ventilating  and  had  no 
aeronautical  courses  to  my  credit,  who  was  I  to  turn  down  a 
job  one  month  before  graduating,  possibly  into  the  ranks  of  the 
jobless!" 

So  Barton's  career  in  aviation  began,  and  has  continued  to 
the  present  time,  about  evenly  divided  between  Aeronca  and 
Ryan.  His  first  position  with  the  Cincinnati  company  was  in 
the  engineering  department  where  he  designed  the  Model  C-3, 
the  first  "low-wing"  job,  a  pioneer  in  the  private  plane  field. 
Barton  modestly  disclaims  the  worth  of  the  design.  However, 
he  will  admit,  under  questioning,  that  he  is  inordinately  proud 
of  his  work,  as  what  engineer  wouldn't  be? 

After  spending  two  years  in  the  engineering  department  at 
Aeronca,  "Bart"  was  shifted  to  the  shop  as  Production  Man- 
(Continiied  on  page  16) 


«tlOPEU«v^ 


«>piUS 


There  are  actually  four  power  planfs  on  this  Martin  Mercator,  the 
Navy's  P4M-1.  Two  Allison  J-33  jet  engines  are  mounted  aft  in  the 
same  nacelles  with  the  two  Prott  &  Whitney  engines.  Maximum  range 
of   this    land-based    patrol    plane    is    over    3,000    miles.    Crew    of    nine. 


The  XAJ-1,  North  American's  new  corrier-based  bomber,  will  carry 
a  heavier  load  than  ony  other  type.  It  is  powered  by  two  Pratt  & 
Whitney  engines  plus  one  G.E. -Allison  J-37  turbojet.  (Below)  The 
Intercontinental  B-36  bomber  built  by  Convair  has  just  hod  some- 
thing added;  four  G.E.  J-47  jet  engines  to  give  it  added  speed, 
Ryan  builds  important  components  for  the  J-47  which  will  give  this 
plane    20,000    pounds    of    additional    thrust    for    take-off    and    climb. 


Composite-engined  aircraft, 

pioneered  by  Ryan,  notv  coming 

into  tvider  military  use 


The  "jet  plus  propeller"  power  plant  combination,  pio- 
neered by  Ryan  during  the  war  years  in  its  series  of  "Fire- 
ball" Navy  fighters,  is  on  the  ascendancy  again.  Recogniz- 
ing certain  limitations  as  well  as  definite  advantages  of 
both  reciprocating  engines  and  jet  propulsion  power  plants, 
the  military  services  have  recently  disclosed  planes  of  three 
different  manufacturers  which  use  the  principle  first  in- 
troduced by  Ryan. 

Latest  and  most  significant  plane  to  use  the  added  boost 
of  jet  engines  for  top  combat  performance  is  America's 
foremost  aerial  weapon,  the  Intercontinental  B-36  Bomber, 
developed  by  Consolidated- Vultee.  Two  "pods,"  each  en- 
closing two  General  Electric  J-47  jet  engines,  for  which 
Ryan  is  building  important  components,  are  being  installed 
under  the  huge  wings  of  the  B-36.  These  will  give  the 
plane  20,000  pounds  of  additional  thrust  for  take-off  and 
high-altitude  operation. 

The  other  two  aircraft  which  combine  jet  and  propeller 
power  are  the  Navy's  P4M-1  Mercator,  built  by  Martin 
and  the  North  American  XAJ-1.  The  Mercator  is  a  land- 
based  patrol  plane  with  two  Pratt  and  Whitney  Double 
Wasp  reciprocating  engines  and  two  Allison  J-3  3  jet 
engines. 

{CotitiitiicJ  oil  page  21 ) 


Plant  Safety  CommiM-ee  checks  regularly  on  industrial  hazards  and  makes  recommendations  for  changes  or 
improvements.  Inspecting  equipment  on  an  H.P.M.  hydropress  are  ( L.  to  R.)  Herb  Rowlings,  Safety  Engineer; 
Jerry     Lowe,     tooling;     Marvin     D.     Fowler,     receiving;     H.     E.     Dunn,     welding;     and     Lionel     Hodson,     tooling. 

Safety  Is  No  Accident 


Printed  in  red  letters  in  the  center  of 
the  dial  on  every  telephone  in  the  plant 
is  the  terse  phrase,  "EMERGENCY  DIAL 
3  3  3."  This  short  phrase  sums  up  better 
than  any  list  of  rules,  pamphlet  or  poster 
the  importance  of  safety  precautions,  or 
rather,  how  the  lack  of  proper  caution 
may  result  in  someone's  having  to  dial 
those  three  red  numbers  to  summon  aid 
for  a  careless  casualty. 

Ryan's  own  safety  program,  State  safe- 
ty orders,  lectures,  posters  or  a  foreman's 
warning  all  stand  for  naught  if  the  indi- 
vidual lets  down  his  vigilance  even  mo- 
mentarily. As  someone  succinctly  phrased 
it,  "Safety  is  a  state  of  mind,"  or,  as 
Herb  Rawlings,  Ryan's  Safety  Engineer 
puts  it,  "98  percent  of  all  injuries  are  due 
to  human  failure.  Only  2  percent  are  due 
to  machine  failure." 

In  addition  to  the  list  of  safety  orders 
from  the  California  Accident  Commis- 
sion, most  industrial  companies  themselves 
set  up  safety  programs  for  their  em- 
ployees, and  in  the  case  of  large  opera- 
tions, the  comoanies  employ  safetv  engi- 
neers and  welfare  officials  to  work  with 
the  people  in  the  plant  on  educational 
safety  programs. 


At  Ryan,  the  safety  program  is  many- 
faceted.  It  includes  the  operation  of  a 
Safety  Committee,  made  up  of  four  work- 
men, selected  by  the  unions,  as  well  as  the 
Safety  Engineer.  Each  week  they  make  a 
two-hour  tour  of  the  plant  and  the  com- 


Safety  device,  which  G.  S.  Alvarado- 
Prieto  demonstrates,  is  built  into 
this  punch  press.  Both  hands  must 
be   used  on   levers,   reducing   hazards. 


mittee  turns  in  to  Herb  Rawlings  its 
recommendations  for  improvements  in 
the  safety  program  as  well  as  requests  for 
any  increased  precautions. 

But  the  Safety  Committee  is  only  one 
part  of  Ryan's  program.  There  are  safety 
posters  placed  at  strategic  places  through- 
out the  plant,  posted  lists  of  company 
safety  rules,  which  have  recently  been  re- 
issued, as  well  as  a  constant  check  on  the 
part  of  both  the  foreman  in  the  shop  and 
the  Safety  Engineer  on  unsafe  practices 
or  unguarded  operations  which  might  re- 
sult in  accidents. 

The  foremen  are  the  men  most  im- 
mediately responsible  for  seeing  that  safe- 
ty rules  are  observed.  They  must  main- 
tain a  constant  vigilance  to  see  that  gog- 
gles are  worn,  gloves  put  on,  plastic  masks 
adjusted  to  protect  a  worker's  face  and 
that  careless  practices  on  any  machinery 
are  promptly  stopped  before  somebody 
ends  up  in  the  hospital. 

As  important  to  the  safety  program  as 
the  foremen  are  the  plant  maintenance 
workmen,  whose  job  it  is  to  see  that  their 
periodic  checks  and  servicing  of  machin- 
ery include  a  close  inspection  of  the  in- 
(Contiuued  on  page  19) 


MANY- FOLD  OPERATIQ 


There  is  more  to  building  an  efficient 
exhaust  system  for  an  airplane  power  plant 
than  is  generally  realized.  Weeks,  perhaps 
months,  of  patient  design  and  engineering 
detail  work  must  be  cleared  before  even 
the  plaster  models  are  shaped.  Once  the 
raw  sheet  metal  is  started  on  its  voyage 
through  the  plant,  however,  progress  is 
rapid  despite  the  complexity  of  the  opera- 
tions involved  in  producing  the  custom- 
shaped,  corrosion-and-heat-resistant  steel 
manifolds.  Once  the  go-ahead  signal  is  re- 
ceived from  engineering,  the  shops  get 
busy. 

One  additional  step  is  required  prior  to 
the  start  of  fabrication  of  the  parts.  This 
is  the  creation  of  master  models  and  pat- 
terns for  dies  used  to  stamp  out  the  hard 
steel  alloys.  These  patterns  are  meticu- 
lously fashioned  on  the  marble-topped 
tables  of  the  plaster  pattern  shop. 

In  describing  this  detailed  work,  John 
Castien,  Foreman  of  the  Pattern  Shop  and 
Foundry  says,  "We  take  the  large  steel 
templates  from  the  Photo  Loft  Reproduc- 
tion department,  then  cut  out  smaller  sec- 
tions more  convenient  for  working  on  the 


John  Pacheco,  molder  i  left  I  pours  hot  lead 
into     Kirksite     dies    to     form     male     punch     parts. 

(Below)  Johnny  Castien,  Pattern  Shop  Foreman, 
and  Carlyle  Cline,  leodmon,  check  modeling 
board     to     blueprints    of     new     exhaust    manifold. 


^S  FORM  A  MANIFOLD 


marble  tops.  The  smaller  pieces  are  set  up 
on  modeling  boards  and  exact  lineal  meas- 
urements taken  to  produce  curves  shown 
in  drawings." 

The  drawings  themselves  are  the  result 
of  a  complex  operation  in  Photo  Loft  Re- 
production department,  supervised  by 
Foreman  Dyche  Clark. 

Working  drawings  are  scribed  directly 
upon  specially  prepared  aluminum  tem- 
plate sheets  in  the  Engineering  depart- 
ment. These  sheets,  of  .040  to  .072  gauge, 
have  been  coated  by  the  template  shop 
with  a  white  Dupont  primer. 

The  various  drawings  may  occupy  any 
size  of  sheeting  up  to  5  by  12  feet.  Photo 
(Continued  on  page  12) 


(Right)     Masked    man    welds    complex    manifold    ports. 

(Below)  Max  Caldwell's  job  as  drop  hammer  oper- 
ator takes  skilled  handling,  correct  placing  of 
stainless  steel  sheets  under  hammer  to  assure  a 
correct    "flow"    of    cold     metal    into    the    lead     molds. 


Bill   Vogel,   above,    marks   ports   for  cutting,    welding    or   grinding    from    master   pat- 
terns ranged  behind  him  at  the  template  bench.   Accuracy  is  the   prime  factor  here. 


Bid  and  LITTLE  HMLIFT 


Ryan  manifolds  and  Navions, 

too,  played  a  part  in  saving 

lives  during  the  Big  Snotv 


During  the  Great  White  Winter  of  1948-49,  the  nation 
acclaimed  the  tremendous  job  the  Air  Force  did  in  bringing 
food  to  starving  cattle  and  sheep,  medical  supplies  and  succor 
to  those  Nebraska,  Wyoming,  Montana,  Colorado,  Idaho,  Ne- 
vada and  Utah  farmers  and  ranchers  who  were  holed-up  for 
weeks  and  months  in  the  worst  bhzzard  weather  of  our  history. 
But  in  writing  of  the  marvelous  feat  the  C-82  "Flying  Box- 
cars" performed  during  the  "Haylift,"  many  newsmen  and 
radio  commentators  overlooked  the  heroic  efforts  small  plane 
owners  also  made  in  rescue  and  relief  work;  work  which  saved 
many  lives  and  tens  of  thousands  of  dollars  worth  of  livestock. 

All  light  plane  manufacturers  can  be  proud  of  their  planes, 
which  stood  up  under  gruelling  conditions  to  do  yeoman  serv- 
ice for  their  owners.  Of  particular  interest,  however,  are  the 
stories  of  Navion  owners  and  pilots  whose  rescue  work  against 
terrific  odds,  and  at  the  cost  of  one  pilot's  life,  made  private 
plane  history. 


The  main  burden  of  feeding  the  livestock,  we  know,  fell  to 
the  C-82  Packets,  those  cargo  or  troop  carrying  transports 
Fairchild  Engine  and  Aircraft  Corporation  builds  for  the  Air 
Force.  Their  Pratt  &  Whitney  engines,  and  Ryan-made  exhaust 
manifolds,  had  to  take  punishment  from  36  below  zero  temper- 
atures, and  unusual  flight  conditions  which  put  the  "Flying 
Boxcars"  to  extreme  tests  when  flying  over  hazardous  mountain 
country  to  drop  the  hay  bales. 

Isolated  farmers  and  ranchers  and  the  smaller  herds  of  sheep 
and   cattle  had  to  depend,  for  the  most   part,  on  the  mercy 

(Continued  on  page  IS) 


■^^^^ 


/ 


Acme 
Isolated  towns  like  this  needed   medical   supplies,  food    and   other   succor   which    personal    planes    provided. 


Typical  of  the  hazards  of  blizzard  relief  flights  is  this  narrow,  snow- 
covered  roadway  used  as  a  makeshift  landing  strip  for  a  Navion.  (Below) 
Edward  Kooper,  Jr.  (left)  who  flew  numerous  mercy  flights  for  stricken 
ranches  and  farms  stands  before  his  Navion  with  Clyde  Perrin,  Alliance, 
Nebraska  rural  mail  carrier.  The  two  men  delivered  mail  by  air  to  iso- 
lated families  who  otherwise  would  not  have  received  Christmas  packages. 


Three  of  these  wartime  aircraft  production  experts,  pictured  here  at  the 
plant  inspecting  the  mock-up  of  the  Ryan  Fireball  fighter,  are  again  asso- 
ciated— this  time  in  the  maintenance  of  American  Air  Power  for  peace.  ( r. 
to  I.)  Admiral  DeWitt  C.  Ramsey,  new  president  of  the  Aircraft  Industries 
Association;  T.  Claude  Ryan,  member  of  the  A.  I.  A.  board  of  governors  and 
Captain  Lelond  D.  Webb,  now  West  Coast  manager  of  A.  I.  A.  At  far  left  is 
Artemus    L.    Gates,    the    wartime    Assistant    Secretary    of    the    Novy    for    Air. 

ADMIRAL  RAMSEY,  WARTIME  HEAD  OF  BUREAU 
OF  AERONAUTICS,  NOW  CHIEF  OF  A.  I.  A. 

Three  wartime  aircraft  production  experts,  who  worked  together  as  repre- 
sentatives of  the  Navy  and  industry  to  speed  victory  in  the  air,  again  find  them- 
selves associated.  This  time  their  task  is  the  peacetime  maintainance  of  American 
air  power. 

This  came  to  hght  last  month  with  the  election  of  Admiral  DeWitt  C.  Ramsey, 
former  Chief  of  the  Navy's  Bureau  of  Aeronautics,  as  new  president  of  the  Air- 
craft Industries  Association.  Second  member  of  the  trio  is  Captain  Leland  D. 
Webb,  USN  retired,  who  served  as  Acting  Manager  of  A. LA.  until  May  1st,  but 
has  now  returned  to  Los  Angeles  to  head  the  association's  West  Coast  office. 

Third  of  the  wartime  aircraft  officials  now  working  with  the  aircraft  industry 
trade  association  is  T.  Claude  Ryan,  company  president,  who  is  a  member  of 
the  board  of  directors  of  A.LA  ,  which  is  also  the  coordinating  agency  of  the 
mdustry  in  its  relations  with  the  military  services. 

Admiral  Ramsey  is  not  a  stranger  to  the  Ryan  plant,  either,  for  back  in  1944 
and  1945,  when  he  was  the  Chief  of  the  Bureau  of  Aeronautics,  he  was  a  fairly 
frequent  visitor  here.  At  that  time  production  of  Ryan's  revolutionary  fighter, 
the  FR-1  Fireball,  was  of  vital  interest  to  all  three  men. 

During  the  war  Captain  Webb  was  the  Navy's  West  Coast  Procurement 
Officer  for  the  Bureau  of  Aeronautics  and  another  visitor  often  seen  on  the  Fire- 
ball production  line. 

Before  assuming  his  duties  May  1st,  Admiral  Ramsey  was  the  U.  S.  High  Com- 
missioner of  the  Trust  Territory  of  the  Pacific  Islands.  Prior  to  this  he  was  Vice 
Chief  of  Naval  Operations  and  Commander  in  Chief  of  the  Pacific  Fleet. 

A  former  shipmate  of  the  Admiral's,  A.  S.  Billings,  Ryan's  Chief  Inspector, 
said,  "They  couldn't  have  elected  a  more  able  man  to  pilot  the  A.LA."  when  he 
heard  of  Ramsey's  new  position,  following  his  retirement  from  the  Navy.  "Bill" 
Billings  is  an  old  associate  of  both  the  Admiral  and  Captain  Webb.  All  three 
served  aboard  the  U.S.S.  New  Jersey  in  1912,  when  the  two  present  A.LA. 
officials  were  newly  graduated  from  Annapolis.  Billings  served,  off  and  on  for 
15  years,  in  various  ships  and  air  stations,  with  the  new  A.LA.  president. 


MANY-FOLD  OPERATIONS 
FORM  A  MANIFOLD 

(Continued  from  page  9 ) 
operators  Dave  Monesmith  and  Glenn 
Wilds  place  the  drawing  sheets  upon  a 
huge  copyboard,  the  face  of  which  resem- 
bles a  quilt  of  waffle  irons.  Behind  the 
copyboard  is  a  network  of  hydraulic  lines 
governed  by  29  valves  which  in  turn  con- 
trol 58  vacuum  outlets  serving  to  hold 
the  sheet  metal  rigidly  against  the  copy- 
board  surface. 

Both  the  copyboard  and  the  lens  are 
calibrated  to  within  1  1000th  inch,  and 
are  opirated  electrically.  The  photo  oper- 
ator sets  the  Monotype  photo  copy  cam- 
era lens  at  F.16  for  30-45  seconds  on  most 
shots,  getting  the  image  on  a  glass  nega- 
tive. When  the  negative  is  obtained,  the 
second  process  is  simple.  Sheets  of  cold 
rolled  steel,  previously  sanded  and  wiped 
with  chemically  treated  tac-rags,  are  given 
a  primer  of  white  paint,  which  dries  in  five 
to  ten  minutes,  and  a  coating  of  photo- 
graphic emulsion  which  takes  up  to  24 
hours  to  dry.  This  emulsion-coated  sheet 
is  set  upon  the  copyboard  racks  and  the 
camera  then  projects  a  "picture"  upon  it 
from  the  glass  negative  plate  which  is 
anywhere  from  5  by  7  inches  to  18  by  32 
inches  in  dimension.  The  camera  handles 
negatives  up  to  40  by  42  inches. 

When  the  templates  are  ready,  they  are 
taken  to  the  pattern  shop  where  Castien's 
highly  skilled  technicians  create  third- 
dimensional  forms  from  the  rampant 
curves  and  tangets  comprising  the  flat 
steel  picture-sheet.  Smaller  working  sec- 
tions are  cut  from  the  steel  layout; 
adapted  to  the  varying  bench  sizes.  The 
actual  manifold  model  is  faired  into  being 
between  the  vertical  sections,  after  estab- 
lishment of  a  seam  line  and  drop  ham- 
mer stamping  angles.  Main  difficulty, 
leadman  Carlyle  Cline  explains,  is  to  main- 
tain the  exact  slow  curve  indicated  by 
the  drawings. 

"A  manifold  actually  is  a  complicated 
and  precise  line  of  steel  weaving  around  an 
engine  structure,"  he  says. 

The  resulting  models  resemble,  in  the 
case  of  a  manifold  cast,  nothing  so  much 
as  half  a  fat  macaroni  section  sliced  open 
on  a  breadboard. 

The  plaster  molds,  foundry  leadman 
Raymond  Hoermann  explains  in  describ- 
ing the  casting  procedures,  "Are  then  set 
into  forms  filled  with  famous  San  Diego 
brown  molding  sands.  Thev  come  from  a 
local  canyon  near  the  city." 

"Into  the  resulting  impressions  we  pour 
Kirksite  'A'  alloy,"  Hoermann  continues, 
"to  form  the  permanent  female  die.  The 
Kirksite  dies,  after  cooling,  are  ground 
and  polished.  Then  we  pour  molten  lead 
{Continued  on  page  1\) 


MANY-FOLD  OPERATIONS 
FORM  A  MANIFOLD 

(Coiitiiiiied  from  page  12) 

into  them,  creating  a  punch,  or  male  die. 
Both  dies  are  cast  to  fine  tolerances,  with 
proper  allowance  for  clearances." 

Before  the  actual  fabrication  of  the 
manifold  parts  begins,  the  large  sheets  of 
stainless  steel  or  Uniloy  have  to  be  meas- 
ured and  cut  into  varying  sizes,  depend- 
ing on  the  dies  which  will  form  them. 

"The  sheets  of  stainless  steel  are  first 
marked  from  a  gang  pattern,"  according 
to  C.  R.  Harper,  Assistant  Foreman  ot 
the  Cutting  and  Forming  Department. 
"This  one  large  pattern  often  includes  the 
outlines  of  smaller  patterns  which  arc 
broken  down  into  separate  parts  at  the 
cutting  machines,"  he  says. 

A  plywood  board,  shaped  to  the  size  of 
the  parts  needed,  is  outlined  on  each  metal 
sheet.  Then  the  rotary  shears  cut  the 
metal,  following  the  marks  scribed  upon 
it.  In  the  case  of  larger  parts  the  Libert 
shears  are  used.  It  sometimes  takes  two 
men  on  this  machine  to  shove  and  pull  the 
heavier  sheets  along  the  lines  marked  out 
from  the  patterns. 

After  cutting,  the  stacked  parts  go  to 
the  stamping  machine,  where  a  steel  die 
indelibly  stamps  each  piece  to  identify  it 
in  the  final  assembling  of  the  manifold. 
Numbers  are  stamped  far  enough  from 
the  edge  so  they  will  not  be  trimmed 
away  during  the  various  other  cutting  and 
trimming  processes. 

Now,  both  dies  and  the  raw  materials 
are  ready  for  the  forming  process  in  the 
drop  hammer  department. 

"Some  people,  not  in  the  know,  are 
under  the  impression  that  you  just  put 
the  manifold  sections  on  top  of  the  die 
and  drop  a  1,000  to  3,000-pound  hammer 
head  down  on  them,"  Ray  McCollum, 
Foreman  of  the  Drop  Hammer  and  Heavy 
Presses  department  says.  "Tbis  is  not  the 
case  at  all." 

A  considerable  amount  of  skill  is  re- 
quired in  the  forming  operations,  accord- 
ing to  McCollum,  for  the  metal  mani- 
fold parts  are  drawn  down  into  the  dies 
through  the  use  of  rubber  pressure  pads. 
It  takes  experience  to  place  the  pads  prop- 
erly so  that  when  the  terrifically  heavy 
hammers  drop  on  the  metal  it  will  flow 
freely  into  the  die.  Intricate  placing  of 
the  pads  minimizes  the  thinning  of  the 
metal  in  critical  areas.  Most  of  the  drop 
hammer  operators  have  been  with  Ryan 
seven  or  eight  years.  A.  I.  Park  is  the  vet- 
eran of  this  section,  with  more  than  eleven 
years  experience.  The  complete  drop  ham- 
mer process  includes  a  first  drop,  after 
which  the  metal  part  is  sent  through  a 
normalizing  and  pickling  process.  Nor- 
malizing is  actually  heating  in  a  huge 
(Continued  on  page  15 ) 


Patrick   (I.I   presents  plaque  to  Foushee 

Logs  Over  100,000  Flying 
Miles  on  Manifold  Business 

"Service"  is  the  watchword  when 
Ryan's  exhaust  manifold  customers  need 
advice  or  help.  To  make  sure  that  the 
manufacturers  and  users  get  the  help  they 
need — in  a  hurry — C.  L.  "Frenchy"  Fou- 
shee, Field  Service  Representative  of  the 
Metal  Products  Division,  is  practically 
always  on  the  run,  or  more  technically, 
"on  the  fly." 

In  the  past  two  and  one-half  years, 
"Frenchy"  has  flown  more  than  100,000 
miles  on  commercial  airlines  alone,  not 
counting  the  miles  he  has  travelled  in  the 
company's  Navion  business  plane  or  by 
car,  to  factories,  offices  and  military  bases 
all  over  the  U.  S.  As  proof  of  his  unusual 
air  mileage  record,  he  now  holds  a  gold 
membership  card  and  plaque  designating 
him  a  member  of  United  Air  Lines'  "100,- 
000  Mile  Club." 

Last  month,  William  R.  Patrick, 
United's  district  traffic  and  sales  manager 
in  San  Diego,  and  Henry  Hansen,  traffic 
representative,  presented  Foushee  with  his 
membership  and  welcomed  him  into  the 
roster  of  members  who  have  flown  this 
great  distance  on  regular  scheduled  air- 
line flights. 

A  typical  trip,  whereby  "Frenchy"  totes 
up  the  incredible  mileages,  was  made  sev- 
eral months  ago.  It  took  one  month  in 
time;  over  12,000  miles  in  distance.  Pur- 
pose of  this  trip  was  to  set  up  maintenance 
and  installation  procedures  and  to  train 
personnel  in  welding  techniques  for  Ryan 
exhaust  manifold  systems. 

From  San  Diego,  Foushee  flew  to  San 
Francisco  to  call  on  United  Air  Lines  and 


Pan  American  World  Airways.  At  nearby 
Moffett  Field  he  stopped  to  see  personnel 
at  MATS,  which  is  the  new  combined  Mil- 
itary Air  Transport  Service. 

Next  stop  on  this  odyssey  was  Denver 
and  the  offices  of  Continental  Air  Lines. 
From  Denver  he  hopped  to  Tulsa  and  a 
short  conference  with  American  Airlines. 
After  Tulsa  it  was  Memphis,  where  he 
.tided  Chicago  and  Southern  Air  Lines  in 
establishing    maintenance    procedures. 

Exhausted?  The  trip  had  only  begun. 
"Frenchy's"  travels  next  sent  him  to  St. 
Paul  to  visit  Northwest  Airlines.  At 
Wright  Field,  in  Dayton,  where  he  landed 
next.  Air  Force  maintenance  problems 
were  threshed  over. 

Pan  Am's  New  York  offices,  as  well  as 
American  Airlines  there,  were  next,  after 
which  he  flew  to  Boston  and  a  talk  with 
Northeast  Air  Lines.  Engineering  and 
manufacturing  problems  on  engine  com- 
ponents at  the  Wright  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany in  Paterson,  N.  J.,  drew  him  there 
next,  followed  by  a  conference  in  Wil- 
mington, Del.,  with  TWA. 

The  Martin  plant  in  Baltimore  and  the 
Fairchild  Engine  and  Aircraft  Company  in 
Hagerstown,  Md.,  then  figured  on  the  field 
representative's  itinerary,  after  which  he 
flew  to  Washington,  D.C.,  for  talks  with 
the  Navy's  Bureau  of  Aeronautics  and 
Capital  Airlines.  At  the  Navy's  Patuxent, 
Md.,  test  base,  manifolds  on  new  Lockheed 
P2Vs  were  the  object  of  service  confer- 
ences, as  well  as  other  types  of  Ryan-built 
exhaust  systems  on  test  there. 

It  is  a  fairly  long  jump  from  Patuxent 
to  Miami,  but  without  intervening  stops, 
our  manifold  representative  made  the  trip 
to  see  both  National  Air  Lines  and  Pan 
Am.  Jacksonville,  Atlanta  and  Mobile 
were  his  next  three  visits. 

This  lengthy  journey  should  have  con- 
sumed every  minute  of  the  30  days  Fou- 
shee spent  awa)'  from  San  Diego,  but  be- 
fore he  returned  he  made  yet  another  call. 
This  last  stop  was  Dallas.  Is  it  any  wonder 
that  since  becoming  eligible  for  the  "100,- 
000  Mile  Club"  membership,  Foushee  has 
logged  an  additional  60,000  miles? 

When  he  hits  the  200,000  mile  mark, 
and  it  looks  as  if  it  won't  be  too  long  in 
happening,  "Frenchy"  will  have  a  star 
added  to  his  card.  Additional  stars  come 
with  additional  mileage  in  100,000-mile 
laps,  and  at  the  present  rate  Ryan's  ex- 
haust manifolds  and  jet  engine  components 
are  rolling  off  the  production  line  to  be 
installed  in  both  military  and  commercial 
aircraft,  Foushee  may  well  have  one  of 
the  most  star-studded  membership  cards 
in  United  Air  Lines'  club. 


13 


PROVING  GROUND  FOR 
NAVIONS 

(Continued  from  page  2) 
and  vicissitudes  of  below  zero  weather. 

"It  is  not  unusual  to  have  to  climb  to 
12,000  feet  or  more  to  rise  above  the  tur- 
bulence caused  by  winds  over  the  moun- 
tains," Morton  says,  "and  the  Navion  has 
never  responded  any  way  but  excellently. 
In  fact,  for  all-round  performance  the 
Navion  has  the  finest  I've  found  in  any 
four-place  plane.  Its  ease  of  handling,  sim- 
plicity and  stability  can't  be  beat  in  any 
airplane,  large  or  small."  This  is  not  hol- 
low praise,  for  pilot  Morton  has  been  fly- 
ing since  1923,  and  has  handled  some 
tough  assignments,  like  the  trans-Pacific 
flights  he  made  for  several  years.  The  last 
flights  were  with  PBY5As  to  Java  for  the 
Shell  Oil  Company  in  1946.  There  have 
been  many  other  long,  arduous  hops  in  his 
26  years'  flying  experience. 

These  weekly  flights  have  been  one  of 
the  best  tests  conceivable  for  plane  per- 
formance. The  regular  flights,  accurate 
logs  kept,  the  challenge  of  unusual  ter- 
rain, including  mountain  flying  and  moun- 
tain weather,  all  contribute  information 
of  great  value  to  the  builders  of  the  Nav- 
ion. The  dependability  of  this  plane  has 
been  proved  weekly,  by  its  makers  in  their 
own  "airline"  operation,  so  that  Navion 
owners  will  benefit  by  the  experience  of 
Ryan's  own  pilots. 

AIR  FORCE  STAGES  SUCCESSFUL 
"TELEVISION  AIRLIFT"  IN  EAST 

"Of  far-reaching  significance,"  accord- 
ing to  General  Hoyt  S.  Vandenberg,  Air 
Force  Chief  of  Staff,  was  a  recent  flight 
by  Air  Force  planes  equipped  with  tele- 
vision cameras  and  transmitting  equip- 
ment as  part  of  a  joint  Air  Force-National 
Broadcasting  Company  exercise  promptly 
dubbed  "Operation  Airlift  TV."  "Those 
of  us  who  watched  by  television  the  flights 
of  our  planes,"  said  General  Vandenberg, 
"could  envision  many  applications  of  a 
similar  type  of  operation  in  a  time  of 
disaster." 

Pictures  of  Washington  scenes  were 
presented  by  a  Douglas  C-47  which 
cruised  over  the  Capital,  while  aerial  views 
of  Cleveland  were  transmitted  by  a  C-54 
which  flew  above  that  city.  Both  planes 
later  winged  busily  over  New  York  to 
make  available  action  photography  of 
Manhattan. 

Ryan  stainless  steel  manifolds  are 
important  parts  of  C-47  and  C-54 
equipment. 


NEW  MANIFOLD  SALES 
ENGINEER  APPOINTED 

The  Glider  Club  at  Case  Institute  of 
Technology  gave  Bruce  Todd,  newly 
appointed  Sales  and  Engineering  Rep- 
resentative of  Ryan's  Metal  Products 
Division,  his  first  initiation  into  avia- 
tion. By  1939,  the  year  he  w^as  gradu- 
ated from  the  Cleveland  engineering 
school,  Todd  w^as  also  -well  on  his  ■way 
toward  a  CAA  pilot*s  license  and  ready 
for  a  career  in  the  aircraft  industry. 

That  career  began,  prior  to  World 
War  II,  at  the  San  Diego  plant  of  Con- 
solidated-VuItee.  Here,  Bruce  w^orked 
as  a  power  plant  engineer,  mostly  on 
the  B-24s  Convair  was  building.  He 
also  flew^  in  many  of  the  planes  to  check 
his  department's  work.  In  1942  he 
moved  to  Pratt  and  Whitney's  plant  at 
East  Hartford,  Connecticut.  The  fol- 
lowing year  he  returned  to  Los  Angeles 
as  installation  engineer  for  their  power 
plants  in  both  commercial  and  military 
planes,  and  remained  there  for  five 
years. 

Last  month  Todd  came  to  Ryan  where 
his  new  assignment  will  be  sales  con- 
tacts with  the  Boeing  Airplane  Company 
in  Seattle  and  Wichita,  Westinghouse 
in  Kansas  City,  Convair  in  Ft.  Worth 
and  Chance-Vought  in  Dallas.  The  Boe- 
ing B-50,  C-97  and  Model  377  exhaust 
manifold  installations  will  be  one  of  his 
chief  concerns,  as  will  the  C-97  fuselage 
section  Ryan  is  building. 

Since  coming  to  live  in  San  Diego, 
genial  Sales  Engineer  Todd  has  re- 
newed many  old  acquaintances.  During 
his  spell  at  Convair,  Ryan's  Director  of 
Engineering,  Harry  Sutton,  was  Bruce's 
boss.  Oddly  enough,  a  schoolmate  of 
Todd's,  Charles  Byrne,  Ryan's  new- 
Chief  Engineer  of  Metal  Products,  was 
a  stranger  to  him  w^hen  he  first  arrived. 
Possibly  this  can  be  attributed  to 
Byrne's  having  been  on  the  football 
squad  at  Case  Institute  and  Todd  on  the 
track  team,  where  he  ran  the  440-yard 
and  mile  races.  They  are  both  Mechani- 
cal Engineering  School  graduates,  how- 
ever, but  never  seem  to  have  met  w^hile 
there. 

Though  Todd  is  a  flying  enthusiast, 
he  hasn't  had  an  opportunity  since  com- 
ing to  San  Diego  to  fly.  He  checked  out 
in  the  Navion  several  years  ago  in  Se- 
attle, has  flown  most  recently  at  Clover 
Field,  Santa  Monica  and  would  like  to 
get  in  some  more  Navion  time  whenever 
his  work  permits. 


RYAN  EXECUTIVES  TO 
ATTEND  CONFERENCE 

Three  of  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company's 
top  executives  are  scheduled  to  participate 
in  the  fourth  "Williamsburg  Conference," 
the  semi-annual  meeting  held  between  top 
aircraft  industry  officials  and  government 
executives  concerned  with  all  phases  of 
long  range  military  planning. 

Since  the  war,  government  and  indus- 
try have  been  holding  these  meetings  as 
a  high  level  forum  to  consider  long  range 
strategic  planning  and  industrial  mobil- 
ization, in  order  that  America's  national 
interests  may  be  served  efficiently  and 
promptly  in  case  of  any  national  crisis  or 
emergency.  Scheduled  to  attend  the  meet- 
ings late  in  May  at  Williamsburg,  Vir- 
ginia, are  T.  Claude  Ryan,  President;  Sam 
C.  Breder,  Sales  Manager,  and  Harry  Sut- 
ton, Director  of  Engineering. 

Because  the  conferences  are  between  top 
government  and  aircraft  officials  con- 
cerned with  matters  of  extreme  militar)' 
importance,  sometimes  of  a  confidential 
nature,  no  public  statements  or  results  of 
the  talks  are  released. 

Track  Landing  Gear 
New  C-82  Feature 

First  production  model  of  the  Fairchild 
C-82  Packet  equipped  with  Track  Land- 
ing Gear  was  delivered  recently  to  the 
20th  Troop  Carrier  Squadron,  314th 
Troop  Carrier  Wing,  stationed  at  Smyrna, 
Tennessee.  It  was  the  first  of  18  planes 
to  be  delivered  with  such  installations. 

All  track-equipped  C-82  aircraft  under 
the  present  contract  will  be  delivered  to 
the  20th  Troop  Carrier  Squadron,  making 
it  the  first  completely  track-equipped 
unit.  Under  present  plans  the  Air  Force 
will  use  the  unit  for  special  operational 
testing.  Cutting  the  ground  bearing  pres- 
sure of  the  standard  landing  gear  wheel 
by  two-thirds,  the  track  makes  it  possible 
for  heavy  aircraft  to  land  on  sod  fields  and 
unimproved  landing  strips. 

FAIRCHILD  USES  RYAN-MADE 
BALL  AND  SOCKET  TYV^  COLLEC- 
TORS ON  ITS  PACKETS. 


14 


MANY-FOLD  OPERATIONS 
FORM  A  MANIFOLD 

(Continued  from  page  1 3  ) 
oven,  at  1950  degrees  Fahrenheit.  Pick- 
ling is  an  acid  bath  which  cleans  the  metal 
part  before  it  goes  back  to  the  drop  ham- 
mers and  a  second  die,  where  it  again 
receives  the  tremendous  force  of  pressure 
needed  to  smooth  out  imperfections.  Again 
the  metal  is  normalized  and  pickled  and 
returns  for  a  final  session  with  the  drop 
hammer  on  a  finisher  die. 

Before  the  parts  for  the  manifold  as- 
semblies are  sent  to  the  welding  depart- 
ment they  are  trimmed,  and  some  of  the 
excess  metal  is  cut  away  from  the  ends 
and  around  the  flanges. 

In  Claude  Coppock's  Welding  Depart- 
ment the  two  sides  of  each  manifold  part 
are  joined  together  by  an  electric  spot 
tacking  machine.  From  these  machines 
they  are  trundled  over  to  the  power 
shears,  where  the  tacked  flanges  are 
trimmed  down  close.  A  carbon-arc  tack- 
ing machine  again  reinforces  the  seams, 
running  down  each  side  of  the  manifold 
part  and  they  are  then  ready  to  go  to  the 
small  shed  outside  the  building  known  as 
the  flux  shed. 

Welding  flux  is  applied  on  the  under 
side  of  the  manifold  seams  during  this 
operation  in  preparation  for  more  welding 
processes.  From  the  flux  shed  the  parts 
go  to  either  the  oxyacetylene  welding  ma- 
chine, if  they  are  stainless  steel,  or  to  the 
heli-arc  welding  rig  if  they  are  made  of 
Uniloy,  No.   19-9W. 

Another  oven  again  heats  the  parts  for 
relief  of  stresses  set  up  in  the  metal  by 
the  welding  procedures.  When  the  parts 
come  from  the  oven  they  are  given  an 
acid  bath  to  clean  off  the  scale  which 
forms  under  the  extreme  temperatures. 

The  "bump"  shed,  or  pre-jig  area,  as 
it  is  officially  called,  is  the  province  of 
Assistant  Manifold  Assembly  Foreman  R. 
H.  Guyer.  In  this  building,  a  small  struc- 
ture on  the  north  side  of  building  120, 
the  welded  and  bathed  manifold  parts  get 
a  rigid  going  over.  Bumps  in  the  seams 
are  hammered  out  and  the  exhaust  ends 
are  rounded  up.  At  the  template  bench, 
Bill  Vogel  marks  the  parts  for  cutting, 
more  welding  and  grinding.  Each  produc- 
tion job  has  a  complete  set  of  templates, 
down  to  the  smallest  pieces.  These  are 
clamped  around  the  manifold  parts, 
checked  for  tolerances  and  marked  in  red 
for  the  cutting  machines. 

Before  the  seams  can  be  ground,  they 


must  again  be  welded.  The  edges  of  the 
parts  are  then  trimmed  along  the  red- 
marked  lines  put  on  at  the  template  bench. 
A  rough  grinding  first  smooths  the  welded 
seams,  followed  by  a  finish  grinding.  This 
last  process  is  done  with  an  air  grinding 
tool  which  is  hand  operated.  It  buffs  down 
the  rough  seams  until  they  gleam  like 
silver. 

Before  the  manifold  parts  are  stored 
outside,  ready  for  the  manifold  assembly 
jigs,  the  ends  are  again  checked.  All  over- 
sized ends  are  brought  into  tolerance  on 
the  "guillotine,"  a  small  machine  which 
clamps  two  dies  together.  Ends  which  are 
too  narrow  are  brought  out  to  proper 
width  by  an  expanding  mandrel. 

Special  ball  and  socket  parts  for  the 
Boeing  B-50  and  C-97  exhaust  systems  re- 
quire an  additional  grinding  operation. 
The  outside  of  the  metal  hoops  must  be 
honed  down  to  a  fine  gloss  before  the 
crank  presses  form  the  cylinders. 

After  numerous  welding  operations, 
grinding  jobs  and  precision  checks  are 
made  on  the  manifold  parts  they  are  stored 
outside  building  120  in  a  3-day  bank,  or 
stockpile,  which  is  three  days  backlog  of 
work.  They  are  ready  for  their  final  as- 
sembly now  in  the  manifold  jigs.  This 
operation  as  well  as  the  final  inspection, 
packaging  and  delivery  of  these  laboriously 
wrought  manifolds  will  be  discussed  in  a 
later  issue. 


FIRST  OF  NEW  STRATOCRUISER 
FLEET  DELIVERED  TO  PAN-AM 

First  of  a  fleet  of  20  double-deck,  75- 
passenger  Boeing  Stratocruiser-type  Clip- 
pers was  delivered  to  Pan  America  World 
Airways  recently  and,  as  "Clipper  Amer- 
ica," has  already  gone  into  service  be- 
tween the  west  coast  and  Honolulu.  As 
the  remainder  of  Pan-American's  Clip- 
pers are  delivered,  they  will  go  into  the 
Atlantic  service. 

The  big  Boeing-produced  plane,  largest 
commercially  operating  landplane,  incor- 
porates developments  made  in  building 
B-29  and  B-50  Superfortresses  and  C-97 
Stratofreighters.  Performance  character- 
istics of  the  craft,  which  has  been  offi- 
cially licensed  for  commercial  passenger 
service  by  the  Civil  Aeronautics  Admin- 
istration, exceed  government  standards  in 
many  instances.  Boeing  flight  crews  and 
engineers  have  flown  the  Stratocruiser 
more  than  2  50,000  miles  during  an  800- 
hour  test  program  which  preceded  deliv- 
ery of  the  first  Clipper  plane. 

"The  new  Clipper  is  a  tribute  to  Amer- 
ican enterprise,  manufacturing  and  en- 
gineering ability,"  declared  A.  A.  Priester, 
vice  president  and  chief  engineer  of  Pan 
American  World  Airways  as  he  officially 
took  possession  for  his  company  from 
William  M.  Allen,  Boeing  president,  at 
Portland-Columbia  airport. 

Ryan-vtaniifactiired  exhaust  sys- 
tems are  sturdy  features  of  Boeing's 
famous  Stratocruisers. 


Spectators    at    Uruguay's    Independence    Day    parade    in    Montevideo    acclaim    this    Novion, 
which    distributors    Miller,    Medeiros    and    Bastos    took    through    the    streets    of    the    city. 


Charles  Byrne,  (left)  Chief  Engineer  of  the  Metal  Products  Division,  hands 
manifold  ports  to  Field  Service  Representative  "Frenchy"  Foushee  for  quick 
delivery  to  a  Ryan  customer.  Eddie  Oberbauer,  Assistant  Foreman  in  Final 
Assembly,    pilots    the    Navion,    often    used    to    get    rush    orders    out    on    time. 


PRECISION  JET  PARTS  FOR  AIR  POWER 


(Continued  from  page  1 ) 
probably  the  best  word  to  describe  them. 
They  are  short  pieces,  the  ends  of  which 
splay  out   to  scoop  in   the  gas   from   the 
engine. 

Because  accuracy  is  of  paramount  im- 
portance, and  tolerances  are  as  fine  as 
2/lOOOths  of  an  inch,  the  inspection  of 
the  jet  components  is  a  hair-line  job.  Jim 
Ring  is  in  charge  of  checking  these  toler- 
ances, and  he,  along  with  Bud  Bragdon, 
Charlie  Brown  and  Tom  McCarty,  super- 
vises tooling  inspection  on  the  entire  GE 
assembly.  According  to  "Red"  Hammock 
and  Ring,  all  the  men  involved  in  Jet 
Assembly  are  anxious  to  work  to  the  high- 
est standards  of  quality  because  of  their 
interest  in  this  project.  "From  an  inspec- 
tion standpoint  they've  cooperated  100 
per  cent,"  says  Jim. 

Welding,  too,  is  of  such  fine  precision 
that  Bill  Kuplik  has  been  especially  as- 
signed to  this  assembly  to  supervise  the 
intricate  nature  of  this  part  of  the  work. 
No  burrs,  mars  or  other  surface  imper- 
fections can  be  allowed,  so  workers  must 
use  special  care  and  skill  in  handling  all 
the  jet  parts,  even  down  to  spraying  a 
fine  coating  of  plastic  on  the  outer  and 
inner  cones  to  protect  them  as  they  pass 
down  the  production  line. 

In  January,  when  this  department  be- 
gan its  work,  all  new  machinery  and  tools 
had  to  be  installed;  tools  like  the  Pang- 
born  hydro-finish  liquid-honing  machine 
and  the  electric  portable  spotwelder.  In 
charge  of  all  machine  operations  is  George 
Lawton,  who,  along  with  Gilbert   Bell,  is 


an  assistant  foreman  in  the  Jet  Compon- 
ents Department. 

Praise  of  the  precision  and  dispatch 
with  which  Ryan  builds  turbojet  com- 
ponents is  always  forthcoming  from  every 
group  of  General  Electric  or  Air  Forces 
personnel  who  have  watched  the  depart- 
ment in  operation.  In  fact,  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  project,  Ryan  made  history, 
in  no  small  sense,  by  being  the  first  sub- 
contractor to  submit  production-built  jet 
assemblies  which  were  immediately  ap- 
proved, without  having  to  be  returned  to 
the  factory  for  changes  or  modifications. 

Jet  cones,  combustion  chambers  and 
liners  are  not  the  only  parts  "Red's"  crews 
produce.  De-icing  ducts  for  PB4Y2s, 
B25-J  modification  kits,  C-82  heat  ex- 
changers for  AiResearch  Company  as  well 
as  drinking  water  and  waste  water  tanks 
for  the  new  Boeing  Stratocruisers  are  on 
the  production  schedule  assistant  foremen 
Emil  Magdich  and  W.  A.  Steinruck  are 
keeping. 

Despite  the  interest  all  the  men  have 
in  building  these  new  power  plant  parts 
for  America's  growing  jet-propelled  air 
fleet,  it  is  always  a  pleasant  boost  to  get 
the  kind  of  verbal  pat  on  the  back  which 
was  contained  in  a  recent  letter  from  Ken 
Houseman,  Manager  of  the  General  Ekv- 
tric  plant  at  Lockland,  Ohio,  where  the 
Ryan-built  parts  will  be  assembled. 

In  commenting  on  his  recent  inspection 
tour  of  the  Jet  Components  Department, 
he  wrote,  "Needless  to  say,  we  were  very 
favorably  impressed  with  the  set-up  at 
Ryan  and  left  with  full  confidence  that 
your  Company  is  prepared  to  do  the  job 
for  us  that  has  been  laid  out." 


HE  KEEPS  PRODUCTION 
MOVING 

(Continued  from  page  5 ) 
ager.  Here  he  introduced  such  innovations 
at  the  time  as  standard  cost  accounting, 
time-study  and  a  group  bonus  plan.  The 
shop  at  Aeronca  during  this  period  was 
laid  out  so  that  all  equipment  and  ma- 
chinery for  one  process  was  located  to- 
gether. All  the  lathes  were  in  one  place, 
in  another  section  of  the  plant  the  presses 
were  collected  and  so  on  throughout  the 
entire  production  floor.  Work  went  out 
from  these  central  locations  to  the  floor 
and  came  back  again  and  again  for  re- 
welding,  additional  cutting,  checking  or 
other  processing.  All  this  back  and  forth 
movement  from  assembly  back  to  the 
machines  made  for  a  certain  amount  of 
lost  motion.  To  facilitate  the  easy  flow  of 
production  from  one  operation  to  another. 
Barton  revamped  the  old  system  and 
moved  machinery  and  men  about  the  shop 
to  cut  down  on  time-consuming  move- 
ments and,  incidentally,  to  cut  costs. 

When,  in  1940,  Barton  came  to  Ryan 
as  factory  superintendent,  he  helped  in- 
troduce this  de-centralized  system  of 
work  flow  at  this  plant.  "Any  changes  of 
this  type  in  a  production  line,"  Barton 
explains,  "take  much  planning  and  repre- 
sent a  composite  of  the  ideas  of  many 
people,  from  company  executives  to  the 
men  who  operate  the  machines."  This 
ability  to  coordinate  diverse  operations 
into  a  smooth  flow  of  manufacture  is  one 
of  the  reasons  Barton  sits  in  Ryan's  Pro- 
duction Manager's  office  today. 

His  present  job  is  largely  one  of  co- 
ordination. All  production  phases  of  the 
Manifold  Department,  Boeing  fuselage, 
Navion  and  General  Electric  Jet  Assem- 
bly are  Barton's  province.  It  is  his  prob- 
lem to  see  that  work  on  all  these  projects 
moves  smoothly  and  he  corrects  any  con- 
ditions which  might  tend  to  slow  it. 

Because  the  job  is  one  of  constant 
change,  and  work  is  often  performed 
under  pressure.  Barton  is  a  man  who  is 
usually  on  the  run.  "I  never  know  when 
he's  going  to  be  in  the  office,"  his  secre- 
tary, Helen  Bliss,  will  say,  "except  when 
he's  holding  a  meeting  of  the  superin- 
tendents." These  meetings  are  an  im- 
portant part  of  the  Production  Manager's 
job,  for  from  them  he  finds  what  prob- 
lems have  come  up  in  the  shop  and  can 
work  them  out,  with  the  help  of  the  men 
directly  affected. 

Away  from  Ryan  and  the  problems  of 
cost,  schedules,  machine  design  and  co- 
ordination of  manufacturing.  Barton  re- 
laxes with  good  music.  He  has,  at  present, 
over  400  record  albums  comprising  the 
works  of  both  the  old  masters  and  the 
moderns.  In  addition  to  record  collecting 
(Continued  on  page  17) 


HE  KEEPS  PRODUCTION 
MOVING 

(Continncd  from  page  16) 
the    Production     Manager    is     an     ardent 
golfer.   Although   he  has   pla)'ed  golf   for 
only  two  years,  he  now  shoots  well  under 
100. 

The  next  time  the  San  Diego  Shriners' 
Drum  and  Bugle  Corps  marches  in  a 
parade  and  you  happen  to  be  on  the  curb- 
stone watching  them  pass,  keep  on  the 
lookout  for  a  familiar  figure  playing  a 
bugle.  It  will  be  "Bart,"  rolling  out  trum- 
pet flourishes,  for  he  seems  to  be  a  man 
of  many  talents  and  you  never  know 
where  he  will  turn  up  next;  on  the  pro- 
duction floor,  at  the  golf  links  or  quietly 
at  home  with  his  wife  and  two  daughters 
listening  to  good  music. 


DOUGLAS  DC-6  GETS 

ADDED  SPEED  FROM 

EXHAUST  THRUST 

(Continued  from  page  4) 
propulsive  thrust"  is  because  of  its  approx- 
imation in  principle  to  the  power  obtained 
by  using  jet  reaction  engines.  The  intensity 
of  the  heat  generated  in  the  cylinders  gives 
added  impetus  to  the  gas  as  it  expands  and 
is  "nozzled"  from  the  stacks.  The  added 
power  comes  from  the  increased  thrust, 
which  in  other  types  of  manifolds  is  dissi- 
pated due  to  turning  the  exhaust  stacks 
downward  so  that  the  gases  furnish  no 
drive  to  the  planes  in  propelling  them  for- 
ward. 

In  addition  to  the  propulsive  thrust  of 
the  Ryan  manifold  system  on  the  DC-6, 
fully  reversible  propellers  have  been  in- 
stalled as  a  further  refinement  in  speed 
control.  The  reverse  thrust  from  these 
props  is  used  to  bring  the  plane  to  a  faster 
stop  after  landing,  thereby  lessening  the 
use  of  wheel  brakes. 

The  comfort  of  DC-6s  is  built-in,  tech- 
nically speaking,  for  one  of  the  improve- 
ments engineered  on  this  postwar  commer- 
cial carrier  is  its  air-conditioning  for  hu- 
midity as  well  as  for  heating  and  cooling. 
The  system  has  ground  ventilating  blow- 
ers that  operate  automatically  when  the 
plane  is  on  the  ground,  which  means  that 
when  the  airliners  land  in  summer  tem- 
peratures, passengers  who  are  not  getting 
off  experience  no  sharp  contrast  of  the  air 
on  the  ground  compared  to  the  cool  air 
they  have  been  enjoying  aloft. 

A  new  Air  Freighter,  modelled  on  the 
lines  of  the  DC-6,  is  now  planned  for  pro- 
duction at  the  Douglas  Company-  This 
plane  will  also  be  equipped  with  four 
Pratt  and  Whitney  Double  Wasp  engines, 
fly  in  excess  of  300  m.p.h.  and  will  be 
capable  of  carrying  a  payload  of  1  5  tons 
on  a  2000-mile  flight  or  transport  23,000 
pounds  of  air  freight  non-stop  from  coast 
to  coast. 


WHO  WRITES  JOKES?  Ever  wondered  who  rhinks  up  clever  routines  for  radio  comed- 
ians? One  such  mysteryman  is  Zeno  Klinker,  No.  1  writer  for  Edgar  Bergen  and 
Charlie  McCarthy,  and  owner  of  a  Ryan  Navion.  Zeno  praises  his  Novion  for  those 
critical  moments  when,  as  inspiration  appears  just  out  of  reach,  he  takes  to  the  air,  and 
finds  the  answer.  Too,  he  needs  his  plane  to  keep  up  with  bossman  Bergen,  also  a  Ryan 
Navion  owner.  Comedy  isn't  Zeno's  sole  forte;  he  has  also  found  time  to  assemble 
one  of  the  world's  finest  motion  picture  histories  of  the  development  of  aviation. 

CHILE'S  FIRST  RYAN  NAVION  was  delivered  last  month  to 
Ricardo  Robinson,  Studebaker  distributor  in  Valparaiso.  Rob- 
inson was  accompanied  on  his  homeward  flight  from  San 
Diego  by  Eduardo  Sepulveda,  Chilean  Air  Force  officer.  "Our 
country  has  long  needed  a  safe  and  practicol  plane  like  the 
Navion,"  Robinson  said  in  accepting  title  from  William  Broth, 
erton,  Ryan  Export  Sales  Coordinator.  Plans  call  for  demon- 
strations of  his  smartly-finished  '49  model  throughout  Chile, 
with  special  attention  given  to  flying  clubs. 

LAWYER  FLIES.  Henry  L.  F.  Kreger,  partner  in  the  law  firm  of  Squire,  Sanders  & 
Dempsey,  Cleveland,  Ohio,  travels  cross-country  by  Navion,  soys  he  wouldn't  do  it 
any  other  way.  Frequent  trips  to  Buffalo  and  New  York  City  for  conferences  with 
clients  head  his  schedule.  Quick  hops  to  Washington  help  in  handling  important 
business  with  federal  agencies.  The  Kreger  family's  recent  flight  to  Palo  Alto,  Cali- 
fornia, for  0  visit  with  daughter  Paulina,  a  junior  at  Stanford  University,  was  voted 
their  vocation  favorite.  Son  Charles,  an  engineer  with  the  Crane  Co.  in  Chicago,  also 
enjoys  taking  on  occasional  turn  at  the  Novion's  controls. 

"OUR  RYAN   NAVION   HAS  BEEN   INVALUABLE  .  .  ."  writes  J.  B.  Conway, 

Portland,  Oregon  representative  for  the  Coe  Manufacturing  Co.  "Trips  which 
used  to  take  several  days  by  cor  are  now  accomplished  by  Navion  in  a  few 
hours.  The  ability  to  rush  replacement  parts  to  customers  has  also  been  a  great 
help.  The  Navion  recently  sold  a  complete  machinery  plant  by  enabling  us  to 
move  key  personnel   rapidly." 

HAULING  TRUCK  PARTS,  attending  dealer  meetings  and  flying  drivers  to  pick  up 
cars  ore  just  a  few  of  the  uses  Walter  Dufresne,  Dodge  &  Plymouth  dealer  in  Boise, 
Idaho,  has  found  for  his  Navion.  "The  plane's  a  great  help  in  covering  the  broad 
stretches  of  Idaho,"  soys  Dufresne.  "And  I've  always  held  that  there's  nothing  tjetter 
in  the  world  for  a  good  hunting  or  fishing  party  than  the  Navion.  I  personally  enjoy 
most  the  flight  to  Bennett's  Ranch,  which  sits  3,100  feet  high  in  the  mountain 
country." 

ORIGINAL  FLYING  DOCTOR  .  .  .  That's  Dr.  Frank  A.  Brewster  of  Holdrege, 
Nebr.,  whose  Ryan  Navion  is  a  modern  successor  to  the  long  series  of  aircraft 
he's  owned  since  1919,  when  he  purchased  the  first  plane  in  the  U.S.  to  be  used 
by  a  physician  for  making  calls.  Well-known  for  his  radio  appearances  and 
the  many  magazine  articles  and  motion  pictures  describing  his  flight  activities, 
Dr.  Brewster  is  a  75-year  old  pilot  who  regularly  Navions  the  100  miles  sepa- 
rating his  two  clinics.  A  treasured  keepsake  is  his  scrapbook  of  articles  gathered 
from  all  over  the  world  describing  his  flying. 

WHEREVER  AUTOMOTIVE  TRADES  people  gather  and  Sam  Lev- 
itt's name  is  mentioned,  someone's  sure  to  say,  "Oh,  you  mean  the 
'flying'  salesman!"  For  Levitt's  reputation  as  "the  guy  who  pilots 
his  own  airplane"  has  spread  far  and  wide  during  his  cross-country 
travels.  As  direct-factory  representative  for  specialty  manufactur- 
ers, this  New  Yorker  flies  up  to  100,000  miles  per  year,  calls  his 
'49  Ryan  Navion  the  perfect  soles  plane.  Frequent  meetings  with 
executives  of  the  nation's  leading  chain  automotive  accessory 
stores,  rubber  companies  and  mail  order  houses  keep  him  and  his 
sample  cases  regularly  on  the  wing. 

CLUB  GOES  NAVION.  Two  heads  ore  better  than  one,  they  say,  so  a  decision 
by  many  heads  should  be  even  more  reliable.  Members  of  the  Los  Altos  Flying 
Club  in  Los  Altos,  Calif.,  demonstrated  their  belief  in  the  truth  of  such  an  adage 
this  month  when  they  bought  a  handsome  Navion.  Like  so  many  other  private 
flying  groups  ore  doing  this  year,  the  Los  Altos  folks  traded  in  their  older  two- 
place  ship  for  the  bigger,  more  useful  Navion.  United  Air  Lines  captain  Gilbert 
Sperry  is  a  "busman's  holiday"  flying  member  of  the  Los  Altos  Club,  who  likes 
to  log  time  on  the  Navion  between  airline  schedules. 

NAVION  IN  THE  ARGENTINE.  "I  do  a  lot  of  flying  in  my  Ryan  Navion.  When 
visiting  my  family  at  the  seashore — some  300  miles  from  my  office — I  land  near 
their  hotel  in  a  recently  harvested  oat  field.  It's  wonderful  to  think  that  I  can  actually 
do  a  spot  of  work  here  at  the  plant  on  a  Saturday  morning  and  still  hove  time  for 
a  sea  bath  before  lunch.  The  more  flying  I  do,  and  the  more  I  talk  with  people  who 
fly,  the  more  convinced  I  am  that  I  hove  the  ideal  private  plane." — Robert  M.  Frozer, 
Buenos  Aires,  Argentina. 


BIG  AND  LITTLE  HAYLIFT 

(CoutitJued  from  page  10) 

flights  of  small  private  planes.  It  has  been 
estimated  that  close  to  10,000  flights  were 
made  during  the  blizzard  season  in  the 
state  of  Nebraska  alone.  There  are  more 
than  6,000  private  planes  owned  and  op- 
erated by  residents  of  the  seven  states 
hardest  hit  by  the  cold  and  snow.  Most  of 
these  owners  worked  tirelessly  during  the 
disaster  period.  Their  flights  proved  the 
inestimable  value  of  personal  aircraft  in 
performing  the  type  of  rescue  work  in- 
volving crude  landing  strips,  short  take- 
off areas  and  low-flying  aerial  deliveries 
of  food,  medical  supplies  and  mail. 

There  could  be  no  more  dramatic  way 
of  presenting  the  job  accomplished  by  pri- 
vate pilots  than  to  recount  excerpts  from 
the  log  of  Ryan  Navion  owner  and  dealer 
Edward  Kooper  of  Alliance,  Nebraska. 

The  flights  Kooper  made  between  Jan- 
uary 8th  and  February  7th,  when  all  roads 
around  Alliance  were  blocked  by  drifts, 
totalled  5,5  50  air  miles.  Here  is  a  recount- 
ing of  the  missions  in  Kooper's  own  words: 

"On  January  10th,  I  made  food  drops 
to  the  Noalan  Ranch,  the  Kooper  Ranch, 
the  Smith  Ranch;  a  medicine  drop  to  the 
Younkin  Ranch,  where  four  small  chil- 
dren were  ill;  and  a  tractor  repair  drop  to 
the  Bignell  Ranch.  Each  drop  consisted  of 
a  minimum  of  100  pounds,  and  total  time 
for  these  flights  was  2  hours,  45  minutes. 
Visibility  on  the  return  of  this  trip  was  so 
low  that  I  had  to  follow  fence  lines  to 
reach  the  airport. 

"On  January  1 2th,  I  flew  air  and  ground 
liaison  in  my  Ryan  Navion  for  a  ground 
party  of  crawler  type  tractors  and  jeeps 
opening  a  road  for  a  propane  gas  truck, 
which  had  been  stalled  in  the  snow  drifts 
around  20  miles  from  Alliance,  since  the 
beginning  of  the  great  blizzard.  It  was 
very  essential  that  this  truck  reach  Alli- 
ance, as  many  residents  were  running  short 
of  gas  for  cooking  and  heating. 

"On  January  19th,  I  made  a  morning 
food  and  veterinary  medicine  drop  at  the 
Withers  Ranch.  In  the  afternoon,  I  flew 
Mr.  Brown  of  Valentine,  Nebraska,  to  his 
ranch.  We  landed  on  a  lake,  which,  even 
though  swept  by  winds,  had  heavily 
crusted  snow  in  drifts  6  to  8  inches  high. 
This  gave  the  Navion  landing  gear  a 
rugged  workout  as  we  sometimes  rode 
on  top  of  the  snow  where  it  froze  hard. 

"On  January  30th,  we  made  several 
reconnaisance  trips  over  isolated  cattle 
herds.  Due  to  these  flights,  ranchers  own- 
ing them  were  able  to  locate  and  care  for 
them  much  quicker  than  would  other- 
wise have  been  possible." 

This  dispassionate  account  of  rescue 
work  by  just  one  Ryan  Navion  owner 
should  be  multiplied  many  times  to  give 


a  full  scale  picture  of  the  service  owners 
provided  in  the  West's  time  of  dire  need. 
Even  the  mails  got  through,  if  not  on 
time,  at  least  not  too  late  to  bring  cheer 
to  isolated  families. 

Clyde  Perrin,  a  mail  carrier  who  delivers 
out  of  Alhance,  was  piloted  by  Ed  Kooper 
over  his  rural  route  of  forty-two  ranches. 
In  one  day  he  dropped  to  the  snow-bound 
families  along  the  way  over  a  month's 
back  load  of  first-class  mail,  which  had 
been  piling  up  in  the  post  office  since  be- 
fore Christmas.  In  an  article  describing 
the  operation,  which  Hugh  Bunnell  of  the 
Alliance  Times-Herald  News  wrote,  he 
mentions  the  possibility  of  using  air  serv- 


RYAN"STM"TRAINERS  SURVIVE 
WAR  AND  STUDENT  PILOTS 


It*s  hard  to  wear  out  a  Ryan-made 
airplane. 

Word  conies  from  far-a^vay  Hong 
Kong  that  three  Ryan  STM  two-place 
planes  made  in  1940  are  not  only  still 
flying,  but  making  money  for  their 
owners  as  student-pilot  trainers. 

Helping  to  keep  them  in  top  shape  is 
a  former  Ryan  School  of  Aeronautics 
student,  Bob  King,  who  was  graduated 
in  1928.  He  is  Engine  Instructor  for 
the  Far  East  Flying  School  based  on  Kai 
Tak  field,  Kowloon,  Hong  Kong,  China. 

Few  light  training  type  airplanes 
have  had  a  more  eventful  history  than 
the  three  STM's  now  helping  transform 
beginners  into  capable  pilots.  This  par- 
ticular group  of  planes  was  part  of  a 
hundred  built  for  the  Netherlands  East 
Indies  government,  which  found  them 
extremely  helpful  in  preparation  for 
the  Pacific  clash  which  appeared  inevi- 
table even  then. 

When  the  Japanese  struck  the  Indo- 
nesian islands  the  Ryan  planes  were  sent 
to  Australia,  where  they  served  with 
the  Australian  Air  Force.  After  the  suc- 
cessful completion  of  the  war  and  liber- 
ation of  Hong  Kong,  the  Far  East  Fly- 
ing School  bid  for  the  still  sturdy  craft. 

At  first  glance  the  rates  for  flying 
and  engineering  work  at  the  Hong  Kong 
School  appear  to  be  slightly  on  the  ter- 
rific side,  flying  fees  being  listed  at  $96 
per  hour.  But,  after  the  exchange  medi- 
um of  approximately  four  HK  dollars 
to  one  U.  S.  dollar  is  applied  the  fee 
shapes  up  in  more  attractive  proportion 
compared  to  inflated  prices  prevalent 
in  the  Far  East. 


ice  to  deliver  mail  in  the  future  to  isolated 
ranches,  winter  and  summer.  It  would  be 
much  easier,  the  route  carrier  feels,  to  drop 
labeled  packets  to  his  customers  than  to 
make  the  car-wrecking  trip  over  back 
country  roads  for  each  delivery. 

Amplifying  some  of  the  problems  of 
the  blizzard  rescue  work,  Kooper  said, 
"The  airport  hangar  was  unheated,  but 
even  so,  I  had  little  trouble  starting  the 
engine  of  my  Navion  on  all  of  those  sub- 
zero mornings.  Upon  locating  the  home 
of  the  distressed  farmer  or  rancher,  I 
would  circle  above  it  in  the  Navion  until 
the  owner  appeared  in  his  yard.  Then  I 
would  circle  out  into  the  wind,  ease  the 
throttle,  put  on  full  flaps  leaving  gear  up, 
open  the  canopy  to  the  first  stop  or  farther 
according  to  the  size  of  the  package,  seek 
an  altitude  of  about  80  feet  above  ground 
and  at  an  air  speed  of  70  m.p.h.  push  in 
full  throttle.  Then  at  the  proper  moment 
I  gave  the  drop  order  to  my  passenger  who 
by  this  time  had  the  package  or  packages 
resting  on  the  right  wing.  While  circling 
prior  to  the  run,  I  would  select  an  open 
spot  of  deep  snowdrifts  in  the  ranch  yard 
for  the  target." 

In  speaking  of  the  Navion's  perform- 
ance during  these  package  drops,  Kooper 
said,  "I  was  somewhat  apprehensive  the 
first  time  I  slid  the  canopy  back  past  the 
first  stop  to  sHp  out  a  large  package,  be- 
cause of  the  warning  tag,  "Do  not  slide 
past  first  stop  while  in  flight.'  However, 
my  Navion  was  as  gentle  and  responsive 
as  usual  and  showed  no  tendency  to  'mush 
in.'  " 

The  mercy  flight  of  one  Navion  owner 
ended  in  tragedy.  Dick  Reed,  operator  of 
a  unique,  pioneering  charter  flying  service 
in  Casper,  Wyoming,  gave  his  life  flying 
food  and  fuel  oil  to  a  marooned  pipe  line 
station  in  the  Green  Mountains  of  Wy- 
oming. According  to  Reed's  partner  in  the 
flying  service,  Carl  Potter,  only  the  ex- 
treme urgency  of  the  situation  prompted 
both  men  to  fly  their  planes  so  heavily 
loaded  with  oil  drums,  and  in  such  poor 
flying  weather.  Reed's  plane  was  carn,'ing 
three  30-gallon  diesel  oil  drums,  two  in 
back  and  one  just  behind  the  dual  controls 
in  front.  While  en  route  to  the  pipe  line 
station  on  the  third  flight  that  day,  the 
drums  in  Dick's  plane  broke  loose  from 
their  lashings  and  the  forward  drum 
jammed  against  the  controls,  causing  a 
fatal  crash. 

The  natural  gas  pumping  station,  and 
the  families  who  operated  it,  supphed  sev- 
eral small  Vi'Voming  communities  with 
heat  to  withstand  the  frigid  weather.  The 
two  partners  had  been  flying  several  times 
a  day,  under  minimum  flying  conditions, 
to  bring  in  relief  supplies.  The  perils  Reed 

{Continued  on  page  19) 


BIG  AND  LITTLE  HAYLIFT 

(Cojitinncd  from  page  18) 
and  Potter  underwent,  like  those  of  other 
private  plane  pilots,  serve  to  highlight  the 
bravery  and  endurance  these  men  showed 
throughout  the  blizzard  areas  for  weeks 
on  end. 

Ranchers  and  farmers  of  the  stricken 
areas  have  had  the  usefulness  of  private 
planes  demonstrated  to  them  in  the  most 
dramatic  way  possible,  and  according  to 
Civil  Aeronautics  Administrator  Delos  W. 
Rentzel,  last  winter's  blizzards  and  winds 
in  the  West  blew  some  good  for  makers 
of  light  planes.  Rentzel  bases  his  conclu- 
sion on  the  bales  of  cUppings  sent  the 
CAA,  praising  the  role  played  by  personal 
planes  in  winter  relief  work. 

"You  don't  have  to  prove  to  a  rancher 
that  an  airplane  is  useful  to  him  after  it 
has  saved  his  cattle,  staved  off  his  own 
hunger  or  brought  him  fuel  when  all 
other  methods  of  transportation  had  brok- 
en down,"  Rentzel  said. 


SAFETY  IS  NO  ACCIDENT 

(Continued  from  page  7 ) 
stallation,    and,   if    necessary,    an    adjust- 
ment of  safety  guards  or  other  devices  of 
an  anti-accident  nature. 

The  rapid  changes  in  plant  layout  to 
accommodate  new  contracts,  like  the  re- 
cent reorganization  to  install  the  Jet  Cone 
Assembly,  expose  new  hazards.  It  usually 
means  the  machines  which  have  been 
moved  must  again  be  studied  in  their  new 
location  to  uncover  any  hazards  not  found 
before.  All  changes  within  the  plant  mean 
a  constant  pohcing  job  on  the  part  of 
everyone  concerned  with  safety  to  see 
that  any  hazards  exposed  are  properly 
guarded. 

There  is  more  to  industrial  safety,  too, 
than  just  the  committees,  foremen,  post- 
ers and  rules.  Any  Safety  Engineer  must 
have  a  background  of  industrial  engineer- 
ing. In  the  case  of  both  Morrie  Clancy, 
Supervisor  of  Safety  and  Welfare,  and 
Herb  Rawlings,  this  requisite  has  been 
met.  During  Rawlings'  six  years  with 
Ryan  he  has  spent  two  years  in  the  Safety 
Engineers'  office.  He  has  had  two  courses 
from  the  State  Industrial  Committee  on 
safety  engineering  and  another  from  the 
Extension  Department  of  the  University 
of  California.  During  Clancy's  seven  years 
as  Safety  Engineer,  preceding  Rawlings, 
he  took  numerous  Extension  courses.  The 
two  are  also  familiar  with  all  operations 
in  the  plant,  from  having  made  a  study 
of  all  processes  in  use  on  the  shop  floor,  as 
well  as  the  machinery  in  use,  its  accident 
potential  and  method  of  safeguard. 

The  type  of  accident  which  causes  more 


loss  of  working  time  is  another  factor  to 
be  studied  for  any  industrial  safety  pro- 
gram. According  to  Morrie  Clancy,  most 
minor  accidents  in  the  aircraft  industry 
involve  the  eyes  and  fingers.  Cause  of 
these  accidents  is  usually  the  worker's 
careless  use  of  eye  protectors  or  gloves. 
Most  common  major  accidents  are  back 
strains,  resulting  from  someone's  improper 
lifting  technique,  or  being  too  proud  to 
ask  another's  help  when  a  heavy  piece  of 
equipment  has  to  be  moved. 

The  purpose  of  any  safety  program  is 
to  cut  down,  if  not  completely  eliminate, 
these  accidents  so  that  the  individual  may 
enjoy  a  full  paycheck  each  week,  instead 


of  languishing  in  the  hospital  collecting 
only  a  small  sum  in  compensation  for  the 
time  he  misses  away  from  the  machine. 

But  no  amount  of  lecturing,  foremen's 
warnings,  list  of  safety  rules,  posters  or 
committees  can  decrease  the  accident  rates 
if  the  individual  lets  down  his  guard. 
"Safety  is  a  state  of  mind,"  is  a  slogan, 
the  importance  of  which  cannot  be 
stressed  enough.  The  next  time  you  have 
occasion  to  use  a  telephone  within  the 
plant,  glance  at  the  center  of  the  dial  and 
remember,  he  who  gets  careless  may  be 
the  subject  of  someone's  having  to  dial 
those  three  red  numbers  listed  under 
"EMERGENCY." 


Why  a  5  Year  Procurement  Plan? 

PRODUCTION  OF  NEW  COMBAT  PLANES 

MUST  BE  SCHEDULED  FAR  AHEAD  OF  NEED 


16  MOS. 


AIR  FORCE  OR 

NAVY  ANNOUNCE 

SPECIFICATIONS. 

COMPANIES  SUBMIT 

DESIGN  AND  BIDS 


14  MOS. 


WINNING 

COMPANY 

BUILDS 

EXPERIMENTAL 

MODELS 


12  MOS. 


TESTING 

EXPERIMENTAL 

MODELS 


TOOLING  OF  PLANT, 
PARTS    PROCUREMENT. 


START  OF 
PRODUCTION 


START  OF 

DELIVERIES, 

FURTHER  TESTING 


MORE  THAN  48  MONTHS   FOR  A  NEW  FIGHTER  MODEL 


What  the  Other  Man  Thinks 

BIG  JOBS.  BIG  TOOLS 
"Two  workmen  vrere  watching  the  operation  ol  an  immense  piece  ol  machinery  Twhich 
shoveled  fifty  tons  of  earth  in  one  scoop.  One  of  them  said:   'Bill,  if  it  weren't  for  that 
blasted  shovel,  500  of  us  might  be  busy  with  our  spades.' 

"  'Yes.'  answered  Bill,  'and  if  it  weren't  for  our  spades.  1,000.000  of  us  might  be  busy 
with  teaspoons.'  " 

— Detroit  Purchaser 

HOLIFIELD  CALLS  FOR  STABLE  AIR  PROGRAM 

"The  ^vanton.  seemingly  unthinking  dissipation  of  our  nation's  aircraft  ^worker 
skills  could  very  well  contribute  to  a  national  disaster  if  it  is  allowed  to  continue. 

"The  loss  of  these  skills  results  from  the  recent  cut-backs  in  airplane  production 
orders  by  the  Air  Force,  which  in  turn  is  brought  about  by  proposed  budget  cuts 
in  airplane  procurement  and  the  resulting  disruption  of  the  five-year  air  power 
plan  adopted  by  Congress  during  its  last  session. 

"These  cut-backs  and  the  lay-offs  of  thousands  of  aircraft  workers  brings  up  the 
whole  problem  of  sound  planning  in  our  air  power  program  and  the  absolute 
necessity   of  achieving   some  kind   of  steadiness  in   the  procurement   of   aircraft. 

"Steadiness  is  needed  not  only  to  avoid  the  costly  and  perhaps  disastrous  dissi- 
pation of  aircraft  worker  skills,  but  also  to  provide  more  units  of  airplanes  for  less 
cost  to  the  government  and  its  taxpayers,  and  to  properly  maintain  aircraft  manu- 
facturing facilities  in  a  state  of  readiness  so  that  they  can  be  vastly  expanded 
when  and  if  needed." 

—Representative  Chet  Holifield   (D.,   Calif.) 

NOTHING  BETTER! 
"There's  nothing  that  Communism  can  do  for  the  world  that  Capitalism  isn't  already 
doing  better! 

Communism  delivers; 
Work  -  or  -  starve  and  the 
dreadful  security  of  a  job 
for   life   in   a  slave   labor 
camp. 


Communism  promises 
Security 


Capitalism  delivers: 
Social  security;  vrages  en- 
abling a  man  to  save  for 
his  future;  a  standard  of 
living  higher  in  the  worst 
times     than     Communism 
gives  at  its  best. 
"Come  to  think  of  it,  what  else  does  communism  even  promise?  But  it  delivers  a  great 
deal  more — ballots  with  only  one  name  on  them;  prison  camps  if  you  stay  away  from 
work;  'homes'  of  one  room  for  entire  families;  government  dictated  wages  and  prices  so 
fixed   that    you   will   never   rise    above   a   bare    and   barren   existence:    riches    for   a   few 
bureaucrats  who  keep  themselves  in  power,   poverty   for   everyone  else;   constant   fear, 
frustration,  hopelessness  wrhich  only  death  can  end. 

"And  yet  there  are  people,  who  call  themselves  Americans,  working,  scheming,  plotting 
night  and  doy  right  now  to  force  these  'blessings'  of  communism  onto  you  and  your 
children." 

— Warner  and  S'wasey 

Manufacturers  of  Machine  Tools 

A  FUTURE  IN  YOUR  COMPANY? 

"Would  you  like  to  work  best  in  a  department  that  is  growing  in  size  every  day. 
where  new  jobs  become  available  as  the  working  force  expands,  where  new  equip- 
ment makes  work  easier  to  do,  vrhere  costs  are  low  and  are  becoming  lower — in 
short,  where  a  profit  is  being  made? 

"Or  would  you  rather  be  in  a  department  vrhere  vrork  tends  to  be  spotty,  where 
equipment  is  old,  where  contraction  is  taking  place,  where  costs  are  high  arid 
where  little  profit  is  being  made  or  a  loss  suffered? 

"The  best  jobs  from  the  standpoint  of  steadiness,  where  the  greatest  opportunity 
for  advancement  is  present,  are  in  the  department,  the  plants,  and  the  companies 
that  are  earning  the  greatest  profits.  High  profits  result  from  efficient  operations. 

"The  company  with  the  highest  profit  in  an  industry  is  the  company  that  is  most 
likely  to  grow.  It  attracts  investors  who  put  up  the  money  for  plant  enlargement. 
And  low  costs  that  make  possible  high  profits  come  only  from  excellent  equipment 
and  an  able  team  of  employees.  Most  anyone  can  be  proud  if  he  can  say:  'My 
company  earns  the  largest  profit  in  the  industry.' 

"There  is  no  permanence  and  no  future  in  a  job  with  a  loser  on  the  way  to 
bankruptcy." 

— E.  J.  Hanley,  Vice  President  and  Treasurer 
Allegheny  Ludlum  Steel  Corporation 

"I  WISH  YOU  WERE  A  MILLIONAIRE" 

"This  may  sound  crazy  in  this  day  and  age.  but  I  wish  there  were  100  times  as  many 
millionaires  in  this  country  as  there  are  today. 

"I  wish  you  were  one.  I  wouldn't  mind  being  one  myself. 

"My  theory  is  that  almost  every  millionaire  helps  other  people  make  money.  Whether 
you  like  millionaires  or  not — most  of  them  build  businesses,  set  wheels  turning,  give  jobs. 

"I  don't  mind  if  you  make  a  million  dollars,  if.  in  so  doing,  you  add  to  the  general 
activity  and  prosperity  of  America.  The  amount  of  money  to  be  mode  in  America  is  not 
limited.  We  could  make  a  total  of  300  billion  a  year  if  we  all  worked  harder  and  had 
good,  energetic  leadership." 

— Don  Hero!j 


LOCKHEED  P2V  "NEPTUNE" 
RETRACES  NC-4  FLIGHT  ROUTE 

Last  week,  May  8th  to  be  exact,  the 
Navy's  "Truculent  Turtle"  took  off  from 
the  Naval  Air  Station,  New  York,  for  its 
commemorative  flight  to  Plymouth,  Eng- 
land, via  Newfoundland,  the  Azores  and 
Lisbon,  Portugal.  Just  30  years  ago  this 
date  the  famous  Navy  seaplane,  the  NC-4, 
flew  this  route  in  the  first  crossing  of  the 
Atlantic. 

The  Lockheed-built  P2V-2  "Neptune" 
is  the  plane  which  holds  the  world  non- 
stop distance  record  of  11,23  6  miles  from 
Perth,  Australia,  to  Columbus,  Ohio,  set 
on  October  1,  1946.  The  record  was  set 
with  Commander  Thomas  D.  Davies, 
USN,  as  pilot.  Commander  Davies  also 
flew  the  historic  New  York  to  Plymouth 
flight,  accompanied  by  Admiral  A.  C. 
Read,  USN  (Ret.),  pilot  of  the  historic 
NC-4  on  its  flight  in  1919. 

The  "Truculent  Turtle's"  flight  cov- 
ered the  same  route  as  the  NC-4,  with 
the  exception  that  there  was  only  one 
stop;  in  Lisbon.  It  landed  in  Plymouth 
May  9. 

P2V  "Neptunes"  are  equipped  uitb 
Ryan  ntanifolds. 

C-74  CARRIES  RECORD 
NUMBER  OF  PASSENGERS 

A  new  record  for  a  transatlantic  plane 
passenger  load  was  set  May  4,  when  a 
Douglas  C-74  Globemaster  hauled  82 
homeward-bound  U.S.  airmen  from  Mar- 
ham,  England,  to  Brookley  Field  near  Mo- 
bile, Alabama,  home  base  of  the  plane. 

The  Globemaster  carried  home  airmen 
due  for  a  period  of  duty  at  U.S.  air  bases 
and  has  returned  to  England  with  others 
completing  their  stateside  tours. 

The  first  leg  of  the  return  trip  was  to 
Lagens  Base  in  the  Azores,  1420  miles 
from  Marham.  From  the  Azores,  the  plane 
flew  1862  miles  to  Bermuda  and  then 
1198  miles  to  Alabama. 

The  C-74  has  a  wingspan  of  173  feet 
and  its  tail  assembly  towers  over  a  four- 
story  building.  The  plane  made  the  4480- 
mile  crossing  in  27  hours,  at  an  average 
of  about  16^  m.p.h.  The  plane  carries  125 
fully  equipped  combat  troops  or  30,000 
to  U1,000  pounds  of  cargo. 

Douglas  C-74s  are  equipped  uitb 
Ryan-built  exhaust  collector  systems. 


JET  PLUS  PROPELLER 

(Continued  from  page  6) 

The  XAJ-1  will  combine  two  Pratt  & 
Whitney  engines  with  but  one  G.E. -Alli- 
son J-3  5  turbojet.  According  to  recent 
press  releases  this  plane  will  be  much  faster 
and  able  to  carry  a  heavier  bomb  load  than 
any  carrier-based  type. 

There  was  considerable  skepticism  six 
years  ago  when  the  idea  of  the  composite 
powered  plane  was  first  discussed.  The 
British,  themselves  responsible  for  the  jet 
engine,  toyed  with  the  idea,  but  dropped 
it  as  impractical.  Then  the  U.  S.  Navy's 
Bureau  of  Aeronautics  put  the  plan  up 
for  study,  and  Ryan  engineers  and  pro- 
duction people  came  back  with  the  "Fire- 
ball" as  a  practical  answer. 

Here  was  a  plane  which  blended  the 
best  qualities  of  piston  and  jet  engines. 
The  FR-l's  propeller-driving  engine  gave 
it  short  take-off  and  excellent  maneuver- 
ability characteristics,  plus  the  economy 
of  fuel  necessary  for  long  range.  It's  jet 
engine,  not  ideally  suited  as  the  sole  source 
for  powering  a  carrier-based  fighter,  be- 
cause of  longer  take-off  run  and  high  fuel 
consumption,  was  combined  with  the  pis- 
ton engine  to  give  a  high,  sustained  rate 
of  climb  and  top  speed  under  combat 
conditions. 

It  is  interesting  to  conjecture  what  suc- 
cess the  Fireball-type  of  fighter  would 
have  in  intercepting  the  high-flying  B-36 
bombers.  There  has  long  been  an  argument 
as  to  whether  or  not  jet  fighters  could 
satisfactorily  intercept  and  maneuver 
against  high-flying  bombers,  due  to  the 
difficulty  of  making  sharp  turns,  in  the 
high  altitudes  and  thin  atmosphere.  A 
more  maneuverable  combined  jet  and  pro- 
peller type  fighter  may  or  may  not  answer 
this  tactical  problem. 

As  the  new  models  of  these  compositely 
engined  planes  are  turned  out  and  join 
our  ever-expanding  air  fleets,  Ryan  can  be 
justifiably  proud  of  the  spade  work  its 
engineers,  designers  and  builders  did  on 
the  composite-engine  type  of  plane  now 
proving  of  such  value  to  the  services. 


PACESETTERS  for  dibtnbutor  and  dealer  participation  m  shows  and  exhibitions,  Anco, 
European  Ryon  Navion  distributor,  this  month  displayed  a  beautiful  Italian  Cream 
1949  model  at  the  Paris  Aviation  Salon.  Famed  as  the  world's  largest  and  most 
important  aviation  exhibition,  the  two-week  Salon  attracted  500,000  visitors,  drawn 
from  every  part  of  the  globe.  Recognizing  the  event  as  an  aircraft  market  as  well 
as  a  showcase,  Capt.  Henri  de  Montmarin,  a  managing  partner  of  Anco,  kept  another 
Ryan  Navion  at  a  nearby  airfield  for  demonstrating  to  interested  persons. 

FLYING  OYSTERS.  "Luscious  Louisiana  oysters  and  shrimp 
delivered  from  bayou  to  dining  table  in  o  matter  of  hours," 
reads  the  copy  for  Bill  Eberhart's  FLYING  CHEF  advertising. 
Adding  such  interesting  cargo  flying  to  the  many  other  phases 
of  his  Louisiana  Aircraft  business,  this  hustling  distributor 
keeps  seafood-laden  Ryan  Navions  on  the  go  between  the 
bayous  and  bays  near  Patterson,  La.,  and  his  Baton  Rouge 
deep-freeze  lockers.  Bill,  himself,  and  his  right  hand  man, 
Jack  Rogers,  ore  aerial  chauffers  for  the  salt-water  delicacies. 

NEW  MINNEAPOLIS  DEALER.  Naas  Air  Service  now  fills  the  long-felt  need  for 
aggressive  Ryan  Navion  representation  in  the  Midwest's  Minneapolis  stronghold.  Oper- 
ating a  downtown  office  in  addition  to  their  headquarters  at  Flying  Cloud  Field,  Dave 
and  Vernon  Naos,  while  helping  to  swell  '49  Ryan  Navion  sales,  ore  also  busily  serving 
Minnesota's  many  present  Navion  owners. 

HAYLIFT  NAVIONS.  Aircraft  Service  Company,  distributor  in  Boise,  Idaho, 
worked  two  Navions  overtime  this  winter  as  mercy  ships,  hauling  food  to  cattle, 
horses,  and  sheep  snowbound  in  the  Idaho  hill  country.  ASCo  pilots  taking  part 
in  "hoylift"  and  "foodlift"  programs  included  Les  Randolph,  Glenn  Higby, 
Glen  Eichelberger,   Howard  Jeppson  and  Robert  Scott. 

"PLAY  BALL!"  Teams  of  the  Eastern  Professional  Baseball  League  see  a  great  deal 
of  league  prexy.  Tommy  Richardson,  who  flies  the  circuit  in  a  Ryan  Navion.  Richard- 
son is  a  regular  charter  customer  of  John  Abiuso,  Horrisburg,  Pa.,  Ryan  Navion  dealer, 
whose  22  years  in  aviation  have  convinced  him  that  charter  jobs  are  the  surest  road 
to  airplane  sales.  Abiuso  pilots  Richardson  and  other  league  officials  around  their 
Connecticut-New  York-Pennsylvania  territory  several  times  a  season,  seeing  to  it  that 
they  never  miss  a  playoff  or  league  meeting. 

TWO  PAY-OFF  soles  techniques  are  working  for  Metcalf  Flying  Service,   Inc., 

dealer  in  Toledo,  Ohio.  Tommy  Metcalf,  president,  first  carefully  screens  his 
Ryan  Navion  prospects,  selecting  those  he  believes  worthy  of  an  all-out  invest- 
ment of  his  time  and  energy.  To  these,  he  devotes  as  much  as  o  full  week 
with  a  Ryan  Navion  demonstrator.  He  takes  them  practically  anywhere  at  any 
time,  for  business  and  pleasure,  confident  that  through  actual  cross-country 
flying  they  will  become  convinced  of  the  Navion's  advantages  as  fast,  com- 
fortable, economical  transportation.  The  second  port  of  his  formula  calls  for 
on  active  and  continuous  campaign  of  teaching  Navion  owners  how  they  con 
obtain  the  greatest  utility  from  their  planes.  Special  emphasis  is  again  placed 
upon  increasing  their  cross-country  experience.  Token  of  success  in  the  latter 
direction  are  his  customers'  log  books  which  show  that  after  a  year  or  less  of 
ownership,  the  Navion  owners  ore  flying  to  all  parts  of  the  country. 

"SO  CONVENIENTLY  LOCATED  a  30c  bus  trip  takes  you  to  the 
heart  of  Manhattan  in  35  minutes,"  soys  Bob  Hewitt,  Mallard  Air 

Service  prexy,  of  the  new  facilities  his  organization  occupies  at 
Teterboro,  N.  J.  Other  features  are  300,000  square  feet  of  paved 
romp,  more  than  8,000  square  feet  of  hangar  space.  A  comfortable 
customer  lounge,  and  a  country  club  complete  with  bar,  grill  and 
restaurant  close  by,  add  to  the  pleasure  of  a  stopover  with  Mallard. 
"We've  on  exceptional  brand  of  service  in  store  for  Navion  owners," 
Bob  promises. 

NAVION  AMBULANCE.  Two  new  Ryan  Navions  will  soon  be  assigned  ambu- 
lance duty  with  the  Sonidod  Militar,  Uruguayan  government  health  agency. 
Miller,  Medeiros  &  Bastos,  distributor  in  Montevideo,  completed  the  transaction. 


b"^ 

MAY   25,    1949                                                                                                                                                             VOL.    10,   No.    5 

Published  By 

Ryan   Aeronautical   Company,   Lindbergh  Field,  San  Diego  12,  California 

....    Frances  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  editor Robert  F.  Smith,  Navion  news  editor 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographer William  Wagner,  editorial  director. 

^^^mmmmmm 

lichard    Timmis,    editor 

RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY 

LINDBERGH     FIELD 
SAN  DIEGO  12,  CALIFORNIA 

Return   Postage  Guaranteed 

POSTMASTER:      If     addresstc     has     removed,     and      ne 


addr< 
for 


»'hich 


t.fy    sendci 


27990 

R.  K.  BRAITHWAIT 

4071  HAINES 

SAN  DIEGO,  CALIF, 


Sec.  562,  P.  L.  SC  R. 

U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego,  California 
Permit  No.  437 


IN  A  CLASS  BY  ITSELF  FOR  SAFETY, 
for  easy  flying,  comfort,  ruggedness,  too! 


BIG  WINDSHIELD  for  perf 

visibility...5eedownl2  degi 


SENSITIVE  ALTIMETER 
DAMPENED  FUEL  GAUGE 

for-  occurate   fuel 
quantity  readings. 


Some  of  the  many  sofety  feotures   | 

of  tfie  thorougfily  equipped  Ryan  \ 

I  stondord  tnstr\jment  panel   1 


BEHIND  THE  WHEEL  of  the  Ryan  Navion  is  the  only  place  to  learn 
how  safe  it  is,  how  easy  to  fly.  There's  a  reason  why  Navion  gives 
you  more  of  these  vital  qualities.  Good  aircraft  design  is  a  blend- 
ing of  desirable  features.  In  the  design  stage,  the  dominant  features 
of  the  plane  to  be  produced  are  selected . . .  aU  other  features 


RATEOf-CLIMB 

MANIFOLD  PRESSURE 
GAUGE  for  efficient, 
economical  engine 
performonce. 

VARIABLE  PITCH 

PROPELLER,  like  shift- 
ing gears  for  fast 
getaway  and  climb; 

DUAL 

FUEL  SYSTEM  with  air- 
liner-type auxiliary 
pump  arrangement. 


follow.  Navion  is  big  and  fast.  It  is  rugged  and  hardworking. 
But . .  .  first  and  foremost,  it  is  safe  and  easy-to-fly.  That's  the 
way  it  was  designed  .  .  .  the  way  it's  built.  That's  why  it's  first 
choice  with  more  and  more  businessmen  who  fly  everywhere. 
And  here's  what  makes  it  that  way  . . . 


BIG,  FULL-DEFLECTION,  high  lift  flaps  de- 
liver landings  at  only  5-i  m.p.h.  with  full 
load  and  no  wind.  Only  875  ft.  needed  to 
clear  a  50-ft.  obstacle— landing  or  take-off. 


RUGGED,  WIDE  TREAD  tric\cle  gear  features 
oversi/c  tiros  and  stccrahle  nosewheel. 
Deep-stroke  shocks  and  equalized  hy- 
draulic brakes  make  ground-handling  easy. 

/ 


INTERCONNECTED    RUDDER    AND    AILERON 

give  you  "two-control  after  take-off."  yet 
you  have  rudder  when  you  want  it.  Navion 
forgives  pilot  errors  short  of  foolhardiness. 


900-FT.  PER  MINUTE  initial  rate  of  climb 
is  delivered  by  Navion's  husky  205  h.p. 
engine.  Dependable  dual  fuel  system,  like 
modern  airliner's,  is  standard  equipment. 


FULL  AILERON  control  understalling  speeds, 
with  Ryan  Navion!  Rugged,  stall-resistant, 
all-metal  wings  are  "built  like  a  bridge" 
. . .  and  that  means  real  safety  for  you! 


SMOOTH,  "IN  A  GROOVE"  flying  even  in 
rough  air. . .  cruising  speeds  up  to  155  m.p.h. 
Navion  delivers  800-mile  economy  range 
with  auxiliary  underseat  fuel  tank  installed. 


NO  OTHER  PLANE   COMBINES 
SO  MANY  FEATURES  SO  WELL 


REPORTER 


aft  and  side  motion  of  the  tailpipe  as 
well  as  the  up  and  down  motion  while  in 
flight.  One  portion  of  the  tailpipe  was 
attached  to  the  airplane  structure  and  one 
portion  to  the  engine.  Ted  Hacker,  Ryan 
Manifold  Design  Engineer,  solved  iIms 
thorny  problem  of  transverse  motion  by 
devising  transversal  seal  rings  which  fitted 
between  the  engine  and  the  plane's  struc- 
ture. 

Because  of  careful  planning,  this  ex- 
haust system,  prototype  for  the  present 
Ryan  ejector-type  installations,  required 
no  reworking  or  design  changes  after 
operational  tests,  but  there  were  tremen- 
dous problems  involved  in  the  construc- 
tion of  the  assembly. 

Of  the  fourteen  large,  stainless  steel 
sections  which  made  up  the  final  assem- 
bly, some  were  as  much  as  six  feet  in  dia- 
meter. Biggest  headache  was  holding  these 
huge  sheet  metal  parts  to  fine  tolerances 
during  welding,  heat-treating  and  assem- 
bling. 

At  the  time  the  Typhoon  was  being 
tested,  Claude  Whitehurst,  now  Metal 
Products  Engineering  Designer  at  Ryan, 
was  with  Wright  Aeronautical.  He 
worked  as  configuration  and  powerplant 
designer  for  the  installation  of  the  T-3  5 
in  the  B-17  when  it  was  first  tested,  and 
helped  solve  the  problem  of  a  special 
starter  for  the  engine  when  the  plane  was 
on  the  ground. 


Largest  jet  exhaust  system  dworfs  man  standing  to  left.  Some 
sections  of  this   Ryan-built  collector   measure   six   feet   across. 


Biggest  Ryan  Jet  Engine  Assemlily 


Only  recently  has  the  Air  Force  per- 
mitted release  of  these  pictures  of  the 
largest  tailpipe  assembly  ever  built  for  a 
turbojet-propeller  installation.  Now  the 
story  of  Ryan  ingenuity,  inventiveness 
and  manufacturing  skill  can  be  told. 

Several  years  ago  Wright  Aeronautical 
Corporation  began  work  on  an  experi- 
mental gas  turbine-propeller  engine,  re- 
ported to  be  one  of  the  largest  in  the 
world,  with  a  thrust  said  to  be  in  excess 
of  5,000  pounds.  They  called  on  Ryan 
engineers  and  workmen  to  turn  out  the 
largest  tailpipe  assembly  ever  constructed 
to  carry  off  the  fiery  exhaust  gases  and 
provide  jet  thrust  for  the  engine.  In  ad- 
dition, this  exhaust  outlet  system  was  so 
designed  as  to  create  a  jet  pumping  action 
which  provided  forced  cooling  for  the 
engine  shroud  and  oil-cooling  systems. 

One  of  the  design  problems  Ryan  engi- 
neers  had   to   conquer   was    the   forward. 


This  huge  Wright  T-35  Typhoon  gas  turbine  propeller  en- 
gine shown  here  in  the  nose  of  a  B-17  Fortress  developed 
tremendous  power.   Ryan  built  exhaust  system  for  Typhoon. 


» 


1         ] 


DRILLER'S  FLYIi 


Appell  Drilling  Company  puts 

Navion  to  rugged  use  hauling 

parts  and  technicians 


THERE  isn't  a  harder  working  or  more 
essential  piece  of  machinery  owned  by 
the  Appell  Drilling  Company  of  Alice, 
Texas,  than  their  Ryan  Navion,  which  is 
used  as  a  "jack-of-all-trades"  cargo  and 
personnel  transport. 

For  over  a  year  the  company  has  de- 
pended on  the  all-metal,  four-place  plane 
for  servicing  their  oil  well  drilling  rigs 
scattered  over  the  important  Southwest 
and  Gulf  Coast  areas  of  the  Lone  Star 
state. 

W.  O.  "Bill"  Poole,  veteran  pilot  and 
"tool  pusher,"  has  done  most  of  the  fly- 
ing between  these  two  widely  separated 
general  areas  as  well  as  on  the  shorter  runs 
between  office  and  rigs  in  a  single  sector. 
From  his  500  hours  experience  at  the  Na- 
vion's  controls  comes  a  fresh  story  of  a 
modern  business  plane's  remarkable  utility. 

Every  day,  usually  in  company  with 
Bill  Appell,  the  owner,  or  some  other 
executive  of  the  firm,  Poole  flies  from 
their  main  office  in  Alice  to  one  of  the 
field  sites  where  Appell  rotary  drills  are 
employed  in  the  steady,  penetrating 
search  for  precious  petroleum.  So  routine 


has  use  of  their  Navion  become,  the  Ap- 
pell folks  now  are  as  used  to  air  travelling 
as  they  formerly  were  to  covering  their 
rough  Texas  territory  in  trucks  and  jeeps. 

"Yes,  we've  had  so  many  'important' 
and  'unusual'  trips  in  our  Navion,  we  long 
ago  gave  up  tiying  to  set  apart  any  par- 
ticular ones,"  says  Bill  Poole.  "Use  of  the 
plane  is  simply  routine  business  practice. 

"A  lot  of  our  jobs  are  located  in  the 
remote  and  hard-to-get-to  brush  country. 
We've  made  air  transportation  in  such 
cases  an  easy  matter  by  often  going  in 
with  a  bulldozer  immediately  and  clearing 
our  own  small  landing  strips  right  along- 
side the  rigs. 

"To  keep  one  of  these  big  rigs  working 
without  a  complete  shutdown,  which  usu- 
ally lasts  at  least  48  hours,  we  fly  in  re- 
pair parts  to  handle  machinery  break- 
downs. We  even  do  this  at  night,  taking 
special  care  to  make  our  navigation  good 
and  sharp. 

"Making  a  night  landing  on  one  of  our 
short  1,000  to  1,500-foot  unlighted  strips 
isn't  without  its  tough  moments,  even 
with  an  easy-to-fly  ship  like  the  Navion. 


We  frequently  have  to  make  a  second  pass 
or  very  low  turn — a  maneuver  which  our 
plane  does  very  nicely. 

"Hauling  heavy  parts  and  drilling  bits 
to  get  a  rig  started  requires  lots  of  these 
on-the-scene  deliveries.  If,  at  a  new  setup, 
there  isn't  some  sort  of  clear  area,  road  or 
other  place  half-way  suitable  to  land  on 
close  up  to  the  rig,  we  take  a  bulldozer 
and  knock  out  a  strip  about  1,500  feet 
long." 

In  looking  over  the  whole  field  of  their 
operations,  Poole  figures  that  about  8  5  per 
cent  of  all  their  landings  and  take-offs  are 
in  and  out  of  isolated,  unimproved  places 
where  there's  only  1,000  feet  or  less  of 
open  ground.  Highways  and  small  coun- 
try roads  with  trees  on  either  side  many 
times  serve  as  air  fields. 

"There  are  times,  too,  when  we  fly 
along  the  highways  looking  for  an  over- 
due, broken-down  truck  that  is  loaded 
with  badly  needed  pipe.  When  there  isn't 
a  small  clearing  handy  where  we  spot  the 
missing  vehicle,  we  land  right  on  the  high- 
way itself.  That  way,  troubles  get  solved 
fast,  as  arrangements  are  quickly  made  for 
the  repairs  which  will  get  the  truck  going 
again,  or  will  make  possible  speedy  trans- 
fer of  the  cargo  to  another  vehicle." 

Typical  of  the  Appell  jobs  is  the  Con- 
tinental DriscoU  B-3  8  now  being  drilled 
for  the  Continental  Oil  Company  in  Du- 
val County,  just  west  of  Benevides,  Texas, 
where  Poole  flies  his  boss  for  conferences 
with  the  Continental  executives  and  field 
superintendents,  as  well  as  for  regular  in- 
spection of  construction  work  in  progress 
by  Heldt  Brothers  Contracting  Company, 
well-known  oil  field  and  road  builders. 

Another  large  rig  has  been  erected  on 
the  north  edge  of  Mathis  Lake  northeast 
of  Alice.  To  reach  this  site  with  a  surface 
vehicle  from  the  main  office  takes  a  rough 
and  dusty  2  Vz  hours,  while  the  Navion 
completes  the  trip  in  a  fast  twenty  min- 
utes. After  buzzing  the  rig  as  a  signal 
the  boss  has  arrived  with  tools  and  special 
instructions,  Poole  sets  the  plane  down 
on  an  improvised  strip  they've  carved  out 
of  heavy  brush  with  the  ever-present  bull- 
dozer. 

Length  of  the  drilling  rig  runway, 
which  edges  right  up  to  the  base  of  the 
rig  and  trails  off  at  the  end  into  the  lake, 
is  about  1,000  feet,  with  width  varying 
between  forty  and  fifty  feet.  Tight  quar- 
ters, a  loose  top  soil  surface  and  slightly 
rolling  terrain  offer  a  pretty  tough  test, 
which  the  husky,  tricycle-geared  Navion 
takes  in  stride,  having  completed  200 
landings  on  the  field  without  a  single 
mishap. 

On  an  ordinary  flight  to  the  lake  loca- 
tion, Poole  will  carry  as  many  as  four  75- 
pound  drill  bits  in  addition  to  passengers. 
(Continued  on  page  15) 


So  that  Navion  could  carry  its 
cargo  directly  to  the  location 
the  Mathis  Lake  landing  field 
was  placed  as  close  as  possible 
to  drilling  rig.  Strip  touches 
lake  at  lower  right  hand  corner. 


Pilot  Bill  Poole,  left,  talk- 
ing to  bulldozer  operator,  has 
just  landed  owner  Bill  Appell, 
right,  on  dirt  rood  adjacent 
to  drilling  site.  Navion  often 
has  to   use   makeshift   runways. 


If  personnel  or  equipment  ore 
needed  at  any  spot  in  a  hurry 
scrub  brush  or  rough  roods  are 
no  problem  for  rugged  Navion. 
Below,  another  country  rood 
landing    near  oil  well   workings. 


^ 


R.  J.  Fullsrton,  above,  runs  anoly- 
sis  on  spectrograph  to  determine  the 
chemical  composition  of  metal  sample. 


Because  one  of  Ryan's  most  important 
departments  could  quickly  dream  up  and 
develop  a  special  anti-scaling  compound, 
the  company  landed  a  very  important  con- 
tract which  otherwise  might  have  b;en 
lost  had  some  unusual  specifiications  not 
been  met.  The  compound  this  department 
concocted  is  a  liquid  slurry,  jocularly 
known  as  a  "mud  bath,"  which  protects 
important  stainless  steel  parts  while  they 
are  being  fabricated  and  eliminates  the 
scale  which  otherwise  accumulates  on 
metals  during  heat  treating  processes. 

The  Laboratory,  is  the  group  of  inven- 
tors, testers,  compounders  and  general, 
all-around  alchemists  called  in  to  solve 
difficult  problems  of  a  metallurgical  or 
chemical  nature.  The  "mud  bath"  they 
developed  was  to  coat  General  Electric 
jet  cone  parts  as  they  passed  through  pro- 
duction to  insurance  their  delivery  in  a 
completely  scale-free  condition.  Almost 
daily,,  this  group  works  out  a  new  way,  a 
cheaper  way  or  a  better  way  to  make  the 
manifold  or  Navion  parts,  which  are  the 
lifeblood  of  the  company's  economy. 

Supervision  of  the  myriad  jobs  per- 
formed by  the  Laboratory  is  in  the  cap- 
able hands  of  Will  Vandermeer,  longtime 
Ryan  experimental  designer,  engineer  and 
technician.  All  the  standards  of  perfection 
and  accuracy  which  govern  the  operations 
of  most  of  the  machines  in  the  plant  are 
Will's  concern,  as  well  as  the  control  of 
all  processes  such  as  plating,  pickling, 
anodizing  and  salt  baths  used  out  on  the 
line.  In  addition,  this  inventive  Dutch  en- 
gineer is  in  charge  of  research  on  new 
ideas  and  techniques  for  the  improvement 


AIRCRAFT  SCIENC 


Complex  problem  all  in  a  day's  tvork  for\ 
Ryan  inventors  and  investigators 


The    120,000   pound  stress  machine   is   used   by    W.    M.   Cottrell  to  test  swivel   joint. 


:lab 


of  Ryan  products;  no  small  chore.  Assist- 
ing Vandermeer  in  the  general  supervision 
of  the  Laboratory  is  Bert  Holland. 

Testing  is  probably  the  Laboratory's 
most  important  job.  Almost  all  new  metal 
alloys  developed  for  manufacturing  use 
arc  given  a  gruelling  workout  by  the 
Laboratory,  always  on  the  alert  for  a 
metal  which  will  improve  manifold,  jet 
engine  or  airplane  quality,  speed  produc- 
tion or  cut  costs. 

An  example  of  the  Laboratory's  scien- 
tific acumen  was  the  early  use  of  19-9  DL, 
a  special  corrosion  and  heat  resistant  stain- 
less alloy,  manufactured  by  Universal 
Cyclops  for  exhaust  systems.  Almost  two 
years  ago  the  Ryan  lab  put  samples  of 
this  alloy  through  every  known  test,  to 
determine  its  strength,  resistance  quali- 
ties and  chemical  structure.  Results 
showed  the  superior  properties  of  19-9 
DL  and  the  Laboratory  recommended  its 
use  to  the  Engineering  Department.  This 


Many    production   problems   ore   solved    by   difficult   onolyses 
like  one    B.  W.   Floersch,  chemical   engineer,   is  conducting. 


Novion   radio    installations  ore   carefully   checked    by    radioman 
Doug   Erickson    in   copper-lined   room    next  to    instrument   shop. 


Crystalline  structure  of  small  particle  of  metal  is  revealed 
to  Wilson  Hubbell  by  microscope  on  metallograph  he  uses. 


Elements   comprising    make-up   of   a    metal   sample   are   deter- 
mined by  comparing  spectrum  lines  of  this  densitometer  machine. 


good  judgment  improved  Ryan  manifold 
quality  in  no  small  degree,  proving  that 
alert  scientific  investigation  pays  off  for 
both  producer  and  customer. 

A  tour  through  the  Laboratory  is  com- 
parable to  a  visit  to  an  engineering  school; 
something  resembling  Caltech,  MIT  or 
Cornell,  but  on  a  smaller  scale.  Besides  the 
chemical  section  and  metallurgical  depart- 
ment, Ryan  maintains  a  complete  instru- 
ment lab,  radio  repair  facility,  physical 
testing  section  and  experimental  plating 
room. 

To  the  right,  as  one  enters  the  lab  sec- 
tion of  the  Main  Factory  building,  is  the 
instrument  shop.  Here,  surrounded  by 
clocks,  dials,  computers  and  other  in- 
volved gadgets,  sits  Win  Alderson.  He's  in 
charge  of  this  facility,  assisted  by  J.  H. 
(Continued  on  page  12) 


Clara  Livingston,  Ryan  Navion  dealer,  flies  one  of  her  planes  over  the  harbor 
of  Son  Juan.  The  Novion  is  ideal  she  finds  for  island  hopping,  as  well  as 
trips  fo  Miami  and  other  mainland  cities  from  Dorado  Airfield  in  Puerto  Rico. 


toba  with  their  distributorship.  In  addition 
to  selling  Navions,  they  run  their  own 
flying  school  and  private  charter  service. 
McTavish,  who  flew  six  years  with  the 
Royal  Canadian  Air  Force,  was  recently 
rated  one  of  the  two  best  private  instruc- 
tors in  the  Dominion.  Before  joining  the 
R.C.A.F.  in  1939,  he  flew  two  years  as  a 
commercial  pilot.  The  McTavish's  school 
shares  with  three  others  the  highest  pri- 
vate rating  of  any  Canadian  flight  instruc- 
tion organization. 

Three  flight  instructors  and  three 
mechanics  work  for  Chinook  Flying  Ser- 
vice, which  has  a  large  hangar  and  main- 
tenance and  repair  facilities  at  the  Cal- 
gary Municipal  Airport. 

It  takes  some  humping  to  cover  the 
vast  reaches  of  western  Canada,  either  as 
a  sales  organization  or  on  charter  flight 
service.  Only  one  out  of  every  twelve 
landings  Chinook  pilots  make  on  charter 
flights  are  at  regular  Canadian  airports, 
the  rest  are  on  rough  fields  or  dirt  roads 
near  the  homes  of  their  passengers. 

On  a  recent  visit  to  the  Ryan  factory 
in    San    Diego,    Eustace   Bowhay,    former 

(Continued  on  page  14) 


ISLAND  HOPS  AND  PRAIRIE  LANDINGS 


They're  flying  Navions  in  Calcutta  and 
Paris,  Rio  de  Janeiro  and  Pretoria,  as  well 
as  here  at  home,  largely  because  of  the 
salesmanship  and  push  of  our  foreign  dis- 
tributors and  dealers,  of  whom  Ryan  has 
twelve.  The  story  of  two  of  these  com- 
panies might  serve  to  illustrate  the  prob- 
lems and  successes  of  our  far-flung  repre- 
sentatives. 

As  far  away  as  Calgary,  Canada,  D.  F. 
McTavish  and  his  wife  are  selling  Navions 
to  wheat  ranchers,  oil  men  and  western 
Canadian  business  firms.  At  the  other  end 
of  the  continent,  in  Puerto  Rico,  Clara 
Livingston,  at  her  airfield  near  San  Juan, 
is  demonstrating  and  selling  the  personal- 
business  plane  to  sugar  plantation  owners, 
manufacturers  and  importers. 

These  two  foreign  sales  representatives 
of  Ryan  are  officially  known  as  Chinook 
Flying  Service,  Ltd.  (that's  in  Canada) 
and  Dorado  Airfield.  Both  Navion  sales 
organization  heads  have  unusual  back- 
grounds as  well  as  years  of  flying  experi- 
ence which  eminently  qualify  them  for 
their  business  ventures. 

In  Calgary,  Franz  and  Mrs.  McTavish, 
cover  the  entire  provinces  of  Alberta, 
British  Columbia,  Saskatchewan  and  Mani- 


Ryan  representatives  in  Canada  and 
Puerto  Rico  push  use  of  versatile  Navion 


Franz  McTavish,  owner,  and  Eustace  Bowhay,  chief  pilot  for  Chinook  Flying  Ser- 
vice, Ltd.  stand  in  front  of  large  hangar  company  maintains  in  Calgary,  Canada. 


S^Ji 


^^J^ 


'240"  AHEAD  WITH 


ALREADY  becoming  .1  familiar  sight 
at  airports  around  the  world  as 
present  large  orders  are  filled,  the  40- 
passenger,  300  m.p.h.  "240"  Convair- 
Liner  brings  many  air  travel  improve- 
ments into  the  twin-engine  field  with  in- 
creased speed,  pressurized  and  air-condi- 
tioned cabins  and  improved  operating  ef- 
ficiency. 

Ryan  Aeronautical  Company's  wide  ex- 
perience in  the  design  and  manufacture  of 
stainless  steel  exhaust  systems  has  been 
incorporated  into  the  powerplant  config- 
uration. Its  specially  designed  manifold 
harnesses  the  energy  in  the  exhaust  gases 
to  help  provide  a  claimed  increase  of  from 
10  to  12  m  p  h.  through  jet  propulsive 
thrust. 

Reaching  out  to  tap  each  of  the  18- 
cylindered,  2400-h.p.  Pratt  and  Whitney 
engines  like  a  silvery  octopus,  Ryan's  in- 
geniously built  19-9  DL  corrosion-re- 
sistant steel  manifolds  coil  backwards 
from  exhaust  ports  to  make  productive 
use  of  what  otherwise  would  be  wasted 
blasts  of  the  flaming  gases.  More  than  3 
feet  in  length,  each  manifold  consists  of 
outlet  sleeves,  stack  bodies,  nipple  sec- 
tions with  3 -bolt  flanges  and  connecting 
tubes. 

Smooth  working  teams  under  Welding 
and  Pre-jig  Foreman  Claude  E.  Coppock 
and  Manifold  Assembly  Lineup  and  Jig 
Foreman  Joe  Love  has  maintained  an 
accelerated  flow  of  parts,  each  step  of 
processing  receiving  rapid  but  careful 
handling. 

Exhaust  gases  are  discharged  at  1600- 
1800  deg.  Fahrenheit,  and  at  velocities  up 
to  1500  m.p.h.,  into  bell-mouthed  ejector 
tubes  carried  through  the  cowl  over  the 
upper  surface  of  the  wing  to  the  trailing 
edge.  High  velocity  of  the  gases  into  the 
bell-mouth  creates  a  venturi  effect  which 
in  turn  produces  the  necessary  pumping 
action  to  suck  cooling  air  across  the  en- 
(Continucd  on  page  17 ) 


The  novel  "orange-peel"  cowlings  surrounding  the  Convair-Liner's  two  Pratt  and 
Whitney  2400  horsepower  engines  are  made  in  four  sections.  Each  is  hinged  ot 
the    firewall,    enabling    mechanics    to    reach    any    part    of    the    powerplant    quickly. 


Ernie  Simonson,  Assistant  Foreman,  and 
Joe  Basso  of  Manifold  Assembly,  apply 
heating    torch    to    a     240    exhaust    system. 


Cut-away  engine  nacelle  shows  compact- 
ness of  Ryan-built  stainless  steel  ex- 
haust   monifcld    on     new    Convair-Liner. 


PRECISION  ON  THE  MANIFOL 


Patience,  too,  is  for  sale  at  Ryan,  along 
with  exhaust  manifolds,  jet  components, 
Navions  and  other  products.  Anyone  ob- 
serving the  final  assembly  of  Ryan-built 
collector  systems  will  have  to  admit  that 
the  infinite  care,  detailed  inspection  and 
hours  of  fitting,  welding  and  cutting  re- 
quire this  virtue  in  large  quantities.  It  is 
of  the  utmost  importance  in  the  success- 
ful completion  of  a  manifold,  for  they  are 
precision-built  products,  requiring  long 
research  and  planning,  in  addition  to 
skilled  workmanship. 

When  the  numerous  segments  of  the 
manifold  are  trundled  in  from  the  pre- 
jig  shed  they  resemble  nothing  so  much 
as  parts  of  a  gigantic  metal  jigsaw  puzzle. 
It  is  no  pun  to  say  that  they  are  first 
fitted  into  jigs  to  begin  their  journey 
down  the  line  to  the  Shipping  Depart- 
ment. It  is  a  highly  skilled  technique,  the 
setting  up  of  jigs  (metal  clamps  and 
braces  which  hold  the  manifold  parts  into 
place  for  their  fitting),  and  good  jig 
assemblers  must  have  experience  and  a 
competent  knowledge  of  manifold  con- 
struction features.  An  exhaust  collector 
system  isn't  something  which  is  just 
thrown  together. 

Jigs  are  set  up  from  blueprints  which 
are  replicas  of  the  engine  parts  the  mani- 
fold must  fit.  Every  clamp  and  brace  of 
the   jig   is   checked   and   re-checked   after 


being  attached  to  the  jig  tables.  Tolerances 
are  fine  and  cannot  vary  more  than 
l/16ths  of  an  inch  or  the  manifold  part 
would  have  to  be  reworked. 

The  sections  of  a  collector  system,  be- 
fore they  reach  Ray  Ortiz's  Final  Assem- 
bly Department,  are  carefully  formed. 
They  have  been  spot  and  arc-welded  sev- 
eral times  and  checked  all  along  the  way 
for  defects  in  construction.  When  the 
large,  semi-circles  of  tubing  reach  the  as- 
sembly jigs  their  ends  and  exhaust  ports 
must  neatly  dovetail  with  each  other. 
After  the  assembler  has  tapped  and  pulled 
them  into  the  exact  position  they  will  hold 
around  the  engine  they  are  eventually 
destined  to  serve,  he  fits  the  hangers  to 
each  section.  These  hangers  are  actua'ly 
small  steel  fittings  by  means  of  which  the 
manifolds  are  secured  to  the  motor  or  en- 
gine mount.  When  the  hangers  are  accu- 
rately fitted,  a  welder  steps  in  and  neatly 
tacks  them  to  the  part.  Following  this 
operation,  flanges  and  other  small  parts 
are  spot  welded  to  the  sections.  The  flanges 
are  where  the  steel  clamps  which  hold  the 
various  sections  together  are  placed  when 
the  manifold  is  fitted  to  the  engine. 

All  these  small  parts,  which  are  actually 
accessories  tacked  on  to  the  collectors, 
are  built  in  the  Small  Parts  Department, 
under  Foreman  Floyd  Bennett's  watchful 
eye.  There  are  two  types  of  these  parts, 


In  a   coordinoted  small   parts  operation.  Art   Moore   hand   rolls   light 
sheet  stock,  A.  O.  Gilmore  spotwelds  and  A.  H.  Richards  flash  welds. 


This  large,  stainless   steel   part  in   elaborate   jig   assemt ' 
section  of  a  B-50  manifold.  Dee  Castleberry  is  torch   noi: 


PRODUCTION  LINE 


one 
zing. 


(L.  to  R.)    Sam  Fast,  Harlan   Branch,  Bob  Forton  and  John  Gavin 
truck  completed  manifold  sections  from  assembly  line  to  Shipping. 


both  of  which  are  first  cut  in  the  Fabrica- 
tion Department.  The  first  type  is  blanked 
and  formed  into  the  shape  required  on 
large  punch  presses.  The  second  type  is 
formed  by  rolling  machines  and  the  loose 
ends  welded  together  to  make  a  stainless 
steel  band. 

At  the  lathes  in  this  department,  fit- 
tings are  cut,  bored  and  faced  into  the 
desired  shapes.  Ball  and  socket  fittings  are 
also  shaped  and  welded  here  before  going 
to  the  final  assembly  lines  for  fitting. 
The  entire  section  is  so  laid  out  that  there 
is  a  smooth  sequence  of  operations,  with 
no  hitches  between  one  process  and  the 
next.  For  example,  a  flat  piece  of  steel 
about  four  inches  wide  is  rolled  on  a  hand 
roller.  It  is  dropped  by  the  operator  into 
a  cart  and  moves  only  four  feet  to  a  spot 
(Continued  on  page  1 6) 


CHIEF  INSPECTOR  and  HEAD  COACH 


As  the  Ryan  Reporter  chatted  with 
Arthur  S.  Billings,  Sr.,  "Bill"  to  everyone 
at  the  plant,  a  cigarette  ash  inadvertently 
drifted  to  rest  alongside  the  ashtray  on 
Bill's  desk.  Quick  as  a  flash,  the  offending 
ash  was  whisked  away,  the  tray  dumped 
into  the  waste  basket,  desk  straightened 
and  the  interview  resumed. 

The  foregoing  is  not  told  in  order  to 
depict  B.llings  as  fussy,  but  only  to  show 
you  what  solid  indoctrination  in  the  Navy 
does  toward  forming  one's  habits  and 
character.  In  the  service,  bunks,  cabins, 
decks,  offices — all  must  be  kept  "ship- 
shape." Offending  ashes,  spilled  grease, 
every  evidence  of  landlubberlv  conduct  is 
carefully  kept  to  a  minimum.  Efficiency, 
neatness,  precision  —  a'l  count  in  the 
Navy,  and  Bill,  a  former  Navy  man,  has 
carried  this  training  over  into  his  present 
job  at  Ryan:  to-wit.  Chief  Inspector. 

This  position  means  assuming  the  ulti- 
mate responsibility  for  the  final  perform- 
ance of  all  Ryan-built  products.  The 
smallest  detail  of  a  manifold  clamp  to  the 
final  test  flight  of  a  completed  Ryan  Na- 
vion  before  its  delivery  have  to  be  checked 
and  passed  by  the  Inspection  Department's 
eagle-eyed  crew  of  120  men  and  wcmen. 
(Continued  on  next  pa^c) 


10 


ASSEMBLY  BUILDING  IMPROVED 

Work  has  recently  been  completed  resulting  in  major  structural 
changes  in  the  Final  Assembly  building  at  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany. Two  major  engineering  and  construction  jobs  have  altered  the 
interior  of  the  structure  to  lengthen  the  usable  life  of  the  building 
and  save  much  space  on  production  lines. 

Final  Assembly  was  once  considered  by  many  engineers  to  be  the 
largest  wooden  clear  span  structure  in  the  world,  being  5  76  feet 
long  and  2  00  wide,  but  can  claim  that  distinction  no  more.  During 
the  past  month  the  Walter  Trepte  Construction  Company,  San  Diego 
contractors,  have  been  placing  29  "H"-shaped  steel  columns  (shown 
to  the  left  in  the  picture  above)  beneath  the  centers  of  the  wooden 
trusses  which  hold  up  the  roof  of  the  building. 

The  reason  for  reinforcing  the  beams  with  the  steel  columns, 
according  to  Durward  Palmer,  Ryan  Plant  Engineer,  is  to  add  to 
the  company*s  long  range  production  facilities.  The  work  had  been 
planned  for  some  time  but  had  to  a-wait  clarification  of  the  status 
of  war  plant  buildings  before  the  $65,000  engineering  job  could 
begin. 

When  Final  Assembly  was  built  in  1943  the  original  design  called 
for  steel  roof  trusses.  The  scarcity  of  steel,  however,  during  the  war 
years,  made  substitution  of  wood  necessary.  There  are  115,200 
square  feet  of  space  under  the  building's  roof  and  3 1  trusses  span 
the  floor  area,  but  only  29  carry  any  appreciable  load;  the  number 
of  steel  columns  erected. 

To  the  right  in  the  photograph  is  shown  the  ne^v  monorail  system 
recently  added  to  the  Navion  assembly  line  in  Final  Assembly.  By 
using  this  overhead  rail  system  the  -work  of  mating  wings  to  fuselage 
and  installing  engines  can  be  expedited  and  much  floor  space  saved. 

The  monorail  covers  a  floor  area  which  measures  3  0  by  3  2  feet 
and  the  space  saved  by  shifting  engine  installations,  as  well  as  other 


Navion   production  line  facilities,  will  now  be  used   as  areas  for   the 
Boeing  C-97  Stratofreighter  and    3  77   Stratocruiser  jigs. 

A  small  crane  atop  the  monorail  will  perform  many  of  the  oper- 
ations formerly  handled  by  the  larger  overhead  crane  in  this  build- 
ing, leaving  it  free  for  heavier  work  on  Boeing  rear  fuselage  assem- 
blies. 


Airplanes,  parts,  engines  and  flight  per- 
formance are  not  new  fields  for  Billings. 
In  1916  he  was  one  of  the  first  enlisted 
men  in  the  fleet  to  go  through  the  Naval 
Aviation  course  at  the  Airmen's  School 
in  Pensacola,  Florida.  When  war  broke  out 
in  '17,  Bill  was  spent  to  Squantum,  Mas- 
sachusetts, for  more  flight  training.  This 
same  year  he  helped  organize  the  ground 
school  in  Balboa  Park,  here  in  San  Diego, 
as  well  as  put  North  Island  into  commis- 
sion as  a  flight  training  center  for  fleet 
pilots. 

During  World  War  I  years,  Quarter- 
master Billings  also  served  as  flight  in- 
structor as  well  as  having  charge  of  as- 
sembly and  repair  facilities  on  the  Island. 
He  was  the  only  enlisted  man  at  the  time 
who  served  as  an  instructor  in  the  Navy. 

In  June,  1919,  they  moved  his  rank  up 
to  that  of  Warrant  Officer  and  in  August 
of  that  year  he  was  permanently  commis- 
sioned as  an  Ensign. 

During  the  Twenties,  Mustang  Billings 
(any  officer  who  comes  up  from  the  ranks 
in  the  Navy  is  called  a  "Mustang")  con- 
tinued his  flying  career  at  stations  like 
Honolulu,  where  he  helped  commission  the 
Naval  Air  Station,  or  back  at  North 
Island,  where  he  was  engineering  officer 
of  Combat  Squadron  I,  which  flew  Vought 
VE-7s,  the  first  Navy  combat  plane.  He 
also  checked  out  in  De  Havillands  as  well 
as  in  Douglas  DTs.  Because  he'd  had  cata- 
pult training  he  was  assigned  to  the  bat- 
tleship  Pennsylvania   in    1926    and    went 


from  there  to  the  first  carrier  the  Navy 
ever  commissioned,  the  old  Langley.  For 
qualification  of  carrier  landings  aboard 
the  Langley,  he  was  operations  officer  from 
'26  to  '30,  in  charge  of  all  pilot  training. 
Vigilance  in  this  job  eliminated  all  casual- 
ties but  one  during  a  period  of  training 
more  than  500  pilots  for  our  carrier  fleet 
in  take-offs  and  landings.  During  his  Navy 
days,  from  1910  to  1932,  Bill  served  with 
many  of  the  officers  who  were  later  to 
become  the  wartime  bosses  of  our  fleet; 
men  like  Marc  Mitscher,  DeWitt  Ramsey, 
John  Towers  and  A.  E.  Montgomery. 

After  leaving  the  service  in  '32,  Bill 
worked  in  the  real  estate  and  bond  busi- 
ness until  coming  to  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Company  in  1940.  Aviation  had  again 
claimed  him  and  he  started  to  work  here 
as  an  assembler  in  John  van  der  Linde's 
department.  At  that  time  Ryan  was  build- 
ing trainers  for  the  Dutch  to  be  used  in 
the  Netherlands  East  Indies.  Following 
five  months  of  work  in  the  Final  Assem- 
bly Department,  Bill  was  promoted  to  As- 
sistant Chief  Inspector.  Two  years  later 
he  went  to  the  Quality  Control  Office  and 
in  1946  assumed  his  present  title  as  Chief 
Inspector. 

No  profile  of  Bill  would  be  complete, 
however,  without  mentioning  his  passion 
for  baseball.  Back  in  his  early  Navy  days 
he  organized  a  ball  team  at  Pensacola  Air 
Station  which  he  played  on  and  which  he 
managed.    Of    the    95    games    the    team 


played,  against  almost  every  college,  uni- 
versity or  other  Navy  team  in  the  South, 
Bill's  Nine  lost  only  six,  tied  just  two.  In 
1940,  Bill's  son.  Jack,  and  the  Marlette 
boys,  Irv  and  Jack,  with  Bill's  help, 
organized  the  Ryan  hardball  team.  Since 
its  beginnings  the  team  has  had  an  en- 
viable record  in  local  sandlot  baseball  and 
developed  over  30  well-known  players 
who  have  since  joined  professional  ball 
clubs. 

The  Billings  family,  two  boys  and  two 
girls,  have  all  worked  at  Ryan  at  one  time 
or  another.  Marjorie,  Jack  and  Arthur, 
Jr.,  were  here  during  part  of  the  war, 
until  the  boys  joined  the  service. 

Hobbies,  spare  time  activities  or  other 
off-duty  pursuits  for  Billings  involve  just 
two  things:  baseball  and  the  Navy.  The 
man  still  wears  "scivy"  shirts,  a  carry- 
over from  his  service  days,  and  don't  ask 
him  what  he  thinks  about  the  recent 
scrapping  of  plans  for  the  super  carrier, 
for  he'll  tell  you  in  rather  salty  phrase- 
ology, being  an  old  carrier  hand.  As  for 
baseball,  B'.ll  just  mutters,  "Don't  get  me 
started,"  if  queried  during  office  hours 
about  Ryan's  team,  former  players  or  fu- 
ture possibilities  of  the  Nine  in  the  San 
Diego  Industrial  League. 

Of  his  own  Inspection  Department  per- 
sonnel and  the  job  they  do,  Billings  says, 

"It's  the  best bunch  of  people  I  have 

ever  worked  with!  They're  the  ones  who 
are  finally  responsible  for  seeing  that  the 
'customer  is  always  right.'  " 


11 


SWISS  NAVION  PILOT  COMPLETES  CIRCLE  OF  SOUTH  AMERICA 


The  February  issue  of  the  Ryan  Re- 
porter carried  a  story  on  the  long  and 
interesting  flight  Berni  Dardel,  Swiss  pilot, 
made  in  his  Ryan  Navion  down  the  west 
coast  of  South  America  to  Buenos  Aires. 
Dardel  is  now  back  in  San  Diego,  after 
completing  another  long  flight,  this  time 
up  the  east  coast  of  South  America. 

Young  Dardel  is  probably  one  of  the 
few  private  pilots  who  have  flown  single- 
engine  personal  planes  the  length  of  both 
South  American  coasts.  The  return  trip 
to  San  Diego  included  over  2000  miles  of 


flight  along  the  jungle  coast  of  Northern 
Brazil,  a  particularly  hazardous  trip  for 
there  are  no  beaches  enroute  and  swamps 
extend   10  to  30  miles  inland. 

Above  is  a  picture  of  Dardel  (insert) 
and  his  Ryan  Navion  flying  over  the 
famous  Christ  of  Rio  statue  overlooking 
Sugar  Loaf  and  the  harbor  of  Brazil's 
capital  city.  Currently,  the  Swiss  flying 
enthusiast  is  completing  a  course  in  in- 
strument flying  at  a  local  aviation  school 
before  delivering  a  new  Ryan  Navion  to 
Santiago,  Chile. 


AIRCRAFT  SCIENCE  LAB 

(Continued  from  page  5j 
Jensen.  Both  are  licensed  CAA  instrument 
men,  and  this  section  is  one  of  the  two 
CAA  certified  repair  stations  south  of  Los 
Angeles.  All  Navion  instruments,  as  well 
as  those  of  other  planes,  are  calibrated  or 
repaired  here  for  the  Ryan  Customer  Ser- 
vice Department  and  our  own  Flight  Test 
work.  In  addition  to  repair  work.  Alder- 
son  and  his  technicians  work  on  the  devel- 
opment of  improved  control  panel  devices. 

Contained  in  the  instrument  shop  is  a 
small,  copper-lined  room  where  radioman 
Doug  Erickson  works.  In  here  all  aircraft 
radios  are  inspected  and  checked  before 
their  installation.  In  addition,  Doug  makes 
special  radio  installations  of  radio  com- 
passes, special  radio  hook-ups  and  numer- 
ous other  communications  gear  for  our 
customers. 

In  a  small  cubbyhole  next  to  Vandcr- 


meer's  and  Holland's  office  a  maintenance 
and  repair  facility  is  supervised  by  R.  K. 
Young.  He  is  the  man  who  checks  and 
rebuilds  all  automatic  temperature  control 
instruments  (called  Micromaxes)  which 
are  used  on  furnaces,  baths  and  plating 
tanks.  Their  trouble-free  performance 
saves  many  hours  out  in  the  shop  or  costly 
re-working  jobs  because  parts  could  not 
pass  inspection  standards. 

Across  the  hall  from  the  instrument 
lab  is  the  domain  of  Ryan's  chemists; 
B.  W.  Floersch,  Supervisor.  Here  "Bo" 
Floersch,  eight  years  a  chemical  research 
engineer  for  Ryan;  R.  J.  Taylor,  research 
chemist,  and  Walter  V.  Holloway,  chem- 
ist, run  the  analyses  to  determine  atmo- 
spheric composition  of  heat  treat  ovens, 
develop  "mud  baths,"  determine  causes  of 
metal  failures  and  any  number  of  other 
tests  to  improve  manufacturing  of  Ryan 
products. 


As  a  result  of  long  and  careful  study  by 
these  men  in  the  chemical  lab,  the  mani- 
fold assembly  line  now  has  a  new  bath  in- 
stalled to  prevent  scaling  of  exhaust  col- 
lector parts.  This  new  molten  salt  bath 
eliminates  the  hot  acid  dunkings  all  metal 
parts  now  receive.  Before  this  new  devel- 
opment in  metal  treating  a  careful  eye 
had  to  be  kept  on  the  gas  atmosphere  of 
heat  treat  furnaces  to  guard  against  a 
change  in  the  composition  of  the  air  in 
the  ovens  which  might  result  in  faulty 
oxidization.  Now  that  the  molten  salt 
bath  process  is  set  up  the  chemicals  in 
the  process  will  change  the  oxides  to  all 
of  one  type  and  the  oxide  content  in  the 
furnaces  will  not  have  to  be  so  carefully 
watched.  Cold  instead  of  hot  pickling 
will  follow  the  salt  dip,  which  is  a  less 
expensive,  quicker  method  of  keeping  scale 
from  corroding  metal  parts. 

Paint  is  an  important  adjunct  to  air- 
plane production  for  a  smooth,  well  ap- 
plied paint  coating  enhances  the  looks  of 
the  plane  as  well  as  protects  its  metal  from 
rust  and  other  weather  damage.  To  insure 
high,  uniform  quality  of  all  painting  ma- 
terials used  at  the  plant,  the  Laboratory 
chemists  are  constantly  called  upon  to 
check  properties  and  investigate,  for  com- 
parison purposes,  paint-type  materials 
made  by  various  manufacturers.  Any 
troubles  with  paints  and  enamels  are 
examined  in  this  section  which  recom- 
mends corrective  measures  as  well  as  new 
products  as  they  come  on  the  market  and 
have  been  tested  here. 

In  continuing  the  tour  of  this  depart- 
ment one  goes  from  the  chemical  lab, 
with  its  beakers,  test  tubes,  atomic  val- 
ence charts,  and  Bunsen  burners  to  the 
Metallurgical  Department  directlv  across 
the  hall.^  Wilson  Hubbell,  Chief'  Metal- 
lurgist, who  has  been  with  the  company 
more  than  eight  years,  says  the  bulk  of 
their  work  is  running  down  difficulties 
the  shop  has  when  working  with  metals. 

When  steel  companies,  in  their  search 
for  stronger,  more  resistant  metals,  de- 
velop new  formulae,  they  send  out  sam- 
ples to  manufacturing  plants  equipped 
with  research  laboratories  for  testing  these 
new  advances.  Ryan  keeps  abreast  of  what 
is  going  on  in  the  science  of  metallurgy 
by  submitting  these  new  alloys  to  rigid 
testing. 

In  Wilson  Hubbell's  section  these  new 
metals  are  photographed,  hammered,  and 
generally  pushed  around,  in  a  scientific 
manner,  to  determine  their  weldabihty, 
formabilitv  and  to  discover  flaws  which 
might  show  up  in  processing  out  in  the 
plant. 

One  interesting  analysis  is  made  by  the 
spectrograph.  This  expensive  and  highly 
involved  piece  of  equipment  gives  a  quick 
analysis  of  the  chemicals  making  up  any 
metal  alloy.  Particles  of  the  metal  under 


12 


study  are  placed  between  the  carbon  elec- 
trodes of  this  machine.  Then  an  electric 
spark  is  generated  between  the  electrodes 
which  heats  the  metal  particle  to  a  tem- 
perature where  it  gives  off  light.  The  light 
then  passes  through  a  slit  (which  limits 
its  height  and  width)  and  is  directed  to  a 
diffraction  grating.  This  grating  is  a  pol- 
ished concave  surface  upon  which  arc 
ruled  48,000  lines  within  two  inches.  The 
grating  reflects  the  light  to  a  special  strip 
of  film  and  as  it  does,  it  breaks  up  the 
beam  into  its  various  wave  lengths,  much 
like  a  prism  behaves  when  sunlight  is  al- 
lowed to  shine  through  it. 

Now  a  photograph,  called  a  spectro- 
gram, is  made  of  this  hght.  The  picture  is 
taken  to  a  densitometer  where  it  is  pro- 
jected in  magnified  proportions  upon  a 
ground-glass  screen.  Here  the  spectrum 
lines  can  be  clearly  seen  and  by  comparing 
these  lines  with  a  master  spectrum  it  is 
possible  to  tell  exactly  which  elements  are 
present  in  the  sample  of  metal  and  in  what 
quantity. 

Ruth  Oswald,  who  operates  this  spec- 
trograph, says  the  lab  can  detect  traces  of 
elements  which  are  sometimes  as  small  as 
1  1000  of  1  percent,  often  not  detectable 
by  any  other  means.  This  sort  of  knowl- 
edge is  invaluable  when  contracts  call  for 
certain  alloys,  or  there  is  trouble  with  a 
special  part  during  heat  treating  processes. 

Another  device  Hubbell  puts  to  con- 
stant use  in  metallurgical  studies  is  the 
metallograph.  This  is  a  combination  mi- 
croscope and  camera  which  magnifies  the 
surface  of  a  particle  of  metal  so  that  you 
can  see  the  grains.  In  addition,  pictures 
can  be  taken  of  the  grains  showing  the 
crystalline  structure  of  the  metal  and  just 
what  temper,  corrosion  resistance  or  im- 
purity the  sample  contains.  The  metallo- 
graph will  magnify  up  to  2000  diameters. 

All  these  complicated  machines  are 
used  daily  to  check  incoming  materials  to 
see  if  they  are  up  to  specifications  for  the 
job  they  were  intended  to  do.  Only  those 
meta's  which  come  from  the  vendor  with 
a  certified  affidavit  are  not  checked  by  the 
metallurgical  crew. 

Another  job  this  section  performs  is  the 
certifying  of  all  spot-welding  equipment 
before  it  can  be  used  on  any  jobs.  Each 
machine  must  meet  a  government  speci- 
fication and  it  is  R.  J.  Fullerton's  job  to 
see  that  sample  welds  are  made  on  each 
machine. 

He  takes  these  samples  and  runs  shear 
tests  and  metallographic  examinations  to 
prove  the  quality  of  the  weld.  This  is  par- 
ticularly important  in  the  construction  of 
Boeing  rear  fuselage  assemblies  where 
structural  spot-welds  are  used  in  place  of 
the  usual  rivet  construction. 

After  Fullerton  sets  up  welding  stand- 
ards and  certifies  the  machines  the  data  is 
turned  over  to  the  Inspection  Department 


for  enforcement.  But  everything  connect- 
ed with  spot-welding  processes  must  be 
certified  "right"  in  the  lab  before  any  job 
can  begin  in  the  shop. 

Slightly  at  an  angle  across  the  hall  from 
Hubbeli's  domain  is  the  experimental  plat- 
ing lab,  complete  with  plating  vats  and 
other  paraphenalia.  Here,  intricate  parts, 
usually  of  an  experimental  nature,  which 
are  too  expensive  or  too  difficult  to  ma- 
chine are  made  of  aluminum  and  then 
coated,  or  plated,  with  nickel,  copper  or 
silver.  When  the  plating  is  finished  the 
aluminum  mock-up  is  dissolved  out  from 
the  inside  of  the  coating  and  the  harder 
metal  part  remains. 

Last,  but  not  least,  of  the  important 
components  of  the  laboratory,  is  W.  M. 
"Mac"  Cattrell's  physical  testing  lab. 
Under  Mac's  direction,  the  static,  tensile 
and  dynamic  testing  of  all  structures  such 
as  springs,  fabrics,  wing  sections,  spars, 
ribs,  castings  as  well  as  spot  and  seam 
welds  is  accomplished  with  special  equip- 
ment. 

One  of  the  interesting  machines  in  this 
branch  of  the  Laboratory  is  a  huge  tensile 
testing  apparatus  which  will  pull  apart  a 
piece  of  metal  with  the  ease  of  tearing  a 
piece  of  Kleenex.   The  machine  exerts   a 


force  of  120,000  pounds  and  is  used  to 
crush,  tear  and  rip  all  metals  under  survey 
to  determine  any  weakness  before  pur- 
chase orders  are  sent  to  manufacturers. 

Because  most  physical  testing  of  small 
parts  requires  elaborate  jigs  to  hold  the 
pieces  in  the  machines,  this  section  main- 
tains its  own  complete  machine  shop,  run 
by  Glenn  Strickland,  machinist. 

Physical  testing  has  another  important 
job  to  do  and  that  is  the  calibration  work 
for  the  Inspection  Department.  On  ten- 
siomcters  in  this  section  of  the  lab,  Navion 
control  cables  are  pulled  and  strained  to 
see  that  they  come  up  to  CAA  specifica- 
tions. Hydraulic  gauges,  too,  used  by  In- 
spection, Maintenance  and  Production  De- 
partments are  also  checked  here. 

In  the  compact  confines  of  the  Labora- 
tory, there  are  1 5,  working  under  Vander- 
meer's  direction  and  their  findings  can 
give  the  go  ahead  or  kill  the  ordering  of 
new  parts  or  new  metals,  the  design  of 
new  processes  or  tools.  It  is  a  well-trained, 
important  group  of  men  upon  whose  deci- 
sions may  rest  the  performance  and  qual- 
ity of  our  many  products,  the  products 
by  which  Ryan  is  judged  by  other  com- 
panies, by  the  military  services  and  by 
our  other  customers. 


NAVION  USED  IN  GCA  EXPERIMENT 


The  Ryan  Navion,  pictured  above,  is 
flying  over  a  portable  GCA  (Ground  Con- 
trolled Approach)  radar  installation  at 
the  International  Airport,  Ontario,  Cali- 
fornia. The  plane,  the  first  used  in  a  con- 
trolled experiment  for  private  aircraft, 
was  piloted  by  Miss  De  Thurmond,  Holly- 
wood commercial  photographer  and  flying 
instructor. 

In  cooperation  with  Western  Flying 
magazine,  Ryan  sent  the  plane  to  Gilfillan 
Brothers,  Inc.,  GCA  developers,  for  a 
series  of  test  landings  by  Miss  Thurmond 
and   William   Sloan,  Ryan's  Field  Repre- 


sentative. 

The  tests  were  made  under  simulated 
blind  landing  conditions  and  in  each  try 
the  GCA  unit,  after  locating  the  Navion 
on  its  radar  screen,  transmitted  landing 
instructions  to  the  control  tower  at  the 
field.  The  control  tower  operator  "talked" 
the  plane  down  for  a  perfect  landing  in 
each  instance. 

GCA  is  not  yet  ready  for  private  plane 
pilots,  but  the  time  is  only  a  few  years 
away  when  this  tremendous  air  safety  ad- 
vancement will  be  available  to  private 
plane  owners. 


13 


mmeSBI&^mSmM 


h'^fMsim 


SOUTHERN  OHIO  AVIATION  WELL-REPRESENTED.  During  one  of  the  frequent 
foctory  visits  which  have  kept  Southern  Ohio  Aviation  Compony  near  the  top  of  the 
distributor  list  for  total  deliveries  on  1949  Ryan  Novions,  president  Jim  Hobstetter 
arrived  in  company  with  two  of  his  most  important  dealers,  Don  Hood,  chief  of 
Aircraft  Sales  Company  in  Indianapolis,  and  A.  Clayton  Tschantz,  general  manager 
of  Richland  Aviation  of  Cleveland  and  Mansfield,  Ohio.  While  expressing  keen  en- 
thusiasm over  Navion  sales  prospects  in  the  Cleveland  area,  where  Dick  Dorn  is 
operations  manager,  Clayton  extended  a  hearty  invitation  to  all  Navion  folks  to  visit 
Richland's  deluxe,   new  Sky  Club  Restaurant  at  the  Municipal  Airport  in  Mansfield. 

CUSTOMERS  OF  RAY  HINCH,  prexy  of  Beverly  Air  Service,  Ryan  Navion 
dealer  at  Chicago's  Rubinkam  Airport,  have  an  excellent  example  of  a  prac- 
tical pilot  in  the  genial  bossmon.  Ray  believes  in  really  "using"  an  airplane, 
colls  the  Navion  "everyday  transportation"  and  means  it.  As  Exalted  Ruler  of 
Chicago  Lodge  1  596,  B.P.O.E.,  he  sees  that  Elks  business  is  paced  to  Ryan 
Navion  speed.  For  the  recent  Elks  Notional  Bowling  Tourney  at  Battle  Creek, 
Michigan,  he  flew  in  two  Navion-loads  of  his  Lodge's  best  bowlers.  And  .last 
May  he  led  a  four-Navion  caravan  of  the  brothers  to  the  Elks  Convention  at 
Quincy,    Illinois. 

AEROCLUB  DE  COLOMBIA  is  the  newest  Ryan  Navion  export  dealer.  This  leading 
aviation  organization  of  Bogota,  Colombia,  headed  by  James  G.  Leaver,  veteran 
administrator,  has  many  of  that  South  American  country's  most  prominent  business 
and  professional  men  as  its  directors.  Delivery  of  the  Aeroclub's  first  '49  model 
demonstrator  is  scheduled  for  late  this  month. 

"THE  GOOD  WORK  OF  TWO  NEW  DEALERS  has  had  a  big  part  in  getting  us 
off  to  Q  fast  start  in  selling  1949  Ryan  Novions,"  reports  H.  Leibee  "Bill" 
Wheeler,  vice-president  of  Buffalo  Aeronautical  Corporation,  distributor  for 
Western  New  York.  Kenneth  Gwinnip  of  Olean,  New  York,  and  Elmiro  Aero- 
nautical of  Elmiro,  both  ore  working  hard  to  increase  the  reputation  of  the 
Ryan  Navion  as  the  most  useful  and  safe-to-fly  airplane  in  their  region.  An- 
nouncement of  additional  dealer  appointments  for  the  territory  ore  expected 
soon,   according  to  Wheeler. 

NOTES  ON  A  VISIT  WITH  TEXAS  DEALERS.  .  .  .  Southwest  Air  Rangers'  Bill 
and  Don  Mueller — both  sharp  photographers — hove  come  up  with  one  of  the  shrewd- 
est sales  promotion  ideas  of  the  year.  They're  shooting  movies  of  the  Ryan  Navion  at 
work  in  city  and  on  ranch,  which  they  plan  to  take  along  with  them  when  calling 
on  prospects  located  in  isolated  sections  beyond  their  El  Paso  headquarters.  .  .  . 
Bobby  Ragsdale,  Austin,  has  designed  his  own  stretcher  installation  for  Novions  and 
reports  good  results  in  its  use.  Bobby  has  a  full  shop  of  work,  including  rebuilding 
jobs  on  two  Novions  severely  damoged  by  the  storms  up  Amarillo  way.  .  .  .  Some 
of  the  country's  finest  storoge  facilities  for  Novions  ore  at  Hurt  Airport,  San  Antonio, 
where  Moody  Monroe  hos  twenty-two  individual  metal  hangars  available  for  his 
lucky  customers.  They've  storm-proof  construction  to  boot.  .  .  .  Efficiently  managed, 
and  operating  on  the  big,  well-organized  Cuddihy  Field  at  Corpus  Christi,  Roger 
Gault's  Goult  Aviation  is  looking  to  1949  as  "Ryon  Navion  Year"  in  the  Gulf  Coast 
area.  .  .  .  Cliff  Hyde  and  Harvey  Pennell  con  well  be  proud  of  one  of  the  outstanding 
airplone  sales  ond  service  centers  in  the  whole  Southwest.  Sunday  at  their  plocei  is 
like  bargain  day  at  your  favorite  department  store.  Houston  folks  turn  out  in  bunches 
to  see  the  '49  Ryan  Navion.  Operoting  strictly  business.  Cliff's  salesmen  follow  o 
floor  schedule  just  as  automobile  salesmen  do.  .  .  .  The  flooded  Trinity  River  brought 
0  new  Ryan  Navion  into  prominence  in  heroic  proportions  lost  month,  as  Parker- 
Huett  Aviation,  Dallas,  mode  the  plane  available  to  local  police  for  directing  rescue 
of  stranded  persons.  The  Navion  is  credited  with  helping  save  100  lives.  .  .  .  Jock 
Riley's  hustle  in  the  Shreveport  area  is  topic  of  conversation  throughout  Les  Bowman's 
Texas  territory.  .  .  .  Hord  work  and  an  ideal  airport  locotion  contribute  to  the  suc- 
cess of  Norm  Hoffman's  West  Texas  Flying  Service  in  Midland.  And  while  Norm's 
out  demonstrating  to  oil  men  and  ranchers,  his  charming  mother  does  a  top-notch 
job  of  managing  office  and  airport. 

THERE'S  A  GO-GETTER  FOR  RYAN  NAVION  sales  in  Colorado  by  the  name 
of   Jim    Hurst,    manager  of  Cirrus  Air   Service,   dealer   under   Mountain   States 

Aviotion  at  Antonito.  Jim  recently  wos  instrumental  in  selling  o  '49  ',Ryan 
Navion  to  W.  B.  Hamilton,  owner  of  the  famed  T-Bone  Ranch,  cattle  heod- 
quorters  for  Colorado's  southern  valley  of  the  Rio  Grande  River.  When  spring 
weather  was  bursting  good  in  his  part  of  the  Rockies,  promotion-conscious  Jim 
cooperated  with  Ryan  photographer,  Dick  Milne,  to  obtain  picture  coverage  of 
Ryan  Novions  ot  work  on  western   ranches. 


ISLAND  HOPS  AND 
PRAIRIE  LANDINGS 

(Continued  from  page  6j 
chief  pilot  for  Chinook,  said  of  charter 
hops,  "When  we  get  such  a  call  we  don't 
even  bother  to  ask  if  they  have  a  landing 
strip  nearby,  from  which  we  can  operate 
the  Ryan  Navion.  We  just  fly  on  out  and 
select  our  'landing  field'  when  we  get 
there — it  may  be  a  pasture,  unimproved 
rural  road,  a  field  of  broom  grass,  or  a 
plowed  field.  It  doesn't  much  matter,  just 
so  it's  reasonably  smooth." 

Of  the  rough  landings  the  chartered 
Navions  are  called  upon  to  make,  Bowhay 
said,  "We  simply  drag  the  field  down- 
wind, slow  flying  the  Navion  at  about  75 
m.p.h.  to  study  the  terrain.  Then  we  make 
a  quick  180  degree  turn  and  land  into  the 
wind.  The  farmer  never  has  more  than  a 
mile  or  so  to  go,  knows  precisely  where 
we've  landed  and  is  over  there  to  get  us 
right  away." 

Five  snowbound  months  out  of  each 
year  are  another  problem  for  the  Chinook 
people,  but  the  country  up  there  is  devel- 
oping its  natural  resources  at  a  furious 
rate  and  the  Chinook  Flying  Service  own- 
ers look  forward  to  a  bright,  "flying"  fu- 
ture. 

In  Puerto  Rico  private  plane  problems 
are  long,  over-water  hops  and  the  scat- 
tered airports  of  the  West  Indies,  but  Clara 
Livingston  doesn't  seem  to  mind.  This 
Navion  dealer  has  been  flying  since  1930 
and  was  well  known  in  the  U.  S.  as  a 
woman  racing  pilot.  She  was  the  first 
woman  to  make  a  solo  flight  over  the 
Caribbean  back  in  1931,  when  she  first 
went  to  Puerto  Rico. 

At  her  sugar  plantation,  2  5  miles  out 
of  San  Juan  (13  by  air.  Miss  Livingston 
informs  us),  she  has  the  most  modern 
private  landing  field  on  the  island.  During 
the  war  the  Army  took  over  the  field, 
which  has  a  3  500-foot  runway,  for  war- 
time use.  They  paved  the  strips  and  gen- 
erally improved  the  set-up  before  return- 
ing it  to  Clara  at  the  end  of  hostilities. 
She  can  now  claim  to  have  the  onlv  im- 
proved, modern  airport  available  to  pri- 
vate planes  in  the  entire  San  Juan  area. 

Even  though  Dorado  is  over  1400  miles 
from  Miami,  Ryan's  Puerto  Rico  dealer 
frequently  makes  the  trip  in  a  Navion, 
which  includes  three,  long  over-water 
hops.  She  recently  stopped  off  in  Cuba 
and  sold  a  Navion  to  a  private  plane  en- 
thusiast there. 

At  the  Dorado  School  of  Aviation,  Clara 
has  three  instructors  helping  her  with  the 
more  than  30  enrolled  students.  All  the 
pilots  speak  Spanish  for  manv  in  her  classes 
come  from  Latin  American  countries 
south  of  San  Juan.  Three  mechanics  at 
{Continued  on  page  1^ ) 


ISLAND  HOPS  AND 
PRAIRIE  LANDINGS 

{Continued  from  page  H) 
the  large  maintenance  and  repair  shops  at 
Dorado     Airfield    keep    most    of     Puerto 
Rico's  private  planes  in  top  running  order. 

At  the  moment,  aggressive  Miss  Living- 
ston is  putting  much  thought  and  effort 
into  building  up  her  school.  She  feels  there 
is  an  education  problem  to  be  met  before 
private  flying  will  really  become  big  time 
in  the  islands.  In  a  recent  letter  to  Wil- 
liam P.  Brotherton,  Ryan  Export  Sales 
Manager,  she  says  of  her  school  and  pri- 
vate flying,  "The  Virgin  Islands  are  so 
close  that  we  hop  back  and  forth  casually, 
hardly  out  of  gliding  distance  of  shore, 
over  water  stretches  that  were  once  real 
barriers.  The  commercial  and  pleasure 
value  of  flying  is  more  and  more  appreci- 
ated, although  it  is  by  no  means  fully 
developed  here  as  yet." 

Private  flying  will  continue  to  develop, 
it  should  follow,  when  there  are  enthusi- 
asts like  Franz  McTavish  and  Clara  Liv- 
ingston turning  out  top  quality  pilots  and 
maintaining  complete  service  and  sales 
facilities  for  personal  plane  owners  in  their 
territories.  Ryan  is  fortunate  in  having 
such  alert  salesmen  showing  the  advan- 
tages of  modern  air  travel  in  personal- 
business  planes  to  out-of-America  buyers, 
in  addition  to  providing  excellent  service 
to  present  or  prospective  Navion  owners. 

OIL  DRILLER'S 
FLYING  MACHINE 

(Cont'niiied  from  page  }) 
"In  its  50  hours  of  flying  a  month,  the 
Navion  is  used  more  for  cargo-carrying 
and  general  business  travel  than  any  other 
purpose,  and  has  enabled  Mr.  Appell  to 
make  personal  inspections  of  all  our  drill- 
ing rigs  more  often  than  ever  before," 
Poole  explains.  "That  in  itself  would  be  a 
real  story  of  the  plane's  practical  value, 
but  there's  actually  another  approach  to 
its  utility  which  rates  a  moment's  con- 
sideration. 

"I'm  talking  about  the  recreational  side 
of  things.  Hunting  and  fishing  trips 
round  out  a  busy  vacation  schedule  for 
the  Navion.  For  example,  when  White 
Wing,  a  favorite  game  of  ours,  are  in  sea- 
son we  can  only  hunt  them  between  4:00 
p.m.  and  sundown.  In  spite  of  such  a  brief 
legal  period  to  do  our  stuff,  with  the  Na- 
vion we  are  able  to  hunt  a  ISO  square  mile 
area  in  a  single  evening.  Doing  what 
amounts  to  a  special  brand  of  hedge-hop- 
ping, we  pick  out  a  clearing  from  the  air 
that  looks  fairly  smooth,  and  do  our  hunt- 
ing. Satisfied  with  what  we've  bagged,  we 
take  off  for  the  next  spot,  where  we  go 
through  the  same  procedure." 

(Continued  on  page  16) 


We  Fly  Navions 


Gillies 


King 


LATEST  TO  JOIN  THE  RANKS  of   Ryan   Navion  fleet  operators  is  the  Fullerton  Oil 

Company  of  Hobbs,  New  Mexico.  Headed  by  C.  H.  Sweet,  this  fast-growing  firm's 
Navions  have  become  familiar  callers  on  the  air  fields  and  drilling  sites  of  Texas  and 
New  Mexico.  Fort  Worth,  Houston  and  Midland  are  among  its  principal  stopping  points. 
Jock  Horris  pilots  one  ship,  while  Sweet  himself  handles  controls  of  the  other. 

"THE  NATION'S  STUDIO,"  more  officially  known  as  Olon  Mills,  Inc.,  special- 
ists in  distinctive  portraiture,  keeps  its  Navion  busy  on  flights  about  the  central 
states  from  offices  in  Springfield,  Ohio.  E.  A.  Coleman,  regional  manager,  sends 
word  the  Navion  performed  extro-heovy  duty  carrying  lost  season's  big  Christ- 
mas cargo.  To  record  this  application  of  a  business  plane  to  business  tasks,  the 
Olon  Mills'  people  put  the  whole  proceedings  on  1  6  mm  movie  film. 

NAVIONS  WERE  IN  THE  MONEY  again  in 
this  year's  version  of  the  All-Women's  Trans- 
continental Air  Race  from  Son  Diego  to  Miami. 
Betty  Gillies  of  Son  Diego  and  her  co-pilot, 
Barboro  London,  took  runner-up  laurels  in  the 
"99ers"-sponsored  event  in  Betty's  Navion. 
Although  her  feat  didn't  place  her  in  the  elite 
trio  of  top  prize-winners,  Mrs.  Zona  King, 
Navion-owner  from  Quincy,  California,  was  the 
first  entrant  to  land  at  AAiomi,  setting  a  fast 
pace  all  the  way  for  the  others.  Carol  Bloom  of 
Oroville,  California,  was  her  co-pilot. 

"JUST  RIGHT  FOR  THE  PLAINS  COUNTRY  where  winds  ore  strong  and  fields  are 
rough,"  says  Emil  Knutson,  Gruver,  Texas,  wheat  rancher  and  cattleman,  describing 
his  Ryan  Navion.  Currently  flying  a  '49  model,  after  enjoying  great  success  with  a 
'48  ship,  Knutson,  his  son,  Dave,  and  son-in-law,  Joel  Stovlo,  oil  pilot  the  Navion. 
They  use  it  to  locate  storm-scattered  cattle,  check  on  hail  damage  to  wheat,  haul 
repair  parts  for  tractors,  combines  and  elevators,  attend  cattle  sales,  and  have  even 
saved  a  human  life  by  flying  a  gravely  ill  neighbor  girl  through  thunderstorms  to  on 
Amarillo  hospital.  "We're  great  Ryan  Navion  boosters,"  Emil  odds,  "and  feel  we've 
helped  sell  at  least  eight  of  these  fine   planes." 

BILL  CHERNEY,  owner  of  the  McLean  Manufacturing  Company,  Chicago,  may 
worry  about  other  things  occasionally,  but  he  need  never  be  concerned  over 
people  having  trouble  noticing  his  Ryan  Navion.  Painted  a  red  hot,  fire- 
engine  red,  the  plane  gets  first  call  for  contacting  Cherney's  customers  widely 
dispersed  through  the  Midwest  and  East.  Wherever  he  goes,  there's  usually  a 
load  of  samples,  or  finished  parts  of  some  sort,  in  the  Navion's  baggage  com- 
partment. 

CHERNEY'S  FELLOW  CHICAGOAN,  Frank  J.  Pascal,  keeps  him  company  as  o 
satisfied  customer  of  Bill  Turgeon,  Ryan  Navion  dealer  at  the  "Loop  city's"  Sky 
Harbor  Airport.  Owner  of  the  Pascal  Rent-A-Car  System  with  operations  in  Chicago 
and  Los  Angeles,  Pascal  uses  his  own  Ryan  Navion  in  flying  a  busy  route  between 
those  two  cities  and  Detroit,  where  he  purchases  new  equipment.  Pascal  is  another 
Ercoupe  graduate,  having  moved  up  to  the  bigger,  faster  Ryan  Navion  this  year. 

ARIZONA  MAN  PROUD  OF  HIS  PLANE.  "Ryan  Navion  4146K,  which  I  own, 
has  flown  in  excess  of  380  hours  since  it  was  purchased  in  March,  1948.  Aside 
from  regular  25  and  100  hour  checks,  there  has  been  no  additional  mainte- 
nance performed.  Total  cost  of  extra  maintenance  for  the  period  was  $67.  Fuel 
consumption  averaged  9.86  gal/hr,  and  oil  consumption  was  about  one  pt/hr. 
These  figures  were  arrived  at  with  an  average  power  setting  of  22  inches  Hg. 
at  2,080  rpm,  which  gave  me  an  average  true  airspeed  of  140  mph.  The  Ryan 
Navion's  a  real  airplane,  and  I'm  proud  of  it!" — Derek  Von  Dyke,  Phoenix, 
Arizona. 

15  NAVIONS  IN  PORTLAND-TO-PORTLAND  FLIGHT.  Led  by  W.  T.  Peters,  Port- 
land, Oregon,  arc-welding  distributor,  in  his  Navion,  a  contingent  of  more  than 
sixty  personal  airplanes  recently  flew  from  Portland,  Oregon,  to  Portland,  Maine. 
Most  of  the  participating  pilots  were  members  of  the  Portland  (Oregon)  Chamber 
of  Commerce,  and  annually  make  such  a  group  air  tour.  Previous  trips  were  to 
Death  Valley,  to  Mexico  and  Alaska.  During  their  stopover  in  Boise,  Idaho,  the 
private  air  tourists  were  feted  to  luncheon  by  the  IDAHO  DAILY  STATESMAN 
newspaper  in  the  luxurious  patio  of  Bradley  Field,  home  of  Aircraft  Service  Company, 
0  Ryan  Navion  distributor. 

STEVE  BROOKS,  who  rode  Ponder  to  spectacular  triumph  in  the  1949  Kentucky 
Derby,  now  does  all  his  traveling  between  the  nation's  finest  race  tracks  in  a 
Navion  sleek  as  the  thoroughbreds  he  handles  so  well.  He  recently  flew  with 
his  family  from  Dallas  to  Arlington  Pork,  near  Chicago,  where  he  is  under 
contract  to  ride  for  Calumet  stables.  On  or  off  the  record,  he  soys  in  horses, 
it's  Ponder;   in  planes,   it's  Navion. 


Martin 


TWO  NAMED  TO  NEW 
MANAGEMENT  POSTS 

In  a  move  to  establish  the  closest  co- 
ordination between  principal  Ryan  offi- 
cials and  the  shop,  L.  C.  Martin  and  Rob- 
ert L.  Clark,  division  managers,  have  been 
appointed  to  key  management  positions 
as  assistants  to  Executive  Vice  President 
George  C.  Woodard. 

The  new  team  of  Martin  and  Clark  will 
serve  as  the  com- 
pany's top  produc- 
tion and  planning 
specialists.  Establish- 
ment of  the  Manu- 
facturing Control 
group  will  make  it 
possible  for  officers  of 
the  company,  at  all 
times,  to  have  com- 
plete, up-to-the-min- 
ute manufacturing 
and  planning  information  on  which  to 
base  all  decisions  which  effect  the  opera- 
tions of  the  plant. 

It  will  be  the  responsibility  of  Wood- 
ard's  new  assistants  to  set  up  master  plans 
for  all  the  company's  manufacturing  proj- 
ects. From  the  standpoint  of  meeting 
delivery  dates,  controlling  production 
costs  and  maintain- 
ing quality  Martin 
and  Clark  will  pro- 
vide the  liaison  on 
each  project  between 
top  management  and 
the  shop. 

The     new     Manu- 
facturing   Control 
team  will  work  as  a 
unit,    with    Larry 
Clark  Martin     tending      to 

specialize  in  technical  production  prob- 
lems, while  Bob  Clark  will  concentrate 
more  on  scheduling  and  planning. 

As  a  result  of  the  new  set-up,  new  job 
opportunities  have  been  opened  up  for  the 
successors  to  Martin  and  Clark's  positions. 
In  planning  the  new  functions,  the  com- 
pany has  been  able  to  follow  its  policy  of 
advancing  its  own  people  to  positions  of 
greater  responsibility  and  opportunity. 
Selected  to  head  Production  Engineering 
is  H.  P.  Rasp,  while  John  Considine  steps 
into  Clark's  shoes  as  head  of  Production 
Control  and  Dispatching. 

Taking  Rasp's  post  as  Fabrication  Su- 
perintendent is  Bert  Bowling,  formerly 
manufacturing  engineer. 

Better  control  of  manufacturing  oper- 
ations and  improved  efficiency  throughout 
the  plant  is  expected  to  result  from  estab- 
lishment of  the  Manufacturing  Control 
team  in  Woodard's  office,  and  from  reas- 
signments  of  functions  under  the  new 
supervisors. 


OIL  DRILLER'S 
FLYING  MACHINE 

(Continued  from  page  H) 
Thanks  to  just  this  sort  of  "pleasure" 
flying,  the  big,  versatile  plane  has  built  up 
a  backlog  of  goodwill  for  the  Appell  Com- 
pany with  clients  and  prospects  who  have 
been  guests  on  trips  as  far  away  as  the 
interior  of  Mexico — wherever  the  fish  bite 
best  or  the  game  grows  biggest. 

Figuring  up  operational  costs  for  their 
plane  doesn't  blight  the  Appell  Company's 
happy  picture  of  business  air  travel  one 
iota.  Contrary  to  what  non-air  minded 
executives  sometimes  think,  a  150  m.p.h. 
aircraft  like  the  Ryan  Navion  has  proved 
as  cheap  transportation  as  an  automobile. 
Totalling  all  maintenance  items  (gas,  oil, 
repairs,  storage,  etc.),  Appell  accountants 
calculate  the  Navion  costs  about  $5.38 
per  hour  to  operate. 

"From  all  that's  been  said,  you  can  get 
a  pretty  clear  picture  of  why  our  com- 
pany is  sold  on  the  use  of  its  own  air- 
plane," Poole  advises.  "While  being  as 
cheap  as  a  car  to  operate,  the  Ryan  Navion 
has  exactly  what  we  need:  rugged  con- 
struction; the  ability  to  carry  heavy  loads 
in  and  out  of  small,  rough  fields;  ample 
cabin  space;  good  stalling  characteristics 
and  an  easy-to-fly  disposition." 

— Robert  F.  Smith 

PRECISION  ON  THE 
PRODUCTION  LINE 

(Continued  from  page  9) 
welding  machine.  From  here  it  travels  to 
the  flash  welding  operator  who,  when  he 
is  finished  securing  the  ends,  puts  it  into 
another  box  to  progress  on  down  the  line 
to  necessary  stations  for  additional  oper- 
ations, like  normalizing,  before  going  to 
the  punch  presses  for  a  final  forming  or 
to  the  air  mandrels  for  sizing  and  form- 
ing. After  these  numerous  stages  in  de- 
velopment the  final  small  part  is  ready  for 
the  main  assembly  line. 

Maintaining  an  even  flow  of  work  is 
the  production  job  this  department's  oper- 
ators excell  in.  The  parts  haie  to  be  ready 
for  the  jig  assemblers  on  time  or  produc- 
tion all  along  the  line  will  be  held  up 
through  lack  of  coordination  of  func- 
tions. 

Back  at  the  jig  tables,  the  sections,  after 
small  parts  are  tacked  on,  are  ready  to  be 
moved  to  final  arc  and  spot-welding  jobs 
and  a  cleanup  in  the  sandblasting  cham- 
ber. Operators  here  wear  special  rubber- 
ized suits,  fitted  with  a  great  headpiece, 
resembling  a  diver's  mask,  which  protects 
them  from  the  spray  and  force  of  the 
8  5  pounds  air  pressure,  plus  sand,  which 
is  blown  against  the  manifold  parts  to 
clean  any  scale  resulting  from  welding 
processes. 


"The  welds  on  the  brightened  parts, 
after  they  leave  the  sandblasting  cham- 
bers, are  now  visually  inspected  and  any 
re-welding  is  handled  by  one  of  the  men 
near  the  checking  tables,"  according  to 
Joe  Love,  Foreman  for  this  phase  of  mani- 
fold production.  After  passing  inspection, 
the  various  sections  are  "bumped,"  which 
is  factoryese  for  smoothing  out  any  dents 
or  wrinkles  by  tapping  with  a  hammer. 
Parts  are  fitted  over  rounded  steel  forms 
and  held  by  the  operator  while  he  knocks 
out  any  slight  mars  accrued  during  jig 
normalizing  operations  and  handling. 

The  final  line-up  jigs  are  the  next  stop 
in  the  assembly  line.  Here  the  parts  are 
aligned  to  the  fiixtures  which  are  replicas 
of  the  engine  the  manifold  is  to  fit.  Tol- 
erances are  again  carefully  checked  on 
these  final  jigs,  as  well  as  the  location  of 
hanger  pin  holes,  flanges,  port  tubes,  col- 
lars and  other  small  parts  which  have  been 
welded  to  the  collector  sections. 

After  aligning,  sections  go  to  a  final 
welding  area  for  checking  and  re-welding. 
After  the  ends  have  been  sized  to  within 
5  1000  of  an  inch,  the  parts  are  dipped 
in  an  acid  rinse,  known  as  a  passivating 
operation,  and  are  finally  ready  for  ship- 
ment. 

Each  part  is  carefully  fitted  into  a  box 
designed  especially  to  hold  it  safely  dur- 
ing its  air  or  rail  journey  to  the  aircraft 
it  was  planned  for  and  built  to  service. 
Row  after  row  of  parts  are  neatly  lined 
up  on  shelves  in  the  Shipping  Department 
or  stacked  in  small,  wheeled  boxes;  a  com- 
plete manifold  section  to  a  box  to  facili- 
tate easy  identifiication  for  the  packers. 
Numerous  shipments  go  out  each  day 
from  Shipping,  ready  for  quick  attach- 
ment to  the  engines  of  most  of  the  coun- 
try's leading  aircraft  manufacturers. 

From  the  first  line  on  an  engineer's 
drawing  board,  to  the  final  wad  of  excel- 
sior stuffed  into  a  packing  box  to  hold  a 
part  securely,  Ryan-built  exhaust  mani- 
folds go  through  uncounted  operations. 
Perfection  resulting  in  long,  trouble-free 
service  is  the  goal  at  each  stop  along  the 
production  line.  Manifolds  are  not  easily 
built,  but  once  they  are  ready  for  ship- 
ment they  represent  thousands  of  man 
hours  of  precision  work. 

In  a  later  issue  of  the  Ryan  Reporter 
the  story  of  the  company's  manifold 
service  policies  will  appear.  Even  after 
the  steel  exhaust  systems  are  clamped 
on  the  engine,  Ryan's  job  does  not  end. 
It  is  the  company's  responsibility  to  see 
that  its  product  maintains  a  high  standard 
of  service,  which  means  instruction  for 
mechanics  by  our  field  service  representa- 
tives, operation  booklets  and  numberless 
other  details  which  help  maintain  our  posi- 
tion as  the  country's  "leading  stainless 
steel  fabricator  for  the  aircraft  and  air- 
craft engine  industry." 


\6 


PAN  AM  GETS  TENTH 
BOEING  STRATOGRUISER 

Boeing  Airplane  Company  recently 
reached  the  half-way  mark  in  its  Strato- 
cruiser  delivery  program  to  Pan  American 
World  Airways  when  it  turned  over  a 
tenth  plane  under  a  contract  for  twenty 
of  the  7 5 -passenger,  double-deck  airliners. 

The  recent  delivery  has  been  named  the 
Clipper  Bald  Eagle  and  will  make  sched- 
uled trans-Pacific  flights  from  Pan  Am's 
Pacific-Alaska  Division  headquarters  in 
San  Francisco.  The  airline  received  its 
first  Stratocruiser,  the  Clipper  America, 
January  31.  Since  then,  the  new  Boeing 
plane  has  entered  regular  service  on  four 
PAA  routes.  They  are  the  San  Francisco- 
Honolulu,  Los  Angeles-Honolulu,  New 
York-Bermuda  and  New  York-London 
flights. 

Other  Stratocruisers,  for  which  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company  is  building  rear 
fuselage  assemblies,  are  under  construc- 
tion at  Boeing,  Seattle,  for  American  Over- 
seas Airlines,  Northwest  Airlines,  British 
Overseas  Airways  Corporations  and  United 
Air  Lines. 

In  addition  to  building  rear  fuselages 
for  the  Stratocruiser,  Ryan  also  fabricates 
the  manifold  systems  used  on  the  huge, 
four-engine  plane,  so  popular  with  both 
commercial  airlines  and  the  Air  Forces. 

TRACK  LANDING  GEAR 
FOR  G-82  PACKETS 

The  first  production  model  of  the  Fair- 
child  Track  Landing  Gear  was  recently 
delivered  to  the  20th  Troop  Carrier 
Squadron  of  the  314th  Troop  Carrier 
Wing  stationed  in  Tennessee.  The  track- 
equipped  C-82  marked  the  first  of  eighteen 
installations  now  in  production. 

Under  the  present  contract  all  C-82 
Packets  equipped  with  tracks  will  be  de- 
livered to  the  20th,  making  it  the  first 
completely  track-equipped  troop  carrier 
squadron.  Under  present  plans  the  Air 
Force  will  use  the  unit  for  special  oper- 
ational testing. 

Ryan-built  exhaust  manifolds  are  stand- 
ard equipment  on  all  Fairchild  C-82s. 


"240"  AHEAD  WITH  RYAN  MANIFOLDS 


(Continued  from  page  7 ) 
gine  cylinders.  Up  to  70,000  pounds  of  air 
per  hour  at  take-off  power  are  needed  to 
cool  each  engine,  adequate  cooling  on  the 
ground  being  assured  because  the  pump- 
ing action  varies  with  engine  speed  rather 
than  with  the  forward  speed  of  the  air- 
plane. 


A  striking  new  feature  of  the  new 
"240"  Convair-Liner  is  the  novel  "orange- 
peel"cowling  which  surrounds  the  engine. 
It  is  built  in  four  sections,  each  hinged  at 
the  firewall.  The  cowling  may  be  opened 
within  seconds,  exposing  the  entire  engine 
area  for  simplified  maintenance  and  in- 
spection. 


ARMY  TAKES  NAVION  MAINTENANCE  COURSE  AT  RYAN 

A  tech  sergeant's  enthusiasm  was  instrumental  in  the  Army's  recent  decision 
to  send  personnel  to  the  Ryan  Navion  Factory  Maintenance  School. 

Sgt.  James  Goodwin  had  taken  the  course  with  Ryan  Navion  distributor  and 
dealer  representatives  last  February,  and  was  so  pleased  with  the  practical  instruc- 
tion he  received  that  he  never  stopped  talking  about  it  once  he  returned  to  duty 
at  Fort  Monroe,  Va. 

His  commanding  officer  was  quick  to  see  the  logic  of  a  factory-conducted 
maintenance  course  and  went  to  work  sounding  out  other  Field  Forces  officers 
on  the  advisability  of  arranging  classes  for  the  men  responsible  for  servicing  the 
Army's  L-17  Navions.  The  outcome  was  a  series  of  four  classes  at  the  factory 
for  Army  and  National  Guard  personnel. 

Students  attending  these  sessions  hailed  from  bases  in  nearly  every  state,  with 
Sgt.  Juan  U.  Alemany  arriving  from  the  far-off  insular  territory  of  Puerto  Raco. 

Jack  Lucast,  Ryan  Navion  Field  Service  Representative,  was  chief  instructor. 

"It  is  desired  to  express  the  appreciation  of  the  National  Guard  Bureau  to  you 
for  your  assistance  in  making  these  arrangements  for  the  training  of  key  National 
Guard  personnel,"  wrote  Colonel  Thomas  L.  Martin,  Chief  of  the  Army  Organ- 
ization and  Training  Group,  National  Guard  Bureau,  in  a  letter  to  Walter  O. 
Locke,  Ryan  Contract  Administrator,  confirming  the  class  dates. 


JULY   6,    1949  VOL.    10,   No.    6 

Publhhed  By 
Ryan   Aeronautical   Company,   Lindbergh  Field,  San  Diego   12,  California 


editor Frances  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  editor Robert  F.  Smith,  Navion  news  editor 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographer William  Wagner,  editorial  director. 


17 


R.    K.    BRAITir^AIT 

4071    HAi:iES 

SAN   DIEGO,    CALIF, 


Sec.  562,  P.  L.  6C  R. 

U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego,  California 
Permit  No.  437 


lyi^iMS? 


_5T 


^ 


_5T_ 


Mi©ia©if![g^ 


-^'. 


Metal  Products 


^ 


DIVISION    OF    RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY      •      LINDBERGH    FIELD      •      SAN    DIEGO,     CALIFORNIA 

Exhaust    Systems      •      Turbo-Jet    and    Ram-Jet    Components 


rvu4i^t. 


REPORTER 


At  Douglas  Aircraft  Company  in  Santo  Monico,  Jock  Zippwald, 
Ryan  Soles  Engineer  (center),  discusses  DC-6  ond  C-54  exhaust 
manifold  design  with  P.  hi.  Thompson,  Power  Plant  Technical 
Enginer    (I.),    and    Ivor   Shogron,    Chief   of    Power    Plant    Section. 


At  the  General  Electric  jet  engine  plant  in  Lockland,  Ohio, 
Jimmy  Stolnaker  (I.),  Ryan  Sales  Engineer;  Claude  Auger,  G.E. 
Division  Engineer  (center),  and  Chorles  Byrne,  Chief  Engineer 
of  Ryon's  Metal   Products   Division,   confer  on  J-47   tail   cones. 


Unlike  many  business  firms  which  had 
it  pretty  soft  from  1941  through  1948, 
the  aviation  industry  has  always  had  to 
turn  out  a  first  rate  product,  to  the  cus- 
tomer's technically  exacting  demands, 
and  consequently  doesn't  need  to  re-learn 
the  old  sales  adage  about  the  "customer 
always  being  right." 

Aviation  products  and  component 
parts,  unlike  most  other  manufactured 
items,  have  to  be  carefully  checked  over 
after  they  go  into  service  to  see  that  every- 
thing functions  according  to  design  and 
this  is  the  reason  Ryan  maintains  not  only 
a  Metal  Products  Sales  Division  but  a 
corollary  Service  Department  of  trained 
men  within  that  sales  division.  These  men, 
many  of  them  aircraft  and  mechanical 
engineers  and  practical  shop  craftsmen, 
are  the  troubleshooters  who  not  only  put 
the  finger  on  exhaust  systems  or  jet  parts 
service  problems  but  work  closely  with 
the  engineers  and  designers  of  other  air- 
craft companies  in  the  solving  of  mechan- 
ical problems  of  new  aircraft  develop- 
ments before  the  planes  are  off  the  draw- 
ing boards. 

Almost  anytime  a  visitor  goes  into  the 
Metal  Products  offices  to  look  for  some- 
one, he'll  be  told  that,  "Bruce  Todd  is  in 
Fort  Worth  this  week,"  or  that  "Jack 
Zippwald  went  to  Douglas  for  two  days." 
Ask  for  practically  anyone  of  the  seven 
sales  and  service  representatives  and  you'll 
find  them  at  other  plants  from  Baltimore 
to  Seattle,  busy  ironing  out  manifold 
problems  or  taking  new  orders  for  stain- 
less steel  components  which  keep  many 
military  and  commercial  planes  in  the  air. 

The  reason  the  boys  are  "on  the  road" 
so  much  can  be  summed  up  in  one  word: 
Seri'ice.  When  Ryan  builds  a  manifold  it 
is  engineered  to  rigid  specifications.  To 
guarantee  that  these  requirements  of  per- 
formance and  long  life  are  met,  sales  en- 
gineers like  Jimmy  Stalnaker,  Rod  Mc- 
Donough,  Bruce  Todd,  Jack  Zippwald  and 
"Frenchy"  Foushee  must  be  on  the  job 
constantly,  checking  those  parts  already 
in  use  or  working  with  engineers  at  other 
plants  on  the  design  of  new  manifolds 
based  on  the  findings  of  Ryan's  past  ex- 
perience in  stainless  steel  fabrication. 

Only  last  month,  Bruce  Todd,  newest 
addition  to  the  sales  engineering  force, 
spent  much  time  at  Seattle  in  consulta- 
tion on  a  tailpipe  for  the  Boeing  B-47 
Stratojet  bomber.  This  tailpipe  was  a  cinch 
for  Bruce  and  the  men  in  Ryan's  Mani- 
fold Engineering  Department  to  design. 
The  company's  experience  in  building  aft 
assembly  components  for  powerful  engines 

(Continued  on  page  15) 


Exhaust  systems  of  the  well-known  bomber  pictured  on  wall  at  rear  ore  the 
subject  of  a  consultation  between  Convolr  powerplont  engineers  Dolton  J. 
Suggs  (I.I  and  Paul  Lynch  (r. I  with  Ryan's  Sales  Engineer  Bruce  Todd  during 
a  recent  trip  he  mode  to  the  Ft.  Worth  plant  where  the  giant  plane  is  built. 

Service  Anywhere  For 
Ryan  Metal  Products 

A  manifold  Service  check  on  the  Convair  240  is  mode  by  Frank  Voll,  Engineer- 
ing Coordinator  (second  from  right),  and  Harry  Schmidt,  Manifold  Engineer  (for 
right) ,  with  Convair  engineers  Dan  Applegate,  Glen  Korel  and  G.   D.   McVickers. 


JUST  WHAT  THE  DOCTOR  ORDERED 


The  patient  put  up  considerable  resist- 
ance. Even  though  he  had  a  perforated 
stomach  and  needed  immediate  surgical 
attention  and  life-saving  blood  transfu- 
sions he  didn't  want  to  be  flown  to  the 
hospital  in  a  Navion,  or  any  other  plane. 
But  time  was  precious  and  the  roads  be- 
tween his  home  and  the  hospital  were 
rough  and  time-consuming,  so  over  his 
pleadings  and  protests  the  doctor  put  him 
aboard  in  a  stretcher.  The  operation  was 
a  success,  thanks  to  the  speed  with  which 
the  patient  reached  the  operating  table  and 
an  adamant  medico  who  wouldn't  be 
swayed  in  his  determination  to  do  what  he 
thought  best.  The  only  trouble  resulting 
from  this  incident  was  the  patient's  anger 
when  told  that  the  doctor  wouldn't  fly 
him  back  home  from  the  hospital  but 
would  send  him  in  a  car  instead! 

Hero  of  this  ironic  little  story  was  Dr. 
Roy  F.  Courtney  of  Burlington,  Colorado, 
Navion  owner  and  pilot,  who  uses  his 
personal-business  plane  as  often  as  ten 
times  a  month  to  fly  between  Burlington 
and  Cheyenne  Wells  or  between  Burling- 
ton and  Denver  on  business.  The  doctor 
owns  and  manages  two  hospitals  in  the 
eastern  Colorado  towns,  and  like  so  many 
other  M.D.s  and  dentists  finds  the  Navion 
a  superb  adjunct  to  operations,  consulta- 
tions and  trips  to  medical  society  meet- 
ings, not  to  mention  the  plane  as  perfect 
transportation   over    weekends    when    the 


Dr.  W.  F.  McGinnis  of  Mf.  Pleasant, 
Mich.,  puts  his  Navion  to  good  use 
carrying  emergency  cases  to  hos- 
pitals    or     for     personol     flying     time. 

owners  want  to  "get  away  from  it  all"  in 
the  usual  short  periods  medical  men  allow 
themselves  away  from  their  offices. 

A  firm  believer  in  relaxation  for  busy 
physicians  is  John  Barrow,  M.D.  of  Dale, 
Indiana.  He  finds  his  Navion  speeds  him 
to   favorite  lakes   for  fishing  in   a   matter 


of  only  a  few  hours.  Whereas  a  short 
week's  vacation  often  meant  spending  two 
or  three  days  on  the  road,  Dr.  Barrow 
now  can  get  away  from  the  office  for  a 
fishing  trip  on  a  moment's  notice  and 
spend  only  as  much  time  as  he  feels  he 
can  spare  away  from  his  medical  duties 
without  thought  of  timetables,  car  mile- 
age or  being  out  of  reach  with  his  office 
in  case  of  an  emergency  call. 

Pleasure  is  not  the  only  use  Barrow  finds 
for  the  Navion.  No  place  is  too  far  nor 
inaccessible  for  a  call.  "Quite  frequently," 
he  says,  "I  arise  early  in  the  morning,  fly 
a  300-mile  round-trip  and  am  back  in  my 
office  by  my  9  a.m.  opening  time. 

"I  have  hauled  supplies  in  my  Navion 
when  it  would  have  been  impossible  to  do 
it  any  other  way.  Several  times  I  flew  for 
some  important  drug  that  was  badly  need- 
ed to  save  a  life.  Had  I  not  had  such  fast 
transportation  the  outcome  would  have 
been  quite  different.  My  patients  have 
come  to  feel  that  my  flying  benefits 
them." 

One  dentist's  Navion  helps  him  keep 
wriggling  small  fry  sitting  quietly  while 
he  works  on  their  teeth.  As  Dr.  D.  P. 
Miller,  of  Appleton,  Minnesota,  says  him- 
self, "Many's  the  child  who  will  sit  quiet- 
ly in  the  dentist's  chair  for  the  promise  of 
an  airplane  ride."  In  addition  to  being 
used  as  a  pacifier  for  the  younger  patients, 
Dr.  Miller's  Navion  takes  him  to  his  cabin 


Dr.  Frank  A.   Brewster  of  Holdrege,  Neb.,  famous  "flying   doctor"  who  made   first  use  of  airplane    for    medical    work    in    1919 
stands  on  wing  of  his  Navion.    In  front  of  plane  are   his  two  sons,  also   pilots.   Dr.   F.   Wayne    Brewster    and    Dr.    Don    Brewster. 


on  weekends  to  rest  from  the  week's 
routine.  "Four  people  need  a  lot  of  stuff 
for  a  long  weekend,"  the  dentist  says.  "My 
Navion  can  handle  it  all.  I  don't  have  to 
weigh  my  baggage  or  carry  my  pajamas 
in  a  paper  bag  or  box,  as  some  of  my 
friends  do.  And  I  like  being  able  to  take 
three  passengers. 

"Business  flying  rates  attention  from 
me,  too,"  continues  the  Minnesota  flying 
enthusiast.  "I  am  director  of  the  Larson 
Watercraft  Company  in  Little  Falls,  and 
flying  is  my  only  means  of  getting  to 
directors'  meetings.  I  also  depend  on  my 
plane  for  getting  up  to  Crosby,  North 
Dakota — 6  50  miles — each  year  to  check 
on  some  farms." 

Like  Dr.  Courtney,  Dr.  Louis  S.  Dewey 
of  Okanogan,  Washington,  also  uses  his 
Navion  as  a  fast,  1  JO-mile-per-hour  air 
ambulance.  His  plane  rushes  patients  to 
the  hospital  three  or  four  hours  sooner 
than  would  otherwise  be  possible.  There 
are  only  two  small  hospitals  in  the  Okano- 
gan Valley  and  when  severe  accidents 
occur  or  specialists  are  needed  for  particu- 
larly complicated  operations.  Dr.  Dewey's 
Navion  gets  the  sick  to  more  elaborate 
hospital  and  medical  facilities  in  a  hurry. 

He  says,  "It's  easy  to  see  the  difference 
in  the  condition  a  patient  arrives  in  when 
I  fly  him  to  Spokane  in  50  smooth  air 
minutes  rather  than  sending  him  over  the 
rough,  three-hour  highway  route.  To 
Seattle  it's  a  matter  of  75  minutes  by  air 
instead  of  six  hours  on  the  road." 


Conversion   of  the    Navion    into    on    oi 
by  the  installation  cf  a  stretcher.  Rooi 


nbulance    plane    is   quickly    accomplished 
n  is  still  left  for  doctor,  nurse  and  pilot. 


In  Okanogan,  Washington,  seasonal  changes  of  an  abrupt  nature  and  rough  flying 
fields  made  Dr.  Louis  Dewey  doubly  appreciative  of  his  Navion,  which  he  uses 
to    fly    patients    to    hospitals    in    Spokane    and    Seattle    in    one-third    driving    time. 


Flying  where  the  climate  runs  the  ga- 
mut of  seasonal  changes.  Dr.  Dewey  has 
been  pleased  with  the  performance  of  the 
airplane  in  the  worst  kind  of  flight  and 
landing  conditions.  "Most  of  my  take- 
offs,"  he  explains,  "are  from  small  fields. 
Many  times  this  last  winter  I  had  to  take 
off  and  land  in  packed  and  unpacked  snow 
sometimes  five  inches  deep.  Even  mud  as 
much  as  three  inches  deep  frequently  cov- 
ered a  landing  strip." 

His  Navion  met  such  tough  conditions 
successfully  largely  because  of  its  rugged 
tricycle  landing  gear  and  extra-large 
steerable  nosewheel — which  combined  to 
provide  safe,  effective  handling  for  taxi- 
ing, take-offs  and  landings. 

Lest  the  reader  think  private  flying  is 
only  for  the  younger  medical  man  let  him 
ponder  the  longtime  flying  record  of  Dr. 
Frank  A.  Brewster  of  Holdrege,  Nebraska, 
world-renowned  as  the  first  "flying  doc- 
tor." This  air  enthusiast  made  his  first 
emergency  medical  flight  in  an  old  Jenny 
back  in  1919.  Since  then  he  has  flown 
countless  hours  and  miles  to  tend  his  pa- 
tients throughout  the  state  and  to  admin- 
ister the  affairs  of  his  clinic.  After  being 
piloted  by  others  for  26  years.  Dr.  Brew- 
ster learned  to  fly  himself  in  1945 — at  the 
age  of  71!  Since  then  he  has  logged  hun- 
dreds of  hours  of  flying  time. 

In  1948  he  bought  a  Ryan  Navion, 
(Continued  on  page  14) 


ii 


MABEL"  RMLLY 
GETS  LOiiDED 


A  single-seated,  carrier-based  dive 
bomber  which  carries  a  payload  of  7066 
pounds  of  armament  and  fuel  and  flies 
with  a  total  weight  of  1 5  tons  is  in  drama- 
tic contrast  with  the  same  type  plane  of 
20  years  ago  which  carried  only  one  1000- 
pound  bomb  or  torpedo  and  flew  with  a 
maximum  weight  of  only  6147  pounds. 

The  early  day  dive  bomber,  out  of 
which  evolved  today's  fast,  heavy  striking 
weapon,  was  the  Martin-built  BM-1.  Its 
successor  with  the  great  weight  is  also 
Martin-built.  It  is  the  AM-1,  officially 
named  "Mauler,"  but  unofficially  dubbed 
by  carrier  pilots  and  crews  who  have  flown 
her  as  "Able  Mabel" — for  the  letters  A 
and  M. 

First  flight  tests  of  the  Mauler  were 
held  last  year  aboard  the  carrier  USS  Kear- 
sarge  and  early  in  1949  aboard  the  USS 
Leyte.  During  these  testing  periods  the 
plane  carried  as  many  as  twelve  5 -inch 
rockets  and  three  2200-pound  torpedoes, 
or  four  20  milHmeter  cannon  plus  ammu- 
nition, twelve  2  50-pound  bombs  and  three 
torpedoes,  a  truly  formidable  load  of  ex- 
plosives. 


(Above)     Ben    Castillo    lines    up    Mauler    manifold    parts    and    checks    tolerances    at    Ryan    plant.     (Below)     Mechan 
Martin  Co.   installing    Ryon-built  exhaust  systems   on    Pratt   &   Whitney    Wasp   Major   engines  which  power  the  heo 


Ics   at   Glenn    L. 
eavy  dive-bomber. 


As  early  as  June  of  1945,  when  the 
AM-1  was  in  its  formative,  or  drawing 
board  stage,  Ryan  engineers  were  work- 
ing on  a  suitable  exhaust  system  for  the 
ship  that  packs  such  a  mighty  wallop. 
Long  hours  went  into  the  design  of  the 
ejector-type  stacks,  resembling  the  systems 
Ryan  builds  for  the  Douglas  DC-6  and  the 
P2V2  Neptunes  of  Lockheed.  The  extra 
propulsive  thrust  of  the  hot  gases  expelled 
by  this  particular  type  of  manifold  is 
worth  an  extra  100  horsepower  to  the 
engine  of  the  plane  in  which  the  system  is 
installed. 

Particularly  thorny  was  the  problem  of 
carrying  the  tremendous  force  of  the  gases 
through  extremely  narrow  stacks,  due  to 
the  closeness  of  the  engine  and  the  walls 
of  the  engine  cowling  on  the  Mauler. 
Original  designs  called  for  a  smaller  en- 
gine but  before  the  plane  was  finally  ap- 
proved another  type  of  engine,  the  Pratt 
&  Whitney,  32  50-horsepower  Wasp  Major 
was  decided  upon.  This  extra  size  within 
Able  Mabel's  nacelle  necessitated  some 
hairline  planning  to  get  the  stainless  steel 
stacks  to  fit. 

As  an  operational  plane,  the  Mauler  is 
capable  of  the  extensive  range  of  2000 
miles,  which  is  amazing  considering  its 
gross  weight.  The  plane  has  a  50-foot 
wing  span  and  is  41  feet,  6  inches  long, 
making  it  the  largest  and  heaviest  torpedo 
or  dive  bomber  attack  plane  ever  to  be 
launched  from  carrier  decks. 

The  torpedoes,  rockets  and  bombs  Mabel 
packs  along  are  carried  in  shackles  under 
the  fuselage  and  wings,  while  the  small 
bore  cannon  are  mounted  in  the  leading 
edges  of  the  wings,  two  on  each  side. 

This  heavy  plane,  of  which  the  Navy 
ordered  149,  has  a  better  than  300  m.p.h. 
speed,  fully  loaded,  compared  to  the  puny 
speed  and  armament  of  the  earlier  Martin- 
built  BM-ls.  It  was  those  early  biplanes, 
nonetheless,  which  the  U.  S.  Navy  used 
to  develop  its  murderous  dive  bomber  and 
torpedo  tactics  which  worked  so  success- 
fully against  enemy  shipping  in  World 
War  II.  Data  gleaned  from  the  20-year-old 
planes,  with  their  52  5-horsepower  Pratt 
&  Whitney  Hornet  engines,  helped  make 
possible  today's  super  fighting  aircraft. 


Of  the  two  AM- Is  shown  here,  the  one  on 
the  left  is  carrying  the  larger  payload. 
The  2000-pound  bomb  in  center,  two  "Tiny 
Tim"  rockets  and  1 2  five-inch  rockets 
give    it   25,737-pound    gross   flying    weight. 


.^"SS-^v-^tL  i^rTrfsS 


Were  it  possible  for  the  television  cameras  to  record  Godfrey  flying   his  Navion  the  scene  might  look  like  one  above. 

GODFREY:  On  the  k  and  In  tk  k 


You,  the  wife  and  children,  plus  nu- 
merous distant  relations  and  neighbors 
who  "just  dropped  by,"  are  sitting  in 
front  of  your  newly  purchased  television 
set.  The  lights  have  been  lowered.  The  last 
scraping  of  chairs  has  faded  as  the  assem- 
bled throng  finally  gets  itself  ensconced 
for  the  evening's  entertainment.  Those 
helpful  remarks  like,  "Why  don't  you 
turn  that  knob  on  the  right  and  get  rid 
of  the  blur,"  or  "My  wife's  brother's  set 
doesn't  have  those  spots,  but  of  course  he 
paid  $795  for  his,"  have  finally  been 
quelled  and  things  are  ready. 

It  is  8:30  p.m.,  Monday  evening  and 
the  Arthur  Godfrey  Show  is  about  to  go 
on  the  air.  Tonight's  entertainment,  spon- 
sored by  Chesterfield  cigarettes,  gets  off  to 
a  good  start  with  music.  Godfrey  makes  a 
wry  remark  or  two.  There  is  some  sing- 


«>JP*'^'-. 


According  to  passengers  who  have 
flown  with  Godfrey  he  is  cool  and 
attentive     at     the     Novion's    controls. 


ing,  and  then  one  of  the  country's  best 
known  private  plane  enthusiasts  wheels 
out  a  small  scale  model  of  the  1949  Ryan 
Navion,  sent  him  by  the  Ryan  Aeronau- 
tical Company  for  use  during  his  visual 
broadcasts. 

Godfrey  switches  a  small  lever  in  the 
plane's  cabin  and  the  propeller  whirls. 
Very  realistic-like.  On  the  wings  of  the 
model  are  painted  the  C.'\A  license  num- 
bers which  Godfrey  has  on  his  own  Na- 
vion. After  some  preliminaries  about  "how 
an  airplane  flies,"  during  which  Godfrey 
moves  the  model  plane's  control  surfaces 
to  demonstrate  a  point,  he  begins  to  rhap- 
sodize. "I  like  the  Navion  becau-se  it's  an 
airplane  for  a  very  sloppy  pilot  like  my- 
self who  flies  once  every  other  weekend 
or  something.  It's  an  airplane  you  don't 
h.ive  to  get  checked  out  in  every  ten  min- 


utes.  It's  an  airplane  that  will  take  care  of 
you — if  you  want  it  to — if  you  get  in  a 
jam.  It's  an  airplane  that  forgives  your 
mistakes.  If  you  make  errors  with  the 
Navion,  it  doesn't  matter.  The  thing 
comes  out  of  it  itself  and  tells  you,  'hey, 
hey,  what's  wrong  with  you,  you  jerk?'  " 

But  don't  let  those  self-deprecatory  re- 
marks fool  you.  As  a  pilot  Arthur  is  no 
slouch.  He  has  logged  more  than  2  500 
hours  since  he  made  his  first  flight  as  a 
17-year-old  apprentice  seaman  at  a  Navy 
radio  school  in  1920.  According  to  pas- 
sengers who  have  flown  with  Godfrey,  he 
is  cool  and  attentive  at  the  controls  and 
a  stickler  for  having  everything  in  top 
shape  before  he  takes  off  to  fly  from  his 
home  near  Leesburg,  Virginia,  to  Teter- 
boro  Airport  in  New  Jersey,  where  he 
parks  his  Navion  before  beginning  the 
weekly  round  of  radio  and  television 
shows. 

Television  audiences  are  not  the  only 
Godfrey  fans  to  hear  about  the  speedy, 
all-purpose  personal  plane.  Hardly  a  week 
passes  but  what  this  Navion  owner 
doesn't  mention  his  plane,  a  '48  model,  or 
comment  on  private  flying,  its  uses  and 
abuses,  over  the  CBS  network  on  his  morn- 
ing radio  shows  for  Lipton's  Tea. 

His  infectious  enthusiasm  for  private 
flying  and  the  Navion  as  the  plane  to  do 
it  in,  has  captured  the  interest  of  many 
other  Navion  owners,  who  never  miss  a 
Godfrey  broadcast.  He  has  had  many  let- 
ters from  them  telling  how  they  always 
pick  up  his  program  even  while  flying 
their  own  planes. 

Because  of  this  aviation  enthusiasm 
many  people  have  learned  to  fly  and 
bought  planes  after  hearing  Arthur  talk 
about  the  fun  and  pleasure  he  receives 
from  his  own  aircraft.  Bill  Cullen,  a  fel- 
low Columbia  Broadcasting  announcer 
and  M.C.  on  the  "Hit  the  Jackpot"  pro- 
gram, recently  bought  a  Navion  and  cited 
Godfrey's  influence  as  deciding  him  on 
this  particular  plane. 

Dr.  Elliott  Finger  of  Marion,  South 
Carolina,  was  another  Godfrey  fan  whose 
interest  in  private  flying  was  piqued  by 
the  enthusiasm  of  the  commentator.  The 
Doctor  had  a  demonstration  from  Hugh 
Eudy,  Navion  distributor  of  Hcnderson- 
ville.  South  Carolina,  and  bought  a  plane. 
A  telegram  Finger  sent  Godfrey,  w^hich 
was  subsequently  read  over  the  air,  said, 
"I  heard  you  plug  the  Navion  and  went 
out  and  had  a  demonstration.  Now  I  have 
a  Navion,  and  a  carton  of  Chesterfields, 
all  as  a  result  of  your  persuasive  broad- 
casts." 

His  friends  get  as  much  pleasure  out  of 
the  radioman's  plane  as  he  does.  Instead  of 
letting  the  Navion  just  sit  in  the  hangar 
at  the  Teterboro  Airport  while  he  broad- 
casts and  televises,  Godfrey  has  Bob  Ulik 
fly   the  plane  to  take  friends  on  business 


or  pleasure  trips  when  it  is  not  being 
used  by  the  genial  radio  personality.  Ulik 
was  formerly  a  pilot  for  Mallard  Air  Ser- 
vice, Ryan  Navion  distributors  for  Greater 
New  York,  whose  president.  Bob  Hewitt, 
has  worked  long  and  intimately  with  God- 
frey on  his  personal  flying  interests. 

In  a  recent  broadcast  Godfrey  was  talk- 
ing about  his  picture  in  the  spring  issue 
of  Radio  Album  magazine,  which  he 
didn't  think  looked  too  good  on  the  cover. 
Then  he  turned  to  the  inside  pages  and 
remarked,  "Oh,  oh,  and  on  page  17.  Oh, 
that's  a  good  shot!  There's  a  good  picture 
of  the  inside  of  the  Navion.  See  it?  Can 
you  see  that?  That's  ^ood.  That's  the  old 
Navion.  That's  before  I  got  this  new  one. 
That  reminds  me,  I've  got  to  get  another 
new  one.  Have  you  seen  the  new  '49 
model  of  the  Ryan  Navion,  Ben?  Oh, 
brother,  why  do  they  do  that?  I  was  just 
getting  used  to  mine  you  know.  I  flew  it 
up  here  yesterday  with  Bob  Hewitt  from 
Virginia.  I  am  telling  you  I  have  never 
had  anything  so  thrilling  in  my  life.  That 


doggone  thing  climbed  1400  feet  the  first 
5  0  seconds.  I  took  off  out  of  Leesburg, 
you  know,  thinking,  as  usual,  I'd  have  to 
sneak  around  through  the  trees  and  find 
a  hole  somewhere.  Boom,  I  had  a  1000 
feet  so  fast  I  didn't  know  what  to  do. 
Gosh,  it's  a  wonderful  ship.  Let  me  see 
what  this  story  says  here.  It  says,  'God- 
frey loves  flying  but  the  real  reason  he 
commutes  by  plane  has  to  do  with  time 
saving.  He's  on  daily  for  Lipton  Tea  and 
on  Monday  evening  for  Chesterfields.'  " 

Not  content  just  to  use  the  plane  for 
commuting  and  "time  saving,"  as  the 
article  implied,  Godfrey  has  also  flown  his 
Navion  in  many  eificiency  flights  and  pri- 
vate plane  regattas  sponsored  by  the  Air- 
craft Owners  and  Pilots  Association  to 
demonstrate  the  high  performance  of  per- 
sonal aircraft.  In  recognition  for  the  yeo- 
man work  he  has  done  in  helping  boost 
private  aviation  and  safe  and  sane  flying 
through  his  broadcasts  and  articles,  the 
National  Flight  System,  in  1948,  presented 
(Continued  on  page  12) 


"Hove  you  see  the  new  '49  model  of  the  Ryan  Novion,  Ben?  Oh,  brother,  why  do 
they  do  that?  I  was  just  getting  used  to  mine  you  know.  I  flew  it  up  here  yes- 
terday   from    Virginia.    I    have    never    hod    anything    so    thrilling    in    all    my    life." 


The  name  stamped  on  many  of  the 
world's  most  powerful  and  "hottest"  en- 
gines— for  which  Ryan  builds  exhaust 
cones  and  other  stainless  steel  parts — is 
also  the  name  attached  to  some  of  the 
world's  hottest  stoves  and  coldest  ice- 
boxes. Maker  of  these  engines,  plus  the 
countless  products  dear  to  the  hearts  of 
America's  housewives,  is  General  Electric, 
a  name  with  which  Ryan  has  long  been 
linked  in  the  development  and  manufac- 
ture of  thermal  jet  components  and  high- 
speed aircraft. 

Current  production  line  activities  in 
Ryan's  Metal  Products  Division  include 
the  jet  cone  assembly  line  for  the  manu- 
facture of  several  G.E.  J-47  jet  engine 
parts,  including  transition  liners,  inner  and 
outer  exhaust  cones  and  inner  combustion 
chambers.  This  powerful  engine  now  driv- 
ing many  combat  planes,  including  the 
Air  Force's  F-86  fighters  and  B-45  bomb- 
ers, both  built  by  North  American,  is  not 
the  first  G.E.  jet  product  with  which 
Ryan  has  worked. 


Ryan's  "Dark  Shark"  Fireball  plane,  developed  during  last  war,  used  two  G.E.- 
built  engines,  the  TG-100  propjet  and  1-16  jet.  Those  powerplants  in  the  Navy 
fighter  helped  to  give  it  a  phenomenal  rote  of  climb  and  high  speed  for  combat. 


THE  JET  ElfillE  TEJ 


4  BLADED  PROPELLER 
G-E  TG  100  PROPJET 

JET  EXHAUSTS 


Beginning  tuith  the 
worked  closely 
jet  engine 


Before  World  War  II,  when  Douglas 
was  building  their  A-20  "Boston"  twin- 
engine  attack  bomber,  many  of  the  en- 
gines were  equipped  with  General  Electric 
turbosuperchargers,  to  give  an  added 
power  boost  at  high  altitudes.  Ryan,  at 
that  time,  designed  and  built  the  A-20 
tailpipe  assemblies  to  carry  the  exhaust 
gases  from  the  engine  into  the  super- 
charger impeller  wheels.  The  same  super- 
charger is  now  in  use  on  such  super  planes 
of  the  postwar  period  as  the  Boeing  B-50, 
C-97A  and  377.  Ryan  has  continued  to 
build  the  tailpipe  assemblies  which  work 
hand  in  glove  with  the  G  E.  superchargers 
in  these  models. 

This  prewar  association  of  Ryan  and 
G.E.  products  on  the  A-20  and  other 
fighting  craft,  presaged  later  developments 
by  both  manufacturers  which  culminated 
in  the  use  of  two  G.E. -built  engines  in  the 
Ryan  XF2R-1  "Dark  Shark"  Fireball. 
These  engines  were  the  TG-100  turbo- 
prop and  1-16  turbojet  which  powered  the 
jet-plus-propeller  plane. 

General  Electric  was  the  pioneer  manu- 
facturer of  gas  turbine  superchargers  for 
aircraft,  and  efforts  in  this  field  were  di- 
rected by  the  late  Dr.  Sanford  A.  Moss. 
As  a  result  of  the  efforts  of  Dr.  Moss  and 
a  small  group  of  associates  at  the  River 
Works  Thompson  Laboratory  of  G.E., 
practicallv  everv  aircraft  turbosuper- 
charger  ever  built  in  this  country  was 
built  to  General  Electric  design. 

In  191 S,  Moss  and  a  group  of  Army 
Air  Force  representatives  took  the  first 
supercharger  built  in  G  E.  labs,  installed 
on  a  Liberty  engine,  to  the  top  of  Pike's 
Peak  for  an  altitude  test.  This  early  ex- 


« OF  li.  I  m  Km 


16,  these  firms  have 
n  aircraft  and 
velopnient 


periment  showed  that  the  3  50  sea  level 
horsepower  of  the  Liberty  increased  to 
3  80  horsepower  at  14,000  feet  with  the 
use  of  the  newly  developed  power  booster. 
From  that  time  on,  the  development  of 
exhaust-gas-driven  turbines  has  been  a 
story  of  constant  improvement  and  refine- 
ment. Such  G.E.  turbines  have  also  been 
adapted  to  many  other  applications,  such 
as  ground  boosting,  emergency  power  and 
range  extension,  when  used  with  recipro- 
cating engines. 

This  early  experience  with  supercharg- 
ers and  turbines  was  the  ground  work, 
actually,  for  the  later  development  of  jet 
power.  The  jet  engine  is  in  reality  an 
overgrown  turbosupercharger,  for  it  oper- 
ates on  the  same  principal  as  Dr.  Moss's 
earliest  experimental  models.  General  Elec- 
tric began  the  manufacture  of  jet  engines 
in  1942  with  a  model  known  as  the  1-16. 
Ryan  designed  and  produced  some  of  the 
tailpipe  sections  for  this  powerplant. 

(Continued  on  page  16) 


(Above)    G.E. -built  J-47  jet  engine  for  which   Ryan  fabricotes  the  tailpipe  assemblies  and   other  parts  shown   below. 


The  center  of  interest  in  the  picture 
to  the  right  of  this  column  unfortunately 
cannot  yet  be  shown  to  the  reader,  and 
has  had  to  be  cropped  out.  The  officers  and 
civilians  are  observing,  with  interest,  a 
high-speed,  jet-propelled,  pilotless  target 
plane,  which  has  been  under  development 
at  Ryan  for  the  past  year  and  a  half.  For 
three  days  during  August  the  plane  under- 
went a  major  "work  in  progress"  inspec- 
tion by  a  joint  Air  Force,  Navy  and  Army 
Field  Forces  group  in  charge  of  guided 
missile  design  and  development. 

Nucleus  of  the  inspection  party  was 
the  seven-man  board,  officially  known  as 
the  "689"  Board  which  was  headed  by 
Colonel  H.  J.  Sands,  Jr.,  Chief  of  the 
Guided  Missile  Section  of  the  Air  Materiel 
Command.  Approximately  thirty  other 
officers  and  civilians  from  Wright  Field 
and  other  aviation  development  labora- 
tories accompanied  the  Board  on  its  visit. 


Military  Previews 


RYAN  XQ-2  JET  TARGET  PLANE 


Part  of  "689"  Board  conferring  with 
Ryan's  Director  of  Engineering  1 1,  to 
r.)  Lowrence  Bruno,  Bernard  Bayuk, 
Harry  Sutton,  Maj.  J.  K.  Taylor,  Col. 
H.  J.  Sands,  Jr.  and  Donald  Thompson. 


Missile  experts  1 1,  to  r.  I  Capt. 
Nozaire  LeBlanc,  G.  L.  Gates  and 
J.  J.  Dunn  inspect  XQ-2  jet  target. 


The  XQ-2,  official  name  for  the  pilot- 
less  aircraft,  is  being  built  to  original 
specifications  which  resulted  in  the  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company's  being  awarded  a 
contract  for  its  development  after  a  major 
competition  held  last  year.  It  is  being  built 
under  a  combined  Air  Force-Navy  devel- 
opment contract.  The  radio-controlled 
drone,  which  is  less  than  half  the  size  of 
a  standard  fighter  plane,  will  be  used  as  a 
target  for  interception  problems  as  well 
as  for  anti-aircraft  and  combat  plane  gun- 
nery training.  Performance  figures  are 
still  highly  confidential,  as  are  all  tech- 
nical details,  quantity  of  units  being  pro- 
duced by  Ryan  and  the  dollar  value  of  the 
contracts. 

With  Colonel  Sands  on  the  "689"  Board 
were  Bernard  Bayuk,  Air  Force  guided 
(Continued  nn  pa,^e  12) 


10 


^efU^emaddUmW-TC^^'l^et^iia^MmW 


In    Mexico    City    "Vendemos    el    NAVION"    means    "We  sell  the   Navion,"  which  is  exactly  what  partners 
Francisco   Waltz    (I.)    and   Wilford    Morgan    do   at   their    offices    downtown    or    Campestre    Field     (above). 


One  would  think  the  towering  moun- 
tain ranges  of  Mexico  or  the  hot,  steam- 
ing jungle  of  equatorial  Africa  would  be 
the  biggest  hazards  to  private  aviation  in 
those  lands,  but  it  is  a  mistake  to  assume 
so.  Actually  American  dollars  and  the  dif- 
ficulties of  obtaining  them  due  to  cur- 
rency controls  and  devaluated  foreign 
exchange  rates  are  the  problems  personal 
plane  buyers,  as  well  as  our  foreign  dis- 
tributors, face  in  Mexico  City  and  Pre- 
toria, Union  of  South  Africa. 

But  this  not  a  treatise  on  economics. 
It  is  rather  a  story  of  two  of  Ryan's 
out-of-U.   S.   Navion   sales  organizations: 


Morgan  and  Waltz,  Sue.  S.  A.  who  operate 
in  Mexico's  cosmopolitan  capital  city,  and 
Pretoria  Light  Aircraft  Company  (PTY) 
Ltd.,  who  sell  and  service  the  handsome 
personal-business  planes  throughout  the 
lower  half  of  Africa.  The  Navion  is  ideally 
suited  to  both  areas  and  these  distribu- 
tors, like  other  Ryan  sales  representatives 
throughout  the  world,  have  no  trouble 
getting  customers.  Only  the  low  exchange 
rates  and  difficulty  of  getting  import  li- 
censes hold  up  real  volume  sales. 

In  Mexico,  Wilford  Morgan  and  Fran- 
cisco Waltz  maintain  a  large  sales  and  ser- 
vice    establishment    at    the     Aero   Club's 


Campestre  Landing  Field  as  well  as  a 
downtown  office.  The  Campestre  Field  is 
in  the  suburbs  near  Chapultepec  Park. 

At  the  field  the  two  men  rent  20 
hangars  from  the  Club  plus  a  repair  shop 
facility.  There  are  two  mechanics  work- 
ing for  the  company  under  the  supervision 
of  Morgan,  a  former  Air  Force  Technical 
Sergeant  who  worked  on  our  planes  in 
China  during  the  war.  Following  this  duty 
he  was  sent  to  the  American  Embassy  in 
Mexico  City  as  their  chief  airplane 
mechanic.  A  year  and  a  half  ago  he  and 
Waltz  teamed  up  to  sell  Navions. 
(Continued  on  page  12) 


"Wy  Verkoopen  NAVION"  is  the  Dutch  for  "We  sell  the  Navion,"  a   phrase  one  would   hear  at  the   South   African   distributorship  of 
Pretoria    Light    Aircraft    Co.    Below    are    three    of    five    Navions    used   by   South   West   Air  Transport  at   Windhoek   for  charter   flights. 


1949  NAVION  PRICE  REDUCED  $1000 

A  $1000  reduction  in  the  price  of  the  Ryan  Navion  four-place  personal-business 
plane,  effective  immediately,  was  announced  August  12  by  T.  Claude  Ryan,  president 
of  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company. 

"This  price  reduction  is  made  in  keeping  with  the  adjustments  no'w  occurring  in  the 
prices  of  most  commodities,'*  Ryan  said,  "and  follows  a  policy  of  decreasing  gross  profit 
psr  plane    to   increase   sales   volume." 

The  $1000  reduction  in  price  of  the  Ryan  Navion  -was  made  after  an  expression  of 
opinion  by  all  of  Ryan's  distributors  in  favor  of  accepting  a  substantial  cut  in  their 
rate  of  gross  commission  to  aid  in  making  the  plane  available  at  the  9  percent  lower 
price. 

"The  new  price  of  $10,985,"  Ryan  said,  "gives  today's  personal-business  plane  buyer 
an  exceptional  value  in  thoroughly  modern  air  travel  at  a  figure  which  represents  three 
to  four  times  pre-war  value.  Before  the  war  a  plane  with  the  performance  and  capacity 
of  the  15  5-mile-an-hour  Ryan  Navion  cost  from  $18,000  to  $25,000  pre-war  dollars. 
In  terms  of  today's  dollar,  the  comparable  price  ten  years  ago  would  have  been  around 
$35,000. 

"An  increasing  segment  of  the  public  is  coming  to  accept  the  fact  that  the  executive 
plane  is  not  a  luxury  but  a  valuable  business  tool.  Thousands  of  alert  corporations, 
professional  men  and  executives  have  learned  the  value  of  the  modern  business  plane, 
for  it  gives  them  their  own  air  transport  service  wherever  and  whenever  they  want  to 
go  at   three   times  ground   travel   speeds." 


GODFREY:  ON  THE  AIR  AND  IN  THE  AIR 


(Continued  from  page  7 ) 
him  with  an  award  for  having  "contrib- 
uted  more   to   the   promotion   of   private 
flying  than  any  other  individual  this  past 
year." 

On  a  trip  to  the  West  Coast  of  Mexico 
last  year,  the  well-known  radio  person- 
ality stopped  at  Lindbergh  Field,  San 
Diego.  Just  as  he  was  about  to  resume  his 
trip  south  he  noticed  the  Ryan  Navion 
sign  on  the  service  hangar  across  the  field. 
He  asked  his  flying  companions  to  hold 
the  plane  for  a  few  minutes,  jumped  in  an 
airport  jeep  and  came  across  the  field  to 
make  a  Saturday  morning  tour  of  the 
plant  and  the  N.ivion  production  line  in 
company  with  Earl  D.  Prudden,  Ryan's 
Vice  President  in  charge  of  Airplane  Sales. 

Unfortunately  for  that  television  fam- 
ily and  Its  multitude  of  friends  and  rela- 


tives who  were  all  sitting  around  the  re- 
ceiver, watching  Godfrey  toy  with  the 
model  Navion,  it  is  not  yet  possible  to 
show  the  radio  and  video  star  at  the  con- 
trols of  his  plane  while  in  flight.  The 
television  fans  must  rely  on  photographs 
of  the  sort  which  accompany  this  article, 
or,  if  they  are  lucky,  they  might  happen 
to  see  him  landing  or  taking  off  on  his 
next  trip  from  Leesburg  to  New  York  in 
that  sleek,  flyab'e,  four-place  job  he  is 
so  sold  on. 

Television  audiences  saw  the  model 
Navion,  by  the  way,  as  a  result  of  a  let- 
ter the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  re- 
ceived from  a  neighbor  of  Godfrey's  down 
in  Virginia.  She  wrote  asking  why  the 
company  didn't  provide  her  favorite  tele- 
vision performer  with  a  model  of  that 
plane    he    always    talked    about    but    had 


never  shown  his  audience.  She  also  re- 
marked that  she  thought  the  company 
magazine  should  show  some  pictures  of 
the  man  who  has  done  so  much  to  interest 
her  and  thousands  of  others  in  the  per- 
sonal-business plane. 

The  Nation  viodel  and  this  article  are 
the  answer  to  her  query. 

MILITARY  PREVIEW 

(Continued  from  page  10} 
missile  expert;  Lawrence  Bruno,  Air  Force 
technician;  Captain  Nazaire  LeBlanc,  Air 
Force;  Lt.  Cmdr.  O.  Simonelli,  U.S.  Navy; 
Major  J.  K.  Taylor,  Army  Field  Forces, 
and  Donald  Thompson,  U.S.  Navy.  Ac- 
cording to  Robert  Shaver,  Ryan's  Project 
Engineer  for  the  XQ-2,  the  Board  and 
the  other  technical  observers  were  highly 
gratified  at  the  progress  made  in  the  tar- 
get's construction. 

The  jet-propelled  plane  is  the  result  of 
design,  powerplant  and  electronics  ideas 
of  a  large  group  of  Ryan  engineers,  headed 
by  Harry  A.  Sutton,  Director  of  Engi- 
neering, and  including  Bob  Shaver,  Bill 
Mauseth,  Ronnie  Reasoner,  Forrest  War- 
ren, Cart  Laffoon,  Wes  Vyvyan,  Ralph 
Gall,  Jim  Smith,  Lew  Dunfee,  Robert 
Peasley,  R.  G.  Houghton,  Bob  Close  and 
Phil  Massie.  Each  of  these  men,  as  well  as 
the  technicians  in  the  Experimental  De- 
partment where  the  plane  is  being  built, 
has  made  important  contributions  toward 
the  development  of  this  unusual  aircraft. 

VENDEMOS  EL  NAVION 

(Continued  from  page  1 1 } 
The  other  partner,  "Pancho"  Waltz, 
has  had  a  civilian  pilot's  card  for  several 
years.  Waltz  is  in  the  unusual  position 
of  being  a  citizen  of  two  countries,  Mex- 
ico and  France,  this  dual  nationality  being 
the  result  of  strange  citizen  registration 
laws.  During  the  war  he  served  in  Mar- 
tinique with  the  French  Marines. 

On  a  recent  visit  to  the  plant  to  pick 
up  a  1949  Navion,  Waltz  told  of  flying 
conditions  around  Mexico  City.  The  Cam- 
pestre  Landing  Field  is  at  a  7600-foot 
elevation,  surrounded  by  some  extremely 
high  mountains,  and  to  enter  or  leave  the 
city  a  pilot  must  climb  to  11,000  feet. 
These  high  flying  conditions  are  sometimes 
aggravated  bv  the  rain  squalls  and  thun- 
derstorms indigenous  to  the  country  from 
June  through  September.  "But  the  Navion 
performs  beautifully  at  these  altitudes," 
Waltz  says.  "It  is  a  wonderful  plane  for 
mountain  flying." 

Their  company  is  at  present  following 
an  extremely  energetic  advertising  pro- 
gram, plugging  the  Navion  on  daily 
weather  information  broadcasts  aired  by 
Station  XEB.  This  information  includes 
all  the  standard  meteorological  data  from 


the  weather  bureau  and  commercials  of- 
fering Navion  information  to  those  in- 
terested in  ""el  aeroplano  que  piensa,"  (the 
airplane  which  thinks). 

Sales  by  Morgan  and  Waltz  have  been 
largely  to  mining  and  engineering  con- 
cerns and  agencies  of  the  Mexican  Gov- 
ernment, like  a  recent  Navion  sale  to  the 
Comision  Federal  de  Electricidad.  At  pres- 
ent, the  Mexico  City  distributors  have  two 
dealerships  operating  under  their  direc- 
tion: Ulvert  &  Cia.,  Ltda.  in  Managua, 
Nicaragua,  and  Jack  Sullivan  in  Hermo- 
sillo,  who  is  a  dealer  for  the  states  of  Baja 
California,  Sonora,  Sinaloa  and  Chihua- 
hua. This  dealership  is  registered  under  the 
name  of  Industrial  Importadora  y  Con- 
structora,  S.  A.,  and,  like  Morgan  and 
Waltz,  maintains  excellent  Navion  service 
facilities  for  both  U.  S.  and  Mexican 
Navion  owners. 

Half  way  round  the  world  from  Mex- 
ico City  is  Pretoria,  Union  of  South 
Africa.  Here,  the  Pretoria  Light  Aircraft 
Company  operates  out  of  Wonderboom 
Airport  to  sell  the  personal-business  plane 
to  ranchers,  mining  companies,  airlines 
and  private  flying  enthusiasts  throughout 
half  the  continent  of  Africa.  These  Na- 
vion distributors  have  30  agents  in  such 
exotic  places  as  the  Belgian  Congo,  Zanzi- 
bar, Tanganyika,  Basutoland,  Mozambique 
and  Portuguese  Angola.  After  taking  the 
distributorship  in  1948,  Pretoria  Light 
Aircraft  sold  fifteen  planes,  either  from 
their  own  offices  or  through  one  of  the 
far-flung  dealerships.  They  have  the  only 
personal  plane  dealer  organization  in  South 
Africa  and  sell  more  than  50  percent  of 
all  American  aircraft  imported  into 
Africa. 

Founders  and  owners  of  the  distributor- 
ship are  the  brothers  Peter  and  J.  van 
der  Woude,  who  organized  the  company 
in  1937  to  train  civil  air  pilots  and  run  a 
charter  aircraft  service  across  the  vast 
reaches  of  the  African  veldt.  Since  their 
inception  they  have  taken  on  two  private 
plane  distributorships,  Navion  and  Piper, 
as  well  as  dealerships  for  the  Continental, 
Lycoming  and  Franklin  engines. 

Several  years  ago  the  van  der  Woudes 
financed  the  South  West  Air  Transport  at 
Windhoek  which  runs  a  bi-weekly  sched- 
uled service  with  five  Navions  to  the 
northern  districts  of  the  South  West 
Africa  territory.  The  company,  which  is 
managed  by  G.  T.  van  Rooyen,  J.  C. 
Mentz  and  A.  K.  L.  Finke,  recently  bought 
out  the  van  der  Woude  interests. 

In  a  recent  letter  from  van  Rooyan, 
South  West's  General  Manager,  he  told  of 
the  company's  passenger,  mail  and  freight 
flights  which  began  in  November,  1948. 
Since  beginning  this  service  the  company 
has  completed  more  than  70  scheduled 
flights  with  their  four  Navions.  van  Roo- 


yan relates  how  they  run  their  own  main- 
tenance and  servicing  organization  and, 
he  writes,  "being  the  only  aviation  con- 
cern in  the  territory  we  cater  to  all  the 
needs  of  the  private  owners — approxi- 
mately 30.  Our  first  Ryan  Navion  "ZS- 
BXR'  has  completed  its  first  600  trouble- 
free  hours  since  going  into  service  in  July 
last  year." 

With  a  backlog  of  orders  for  new  1949 
Navions,  the  Pretoria  Light  Aircraft 
Company  is  limited  in  the  number  which 


they  can  import  into  Africa  due  to  the 
country's  dollar  allocation  controls  which 
does  not  allow  our  distributors  to  buy  all 
the  planes  they  could  sell. 

Unfortunately  international  finance  can 
be  a  bigger  hazard  to  private  plane  sales 
and  ownership  than  the  roughest  winds, 
or  the  crudest  landing  fields.  The  Navion 
can  take  these  easily  in  its  stride  as  Morgan 
and  Waltz  and  the  van  der  Woudes  have 
demonstrated  to  many  enthusiastic  Na- 
vion customers  in  the  past  two  years. 


Two  saU  baths  for  removing   scale  from  stainless  steel  parts  have  been   relocated 
in  outside  shed.  A  water  tank  and  two  acid  baths  are  also  housed  in  new  addition. 

Heat  Treat  Re-grouped  for  Efficiency 


During  part  of  July  and  most  of  the 
month  of  August,  the  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Company's  production  line  for  Metal 
Products  has  been  undergoing  some  major 
alterations.  The  Drop  Hammer  Depart- 
ment, where  the  stainless  steel  manifold 
and  some  specialized  airplane  parts  are 
formed  into  shape,  has  had  a  '"moving 
day."  Here  also  the  parts  are  heat  treated 
for  strength  and  bathed  in  acid  for  the 
removal  of  scale. 

All  the  heat  treat  furnaces,  which  for- 
merly were  scattered  about  the  produc- 
tion floor  of  the  main  shop  building,  and 
the  acid  baths  have  been  centralized  in 
one  accessible  location.  Better  control  over 
the  movement  of  material  is  now  obtained 
and  a  steadier  flow  of  work  is  possible,  not 
to  mention  the  time  and  money  expected 
to  be  saved  by  this  close  grouping  of  the 
large  furnaces  and  tanks. 


Original  plans  for  this  re-grouping  of 
this  important  production  phase  were 
formulated  by  Ray  Ortiz,  Manifold  Pro- 
duction Superintendent;  Herb  Rasp,  Pro- 
duction Engineering  Manager;  G.  E.  Bar- 
ton, Production  Manager,  and  Owen 
Walker,  Assistant  Foreman  in  the  Drop 
Hammer  Department,  who  has  charge  of 
the  heat  treating  and  pickling  operations. 

A  new  metal  shed,  built  on  the  outside 
of  the  main  manifold  assembly  building, 
was  rushed  to  completion  by  the  Plant 
Engineering  Department  under  Durward 
Palmer's  supervision.  It  now  houses  two 
salt  baths,  a  water  tank  and  two  acid 
baths  for  treating  stainless  steel  and 
aluminum  parts.  The  outside  shed  has  the 
added  advantage  of  placing  this  phase  of 
production  out-of-doors  where  acid  fumes 
are  less  noticeable. 


13 


KEY  EXECUTIVES 
TAKE  NEW  POSTS 

New  positions  of  increased  responsibili- 
ties were  assumed  by  three  of  Ryan's  key 
executives  August  1,  in  a  move  designed 
to  further  strengthen 
^^H^^^^^^^^l  efficiency  of  the  de- 
^^^^^^^^^^1  partments  affected. 
^^^^^^^^^^H  At  the  same  time, 
^m  ^^U      certain  functions 

B.,  TB      were    regrouped    for 

«'*         "^  J      better      coordination 

^^  ^^      of      the      company's 

^^L  '^F^      operations. 

PP-^ ^  Colin    A.    Still- 

!   ^^^ML  wagen,  who  has  held 

-      '     "^  the  position  of  Con- 

Stillwagen  troUer  and  Secretary 

for  the  past  three 
years,  was  promoted  to  the  new  and  im- 
portant assignment  of  Director  of  Ma- 
teriel and  Contract  Administration.  He 
also  continues  as  an 
officer  of  the  com- 
pany, retaining  the 
position  of  Corporate 
Secretary. 

Walter  O.  Locke, 
19-year  veteran  with 
the  Ryan  organiza- 
tion, has  taken  on 
greater  responsibili- 
ties in  his  new  ad- 
visory capacity  to 
the  management.  His  Locke 

previous     assignment 

as  Assistant  to  President  T.  Claude  Ryan 
has  become  a  more  active  one,  and  in 
addition  Locke  now  serves  as  Staff  As- 
sistant to  George  C.  Woodard,  Executive 
Vice  President,  with  duties  in  connection 
with  general  operational  control. 

Selected  to  take 
over  direction  of  the 
work  of  the  Control- 
ler's Office,  formerly 
under  Stillwagen's 
supervision,  was  L.  L. 
"Jeff"  Underwood, 
who  has  been  ad- 
vanced to  the  new 
position  of  Assistant 
Treasurer  of  the  cor- 
poration. In  his  new 
assignment.  Under- 
wood works  directly 
under  Woodard.  For  the  past  three  years. 
Underwood  has  been  Supervisor  of  Budget 
Control  and  Internal  Auditing. 

"These  changes,"  T.  Claude  Ryan,  pres- 
ident, pointed  out,  "are  based  on  well- 
deserved  confidence  in  the  abilities  of 
these  executives  and  the  new  positions 
represent  increased  responsibilities  in  each 
case." 


Underwood 


The  newly  grouped  departments  which 
are  now  under  Stillwagen's  supervision  in- 
clude: Contract  Administration,  Schedules 
and  Production  Control,  Purchasing,  Ma- 
terial Control,  Standards  and  Estimating, 
Airplane  Spares,  Airplane  Service,  Safety 
and  Welfare  and  Traffic. 

Stillwagen  joined  the  Ryan  organization 
ten  years  ago  as  head  of  the  Accounting 
Department  of  the  Ryan  School  of  Aero- 
nautics. During  the  war  years  he  held 
executive  management  positions  with 
Ryan's  Army  pilot  training  school  in  San 
Diego,  and  Hemet,  California,  as  well  as 
Tucson,  Arizona.  At  the  end  of  the  war 
he  was  placed  on  the  Ryan  company's 
executive  staff  and  in  November,  1945, 
was  advanced  to  the  positions  of  Control- 
ler and  Corporate  Secretary. 

Recent  recognition  of  Stillwagen's  out- 
standing ability  came  with  his  selection 
as  Chairman  of  the  Citizen's  Budget  Ad- 
vistory  Committee  of  50  to  assist  in  guid- 
ing the  City  of  San  Diego's  financial  poli- 
cies. 

Locke  is  Ryan's  fourth  oldest  employee 
in  point  of  service  with  the  company. 
During  his  19  years  with  the  organization 
he  has  served  in  many  executive  capacities 
and  knows  the  company's  operations  from 
every  angle.  His  long  and  varied  experi- 
ence is  proving  extremely  valuable  in  his 
new  assignment. 


«     —'REPORTER 


ON  THE  COVER 

Lumber  firms  keep  close  contact  be- 
tween mills  and  cutting  operations 
through  the  use  of  safe,  fast  business 
airplanes  like  the  Ryan  Navion  shown 
here  and  on  the  cover,  flying  over  the 
Shevlin-Hixon  mill  at  St.  Helens,  Ore- 
gon. 

Owned  by  the  Perma-Wall  construc- 
tion Company  of  Portland,  this  busy 
plane  transports  company  executives  for 
calls  on  customers  and  supply  sources 
throughout  the  Pacific  Northwest. 


Jeff  Underwood,  the  company's  new 
Assistant  Treasurer  and  head  of  its  ac- 
counting functions,  first  joined  the  com- 
pany through  its  subsidiary,  Ryan  School 
of  Aeronautics  of  Arizona,  at  Tucson. 
There,  for  two  years,  he  served  as  office 
manager  and  head  of  the  accounting  de- 
partment, transferring  to  the  Ryan  Aero- 
nautical Company  upon  termination  of 
the  pilot  training  program. 

JUST  WHAT  THE 
DOCTOR  ORDERED 

(Continued  jrom  page  I) 
twenty-nine  years  after  he  purchased  his 
first  plane,  and  uses  it  constantly  to  travel 
between  his  three  hospitals;  in  Holdrege, 
Oberlin,  Kansas  and  Lexington,  Nebraska, 
which  he  and  his  two  sons,  also  surgeons, 
operate.  Both  the  other  Brewsters  are  pri- 
vate plane  pilots  as  is  their  mother. 

Nothing  could  be  more  unlike  the  flat, 
endless  expanses  of  Nebraska  and  Kansas 
where  Dr.  Brewster  and  family  fly  their 
planes,  than  the  towering  mountain  re- 
gions of  Utah.  Here  the  Wasatch  range, 
a  10,000  to  12,000-footer,  is  the  hurdle 
Dr.  J.  E.  Dorman  of  Price,  Utah,  must 
cross  every  week  to  attend  clinic  meetings 
or  perform  operations  at  a  Provo  hospital. 

Dr.  Dorman,  a  leading  eye,  ear,  nose  and 
throat  specialist,  finds  his  Navion  almost 
mandatory  in  procuring  the  time  needed 
to  attend  medical  meetings  in  Salt  Lake 
Citv  and  elsewhere  around  the  country. 
Since  purchasing  his  Navion,  he  has  logged 
over  500  hours,  mostly  mountain  hopping, 
and  when  asked  if  he  would  buy  another 
one  he  replied,  "I  wouldn't  have  anything 
else.  But  I'm  getting  such  good  service 
from  this  particular  aircraft  that  I  expect 
to  go  on  flying  it  for  quite  a  few  more 
years  before  trading  it  in  on  a  new  model." 

The  use  of  personal  planes  by  "flying 
doctors,"  so  dramatically  pioneered  by  Dr. 
Brewster  in  1919,  when  he  made  his  first 
flight  to  save  the  life  of  an  oil  worker  by 
performing  an  emergency  operation,  has 
now  become  almost  routine.  Throughout 
America,  doctors,  dentists  and  specialists 
in  the  field  of  medicine  and  surgery  are 
depending  more  and  more  on  private  plane 
transportation  to  save  them  hours  of  time, 
not  to  mention  the  patients  whose  lives 
depend  on  precious  minutes  gained  by 
flight. 

But  the  practice  of  medicine  and  the 
advantage  of  quick  transportation  for 
rush  cases  are  not  the  only  benefits  the 
Navion's  medical  owners  enjoy.  A  chance 
to  relax  for  a  few  days  away  from  the 
swabs,  sutures  and  sulfa  means  almost  as 
much  to  the  M.Ds.  and  dentists  in  this 
day  of  shortages  in  the  medical  ranks 
when  leisure  hours  can  be  lengthened  by 
flying  to  and  from  that  cabin  in  the 
mountains  or  cottage  bv  the  sea. 


14 


SERVICE  ANYWHERE  FOR 
RYAN  METAL  PRODUCTS 

(Continued  from  page  1 ) 

solved  many  of  the  problems  in  the  final 
design  which  led  to  an  order  for  a  quan- 
tity of  these  tailpipes  to  be  fabricated  at 
the  Ryan  plant. 

In  the  same  four  weeks,  the  same  sales 
engineer  had  numerous  sessions  with  Pan 
American  maintenance  people  discussing 
a  new  stainless  steel  alloy  for  flanges  and 
ball  joints  on  the  Boeing  377  exhaust  sys- 
tems. The  alloy,  tested  in  the  company's 
laboratory,  is  expected  to  extend  the  ser- 
vice life  of  these  systems  by  many  hours. 

At  the  same  time  Todd  was  rushing 
between  Boeing  at  Seattle,  Ryan  in  San 
Diego  and  Pan  Am  at  San  Francisco,  Jack 
Zippwald  was  spending  more  than  a  few 
hours  at  the  Douglas  factory  in  Santa 
Monica  on  DC-6  and  C-54  manifold  ser- 
vice calls.  Jack's  long  background  in  prac- 
tical shop  techniques  and  assembly  proc- 
esses at  Ryan  comes  in  handily  when  an- 
other firm's  engineers  want  to  know  how 
a  ball  and  socket  joint  or  a  manifold  clamp 
will  stand  up  to  the  tremendous  pounding 
a  transport  engine  will  give  them. 

In  the  industrial  heart  of  America,  the 
vast  Midwest  area  of  Ohio,  Michigan,  Illi- 
nois and  Indiana  the  man  who  sells  Ryan 
products  as  well  as  checks  on  operation 
and  service  or  advises  on  new  manifold 
improvements  is  Jimmy  Stalnaker,  an- 
other practical  shop  man.  Jimmy's  apart- 
ment is  in  Dayton,  Ohio,  but  he  doesn't 
hang  around  it  much.  He  can  usually  be 
found  at  the  Lockland,  Ohio,  General 
Electric  plant,  working  on  J-47  tailpipe 
design  studies. 

Another  frequent  visitor  in  Dayton, 
from  the  home  office  in  San  Diego,  is  the 
Metal  Products  Division's  Chief  Engineer. 
His  name  is  Charles  Byrne  and  his  back- 
ground in  designing  jet  components  for 
General  Electric's  earlier  1-16  and  J-33 
engines  eminently  qualifies  him  for  con- 
sulting jobs  on  the  J-47,  newest  G.  E. 
fighter  and  bomber  powerp'ant. 

Calling  on  customers  and  consulting 
with  engineering  departments  of  East 
Coast  airplane  manufacturers  is  Rod  Mc- 
Donough  who  operates  up  and  down  the 
Atlantic  seaboard  from  New  Jersey.  Mar- 
tm,  Fairchild,  Grumman,  Republic  and 
Wright  Aeronautical  are  on  his  Ust  for 
regular  service  calls  involving  exhaust  sys- 
tem and  jet  engine  designs,  installations  or 
changes.  Rod,  before  coming  with  Ryan 
earlier  this  year,  spent  13  years  as  engineer 
and  sales  representative  with  Wright 
Aeronautical  Corporation. 

Even  farther  from  the  factory  on  the 
West  Coast  has  been  Frenchy  Foushee;  all 


This  Flying  World 

•  The  first  of  the  36  T-29  "Flying  Classrooms"  ordered  by  the  Air  Force  for  naviga- 
tion training  will  be  completed  in  September  at  the  Convair  plant  in  San  Diego.  The 
plane  outwardly  resembles  Convair's  commercial  transport  known  as  the  240  Convair- 
Liner,  but  with  the  addition  of  four,  bubble-like  astrodomes  on  top  of  the  fuselage. 

Student  navigators  will  take  star  sights  through  these  plastic  domes  as  part  of  their 
training.  The  T-2  9  will  accommodate  16  students,  in  addition  to  the  pilot,  co-pilot,  crew 
chief,  navigation  instructor  and  radio  operation  instructor.  The  oxygen  system  in  the 
plane  will  have  individual  outlets  and  provide  training  in  the  use  of  oxygen  masks  at 
high  altitude  operation. 

RYAN  EXHAUST  SYSTEMS  AID  PERFORMANCE  OF  BOTH 
THE  CONVAIR  240  AND  T-29. 

•  The  lirst  scheduled  service  wilh  Boeing  Stratocruisei  equipment  on  domestic  routes 
was  inaugurated  Aug.  1  by  Northwest  Airhnes.  Initially,  the  new  equipment  will  be  used 
on  the  Twin  Cities-Chicago  route,  and  by  Sept.  1  it  is  proposed  to  have  transcontinental 
Stratocruiser  flights  operating  between  New  York  and  Seattle  via  Detroit,  Milwaukee,  the 
Twin  Cities  and  Spokane.  The  service  will  be  at  standard  fares.  Initial  schedules  call  for 
three  round-trips  daily  between  Minneapolis  &  St.  Paul  and  Chicago. 

IN    ADDITION    TO    BUILDING    THE    REAR    FUSELAGE    ASSEMBLIES    FOR    THE 

STRATOCRUISER,   RYAN  AERONAUTICAL   COMPANY    ALSO  FABRICATES 

THE  STAINLESS  STEEL  EXHAUST  SYSTEMS  WHICH  ARE  STANDARD 

EQUIPMENT  ON  THESE  AND  OTHER  BOEING  PLANES. 

•  The  ■wraps  have  been  partially  removed  from  a  new  Navy  project  now  being  built 
by  the  Goodyear  Aircraft  Company  at  Akron,  Ohio.  The  project  is  a  new  blimp,  designed 
specifically  to  carry  the  latest  equipment  for  combatting  snorkel-type  submarines. 

The  lighter-than-air  craft  will  be  3  24  feet  long,  and  the  largest  non-rigid  airship 
ever  built.  The  Navy  designation  for  the  blimp  is  "N-type,'*  and  it  will  be  capable  of 
both  long-range  over  ocean  patrol  as  -well  as  anti-sub  warfare  due  to  its  ability  to 
hover  over  a  given  spot  while  employing  its  devices  for  detection  and  tracking  of  under- 
sea ships. 

The  big  blimp,  for  which  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  built  exhaust  manifolds  for 
the  two  Wright  engines,  will  be  able  to  refuel  in  flight  by  dropping  a  fuel  line  to  a 
surface  ship.  The  two  engines  are  to  be  mounted  within  the  control  car  to  enable  repairs 
to  be  made  while  the  blimp  is  in  flight. 

The  ne-w  airship,  with  its  two-deck  control  car,  -will  be  capable  of  making  7  5  knots 
and  -will  carry  a  useful  load  of  more  than  four  and  a  half  tons. 

RYAN    EXHAUST    SYSTEMS    ARE    INCORPORATED    INTO    THIS    LARGEST 
OF   ALL    NON-RIGID    AIRCRAFT. 

•  A  B-50  Superfortress  has  recently  been  equipped  with  retractable  track  landing  gear 
— the  first  application  of  this  track  gear  to  a  heavy  combat-type  aircraft  and  the  first  to 
use  a  dual-track  arrangement  on  each  landing-gear  leg. 

A  heavy  plane  equipped  with  conventional  wheel-type  landing  gear  will  break  through 
a  dirt,  sod  or  sand  surface  because  all  the  weight  is  concentrated  on  a  relatively  small 
area.  The  engineering  answer  to  this  problem  was  the  track  gear,  first  used  on  the  Fair- 
child  C-82  Packets.  By  distributing  the  weight  of  the  plane  over  a  larger  area  the 
developed  pressure   is   kept  below  penetration   pressure. 

RYAN-BUILT  EXHAUST  MANIFOLDS  ARE  STANDARD  ON  BOTH  THE 
C-82    PACKETS   AND   THE   B-5  0    SUPERFORTRESSES. 


the  way  to  England  and  Germany  on  a 
service  trip  which  covered  manifold  in- 
stallation and  performance  checks  on  the 
Douglas  C-54  and  C-74  and  Fairchild 
C-82s  in  use  on  the  Berlin  Airlift.  Just 
before  he  flew  to  the  continent,  Frenchy 
was  awarded  a  plaque  designating  him  a 
member  of  United  Air  Lines'  "100,000 
Mile  Club."  He's  flown  more  miles  than 
that  in  the  past  four  years  making  exhaust 
system  tests,  instructing  maintenance 
crews  in  the  installation  of  Ryan-built 
manifold  parts  and  in  welding  techniques. 
While  the  sales  engineers  are  solving 
service,  maintenance  and  design  enigmas 
away  from  the  office,  there  must  still  be 
men  holding  down  the  fort  back  in  San 
Diego.  Frank  VoU,  Engineering  Coordina- 
tor,  and   Fred  Coffer,   Sales  Coordinator, 


both  with  many  years  of  practical  assem- 
bly line  and  sales  experience  behind  them, 
keep  the  blueprints,  contracts,  modifica- 
tion and  service  catalogues  and  the  myriad 
other  details  of  successful  manifold  fabri- 
cation flowing  smoothly.  They  see  that 
the  job  gets  out  on  time  whether  its  a 
new  assembly,  a  modification  or  a  replace- 
ment part. 

Head  man  of  the  Metal  Products  bunch 
is  Sam  Breder.  He  likes  to  sell.  He  likes  to 
get  to  the  bottom  of  service  difficulties 
and  iron  them  out,  too,  and  across  his  desk 
pass  the  service  reports  the  boys  in  the 
field  send  in  or  phone  in  for  Sam's  final 
OK.  This  man's  enthusiasm  for  selling  and 
servicing  manifold  products  infects  all 
those  who  work  with  him.  He  is  constant- 
(Continiied  on  page  16) 


15 


^aM^  SSaa  Mko)  ©ia  J^fej^SoGS 


FASTEST  NAVION?      Charlie  Toth,  top  man  of  Toth  Aircraft  &  Accessories, 

distributor  in  Konsos  City,  Mo.,  recently  set  what  may  well  be  a  record  speed 
run  for  the  Ryan  Navion.  Between  Kansas  City  and  Cincinnati,  a  560-mile 
stretch,  favorable  winds  helped  his  '49  demonstrator  average  224  miles  per 
hour,  completing  the  junket  in  only  2  hrs.  and  25  mins.  Charlie  flew  on  to 
Washington,  D.  C,  at  almost  the  some  clip,  The  Toth  organization  is  also  cur- 
rently celebrating  delivery  of  o  new  Ryan  Navion  to  the  J.  D.  Armstrong  Con- 
struction Co.,  considered  one  of  the  most  important  sales  of  1949  in  this  Mid- 
western territory. 

ONE  IMPORTANT  REASON  WHY  ST.  LOUIS  FLYING  SERVICE  is  in  its  greatest  Ryan 
Navion  sales  season  is  the  alert  selling  policy  of  prexy  Arch  McEwein.  The  well-liked 
Mid-westerner  recently  gave,  by  special  invitation,  extensive  demonstrations  of  the  '49 
model  at  the  three-day  conference  of  the  Central  Bible  Institute  and  Assemblies  of 
God  Church  in  Springfield,  Mo.  Reporting  considerable  interest  in  the  Navion  among 
the  conferees.  Arch  says  that  over  90%  of  the  pilots  present  had  the  opportunity  to 
either  pilot  or  ride  in  his  demonstrator. 

FIRE  FIGHTERS.  Les  Randolph,  Glenn  Higby  and  Howard  Jeppson,  three 
crack  pilots  for  Aircraft  Service  Co.,  Ryan  Navion  distributor  in  Boise,  Idaho, 
con  match  their  public  service  records  with  any  in  the  nation.  This  summer 
they're  using  Navions  to  ossist  the  U.  S.  Forest  Service  in  the  battle  against 
fire  in  the  Bear  'Valley,  Round  Valley  and  Marble  Creek  areas  of  Idaho.  Drop- 
ping supplies  of  bedding  and  food  to  fire  fighters  on  the  ground  is  one  im- 
portant item  on  their  list  of  duties.  Thanks  to  the  planes,  they're  reaching  men 
in  interior  locations  which  are  otherwise  inaccessible.  Such  summertime  emer- 
gency flying  follows  close-up  on  their  spring  wheat  crop  rescues  and  winter 
months'   hoylift  operations. 

THERE'S  A  SURGE  OF  SOUTH  AMERICAN  NAVION  ACTIVITY  currently  centered 
in  Colombia.  The  Aeroclub  de  Colombia,  Ryan  Navion  distributor  located  in  Bogota, 
that  country's  capital  city,  announces  delivery  will  soon  be  made  on  a  '49  Ryan 
Navion  to  Dr.  Jorge  Saenz  and  William  G.  Post.  Gustavo  Izquierdo,  veteran  mountain 
pilot,  is  picking  up  the  new  plane  at  the  factory.  Commenting  on  the  opening  of  the 
Aeroclub's  branch  office  in  Moriquito,  James  G.  Leaver,  Manager,  soys,  "There's  a 
great  deal  of  enthusiasm  over  the  Navion  in  this  particular  agricultural  area,  com- 
posed of  successful  farm  owners,  most  of  whom  ore  cotton  growers."  Leaver  adds  that 
the  Aeroclub — an  enterprise  with  125  members — has  mode  other  important  Navion 
soles  for  which  import  permits  are  now  being  arranged. 

CREDIT  BILL  COXE  AND  TOM  MITCHELL  with  being  two  of  the  Ryan  Navion 
program's  most  up-and-coming  soles  representatives.  Operating  out  of  Green- 
ville, S.  C,  and  Lombard,  III.,  respectively,  this  hustling  pair  is  doing  the  bang- 
up  type  selling  job  that  promises  to  keep  "Ryan  Navion"  the  top  aviation  name 
in  their  areas.  Both  were  recent  visitors  at  the  factory  where  they  took  delivery 
on  '49  models  for  customers.  Bill  soys  his  philosophy  for  selling  is  to  tell  the 
prospect  about  the  Navion,  then  follow  up  fast  with  a  demonstration  that  shows 
the  soles  talk  was  entirely  foctuol;  on  underestimotion,  if  anything.  Tom,  o  real 
oldtimer  in  this  aviation  game  by  any  man's  standard,  works  much  the  some 
way,  enjoying  the  longtime  patronage  of  many  of  the  Midwest's  most  prominent 
flying  people.  Carolina  Aeronautics  and  Howard  Aviation  rote  congratulations 
for  appointing  these  two  high-calibre  representatives. 

"HE  IMMEDIATELY  BECAME  SO  ACQUAINTED  WITH  THE  NAVION  he  thought 
he  had  been  flying  it  all  his  life,"  writes  Arturo  Meneses,  about  his  boss'  first  flights 
in  a  '49  Ryan  Navion.  The  Aviation  Department  Manager  for  Salinas,  Fobres  y  Cio., 
Ltda.,  Ryon  Navion  distributor  for  Chile,  goes  on,  "Our  most  recent  '49  Ryan  Navion 
arrived  in  Santiago  in  perfect  condition.  On  his  second  take-off  by  himself,  Fobres 
went  round-trip  to  La  Serena,  a  town  250  miles  north  of  here.  That's  when  he  really 
discovered  what  a  fine  ship  the  '49  model  is.  Incidentally,  there  was  a  much  higher- 
powered  American-built  high-wing  single-engine  cabin  plane  flying  the  same  route 
at  the  time,  and  it  gained  only  five  minutes  on  the  Navion  each  way." 

HOW  TO  WIN  FRIENDS  AND  INFLUENCE  PROSPECTS.  When  a  Ryon 
Novion  advertising  inquiry  turned  out  to  be  from  on  1  I  -year-old  Troy,  Ohio, 
school  girl,  Jim  Hobstetter,  president  of  Southern  Ohio  Aviation,  decided  thot 
nonetheless  he  would  go  oheod  with  his  plans  to  give  her  the  demonstration 
she  had  wanted  so  badly.  So  one  recent  Wednesday  afternoon  Jim  met  little 
Julia  Kauffman  and  her  daddy,  Horry  Kauffman  of  the  Skinner  Irrigation  Co., 
at  Waco  Field  in  Troy  for  the  promised  Navion  ride.  Impressed,  Kauffman 
wrote  to  the  Ryan  factory,  "Julia  and  I  both  appreciate  Mr.  Hobstetter's 
thoughtfulness  in  toking  us  for  the  demonstration.  It  was  one  of  those  extra 
little  things  that  wasn't  at  all  necessary  for  him  to  do.  With  such  friendliness 
in  their  business,  we  ore  sure  Mr.  Hobstetter  and  Southern  Ohio  Aviotion  moke 
on  excellent  connection  for  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company." 


ly  moving  from  one  end  of  the  country 
to  the  other,  just  as  his  sales  and  service 
representatives,  and  with  all  their  urgency 
and  dispatch  when  a  new  problem  comes 
up  that  Ryan  experience  can  settle. 

Only  two  men  in  the  department  stay 
put  for  any  length  of  time.  They  are  Joe 
Small,  Assistant  Sales  Manager,  whose 
main  province  is  selling  metal  products, 
keeping  the  sales  records,  checking  sales 
reports  and  routing  the  travellers  from 
one  spot  to  another. 

The  other  is  Joe  Richert,  Office  Man- 
ager, whose  job  it  is  to  expedite  orders 
and  keep  inter-departmental  workings 
running  efficiently. 

After  all,  someone  has  to  be  on  hand 
when  all  the  phones  start  ringing  and  the 
calls  come  pouring  in  from  Seattle,  Balti- 
more, Dayton  or  Fort  Worth  reporting 
on  work  in  progress,  sales  consummated  or 
service  problems  solved  and  the  men  on 
the  move  want  to  know  where  they  are 
needed  to  take  Ryan  know-how  and  ser- 
vice next. 

JET  ENGINE  TEAM 
OF  G.  E.  AND  RYAN 

(Continued  from  page  9) 

It  is  interesting  to  digress  at  this  pc»nt 
to  tell  of  an  unusual  incident  which  oc- 
curred just  before  Ryan  began  designing 
the  first  FR-1  Fireball  in  which  the  1-16 
was  installed. 

All  work  on  the  model  was  highly 
secret  and  in  1942,  right  after  America 
entered  the  war,  several  British  power- 
plant  experts  arrived  incognito  in  Boston 
and  registered  at  obscure  hotels  before  be- 
ginning work  with  G.E.  engineers.  A  jet 
propulsion  aircraft  engine  of  British  de- 
sign was  brought  to  America  on  a  fast 
ship  and  taken  by  a  circuitous  route  to  a 
G.E.  plant  and  delivered  inside  the  fac- 
tory at  a  time  when  all  the  workmen 
except  guards  were  absent. 

Another  Englishman  had  been  flown 
across  the  ocean  and  registered  under  an 
assumed  name  at  the  Boston  Statler,  where 
he  stayed  in  a  specially  guarded  room 
with  an  outside  telephone  line  directly  to 
the  G.E.  plant.  After  several  weeks  this 
man  moved  into  the  home  of  one  of  the 
company's  top  engineers,  whose  wife 
didn't  even  know  the  Enghshman's  right 
name  during  the  months  he  lived  in  her 
house. 

Only  long  after  the  P-5  9A  "Aircomet," 
first  plane  to  fly  with  the  1-16,  had  been 
launched  did  word  get  around  that  the 
mysterious  Britisher  was  Frank  Whittle, 
the  world's  pioneer  expert  on  jet  propul- 
sion, to  whose  original  design  the  1-16  was 
built. 

The  TG-100,  turboprop  engine,  which 
powered  the  XF2R-1,  along  with  the  1-16, 
was  another  General  Electric  development 
for   which   Ryan   built   the   tailpipes   and 


exhaust  cone.  The  combination  of  these 
two  installations  gave  the  Dark  Shark 
phenomenal  climb  and  peak  performance 
over  a  wide  range  of  speeds  and  altitudes. 
The  TG-lOO's  two-way  harnessing  of  gas 
turbine  power  to  drive  a  propeller  and  at 
the  same  time  boost  with  jet  thrust  also 
gave  the  plane  greater  flexibility  at  low 
speeds,  particularly  during  take-off. 

Ryan  and  General  Electric  cooperation 
on  military  aircraft  and  engines  paused 
briefly  in  1946  following  the  cessation  of 
hostilities,  but  was  resumed  again  in 
January  of  this  year  with  the  awarding 
of  a  contract  by  G.E.  for  Ryan  to  build 
J-47  exhaust  cone  parts.  Since  this  new 
work  has  started,  Ryan  and  G.E.  engi- 
neers have  worked  closely  together  on  the 
stainless  steel  components  which  go  into 
the  engine  powering  such  craft  as  the 
pace-setting,  6 70 -mile-per-hour  F-86 
Sabre  fighter.  Ryan  production  skill  has 
turned  out  a  vast  quantity  (exact  number 
is  confidential)  of  the  gleaming  exhaust 
cones  and  other  parts  in  the  eight  months 
since  tooling  up  processes  began. 

Some  hitherto  confidential  facts  con- 
cerning the  performance  of  the  J-47  (TG- 
190)  have  just  been  released  by  the  Air 
Force  and  a  little  more  of  what  General 
Electric  and  Ryan  are  accomplishing  can 
be  revealed. 

The  J-47  represents  a  three-fold  in- 
crease in  thrustpower  over  the  first  Air 
Force  jets  flown  in  1942.  In  six  years,  the 
company,  through  experimentation  and 
development,  has  increased  thrust  from 
the  original  1400-1500  pounds  to  the 
maximum  blast  of  over  5000  pounds 
which  the  J-47  puts  out. 

The  engine  incorporates  multiple  com- 
bustion chambers  and  an  axial  flow  tur- 
bine, and  can  burn  either  kerosene  or 
grade  100  130  gasoline.  Air  is  gulped  into 
the  engine  at  an  airflow  rate  of  90  pounds 
per  second.  With  the  engine  operating  at 
a  normal  continuous  cruise  thrust  power, 
exhaust  temperatures  become  so  high  that 
special  resistant  alloys  have  been  used  in 
the  construction  of  the  J-47  combustion 
chambers,  exhaust  systems  (both  of  which 
Ryan  builds)  as  well  as  the  nozzle  dia- 
phragm and  turbine  wheel. 

As  in  the  last  days  of  the  war,  when 
the  Fireballs  and  Dark  Shark  first  flew, 
G.E.  and  Ryan  cooperation  has  succeeded 
in  producing  advanced  aircraft  com- 
ponents so  vitally  necessary  in  America's 
effort  to  hold  its  lead  in  aircraft  and  jet 
engine  development. 


WHEN  YOU  HEAR  THE  FAMOUS  "QUIZ  KIDS"  over  the  oir  next  fall,  include  a  '49 
Ryan  Navion  in  the  script.  John  Lewellen,  program  manager  and  director  for  this 
favorite  Sunday  radio  feature,  will  be  using  his  new  plane  to  travel  from  city  to  city, 
giving  a  new  twist  to  the  show  which  spotlights  local  brain-children  across  the 
nation  rather  than  a  permanent  set  of  youthful  experts.  He  also  will  be  flying  back 
to  Chicago  each  Wednesday  for  the  televised  Quiz  Kids  program.  Business  won't  take 
ell  the  Navion's  time,  however.  Flying  with  the  Lewellens  is  a  family  affair,  for 
Mrs.  Lewellen  and  their  youngsters,  Tommie  and  Lu  Ann,  enjoy  trips  in  the  handsome 
plane,  too.  The  few  times  it  isn't  in  use,  the  Navion  is  hongored  just  ten  minutes 
from  their  Glen  Ellyn,   Illinois  home. 

LOOKING   FOR   THE   SAFEST  OF   MODERN    PERSONAL   PLANES,    Horold   G. 
Hilton,  Caterpillar  and  John  Deere  implement  distributor  of  Modesto,  Califor- 
nia,   settled    upon    the    Ryan    Navion.    Experience    soon   convinced    him    he    had 
found  the  plane  he  was  after.  So  he  bought  a  second  Navion  as  a  gift  for  his 
son,    Harold    L.    Hilton,    who    lives   at    Boulder    Creek,    north    of   Modesto.    Now 
father  and  son  regularly  use  their  Navions  to  commute  between  the  two  towns, 
loading  the  ships  down  nearly  every  trip  with  members  of  their  families,   lug- 
gage and  odd  lots  of  cargo. 
"THERE'S  NOTHING  THAT  SO  COMPLETELY  RELAXES  ME,  or  takes  my  mind  so 
thoroughly  off  oil  business  as  flying  my  Navion,"   declares  Dr.  E.   E.   Collins,  dentist 
in  Sunbury,  Pa.  Typical  of  the  professional  man  who  in  his  forties  takes  up  flying  for 
recreation.    Dr.    Collins    takes    real    pleasure    in   acquainting    his   dental    colleagues    as 
well   OS  other  pilots  with   the   wonders  of   Navion   flying.    His   wife,    Violo,   shares    his 
enthusiasm,  and  recently  joined  him  in  a  vacation  flight  which  took  them  from  coast 
to  coast  corner  to  corner,  across  the  U.  S.  "We  couldn't  do  without  the  Navion  now," 
he  explains.  "The  way  it  has  helped  us  to  be  with  our  families  more  frequently  than 
ever  before  is  one  important  reason.  The  old  9-hour  car  trip  to  Bridgeport,  Conn.,  to 
visit  my  wife's  relatives  is  now  only  1    hour  40  minutes  in  the  Navion.  And  to  Elmira, 
N.  Y.,   where  my   folks   live,   the   air   route  takes   less   than   one-third   the    automobile 
time." 

OFFICIALS  OF  THE  EUREKA  TEA  COMPANY,  Chicago  and 
Milwaukee,  value  their  '49  Ryan  Navion  most  for  the  savings 
in  time  and  money  which  it  provides  on  short  hops.  C.  E. 
Swanson,  Eureka's  General  Manager,  reports  that  they  have 
reduced  total  travel-time  I  including  time  from  town  to  air- 
port and  all  other  extras!  at  least  50%  since  they've  been 
flying  between  their  branch  offices.  Now  flying  a  '49  Ryan 
Navion,  after  eight  months  of  highly  satisfactory  use  from 
their  '48  model,  the  Eureka  people  ore  among  the  Midwest's 
most   prominent   Navion    boosters. 

"FLYING  LABORATORY"  is  the  opt  designation  of  the  '49  Ryan  Navion  owned  by 
Aircraft  Radio  Corporation  of  Boonton,  N.  J.  Used  to  demonstrate  ARC's  excellent 
radio  equipment,  the  Flying  Lab  is  specially  decked  out  with  a  complete  two-way 
VHF  communication  system,  low  frequency  navigational  system  using  directional  loop, 
VHF  omnidirectional  IVOR!  system,  ILS,  two-control  radio  setup,  full  set  of  instru- 
ments for  testing  omnidirectional  equipment  and  other  field  instollations.  C.  L. 
Cahill,  of  the  Division  of  Field  Engineering  and  Sales,  covers  the  nation  twice  yearly 
with  the  Navion.  When  not  so  on  the  wing,  the  plane  sees  heavy  use  at  the  home 
base  in  development  work  and  executive  transportation  assignments. 

NEWSPAPER  PUBLISHER'S  WORKHORSE.  Roger  C.  Wil- 
liams, Assistant  General  Manager  of  the  Guy  Gannett  Pub- 
lishing Co.,  Portland,  Maine,  soys  his  firm's  Ryan  Navion 
is  just  that.  The  four-place  sky  hustler's  jobs  range  from 
cross-country  trips  between  California  and  New  England 
for  visits  to  newspaper  plants  and  radio  stations,  to  heavily- 
scheduled  short  hops  between  cities  in  Maine  where  the  five 
major  Gannett  papers  and  two  radio  stations  ore  located. 
"We've  found  the  Navion's  wonderful  from  utility,  time- 
saving  and  emergency  transportation  standpoints,"  says  Williams,  "and  for 
advertising  and  prestige  purposes,   it's  0-K  Plus!" 

FLEET  FOLKS.  The  Palm  Mortuary,  Las  Vegas,  Nevada,  has  been  added  to  the 
ever-growing  list  of  Navion  fleet  operators.  Under  the  supervision  of  Jerry  Woodbury, 
Navions  4372K  and  4894K  ore  used  as  flying  ambulances  to  busily  cover  the  region 
fanning  out  around   this  famous  Western  city. 


AUGUST    31,    1949 


VOL.    10,   No 


PubhsheJ  B^ 

Ryan   Aeronautical    Company,   Lindbergh  Field,   San  Diego   12,  California 

.     .     .    Frances  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  editor Robert  F.  Smith,  Navion  news  editor    . 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographer William  Wagner,  editorial  director. 


17 


RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY 

LINDBERGH     FIELD 
SAN  DIEGO  12,  CALIFORNIA 

Return   Postage  Guaranteed 


POSTMASTER:     If    iddre 
address   {s   known,   notify 
for   which   is  guaranteed. 


ed,     and 


R.    K.    EP.AITir^/AIT 
4071    HAiriES 
SAiJ   DIEGO,    CALIF, 
9 


Sec.  34.66,  P.  L.  a:  R. 

U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego,  California 
Permit  No.  437 


Metal  Products 


DIVISION    OF    RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY      •      LINDBERGH    FIELD      •      SAN     DIEGO.     CALIFORNIA 

Exhaust    Systems      •      Turbo-Jet    and    Ram-Jet    Components 


■^^ 


R  E¥  0%I»R 

^7.      ' 


\^ 


\ 


\^ 


-Xli^f 


#     #     # 


1    »    I   '  f 


II 


"^^^^ 


i%.  •■■  >i>l2 


VOL.  10,  NO.  8 


MANIFOLD  SERVICE 


\ 


Berlin's  Templehof  field  and  a  line-up  of  Ryan  mani- 
fold-equipped C-54s  shown  above  were  on  Foushee's 
itinerary.  (Below)  Mechs  remove  cowl  of  Fairchild  C-82 
Packet  for  Foushee  to  study  manifolds.  These  C-82s  were 
airlift  service-tested  ond  carried  loads  too  unwieldy  for 
other  planes.  (Middle)  KLM,  Royal  Dutch  Airline  in 
Amsterdam  hod  most  modern  maintenance  set-up  includ- 
ing   engine    test     laboratory    which     Foushee     inspected. 


iOES  ABROAD 


C.  L.  "Frenchy"  Foushee 


T  HE  first  question  everyone  asked  him 
'  when  he  returned  to  the  factory  in 
late  August  was,  "Did  you  get  to  Paris, 
Frenchy?"  The  question  was  usually  asked 
with  a  leer,  the  questioner's  mind  filled 
with  visions  of  beautiful  women  in  low- 
cut  gowns  throwing  themselves  into  Ian- 
quid  poses  in  expensive  restaurants  over 
magnums  of  Champagne.  But  there  was 
none  of  that  for  C.  L.  Foushee,  Ryan's 
Manifold  Field  Service  Representative, 
even  though  his  last  name  announces  his 
French  heritage.  After  all,  he  only  spent 
two  days  in  the  city  American's  dream 
of  visiting,  and  the  so  called  "smart" 
restaurants  get  around  $10  for  a  small 
steak;  a  price  way  beyond  the  average 
traveller's  means,  even  if  he  has  an  expense 
account. 

The  Service  Representative  did  have  a 
good  time  without  the  fancy  trappings. 
He  saw  the  Eiffel  Tower,  ate  some  good 


food,  was  shown  the  town  by  Ryan's 
European  Distributor  for  the  Navion, 
Rene  Delbos,  and  had  a  bottle  or  two  of 
the  famed  French  vintages.  The  trip  was 
not  for  pleasure  but  a  business  journey 
for  the  Air  Forces  who  wanted  a  Ryan 
man  to  evaluate  their  manifold  service  and 
maintenance  facilities  for  the  planes  fly- 
ing the  Berlin  Airlift.  The  side  trips  to 
Paris,  Brussels,  Amsterdam  and  Zurich 
were  on  company  business,  for  the  purpose 
of  discussing  manifold  service  and  main- 
tenance crew  training  with  foreign  air- 
lines whose  planes  like  the  Douglas  DC-6, 
Convair  240,  DC-4  and  DC- 3  are 
equipped  with  Ryan-built  collector  sys- 
tems. 

The  major  part  of   the  six-week  Eur- 
opean   tour    Foushee    spent    in    Germany. 
He  arrived  at  Frankfurt  after  an  unevent- 
ful   18-hour    plane    trip    from    Westover 
(Continued  on  page  1 9 ) 


Air  Force  mechanics  at  maintenance  center  in  Erding,  Germany,  check   Ryan- 
built    exhaust    stacks    on    Douglas    C-54.     Foushee    called    here    on    his    trip. 


HANG  an  overgrown  Jato  Junior 
"thermos  bottle,"  6  by  18  inches, 
beneath  the  belly  of  your  Navion  and 
you're  ready  for  even  more  startling  take- 
off performance  than  that  for  vi'hich  the 
Navion  is  already  justly  famous. 

Developing  2  50  pounds  of  thrust  for 
12  seconds  duration,  Jato  Junior  will 
"shoot  you  virtually  straight  up  on  take- 
off like  an  express  elevator  in  the  Empire 
State  Building!" 

That's  the  report  of  William  P.  "Doc" 


JATO 


Sloan,  Ryan  Aeronautical  Companj^  sales 
demonstration  pilot,  after  his  first  Jato 
(jet  assisted  take  off)  flight  in  the  Ryan 
Navion  of  Aerojet  Engineering  Corp., 
developers  of  this  and  other  rocket  en- 
gines. Sloan  reports,  "I  had  over  a  thous- 
and feet  before  I  could  even  get  the 
gear  up!" 

According  to  both  Ryan  and  Aerojet 
engineers  the  use  of  a  Jato  Junior  rocket 
engine  will  enable  a  plane  at  full  gross 
weight  to  make  unbelievably  short,  steep 


The  Jato  Junior-equipped  Navion  with  o  smoke 
trail  was  1 84  feet  in  the  air,  600  feet  from 
its  take-off  point,  when  the  other  Navion  ot 
the  left  was  just  getting  off  the  runway  500 
feet  from  its  starting  point.  Use  of  rocket 
power  permits  shorter  take-offs,  with  bigger 
loads,  than   are  possible  with  standard  engine. 


William  P.  Sloan,  Ryan's  sales  demonstration 
pilot,  outdistances  another  Novion  (on  ground 
ct  right)  during  a  test  flight  he  mode  with 
Aerojet's  Jato-equipped  Navion.  "I  hod  over 
1000  feet  before  I  could  even  get  the  gear 
up,"  Sloan  reported  in  amazement  after  land- 
ing    the     fast-climbing,     experimental     Navion. 


1 

^^M^ 

_ 

ft 

1 

N avion  pilots  tvill  be  able  to  take  off  like 

an  express  elevator  tvhen  Jato  Junior 

is  tnade  available  commercially 


inioi 


take-offs  from  small,  high  altitude  fields 
surrounded  by  obstacles.  Its  utility  for 
construction  and  mining  companies,  for 
the  Army  Field  Forces,  and  for  cargo 
carriers  in  remote,  isolated  regions  is  all 
too  apparent.  The  greater  take-off  load 
would  more  than  compensate  for  the 
original  installation  cost  and  subsequent 
recharging  with  the  propellant. 

Unfortunately,  Jato  Junior  is  not  com- 
mercially available  now.   It  was  developed 
(Continued  on  page  17) 


Small  size  of  powerful  Jato  Junior  bottle 
is  shown  In  picture  above  as  an  Aerojet 
engineer  attaches  the  50-pound  container 
to  underside  of  Novion   beneath   the  cabin. 


The  Jato  Junior  rocket  is  fired  as  soon  as 
Navion  develops  full  power  and  plane  has 
started  down  runway.  Almost  vertical  climb 
is  achieved,  as  shown  at  right,  and  any  ob- 
struction can  be  cleared  in  only  300  feet 
from  plane's  starting  point  when  jet-assisted 
take-off    is    used    to   give   on    added    boost. 


HIP  TO: RYAN  OUSTOMUR 


,-|5  0 


I MAGINE  a  freight  train,  made  up  of 
■  8  fully  loaded  cars,  and  you  have  some 
idea  of  the  immense  volume  of  stainless 
steel  exhaust  manifolds  and  jet  engine 
parts  which  leave  the  Ryan  plant  every 
month.  Translated  into  poundage  figures, 
the  volume  averages  160,000  pounds 
monthly.  And  exhaust  manifolds,  for  all 
the  heavy-duty  work  they  do,  are  a  com- 
paratively lightweight   product. 

The  work  of  building  collector  systems 
for  most  of  the  commercial  and  military 
aircraft  currently  in  the  air  does  not  end 
when  the  manifolds  are  taken  from  the 
jigs,  checked  to  specifications  and  cleaned 
in  a  final  anti-scale  bath.  They  must  then 
be  carefully  packed  and  routed  to  other 
aircraft  manufacturers  throughout  the 
country. 

Responsibility  for  maintaining  a  steady 
flow  of  completed  parts  from  factor)'  to 
consumer  is  within  the  province  of  the 
Shipping  Department,  supervised  by  W.  J. 
Higgins.  It  is  a  fast-working  crew  of  20 
people,  located  conveniently  at  the  end 
of  the  manifold  final  assembly  line. 


As  the  B-50,  DC-6,  C-97,  P2V-3,  Con- 
vair  240,  and  the  numerous  other  mani- 
folds Ryan  builds  come  from  the  assem- 
bly line  to  Shipping,  they  are  grouped  on 
shelves,  related  parts  adjacent  to  each 
other  for  convenient  and  quick  handling. 
This  space  is  called  a  Shipping  Accumula- 
tion Area,  and  its  contents  are  constantly 
changing  as  new  parts  roil  off  the  produc- 
tion lines. 


Art  Moore,  stock  clerk,  (above)  loads  a 
hand  truck  with  Boeing  B-50  parts  for 
inspection  and  crating.  Each  collector 
system     leaves    factory    as    unit,    or    "kit." 


Rush  order  for  Lockheed  P2V-3  "Neptune" 
collector  system  ports  brought  Novion 
(below)  into  shipping  picture  when  it  mode 
a     hurried     delivery     to     Lockheed     factory. 


6i«i^ 


T 


(Above!   Work  area  of  Shipping  Department  shows  the  Accumulation  Area  in   background  and  lined   up  crates  being   loaded  with 
manifold   parts.    (Below)    Victor   Lindemann,   stock   clerk,    enters    changes    in     records    on     department's     Stock     Control     Board. 


ULL)   UU 


'm^m 


T~r^ 


WW    WW 


when  the  parts  arrive  in  Shipping, 
Victor  Lindemann,  stocli  clerk,  counts 
them  and  notes  the  part  number  on  stock 
inventory  cards.  These  cards  provide  a 
running  inventory  for  chief  clerk,  Art 
Selness,  of  the  Shipping  Department  so 
that  he  knows  at  any  moment  just  how 
many  B-50  parts,  for  instance,  are  on  the 
shelves  ready  for  shipment.  The  cards  are 
filed  on  an  Inventory  Control  Board  and 
changed  daily  as  new  parts  arrive  from 
Manifold  Assembly  and  shipments  move 
out  of  the  factory  to  customers. 

Manifolds  are  not  shipped  piecemeal, 
but  sent  as  complete  "kits."  Each  kit  con- 
tains all  the  pieces  which  make  up  a  com- 
pleted engine  assembly.  As  orders  come 
through  from  the  Metal  Products  Sales 
office  to  send  out  completed  exhaust  sys- 
tems, they  are  entered  on  a  "Schedule  by 
Model"  sheet  which  Production  Control 
prepares.    The   sheet    tells   Shipping    how 


i 

s 

f\ 

HHHv^  ^^^ 

^^^M 

^ 

\ 

m 

many  AM-1  "Mauler"  collector  kits,  for 
example,  are  to  be  sent  during  the  month 
of  September  to  the  Glenn  L.  Martin 
Company.  The  Inventory  Control  Board, 
each  day,  tells  Shipping  personnel  how 
many  separate  AM-1  parts  are  available 
on  the  shelves  and  they  can  plan  their 
shipments  accordingly. 

Stenographers  Tunie  Niemi,  Rita  Wy- 
ant  or  Betty  Linder  then  make  out  a 
Check  List,  Packing  Sheet  and  Pull  Sheet, 
each  a  duplicate  of  the  other,  with  every 
part  and  quantity  required  for  a  complete 
kit  listed.  The  stock  clerks  George  San- 
chez and  Arthur  Moore  now  begin  to  pull 
parts  from  the  shelves  in  the  Shipping 
Accumulation  Area.  As  each  part  goes 
into  a  moveable  truck,  they  check  it  off 
the  Check  List  and  Pull  Sheet.  The  parts 
are  now  trucked  to  the  inspection  table. 
Here,  Bill  Crawford  and  Glynn  Brock  of 
(Continued  on  page  14) 


5 


PLAlOFAll-JOIIS 


THEY  always  said  personal-business 
planes  would  really  "arrive"  only  when 
they  proved  to  have  sufficient  utility  for 
business  firms  to  use  them  regularly  as  an 
accepted  part  of  their  transportation  pro- 
gram. 

Well,  that  day  has  arrived — in  fact,  it's 
been  here  for  nearly  three  years,  say  Ryan 
executives  who  have  made  one  of  the  most 
comprehensive  surveys  of  executive  plane 
usage  ever  conducted. 

Aircraft  men  are  quick  to  admit  that 
they,  of  all  people,  are  constantly  being 
surprised    (and  pleasantly)    by  the  broad 


W.  B.  Hamilton,  Mayor  of  Wichito  Falls, 
Texas,  uses  his  Ryan  Navion  to  travel  be- 
tween his  famous  "T-Bone"  Ranches  in 
Wichita  Falls  and  Antonito,  Colorado.  When 
supplies  are  needed,  his  son  John  flies  to 
Joroso,  a  small  town  lying  holf  in  Colorado 
and  half  in  New  Mexico.  There  he  taxies 
up    the    main    street   to    the    general    store. 


John  I.  Easterly,  head  of  the  Watsonville, 
California  architectural  firm  of  Easterly, 
Ellenwood  &  Eosterly,  learned  to  fly  at 
63,  now  covers  his  business  commitments 
exclusively  by  Ryon  Navion.  Since  using 
his  own  plane,  he  has  obtained  business 
that  was  heretofore  impossible  to  service. 
His   son    and    partner,    John    Jr.,    olso   flies. 


scope  of  practical  uses  business  firms  are 
finding  for  their  Ryan  Navion  executive 
planes.  Hardly  a  day  goes  by  without 
some  new,  dramatic  example  of  real  util- 
ity being  reported  by  plane  owners.  Yet, 
more  important  than  these  attention-get- 
ting, dramatic  stories  is  the  increasing 
acceptance  of  personal  air  travel  by  the 
hundreds  of  companies  who  consider  use 
of  their  executive  planes  as  "strictly  rou- 
tine." 

Actually,  personal-business  plane  flying 
reached  maturity  —  or  at  least  "voting 
age" — late  in  1946  with  the  introduction 
of  the  post-war,  all-metal,  four-place  Na- 
vion. 

Here,  for  the  first  time,  was  a  plane 
with  the  speed,  comfort,  safety,  carrying 
capacitv,  ease  of  flving  and  ability  to 
operate  from  improvised  landing  holds — 
in  short,  the  utility — which  made  regular 
use  of  3  business  plane  practical  and 
profitable. 

And  who  are  the  men  who  now  take 
advantage    of    this    practical,    profitable, 


x^' 


^,v 


"      t; 

"   .rC^JiiiJ-"***^ 

-9^' 

> 

'%',      ^'-v       "■' 

»,.  ^"■'-~     -           "            ■ "  ■  .■ 

*-^ 

^^"^^ 

>l^                          ^ 

Wi^itm^Ss^^^^^ 

From  his  Ryan  Navion,  George  Yoxtheiiner,  heavy  contractor  ond  bituminous  cool  miner  of  Northumberland, 
Pa.,  makes  o  fast,  flying  inspection  of  his  strip  mining  operations  near  Punxsutowney,  Pa.  in  addi- 
tion to  "trouble-shooting"  trips  to  such  locations,  the  plane  is  used  for  survey  work  and  as  on  air 
truck  to  haul  machinery  ports  and  equipment.  "My  Navion  is  indispesnable,"  soys  Yoxtheimer.  "Time 
saved   during   equipment  breakdowns   alone   would   cover  its  expenses  .  .  .  my  uses  for  it  would  fill  o  book." 


modern  travel  medium?  Ryan  officials 
describe  the  average  Navion  owner  in 
these  terms:  He's  a  farmer,  manufacturer, 
automobile  dealer,  oil  man,  contractor, 
cattle  rancher  or  doctor  in  his  early  for- 
ties. He's  not  interested  in  flying  as  a 
sport;  stunt  flying  and  acrobatics  are 
farthest  from  his  mind.  What  he  wants  is 
a  safe,  easy-to-fly,  reliable  plane  which 
will  ""get  him  there"  in  a  hurry,  yet  which 
is  inherently  designed  to  keep  him  out  of 
the  trouble  one  normally  must  expect 
from  a  faster  travel  medium. 

The  typical  Ryan  Navion  purchaser  has 
had  perhaps  2  50  hours  of  previous  flying 
time,  but  h.is  found  that  his  two-place 
airplane  lacks  the  utility  he  needs.  He  is  a 
leader  in  community  affairs,  is  an  aggres- 


sive young  businessman  who  owns  or  has 
an  interest  in  his  firm,  and  whose  income 
is  in  the  $10,O00-$25,0OO  per  year 
bracket.  And  the  fact  that  8  5'^(  of  his 
flying  time  is  logged  on  strictly  business 
trips  is  the  final  confirmation  of  his  Na- 
vion's  usefulness. 

Because  he  has  found  the  Ryan  Navion 
exceptionally  safe,  ruggedly  constructed 
and  easy  to  fly,  the  owner  finds  no  need 
for  a  professional  pilot.  If  he  doesn't  fly 
himself,  there  is  probably  a  war  veteran 
in  his  organization  who  does,  and  can  take 
on  the  business  trip  piloting  in  addition 
to  his  other  assignments. 

Now,  let's  take  a  look  at  how  these 
planes  are  being  used.  With  his  15  5  mph 


Navion,  the  contractor  supervises  widely 
scattered  construction  jobs  in  a  single  day 
which  formerly  could  have  his  on-the-job 
consultation  only  infrequently.  Manufac- 
turers are  speeding  their  salesmen  and  en- 
gineers on  selling  and  service  assignments. 
Oil  drillers,  supply  houses  and  geologists 
cover  states  where  they  formerly  covered 
counties. 

Textile  mills,  machinery  manufactur- 
ers, chemical  firms,  electrical  supply 
houses,  loggers  and  lumber  mills,  insur- 
ance companies,  food  processors,  furniture 
companies,  jewelers,  salesmen,  lawyers — 
a  virtual  cross-section  of  industry,  busi- 
ness and  the  professions — make  up  the 
Ryan  Navion  executive  plane's  market. 
(Continued  on  page  12) 


The  International  Union  of  Operating  Engineers,  A.  F.  of  L.,  uses  its  Ryan  Navion  extensively  to  in- 
crease the  efficiency  of  representatives  operating  out  of  the  Terre  Haute,  Indiana  central  office.  O.  B. 
Souci,  an  International  Trustee,  does  most  of  the  piloting,  flying  direct  to  job  sites  to  negotiate 
labor  disputes.  Here  he  has  just  landed  on  a  highway  building  job  near  Bloomington,  Indiana  to  de- 
liver  on   operator  for   a   Turneou    Pull    machine,   who    is  badly  needed  in  order  to  complete  work   in  progress. 


UYHOOK 


PILOTS  in  the  early  days  of  flying  used 
often  to  wish  for  a  "skyhook,"  an 
imaginary  hook  which  was  supposed  to 
reach  down  from  the  sky  for  latching 
onto  in  tight  situations.  The  closest  ap- 
proach to  those  skyhooks  of  legend  are 
the  new  Piasecki  helicopters  shown  on 
these  pages,  whose  amazing  performance 
can  only  call  to  mind  their  resemblance 
to  that  longed-for  rescue  device  of  an 
earlier  time. 

These  'copters  are  the  most  unusual 
piston-engine  aircraft  for  which  Ryan  de- 
signs and  builds  exhaust  manifolds.  Built 
by  the  Piasecki  Helicopter  Corporation  of 
Morton,  Pennsylvania,  they  are  known 
officially  as  the  HRP-1  and  the  HUP-1, 
and  both  are  in  use  by  the  Navy,  Coast 
Guard  and  Marines.  A  third  type,  the 
HRP-2,  is  still  in  the  developmental  stage. 

Along  with  the  jet-propelled  aircraft, 
the  helicopter  type  of  airplane  has  made 
rapid  strides  in  both  speed  and  perform- 
ance in  the  past  five  years.  Once  a  thing 
of  experimental  design  and  unpredictable 
performance,  the  'copter  has  blossomed 
into  a  useful  arm  of  our  military  services 
for  reconnaissance,  rescue  and  communi- 
cation. The  HRP-1,  first  twin-tandem 
rotor  helicopter  ever  built,  is  known  as 
the  "Rescuer,"  for  the  useful  missions  it 
has  performed  during  its  Navy  service. 

The  HRP,  as  a  rescue  vehicle,  is  ca- 
pable of  saving  seven  or  eight  men  within 
ranges  up  to  300  miles.  In  an  emergency 


HRP-1  "Rescuer"  simulates  mass 
rescue  of  sailors  from  life  raft. 
'Copter  carries  10  men  300  miles. 


it  could  pick  up  nine  or  ten  men  from  a 
life  raft,  an  ice  ledge  or  out  of  the  jungle. 

The  "Rescuer"  is  powered  by  a  Pratt  & 
Whitney  600  h.p.  engine  and  can  take  off 
vertically  with  more  than  a  ton  of  useful 
load,  accelerate  to  speeds  of  over  100  miles 
per  hour  and  climb  to  high  altitudes.  It 
was  designed  to  carry  a  crew  of  two  men, 
plus  eight  passengers. 

The  rotors  at  either  end  of  the  fuselage 
of  this  plane  (prototype  of  which  first 
flew  in  1945)  permit  full  utilization  of 
the  central  portion  of  the  fuselage  for 
cargo  or  passengers.  The  large  cabin  area 
is  on  the  center  of  gravity,  allowing  high 
overloads  and  making  it  possible  to  shift 


cargo  while  in  flight  without  materially 
affecting  the  balance. 

An  improved  and  modernized  version 
of  the  HRP-1,  known  as  the  HRP-2,  was 
ordered  by  the  Navy  in  June  of  1948. 
This  newer  development  of  the  HRP-1 
has  an  all-metal  body  for  greater  struc- 
tural strength. 

For  this  improved  helicopter  which  is 
still  under  construction,  Ryan  is  current- 
ly building  manifold  exhausts  as  well  as 
stainless  steel  shrouds.  Because  helicopter 
engines  are  necessarily  inside  the  fuselage 
of  the  plane,  some  method  must  be  used 
to  protect  the  interior  from  excessive 
heat.  This  the  metal  shrouds  do,  in  addi- 
tion to  providing  carburetor  heat  for  the 
engines. 

From  specifications  of  the  Piasecki  Cor- 
poration, Rvan  has  developed  a  shroud 
after  long  and  painstaking  work.  Stamp- 
ings for  these  metal  exhaust  coverings  are 
difficult  and  have  called  for  extremely 
close  cooperation  between  the  Engineering 
Department  and  Manifold  Assembly.  En- 
gineers Bob  Williams  and  Frank  Hughes 
have  done  most  of  the  design  and  im- 
provements in  close  coordination  with 
Bob  Chase,  Assistant  Foreman,  whose  job 
it  has  been  to  work  out  any  kinks  in  the 
shroud's  design  while  it  is  on  the  jig  tables. 

The  third  tvpe  of  helicopter  built  by 
Piasecki  for  which  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Companv  furnishes  manifolds  and  shrouds 
is  the  HUP-1.  Specifications  for  this  air- 
craft  were  issued  by  the  Navy's  Bureau 


of  Aeronautics  in  1945  and  called  for  a 
general  purpose,  high  performance  'copter 
whose  mission  would  include  ship-to- 
shore,  shore-to-ship  and  ship-to-ship  com- 
munication. In  addition,  it  was  to  be 
capable  of  personnel  transfer,  air-sea  res- 
cues, aerial  observation  and  general  utility 
service  with  the  Fleet. 

Sleeker  looking  and  faster  than  the 
HRP,  the  HUP  has  a  fast  rate  of  cUmb; 
better  than  1600  feet  per  minute  in  for- 
ward flight  and  1500  feet  per  minute  in 
vertical  ascents.  At  75  percent  power,  the 
cruising  speed  of  the  HUP-1  is  114  miles 
per  hour,  and  in  trial  speed  runs  at  the 
Piasecki  plant  one  of  the  streamlined 
'copters  made  calibrated  runs  at  131  miles 
per  hour.  This  mark  unofficially  surpasses 
the  present  world's  record  of  124  mph  for 
rotary  wing  aircraft  held  by  the  British 
"Gyrodyne." 

The  newer  HUP  looks  more  like  an  air- 
plane than  a  helicopter  because  of  its 
clean  fuselage  and  large  vertical  fin.  It  is 
compact  enough,  however,  to  go  down  the 
smallest  carrier's  elevator  without  folding 
the  rotor  blades  and  is  able  to  go  down  a 
cruiser  aircraft  elevator  with  the  blades 
folded.  The  spacious,  usable  cabin  area  of 
the  HUP  can  comfortably  carry  five  pas- 
sengers plus  a  crew  of  two  and  the  un- 
usually large  center  of  gravity  range  of 
the  plane  eliminates  the  usual  helicopter 
balance  problems,  permitting  passenger 
movement  while  in  flight  as  well  as  the 
shifting  of  cargo  loads  while  in  hovering 
flight.  For  rescue  work  the  new  plane  fea- 
tures a  big,  internal  rescue  hatch  adjacent 
to  the  pilot's  seat  which  is  large  enough 
to  permit  passage  of  a  ladened  litter.  An 
hydraulically  operated  hoist  is  mounted 
above  the  hatch  so  that  rescued  personnel 
can  be  brought  directly  into  the  cabin 
while  strapped  to  a  litter. 

For  a  long  time,  pilots  and  builders  of 
aircraft  have  speculated  on  the  possibili- 
ties of  looping  a  helicopter.  Speculation  is 
now  at  an  end,  for  early  in  1949  a  test 
pilot  at  the  Piasecki  plant  did  just  that. 
During  test  flights  aimed  at  demonstrat- 
ing the  HUP's  ability  to  withstand  high 
G  forces,  the  pilot  made  several  dive  runs 
to  get  up  to  the  required  test  figure.  On 
the  third  dive  he  applied  full  controls 
which  put  the  ship  into  a  vertical  posi- 
tion, nose  up.  To  the  awe  of  dozens  of 
company  officials  and  Navy  inspectors 
watching  the  demonstration  the  pilot 
made  the  quick  decision  to  continue  on 
through  the  loop  in  order  to  recover  the 
plane's  balance.  With  this  maneuver  safe- 
ly accomplished  the  helicopter  now  seems 
ready  for  almost  any  kind  of  duty. 


Exhaust   system    shrouds   which    Ryan    builds   for    Piasecki    HRP-2    are    checked    by   Tom 
McCarty    (1.)    of  Inspection  ond  Bob  Chose,  Assistant  Foreman  of  Manifold  Assembly. 


Built-in    crone    hoists    stretcher    coses    aboard    HUP-1     for    emergencies    or    con 
lower  supplies  to  men  on  ground.  This  Navy  plane  has  been  clocked  at  1  3  1   m.p.h. 


PRODlIfTlOS 


JN 


(Above)    Drilling  aluminum   ribs  of  a   C-97   cargo   door. 

Like  peering  through  the  wrong  end  of  a  telescope  is 
this  view    (upper   left)    of  the   fuselage   "46   Sections." 

Resembling  big  metal  wine  casks,  (left)  five  fuselages 
are    lined    up    for    final    riveting    before    pressure    test. 

Looking  like  metal  clothespins,  the  Cleco  fasteners 
the  operator  (below)  is  clipping  to  the  cargo  door 
frame   hold   oluminum   skin   of  C-97    in   place   for   rivets. 


photographs  by  Don  Doerr 


^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^■^^^^^^^^^■kl  im^ 

,,     .    ■  ...           A 

^     /=X-.i  -V 

5 

To  an  engineer  the  glittering  sections  of  the  Boeing  C-97 
fuselage  sections  shown  on  these  two  pages  represent  stresses 
and  strains,  aerodynamics  problems  and  other  involved  mathe- 
matical calculations.  To  the  300  workmen  on  the  job  they 
represent  many  manhours  of  riveting,  testing,  cutting,  boring 
and  drilling.  To  the  future  passenger  aboard  a  Stratocruiser 
they  represent  a  safe,  quiet  trip  from  San  Francisco  to  Hono- 
lulu. But  to  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company's  chief  photographer, 
Don  Doerr,  thev  presented  an  interesting  opportunity  for  the 
camera  artist  to  record  unusual  pattern  shots  and  odd  lighting 
effects. 

On  a  recent  tour  through  the  Final  Assembly  building, 
where  nine  of  these  after  sections  are  turned  out  each  month, 
Doerr  clicked  his  shutter  to  record  aircraft  production  as  a 
photographer  sees  it  in  progress. 


Completed   fuselage    (above)    is    hoisted    aboard   flat  car 
for    trip    to    final    assembly    at    Boeing's    Seattle    plant. 


Man    inside    skeleton     (left)     of    fuselage    is    "bucking" 
rivets     which     hold     stringers     to     circular     belt     frames. 


Center  ring  of  convex  metal  bulkhead  is  riveted   (below) . 
This  "door"   maintains  cabin  pressure  at  high  altitudes. 


Farmers  and  ranches  have  virtually 
eliminated  serious  "down  time"  losses  on 
farm  equipment  by  quickly  obtaining  re- 
pair parts.  Too,  flying  farmers  check  irri- 
gation, crop  condition,  erosion,  and  other 
factors  in  large  scale  farm  operation  by 
quick  daily  aerial  surveys. 

Take  the  Buerkle  brothers  of  Bakers- 
field,  California.  They  supervise  five 
farms  in  widely  separated  sections  of 
Southern  California — some  hundreds  of 
miles  apart — often  visiting  all  of  them  in 
a  single  day.  To  complete  the  same  in- 
spection by  car  would  require  several  days 
of  hard  driving  over  mountain  and  desert 
roads. 

Men  like  the  Buerkles,  who  have  the 
farmer's  instinctive  aptitude  with  ma- 
chines, insist  that  safety  and  rugged  per- 


that  is  just  as  much  at  home  on  an  un- 
improved strip  alongside  a  drilling  rig  as 
on  a  metropolitan  airport  runway. 

Heavy  industries,  manufacturers  and 
mining  operators  favor  an  airplane  with  a 
wide  choice  of  passenger  and  cargo  loads. 
Because  it  possesses  such  a  wide  choice, 
the  Navion  is  coming  into  increasing  use 
by  companies  in  all  parts  of  the  world. 
It's  a  rugged,  half-ton  truck  that  hauls 
anything  from  a  load  of  Caterpillar  D-8 
parts  to  a  sample  refrigerator  or  crate  of 
books.  Though  comfortable  and  luxurious 
enough  to  more  than  satisfy  even  the  most 
discriminating  passengers,  this  four-place 
plane  is  easily  converted  to  a  rugged,  spa- 
cious flying  truck  or  station  wagon  by  the 
simple  trick  of  removing  the  canopy  or 
conveniently  rolling  it  back. 


cial  combination  of  desirable  features. 
Hardly  ever  is  this  utility  as  a  sales  plane 
left  unmentioned  on  a  Navion  owner's 
questionnaire. 

Navion  owners  in  Canada,  Central  and 
South  America,  Asia  and  Africa  were  in- 
cluded in  the  Ryan  survey.  In  many  cases, 
these  owners  live  in  the  only  real  avia- 
tion hinterlands  left  in  the  world.  For 
this  reason,  they  necessarily  have  to  oper- 
ate aircraft  that  are  easy  to  maintain, 
have  long  range  (Navion's  is  up  to  800 
miles  with  auxiliary  gas  tank)  and  excel- 
lent performance  at  high  altitudes — such 
as  those  encountered  in  Mexico  and  Brazil 
— and  over  lower-than-sea  level  regions 
like  those  found  in  the  Near  East.  When 
they  get  these  features  in  an  airplane  they 
can    and    do    use    it    for   much    the    same 


;^c^' 


The  Ryan  Navion  at  left,  being  loaded  with  a  rush,  500-lb.  shipment  destined  (or  one  of  the  Foundries  Moterials  Compony's  Mid- 
western customers,  helps  this  Coldwater,  Michigan  firm's  President,  Douglas  J.  Strong  (in  cabin),  cover  close  to  100,000  miles  a 
yeor,  contacting  customers  and  suppliers  in  twenty  states.  Before  owning  the  plane,  he  traveled  only  45,000  miles  annuolly  .  .  . 
More  routine  Navion  cargo  is  the  Northwest  Hammond  Studios'  Spinet  organ  shown  being  lowered  into  place  at  right  by  Charles 
Newman,  Northwest's  Service  Manoger.  K.  J.  Bailey  (left).  President,  besides  flying  organ  deliveries,  also  uses  the  Navion 
to  advertise,  coll  on  customers  and  coordinate  operations  of  the  company's  too  offices  in  Great  Falls,  Montona  and  Spokane,  Washington. 


formance  be  built  into  a  plane — as  they 
are  in  their  Ryan  Navion — instead  of  be- 
ing left  to  the  varying  skills  of  pilots. 

Chester  A.  Weseman,  Austin,  Minne- 
sota contractor,  regularly  travels  by  Na- 
vion between  his  Minnesota  contracting 
operations,  Texas  citrus  ranch  and  Nevada 
gold  mine — 3000  miles — often  within 
two  or  three  days.  Included  among  his 
plane's  many  usages  are  aerial  inspections 
of  citrus  orchards,  contacting  construc- 
tion jobs  and  hauling  heavy  parts  for  gold 
mining  machinery. 

In  the  petroleum  industry,  where  the 
distances  are  great  and  operating  condi- 
tions are  generally  of  the  toughest  type,  a 
plane  has  to  have  the  ability  to  take  hard 
knocks,  rough  landings  and  heavy  flight 
schedules.  An  oil  man  must  select  a  plane 


Real  estate  brokers,  lumbermen,  engi- 
neers, forestry  officials,  law  enforcement 
officers  and  others  who  do  extensive  aerial 
survey  work  utilize  airplanes  which  have 
as  close  to  all-round  visibility  as  possible. 
Such  complete  visibility  means  a  better 
job  done  and  assures  extra  safety  in  the 
air  and  on  the  ground. 

Experience  is  beginning  to  indicate  that 
a  personal-business  plane  with  a  well- 
selected  combination  of  safety,  speed, 
roominess,  comfort  and  smart-styling 
may  well  prove  to  be  the  biggest  boon  to 
selling  since  the  advent  of  the  company 
automobile.  Food  companies,  financial 
houses,  automobile  dealers,  supply  firms, 
merchants,  publishers  and  manufacturers 
in  increasing  numbers  are  choosing  the 
Navion  because  it  embodies  just  this  spe- 


unusual  purposes  which  distinguish  Na- 
vion usage  in  the  U.  S. 

Flying  in  Alaska  above  the  Arctic  Cir- 
cle, where  the  chief  problem  is  keeping 
engines  from  over-cooling  rather  than 
over-heating,  Robert  Rice  of  Wien-Alaska 
Airlines  uses  a  Navion  to  do  everything 
under  the  Midnight  Sun  and  a  lot  more 
besides.  His  dependable  plane  defies  the 
worst  kinds  of  weather  and  the  most 
freezing  temperatures  to  provide  ambu- 
lance service  between  remote  sections  of 
the  interior  and  Fairbanks;  to  carry  ma- 
chinery, lumber,  livestock,  oxy-acetylene 
tanks,  people  or  whatever  else  has  to  move 
in  and  out  of  the  frigid  North. 

These  remarkable  usage  reports  from 
Navion  owners  in  every  walk  of  life  have 
(Continued  on  page  1 S ) 


THE  WHMT  CROP 


By  HOWARD  JEPPSON 


SIX  of  us  pilots,  flying  as  many  Navions 
helped  save  the  wheat  crops  in  Idaho's 
Fairfield  Valley  this  Spring.  The  story  of 
this  operation  again  proves  the  remark- 
able utility  of  the  modern  personal  plane, 
showing  the  unusual  uses  to  which  it  can 
be  adapted. 

When  frost  and  freeze  threatened  to 
wipe  out  the  season's  entire  output  of 
wheat  in  this  rich  area,  the  Aircraft  Serv- 
ice Co.,  Ryan  Navion  distributor  at  near- 
by Boise  was  called  in  to  duplicate  the 
Navions'  feat  of  1948.  That  year,  eight 
times,  the  planes  took  off  at  dawn  to  per- 
form a  close-to-ground  "wheat  dragging," 
which  is  a  technique  similar  to  the  one 
used  by  crop  dusters.  We  made  repeated 
passes  over  the  stands  of  grain,  keeping 
about  30  feet  off  the  ground.  We  flew  at 
75  m.p.h.  and  with  the  Navion's  large 
flaps  lowered,  so  that  they  stirred  up  the 
chill  morning  air. 

Lloyd  Baron,  a  Fairfield  rancher,  lost  an 
$88,000  crop  to  the  freeze  in  1947.  Look- 
ing for  a  way  to  save  his  '48  investment 
he  borrowed  a  page  from  the  California 
fruit  grower's  notebook  and  inaugurated 
this  special  use  of  the  airplanes  to  stir 
up  the  chill  air  which  lies  low  on  the 
ground  on  May  mornings.  As  owner  of 
one  of  the  largest  wheat  acreages  in  the 
Valley  he  first  suggested  to  Les  Randolph, 
Aircraft    Service's    manager,    that    planes 


be  tried  out  to  rescue  the  crops.  Baron 
mentioned  he  had  heard  that  California 
orchard  men  used  powered  wind  machines 
on  towers  to  keep  the  air  moving  and 
thought  planes  might  accomplish  the  same 
thing  flying  low  over  flat  farm  land.  Six 
other  wheat  ranchers  in  the  500-foot  high 
Fairfield  Valley  supported  Lloyd's  plan. 

The  experiment  was  made  and  the 
Navion  fleet  prevented  frost  and  freeze 
from  settling  on  the  crops  while  the 
wheat  was  in  its  critical  growing  period. 
When  cold  strikes  a  mature  field  it  can 
shrivel  the  grain  to  a  dry,  empty  husk. 

The  experience  of  Harry  Geisler,  anoth- 
er large  Fairfield  grower,  suppHes  this 
season's  most  striking  demonstration  of 
the  effectiveness  of  "wheat  dragging."  An 
80-acre  corner  of  Geisler's  wheat  tract 
was  not  covered  by  the  Navions.  This 
section  froze.  But  a  larger  field  which  the 
planes  worked  over  survived,  even  though 
the  ground  temperatures  went  as  low  as 
22  degrees  Fahrenheit  during  the  opera- 
tion. 

Idaho  weathermen  are  highly  enthusi- 
astic over  the  results  obtained  in  this 
unique  method  of  frost  damage  preven- 
tion. They  attribute  the  success  of  the 
Navions  to  their  stirring  up  of  the  air 
over  the  wheat,  thereby  keeping  moisture 
from  condensing  into  frost.  Earlier  the- 
ories held  that  the  low-flying  planes  actu- 


ally raised  the  temperature  of  the  air 
disturbed. 

Giving  the  air  a  good  churning  every 
ten  minutes  will  prevent  this  type  of  crop 
damage,  the  weathermen  explain,  even 
when  temperatures  fall  as  low  as  1 8  de- 
grees below  freezing.  Ten  minutes  is  the 
time  required  in  a  dead  calm  for  frost  to 
form. 

The  dollar-saving  success  of  the  wheat 
rescue  job  prompted  Navion  pilots  to  take 
a  crack  at  another  grower  problem;  rain 
spoilage  of  cherries.  When  a  cherr)'  nears 
maturity,  rain  frequently  will  fill  the 
recession  where  the  stem  is  attached.  A 
raindrop  will  also  hold  to  the  bottom  tip 
of  the  fruit.  This  causes  the  cherry  to 
absorb  water  which  can  split  its  skin  with 
the  resultant  spoilage  and  molding. 

To  solve  this  problem  the  Navions  were 
flown  close  to  the  trees  immediately  after 
each  shower.  Using  about  a  three-quarter 
flap,  they  give  the  surrounding  air  a  strong 
downwashed  churning  which  knocks  the 
raindrops  off  the  cherries  quickly  and 
thoroughly. 

Fully  aware  that  the  airplane  is  a 
mighty  useful  piece  of  ranch  equipment, 
due  to  the  successful  preventative  flights 
of  the  last  two  seasons,  Fairfield's  wheat 
and  fruit  growers  have  come  to  look  upon 
Aircraft  Service  Company's  Navions  as  a 
first  source  of  help  in  any  emergency. 


tgtetmio^Mm.tj')^^*^.  I  ..:.ffimtt 


•  **.^,^^^*^' 


iitfiitfiiiiiiii- 


J^« 


lavion  In  1  Pig's  Eye 

Johnny  Snider  (in  cabin,  upper  right),  youthful  Clinton,  Oklahoma  farmer,  was 
set  on  showing  his  prize  hog  at  the  National  Barrow  Show  in  Austin,  Minnesota,  lost 
month.  He  wasn't  going  to  let  wheat  planting  stop  him — or  the  pig — in  making  it 
there  on  time  for  the   big  event. 

Waiting  until  the  last  possible  moment  before  leaving  his  groin  fields,  Johnny — 
with  the  help  of  Dove  Johnson  (standing  on  walkway,  below),  an  executive  of  the 
Notional  Flying  Farmer  Magazine — loaded  his  blue  ribbon  porker  aboard  Johnson's 
Novion,   and  the  three  of  them   took  off   for   Austin. 

The  hefty  guest  of  honor  took  full  advantage  of  the  Navion's  comfort  and  roomi- 
ness to  relax  aplenty  during  the  flight  North.  You  might  say  he  rather  "made  a  pig 
of  himself"  the  way  he  took  up  most  of  the  big  back  seat. 

After  his  restful  ride,  he  reached  Austin  in  top  condition  for  the  Show,  being 
greeted  upon  arrival  by  Pete  Holland  (upper  far  left).  Director  of  the  National 
Barrow  Show,  and  the  smiling  Mayor  of  Austin    (for  right)  . 

Proud  owner  Snider  is  prominent  in  the  Clinton  chapter  of  the  Future  Farmers  of 
America.  His  friend,  newsman  Johnson,  flies  his  Novion  extensively  in  connection 
with  his  duties  with  the  Notionol  Flying  Farmers  Association  ond  as  editor  and 
publisher   of   the    Nowata    Doily    Star,    Nowata,    Oklahoma. 


SHIP  TO:  RYAN 
CUSTOMERS 

(Continued  from  page  5  j 
Ryan's  Inspection  Department  look  for 
any  bumps  or  flaws  in  the  metal  since  the 
parts  were  last  inspected  in  production 
and  check  them  carefully  before  OK'ing 
the  Check  List  form.  They  also  make 
sure  of  a  correct  count  before  they  turn 
the  parts  over  for  the  final  inspections 
by  Air  Force  representatives  and  customer 
inspection  personnel. 

After  final  inspections  are  completed 
the  parts  are  crated  in  specially  built 
boxes  turned  out  in  the  company's  Box 
Shop.  The  Packing  List  is  placed  inside, 
signed  by  the  packer,  and  the  cover  nailed 
shut.  The  crate  is  now  ready  for  Joe 
McCoy,  the  stenciler,  who  weighs  it,  sten- 
cils the  correct  address  on  the  box  and 
gives  the  Check  List  to  the  Bill  of  Lading 
Clerk,  Millie  Borscheim,  who  makes  out 
the  proper  shipping  instructions. 

The  Pull  Sheet  the  stock  clerk  used 
when  taking  parts  off  the  shelves  is  also 
returned  to  the  office  and  the  running 
inventory  of  parts  on  the  Inventory  Con- 
trol Board  is  brought  up  to  date  so  that 
Higgins  and  his  people  know  how  much 
they  have  on  hand  for  future  manifold 
shipments. 

Does  the  foregoing  sound  involved?  It 
isn't.  Actually  the  whole  procedure  works 
quite  smoothly  and  enabled  the  depart- 
ment to  set  a  1949  shipment  record  in 
September  with  220,000  pounds  of  mani- 
folds sent  off  by  train,  plane  and  truck  to 
Ryan  customers. 

Collector  systems  are  not  the  only  prod- 
ucts of  the  company  which  Department 
*  547  has  to  handle  every  day.  Ryan  Nav- 
ion  spare  parts  leave  for  owners  and 
dealers  from  the  floor  of  Shipping,  as  do 
jigs  and  fixtures  other  airplane  manu- 
facturers require  from  the  factor)-. 

The  huge  Boeing  fuselage  sections,  when 
completed  in  the  Final  Assembly  building, 
are  loaded  aboard  a  truck,  hauled  to  a 
waiting  flat  car  and  lowered  gently  bv 
crane  onto  the  cradles  waiting  for  them 
(See  picture  on  Page  11).  Covering  each 
fuselage  with  yards  of  convas  to  protect 
it  from  the  elements  was  formerlv  a  tedi- 
ous, four  or  five-hour  job  But  Shipping 
came  up  with  the  work-shortening  plan 
of  having  the  crane  droD  the  canvas,  in- 
tricately folded,  atop  the  fuselage  after 
it  was  secured  in  its  cradle.  William  Ew- 
ing.  who  suggested  this  method,  now 
crawls  to  the  top  of  the  C-97  section  and 
pulls  the  canvas  folds  apart.  It  falls  into 
nlace  over  the  rounded  si-les  of  the  fuse- 
lage and  is  quickly  secured  in  place  with 
ropes  in  a  matter  of  only  a  few  minutes. 

Another  clever  plan   was   worked   out 
in  this  department  recently,  when  it  de- 
vised   a   returnable   shipping  crate,   made 
(Continued  on  page  /5) 


SHIP  TO:  RYAN 
CUSTOMERS 

(Continued  from  page  14) 
of  plywood,  to  protect  General  Electric 
jet  tail  cone  assemblies  en  route  to  Dayton, 
Ohio,  and  the  G.  E.  plant  near  there  at 
Lockland.  These  boxes  are  built  so  care- 
fully and  accurately  they  fit  together  like 
a  Chinese  puzzle  and  are  used  over  and 
over  at  much  less  cost  in  time  and  mater- 
ials, providing  much  greater  protection 
for  the  stainless  steel  cones  which  must 
arrive  at  G.  E.  in  flawless  condition. 

Most  of  the  tremendous  volume  of 
metal  products  leaving  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Company  each  month  is  hauled  by  truck 
or  goes  aboard  freight  cars,  but  from 
time  to  time  emergency  parts  or  experi- 
mental collector  sets  must  be  rushed  to 
other  manufacturers  by  Railway  Express 
or  commercial  air  freight.  Even  these  are 
sometimes  too  slow.  In  these  cases  one 
of  the  company's  own  Ryan  Navion  exec- 
utive planes  comes  in  to  the  shipping  pic- 
ture to  make  hurry-up  deliveries  right  at 
the  airfields  bordering  other  aircraft  fac- 
tories. 

Current  volume  of  production  of  mani- 
folds, Boeing  fuselages  and  jet  cones  keeps 
the  Shipping  Department  on  the  run  to 
get  out  those  crates  on  time.  Good  as  the 
Shipping  Department  is  in  handling, 
wrapping  and  getting  rush  materials  on 
their  way,  any  requests  for  wrapping  and 
mailing  Christmas  gift  packages  this  win- 
ter will  be  met  with  a  stern,  "No."  And 
you  can  see  why. 


ON  THE  COVER 


This  unusual  pattern  shot  of  a  rivet- 
ing operation  ^vas  made  by  Ryan  Aero- 
nautical Company's  Chief  Photographer, 
Don  Doerr.  It  is  one  of  many  his  camera 
caught  on  a  recent  photographic  tour 
he  took  of  the  Boeing  Fuselage  Assem- 
bly line  at  the  plant. 

On  pages  10  and  11  are  other  un- 
usual production  pictures  of  the  fuse- 
lage sections  Ryan  has  under  construc- 
tion for  the  Boeing  "Stratocruisers" 
and  "Stratofreighters." 


Fireball  Started  It;  low  F-M 


How  does  the  engineering  department  of  an  aircroft  company  approach  the  design 
problem  when  they  must  house  radar  search  equipment  in  the  nose  of  a  jet  fighter 
where  the  air  inlet  duct  usually  goes?  Engineers  at  Republic  Aviation  Corp.  solved  this 
problem  on  on  F-84  Thunderjet  experimental  model  by  putting  the  inlet  ducts  flush 
with  the  side  of  the  forward  fuselage,  ahead  of  the  wing  leading  edge.  This  develop- 
(ment  on  one  of  the  country's  newest  combat  planes  was  first  pioneered  by  the 
National  Advisory  Committee  for  Aeronautics  and  Ryan  engineers  and  first  used  on 
the  Ryan  XFR-4  experimental  Navy  fighter  which  had  its  maiden  flight  in    1945. 

The  installation  of  this  type  duct  on  a  Republic  F-84  is  a  result  of  the  earlier 
studies  and  analyses  made  by  NACA,  which  determined  that  side  inlet  ducts  would 
give  the  desired  flow  characteristics  and  pressure  recoveries  and  at  the  some  time 
provide  ample  room  for  equipment  in  the  nose  section  with  a  minimum  change  in  both 
structural  end  aerodynamic  features. 

One  of  the  primary  purposes  of  the  earlier  Ryan-NACA  experiments  with  flush 
entry  ducting  was  to  provide  a  flying  laboratory  project  to  answer  the  problems  posed 
under  actual  flight  conditions.  Before  the  development  of  the  XFR-4  research  plane, 
a  conventional  Ryan  FR-1  Fireball  fighter  was  converted  at  the  Ames  Aeronautical 
Laboratory  to  test  the  first  flush  entry  system  in  a  full-scale  airplane  in  the  NACA's 
wind  tunnel. 

The  side  intake  ducts  built  into  the  XFR-4  used  a  slightly  different  design  than 
the  Republic  engineers  have  incorporated  in  the  F-84.  The  XFR-4  Fireball,  being  a 
jet-plus-propeller  job,  did  not  use  the  Westinghouse  J-34  jet  engine  in  the  aft 
fuselage  section  at  all  times  during  flight.  For  this  reason  duct  entry  doors  hod  to 
be  installed  in  the  streamlined  intakes  in  a  way  which  would  eliminate  the  drag  of 
air  windmilling  through  the  aft  jet  engine  when  it  was  not  operating.  The  F-84 
experimental  ducts  ore  less  complicated  than  the  XFR-4's,  having  no  entry  doors. 

The  FR-1  Fireball,  first  jet-plus-propeller  plane,  of  which  the  XFR-4  was  a  fur- 
ther development,  had  the  intake  ducts  located  in  the  leading  edges  of  its  wings. 
Like  the  modified  F-84,  the  XFR-4'5  flush  entries  provided  a  smooth  contour,  with- 
out external  scoops,  on  both  sides  of  the  lower  forward  section  of  the  plane's  fuselage. 

Eight  flights  hove  been  made  to  dote  with  this  modified  Republic  F-84  and  pilot 
reports  ore  highly  satisfactory.  There  are  no  reported  changes  in  stability  characteris- 
tics. The  rate  of  climb  has  been  increased  and  other  performance  requirements  hove 
proved  equal  to  the  regular  F-84  model  with  nose  type  ducts. 


Boeing     C 
Aluminum 


'97     floor     section     is     roll     spotwelded     by     newly-acquired     equipment, 
sheets    are    joined    firmly    by    heat    and    pressure    of    wheel    electrodes. 


WHERE  it  once  took  two  men  ap- 
proximately six  and  one-half  hours 
to  spotweld  a  large  floor  section  for  the 
Boeing  C-97  fuselages,  it  now  takes  one 
man  just  two  and  one-half  hours.  This 
saving  of  ten  to  eleven  work  hours,  not 
to  mention  the  cutting  down  of  fatigue 
and  tendency  to  error  in  a  precision  oper- 
ation of  this  type,  is  all  due  to  a  newly 
installed  piece  of  equipment  in  Ryan's 
Final  Assembly  Building. 

This  machine  is  the  roll  spotwelder, 
obtained  by  the  company  for  special  work, 
and  used  to  weld  aluminum  stringers  to 
airplane  skins  as  well  as  fabricate  the 
Boeing  floor  sections.  The  roll  spotwelder 
makes  use  of  two  wheels  which  act  as  the 
electrodes.  A  variable  driving  mechanism 
controls  the  wheel  rotation  and  the  alum- 
inum sheets  can  be  welded  either  over- 
lapped or  spaced.  The  material,  before 
welding,  is  thoroughly  cleaned  in  an  alka- 
line bath  to  remove  grease  or  foreign 
particles.  It  is  then  rinsed  and  etched  to 
provide  the  proper  surface  condition  be- 
fore it  is  welded. 

The    current    flow    through    the    elec- 


Welding     torch     on     heli-arc     seamwelder     moves     along     trolley     to     join     ends     of 
o     J-47      jet     toil     cone      part.      Special      Ryan-built     jig      holds      parts      in      place. 


trodes  heats  the  material  and  as  it  is 
squeezed  together,  a  bond  is  formed  be- 
tween the  two  aluminum  sheets. 

The  machine  is  electronically  controlled 
for  various  weld  spacings,  and  when  in 
operation  is  capable  of  welding  90  spots 
per  minute. 

Another  time  saver  recently  installed  is 
the  heli-arc  seamwelder,  in  use  in  the  Main 
Factory  Building  in  the  General  Electric 
J-47  tail  cone  assembly  area.  It  is  shielded, 
inert  arc-welding  device  which  travels  on 
a  small  trolley.  The  operator  can  adjust 
the  arc  spacing  to  meet  specifications  for 
the  various  parts  he  joins  together. 

When  the  stainless  exhaust  chambers, 
tail  cones  and  B-47  tailpipes  are  formed 
on  a  rolling  machine  they  are  then  taken 
to  the  heli-arc  seamwelder  for  joining  the 
loose  edges.  A  specially  built  fixture  holds 
the  parts  in  place,  while  the  operator  runs 
the  electrode  along  the  trolley  to  join  the 
stainless  ends  firmly.  The  water-cooled 
torch,  which  is  the  basis  of  this  welding 
process,  provides  a  tube  to  conduct  the 
gas  used  around  the  electrode,  thereby 
shielding  the  weld  spot  from  oxidation. 

The  heli-arc  seamwelder  is  a  product  of 
the  Linde  Air  Products  Company.  The 
roll  spotwelder  was  manufactured  by  the 
Federal  Machine  and  ^"elder  Company. 


16 


JATO  NAVION 

(Continued  from  page  3 ) 
by  Aerojet  for  the  commercial  market, 
but  uses  experience  gained  and  principles 
developed  under  classified  U.  S.  Navy 
Bureau  of  Aeronautics  contracts,  and  so 
remains  on  the  restricted  list.  However, 
"should  this  restriction  be  relaxed,  we 
expect  to  make  this  rocket  available  to 
aircraft  owners  for  commercial  use,"  says 
Elmer  E.  Nelson,  Aerojet  Director  of 
Sales,  who  has  done  most  of  the  test 
work  on  his  company's  Jato  Junior- 
equipped  Navion. 

This  rocket  engine  is  currently  under- 
going service  tests  by  the  Army  Field 
Forces  and  Army  Ordnance.  Some  of 
these  tests  will  be  conducted  at  the  Aber- 
deen Proving  Grounds  and  others  on 
Army  Ryan  Navion  L-17B  liaison  planes 
at  Ft.  Bragg,  North  Carolina.  It  is  antici- 
pated by  Aerojet  engineers  that  upon 
completion  of  these  service  tests,  con- 
siderable use  for  this  rocket  will  be  found 
by  the  Army  Field  Forces. 

Little  larger  than  a  big  thermos  bottle, 
and  weighing  50  pounds  because  of  its 
steel  casing,  the  Jato  Junior  rocket  motor 
is  mounted  on  the  under  side  of  the  Nav- 


ion fuselage  beneath  the  cabin.  Its  2  50 
pounds  of  thrust — adding  a  solid  extra 
punch  to  the  205  horsepower  of  the 
plane's  conventional  Continental  engine 
— results  from  the  rapid  burning  of  a 
solid   fuel  propellant. 

The  Jato  Junior  rocket  is  fired  as  soon 
as  the  Navion's  engine  is  developing  full 
power  and  the  plane  has  started  down 
the  runway.  The  rate  of  climb  once  the 
airplane  is  airborne  is  truly  astonishing. 
There  is  no  impact  upon  Jato  ignition, 
and  the  pilot's  only  reaction  is  one  of 
pleasure  over  the  availability  of  so  much 
additional  power. 

The  Ryan  Navion  which  normally  takes 
only  875  feet  to  climb  over  a  50-foot 
obstacle  can,  with  the  aid  of  Jato  Junior, 
clear  the  same  obstruction  in  only  300 
feet  from  its  starting  point.  (With  its 
new  metal  blade  Hartzell  propeller,  the 
conventional  Ryan  Navion  has  take-off 
performance  about  lO'-'f  better  than  that 
quoted  above  for  normal  operation.) 

In  a  recent  demonstration  a  Jato  Jun- 
ior-powered Navion  was  184  feet  in  the 
air  600  feet  from  the  point  it  started 
its  take-off,  while  a  sister  plane  using 
conventional  power  was  just   getting  off 


the  runway  5  00  feet  from  its  starting 
point. 

The  Jato  Junior  has  been  awarded 
C.A.A.  rocket  type  certificate  No.  250. 
It  has  one-fourth  the  thrust  of  its  pre- 
decessor, the  original  Jato  unit  which 
played  such  a  prominent  role  during 
World  War  II  for  the  assisted  take-off 
of  all  types  of  military  aircraft. 

The  Jato  Junior  is  a  self-contained  unit, 
and  its  operation  is  independent  of  its 
surroundings  since  the  propellant  used 
contains  its  own  oxygen,  instead  of  de- 
pending on  atmospheric  oxygen  to  sus- 
tain fuel  combustion. 

The  thrust  is  developed  by  the  ex- 
hausting of  gases  through  the  nozzle  at 
high  velocity.  The  action  of  the  gases 
escaping  exerts  an  equal  and  opposite  re- 
active force  upon  the  chamber  in  accord- 
ance with  Newton's  third  law  of  motion. 
The  gases  are  generated  by  the  chemical 
decomposition  (burning)  of  the  propel- 
lant materials  under  pressure.  These  pro- 
pellants  are  ignited  by  an  electrical  igniter 
requiring  only  6  volts.  The  operating 
chamber  pressure  ranges  are  from  8  50 
pounds  per  square  inch  to  16  50  pounds 
per  square  inch. 


Set-  up  in  a  completed  unit  as  it  will  look  when  installed  in  Boeing  B-50  engine  nacelles,  this  collector  system  for  the 
giant  bomber  is  one  of  hundreds  which  Ryan  Aeronautical  Compony  has  built  to  date.  William  Kupilik,  Assistant  Weld- 
ing Foreman,  points  to  one  of  the  smaller  hangers  which  are  used  to  attoch  this  exhaust  system  to  the  Pratt  &  Whitney  engines. 


17 


Ulith  men  lUho  Sell  ilauions 


Bertolet 


EYE  TO  THE  JACKPOT.  Harry  Combs  and  Lew  Hoyden  of  Mountain  States 
Aviation  have  been  racing  other  Ryan  Navion  distributors  for  the  fop  sales  total 
during  the  fall  period.  The  smooth-working  pair  really  hit  the  jackpot  in  mid- 
September  when  they  sold  three  '49  Ryan  Navions  in  a  single  day.  News  of 
their  achievement  reached  the  factory  in  the  form  of  a  check  covering  the 
triple  purchase.  Such  dramatic  selling  success  assured  them  a  position  among 
the  top  three  distributors  for  the  period, 

PILOT'S  POTPOURRI.  News  items  picked  up  around  the  factory 
.  .  .  "Sime"  Bertolet,  prexy  of  Aviation  Consultants,  Inc.,  paid  his 
first  San  Diego  visit  this  year  during  the  closing  days  of  August. 
The  lovely  Mrs.  Bertolet  made  the  trip  with  her  husband.  .  .  .  Pete 
Graves,  sales  boss  for  Southern  Ohio  Aviotion,  included  an  oppear- 
ance  before  the  Ryan  Management  Club  among  his  activities 
while  taking  delivery  on  a  '49er.  .  .  .  Bill  Bloke  and  Bob  Norswing, 
top  execs  from  Washington  Aircraft  Cr  Transport  and  Rankin  Avia- 
tion Industries,  respectively,  Pacific  Northwest  distributors,  fig- 
ured in  the  big  coincidence  of  the  year  when  they  made  simul- 
taneous pick-ups  of  new  planes.  .  .  .  John  B.  Rudy,  Southern 
California  direct-factory  dealer  in  Glendale,  called  in  company  with  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Jocobson,  recent  purchasers  of  his  Italian  Cream  demonstrator.  .  .  .  W.  P.  "Doc" 
Sloan,  Assistant  to  Navion  sales  chief  Earl  Prudden,  is  in  the  home  stretch  of  a 
cross-country  tour  among  Ryan  Navion  distributors  and  military  bases  which  has 
kept  him  on  the  wing  for  six  weeks.  .  .  .  Looking  for  a  sure-fire  way  to  add  revenue 
and  gain  high-grade  publicity  for  the  Ryan  Navion  and  your  company?  Toke  a  tip 
from  St.  Louis  Flying  Service's  contract  for  flying  personnel  of  the  United  Press  and 
Acme  News  Service  during  disaster  emergencies. 

ANNUAL  CONCLAVE  OF  THE  PERSONAL  AIRCRAFT  COUNCIL  took  Ryan 
Vice  President  Earl  Prudden  to  Cleveland  over  Labor  Day  weekend.  While  there, 
EDP  represented  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  at  the  Notionol  Air  Races. 
Rounding  out  his  ten-day  trip  were  homeward  bound  visits  with  four  Ryan 
Navion  distributors,  Southern  Ohio  Aviation,  Van's  Air  Service,  Toth  Aircraft 
and  Accessories  and  Mountain  States  Aviation.  "All  the  distributors  I  talked 
with  reported  improved  market  conditions  and  good  sales  prospects  for  the 
autumn  months,"  was  the  factory  executive's  comment  upon  arrival  in  San 
Diego. 

URUGUAYAN  DISTRIBUTOR  DELIVERS  AMBULANCE  NAVIONS.  In  a  colorful 
ceremony  attended  by  several  leading  cabinet  members  of  the  Uruguayan  Govern- 
ment, Miller,  Medeiros  &  Bostos,  distributors  in  Montevideo,  delivered  two  new  Ryan 
Navions  to  the  Sanitad  Militar,  national  public  health  agency  last  month.  Bearing 
double-stretcher  installations,  the  two  planes  will  be  used  as  air  ambulances.  News 
of  the  big  event  was  carried  to  the  Spanish-speaking  countries  of  South  America  by 
ACCION,  EL  DIARIO,  EL  DIA  and  EL  PLATA,  important  doily  newspapers  of  Uru- 
guay. M  M  &  B  presently  is  negotiating  with  the  Government  for  purchase  of  five 
more  '49  models. 


HOUSTON,  TEXAS,  BASEBALL  FANS  tuning  in  home  games 
of  the  Texas  League  "Buffaloes"  ore  well-acquainted  with 
the  safe  and  practical  Ryan  Navion.  Cliff  Hyde  Flying  Ser- 
vice, dealer  in  Houston,  has  sponsored  a  series  of  game- 
time  spot  announcements  over  radio  station  KATL  pointing 
out  the  merits  of  the  Navion  and  explaining  the  easy  ways 
it  can  be  purchased  through  their  organization.  Says  the 
KATL  announcer,  "Buy  on  time  payment,  or  ask  about  a 
lease  agreement.  It's  Navion  for  fast,  inexpensive,  safe 
travel.  See  it,  fly  it  at  the  Cliff  Hyde  Flying  Service." 


Hyde 


SEPTEMBER  DELIVERIES  WERE  SPARKED  by  rapid-fire  factory  pick-ups  of  new 
Ryan  Navions  by  representatives  of  General  Aeronautics,  Page  Aviation  and  Northern 

Air  Service.  The  boys  were  taking  away  beautiful  '49  models  so  fast  the  Customer 
Service  Department  was  kept  on  a  steady  jump  with  final  washing  and  vacuuming 
of  the  new  planes. 

PHOTOGRAPHS  OF  A  NAVION  FLYING  LOW  OVER  A  WHEAT  FIELD  hove 
provided  the  biggest  publicity  score  in  the  three  years  of  the  plane's  history. 
Illustrating  the  remarkable  wheat  crop-saving  feat  of  six  pilots  of  the  Aircraft 
Service  Company  in  as  many  Navions,  these  pictures  hove  appeared  in  maga- 
zines and  newspapers  across  the  country,  and  will  likely  be  seen  in  more  first- 
order  notional  publications  during  October.  Glenn  Higby  and  Howard  Jeppson, 
pilots  for  ASCO,  are  personally  responsible  for  executing  this  excellent  piece  of 
Navion  promotion  that  has  reader  appeal  of  the  broadest  nature.  Howard's  own 
story  is  on  page  5  of  this  issue. 


Million  Dollar  Increase 
Awarded  on  XQ-2  Target 

A  new  million  dollar  Air  Force  con- 
tract has  been  awarded  Ryan  Aeronauti- 
cal Company  to  continue  the  development 
and  fabrication  of  an  additional  quantity 
of  Ryan  XQ-2  remotely  controlled,  jet- 
powered,  aerial  target  planes. 

The  original  contract  for  the  Ryan 
robot  planes,  signed  more  than  a  year 
ago,  was  for  approximately  two  million 
dollars. 

The  design  and  fabrication  of  the  first 
experimental  quantity  has  progressed  sat- 
isfactorily, and  delivery  schedules  have 
been  established  to  permit  flight  testing 
and  evaluation  by  the  Air  Force.  The  Air 
Force  is  charged  with  the  technical  re- 
sponsibility for  the  development  of  the 
XQ-2. 

The  high  speed,  radio-controlled  target 
craft  will  be  used  for  combat  plane  inter- 
ception problems  and  for  anti-aircraft 
and  aerial  gunnery  training  by  the  Air 
Force,  Navy  and  Army. 

The  first  production  units  are  now 
being  assembled  at  Ryan's  San  Diego  plant 
and  work  on  a  second  group  of  the  pilot- 
less  aircraft  is  being  started  immediately, 
company  officials  said.  The  first  prelimi- 
nary evaluation  of  the  XQ-2  was  com- 
pleted a  few  weeks  ago  by  a  joint  Air 
Force-Navy-Army  technical  board  headed 
by  Col.  H.  J.  Sands,  Jr.,  Chief  of  the 
guided  missiles  section  of  the  Air  Materiel 
Command. 

No  information  is  available  as  to  the 
number  of  robot  planes  scheduled  to  be 
built,  nor  have  other  than  very  general 
technical  details  of  the  XQ-2  been  re- 
leased. 

Since  the  XQ-2  is  to  be  used  in  target 
work  with  latest  combat  planes,  it  is 
reported  to  be  capable  of  performance 
approximating  that  of  modern  jet  fighter 
aircraft.  Powered  by  a  jet  engine,  the 
robot  aerial  target  is  designed  for  high 
speeds  and  remote  control  operation.  It  is 
less  than  one-half  the  size  of  a  standard 
jet  fighter  plane. 

The  original  development  contract  for 
the  XQ-2  was  awarded  the  Ryan  Aero- 
nautical Company  as  a  result  of  a  design 
competition  with  other  aircraft  manu- 
facturers. 

PLANE-OF-ALL-JOBS 

(Continued  from  page  12) 
convinced  Ryan  officials  that  personal- 
business  planes,  with  such  flexibility,  safe- 
ty and  rugged  construction  as  has  been 
incorporated  in  the  Navion,  have  real 
utility — the  utility  which  is  the  pre- 
requisite for  substantial  increase  in  the 
ownership  of  private  aircraft. 


MANIFOLD  SERVICE 
GOES  ABROAD 

(Continued  from  page  1 ) 
Army  Air  Field,  Massachusetts  by  way  of 
the  Azores.  His  destination  was  the  head- 
quarters of  the  U.  S.  Air  Force  in  Europe 
at  Wiesbaden,  an  hour's  ride  from  Frank- 
furt. 

Work  started  immediately  with  Air 
Force  orders  to  Headquarters,  First  Air- 
lift Task  Force,  Maintenance  Section. 
Frenchy's  assignment  was  as  a  "Technical 
Representative"  under  a  joint  Air  Force- 
Ryan  service  project,  and  his  job  was  to 
tour  the  four  bases  in  Germany,  plus  the 
repair  base  at  Burtonwood,  England, 
where  Douglas  C-54s  received  their  200- 
hour  inspection.  It  might  be  explained, 
for  those  who  haven't  kept  up  on  the 
types  of  planes  which  flew  the  Airlift 
during  its  two  years  of  unparalleled  oper- 
ation, that  during  the  last  year  of  the  lift, 
Douglas  Aircraft  Company's  four-engine 
transports  were  the  most  widely  used 
planes  to  carry  the  food  and  coal  which 
licked  the  Russian  blockade.  Other  planes, 
for  which  Ryan  builds  manifolds,  like  the 
Boeing  C-97  and  Douglas  C-74  were  serv- 
ice tested  on  the  Airlift  but  not  kept  in 
constant  day  and  night  operation.  The 
C-82  Fairchild  Packet  also  saw  service 
hauling  bulky  cargo  which  couldn't  be 
handled  as  easily  by  the  C-54s. 

Colonel  Luke  Harris  and  Major  Jules 
Prevost,  heads  of  the  maintenance  section 
of  Airlift  Task  Force  briefed  Foushee  on 
his  mission  and  assigned  Captain  John 
Autry  as  his  guide  and  mentor  for  the 
trip  around  Bizonia,  the  name  for  the 
two-zone  American  and  British  sectors. 

From  Wiesbaden,  after  he  inspected 
manifold  service  facilities  there,  he  flew 
to  Rhein  Main,  near  Frankfurt.  In  the 
British  Zone  he  stopped  for  several  days 
in  both  Celle  and  Fassberg.  From  Wies- 
baden, he  was  flown  through  the  Airlift 
Corridor  into  Berlin  and  Templehof  Air 
Field  to  inspect  facilities  there. 

Berlin  was  the  most  interesting  stop 
during  his  tour  around  Germany,  Frenchy 
thinks.  Despite  not  being  able  to  eat  in 
any  German-owned  restaurants  or  clubs 
or  have  a  drink  in  any  of  the  German 
night  clubs,  due  to  currency  restrictions 
and  new  laws  putting  these  places  off 
limits  for  American  occupation  forces, 
he  did  get  around  the  city  to  see  the  sights 
during  the  two  short  trips  he  made  into 
the  capital. 

One  afternoon,  in  company  with  an  Air 
Force  officer  and  a  Pratt  and  Whitney 
service  representative,  he  strolled  through 
the  Russian  Zone  and  took  a  very  good 
picture  of  the  Communist  headquarters 
building.  "No  one  stopped  us,"  Frenchy 
says,  "or  even  asked  to  look  at  our  passes. 
The  people  on  the  other  side  of  the  'cur- 
(Conthmed  on  page  20) 


lUe  Fly  Hauions 


"WHATEVER  HAPPENED  TO  THE  FIRST  NAVrON?"  Best  answer  is  supplied  by  the 
Radioplane  Company,  Van  Nuys,  California,  present  owners  of  N91100 — the  first 
Navion  built  and  first  really  "postwar"  personal  airplane.  Because  of  a  slick  maroon 
paint  job  and  the  many  accessories  added  to  it,  you  wouldn't  recognize  91  1  00  today  as 
the  plane  which  inaugurated  Navion  production.  Alex  Callam,  pilot-engineer  for  Radio- 
plane,  advises  that  the  veteran  four-placer  is  used  as  an  executive  transport  during 
frequent  trips  to  Air  Force,  Army  and  Navy  test  centers  where  the  Company's  equip- 
ment is  used  in  connection  with  catapult,  drone  and  missile  activities.  300  to  400 
pounds  of  cargo  ore  carried  on  many  of  its  flights. 

MERRY-GO-ROUND  NAVION.  Art  B.  Thomas,  Lennox, 
South  Dakota  carnival  operator,  hasn't  replaced  the  tradi- 
tional horses  with  airplanes  yet,  but  his  friends  soy  any- 
thing's  liable  to  happen  since  he's  become  the  enthusiastic 
owner  of  a  Ryan  Navion.  Currently  completing  this  season's 
final  tour  of  the  South  Dakota  fair  circuit,  Art  will  soon  turn 
his  plane's  nose  toward  Long  Beach,  California,  where  he 
and  his  wife,  Carrie,  spend  their  vacations.  16-year-old  son, 
Gary,   is  flying  West  with  them  this  November  to  take   his 

private  pilot's   instruction  so  that  he  can  spell   mom  and  dad  at  the   controls 

next  spring. 

THE  VERMONT  AERONAUTICS  COMMISSION  is  using  its  Navion  to  acquaint  the 
citizens  of  Vermont  and  neighboring  New  England  areas  with  benefits  of  business 
flying.  One  of  the  State's  most  interested  aviation  people  is  the  Governor  himself,  who 
choses  the  Navion  whenever  he  has  to  travel  with  dispatch  on  State  business.  Mr.  F. 
Knapp,  Commission  head,  shares  the  Navion's  piloting  with  his  number-one  inspector. 

PARAGUAY  PLEASED.  Prominent  among  Ryan  Navions  doing  heavy  duty 
abroad  are  those  flown  over  mountainous  Paraguay  in  the  heart  of  South  Amer- 
ica. Paul  H.  Cox,  Manager  of  Comerclal  e  Inmobillaria  Paraguayo-Argentina, 

in  the  capital  city  of  Asuncion,  passes  on  his  organization's  experience:  "Vv'e 
are  extremely  pleased  with  the  Ryan  Navion,  and  could  not  wish  for  a  better 
plane.  It  has  stood  up  excellently  to  very  hard  work,  fully  proving  our  confidence 
in  it." 

FRANK  TRAGER,  CHILLICOTHE,  MISSOURI,  does  a  beautiful  job  of  piloting  his 
'49  Ryan  Navion.  Which,  of  course,  isn't  news  .  .  .  until  you  realize  Frank's  prob- 
ably the  only  one-armed  Navion  owner  in  the  country.  Flying  with  special  CAA 
approval  and  utilizing  a  neat  spoke-like  accessory  attached  to  his  plane's  control 
wheel,  he  finds  piloting  is  as  easy  as  pie,  and  considers  the  Ryan  Navion  an  excellent 
plane  for  anyone  who  particularly  wonts  a  safe,  simple-to-fly  airplane  that  has  speed. 

FLIES  FOR  FOUNDRY.  Robert  L.  Bough  is  General  Super- 
intendent of  the  Illinois  Foundry  Company.  He's  also  pilot 
of  the  firm's  '49  Ryan  Navion  which  is  used  extensively  for 
visiting  customers,  and  as  o  fast  transport  for  the  Foundry's 
other  executives.  The  big  plane  also  receives  the  call  during 
emergencies.  With  o  Company  policy  of  "help  the  customer 
every  way  you  can,"  Bough  reports  the  Navion  is  providing 
new  means  to  do  so  never  before  at  hand. 

SPECIALIZING  IN  TEXTILE  PLANT  CONSTRUCTION,  McKoy  Helgerson,  Greenville, 
S.  C,  employ  a  Ryan  Navion  as  a  contractor's  tool  with  multiple  applications.  Partner 
H.  C.  Helgerson  flies  to  job  sites  for  inspections  and  supervision  of  repairs  on  cranes 
and  other  equipment.  At  field  locations  where  regular  visits  must  be  mode,  landing 
strips  are  knocked  out  of  the  rough  by  a  bulldozer.  H.  B.  McKoy,  the  other  half  of 
the  firm's  management,  is  able  to  visit  projects  that,  before  the  Navion  was  used, 
were  too  for  from  the  main  office  to  receive  his  attention. 

FROM  FAR  OFF  SOUTH  AFRICA  R.  W.  Rumble,  civil  engineer  and  housing 
contractor,  voices  enthusiastic  approval  of  his  new  Ryan  Navion.  He  writes  to 
the  Ryan  Sales  Department  from  Pretoria:  "We  like  the  Navion's  good  visibility 
and  sensitive  controls.  Its  flaps  ore  tops.  Navion  stable  flight  characteristics 
make  cloud  flying  and  blind  approaches  simple  matters.  The  tricycle  under- 
carriage is  a  blessing  on  narrow  cross-wind  runways  and  simplifies  taxiing. 
And  all  of  our  passengers  hove  been  highly  pleased  with  the  space  and  com- 
fort of  the  seats." 

CHICKENS  THAT  STILL  HAVE  WINGS.  While  the  nation's  press  hails  the  world's 
first  eorthbound  wingless  chicken,  the  Stone  Poultry  and  Breeding  Form  in  Dinubo, 
California,  is  seeing  to  it  that  their  White  Leghorns  and  Rock  Homp  Cross  fly  higher 
and  earlier  than  ever  before.  When  just  one  day  old,  their  chicks  take  to  the  air — 
as  passengers  snugly  loaded  1  00  to  a  cardboard  carton  aboard  the  company's  Navion. 
California  poultrymen  say  that  Stone-flown  chicks  orrive  quicker  and  in  better  con- 
dition than  railway-transported  ones  ever  did. 


MANIFOLD  SERVICE 
GOES  ABROAD 

(Continncd  from  page  19) 
tain'  hadn't  the  well-fed  look  most  of  the 
Germans  in  the  Allied  Zones  have  about 
them." 

The  Air  Force  billeted  Foushee  in  hotels 
under  Occupation  Forces'  control  but  in 
the  small  towns  like  Celle  and  Fassberg, 
he  slept  and  ate  at  the  Bachelor  Officers 
Quarters  for  Air  Force  and  Army  per- 
sonnel. 

At  the  conclusion  of  his  three-week 
tour  of  the  Airlift  bases,  Frenchy  returned 
to  Wiesbaden  and  composed  his  report 
on  all  service  facilities  inspected  and 
turned  it  in  to  the  Maintenance  Division 
under  the  Commanding  General  of  the 
First  Airlift  Task  Force. 

The  problem  confronting  the  airlift 
mechanics,  according  to  this  report,  was 
the  tremendous  turnover  of  personnel 
which  hindered  instruction  of  mainte- 
nance crews.  Air  Force  G.I.s  who  had 
mastered  the  welding  techniques  or  in- 
stallation procedure  necessary  to  good 
manifold  service  were  being  changed 
around,  or  ordered  back  to  the  states, 
leaving  gaps  in  the  shops  which  were 
filled  by  others  less  qualified  to  make 
maintenance  repairs.  "They  did  a  terrific 
job,"  according  to  Foushee,  "under  these 
adverse  conditions.  And  the  manifolds 
themselves  held  up  during  the  steady  flight 
schedules  remarkably  well." 

Three  days  of  his  tour  of  the  Airlift 
bases  included  a  trip  to  Burtonwood, 
England,  near  Liverpool.  At  this  huge 
base,  200-hour  checks  of  the  C-54s  were 
made.  The  planes  were  flown  from  Ger- 
many to  England,  where  repair  facilities 
are  better,  and  gone  over  to  catch  any 
structural  breakdowns  resulting  from 
their  grueling  service.  Despite  Burton- 
wood's  proximity  to  London,  Frenchy 
didn't  get  to  make  a  side  trip  to  the 
English  capital.  Currency  regulations, 
food  ration  cards,  and  all  the  other  haz- 
ards of  modern  European  travel  just  didn't 
seem  worth  the  effort,  he  claims,  so  he 
spent  the  three  days  at  the  air  field,  eating 
bad,  English  food. 

The  C-54  service  inspections  wound 
up  the  third  week  of  July  and  the  follow- 
ing week  Frenchy  stepped  temporarily  out 
of  his  Manifold  Service  role  into  that  of 
Airplane  Service  "expert"  to  check  the 
Ryan  Navion  L-17B  liaison  plane  assembly 
depot  at  Erding,  the  USAFE  Air  Depot 
near  Munich.  Here  3  8  of  the  Navions  the 
Army  purchased  earlier  this  year  from 
Ryan  were  assembled  for  reconnaissance 
and  personnel  transport  use  in  Europe.  All 
except  five  of  the  38  Navions  were  flying 
when  Frenchy  visited  the  depot  and  are 
in  use  throughout  the  American  sector  of 
Germany  at  Bad  Tolz,  Grafenwohr,  Stutt- 


gart and  Heidelberg.  There  are  also  two 
with  the  Army  Ground  Forces  in  Vienna 
and  two  in  Trieste. 

Factory  assembly  information  which 
Foushee  provided  during  his  week's  stay 
at  Erding  has  helped  to  smooth  out  some 
of  the  problems  the  crews  faced  in  get- 
ting  the   L-17Bs  in   top  operating   form. 

Following  the  trip  to  Erding,  Foushee 
spent  his  last  two  weeks  abroad  making 
calls  on  foreign  airlines  who  fly  Ryan- 
manifold-equipped  planes,  and  incident- 
ally taking  a  quick  Cook's  Tour  through 
some  of  Europe's  capitals. 

Brussels  was  his  first  call.  There  Sabena 
Air  Line  has  its  headquarters.  They  fly 
DC-6s,  Convair  240s,  DC-4s  and  DC-3s, 
all  with  Ryan  manifolds.  There  were  no 
service  or  repair  problems  at  their  shops, 
for  the  Sabena  people  make  all  the  spare 
parts  and  replacements  for  their  exhaust 
systems  by  hand.  The  great  dollar  shortage 
in  Belgium,  as  elsewhere,  makes  it  cheaper 
for  them  to  build  from  Ryan  designs  than 
to  import  new  parts  as  replacements. 
Frenchy 's  day  and  a  half  in  Brussels  in- 
cluded some  sightseeing  and  led  to  the 
observation  that  the  Belgians  seemed  to 
have  more  consumer  goods  available  than 
other  nations.  The  food  was  good,  too, 
and  plentiful.  As  in  other  cities  he  visited, 
Frenchy  found  currency  restrictions  a 
menace.  He  was  constantly  having  to 
count  the  money  in  his  pocket  every  time 
he  crossed  a  border  so  as  not  to  get  stuck 
with  lower  exchange  rates  when  convert- 
ing from  francs,  to  pounds,  to  marks,  and 
back  again  into  American  dollars. 

Paris  was  the  next  stop  for  Frenchy, 
(his  French,  which  his  father  taught  him 
was  not  quite  up  to  the  slangy,  Parisian 
speech  he  encountered.  "They  have  dif- 
ferent words  than  I  was  taught  for  almost 
everything.    It's    part    French,    part    Bel- 


VOL.   10  OCT.   21,   1949 


No 


Piihlhbcd  By 

Ryan  Aeronautical  Company 

Lindbergh  Field 

San   Diego    12,  California 

Richard  Timmis,  editor 

Frances  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  cdito 

Robert  F.  Smith,  Navion  news  editor 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographer 

William  Wagner,  editorial  director 


gian,  part  German  and  part  something 
they've  made  up  since  my  family  lived 
in  France.")  Rene  Delbos,  Ryan  Navion 
European  distributor,  was  his  host  on  a 
sightseeing  trip.  He  stayed  at  the  Cali- 
fornia Hotel,  out  of  nostalgia,  no  doubt, 
and  found  eating  in  the  small  bistros  a 
lot  cheaper  than  trying  to  make  a  dollar 
buy  anything  but  beans  in  the  more 
widely  advertised  tourist  spots.  Even 
lunch  at  the  hotel  cost  $5  American,  and 
"why  anyone  would  want  to  tour  France 
at  those  prices  is  beyond  me,"  Frenchy 
avows. 

After  Paris  came  a  two-day  stay  in 
Zurich.  Swissair  in  that  city  maintain 
repair  shops  for  DC-4s  and  Convair  240s 
which  they  operate.  The  Swissair  people 
were  very  well  pleased  with  the  perform- 
ance of  Ryan  manifolds  and  seemed  to 
have  no  problems.  They  were  avid  to  learn 
about  the  latest  factorj'-approved  main- 
tenance procedures  so  as  to  be  able  to 
apply  them  to  their  own  set-up.  Amster- 
dam and  a  call  on  the  KLM,  the  Royal 
Dutch  Air  Line,  people  was  another  two- 
day  stop  for  Foushee.  The  Dutch,  he 
says,  have  the  most  efficient  facilities  and 
the  best  shops  maintained  by  any  of  the 
European  airlines  he  visited. 

"They  tend  to  follow  American  ideas 
of  how  a  shop  should  be  maintained  and 
their  equipment  is  excellent,"  Frenchy 
says.  "They  are  extremely  interested,  too, 
in  learning  all  they  could  about  Ryan's 
maintenance  and  overhaul  procedure."  His 
job  was  to  give  them  the  information  they 
wanted,  information  which  will  keep  the 
sturdily-built  collector  systems  perform- 
ing long,  trouble-free  hours. 

Amsterdam  was  the  last  European  cap- 
ital Frenchy  stayed  in  before  returning  to 
Wiesbaden  to  await  his  return  orders  to 
the  States.  By  the  time  he  had  returned 
to  Germany  the  Airlift  was  at  an  end, 
but  the  valuable  service  recommendations 
made  as  a  result  of  Frenchy 's  six-week 
trip,  will  find  use  in  future  Air  Force  op- 
erations with  large  cargo-carrying  trans- 
ports. 

A  two-day  wait  in  Wiesbaden  was  fol- 
lowed by  Foushee's  return  to  his  first  stop 
in  Germany,  Frankfurt.  From  here,  on 
August  12,  he  flew  to  Paris,  then  to  the 
Azores  and  Newfoundland,  and  back  once 
more  to  American  soil  at  Westover.  The 
trip  over  and  back  were  by  Air  Force 
C-121  Constellations. 

Yes,  Frenchv  got  to  Paris,  and  a  lot  of 
other  cities,  too.  But  to  the  second  ques- 
tion invariably  asked  him  on  his  return, 
his  answer  is,  "Not  for  a  long  time  to 
come.  Travel  isn't  very  good  and  it  isn't 
as  glamorous  as  people  back  in  the  U.  S. 
are  led  to  believe." 

The  second  question  he  is  asked  is, 
"Would  you  like  to  go  back  again  and 
spend  more  time?" 


20 


1917 


The   Bcllmjini   Arehji 


P  VERYONE  was  singing  George  M. 
■"  Cohan's  hit,  "Over  There."  Elsie 
Janis  was  telling  the  public  to  "Smile, 
Smile,  Smile."  Beautiful  movie  stars  and 
debutantes  were  grabbing  young  men  on 
the  streets  of  New  York  and  Hollywood 
and  kissing  them  rapturously  five  minutes 
after  the  young  men  had  "signed  up." 
America  was  in  the  biggest  thing  it  had 
ever  tackled.  The  country  was  out  to 
"Crush  the  Hun"  and  to  protect  Amer- 
ican womanhood  from  a  fate  worse  than 
death.  Needless  to  say,  the  year  was  1917 
and  the  U.S.A.  was  finally  in  the  "War  to 
End  All  Wars." 

In  Southern  California  one  young  man, 
driver  of  a  laundry  truck,  marched  down 
to  apply  for  an  appointment  as  a  flying 
cadet  in  the  rapidly  expanding  Army  Air 
Corps.  Like  thousands  of  other  young  men 
he  was  in  good  health,  passed  the  written 
examinations,  looked  like  good  pilot  ma- 
terial but  was,  unfortunately,  too  young. 
The  young  man  then  applied  for  a  waiver 
on  age  to  the  War  Department.  It  was 
not  waived  and  he  was  back  on  that  laun- 
dry truck,  instead  of  flashing  through  the 
air  over  France. 

But  the  coolness  with  which  the  War 
Department  met  his  patriotic  ardor  did 
not  deter  him.  If  he  couldn't  get  into  fly- 
ing as  a  war  pilot  there  were  other  ways 
and  means.  He  had  some  money  saved  up 
from  hauling  all  that  wet  wash.  After 
much  discussion  of  the  advantages  of  an 
aviation  career,  parental  consent  was  fi- 
nally forthcoming.  The  young  man  was 
allowed  to  take  a  course  at  a  civilian 
school,  located  in  Venice,  California. 

The  fee  was  500  hard-earned  green- 
backs. The  school  promised,  in  exchange 


for  the  $500  in  hard  cash  to  give  the  boy 
400  minutes  of  instruction.  Instruction  at 
$1.25  per  minute  may  seem  excessively 
costly,  even  by  1949's  inflationary  stand- 
ards, but  the  youth  burned  to  learn  and 
signed  on  the  dotted  line. 

Imagine  his  chagrin  when  he  had  his 
first  look  at  the  planes  in  which  he  was 
to  train.  One  was  a  Curtiss  pusher  bi- 
plane and  the  other  was  a  tractor  biplane 
of  ancient  vintage,  manufacturer  un- 
known. 

Not  only  were  the  planes  unsteady,  but 
the  school,  too,  was  financially  unstable. 
As  if  this  were  not  enough  to  have  any- 
one screaming  for  his  money  back,  two 
days  after  the  young  man  and  eleven 
other  aspirants  to  a  flying  career  signed 
up  as  students,  the  pusher  plane  cracked 
up  and  the  boys  learned  that  the  tractor 
plane  could  hardly  get  off  the  ground. 
Instead  it  was  used  to  teach  them  how  to 
taxi,  and  each  of  the  precious  $1.2  5- 
minutes  spent  taxiing  were  charged  up  to 
"flying"  time.  Instruction  consisted  most- 
ly of  time-worn  lectures  delivered  to  the 
"students"  who  sat  around  on  the  ground 
dreaming  of  a  chance  to  get  into  the  air. 

But  all  was  not  lost.  After  weary 
months  of  doing  nothing  either  on  the 
ground  or  in  the  air,  the  twelve  pilots- 
to-be  got  a  break.  A  young  aviator  who 
had  received  instruction  in  a  more  repu- 
table school  dropped  by  the  Venice  estab- 
lishment and  agreed  to  take  over  as  in- 
structor. Things  looked  up  for  our  young 
man. 

One  morning  the  new  instructor,  whose 
name  was  Al  Wilson — a  name  later  to 
become  famous  in  aviation  circles — told 
the  subject  of  this  story  to  "get  in  that 
tractor  biplane   and   taxi   the  ship   across 


the  field  fast  enough  to  get  your  tail  up, 
but  don't  let  it  get  off  the  ground."  What 
fledgling  pilot  could  follow  those  instruc- 
tions to  the  letter,  especially  when  he'd 
plunked  down  his  hard-earned  money  and 
was  burning  to  get  just  one  chance  at 
taking  a  plane  off  the  ground? 

You've  guessed  the  outcome.  He 
jumped  in  the  plane  and  opened  the  throt- 
tle wide.  Before  Wilson  could  yell  a 
warning  or  any  advice  the  young  man 
had  the  plane  off  the  ground  and  into 
the  air.  It  was  great!  His  first  solo  flight! 
Only  one  thing  bothered  him.  How  was 
he  going  to  land  this  thing  alone? 

He  did  the  best  he  could.  Remembering 
how  Wilson  had  cut  the  gun,  stuck  the 
nose  down  and  then  leveled  out  as  the 
plane  neared  the  ground,  the  youth  tried 
to  emulate  him.  But  he  didn't  level  out 
quite  soon  enough. 

Along  with  the  breakage  of  the  pro- 
peller came  the  total  collapse  of  the  flight 
school.  Its  one  flyable  plane  more  or  less 
a  wreck,  the  school  just  quietly  folded. 
History  has  not  recorded  what  happened 
to  the  other  eleven  erstwhile  students.  It 
has  recorded  that  the  eager  young  man 
went  on  to  learn  to  fly  in  the  Army, 
started  his  own  business  in  1922  and  by 
way  of  interest  in  bettering  pilot  training 
methods  established  a  flight  school  with 
far  better  equipment  and  instruction  than 
he  himself  had  for  his  first  commercial 
flight  training. 

The  name  of  that  later  day  flight  school 
was  the  "Ryan  School  of  Aeronautics," 
named  for  its  founder  T.  Claude  Ryan 
who  got  into  aviation  the  hard  way:  l?y 
hiiilding  step  by  step  from  that  crack-up 
32  years  ago  on  his  first  solo  flight. 


RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY 
LINDBERGH     FIELD 
SAN  DIEGO  12,  CALIFORNIA 

Return  Postage  Guaranteed 


POSTMASTER: 

If 

addrt 

sec    h 

as     remo 

vcd,     and     new 

address   is   know 

0,  n 

tifv 

ender 

on   Forn 

1    3M7,   postage 

for  which  is  gu 

irint 

eed. 

Sec.  34.66,  P.  L.  &  R. 

U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego,  California 
Permit  No.  437 


HERE'S  WHY  THE  RUGGED,  ALL-METAL  RYAN  NAVION 
GIVES  YOU  A  GREATER  MARGIN  OF  SAFETY! 


ugh,  .040  Alclad  cabin  enclosure 

Sturdy  internol  rib  and  spar-like 
sJringer  structure  with  stressed  skin 


IT'S  REALLY  AS  SIMPLE  AS  THIS:  Ninioii  is  designed  10  be  a  sale,  easy- 
to-fly  plane.  Within  this  fundamental  premise,  all  other  features  are 
developed  to  the  highest  point  possible.  Navion  is  big  and  fast.  It  is 
rugged  as  a  mule,  and  as  hard-working.  Aerodynamically  and  struc- 


turally It  IS  designed,  and  is  built,  to  take  heavy-duty  punishment.  But 
above  all,  the  Ryan  Navion  is  safe . . .  and  it  is  easy  to  fly.  That's  why 
it's  first  choice  with  non-professionals  who  fly  for  fun  and  profit.  And, 
here's  what  makes  it  that  wav . . . 


HUSKY,  205  h.p.  engine  features  dual  fuel 
system  for  dependability. .  .delivers  up  to 
155  m.  p.  h.  cruising.  Fully  loaded,  initial 
rate  of  climb  is  900  ft.  per  minute. 


SELECTIVE  SETTING,  high -lift  flaps  enable 
Narion  to  land  at  only  54  m.p.h.  Only  875  ft. 
needed  to  clear  a  50-ft.  obstacle,  either  on 
take-off  or  landing ...  fully  loaded,  no  wind. 


NAVION  GIVES  YOU  new  VHF  radio  trans- 
mitter. Standard  instruments  now  include 
manifold  pressure,  dampened  fuel,  outside 
temperature  gauges,  rate  of  climb  indicator. 


HERE'S  THE  FAMOUS  Navion  wing  with  its 
anti-stall  design.  For  extra  safety,  full  ailer- 
on control  is  yours  even  below  stalling  speed. 
Note  full  (43°)  flap  deflection. 


THESE  HEAVYWEIGHTS  will  take  a  beating! 
Big,  steerable  nosewheel  is  heavier  than  most 
"main"  gears.  Oversize  tires;  deep-stroke 
shocks  for  safe,  easy  rough-field  landings. 


EXCLUSIVE  rudder- aileron  control  linkage 
makes  Navion  so  eas\  to  fly.  You  get  "two- 
control"  after  take-off.  yet  you  ha\e  rudder 
when  you  want  it.  Write  for  FREE  booklet. 


NO   OTHER    PLANE    COMBINES 
SO  MANY   FEATURES  SO  WELL 


THESE   COMFORT   FEATURES 
ARE  STANDARD  EQUIPMENT 

•  "All-Round"  Sound  Insulation  and  Muffler 

•  Soft-Cushioned  43-in.  Rear  Seat 

•  Front  Seals  Adjust  Individually 

•  New  Healing-Ventilating  System 

•  Limousine-Type  Center  Arm  Rest 

•  In-Flighl  Access  lo  Luggage 

•  Easy-Enlrance  Roll-Back  Canopy 


^i  * 


♦      s  VOL.  K*  NO.  9 


HOT  OVENS 


FOR  C 


EVERYONE  knows  that  metal  can  be 
stretched.  The  softest  gold  to  the 
hardest  stainless  steel  alloys  can  be 
pounded  or  heated  into  innumerable 
shapes.  This  ability  of  metals  to  be  formed 
into  desired  patterns  is  the  basis  of 
modern,  heavy  industry. 

The  stronger  the  metal  the  more  dif- 
ficult the  forming  process,  which  is  the 
case  with  the  newer  steel  alloys  like  18-8 
and  19-9  DL  "Uniloy,"  of  which  Ryan 
exhaust  manifolds  are  fabricated.  Innu- 
merable manufacturing  operations  are  re- 
quired in  drawing  the  metal  into  the  shape 
it  must  hold  around  the  reciprocating 
engines  whose  waste  gases  it  dispels. 

Pieces  of  flat,  stainless  steel  sheet  des- 
tined to  end  up  in  a  strong  semi-circle  as 
one-half  of  an  exhaust  section,  must  first 
be    pounded    in    the    drop    hammers.    The 


first  drop  of  the  hammer  which  rams  the 
steel  down  into  the  Kirksite  die  cannot  be 
too  deep,  for  internal  stresses  are  set  up 
which  might  crack  the  steel.  To  remove 
the  stresses  after  the  first  pounding  with 
the  hammers  the  piece  of  steel  must  be 
heated  or  "normalized"  in  one  of  the  large, 
gas-fired  furnaces  in  the  Ryan  Factory. 
The  ovens  are  set  for  1980  for  the  18-8 
alloys,  but  for  the  19-9  DL  a  setting  of 
1800'  is  required.  Before  this  heating  up 
for  stress  relief  the  parts  must  first  be 
de-greased  since  they  have  become  some- 
what oily  during  the  drop  hammer  opera- 
tion. The  pieces  are  stowed  in  metal  cages 
and  submerged  in  a  de-greasing  tank.  Fol- 
lowing this  they  are  dipped  in  a  de-zinc- 
ing bath  of  30  per  cent  nitric  acid  which 
cleans  off  any  particles  of  zinc  which  may 
have  adhered  to  the  metal  from  the  Kirk- 
site and  lead  dies. 


After  approximately  10  minutes  at  cor- 
rect temperature  in  the  normalizing  ovens 
the  parts  are  rolled  out  by  one  of  the  oper- 
ators and  allowed  to  cool  down  before 
being  re-hit  in  the  drop  hammers  to  draw 
them  down  even  more  into  the  dies. 

Following  this  second  "stretch"  the 
manifold  sections  have  the  edges  trimmed 
of  excess  material  and  the  parts  go  to  the 
planishing  shed  where  any  wrinkles  are 
ironed  out.  More  dips  for  the  metal  in  th« 
de-greasing  and  de-zincing  baths  and  they 
are  once  more  heated  to  relieve  internal 
strain. 

Unfortunately  the  high  temperatures 
and  the  chemistry  of  the  metals  conspire 
to  leave  a  certain  amount  of  scale  on  the 
pieces  of  exhaust  stacks  and  this  must  be 
removed  before  the  parts  can  be  stretched 
again  in  the  hammers. 


This  operation  is  where  the  new  caustic 
salt  and  acid  pickUng  baths  Ryan  has 
recently  grouped  into  one  location  out- 
side the  main  factory  building  come  into 
use.  Formerly  only  a  pickling  bath  was 
used,  but  at  that  time  most  of  the  parts 
were  made  of  18-8.  Now  that  practically 
75  per  cent  of  Ryan's  manifolds  are  made 
from  the  stronger  19-9  Uniloy,  a  different 
process  for  removing  scale  had  to  be 
evolved. 

The  19-9  resists  chemical  pickling  re- 
markably well  but  weld  seams  along  the 
edges  of  the  parts  after  they  are  joined 
together  to  form  a  complete  exhaust  sec- 
tion are  less  resistant  to  conventional 
pickling  acids.  One  way  to  knock  off  the 
scale  was  to  sandblast  the  parts  several 
times.  This  was  an  expensive  and  long 
drawn  out  operation.  To  eliminate  this 
time-consuming,  cost-consuming  process 
and  still  deliver  the  stainless  manifold 
sections  to  Ryan  customers  undamaged  by 
the  de-scaling  process,  Ryan's  chief  chem- 
ical research  engineer,  B.  W.  Floersch, 
experimented  with  various  other  methods 
of  cleaning  the  scale  from  the  19-9  DL 
without  altering  or  weakening  the  metal's 
composition. 


D  STEEL 


His  "solution"  was  a  molten  caustic  salt 
bath,  for  dipping  the  stainless  parts  into 
before  thev  were  pickled  in  the  acid  tanks. 
It  has  worked  so  well,  with  both  the  18-8 
and  19-9  that  only  one  sandblasting  oper- 
ation is  now  necessary  as  a  final  clean-up 
before  shipping,  and  the  tensile  strength 
of  the  metal  remains  as  strong  as  ever. 

A  large  metal  cage  holds  the  parts  to 
be  bathed  in  the  salt  and  acid  solutions 
and  an  overhead  crane  lifts  them  from  the 
floor  of  the  pickling  shed  up  and  over  into 
the  salt.  They  are  next  Hfted  up  and 
plunged  into  a  plain  water  tank  to  be 
quenched.  This  cleans  off  most  of  the  salt 
and  is  followed  by  the  acid  bath  which 
neutralizes  any  of  the  caustic  which  might 
still  be  adhering  to  the  metal.  Then  the 
pieces  go  to  the  hydrofluoric-nitric  acid 
solution  for  a  5  to  20-minute  immersion 
before  they  are  pressure  sprayed  with 
water  to  clean  off  any  of  the  loose  scale 
resulting  from  the  pickling  process. 

Once  more  the  dull-gleaming  parts  are 

wheeled  back  to  the  drop  hammers  for  a 

third  round  of  pounding  which  gives  them 

yet  a  deeper  draw  down  into  the  dies.  The 

(Continued  on  page  17) 


Alfred  Napolske  and  L.  T.  Bissette  pressure  spray  the  stainless  monifold  sec- 
tions after  parts  leave  the  acid  tanks.  fHosing  removes  loose  scale  from  metal. 


Highway  Patrolman  Dillard,  Ryan  Navion  Dealer  Robert  Ragsdale,  radioman  Jim  Boutwell,  and  Texas 
Department  of  Public  Safety  Director  Col.  Homer  Garrison  stand  beside  the  efficient,  up-to-date  com- 
bination   of    plane,    car    and    walkle    tolkie     lot     Boutwell's    feet)     thot    stopped    the    jail    breakers. 


FLYING 
BLOODHOUNDS 


Liza  tvotildn't  have  gotten  as  far 

as  the  river  if  she'd  had  the 

Texas  Rangers  and  a  Navion 

on  her  trail 


From  the  Navion  police  plane's  win- 
dow, officers  spotted  the  escaped 
prisoners  on  this  rough  Texos  ter- 
rain,   then    radioed    to    ground    posse. 


IN  the  old  days  a  jail  break  meant  getting 
out  the  bloodhounds  and  tracking  the 
escapees  down  by  foot. 

Today  a  jail  break  means  getting  out 
the  Ryan  Navion  police  plane  and  track- 
ing the  fugitives  down  by  air. 

The  Texas  Department  of  Public 
Safety,  which  includes  the  famous  Texas 
Rangers,  can  cite  their  own  recent  ex- 
perience to  prove  the  value  of  a  plane  in 
assisting  ground  posses  to  nab  criminals 
during  such  a  manhunt. 

Five  prisoners  escaped  in  a  recent  break 
from  the  Atascosa  County  jail  at  Jourdan- 
ton,  Texas.  At  the  request  of  authorities, 
Bobby  Ragsdale,  Ryan  Navion  dealer  at 
Austin,  the  state  capital,  rolled  a  plane  out 
of  his  hangar  —  this  happened  before  the 
Department  had  its  own  Navion — picked 
up  Jim  Boutwell,  a  pilot  and  radio  opera- 
tor for  the  Department  of  Public  Safety, 
and  quickly  flew  the  1 10  miles  to  the  scene 
of  the  jail  break. 

There  a  walkie-talkie  radio,  made  fa- 
mous during  World  War  II,  was  put  in 
the  Navion,  and  Highway  Patrol  Sergeant 
John  H.  Hollyfield  of  San  Antonio 
climbed   aboard. 

The  three  men  began  flying  over  the 
area.  Down  below,  ground  crews,  each 
equipped  with  similar  portable  two-way 
radios,  began  moving  through  the  field 
and  woods  where  the  prisoners  were 
thought  to  be. 


Jim  Boutwell,  police  radio  operator,  in 
walkie  talkie  contact  with  highway  pa- 
trolmen ond  Texas  Rangers,  reports  move- 
ments of  fugitives,  while  pilot  Rogsdale 
keeps    Navion    on    guard    at   low    altitudes. 


A  Texas  policeman  who  does  his  high- 
way potrollng  in  a  high-speed  air- 
plane is  Max  Westermon,  Jr.  Here  he 
boards  the  Texas  Department  of  Pub- 
lic Safety's  Navion  to  go  to  Houston. 


IJEXiS 

PUBLIC  SAfErr 


Two  escapees  had  already  been  caught 
by  a  posse.  The  other  three,  all  cattle 
thieves,  had  disappeared  but  were  practi- 
cally nailed  to  the  ground  when  the  plane 
arrived  on  the  scene.  After  the  flying  trio 
took  off  they  began  spotting  movements 
on  the  ground,  which  were  reported  to 
the  posse  through  the  ground  crews' 
walkie-talkies.  The  plane  with  its  three 
spotters  soon  narrowed  down  the  possible 
area  of  the  prisoners'  hiding  place  as  a 
brush  patch  20  miles  south  of  the  jail 
break. 

Every  time  one  of  the  fugitives  would 
move,  Boutwell,  in  his  ringside  seat  in  the 
Navion  above  the  brush  patch,  would  re- 
lay the  information  to  the  ground  posse. 
Little  by  little  the  posse,  with  its  "seeing 
eye"  circling  1,000  feet  overhead,  closed 
in  and  nabbed  the  three  escaped  prisoners. 

The  escapees  had  managed  to  travel  less 
than  two  miles  from  the  time  the  air 
observation  team  moved  in  until  they  were 
caught.  If  they  had  broken  and  made  a 
run  for  it,  they  would  have  found  the 
plane  slowly  following  them  down  the 
road,  giving  pursuing  officers  a  report  on 
their  every  movement.. 

The  episode  was  convincing  proof  of  an 
airplane's  practical  value  in  law  enforce- 
ment for  Department  of  Public  Safety 
officials,  who  as  soon  as  the  prisoners  were 
(Continued  on  page  1  5 ) 


Accurate    drilling    of    flanges    to    close    toler- 
ances is  job  of  Joe   Ketchum  in  Jet  Assembly. 


(Above)  B-47  tailpipes  on  Ryan  assembly  line  are  given  a  de-greasing  bath  by  Homer 
Marshall.  (Below)  installation  crew  working  on  G.E.  J-47  engine  in  the  experimen- 
tal XB-47  Stratojet.  Tail  cones  and  tailpipes  Ryan  builds  are  enclosed  in  the  pod, 
at  the  rear  of  the  installation.  Note  rakish  swept-bock  wings  of  600  m.p.h.  bomber. 


mi 


Now  being  installed  in  the  world's 
fastest  bombers  are  Ryan-built  jet 
engine  tailpipes  which  carry  the  tremen- 
dous propulsive  thrust  leaving  the  Ryan- 
built  tail  cone  assemblies  of  one  of  the 
world's  most  powerful  thermal  jet  engines. 
These  stainless  products  —  bomber  tail- 
pipes and  jet  engine  tail  cones — are  mated 
to  a  General  Electric  J-47  engine,  and 
help  to  send  the  Boeing  B-47  Stratojet 
"light"  bomber  on  its  600-mile-per-hour 
way. 

The  new  tailpipes,  which  are  currently 
fabricated  in  the  Ryan  jet  engine  assem- 
bly department,  are  the  result  of  design 
changes  made  to  save  weight  on  the  12  5,- 
000-pound  Stratojet  and  eliminate  the 
necessity  of  additional  tooling  for  produc- 
tion. The  changes  in  the  original  design 
for  these  circular,  30-inch  pipes  came 
about  after  conferences  Bruce  Todd,  Ryan 
Metal  Products  sales  engineer,  held  with 
E.  F.  Thorslund  and  L.  S.  Badley  of  Boe- 
ing's Materiel  Department.  Another  series 
of  drawing  board  bull  sessions  resulted  in 
modifications  worked  out  by  Pat  Carter, 
Ryan  Metal  Products  engineer.  In  short, 
a  one-piece  tailpipe  assembly  instead  of 
the  former  two-piece  product. 

The  Ryan  plant  is  equipped  with  a  heli- 
arc  seamwelder.  This  item  of  equipment  is 


^BKm^^^. 

1 

WM 

HH 

^^ 

^-^    ^K. 

^^^fflB 

IIHI^^^v^^^^^hSIH 

gtl 

— -^ ^ 

-"^^^I^^ 

^^^^n^_k^>Hji^'^ 

BF^ 

"tLJ 

IMS 

lEili^ 

jnoijm 

niLPlPES  FOR  THE  STRITOJETS 


basically  the  reason  for  the  change  from 
two  to  one  piece  on  the  tailpipe.  The  seam- 
welder  is  capable  of  strong,  even  welds, 
almost  impossible  to  sunder.  The  two- 
piece  exhausts  were  made  with  a  lap  joint, 
which  meant  extra  work  in  fitting,  extra 
tools  to  do  the  job.  It  also  meant  added 
weight.  What  came  off  Carter's  drawing 
board,  via  the  Todd-Boeing  conferences, 
was  a  decided  improvement. 

The  plane  these  stainless  products  built 
by  Ryan  help  to  push  is  big;  almost  as 
large  as  Boeing's  B-29  Superfortress.  It  has 
a  wingspan  of  116  feet  and  is  108  feet 
long.  Six  G.E.  J-47  engines  are  mounted 
beneath  the  swept-back  wings.  Four  en- 
gines are  mounted  in  pairs  on  outriggers 
under  the  inboard  section  of  the  wings 
and  one  engine  is  mounted  near  each 
wing-tip.  Fuel  for  the  B-47  is  a  special 
aviation  type  of  kerosene. 

Power  for  this  bomber  was  originally 
supplied  by  six  G.E.  J- 3  5  jet  engines. 
Each  had  4000  pounds  of  thrust.  The 
middle  of  this  year  these  engines  were 
replaced  on  one  of  the  bombers  by  an 
equal  number  of  J-47  turbojets,  each  of 
which  develops  a  5000-pound  thrust.  This 
plane  service-tested  the  newer  jet  power- 
plants  prior  to  their  use  in  production 
Stratojets  now  being  built  for  the  Air 
Force  at  the  Boeing  Wichita  Division. 


Although  the  Stratojet  is  designated  by 
the  Air  Force  as  a  "light"  bomber  it  can 
carry  10  tons  of  bombs  more  than  2000 
miles  and  will  fly  at  altitudes  exceeding 
3  J, 000  feet.  Its  crew  of  three  is  small  in 
comparison  to  the  size  of  the  plane. 

Last  February  a  new  unofficial  trans- 
continental speed  record,  of  3  hours  and 
46  minutes,  was  established  by  a  B-47  on 
a  routine  flight  from  Moses  Lake  Air  Base 
in  central  Washington  state  to  Andrews 
Air  Force  Base,  Maryland.  This  2289-mile 
dash,  non-stop,  was  flown  at  an  average 
speed  of  607.8  miles  per  hour. 

Design  work  on  the  B-47  began  in  1 94  5 , 
immediately  after  V-J  Day.  Fifteen 
months  later  the  first  airplane  rolled  from 
the  Boeing  factory  and  made  its  initial 
flight  in  December  of  1947.  This  experi- 
mental bomber  designated  the  XB-47,  was 
one  of  the  fastest  produced  of  any  Boeing 
plane,  just  two  years  elapsing  between 
first  design  work  and  completion  of  the 
first  model. 

Comparably  fast  was  the  completion 
of  design  work  at  Ryan  on  the  one-piece 
tailpipe,  which  was  first  discussed  on  July 
2  5,  approved  from  Pat  Carter's  drawings 
and  into  production  on  August  15,  only 
three  weeks  from  the  idea's  inception. 


Logan  unloads  machinery  ports  after  fost,  oeriol  delivery  to  the  form  of 
A.  J.  Rupp,  located  20  miles  southwest  of  Leoti,  Konsos.  hie  set  his  plane 
down  on  a  rough  pasture  alongside  the  Butler  Steel  Building  ot  left  which 
he  sold  to  Rupp.  Case  combines  and  tractor  at  right  were  also  Logan  sales. 

MM  II 1  mVi 

He  operates  four  enterprises  successfully 

■with  a  N avion  to  speed  hint  from 

one  to  the  other 


IF  you  found  yourself  in  four  different 
businesses  operating  in  a  dozen  midwest- 
ern  states  scattered  from  Colorado  to 
Illinois,  what  would  you  do?  Just  how 
would  you  find  the  time  to  manage  them? 
Chances  are  you'd  do  what  Carl  B. 
Logan  of  Leoti,  Kansas,  did.  He  soon 
found  that  surface  travel,  and  occasional 
use  of  scheduled  air  lines  just  didn't  fit 
his  needs.  Either  he  was  going  to  have  to 
give  less  personal  attention  to  his  varied 
business  interests  or  spend  more  time 
under  ever-increasing  driving  pressure  on 
the  road  or  give  up  one  or  more  of  his 
activities. 

No,  there  was  one  more  alternative  to 
consider.  Other  businessmen,  farmers  and 
ranchers  in  the  rich  agricultural  plains 
country,  were  finding  real  advantages  in 
having  their  own  planes.  Perhaps  he  ought 
to  try  it.  Logan  did,  first  using  a  four- 
place  Navion  from  nearby  Garden  City 
on  charter;  later  buying  his  own  Navion. 

That  such  highly-personalized  air  travel 
has  paid  off  for  this  resourceful  young 
midwestern  businessman  is  amply  attested 
by  the  success  of  his  varied  enterprises: 
Feed-grain  elevators;  Implement  sales  and 
service;  distributorship  of  Steel  Buildings; 
and  Oil  well  operations.  Let's  look  at 
them. 

Logan  Implement  Company  is  the  orig- 
inal and  central  enterprise  around  which 


Landing  on  the  road  outside  Leoti, 
Logan  toxies  to  the  front  door  of 
his  implement  building.  At  left 
is  one   of  his   two   groin    elevators. 


Mrs.  Logan  hands  her  husband  a 
suitcase  while  daughters  Orpha 
Kay  and  Maida  June  hold  bag  of 
parts    he    will    deliver    by    Novion. 


Logan,  right,  congrotulotes  friend 
Reinholdt  Deines  for  piloting  the 
Logan  Navion  to  victory  in  short- 
field  contest  at  Albuquerque,  N.  M. 


Flying  low  over  the  Nunn  Pool 
oil  field,  25  miles  north  of 
Garden  City,  Kans.,  Logan  com- 
pletes inspection  trip  of  his 
several      petroleum      properties. 


the  other  activities  have  been  built.  The 
implement  company  handles  the  J.  I.  Case 
line  of  tractors  and  farm  implements. 
Logan's  Navion  is  continually  on  the  go 
throughout  Western  Kansas  selling  and 
servicing  implements  and  hauling  emer- 
gency repair  parts. 

Another  important  business  in  which 
Logan  is  a  partner  and  manager  is  buying 
and  selling  grains,  feed  and  coal.  Here  the 
Navion  proves  equally  valuable  for  con- 
tacting railroad  authorities,  buying  and 
selling  trips  and  for  checking  losses  in 
shipment  at  various  points.  The  grain  and 
feed  business,  and  operation  of  elevators. 


requires  Logan  to  make  frequent  trips  to 
markets  in  Kansas  City,  Omaha,  St.  Louis 
and  Chicago. 

Third  of  Logan's  activities  is  the  dis- 
tributorship of  Butler  Steel  Buildings, 
mostly  for  grain  storage  and  other  farm 
use.  Western  Kansas  and  Eastern  Colo- 
rado are  the  areas  where  steel  building 
erection  is  concentrated.  Here  again  the 
plane  proves  its  worth  not  only  in  selling 
and  servicing,  but  in  contacting  dealers 
and  keeping  erection  crews  going. 

Completely  disassociated  from  his  three 
other  businesses,  all  closely  tied  in  with 
(Continued  on  page  1 8) 


m\m  II  THE  lEws  imiOiiD 


NAVIONS  FLY  AS  ARMY  AMBULANCES  IN  URUGUAY 


MONTEVIDEO,  URUGUAY.  (Syndicate)— in  what  this  na- 
tion's newspapers  are  hailing  as  a  milestone  in  Uruguayan  military 
aviation  history,  the  Sanidad  Militar,  medical  service  for  the  Army, 
is  now  using  two  new   Ryan  Navion  air  ambulances. 

Purchased  through  Miller,  Medeiros  &  Bastos,  Ryan  Navion  dis- 
tributor in  Montevideo,  the  planes  recently  were  delivered  to  Sani- 
dad officials  in  colorful  ceremonies  at  the  Pando  airfield  near  here. 
Dr.  Guillermo  Rodriguez  Guerero,  Director  of  the  Sanidad  Militar, 
along  with  the  Ministers  of  National  Defense  and  Public  Health  and 
other  high  military  and  civil  officials,  took  part  in  acceptance  cere- 
monies. 

Selection  of  the  Ryan  Navions  came  after  careful  consideration  of 
ail  existing  single  engine  aircraft  by  government  authorities. 

The  Navions — available  to  both  Army  and  civilian  personnel — 
are  based  at  the  interior  towns  of  Carrasco  and  Durazno.  Each  plane 
carries  two  stretchers  and  is  equipped  as  a  mobile  emergency  hos- 
pital  with   modern   surgical   i 


SPAIN  AND  NORTH  AFRICA  COVERED  BY  DIPLOMAT  IN  RYAN  NAVION 


MADRID,  SPAIN.  Round  trip 
flights  in  his  Ryan  Navion,  on  official 
business  for  his  government',  to  Caso- 
blanca.  North  Africa  are  reported  by 
Dr.  Juan  B.  Peloyo,  Agricultural  Con- 
sultant (or  the  Argentine  Embassy  in 
Madrid.  Dr.  Pelayo,  who  is  also  diplo- 
matically accredited  ot  the  capital  of 
Portugal,  relies  on  his  plane  for  trav- 
eling extensively  over  the  Iberian  Pen- 
insula and  into  neighboring  countries 
of  Europe  and  Africa.  On  a  good 
many  flights,  he  is  accompanied  by 
his  wife,  mother  and  two  sons.  Vice- 


President  of  the  Argentine  Aero  Club, 
he  participates  in  outstanding  conti- 
nental air  shows,  helping  to  form  o 
colorful  Ryan  Navion  squodron  with 
several  French  pilot-friends,  including 
Captain  de  Montmarin,  official  of 
Anco,  European  distributor  for  the 
Ryan   Navion. 

Says  Dr.  Pelayo,  "The  Ryan  Navion 
has  fulfilled  my  hopes  in  it,  flying 
very  well  in  all  weather  and  perform- 
ing odmirably  from  various  airports 
at  highly  differing  altitudes." 


SHORT-FIELD  EXCELLENCE  OF  RYAN  NAVION  DEMONSTRATED  IN  BAJA  CALIFORNIA,  MEXICO 


LA  PAZ,  BAJA  CALIFORNIA,  MEXICO.  (Feature  Service)- 
A  series  oi  arduous  demonstration  flights  under  this  region's  tropical 
climatic  conditions,  has  just  been  successiuUy  completed  in  a  Ryan 
Navion  piloted  by  Francisco  Waltz  of  Mexico  City. 

Taking  off  down  wind,  instead  of  conventionally  into  the  wind. 
Waltz's  Navion  successfully  operated  from  a  very  short  rock  and 
gravel  strip  here  at  the  southernmost  tip  of  the  Bajc  California  Pen- 
insula. Pacific  Ocean  breakers  pounded  on  three  sides,  as  Waltz  made 
his  take-off  from  this  narrow  strip  of  land. 

Impressed  with  the  Navion 's  remarkable  performance  in  this  high 
temperature  section,  several  local  citizens,  for  whom  Waltz  demon- 
strated the  plane,  have  indicated  plans  lor  early  purchase  of  Ryan 
Navions  in   1950. 


#^ 

ij 

HBr^  jj 

irn^ifH 

iKSll^OHnf's^^S 

V,  ^B-Si  2!/'  ''^tul'  -^ 

■iPwiji  i^IhbK.  i^Eyi 

IP^f^ 

_^;tr^  'i|g|fl|L 

^■s^^ 

fistt^. 

;W 

^-^1 -«.—».  . 

BRAZIL'S  FIRST  1949  RYAN  NAVION  SUCCESSFULLY 
COMPLETES  TEST  FLIGHTS 

RIO  DE  JANEIRO,  BRAZIL.  (Syndicate)  —  Brazil's  first 
1949  Ryan  Navion  was  assembled  here  this  week  tinder  the  ex- 
perienced eye  of  Berni  Dardel,  famous  inter-continental  Nation 
oiiner  and  pilot,  ii'ho  flew  to  Rio  from  Santiago,  Chile,  at  the 
invitation  of  Dias,  Henriques  y  Cia.,  newly-appointed  Brazilian  Ryan 
Nai'ion  distributor,  to  supervise  the  plane's  readying  and  test  flying. 
After  his  work  here,  including  demonstrations  of  the  Navion  to 
government  officials  and  other  leading  citizens,  Dardel  flew  to  Buenos 
Aires  to  join  his  parents.  His  own  Ryan  Navion  is  jvaiting  for  him 
at  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  in  San  Diego,  California,  after 
his  visit  to  his  native  Switzerland, 


SANTIAGO,  CHILE.  (Special)— Doing  twice  in  six  months  what 
most  private  pilots  dream  about  trying  once  in  a  lifetime,  Berni  Dardel, 
youthful  Swiss  flyer,  arrived  here  recently  after  a  flight  down  the 
West  Coast  of  Central  and  South  America  from  San  Diego,  California, 
U.S.A.  in  a   1949  Ryan  Navion  airplane. 

Himself  the  owner  of  a  Ryan  Navion,  Dardel  was  in  this  case  deliv- 
ering a  new  plane  to  Salinas,  Fabres  y  Cia.,  Ryan  Navion  distributor 
tor  Chile. 

Asked  about  the  dangers  encountered,  Dardel  replied  thot  his 
closest  call  occurred  while  he  was  water-skiing  in  the  Bay  at  Aca- 
pulco,  Mexico,  during  a  day's  stopover  there.  He  and  Ryan's  dis- 
tributor for  Mexico  both  landed  their  Navions  right  on  the  beach 
at  Acopulco. 


SWISS  PILOT  IN  SECOND  NAVION  FLIGHT  TO  CHILE 


NAVION  AIRLINER  TURNS  IN  600  TROUBLE-FREE  HOURS  OVER  SOUTH  WEST  AFRICA 


WINDHOEK,  SOUTH  WEST  AFRICA.(Feature  Service) 
— 600  hours  of  trouble-free  service  is  the  record  of  Ryan  Navion 
ZS-BXR  owned  by  South  West  Air  Transport,  Pty.,  Ltd.,  Windhoek. 
One  of  three  Ryan  Navions  purchased  by  SWAT  through  Pretoria 
Light  Aircraft  Company  in  Pretoria,  South  African  distributor  for 
this  all-metal  plane,  ZS-BXR  is  used  in  scheduled  airline  service 
over  some  of  the  toughest  flying  country  in  the  -world. 

*'We  now  have  five  Navions  in  our  air  fleet — 5  Ryans  and  2  older 
models — and  honestly  say  they  have  given  us  excellent  service.  I  am 
sure  that  the  Navion  is  the  only  airplane  of  its  class  that  can  stand 
up  to  the  operating  conditions  of  South  West  Africa,*'  reports  G.  T. 
van  Rooyen,  SWAT  manager. 


VENEZUELAN  SUGAR  PLANTER  COMES  HOME  WITH  RYAN  NAVION 


MARACAIBO,  VENEZUELA.  (Special)  —  Eugenic  Paris, 
partner  in  Central  Venezuela  prominent  sugar  growing  and  refin- 
ing company,  Is  also  one  of  Venezuela's  most  ardent  private  pilots. 

Personally  colling  at  the  Ryan  factory,  San  Diego,  California, 
for  his  1949  model  Navion,  Paris  flew  the  4,200-mile  distance  to 
Maracoibo  himself.  Passengers  included  his  wife,  Isabel,  and  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Edward  De  Larm. 

His  big  tricycle-geor  plane  lands  in  the  middle  of  sugar  cane 
fields  whenever  he  chooses  to  visit  plantings  or  field  refineries.  The 
Navion  is  christened  "Santisima  Trinidad." 

(Continued  on  page  14) 


RYAN   FIREBIRD 


FLASHING  across  this  page  is  the 
rocket-propelled  Ryan  "Firebird." 
Named  for  the  mythical  bird  with 
wings  of  fire  in  the  old,  pre-Stalin, 
Russian  fairy  tale,  the  "Firebird"  has 
just  been  revealed  as  the  U.  S.  Air 
Force's  first  air-to-air  guided  missile. 
Unlike  the  legendary  creature,  this 
"Firebird"  can't  be  changed  into  a 
beautiful  princess  at  a  sorcerer's 
w^him.  Instead  it  remains  a  potentially 
deadly  w^eapon,  perhaps  heralding  the 
day  of  so-called  "push  button"  war- 
fare. 

The  "Firebird"  is  virtually  a  frag- 
mentation shell  with  human  intelli- 
gence. It  is  extremely  small,  fast  and 
difficult  to  track,  even  on  radar 
scopes.  It  is  designed  to  be  as  effective 
for  night  or  bad  weather  interception 
as  it  is  in  clear  skies,  since  visual 
sighting  is  not  required. 

Designated  the  XAAM-A-1  (exper- 
imental, air-to-air  missile.  Air  Force, 
first  model),  the  Ryan  "Firebird"  is 
extremely  compact  for  the  complete 
radar  navigational  system  and  large 
explosive  charge  it  carries.  Launched 
from  a  "mother"  jet  fighter  plane,  it 
is  capable  of  heading  off  and  destroy- 
ing its  objective  in  a  matter  of  sec- 
onds. It  has  all  the  speed  first  gen- 
erated by  the  parent  fighter,  plus  the 
added  power  of  its  own  booster  rocket 
and  finally  its  flight  rockets. 

Because  it  is  a  pilotless  projectile, 
it  is  capable  of  maneuvers  beyond 
human  endurance,  making  it  extreme- 
ly effective  against  piloted  aircraft. 
Little  more  than  half  a  foot  in  diam- 
eter, it  is  about  1 0  feet  in  length  and 
7  Yz  feet  long  after  dropping  its  boost- 
er rocket. 

The  "intelligence"  of  the  "Fire- 
bird" is  its  complicated  radar  naviga- 
tional and  electronic  system,  making 
this  missile  one  of  the  most  compact 
flying  weapons  ever  devised. 

The  missile's  mother  plane  is  the 
first  to  detect  the  target,  and  directs 
the  launching  of  the  missile.  There- 
after, the  "Firebird"  is  designed  to 
"home"  on  the  enemy  target.  At  night 
or  in  inclement  w^eather  the  launch 
plane  must  have  a  search  tracking 
radar  capable  of  spotting  the  enemy 
aircraft.  The  host  fighter  plane  can 
carry  one  or  more  missiles  on  external 
launching  racks  which  fit  standard 
bomb  installations.  The  "Firebird" 
missiles  can  be  fired  in  single  or  mul- 
tiple launchings. 

{Continued  on  [>as,('  I}) 


10 


> 

♦  /  ^^ 

4. 

« 

AIR  FORCE'S  FIRST  AIR-TO-AIR  GUIDED  MISSILE 


U.S.A.F.  movies  of  "Firebird"  in  flight-.  Models  for  clarify  in  lower  phofos.   (LeffI   As  missile  is  released  from 
F-82.    (Center)    Missile  starts  flight  toward  target.    (  Right)    Booster  is  dropped  as  flight  rockets  take  over. 


Owen  Olds  (I.  )  ond  Rolph  Monsees  in- 
spect guidance  mechanisms  on  missile. 


Test  data   obtained   at   photographic   stations   oiong   course   of  missile's  flight 
is  tabuloted  by  Ryan  technicians  on  scale  layout  of  Alamogordo  Firing  Range. 


Plastic    rodomes    were    carefully    fab- 
ricated to  house  guidonce  equipment. 


Bud  Sly   (left),  telemetering  expert,  and  M.  E.  Davidson,  Flight  En- 
gineer, adjust  a  "Firebird"  beneath  wing  of  F-82  for  a  test  flight. 


Entire  missile  project  was 
supervised  by  Harry  Sutton, 
Ryon  Engineering   Director. 


Captain  R.  G.  Illing,  Air  Force's  Project-  Officer  at  Hollomon  Air  Base,  looks 
over  two  "Firebirds"  about  to  be  taken  aloft  for  test  firing  from  F-82  wing. 


The  joint  Air  Force-Ryan  Range  Recovery  Crew  waits  on  the  New 
Mexico  desert  for  a  missile  to  parachute  to  earth  following  test  run. 


In  actual  flight  tests,  four  of  the 
"Firebird"  air-to-air  missiles  were 
slung  beneath  the  wings  of  a  North 
American  F-82  "Twin  Mustang" 
fighter  —  two  beneath  each  wing. 
During  other  tests,  a  Douglas  B-26, 
tw^in-engine  attack  bomber,  served 
as  the  launch  plane. 

The  wings  and  tail  of  the  missile 
are  in  the  form  of  a  double  cruciform, 
the  wings  having  an  V  attitude  and 
the  fins  a  +  attitude  when  in  level 
flight.  The  four  vane-like  -wings  are 
located  about  midw^ay  on  the  rocket 
portion  of  the  projectile.  T-wo  feet 
behind  the  wings  are  the  four  tail 
vanes.  Both  wings  and  tail  surfaces 
serve  to  control  the  flight  of  the 
missile. 

Of  approximately  a  3 -foot  span, 
the  wings  have  an  aerodynamically 
smooth  surface  not  equalled  by  the 
usual  sheet  metal  construction.  Ex- 
cept for  the  plastic  radome  and  wings, 
the  basic  missile  structure  is  conven- 
tional aluminum-alloy  sheet.  After 
the  missile  is  launched  from  the  par- 
ent plane,  a  booster  rocket  takes  over. 
Then,  -when  the  "Firebird"  reaches 
maximum  speed,  the  spent  booster  is 
jettisoned  by  an  explosive  charge. 
Thereafter,  during  the  latter  phase 
of  interception,  po-wer  is  supplied  by 
flight  rockets.  The  warhead  is  de- 
signed to  explode  when  it  is  close 
enough  to  an  enemy  aircraft  to  insure 
destruction.  Should  the  missile  miss 
its  target,  the  -warhead  is  automatic- 
ally detonated  in  the  air. 

Development  of  the  missile  has  been 
under  way  for  more  than  two  years 
by  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company. 
The  "birds"  have  been  manufactured 
by  the  company's  San  Diego  plant,  and 
under  joint  Air  Force-Ryan  technical 
supervision  actual  firings  have  been 
made  at  Holloman  Air  Force  Base, 
Alamogordo,  New^  Mexico. 

In  October,  1947,  a  four-man  crew^, 
headed  by  Robert  Shaver,  Flight  Test 
Director,  and  Ed-ward  Sly,  Assistant 
Flight  Test  Director,  moved  from  the 
plant  to  Alamogordo.  The  first  group 
experimented  with  and  worked  out 
the  problem  of  parachute  recovery  of 
the  projectile.  After  the  early  test 
flights  of  the  "birds"  a  parachute 
mechanism  low^ered  them  to  the 
ground,  relatively  undamaged,  to  be 
used  again. 

By  the  time  of  the  first  flight  of  the 
"Firebird,"    on    December    23,    1947, 

(Coiifhiiied  on  page  16) 


13 


PARISIANS  DEMONSTRATE  RYAN  NAVION 
IN  CAMEROON,  SENEGAL  AND  CONGO 


NAVION  SO  ROOMY  SIX 
PASSENGERS  CAN  BE  CARRIED 


CAMEROON,  FRENCH  WEST  AFRICA.  (Feature  Ser- 
vice)— Having  flown  their  1949  Ryan  Navion  3000  miles  from 
Paris  for  this  purpose,  Captain  Henri  de  Montmarin  and  Rene  G. 
Delbos  conducted  a  program  of  flight  demonstrations  for  local 
authorities  last  month. 

The  Congo  and  Senegal  are  also  on  their  schedule  before  they 
return  with  the  155  m.p.h.  aircraft  to  North  Africa  and  Europe. 

Extensive  flying  activities  with  the  new  plane  were  also  recently 
completed  in  Holland,  Belgium  and  Switzerland  following  the  inter- 
nationally important  Paris  Air  Show,  where  the  two  executives  of 
Anco,  Ryan  Navion  distributor  in  Paris,  report  acceptance  of  the 
Ryan  Navion  has  been  enthusiastic  and  the  sale  of  many  of  these 
new  models  w^ill  be  made. 


FRENCH  BUSINESSMAN  INSPECTS  BRANCH 
OFFICES  WITH  RYAN  NAVION 


MARSEILLE,  FRANCE.  (Exclusive)  —  Roland  Fraissinet, 
manager  of  Cyprlen  Fabre  Navigation  Company,  Marseille,  reports 
he  has  improved  his  business  with  his  Ryan  Navion,  which  he  uses 
to  visit  the  firm's  agencies  in  Italy,  Spoin,  Portugal,  England  and 
Africa. 

Also  the  publisher  of  LE  MERIDIONEL,  Marseille's  popular  doily 
newspaper,  Fraissinet  files  all  over  France  taking  part  in  air  shows 
ot  which  he  performs  ten-minute  acrobatic  demonstrotlons.  Le 
Meridionel  painted  in  big  letters  on  the  plane's  fuselage  provides 
dramatic   advertising. 

"In  France,  I  have  a  private  landing  field  by  a  hunting  lodge 
at  Camargue.  The  strip  is  no  wider  i.ian  the  Navion's  wing  span 
and  is  only  400  meters  long.  Thanks  to  the  plane's  landing  qual- 
ities, I  operate  without  trouble  under  all  circumstances  and  with 
any  kind  of  wind,"  explains  Fraissinet. 


MONTEVIDEO,  URUGUAY.  (Syndicate)— Richard  E.  C.  DeRid- 
der,  considered  one  oi  the  finest  pilots  in  South  America,  recently 
wrote  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company,  manuiaclurers  of  the  Ryan 
Navion  personal-business  airplane,  an  account  of  his  extensive  exper- 
iences as  a  Navion  express,  ambulance  and  transport  pilot  in  Uruguay. 
Final  paragraphs  summarized  his  conclusions  for  other  South  Amer- 
ican firms  and  individuals  who  contemplate  the  acquisition  of  an 
airplane. 

"The  Ryan  Navion  is  unique  in  its  class  for  small  field  operation; 
ruggedness;  capacity;  comfort  and  easy,  trouble-free  operation.  De- 
pendable and  safe,  the  Navion  is  truly  the  kind  of  plane  that  a  pilot 
likes  more  and  more  as  he  flies  it. 

"The  improvements  introduced  with  the  1949  Ryan  models  make 
the  Navion  an  even  better  airplane.  It's  so  roomy  that  on  occasions 
this  normally  four-place  plane   has   carried  six  adults." 


"NAVION  BEST  TOURIST  PLANE  IN  COLOMBIA" 

BOGOTA,  COLOMBIA.  (Special)  —Naiio,,  Number  19SS — 
the  first  Ryau-built  model  to  be  purchased  in  this  country — landed 
here  recently  and  received  an  enthusiastic  reception.  Officials  of  the 
Aeroclub  de  Colombia.  Ryan  Nai'ion  distributor  here,  baie  tele- 
graphed th.'  Ryan  factory.  "EVERYONE  JS  IN  LOVE  WITH  THE 
NAVION.  GENERAL  OPINION:  IT  IS  THE  BEST  TOURIST 
PLANE  EVER  IMPORTED  INTO   COLOMBIA." 


RYAN  NAVION  LEADS  25  PLANES 
IN  MEXICAN  HIGH-ALTITUDE  SEARCH 

MEXICO  CITY,  MEXICO.  (Exclusive)— The  ease  with  which  a 
four-passenger  Ryan  Navion  reaches  and  effectively  operates  at  high 
altitude  was  demonstrated  this  week  when  Francisco  Waltz.  Mexico 
City  pilot,  flying  one  of  these  high-powered  planes,  was  first  to  locate 
a  twin-engined  airliner  which  had  met  with  mishap  near  the  snowcap 
of  famed  Popocatepetl  at  15,500. 

Luis  Sanchez,  an  experienced  mountain  climber,  and  one  other 
observer-passenger  accompanied  Waltz.  Twenty-five  aircraft,  among 
which  were  DC-3  airliners  and  assorted  Army  craft,  were  in  the  search. 

Waltz  is  managing  partner  of  Morgan  &  Waltz,  Ryan  Navion  dis- 
tributor for  Mexico  and  Central  America. 

He  later  explained  to  reporters  that  Navions  in  Mexico  usually  fly 
at  a  minimum  of  8,000  feet,  frequently  going  up  to  more  than  15,000 
to  get  above  the  country's  central  plateau  or  over  the  weather.  When 
taking  off  from  the  7.300-fool  high  airport  at  Mexico  City,  a  Navion. 
with  four  passengers,  climb';  over  a  surrounding  10,000-fool  mountain 
ridge  within  IS  minutes. 


14 


FLYING  BLOODHOUNDS 

(Couthiiied  from  page  }) 
jailed    again,    purchased     a     1949    Ryan 
Navion     from     Ragsdale,     appropriately 
named  it  the  "Texas  Ranger,"  and  went 
into  police-flying  on  a  routine  basis. 

Now  the  "Ranger,"  with  bold  TDPS 
markings  and  a  big  map  of  the  state 
identifying  its  fuselage,  daily  plies  the 
Texas  skies  under  the  controlling  hands 
of  Max  Westerman,  Jr.,  Highway  Patrol- 
man turned  pilot. 

Although  availab'e  to  all  divisions  of 
the  Department  of  Public  Safety,  includ- 
ing Weights  &  Measures,  Vehicle  Licenses 
and  others,  the  husky  plane  is  put  to  task 
with  greatest  regularity  by  the  Rangers 
and  the  Highway  Patrol.  Col.  Homer 
Garrison,  Jr.,  Director  of  the  Department, 
and  Chief  Joe  Fletcher,  the  Assistant  Di- 
rector, who  were  instrumental  in  the  de- 
cision that  an  "air  arm"  was  in  order,  are 
frequent  passengers  for  inspection  tours 
of  Ranger  and  Highway  Patrol  radio  sta- 
tions and  branch  headquarters. 

Besides  executive  transportation  and 
its  use  for  conducting  manhunts  such  as 
the  pursuit  of  the  Jourdanton  jail  break- 
ers, the  Navion  comes  in  handy  for  break- 
ing up  traffic  jams  on  congested  highways. 
Here  again  Walkie-talkie  radio  helps  turn 
the  trick.  A  traffic  coordinator  overhead 
diagnoses  the  problem,  and  then  over  the 
radio  instructs  police  cars  how  to  route 
automobiles  out  of  the  jam. 

Mercy  searches  offer  further  opportun- 
ity for  the  big  four-placer,  which  has 
seven  windows  and  all-round  visibility,  to 
earn  its  salt.  Children  lost  in  Texas'  num- 
erous forests  are  much  easier  to  locate 
from  the  air  than  afoot.  Speedier  control 
of  forest  fires  than  ever  before  is  expected 
next  season  through  the  use  of  the  plane, 
as  officers  will  be  able  quickly  to  observe 
the  extent  and  direction  of  flames  and  to 
direct   fire   fighters    accordingly. 

Tornadoes,  floods,  hurricanes  and  other 
disasters  will  be  held  in  better  check  than 
in  previous  years  with  the  155  m.p.h. 
Navion  available  for  on-the-spot  damage 
inspection  and  for  fast  transport  of  doc- 
tors, medicine  and  relief  supplies.  Cas- 
ualties can  be  swiftly  and  comfortably 
delivered  to  distant  hospitals. 

Bulky,  unconventional  cargo  assign- 
ments are  also  duck  soup  for  the  "Rang- 
er," with  its  quick-opening  hatch  and 
load-hungry  cabin  space.  Diving  equip- 
ment, fire-arms,  stretchers,  oxygen  tanks 
and  machinery  are  all  handled  with 
roomy  ease. 

The  Ryan  Navion  is  the  first  plane  ever 
owned  by  the  Department,  but  officials 
already  feel  that  its  record  of  success  may 
well  establish  it  as  the  forerunner  of  a 
sizeable  air-fleet  that  will  find  extensive 
use  by  all  divisions  of  the  Department. 


Studying  1950  Navion  models  painted  in  various  shades  for  easier  selection  are 
(I.  to  r. )  Eorl  D.  Prudden,  Airplane  Sales  Vice  President;  Robert  Clark  of  Manu- 
facturing Control;  William  Sloan,  Assistant  to  Vice  President;  and  T.  Claude  Ryan. 

170  M. P. H.  lycoiningPowered Super 
Navion  Readied  for  1930  Sales 


A  new  2  60  h.p.  Lycoming-powered 
"Super"  Ryan  Navion  whicli  cruises  170 
miles  per  hour,  climbs  12  50  feet  per  min- 
ute with  full  load  and  has  comparable  all- 
round  high  performance,  has  been  an- 
nounced by  T.  Claude  Ryan,  President  of 
the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company. 

The  new  model  adds  to  the  Navion  line, 
becoming  a  companion  plane  to  the  popular 
205  h.p.  Continental-powered  De  Luxe 
Navion  which  "will  be  continued  as  the 
principal  model. 

The  first  Super  "2  60"  model  Ryan  Nav- 
ions  Tvill  begin  coming  off  the  assembly 
line  of  the  San  Diego  plant  in  a  few  months, 
with  deliveries  scheduled  to  begin  in 
March.  Advance  deposits  on  the  new  Ly- 
coming "2  60"  Navions  are  already  being 
accepted  through  distributors  to  establish 
purchaser  priority  for  spring  deliveries. 

Externally,  except  for  the  changes  in 
1950  paint  design  and  finishes,  the  appear- 
ance of  the  Super  "260"  and  De  Luxe 
"205"  Navion  models  is  very  similar.  The 
three  inch  longer  nose,  slightly  different 
cowling  lines  and  larger  propeller  of  the 
new  model  are  not  at  first  noticeable.  In 
performance,  ho'wever,  the  "2  60"  is  truly 
a  new  airplane.  Pilots  who  have  flown  the 
ne^v  Super  Navion  report  that  it  will  out- 
cruise,  out-climb  and  other-wise  out-per- 
form everything  in  its  class. 

The  take-off  distance  for  the  Super 
"2  60"  is  a  phenomenally  short  ground  run 
of  only  400  feet,  and  to  clear  a  5  0-foot 
obstacle  only  770  feet  are  required  from 
a  standing  start. 

The  Navion's  excellent  landing  and  slow 
flight  characteristics  have  not  been  affected 
as  a  result  of  the  higher  power.  In  ap- 
proaching over  a  5  0-foot  obstacle,  only 
87  5  feet  distance  is  needed  to  the  end  of 
the  landing  roll.  The  ground  roll  itself  is 
only  47  0  feet.  As  a  result  of  higher  cruis- 
ing speed,  fuel  economy  in  terms  of  miles 
per  gallon  remains  nearly  the  same  as  for 
the  205  h.p.  Navion,  a  very  unusual  ac- 
complishment considering  the  great  in- 
crease in  power  and  performance.  With 
the  20  gallon  auxiliary  tank,  which  is 
included  at  no  extra  cost  on  the  "260" 
model,    normal    range    is    640    miles,    and 


when    cruised    at   maximum    economy   con- 
ditions,   range    can    be    increased    to    900 

The  first  experimental  Super  "2  60" 
Navion  was  developed  by  Ryan  this  past 
summer  and  has  logged  several  hundred 
hours  in  extensive  test  and  demonstration 
flights  since  then.  Flown  by  William  P. 
"Doc"  Sloan,  Ryan's  head  sales  pilot  and 
assistant  to  the  Vice-President,  the  "2  60" 
has  been  demonstrated  throughout  the 
country  to  Navion  distributors  and  tested 
under  a  wide  variety  of  conditions. 

The  Super  "2  60"  Navion  has  met  with 
tremendous  enthusiasm,  particularly  over 
its  high  performance  and  the  fact  that  this 
has  been  obtained  without  sacrificing  the 
plane's  widely  recognized  safe,  easy-to-fly 
characteristics.  The  ease  of  its  outstanding 
performance  from  high  altitude  fields  is 
especially  noteworthy  and  of  real  opera- 
tional interest  to  ranchers  and  to  mining 
and  lumber  companies  with  properties  in 
such  locations. 

The  Super  "2  60"  has  been  planned  to  sell 
for  under  $14,000  completely  equipped. 

The  Lycoming  GO-43  5-C2  which  powers 
the  Super  Navion  is  a  six  cylinder  opposed 
air-cooled,  geared  engine,  with  a  2-minute 
take-off  power  rating  of  260  h.p.  at  3400 
rpm.  Its  normal  continuous  power  rating 
is  240  h.p.  at  3000  rpm. 

This  engine  is  a  development  of  the  190 
h.p.  0-43  5  Lycoming  engine  -which  pow- 
ered the  wartime  L-5  liaison  planes.  This 
type  engine  gained  and  held  an  excellent 
reputation  for  quality  of  design,  workman- 
ship, dependable  operation  and  ease  of 
maintenance.  The  gear  GO-43  5  version  was 
used  in  Navy  military  drones  produced  by 
the  Naval  Aircraft  Factory  and  by  com- 
mercial manufacturers. 

The  latest  "C2"  engine  incorporates  ex- 
tensive refinements,  such  as  ne^sv,  more  ef- 
ficient type  cylinder  heads,  ne-w  crank- 
shaft and  gear  reduction  of  a  proven  de- 
sign. The  more  expensive  military  version 
of  this  engine  is  to  be  used  as  standard 
equipment  in  the  Navion  "60."  It  is  fur- 
nished with  the  A-N  accessory  case  and 
A-N  type  Eclipse  starter  and  generator. 


15 


Three  Ryan  executives.  Earl  Prudden,  Vice  President  (left),  Walter  Balch,  Air- 
plane Service  Manager  and  Walter  O.  Locke,  Assistant  to  the  President  (extreme 
right)  chat  with  Standard  Oil  of  California  representatives  Oliver  B.  Lyons 
and  W.  V.  Hanley  before  the  demonstration  program  of  plane  fuels  and  lubricants. 


Navion  Provides 
Flying  Laboratory 
For  Standard  Oii 


W.  V.  Hanley  (I.)  and  O.  B.  Lyons  un- 
pack special  equipment  from  Standard 
Oil  Company's  Navion  for  demonstra- 
tion.   Note    television    receiver    used. 


"Chevron  No.  2,"  Standard  Oil  of 
California's  flying  laboratory,  recently 
stopped  in  Son  Diego  to  demonstrate  fuel 
and  lubrication  requirements  of  personal 
and  airline-type  planes  to  aircraft  tech- 
nicians meeting  at  the  Institute  of  the 
Aeronautical  Sciences,  located  near  the 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  plant  build- 
ings on  the  harbor. 

The  1800-hour  veteran  Navion  plane, 
extensively  outfitted  with  technical  equip- 
ment, was  flown  here  by  W.  V.  Honley, 
Assistant  Manager  of  Standard's  Aviation 
Division.  Equipment  carried  aboard  the 
Navion  included  a  big  television  screen, 
which  enables  Hanley  to  put  the  plane  to 
better  use  when  talking  to  large  audi- 
ences about  such  important  items  as 
volatility  studies,  vapor  lock,  fuel  econ- 
omy and   lubricating   oil  comparisons. 

Standard  Oil  of  California,  which  is 
engaged  in  a  vigorous  program  of  avia- 
tion research  and  development,  is  build- 
ing up  a  modern,  multi-purpose  oir  fleet 
around  the  four-place  Navion  and  other 
all-metal  planes,  including  a  Douglas 
B-23  bomber,  converted  to  on  executive 
transport.  The  company's  longtime  policy 
of  stimulating  civilian  flying  and  popu- 
larizing air  travel  keynotes  the  entire 
enterprise. 

In  addition  to  using  their  Navion  for 
demonstrations  of  fuels  and  lubricants, 
OS  they  did  at  the  recent  Institute  meet- 
ing, the  company  also  uses  it  for  trons- 
portation  of  sales  representatives  or  to 
answer  requests  of  assistance  from  cus- 
tomers who  want  special  fuels,  technical 
advice  or  other  help  in  any  one  of  the 
seven  far  western  states  in  the  company's 
territory.  Most  of  the  Standard  dealers 
con  be  reached  within  a  half  day  from  the 
Son  Francisco  offices  through  use  of  the 
Navion. 


RYAN  FIREBIRD 

(Continued  from  page  13) 

there  were  six  people  from  Ryan  working 
day  and  night  with  the  Field  Test  Group. 
At  first,  flights  were  few  and  far  between 
while  modifications  were  incorporated  in 
the  missile  and  more  and  more  data  ob- 
tained from  telemetering  and  photographs. 
However,  by  April  of  this  year,  with  12 
from  Ryan  working  at  Holloman,  approx- 
imately one  "bird"  a  week  was  being  fired, 
weather  permitting. 

The  Field  Test  Crew  worked  closely 
with  Air  Force  officers  and  men  and  three 
of  the  Ryan  group  qualified  as  Missile 
Launchers,  after  completing  an  Air  Force 
high  altitude  indoctrination  course  at  the 
Aero-Medical  Laboratory,  Wright  Field, 
Dayton.  At  least  one  of  these  three,  either 
M.  E.  Davidson,  Ed  Sly  or  Bob  Shaver, 
went  along  on  each  F-82  or  B-26  flights 
to  release  the  projectile.  Their  jobs  were 
comparable,  while  in  the  air,  to  that  of  a 
bombardier. 

According  to  Shaver  as  many  as  75 
people  were  involved  during  every  "Fire- 
bird" launching  and  flight  test.  This  large 
group  was  needed  to  man  the  aerial  and 
ground  photography  stations,  telemeter- 
ing station,  photo  tracking  stations  and 
radar  installations,  not  to  mention  the 
indispensable  flight  and  range  recovery 
crews.  When  a  missile  was  flown,  every- 
one pitched  in  to  help,  including  men 
from  other  aircraft  companies  who  were 
out  at  the  Holloman  Base  working  on 
their  company's  guided  aircraft  projects. 

The  Ryan  crew  worked  at  all  hours,  in 
rain,  snow  and  sleet,  to  gather  the  valuable 
information  which  made  the  tests  success- 
ful. At  all  times  during  the  entire  two- 
year  testing  and  evaluating  period  a  close 
rapport  was  maintained  between  the  Field 
Test  Group  and  the  San  Diego  factory, 
where  the  Engineering  Department  and 
Laboratory  were  doing  the  design  and 
research  work,  and  the  Experimental  De- 
partment was  turning  out  the  missiles. 

In  charge  of  guidance  development,  of 
such  tremendous  importance  to  the  proj- 
ect, was  Owen  Olds  and  supervising  the 
overall  job  as  project  engineer  was  Sam 
Beaudry.  Many  other  engineers  from 
Ryan,  working  on  all  phases  of  the  "Fire- 
bird's" development,  were  frequent  trav- 
elers between  San  Diego  and  Alamogordo, 
checking  and  evaluating.  The  entire  proj- 
ect was  under  the  personal  direction  of 
Harry  A.  Sutton,  Ryan  Director  of  Engi- 
neering. 

In  the  interests  of  economy,  the  missiles 
were  launched  from  the  F-S2  or  B-26 
without  the  guiding  mechanism  installed, 
and  the  data  resulting  from  the  flight  tests 
served  to  determine  the  effectiveness  ot 
the    propulsion    system   and    the    general 


16 


aerodynamic  configuration.  The  guiding 
mechanism  has  been  subjected  to  extensive 
ground  testing  and  found  satisfactory. 

The  project  is  still  in  the  experimental 
phase.  Although  it  is  not  planned  to  put 
the  "Firebird"  into  production,  the  re- 
search and  development  work  has  pro- 
vided Air  Force  and  aircraft  industry 
technicians  with  valuable  engineering  data 
which  is  being  used  in  designing  improved 
air-to-air  missiles.  The  cost  of  the  develop- 
ment project  was  approximately  two  mil- 
lion dollars. 

HOT  OVENS  FOR 
COLD  STEEL 

(Continued  from  page  1 ) 
separate  pieces  forming  one-half  of  a  man- 
ifold section  are  now  joined  together  by 
arc  welding  operations  to  form  a  multiple 
half  stamping  before  again  being  normal- 
ized and  pickled. 

A  fourth  and  final  re-hit  draws  the 
metal  to  the  desired  depth  and  concavity 
before  the  edges  are  squared  up  in  the 
planishing    shed.    Now   the   semi-circular 


lUith  nauion  Salesmen 


Crane  Operator  Leroy  McGhee  hoists 
parts  from  the  water  quenching  tank 
in   newly-built  outside   pickling   shed. 

halves  are  matched  up  and  welded  into 
a  whole  exhaust  section.  The  flux  used 
during  welding  is  cleaned  off  in  new  de- 
fluxing  baths  out  in  the  pickling  shed  and 
the  metal  is  normalized  and  pickled  for 
the  last  time. 

This  elaborate  back  and  forth  flow  of 
stainless    parts    includes    four    hits,    four 
normalizes  and  three  pickles,  but  the  en- 
(Continued  on  page  19) 


AMERICA'S  POLICE  CHIEFS  had  a  flying  outing  os  a  highlight  of  their  recent 
Internotional  Convention  in  Dallas,  Texas.  Thanks  to  a  generous  offer  from 
Porker-Huett  Aviation,  Dallas  Ryan  Navion  Dealer,  100  delegates  saw  this 
interesting  Texas  city  from  the  oir  in  Navions.  The  Dallas  Daily  Times-Herald 
cited  this  sight-seeing  special  as  a  "unique  public  relations  job  that  sold  the 
City  of  Dallas  to  the  visitors."  A  trio  of  Ryan  Navions  were  kept  busy  for  three 
days  on  the  project.  Johnny  Huett,  a  partner  in  the  dealer  firm,  also  sends  word 
of  the  sole  of  a  '49  Ryan  Navion  to  his  long-time  friend  and  customer,  Steve 
Brooks,  Kentucky  Derby-winning  jockey  for  the  famous  Calumet  Forms. 

FOLLOWING  THE  EXAMPLE  of  Mountoin  States  Aviation,  pacemakers  in  early  fall, 
Gillis  Flying  Service  and  Northern  Air  Service  went  to  town  in  recent  weeks  to  walk 
off  with  top  selling  honors  among  Ryan  Navion  distributors.  Business  firms,  industrial 
concerns  and  professional  men  head  the  list  of  new  owners  the  two  organizations 
have  brought  into  the  Navion  fold.  Bossmen  Al  Gillrs  and  Chet  Hall  both  put  on  lots 
of  personal  pressure  to  capture  the  prizes  in  the  final  rush. 

"JANE  OF  ALL  TRADES"  is  fitting  title  for  Betty  Burnett, 

secretary  for  the  Portland  office  of  Rankin  Aviation  Indus- 
tries, Oregon  and  Southern  Washington  Ryan  Navion  Dis- 
tributor. She's  the  capable  gal  responsible  for  the  front  cover 
photograph  of  the  Vol.  10,  No.  7  edition  of  the  Ryan  Re- 
porter, having  personally  token  the  remarkable  aerial  shot 
of  0  Ryan  Navion  flying  low  over  the  Shevlin-Hixon  Lumber 
Mill  at  St.  Helens,  Oregon.  Besides  shooting  fine  pictures 
and  doing  a  good  job  of  office  management,  Betty  is  a 
licensed  pilot  ond  relishes  time  ot  the  controls  of  a  Navion. 

RECENT  DELIVERY  OF  A  '49  RYAN  NAVION  to  Bruce  Snyder  of  Red  Lion,  Pa  , 
was  a  timely  reminder  of  the  splendid  selling  job  being  done  by  Charlie  Frew,  Ryan 
Navion  Dealer  par  excellence  under  Aviotion  Consultants  in  the  area  around  York,  Pa. 
Charlie's  the  much-respected  gent  who  sold  six  Navions  during  one  four-month  period 
lost  year.  His  customers  flying  Navions  number  some  of  the  foremost  names  of 
industry.  Besides  Snyder's  Yoe  Leaf  Tobacco  Company,  there  are  such  firms  as  Inter- 
national Chain  and  Cable,  Baldwin  Oil  Burner  and  Cook  Motors. 

HUGH  EUDY,  President  of  Carolina  Aeronautics,  Distributor  for  the  Carolinas 
and  Tennessee,  goes  in  for  Ryan  Navion  ambulance  flying  in  a  big  way.  Cur- 
rently advertising  his  service  in  leading  Southern  publications,  Hugh  also  has 
working  arrangements  with  surface  ambulance  firms  in  western  North  Carolina, 
which  he  serves  on  an  immediate  availability  basis.  He  writes,  "This  faster, 
more  comfortable  and  convenient  Navion  method  usually  costs  no  more  than 
rood  ambulance  service  as  the  difference  between  short  air  miles  and  long  road 
miles  well  makes  up  for  the  slightly  higher  rote  per  mile  with  the  plane." 

SOUTHWEST  AIR  RANGERS,  Ryan  Navion  Dealer  in  El  Paso,  sponsored  the  Naviga- 
tion Contest  held  in  connection  with  the  Fifth  Annual  International  Aviation  Celebra- 
tion held  in  that  border  city  last  month.  Bill  Mueller,  a  Southwest  Air  Rangers  partner, 
handled  plans  for  this  famous  race  of  more  than  200  miles  from  El  Paso  to  Chihuahua, 
Mexico,  which  in  1948  was  won  by  Les  Bowman,  president  of  General  Aeronautics, 
Texas  Distributor,  in  his  Ryan  Navion  demonstrator.  Best  Navion  performances  turned 
in  this  yeor  were  those  of  Bowman  and  Frank  Dupuy,  who  finished  only  50  and  59 
seconds  short,  respectively,  of  their  estimated  times  of  arrival  in  Chihuahua. 

DUTCHESS  COUNTY  FLYING  SERVICE,  Rhinebeck,  New  York,  is  one  of  the 
Ryan  Navion  program's  newest  sales  representatives,  under  appointment  of 
Mallard  Air  Service,  Teterboro,  New  Jersey.  Bob  Decker,  monoger,  has  just 
token  factory  delivery  on  a  '49  Lucerne  Green  model  for  his  special  customer, 
Allan  A.  Ryan,  Chairman  of  the  Board  of  the  Royal  Typewriter  Company.  Ryan 
will  fly  the  Navion  himself,  having  recently  completed  his  first  solo  after  in- 
struction   from    Decker. 

DOWN  SHREVEPORT  WAY  Ryan  Navions  ore  sharply  on  the  increase.  Jack  Riley, 
Dealer  under  General  Aeronautics,  is  largely  responsible.  He  recently  delivered  a  '49er 
to  the  Lion  Oil  Company,  a  firm  long  prominent  in  business  flying  circles  of  the 
Southern  U.  S.  Clark  Barton,  Lion  executive,  accompanied  Jock  to  the  factory  when 
he  called  for  N499IK.  This  was  the  third  important  Ryan  Navion  sole  completed 
by  Jock  in  one  month. 

TOP  MAN  JIM  KELLEY  of  the  Kelley  Flying  Service,  Fort  Wayne,  Indiana, 
Ryan  Navion  representative  who  this  month  completed  one  of  the  most  import- 
ant Ryan  Navion  soles  of  1949  to  the  Seyfcrt  Foods  Company,  received  these 
worm  words  of  praise  from  C.  H.  Seyfert,  the  firm's  owner,  "A  year  ogo  I 
wouldn't  hove  thought  of  buying  on  airplane.  Then  Jim  Kelley  got  hold  of  me, 
showed  how  o  Navion  would  help  my  business  and  be  safe  for  me  to  fly.  Now 
I'm  one  of  the  most  enthusiastic  private  pilots  and  Navion  owners  you'll  ever 
find." 


17 


MAN  IN  A  HURRY 

(Continued  from  page  7 ) 
farming,  are  Logan's  oil  well  operations  in 
Eastern  Kansas  and  Oklahoma.  There  are 
wells  to  check  on  flying  trips  to  be  sure 
they're  pumping,  boards  of  directors 
meetings  to  attend,  and  inspections  to  be 
made  of  wells  being  drilled  in  new  loca- 
tions. 

Not  only  has  the  plane  helped  Logan 
better  supervise  his  widespread  activities; 
it  has  also  made  it  possible  to  extend  the 
area  of  his  operation.  Typically,  he's  been 
able  to  take  on  a  larger  area  of  dealers  for 
Butler  buildings  and  to  expand  oil  opera- 
tions. But  let  Logan  tell  some  of  his  ex- 
periences and  thinking  about  personal 
plane  utility  in  his  own  words. 

"Recently  I  received  a  telephone  call 
from  St.  Louis  telling  me  I  had  only  eight 
hours  left  to  close  a  deal  and  sign  papers 
to  complete  the  transaction.  This  deal 
meant  more  money  to  me  than  a  new 
Navion  cost.  I  would  have  lost  all  this  if 
it  had  not  been  for  my  Navion. 

"The  least  time  I  would  have  made  it 
by  train  would  have  been  1 1  hours,  and 
by  car  it  would  have  taken  13  hours.  If  I 
had  been  depending  on  any  of  the  light 
planes  in  the  area  I  would  not  have  had 
enough  daylight  hours  to  make  the  trip. 
Instead  I  took  off  in  the  Navion  and  cov- 
ered the  approximately  62  5  miles  in  less 
than  four  hours  flying  time. 

"The  Navion  proves  ideal  for  the  day- 
in,  day-out  type  of  hard  flying  we  are  al- 
ways doing,  mostly  from  improvised 
fields.  There  are  very  few  times  the  plane 
is  flown  that  I  do  not  land  in  some  wheat 
field,  pasture  or  on  a  country  road.  For 
this  kind  of  landing  and  take-off  you  have 
to  take  off  your  hat  to  the  Navion. 

"The  plane  is  a  real  business-getter,  too. 
I  find  that  my  plane,  when  used  in  con- 
nection with  sales,  helps  me  do  a  better 
job.  Its  attraction  helps  me  make  new  ac- 
quaintances. I  take  customers  to  various 
meetings  and  banquets  they  couldn't 
otherwise  attend  because  of  the  time  re- 


quired in  getting  there.  This  helps  me 
know  my  customers  better  and,  as  a  re- 
sult, I've  done  a  lot  of  new  business  and 
gained  many  good  friends  because  of  the 
plane. 

"There's  personal  emergency  transpor- 
tation as  well  as  business  savings  to  be 
considered  when  buying  a  plane.  The 
Navion  has  ample  room  as  a  flying  am- 
bulance for  a  patient  and  doctor,  and  the 
150  m.p.h.  speed  has  proved  a  real  factor 
in  getting  proper  medical  attention.  Mrs. 
Logan  some  time  back  required  an  emer- 
gency operation,  and  in  only  3  hours  and 
5  3  minutes  we'd  flown  her  620  air  miles 
to  the  Mayo  Clinic  at  Rochester,  Minne- 
sota. 

"On  long  business  trips  -  and  I  make 
plenty  of  them,  since  the  plane's  flying 
about  15  days  each  month  -  the  Navion 
saves  me  approximately  one-half  on 
traveling  expenses,  not  counting  the  tre- 
mendous saving  in  time. 

"For  carrying  emergency  implement 
and  tractor  repair  parts;  for  flying  drill 
bits,  valves  and  acid  to  oil  well  locations; 
for  taking  shortages  and  critical  materials 
to  steel  building  erection  sites,  the  plane's 
cargo  utility  can't  be  matched.  There's 
plenty  of  room  for  four  big  passengers  - 
I  weigh  200  pounds  myself  -  and  their 
luggage.  By  removing  the  rear  seat  back 
rest  we  have  room  for  items  six  feet  long, 
which  is  something  most  planes  can't 
offer.  A  typical  load  for  us  is  a  cargo  of 
cast  iron  implement  wheels  weighing  636 
pounds.  That's  the  kind  of  hard  work  we 
give  our  plane  to  do. 

"I  have  flown  several  different  makes 
of  planes  but  the  Navion  is  the  first  plane 
that  I  can  say  every  time  I  fly  it  I  learn 
something  new  which  proves  to  me  that 
it  is  safer  and  has  advantages  that  other 
planes  in  its  class  do  not  have.  For  that 
reason,  the  whole  family  likes  the  Navion. 
My  wife,  two  daughters  -  one  seven  and 
the  other  ten  -  and  my  71 -year-old 
mother-in-law  are  all  frequent  passengers. 

"Where  do  we   fly?  A   typical  month 


may  take  me  to  Kansas  City  and  Topeka 
twice  each,  to  Hutchinson  three  flights 
and  at  least  once  to  St.  Louis,  Oklahoma 
City,  Denver,  Wichita,  Omaha  and  Al- 
buquerque. And,  speaking  of  Albuquer- 
que, one  flight  there  attracted  a  lot  of  at- 
tention in  the  aviation  industry. 

"As  a  Navion  booster  I've  always  been 
proud  of  my  plane's  short  field  perform- 
ance. Owners  of  other  planes  in  the  Nav- 
ion class  are  equally  loyal,  but  around  Al- 
buquerque their  enthusiasm  ran  a  bit  too 
high.  In  fact,  whenever  I  landed  there, 
they  were  in  the  habit  of  belittling  my 
Navion.  Seems  someone  put  out  informa- 
tion a  forked-tail  plane  could  outperform 
the  Navion  in  short  field  operation. 

"Well,  I  just  couldn't  believe  that,  nor 
could  Reinholdt  Deines,  the  pilot  who 
sold  me  my  Navion,  and  who  was  with 
me  at  the  time.  Now  I'm  just  an  average 
pilot  with  less  than  a  thousand  hours, 
though  I've  flown  off  and  on  since  1931. 
I  thought  I  ought  not  to  compete  against 
the  professional  pilot  at  Albuquerque 
who's  flown  high-altitude  fields  for  years, 
and  whose  new  plane  was  properly  ad- 
justed for  operation  there.  After  all  my 
Navion  was  two  years  old,  had  a  thousand 
hours  on  it  and  normally  operated  over 
the  level,  midwestern  plains. 

"Still,  if  Deines  thought  he  could  out- 
fly  a  distributor's  new  competitive-make 
plane  at  the  5  36  5-foot  altitude  I  was  will- 
ing to  back  him,  as  was  an  Albuquerque 
cattle  rancher  friend  of  ours,  Lowell 
Brakey.  Fact  of  the  matter  is  some  pretty 
substantial  bets  were  placed,  and  we  cov- 
ered them  all. 

"Now  I  only  want  to  talk  about  the 
good  points  of  my  Navion,  and  have  no 
intention  of  implying  the  other  plane 
isn't  a  fine  product,  too.  It  is.  But  we 
certainly  were  right  about  the  Navion's 
take-off  superiority. 

"First    off    the   ground    was    the   other 
plane,    with    a    sparkling    395-foot    run. 
Deines  made   it   in  only   3  30   feet   in   the 
(Continued  on  page  1 9 ) 


Novion  londing  on  a  stubble  patch  allows  Carl  Logan  a  close  look  at  work  on  a  new  gas  pipe  line  near  his  biggest  oil  field. 


18 


MAN  IN  A  HURRY 

{Cmitinucd  from  page  1  H  ) 
Navion  and  our  bets  began  to  look  col- 
lectible. How  about  landing,  though? 

"Well,  the  Navion  landed  first  -  came 
in  a  little  high  with  power  on  at  that  al- 
titude —  but  by  using  full  flaps  and 
brakes  stopped  in  348  feet.  The  plane 
Deines  was  flving  against  made  it  in  402 
feet,  but  the  last  report  we  had  after  col- 
lecting out  bets  was  that  the  other  pilot 
was  still  scratching  his  head  wondering 
how  we'd  done  it. 

"The  competition  was  quite  widely  re- 
ported in  the  trade  magazines,  and  we  no 
longer  get  kidded  when  we  land  at  Al- 
buquerque. Afterward  a  lot  of  people 
claimed  we  were  taking  205  h.p.  out  of 
our  engine,  the  same  power  as  the  new 
Ryan  Navions  have  for  take-off.  That's 
not  true.  Mv  plane  was  a  North  American 
185  h.p.  job  and  we  had  the  props  set  to 
take  out  only  this  power. 

"The  Navion  is  wonderful  for  business 
travel,  but  I  think  we  got  more  kick  out 
of  that  competition  at  Albuquerque  than 
we  do  out  of  all  the  other  money-making 
flights  we  made  in  the  normal  course  of 
business." 


HOT  OVENS  FOR 
COLD  STEEL 

(Contirincd  from  page  17) 
tire  operation  is  hastened  due  to  the 
grouping  several  months  ago  of  all  the 
heat  treat  furnaces,  acid  and  salt  baths 
into  one  central  section  in  the  main  fac- 
tory, near  the  drop  hammers.  This  import- 
ant department  has  Ray  McCoUum  for 
its  Foreman  during  day  shifts  and  Adolph 
Bolger  at  night.  They,  along  with  Owen 
"Chief"  Walker,  Assistant  Foreman,  su- 
pervise the  intricate  processes  on  which 
the  final  strength  of  a  completed  exhaust 
stack  must  rely.  Oven  temperatures  must 
remain  constant.  Acid  content  of  the 
pickling  baths  must  be  carefully  watched 
and  the  drawing  of  the  heavy  metal  into 
the  drop  hammer  die  forms  has  to  be 
handled  with  infinite  care  so  as  not  to 
stretch  the  parts  too  quickly. 

The  strong,  pressure-resistant  Ryan 
manifolds  which  are  standard  equipment 
on  practically  all  of  the  transports  and 
military  planes  would  not  be  possible  ex- 
cept for  the  stretching  qualities  of  metal 
and  the  long,  careful  stress-relieving,  de- 
scaling processes  in  the  Drop  Hammer  and 
Heat  Treat  Department.  The  industrial 
chemistry  knowledge  of  Ryan's  Engineer- 
ing Laboratory  has  also  contributed  im- 
measurably to  maintaining  a  uniformly 
high  standard  of  quality  in  the  parts  so 
laboriously  formed  on  the  factory  pro- 
duction lines. 


With  nauion  Ouiners 


WINE  FLYIN'  FINE.  That's  the  word  of  Joaquin  M.  Castillo,  fashionoble 
women's  shop  operator  and  cattle  rancher  of  Montevideo,  Uruguay.  While  at 
the  factory  taking  delivery  on  his  third  Navion,  the  interesting  South  American 
told  of  0  recent  evening  when  the  Red  Wine  ran  out  during  dinner  at  his 
roncho.  Not  one  to  disappoint  his  guests,  Castillo  jumped  into  his  Navion — 
which  he  keeps  alongside  the  house — and  flew  to  the  village  of  Cuchilla  Grande 
where  he  landed  in  the  street,  taxied  up  to  the  store,  loaded  aboard  a  wine 
supply,  and  took  off  for  home.  He  hod  the  liquid  chilled  for  serving  before 
most  of  the  party  had  any  idea  of  what  was  afoot,  or  awing. 

THREE-TIMER  CLUB.     Like  Uruguay's  Castillo,  Louisiana's  T.  L.  James  and  Company 

belongs  to  on  exclusive  group  of  "three-timers,"  having  qualified  for  membership 
by  taking  delivery  on  their  third  Novion.  G.  W.  "Bill"  James,  vice-president,  who 
puts  most  pilot-time  on  the  Navions,  credits  planes  with  doubling  his  firm's  volume 
of  construction  work.  He  figures  that,  on  on  overage,  he  saves  two  days  travel  time 
a  week  by  flying  Navion  rather  thon  traveling  on  the  ground. 

BRUCE  R.  SNYDER,  Red  Lion,  Pennsylvonio,  head  of  the 
Yoe  Leaf  Tobacco  Company,  now  pilots  a  '49  Ryan  Novion, 
fast-flying  successor  to  his  '48  model  Novion  which  became 
well-known  as  the  "Tobaccoman's  Airplane"  in  the  Eastern 
states  territory  where  he  buys  choice  short  filler  and  wrapper 
leaf  for  cigars.  Snyder's  favorite  pastime  is  flying  business 
friends  on  extended  trips  to  show  them  how  they  con  do  in 
one  day  by  Navion  what  usually  takes  them  four. 

COMMUTING  DAILY  BETWEEN  TWO  OFFICES  is  no  longer  the  formidable  task  it 
once  was  for  Dr.  Walter  P.  Kielhorn,  Grondville,  Michigan.  His  '49  Ryan  Navion 
allows  him  to  tend  to  a  large  practice  in  Grondville  and  another  one  in  Williomston, 
Michigan,  75  miles  away,  spending  several  hours  o  day  in  each  place  with  minimum 
time  spent  enroute.  His  associate.  Dr.  R.  M.  Nickless,  also  pilots  the  plane,  and 
experienced  the  thrill  of  picking  up  the  new  ship  at  the  factory. 

"NICEST  PLANE  IN  TEXAS"  soy  Southwestern  aviation  men  about  the  '49 
Ryan  Navion  flown  by  the  A.  O.  Smith  Corporation  out  of  its  Houston  branch. 
Manufacturers  of  gas  tanks  and  pumps,  pipe,  welding  equipment  and  other 
heavy  duty  products,  this  company  has  its  Navion  equipped  with  full  instru- 
ment panel,  auxiliary  fuel  tanks,  omni-range  and  other  outstanding  extras  for 
utmost  safety  in  transporting  executives  and  technicians  over  a  big  South- 
Central  territory.  Main  A.  O.  Smith  office  is  in  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin. 

A  NAVION  WITH  TELEVISION  is  o  distinction  of  "Chevron  #2,"  aviation  testing 
plane  owned  by  the  Standard  Oil  Company  of  California.  W.  V.  "Bill"  Honley,  assistant 
manager  of  Standard's  Aviation  Division,  flies  the  Navion  about  the  seven  For 
Western  stotes  to  demonstrate  the  fuel  and  lubrication  requirements  of  personal  and 
oirline-type  aircraft.  The  TV  set  goes  along  to  show  audiences  detonation  diagrams 
of  what  happens  in  a  cylinder  when  the  engine  is  running.  A  public  address  system 
and  large  delineoscope  ore  also  carried  as  supplementary  equipment  for  Honly's 
presentation.  "Chevron  ^2"  is  a  real  veteran,  having  1,800  flying  hours  to  its  credit. 

A  FLEET  OF  THREE  RYAN  NAVIONS  enables  Oscar  Cooke, 

Chillicothe,  Missouri,  to  conduct  enterprises  in  several  states 
with  high-speed  efficiency.  Public  transportation  operations 
in  Omaha;  heavy  equipment  distribution  in  Kansas  City; 
Cadillac  and  Oldsmobile  soles  in  Chillicothe,  a  road  building 
machinery  business  in  Missouri  and  Hereford  cattle  raising 
in  Kansas  make  up  the  Cooke  interests.  Taken  together,  they 
present  a  sizeable  problem  of  supervision  which  the  bossman 
solves  by  moving  around  frequently  in  a  Navion. 

FROM  COAST  TO  COAST  AND  BACK  AGAIN,  18,000  miles,  is  the  recent  flight 
log  entry  for  the  '49  Ryan  Navion  owned  by  the  C  &  H  Supply  Company,  Seattle, 
Washington.  As  agents  for  AiReseorch  Corporation,  on  important  Ryan  metal  prod- 
ucts customer,  C  &  H  fits  quite  naturally  into  the  family  of  Ryan  Navion  owners. 
Soys  Phil  Coffer,  Jr.,  C  &  H  executive,  "We've  seen  a  lot  of  planes,  but  sincerely 
believe  that  our  Navion  tops  any  of  them." 

NAVION  BEGINS  DOCTOR'S  WORLD  TOUR.  A  globe-girdling  trip  the  likes 
of  which  should  be  material  for  books  and  movies  was  begun  recently  by  Dr. 
William  D.  Currier,  ear,  nose  and  throat  specialist  of  Pasadena,  California,  when 
he  flew  his  Navion  to  New  York  City.  Commissioned  by  the  Indian  Government 
Medical  Colleges  ond  the  Christian  Medical  Colleges  of  Pakistan  to  instruct 
their  surgeons  in  new  procedures.  Dr.  Currier  is  making  his  trip  to  India  the 
framework  for  a  world  tour  that  will  see  him  and  Mrs.  Currier  using  every 
mode  of  transportation,  from  fast  Navion  in  the  U.  S.  to  donkeys  in  Spain, 
gondolas  in  Venice,  camels  in  Egypt,  elephants  in  Indio  and  rickshas  in  Hong 
Kong. 


Plant  Tour 


STEP-UPS.  Recent  new 
appointments  within  the 
company  include  a  step 
up  for  Stuart  Fraser  and 
Sam  Kroschel.  On  Novem- 
ber 7  it  was  announced  by 
Colin  A.  Stillwagen,  Di- 
rector of  Material  and 
Contract  Administration, 
that  "Stu"  was  appointed 

OS  Executive  Advisor  to 
this  office  and  will  be  in 
charge  of  all  quotations 
which  the  company  sub- 
mits to  customers. 

Kroschel,  formerly  staff 
assistant  to  Stillwagen, 
has  assumed  the  duties  of 
Froser's  former  office, 
which  was  Supervision  of 
Standards  and  Estimating, 
ith  the  company  for  five 
years,  during  which  time  he  has  capably 
filled  such  jobs  as  Supervisor  of  Cost  Ac- 
counting, and  most  recently  Standards  and 
Estimating. 

Before  coming  to  Ryan,  Sam  Kroschel  was 
the  office  and  credit  manager  of  Walker's 
Department  Store  in  San  Diego.  Since  joining 
the  organization  in  January  of  this  year,  Sam 
has  worked  as  Supervisor  of  the  Accounts 
Payable  division  and  his  recent  staff  assist- 
ant's position. 


Kroschel 

Fraser  has  been 


TRAFFIC  CHANGE.  A  regrouping  of  the 
Receiving,  Shipping,  Automotive  Service  and 
Traffic  departments  is  upcoming  for  Decem- 
ber 1  ,  On  that  date  the  Traffic  Section, 
under  Harry  Brew's  supervision,  will  assume 
responsibility   for    these   groups. 

in  effecting  this  reorganization,  several 
location  changes  will  be  mode.  The  Air- 
plane Spares  office  and  stockroom  will  be 
moved  from  its  present  location  to  the  Ser- 
vice Building,  the  Shipping  Department,  ex- 
cept for  the  stock  accumulation  area  to  the 
area  vacated  by  Stores  Row  Material  in  the 
present  Spares  Building.  The  Traffic  office, 
including  inter-plant  transportation  office, 
will  move  from  the  Administration  Building 
to  the  location  vacated  by  Airplane  Spores. 
This  would  all  sound  less  confusing  if  a  map 
of  the  plant  were  included,  :)ut  space  does 
not  permit.  Anyway,  a  lot  of  departments 
are  going  to  move  to  facilitate  on  easier 
handling  of  materials,  both  incoming  and 
outgoing. 

PICNIC.  Bubble  gum  chewing  contests, 
rolling  pin  throwing  tournaments,  egg  tossing 
competitions  and  other  exhausting  sports 
activities  were  the  feature  of  the  November 
5th  picnic  given  by  the  supervisors  in  the 
Airplane  Division,  More  than  75  people 
including  the  wives  and  children  of  John  van 
der  Linde,  Gene  Wilcox,  Rosie  Barthol,  Ralph 
Schuiz,  Eddie  Oberbauer,  Roy  Ryan,  Joerg 
Litell,  Buck  Kelley,  Fred  Herpich,  Bill  Croner, 
Les  Evans,  Larry  Larson,  and  "Moc"  McPher- 
:50n,  ate  tons  of  food,  consumed  gallons  of 
oop  and  ice  cream  at  El  Monte  Pork  near 
Lakeside. 


Marge  Besf,  department  clerk,  reports 
that  the  groups  didn't  break  up  until  way 
post  sunset,  when  members  limped  home 
exhausted  out  happy  after  the  numerous 
feats  of  strength  and  contests  of  skill. 
ACCIDENT.  Friends  and  fellow  workers  of 
"Storkey"  Starkweat-her,  maintenance  me- 
chanic, were  shocked  to  hear  of  his  recent 
accident,  Storkey  lost  his  left  arm  in  o  freak 
automobile  accident  near  Ensenada,  Baja, 
California,  November  6. 

An  oil  and  gasoline  truck  sideswiped  the 
car  and  severed  the  arm  when  Starkweather 
was  signalling  out  of  his  car  window  for  a 
turn.  With  more  fortitude  than  seems  pos- 
sible, Storkey  had  his  wife  drive  him  the  60 
miles  back  to  San  Diego  and  the  Naval  Hos- 
pital while  he  held  his  arm   in  a  tourniquet. 

Ryanites  will  be  glad  to  hear  that  Stark- 
weather is  doing  nicely  at  the  Naval  Hos- 
pital and  expects  to  be  out  and  obout  before 
December  1  . 

ENG.  CLASSES.  Engineers  with  two  or  more 
years  of  engineering  education  who  wont  to 
get  a  B.S.  degree  through  evening  or  late 
afternoon  courses  will   be   interested   in   this. 

Through  a  plan  now  developing  in  cooper- 
ation with  Son  Diego  State  College,  other 
aircraft  companies  in  Son  Diego  and  the 
Naval  Air  Station,  as  well  as  Ryan,  are  tak- 
ing applications  from  their  engineers  inter- 
ested m  completing  college  training.  Any 
engineers  at  Ryan  who  are  interested  should 
give  their  names,  years  of  college  completed, 
in  what  field  and  at  what  school,  to  the  Per- 
sonnel Department,  which  is  cooperating  with 
the  other  factories  in  town  in  this  educational 
program. 

Four  fields  of  study,  at  present,  ore  being 
considered.  They  ore  Mechomcol,  Electrical, 
Civil  and  Engineering  Physics.  If  enough  en- 
gineers in  the  area  ore  interested  classes  will 
probably  be  held  downtown  or  at  one  of  the 
aircraft  plants. 


Exhibit  Ryan  Products  At  S.  A.  E.  Meeting 


^^^rn^cL              ^^H 

Hy.l 

^^M        MUa'-ACTURED          ^H 

^m  RlUlflWWCIIMMIIT  ■ 

.am 

■  1  ]      'J 
1  ^\^^ 

^^HL^^IIjj^2^ 

Manning  the  exhibition  booth  demon- 
strating Ryan  Aeronautical  Company 
metal  products  at  the  Society  of  Auto- 
motive Engineers'  annual  West  Coost 
meeting  in  Los  Angeles  this  Fall,  were 
C.  L.  Foushee  ( left  > ,  Bruce  Todd  and  Jack 
Zippwald.  The  three  Metal  Products  Soles 
representatives  and  Sam  C.  Breder,  Metal 
Products  Soles  Manager  spent  three  days 
at  the  meeting  acquainting  representa- 
tives of  the  country's  lorgest  oircroft  and 
engine  manufacturing  firms  with  the  high 
quality  exhoust  systems  and  jet  products 
fabricated  by  Ryan.  Other  Ryan  repre- 
sentatives were  Harry  Sutton,  Director  of 
Engineering  and  T.  Claude  Ryan,  Presi- 
dent. 

Purpose  of  the  S.A.E.  meeting  was  for 
on  exchange  of  new  engineering  ideas  and 
technical  information  between  engineers 
in  all  branches  of  industry.  Talks,  confer- 
ences and  educational  exhibits,  like  the 
one  of  Ryan  products  in  the  picture  (left' 
pointed  out  new  advances  and  skills  in 
aeronautical  manufacture  as  well  as  in 
other  fields. 

Shown  on  the  table  in  front  of  Todd, 
are  a  General  Electric  J-47  jet  engine 
inner  combustion  chamber  and  tronsition 
liner.  Next  to  Foushee,  to  his  left,  is  a 
J-47  tail  cone  assembly.  Pictures  of  other 
recent  Ryan  products  ore  on  the  wall  to 
the  rear  of  the  booth. 


GOLF.  After  two  weeks  of  hot  tournoment 
play  in  the  Annual  Ryan  Golf  Tournament, 
only  four  men  out  of  fourteen  in  each  of  the 
four  flights  are  left  in  the  running.  By  De- 
cember 3  the  winners  will  have  been  decided. 
At  present  writing  there  are  still  two  more 
rounds  of  eliminations  to  be  run  off  before 
the  finalists  are  announced. 

Men  remaining  in  each  of  the  four  flights 
ore: 

First  Flight  Third   Flight 

Harold  Coons  Ralph  Haver 

Frank  Deloney  Ivan  Cordon 

Horry  Hodgetts  Carl  Pettersen 

Darwin  Whetstine  BillJundt 

Second  Flight  Fourth  Flight 

Durward  Palmer  Herb  Rasp 

Win  Ewell  Charles  Whitehurst 

Joe  Love  Fred  Ferguson 

Bob  Jamison  Charles  Jorvie 


This  Flying  lUorld 


VISITORS.  In  picture  above  Brigadier  Gen- 
erol  Thomas  H.  Chapman  (left)  and  Lt. 
General    Kenneth    B.   Wolfe,   two  of   the   Air 

Force's  top  procurement  officers  chat  with 
T.  Claude  Ryan,  company  president,  and 
Harry  Sutton,  Director  of  Engineering. 

General  Wolfe  is  from  Wright  Field  and 
Washington,  D.  C,  and  General  Chapman  is 
chief  of  the  Los  Angeles  Procurement  Field 
Office.  The  two  officers  conferred  for  several 
hours  with  Ryan,  Sutton  and  Sam  C.  Breder, 
Metol  Products  Sales  Manager  as  well  as 
other  company  engineering  and  production 
executives,  and  while  here  also  inspected 
the  Ryan  XQ-2  jet-propelled,  pilotless  target 
plane. 

CHEST  DRIVE.  More  than  $5000  was  con- 
tributed to  the  Community  Chest  Drive  of 
San  Diego  by  Ryan  employees  and  the  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company  during  the  week  of 
November  7  through  I  1  .  Donations  were 
made  by  both  payroll  deductions  and  direct 
cash  contributions  to  the  42  welfare  agen- 
cies represented  by  the  combined  Commun- 
ity Chest. 

LEGAL  COUNSEL.  A  recent  addition  to 
the  company  was  B.  Kenneth  Goodman,  who 

assumed  his  new  duties  as  legal  counsel  for 
the  firm  on  November  I .  Goodman,  before 
coming  to  the  orgonizotion,  was  Deputy  City 
Attorney  of  Son  Diego. 

During  his  tenure  as  Deputy  City  Attorney 
he  was  in  charge  of  revamping  and  modern- 
izing a  number  of  Harbor  Department  leases 
which  had  grown  obsolete  through  the  years 
and  of  tightening  city  controls  over  tide- 
lands  tenants. 

Prior  to  joining  the  city's  legal  staff,  Good- 
man served  as  chief  attorney  for  the  Office 
of  Price  Administration  in  Son  Diego. 


•  The  Military  Air  Transport  Service  took  delivery  in  Seattle  recently  of  its  first  new 
Boeing  C-97  Stratofreighter,  the  C-97A. 

The  74-ton,  double-deck  cargo  and  troop  carrier,  one  of  37  of  this  type  scheduled 
for  assignment  to  MATS,  is  to  be  assigned  to  its  Continental  Division  at  Kelly  Air  Force 
Base,  San  Antonio,  Texas.  It  will  be  used  in  a  pilot  and  crew  training  program. 

The  C-97  can  carry  134  fully-equipped  troops  or  mixed  loads  of  cargo  and  men. 
Used  as  an  aerial  ambulance  the  plane  can  transport  83  litter  patients,  their  medical 
supplies  and  attendants. 

The  Stratofreighter  also  features  a  bulbous  radar  dome  which  projects  from  the  ship's 
nose  beneath  the  control  cabin. 

SCORE  A  DOUBLE  PLAY  FOR  RYAN  ON  THE  BOEING  C-97A! 

Its  rear  fuselage  is  built  by  Ryan.  And  Ryan  exhaust  systems  are  standard  equipment 
on  the  C-97A  and  other  Boeing  planes. 

•  Retractable  aluminum  skis  which  fit  over  the  wheels  of  its  regular  tricycle  landing 
gear  are  featured  on  the  Navy's  Lockheed  "Neptune,"  designed  for  Arctic  operations.  The 
skis  are  tucked  inside  a  fairing  underneath  the  engine  nacelle?. 

This  P2V  is  specially  fitted  with  super-sized  heaters,  a  sun  compass,  special  radio  and 
radar  for  use  near  the  magnetic  poles,  and  additional  fuel  tanks  for  extra-long  range 
operations. 

RYAN   EXHAUST   SYSTEMS   ARE   STANDARD   EQUIPMENT   ON 
LOCKHEED   "NEPTUNES"   IN   USE   BY   THE   U.  S.   NAVY 

•  Secretary  of  Defense  Louis  A.  Johnson  had  his  first  ride  recently  in  a  Piasecki  HUP-1 
helicopter  when  one  of  the  planes  carried  him  from  the  Oceana  Naval  Air  Station  at 
Norfolk,  Virginia  to  the  huge  carrier,  USS  Franklin  D.  Roosevelt,  5  0  miles  off  the 
Virginia  coast,   to   attend   the  one-day   "cross-education"  program   staged   by   the   Navy. 

The  HUP  with  the  defense  chief  aboard  landed  on  the  carrier  amidst  ruffles  and 
flourishes.  As  the  pilot  dipped  the  nose  of  the  'copter  in  an  acknowledgment  of  the 
19-gun  salute  fired  by  the  FDR's  guns,  Johnson  stepped  out  of  the  Navy's  new  shipboard 
helicopter  to  be  welcomed  aboard  by  Secretary  of  the  Navy  Francis  P.  Matthews.  Also 
present  were  the  Secretary  of  Air  Stuart  Symington  and  Secretary  of  the  Army  Go:don 
Gray,  together  with  all  the  members  of  the  Joint  Chiefs  of  Staff. 

PIASECKI'S  HUP-1   IS  EQUIPPED  WITH  RYAN  MANIFOLDS 

•  The  Air  Force  awarded  Convair  several  weeks  ago  a  contract  for  12  additional  T-29 
navigational  trainers. 

The  new  contract,  amounting  to  approximately  $5,200,000  for  planes  and  spare  parts, 
brings  total  orders  for  the  T-29s  to  48.  The  plane  is  based  on  the  40-passenger,  twin-engine 
Convair-Liner  commercial  transport,  and  the  trainer  is  to  be  used  as  a  "flying  classroom" 
for  the  instruction  of  navigators. 

The  first  Convair  T-29  made  its  initial  flight  September  22,  1949,  and  has  been  under- 
going flight  tests  ever  since. 

THE  TWIN  ENGINES  OF  BOTH  THE  CONVAIR-LINER  AND  T-29 
ARE   EQUIPPED   WITH   RYAN    EXHAUST   MANIFOLDS 

•  The  Douglas  DC-4  transports  operated  by  Braniff  International  Airways  will  be 
allowed  to  use  "Jato"  (jet  assisted  take  off)  when  flying  out  of  La  Paz,  Bolivia.  Until 
this  permission  was  granted  by  the  CAA,  Braniff  was  faced  with  the  problem  of  trying 
to  operate  the  DC-4s  with  reasonable  payloads  out  of  La  Paz  airport,  which  is  located 
at  a  mountain  altitude  of  about   13,500  feet. 

Braniff  will  be  allowed  to  reload  their  own  Jato  bottles  and  will  be  permitted  to 
keep  an  unused  bottle  mounted  on  the  planes  100  hours  before  reloading  it. 

THE  DOUGLAS  DC-4  ALSO  FLIES   EQUIPPED  WITH 
RYAN   STAINLESS   STEEL   MANIFOLD   SYSTEMS 


DECEMBER   6,    1949 


VOL.    10,   No.    9 


Vublhhed  By 

Ryan    Aeronautical    Company,   Lindbergh  Field,  San  Diego   12,  California 


editor Frances  L.  Kohl,  an 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographe 


nd  production  editor Robert  F.  Smith,  Navion  news  editor 

William  Wagner,  editorial  director. 


Sec.  34.66,  P.L.BcR. 

U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego,  California 
Permit  No.  437 


RMHII  Metal  Products 

DIVISION    OF    RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY      •      LINDBERGH    FIELD      •      SAN     DIEGO.     CALIFORNIA 

Exhaust    Systems      •      Jet    and    Rocket    Engine    Components 


i 


miip(«^im 


/ 


y\ 


■'^ 


« 


"•'wn  A^ 


Putting 


on  the  m 


THE  high-flying  Boeing  Stratofreighters 
and  Stratocruisers  need  strong,  resist- 
ant hulls  to  withstand  the  inner  cabin 
pressures  required  for  high  altitude  opera- 
tion. To  maintain  a  comfortable  pressure 
within  the  plane  at  all  times,  the  alumi- 
num body  of  the  C-97  must  be  relatively 
"leak  proof."  Insuring  the  structural 
strength  and  a  minimum  leakage  of  the 
rear  fuselage  section  of  the  huge  aircraft 
is  the  problem  of  Ryan's  pressure  testing 
group  in  the  plant's  Boeing  Assembly 
Department. 

For  the  past  year,  Ryan  has  been  build- 
ing the  aft  sections  for  the  Boeing  trans- 
ports, and  part  of  the  final  check-out  of 
the  completed  hulls  has  been  to  "put  the 
pressure"  on  them  so  that  they  are  deliv- 
ered to  Seattle  completely  ready  for  mat- 
ing to  the  rest  of  the  plane. 

"Putting  the  pressure"  on  every  C-97 
fuselage  is  usually  a  four-day  job.  The 
fuselage  sections  are  bolted  to  a  large  steel 
pressure  plate,  resembling  a  figure  8, 
placed  in  front  of  the  fuselage.  A  rubber 
gasket  around  the  inside  edge  of  the  plate 
also  helps  to  hold  air  pressure  inside  the 
air  frame,  and  at  the  rear  of  the  fuselage 
is   a   pressure  bulkhead,   a   permanent   in- 


Members  of  Inspection  Dept. 
watch  operotor  check  flow 
of  air  into  C-97  fuselage. 
Man  with  telephone  headset 
checks  with  two  men  on  the 
inside    who    hunt    air    leaks. 


stallation,  which  keeps  air  from  entering 
the  cabin  or  cargo  compartment  from  the 
tail  section  of  the  fuselage. 

Two  men,  usually  Ray  Doherty  and 
Frank  Eisman,  both  station  mechanics, 
are  inside  the  fuselage  after  it  has  been 
tightly  closed  and  testing  is  to  begin.  One 
of  the  men  wears  a  headphone  set  to  keep 
in  constant  communication  with  the  out- 
side world,  usually  represented  by  Bill 
Leitch,  who  also  wears  headphones  and  is 
at  the  pressure  testing  gages  and  control 
valves  in  front  of  the  pressure  plate. 

As  pressure  is  slowly  built  up  inside  the 
hull,  leaks  are  detected  by  the  men  inside. 
Leaks  are  found  at  seams  and  joints  where 
the  outside  skin  is  joined  together  by 
rivets,  or  sometimes  around  the  huge 
cargo  door  areas,  where  the  doors  are  at- 
tached to  the  frame  of  the  fuselage. 

At  the  same  time  the  men  inside  are  lis- 
tening for  pressure  leaks,  a  man  on  the 
outside,  using  a  listening  device  compar- 
able to  your  doctor's  stethoscope,  is  care- 
fully going  over  all  sections  of  the  alum- 
inum skin  and  reporting  any  air  escape 
areas  to  the  pressure  control  operator. 

The  structural  strength  of  the  ribs  and 
skin  of  the  fuselages  is  checked  with  10 
pounds  of  air  pressure  per  square  inch. 
This  is  equivalent  to  the  weight  of  a  loco- 
motive on  one  of  the  cargo  doors.  When 
testing  for  leakage  of  air,  6  '/z  pounds  per 
square  inch  is  forced  into  the  fuselage. 
When  inside  pressure  is  constantly  main- 
tained at  an  air  leakage  of  30  cu.  feet  per 
minute  or  less,  the  hull  is  OK'd  as  ready 
for  shipment. 

Before  this  inside  pressure  can  remain 
even,  however,  all  leaks  are  plugged.  Both 
Doherty  and  Eisman,  inside  the  fuselage, 
are  equipped  with  small  hand  pressure 
guns  which  squirt  a  fluid  sealing  com- 
pound around  the  seams  or  joints.  This 
compound,  known  as  "goop,"  hardens 
quickly  and  permanently  on  the  inside 
aluminum  skin  to  provide  an  air-tight 
seam. 

Men  working  inside  the  fuselage  report 
the  only  uncomfortable  effects  from  the 
increased  pressure  of  air  forced  in  by  the 
outside  valves  is  the  feeling  of  heat  due 
to  their  pores  closing.  The  pressure  is 
slowly  built  up  and  slowly  let  off  so  that 
their  ears  don't  "pop"  as  they  are  listening 
for  any  leaks.  Two  hours  of  testing  is  the 
usual  time  the  men  spend  inside  the  fuse- 
lage and  five  pressure  session  runs  includ- 
ing listening  and  applying  sealing  com- 
pound is  usually  necessary  before  the  In- 
spection Department  checks  the  hull  out 
as  ready  for  service. 

(Conthuied  on  page  16) 


(Above)  Frank  Eisman  closes  hatch  on  pressure  plate  preparatory  to  testing  for 
oir  leaks  in  C-97  fuselage  section.  When  door  is  tight  shut  operator  on  out- 
side begins  letting  pressure  into  airframe.  (Below)  Bill  Leitch,  station  mechanic 
in  Boeing  Assembly,  watches  dials  closely.  Gages  show  amount  of  air  pres- 
sure at  any  given  time  within  C-97  hull.  Bill  talks  with  men  inside  by  telephone. 


October  9,  1949 

Trieste 
Dear  Walt: 

In  the  language  of  the  land,  the  L-17  is 
doing  a  "prima"  job  (that's  good — means 
outstanding).  You  almost  have  to  sec 
u'hat  conditions  these  airplanes  are  oper- 
ating under  to  appreciate  what  a  good  air- 
plane the  L-17  is — mountains,  poor  fields, 
lack  of  adequate  maintenance  facilities, 
unfamiliar  aircraft,  ueather  and  more — 
these  are  not  proving  much  of  an  obstacle 
at  all. 

SO  begins  one  of  the  reports  from 
Ryan's  L-17  Navion  Field  Service 
Representative  in  Europe  to  Walter  K. 
Balch,    Airplane    Service    Manager.    Field 


Jack  Lucast,  Ryan  Navion 
Service  Representative,  re- 
ports the  results  of  his 
two-month  sojourn  in  Ger- 
many,   Italy    and    Trieste. 


Serviceman  Jack  Lucast  ended  his  hastily 

written  letter  with  a 

P.S.    Came  across  the  Alps   yesterday  in 

an  L-17  direct  at  15,W0  feet  and  in  tuo 

hours  time  from  Salzburg,  Austria.  What 

scenery! 

Like  every  report  on  his  two-month 
sojourn  in  Germany,  and  Austria,  this  one 
passed  on  to  the  people  back  at  the  factory 


the  praise  and  plaudits  of  Army  officers 
and  men  who  are  flying  or  servicing  the 
L-17  Ryan  Navions  under  the  Army's 
European  Command.  It  also  enumerated 
some  of  the  service  and  maintenance  prob- 
lems the  fast,  four-place  liaison  plane 
meets  with  in  its  hard  routine  as  a  flying 
staff  car,  constabulary  plane  and  dispatch 
courier  linking  various  Army  occupation 
force  bases  throughout  the  American 
zones  in  Europe.  Other  L-17s  are  seeing 
service  in  Japan,  in  Greece  and  with 
a  military  mission  in  Brazil. 

September  27,  Lucast  left  San  Diego  to 
begin  his  trip  abroad  under  a  joint  Army- 
Ryan  field  service  arrangement  which  was 
to  bring  him  a  lot  of  gruelling  work  and 


•  Left)  Lucast  conducts  one  of  his  typical  three-day  classes  in  maintenance  of  L-17s  at  the  Erding  Air  Force  Base,  Erding, 
Germany.  He  conducted  these  classes  at  all  of  his  thirteen  stops.  (Right I  A  U.S.A.F.  mechanic  applies  some  of  his  newly 
acquired    knowledge  on   an   L-17   hangared   at  the   Erding    Air   Force    Base.    Notice    the    "No   Smoking"    sign    left   on    after    the    war. 


a  first  hand  view  of  conditions  in  Occu- 
pied Europe. 

After  being  briefed  in  Washington, 
D.  C,  by  Captain  M.  J.  Strok,  who  is  in 
charge  of  organizing  the  ordnance  main- 
tenance companies  for  Hght  aircraft,  by 
which  most  of  the  L-17s  will  soon  be 
maintained,  and  meeting  Major  General 
Kirk,  Army  Chief  of  Ordnance,  and  Col- 
onel Crabee,  Chief  of  Ordnance  Field  Ser- 
vice Division,  Lucast  was  ready  to  go  to 
Westover  Army  Air  Base  where  he  caught 
a  MATS  C-54  for  the  hop  to  Frankfurt, 
via  Newfoundland,  the  Azores  and  Paris. 

At  the  European  Command's  headquar- 
ters in  Heidelberg,  an  hour  and  a  half 
from  Frankfurt,  Jack  really  began  his 
work.  Here,  Major  Lawrence  Boulby,  light 
aviation  advisor  for  EuCom,  worked  out 
his  itinerary,  which  included  nine  Army 
bases  in  Germany,  three  in  Austria  and 
Trieste,  now  a  free  city.  At  each  of  his 
13  stops,  Lucast  conducted  maintenance 
schools  for  mechanics  and  pilots  of  the 
L-17.  The  classes,  which  usually  lasted 
three  days  at  each  base,  began  at  dawn  and 
though  oiScially  ended  by  dinner  time 
were  more  than  likely  to  be  continued  at 
the  officer's  club  or  in  a  local  bierstube 
until  the  wee  hours,  so  avid  were  Amer- 
ican Army  personnel  to  find  out  the  full 
potentialities  of  the  military  Navions  they 
were  flying  or  servicing. 

(Continued  on  page  14) 


Lucast  took  this  shot  of  the  Air  Liaison  Detachment  at  Trieste.  This  typical  group 
uses  the  L-176  Navion  as  o  flying  staff  car,  constabulary  plane  and  dispatch  courier 
linking  various  bases  throughout  American  zones.   Notice  pressed  steel  strip  runway. 


"Come  across  the 
Alps  yesterday  in 
on  L-17B  direct,  at 
15,500  ft.  and  in 
2  hours  time  from 
Salzburg,  Austria." 


Small  in  comparison  with  the  C-54  shown  in  the  background,  but  just  as  sturdy  is 
this  L-17B  Navion  used  by  the  U.  S.  Constabulary,  snapped  at  the  Rhein-Moin  Air 
Base    at    Frankfurt,    Germany.    Officers    were    picked    up    here    for    new    assignments. 


HEIDELBERG 


All  structural  parts  of  the  stainless 
steel  exhaust  manifolds,  jet  engine  assem- 
blies and  aircraft  components  which  Ryan 
builds  eventually  come  under  the  careful 
scrutiny  of  the  Precision  Inspection  Sec- 
tion of  the  Ryan  Inspection  Department. 
All  machined  parts  and  parts  which  are 
subject  to  high  stresses  in  their  operation 
in  an  exhaust  manifold,  jet  engine  or  air- 
frame are  put  "on  the  spot"  by  the  men 
charged  with  the  responsibility  of  this 
small  but  important  section  of  inspection. 

The  Precision  inspection  function  is  set 
up  at  the  Receiving  Department,  Machine 
Shop  and  the  Experimental  Department. 
These  three  control  stations  handle  the 
work,  loads  relative  to  contractual  and 
engineering  requirements  and,  at  the  same 
time,  the  General  Electric  J-47  jet  com- 
ponents contract,  due  to  the  type  of  parts 
involved  and  tolerances  specified,  is  han- 
dled by  Precision  Inspection  personnel. 

Within  a  small,  wire-enclosed  area,  in 
the  center  of  the  Machine  Shop,  is  the 
bailiwick  of  George  Tiedeman  and  his 
inspectors  who  perform  all  the  various 
functions  of  modern  precision  inspection 
and  who  have  the  final  authority  as  to  the 
acceptability  and  usability  of  these  var- 
ious components. 

A  few  of  the  many  functions  per- 
formed by  this  hard-working  group  are 
First  Article  Inspection  at  the  various 
machines.  Magnetic  Inspection,  Hardness 
Testing,  Tool  and  Gauge  Inspection  and 
the  Precision  Inspection  of  the  final  com- 
pleted parts.  There  are  many  conditions 
which  must  be  taken  into  consideration  in 
the  Precision  Inspection  of  parts  and  as- 
semblies. These  include  dimensional  toler- 
ances from  the  so-called  "wide  open" 
tolerances  of  plus  or  minus   one  thirty- 


An  inspection  check  of  the  overall  height  of  B-36  tail- 
pipe assembly  is  made  by  Wilbur  Woodord  in  Jet  Assembly 
Department.  Height  gauge  used  guarantees  pipe's  accur- 
acy. 


George  Tiedeman  uses  micrometer  to  check  thickness  of  a 
6-50  manifold  flonge.  Variations  of  more  than  a  few 
thousandths  of  on  inch  are  not  allowed  on  precision  parts. 


Precision  Inspection  is  tvorking  for  every  Ryan 
customer.  They  knotv  you'll  put  them 
'^On  The  Spot"  if  you  get  some- 
thing less  than  the  best. 


(Left)  Marion  Rewicz  of  Precision  Inspection  runs  on  oil  and  iron  oxide  solution 
over  Navion  landing  gear  part.  Port  is  between  two  electro-magnets  and  any 
break  in  the  metal  will  attract  iron  particles  to  that  orea.  This  magnetic  machine 
is  invaluable  for  spotting  structural  weaknesses  in  steel  ports.  ( Below)  Bore  gouge 
in  inspector's  hand  checks  accuracy  of  bore  in  stainless  exhaust  monifold  flanges. 


In  the   Experimental   Department  Jim   West,   atop   lodder,   ond 
Harold  Flint  make  sure  alignment  of  Aerobee  nose  is  perfect. 


second  of  an  inch  to  critcial  tolerances 
ranging  down  as  low  as  plus  or  minus 
one  ten-thousandth  of  an  inch;  the  check- 
ing of  precision  threads  for  lead  and  pitch, 
critical  angles,  hole  sizes,  radii  and  con- 
tours of  all  descriptions. 

Other  conditions  which  must  be  taken 
into  consideration  are  those  of  surface  fin- 
ished, internal  structural  quality  as  indi- 
cated by  magnetic  particle  inspection  and 
the  various  hardness  tests  used  in  the  in- 
spection of  materials. 

Precision  inspection  is  maintained  by 
this  group  on  all  small  tools,  gauges  and 
fixtures  to  Insure  that  only  those  tools  of 
known  accuracy  will  be  used  to  fabricate 
aircraft  quality  parts  and  assemblies  and 
only   such  gauges   and   equipment   which 


are  beyond  question  as  to  accuracy  will  be 
used  in  the  inspection  of  these  critical 
parts.  A  complete  record  is  kept  of  this 
inspection  so  that  the  status  of  any  pro- 
duction tool  or  piece  of  inspection  equip- 
ment is  known  at  all  times. 

A  thorough  shop  background  and  a 
general  knowledge  of  mechanics  and  air- 
craft requirements  is  a  mandatory  requi- 
site for  the  inspectors  performing  these 
operations.  Each  operator  and  inspector  of 
magnetic  inspection  equipment  is  required 
to  take  and  pass  a  very  strict  Army  Cer- 
tification test  prior  to  bring  allowed  to 
perform  this  type  of  inspection  and  must 
take  an  additional  eye  examination  at 
least  every  six  months,  and  only  those 
(Continued  on  page  17) 


Arthur   M.    Thurston    (center),   superintendent   of    Indiana    State    Police,   chats   with    Don    Hood,     (left),    Indianapolis    Ryan    Novion 
dealer,    before    his    pilot,    Lieut.    Earl    D.    Smith,    leaves    with    Thurston    on    a    flying    trip    to    a    distant    speaking    engagement. 


RECORD-BREAKING  crowd  of  175,- 
000  race  fans  rolled  into  Indianapolis 
on  May  30,  1946,  to  attend  the  500-Mile 
Speedway  classic.  A  mammoth  traffic  jam 
resulted  and  the  race  was  half  over  before 
all  spectators  were  inside  the  six-foot  fence 
surrounding  the  two  and  one-half  mile 
oval. 

When  police  and  Speedway  officials  re- 
covered from  the  traffic  headache  hang- 
over, they  went  to  work  to  find  a  plan 
that  would  insure  the  safety  and  comfort 
of  future  race  crowds. 

Borrowing  a  trick  from  the  Air  Force, 
they  adapted  to  traffic  direction  the  "grass- 
hopper" spotting  technique  used  in  World 
War  II.  In  1947  a  Navion,  manned  by  an 
Indiana  State  Police  pilot  and  observer, 
circled  the  area  and  coordinated  traffic  di- 
rection on  the  ground. 

A  communications  system  installed  in 
the  plane  established  contact  with  traffic 
headquarters  in  the  Speedway  pagoda.  The 


plane  reported  the  number  of  approaching 
cars,  congested  areas  and  possible  rerout- 
ing. By  8  a.m.,  three  hours  before  race 
time,  most  of  the  fans  were  inside  the 
gates.  Since  this  initial  run,  the  Navion 
has  reigned  as  king  of  a  king-size  traffic 
problem. 

The  plane  used  at  the  1947  race  was  a 
borrowed  one  and  marked  the  first  time  a 
communications  system  of  its  kind  had 
been  tried  in  Indiana.  State  Police  had  em- 
ployed planes  successfully  in  criminal 
chases,  however,  prior  to  the  Speedway 
detail. 


By 

ARTHUR  M.  THURSTON 

Superintendent 

Indiana  State  Police 


In  December,  1946,  Herbert  Smith,  a 
veteran  trooper,  was  shot  and  killed  by 
four  persons  whom  he  had  stopped  in  a 
stolen  car  north  of  Shelbyville.  State  PoHce 
borrowed  a  plane  and  several  other  private 
planes  joined  in  the  search  for  the  killers 
who  abandoned  their  car.  One  of  the  pri- 
vate planes  sighted  the  fugitives  and 
buzzed  the  cornfield  where  they  were  hid- 
ing. A  trooper  in  a  nearby  patrol  car  un- 
derstood the  signal  and  located  and  cap- 
tured the  killers. 

Performances  of  the  planes  were  so  con- 
vincing that  the  department  purchased  a 
Navion  on  July  9,  1947.  This  plane  added 
greatly  to  Indiana  police  services.  A  birds- 
eye  view  of  ground  situations  has  enabled 
troopers  to  control  heavy  traffic  with  com- 
parative ease  and  to  track  down  criminals 
who  otherwise  might  elude  the  law. 

Most  frequent  assignments  for  the  fly- 
ing patrol  are  criminal  chases  and  man- 
hunts.   Between    40    and    5  0   flights   have 


been  logged  on  searches  for  bank  robbers, 
escapees  from  prisons  and  jails  as  well  as 
lost  children. 

Mercy  missions  comprise  other  impor- 
tant flights  for  the  plane.  Life-saving 
blood  plasma  was  rushed  through  the  air 
to  Terre  Haute  when  a  tornado  hit  the 
area  in  the  spring  of  1949. 

When  the  small  town  of  Coatesvillc 
was  leveled  by  a  tornado  on  Good  Friday, 
1948,  the  Navion  was  used  to  fly  supplies 
to  the  stricken  settlement.  The  plane's 
excellent  performance  in  and  out  of  small 
fields  permitted  rescue  workers  to  land  on 
the  outskirts  of  the  town  although  there 
was  no  airport  closer  than  a  half-hour 
drive. 

Slow  flight  characteristics  of  the  ship 
also  make  it  adaptable  for  use  in  water 
rescue  operations  or  in  searches  for  drown- 
ing victims. 


Indiana  State  Police  headquarters  is  ad- 
vantageously situated  on  a  former  air 
field.  It's  easier  to  walk  out  the  front  door 
and  step  into  an  airplane  on  the  runway 
a  few  feet  away  than  it  is  to  walk  several 
yards  farther  to  the  parking  lot  and  step 
into  an  automobile.  The  location  increases 
the  speed  in  which  disaster  work  and  man 
hunts  are  executed.  It  also  facilitates  use 
of  the  plane  in  other  varied  activities  of 
the  department.  These  details  include 
transporting  prisoners  and  witnesses  for 
trials  and  traveling  to  the  Michigan  City 
prison  to  question  inmates,  carrying  sus- 
pects to  and  from  headquarters  when  a  lie 
detector  test  or  another  contact  is  re- 
quired, and  chauffeuring  Governor  Henry 
F.  Schricker  of  Indiana,  the  writer  and 
other  police  officials  to  meetings  and  speak- 
ing engagements. 


We  have  found  that  traveling  by  air 
cuts  time  less  than  half  and  at  the  same 
time  slashes  expenses.  As  an  example,  let 
me  cite  the  trip  I  made  with  our  public 
relations  officer,  field  operations  captain 
and  pilot  to  a  convention  of  state  and 
provincial  chiefs  of  police  in  Niagara 
Falls,  Canada,  recently.  The  four  of  us 
attended  all  sessions  of  the  convention  and 
were  back  at  our  desks  in  three  days.  The 
trip  would  have  required  six  days  by  car. 
Total  cost  for  gas  and  oil  was  $24. 

In  September,  Lieutenant  Earl  D.  Smith, 
executive  assistant  and  chief  pilot  for  the 
department,  and  I  flew  to  a  meeting  of 
the  International  Chiefs  of  Police  in  Texas. 
Gas  and  oil  for  the  trip  cost  $36. 

Movement  of  evidence  in  court  cases  is 
greatly  expedited  by  use  of  the  Navion. 
(Continued  on  page  16) 


Lieut.  Robert  H.  Shields  supervises  the  loading  of  his  handcuffed 
prisoner  into  the  department's  Ryan  Navion.  Lieut.  Earl  Smith, 
pilot  of  the   Indiana  State   Police,   will  fly  him  direct  to  trial. 


INVESTOR-STOCKHOLDER 


.  ^^stocks  are  a  place  to  put  your  savings, 

you'll  get  something  out  of  them  and 

you'll  be  providing  jobs  for  others," 

says  investor-stockholder 

DAN  HEGE 


I  HE  Heges  live  on  top  of  one  of  the 
highest  hills  in  the  Southern  California 
valley  where  Mr.  Hege's  avocado  and 
lemon  grove  is  situated.  Near  the  small, 
inland  town  of  Escondido,  in  the  heart 
of  the  citrus  and  avocado  belt,  their  grove 
covers  approximately  20  acres. 


Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hege  gaxe  out  over  their  20- 
ocre  citrus  and  avocado  grove  from  their 
hill-top    ranch    house    in    Escondido,    Colif. 


It's  a  long  climb  up  and  down  the  steep 
hillside  the  Heges  own,  which  is  the  kind 
of  location  on  which  avocados  thrive,  but 
Daniel  C.  Hege,  retired  bank  official  and 
present  grove  owner,  makes  it  several 
times  a  day,  to  water  or  fertilize  his  trees, 
spray  the  lemons  or  pick  the  fruitful  re- 
sult of  his  labors. 

"If  you  can  call  taking  care  of  this 
ranch,  with  practically  no  outside  help, 
'retiring,'  then  that's  what  I  did  in  1941," 
Hege  says.  "But  I  love  this  kind  of  work 
and  I  like  this  valley." 

"We  think  we  have  the  finest  view  in 
the  whole  district,"  Mrs.  Hege  claims,  and 
it  is  almost  unbelievably  beautiful.  From 
the  long  terrace  of  their  California  ranch- 
style  house,  one  can  see  Palomar  mountain 
on  a  clear  day  and  it  is  3  5  miles  away.  In 
almost  every  direction  one  sees  carefully- 
tended  groves  and  irrigated  pastures,  hill- 
side-hugging ranch  houses  and  sleek  cattle. 

But  their  home  is  not  the  house  of  a 
tycoon  of  industry.  It  is  a  rambling,  con- 
crete block  dwelling  of  average  size.  There 
(Continued  on  page  H) 


WHO  m 


1500  otuners  provide  the 
m-oney  for  buildings,  tools 

and  materials  tvhich  are 
necessary  to  make  jobs  for 

Ryan's  13  00  employees. 


I  \  Ryon  stockholder  recently  remarked: 
"I  wish  everyone  who  works  for  a  corporation 
would  try  to  remember  there  ore  such  people 
OS  stockholders  and  thot  they  are  not  a  class 
of  plutocrats.  They  merely  are  ordinary  peo- 
ple trying  to  get  some  security  for  themselves 
out  of  whot  they've  soved  through  long,  hard 
work." 

This  one  mon's  summation  of  the  position 
of  the  stockholder  in  a  corporation  probably 
echoes  the  feelings  of  countless  shareholders 
in  American  corporations,  both  large  and 
small.  No  matter  how  important  the  positions 
of  the  executives  in  a  company,  how  vital 
the  skilled  craftsmanship  of  the  company's 
workers,  their  jobs  ultimotely  depend  on  the 
overage  American  man  or  woman  who  has 
invested  his  savings  in  the  company  from 
which  those  executive  or  workmen  earn  their 
keep. 

Stockholders  are  not  "plutocrats,"  or 
bankers,  or  tycoons  of  unlimited  resources. 
They  ore  for  the  most  part  the  people  who 
live  next  door,  or  drive  the  laundry  truck, 
hove  the  form  at  the  edge  of  your  town,  own 
the  grocery  or  cosh  your  checks  at  the  locol 
bonk.  The  few  hundred  or  thousand  dollars 
they  hove  set  aside  for  their  old  age  have 
been  invested  in  American  industry.  The 
returns  they  make  ore  not  something  just 
handed  them,  but  represent  a  small  poyment 
for  the  use  of  the  money  which  started  and 
keeps  the  business  going,  and  for  the  risk  of 
their  life  savings  they  hove  been  willing  to 
take  because  of  their  belief  in  a  free  enter- 
prise economy. 

The  majority  of  America's  stockholders 
ore  not  large  investors.  Twenty  of  Ryon's 
stockholders,  picked  alphabetically  from  the 
list  of  1500,  had  holdings  averaging  130 
shares.  The  highest  was  600,  the  lowest   7. 


It 


IS  Vim 


They  live  oil  over  the  country — Kentucky, 
New  York,  California,  Massachusetts,  Mex- 
ico— represent  almost  every  type  of  occupo- 
tion.  This  random  list  of  twenty  included  12 
men,  7  women  and  only  one  brokerage  firm, 
whose  holding  in  turn  is  for  several  individ- 
uals who  ore  their  customers.  Seven  of  the 
20  shareholders  had  25  or  less  shares  each. 
Anyone  con  see  from  this  that  the  average 
investor  is  not  a  large  stockholder.  But 
the  millions  of  security  issues,  owned  in  two, 
five,  ten  or  100  shore  blocks  by  small  in- 
vestors, is  the  lifeblood  of  this  country's  eco- 
nomic system. 

Any  large  scale  operation  demands  build- 
ings, tools  and  materials  to  begin  its  produc- 
tion. Those  buildings  and  tools  ore  costly, 
the  materials  represent  many  dollars.  To  keep 
turning  out  airplane  and  metal  oircroft 
products,  thousands  of  dollars  worth  of 
equipment  for  each  employee  is  necessary. 
No  one  man,  or  even  a  small  group  of 
wealthy  men,  could  possibly  finance  a  busi- 
ness on  the  scale  of  today's  large  aircraft 
foctories.  But  a  vast  group  of  people  of 
moderate  means  can  finance  an  airplane 
plant — or  other  business. 

When  they  do  invest,  they  expect  a  rea- 
sonable return,  in  the  form  of  dividends  for 
the  use  of  their  money.  They  also  expect 
the  company  to  reinvest  some  of  its  earnings 
for  additional  machinery  and  materials  in 
order  to  expand  the  company's  operations 
and  to  keep  its  equipment  and  facilities  mod- 
ern so  the  company  will  be  able  to  get  its 
shore  of  the  available  business.  This  plough- 
ing back  of  profits  necessarily  cuts  down  on 
the  dividend  earnings,  but  as  a  long  range 
plan  for  assuring  the  stability  of  the  com- 
pany— and  providing  jobs  for  its  employees 
— it  cannot  be  beot. 

No  company  could  expand  and  grow  with- 
out the  money  provided  by  its  owners.  Amer- 
ican industries  must  depend  on  the  foresight 
and  good  business  sense  of  its  management 
and  the  hard  work  of  its  employees  to  keep 
the  business  financially  solvent.  They  also 
depend  for  new  investment  capitol  on  the 
hard  work  of  many  Americans  whose  in- 
vested savings  resulting  from  this  work  keep 
businesses  growing. 


EMPLOYEE-STOCKHOLDER 


.  .  ^'it's  a  good  idea  for  evtployees  to  own 
stock  in  the  company  they  work  for" 
says  employee-stockholder 
EDDIE  OBERBAUER 


CmPLOYEES  are  often  stockholders, 
too.  Take  the  case  of  Edward  Oberbauer, 
onetime  mechanic  student  at  the  Ryan 
School  of  Aeronautics  and  a  14-year  man 
with  the  company — first  as  janitor,  then 
mechanic,  test  pilot  and  final  assembly 
foreman. 

Eddie  feels,  like  many  other  Ryan  em- 
ployees, that  "it  is  a  good  idea  for  em- 
ployees to  own  stock  in  the  company  they 
work  for.  It  gives  them  more  interest  in 
their  work  and  their  company.  Employee- 
stockholders  strive  harder  for  real  produc- 
tion efficiency;  they  try  to  keep  down  ex- 
penses when  they  know  the  security  of 
the  savings  they've  invested  in  the  com- 
pany depends  to  some  extent  on  their 
watchfulness." 

Like  most  of  the  Ryan  people,  Eddie 
has  a  tremendous  love  of  airplanes  and  the 
aircraft  industry.  Lindbergh's  flight  in  the 
Ryan-built  "Spirit  of  St.  Louis"  sparked 
Eddie's  enthusiasm  for  the  rapidly  advanc- 
ing field  while  still  working  for  his  father 
on  a  Montana  farm. 

A  year  later,  his  eye  on  the  sky,  he  be- 


gan corresponding  with  T.  Claude  Ryan 
about  the  chances  of  entering  the  struggl- 
ing aviation  school  Ryan  had  in  San  Diego. 
But  the  depression  following  1929  kept 
Eddie  down  on  the  farm,  helping  out  his 
family's  finances,  until  he  finally  saved 
enough  money  in  193  5  to  make  the  trip 
to  San  Diego. 

(Continued  on  page  1 X  J 


•^^M       1 


The  whole  Oberbauer  family  hod  o  share  in 
helping  to  build  their  adobe  home  while 
living    temporarily    in    a    small    board    house. 


FROM  THE  RYAN  PLANT  TO... 


Seen  in  Ryan's  Experimental  Department  is 
an  almost  completed  Aerobee  sounding  rocket 
being  ossembled  for  Aerojet  Engineer- 
ing Corp.  Ryan  builds  the  main  rocket 
body,  tail  cone,  shrouds,  booster,  fins 
and    fairings    for    this    3000    m.p.h.    rocket. 


A  line-up  of  Aerojet  Aerobee  sounding 
rockets  at  the  Aerojet  Engineering 
Corporation  factory  at  Azusa,  Califor- 
nia. This  photograph  shows  the  Aerobee 
in  the  configuration  in  which  it  is  in 
when    it    reaches    its    zenith    —    75    miles. 


With  Aerojet's  famed  3  000  m.p.h.  Aerobee  rocket, 

-we  may  soon  learn  some  of  the  secrets  of 

cosmic  rays  and  other  unknotvn  facts 

of  the  upper  atmosphere. 


LATEST  name  to  be  revealed  as  associ- 
ated with  the  list  of  those  making 
major  contributions  to  manufacture  of 
the  3000  m.p.h.  Aerojet  "Aerobee"  high 
altitude  sounding  rockets  is  that  of  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company.  Because  of  the 
company's  position  as  leading  fabricators 
of  stainless  steel  components  for  high  tem- 
perature aircraft  uses,  we  have  for  more 
than  a  year  been  building  most  of  the 
assemblies  for  the  pencil-thin  rockets  ex- 
cept the  propulsion  unit  and  fuel  tank. 
The  Aerobee  is  the  most  widely  used 
American-built  sounding  rocket. 

The  latest  research  project  with  Aerobee 
rockets  got  under  way  last  fall  at  Hollo- 
man  Air  Force  Base  at  Alamogordo,  New 
Mexico.  There  the  Air  Force  will  use  the 
latest  Ryan-built  Aerobees  for  a  two-year 
high-altitude  study  of  cosmic  rays, 
meteorology,  radio  characteristics  and 
other  unknown  facts  about  the  physics  of 
the  thin,  upper  atmosphere.  When  all  data 
from  this  upper-atmosphere  research  pro- 
gram has  been  evaluated  it  will  be  used 
by  the  Air  Force  in  evolving  the  design  of 
guided  missiles,  in  determining  the  rela- 
tion between  solar  activity  and  weather 
changes,  and  as  basic  atmospheric  infor- 
mation to  be  used  in  the  guided  missiles 
program. 

Experience  with  the  60  rockets  to  be 
fired  at  Alamogordo  is  expected  to  not 
only  furnish  new  information  about  con- 
ditions 75  miles  above  the  earth,  but  will 
also  supply  technical  data  on  which  fur- 
ther developments  will  be  based.  The  new 
project  is  an  expansion  of  similar  tests  the 
Army  has  been  conducting  with  German 
V-2  rockets  at  the  White  Sands,  New 
Mexico,  proving  ground.  The  Aerobee 
rockets  are  smaller,  simpler  and  cheaper 
missiles  than  the  huge,  complicated  V-2's. 


Since  the  launching  of  the  first  Aero- 
bee rocket  on  March  5,  1948,  at  White 
Sands,  the  missiles  have  twice  hit  the  head- 
lines. First  was  the  fall  of  that  year  when 
automatic  cameras  mounted  in  one  of  the 
rockets  took  200  pictures  at  1  '/2  second 
intervals  from  up  to  70  miles  high,  show- 
ing curvature  of  the  earth  and  land  areas 
of  the  western  United  States  1400  miles 
in  length  from  upper  Wyoming  on  the 
north  to  deep  into  Mexico  on  the  south. 

Then,  last  March,  two  Aerobee  rockets 
were  fired  from  the  deck  of  the  U.S.S. 
Norton  Sound,  a  Navy  seaplane  tender 
fitted  especially  for  launching  guided  mis- 
siles from  her  broad  after-deck  far  out 
at  sea  in  safe,  isolated  areas. 

Data  recorded  by  instruments  carried 
by  the  Aerobees  were  telemetered  to  two 
accompanying  destroyers  with  elaborate 
electronic  equipment  for  receiving  the 
scientific  information.  Both  destroyers  and 
the  Norton  Sound  tracked  the  flight  of 
the  rockets  with  radar. 

Principal  data  gained  at  the  time  of 
these  firings,  to  an  altitude  of  65  miles 
at  a  location  700  miles  in  the  Pacific  off 
the  west  coast  of  South  America,  con- 
cerned cosmic  ray  intensity  and  terrestrial 
magnetic  fields  at  high  altitudes  near  the 
geo-magnetic  equator. 

The  Aerobee  was  developed  originally 
for  the  Navy  Bureau  of  Ordnance  by  the 
Aerojet  Engineering  Corp.  of  Azusa,  Cali- 
fornia, a  subsidiary  of  The  General  Tire 
&  Rubber  Co.,  Akron,  Ohio,  from  which 
(Coiititiiicii  071  page  20) 


An  Aerobee  rocket  leaves  the  launching 
tower  at  White  Sands  Proving  Ground,  New 
Mexico.  This  is  port  of  a  two-year  high- 
altitude  study  about  unknown  facts  of  the 
physics     of     the     thin,     upper     atmosphere. 


75  MILES  STR 


Novions  fly  from  this  snow-covered  field  at  Stibnife,  Idaho,  the  year  round,  often  when  all  roads  are  blocked. 
A  snow  plow  keeps  the  runway  clear  in  order  that  planes  con  bring  in  personnel  and  supplies  for  the  mining 
firm   whose  smelters   bound  the   landing   strip.    Novions  operate    dependably    despite    snow    and    6,500-foot    altitude. 

When  WIMR  tomes 


Winter  need  not  mean  an  end  to  business  and 

pleasure  flying  for  Navion  otvners,  as  tvas 

demonstrated  in  the  Great  Blizzard  of  '49 


RADIO  commentator  Drew  Pearson 
may  recently  have  gotten  himself  out 
on  a  limb — which  could  break  under  the 
weight  of  this  winter's  snows.  In  his 
famous  "Predictions  of  Things  to  Come," 
Pearson  forecast  a  mild  winter  this  year. 
But,  even  if  this  winter  should  follow 
the  pattern  of  last  year's  terrific  blizzards, 
Navion  owners  will  find  themselves  flying 
when  many  other  planes  are  grounded. 

One  of  the  most  useful  qualities  of  the 
Navion  is  its  unique  ability  to  operate 
efficiently  from  rough,  unimproved  fields 
in  deep  snow  or  mud,  even  in  strong  cross- 
winds.  Mature  judgment  demands  that  no 
pilot  should  take  undue  risks  during  ad- 
verse weather,  but  very  often  Navions 
can  be  flown  safely  under  conditions 
which  limit  surface  travel  and  other  air- 
craft. 

Just  what  is  it  about  Navions  that 
keeps  them  "on  the  job"  working  all  win- 
ter? No  one  thing,  say  Ryan  engineers. 
Rather  it's  a  combination  of  many  desir- 
able characteristics  about  Navion's  landing 
gear,  flaps,  rugged  construction,  stall- 
resistant  wing  and  visibility. 

Because  the  Navion  can  take  off  in 
a    tail-low    attitude,    the    nosewheel    lifts 


Wintertime  is  work  time  for  the  Navion 
belonging  to  Roy  Holvorson,  Minnesoto 
Christmas  tree  grower.  His  plane  helps 
him     survey,     plan     cutting     and     supervise. 


quickly,  making  deep  snow  take-offs  easy. 
The  rugged  nosewheel  also  prevents  nos- 
ing over  on  rough  field  landings,  and 
because  it's  steerable,  the  nosewheel  gives 
positive  directional  control  even  on  icy 
runways.  Too,  Navion's  equalized  heavy- 
duty  hydraulic  brakes  are  used  only  for 
stopping  the  plane  rather  than  for  steer- 
ing. 

The  husky  tricycle  gear,  and  high 
ground  and  propeller  clearance,  get  the 
plane  in  and  out  of  snow-banked  fields 
with  ease  and  greater  safety,  while  the 
wide  wheel  tread  and  oversize  tires  make 
for  better  ground  handling  in  soft  snow, 
mud  and  slush. 

The  roomy,  rain  and  wind-sealed  cabin, 
and    heater    for   short-sleeve    comfort   in 


Robert    Rice,    Chief    Pilot    for    Wien    Alaska    Airlines,    uses    his    Navion    for    flying 
cargo   into    the   Alaskan    interior,   where   dog   teams    ore   only    ground    transportation. 


Crocker  Snow,  Massachusetts  Director  of  Aeronautics,  commutes  by  Navion  each  win- 
ter workday  morning  from  his  farm  in  Ipswich,  Mass.,  to  his  Boston  office.  He  uses 
this   Fordson  tractor  and  wooden   roller  to  compact  the    heavy   snow   on    his   runway. 


Grocery  drops  to  marooned  farm 
families  were  part  of  the  mercy 
work  done  in  a  Navion  last  winter 
by  Edward  Kooper  (left)  and  Nor- 
man Watson  of  Alliance,  Nebraska. 


sub-zero  weather,  make  for  physical  com- 
fort to  match  the  mental  comfort  of  fly- 
ing a  Navion.  In  the  air,  the  Navion's  safe 
slow-flying  characteristics  and  360°  vis- 
ibility are  especially  valuable  in  marginal 
weather.  Take  last  winter  when  a  series 
of  great  blizzards  paralyzed  most  western 
plains  states. 

Snow  depths  around  Alliance,  Nebras- 
ka, were  from  two  to  20  feet.  Wind 
velocity  was  often  above  60  miles  an  hour. 
Hundreds  of  cattle  on  large  ranges  per- 
ished early  in  the  storm,  and  thousands 
more  faced  a  similar  fate.  Human  lives 
were  lost,  and  many  were  miraculously 
saved — often  through  the  efforts  of  Ryan 
Navion  owners  like  Edward  Kooper,  Jr. 

Almost  every  day  Kooper  was  in  the 
air  flying  food  and  medicines  to  ranch 
families,  directing  ground  rescue  crews, 
(Continued  on  page  21) 


"The  Navion  is  a  winter  flyer's  plane,"  says  Denis  E.  Sullivan  Jr.  The  prominent 
Chicago  attorney  and  his  wife  have  flown  cross-country  to  California  and  have  re- 
turned in  the  worst  of  winter,  operating  from  fields  covered  with  ice,  snow  and  mud. 


13 


L-17S  ON  THE  JOB 
IN  GERMANY 

(Continued  from  page  3) 
And  Jack  gave  them  the  straight  dope. 
He  found  in  a  few  instances  that  spare 
parts  replacements,  many  of  which  had 
been  misplaced  in  transit  to  Europe,  were 
grounding  the  L-17s.  He  also  flew  with 
numerous  liaison  pilots  in  the  Navion  and, 
pointed  out  the  amazing  short  field  per- 
formance of  the  plane  which  the  pilot's 
had  not  realized,  due  to  their  unfamiliarity 
with  the  aircraft. 

"They  were  amazed  at  what  the  L-17 
could  really  do  when  handled  right,"  Jack 
said  on  his  return  to  the  factory.  "On  sev- 
eral demonstration  flights  made  after  I 
showed  them  a  few  new  tricks,  Army  ob- 
servers couldn't  believe  the  Navion  was 
so  versatile." 

Before  making  his  trip  to  occupied  Eu- 
rope to  instruct  maintenance  personnel, 
Lucast  had  conducted  four,  three-week 
classes  at  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company 
for  maintenance  crews  on  the  L-17s  in 
use  by  the  Army  and  National  Guard 
units  in  this  country.  In  short,  he  is  an 
expert  on  the  proper  approach  to  a  Navion 
to  get  the  most  from  it  in  top  perform- 
ance. 

And  top  performance  is  what  the  plane 
needs  to  operate  under  the  rigorous  con- 
ditions of  Army  constabulary  and  tactical 
air  bases  in  the  occupied  countries.  The 
weather  was  almost  constantly  rainy.  Fog 
and  mist  often  made  visibility  practically 
nil,  but  the  L-17s  fly  in  all  weathers. 

The  fields,  with  the  exception  of  the 
one  at  Stuttgart,  are  all  either  gravel  or 
pressed  steel  strips  known  as  P.S.P.  The 
pounding  the  landing  gear  takes,  Lucast 
observes,  is  something  fearful.  High  alti- 
tude flying,  like  his  trip  from  Salzburg  to 
Trieste,  over  the  Brenner  Pass  and  Inns- 
bruck, is  almost  an  everyday  occurrence. 
When  the  Army  has  need  for  a  fast  mes- 
senger service,  flying  staff  car  or  cargo 
carrier  they  wheel  out  the  L-17s.  "I  was 
amazed  at  how  much  the  normal  gross 
load  of  the  Navion  could  be  exceeded  and 
the  plane  still  fly  out  of  small  fields  with- 
out apparent  hazard,"  Lucast  observed. 
"The  only  flying  trouble  I  encountered  on 
my  entire  stay  overseas  was  during  the 
one  flight  I  made  in  an  Air  Force  transport 
plane.  During  a  Ground  Control  approach 
landing  in  very  low  weather  at  the  end  of 
a  flight  from  Erding  to  Frankfurt  the 
pilots  had  trouble  getting  the  plane  down. 
There  were  no  troubles  during  the  numer- 
ous L-17  flights  I  made,  even  in  the  worst 
fog  or  rain." 

Not  all  the  trip  was  hard  work,  despite 
the  long  days  spent  instructing,  and  dem- 


onstrating the  L-17.  Jack  found,  unlike 
C.  L.  "Frenchy"  Foushee,  Ryan  Metal 
Products  Sales  and  Service  Representative 
who  preceded  him  to  Europe  as  factory 
consultant  on  exhaust  manifolds  used  by 
the  Berlin  Airlift  planes,  that  most  Ger- 
man and  Austrian  restaurants,  theaters, 
night  clubs  and  music  halls  were  no  longer 
"off  limits"  to  American  military  and  civil 
personnel. 

In  Heidelberg,  where  he  was  billeted  in 
the  Army-requisitioned  Hotel  Europa,  he 
had  excellent  food,  good  wine  and  beer. 
Heidelberg  provided  a  sightseer's  paradise 
for  Jack  during  three  days  at  the  end  of 
his  tour  of  L-17  maintenance  and  opera- 
tion bases  when  he  had  some  free  time.  He 
went  through  the  famous  castle  overlook- 
ing the  Neckar  River,  looked  in  on  a  few 
night  spots  ("where  the  entertainment 
was  very  poor")  and  visited  the  famous 
Red  Ox  Inn,  an  old  University  of  Heidel- 
berg student  hangout  and  beer  parlor. 

Unfortunately  he  had  only  one  day  in 
Vienna,   and   wasn't   able   to  see  much  of 


ON  THE  COVER 

George  Tiedeman  intently  aligns  sil- 
houette of  a  manifold  part  with  a 
master  shadow  outline  on  the  ground 
glass  plate  of  the  comparator  machine. 
This  invaluable  aid  to  Precision  Inspec- 
tion shows  instantly  if  a  part  is  too 
large  or  too  small,  or  if  its  sizing  is 
perfect. 

Complicated  testing  apparatus  like 
this  comparator  give  the  men  in  the 
Precision  Inspection  Division  of  the 
Inspection  Department  the  information 
they  need  to  evaluate  the  strength  of 
important  manifold  or  airplane  struc- 
tural parts.  Their  vigilance  in  this 
group  is  an  important  safety  factor  for 
Ryan  metal  products  and  Navion  cus- 
tomers. 


other  cities  like  Wiesbaden  and  Salzburg, 
where  instruction  classes  took  up  every 
available  moment. 

His  trip  into  Vienna,  by  Navion,  was  a 
hair-raiser.  The  landing  was  made  at  night, 
in  bad  weather,  and  the  landing  strip  the 
Army  uses  there  is  only  2400  feet  long, 
entirely  of  gravel.  Two-thirds  of  the  way 
down  the  runway  there  is  a  43 -degree 
turn  and  the  plane  had  to  make  a  hard 
right  swerve  to  negotiate  it.  "Only  know- 
ing the  easy  handling  characteristics  of 
the  Navion  saved  me  some  gray  hairs," 
Lucast  commented. 

In  Bad  Tolz,  Germany,  he  saw  the  "Fes- 
tival of  Horses,"  a  day-long  parade  of 
draft  animals,  gaily  decorated  and  gar- 
landed for  their  appearance  at  church 
where  they  are  blessed  for  the  hard  work 
and  faithful  service  they  have  given  their 
masters  during  the  preceding  year.  The 
State  Opera  performance  of  "Der  Rosen- 
kavalier,"  in  Stuttgart,  found  the  Ryan 
Field  Service  Representative  in  the  large 
audience  as  did  an  all-Beethoven  concert 
in  Heidelberg.  "German  audiences  take 
their  music  too  seriously,"  Jack  observed. 
"Most  of  them  hardly  moved  throughout 
a  two-hour  program  and  I  was  afraid  to 
cough  for  fear  I'd  get  the  cold  stare." 

The  Germans  in  all  the  cities  Lucast 
visited  appeared  reasonably  well  victualed 
but  rather  poorly  dressed.  Only  at  the 
opera  did  he  see  any  semblance  of  gaiety, 
for  there  a  few  of  the  women  were  in  eve- 
ning clothes.  Lucast  doesn't  know  where 
the  up-to-the-minute  gowns  came  from. 

Although  Jack  grew  up  in  a  small,  Ger- 
man-speaking community  in  Wisconsm 
and  had  several  years  of  the  language  in 
high  school,  he  found  that  his  Deutsch 
was  a  little  rusty  when  he  first  tried  it 
out  abroad. 

But  he  was  able  to  ask  directions  and 
usually  understood  what  was  being  said 
by  German  mechanics  at  the  Army  air 
fields  as  well  as  the  other  civilians  he  en- 
countered at  hotels,  restaurants  and  on 
sightseeing  tours. 

The  Occupation  Forces,  according  to 
Lucast,  are  in  top  shape.  Frequent  maneu- 
vers and  tactical  problems  keep  the  men 
and  officers  constantly  on  the  alert.  Morale 
and  a  general  slackness  prevailing  immedi- 
atelv  after  the  war  has  been  drastically 
changed  so  that  America's  Army  and  Air 
Forces  abroad  are  now  in  excellent  form. 

Helping  to  keep  the  Army  functioning 
smoothlv  and  contributing  their  bit  to- 
ward efficient  staff'  and  policing  operations 
arc  the  Ryan  Navion  L-17  liaison  planes, 
whose  daily  usage  helps  bridge  the  distance 
between  widely  separated  areas  of  com- 
mand. In  Japan,  too,  the  L-1 7s  are  aiding 
the  military  in  its  job  of  democratizing 
and  rebuilding  a  former  enemy  nation. 


14 


PLANT  TOUR 


Uufortuuatcly  we  don*t  have  the  opportunity  to  show  many  readers  through  the  Kyan  factory, 
but  jve  can  ask  you  to  join  us  in  this  cotuvin  while  we  go  through  the  plant  and  meet  some  of  the 
people  who  help  make  Ryan  a  better  place  to  work. 


ANGEL 
MAKER 


Harold  B.  Fisher,  Turret  Lothe  Oper- 
ator, is  "President"  of  his  own  company 
besides  working  in  the  Machine  Shop. 

The  factory  which  Fisher  heads  is  un- 
doubtedly the  smallest  one  on  record.  It 
measures  6  by  6  feet.  To  be  more  exact, 
it's  a  child's  playhouse  and  from  it  Fisher 
guides  his  family  in  making  a  unique  re- 
volving Christmas  Tree  angel. 

Fisher's  ingenuity  and  industrious  work 
all  last  year  paid  off  in  his  being  granted 
a  patent  for  his  Christmas  Angel.  Several 
downtown  San  Diego  stores  featured  them 
in  their  windows. 

The  angels  pictured  above  (right)  are 
iOVi  inches  tall,  revolve  slowly  while 
their  golden  wings  sway  back  and  forth. 


Each  of  the  200  angels  in  production  for 
the  Christmas  Season  just  passed  is 
equipped  with  a  telechron  motor. 

"By  this  time  next  year,"  Fisher  says, 
"I  hope  to  have  a  shop  large  enough  to 
manufacture  the  angels  in  quantity." 

The  "Board  of  Directors"  of  this  fam- 
ily company  are  Mrs.  Fisher;  his  four 
daughters,  Shirley,  17,  who  resides  in 
Wisconsin;  Irene,  II;  Beverly,  9,  and 
Linda  Mae,  7.  The  last  three  live  with 
their  parents  at  their  Pacific  Beach  resi- 
dence. Fisher  gives  all  the  credit  to  his 
"Board  of  Directors"  for  doing  most  of 
the  assembly  line  work. 

Fisher  has  been  a  Ryan  employee  for 
two  years. 


TRODS 

THE 

BOARDS 


JOINS  SELECT  GROUP.  M.  W.  "Buck" 
Kelley's  1  5  years  with  Ryan  wos  recog- 
nized during  the  Christmas  week  with  the 
presentation  of  a  diamond  service  pin  by 
T.  Claude  Ryan,  president.  Starting  out 
in  1934  as  a  mechanic,  Kelley  worked 
his  way  up  through  various  assembly  de- 
partments to  a  position  as  Foreman  in 
1940.  Since  then  he  has  held  important 
supervisory  posts  including  Night  Super- 
intendent. At  present,  he  is  Foreman  of 
the  Boeing  Fuselage  Assembly  depart- 
ment. 

Known  to  old-time  Ryan  employees  as 
a  "hot  man  on  the  skins" — drummer, 
that  is — Kelley  joined  a  select  group  of 
senior  employees  when  he  received  his 
1  5-year  service  pin.  Only  older  employees 
ore  founder-president  Ryan,  Earl  D.  Prud- 
den,  vice  president;  H.  J.  Van  der  Linde, 
airplane  production  superintendent;  Wal- 
ter O.  Locke,  assistant  to  the  president; 
M.  E.  Thompson,  change  control  adminis- 
trator; and  Will  Vandermeer,  chief  of  en- 
gineering laboratory. 

Twelve  other  employees  received  10- 
year  service  pins  on  the  same  occasion. 


Daytime  aircraft  inspector;  nighttime 
actor;  week-end  pilot.  That  might  well 
serve  as  a  thumbnail  biography  of  Jock 
Chess,  9 '/2  year  veteran  employee  of  the 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company. 

Starting  two  years  ago  with  the  Alpha 
Omega  Society's  drama  club  as  an  ama- 
teur.   Chess   graduated    to    roles   with   the 


Town  and  Country  Players  of  La  Mesa 
and  most  recently  had  played  roles  in 
three  productions  of  San  Diego's  Globe 
Theater  Community  Players.  During  the 
Christmas  Season,  Chess  played  the  part 
of  the  Town  Crier  in  Dickens'  "Christmas 
Carol,"  the  role  in  which  he  is  photo- 
graphed here. 


PAID  A  VISIT.  Ryan's  lOO-member 
Management  Club  likes  to  get  out  and 
see  what  other  plants  and  other  super- 
visory personnel  are  doing  in  other  indus- 
tries. Such  a  fact-finding  tour  was  the 
recent  visit  members  paid  to  the  nearby 
Notional  Steel  and  Shipbuilding  Corp. 
Here  Ryan  supervisors  get  a  look  at  the 
undersea  side  of  one  of  San  Diego's  famed 
tuna  clippers. 


More  and  more,  the  editor  is  hear- 
ing from  Navion  owners  about  their 
planes  and  flying  experiences.  Typical 
is  this  picture  and  information  on  use 
of  the  Navion  as  a  valuable  business 
tool  received  from  S.  W.  Yoder  of  Los 
Angeles,  California.  No  doubt  other 
owners  who  haven't  written  us  might 
like  to  do  so.  The  RYAN  REPORTER 
is  interested  in  hearing  from  all  Nav- 
ion pilots  and  in  the  future  will  turn 
over  this  page  to  owners  contributing 
your  experiences  and  comments.  Send 
them  along.  Just  address  Editor,  Ryan 
Reporter,  Lindbergh  Field,  Son  Diego 
1  2,  California. 


SALES  OFF?  JUMP  IN  NAVION 
AND  DRUM  UP  BUSINESS 

"I  can't  help  but  drop  you  o  note  to  tell 
you  how  pleased  I  om  with  my  Ryan 
Novion,"  says  S.  W.  Yoder,  president  of 
Yoder  Manufacturing  Company,  whose  re- 
cent letter  is  responsible  for  starting  this 
new  "to  the  editor  .  .  .  FROM  NAVION 
OWNERS"  column. 

"I  consider  it  one  of  the  most  valuable 
assets  in  our  business  of  making  and  market- 
ing automotive  and  bicycle  horns  and  other 


hardware.  From  our  Los  Angeles  headquar- 
ters, I  cover  over  50,000  miles  a  yeor  by 
Navion,  keeping  in  contact  with  our  dis- 
tributors and  soles  organization. 

"To  keep  abreast  of  changing  conditions, 
it's  imperative  to  keep  your  finger  on  the 
pulse  of  the  industry.  Even  telephones  and 
telegrams  are  sometimes  too  slow.  Speed  is 
the  keynote  for  successful  operations  these 
days.  This  is  just  on  example.  Yesterday  one 
of  our  suppliers  200  miles  away  phoned  to 
soy  he  ran  into  difficulty  on  one  of  our  jobs. 
Rather  than  'sweating  it  out,'  I  jumped  into 
my  plane,  which  is  kept  at  a  field  just  five 
minutes  away  from  the  plant.  I  visited  my 
source,  straightened  out  the  difficulty,  and 
was  back  at  the  office  the  some  day  in  time 
to  sign  my  mail. 


"Because  of  my  limited  time  I  can  cover 
cities  much  faster  than  by  scheduled  airlines 
because  I  con  take  off  as  soon  as  my  business 
is  completed  and  I  do  not  hove  to  wait  for 
reservations.  Too,  I  get  greater  coverage 
because  the  Navion  allows  me  to  contact 
places  away  from  airline  routes. 

"As  soon  as  soles  start  to  drop  off,  I  jump 
into  my  Novion  and  coll  on  my  representa- 
tives, and  work  with  them  calling  on  old  and 
new  accounts.  This  meets  with  o  great  deal 
of  success  in  building  soles. 

"I  like  the  Navion  particularly  because  of 
its  ability  to  get  in  and  out  of  small  fields. 
The  main  reason  I  chose  o  Navion  was  be- 
cause of  its  safety  and  ease  of  flying  for  a 
business  man  who  has  o  lot  on  his  mind  and 
does  not  fly  regularly.  I  hove  found  my  Nav- 
ion to  be  the  most  pilot  error  forgiving  plane 
made.  I  feel  that  any  business  man  con  learn 
to  fly  one  safely  in  a  very  short  time." 

PUTTING  PRESSURE 
ON  THE  C-97 

(Continued  from  page  1 ) 
Leitch,  in  addition  to  controlling  air 
flow  and  watching  the  air  gages  for  in- 
formation on  the  rise  and  fall  of  pressures 
inside,  keeps  a  chart  which  shows  the  rise 
of  pressure  per  square  inch  and  the  fall  of 
the  leakage  curve  as  the  two  are  brought 
into  balance  by  seam  and  joint  sealing. 

Pressure  testing  is  exacting  work.  It 
calls  for  a  trained  ear  and  eye  on  the  part 
of  the  men  inside  the  fuselage  as  well  as 
on  the  outside.  Once  the  door  on  the  pres- 
sure plate  is  closed  and  the  air  begins  flow- 
ing into  the  hull  through  the  vent  con- 
nected with  the  factory's  overhead  air 
lines  the  men  must  work  fast  but  care- 
fully, checking  and  sealing.  Otherwise, 
completed  fuselage  sections,  lined  up  ready 
for  testing,  would  be  thrown  off  schedule 
on  their  way  to  Boeing's  factory  for  com- 
pletion of  C-97  assembly. 

Leitch,  Doherty  and  Eisman  really 
know  how  to  "put  on  the  pressure,"  under 
the  supervision  of  Roy  Ryan,  Assistant 
Boeing  Foreman  in  charge  of  this  final 
operation.  Their  listening  and  plugging 
results  in  a  safe  aft  section  on  the  Strato- 
freighters  or  Stratocruisers  now  much  in 
demand  by  the  Air  Force  and  commercial 
airlines.  The  comfort  and  safety  of  crew, 
passengers  and  cargo  aboard  Boeing  planes 
depends  in  large  measure  on  the  good  job 
the  pressure  testing  group  does  with  its 
headphones,  sealing  fluid  guns  and  air 
valves. 

INDIANA  STATE  POLICE 

(Continued  from  page  7 ) 
In  important  trials  evidence  is  sometimes 
discarded  because  too  many  persons  have 
handled  it  and  identity  cannot  be  estab- 
lished beyond  doubt.  Employing  the  plane, 
a  technician  can  fly  to  the  scene  of  the 
crime,  pick  up  the  evidence,  fly  back   to 


headquarter's  laboratory,  examine  the  evi- 
dence and  take  it  to  court  himself,  leaving 
no  loopholes  in  the  case. 

The  plane  also  is  used  in  reconnaissance 
fashion  to  photograph  disaster  scenes  and 
to  check  on  large  traffic  control  projects 
such  as  the  Speedway  and  the  State  Fair. 

Five  hundred  hours  were  logged  on  the 
first  Navion,  a  North  American,  before 
the  blue  and  gold  State  Police  insignia  was 
transferred  to  a  second  Ryan  Navion 
model  last  July.  In  six  weeks,  100  hours 
for  a  total  of  14,000  miles  were  registered 
on  the  new  plane. 

Lieutenant  Smith  estimates  that  300 
miles  or  about  2  V2  hours  a  day  was  an 
average  flying  schedule  for  the  first  Na- 
vion. However,  he  adds  that  the  new 
plane  is  being  used  much  more  than  the 
first  one  because  it  is  faster  and  more 
adaptable  to  policing.  Lieutenant  Smith 
lists  the  factors  making  the  second  plane 
more  satisfactory  as  follows: 

1.  The  20S-horsepower  engine  which 
gives  better  performance  than  the  18  5- 
horsepower  engine  out  of  small  fields. 

2.  The  enamel  paint  finish  which 
doesn't  require  as  much  maintenance. 

3.  A  full  instrument  panel  and  flares 
for  night  operation. 

4.  An  auxiliary  gas  tank  which  gives 
greater  range  than  before. 

5.  Sound-proofing  which  permits  bet- 
ter radio  usage. 


ASHTRAY  MODEL 

There's  another  "Ryan  Navion"  fac- 
tory besides  the  one  at  San  Diego.  This 
model  plant  is  located  at  Morgantown, 
West  Virginia,  and  is  known  as  Christie 
Batlas  &  Co. 

Right  now  Batlas  is  manufacturing 
several  hundred  Navions  for  Ryan  dis- 
tributors. Unlike  those  coming  from 
the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  fac- 
tory, Batlas'  production  is  of  planes 
with  only  10-inch  wing  span.  But,  like 
Ryan's  Navions,  his  are  equipped  with 
ash  trays — in  fact  they're  the  main 
reason  for  the  Batlas  Navion  model. 

Authorized  Ryan  Navion  distributors 
can  supply  the  models  to  interested 
owners. 


16 


ON  THE  SPOT 

(Continued  from  page  5  j 

with  perfect  eyesight  are  allowed  to  con- 
duct this  important  inspection. 

For  the  benefit  of  those  to  whom  mag- 
netic inspection  is  unfamiliar,  this  type 
of  inspection  is  performed  to  find  hair- 
line cracks  and  discontinuities,  both  sur- 
face and  sub-surface,  in  critical  or  high 
stressed  steel  parts  or  assemblies.  The  prin- 
ciple of  this  inspection  is  basically  that 
of  the  old  high  school  physics  experiment 
with  a  magnet  and  iron  filings,  wherein 
the  iron  filings  will  bridge  the  gap  be- 
tween the  unlike  poles  of  the  magnet. 

In  aircraft  application  this  condition  is 
brought  about  in  the  part  under  inspection 
by  placing  it  in  a  magnetic  field  or  mag- 
netizing the  part  by  passing  a  high  amper- 
age current  through  it  and  pouring  over 
the  part  a  solution  of  light  oil  and  mag- 
netic iron  oxide.  Cracks  or  sub-surface 
indications  will  be  shown  by  a  definite 
pattern  on  the  surface  of  the  material. 
This  requires  considerable  training  and 
experience  on  the  part  of  the  magnetic 
inspector  to  correctly  interpret  these  in- 
dications and  to  prevent  unsatisfactory 
parts  from  going  into  an  assembly  or 
satisfactory  parts  from  being  sent  to  Ma- 
terial Review.  Marian  Rewicz,  who  has 
been  with  this  company  for  some  time,  is 
the  man  responsible  for  conducting  mag- 
netic inspection  in  the  highly  efficient 
manner  for  which  Ryan  is  proud. 

Many  other  articles  of  modern  inspec- 
tion equipment  are  in  constant  use  in 
Precision  Inspection  such  as  the  super- 
accurate  master  micrometer,  comparators, 
angle  computers  and  similar  equipment. 
The  comparator,  which  is  an  invaluable 
tool,  can  best  be  described  as  a  highly  mag- 
nified, extremely  accurate  shadow  picture 
of  a  part  cast  upon  a  frosted  glass  screen 
where  it  can  be  matched  with  accurate 
templates.  Many  precision  inspection  re- 
quirements which  cannot  be  met  by  any 
other  method  are  accomplished  by  using 
this  type  of  equipment. 

Most,  but  not  all  precision  inspection 
is  carried  out  in  this  one  area.  Jet  Engine 
Tail  Cones  and  other  Jet  Engine  Assem- 
blies are  inspected  to  very  close  tolerances 
in  the  Jet  Assembly  Department.  The 
same  close  tolerances  as  found  on  normal 
machined  parts  are  held  in  the  width, 
height  and  circumferences  of  these  pre- 
cision assemblies,  using  the  finest  available 
equipment  and  the  latest  production  in- 
spection methods. 

In  the  Experimental  Department  also, 
closely  machined  parts  for  the  Ryan  XQ-2 
jet-propelled  pilotless  target  plane  and  the 
famous  Aerobee  Sounding  Rocket  are. 
checked  with  the  same  accuracy  and  care 
that  the  jet  engine,  manifold  and  airframe 
parts  receive. 


THREE  NAVIONS  FOR  1950 

Prices  Start  at  $9485 

<  Utility  205    «  De  Luxe  205    <«  Super  260 


Three  models  ranging  in  price  from 
$9,485  to  $13,985  will  comprise  the 
1950  line  of  Ryon  Navion  planes,  new- 
est addition  to  which  is  a  new  low-price 
Navion,  the  "Utility  205"  model. 

Previously,  plans  were  announced  for 
production  of  the  new  170  mph.  Lycom- 
ing-powered  "Super  260"  Navion  early  in 
1950  as  a  companion  plane  to  the  Con- 
tinental-powered model  which  Ryan  has 
been  building  since  1947. 

Deliveries  of  new  1 950  models  of  the 
205  h.p.  "De  Luxe"  and  "Utility"  planes 
started  immediately  after  the  first  of  the 
year.  Ryan  distributors  have  also  begun 
to  book  advance  orders  on  the  "Super 
260"  Lycoming  models  which  will  begin 
coming  off  the  production  line  in  late 
March. 

Price  of  the  "Utility  205"  has  been 
established  at  $9,485  f.o.f.  the  Ryan  fac- 
tory at  Son  Diego.  This  is  $1,500  less 
than  the  "De  Luxe  205,"  which  has  been 
the  only  model  previously  offered,  end 
mokes  it  the  lowest  priced  airplane  of 
comparable  type  by  a  wide  margin. 

The  new  utility  model  is  powered  by 
the  same  Continental  205  h.p.  engine 
and  has  the  same  outstanding  perform- 
ance as  the  De  Luxe  model.  It  is  expected 
that  the  utility  plane  will  prove  especially 
popular  with  prospective  stor  mail  route 
operators,  charter  and  air  freight  services, 
ranchers,  farmers,  contractors,  oil  men, 
mining  companies  and  others  where  rug- 
ged utility  and  low  cost  for  maximum  per- 
formance with  up-to-date  equipment  are 
the  important  factors. 

The  "Utility  205"  hos  exactly  the  same 
proven  airframe  and  engine  as  other  Na- 
vion models  and  is  mode  to  the  some 
quality  on  the  regular  production  line. 
The  only  difference  is  that  the  accessor- 
ies furnished  are  limited  to  those  cus- 
tomarily supplied  on  standard  type  air- 
planes. 


For  example,  the  interior  furnishings 
and  instruments  are  less  elaborate  than 
in  the  De  Luxe  model.  An  RCA  model 
116  high-quality  radio  with  6-channel 
VHF  transmitter  is  standard  as  in  the 
De  Luxe  model,  as  is  the  power  hydraulic 
equipment  for  landing  gear  and  flap 
operation.  The  "Utility  205"  also  carries 
the  famous  Ryan  high  gloss  enamel  finish 
in  attractive  Desert  Tan  at  no  extra 
charge.  The  buyer  of  the  utility  model 
may  choose  any  specific  additional  acces- 
sories he  wishes  and  have  them  added  as 
optional  equipment,  but  is  not  required 
to  take  any  he  does  not  desire. 

The  general  reaction  among  potential 
customers  with  whom  Ryan  has  discussed 
the  new  Utility  Navion  seems  to  be  that 
it  is  a  lot  of  airplane  for  the  $9,485  price 
tag  and  fills  a  long  felt  need. 

The  De  Luxe  model,  which  Ryan  has 
vastly  improved  during  its  two  years  of 
production,  has  been  further  refined  for 
1950.  Most  important  is  the  installation 
of  manually  controlled  engine  cowl  flaps 
as  standard  equipment.  These  cowl  flops, 
together  with  the  cylinder  heod  tempero- 
ture  gauge  which  has  been  added,  will 
ossure  even  more  reliable  engine  opera- 
tion. The  flaps  will  provide  greatly  im- 
proved engine  cooling,  particularly  in  the 
climb,  while  the  cylinder  head  tempera- 
ture gauge  will  minimize  the  possibility 
of  pilots  overheating  their  engines. 

In  addition,  the  1950  De  Luxe  models 
will  be  offered  in  three  striking  new  colors 
— Ceramic  Red,  Gala  Green  and  Coastal 
Blue.  Flexible  hose  has  replaced  rigid 
plumbing  to  flap  and  nose  gear  actuating 
cylinders.  Better  radio  performance  has 
been  assured  by  adding  fin-to-elevator 
antennae  to  that  previously  provided  from 
fuseloge  to  fin.  A  new  cabin  air  intake 
arrangement  now  gives  increased  fresh- 
air  circulotion  and   better  ventilation. 


In  the  Receiving  Inspection  Depart- 
ment a  great  number  of  parts,  varying 
from  the  smallest  screw  to  the  largest 
rocket  nose,  which  are  made  by  Ryan's 
many  vendors,  are  checked  by  the  preci- 
sion inspectors  in  that  area.  So  wide  and 
varied  are  the  requirements  in  this  area 
that  practically  every  type  of  inspection 
equipment  presently  in  use  in  the  aircraft 
industry  is  used  to  insure  that  parts  re- 
ceived meet  Engineering  and  Ryan  stand- 
ards of  quality  and  workmanship. 


This  small  but  invaluable  group  of  care- 
ful workmen  within  the  larger  frame- 
work of  the  Inspection  Department  know 
that  customer  acceptance  and  the  personal 
safety  of  thousands  of  pilots,  aircraft 
owners  and  passengers  is  in  their  hands. 
Every  aid  which  modern  Ingenuity  has 
devised  to  check  the  strength  and  usabil- 
ity of  aircraft  parts  and  assemblies  are 
employed  by  this  select  group  in  their 
daily  work.  In  this  type  of  inspection 
there  can  be  no  compromise  with  quality. 


17 


INVESTOR-STOCKHOLDER 

(Continued  from  page  8) 
is  a  laundry  room  in  the  basement  where 
Mrs.  Hege  does  the  family's  clothes,  as  she 
does  most  of  the  other  household  work. 
The  kitchen  is  their  pride,  for  it  incor- 
porates their  own  ideas  of  convenience  and 
comfort.  There  is  a  fireplace  in  one  corner. 
An  old  studio  couch  where  Dan  Hege  can 
take  a  nap  after  lunch  contrasts  with  the 
gleaming  enamel  electric  stove  and  refrig- 
erator. It  probably  doesn't  resemble  the 
kitchen  in  the  farm  home  in  Kansas  where 
Hege  was  born  and  reared  during  the  early 
part  of  this  century,  but  it  is  a  typical, 
ample  ranch  home  kitchen  of  1949  and 
represents  the  careful  planning  and  saving 
of  two  typical  Americans. 

Like  millions  of  other  Americans,  the 
Heges  are  stockholders;  investors  in  the 
economic  system  which  made  their  electric 
stove  and  refrigerator  possible,  put  a  car 
in  their  garage.  What  makes  them  of  in- 
terest in  this  article  is  that  they  are  Ryan 
stockholders. 

Since  1939,  Daniel  Hege  has  owned  100 
shares  of  the  company's  stock.  "Claude 
Ryan's  record  looked  good  to  me,"  he  says 
in  explaining  the  reason  for  his  purchase," 
"and  I  thought  the  company  would  be 
good,  too." 

Hege  seems  to  have  no  regret  of  his 
purchase,  for  he  has  held  it  for  the  past 
10  years  and  plans  to  continue  as  a  part 
owner  of  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company. 

The  couple  also  hold  shares  in  several 
other  companies  and  think  stock  invest- 
ment is  a  sound  way  to  employ  one's  sav- 
ings. As  Hege  sees  it,  "It's  a  place  to  put 
your  savings;  you'll  get  something  out  of 
it  and  you'll  be  providing  jobs  for  others." 

Because  of  his  Kansas  youth,  Dan  Hege 
is  a  great  admirer  of  William  Allen  White. 
Like  that  famous  small  town  newspaper 
editor  with  his  individualistic  approach 
to  American  life  and  politics,  Hege  is  also 
a  great  believer  in  "furnishing  your  own 
security  with  your  own  energy  and  fore- 
sight." 

He  shares  many  of  the  late  Mr.  White's 
critical  views  on  Socialism  and  the  welfare 
state  and  believes  government  "deficit 
spending"  is  a  sure  way  toward  those  twin 
evils.  His  own  thrift  has  resulted  in  a 
beautiful,  productive  property  which  he 
has  built  up  to  a  high  level  of  fertility  dur- 
ing the  eight  years  he  has  owned  it  after 
leaving  the  Security-First  National  Bank 
in  Los  Angeles. 

"And  I  like  ranching,"  Hege  said  as 
he  gazed  out  over  the  Escondido  valley. 
"A  ranch  is  a  good  place  to  rear  children, 
too.  I  don't  think  our  son  Malcolm  would 
have  had  the  fun  living  in  a  city  he  does 
out  here.  There  is  always  something  for 
him  to  do  around  the  place.  It  keeps 
thirteen-year-olds  out  of  trouble." 


Yes,  Hege  likes  working  in  one  of  the 
country's  most  financially  risky  enter- 
prises: citrus  and  avocado  growing  and 
marketing.  He  likes  being  a  small  investor 
in  several  other  enterprises,  too.  But  most 
of  all  he  enjoys  "furnishing  his  own  se- 
curity through  his  own  energy  and  fore- 
sight," like  millions  of  other  stockholders 
and  Americans. 


DIRECTOR  PASSES 


Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  lost  the 
valued  counsel  of  a  member  of  its 
Board  of  Directors  and  one  of  its  orig- 
inal stockholders  with  the  unfortunate 
passing  in  December  of  Frank  N,  Phil- 
lips, Providence,  Rhode  Island,  indus- 
trialist. 

In  1931,  on  incorporation  of  the  com- 
pany, Phillips  became  the  first  financial 
backer,  other  than  T.  Claude  Ryan,  of 
the  new  enterprise.  At  that  time  he  was 
the  only  outside  shareholder,  having  be- 
come acquainted  with  the  organization's 
activities  as  a  result  of  a  visit  to  San 
Diego  with  his  son  Don,  who  was  a  stu- 
dent at  the  Ryan  School  of  Aeronautics. 

Phillips  maintained  and  increased  his 
personal  and  financial  interest  as  time 
w^ent  on,  and  w^as  named  to  the  Board 
of  Directors  in  1943.  His  counsel  and 
advice  was  always  a  valuable  asset  to 
the  company.  He  spent  his  life  in  the 
steel  and  wire  business  where  he  was 
greatly  respected  for  his  fine  personal 
qualities,  leadership  and  business  knovrl- 
edge. 

Donald  Phillips,  his  son,  was  active  in 
aviation  after  obtaining  his  commercial 
pilot's  license.  After  employment  with 
the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  he 
w^ent  East  and  engaged  in  aeronautical 
activities  there.  In  193  6  he  lost  his  life 
on  a  flight  from  New  York  to  Provi- 
dence. 

In  addition  to  his  affiliation  with  the 
Ryan  organization,  Frank  N.  Phillips 
held  many  important  directorships,  in- 
cluding Washburn  Wire  Company,  of 
which  he  was  president;  American  Mu- 
tual Insurance  Co.,  Phillips  Electrical 
Works  of  Canada,  National  Exchange 
Bank,  Rhode  Island  Insurance  Co., 
Mortgage  Guarantee  and  Trust  Co., 
Rumford  Chemical  Works  and  many 
others.  His  outside  activities  included 
trusteeship  of  the  Homeopathic  Hospital 
and  a  directorship  of  the  Y.M.C.A. 


EMPLOYEE-STOCKHOLDER 

(Continued  from  page  9) 

As  Oberbauer  tells  it,  Ryan's  Vice  Pres- 
ident, Earl  D.  Prudden,  now  in  Charge  of 
Airplane  Sales,  who  in  193  5  was  General 
Manager  of  the  School,  met  him  at  the 
train.  Eddie  handed  over  his  enrollment 
money,  in  the  form  of  a  $175  certified 
check,  and  was  welcomed  enthusiastically. 
In  a  matter  of  minutes,  he  was  down  at 
Lindbergh  Field  and  on  a  conducted  tour 
of  the  small  school  and  the  factory  which 
was  just  then  beginning  to  build  Ryan  S-T 
training  planes.  When  Prudden  and  Ober- 
bauer finished  the  short  tour  and  returned 
to  the  plant  offices  for  formal  enrollment, 
Eddie  asked,  "Where  is  the  school?" 

"You've  just  been  through  it,"  Prudden 
replied,  and  went  on  filling  out  the  reg- 
istration blanks. 

Before  Oberbauer  finished  his  term  at 
school,  he  began  earning  "flying  time"  by 
doing  janitor  work  in  the  offices  and  shop 
at  night.  His  pay  was  pilot  instruction 
and  he  got  his  private  license  before  he 
was  graduated  from  the  six-month  me- 
chanic's course.  Upon  his  graduation  he 
rose  from  the  ranks  of  janitor  to  main- 
tenance and  repair  mechanic  on  the  S-Ts. 

Advancing  steadily  he  became  foreman 
in  the  Experimental  Department  in  1939 
when  Ryan  was  working  on  the  YO-51 
"Dragonfly,"  an  Army  liaison  plane.  Other 
promotions  and  other  jobs  supervising 
mechanical  work  on  S-Cs  and  S-Ts,  which 
Ryan  was  building  in  the  pre-war  and 
early  war  years,  were  in  order  for  the 
hard-working  Oberbauer. 

It  was  in  1939,  when  another  issue  of 
Ryan  stock  was  made  available,  that  Eddie 
bought  his  share  of  the  company.  He  has 
held  his  100  shares  ever  since  and  doesn't 
plan  to  do  any  trading  with  them. 

"I  haven't  bought  any  more  shares," 
Eddie  says,  "because  all  my  spare  change 
is  going  into  my  new  house."  This  house 
is  a  two-year  project  which  Eddie  is  build- 
ing with  his  own  hands,  on  a  seven  and  a 
half  acre  piece  of  property  he  bought  a 
few  years  ago  in  a  suburban  area  near  San 
Diego. 

The  house,  which  will  be  a  two-bed- 
room adobe,  has  really  been  a  full  sized 
undertaking.  All  the  laying  of  bricks,  the 
wiring,  plumbing,  land  levelling  and  roof- 
ing has  been  done  by  one  man,  named 
Oberbauer.  On  top  of  working  every 
night  of  the  week,  Eddie  has  found  time 
on  week-ends,  away  from  his  work  at  the 
plant,  to  keep  up  his  23  avocado  trees  and 
12  family  fruit  trees  which  came  with  the 
property.  Troubles  with  a  well,  the  incon- 
venience of  temporarily  living  in  a  small, 
board  shack  with  his  wife  and  three  small 
children,  hasn't  daunted  this  stockholder 
in  American  business. 

(Continued  on  page  19) 


EMPLOYEE-STOCKHOLDER 

(Continued  from  page  IS) 
"The  house  will  be  finished  soon,"  he 
muses,  "and  then  maybe  we  can  relax." 
His  wife,  too,  on  top  of  caring  for  a  4- 
year-old,  a  2-year-old  and  a  10-month-old 
baby,  has  found  time  to  help  with  the 
painting.  But  Eddie  Oberbauer  comes 
from  a  race  of  hardy  American  individ- 
ualists. His  father  homesteaded  his  first 
farm  in  Montana  just  after  the  turn  of 
the  century,  and  the  Oberbauers  know 
what  hard  work  and  thrift  can  produce. 
This  Foreman  in  Ryan's  Final  Assembly 
Department  is  just  one  more  example  of 
"stockholders  being  people" — people  who 
know  the  value  of  a  dollar  and  where  to 
put  it  to  the  best  use. 


IMAGINEER" 


Finding  hidden  rivet  holes  has  often 
been  described  as  similar  to  looking  for  a 
needle  in  a  haystack.  Gayle  De  La  Mater, 
an  experienced  Ryan  production  assembler 
and  "imagineer"  has  solved  the  problem 
with  an  ingenious  instrument  of  his  own 
design. 

De  La  Mater  has  worked  on  the  idea  for 
a  year,  drawing  on  his  nine  years'  experi- 
ence with  Ryan  to  produce  a  precision  tool 
of  professional  caliber. 

In  aircraft  assembly  work,  overlapping 
sheets  of  aluminum  skin  often  cover  un- 
derskin  which  has  been  drilled  for  rivet 
holes.  Locating  the  hidden  holes  requires 
time-consuming  measurements  and  often 
results  in  holes  not  precisely  lined-up  with 
those  in  the  often  inaccessible  under-skin. 

De  La  Mater  has  short-cut  the  previous 
method  by  designing  two  small  hand  tools 
which  make  use  of  magnetic  principles  to 
locate  the  hidden  holes.  The  operator 
places  a  small,  pointed,  permanent  magnet 
in  the  rivet  hole  in  the  under-skin.  A 
flashlight-like  instrument  with  batteries, 
light  and  needle-pointer  is  moved  over  the 
outer  skin,  and  by  means  of  magnetism 
finds  and  marks  the  exact  location  to  drill 
a  hole  which  lines  up  precisely  with  the 
hidden  rivet  hole. 


PLANES  IN  THE  NEWS... 


Following  are  news  items  reporting  on  new  developments  in  both  military  and  commercial  aircraft, 
new  records  and  other  information  of  interest  to  REPORTER  readers.  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany is  justly  proud  of  the  part  its  products  are  playing  to  help  the  advancement  of  American 
aviation,  for  these  products  are  an  integral  part  of  most  of  the  planes  which  make  news  in  the 
world  of  aviation  every  day. 


bringing  total  bomb  load  on  this  type 
mission  to  14  tons.  Over  200  B-50Ds  are 
on  order  for  the  Air  Force,  with  deliveries 
scheduled  into  the  latter  part  of  the  year. 
On  the  Boeing  B-SODs: 
Ryan  Exhaust  Collectors 


FASTEST  FRISCO-L.  A.  San  Francisco 
to  Los  Angeles  in  2  minutes  less  than 
an  hour  at  on  overage  speed  of  350  mph. 
That's  real  transport  speed.  Test  pilots 
Lorry  Peyton  and  Russell  Thaw  recently 
chalked  up  that  new  mark  for  commercial 
aircraft  flying  the  Douglas  DC-6A  pro- 
totype. Tailwind  was  negligible  and  load 
was  described  as  "about  normal."  Aboard 
were  1  1  passengers  and  a  jeep  which  the 
"Liftmaster"  demonstration  plane  carries 
to  provide  its  own  ground  transportation. 
On  the  Douglas  DC-6A: 
Ryan   Exhaust  Stacks 


1 


DROP    TANKS    FOR    BOEING    B-50Ds. 

Delivery  to  the  Air  Force  of  Boeing  B-50D 
Superfortress  bombers  equipped  with 
droppoble  fuel  tanks  hos  begun.  Grossing 
1  64,500  pounds,  the  "D"  has  a  top  speed 
of  400-plus  mph  and  a  normal  range  of 
over  6000  miles. 

With  700-gallon  capacity  external  fuel 
tanks,  one  under  each  wing  outboard  of 
the  No.  I  and  4  engines,  range  is  greatly 
increased.  When  not  needed  for  maximum 
range,  the  two  wing  tank  fittings  can  be 
used    to    carry    two    400-pound     bombs. 


y>t 


TOPS  IN  SAFETY.  Navy  Patrol  Squad- 
ron 4  is  the  first  unit,  irrespective  of  the 
type  aircraft  assigned,  to  win  three  quar- 
terly safety  awards  consecutively.  For 
this  reason  and  for  their  outstanding 
safety  record  in  piloting  their  Lockheed 
P2Vs,  Navy  Patrol  Squadron  4  recently 
were  presented  The  Fleet  Air  West  Coast 
P2V  flight  safety  award. 

The  squadron  flew  a  total  of  3707  ac- 
cident-free hours  from  July  1948  to  April 
1949   in   the  Seattle  and  Alaskan   areas. 
On  the  Lockheed  P2Vs: 
Ryan  Jet  Stack  Exhaust  Systems 


LOADED.  Largest  passenger  load  ever 
to  fly  the  Atlantic  in  a  heavier-than-oir 
craft  was  the  1  03-passenger  list  recentiv 
aboard  on  Air  Force  Douglas  C-74  Globe- 
master  en  route  from  England.  This  same 
Globemoster  hod  previously  set  a  per- 
formance record  of  240-hour  utilization 
in  September,  1949,  and  was  a  veteran 
of  the  Berlin  Airlift,  where  it  had  deliv- 
ered 225,000  pounds  of  coal  in  one  day. 
On  the  Douglas  C-74: 
Ryan   Exhaust  Stacks 


19 


QUOTED 
BRIEFLY... 


And  To 
Tlie  Point 


Too  few  of  us  have  the  ability  to  put  into 
words  some  of  the  basic  truths  of  America's 
greatness.  When  the  editors  run  across  a  par- 
ticularly potent  phrase,  we  like  to  pass  it 
along  to  Ryan  Reporter  readers,  for  example: 


"Too  many  people  want  to  lean  upon  the 
government,  forgetting  that  the  govern- 
ment must  lean  upon  the  people.  Too 
many  people  are  thinking  of  security  in- 
stead of  opportunity.  They  seem  more 
afraid  of  life  than  of  death." 

— James  F.  Byrnes, 

Former  Secretary  of  State 


"In  family  life,  if  we  spend  more  than  we 
make  we  are  dispossessed.  I  don't  see  how 
a  nation  can  expect  different  treatment." 

— General  Dwight  D.  Eisenhower 


"Not  a  day  passes  but  what  I  give  thanks 
that  I  was  not  innoculated,  in  my  early 
years,  with  the  philosophy  of  assured 
security.  Security  must  be  earned  if  it  is 
to  have  any  meaning;  to  accept  unearned 
security  is  to  become  the  slave  of  the  dis- 
penser. Yet  on  every  side  today  we  ob- 
serve a  growing  adherence  to  the  idea 
that  the  world  or  the  nation  or  somebody 
owes  us  a  living;  that  we  should  enjoy 
more  rewards  for  less  effort;  that  a  whole- 
sale 'humanitarianism'  should  take  the 
place  of  individualism." 

— W.  A.  Patterson, 

President  of  United  Air  Lines 


.    11  JAN.    13,   1950  No.    1 

Piihlnhcd  By 

Ryan  Aeronautical  Company 

Lindbergh  Field 

San   Diego    12,   California 


Richard  Timmis,  editor 
ranees  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  editt 
Robert  F.  Smith,  Navion  news  editor 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographer 
William  Wagner,  editorial  director 


75  MILES  STRAIGHT  UP 

(Continued  from  page  11  j 
subsidiary  Ryan  received  its  contracts  for 
the  missile's  needle-like  nose  section,  the 
tail  cone,  booster  and  main  rocket  body 
fins,  shrouds,  fairings  and  other  com- 
ponents. These  are  built  in  Ryan's  experi- 


Jim  Southwick,  experimental  depart- 
ment worker,  installs  fairing  where 
fins    attach    to    the    rocket    tail    cone. 


mental  department  where  the  company's 
own  guided  missile  and  pilotless  aircraft 
production  work  takes  place. 

A  portion  of  the  components  of  the 
first  20  Aerobees  was  sub-contracted  by 
Aerojet  to  Douglas  Aircraft  Company, 
Santa  Monica.  The  original  project  was 
under  the  technical  supervision  of  the  Ap- 
plied Physics  Laboratory  of  Johns  Hopkins 
University.  The  design  of  the  Aerobee  was 
influenced  to  some  extent  by  previous 
development  sponsored  by  the  Ordnance 
Department  of  the  Army. 


Six  completed  Aerobee  nose  sections 
are  given  final  approval  by  Everett 
Worthington,    Aerojet    Representative. 


The  Aerobee  is  a  liquid-fueled  rocket, 
20  feet  long  and  pencil  thin.  It  is  only 
slightly  over  one  foot  in  diameter  and  has 
three  fins  to  provide  stability.  It  has  two- 
stage  propulsion;  that  is,  a  solid  fuel 
booster  rocket  first  brings  its  velocity  up 
to  670  m.p.h.  and  then  drops  off.  After 
that  the  sustaining  liquid-fueled  rocket 
motor  speeds  it  up  to  3000  miles  an  hour 
and  altitudes  of  7S  miles.  It  is  designed 
to  carry  a  150-  to  200-pound  pay  load  of 
scientific  instruments  which  are  blown 
from  the  nose  of  the  missile  at  the  top  of 
the  trajectory  and  lowered  by  ribbon  para- 
chute. Some  instruments  will  be  self- 
recording;     others    will    be    telemetering 


Precision  lathe  operated  by  Gordon 
Fellows  machines  casting  to  assure 
perfect     alignment     of     tail     section. 


types  automatically  transmitting  data  to 
scientists  on  the  ground  during  the  flight 
of  the  rocket. 

Simple  in  design  and  comparatively  in- 
expensive to  build,  the  Aerobee  is  tired 
from  a  launching  tower  by  a  small  tech- 
nical crew  using  a  minimum  of  costly  in- 
stallation and  firing  facilities. 


WHEN  WINTER  COMES 

(Continued  from  page  13) 

delivering  mail  on  a  rural  route  and  mak- 
ing emergency  passenger  flights. 

Scores  of  landings  and  takeoffs  gave  the 
Navion  a  rugged  test.  The  all-round  vis- 
ibility of  the  plane's  sliding  canopy  was 
a  real  asset,  for  on  more  than  one  occasion 
Kooper  had  to  find  his  way  to  the  Alliance 
airport  by  following  ranch  fence  hnes. 
Carburetor  heat  had  to  be  used  continually 
on  one  320-mile  flight  when  the  tempera- 
ture was  30  degrees  below  zero. 

Often  Kooper  loaded  150  pounds  of 
groceries  —  sugar,  flour,  bread,  canned 
goods — packaged  in  burlap,  into  his  Nav- 
ion. Despite  the  zero  weather,  the  plane 
almost  invariably  started  easily.  Take-offs 
were  routine  from  the  Alliance  Airport 
once  the  plane  reached  the  head  of  the 
runway.  But  getting  there  was  a  real 
heavy-duty  chore  for  the  landing  gear, 
as  it  required  threading  through  the  deep, 
rough  and  frozen  cut  made  by  a  rotary 
snow  plow  to  serve  as  a  taxi-strip. 

Dropping  the  packages,  too,  called  for 
real  airmanship  and  confidence  in  the 
plane's  stability  at  low  speeds.  Kooper 
would  circle  isolated  farm  houses,  turn 
into  the  wind,  ease  the  throttle,  put  on 
full  flaps  with  the  gear  up,  open  the  can- 
opy, drop  to  about  80  feet  above  the 
ground  and  reduce  air  speed  to  70  miles 
an  hour.  Laying  the  burlap-wrapped  pack- 
age on  the  wing,  Kooper  would  let  go  so 
the  prop  wash  would  sweep  it  off  the 
wing,  and  with  almost  pin-point  precision 
drop  it  into  the  yard. 

Medicine  for  sick  children,  prescribed 
by  a  doctor  after  descriptions  of  the  ill- 
ness by  anxious  parents;  sacks  of  repair 
parts  for  the  tractors  and  bulldozers 
which  kept  open  feed  paths  for  cattle; 
veterinary  supplies;  reconnaissance  flights 
for  ranchers  searching  for  scattered  cattle; 
aerial  mail  delivery  to  42  isolated  farms 
which  had  had  no  outside  communication 
for  six  weeks — these  were  typical  of  the 
day-in,  day-out  emergency  flights  during 
the  Great  Blizzard  of  1949. 

Probably  Kooper's  roughest  flight  was 
that  to  "By-The-Way"  ranch,  owned  by 
a  former  Governor  of  Nebraska.  "The 
landing  I  made  there,"  Kooper  says,  "was 
the  roughest  of  any  during  the  storm  per- 
iod. I  landed  on  a  lake  that  was  ridged 
with  frozen  drifts.  The  Navion's  landing 
gear  got  a  rugged  workout,  but  the  plane 
was  very  responsive  at  all  times  and  I  was 
able  to  keep  it  under  perfect  control.  The 
take-off,  too,  was  without  difficulty  de- 
spite   the    weather    and    field    condition." 

When  the  storm  abated  after  more  than 
a  month  of  such  flying,  Kooper  found  the 
plane  was  already  past  the  100-hour  check 
time.  Expecting  there  would  be  plenty  of 


service  work  to  do,  he  reported  that  "Af- 
ter all  that  rough  flying  about  all  there 
was  to  do  was  to  clean  the  plugs  and  wash 
down  the  engine." 

Fortunately  all  Navion  winter  fl)'ing 
isn't  as  strenuous  as  Kooper's  emergency 
trips.  Most  of  it  is  being  done  by  execu- 
tives and  professional  men  who  find  it  as 
important  to  maintain  business  contacts 
in  winter  as  any  other  time  of  the  year. 

In  Alaska  where  flying  is  the  prime 
method  of  travel,  conditions  are  really 
tough.  Take  it  from  Navion  owner  Rob- 
ert E.  Rice  of  Fairbanks.  It  may  sound  hke 
a  tall  tale,  and  is  certainly  not  recom- 
mended practice,  but  Rice  says  he  has 
landed  the  Navion  in  three  feet  of  snow 
drifts  and  taken  it  off  under  the  same 
conditions.  "Extreme  cold,"  he  says,  "is 
our  biggest  problem  in  year-round  opera- 
tion. Engines  must  be  pre-heated  for  use, 
and  there's  no  'warming  up'  after  they're 
started.  It's  a  case  of  take  off  quick,  be- 
cause the  longer  they  run  the  colder  they 
get." 

The  editor's  own  favorite  Navion  win- 
ter flying  story  concerns,  oddly  enough, 
a  railroad  conductor. 

Howard  Jeglum  of  Three  Forks,  Mon- 
tana, regularly  went  by  the  CAA  emer- 


gency field  at  Whitehall  on  his  run  on  the 
Northern  Pacific  Ry.  One  day  at  the 
height  of  the  blizzard  in  the  5000-ft.  alti- 
tude country  he  noted  a  Navion  which  its 
owner  had  apparently  landed  because  of 
the  storm.  Five  weeks  went  by  and  the 
plane  was  still  there.  Jcglum's  curiosity 
got  the  best  of  him.  He  found  out  the 
owner's  name  from  CAA,  phoned  Verne 
Daniels  of  Billings  and  arranged  to  return 
the  plane  to  him.  Two  days  later  the  keys 
arrived  and  Jeglum  and  a  friend  went  to 
Whitehall  to  fly  the  plane  out. 

The  Navion  had  landed  on  prairie  that 
had  been  wild  a  long  time  and  was  criss- 
crossed with  irrigation  ditches.  There  was 
no  way  to  tie  it  down  during  the  worst 
winter  Montana  ever  had,  but  the  ship 
stayed  "put"  with  only  the  hand  brake 
set,  except  to  weathercock  into  the  wind. 
Winds  up  to  70  m.p.h.  had  blown  and 
temperatures  had  dropped  as  low  at  — 40°. 
Jeglum  could  look  forward  to  a  tough 
time  getting  that  plane  started.  Yet  he 
pulled  the  prop  through  several  times, 
turned  on  the  switches,  tried  the  starter 
and  the  engine  started  right  off. 

No  wonder  the  Navion's  a  favorite  for 
winter  flying. 


Executive  Aircraft  Center  to 
Service  Navion  Owners  at  N.  Y. 


Newest  and  most  complete  "executive 
aircraft  center"  in  the  country  is  that  re- 
cently established  by  Mallard  Air  Service, 
Ryan  Navion  Distributor,  to  service  the 
Metropolitan  New  York  area. 

Designed  to  meet  the  growing  demand 
from  business  organizations  which  operate 
their  own  planes,  the  new  Mallard  facil- 
ity at  Teterboro  Air  Terminal,  New  Jersey, 
offers  Ryan  Navion  owners  24-hour  ser- 
vice, seven  days  o  week  when  traveling 
into  the  New  York  area. 

Representing  on  investment  of  a  mil- 
lion dollars,  the  huge  hangar  is  large 
enough  to  handle  Strotocruisers.  It  is  160 
by  300  feet,  and  has  doors  30  feet  high. 
There  is  a  weather-protected  loading  dock 
with  overhanging  canopy  extending  the 
full  length  of  the  hangar. 


Other  special  features  include  a  com- 
pletely equipped  operations  room  with 
facsimile  weather  mop  tronsmissions; 
teletype  service;  spacious  lounge  for 
executive  aircraft  passengers  and  another 
for  pilots,  both  including  private  offices, 
showers  and  lockers;  and  limousine  ser- 
vice to  New  York  City. 

The  Corporation  Aircraft  Owners  Asso- 
ciation has  acquired  space  at  the  new 
Executive  Aircraft  Center  for  the  use  of 
its  members.  Teterboro  Air  Terminal  has 
no  scheduled  airline  service,  and  there 
are  no  landing  fees.  Robert  M.  hiewitt, 
president  of  Mallard,  has  extended  an  in- 
vitation to  all  Navion  owners  to  visit  and 
use  the  new  facility  when  in  the  New 
York  area. 


RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY 
LINDBERGH     FIELD 
SAN  DIEGO  12,  CALIFORNIA 

POSTMASTER:    If   undcl.venblc   for    any   reason,    notif 
sender  stating  reason  on  Form  .H47,  postage  for  which 


D.N.BEEBE 

3375  RIVIERA  DRIVE 

SAN  DIEGO  9, CALIF. 


Sec.  34.66,  P.  L.  &  R. 

U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego,  California 
Permit  No.  437 


7 


i]EAIIDlN(G 

STAINIESS  STEEi 

FAB  M  CAT©  i 

F®!  Til 

AIICIAFT  ANP 

AWCBAFT  ENGINE 
NiUSTiX 


RMnn  Metal  Products 


DIVISION    OF    RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY      •      LINDBERGH     FIELD      •      SAN     DIEGO.     CALIFORNIA 

Entiaust    Systems      •      Jet    and    Rocket    Engine    Components 


REPORTER 


STyTOORUISE 

for  the 

SUPER  260 


To  GIVE  the  high-flying,  fast-cruising 
new  Ryan  Navion  Super  260  maximum 
operating  efficiency,  the  Koppers  Company 
has  developed  the  new  Strato-Cruise  220H 
propeller.  This  new  propeller  combines  all 
the  operating  advantages  of  a  full-auto- 
matic propeller  and  those  of  a  control- 
lable-pitch propeller. 

The  Strato-Cruise  propeller  introduces 
hydraulic  selective  pitch  control  to  sup- 
plement the  automatic  features  when  de- 
sired by  the  pilot. 

The  Super  Navion  is  designed  to  get 
quickly  to  higher  altitudes  to  take  advan- 
tage of  winds  aloft  and  cooler  air  for 
longer  range  flights.  This  prompted  the 
development  of  the  auxiliary  control  to 
better  the  pitch  control  requirements  for 
most  efficient  cruising  conditions. 

During  take-off,  full  take-off  power  is 
available  from  the  static  condition  of 
engine  run-up,  on  through  the  take-off 
run  and  into  the  climb.  In  the  case  of  a 
controllable  propeller,  it  is  necessary  to 
restrict  the  static  RPM  so  that  the  pro- 
peller,   when    operating    against    the    low 


pitch  stop,  will  not  overrev  in  the  climb 
at  climbing  airspeed.  At  sea  level,  this 
better  take-off  condition  is  possible  with 
the  Koppers  220H  propeller  operating 
under  its  conventional  automatic  operat- 
ing features.  However,  by  using  the 
Strato-Cruise  control  in  full  forward  posi- 
tion, this  same  take-off  advantage  is  avail- 
able at  any  altitude.  Once  the  control  is 
set,  it  is  not  necessary  for  the  pilot  to 
change  the  setting  or  touch  the  propeller 
control  during  the  take-off  and  climb. 

When  the  pilot  wants  to  level  off  and 
cruise,  he  can  set  the  propeller  at  any 
RPM  and  manifold  pressure  combination 
desired  as  long  as  it  is  within  the  recom- 
mended range  for  efficient  engine  opera- 
tion. This  is  accomplished  by  setting  the 
Strato-Cruise  control  at  any  intermediate 
point  of  its  travel.  Setting  of  the  control 
changes  the  outlet  pressure  of  the  regu- 
lating valve.  When  the  pressure  is  set  at 
a  given  point,  the  valve  automatically 
maintains  this  same  pressure  in  the  pro- 
peller control,  thus  holding  the  propeller 
RPM  practically  constant  for  a  particular 
setting. 


by  Sid  Fedan,  Koppers  Company  Propeller  Division 


In  situations  where  full  power  is  desired 
for  going  from  cruise  flight  to  climb,  the 
propeller  control  can  be  pushed  forward, 
and  the  propeller  quickly  assumes  low 
pitch,  high  RPM,  full  power  operation. 
If,  when  landing,  the  propeller  control  is 
not  set  in  low  pitch  position  but  is  left 
at  some  high  pitch  setting,  the  propeller 
will  automatically  go  into  low  pitch  upon 
application  of  full  throttle  should  a  balk 
landing  condition  arise. 


BECAUSE  we  can  no  longer  say  that 
the  wave-washed  sands  of  the  Atlan- 
tic, Gulf  and  Pacific  coasts  are  the  bound- 
aries of  our  military  vigilance,  something 
new  has  been  needed  in  man-made  wings 
to  provide  swift  global  mobility.  A  plane 
that  could  fly  farther  and  fuller  and  safer. 
A  combination  cargo  hauler,  freight  lifter, 
flying  warehouse  and  an  airborne  base  of 
supplies  rolled  into  one.  The  challenge 
was  to  provide,  if  you  will,  a  flying  LST. 


The  newest  answer  to  this  challenge  is 
the  giant  C-124  Globemaster  II  trans- 
port, the  first  of  which  recently  rolled 
out  of  the  Douglas  Aircraft  Company's 
Long  Beach  plant  and  has  already  logged 
some  30  hours  of  successful  flight. 

This  new  transport  has  a  gross  weight 
of  175,000  pounds  and  is  nearly  two  and 
one-half  times  the  size  of  the  Douglas 
C-54  Skymaster,  which  for  years  has  pro- 
vided the  bulk  of  air  lift  for  the  U.S.  Air 


Force.  Despite  this  great  disparity  in  size, 
the  Globemaster  can  operate  from  the 
same  short  fields  the  Skymaster  uses. 

Huge  clamshell  doors  in  the  nose  of 
the  C-124  provide  an  opening  11  feet  8 
inches  high  and  1 1  feet  4  inches  wide. 
With  a  built-in  nose  ramp,  this  newest 
Douglas  transport  becomes  an  airborne 
counterpart  of  the  famous  sea-going 
LSTs,  permitting  wheeled  vehicles  to  drive 
(Continued  on  page  2) 


by  Cliff  Starr,  Power  Plant  Engineer,  Douglas  Long  Beach  Plant 


After  Leon  Moore  of  Manifold  Smoll  Parts  has  checked  this  portion  of  the  C-124 
exhaust  system  for  perfect  alignment,  especially  ot  the  critical  points  where  there 
is  restrictive  clearance  within  the  small  areo  where  the  manifold  fits  around  the 
engine,  he  applies  heat  as  a  normalizing  agent  so  the  metsi  will  hold  this  alignment. 


Preliminary  teamtvork  between  Douglas  and  Ryan 

paid  big  dividends.  Pre-planning  meant 

savings  in  time  and  money  on  the 

intricate  C-124  exhaust  system. 


These  clamshell  doors  on  the  Douglas  C-124  open  wide  to  disclose  o  self-contained 
loading  romp  which  permits  wheeled  vehicles  to  drive  or  be  rolled  through  the  nose 
doors  into  the  huge  fuselage  which  provides  more  thon    10,000  cu.   ft.   cargo  space. 


or  be  rolled  through  the  nose  doors  into 
the  cavernous  fuselage  which  provides 
more  than  10,000  cubic  feet  of  usable 
cargo  space.  The  single-deck,  unobstruct- 
ed cabin  is  12  feet  10  inches  high,  13  feet 
wide  and  77  feet  in  length  (this  length 
being  equivalent  to  a  7-story  building). 
Loading  and  unloading  is  additionally 
facilitated  by  an  electrically  operated 
elevator  which  can  be  lowered  to  the 
ground  from  the  center  of  the  cargo 
section. 

The  four  engined,  heavy-duty  Globe- 
master  cargo  plane  will  be  the  largest  pro- 
duction transport  aircraft  in  military  ser- 
vice. In  it,  fifty  thousand  pounds  of  any 
kind  of  cargo  can  be  flown  approximately 
1,000  miles,  unloaded  and  the  plane  re- 
turned to  base  without  refueling,  with 
allowance  for  reserve  fuel  for  climb  and 
maneuvering.  Greatly  increased  combat 
radius  is  possible  with  lighter  loads. 

Designed  to  carry  troops,  general  cargo 
and  such  heavy  ground  and  Air  Force 
equipment  as  tanks,  field  guns,  bulldozers 
and  full  loaded  trucks,  the  C-124  will 
enable  air  transportation  of  complete  air 
and  ground  force  units  and  their  equip- 
ment. 

One  outstanding  feature  that  only  the 
C-124  has  is  the  ability  to  carry  pre-loaded 
trucks,  trailers  or  large  pre-loaded  con- 
tainers. Previously,  cargo  was  loaded  onto 
trucks,  transported  to  the  airport,  trans- 
ferred to  the  airplane  and  flown  to  its 
destination.  There  the  unloading  and  load- 
ing sequence  had  to  be  repeated  and  the 
cargo  eventually  delivered.  With  the 
C-124,  however,  pre-loaded  trucks  can  be 
driven  to  the  airport,  driven  right  up  into 
the  plane  and  off  they  go.  Upon  arrival 
at  their  destination,  the  trucks  are  driven 
right  out  of  the  plane  and  are  on  their 
wav.  This  unique  feature  cuts  the  time 
previously  required  by  SO',  . 

As  a  personnel  carrier,  the  interior  of 
the  C-124  may  be  converted  into  a 
double-deck  cabin  with  a  capacity  of  200 
troops  and  their  field  equipment.  As  an 
airborne  hospital,  the  Globemaster  ac- 
commodates 136  stretcher  patients,  plus 
S2  attendants  or  ambulatory  patients. 

It  is  powered  by  four  Pratt  &  Whitney 
R-4360  engines,  with  water  injection  and 
variable  speed  superchargers,  rated  at 
3,5  00  take-off  horsepower.  During  the 
oarlv  design  stage  of  the  C-74  Globe- 
master  I  project,  we  sent  to  the  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company  a  complete  engme 
nacelle  with  its  Pratt  &  Whitney  engine 
so  that  a  first-hand  study  of  the  power 
package  could  be  made  as  a  preliminary 
to  the  design  of  an  exhaust  system  for  it 
and  its  big  brother,  the  Globemaster  II. 
Essentially,  the  R-4360  power  plant  is 
four  7-cyKnder  radial  engines,  bolted  to- 
gether to  form  a  compact  unit  of  11,000 
precision-made,  jewel-like  parts.  It  is  the 


Douglas'  175,000  pound  Globemasfer  II  is  nearly  two  and  one-half  times  the  size  of  the  C-54  Skymoster,  but  the  C-124  can 
operate  from  the  same  short  fields.   It  is  o   combination   cargo  hauler,  freight  lifter,  and  airborne  supply  base  rolled  into  one. 


ultimate  in  rhythmic  control  of  confined 
explosions  —  21  explosions  per  second  in 
each  of  the  28  cylinders.  And,  from  each 
of  these  cylinders,  which  develop  more 
horsepower  than  most  automobile  engines, 
spew  out  great  volume  of  searing  gases. 

This  was  the  beginning  of  many  con- 
sultations between  myself  and  Jack  Zipp- 
wa!d.  Southern  California  Sales  Engineer 
for  Ryan.  He  in  turn  worked  closely  with 
Ted  Hacker,  Ryan  Project  Engineer,  and 
Ralph  Haver,  now  Assistant  Chief  Inspec- 
tor, on  the  exhaust  system  design  problem. 

In  the  C-124,  as  in  most  aircraft,  the 
power  package  had  to  be  designed  with  a 
minimum  frontal  area  for  engine  nacelles, 
to  provide  the  least  possible  aerodynamic 
drag.  Add  to  this  problem  the  volcanic 
blast  of  exhaust  gases  which  the  world's 
largest  piston-type  production  engine  gen- 
erates and  you  have  a  fair  idea  of  the  good 
job  which  Hacker  and  Haver  accom- 
plished in  their  design  work. 

The  Ryan  exhaust  system  taps  the  2  8 
cylinders  by  a  series  of  "Siamese  Stacks" 
which  lie  in  each  of  the  7  troughs  between 
the  rows  of  cylinders.  These  are  called 
"Siamese  Stacks"  because  each  stack 
scavenges  the  exhaust  from  two  exhaust 
ports.  Due  to  the  landing  gear  require- 
ments of  the  aircraft,  the  main  landing 
gear  wheels  were  required  to  retract  up- 
ward and  inward  in  the  inboard  engine 
nacelles.  This  complicated  the  exhaust 
system  by  requiring  the  design  to  have  all 
the  exhaust  outlets  exit  above  the  leading 
edge  of  the  wing  so  that  there  would  be 
no  chance  of  carbon  monoxide  entering 
the  airplane  itself.  Eight  of  the  stacks 
were  individually  routed  directly  to  the 
(Continued  on  page  21 ) 


The  Ryan-built  ex- 
haust system  as  in- 
stalled on  the  C-124 
was  designed  so  that 
all  power  plant  parts 
ore  interchangeable. 
This  means  that 
when  the  C-124  is 
in  the  field  a  min- 
imum amount  of 
spore  parts  are  re- 
quired to  maintain 
the    power    package. 


by  Tom  Ashley,  Managing  Editor,  Southern  Flight 


"This  field,  about  3,500  feet  total  length,  is  located  at  Glenwood  Springs  ond  is 
probably  one  of  the  prettiest  places  we  hit  in  Colorado.  Excellent  fishing  ond 
hunting    facilities    are    available    and    it's    a    swell    place    for    anybody    to    vacation." 


DESPITE  our  prairie  preferences  (being 
from  Texas),  we  listened  to  so  many 
of  Les  Bowman's  mountain  flying  and 
hunting  tales  that  we  had  to  go  to  the 
Great  Rockies  to  see  for  ourselves.  Bow- 
man, be  it  emphasized,  sells  Navions  in 
Texas  when  not  hunting  or  fishing  in 
Wyoming's  bountiful  wilderness,  where  he 
has  demonstrated  enough  outdoors  savvy 
to  rate  a  guide's  license.  Being  an  author- 
ity on  both  Navions  and  the  Rockies, 
he's  apt  to  wax  eloquent  and  then  some  if 
allowed  to.  With  us,  his  touting  was  end- 
less until  we  found  ourselves — the  both 
of  us — planning  a  mountain  junket  as 
the  basis  for  a  Navion  travel  story. 

Came  spring  and  with  it  the  yen  to  get 
up  and  go.  Then  suddenly  our  telephone 
rang.  "We'll  leave  Sunday  if  you  can 
be  ready,"  said  friend  Les.  "Let's  get  an 
early  start  and  we'll  fly  from  the  Mexican 
border  up  the  Continental  Divide  to 
Canada.  Can  you  meet  me  at  the  airport?" 
After  a  Dallas  breakfast  and  an  El  Paso 
lunch  on  the  appointed  Sunday,  we  put 
the  205-hp.  Navion  into  a  mile-high  pas- 
ture 40  miles  from  nowhere  but  still  west 
of  old  Silver  Citv,  N.M.  There  Bowman 


gave  us  a  quickie  introduction  to  moun- 
tain flying  the  easy  way — we  would  work 
up  the  gentle  slopes  by  tackling  the  near- 
by Continental  Divide  at  a  mere  7,000  ft. 
elevation.  But  before  night  fell  we  had 
climbed  far  north  and  into  the  rough 
Sangre  de  Cristo  range,  in  which  we  found 
Eagle  Nest,  N.M.,  and  its  ski-run  flight 
strip.  Back  in  Albuquerque  we  had  heard 
confused  reports  that  Eagle  Nest  was 
closed,  or  was  too  soft,  or  was  too  rough. 
So  we  buzzed  it  to  make  sure  and  landed. 

We  came  to  appreciate  the  Navion's 
short-field  characteristics  at  this  rugged 
air  strip,  which  is  100  ft.  higher  at  one 
end  than  the  other,  and  has  an  elevation 
of  about  8,400  ft.  above  sea  level.  As  alti- 
tude and  temperature  go  up,  lift  and 
horsepower  drop  off.  There's  a  very  pre- 
cise mathematical  formula  for  this  effect. 
For  example,  at  5  5  degrees  Fahrenheit  an 
airplane's  take-off  run  from  Eagle  Nest's 
elevation  is  increased  by  260',  while  its 
rate  of  climb  is  slashed  by  80' r.  That's 
why  mountain  fliers  take  off  downhill, 
land  uphill  and  often  stay  on  the  ground 
in  the  heat  of  the  afternoon. 

We  thought  of  these  facts  next  morn- 
ing while  trolling  for  giant  Rainbow  trout 
in  the  resort's  picturesque  lake.  Then, 
after  a  hefty  lunch  with  the  thermometer 

(Continued  on  page  20) 


"This  runway  af  Glenwood  Springs,  Colorado,  elevation  5,900  ft.  is  locoted  in  a  nar- 
row valley  rimmed  by  sheer  slopes  and  only  a  stone's  throw  from  the  Roaring  Fork 
River.    I    couldn't   wait  to   go   fishing    and    in    only    2    minutes    hod    made    o    big    catch." 


"We  rounded  up  this  herd  of  antelope  in  one  low-level  circle,  then 
photographed  them.  The  scene  is  on  the  great  sage  plains  at  7,000  ft. 
elevation  between  Lander  and  Laramie,  Wyo.,  near  the  Rattlesnake  Mtns. 
The  Ryan  Navion  is  ideal  for  spotting  game  at  low  level  and  slow  speeds." 


"Taking  off  from  Creede,  Colorado,  elevation  8,700  feet,  temperature  62  degrees,  take-off  run  was  made  in  only  t,100  feet. 
You  may  note  the  fence  immediately  bock  of  the  dust  we  hove  kicked  up.  There  is  a  road  this  side  of  that  fence,  so  that 
the    first    hundred    feet    from    the     fence    could     not    be     used.     Flaps   appear   to    be    in    full-down    position    but    we    used    only    30°." 


^r'^^^'^^^'^^'^M.r 


fcS'^W'-*--'-'^*^-'*'-^ 


(Above)  A  small  portion  of  the  enclosed  area  known 
as  the  Experimental  Dept.  which  in  effect  is  a  minia- 
ture aircraft  plant  all  its  own.  Ken  Pixley  (below) 
guides  the  Keller  Duplicating  machine  around  a  tem- 
plate to  moke  a  special  part  for  one  of  the  projects. 


IF  your  badge  is  in  order,  your  pass 
cleared,  you  may  walk  through  the 
green  door  marked  RESTRICTED. 
Through  this  door  and  behind  the  high 
wall  in  the  Final  Assembly  Building  is  the 
department  where  the  planes  and  missiles 
of  the  future  are  being  assembled  today. 

The  department's  title  is  "Experimen- 
tal," but  this  is  a  slight  misnomer.  The 
men  and  women  who  work  here  are  not 
operating  by  trial  and  error.  They  know 
what  they're  doing  in  the  field  of  advanced 
aircraft  design  and  manufacture,  even 
though  the  models  they  build  are  ahead 
of  their  time  in  design  and  performance. 

Within  the  24,000  square  feet  enclosed 
by  the  wall  is  practically  a  complete  air- 
craft plant  in  miniature.  There  is  a  ma- 
chine shop,  a  tooling  department,  sheet 
metal  fabrication  area,  assembly  line  and 
numerous  other  plant  facilities,  all  func- 
tioning to  produce  confidential  or  re- 
stricted types  of  planes  and  missiles  as 
their  designs  are  completed  by  Ryan  Engi- 
neering Department. 

Like  the  "non-classitied"  departments 
of  the  company,  the  Experimental  group 
has  its  own  tool  planning,  production 
planning  and  production  control  set-up. 
Work  in  progress  is  expedited  by  Experi- 
mental's    own    dispatching    organization. 


BEHIl 


« 


is  tvhere  the  planes  and  missiles  of 
the  future  are  being  assembled 
today. 


Only  the  really  big  stainless  steel  or 
aluminum  sheet  parts  which  require  the 
hydropresses,  drop  hammers  or  other  heavy 
equipment  are  farmed  out  to  the  main 
factory  floor. 

In  the  past  two  years  the  men  working 
under  General  Foreman  Kenny  KruU  have 
turned  out  such  diverse  projects  as  the 
rocket-powered  Ryan  "Firebird,"  the  Air 
Force's  first  air-to-air  guided  missile;  the 
XQ-2,  pilotless  jet  "drone"  plane;  and 
Aerobee  sounding  rockets  for  Aerojet  En- 
gineering Corp.,  as  well  as  numerous  Ryan 
Navion  modifications  and  structural 
changes  for  the  F-82  "Twin  Mustang" 
and  B-26  planes  from  which  the  "Fire- 
birds" were  launched  during  guided  mis- 
sile flight  testing  at  Holloman  Air  Base, 
Alamogordo,  New  Mexico. 

When  Krull  first  went  to  work  in  the 
Experimental  Department,  10  years  ago, 
it  was  a  young,  small  organization,  in  a 
small  space.  Since  then  he  has  seen  it  grow 
to  far  greater  proportions  and  turn  out 
such  well-known  experimental  jobs  as  the 
Ryan  XFR-1  "Fireball,"  and  its  faster, 
more  lethal  conversions,  the  XFR-4,  the 
XF2R-1  "Dark  Shark"  and  the  Model  30 
XF2R-2  during  the  war  years.  With  the 
accent  on  guided  projectiles  and  jet-pro- 
(Contimied  on  page  22) 


z?e  A^/IV/O/V  LOOK 


During  the  war  it  w^as  my  privilege  to  develop,  in 
conjunction  wth  "The  Aeroplane,**  a  series  of 
"Oddentification"  caricatures  of  military  aircraft 
which  were  widely  used  to  help  teach  aircraft 
recognition.  We  discovered  that  while  many  do 
not  react  altogether  favorably  to  a  subject  when 
it  is  presented  seriously,  pretty  nearly  everybody  is 
open  to  humorous  approach.  A  good  caricature 
should  do  more  than  exaggerate  prominent  features 
— it  should  also  portray  personality.  And  what 
personality  the  Ryan  Navion  has!  I  found  that  out 
when  the  Ryan  folks  asked  me  to  look,  through  the 
artist*s    eye,    at    the    Navion.     Here's    what    I    saw. 

—  CHRIS  E.  A.  WREN 


FUG^r  STABILITY - 


"^^^^^^ -/or  Hun^  _ 


HOW  WAS  RYAN  BU 


ON  THIS  PAGE  — 

FINANCIAL  SUMMARY  OF  1949 

Ji        FOR  RYAN  PRODUCTS,  OUR  CUSTOMERS  PAID  US $15,014,564 

In  making  these  products  for  customers,  Ryan  paid 
the  following  bills  during  the  year: 


D         Cost  of  Human  Energy  paid  for  in  Wages  and  Salaries $  7,376,754 

n         Cost  of  Materials  and  Services  Bought  from  Others 6,446,450 

n         Cost  of  Tools  Wearing  Out 195,894 

(The  accounting  term  is  Depreciation) 

p          Cost  of  Payments  Ordered  by  Government 637,414 

(Federal,  State  and  Local  Taxes) 

p          Cost  of  Using  the  Tools  of  Production 358,052 

(The  accounting  term  is  Profit)  

TOTAL  SPENT  DURING  THE  YEAR $15,014,564 


100.0'/c 


49.2% 

42.8%, 

1.3%c 

4.3% 

2.4% 
lOO.O^c 


I 


Depicted  somewhot  in  the  character  of  an  exhaust  system, 
this  chart  shows  the  source  of  revenues  and  their  flow  into 
a  common  $15,014,564  income  pool,  and  how  this  total 
income  for  fiscal  1949  was  drown  off  and  distributed 
between  payroll,  materials,  depreciation,  taxes,  and  the  cost 
of  using  the  tools  of  production.  Note  that  neorly  half  of  ell 
the  money  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  took  in  lost  year 
was  paid  out   for  "humon   energy"   to  employees   in   wages. 


;iNE$$  LAST  YEAR? 


ON  THIS  PAGE  — 


A. 


FACTS  BEHIND  THE  FIGURES 


OUR  CUSTOMERS  PAID  US 

For  products  of  our  Airplane  Division $   8,736,821 

For  items  of  our  Metal  Products  Division 6,277,743 

A  total  of $15,014,564 

Work  in  the  Airplane  Division  falls  into  three  groups:  (1)  Ryan  Navion  personal-business  planes; 
(2)  Manufacture  of  airplane  components  for  other  companies,  and  (3)  Development  and  manufacture 
of  new  experimental   research-type  aircraft   and   other  products  for  the  military  services. 

The  Ryan  Navion  production  and  sales  volume  for  fiscal  1949  was  smaller  than  for  1948.  Taken 
alone,  the  Navion  program  resulted  in  a  loss  this  past  year  because  of  the  lower  sales  volume,  which 
closely  paralleled  the  experience  of  all  personal-business  plane  manufacturers  as  a  group.  At  the  close  of 
1948,  165  Ryan  Navion  L-17Bs  were  on  contract  for  the  Army  Field  Forces  and  the  National  Guard. 
These  and  220  Ryan  Navions  for  the  commercial  market  brought  the  year's  total  sales  to  383  compared 
with  48  5  for  1948. 

Sub-contract  work  for  other  companies  was  in  good  volume  and  consisted  largely  of  Boeing  rear 
fuselage  sections.  The  company  is  at  present  bidding  for  a  considerable  volume  for  sub-contract  work 
on  major  airframe  components  for  other  manufacturers  and  it  is  anticipated  this  activity  will  represent 
a  substantial  volume  in   1950. 

Our  military  aircraft  research  program  has  centered  around  the  Ryan  XQ-2  jet-propelled  pilotless  target 
plane,  which  is  considered  to  have  excellent  future  possibilities,  and  the  Firebird  guided  missile,  which 
was  largely  completed  during  the  year.  Some  phases  of  the  Firebird  project  are  still  active  and,  in  addi- 
tion, an  engineering  design  and  research  project  for  the  U.  S.  Navy,  Bureau  of  Aeronautics,  is  being  con- 
tinued. 

The  principal  activity  of  the  Metal  Products  Division    is    the   engineering    and    manufacture    of    steel 

(Continued  on  Page  17) 


To  make  the  Employee,  Stockholder  and  Customer  "gears" 
of  the  American  industrial  machine  mesh  properly  is  the 
three-fold  job  of  Management.  When  the  machine  runs 
smoothly,  everyone  benefits.  Employees  get  good  wages; 
investors  get  a  fair  return  on  the  savings  they  have  risked 
to  buy  the  tools  of  production;  and  customers  receive 
"their  money's  worth"  in  the  goods  produced.  It  takes 
real   management  skill  to  serve  three   masters  equally  well. 


JET  PROFICIENCY 


Unique  among  manufacturers  of  Jet  Engine  Components, 
Ryan  also  designs,  builds  and  flies  jet  aircraft. 


CofnpfcsBor.     Ccmbusrion  Cho'nber.      T' 


SketO 
concci 


Bank 
Ryan 


of   General    Electric    1-16    jet  engines  on   final    assembly    line    during    wortime    manufacture    of 
FR-1    composite-engined    Fireball    fighters.    1-16    was    first    mass    production    engine    in    U.  S. 


Special  techniques  Ryan  has  developed  with  heot- 
and  corrosion-resistant  stainless  steels  played 
large     part    in    developing     jet    engine    afterburner. 


ALTHOUGH  widely  recognized  as  a 
pioneer  aircraft  manufacturer  of  28 
years  standing,  it  is  not  so  generally  real- 
ized that  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  is 
the  only  fabricator  of  high-temperature 
jet  engine  components  who  is  able  to  draw 
upon  the  first-hand  experience  of  years  of 
designing,  building  and  flymg  jet-powered 
aircraft. 

This  invaluable  know-how  is  the  ac- 
cumulation of  hundreds  of  hours  of  actual 
flight  test  data  gleaned  from  engineering 
and  flying  piloted  jet  planes  and  pilotless 
rocket-powered  missiles.  It  has  been  fur- 
ther supplemented  by  working  closely 
with  leading  aircraft  and  engine  manu- 
facturers in  the  development  of  new  jet 
planes  and  power  plants,  and  by  research 
conducted  in  Ryan's  own  test  cells. 

Ryan's  jet  experience  dates  almost  from 
the  first  development  of  thermal-jet  power 
in  this  country.  Shortly  after  the  Vi'hittle 
engine  was  first  brought  to  the  United 
States,  Ryan  undertook  development  and 
manufacture  of  the  world's  first  com- 
posite-powered aircraft  and  the  first  Navy 
plane  to  use  a  jet  engine.  From  that  date, 
customers  of  Ryan's  Metal  Products  Divi- 
sion began  to  realize  the  unique  advan- 
tages which  only  a  jet  components  manu- 
(ConthiHcd  on  page  I S  ) 


TURBa 

INLET' 
EXHAL 


Best  qualities  of   j^ 
"Dark   Shark."   Get 


RYAN   AFTERBURNER 


lows  oversimplified  explanafion  of  Ryan  Afterburner.    Fuel   is  sprayed   into  toilpipe   where   its   burning   is,   in   basic 
in,  like  instolling  o  ram-jet  engine  downstream  from  the  jet  engine  to  give  tremendous  boost  to  propulsive  thrust. 


General  Electric  TG-100  turbo-prop  engine  on  Ryan 
XF2R-1.  Turbo-prop  gives  two-way  harnessing  of 
power,    driving    propeller    and    providing    jet    thrust. 


Development  of  jet  engine  accessories;  and  new, 
still  restricted  techniques,  are  conducted  in  this 
steel   and   concrete   test  cell   at  the    Ryan    factory. 


"^ROP 


TURBO-JET 

INLET 
TAIL  PIPE 


iropulsion   ond    propeller-driving  power  plants  were  combined   in   Ryan   XF2R-1 
il    Electric   engines,   turbo-prop  in  nose  and  thermal-jet  in  rear,  powered  plane. 


Air    Forces'    first    air-to-air    guided    missile,    this    rocket-powered 
Ryan  "Firebird"  is  designed  to  seek  out  and  destroy  enemy  planes. 


William  Immenschuh,  right,  project  engineer, 
in  control  booth  of  test  cell,  watches  in- 
struments  recording   operation   of   jet   engine. 


"My   farms   located   at  Tehachapi   and   Bokersfield   are   60   miles   apart,   and    I    don't   know    how    I    ran    the 
two    of   them    before    I    got    my    Navion,"    soys    Henning.   "The   round   trip   is   a    relaxing    breathing    spell." 


lUU  IHMD "  FIRMER 


THE  trick  in  successful  large-scale  farm 
operation,  according  to  Ray  C.  Hen- 
ning of  Bakersficld,  California,  is  keeping 
a  step  ahead  all  the  time  in  the  introduc- 
tion of  new  crops,  new  methods  and  new 
equipment. 

And  keep  ahead  —  years  ahead  —  Ray 
Henning  does,  thanks  to  the  155  m.p.h. 
transportation  afforded  by  ownership  of 
the  Ryan  Navion  business  plane  which  he 
flies  himself. 

A  recent  example  of  how  Henning  got 
a  year's  head  start  on  the  introduction  of 
new  "Ranger"  alfalfa  seed  is  typical  of 
the  advantage  this  progressive  California 
farmer  has  realized  by  flying  his  own 
plane. 

Late  this  summer  Henning  told  his 
county  farm  advisor  that  "I  will  fly  any 
place  in  the  United  States  to  get  a  supply 
of  foundation  Ranger  alfalfa  seed  if  it 
can  be  located  and  approved  by  the  Uni- 
versity of  California  College  of  Agricul- 
ture Certified  Seed  Department." 

This  challenge  was  met  by  the  college 
and  by  the  Kern  County  Farm  Advisor 
who  located  five  acres  of  cured  but  not 
thrashed  Ranger  alfalfa  seed  in  Montana 
through  the  cooperation  of  Ralph  Mercer 


of  the  College  of  Agriculture  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Montana,  and  Art  Kegel,  Farm 
Advisor  at  Miles  City,  Montana.  Mercer 
prevailed  upon  the  grower,  Joe  Muggli,  to 
thrash  the  seed  immediately.  Next  day 
Mercer  wired  Henning  that  800  lbs.  of 
seed  would  be  at  Miles  City  Airport  by 
the  time  he  got  there — and  it  was.  Hen- 
ning left  Bakersfield  on  Saturday  and 
landed  at  Bozeman  while  the  sun  was  still 
high,  where  he  conferred  with  Mercer. 
Next  morning  it  was  but  a  short  scenic 
hop  along  the  Yellowstone  River  to  Miles 
City.  The  seed  loaded,  Henning  spent  the 
rest  of  the  day  with  the  farmer  in  his 
fields  studying  crop  methods  and  the  har- 
vesting machinery  developed  by  this  pro- 


Roy   Henning  of   Ba- 

^^^H 

kersfield,    California, 

Bk  .^s 

has     always      looked 

kI 

for  the  fastest,  most 
efficient    way    to    do 

his  large-scale  form- 

9HM 

ing.  Since  1946  No- 

^  w^ 

vions      hove      helped 

him    plan,    supervise 

^          ^ 

and    service    his    ex- 

tensive acreages. 

gressivc  Montana  grower.  One  day  more 
saw  Henning  winging  his  way  back  to 
California  with  eight  50-pound  sacks  of 
the  extremely  scarce  and  valuable  seed 
and  a  notebook  full  of  new  ideas. 

On  the  trip  to  Montana  and  return, 
Henning  was  accompanied  by  his  teen- 
aged  daughter  Barbara,  who  shared  the 
piloting  chores  with  her  father.  Henning 
not  only  brought  seed  for  himself  but 
shared  his  valuable  stock  with  four  other 
farmers  of  the  Tehachapi  Valley  near 
Bakersfield. 

Henning  landed  at  Tehachapi  only  a 
few  davs  before  it  would  have  been  too 
late  to  plant  alfalfa  seed  in  the  valley, 
due  to  the  approaching  fall  weather.  As 
it  was  he  got  his  crop  in  in  short  order 
without  having  to  wait  until  the  fall  of 
1950  and  having  to  lose  one  year's  seed 
production,  on  a  crop  entirely  new  in 
that  region. 

The  Ranger  seed  is  in  especially  heavy 
demand  because  the  new  alfalfa  has 
proven  to  be  extremely  winter  hardy  in 
the  north  central  states,  giving  a  late 
season  crop  not  previously  obtainable  in 
that  clime.  The  crop  produced  from  this 
seed   for  commercial   hay  production  ex- 


14 


ceeds  any  other  variety  previously  obtain- 
able. The  seed  produced  by  Henning  from 
the  special  foundation  Ranger  alfalfa  seed 
will  largely  be  shipped  to  the  north  cen- 
tral states. 

No  sooner  had  Henning  returned  to 
California  and  planted  his  Ranger  alfalfa 
seed  than  he  was  off  in  his  Navion  plane 
on  another  "years  ahead"  flight  —  this 
time  to  the  University  of  Nebraska  at 
Lincoln  to  find  out  all  the  Agricultural 
College  there  knows  about  Safflower  seed, 
a  new  oil  seed  crop  taking  the  place  of 
linseed  as  a  drying  oil  in  paints.  Henning 
Navioned  home  the  next  day,  as  he  put 
it,  "daylight  to  dark." 

Getting  away  from  his  own  extensive 
farm  operations  to  learn  the  newest 
methods  used  elsewhere  has  been  nothing 
new  to  Henning,  who's  been  regularly 
getting  the  jump  on  other  farmers  ever 
since  he  bought  his  first  Navion  three 
years  ago.  But,  let  Henning  tell  it  him- 
self— 

"I  needed  a  weed  burner  hot  enough  to 
burn  weed  seeds  on  contact.  Heard  of  one 
(Continued  on  page  2}  ) 


Irrigation  and  crop  checks  are  routine,  minutes-long  jobs  for  the  Navion.  Its  sturdy  tri- 
cycle landing  gear  and  full  deflection  flaps  have  put  Henning  down  gently  on  fields  from 
278  ft.  below  sea  level  to  5,000  ft.  above,  on  country  roods  (above I,  grain  stubble  fields 
and  dry  lake  beds.  When  he  wanted  scarce  "Ranger"  alfalfa  seed  grown  near  Miles,  Mont., 
he  and  his  daughter,  Barbara,  flew    1,300  miles  after  the  eight  50-lb.  sacks  shown   below. 


We  are  constantly  learning  from  the  many 
letters  received  from  Nation  owners  of  the 
interesting  and  varied  ways  in  which  they 
are  using  their  planes.  Below  are  just  a  few 
examples  of  Navion  utility  recently  reported. 
More  will  follow  in  future  issues.  You,  too, 
are  invited  to  send  us  a  photograph  of  your 
Navion  with  a  description  of  the  manner  it 
is  helping  you  for  business  and  pleasure.  Ad- 
dress Editor,  Ryan  Reporter,  Lindbergh  Field, 
San  Diego  12,  California. 


CATTLEMAN  KEEPS  TAB  ON  STOCK 
AND  THREE  OFFICES  WITH  NAVION 


^L_3 


Well-known  wherever  cattlemen  congre- 
gate is  the  rugged  Ryan  Navion  belonging 
to  Tex  Condon,  operator  of  the  Washburn 
&  Condon  Live  Stock  Agency. 

Tex  uses  the  ton-colored  plane  to  keep 
things  humming  at  his  three  offices  in  Los 
Angeles,  Stockton  and  Phoenix.  Any  cattle 
sole  or  show  "is  just  next  door"  when  he 
goes  by  Navion. 

Flights  to  eastern  markets  are  omong  his 
favorites,  hie  also  flies  to  check  ranges  ond 
inspect   stock. 

Each  year,  the  Navion  lands  in  o  pasture 
alongside  on  old  Arizona  ranch  house  to 
enable  him  to  attend  the  Southwest's  famous 
Yavapai  calf  sole.  Tex  auctions  off  calves 
contributed  by  members  of  the  Yavapai 
Cattle  Growers  Association,  with  proceeds 
going  to  support  the  American  Notional  Live 
Stock  Association  and  similar  groups. 


V.  F.W.  COMMANDER  AVERAGES 
20  HOURS  FLYING  TIME  A  WEEK 

Commander-in-Chief  Clyde  A.  Lewis  of 
the  Veterans  of  Foreign  Wars  reports  he  is 
averaging  20  hours  flying  time  each  week 
in  the  "Spirit  of  the  V.F.W.,"  his  organiza- 
tion's trim  Ryan  Navion. 

During  o  recent  five-week  period  he  flew 
over  15,000  miles  on  on  extended  air  tour 
that  took  him  as  far  west  from  his  Plotts- 
burg.  New  York,  home  os  Phoenix  ond  Los 
Angeles. 


"The  Novion's  superb  performance  has 
helped  me  corry  out  my  executive  duties  in 
o  manner  far  beyond  my  fondest  expecta- 
tions," he  advises.  "I  am  able  to  get 
directly  to  the  smallest  towns  as  well  as  the 
big  cities  to  be  at  meetings,  give  speeches 
ond  attend  to  V.F.W.  business. 

"Typical  of  the  Novion's  dependable  per- 
formance was  the  experience  I  had  not  long 
ago  at  Williston,  North  Dakota,  during  one 
of  my  tours  of  the  Central  States. 

"We  hod  to  land  in  the  dark  and  the 
field  was  nothing  more  than  a  glorified  cow 
posture  with  o  smoll  battery  of  lights  to 
mark  the  runway.  But  the  sure-footed  Nav- 
ion made  the  landing  without  incident  and 
we  were  quickly  on  our  way  to  the  local 
meeting." 


NAVION  AIDS  MISSIONARY  IN 
EVANGELICAL  WORK  IN  BRAZIL 


A  Ryan  Novion  is  helping  Robert  Standley, 
evangelistic  missionary  for  the  Foreign  Mis- 
sion Board  of  the  Southern  Baptist  Conven- 
tion, to  carry  the  Gospel  into  the  heart  of 
Brazil. 

Standley  took  delivery  on  o  new  Novion 
at  the  factory  in  January  and  flew  it  to 
his  headquarters  at  Fortolezo  in  the  Bra- 
zilian State  of  Ceoro,  north  of  the  Amozon 
River. 

Equipped  with  o  stretcher  installation, 
the  plane  is  a  ship  of  mercy,  used  to  provide 
emergency  medical  service  to  inhobitonts 
of  the  interior  as  well  as  to  corry  mission- 
aries to  the  various  villages  where  they 
preach. 

As  aviation  odvisor  to  the  Foreign  Mis- 
sion Board,  Standley  surveys  the  states  of 
Brozil  to  determine  in  which  areas  addi- 
tional oircroft  could   be  used  effectively. 

With  the  Navion  —  which  he  chose  from 
all  four-place  croft  because  of  its  speed, 
ruggedness  and  rough  field  operating  quali- 
ties —  he  figures  that  one  missionary  couple 
con  do  the  work  ordinorily  assigned  to  five; 
in  one  year  one  couple  con  do  what  for- 
merly took  them  five  years. 


RUGGED  NAVION  IS  NEW  MEXICO 
RANCHERS'  LINK  TO  CIVILIZATION 

Until  o  fast-climbing  Navion  first  thrust 
its  nose  over  the  Copperas  Mts.,  Dawson 
"Doc"  Campbell  and  his  family  were  isolated 
deep  in  the  Gilo  Notional  Forest  of  South- 
western New  Mexico,  five  hours  drive  from 
the  nearest  post  office. 

"Now,  a  Navion  reaches  us  all  the  way 
from  El  Poso,  Texos,  in  on  hour  and  20 
minutes,"  Campbell  explains.  "Navions  work 
out  best,  too,  for  bringing  in  hunters  and 
fishermen  to  our  Gilo  Hot  Springs  Ranch 
becouse  they  hold  four  people  with  lots  of 
equipment,  and  still  get  safely  over  the 
7,500-ft.  mountain  rim  which  surrounds 
us. 

"Small  planes  have  to  circle  to  climb 
over  the  Copperas,  but  a  Navion  just  delib- 
erately  scoots    over   without   looking    bark!" 

Hunters  with  their  hearts  set  on  deer, 
bear  and  wild  turkey,  land  on  a  home-made 
strip  that  Campbell  put  in  just  before  the 
lost  seoson.  Short,  yet  big  enough  for  the 
Navion,  the  field  is  located  5,400  feet  above 
sea  level. 


MICHIGAN  GEOLOGISTS  STRIKE  OIL 
WITH  HELP  OF  RYAN  PLANE 


Norman  L.  Stevens,  Bangor,  Mich.,  ond 
his  staff  of  geologists  recently  discovered 
two  important  new  oil  fields — the  "South 
Lee"  of  Allegan  County  and  the  "Geneva" 
of  Van  Buren  County,  Mich.  —  thanks  to 
preliminary  geophysical  surveys  mode  from 
their  Ryan  Navion. 

The  procedure  for  searching  out  oil  be- 
gins with  0  low  flight  over  the  regions  being 
surveyed.  Radio  beams  are  sent  out  against 
the  eorth's  surface  from  o  special  transmit- 
ting  device   installed   in   the   Navion. 

Sensitive  receivers  in  the  plane  pick  up 
the  beams  as  they  ore  bounced  bock.  Meas- 
uring instruments  then  determine  the  beam 
intensities  in  a  way  that  tells  geologists  — 
three  of  whom  usually  moke  each  flight  — 
where  faulting,  fracturing  or  other  irregu- 
larities exist. 

Ground  crews  ore  subsequently  dispatched 
to  the  locations  in  question  to  make  a  de- 
tailed study  with  Gish-Rooney  Resistivity  in- 
struments. 

"Besides  our  survey  (lights,  there  ore 
many  trips  bock  and  forth  omong  the  three 
offices  in  Bangor,  Mich.;  Wauseon,  Ohio 
and  Winsted,  Conn.,"  says  Stevens. 

"As  many  as  12  of  our  staff  use  the 
Navion  regularly.  When  they  aren't  out  on 
o  business  flight,  the  ship's  probably  being 
used  to  fly  clients  to  an  oil  field,  where  we 
land  in  the  rough  right  at  the  well  site." 


16 


products  used  as  accessories  for  aircraft  engines.  These  now 
fall  into  two  basic  divisions:  (1)  Exhaust  systems  and  other 
items  for  conventional  piston-type  engines;  (2)  Components 
for  the  newer  type  gas  turbine  jet-propulsion  engines. 

For  piston-type  engines,  Ryan  has  been  a  leading  producer 
of  exhaust  systems,  heat  exchangers,  anti-icing  equipment  and 
similar  installations  for  the  past  12  years.  Our  exhaust  systems 
products  are  standard  equipment  on  a  major  portion  of  today's 
most  modern  commercial  and  military  airplanes,  particularly 
the  multi-engine  types. 

Jet  engine  parts  and  accessories  represented  a  larger  propor- 
tion of  the  total  volume  of  the  Metal  Products  Division  than 
in  the  prior  year  and  this  trend  is  expected  to  continue  as 
increasing  emphasis  is  given  this  newer  type  power  plant. 
Among  Ryan  fabricated  jet  engine  parts  are  tail  cones,  struts, 
combustion  chambers  and  tail  pipes.  The  engine  parts  are  pro- 
duced for  the  engine  manufacturers  and  the  tail  pipes  for 
the  airframe  builders. 


B, 


COST  OF  HUMAN  ENERGY  paid  for  in 
WAGES   AND   SALARIES $7,376,754 


The  wages  and  salaries  of  Ryan  employees  take  49-1/5  cents 
of  every  dollar  paid  us  by  our  customers. 

The  earnings  of  Ryan  employees  have  increased  87  percent 
since  1940  to  the  present  $1.50  per  hour  average  for  produc- 
tion workers.  This  rate  of  increase  is  somewhat  greater  than 
the  area  cost  of  living  rise  during  the  same  period  and  means 
that  Ryan  workers  have  a  considerably  higher  standard  of 
living  than  they  did  ten  years  ago. 

In  addition  to  the  wages  paid  directly  to  each  Ryan  em- 
ployee, the  company  made  substantial  "fringe  benefit"  pay- 
ments, such  as  life  insurance,  weekly  sickness  benefits,  hos- 
pitalization, surgical  benefits  including  dependents'  coverage, 
paid  vacations,  holiday  pay,  rest  periods,  social  security  and 
retirement.  The  cost  of  these  benefits  paid  by  Ryan  amount 
to  an  additional  7c  per  hour  per  employee. 

You  may  be  wondering  how  wages  compare  with  dividends. 
For  every  dollar  paid  out  in  dividends  in  1949,  $187.30  was 
paid  out  in  wages. 

Wages  and  salaries  paid  to  Ryan  employees  buy  homes  and 
furniture,  education,  insurance,  food  and  clothing  — -  help  make 
local  business  prosper. 

As  one  of  the  large  employers  in  San  Diego,  Ryan's 
$7,376,754  payroll  last  year  was,  for  the  most  part,  spent 
here  and  added  to  the  high  level  of  prosperity  and  standard 
of  living  most  San  Diegans  enjoy. 


c, 


COST  OF  MATERIALS  AND  SERVICES 
Bought  From  Others $6,446,450 


The  greater  part  of  this  more  than  six  million  dollars  was 
paid  by  Ryan  to  a  broad  cross-section  of  industry  which  fur- 
nishes materials  such  as  steel,  aluminum,  engines,  instruments, 
paint,  castings,  etc.,  and  services  such  as  heat,  light,  gas,  print- 
ing, telephones  and  the  many  other  daily  needs  of  a  large 
factory. 

The  money  for  materials  is  spent  in  practically  every  state 
and  helps  to  make  better  business  and  more  jobs  in  every  sec- 
tion of  the  country.  Many  of  the  services  we  buy  are  furnished 
by  local  firms  and  contribute  to  the  welfare  and  prosperity 
of  the  San  Diego  area. 

To  make  certain  that  we  "get  our  money's  worth"  and  that 
the  company's  "cost  of  living"  is  kept  within  bounds,  every- 
thing we  buy  is  handled  through  the  purchasing  department. 


It  would  be  a  simple  job  to  buy  the  lowest  priced  product  or 
service.  But  such  a  buying  policy  would  make  it  impossible 
for  us  to  maintain  Ryan  quality  standards.  Instead,  we  search 
out  every  possible  source  of  supplies  that  meets  our  quality 
standards,  and  then  buy  from  the  firms  that  offer  the  best 
price  and  best  delivery.  Every  dollar  thus  saved  becomes 
another  dollar  available  to  those  who  work  here  and  to  those 
who  have  provided  the  tools  of  production. 


D 


COST  OF  TOOLS  WEARING  OUT       $195,894 


When  Ryan  signed  contracts  with  General  Electric  last  year 
to  build  important  components  for  the  J-47  jet  engine  we 
did  not  have  all  of  the  equipment  needed  to  produce  the  tail 
cones,  combustion  chambers  and  other  assemblies.  We  had 
to  buy  many  new  machines  and  tools.  Typical  of  these  is  the 
Billiard  Turret  Lathe  which  cost  $21,}  00. 

We  estimate  the  new  Billiard  lathe  will  last  10  years.  We 
base  this  estimate  on  our  knowledge  of  the  machine  and  how 
we  will  use  it,  and  on  the  advice  of  the  company  which  built 
the  lathe.  Therefore,  we  plan  to  set  aside  1,10  of  the  cost 
($21  }0  each  year)  for  the  next  10  years.  When  we  need  a 
replacement  in  19  59,  the  money  to  buy  a  replacement  machine 
will  be  on  hand. 

This  same  type  of  reserve  fund  must  be  set  up  for  each 
of  the  machines  and  tools  we  require.  During  the  year,  we 
put  $195,894  into  this  fund. 

But  suppose  we  had  not  put  aside  this  money?  What  would 
happen  to  the  jobs  of  those  whose  work  is  directly  connected 
with  the  tools  which  will  wear  out  this  year?  How  much 
would  all  other  wages  have  to  be  cut  if  the  work  these  tools 
did  for  us  had  to  be  bought  outside  from  some  other  com- 
pany? What  chance  would  Ryan  have,  with  obsolete  machines, 
to  compete  against  other  companies  in  obtaining  new  business? 

As  it  was,  the  $195,894  was  inadequate  for  our  needs.  Dur- 
ing the  year,  we  had  to  buy  $406,054  additional  equipment, 
requiring  $210,160  extra  which  was  paid  for  out  of  earnings. 


E, 


COST  OF  PAYMENTS  ORDERED 

BY   GOVERNMENT    $637,414 


Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  had  to  pay  Federal,  State 
and  Local  governments  the  equivalent  of  approximately  $27.00 
per  month  for  each  employee. 

Corporation  taxes  are  at  the  rate  of  about  3  8  cents  of  every 
dollar  of  the  company's  gross  income.  In  spite  of  the  designa- 
tion "Corporation,"  these  taxes  are  paid,  not  by  corporations, 
but  by  the  customers  who  are  the  source  of  corporation  in- 
come. In  determining  the  proper  selling  price  of  the  Ryan 
Navion,  for  example,  we  must  calculate  our  taxes  in  advance 
and  make  them  part  of  the  retail  price  to  our  customers. 
This  is  true,  even  though  the  tax  law  says  that  taxes  "must 
not  be  passed  on  to  the  customer."  There  is  no  possible  way  to 
obey  such  a  law,  because  the  customer  is  the  only  source  of 
the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company's  income,  just  as  you  the 
taxpayer  are  the  only  source  of  the  federal  government's 
income. 

In  the  role  of  tax  collector,  Ryan  relayed  to  Federal,  State 
and  Local  governments  $637,414,  which  we  in  turn  had  re- 
ceived from  our  customers. 

These  taxes  are  spent  for  the  support  and  services  of  gov- 
ernment —  national  defense,  public  safety,  schools,  hospitals, 

(Continued  on  page  19) 


17 


JET  PROFICIENCY 

(Continued  from  page  12) 
facturer   who   also   flies   jet   planes   could 
offer  them. 

Staggering  design  problems  had  to  be 
solved  to  produce  the  composite-engined 
Ryan  FR-1  Fireball.  It  required  teaming 
the  entirely  new  jet  power  with  the  con- 
ventional piston-type  in  one  compact, 
deadly  fighter.  Other  obstacles  arose  be- 
cause the  Fireball  was  the  first  carrier- 
borne  jet  aircraft  and  the  first  tricycle- 
geared  airplane  to  be  operated  with  the 
catapult  and  arresting  gear  of  aircraft 
carriers.  Only  by  establishing  a  well- 
integrated  engineering,  test  and  produc- 
tion team  was  it  possible  to  meet  the  basic 
problems  and  successfully  build  the  Fire- 
ball. 

Following  fast  in  the  jet  wake  of  the 
Fireball,  Ryan  developed  the  XFR-4, 
XF2R-1  and  XF2R-2  Navy  jet  fighter 
planes  for  carrier  use.  These  experimental 
aircraft  were  logical  steps  in  harnessing 
the  swelling  power  of  the  new  jet  engines: 
the  General  Electric  1-16,  the  Westing- 
house  24-C  and  the  G.  E.  TG-100,  the 
latter  a  gas  turbine  driving  a  propeller. 

The  XF2R-1  "Dark  Shark"  was  one  of 
the  original  test  aircraft  for  America's 
first  turbo-prop  engine.  This  airplane 
made  the  first  cross-country  flights  ac- 
complished with  turbo-prop  power  and 
provided  much  of  the  flight  test  data  for 
developments  which  have  since  transpired. 

Working  with  NACA,  Ryan  developed 
the  FR-4  model  to  conduct  much  of  the 
basic  research  on  flush-entry  ducts  for  jet 
powered  planes.  Results  of  this  research 
are  showing  up  in  many  of  the  new  mili- 
tary jet  planes. 

Ryan  engineers  tackled  another  un- 
charted area  of  aviation  when  the  Ryan 
Afterburner  was  designed  and  built  to 
give  added  thrust  to  jet  engines.  Here, 
the  most  critical  problems  of  volcanic 
temperatures  and  combustion  were  en- 
countered because  of  the  tremendous 
amounts  of  fuel  which  the  Afterburner 
is  able  to  consume.  Metallurgists  of  the 
Ryan  Engineering  Laboratory  worked 
closely  with  the  test  cell  crews  on  this 
project  because  of  the  new  frontiers  which 
were  being  explored  in  the  use  of  heat- 
and  corrosion-resistant  alloys. 

A  dramatic  example  of  exceptional 
team-work,  involving  all  branches  of  avia- 
tion science  and  flight  research  was  the 
development  of  the  rocket-powered  Ryan 
"Firebird"  air-to-air  guided  missile.  This 
uncanny  dart  of  destruction  was  designed 
to  quickly  detect  the  presence  of  the  tar- 
get when  released  from  its  "mother  plane" 
and  "home"  on  it  by  means  of  an  elec- 
tronic    "brain."     Electronic     technicians. 


metallurgists,  aerodynamicists,  rocket-pro- 
pulsion experts  and  many  others  coordi- 
nated their  work  with  results  of  actual 
firing  tests  made  at  the  Air  Force  research 
base  at  Alamogordo,  New  Mexico. 

Newest  Ryan  projects  in  the  applica- 
tion of  jet  propulsion  to  aircraft  are  the 
XQ-2  pilotless  target  plane  and  an  un- 
specified research  program  for  the  Navy's 
Bureau  of  Aeronautics.  This  much,  how- 
ever, may  be  said  about  the  XQ-2:  It  is 
less  than  half  the  size  of  a  standard  jet 
fighter  plane,  is  designed  for  high  speeds 
and  remote  control  operation  and  will  be 
used  as  a  robot  aerial  target  drone  for 
interception,    aerial     gunnery    and    anti- 


aircraft training  by  the  Air  Force,  Navy 
and  Army. 

In  the  highly-specialized  field  of  devel- 
oping and  manufacturing  components  for 
powerful  jet  engines,  gas  turbines  and 
rockets,  Ryan  has  achieved  smooth-work- 
ing liaison  between  its  own  technicians 
and  those  of  engine  and  aircraft  companies 
for  which  it  builds  parts.  But,  importantly 
and  uniquely,  only  Ryan  is  able  to  "back- 
stop" its  Metal  Products  experts  with  the 
vast  experience  of  its  own  Airplane  Divi- 
sion and  that  group's  knowledge  of  de- 
signing, building,  testing  and  flying  jet- 
powered  aircraft. 


QUOTED 
BRIEFLY... 


And  To 
The  Point 


Too  few  of  IIS  hare  the  ability  to  put  into 
ti'ords  some  of  the  basic  truths  of  America's 
greatness.  When  the  editors  run  across  a  par- 
ticularly potent  phrase,  we  like  to  pass  it 
along  to  Ryan  Reporter  readers.  For  example: 


"Big  Government  is  growing  bigger.  Big 
Government  is  more  dangerous  than  Big 
Business.  Little  governments  can  regulate 
big  business  and  the  United  States  govern- 
ment can  punish  those  who  violate  the 
laws  against  monopoly,  but  it  is  difficult 
to  regulate  Big  Government." 

— James   F.  Byrnes, 

Former  Secretary  of  State 

"I  am  not  happy  when  I  see  government 
slipping  back  into  deficits  as  a  way  of 
life  in  a  period  when  production  and  em- 
ployment are  high,  instead  of  putting  its 
fiscal  house  in  order  and  husbanding  re- 
serves to  support  the  economy  if  less  pros- 
perous times  overtake  us." 

— Dr.  Edwin  G.  Nourse 
Former  Chairman  of  the 
President's  Council  of 
Economic  Advisers 

"Dictatorship  can  compete  with  dicta- 
torships and  a  free  virile  democracy  can 
outpace  any  such  in  the  long  pull.  But 
a  people  bent  on  a  soft  security,  surrend- 
ering their  birthright  of  individual  self- 
reliance  for  favors,  voting  themselves  into 
Eden  from  a  supposedly  inexhaustible 
public  purse,  supporting  everyone  by  soak- 
ing a  fast  disappearing  rich,  scrambling 
for  subsidy,  learning  the  arts  of  political 
logrolling  and  forgetting  the  rugged  vir- 
tues of  the  pioneer,  will  not  measure  up 
to  competition  with  a  tough  dictator- 
ship." — Dr,  Vannevar  Bush, 
Carnegie   Institution   of   Washington. 


$500,000  IN  NEW  MANIFOLO 
AND  JET  ORDERS  RECEIVED 

New  Metal  Products  business  totaling 
$500,000  for  Ryan  manifolds  and  jet 
engine  parts  has  been  contracted  for  in 
the  past  few  weeks. 

Approximately  a  quarter  of  a  million 
dollars  of  new  business  has  been  placed 
by  General  Electric  Co.  for  additional  jet 
engine  components,  supplementing  the 
large  volume  of  exhaust  cones,  combustion 
chambers  and  transition  liners  now  in 
production. 

New  exhaust  manifold  system  business, 
also  amounting  to  about  $2  50,000,  has 
been  received  from  the  U.  S.  Air  Force 
for  a  number  of  multi-engined  bomber 
jnd  cargo  planes. 

COMPANY  EXECUTIVES  RETURN 
AFTER  BUSINESS  TRIPS  EAST 

Most  of  Ryan's  large  group  of  travelers 
were  "on  the  road"  last  month,  calling 
on  the  military  services  and  customers 
throughout  the  country,  but  are  now  back 
at  their  regular  desks. 

Leading  the  parade  was  President  T. 
Claude  Ryan  with  visits  to  Washington, 
Wright  Field  and  other  aircraft  procure- 
ment centers.  While  in  Washington,  in 
company  with  Sam  C.  Breder,  Sales  Man- 
ager, Ryan  had  conferences  with  Defense 
Secretary  Johnson,  Air  Secretary  Syming- 
ton, Assistant  Navy  Secretary  Kimball, 
Air  Force  Generals  Rawlings,  Wolfe, 
McNaughton  and  Brandt,  and  Admirals 
Price,  Cassidy,  Pride  and  Harrison. 

Ryan's  eastern  and  mid-western  Metal 
Products  representatives.  Rod  McDonough 
and  James  Stalnaker,  visited  the  home 
plant  at  San  Diego  for  several  weeks  of 
engineering  and  production  conferences. 
Stalnaker  accompanied  Breder  when  the 
latter  left  on  an  extended  tour  of  eastern 
aircraft  activities. 


18 


farm  subsidies,  "free"  education  and  medical  services,  etc. 
But  nothing  which  comes  from  the  government  is,  in  fact, 
"free."  Taxes  collected  from  the  people — from  you  and  me 
— are  the  government's  only  source  of  revenue. 


F. 


COST  OF  USING  THE  TOOLS  OF  PRODUCTION: 
Paid  in  Dividends  to  1500  Tool 

Providers    $   39,384 

Re-invested  in  the  Business 318,668 


$358,052 


Just  what  "tools"  does  this  item  of  expense  cover?  It  in- 
cludes far  more  than  power  tools  like  hydro-presses  and  lathes, 
and  hand  tools  like  sheet  metal  shears,  hammers  and  cleco 
fasteners.  It  includes  buildings,  offices,  lift  trucks,  step  ladders, 
stationery,  ditto  machines  and  everything  physically  required 
in  our  work. 

Tools  and  facilities  provided  by  the  stockholder-owners  of 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  to  do  the  job,  through  owner- 
ship and  rental  provisions,  average  approximately  $5,750  for 
every  employee.  These  owners,  the  stockholders,  could  have 
spent  their  money  in  other  ways:  on  homes,  vacations,  auto- 
mobiles, etc.  Or,  deciding  to  invest  in  tools,  they  might  have 
invested  in  the  tools  of  some  other  corporation.  Instead,  they 
let  Ryan  have  their  money  in  the  belief  that  the  money  could 
be  "put  to  work"  here  to  provide  some  reasonable  return  for 
the  risk  of  their  savings. 

You  may  wonder  that  this  item,  called  "profit"  by  accovmt- 
ants,  is  identified  here  as  a  "cost."  It  varies  in  size  from  year 
to  year.  It  cannot  be  paid  until  all  other  costs  are  paid.  In 
a  year  of  loss,  all  the  money  from  customers,  plus  reserve 
funds  belonging  to  the  owners,  must  be  used  to  meet  the  costs 
of  payrolls,  materials,  taxes,  depreciation,  etc.  But  Profit  is 
a  cost.  To  believe  otherwise  is  to  assume  that  our  tool  pro- 
viders are  so  charitable  they  would  give  each  of  us  a  $5,750 
gift  of  tools  with  which  to  earn  our  living  and  expect  nothing 
in  return. 

Rarely  is  the  entire  cost  of  using  the  tools  paid  directly  to 
the  stockholders  who  provide  them.  A  part  of  it  is  paid  in 
dividends.  The  remainder,  with  the  owners  consent,  is  rein- 
vested in  the  business  to  pay  for  expansion  and  emergencies. 
For  every  dollar  due  the  owners  this  year,  lie  was  paid  in 
dividends  and  89c  reinvested. 

Over  a  period  of  years  the  funds  Ryan  stockholders  have 
reinvested  in  the  business  have  bought  new  machines  and 
buildings  to  keep  our  plant  modern  so  that,  in  competition 
with  other  companies,  we  can  get  our  share  of  the  business. 
On  the  company's  balance  sheet  the  accountants  list  the  amount 
reinvested  as  "Earned  Surplus."  The  common  meaning  of 
surplus  is  "that  which  remains  when  use  or  need  is  satisfied." 
Perhaps  this  is  why  the  term  surplus,  in  referring  to  a  com- 
pany's financial  statement,  is  so  misunderstood.  The  "need" 
of  industrial  firms  for  "surplus"  funds  is  never  satisfied.  They 
are,  in  fact,  essential  to  growth  and  to  stability. 

Surplus  too  often  suggests  idle  money,  stored  away  in  a 
vault,  which  stockholders  are  hoarding.  Nothing  could  be 
farther  from  the  truth.  A  real  example  of  "surplus"  is  that 
$21,300  Bullard  turret  lathe. 

The  next  time  someone  suggests  that  the  Ryan  company's 
surplus  ought  to  be  "split  up,"  remember  that  it  wouldn't  be 
money  but  tools  which  would  have  to  be  split.  Remember, 
too,  that  7  out  of  10  Ryan  employees  have  employment  here 
today  because  a  surplus  was  available  to  build  the  company 
up  to  its  present  size  and  facilities.  Those  seven  ought  to 
have  a  good  answer  for  any  mis-informed  critics  who  want  to 
take  the  company's  surplus. 


MORE  mm  Emm 
mmm  on  order 

With  delivery  this  month  of  the  50th  Ryon-built  aft 
fuselage  section  for  Boeing  C-97  Stratofreighters  and  377 
Stratocruisers,  receipt  of  a  re-order  for  additional  units  has 
been  disclosed,  assuring  re-octivotion  of  this  assembly  line. 

The  new  contract  with  Boeing  Is  for  approximately  three 
quarters  of  a  million  dollars  and  calls  not  only  for  the  30- 
foot  long  C-97A  aft  fuseloge  sections  but  also  for  cargo 
doors  and  for  all  the  floor  beams  for  the  additional  number 
of  Boeing  military  cargo  planes  to  be  built.  Production  will 
get  under  way  first  on  floor  beams,  as  these  must  be  supplied 
to  Boeing  for  the  other  sections  of  the  fuselage  which  ore 
built  at  the  Seattle  plant. 


New  Field  Entered  By  Ryan  Starting 
Worl(  on  $750,000  Wing  Tanl(  Order 

A  new  field  of  airframe  components  manufacture  has  been 
entered  by  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  with  the  closing  of 
contracts  for  the  design  and  volume  production  of  external 
wing  tanks  for  military  planes. 

Preliminary  work  on  the  three-quarters  of  a  million  dollar 
contract  has  been  under  way  for  some  time  in  the  engineering 
department,  research  laboratory  and  experimental  department. 
Due  to  security  restrictions  Ryan  is  not  yet  at  liberty  to  dis- 
close details  of  the  new  order,  nor  the  military  airplane  for 
which  the  tanks  are  to  be  manufactured. 

Requirements  for  the  external  wing  tanks  were  outlined 
by  the  prime  manufacturer,  but  Ryan  will  do  the  actual  design 
and  engineering.  Possibly  the  largest  tanks  ever  designed,  some 
idea  of  their  size  may  be  gained  by  the  fact  they  will  be  larger 
than  the  fuselage  of  Ryan's  popular  four-place  Navion  per- 
sonal-business plane. 

Production  on  the  tanks,  on  the  basis  of  present  schedules, 
will  continue  well  into  1951. 


19 


OCCASIONALLY  IT'S  "EASY  GOING" 


The  old  adage  about  "all  work  and  no 
play  .  .  ."  Is  occasionoily  applied  when  vis- 
itors arrive  in  San  Diego  for  conferences  at 
the  Ryan  plant  on  production.  Recently  Gen- 
eral Electric  executives  from  the  jet  engine 
plant  at  Lockland,  Ohio,  hod  a  bit  of  free 
time  to  tour  the  harbor  in  T.  Claude  Ryan's 
pride  and  joy,  "Easy  Going."  Aboard  the 
cobin  cruiser  (1.  to  r. )  are  Ryan;  Claude 
Auger,  chief  engineer  at  Locklond;  Paul 
Nichols,  production  manager  at  the  G.  E. 
plant;  Sam  C.  Breder,  Ryan  sales  manager 
and  James  Stalnoker,  Dayton  representative 
for  Ryan. 


FLYING  THE  HIGH  WAY 

(Continued  from  page  5 ) 
at  5  5  degrees,  we  thought  about  it  some 
more  as  we  closed  the  Navion  canopy  for 
take-off.  The  ground  was  soft  from  morn- 
ing showers,  iDut  we  would  benefit  from 
the  downhill  slope.  Then  came  the  sur- 
prise. Loping  down  the  mountain,  the 
Navion  broke  ground  after  a  run  of  only 
1,400  ft.  Climbing  out,  however,  was 
something  else  again.  Handicapped  by  al- 
titude and  temperature,  the  Navion's  rate 
of  climb  was  still  a  generous  200  fpm. 
That's  above  the  average,  but  Bowman 
held  the  nose  down  to  build  up  100  mph. 
before  making  a  180  to  regain  the  slope 
and  slide  up  its  grade  with  the  aid  of  ris- 
ing air  currents.  Half  way  up  the  crest 
of  the  12,000  ft.  ridge  we  were  climbing 
900  fpm. 

On  many  such  strips  at  altitude,  han- 
dicapped by  soft  ground,  large  rocks  and 
chuck  holes,  we  came  to  admire  the  de- 
sign behind  Navion  performance.  In  addi- 
tion to  short-field  excellence,  we  found 
ourselves  thankful  for  the  nosewheel  and 
for  all  that  cabin  visibility,  without  which 
terrain  flying  in  the  mountains — essential 
for  best  utilization  of  slope  currents — 
would  be  less  efficient  and  more  hazardous. 
These  two  features  are  usually  taken   for 


granted.  But  up  on  top  of  the  world  where 
we  were  they  took  on  realistic  values. 

Storms  dogged  out  flight  path  or  we 
would  have  made  Leadville,  Colorado, 
whose  air  strip  is  pretty  close  to  10,000 
ft.  above  sea  level.  Dodging  thunderstorms 
until  we  were  within  five  minutes  of  our 
target,  we  found  the  biggest  thunder 
buster  of  all  had  squatted  right  on  Lead- 
ville for  the  afternoon.  So  we  veered  away 
to  our  left  and  struck  out  for  Montana 
beyond  the  mighty  Tetons. 

But  not  before  putting  into  Creede, 
Colorado,  for  an  impressive  Navion  dem- 
onstration at  an  airport  with  an  elevation 
of  8,700  ft.,  which  is  higher  than  Eagle 
Nest.  Its  turf  strip  is  table-flat  compared 
with  the  Eagle  Nest  grade  and  to  make 
matters  worse  the  temperature  was  up  to 
62  degrees — enough  to  slash  our  rate  of 
climb.  Then,  too,  the  altitude-tempera- 
ture chart  indicated  that  our  take-off  run 
would  be  tripled.  Actually,  the  Navion 
got  off  the  ground  in  only  1,100  ft. — .^00 
ft.  shorter  than  at  Eagle  Nest.  We  went 
back  in  and  tried  it  again.  And  a  third 
time.  Then  we  found  the  answer.  Our 
gross  was  about  the  same.  But  we  were 
benefitted  by  greater  lift  in  the  air  cur- 
rents, which  were  rising  up  through  the 
distant  valley  before  reaching  the  flat  air- 
port.   On   our  departure.   Bowman   emu- 


lated the  birds  by  hugging  the  steep 
mountain  walls  and  in  10  minutes  from 
take-off  we  had  climbed  5,000  ft.  above 
the  field  to  slide  the  Navion  across  a  ridge 
at   14,000  ft. 

Far  north  and  abreast  of  the  jagged 
Tetons,  just  before  crossing  into  Montana 
from  the  Jackson  Hole  country,  thunder- 
storms completely  blocked  out  path  up 
the  Divide.  So  we  crossed  over  to  the 
Eastern  slope  through  pristine  wilderness 
and  along  vast  flat  tops  never  trod  by 
civilized  man,  to  land  at  Cody,  Wyoming. 
After  a  couple  of  days  in  the  Big  Horn 
visiting  Bowman's  hunting  lodge  near 
Cody,  we  charted  a  course  for  home.  But 
the  1,100-mile  return  flight  seemed  too 
flat  and  dull,  so  we  wheeled  the  Navion 
off  at  intervals  for  a  close-up  look  at  such 
things  as  the  glaciers  behind  beautiful 
Lander,  Wyoming;  the  thousands  of 
pranghorn  deer  which  animate  the  7,000- 
ft.-high  sage  plains  just  outside  of  the 
Rattlesnake  Mountains  on  the  way  into 
Laramie,  and  Estes  Park's  picturesque 
flight  strip  in  the  scenic  heart  of  Colo- 
rado. 

We're  going  to  do  that  trip  again — all 
the  way  up  the  Continental  Divide  into 
British  Columbia.  There  are  some  meadows 
up  around  12,000  ft.  where  we  want  to 
land  and  camp  while  camera-shooting 
some  big  game  which  we  spotted  in  nearby 
crags — huge  deer  and  elk  and  two  of  the 
greatest  mountain  sheep,  both  with  full 
curls,  we  have  ever  seen.  We'll  do  it  in  a 
Navion,  too,  and  the  airplane  Les  Bowman 
and  I  take  into  the  high  wilderness  will  be 
far  and  away  the  best  mountain  ship  ever 
offered  to  the  public.  It'll  be  the  new  260 
Super  Navion.  Bowman  has  been  selling 
it  for  months  —  not  from  hearsay  but 
from  tests  he  and  Doc  (Brief  Case)  Sloan 
ran  on  the  prototype. 

They  found  a  strip  at  an  elevation  of 
8,200  ft.  behind  Denver  near  Granby, 
Colorado.  At  full  gross  of  2,8  50  lbs.,  they 
report  breaking  ground  in  only  900  ft. 
The  260's  sea  level  rate  of  climb  is  listed 
at  1,2  50  fpm.,  but  Bowman  swears  it  has 
made  1,400  fpm.  at  105  mph.  Be>ond  all 
this,  it  becomes  a  champion  altitude  per- 
former in  speed.  Whereas  the  added  horse- 
power gives  it  12  to  14  mph.  more  speed 
than  offered  by  the  205-hp.  Navion  at  sea 
level,  it  is  actually  .^2  mph.  faster  when 
flying  at  14,000  ft. 

When  Bowman  saw  the  prototype  do 
such  things,  he  raced  for  a  ranch  in  East- 
ern New  Mexico  where  he  demonstrated 
it  to  a  prospect  with  an  unmiproved  flight 
strip  at  an  elevation  of  6,5  00  ft.  '^"ith 
two  persons  aboard,  full  tanks  including 
the  auxiliar\'  and  Doc's  brief  case,  plus 
baggage  and  camera  equipment,  he  took 
stepped  it  off  himself.  He's  taking  one  of 
the  first  260's  to  be  delivered  in  March, 


20 


LST  WITH  WINGS 

(Continued  from  page  3 ) 
atmosphere.    The   other   six    were   routed 
into   two  semi-collectors   which  pipe   the 
gas  to  adjacent  locations. 

Another  unusual  feature  of  the  C-124 
exhaust  systems  is  the  metal  itself.  It  is 
known  as  "Uniloy  19-9DL."  This  is  a  new 
material  which  has  been  pioneered,  in  its 
application  to  aircraft  exhaust  systems  by 
Ryan. 

An  exclusive  engineering  feature  Ryan 
has  employed  in  the  Globemaster  II  ex- 
haust system  is  the  "Ball-and-Socket,"  or 
universal-type,  joint.  These  flexible  yet 
leak-resistant  joints  are  installed  on  the 
individual  stacks  and  the  semi-collectors 
where  they  are  attached  to  the  engine 
cowl.  By  this  means,  the  mighty  pitch  and 
yaw  of  the  engines,  the  torsional  rotation 
caused  by  tremendous  power  surges,  as 
well  as  the  expansion  due  to  temperature 
changes,  are  absorbed  by  the  flexible  joints. 
Smoother  and  more  comfortable  flight  can 
be  attributed  to  this  additional  contribu- 
tion to  "floating  power." 

By  the  close  preliminary  teamwork  be- 
tween Douglas  and  Ryan  engineers,  the 
problems  encountered  in  the  designing  of 
the  C-124  exhaust  system  were  minimized. 
Though  designed  for  the  world's  most 
powerful  piston-type  engine  and  the  larg- 
est production  transport  airplane,  it  incor- 
porated some  of  the  smallest  manufactur- 
ing tolerances  ever  attempted  for  this  type 
of  fabrication.  In  spite  of  this  fact,  and 
the  terrific  heat  imposed  by  this  mighty 
power  plant,  Ryan's  exhaust  manifolds 
have  proven  up  to  the  job  required  of 
them. 


VOL. 

R 

1           MAR.    8,    1950           No.    2 

Published  By 
yan  Aeronautical  Company 

Lindbergh  Field 
San  Diego   12,  California 

France 
Robe 

Willi! 

D 
Wil 

s  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  editor 
rt  F.  Smith,  Navion  news  editor 
m  P.  Brotherton,  technical  editor 
on  Doerr,  chief  photographer 
liam  Wagner,  editorial  director 

PLANT  TOUR 


Unfortunately  we  don't  have  the  opportunity  to  show  many  readers  through  the  Ryan 
factory^  but  we  can  ask  you  to  join  us  in  this  column  while  we  go  through  the  plaitt 
and  meet  some  of  the  people  who  help  make  Ryan  a   better  place  to  work. 


BOOTS  AND  BUSTLES  are  in  order  for 
the  35  Ryan  couples  who  have  taken  up 
the  latest  craze  of  Square  Dancing.  Ac- 
cording to  Bob  Fullsrton,  President  of  the 
Boots  and  Bustles  Club,  all  Ryan  em- 
ployees and  their  friends  ore  welcome  to 
\he  Wednesday  night  sessions  at  the 
Recital  Hall  at  Balboa  Pork.  Beginner 
classes  start  at  7:00  p.m.  with  Win 
Alderson  of  the  Laboratory  as  caller.  By 
8:00  p.m.,  you're  all  set  to  swing  your 
partner  with  gusto.  Ralph  Haver,  club 
vice  president,  and  OIlie  Olson,  secretory- 
treasurer,  admitted  they  were  skeptical 
at  first,  too,  but  now  they  swear  by 
square  dancing    for  what   ails   you. 

WOODARD  TAKES  THE  CUE.  As  just 
about  the  handiest  man  in  these  ports 
with  a  cue,  George  C.  Woodard,  executive 
vice-president,  has  again  come  out  on  top 
in  the  Son  Diego  Club's  annual  billiard 
tournament.  With  1 5  wins  to  his  credit 
and  only  3  losses,  Woodard  became  Club 
Champion  for   1950. 


THREE  FLYING  DUTCHMEN  got  to- 
gether on  the  occasion  of  Peter  van  der 
Woiide's  recent  factory  visit.  Turning  out 
to  give  the  Ryan  Navion  distributor  from 
Pretoria,  Union  of  South  Africa,  his  first 
look  at  the  Navion  assembly  lines  were 
Will  Vondermeer  (I.),  General  Super- 
visor of  the  Engineering  Laboratory,  and 
John  van  der  Linde  (r.).  Airplane  and 
Fabrication  Superintendent.  With  two 
such  guides,  van  der  Woude  said  he  felt 
right  at  home  even  though  so  far  away 
from  the  Dutch  atmosphere  of  his  country. 


TURKISH  DELIGHT.  Whether  or  not  the 
Turks  were  delighted  we're  not  sure,  but 
we  do  know  a  traveler  arriving  recently 
at  Ankara  was  pleased  and  surprised  to 
see  0  Navion  as  he  alighted  at  Yesilkoy 
Field  from  a  Pan  American  Clipper.  The 
traveler  was  Keith  Monroe,  editor  of  the 
original  Ryan  Flying  Reporter,  our  war- 
time company  magazine,  now  a  prominent 
free-lance  writer.  Apparently,  he's  on  a 
European  tour  seeking  new  magazine 
material. 

The  Navion?  Monroe  writes,  "I  was 
too  cold  to  stand  around  and  ask  ques- 
tions. There  was  a  wind  blowing  from 
Siberia  and  I'd  just  left  the  desert  heat 
of  Karachi,  India."  Must  hove  been  one 
belonging  to  the  Army  Field  Forces  in 
occupied  Europe,  to  on  American  military 
mission,  or  to  the  Government  of  Greece. 
Or,  perhaps  one  of  the  many  European 
business  men  who  own  and  fly  Navions  in 
their  travels. 

IF  THE  SHOE  FITS  ...  and  it  did  fit 
Paul  E.  Gongaware  of  Manifold  Small 
Ports  becoTjse  he  was  the  lucky  winner 
from  numerous  entries  in  the  Safety  Shoe 
Contest.  His  guess  of  3078  lbs.  pressure 
to  break  the  toe  of  a  safety  shoe  was  the 
closest  to  the  4100  lbs.  pressure  it  did 
take.  Consequently,  Gongaware  is  now 
wearing  his  free  pair  of  safety  shoes. 
You  may  hove  o  pair,  too,  at  a  reduced 
cost  without  having  to  guess  anything. 
See  M.  M.  Clancy,  Safety  Engineer. 


CITIZEN 
ANDREW 


e  =    1 

2  I  V 


.7   +    1    OD 


This  relatively  simple  formula  is  only 
One  of  the  hundreds  appearing  in  the 
just-published  60-page  NACA  tome  on 
disturbed  airplane  motion  authored  by 
Ryan's  chief  oerodynamacist  and  newest 
American  citizen,  G.  Andrew.  Took  him 
two  years  to  write  it,  too,  and  we  con 
understand  why. 

"Andy"  hod  another,  longer  middle- 
European  lost  name  which  he  dropped  in 
November  when  he  received  his  final 
papers. 

It's  been  a  long,  devious  path  to  Amer- 
ican citizenship  Andy  has  trod  since  the 
day  ten  years  ago  he  beat  Hitler  out  of 
his  native  country,  where  he  was  a  noted 
aeronautical  scientist. 

After  serving  as  on  officer  in  the 
French  Air  Force,  Andy  crossed  the  chan- 
nel to  England  when  Paris  fell,  to  join 
the  Royal  Air  Force  and  there  sow  the 
blitz  through.  Then  followed  technical 
work  in  Canada  with  industrial  firms  and 
finally  admittance  to  the  U.  S.  in  1944  by 
special  permission  of  the  Army  and  Navy. 

He's  been  at  Ryan  the  past  three  and 
0  half  years. 


Ulith  nauion  SalEsmen 


15  NAVIONS  SOLD  IN  15  MONTHS  is  the  record  of  Jack  Riley,  Shreveport,  Louisi- 
ana, dealer  under  General  Aeronautics.  Delivery  olready  completed  on  his  first  1950 
DeLuxe  205  to  the  Hycolog  Company,  Shreveport  oil  well  servicing  firm,  Jack  isn't 
losing  any  of  the  selling  momentum  which  made  him  one  of  1 949's  outstanding 
Ryan  Navion  representatives.  Jack  currently  is  opening  new  offices  at  the  Shreveport 
Municipal  Airport,  emphasizing  accommodations  for  Navion  owners  which  are  in 
keeping  with  the   luxury-type  planes  they   fly. 

THOSE  WHO  HEARD  the  National  Broadcasting  Company's  recent  on-the-spot 
description  of  floods  in  Central  Indiana,  as  made  from  a  plane  in  flight,  will 
be  interested  to  know  that  the  broadcasting  ship  was  a  Ryan  Navion,  piloted 
by  Don  Hood,  Southern  Ohio  Aviotion's  dealer  in  Indianapolis.  Don  supplied 
the  Navion  and  his  services  to  Station  WIRE  for  the  emergency  coverage.  An 
announcer  and  engineer  accompanied  him  over  the  disaster  zone  to  record  the 
event.  During  a  two  and  a  half  hour  period,  they  covered  a  300-mile  area. 

SWISS  APPRECIATION  OF  THE  RYAN  NAVION'S  superb  high  altitude  performance 
parallels  that  of  pilots  who  fly  the  American  Rockies.  That's  the  opinion  of  Technical 
Manager  Warnsi  of  Air-Import  Corporation,  who  is  seen  here  delivering  HB-ESE  to 
its  purchaser,  Georges  Filipinetti,  at  Comtrin  Airport,  Geneva.  Alpine  heights,  he  feels, 
present  the  same  lofty  take-off  problems  that  the  Navion  has  proved  it  can  handle 
so  well  during  operations  in  the  mountainous  sections  of  North  and  South  America. 
Air- Import  is  the  Ryon  Navion  dealer  for  Switzerland  under  Anco,  European  dis- 
tributor. 


Filipinett 


Warnez 


NEW  FAME  IS  COMING  TO  THE  RYAN  NAVION  and  to  the  luscious  shrimp,  gumbo 
and  bisque  of  Louisiana,  because  an  alert  Ryan  Navion  distributor  saw  the  possibili- 
ties in  putting  planes  and  food  together  for  better  business.  From  the  Baton  Rouge 
headquarters  of  Louisiana  Aircraft,  dynamic  Bill  Eberhart  now  delivers  by  Navion  a 
selection  of  12  Louisiana  sea  food  delicacies,  all  bearing  the  copyrighted  "Flying 
Chef"  label  which  pictures  a  French  Chef  at  the  controls  of  a  red  Ryan  Navion.  Is 
business  good?  Bill's  answer  is  the  network  of  Louisiana  stores  he  serves  on  a  large 
scale  and  his  ever  increasing  air  deliveries  to  California,  New  York  and  Florida. 

BILL    FRASER,    MANAGER   OF    CLEAR    RIDGE    AVIATION 

in  Omaha,  the  newest  Ryan  Navion  domestic  distributor, 
hos  picked  up  his  first  DeLuxe  205  demonstrator  and  already 
has  the  boll  rolling  for  increased  Navion  sales  in  the 
Nebraska- Iowa  region  served  by  his  organization.  Oscar 
Cooke,  founder  of  Clear  Ridge,  and  himself  the  owner  of 
three  Ryan  Navions,  accompanied  Bill  to  San  Diego  for  the 
important  delivery.  The  DeLuxe  model  was  the  first  to  leave 
the  factory  with  the  new   1950  Gala  Green  finish. 

PLEASANT  FLYING  WEATHER  is  bringing  out  the  air  travelers  in  big  numbers. 
Catching  the  full  spirit  of  the  season,  at  least  two  Ryan  Navion  dealers  are  planning 
exclusive  Navion  parties  for  flights  to  California  and  Texas.  Tommy  Metcalf  of  Toledo, 
Ohio,  is  getting  together  an  airavan  of  six  Navions  for  the  jaunt  to  San  Diego  and  sev- 
eral days'  relaxation  in  Southern  California.  Jack  Riley,  Shreveport  dealer,  is  arranging 
a  10-Navion  trip  to  Tex  Anderson's  Circle  R  Sky  Ranch  near  Son  Antonio.  "Plane 
owners  enjoy  company,"  is  the  way  Metcalf  puts  it.  "They  like  the  fellowship  that 
exists  among  pilots  as  within  no  other  group.  Add  to  that  o  desire  to  'really  go  places' 
in  their  planes  and  you  have  the  reason  why  Novion-fleet  flights  ore  so  successful." 

HONORABLE  MENTION.  Mallard  Air  Service's  new  Executive  Aircraft  Center 
at  Teterboro,  N,  J.,  sent  1950  business  flying  to  a  wonderful  start.  Arthur  God- 
frey and  Gill  Robb  Wilson,  aviation  editor  of  the  New  York  Herald  Tribune, 
teamed  up  to  see  that  dedication  ceremonies — attended  by  a  host  of  celebrities 
— went  off  in  grand  style.  .  .  .  First  of  the  1950  Ryan  Navion  DeLuxe  205 
demonstrators  was  taken  by  Carolina  Aeronautics,  distributor  in  Henderson- 
ville,  N.  C.  The  one  and  only  Koddy  Landry  ferried  the  Ceramic  Red  beouty 
East.  .  .  .  Delivery  of  a  new  Ryan  Navion  to  the  Veterans  of  Foreign  Wars  has 
earned  Aviation  Consultants,   Inc.,  a  gold  star  on  the  Navion  sales  honor  roll. 


BEHIND  CLOSED  DOORS 

(Continued  from  page  7 ) 
pel'ed  planes  following  1945,  the  depart- 
ment has  channeled  its  energies  into  those 
highly  technical  fields.  In  1948,  a  special 
steel-reinforced  concrete  test  cell  was 
built  at  the  factory,  from  the  designs  of 
William  Immenschuh,  Project  Engineer, 
in  which  some  of  the  products  of  the 
Experimental  Department  have  been  put 
through  their  paces.  At  the  moment  the 
concrete  and  steel  building  is  being  used 
for  highly  confidential  work  involving 
new  aviation  concepts  in  a  U.S.  Navy 
Bureau  of  Aeronautics  project.  Here,  too, 
the  development  work  on  the  Ryan  jet 
engine  Afterburner  was  conducted. 

Typical  of  the  "Aircraft-plant-in- 
miniature"  operations  of  the  Experimental 
group  was  the  recent  fabrication  of  the 
XQ-2,  high-speed,  jet  target  plane. 

First,  designs  in  the  Engineering  De- 
partment were  hashed  over  by  tool  plan- 
ning personnel  from  Experimental.  Pur- 
pose of  these  sessions  was  to  give  the  engi- 
neers some  of  the  shop's  ideas  and  sugges- 
tions to  facilitate  the  building  of  the  tar- 
get. From  the  rough  sketches  and  ideas, 
the  tool  planning  group  was  able  to  pre- 
plan its  own  part  of  the  project  before 
the  release  of  final  drawings  started  the 
pilotless  drone  plane  into  production. 

Tools  for  building  the  plane  were  Ex- 
perimental's  first  step.  Orders  went  out 
to  its  own  machine  shop  to  build  them. 
Heavy  jigs  were  made  in  the  main  fac- 
tory shops  and  returned  to  Experimental 
for  final  use. 

After  the  necessary  tools  for  any  one 
part  were  ready  the  actual  manufacture 
of  that  particular  part  began.  The  stain- 
less steel,  aluminum  and  magnesium  sheets 
were  formed  on  the  stretch  press.  After 
all  the  parts  for  a  particular  assembly 
were  completed,  the  XQ-2  was  ready  for 
assembly. 

The  first  model  was  a  wind  tunnel  and 
static  testing  version.  Results  of  the  in- 
quiries into  its  potentialities  led  the  Air 
Force,  Army  and  Navy,  under  whose 
joint  aegis  the  project  is  being  completed, 
to  increase  the  order. 

Experimental  has  other  jobs  b.'side  the 
building  of  the  newer  type  of  aircraft  and 
missiles.  Most  important  is  the  modifica- 
tion of  these  types  after  testing  points  the 
way  toward  improvement.  The  First 
XQ-2,  like  the  first  "Fireball,"  and  "Fire- 
bird," underwent  modifications.  Anything 
as  fluid  as  aircraft  design,  what  with  the 
rapid,  almost  daily  changes  in  tactical 
concepts,  powerplant  installations  and 
electronics  mechanisms,  poses  vast  prob- 
lems for  the  assembly  line  technicians  and 
(C.-ntiitucd  on  pa<^c  2}  ) 


workmen  who  must  turn  out  the  con- 
stantly improving  models.  Experimental 
is  so  set  up  that  changes  can  be  incorpor- 
ated almost  overnight  should  a  radar  nose 
assembly  prove  too  short  or  a  rocket  en- 
gine pack  too  much  punch  for  the  hous- 
ing encasing  it. 

But  the  Experimental  Department 
prides  itself  on  getting  the  new  jobs  out 
while  they  are  still  news.  Just  four  months 
and  nine  days  after  the  final  drawings  for 
the  static  test  model  of  the  XQ-2  were 
ready  for  Tool  Planners,  the  first  model 
was  completed,  checked  by  the  Inspection 
Department  and  ready  for  shipment  to  the 
Wright  Field  wind  tunnel.  Speed,  with 
precision,  is  Experimental's  stock  in  trade, 
thanks  to  the  abilities  of  men  like  Kenny 
Krull;  R.  W.  Macomber,  Manufacturing 
Engineer  in  charge  of  Production  Control 
and  Production  Engineering;  O.  H.  In- 
galls,  Foreman  of  Fabrication  and  Tool- 
ing, and  C.  H.  Staup,  Foreman  of  Assem- 
bly and  Test  Work. 

Passing  through  the  door  marked  RE- 
STRICTED is  much  like  Alice's  step 
through  the  Looking  Glass.  Nothing  she 
found  there  could  possibly  have  astounded 
her  more  than  the  things  she  would  find 
on  the  other  side  of  the  high  board  wall 
in  the  Ryan  Final  Assembly  Building. 


"YEARS  AHEAD"  FARMER 

(Continued  from  page  15) 
used  by  railroads  in  the  East  and  built  at 
Minneapolis,  Minnesota.  My  wife  and  I 
tlew  the  Navion  back  to  Minneapolis, 
found  out  it  was  what  I  wanted,  had  one 
built  for  farm  use  and  shipped  to  Teha- 
chapi.  From  there  we  went  to  Florida, 
where  we  visited  competitive  potato  pro- 
ducing districts  in  that  State.  Then  it  was 
on  to  New  Orleans,  where  I  bought  three 
strains  of  hybrid  corn  seed  to  try  in 
California. 

"Last  April  I  needed  some  up-to-date 
information  on  apple  orchards.  Flew  to 
Santa  Rosa,  California,  in  the  morning, 
spent  the  day  with  Farm  Advisor,  visit- 
ing growers,  discussing  insect  control, 
irrigating  methods,  pruning,  etc.,  and  was 
back  home  before  dark. 

"In  September  the  corn  I  had  bought 
in  New  Orleans  had  grown  up  and  I 
wanted  to  see  the  latest  corn  harvesting 
and  shelling  equipment,  and  talk  with 
some  other  California  corn  growers.  So 
one  morning  after  visiting  my  Bakersfield 
ranches  and  going  to  my  office,  I  flew  the 
Navion  to  Stockton.  Arriving  at  noon,  I 
was  met  by  the  grain  buyer  for  Ralston 
Purina  Corporation,  who  took  me  to  the 
best  growers  in  the  area.  In  addition  to 
seeing  their  automatic  harvesting  equip- 
ment, I  was  able  to  get  information  first 
hand  on  proper  seed  spacing,  cultivating, 
frequency    of    irrigation,    insect    control, 


growing  costs,  harvesting  costs  and  last, 
but  not  least,  net  returns  per  acre. 

"Another  good  example  of  the  value 
of  my  plane  concerned  Ramie,  a  fiber 
plant  previously  grown  only  in  Egypt. 
The  only  decordicating  machine  in  exist- 
ence to  handle  Ramie  and  the  only  field 
of  Ramie  in  shape  to  harvest  after  the 
New  Orleans  hurricane,  was  at  Atmore, 
Alabama.  Another  farmer  who  is  also 
interested  in  Ramie  as  a  California  crop, 
and  our  wives  and  I,  flew  to  Atmore, 
Alabama.  We  saw  the  Ramie  growing 
and  saw  it  harvested.  We  learned  about 
the  growing  habits  of  Ramie,  what  kind 
of  soil  it  liked,  what  fertilizers  to  use, 
how  often  to  irrigate,  when  to  harvest 
and  what  insects  liked  Ramie  best — we 
learned  this  in  one  day  and  returned  to 
New  Orleans. 

"From  New  Orleans  we  made  a  short 
hop  up  to  Clarksdale,  Mississippi.  There 
we  visited  the  King-Anderson  plantation 
where  a  large  implement  manufacturing 
company,  Allis-Chalmers  Mfg.  Co.,  had 
been  experimenting  with  and  developing 
a  mechanical  cotton  picker.  We  had  been 
told  by  our  local  dealer  before  leaving 
home  that  the  company  considered  it 
complete,  and  after  this  picking  it  was 
going  back  to  the  factory  for  blueprint- 
ing and  production.  We  had  a  private 
preview  of  a  machine  doing  the  slickest 
job  of  picking  cotton  we  had  ever  seen. 
After  crawling  over  the  machine,  under 
it,  into  it,  walking  in  front  of  it,  behind 


rvtfcvfL 

—'reporter 


Here   comes   the  new    Navion! 

Don  Doerr,  Chief  Photographer, 
caught  this  exciting  near  head-on  view 
of  the  first  1950  De  Luxe  205  Ryan 
Navion  during  a  special  photo  flight 
over   Southern    California. 

Hand-holding  his  Speed-Graphic  cam- 
era, Don  shot  the  picture  through  the 
right    rear  window   of  another  Navion. 

William  P.  Sloan  and  Bill  Lake  pi- 
loted the  De  Luxe  205  and  camera 
planes,    respectively. 


it,  beside  it  and  driving  it,  we  placed 
number  one  and  number  two  orders  for 
Kern  County,  California,  on  the  spot. 

"The  following  summer  I  was  con- 
fronted with  a  weed  problem  in  my  pota- 
toes after  the  plants  were  too  large  to 
cultivate.  2-4D,  the  new  selective  weed 
spray,  was  supposed  to  kill  any  broad- 
leafed  plant.  I  had  heard  that  Dr.  Baake 
of  Iowa  State  College  at  Ames,  Iowa,  had 
been  doing  some  research  work  with  2-4D 
on  potatoes  with  success. 

"My  son,  who  is  13,  and  I  took  off  for 
Iowa  State  College.  Bill  takes  over  when 
I  feel  a  siesta  coming  on.  I  have  slept  an 
hour  or  more  at  a  time  and  never  awak- 
ened to  find  Bill  off  course  or  at  another 
altitude.  (I  am  bragging  on  my  son  but 
you  can  use  it  to  brag  on  your  airplane — 
though  I  know  he  loves  to  jockey  throttle 
and  prop  pitch  into  combinations  of  his 
own.  'A  guy  has  to  do  something,'  says 
Bill.) 

"Arriving  at  noon  the  following  day 
we  spent  the  afternoon  with  Dr.  Baake 
getting  the  benefit  of  three  years  inten- 
sive research  with  2-4D  on  potatoes 
through  photographs  and  a  personal  dis- 
cussion with  the  man  who  had  done  the 
work.  Needless  to  say  we  came  away  with 
copies  of  papers  written  by  Dr.  Baake, 
comparability  charts,  formulae  and  the 
characteristics  of  the  different  forms  of 
2-4D  on  various  plants. 

"The  next  morning  we  spent  two  hours 
with  Dr.  Cook,  who  has  been  doing  re- 
search work  on  potato  scab,  another 
plague  of  the  potato  grower. 

"Taking  off  from  Ames  at  11:00  am., 
we  lunched  in  Omaha  and  that  night  slept 
in  Cheyenne.  The  next  afternoon  we  were 
home.  After  engaging  an  airplane  spray 
rig  for  the  following  morning,  I  found 
that  the  particular  form  of  materials  I 
needed  were  not  available  locally.  With 
just  enough  time  left  to  telephone,  I  lo- 
cated the  materials  in  Fresno,  California, 
100  miles  away.  The  engine  in  the  Navion 
wasn't  cold  yet  when  I  took  off  for 
Fresno  and  90  minutes  later  I  had  my 
eight  5-gallon  cans  of  spray  material  on 
the  runway  for  the  spray  rig  the  next 
morning.  I  made  it  home  in  time  for  the 
one-quarter  apple  pie  and  ice  cream 
course  of  the  homecoming  dinner.  Bill 
had  eaten  all  the  chicken!    ■ 

"Using  the  information  gained  at  Iowa 
State  I  did  a  three-in-one  job  of  spray- 
ing by  incorporating  into  one  solution 
2-4D  for  weed  control,  Tetraethyl-pyro- 
phosphate  (TEPP)  for  a  quick  kill  of  in- 
sects and  liquid  DDT  for  a  residual  insect 
poison.  Yes,  this  trip  really  paid  dividends 
— but  quick. 

"Is  it  any  wonder  that  I  claim  it's  my 
Ryan  Navion  which  makes  it  possible  for 
me  to  do  so  much  in  the  way  of  new 
farming  operations?" 


23 


IN  LINCOLN'S  WORDS 

84     5  8 


PROPERTY  IS  THE  FRUIT  OF  LABOR;  PROPERTY 
IS  DESIRABLE;  IT  IS  A  POSITIVE  GOOD  IN  THE 
WORLD.  THAT  SOME  SHOULD  BE  RICH  SHOWS 
THAT  OTHERS  MAY  BECOME  RICH,  AND  HENCE 
IS  JUST  ENCOURAGEMENT  TO  INDUSTRY  AND 
ENTERPRISE. 

LET  NOT  HIM  WHO  IS  HOUSELESS  PULL  DOWN 
THE  HOUSE  OF  ANOTHER,  BUT  LET  HIM  WORK 
DILIGENTLY  AND  BUILD  ONE  FOR  HIMSELF, 
THUS  BY  EXAMPLE  ASSURING  THAT  HIS  OWN 
SHALL  BE  SAFE  FROM  VIOLENCE  WHEN  BUILT. 


YOU 
CAN- 
NOT 


bring  about  prosperity  by  discouraging 

thrift, 
strengthen  the  weak  by  ■weakening  the 

strong, 
help   strong   men   by    tearing   down    big 

men. 
help  the  'wage  earner  by  pulling  do'wn 

the  wage  payer, 
further  the  brotherhood  of  man  by  en- 
couraging class  hatred, 
help    the    poor    by    destroying    the   rich, 
establish    sound    security    on    borro'wed 

money, 
keep  out   of   trouble   by   spending   more 

than  you  earn, 
build  character  and  courage  by  taking 
away  man's  initiative  and  independence, 
help  men  permanently  by  doing  for  them 
what  they  could  and  should  do  for 
themselves. 


24 


STAINIESS  STEEL 

EABMCATOE 

FOl  Til 


AIICIAIPT  AN 
AIECIAFT -ENGP 


INiUSTlI 


iJ^ 


RVnn  Metal  Products 


DIVISION    OF    RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY      •      LINDBERGH     FIELD      •      SAN     DIEGO.     CALIFORNIA 

EOaust    Systems      •      Jet    and    Rocket    Engine    Components 


RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY 
LINDIERGH     FIELD 
SAN  DIEGO  12,  CALIFORNIA 


E.  A.  HAEUSER 
3744  BANCROFT 
SAN  DIEGO  4,  CALIF 


Sec.  34.66,  P.  L.&R. 

U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego,  California 
Permit  No.  437 


NEW  1950  NAVION  DE  LUXE  205! 


Here's  the  newest  member  of  a  distinguished  family.  It's  a  big, 
rugged,  still  better  Navion  .  .  .  unsurpassed  for  safe,  easy  flying.  That's 
why  it's  the  only  plane  in  its  class  used  by  the  U.S.  Army  Field  Forces 
.  .  .  why  it's  preferred  by  non-professionals  everywhere  who  fly  for  fun 
and  profit.  The  155  mph  all-metal  Navion  offers  you  most  of  what  you 
want  most:  restful,  relaxed  flying  In  a  beautifully  appointed,  roomy 
cabin  that's  sound-proofed,  ventilated  and  well-equipped.  Navion  gives 
you  superior  stability  under  all  flight  conditions.  It  forgives  pilot  error 
short  of  deliberate  foolhardiness.  Big.  Fast.  Riigged.  Safe  and  easy-to- 
fly.  That's  Navion,  the  dependable  airplane.     ^  ^-  - — &  8 


THERE'S  A  NAVION  FOR  EVERYONE  IN  1950 

^NAVION  UTUfTY  205    ^NAVION  DE  LUXE  205    (((^NAVION  SUPER  260 


A  new,  hardworking  plane 
for  all  who  need  modem, 
safe  air  transportation  at 
minimum  cost.  Ideal  for 
heavy-duty  chores.  Retains 
all  safe,  easy-flyijig  fea- 
tures.    ''■'.  ■%       \i  ij 


New  adjustable  cowl  flaps 
give  improved  engine  cool- 
ing; new  cylinder  head 
temperature  gauge;  new 
radio  antenna;  improved 
ventilation.  Three  beauti- 
ful new  colors. 


The  260  hp  Lycoming 
model  gives  top  all  around 
performance,  cruises  at 
170  mph.  climbs  1250 
fpm,  and  combines  fa- 
mous Navion  rugged  sta- 
bility and  safe  flying. 


1950  NAVION   PRICES  BEGIN  AT  $9485 

Write  today  on  business  letterhead  for  more  information 

NO  OfHER   PLANE  COMBINES   SO   MANY   EEATURES  SO  WELL 


Spinner  available  as  extra  equipment 

y^Check  these  Navion  Features 
for  Safer,  Easier  Flying! 

I^UPERiOR  STABILITY  for  easiest  air 
ride  under  all  flight  conditions. 

KSHORT  FIELD   EXCELLENCE   with  slower 

landings,  quicker  take-off's,  faster  climb. 

KuNEQUALLED  VISIBILITY. . .  all  around. 
over  the  nose  and  directly  back. 

rxiSi  ROUGH  FIELDS  with  confidence, 
even  in  cross  winds,  on  mud  or  snow. 

I^XTRA  LARGE  NOSEWHEEL   that's  SteCr- 

able;  higher  ground  clearance,  sturdier 
landing  gear. 

r^TALL-RESlSTANT,  ANTI-SPIN.  Unique 
wing  design  gives  aileron  control  below 
stalling  speed. 

Vrugged  CONSTRUCTION  throughout. 
Navion  was  designed  from  the  start  for 
heavy-duty  flying. 

^EFFICIENT  HIGH-LIFT  FLAPS  with  Selec- 
tive positioning,  lower  a  full  43°,  give 
63 Cr  more  lift  for  landings  under  50 
mph  with  average  loads. 

t^lL-METAL  DURABILITY.  Wrinkle  and 
dent-resistant  skin. 

rAIRLINER-TYPE  FUEL  SYSTEM  with  dual 

pumps. 

^EXCLUSIVE  TWO-CONTROL  feature  for 
smooth,  effortless,  coordinated  control. 


REPOR^liR 


^ 


TtDTTli;  N0.13 


EXHAUST  STACKS 


^  i- 


Cooling 
Air 


Heated  Air 
To  Duct  System 


"  ■  -r  ■&»•'.  ^„  - 


;^ 


THERMAL  ANTI-ICING 


by  M.  G.  Beard,  Director  of  Flight  Engineering  and  Dave  Nortli,  Asst.  Project  Engineer,  American  Airlines 


SINCE  1947,  the  airlines  have  been  push- 
ing a  new  kind  of  vehicle  through  the 
occasional  icing  clouds  over  these  United 
States.  It  differs  from  its  predecessors  in 
that  it  is  equipped  to  keep  various  essential 
airfoil  surfaces  warm  (above  freezing) 
when  flying  through  an  atmosphere  below 
freezing.  Thermal  anti-icing  of  wing  and 
tail  surfaces  with  heated  air,  cyclic  de- 
icing  of  propeller  leading  edges  with  elec- 
trical heating  elements,  and  warming  of 
the  cockpit  windshield  glass  with  either 
heated  air  or  electrical  power  is  now  a  rou- 
tine accomplishment  on  many  airlines. 

It  IS  miportant  to  remember  only  one 
thing — that  heated  wing  surfaces  on  pres- 
ent day  aircraft  are  merely  iiarni  (32^   to 


100  F.)  rather  than  hot ^  and  that  only 
the  leading  edge  is  heated  rather  than  the 
entire  airfoil. 

The  Consolidated  Vultee  Convair  240 
airplanes,  of  which  there  are  about  175 
units  in  service,  has  an  airfoil  anti-icing 
system  similar  in  principle  to  that  of  the 
DC-6  except  that  the  heat  source  is  a  heat 
exchanger  device  converting  the  energy 
of  the  powerplant  exhaust  gases  into  use- 
able heat.  Four  of  these  exchangers,  or 
augmentor  tubes,  as  they  are  called,  are 
installed  in  each  Convair,  two  per  engine 
nacelle. 

The  outboard  augmentor  in  each  nacelle 
sends  heat  to  the  adjacent  outer  wing 
pane!  and  some  heat  to  the  inboard  wing 


section  plus  a  cross-over  duct  to  the  op- 
posite wing  system.  The  latter  is  for  use 
during  single  engine  operation.  Each  in- 
board augmentor  tube  sends  heated  air 
to  a  converging  duct  in  the  fuselage 
through  which  heat  is  distributed  to  the 
cabin  air  system  or  to  the  tail  anti-icing 
systems  or  both  as  selected  by  the  oper- 
ating crew.  Air  temperatures  at  the  origi- 
nating source  (the  augmentor  tube)  are 
usually  within  the  range  of  3  50°  to 
450  F.  depending  mainly  upon  the  var- 
iables of  airspeed,  O.A.T.,  engine  power 
and  augmentor  vane  position. 

What  results  in  reliability  and  safety  of 
scheduled  flights  are  being  achieved  by 
the  use  of  ice  preventative  "tools"  m  the 


hands  of  today's  skilled  flight  crews? 

No  sooner  had  the  DC-6  been  put  into 
operation,  than  a  controversy  arose  be- 
tween operating  personnel  as  to  whether 
the  heated  wing  system  was  more  efficient 
when  used  as  an  anti-icer  (preheated  be- 
fore entering  icing  conditions  and  con- 
tinuously heated  during  icing  conditions), 
or  as  a  deicer  (entering  the  icing  condition 
cold  and  turning  on  at  intervals  as  re- 
quired to  melt  off  ice  deposits  formed) . 

Although  the  manufacturer's  instruc- 
tions for  both  the  DC-6  and  Convair  indi- 
cated clearly  that  heated  wings  were  most 
efficient  when  operated  as  an  anti-icing 
system,  it  was  natural  that  operating  per- 
sonnel should  take  exception  to  such  in- 
struction, and  do  some  personal  experi- 
menting under  icing  conditions.  From 
long  experience  with  pneumatic  rubber 
deicer  boots  it  was  learned  that  boots 
under  some  conditions  are  more  effective 
as  deicers  with  intermittent  operation  than 
as  anti-icers  under  continuous  operation. 
Also  under  certain  severe  conditions  of 
hard,  low-temperature  rime  ice,  it  is  con- 
sidered better  to  leave  pneumatic  boots 
entirely  inoperative.  It  is,  therefore,  per- 


BEARD 


This  article  is  o 
condensation  of  the 
paper,  "Operotionol 
Results  of  Thermal 
Anti  -  Icing,"  pre- 
sented at  the  re- 
cent annual  meet- 
ing of  the  Society 
of  Automotive  En- 
gineers. The  sub- 
ject matter  of  the 
paper  includes  both 
exhaust  gas  heat 
exchanger  and  combustion  heater  in- 
stallations. This  condensation,  how- 
ever, covers  only  the  system  using  heat 
from  the  powerplont  exhaust  gas  as 
illustrated  by  experience  with  the  Con- 
vair Liner  240  transport  for  which 
Ryan  manufactures  the  exhaust  col- 
lector. The  Douglas  DC-6  uses  a  Ryan 
ejector-type  manifold  system  to  pro- 
vide increased  speed  through  jet  pro- 
pulsive thrust.  Heat  for  the  DC-6  anti- 
icing  is  from  a  gasoline  combustion 
heater. 


fectly  normal  that  pilots  would  wish  to 
investigate  individually  the  relative  merits 
of  heated  airfoils  when  used  as  anti-icers 
or  deicers.  Convair  made  a  special  study  of 
these  two  methods  and  their  training  film 
indicated  clearly  the  advantages  of  using 
the  system  in  the  anti-icing  manner. 


During  icing  tests  in  moderate  to  heavy 
ice  on  both  models,  encountering  many  of 
the  various  types  of  icing  over  a  great 
range  of  temperatures,  it  was  concluded 
that  both  the  DC-6  and  Convair  icing 
systems  are  most  efficiently  used  as  anti- 
icing  systems  with  air  foils  full  warmed 
before  entering  the  icing  area,  continuous 
heating  during  the  icing  encounter  and 
afterwards  until  all  runback  is  dissipated. 

Pilot  reactions  following  the  past  win- 
ter's operations  have  been  predominently 
favorable.  The  airlines  generally  have  not 
attempted  to  negotiate  more  severe  icing 
conditions  this  past  winter  with  the  DC-6 
and  Convair  than  would  have  been  flown 
with  the  DC-3's  and  DC-4's  equipped 
with  wing  deicer  boots.  Pilot  concensus 
at  the  end  of  last  winter  was  that  heated 
airfoil  efficiency  was  higher  throughout 
the  winter  than  would  have  been  accom- 
plished by  deicer  boots.  The  amount  of 
"runback"  present  under  certain  condi- 
tions was  disappointing  and  indicated  need 
of  improvement  in  future  designs. 
(Continued  on  page  24) 


HEATED  AIR  DUMPS 
AT  TRAILIN6  EDGE 


iini,LijL_ 


THE  mi  m  MM 

OF  A  PRiice 


"^^F  the  10  Navions  which  we  or- 
^^  dered,  one  was  purchased  by  His 
Highness  the  Maharaja  of  Dumraon.  I 
arranged  the  employment  of  a  personal 
pilot  named  Capt.  David  Todd.  H.  H. 
enjoyed  his  Navion  and  in  fact  felt  very 
proud  of  its  appearance  and  performance 
and  to  date  this  aircraft  has  given  approx- 
imately 80  hours  of  trouble  free  service. 
During  the  latter  portion  of  October,  he 
decided  to  fly  from  Calcutta  to  Shillong 
in  Assam,  where  he  was  in  residence  at 
the  time  for  a  hill  station  holiday.  This 
trip  was  accomplished  without  incident, 
flying  north,  skirting  the  Pakistan  border, 
flying  East  along  the  Brahmaputra  river 
to  the  landing  strip  at  Gauhati,  the  near- 
est airstrip  to  Shillong. 

"From  the  strip  he  had  to  travel  by  road 
to  Shillong  at  a  height  of  approximately 
4500  feet  where  the  cUmate  experienced  is 
equivalent  to  our  spring  and  summer.  On 
the  14th  of  November,  Captain  Todd, 
who  was  back  in  Calcutta,  received  a  cable 
informing  him  that  H.  H.  had  expired 
and  that  his  Navion  was  urgently  required 
at  Gauhati  to  collect  his  body.  Todd  con- 
tacted me  and  we  decided  to  fly  together 
to  Gauhati. 

"The  flight  to  Gauhati  was  without  in- 
cident and  on  arrival  found  the  body  of 
H.  H.  lying  in  his  limousine  at  the  air- 
strip. We  removed  the  Navion's  rear  seat 
back  rest  and  laid  it  lengthwise  in  the 
cabin.  Upon  this  we  laid  a  mattress  and 
carefully  we  removed  the  body  from  the 


For  sheer  dromo  and  unusual  cir- 
cumstance it-  would  be  difficult  to 
match  the  last  flight  of  His  Highness 
the  Maharaja  of  Dumraon,  in  his  be- 
loved NAVION.  Squadron  Leader  T.  A. 
Coomber,  General  Manager  of  HIN- 
DUSTAN AIRWAYS,  LTD.,  Ryan 
NAVION  Distributor  for  Indio,  has 
written  a  poignant  letter  describing 
this  unique  mission. 


car  and  placed  it  gently  in  the  aircraft. 
Todd  and  I  took  our  places  and  H.  H.'s 
private  secretary  took  the  seat  on  the 
starboard  side  of  our  incumbent  passenger. 

"As  darkness  was  already  falling,  we 
found  it  necessary  to  proceed  back  to  Cal- 
cutta where  full  night  landing  facilities 
are  available.  This  we  did  without  inci- 
dent, making  a  perfect  night  landing  at 
Dum  Dum  Airport.  Due  to  the  lateness 
of  the  hour  and  also  to  the  fact  that  a 
very  early  take-off  was  necessary  the  fol- 
lowing morning  to  get  the  body  of  H.  H. 
to  its  last  resting  place,  it  was  decided  to 
picket  the  aircraft  at  the  airport,  leaving 
the  body  inside  the  cabin.  There  his  sec- 
retary spent  a  very  uncomfortable  night 
sleeping  on  the  hard  tarmac  underneath 
the  main-plane  of  the  Navion,  keeping 
watch  as  is  the  custom. 

"At  3:30  the  following  morning,  I 
drove  down  to  pick  up  Todd  and  we  pro- 
ceeded back  to  the  airport  where  we  ob- 


tained clearance.  Upon  proceeding  to  the 
aircraft,  we  opened  the  canopy  and  found 
the  cockpit  full  of  flowers  and  garlands 
which  had  been  placed  there  during  the 
night  by  sorrowing  relatives;  the  scent 
from  the  exotic  eastern  blooms  was  a 
trifle  overpowering! 

"We  took  off  and  flew  an  approximate 
course  of  313°  to  Patna  where  we  landed 
for  refueling  and  to  meet  the  elder  son  of 
H.  H.,  the  heir  apparent.  Here  the  ar- 
rangement was  altered,  as  originally  we 
intended  to  fly  the  body  to  the  State  of 
Dumraon  for  its  cremation,  but  the  son 
decided  to  proceed  further  west  to  Benares, 
the  most  holy  city  of  India,  for  the  crema- 
tion. It  is  pointed  out  at  this  stage  that 
we  had  a  full  load  of  fuel,  there  were  3 
persons  sitting  in  the  two  front  seats,  and 
the  body  of  H.  H.,  in  addition  to  his 
private  secretary  in  the  rear  of  the  air- 
craft. Also  we  were  carrying  approxi- 
mately IJO  lbs.  of  baggage.  My  estimate 
of  the  total  useful  load  carried  was  in  the 
region  of  1150  lbs.  but  the  Navion  took 
off  with  no  flap  in  approximately  800 
yards  with  no  trouble  at  all. 

"We  flew  East  reaching  Dumraon, 
where  we  did  a  few  circuits  around  his 
palace  and  finally  dipped  in  salute  to  a 
huge  gathering  of  his  subjects.  We  then 
proceeded  directly  to  Benares.  Here  the 
body  was  off-loaded  into  a  conveyance  and 
carried  to  the  banks  of  the  Ganges  for 
cremation  in  accordance  with  the  Hindu 
customs." 


GUIDED  MISSILE  DEVELOPMENT 


By  Colonel  Harry  J.  Sands,  Jr.,  USAF 

Assistant  for  Guided  Missiles 
Wright-Patterson  Air  Force  Base 


M 


Col.  H.  J.  Sonds 


ANY    new    fields 
of      development 
face    science,     industry 
and    the    armed    forces. 
The  guided  missiles  field 
is    commonly    accepted 
as  the  most  complex  and 
most     difficult     of     all, 
since  in  no  other  realm 
of  development  are  so  many  branches  of 
physical    science    directly,    or    indirectly, 
involved  —  aerodynamics,    thermodynam- 
ics,  electronics,   mathematics,   mechanics, 
ceramics,  heat  transmission,  chemistry  and 
combustion,   metallurgy,   ballistics,   mete- 
orology, astronomy,  cartography  and  oth- 
ers. The  integration  of  all  of  these  sciences 
into  the  development  of  successful  guided 
missiles   will   task   the  ingenuity   and   the 
initiative  of  American  industry  and  sci- 
ence. 

(Cuiitiiiued  on  page  4) 


A  tremendous  amount  of  reseorch  goes  into  every  new  guided  missile  project. 
For  example,  in  the  gigantic  wind  tunnel  at  the  Wright-Patterson  Air  Force 
Base,  Dayton,  Ohio,  studies  are  conducted  of  the  aerodynamic  characteris- 
tics of  the  Ryan  "Firebird"  air-to-air  experimental  rocket-powered  missile. 


Members  of  the  "689"  Board  shown  during  a  recent  visit  to  Ryan  confer- 
ring with  Ryan  engineering  personnel  on  the  XQ-2  jet  target  plane.  (L. 
to  r. )  Lawrence  Bruno  and  Bernord  Bayuk,  Air  Force;  hiarry  Sutton,  Ryan; 
Maj.  J.  K.  Taylor  and  Col.  Sands,  Air  Force,  and  Donald  Thompson,  Navy. 


With  target  plane,  guided 

missile  and  ]et  engine 

parts  projects,  Ryan 

has  an  important 

role  in  the  future 

of  Air  Power 


In  the  event  of  another  war,  the  em- 
ployment of  guided  missiles  will  encom- 
pass the  following  missions:  the  AIR  DE- 
FENSE of  the  continental  United  States, 
the  TACTICAL  SUPPORT  of  ground 
forces  and  the  conduct  of  STRATEGIC 
AIR  WARFARE  necessar)'  to  destroy  an 
enemy's  capacity  to  wage  war  and  his 
will  to  fight. 

To  accomplish  these  three  objectives, 
four  major  types  of  missiles  are  being  de- 
veloped— the  air-to-air,  the  surface-to- 
air,  the  air-to-surface,  and  the  surface-to- 
surface  missiles. 

The  air-to-air  missile  is  a  weapon  which 
will  replace  conventional  aircraft  arma- 
ment such  as  the  20  millimeter  guns  of 
World  War  II.  Such  a  weapon  will  be 
capable  of  being  launched  from  a  fighter 
or  bomber  aircraft  and  travel  several 
miles  at  supersonic  speeds  to  destroy  an 
enemy  aircraft  target.  Necessarily,  such 
missiles  must  be  as  compact  as  possible 
to  allow  the  maximum  number  to  be 
carried  by  our  aircraft. 

The  surface-to-air  missile  is  a  defensive 
weapon  which  can  best  be  described  as  a 
pilotless  interceptor.  Such  missiles  must 
be  capable  of  being  launched  from  de- 
fensive ground  sites  surrounding  strate- 
gically critical  areas,  such  as  large  indus- 
trial centers  and  military  installations  and 
being  guided  automatically  to  the  ap- 
proaching enemy  aircraft  targets. 

The  air-to-surface  missile  is  an  exten- 
sion of  the  conventional  type  of  bomb. 
Such  a  missile  will  be  launched  from  an 
aircraft  and,  instead  of  falling  vertically 
as  does  the  conventional  bomb,  it  will 
travel,  perhaps,  hundreds  of  miles  after 
its  release  with  pinpoint  accurac\  to  its 
target. 


The  surface-to-surface  missile  is  the 
type  of  missile  which  we  normally  visu- 
alize when  we  hear  the  term  "push-button 
warfare,"  for  this  is  the  type  of  missile 
which  is  launched  from  one  point  on  the 
earth's  surface  against  a  target  at  another 
point  on  the  earth's  surface  thousands  of 
miles  away.  Thus,  such  a  missile  would 
perform  the  mission  of  long  range  stra- 
tegic bombers. 

Obviously,  many  problems  must  be 
solved  before  any  of  these  missiles  can 
become  realities.  Some  of  the  major  prob- 
lems   are: 

1.  The  development  of  materials  to 
withstand  the  high  temperatures  which 
will   be  experienced   in   supersonic   flight. 

2.  The  development  of  high  speed 
power  plants  such  as  ramjets,  turbojets 
and  rockets. 

3.  The  development  of  fuels  of  greater 
efficiency  which  will  allow  the  attainment 
of  longer  ranges  at  higher  speed. 

4.  Control  systems  for  missiles  of  var- 
ious types  and  speed  ranges. 

5.  The  development  of  automatic  guid- 
ance systems  to  carry  the  missiles  to  their 
targets  with  a  high  degree  of  accuracy. 

In  addition  to  the  purely  technical 
problems  which  are  involved  in  the  de- 
velopment of  guided  missiles,  many  auxil- 
iary developments  will  also  be  required  to 
make  guided  missiles  operational  weapons. 
For  instance,  in  the  case  of  surface 
launched  missiles,  launching  ramps, 
launching  towers,  handling  equipment, 
erecting  equipment,  servicing  towers,  elec- 
trical, hydraulic  and  pneumatic  checking 
panels,  fuel  servicing  tankers,  and  many 
other  related  pieces  of  equipment  are  re- 
quired to  prepare  such  a  missile  for  launch- 
ing. Furthermore,  before  a  missile  of  the 
surface-to-air  type  can  be  launched,  early 
warning  devices  are  required  to  detect 
the  approaching  enemy  aircraft,  and 
tracking  radars,  computers  and  initial 
guidance  mechanisms  will  be  required  to 
put  the  missile  into  action. 

Another  development  which  must  go 
along  with  the  development  of  guided 
missiles  themselves  is  the  development  of 
airborne  targets  and  drones  which  are 
required  to  test  missiles  to  be  launched 
against  air  targets  such  as  the  surface-to- 
air  and  air-to-air  missiles.  The  project  of 
(Continued  on  page  24) 


This  Convair  Lark  is  designed  to  intercept  and  destroy  enemy  aircraft  be- 
fore ship  or  shore  targets  can  be  attacked.  The  missile  is  powered  by  a 
high  thrust,  liquid  fuel  rocket  motor.  Added  momentum  for  launching  is  sup- 
plied   by   a    twin-rocket   booster   assembly    which    separates    early    in    flight. 


As  a  means  of  recording  hitherto  unknown  facts  about  the  physics  of  the 
earth's  thin  upper  atmosphere,  the  U.  S.  Air  Force  uses  on  intricate  group 
of  compact  instruments  in  the  V-2  rocket.  Ready  to  soar  100  miles  or  more 
into  space,  o  V-2  is  shewn  in  its  huge  launching  ramp  at  White  Sands,  N.  M. 


IXTM!"  lews  (loverage 


The  Everett'  Daily  Herald  goes  right  to  the  source  of  a  news  story  in  their  speedy  Navion  called  Herolder  II.  Shown 
here  in  front  of  a  Boeing  Stratocruiser  (for  which  Ryan  builds  both  the  manifolds  and  the  rear  fuselage  section' 
are     (I.     to    r.)     M.     W.    McQuillin,    Aviation     Editor    and     Robert     Best,     Publisher.     Chuck     Walters,     pilot,     in     the     Navion. 


I  S  it  a  spot  news  story  with  pictures 
'  which  must  make  today's  edition,  or 
is  it  an  executive's  conference  in  a  city 
miles  away  across  colorful  Puget  Sound? 

Or  is  it  a  promotion  expedition  to  show 
Eastern  business  men  the  market  poten- 
tials of  the  great  Northwest,  or  a  pleasure 
hop  with  some  local  advertiser  to  view 
his  home  from  the  sky? 

Whatever  the  purpose  the  Everett  Daily 
Herald,  published  daily  at  Everett,  Wash- 
ington, presses  into  service  its  sleek,  rugged 


Ryan  Navion  to  get  the  personnel  there 
and  get  them  back.  The  "Heralder  11," 
as  the  plane  is  christened,  is  one  of  the 
hardest  working  and  most  reliable  mem- 
bers of  the  staff.  Twenty-six  executives 
and  other  employees  use  it  for  business 
trips. 

Although  several  newspapers  in  the 
Northwest  own  and  operate  their  own 
planes,  the  Everett  Herald  has  pioneered 
such  a  trend  in  the  Evergreen  state,  and 
the  trim  craft,  with  its  large  lemon  yellow 


letters  which  are  the  same  as  the  masthead 
of  the  newspaper,  is  a  familiar  sight  to 
thousands  of  people  throughout  Washing- 
ton, Oregon  and  California. 

The  log  of  the  Navion  shows  increasing 
business  use  of  the  airplane.  Personnel 
transportation  of  executives  to  conven- 
tions and  business  appointments  in  Port- 
land, Oregon,  Spokane  and  similar  distant 
places  are  made  in  a  matter  of  an  hour, 
thus  cutting  considerably  the  time  the 
executive  need  be  away  from  his  desk. 


by  M.  W.  McQuillin,  Aviation  Editor,  The  Everett  Daily  Herald 


As  The  Herald  is  one  of  the  operators 
of  the  West  Tacoma  Newsprint  Com- 
pany, there  is  frequent  occasion  to  fly  to 
Tacoma  and  return  the  same  afternoon, 
a  full  day's  trip  by  automobile. 

For  the  past  two  years  Robert  D.  Best, 
publisher,  has  been  president  of  the  Allied 
Daily  Newspapers,  which  has  necessitated 
numerous  trips  to  committee  meetings  as 
well  as  the  four  regular  sessions.  As  the 
executive  secretary  to  the  Association  is 
located  in  Olympia,  nearly  100  miles  from 
The  Herald  office,  the  Heralder  II  expe- 
dited this  travel. 

It  is  common  practice  for  Mr.  Best  to 
pick  up  other  publishers  in  the  state  and 
fly  them  to  the  meeting  city.  In  addition, 
business  interests  necessitate  frequent 
trips  to  Grays  Harbor,  which  requires 
3  !  2  hours  driving  one  way.  The  Navion 
makes  the  round  trip  in  less  than  one  hour. 

Only  last  week  we  had  occasion  to  fly 
to  Grays  Harbor.  What  made  this  par- 
ticular trip  unusual  was  the  ten  inches 
of  unpacked  snow  covering  the  runways 
of  Paine  Field,  our  home  port.  By  using 
full  flaps  and  picking  the  nosewheel  up 
as  soon  as  possible,  the  pilot  had  the  plane 
off  after  a  run  only  a  little  longer  than 


By  flying  pictures  faken  at  the  "Timber 
Bowl"  parade  back  to  their  main  office, 
the  Everett  Doily  Herald  hod  the  papers 
back   to   the   spectators   the    very   some   day. 


needed  for  regulation  take-offs.  The  Nav- 
ion just  seemed  to  bounce  into  the  air 
in  spite  of  all  that  snow. 

Predecessor  to  the  company  owned 
Navion  was  a  two-place  airplane  used  by 
the  newspaper  company  for  three  years. 
This  smaller  craft  proved  the  value  of  an 
airplane  for  newspaper  use  and  it  became 
apparent  that  a  four-place  ship  would 
render  double  the  utility.  Hence  the  Nav- 


ion, which  also  has  remarkable  value  for 
picture  taking. 

The  Navion  is  used  by  all  departments 
of  the  business — advertising,  circulation, 
news  coverage,  photography  and  promo- 
tion work.  It  has  been  used  to  carry  eastern 
executives  over  the  Washington  territory 
to  give  a  bird's-eye  view  of  the  market 
protentiality. 

Among  the  spectacular  uses  to  which 
the  Heralder  II  has  been  put  was  coverage 
of  the  disastrous  Vanport,  Oregon,  flood, 
the  more  recent  floods  in  the  Mount  Ver- 
non, Wash.,  area  and  the  swift  coverage 
of  the  famed  Darrington  Timber  Bowl. 

Darrington,  a  small  logging  town  bur- 
ied deep  in  the  Cascade  Mountains  and 
some  60  miles  from  Everett,  has  gained 
nation-wide  fame  for  its  annual  celebra- 
tion. On  the  morning  of  the  big  parade, 
a  feature  of  the  celebration,  the  Navion 
was  dispatched  with  a  reporter  and  pho- 
tographer to  cover  the  event.  A  half  hour 
after  the  parade  got  under  way  at  11 
o'clock,  the  pictures  were  on  film  and 
pilot  "Chuck"  Walters  was  winging  his 
way  back  to  the  home  field  in  time  to 
get  the  pictures  in  the  first  edition. 
(Continued  on  page  20) 


Using  the  flexible  Navion,  Chuck  Walters  was  able  to  deliver  "today's  edition"  of  the  Everett  Doily  Herald 
to  the  remote  mountain  town  of  Darrington,  Washington,  opproximotely  three  hours  after  the  pictures  were 
snapped  of  their  famed  "Timber  Bowl"  parade.  By  ground  transportation,  it  would  have  token  at  least  two  days. 


'^:ff^ 


lU 


At  General   Elecfric's  Lockland,   Ohio,   plant,  these  compressor  rotors    ore    carefully    examined    before    being    assembled    into    stotor 
assemblies.    Seen    in    the    background    ore    Ryan-built    exhaust    cones    which     fit    onto    the    aft    section    of    the    J-47     jet    engine. 


SllBCOITyfTIK  THE  J-47 

by  Douglas  D.  Lawson.  Purchasing  Agent, 
Aircraft  Gas  Turbine  Divisions,  General  Electrif  Company 


Installation  crew  working  on  G.  E.  J-47  engine  in  the  jet  pod  slung  beneath  the 
wings  of  the  Boeing  B-47  Strotojet  bomber.  Ryan  not  only  builds  the  exhaust  cone 
for  the  J-47  engine,  but  also  fabricates  the  tailpipe  for  the  bomber.  These  some 
jet  pods  ore  used  to  provide  added  thrust  for  the  B-36  inter-contlnentol  bombers. 


EXPANSIBILITi""— that  is,  the  poten- 
tial of  industry  to  expand  production 
rapidly  and  efficiently  in  time  of  national 
emergency — is  the  keynote  of  General 
Electric's  J-47  jet  engine  assembly  plant 
at  Lockland,  Ohio. 

Some  two  hundred  sub-contractors  from 
.ill  parts  of  the  United  States  are  partners 
in  this  plan  of  industrial  mobilization. 
Thev  manufacture  the  thousand  and  more 
parts  of  the  J-47  engine;  sub-assemble  and 
ship  them  to  Lockland.  Here  the  manu- 
factured parts  are  assembled  into  com- 
plete jet  power  plants;  tested,  re-assem- 
bled, re-tested  and  sent  to  aircraft  plants 
for  installation  in  Amrica's  most  advanced 
fighter  and  bomber  planes. 

It's  a  big  program  .  .  .  one  which  re- 
quires close  coordination  and  precision 
manufacture  every  step  of  the  way.  Gen- 
eral Electric  produces  the  J-47  jet  engine 
at  two  plants — the  assembly  operation  at 


Lockland  and  its  own  "raw  material  to 
complete  engine"  manufacturing  plant  at 
Lynn,  Massachusetts. 

In  time  of  emergency,  the  Lynn  plant 
would  have  to  concentrate  on  research  and 
development  of  still  newer  jet  engine 
types.  The  Lockland  plant,  because  its 
manufacturing  operations  are  spread  over 
many  sub-contractors  through  the  coun- 
try, represents  an  "expansible"  facility 
which  could  produce  a  large  increase  in 
finished  units  in  a  remarkably  short  time. 

That  the  Lockland  plan  is  both  sound 
and  economical  is  attested  by  the  fact  that 
it  has  already  saved  millions  of  dollars  in 
plant  equipment  and  tooling. 

In  determining  which  companies  should 
share  in  the  engine  sub-contracting  pro- 
gram, four  factors  were  considered: 

L  Facilities  required  to  do  the  particu- 
lar job. 

2.  Facilities  available  in  the  sub-con- 
tractors plant. 

3.  Sub-contractors'  previous  experi- 
ence and  performance  record  on  similar 
parts. 

4.  Sub-contractors'  price  quotation. 

(Cunfhiiied  on  page  21) 


Upper:  After  receipt  of  Ryan-built  exhaust  cones,  the  parts 
are  fitted  into  J-47  engines.  In  this  picture,  the  tailcones 
are  being  dismounted  after  o  preliminary  engine  test.  Lower: 
The  North  American  F-86  Sabre,  holder  of  the  world's  speed 
record.  Seen  in  the  background  is  the  J-47  engine  and  tailpipe. 
Tail    assembly    will    be    attached    to    main    part    of    the    plane. 


General  Electric,  Ryan  and  200  other 

sub-contractors  form  a  neu>  type 

of  production  team  for 

'' expansibility" 


nm 


Seen    here    installed   in   the   C-119's   Pratt   &   Whitney    engine    is   a    Ryan   manifold.    By    use   of   transversal    slip 
joints    in    the    Ryan    manifold,    a    light-weight    flexible    joint    is    provided    which    accommodates    collector    motion. 


11  ELPiNG  to  make  the  Fairchild  C-119 
'  '  "Packet"  the  standard  troop  and 
cargo  airplane  for  the  U.  S.  Air  Force  and 
Navy  are  Ryan  exhaust  systems,  currently 
being  installed  in  the  Packets  at  the  Fair- 
child  Aircraft  Division  in  Hagerstown, 
Maryland. 


Combining  higher  payload  with  greater 
power  and  maneuverability,  the  new  Fair- 
child  C-119  "Packet"  now  entering  Air 
Force  and  Marine  Corps  service  is  an 
even  more  versatile  cargo  and  transport 
plane  than  the  famed  Fairchild  C-82 
"Flying  Boxcar"  which  it  replaces. 


After  more  than  five  years  of  operating 
experience  with  the  C-82s,  Fairchild  en- 
gineers and  the  Air  Force's  Air  Materiel 
Command  experts  were  able  to  design  into 
the  new  "Packet"  many  features  and  ad- 
vantages leading  to  increased  etficiency 
and  performance. 


by  ^orm  Bryan,  Power  Plant  Staff  Engineer,  Fairchild  Airplane  Division 


10 


IILD  PICKETS "  mi  IT! 


Major  improvements  In  the  new  Fair- 
child  C-119  include: 

1.  The  pilot's  compartment  has  been 
lowered  and  moved  forward,  giving  pilots 
unobstructed  visibility  for  formation  fly- 
ing, delivering  paratroopers  over  the  drop 
zone,  and  for  ground  maneuvering. 

2.  Cockpit  instruments  have  been  re- 
arranged for  a  more  functional  grouping, 
making  the  pilot's  task  easier.  For  instance, 
all  pilot  radio  equipment  is  located  on  the 
control  pedestal  between  pilot  and  co-pilot 
and  within  easy  reach  of  either. 

3.  Cargo  capacity  has  been  enlarged  to 
2700  cubic  feet,  with  a  14-inch  widening 
of  the  fuselage,  a  feature  of  major  benefit 
to  the  military's  air-transportable  units. 
The  cargo  hold  has  unobstructed  loading 
spaces  for  such  bulky  equipment  as  15  5 
millimeter  howitzers,  as  many  as  six  small 
automobiles,  heavy  trucks,  etc.  Large 
clamshell  doors  which  open  the  entire  rear 
of  the  cargo  compartment  at  truck  bed 
level  permit  easy  loading  and  unloading. 

(Continued  on  page  21) 


Many  months  of  preliminary  team-work  between  Ryan  and  Fair- 
child  went  into  this  manifold  system  for  the  C-1  19.  Here  is  one  sec- 
tion of  the  manifold  being  Installed  in  the  Pratt  &  Whitney  engine. 


The  Fairchild  C-119  Packet  in  flight.  Designed  os  a  troop  and 
cargo  airplane,  the  new  Packet  con  carry  a  30,000  lb.  poylood.  For 
rescue   work,    it   can    carry   a    large   helicopter   for  emergency   use. 


One  of  Ryan's  furbo-jet  engine  test  stands  is  the  scene  of  o  technical  lecture 
by  project  engineer  William  Immenschuh.  In  this  steel  and  concrete  test  cell, 
Ryan    has    developed    "afterburners"    and    other    specialized    jet    engine    accessories. 


^^F  necessity,  the  cloak  of  military 
^^  security  must  be  thrown  over  the 
activities  of  an  ever-increasing  group  of 
scientists  and  military  men  engaged  in  the 
many  branches  of  guided  missile  and  pilot- 
less  aircraft  research.  Several  such  groups 
have  recently  visited  the  Ryan  plant  to 
observe  projects  under  way  in  the  labora- 
tory and  in  the  manufacturing  depart- 
ments. Selected  oflScers  of  the  Army,  Navy 
and  Air  Force  specializing  in  these  fields 
are  pictured  in  these  photos  while  attend- 
ing special  familiarization  classes  conduct- 
ed by  Ryan  experts. 


GUIDED  MISSILE  EXPERTS  VISIT 


How  the  gas  of  piston-engine  exhcust  systems  can  be  harnessed 
and  put  to  work  to  provide  heat  for  anti-icing,  for  passenger 
cabins,  for  carburetors  and  other  uses  is  explained  by  engineer 
Harry    Schmidt    whose    special    field    of    study    is    thermodynamics. 


Visiting  missile  experts  learn  the  secrets  of  the  XQ-2  jet 
propel^ed  pitotless  target  plane  from  Ryan  engineers.  Half 
the  size  of  a  standard  jet  fighter,  the  XQ-2  is  a  high-speed 
radio-controlled     drone     for     gunnery     and     interception     training. 


The  use  of  radar,  electronic  and  servo-mechanism  devices  to  pro- 
vide almost  human  intelligence  for  guidance  of  pilotless  planes 
and  missiles  is  the  subject  of  the  lectures  in  this  laboratory. 
Ryan   engineers   Jim   Smith    (I.I    and    E.    B.    Clapp   lead   the   talks. 


The  one  time  during  their  visit  when  Ryan's  cameromon  did 
not  have  to  be  on  guard  against  showing  secret  devices  was 
when  the  missile  experts  inspected  the  Ryon  Novion  assembly 
line    under    the    guidance    of    project    engineer    D.    H.    Williams. 


12 


Reprinted  From 

Mcigiizinp 

S!AN  DIEGO 


Edwin  I.  M\ 
Pnbli$h(^i' 


T.  Claude  Ryan,  founder-president  of  fhe  Ryan  Aeronoufical  Company,  stands  before  two 
famous  Ryan  planes  in  this  1934  photograph:  the  high-wing  M-l  monoplane  (19261,  and  the 
low-wing   S-T    (1933),    predecessor   of   the   famous   wartime    Army-Novy    PT    training    planes. 


JEMIES  TO  JETS 

Ryan,  San  Diego's  pioneer  plane  builder,  has  had  a  glorious  history 


IT  is  common  folklore  that  the  great  U.  S.  aircraft  companies 
were  founded  by  fanatic  young  aviators  who  were  com- 
pletely balmy  on  the  subject  of  flying  and  lived  only  to  create 
airplanes.  This  tradition  may  be  partly  true,  but  it  is  possibly 
more  accurate  to  say  that  most  of  them  stumbled  into  the 
business  as  a  result  of  having  constantly  to  repair,  repatch  and 
rebuild  the  rickety  old  crates  of 
those  days  as  a  prerequisite  to 
regular  flight.  In  the  case  of  T. 
Claude  Ryan,  the  founder  and 
president  of  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Company,  San  Diego's  oldest 
plane  manufacturing  plant,  both 
incentives  were  at  work.  Ryan, 
along  with  Donald  Douglas,  Lar- 
ry Bell,  Glenn  Martin  and  Rube 
Fleet,  is  one  of  the  genuine  arti- 
cles, a  pioneer  flyer-builder  who 
lived  to  see  his  flimsy  repair  shop 
grow  to  become  a  giant  industrial 
corporation. 

The  story  is  told  how  Ryan,  a 
shy,  dark  young  Dana  Andrews 
type  who  had  gotten  out  of  the 
Army  Air  Corps  only  a  few 
months  before,  came  to  San 
Diego   in    1922    to   get   in   some 


The  present  site  of  the  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Company  covers  43  acres  and  was  begun  in 
1939,    the    year    war    orders    began    pouring    in. 


hours  at  the  old  Rockwell  Field  (now  Naval  Air  Station, 
North  Island).  While  getting  a  shave  preliminary  to  reporting 
in,  Ryan  got  to  talking  with  the  barber  about  flying  and 
learned  that  a  local  flyer,  who  had  done  too  well  smuggling 
Chinese  via  air  over  the  border  and  landed  himself  in  a  federal 
penitentiary,  had  left  vacant  a  perfectly  good  air  field  down 
by  the  waterfront.  Perhaps  Ryan 
would  be  interested  in  taking  it 
over.  True  to  the  Horatio  Alger 
tradition,  he  rushed  to  survey  the 
field  and  found  it  a  precarious 
landing  strip  set  neatly  in  the 
midst  of  high  tension  wires,  a 
couple  of  telephone  poles  and  the 
mast  of  a  dredge.  Next  he  inter- 
viewed the  harbormaster  to  in- 
quire about  the  rental.  Joe  Bren- 
nan  told  him,  "$50  a  month." 
"Don't  think  I'll  take  in  that 
much  in  a  month,"  Ryan  said. 
"Well,"  Brennan  said,  "tell  you 
what.  We  like  to  help  new  bus- 
inesses here  in  San  Diego.  Sup- 
pose you  try  it,  see  how  it  goes, 
then  we'll  decide  on  the  rent 
later."  Next  Ryan  went  into  a 
(Continued  on  next  page) 


13 


Ryan  at  the  controls  of  a  Ryan-Standard  biplane.  In  1923,  Ryan 
bought  six  old  Standards  as  war  surplus,  completely  rebuilt  the 
two-place,  open  cockpit  aircraft  into  five  place  cabin  planes. 
With   them   he   launched   the   Los  Angeles-San   Diego  Air  Line. 


In  1943,  the  United  States  Navy  gave  Ryan  the  job  of  designing 
and  building  a  combination  iet-plus-propeller  fighter.  The  FR-1 
Fireball,  obove,  was  the  first  of  its  kind.  XF2R-1  "Dark  Shark" 
and  XFR-4  research  planes  followed  production  of  FR-1    model. 


The  Spirit  of  St.  Louis,  Lindbergh's  plane  in  the  famous  1927  At- 
lantic hop.  Designed  by  Ryan,  it  was  ready  for  flight  in  60  days. 


"Free  parking"  to  local  pilots  made  Ryan  Field  San  Diego's  heod- 
quarters  for  aviators  and  the  main  airfield  in  the  early   I920's. 


huddle  with  the  commandant  of  Rock- 
well Field,  a  young  aviator  —  Lt.  Col. 
named  Henry  H.  "Hap"  Arnold,  to  nego- 
tiate the  purchase  of  a  JN4-D  with  which 
to  start  his  business.  He  bid  $400  and  the 
bid  was  accepted  in  Washington.  By  sell- 
ing his  model  T  Ford  for  $300,  and  taking 
everything  he  had  from  the  bank,  Ryan 
got  together  $450.  After  paying  $25  to 
have  the  Jenny  assembled,  he  was  ready 
for  business  with  $2  5  working  capital  and 
a  piano  box  for  a  tool  shed.  Soon  after, 
he  began  rebuilding  other  surplus  war 
planes  and  finally  graduated  to  building 
them   from  scratch. 


In  his  quietly  decorated  office  today, 
Ryan  has  two  pictures  on  the  wall  behind 
his  desk.  One  of  them  is  of  General  Hap 
Arnold  and  the  other  of  Joe  Brennan, 
the  recently  retired  Port  Director.  He  will 
never  forget  either  of  them.  From  this 
room,  Claude  Ryan  directs  the  far-flung 
operations  of  Ryan  Aeronautical.  Many 
of  the  pioneer  airmen  have  stepped  out  of 
the  management  picture  since  the  War 
and  have  been  replaced  with  typical  Wall 
Street  executive  types  representing  the 
new  stock  control,  or  by  experts  in  mass 
production  and  marketing.  Ryan,  how- 
ever, is  still  very  much  the  boss. 


The  name  Ryan  means  something  in 
the  business.  Ryan  was  the  first  to  pioneer 
in  the  field  of  enclosed  cabin,  high  mono- 
planes, the  first  to  establish  a  year-round 
regularly  scheduled  airline  service  \n  the 
United  States,  and  the  designer  and  builder 
of  the  famed  Ryan  S-T,  a  low-wing  all 
metal  monoplane  which  rendered  obsolete 
the  old  biplane  primary  trainers  and  be- 
came the  model  for  thousands  of  primary 
trainers  used  by  the  air  forces  during  the 
War — many  of  them  built  by  Ryan  itself. 

Today.  Ryan  presides  over  a  business 
which  is  not  only  diversified  within  the  in- 
dustry, so  to  speak,  but  within  itself.  To 


14 


keep  things  in  order,  he  has  divided  his 
company  into  two  operating  divisions, 
the  Airplane  division  and  the  Metal  Prod- 
ucts division.  The  former,  which  contrib- 
uted some  60  per  cent  of  the  gross  last 
year,  makes  the  Ryan  Navion,  manufac- 
tures major  airframe  components  and  as- 
semblies for  the  larger  type  aircraft  and 
produces  other  products,  meaning  guided 
missiles  and  such,  in  limited  quantities  for 
the  Air  Force,  the  Navy  and  the  Army. 
Ryan  got  into  the  manufacture  of 
exhaust  systems  in  1937  and  it  soon  be- 
came a  Ryan  specialty.  The  company 
built  more  than  150,000  exhaust  systems 
during  the  war  years  alone  and  practically 
every  major  aircraft  manufacturer  has 
used  them  as  standard  equipment  at  one 
time  or  another.  Today  they  are  produced 


by  the  Metal  Products  division,  which 
turns  out  a  confusingly  heterogeneous 
collection  of  items  ranging  from  de-icing 
kits  to  rocket  bodies.  Basically,  it  designs 
and  manufactures  products  fabricated 
from  the  heat-  and  corrosion-resistant 
alloys,  principally  stainless  steel  products 
used  as  accessories  for  aircraft  and  engines. 
The  day  war  was  declared  in  1917, 
Claude  Ryan  hopped  a  train  from  his 
home  town  of  Parsons,  Kansas  to  join  up 
in  the  Navy  Air  Corps  in  Joplin,  Missouri. 
As  a  kid,  Ryan  had  been  possessed  of  more 
than  the  usual  kid's  desire  to  fly  and  had 
spent  hours  poring  over  all  the  books  on 
aviation  in  the  little  town  library.  The 
Navy,  however,  turned  him  down  because 
he  was  under-age  (19)  and  the  Army  did 
(Continued  on  page  IS) 


??99"?PV^«'^"''''^ 


Upper  right:  Subcontract- 
ing of  aircraft  compo- 
nents such  OS  these  Boe- 
ing C-97  rear  fuselage 
sections  is  big  part  of 
Ryan  business.  Right:  One 
of  Ryan's  three  1950  pro- 
duction models  for  the 
commercial  market  is  this 
De  Luxe  205  Navion. 
Cruising  speed  is  155 
mph.  Far  right:  Jet  ex- 
haust cones  for  General 
Eiectric's  J-47  jet  engine 
are  port  of  ever-increas- 
ing Ryan  production  of 
components  for  turbo-jet 
and   gas  turbine  engines. 


The    Aerobee    high-altitude    sounding    rocket    being    built    for    the    Aerojet    Eng. 
Corp.    travels    at    3000    mph    to    record    conditions    75    miles    above    the    earth. 


T-35  tailpipe  assembly  is  largest  ever 
mode     for     turbo     prop     installation. 


Here  in  pictures  is  the  story  of  a  day's  work  accomplished  with  a  Navion  by  exec- 
utives of  Willson  Products,  Inc.  After  on  eorly  morning  toke-off  from  company 
headquarters  in  Reading,  Po.,  the  first  possenger  delivered  is  Jack  Davis  of  the 
sun   gloss   division    whose   business   is    in    Newark,    N.   J.   The   next   stop    is   .    .    . 


GLASSES 
FLYING  ^AMfM- 


New  London,  Conn.,  where  T.  A.   Willson,  Jr.,  industrial  division   executive,  gets 
off  for  on   oppointment.   He'll  be   picked   up   later   for  return   flight  to   Reading. 


I  ISTEN  for  a  few  minutes  to  tall,  genial 
^  Tom  Willson,  president  and  guiding 
hand  of  Willson  Products,  Inc.,  and  you'll 
soon  be  convinced  that  a  business  organ- 
ization of  any  size  without  its  own  air 
transportation  in  this  day  and  age  is  in 
as  ludicrous  a  plight  as  the  company 
which  thirty  years  ago  refused  to  incor- 
porate that  fantastic  upstart,  the  automo- 
bile, into  its  transportation  system. 

As  top  executive  of  an  internationally 
important  manufacturing  concern,  spe- 
cializing in  the  production  and  sale  of  per- 
sonal safety  equipment  and  sun  glasses, 
under  the  famed  title  "Willsonite,"  he 
sees  to  it  that  his  company's  plane  is  avail- 
able for  the  business  travel  needs  of  at 
least  twenty  key  people  in  the  organiza- 
tion. 

You  quickly  observe  that  this  S3 -year- 
old  executive  and  pilot  thinks  nothing  of 
pacing  his  own  business  day  or  week  to 
his  Navion's  150  mph  cruising  speed.  At 
this  speed,  with  none  of  the  fatigue  cus- 
tomary with  auto  travel  at  less  than  a 
third  the  plane's  ground-covering  rate,  he 
can  see  more  people,  accomplish  more 
work  and  be  home  in  Reading,  Pennsyl- 
vania, more  often  than  any  non-flying 
executive  would  believe  possible. 

Also  a  frequent  user  of  the  plane  is  his 
son,  Tom,  Jr.,  who  works  in  the  com- 
pany's Industrial  Division.  A  quick  run- 
down of  a  single  day  offers  a  fine  example 
of  the  Navion's  business  ability. 

Take  this  one  day  last  summer,  for  in- 
stance. Young  Tom  Willson  took  off  from 
the  Reading  Airport  in  the  early  morning 
with  Jack  Davis,  a  fellow  executive  from 
the  Sun  Glass  Division,  a  third  passenger 
and  300  pounds  of  cargo. 

In  the  Navion's  big  luggage  compart- 
ment this  trip  were  pages  for  a  Willson 
catalog  urgently  needed  by  a  customer  in 
Rhode  Island,  and  a  new  sun  glass  display 
anxiously  awaited  by  the  Willson  Sales 
Promotion  Manager  in  Boston. 

Their  first  stop  out  of  Reading  was 
Newark,  New  Jersey,  where  Davis  left  the 
party.  The  others  flew  on  to  New  London, 
Conn.,  Willson's  destination.  A  company 
pilot  carried  on  to  Westerly,  Rhode  Island. 
There  George  Albrecht,  Sales  Manager  for 
Ashaway,  Inc.,  Willson  Products  distribu- 
tor in  the  sporting  goods  field,  met  the 
Navion  at  the  air  held,  unloaded  his  cargo 
quickly,  helping  plane  and  pilot  to  take 
off  promptly  for  Boston.  At  Boston,  H.  W. 
Huddleston,  the  Sales  Promotion  chief, 
was  eager  for  the  sun  glass  display  which 
he  was  to  deliver  that  afternoon  to  Guy 
Monroe  of  Davis  Sales  Associates,  the  Will- 
son  agent  in  New  England. 


This  last  stop  was  by  no  means  the  end 
of  a  day's  work,  however.  Not  by  a  long 
flight!  With  Huddleston  aboard,  they  took 
off  on  .1  direct  route  for  New  London  to 
pick  up  Willson,  who  had  finished  his  job 
there  by  this  time.  Next  came  a  sharp 
course  change  in  favor  of  New  York  City, 
Huddleston's  goal.  Before  five  p.m..  Will- 
son  was  back  at  Reading  Airport,  his  ini- 
tial point  of  departure. 

"And  all  of  this  was  accomplished  in 
less  than  a  day,  at  a  saving  of  $48.82,  not 
including  savings  in  travel  time  for  the 
personnel  involved,  and  the  expense  of 
hotels,  meals  and  pullmans  which  were 
eliminated.  Nor  should  we  forget  the  great 
importance  of  our  being  able  to  fast- 
deliver  materials  badly  needed  at  two  such 
distant  places,"  Huddleston  explains. 

"Our  products  are  distributed  on  a 
worldwide  basis.  They're  sold  all  over  the 
U.S.  and  in  more  than  one  hundred  foreign 
countries.  Keeping  close  contact  with  just 
the  domestic  outlets  used  to  be  a  problem 
of  great  magnitude.  Then  we  got  our  own 
plane.  Now  we're  taking  the  task  in  stride. 

"Too,  we  use  the  ship  for  flying  to 
cities  where  we're  setting  up  exhibits,  and 
also  put  it  to  work  delivering  rush  orders. 
And  there's  no  faster  nor  more  impressive 
way  to  call  on  customers  than  in  our  own 
airplane. 

"When  last  Christmas,  the  urgency  of 
getting  out  our  catalogs  coincided  exactly 
with  the  Post  Office's  urgency  of  getting 
out  the  Christmas  mail,  the  Navion  saved 
the  day.  For  example,  in  the  case  of  the 
New  England  agent  just  related,  the  cata- 
log pages  would  never  have  reached  him 
on  time  to  be  of  any  real  value,  had  they 
been  shipped  in  any  other  manner  than  by 
Navion." 

(Continued  on  page  20) 


Westerly,    Rhode    Island,    is    nexf.    George    Albrecht,    a    Willson    distributor,    takes 
part  of  a    300-lb.    load   of  catalog    pages   from    pilot  Col   Reodinger.   On    to   .   .   . 


Boston   and  delivery  of  a   new  sun   gloss  display  to  Guy  Monroe,  another  Willson 
ogent.    hi.    W.    hluddleston,   left,    promotion    mgr.,   boards  plane   for  trip  to   NYC. 


Turning    toward    Reading    and    home,    the    Navion    has   shuttled    executives    to    posts    in    5    states    in    less    thon    a    day.    Stops 
in    New   London   to   pick    up   Willson    and    later   in    New   York    City    to    leave    off    Huddleston    were    its    lost    jobs    of   the    day. 


17 


JENNIES  TO  JETS 

(Continued  on  page  15) 
the  same  thing  a  few  months  later  in 
California.  His  next  decision  was  to  under- 
write his  own  training.  He  fell  into  the 
hands  of  a  fly-by-night  school  which  made 
the  students  chip  in  for  gasoline,  provided 
only  two  rickety  planes  which  had  to  be 
grounded  a  good  share  of  the  time,  and 
had  no  flight  instructor.  When  the  in- 
structor was  finally  obtained,  he  spent 
most  of  his  time  taking  up  cash  customers 
for  sightseeing  hops.  The  students  struck, 
and  Ryan  finally  got  in  about  two  hours 
of  flight  instruction.  "I  take  credit  for 
folding  that  school,"  Ryan  now  recalls. 
"I  busted  a  prop  landing  from  my  first 
solo.  The  school  couldn't  meet  the  repair 
bills  and  gave  up." 

On  the  strength  of  this  flying  exper- 
ience, Ryan  was  accepted  as  a  cadet  in 
the  Army  Air  Corps,  only  to  have  still 
another  disappointment  when  the  armis- 
tice was  signed  the  day  after  his  accep- 
tance. Miffed,  he  enrolled  as  an  under- 
graduate in  mechanical  engineering  at 
Oregon  State.  He  had  a  year  of  this,  then 
finally  got  into  the  Air  Corps  again,  took 
his  training  at  March  Field,  and  graduated 
with  the  much  coveted  pursuit  pilot  rat- 
ing. For  two  years  he  flew  forest  fire  patrol 
in  Northern  California  and  Oregon  in  his 
old  No.  13,  a  Liberty  engined  De  Hav- 
illand.  It  was  the  toughest  kind  of  flying 
and  Ryan  became  an  expert  pilot. 

San  Diego's  new  pilot-entrepreneur 
and  his  patched  up  Jenny  didn't  stay  long 
in  his  skimpy  waterfront  landing  field. 
An  itinerant  carnival  next  door  brought 
some  sightseeing  business  in  for  a  while, 
and  when  it  moved  north,  Ryan  went  with 
it.  He  was  soon  back,  however,  and  moved 
to  the  salt  flats  further  up  the  bay.  Then 
he  started  thinking  like  a  businessman. 
One  day  in  1923,  a  sightseeing  bus  stopped 
at  Ryan  Field  and  he  took  up  the  busload 
at  $5  a  head.  He  lost  no  time  in  making  a 
deal  with  the  bus  outfit  to  stop  every  trip 
at  his  field  and  soon  Ryan  was  enjoying 
the  pleasant  sensation  of  making  money. 
His  next  inspiration  was  equally  profit- 
able. By  oflfering  "free  parking"  to  local 
pilots,  he  made  his  field  San  Diego's  avia- 
tion headquarters  and  got  a  major  share  of 
the  servicing  business. 

NOW  he  was  on  his  way.  For  a  few 
hundred  dollars,  he  bid  for  and  got 
six  Standard  bi-planes  and  spare  parts  from 
a  government  warehouse  in  Texas.  With  a 
crew  composed  of  Hawley  Bowlus,  later 
a  world-famous  glider  manufacturer  and 
designer,  Martin  Jensen,  later  a  noted 
pilot  and  John  van  der  Linde,  now  a  key 


production  man  at  Ryan,  Ryan  began  his 
first  manufacturing  job,  rebuilding  the 
open-cockpit,  two-place  planes  into  five 
place,  enclosed  cabin  jobs.  He  called  them 
Ryan-Standards  and  in  partnership  with 
one  of  his  flight  students,  launched  the 
Los  Angeles-San  Diego  Air  Line  with  great 
fanfare  on  March  1,  1925.  It  was  the  first 
year-round,  regularly  scheduled  air  line 
in  the  United  States.  Ryan's  second  major 
rebuilding  job  was  on  a  Cloudster,  built 
by  Donald  Douglas  and  the  forerunner  of 
the  great  series  of  Douglas  airliners.  Ryan 
changed  it  from  a  three  place  open  cock- 
pit craft  (accommodating  eight)  to  an 
enclosed  cabin  plane  to  seat  ten. 

But  Ryan  was  yet  to  design  and  build 
a  plane  of  his  own  from  the  ground  up. 
He  saw  his  chance  in  1925,  when  the 
government  was  preparing  to  turn  air 
mail  over  to  private  contractors.  The  old 
DcHavillands    the    army    had    used    were 


New  Member  California 
State  Aeronautics  Comm. 


Earl  D.  Prudden,  Vice  President  in 
Charge  of  Airplane  Sales,  has  been 
appointed  to  the  California  State  Aero- 
nautics Commission  by  Governor  Earl 
Worren. 

In  announcing  the  appointment  lost 
month.  Governor  Warren  compliment- 
ed the  new  commissioner  on  his  many 
years  of  service  to  the  aviation  indus- 
try and  its  allied  programs  through- 
out the  State. 

A  Ryan  executive  for  22  years, 
Prudden  is  well-known  for  his  avia- 
tion leadership  including  long  service 
with  the  Chomber  of  Commerce,  Per- 
sonal Aircraft  Council,  wortime  pilot 
training  program  and  other  civic  and 
industry  groups.  Since  its  inception, 
he  hos  directed  the  world-wide  sales 
program  for  the  Ryan  Navion. 


outmoded.  Ryan  envisioned  a  high-wing 
monoplane  capable  of  carrying  800  pounds 
and  cruising  at  1 1 5  mph.  The  plane  was 
to  be  Ryan's  M  (for  mail)  1  (for  first). 
At  this  juncture  a  bus  operator  named 
Vern  C.  Gorst  appeared  on  the  scene. 
Gorst  was  bidding  for  the  air  mail  con- 
tract on  the  Pacific  Coast,  a  night  run 
between  Los  Angeles  and  Seattle.  He  was 
interested  in  Ryan's  plane,  but  Ryan  had 
to  build  an  M-1  and  personally  fly  Gorst 
to  Seattle  over  the  proposed  route,  break- 
ing practically  all  inter-city  records  en- 
route,  to  get  the  order.  Gorst's  Pacific  Air 
Transport,  which  later  was  to  become  the 
Pacific  Division  of  United  Air  Lines, 
bought  seven  M-l's  and  other  airlines 
bought  1 3  more.  The  Ryan  manufactur- 
ing business  began  to  hum.  The  M-1  was 
followed  by  the  M-2  and  the  Bluebird,  the 
first  Rvan  cabin  monoplane. 

The  Spirit  of  St.  Louis,  Ryan's  most 
famous  single  plane,  was  somewhat  akin 
to  the  Ryan  B-1  Brougham  class,  which 
the  company  had  begun  building  in  1926. 
The  Brougham  was  to  become  one  of  the 
leading  commercial  planes  of  the  day, 
much  used  in  pioneering  air  line  routes 
all  over  the  world.  The  company  had  been 
asked  by  the  Robertson  Aircraft  Corp.  of 
St.  Louis  and  one  of  their  air  mail  pilots, 
"Can  you  build  a  plane  with  a  Wright  J- 5 
engine  capable  of  making  a  non-stop  flight 
from  New  York  to  Paris?"  Ryan  and  his 
associates  made  a  few  rapid  calculations 
and  wired  the  job  could  be  done.  Within  a 
few  days,  the  Robertson  pilot  arrived. 
Lindbergh  virtually  lived  with  the  plane 
as  it  was  rushed  to  completion  in  60  days. 
About  the  time  the  plane  was  finished, 
Ryan  withdrew  from  active  management 
of  the  concern  and  for  a  few  years  was 
the  distributor  of  the  Siemen-Halske  radial 
engine,  a  European-manufactured  engine 
sold  in  the  U.  S.  under  the  name  Ryan- 
Siemens.  In  1928  Ryan  disposed  of  his 
agency  and  devoted  full  time  to  the  build- 
ing of  the  famous  Ryan  Flying  School.  In 
1931,  the  company  was  incorporated  un- 
der its  present  name,  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Company,  and  a  public  stock  offering 
made.  Soon  after,  Ryan  built  the  admini- 
stration building  at  San  Diego's  new  Lind- 
bergh field  and  added  school  facilities 
and  hangars. 

In  the  bleak  year  of  193  3,  the  Ryan 
S-T  was  born.  Sensing  the  need  for  a  high 
performance,  low-wing  monoplane  of  ad- 
vanced metal  construction,  Ryan  brought 
out  his  newest  baby,  a  sleek,  maneuverable 
sports  trainer  which  was  years  ahead  of  its 
time.  It  was  used  by  both  sportsmen  flyers 
and  flying  schools  all  over  the  Western 
hemisphere  and  soon  attracted  attention 
as  an  ideal  tvpe  for  primary  and  advanced 


military  training,  an  opportune  and  timely 
happenstance.  In  1937,  the  Mexican  gov- 
ernment phiced  orders  to  supply  its  Army 
Air  Force  with  Army  S-T-M's  (military) 
and  this  contract  was  followed  by  similar 
orders  from  Honduras  and  Guatemala.  In 
1939,  Ryan  really  began  to  mushroom. 
An  entire  new  plant  was  built  on  the 
bay  side  of  Lindbergh  field  and  business 
backlog  and  factory  employment  zoomed 
upwards.  Then  the  Air  Corps  selected 
Ryan  School  and  eight  other  commercial 
training  institutions  of  proven  ability  and 
CNperiencc  to  pioneer  the  commercially- 
operated  military  flying  school  in  the  U.  S. 
The  school  took  over  the  old  factor)' 
buildings  on  Lindbergh  field  and  per- 
formed brilliantly  the  entire  war. 

RYAN'S  war  years'  production  record  is 
staggering.  The  S-T-M  type  was  or- 
dered in  heavy  volume  by  the  U.  S.  Army 
and  Navy,  and  more  than  1,300  planes  of 
the  rechristened  PT  series  were  built  and 
delivered.  These  were  the  first  monoplanes 
ever  used  by  the  Army  for  the  initial 
training  of  aviation  cadets,  breaking  a 
30  year  tradition.  During  the  same  period, 
Ryan  developed  the  YO-51  Dragonfly  ob- 
servation plane  for  the  Army,  an  insect- 
looking  little  craft  which  was  capable  of 
making  unbelievably  short,  steep  take-offs, 
near  vertical  descents  and  virtually  "hov- 
ering" at  slow  forward  speeds.  Meanwhile, 
the  factory  was  turning  out  a  steady 
stream  of  aircraft  and  engine  components 
— exhaust  systems,  gun  turrets,  wing 
panels,  and  tail  surfaces.  One  of  the  or- 
ganization's proudest  achievements  was 
the  Fireball  fighter,  a  job  assigned  it  by 
the  Navy  in  1943.  The  Fireball  combined 
for  the  first  time  the  conventional  engine 
with  jet  propulsion,  then  new  and  quite 
untried.  Ryan  had  just  gotten  started  on 
mass  production  on  orders  totalling  more 
than  $100  million  when  the  war  ended 
abruptly  and  production  was  stopped. 

As  he  sits  in  his  office  today,  between 
trips  to  Washington  to  interview  the  big- 
wigs of  the  Air  Force,  Army  and  Navy, 
Claude  Ryan  is  still  a  soft  spoken,  retiring, 
and  completely  charming  business  man. 
He  speaks  about  the  future  of  Ryan  with 
modest  optimism.  All  the  talk  about  mov- 
ing aircraft  factories  to  the  middlewesi 
does  not  greatly  disturb  this  San  Diegan. 
"In  the  first  place,"  he  says,  "it  is  certainly 
not  an  announced  Air  Force  policy.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  the  plants  on  this  coast  are 
much  busier  than  the  East  coast  factories. 
No  one  has  ever  brought  it  up  to  me  when 
I've  been  selling  airplanes."  He  looks  up 
at  the  pictures  of  Hap  Arnold  and  Joe 
Brennan  behind  his  desk.  "I  hke  it  here," 
he  says,  with  finality. 


S^PER  m  MOST  TERRIFIC 
AIRPLME  I'VE  EVER  FLOWr' 


"Outcruises,  outclimbs,  yet  lands 
shorter  than  any  plane  in  its  class." 
That's  how  Ryan  factory  pilots  and  sales 
officials  summed  up  their  experience  with 
the  prototype  of  the  amazing  new  Ly- 
coming-powered  Super  260   Navion. 

But  would  others  share  that  enthusiasm 
when  production  models  began  coming 
off  the  assembly  line?  Perhaps  an  impar- 
tial, widely-recognized  authority  might 
give  the  company  the  benefit  of  his  ex- 
perience in  properly  evaluating  the 
plane's  characteristics. 

It  was  against  this  background  that 
Paul  Montz,  three-time  Bendix  race  win- 
ner, holder  of  many  inter-city  speed  rec- 
ords and  well-known  movie  pilot,  flew 
the  first  production  Super  260  early  in 
April  just  an  hour  after  it  passed  final 
factory  inspection  and  was  licensed. 

If  Ryan  officials  expected  to  hove  their 
enthusiasm  wotered  down,  they  were  in 
for  a  surprise.  Landing  after  a  half-hour 
check  flight,  Mantz  turned  out  to  be  just 
about  the  most  thoroughly  "sold"  pilot 
you  con  imagine. 

"Most  terrific  airplane  I've  ever 
flown!"  exclaimed  the  wildly  gesticulat- 
ing Mantz.  "I've  never  seen  anything 
like  it  in  my  life,  hiere's  one  airplane 
that  has  both  maximum  performance  and 
maximum  safety.  That's  an  unbeatable 
combination. 

"With  its  1250  feet-per-minute  rate 
of  climb,  170  mph  cruising  speed  and 
1  8,000  foot  ceiling,  it  has  the  same  'get 
up  and  go'  i  like  so  much  in  the  P-51 
Mustangs  I  fly.  This  mokes  the  Super 
Navion  as  outstanding  in  its  class  as  the 
P-51    is   among   piston-engine  fighters. 


PAUL   MANTZ 

"This  Super  job  gets  off  like  a  scared 
jockrobbit  in  just  400  feet;  in  770  feet 
I  was  over  a  50-foot  obstacle  with  full 
load  and  no  wind.  You  get  real  perform- 
ance on  the  high  side — yet  on  the  low 
speed  side  you  find  amazing  control. 
When  a  plane  like  this  lands  at  55  miles 
an  hour,  you  can  be  sure  its  handling 
characteristics  make  it  easy  and  safe  for 
amateur  as  well  as  professional   pilots. 

"I  found  the  Navion's  new  power  plant, 
the  260  h.p.  Lycoming,  to  be  one  of  the 
smoothest-running  engines  I've  ever  flown 
behind.  Driving  the  new  fHi-Cruise  pro- 
peller through  silent  reduction  gears  at 
low  RPMs,  it  means  maximum  efficiency 
for  the  engine-propeller  combination,  and 
reduced  noise  level  in  the  cabin. 

"In  my  opinion,  Ryan's  way  out  front 
this  year  with  the  Navion  Super  260!" 


RYAN  NAVION  SUPER  260 


19 


lew  Machine  Speeds  Exhaust  Parts  Production 


A  fast,  extremely  accurate  new  boring 
machine  has  been  added  to  the  battery 
of  machine  tools  in  the  Ryan  Machine 
Shop  in  order  to  accomplish  the  produc- 
tion of  exhaust  system  ports  with  greater 
speed  and  economy.  Monufoctured  by 
EX-CELL-0,  pioneers  in  the  development 
of  boring  machines,  this  particular  model 
is  a  precision  type  which  can  handle  high 
production  in  a  wide  variety  of  jobs.  Be- 
cause of  its  rigid,  sturdy  construction  it 
is  possible  to  attoin  boring  accuracies 
within  .0005"  tolerance. 

EX-CELL-0  hove  especially  designed 
this  new  model  as  a  compact  machine 
which  is  simple  to  operote  and  yet  precise 
in  its  work.  Essentially,  it  consists  of  a 
hydroulically-operoted  steel  work  table 
and  a  battery  of  four  motor-driven  cut- 
ting spindles.  The  work  is  clamped  to  the 
table  and  is  moved  into  the  cutters  by 
the  smooth  hydraulic  action  of  an  ingen- 
ious svstem  of  pumps,  valves  and  hy- 
draulic  controls.   This   is  one   of  the   un- 


usual features  of  the  machine — most  mo- 
chine  tools  utilixe  a  mechanical,  gear- 
driven  system  for  feeding  the  work  into 
the  cutting  tools.  EX-CELL-0  hove  de- 
veloped this  hydraulic  drive  to  obtain 
smooth,  accurate   control  of  the  work. 

Typical  jobs  which  ore  performed  on 
this  mochine  in  the  Ryon  Machine  Shop 
under  supervision  of  Darwin  Whetstine, 
Machine  Shop  Foreman,  ore  the  boring  of 
the  port  tubes  of  the  exhaust  manifold 
sections  for  engines  of  the  Lockheed 
P2V3  Neptune.  Facing  the  flanges  on 
Boeing  B-50  Superfortress  exhoust  sys- 
tem ports  and  boring  the  tubes  for  ball 
sockets  on  these  exhaust  ports  ore  also 
accomplished  with  the  high  precision 
which  these  parts  require.  In  the  accom- 
panying photograph,  Kenneth  Stevens, 
master  machinist  at  Ryon,  is  shown  per- 
forming a  typical  boring  operation  with 
maximum  precision  and  minimum  super- 
vision because  of  the  mochine's  excep- 
tionol   copocity   to  do  this   type  of  work. 


FLYING  GLASSES 

(Coti finned  from  luii^c  17) 


With  main  plant  and  offices  in  Reading, 
the  Willson  people  keep  a  busy  air  route 
open  between  there  and  their  field  office 
in  Detroit. 

When  customers  from  New  York,  Phil- 
adelphia or  Washington  visit  the  plant, 
their  return  transportation  by  Navion  is 
often  conveniently  arranged.  They  are 
pleased,  of  course,  and  well  convinced  that 
Willson  Products,  Inc.,  is  a  company  with 
progressive  methods. 

20 


One  Cal  Readinger,  it  turns  out,  is  an- 
other figure  in  the  Willson  Navion  drama. 
He's  the  professional  pilot  the  company 
keeps  on  its  staff  to  make  sure  that  all  its 
key  people  get  full  use  from  the  plane,  in- 
cluding those  executives  who  as  yet  are 
not  pilots.  Cal  was  put  on  the  payroll 
when  they  moved  up  from  a  two-passen- 
ger Ercoupe  over  a  year  ago  to  the  bigger, 
more  useful  Navion  with  its  four-passen- 
ger seating  and  600-pound  cargo  capacity. 


NEWS  COVERAGE 

(Continued  from  page  7 ) 
Shortly  after  the  presses  started  to  roll 
the  Navion  was  again  in  the  air  carrying 
copies  of  the  paper  back  to  Darrington 
where  they  were  distributed  free  to  the 
celebrants,  the  day's  edition  arriving  near- 
ly five  hours  before  it  would  normally. 
No  other  metropolitan  paper  in  the  area 
had  more  than  a  mention  of  the  festivi- 
ties until  their  edition  the  following  day 
(Sunday)  and  distribution  was  not  made 
in   Darrington. 

"As  this  is  a  highly  competitive  terri- 
tory from  a  circulation  standpoint,"  said 
Mr.  Best,  "we  considered  this  routine  aerial 
coverage  of  inestimable  good  will  and 
circulation  value." 

The  Darrington  Airport  is  rough  and 
short  with  7 5 -foot  trees  at  each  end  of 
the  abbreviated  runway.  But  it  would  take 
more  than  this  to  scare  the  Navion.  With 
four  passengers,  camera  equipment  and 
full  fuel  supply  we  used  only  about  one- 
third  the  runway  for  take-off.  We  cleared 
the  trees  under  no-wind  conditions  with 
a  more  than  comfortable  margin  of  safety. 
Other  circulation  uses  of  the  plane  are 
obvious,  not  the  least  of  which  is  deliver- 
ing bundles  of  papers  when  floods  pre- 
vent auto  route  drivers  from  reaching 
certain  areas. 

IN  1948  The  Herald  wished  to  revamp 
the  business  procedure  of  its  classified 
advertising  department.  The  Bremerton 
Sun,  Bremerton,  Washington,  was  found 
to  have  the  best  procedure  and  the  Her- 
ald's classified  staff  was  flown  there  morn- 
ings and  returned  evenings,  where  a  car 
and  ferry  trip  would  require  nearly  three 
hours. 

Believing  that  most  people  enjoy  an 
airplane  ride,  especially  in  this  type  of 
craft  where  the  visibility  is  unobstructed. 
Publisher  Best  has  followed  the  policy  of 
taking  managers  of  concerns  that  are  ad- 
vertisers with  the  paper  along  on  photo- 
graphic flights.  "This  creates  a  closer  re- 
lationship between  the  paper  and  custom- 
er," Best  said,  "and  certainly  doesn't  hurt 
aviation  any.  All  of  our  guests  have  been 
very  enthusiastic." 

On  one  recent  business  trip  to  San  Fran- 
cisco, Mr.  Best  saved  sufficient  time  to 
take  a  short  vacation  to  Lake  Tahoe, 
Capitola  and  other  Northern  California 
points.  When  he  got  back  to  Everett  he 
told  us  the  Navion's  performance  at  the 
high  altitudes  around  Tahoe  was  excep- 
tional. 

He  also  reported  the  cost  of  opyerating 
the  ship  for  the  whole  trip  was  about  one- 
tenth  of  a  cent  per  seat  mile.  And  on  the 
whole,  we've  discovered  the  Navion,  per 
seat  mile,  has  been  less  expensive  than  any 
form  of  transportation  we  ever  used. 
(Continued  on  next  page) 


"Our  Navion  is  an  important  part  of 
our  business,"  Mr.  Best  often  comments. 
"I  know  it  is  possible  to  publish  a  modern 
newspaper  without  the  use  of  an  airplane. 
We  cou.d  get  out  a  paper  without  modern 
typesetting  machines,  presses  or  even  the 
telephone,  but  we  couldn't  do  as  good  a 
job  nor  give  as  good  service  to  both  our 
advertisers  and  readers." 

The  Everett  Herald's  Navion  is  on  the 
payroll  to  stay  and  is  more  than  paying 
its  own  way. 


"PACKETS"  PACK  IT! 

{Con tiuucd  from  l>agf  11) 

4.  A  new  electrically-operated  mono- 
rail system  has  been  installed  in  the  cargo 
compartment,  permitting  as  many  as 
twenty  500-pound  para-bundles  of  sup- 
plies to  be  dropped  in  less  than  10  seconds 
through  a  forward  para-tainer  door  simul- 
taneous with  paratroopers'  jumping 
through  twin  side  doors  at  the  rear. 

5.  To  compensate  for  the  additional 
load  and  range  of  the  new  Fairchild  C-1 19 
"Packets,"  larger,  more  powerful  Pratt 
and  Whitney  engines,  each  developing 
3  500  horsepower,  have  been  installed. 
These  give  the  new  Fairchild  Packet  great- 
er efficiency  at  all  speeds — a  necessary  fea- 
ture for  the  Air  Force's  specialized  mis- 
sions, which  may  range  from  long  dis- 
tance transportation  to  slow  speed  drop- 
ping of  paratroopers. 

6.  A  steerable  nose  wheel,  plus  fully 
reversing  Hamilton  Standard  propellers, 
makes  the  new  Fairchild  "Packet"  easier 
to  maneuver  on  the  ground.  The  reversed 
propellers  give  added  braking  power  as 
well  as  enabling  pilots  to  back  and  "park" 
the  airplane. 

THE  uses  of  the  new  Fairchild  "Packet" 
are  as  varied  as  the  missions  of  the  Air 
Force  and  Marine  units  which  will  use 
the  planes.  Its  basic  mission  is  to  deposit  a 
maximum  of  cargo,  personnel,  litter  pa- 
tients, mechanized  equipment  or  para- 
troopers at  a  base  1000  miles  out  and  re- 
turn without  refueling. 

As  a  cargo  plane,  the  Fairchild  "Packet" 
can  carry  a  maximum  of  30,000  pounds 
payload.  Equipped  for  paratroop  opera- 
tion, it  can  dump  42  fully  equipped  para- 
troopers plus  20  500-pound  paracans  of 
supplies.  As  a  transport,  it  can  haul  up  to 
64  passengers,  or  3  5  litter  patients  plus 
four  medical  attendants.  It  can  also  tow 
a  30,000-pound  glider  or  two  15,000- 
pound  gliders  and  for  rescue  work,  the 
C-1 19  can  carry  a  large  helicopter  ready 
for  emergency  use. 

Since  the  first  C-82  Packets  were  put 
in  service  in  1945  they  have  been  used 
extensively  in  a  new  strategy  of  military 
logistics — air  transportability.  Today  al- 
most all  of  the  equipment  of  the  Infantry 


Table  of  Organization  can  be  airlifted  by 
the  big  Fairchild  cargo  planes. 

Nearly  three  years  ago,  Ryan  took  the 
first  steps  in  the  development  of  the  ex- 
haust system  for  the  Fairchild  C-119A 
when  James  Stalnaker,  Ryan's  eastern  rep- 
resentative, was  dispatched  to  our  plant 
to  confer  on  the  preliminary  studies  for 
the  new  and  enlarged  "Packet."  After  re- 
viewing the  plans  for  the  new  airplane, 
Ryan  obtained  approval  to  submit  draw- 
ings of  the  Ryan  exhaust  systems  which 
were  then  proving  successful  on  the  same 
Pratt  and  Whitney  Wasp  Major  engines 
in  the  Boeing  Stratocruiser  and  Strato- 
freighter  airplanes. 

Because  Ryan  has  designed  a  sizeable 
number  of  efficient  systems  for  the  Pratt 
and  Whitney  power  plant,  a  wealth  of 
specialized  experience  was  made  available 
for  the  Fairchild  project. 

The  C-119A  exhaust  system  was  modi- 
fied slightly  for  the  C-119B  version.  The 
present  configuration  consists  of  an 
engine-mounted  collector-ring  type  in 
which  all  of  the  hot  gases  scavenged  from 
the  engine's  28  cylinders  are  picked  up  by 
a  circular  collector  ring.  Seven  header 
sections,  lying  in  the  troughs  between  the 
rows  of  cylinders,  pick  up  the  exhaust 
from  three  cylinders  each  and  deliver  it 
to  the  collector.  The  seven  rear  cylinders 


ON   THE   COVER 

Latest-type  spotwelding  equipment 
in  the  Ryan  plant  is  used  for  important 
production  processes  in  the  manufac- 
ture of  airframe  and  aircraft  engine 
components. 

Because  of  rigid  military  require- 
ments, oil  structures  have  to  be  fabri- 
cated with  utmost  core  and  precision. 
This  spotwelder  is  air  pressure-oper- 
ated, water-cooled  and  electronically- 
controlled  by  a  huge  cabinet  of  elec- 
trical equipment.  With  almost  human 
intelligence,  these  electronic  "brains" 
accurately  measure  the  exact  amounts 
of  power  and  pressure  required  for 
each  spotweld,  in  conformity  with  var- 
iations in  metal  thickness  and  resist- 
ances. 


each  empty  their  exhaust  gas  directly  to 
the  collector  by  means  of  a  short  connec- 
tion. 

An  unusual  feature  of  the  C-1 19B  man- 
ifold is  the  use  of  transversal  slip  joints 
which  isolate  these  rear  cylinder  connec- 
tions from  the  movement  of  the  collector 
caused  by  temperature  growth.  These 
joints  are  the  result  of  original  design 
work  in  a  successful  attempt  to  provide 
a  light-weight  flexible  joint  to  accommo- 
date collector  motion.  They  are  an  in- 
genious combination  of  double  slip  joint 
which  permits  a  unique  two-way  motion. 
They  make  possible  the  only  exhaust  sys- 
tems with  engine-mounted  collectors 
which  do  not  require  slip  joints  in  the 
collector  bodies  themselves.  They  reduce 
the  number  of  joints  demanded,  reducing 
leakage  and  save  weight  and  space 


SUB-CONTRACTING 

THE  J-47 

(Contijiued  from  page  9) 

As  a  general  policy,  at  least  two  and 
preferably  three  sources  of  supply  were 
established  for  each  item.  In  the  case  of 
Ryan,  initial  orders  were  for  exhaust  cones, 
combustion  chambers,  transition  liners 
and  burner  assemblies.  These  same  stain- 
less steel  units  were  also  manufactured  by 
other  supphers  in  the  early  stages  of  the 
program.  In  recent  months,  however,  as 
the  performance  of  each  sub-contractor 
was  proved,  orders  on  some  items  were 
placed  with  a  single  source.  Thus,  Gen- 
eral Electric  has  recently  placed  addi- 
tional orders  with  Ryan  for  its  entire 
exhaust  cone  and  transition  liner  require- 
ments for  the  J-47  assembly  line  at  Lock- 
land. 

After  the  basic  plan  had  been  dis- 
cussed with  the  principal  sub-contract- 
ors, each  plant  interested  in  participa- 
tion in  the  program  was  inspected  to 
make  certain  its  experience  and  facilities 
were  adequate.  Then,  orders  were  placed 
on  the  basis  of  competitive  bids.  In  all 
cases,  sub-contractors  were  required  to 
state  their  willingness  to  participate  for 
the  duration  of  the  program  as  well  as 
to  remain  competitive  to  retain  their 
share   of   the   business. 

The  usual  problem  of  handling  highly 
accurate  machined  parts  and  assemblies 
of  high  value  was  increased  in  the  case 
of  Lockland  since  vendors  are  required 
to  ship  parts  in  well  protected,  sealed 
containers.  As  a  result,  special  fixtures  for 
removal  of  parts  from  these  containers  to 
production  type  conveyances  had  to  be 
designed.  Speed,  caution,  safety  and  con- 
venience were  paramount  in  handling 
such  material  on  the  production  lines. 
(Continued  on  page  22 J 


21 


Returnable  shipping  containers,  for  ex- 
atnple,  greatly  facilitated  this  handling 
problem.  Time  consumed  in  packing  and 
other  operations  were  reduced  materially 
by  the  use  of  many  novel  devices. 

At  Lockland,  studies  are  constantly  in 
progress  to  improve  design  and  produc- 
tion as  well  as  to  reduce  the  amount  of 
strategic  materials  used  in  each  unit.  A 
subcontracting  section  maintains  a  card 
index  on  each  component  part  used  in 
the  engine. 

If  a  revision  is  made  in  design,  a  sched- 
uling section  screens  such  changes  and 
advises  the  ordering  and  purchasing  sec- 
tions of  the  revised  instructions  which  are 
issued  to  the  subcontractors.  Vendors  then 
receive  a  weekly  progress  report  with 
definite  instructions  to  speed  up  or  slow 
down  production  in  order  to  maintain  the 
flow  of  parts  at  the  scheduled  rate. 

Production,  of  course,  does  not  end  at 
merely  complete  assembly.  Each  unit  un- 
dergoes a  test  run  after  completion.  After 
test  it  is  disassembled,  inspected  for  worn 
parts  and  returned  for  a  final  run.  Assem- 
bly is  geared  to  provide  for  such  testing 
on  each  unit  without  clogging  the  pro- 
duction line. 

THE  Lockland  operation  was  started  in 
mid-October,  1948,  in  a  plant  previous- 
ly used  for  testing  war-time  reciprocating 
aircraft  engines  and  the  manufacture  of 
some  of  its  components.  Four  months  later 
— and  two  months  ahead  of  schedule — 
the  first  jet  engine  assembled  at  Lockland 
was  turned  over  to  the  Air  Force. 

Since  then,  this  peacetime  plan  of  indus- 
trial mobilization  has  continued  to  prove 
its  value.  To  this  date — though  actual  fig- 
ures cannot  be  released — the  thousand  em- 
ployees at  Lockland  have  delivered  hun- 
dreds of  the  J-47  axial-flow  turbojet  en- 
gines to  the  Air  Force  for  such  planes  as 
the  Boeing  B-47  Stratojet  bomber.  North 
American's  F-86  Sabre  and  B-45  bomber, 
Convair  B-36,  and  newer  research  planes 
like  Republic's  XF-9I  Interceptor  and 
Martin's  XB- 51  bomber. 

In  summary,  production  of  the  J-47 
in  the  Lockland  assembly  plant  has  shown 
the  merit  of  a  well-planned,  coordinated 
sub-contracting  program.  Remarkable  re- 
sults have  been  obtained  by  utilizing 
skilled  vendors  in  manufacturing  all  parts, 
making  sub-assemblies,  and  then  feeding 
them  to  a  central  location  for  assembly 
and  test. 

But  we  aren't  complacent  about  the 
success  of  the  "Lockland  Plan."  We  know 
that  what  is  current  today  is  at  least 
obsolescent  tomorrow.  For  this  reason,  we 
must  set  our  sights  on  the  future.  While 
doing  an  efficient  job  today,  we  and  our 
sub-contractors  are  gaining  "expansibil- 
ity" know-how  for  tomorrow's  require- 
ments— if  such   an   emergency   arises. 


QUOTED 
BRIEFLY... 


And  To 
The  Point 


Too  few  of  us  have  the  ability  to  put  into 
words  some  of  the  basic  truths  of  America's 
greatness.  When  the  editors  run  across  a  par- 
ticularly potent  phrase,  we  like  to  pass  it 
along  to  Ryan  Reporter  readers.  For  example: 


go  to  that  part  of  the  world  where  your 
ideal  is  being  practiced. 

"Then  why  is  it  that  no  one  wants  to 
leave  the  United  States  for  Russia,  or  for 
socialist  England,  or  for  fascist  dictator- 
ships in  Europe  or  South  America?  And 
why  is  it  that  millions  and  millions  in 
those  countries  want — desperately  want — 
to  come  here? 

— Warner  &  Swasey  Ad. 


"I  place  economy  among  the  first  and 
most  important  virtues  and  public  debt 
as  the  greatest  of  dangers  to  be  feared. 
To  preserve  our  independence  we  must 
not  let  our  rulers  load  us  with  perpetual 
debt.  We  must  make  our  choice  between 
economy  and  liberty  or  profusion  and 
servitude. 

"If  we  run  into  such  debts,  we  must 
be  taxed  in  our  meat  and  drink,  in  our 
necessities  and  our  comforts,  in  our  labors 
and  in  our  amusements.  If  we  can  prevent 
the  Government  from  wasting  the  labors 
of  the  people,  under  the  pretense  of  caring 
for  them,  they  will  be  happy." 

— Thomas  Jefferson 


"Communism,  socialism,  fascism,  capital- 
ism— whatever  you  like — it's  here,  in  the 
world,  right  now.  All  you  have  to  do  is 


LOCKHEED  P2V'S  PLAY  PART 
IN  ANTI-SUB  OPERATIONS 

The  outstanding  air  achievement  made 
during  Operation  Portex,  joint  Army- 
Navy-Air  Force  amphibious  training  exer- 
cise off  Vieques,  Puerto  Rico,  was  the  anti- 
submarine work  of  Navy  Lockheed  P2V-3 
Neptune  patrol  bombers.  The  P2V's  were 
highly  successful  in  both  locating  and 
'destroying'  submarines,  including  those 
of  the  snorkel  type. 

The  climax  of  the  exercise  was  an  as- 
sault on  the  island  of  Vieques,  highlighted 
by  a  paradrop  of  a  battalion  of  the  82nd 
Airborne  Division  flying  Fairchild  C-82 
Packets. 

Ryan  builds  exhaust  systems  for  both 
the  P2V  Neptunes  and  the  C-82  Packets. 


FF  TO  SOUTH  AMERICA 


"LANDED  LAST  NIGHT  8  PM  MONTEVIDEO  WITHOUT  SLIGHTEST  TROUBLE 
DURING  9,000  MILES  FLIGHT  THANKS  TO  EVERYONE  AT  RYAN  '  SIGNED  BERNI 
DARDEL.  This  cable  has  just  been  received  from  Berni  Dardel,  famous  Swiss  pilot,  who 
recently  led  a  flight  of  three  Ryan  Navions  to  South  America.  Photographed  on  the 
Ryan  flight  line  in  San  Diego  shortly  before  taking  off  on  this  enjoyable  trip 
ore:  Berni  Dardel,  Ben  Moore,  Jack  Pacini,  Mrs.  Jock  Pacini,  Robert  Sonchez,  Carlo 
Lepori    and    Edward    Munoz.    All    principal    South    American    cities   were    on    itinerary. 


22 


TEN  AND  FIFTEEN  YEAR  SERVICE  PINS  PRESENTED 


Corl  "Ace"  Nesbitt  (right)  of  Air- 
plane Service  receives  his  15-year 
service  pin  from  T.  Claude  Ryan,  pres- 
ident. 


Left  to  right:  C.  A.  Stillwogen,  Floyd  Bennett,  Eugene  P.  Gongoware,  M.  W.  Kelley 
(15-year  pin),  Ree  A.  Evey,  Joe  Williams,  T.  Claude  Ryan,  Mel  Payne,  Lewis  T. 
Monfort,  Dan  Elson,  Jack  Wilkewich,  Rudolph  Friedrich,  Maynard  Lovell  and  Fred 
Haywood. 


Left  to  right:  John  Killion,  Lawrence 
E.  Anderson,  Rochford  Crawford, 
James  Dockett,  Joseph  Leary,  Mickey 
Meyer,  Ernie  Simonson,  James  Smith, 
T.  Claude  Ryan,  Frank  Marsh,  William 
Jones,  Cliff  Scotes,  Dwight  R.  Bement 
and  Fred  Ferguson. 


Left  to  right:  Edward  Lillis,  John  Kin- 
ner,  Carl  Oberbauer,  Richard  Macom- 
ber,  John  O.  Burke,  Gordon  Longmire, 
Dick  Dewey,  T.  Claude  Ryan,  Carl 
Krueger,  Emerson  Akey,  Robert  Booth, 
Jr.,  Bill  Bice,  Clarence  Day  and  Joe 
Basso. 


Left  to  right:  Phillip  Olivas,  Walter 
Thorpe,  Walter  Sly,  Norman  Newton, 
Quinley  Roder,  T.  Claude  Ryan,  Carl 
Nesbitt  (15-year  pin),  Oscar  Kupilik, 
Hjalmar   Rosenquist  and  Sam  Gilbert. 


23 


GUIDED  MISSILE 
DEVELOPMENT 

(Continued  from  page  5j 
the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  for  the 
development  of  the  Q-2  is  an  example  of 
a  program  to  develop  a  piece  of  equip- 
ment which  will  fly  at  high  speeds  and 
high  altitudes  and  serve  as  a  target  to  test 
the  effectiveness  of  developmental  surface- 
to-air  and  air-to-air  guided  missiles. 

The  responsibility  for  converting  such 
a  broad  program  of  development  from  the 
planning  stage  to  the  hardware  stage  falls 
on  the  engineers  and  the  skilled  workers 
in  the  aircraft  industries  of  the  United 
States. 

Many  different  professions,  trades,  and 
skills  will  contribute  to  the  development 
and  production  of  guided  missiles.  Aero- 
nautical and  structural  engineers  and  sheet 
metal  and  iron  workers  will  be  needed  to 
design  and  fabricate  the  wings,  fins,  sta- 
bilizers, and  fuselage  which  go  to  make 
up  the  missile  airframes.  The  field  of  hy- 
draulics and  pneumatics  must  provide  ex- 
perienced men  to  design,  install  and  serv- 
ice the  necessary  servo-mechanisms,  ac- 
cumulators and  actuators  which  make 
up  a  portion  of  the  missile  control  and 
guidance  system.  Electrical  engineers  and 
electricians  must  design  and  install  elec- 
tric power  supply  systems,  high  speed 
motors,  electric  gyros,  servo-mechanisms 
and  gyros  and  the  complex  net  of  wiring 
which  tie  together  all  of  these  components 
into  an  infallible  control  and  guidance 
system. 

Electronics  engineers  and  service  men 
must  develop,  fabricate  and  service  var- 
ious types  of  ground  and  airborne  radio 
and  radar  guidance  component,  as  well  as 
missile-borne  target-seeking  devices  and 
proximity  fuses  to  guide  missiles  to  their 
targets.  Furthermore,  many  highly  skilled 
craftsmen,  such  as  jewelers  and  watch- 
makers will  be  engaged  in  the  manufac- 
ture of  chronometers,  accelerometers, 
gyros  and  other  intricate  and  delicate 
components  for  guidance  and  control 
mechanisms. 

A  specialized  group  of  propulsion  en- 
gineers will  be  needed  to  develop  power- 
ful, high-speed  power  plants  such  as  tur- 
bo-jets, ramjets  and  rockets.  Metallurgical 
engineers  must  produce  high  strength  and 
extremely  high  temperature  metal  to 
withstand  the  operating  conditions  within 
power  plant  combustion  chambers,  ex- 
haust tail  pipes  and,  in  the  case  of  the 
turbojet  engine,  turbine  wheels.  Ceramic 
engineers  will  be  called  upon  to  contribute 
research  and  development  in  the  field  of 
acid-resistant  linings  for  liquid  rocket  fuel 
tanks  and  heat-resistant  linings  for  inlet 
diffusers  and  exhaust  tail  pipes.  Thousands 
of  skilled  machinists  will  be  required  to 
precision  machine  castings  for  various 
parts  of  the  power  plant  system  as  well  as 


to  machine  small  intricate  parts  required 
in  fuel  nozzles,  fuel  pumps  and  other  parts 
of  the  fuel  metering  system.  Chemical 
engineers  and  laboratory  workers  will  be 
required  to  investigate,  develop  and  pro- 
duce vast  quantities  of  high  performance 
fuels  for  use  in  the  various  types  of  power 
plants — the  turbojet,  the  ramjet  and  the 
rocket.  3  y        gQ 

THE  work  of  all  these  people  and  nu- 
merous others  will  require  a  large  corps 
of  inspectors  to  examine  each  piece  which 
is  fabricated  and  every  installation  which 
is  made.  These  inspectors  will  comprise  a 
most  valuable  working  group  in  the 
guided  missiles  industry,  for  on  them  will 
fall  the  responsibility  for  checking  and 
testing  each  part  and  installation  honestly 
and  conscientiously  if  we  are  to  have  the 
most  reliable  and  most  accurate  guided 
missiles  which  can  be  produced. 

As  you  may  have  concluded  from  the 
enumeration  of  the  various  arts,  trades 
and  skills  required  to  develop  and  fabricate 
guided  missiles,  many  different  types  of 
workers  will  be  required.  This  fact  is  not 
startling  to  those  who  have  been  associ- 
ated with  aircraft  development  and  pro- 
duction. Knowing  the  complications  of 
conventional  aircraft  design  and  produc- 
tion, they  can  readily  visualize  the  added 
complications  in  design  and  production 
which  are  introduced  by  removing  a  pilot 
and  crew  from  an  aircraft  and  yet  requir- 
ing it  to  fly  speedily  and  unerringly  to 
unseen  targets. 

The  multitude  of  problems  which  now 
confront  science  in  the  development  of 
the  ultimate  in  guided  missiles  will  be 
solved,  in  time,  by  the  ingenuity  and  re- 
sourcefulness of  American  industry.  These 
problems,  however,  will  not  be  solved  by 
assuming  an  air  of  complacency  in  the 
mistaken  belief  that  we  are  already  fully 


'rI  I'Oi 


.    11  MAY   24,    1950  N 

Published  By 

Ryan  Aeronautical  Company 

Lindbergh  Field 

San  Diego   12,  California 


Frances  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  editor 

Robert  F.  Smith,  Navion  news  editor 

William  P.  Brotherton,  technical  editor 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographer 

William  Wagner,  editorial  director 


prepared  to  protect  our  freedom  and  hb- 
erty  with  a  "push  button"  defense  and 
offense.  The  problem  of  developing  suc- 
cessful guided  missiles  and  integrating 
them  into  an  effective  network  for  defense 
must  be  attacked  vigorously.  Remember 
this — that  for  each  "push  button"  which 
we  will  have  in  the  future,  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  manhours  will  have  been 
invested  in  research,  design,  development, 
planning,  tooling,  fabricating,  inspecting 
and  testing! 


THERMAL  ANTI-ICING 

(Continued  from  page  1) 

NOT  only  must  an  airline  satisfy  the 
operational  requirements  of  flight 
crews  in  the  development  of  ice  protective 
systems,  it  must  also  design  for  ease  of 
ground  maintenance  and  economy  of  op- 
erating cost. 

From  a  maintenance  point  of  view,  the 
thermal  wing  anti-icing  method  has  sev- 
eral advantages  over  the  former  pneu- 
matic deicer  boot  designs: 

1.  Wing  ducting  is  relatively  permanent 
and  easily  stands  up  from  one  1200 
hour  inspection  period  to  the  next. 
Inspection  and  repairs  are  largely 
preventative  in  nature  and  can  be 
scheduled  at  regular  inspection  per- 
iods. 

2.  Whereas  rubber  pneumatic  deicer 
boots  deteriorate  most  rapidly  in  the 
summer  season  when  least  used, 
heated  wings  required  little  attention 
when  not  in  use,  and  are  adaptable 
to  maintenance  on  a  "year-round" 
basis. 

In  comparison  with  the  DC-6,  the  Con- 
vair  augmentor  system  of  providing  heat 
for  wings,  tail,  and  cabin  is  considerably 
more  simple  and  lighter  in  weight.  Its  en- 
tire success,  however,  hinges  directly  on 
the  ability  of  designers  to  develop  an  aug- 
mentor heat  exchanger  tube  which  will 
withstand  the  high  temperatures  and  the 
punishment  of  pulsating  engine  exhaust 
gases  for  a  full  engine  overhaul  period. 

Adding  up  these  thoughts  on  the  oper- 
ational results  of  thermal  anti-icing,  at 
what  conclusion  does  one  arrive? 

We  believe  that  thermal  anti-icing  sys- 
tems are  here  to  stay.  Pilots  like  the  added 
protection.  Maintenance  men  are  meeting 
and  overcoming  the  new  service  problems 
related  to  heated  surfaces.  Engineering 
requirements  for  complete  ice  and  run- 
back  protection  are  now  well-known. 
Some  of  the  "economists"  are  unhappy  be- 
cause to  date  the  operating  costs  have  been 
higher  than  on  previous  systems;  but  so 
also  is  the  protection  greater  than  pre- 
viously afforded.  As  further  experience 
is  gained,  operating  costs  can  and  will  be 
reduced. 


24 


87    96 


THIS  SLOT  MACHINE  ALWAYS 
PAYS  OFF" IN  CASH! 


ALL  OVER  AMERICA,  time-cards  are  being  punched  in  and  out  day  after  day.  Drop  a  time- 
card  in  the  slot,  and  —  presto!  —  comes  Friday  and  there's  a  paycheck  waiting!  Millions  of  ■work- 
ing men  and  -women  have  been  earning  a  good  living  doing  this  for  years.  In  fact,  the  time-card 
and  time-clock  combination  is  one  of  the  best  money-making   methods  in  America. 

ONE  IMPORTANT  THING  to  remember  though  is  you  can't  hit  the  jackpot  unless  there  is  a 
jackpot!  Any  company  must  be  making  money  or  it  cannot  continue  to  pay  out  money.  If  profits 
are  good,  there  w^ill  be  money  to  help  buy  better  equipment  for  present  jobs;  and,  there'll  be  money 
to  expand  and  create  more  jobs,  too.  There  -will  be  money  to  keep  business  going  in  the  months  and 
years  ahead.  Profits  make  any  job  a  good,  dependable  job  to  have.  There's  no  security  in  w^orking 
for  a  company  that  can't  keep  its  head  above  w^ater. 

LET'S  HOPE  that  American  industry  can  earn  enough  profit  to  keep  our  time-clocks  all  over 
the  country  paying  off  in  cash  every  time  they  are  punched. 


RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY 

LINDBERGH     FIELD 
SAN  DIEGO  12,  CALIFORNIA 

POSTMASTER:    If   undeliverable   for    any    reaion.    notif 


436 

K.D.PONSFORD 
4557   TERRACE   DR. 
SAN   DIEGO   4,    CALIF. 


Sec.  34.66,  P.  L.&R. 
U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego,  California 
Permit  No.  437 


EXHAUST  SYSTEMS.  Manifolds,  collector 
rings,  short  stacks  and  other  stainless  steel 
assemblies  are  engineered,  built  and  serviced 
by  Ryan.  For  more  than  a  decade  Ryan  has 
been  recognized  for  outstanding  leadership 
in  the  entire  field  of  high-temperature  air- 
craft   engine    applications. 


AIRFRAME  COMPONENTS.  In  addition 
to  its  own  prime  airframe  contracts,  Ryan 
has  for  over  20  years  built  for  other  manu- 
facturers; produced  complete  airplanes  to 
another  company's  design;  built  wings,  con- 
trol surfaces,  fuel  tanks,  and  fuselage  sec- 
tions for  bombers,  fighters  and  transport  air- 
craft in   war   and   peace  times. 


JET  AND  ROCKET  engine  components. 
Ryan  is  the  only  jet  components  manufactur- 
er who  also  engineers  and  builds  jet  and 
rocket-powered  aircraft  and  guided  missiles. 
Obviously,  you  get  technical  advantages  not 
enjoyed  by  others  when  Ryan  designs  and 
builds  heat  and  corrosion  resistant  compon- 
ents  for  you. 


WHY  RYAN  IS  BEST  QUALIFIED  TO  HELP  SOLVE 
YOUR  STAINLESS  STEEL  FABRICATING  PROBLEMS 


A  partial  list  of  aircraft  embodying 
Ryan-built  components  reads  like  a 
blue  book  of  aviation: 

EXHAUST  SYSTEMS 
AiResearch  heat  exchangers;  Manifolds 
for  Boeing  B-29,  B-50,  377  Stratocruiser, 
C-97  Strofofreighter;  Continental  1790 
tank  engine;  Convoir  240  Convair  Liner, 
PBY  flying  boots,  PB4Y-2  anti-icing  kits; 
Exhaust  systems  for  Douglas  A-20,  B-23, 
DC-3,  C-47,  DC-4,  C-54,  DC-6,  C-74, 
C-124;  Fairchild  C-82  and  0-119  Packets; 
Goodyear  Blimps;  Lockheed  P2V  Nep- 
tunes-  Grumman  F6F  Hellcat;  Mortin 
AM-1;  North  American  AT-6  and  B-25; 
Northrop     P-61     ond     B-35    Flying    Wing; 


Piasecki    Helicopters;    Pratt   and    Whitney 

4360  series  engine;  Republic  P-47  hoods; 
Wright  Aeronautical  3350  series  engine 
exhaust  system. 

AIRFRAME  COMPONENTS 
Boeing  377  and  C-97  rear  fuselage  sec- 
tions, cargo  doors  and  floor  beams;  Boeing 
B-47  Strotojet  components;  Convair  B-24 
and  PB4Y-2  wings  and  tail  surfaces;  Novy 
SOR-1  scout  observation  planes;  Northrop 
P-6t  tail  surfaces;  various  engine  cowls, 
gun  turrets,  etc. 

JET    AND    ROCKET   COMPONENTS 
Aerojet  Aerobee   Sounding    Rockets;   com- 
ponents   for    AiReseorch;    Allison    Division 
of  General  Motors;   Bell  toilpipes  for  Boe- 


ing B-47  and  Convair  8-36  "pods";  com- 
ponents for  M.  J.  Kellogg;  Flader  turbo- 
let;  General  Electric  J-47;  General  Tire 
and  Rubber;  Giannini  let  engine;  Mar- 
quardt  ram-jet;  McDonnell  F2H-1  Banshee 
Ranger  let  engine;  Pratt  and  Whitney; 
Ryan  Firebird  air-to-air  missile;  Wright 
Aeronautical  T-35  Typhoon. 

Take  full  advantage  of  Ryan's  en- 
gineering leadership,  advanced  pro- 
duction techniques  and  service  ex- 
perience in  high-temperature  metal- 
lurgy. Let  Ryan  apply  its  "know- 
how"  to  your  problems  in  the  design 
stage. 


Metal  Products 


DIVISION    OF    RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY      •      LINDBERGH    FIELD 

Exhaust    Systems      •      Jet    and    Rocket    Engine    Components 


SAN     DIEGO,     CALIFORNIA 

Airtrame    Components 


VQ^ISr^iai^A^ 


ilENT  Oi  m 


DURING  the  war  and  through  V-J 
Day,  we  at  Pratt  &  Whitney  were 
rightfully  required  to  devote  our  major 
efforts  to  piston  engines.  We  recognized 
we  faced  a  severe  handicap  in  getting  into 
gas  turbines  against  formidable  competi- 
tors who  had  a  three  to  five  year  head 
start  in  this   new  powerplant  field. 

Already  in  production  was  an  Amer- 
ican-built centrifugal  flow  turbojet  with 
approximately  4000  pounds  thrust.  Rolls- 
Royce  had  also  started  during  the  war  on 
the  development  of  basic  Whittle  cen- 
trifugal flow  turbojet  engines,  and  in  1946 
had  in  their  Nene  an  engine  of  5000 
pounds  thrust.  Because  of  this  improved 


P  &  W  jet  engines  power  Grumman  F9F-2  Panthers. 


Newest  Pratt  and  Whitney  facility  is  $12,000,000  turbine  laboratory. 


by  William  P.  Gwinn,  General  Manager 
Pratt  and  Whitney  Aircraft 


Photo  shows  successive  stages  of  assembly  of  powerful  J-42  Turbo-Wasp  jet  engines  at  East  Hartford  plant. 


performance  of  the  same  basic  type 
Whittle  centrifugal  flow  engine  with 
roughly  the  same  weight  and  installation 
characteristics,  interest  in  the  Nene  was 
aroused  within  the  Navy  and  by  Grum- 
man toward  using  it  as  a  powerplant  for 
the  then  new  F9F  Panther  fighter. 

With  the  Navy's  blessing,  we  pur- 
chased the  manufacturing  rights  in  this 
country  for  the  Rolls-Royce  Nene.  This 
was  late  in  the  spring  of   1947,  and  im- 


mediately a  group  of  our  people  went  to 
England  to  go  into  all  phases  of  the  job 
ahead. 

In  mid-July,  1947,  they  returned  with 
complete  drawings  and  specifications  and 
turned  them  over  to  our  engineering  and 
shop  people.  These  prints  had  to  be  Amer- 
icanized —  translated  into  American  en- 
gineering terms.  Sources  had  to  be  found 
and  established  to  produce  the  special  al- 
loys and  materials  required,  because  it  was 


imperative   that   this   be   a    100   per   cent 
American  project. 

In  addition  to  the  complex  production 
job  such  as  providing  complete  new  facili- 
ties, particularly  for  the  production  of 
sheet  metal  parts,  such  as  combustion 
chambers  and  exhaust  cones,  engineering 
was  faced  with  the  task  of  translating  the 
British  drawings  and  specifications  to 
American  standards.  Engineering  also  had 
(Continued  on  page  20) 


mm  FOR  PERFORMING 


SOME  personal  plane  pilots,  who  had 
thought  they  could  outrun  a  Navion, 
have  been  getting  some  real  surprises  late- 
ly. New  1950  Navions  have  been  over- 
taking and  walking  away  from  them.  And 
the  surprised  pilots  haven't  been  able  to 
do  anything  about  it. 

The    reason    is     the     new    Super     260 
Navion,    powered    by    a    Lycoming    six- 
cylinder  geared  engine — a  plane  that  w 
outclimb  and  outcruise,  yet  land  shorter 
than  anything  in  its  class. 

The  Lycoming  geared  engine  is  part  of 
the  answer.  With  its  increased  propeller 
efficiency  and  engine  power,  it  provides 
superior  take-off  and  climb  performance 
without  sacrificing  top  speed,  smoothness 
or  quietness  of  operation. 

More  and  more,  manufacturers  of  per- 
sonal aircraft  are  turning  to  the  geared 
engine  for  their  power.  It's  not  surprising, 
because  there  is  really  nothing  new  about 
this  type  of  engine.  It  has  been  used  on 
transport-type  aircraft  and  military  air- 
craft for  years.  Every  commercial  multi- 
engined liner  operating  in  the  U.  S.  today 
is  utilizing  geared  power.  Gearing  of  small 
aircraft  engines  is  just  a  new  application 
of  an  old  idea. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  Wright 
brothers  used  a  primitive  gear  reduction 
system  on  their  Kitty  Hawk — two  bicycle 


chains  connecting  sprockets  on  the  engine 
and  two  propellers.  It  wouldn't  have  flown 
with  a  direct-drive  hook-up,  experts  say. 

But  before  we  look  into  the  many  ad- 
vantages of  the  aircraft  engine  equipped 
with  propeller  reduction  gear,  let's  exam- 
ine one  of  the  questions  that  some  pilots 
may  be  asking  as  these  engines  come  into 
deserved  popularity — 

Will  the  higher  "revolutions  per  min- 
ute" of  these  engines  cause  them  to  wear 
out  faster  than  the  direct  drive  engines 
of  slower  rpm? 

TTie  answer  is  definitely  "No." 

In  the  first  place,  "revolutions  per  min- 
ute" is  not  a  true  measure  of  engine 
speed.  For  instance,  the  automotive  engine 
in  \our  car  probably  is  rated  at  3  500  rpm 
or  higher,  and  the  Lycoming  GO-43  5, 
which  powers  the  Super  Navion,  has  a 
normal  rating  of  3000  rpm. 

Engines  for  commercial  aircraft  are  fol- 
lowing the  pattern  of  the  automotive 
field.  Twenty-five  years  ago,  2200  to  2400 
rpm  was  standard  for  auto  engines;  and 
now  technological  advances  have  enabled 
automotive  engineers  to  increase  this  to 
today's  3  500  and  higher.  You  hear  few 
questions  among  auto  owners  about 
whether  the  engines  wear  out  faster. 

Part  of  the  explanation  is  that  the 
development    of    the    rugged    metals    and 


alloys  used  in  today's  power  plants,  with 
improved  lubricants  and  lubricating  sys- 
tems, and  better  production  methods  plus 
other  technical  advances,  minimize  the 
effect  of  higher  rpm  on  engine  life. 

There  is  another  factor  to  be  considered, 
too.  While  Lycoming's  six-cylinder  geared 
engine  has  a  take-off  rating  of  5400  rpm, 
it  cruises  at  only  about  2400-275  0  rpm. 
On  the  other  hand,  most  direct  drive  air- 
craft engines  are  rated  at  2500-2800  rpm 
for  take-off,  and  cruise  at  about  2150- 
2400  rpm,  only  slightly  less  than  the  Ly- 
coming geared  engine. 

One  of  the  major  advantages  of  the 
geared  engine  for  aircraft,  of  course,  is 
that  you  get  more  power  in  a  given-sized 
package  with  a  slower  propeller  speed.  For 
example,  to  get  high  performance  from 
an  engine,  double  the  engine  speed  and 
you  nearly  double  the  power  output.  But 
(Continued  on  page  IS) 


Cowling   of   Ryan  Super  260   Novion   is  the  some   as   used   on  other   models,   yet   en- 
closes power  package  with   27%    greater   h.p.,  without  any   increase   in   frontal   drog. 


Power  plant  specialists  on  Navion  as- 
sembly line  lower  Lycoming  engine  into 
position    for    installation    in    airframe. 


Photo  louifesy   U.  S.  Air  Services 
Aircraft    engines    using    gear    reduction    are    nothing    new     Wright    Brothers    used    a 
primitive    system    of    bicycle    choins    to    transmit    engine    power    to    the    propellers. 


More  combot  troops,  more  military  equipment  than  had  ever  before  been  parochuted  were  dropped 
on  "Swarmer"  airhead  from  Fairchild  C-82s.  Dark  parachutes  ore  those  of  "pathfinder"  para- 
troops;   light    ones    carry    combat    material.    Inset    photo    is    of    Ryan    exhaust    system    for    C-82    plane. 


Lieut.  Gen.  Louris  Norstod, 
Deputy  Chief  of  Air  Staff  for 
Operations,  was  maneuver 
commander.  He's  shown 
briefing    the    news    reporters. 


ALONG  with  the  hundreds  of  planes, 
^  untold  tons  of  equipment,  thous- 
ands of  paratroopers  and  tens  of  thousands 
of  airborne  soldiers,  more  than  600  Ryan 
exhaust  systems  received  a  concentrated 
workout  under  actual  combat  conditions 
during  "Exercise  Swarmcr."  Only  one  of 
the  transports  used  during  the  maneuvers 
was  not  Ryan-equipped. 

Key  figures  in  the  recent  joint  Air 
Force-Army  tactical  maneuvers  in  North 
Carolina  were  the  tried  and  proven  multi- 
engine  transports  —  Douglas  C-54s,  of 
Berlin  Air  Lift  fame,  the  twin-engined 
Fairchild  C-S2  and  C-119  Flying  Boxcars 
and  Packets,  and  the  Douglas  C-74  Globe- 
masters.  Also  on  hand  to  demonstrate  the 
newest  in  aerial  supplv  were  the  Douglas 


C-124  Globemaster  II  and  one  of  the  Boe- 
ing C-97  Stratofreighters.  For  the  latter 
Ryan  builds  the  rear  fuselage  section, 
cargo  doors  and  floor  beams  as  well  as 
the  exhaust  system. 

Just  what  do  maneuvers  like  "Exercise 
Swarmer"  prove? 

They  provide  the  only  practical  means 
of  determining  under  simulated  combat 
conditions  how  an  "airhead,"  somewhat 
like  the  Normandy  beachhead,  can  be 
established  in  "enemy"  territory,  and  how 
it  can  be  supplied  and  expanded  entirely 
by  air  lift. 

For  purposes  of  the  maneuvers,  it  was 
assumed  that  the  territory  held  by  the 
enemy  was  an  island,  so  the  only  way  to 
start  a  counterattack  was  to  establish  an 


airhead  within  the  enemy  lines  and  expand 
it.  More  than  30,000  combat  troops  and 
12,000  tons  of  weapons  and  equipment 
were  pushed  through  entirely  by  air  with- 
in a  matter  of  four  days.  The  troops  had 
nothing  but  what  they  carried  on  their 
backs  or  what  was  parachuted  or  landed 
by  aircraft. 

Preceded  by  several  days  of  bombing  of 
the  air  lift  "beachhead,"  a  Fairchild  Packet 
opened  the  D-Day  attack  by  dropping  the 
first  load  of  "Pathfinder"  troops,  followed 
by  wave  after  wave  of  paratroopers  until 
more  than  2000  men  had  been  dropped  to 
seize  the  air  field.  Later  air  drops  from 
the  Fairchild  C-82s  consisted  of  heavy 
105  and  IS  J  millimeter  guns,  jeeps  and 
(Continued  on  page  6) 


SCHOOL  FOR  IIR  TRANSPOmOILITY 


From  the  nose  of  the  Douglas  C-124A  Globemaster  II  emerges  al- 
most 25  tons  of  destruction.  This  L-37  light  tank  was  flown 
into  the  airhead  to  rout  Aggressor  forces.  Left:  Ryan  exhaust 
system   taps    28-cylinder   engine    by   series    of   "Siamese   Stacks." 


Douglas  {;-124A 


Boeing  C-97 


The  cargo  doors  of  the  Boeing 
C-97  Stratofreighter  transport 
open  to  permit  lowering  of  the 
ramp  up  which  combat  vehicles 
drive  under  their  own  power  to 
simplify  "oir  transportability." 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  not 
only  builds  the  huge  exhaust 
system  shown  at  left,  but  also 
mokes  oft  fuselage  section  and 
cargo  doors  of  the  pressurized 
high -altitude    Stratofreighter. 


Seven  Douglas  C-74  Globemaster  I 
transports  landed  at  three-minute 
intervals  to  aid  in  securing  the 
airstrip  captured  by  paratroopers. 
Each  Globemaster  carried  a  fork- 
lift  truck  on  its  elevator  plat- 
form which  could  be  put  to  work 
immediately  to  help  unload  com- 
bat equipment  being  flown  into 
the  airhead.  Right:  Nacelle  with 
Pratt  &  Whitney  engine  aided  Ryan 
engineers  in  designing  exhaust 
system   for   Globemaster    I    and    II. 


heavy  loads  of  ammunition  and  rations. 
This  was  the  first  time  such  drops,  either 
of  troops  or  equipment  by  parachute,  had 
been  made  on  so  large  a  scale.  Some  300,- 
000  pounds  of  cargo  were  dropped  from 
the  clam-shell  doors  of  the  C-82s. 

After  the  capture  of  the  air  strip  by 
the  paratroopers,  the  huge  Douglas  C-124 
Globemaster  II,  making  its  first  appear- 
ance in  maneuvers,  made  a  token  run  as 
the  first  airplane  to  land. 

For  demonstration  purposes  only,  the 
C-124  carried  a  2 '2-ton  truck,  though  it 
has  capacity  for  three  trucks.  From  the 
time  the  C-124's  landing  wheels  touched 
until  it  taxied  over  to  the  unloading  ramp 
and  disgorged  its  truck,  just  three  minutes 
and  one  second  elapsed.  Had  it  carried  a 
full  load  of  three  2'j-ton  trucks  fully 
loaded  with  supplies,  the  elapsed  time 
would  have  been  approximately  3' 2  min- 
utes. 

Later  the  C-124  showed  the  ease  with 
which  it  could  load  a  huge  M-24  tank 
(via  its  built-in  nose  ramp)  and  a  jeep 
(via   a   rear   elevator)    simultaneously. 

As  reported  by  Wilson  Silsby,  a  Douglas 
Aircraft  Company  observer,  "the  C-124 
was  immediately  followed  by  seven  C-74s 
landing  at  three-minute  intervals,  carrj'- 
ing  troops  and  equipment  flown  in  from 
200  miles  away  to  be  used  in  unloading 
supplies  at  the  airhead.  Each  of  the  74s 
carried  a  fork-lift  truck  on  its  elevator 
platform.  The  minute  the  airplane  was 
parked  on  the  unloading  apron,  the  ele- 
vator was  lowered  and  the  fork-lift  truck 
run  off  the  platform.  Meanwhile,  combat 
troops  streamed  down  a  ladder  from  the 
forward  door.  Other  types  of  equipment 
then  began  coming  down  the  elevator,  to 
be  immediately  set  up  for  use  by  the  com- 
bat troops  in  unloading  a  constant  stream 
of  equipment-  and  personnel-carrying 
C-54s  interspersed  with  C-S2s  and  C-119s 
coming  m  at  round-the-clock  three-min- 
ute intervals  on  a  scale  reminiscent  of  the 
Berlin  Air  Lift.  It  was  an  amazing  sight!" 

"You  can  appreciate  the  feelings  of  a 
country  boy  like  me  who  witnessed  such 
a  tremendous  operation — 2000  paratroop- 
ers  and    tons   of   equipment    and    supplies 


Doufflas  C-74 


Fairchild  C119 

0 


dropped  onto  the  airhead,  followed  by  the 
start  of  operations  from  the  captured  air 
strip  and  topped  off  in  the  afternoon  by 
a  second  drop  of  2000  more  paratroopers 
and  equipment." 

All  in  all,  observers  were  vastly  im- 
pressed by  the  basic  advantages  of  air 
transport  as  demonstrated  in  the  aerial 
war  games.  Heading  this  first  complete, 
large-scale  airborne  training  operation  was 
Lt.  Gen.  Lauris  Norstad,  deputy  chief  of 
Air  Staff  for  Operations.  "Swarmer"  used 
more  planes,  more  equipment  and  more 
paratroopers  than  had  ever  taken  part  in 
a  single  action  before.  Such  an  operation 
provides  a  practical  yardstick  to  govern 
the  future  procurement  policies  of  the 
military  services. 

Perhaps  typical  of  the  lessons  learned 
was  the  need  for  assault-type  transports 
which,  possibly  with  track-tread  landing 
gear,  could  land  on  improvised  fields.  Some 
sort  of  detachable  fuselage  aircraft  (such 
as  Fairchild's  new  XC-120  Pack  Plane) 
is  needed  to  assist  in  cutting  down  loading 
and  unloading  time  and  for  other  special- 
ized applications.  For  example,  such  an 
aircraft  could  carry  a  complete  machine 
shop  or  GCA  landing  system  in  a  "pod" 
which  could  be  flown  into  the  airhead  in 
the  first  wave  and  be  ready  for  immediate 
operation. 

Better  coordination  in  the  future  can 
also  be  expected  between  the  Army  and 
Air  Force  in  designing  heavy  combat 
equipment  and  transport  aircraft  so  as  to 
provide  the  ultimate  in  air  transporta- 
bility. In  the  future  there  will  be  greater 
Air  Force  emphasis  on  designing  to  save 
time  in  ground  handling  and  on  the  part 
of  Army  Field  Forces  in  designing  equip- 
ment that  can  be  carried  with  greater 
speed  and  efficiency  by  air.  Even  now 
many  of  the  self-propelled  military  ve- 
hicles like  six-ton  howitzers,  field  guns 
and  bulldozers  can  be  loaded  under  their 
own  power  thus  avoiding  the  tactically 
expensive  process  of  disassembly.  Such 
specially  designed  vehicles  are  ready  for 
action  as  they  roll  from  the  ramps  of 
transport  planes. 


A  two-and-a-half  ton  truck  goes 
up  the  ramp  of  a  Fairchild  C-119 
Pocket  at  the  supply  base,  200 
miles  from  the  airhead,  as  U.  S. 
airborne  soldiers  and  equipment 
are  rushed  to  support  operations 
at  the  airstrip  captured  from 
Aggressor  forces.  More  and  more 
combot  equipment  of  Army  Field 
Forces  is  being  designed  around 
the  need  for  transporting  it  by 
air.  Standard  installations  on 
C-119s  ore  Ryan  exhaust  systems. 


Star  performer  of  the  Berlin  Air 
Lift,  the  reliable  Douglas  C-54 
Skymaster,  again  sow  heavy 
service  as  transport  planes  in 
"Exercise  Swarmer"  flew  in  more 
than  12,000  tons  of  weapons 
and  other  military  equipment  in 
a  few  days'  operotion.  Since  the 
Douglas  DC-4  commercial  and 
C-54  military  Skymasters  hove 
been  in  service,  Ryan  has  made 
exhaust   systems   for   transports. 


Douglas  C-54 


W.  V.  Hanley,  assistant  manager  of  Standard's  aviation  division,  on   wing,  supervises  loading  of  electronic 
equipment  into  "Chevron  No.  2"  Novlon.  Speciol  test  equipment  is  used  in  demonstrating  new  80   87  fuel. 


mm  TESTS  IMIOR  MilDE "  FUEL 


TEAMING  laboratory  research  with 
executive  travel  and  sales  promotion 
activities,  Standard  Oil  Company  of  Cali- 
fornia has  developed  new  and  unique  jobs 
for  their  "Chevron"  fleet  of  Navions. 

With  nearly  two  thousand  hours  already 
logged  on  their  first  Navion,  the  oil  com- 
pany has  recently  taken  delivery  of 
"Chevron  No.  4,"  a  new  Ryan  1950  De- 
Luxe  205  model. 

In  addition  to  the  continuous  coverage 
of  seven  Western  states  made  possible  for 
Standard's  aviation  engineers  and  sales 
representatives  by  use  of  the  Navions,  the 
development  and  marketing  of  80/87  avi- 
ation gasoline,  first  of  its  kind  to  carry  a 
guaranteed  anti-knock  rating  under  all 
flying  conditions,  is  a  new  and  interesting 
story  in  itself. 

It  all  started  back  in  1937  when  Stand- 
ard originated  a  detonation  knock-indicat- 
ing device  which  made  it  possible  to  vir- 
tually "see"  inside  an  engine's  cylinders. 
With  this   scientific  aid,   the  composition 


of   aviation   gasoline   could   be   'jug 
to  fit  an  engine's  exact  requirements. 
Because    no    single    fuel    for    personal- 


Standard  executive  R.  F.  Bradley, 
left,  takes  delivery  of  "Chevron 
No.  4"  Navion  from  T.  Claude  Ryan. 


executive  planes  was  available  which  com- 
bined the  virtues  of  high  octane  rating  for 
rich  mixture  conditions  and  lower  rating 
for  lean  cruising  operation,  Standard  set 
out  to  "tailor-make"  a  suitable  fuel. 

With  the  detonation  device  installed  in 
the  "Chevron  No.  2"  Navion,  extensive 
tests  were  conducted  under  controlled 
conditions,  and  various  blends  of  fuel 
studied  in  action.  Pick-ups  attached  to 
spark  plugs  transmitted  signals  denoting 
conditions  within  the  cylinder  to  an 
oscilloscope  screen  in  the  Navion  cabin. 
Properly  interpreted  by  a  skilled  engineer, 
the  oscilloscope  "picture"  showed  whether 
or  not  the  engine  was  knocking. 

During  flight  tests  the  Navion  was 
flown  by  W.  V.  Hanley,  assistant  manager 
of  the  aviation  division.  In  addition  to 
developing  SO  87  gasoline  that  prevented 
knocking  under  all  flight  conditions,  the 
research  project  also  included  studies  of 
volatility,  economy,  vapor-lock  and  other 
engine  performance  characteristics. 


With  development  of  the  new  fuel 
completed,  Standard's  aviation  depart- 
ment was  faced  with  the  problem  of  how 
best  to  take  advantage  of  its  sales  pos- 
sibilities. How  to  bring  the  story  effec- 
tively before  private  pilots?  Again,  the 
Navion  came  into  the  picture. 

Standard's  sales  executives  had  long 
used  their  Navion  and  other  aircraft  to 
keep  in  touch  with  customers  throughout 
the  Pacific  states,  traveling  in  the  Navion 
alone  an  average  of  over  5000  miles  a 
month.  Here,  however,  was  a  new  prob- 
lem. 

If  the  oscilloscope  could  be  used  in 
the  Navion  cabin  to  "see"  inside  the  en- 
gine's cylinders,  why  couldn't  a  large 
television  screen,  set  up  in  a  room  before 
an  audience,  be  used  even  more  effec- 
tively? Again,  Standard's  research  depart- 
ment went  to  work  and  came  up  with  a 
solution.  The  Navion  could  be  parked 
outside  a  meeting  hall,  the  engine  operated 
under  various  conditions,  and  by  means  of 
special  electronic  circuits  and  tubes,  the 
picture  carried  over  2  50  feet  of  cable  onto 
a  TV  screen.  All  equipment  was  designed 
to  be  carried  aboard  the  Navion  and 
flown  from  place  to  place. 

Because    of     the    Navion 's     unexcelled 


Standard's   Navion   has   a   habit  of  turning    up   just  where   needed   for   fuel   demon- 
stration   shows.    "Chevron    No.    2"    is    landed    nearby,    then    towed    along    highway. 


short  field  performance  the  plane  was 
landed  in  many  cases  adjacent  to  or  near 
the  auditoriums.  Frequently  the  plane  was 
taxied  or  towed  along  city  streets.  A  total 
of  45  meetings  were  held  before  6000  key 
aviation  people.  Hanley  flew  the  Navion 
15.000  miles  in  the  seven  Western  states 
while  introducing  the  80/87  fuel. 

Being  used  to  a  scientific  approach  to 
the  Navion  because  of  past  research  proj- 
ects with  which  the  plane  was  connected. 
Standard    Oil    ran   its   own    "acceptance" 


tests  when  taking  delivery  of  their  new 
Ryan  Navion  "Chevron  No.  4."  With 
calibrated  instrumentation,  Bill  Hanley 
found  the  new  plane  had  a  true  airspeed 
1  Yz  m.p.h.  in  excess  of  the  advertised 
cruising  performance  and  that  all  instru- 
ments and  settings  were  well  within  lim- 
its. Also,  Hanley  reported,  the  plane  was 
ready  on  time  and  without  a  single  mal- 
functioning unit — an  experience  he  had 
had  only  rarely  in  past  years  when  get- 
ting new  planes. 


Special  equipment  devised  by  Standard  Oil  research  engineers    makes    it    possible    to    project    onto    movie 
screen    for    large    audiences,    the    "picture"    of    inner  workings  of  Navion  engine  during  combustion  cycle. 


ANEW  Universal  Heat  Exchanger 
Test  Stand  recently  installed  adja- 
cent to  the  Jet  Engine  Test  Stand  is  the 
Ryan  factory's  newest  research  facility. 
This  imposing  array  of  pipes,  tubes  and 
valves,  which  looks  like  a  plumber's  night- 
mare, represents  a  substantial  investment 
in  a  new  testing  instrument  of  laboratory- 
like accuracy.  It  is  being  used  daily  to 
check  the  design  and  performance  of 
Ryan-fabricated  heat  exchangers  which 
are  fast  becoming  important  tools  in  the 


these  structures,  heat  is  passed  through  a 
metal  wall  from  one  fluid  to  another  in 
order  to  obtain  higher,  or  lower,  tempera- 
tures at  the  point  of  application. 

Every  design  of  heat  exchanger  can  be 
visualized  as  an  arrangement  of  tubes. 
Conventional  coolant  radiators  and  oil 
coolers  are  composed  of  bundles  of  circu- 
lar tubes  through  which  the  cooling  air 
flows.  In  the  design  of  a  heat  exchanger 
it  is  essential  that  the  heat-transfer  and 
pressure-drop  characteristics  of  the  tubes 
be  known. 


must  be  struck  between  a  design  for  maxi- 
mum service  life,  which  imposes  weight, 
and  for  maximum  output  per  unit  of 
weight,  which  necessitates  minimum 
structural  weight. 

The  Ryan  Heat  Exchanger  Test  Stand 
is  patterned  after  the  N.A.C.A.  Test 
Stand  at  the  University  of  California.  It 
is  an  extremely  versatile  and  high  capacity 
type. 

It  consists  of  a  natural  gas  furnace 
capable  of  producing  3,000,000  B.T.U.s 
of   heat    energy   per    hour,    a    centrifugal 


HEAT  EXCHANGER  RESEARCH 


Installing  a  heat  exchanger  In  the  new  Ryan  heat  exchanger  test  stand  prior  to  air-gas  heat  flow  test 
under  simulated  flight  conditions.  Test  data  aids  Ryan  engineers  in  designing  better  heat  exchangers. 


hands  of  aircraft  designers  in  their  efforts 
to  increase  the  range,  altitude  and  effi- 
ciency of  military  and  commercial  planes. 

Heat  exchangers  are  used  to  transfer 
heat  from  high  temperature  exhaust  gas 
to  lower  temperature  warm  air  which  can 
be  used  to  heat  airplane  cabins,  prevent 
icing  of  wings,  pre-heat  guns  and  perform 
several  other  functions,  details  of  which 
are  not  releasable. 

All  of  us  use  many  types  of  heat  ex- 
changers in  our  daily  life,  such  as  the 
steam  radiator,  vented  gas  heater  and  re- 
frigerator   freezing    chamber.    In    all    of 


In  aircraft,  a  principal  source  of  heat 
(with  tremendous  quantities  of  heat  ener- 
gy, most  of  which  has  previously  gone  to 
waste)  is  the  conventional  reciprocating 
engine.  The  airplane's  power  plant  con- 
sumes enormous  volumes  of  cool  air  and 
heats  it  to  volcanic  temperatures  in  a  mat- 
ter of  seconds.  The  design  of  a  thin-metal- 
walled  heat  exchanger  to  accomplish  the 
transfer  of  heat  from  the  products  of 
combustion,  presents  a  complex  problem. 
It  is  necessary  to  know  the  amounts  of 
heat,  and  efficiency  in  transferring  heat,  at 
varying  air-gas  flow  rates.  A  fine  balance 


type  blower  for  delivering  air  to  the  fur- 
nace and  ventilating  air  to  the  heat  ex- 
changer under  test,  together  with  a  sys- 
tem of  ducting  and  various  measuring 
devices.  Exhaust  gas  and  ventilating  air 
can  be  circulated  through  the  heat  ex- 
changer under  test  at  flow  rates  of  8  500 
and  65  00  pounds  per  hour,  respectively, 
at  an  exhaust  gas  temperature  of  1600""F. 
The  blower,  which  is  driven  by  a  30 
h.p.  electric  motor  operating  at  3600 
r.p.m.  delivers  air  into  a  12-inch  manifold 
and  thence  into  two  8-inch  ducts  which 
(Continued  on  page  19) 


10 


STEILS 
THE 


CAMERA!  Speed!  Action! 
Familiar  as  key  words  in  the  jargon 
of  the  movie  industry,  these  crisp  com- 
mands mark  the  daily  progress  of  the  lat- 
est Rvan  Navion  promotional  venture — 
a  16  mm  color  sound  motion  picture  now 
in  its  second  month  of  production. 

The  2  5 -minute  movie  is  planned  to  con- 
vincingly show  the  businessman  and  pro- 
fessional person  how  he  stands  to  profit 
businesswise  and  in  pleasure  from  owner- 
ship of  a  modern  executive-type  plane  like 
the  Ryan  Navion. 

A  week's  shooting  in  California's  San 
Joaquin  Valley  launched  production. 
Percy  and  Maxine  Whiteside,  Ryan  Na- 
vion dealers  in  the  valley  town  of  Cor- 
coran, spark-plugged  arrangements  for 
filming  such  colorful  action  as  a  cattle 
round-up  on  the  Lou  Hansen  ranch  and 
successful    drilling    to    a    record-breaking 


Producer  Bob  Montague  and  production  coordinator  Robert 
Smith  combine  talents  during  shooting  of  scene  for  Ryan 
Navion  technicolor   motion   picture  now  nearing  completion. 


near-6,000  feet  by  Elmer  von  Glahn  in 
the  Raisin  City  oil  field.  Navions  owned 
by  Hansen  and  von  Glahn  figured  prom- 
inently in  both  scenes. 

Other  Corcoran  folks  whose  Navion  us- 
age was  covered  were  Harold  Dyer,  truck- 
ing firm  operator;  Phil  Hansen,  cotton 
farmer;  Bert  Huff,  machinery  dealer;  Fred 
and  Everett  Salyer,  grain  elevator  opera- 
tors; Clyde  Sitton,  auto  supply  dealer; 
Charles  and  Dick  Gilkey,  local  execu- 
tives. 


Kenneth  Billingsley,  Ford  dealer  in 
Tulare,  demonstrated  a  Navion's  value  to 
an  automobile  agency.  Ed  Neufeld,  Ed 
Peters,  Sam  and  Dan  Barling,  large-scale 
vegetable  farmers  of  the  nearby  town  of 
Wasco,  and  the  B.  M.  Holloway  Company, 
gypsum  miners  at  Lost  Hills,  cooperated  in 
the  filming  of  additional  examples  of  Na- 
vions at  work. 

Grand  finale  of  the  San  Joaquin  footage 
was  a  group  flight  by  six  Navions  to 
(Continued  on  page  25 ) 


(Left)  Rancher  Lou  Hansen  of 
Corcoran,  Calif.,  performed 
like  a  veteran  screen  actor 
when  camera  picked  him  up  as 
he  gassed  his  Navion.  Mike- 
boom  allowed  accurate  record- 
ing of  his  voice  for  movie's 
sound  track.  Corcoran  Air- 
port's manager.  Bill  Halley, 
right,  holds  big  reflector. 
(Right)  A  rugged  location  was 
the  Raisin  City  oil  field  in 
the  San  Joaquin  Valley,  where 
Elmer  von  Glahn  taxies  his  Na- 
vion right  up  to  drilling  rigs. 
Shots  of  cross-wind  operations 
from  the  dirt  road  he  uses  as 
a  landing  strip  preceded  the 
sequences    filmed    at    the    well. 


11 


Mimmn  mm  urn 


Like  Shadrack,  Ryan  manifolds  have  a  habit  of  coming  forth 
unharmed  from  a   fiery  furnace  of  1600    heat. 


FEW  people  realize,  as  they  watch  a 
giant  4-engined  B-50  roar  across  the 
sky,  how  much  sheer  power  is  compressed 
into  modern  aircraft  piston-type  engines. 
Just  one  of  the  3  500  h.p.  engines  on  this 
airplane  packs  almost  as  much  power  as 
two  average  passenger  train  locomotives, 
yet  weighs  less  than  the  locomotive's 
wheels.  This  is  sufficient  power  to  shoot  a 
one-ton  elevator  up  the  shaft  of  the  Em- 
pire State  Building  at  the  speed  of  sound 
(1,020  feet  per  second). 

Similarly,  the  vital  function  which 
Ryan  exhaust  systems  perform  in  remov- 
ing huge  volumes  of  volcanic  exhaust 
gases  from  aircraft  power  plants  is  rarely 
appreciated. 


In  flight,  these  powerful  piston-type  en- 
gines are  running  down  the  air  at  the  rate 
of  .3  00  to  500  miles  per  hour.  Even  this 
mighty  flow  must  be  compressed  by  super- 
chargers and  crammed  down  the  engine's 
"windpipe"  in  greater  volume  to  feed  the 
combustion  in  the  cylinders.  Every  mole- 
cule of  air  and  fuel  emerges  from  the 
exhaust  ports  of  the  engine  with  terrific 
speed  and  at  temperatures  upward  to 
1950°  Fahrenheit.  Since  this  is  almost 
twice  the  melting  point  of  the  plane's 
aluminum  structure,  the  exhaust  system 
has  a  great  responsibility  in  channeling 
the  hot  gases  safely  to  the  atmosphere. 

A  major  problem  in  connection  with 
the  development  of  higher  horsepower  re- 


ciprocating aircraft  engines  continues  to 
be  that  of  disposing  of  the  enormous 
amount  of  heat  generated  by  combustion. 
The  modern  aircraft  engine  is  a  strik- 
ing example  of  man's  success  in  multiply- 
ing his  own  muscular  power  by  mechan- 
ical means.  For  centuries,  his  only  avail- 
able source  of  power  was  the  one-half 
horsepower  he  could  generate  for  short 
periods  of  time  by  physical  exertion.  The 
Egyptians  built  the  pyramids  with  multi- 
plied manpower.  The  Romans  used  horses 
to  supplement  human  muscle.  In  Holland, 
wind  was  harnessed  to  do  the  work.  Even 
after  the  invention  of  a  steam  engine,  a 
generation  limped  along  at  less  than  ten 
horsepower. 


In  1884,  the  compound  steam  engine 
became  famous  for  exceeding  ten  horse- 
power and  Hiram  Maxim  made  history  in 
1898  by  building  a  300  h.p.  steam  engine 
for  an  airplane  which  never  flew.  But 
since  1935,  the  phenomenal  surge  of 
power  which  has  been  packaged  in  air- 
craft engines  has  made  previous  efforts 
along  these  lines  seem  small  by  compari- 
son. 

One  cylinder  of  a  modern  aircraft  en- 
gine generates  as  much  as  125  horsepower 
— far  more  than  most  eight  cylinder  auto- 
mobile engines.  This  enormous  power  has 
been  obtained  from  unbelievably  light- 
weight engines,  weighing  less  than  one 
pound  per  horsepower.  Yet,  massive  pres- 
sures of  1 5  tons  per  cylinder  head  must 
be  tightly  locked  up  in  the  thin  metal 
walls  of  the  cylinder  barrels.  Much  like 
a  cannon  barrel  when  a  shell  is  fired,  the 
cylinder    barrel    must    retain    the    shock 


Precision  machining  of  the  port  of 
B-50  tailpipe  section.  Machined 
face  must  be  flat  with  .005  inches. 


Ryan  exhaust  systems  on  an  aircraft  en- 
gine serve  much  the  same  purpose  as  ex- 
haust systems  on  an  automobile,  except 
that  instead  of  removing  the  hot  gases 
generated  by  about  100  to  150  h.p.  they 
must  serve  the  terrific  combustion  of 
1000,  2000,  3000  or  more  h.p.  They  must 
be  as  light  in  weight  as  possible,  yet  with- 
stand the  effects  of  corrosion  and  vibra- 
tion while  being  subjected  to  frigid  ex- 
ternal temperatures  and  internal  fiery 
blasts. 

To  further  complicate  the  job  of  the 
manifold  design  engineer,  the  exhaust  sys- 
tem must  be  attached  to  an  engine  which 
is  dynamically  suspended  in  its  mount. 
This  allows  the  engine  to  move  in  several 
different  directions  with  sudden  power 
changes  and  isolates  the  plane  from  engine 
vibration.  But  it  also  means  that  the  ex- 
haust system  must  either  be  mounted  on 
(Continued  on  page  23  ) 


caused  by  21  violent  explosions  of  com- 
pressed air  and  gasoline  each  second.  To 
support  this  combustion,  the  engine  con- 
sumes air  like  a  raging  forest  fire.  Two 
superchargers  supply  this  air  by  blasting 
a  concentrated  fuel-air  mixture  down  the 
engine's  throat  like  bellows  forcing  up  a 
fire. 

The  interesting  aspect  of  this  whole 
combustion  cycle  is  that  every  molecule 
of  air  and  gasoline  which  is  rammed  into 
the  engine's  cylinders  must  be  forced  out 
and  returned  to  the  atmosphere — none  of 
it  is  destroyed.  It  is,  however,  greatly 
transformed.  The  air,  which  may  enter 
the  intake  ducts  at  temperatures  as  low 
as  65°  below  zero,  rushes  from  the  engine 
exhaust  ports  with  the  volcanic  heat  of 
1900"F.  In  removing  this  fiery  blast,  the 
Ryan  stainless  steel  exhaust  manifolds  have 
performed  with  unique  satisfaction. 


Above:  Inspection  of  machined  exhaust  ports  on  Ryan-built  stainless  steel  tailpipe 
sections  for  the  Boeing  B-50  installation.  Below:  Bruce  Todd  (left),  Ryan  sales  en- 
gineer, examines  ball-and-socket  joint  designed  for  flexible  exhaust  gas  connection. 


VETERAN"  FLIERS 


Amvet's  National  Commander  Harold  Russell  and  Past  Notional  Commander   Harold    Keats   confer    beside   their   organization's    Ryan 
Novlon    during    visit   at    Norfolk,    Va.    Plane    reduces    trovel    expenses     of     officers,     allows    tighter     scheduling     of    speaking     tours. 


Building  membership  rolls  in  America's 
big  veteran  organizations  demands  fast, 
hard-hitting  campaigning  on  a  nation- 
wide scale.  For  three  of  these  groups — the 
Veterans  of  Foreign  Wars,  American  Vet- 
erans of  World  War  II,  and  the  American 
Veterans  Committee — Ryan  Navions  are 
providing  the  flexible  schedules,  speed,  and 
direct  routes  to  out-of-the-way  places 
which  such  campaigning  by  top  level  offi- 
cers requires. 

The  AVC's  National  Chairman, 
Michael  Straight,  has  just  completed  a 
tightly  scheduled  10,000-mile  Navion  trip 
which  took  him  to  2  5  cities  all  over  the 
country  without  missing  a  single  speak- 
ing engagement.  Louis  Pakiser,  Executive 
Director,  and  Wadsworth  Likely,  public 
relations  adviser,  accompanied  him  on  the 
national  tour  of  AVC  chapters. 


Credit  for  the  AVC's  distinction  in  be- 
ing the  first  of  the  veterans'  groups  to 
fleetly  cover  the  country  by  Navion  goes 
to  Chairman  Straight.  During  World  War 
II  he  piloted  two  of  the  most  famous  war 
planes  ever  to  take  to  the  sky,  the  B-29 
and  the  B-17.  He  has  flown  more  than 
1,500  hours,  holds  a  commercial  license, 
and  is  thoroughly  convinced  of  the  merits 
of  personal  and  business  flying. 

"In  my  work  with  the  AVC,  the  Na- 
vion has  proved  invaluable.  I  use  it  like 
my  father  used  his  car,"  he  says.  "And  I 
fly  in  any  season  of  the  year,  winter  in- 
cluded. Recently,  while  flying  three  dele- 


gates from  an  AVC  Convention,  I  was 
caught  in  a  freak  snowstorm.  With  ceiling 
and  visibility  rapidly  lowering,  I  came 
across  a  cow  pasture,  circled  it  in  a  tight 
turn  at  80  m.p.h.  and  landed  without  a 
bump  in  a  few  hundred  feet,  in  mud  and 
ditches.  The  plane  was  completely  un- 
damaged. 

"The  ship's  stability  and  ruggedness  are 
its  greatest  qualities  and  they  are  life- 
saving  qualities  in  an  emergency!  In  this 
particular  case,  incidentally,  none  of  the 
three  passengers  —  Marine,  Army  and 
Wave  veterans — could  have  attended  the 
Convention  had  the  Navion  not  been 
available." 

In  much  the  same  fashion  the  Amvets 
employ  a  husky,  blue-enameled  Navion 
for  the  official  transportation  of  National 
Commander   Harold    Russell,    famous   for 


14 


his  Academy  Award  winning  performance 
as  the  amputee  in  the  motion  picture, 
"The  Best  Years  of  Our  Lives." 

Russell's  regular  flight  companions  are 
Past  National  Commander  Hal  Keats,  who 
has  charge  of  the  Navion's  maintenance, 
John  Marks  of  the  National  Headquarters, 
and  Public  Relations  Director  Stan  Allen. 

In  addition  to  long-distance  trips  like 
his  recent  national  organizational  tour, 
Russell  makes  short  hops  out  of  Washing- 
ton to  points  up  and  down  the  Atlantic 
coast.  He  reports  the  Navion  is  a  real 
money  saver  in  travel  expenses,  calls  it  a 
"private  airliner"  which  transports  four 
people  for  the  price  of  one  by  scheduled 
airlines. 

He  cites  as  an  example  of  the  superior- 
ity of  Navion  air  travel  the  trip  between 
Washington  and  Fort  Lauderdale,  Florida, 
which  they've  made  in  6  Yz  hours  by  Na- 
vion with  15  m.p.h.  head  winds  all  the 
way.  The  trip  included  two  stops  enroute. 
Airline  time  for  the  whole  trip  is  actually 
longer,  Russell  explains. 

Russell  served  as  an  Army  paratrooper 
before  an  explosion  cost  him  both  his 
hands.  From  a  double-amputee  of  the 
First  World  War,  his  friend  Charlie  Mc- 
Gonegal  of  San  Francisco,  he  has  gained 


10,000-mile  tour  of  A.V.C.  chapters  starts  off  with  a  smile  for  National  Chairmon 
Michael  Straight  and  Executive  Director  Lou  Pokiser  as  they  leove  Washington,  D.  C. 
by    Navion.    Stops    in    19    cities    were    included    in    their    closely    followed    itinerary. 


inspiration  to  acquire  his  private  license. 
McGonegal  became  well  known  in  the 
years  following  the  first  big  fracas  for  his 
skilled  piloting. 

"I  want  to  get  my  private  pilot's  cer- 
tificate as  soon  as  I  can,"  Russell  says.  "In 
and  out  of  the  Army,  I've  flown  in  just 
about  every  kind  of  plane,  and  I'll  take 
the  Navion.  It's  an  easy-flying  ship  that's 
safe  and  simple  to  pilot.  I  want  one  of 
my  own  as  soon  as  possible." 

On  their  longer  trips  Amvet  executives 
frequently  take  along  an  electronic   wire 


recorder  for  use  in  keeping  tab  of  im- 
portant interviews  and  speeches. 

Guest  passengers  for  the  Navion  come 
aboard  as  the  plane  reaches  a  new  terri- 
tory and  National  officers  living  in  that 
region  are  picked  up  and  taken  on  a  tour 
of  their  chapters. 

Clyde  A.  Lewis,  the  V.F.W.  Comman- 
der-in-Chief averages  over  20  hours  fly- 
ing time  weekly  in  his  organization's  trim 
low-winger.  In  that  time,  he  covers 
roughly  3,000  miles.  During  a  recent  five- 

(Confinned  on  page  24) 


Flanked  by  o  uniformed  guard  of  honor,  V.F.W.   Commander-in-Chief  Clyde  A.  Lewis    (in  dork  cop  and  overcoat)   and  "The  Spirit 
of   the    V.F.W.,"    his   official    plane,    are   greeted    in    Kingston,    Pa.,    by    officers    of    Post    283    upon    arrival    for    an    official    visit. 


L.  to  R.:  Walter  (Sandy)  Thorpe, 
and  Terry  Sparks,  10,  the  two  pitchers 
on  Ryan's  Little  League  team  hove  a 
chot    before    worming    up    for    game    time. 


PLAY  BALL! 


Youngsters  go  into  training  under 

Big  League  baseball  scout  in 
Ryan-sponsored  ^^Little  League*' 


WHAT  ten  -  year  -  old  youngster 
wouldn't  thrill  at  the  chance  of 
playing  ball  in  a  real  baseball  league? 
Maybe  even  playing  in  the  Little  League 
World's  Series?  That's  exactly  the  chance 
boys  of  San  Diego  now  have,  thanks  to 
the  interest  of  the  Ryan  Management 
Club,  one  of  four  San  Diego  sponsors 
who  this  year  are  starting  The  Little 
League  locally. 

The  purpose  of  the  entire  program  is 
to  teach  boys  sportsmanship  and  fair 
play  and  thereby  combat  juvenile  delin- 
quency. Each  of  the  four  sponsored  teams 
will  consist  of  twelve  regular  players  and 
six  substitutes,  ages  varying  from  eight 
through  twelve. 


This  year,  the  best  players  of  practice 
sessions  will  be  chosen  for  the  regular 
team.  In  following  years,  play  will  be 
handled  just  like  Big  League  baseball  with 
players  bought  by  offers  of  bonus  points. 

Shoes  and  gloves  are  the  only  equip- 
ment the  boys  have  to  furnish.  All  the 
rest  of  the  necessary  gear  is  supplied.  The 
Ryan  team  uniforms  of  gray  with  black 
lettering  and  trim,  black  cap  and  white 
socks,  will  be  furnished  by  the  Ryan  Man- 
agement Club. 

The  games  will  be  played  according  to 
the  regular  rules  of  Little  League  Base- 
ball, Inc.,  with  regular  umpires,  coaches 
and  managers.  The  winner  of  the  San 
Diego  league  will  play  the  winner  of  the 


San  Bernardino  league  for  the  State  Cham- 
pionship. The  victor  in  the  State  Cham- 
pionship will  represent  California  in  the 
Little  League  World  Series  at  Williams- 
port,  Pa.,  league  headquarters. 

The  program  started  some  three  months 
ago  with  50  to  5  5  boys  reporting  each 
Saturday  morning  for  practice.  From 
that  group,  a  squad  of  12  uniformed 
players  and  six  reserves  was  selected  by 
team  managers.  The  League  played  its 
first  game  on  June  12.  The  clubs  are 
evenly  matched,  the  games  are  well  at- 
tended, and  the  program  by  1951  should 
keep  a  large  group  of  youngsters  in  action 
during  their  summer  vacation. 
(Continued  on  page  l") ) 


Team  Manager  Bill  Billings   (for  left)   and  Cooch  Charlie  Martin   (far  right)   ore  in  there  pitching  to  moke  Ryan  Management  Club's 
"Little  League"  the  best  in  the  city.  "One  of  these  kids  might  turn  out  to  be  another  Ted  Williams  or  Joe   DiMaggio,"  says   Bill. 


NAVION  GOES  A  SALE-ING! 


Selling   campaigns  of  the   Baldwin  Oil   Burner  Company,    Dover,    Pa.,    ore    spearheaded    by    this    Ryan    Novion.    Modern    trucl(    fleet 
in    the    bockground    follows    up    with    instollatlons    and    service    work.    Owner     Paul     R.     Baldwin     pilots    the    trim     plane     himself. 


SINCE  we  took  to  the  air  in  a  Ryan 
Navion,  our  sales  have  gone  up  like 
the  plane's  rate  of  climb,"  is  Paul  R.  Bald- 
win's description  of  the  results  achieved  by 
his  Baldwin  Oil  Burner  Sales  and  Service 
Company,  Dover,  Pa.,  through  this  mod- 
ern method  of  business  travel. 

"I  don't  believe  I'm  exaggerating  when 
I  say  I  owe  the  success  of  the  last  several 
years  to  the  Navion.  And  this  means  quite 
a  bit,  for  in  each  of  the  last  two  years, 
we've  enjoyed  an  increase  of  75"^;  in  busi- 
ness. Total  sales  have  averaged  $150,000 
annually  ...  in  a  business  that's  operated 
just  by  my  wife  and  myself  with  fifteen 
employees.  As  a  result  of  all  this,  we've 
had  to  add  three  more  trucks  to  the  five 
you  see  in  the  picture  accompanying  this 
story. 

"Here  are  a  few  examples  of  the  ways 
we've  been  able  to  profitably  use  the  Na- 
vion. During  the  shortages  of  materials 
several  years  ago,  I  would  have  lost  many 
a  contract  had  I  not  been  able  to  swiftly 
fly  to  all  parts  of  the  country  after  much- 
needed  items. 

"Then  there  are  our  regular  operations 
which  take  five  working  crews  in  a  fleet  of 
trucks  to  new  home  building  sites 
throughout  York  County.  Because  there 
usually  are  no  phones  in  such  localities,  I 
use  my  plane  to  spot  a  crew  from  the  air 
whenever  I  have  to  contact  them.  I  also 
check  on  the  new  building  in  the  area  by 
spotting  foundations  going  up,  then  land- 
ing to  personally  make  fast  contacts  for 
new  work. 

"As  an  added  business  feature,  I  have 
offered    the   services     of   our     Navion    to 


building  contractors  to  help  them  secure 
the  materials  they  require.  Recently  one 
of  the  biggest  builders  saved  a  large  sum 
of  money  by  taking  advantage  of  the 
offer  to  attend  a  war  surplus  sale  which 
he  otherwise  would  have  missed. 

"And  from  an  advertising  standpoint, 
the  Navion  has  rendered  top-notch  util- 
ity, too.  Not  long  ago  our  firm  enter- 
tained 15,000  people  at  the  York  Airport 
by  dropping  6,000  little  parachutes  loaded 
with  candy  and  toys  for  the  children. 

"On  another  occasion,  I  was  asked  by  a 


friend  to  take  a  friend  of  his  on  his  first 
airplane  ride.  After  only  ten  minutes  in 
the  air,  I  was  advised  to  prepare  a  con- 
tract, as  the  gentleman  was  in  need  of  a 
new  heating  unit.  It  can  well  be  said  that 
this  order  came  'right  out  of  the  clear  blue 
sky.'  I  estimate  that  I've  entertained  be- 
tween four  and  five  hundred  customers 
per  year  on  plane  rides. 

"Important,  also,  has  been  the  advance- 
ment of  our  employee  relations  by  use  of 
the  Navion.  One  of  our  policies  is  to  ar- 
(Continued  on  page  24) 


As  0  reward  for  perfect  attendance  at  troop  meetings,  these  Pennsylvania  Boy  Scouts 
with  their  Scoutmaster  Horry  Altlond  (left)  got  a  ride  with  Paul  Baldwin's  Navion  to 
Washington,  D.C.,  where  they  saw  the  Smithsonian  Institution  and  Washington  Airport. 


I  mi^^iiiiniji 


17 


Ingenious  Device  Speeds  Production 

A  new  high-production  machine,  capable  of  stepping  up  machining  speeds,  sim- 
plifying set-up  procedure  and  improving  surface  finish,  has  been  installed  on  the  big 
Buliord  Vertical  Turret  Lathe  in  the  Ryan  Jet  Assembly  Department.  Called  a  Turchan 
hlydroulic  Duplicator,  this  ingenious  device  converts  the  vertical  turret  lathe  into  an 
automatic  production  tool  with  time  savings  opproaching   100  percent. 

Designed  as  the  ultimate  in  high  precision  control  attachments,  it  consists  of  a 
motor-driven  hydraulic  pump  which  supplies  uniform  oil  pressure  of  500  pounds  per 
square  inch  to  a  sensitive  valve  and  master  control  cylinder.  The  valve  is  actuated  by 
a  tracer  point  which  "feels"  the  outlines  of  a  pattern,  or  template,  and  meters  oil 
directly  to  the  control  cylinder.  The  piston  in  this  cylinder  moves  a  tool  slide  which 
supports  the  cutting  tool.  When  attached  to  the  Buliord  Turret  Lathe,  the  duplicator 
accomplishes  exact  duplicates  of  master  patterns  directly  in  metal. 

Typical  application  illustrating  the  versatility  of  the  new  machine  is  demonstrated 
in  the  machining  of  flanges  on  the  exhaust  cones  for  General  Electric  J-47  jet  engines. 
A  template,  conforming  to  the  desired  contours  of  the  flange,  is  clamped  to  the  tracer 
table.  The  sensitive  tracer  point  is  located  on  the  templote  and  the  cutting  tool  is 
positioned  on  the  flange  in  exact  relationship  by  means  of  a  micrometer-dial  locating 
control.  As  the  tracer  point  moves  over  the  outlines  of  the  template,  its  movement  is 
picked  up  by  the  precision  volve  and  translated  into  the  most  minute  changes  in 
direction  of  hydraulic  oil  which  is  piped  to  the  master  control  cylinder.  The  master 
control  piston  moves  in  strict  conformity  with  the  oil  pressure  changes  in  the  lines  and 
operates  the  cutting  tool  so  that  it  instantly  and  faithfully  follows  the  direction  of  the 
tracer.  Accuracies  in  duplication  within  variations  of  only  .002"  ore  obtained. 

This  method  of  generating  work  shapes  from  a  model  has  many  advantages  over 
conventional  methods.  The  smooth  continuous  operation  of  the  power  feed  of  the 
turret  lathe  coupled  with  the  floating  hydraulic  action  of  the  duplicator  produces 
machined  work  of  unsurpassed  smoothness^— often  so  smooth  that  final  grinding  work 
con  be  eliminated.  Also,  it  eliminates  the  use  of  costly  form  tools  and  permits  utiliza- 
tion of  conventional  tools  which  ore  simple  to  set-up. 

Although  the  new  machine  odds  approximately  $5,000  cost  to  the  $21,000  Buliord 
Verticol  Turret  Lathe,  Ryan  production  supervisors — and  Ryan  customers — con  readily 
see  the  benefits  from  improved  work  and  time  sovings  which  more  than  compensate 
for  the  investment.  Because  of  its  automatic  features,  the  tool  allows  ony  machine 
operator  to  handle  intricate  jobs  with  success  and  produce  the  highest  quality  metal 
products. 


GEARED  FOR 
PERFORMANCE 

(Continued  from  page  }  ) 
to  get  super-performance  and  high  effi- 
ciency with  minimum  noise  from  a  pro- 
peller, the  propeller  speed  must  be  kept 
low.  To  achieve  this  combination  of  a 
fast-turning  engine  and  a  slow-turning 
propeller,  an  engine  with  propeller  reduc- 
tion gearing  is  required.  Because  of  geared 
power  the  Super  Navion  can  swing  a 
larger,  aerodynamically  more  efficient  pro- 
peller than  in  the  past. 

Lycoming,  one  of  the  oldest  names  in 
the  aircraft  engine  field,  has  pioneered  in 
the  development  of  propeller  reduction 
gears  for  horizontally-opposed  engines  of 
lower  horsepower.  It  is  first  in  the  field 
with  its  six-cyhnder  GO-43  5  series,  which 
develops  260  hp  at  take-off  with  a  crank- 
shaft speed  of  3400  rpm  and  2180  rpm 
on  the  propeller.  This  reduces  the  pro- 
peller noise,  increases  efficiency  and  makes 
for  a  smoother  engine,  propeller  and  air- 
plane combination.  When  cruising,  the 
rpm  on  the  crankshaft  is  2600  and  the 
propeller  rpm  is  only  1625. 

^^NE  veteran  of  personal-business 
^^  plane  travel,  after  a  recent  flight  in 
the  Super  Navion  said: 

"It's  a  beautiful  flying  plane,  and  one  of 
the  outstanding  features  is  the  low  noise 
level  of  the  propeller.  Sitting  in  the  cabin, 
you  can  carry  on  a  conversation  in  normal 
tones  as  the  plane  cruises  along.  It  is  the 
quietest  operation  I  have  ever  experienced, 
even  including  some  large  commercial  air- 
liners." 

The  "heart"  of  Lycoming's  GO-43J 
series  engine,  along  with  the  reduction 
gearing,  is  the  crankshaft  with  its  pen- 
dulum-type counterweights.  Reduction 
gearing  is  of  the  planetary  type,  providing 
smooth,  dependable  operation  and  long 
life. 

The  counterweight  system,  which  mini- 
mizes torsional  vibration,  is  the  same  tvpe 
that  has  proved  so  successful  on  large  air- 
craft engines  in  military  and  airline  ser- 
vice. There  are  six  counterweights,  or 
dampers,  which  are  kept  in  pairs  so  as  to 
simplify  crankshaft  balance  and  provide 
sufficient  mass  in  the  small  crankcase  space 
available.  Extreme  accuracy  is  necessarv 
in  fabricating  the  counterweights,  the 
various  parts  being  held  to  tolerances  of 
approximately  one  ten-thousandths — even 
closer  than  the  tolerances  in  the  finest 
watches. 

The  basic  design  of  the  GO-43  5  engme 
— the  direct  drive  0-43  5 — has  undergone 


hundreds  of  thousands  of  flight  hours  in 
more  than  3,000  wartime  L-5  military 
planes  and  other  craft.  An  earlier  version 
of  the  same  basic  geared-engine  also  was 
used  successfully  in  a  Navy  plane.  These 
facts  are  full  evidence  that  the  six-cylin- 
der GO-43  5  in  the  Ryan  Navion  Super 
260  has  been  thoroughly  tested  under  all 
conditions,  and  has  passed  with  flying 
colors.  With  the  availability  of  geared- 
engine  power,  the  personal  plane  has  now 
moved  into  a  new  era  of  advanced  per- 
formance and  utility. 


HEAT  EXCHANGER 
RESEARCH 

(Continued  from  page  10) 
supply  the  furnace  with  air  for  combus- 
tion and  the  heat  exchanger  with  ventilat- 
ing air.  A  portion  of  the  air  is  conducted 
to  the  bottom  of  the  furnace  where  it  pro- 
vides oxygen  for  combustion  with  the 
natural  gas  at  the  special  burner  head.  The 
rest  of  the  air  is  bypassed  to  the  top  of 
the  chamber  where  it  mixes  with  the  hot 
gases  from  the  burner  and  acts  as  a  "tem- 
perature regulator."  The  furnace  is  an 
automatic  flash-type  steam  boiler  with  a 
specially  designed  chamber  for  the  mixing 
of  the  hot  combustion  gases  and  the  cooler 
air.  Ignition  is  accomplished  by  a  spark 
from  a  10,000  volt  transformer. 

The  heat  exchanger  test  section  is  lo- 
cated downstream  from  the  furnace  and 
mixing  chamber  and  is  mounted  between 
flanges,  usually,  although  sometimes  slip 
joints  are  used.  The  rate  of  flow  of  ven- 
tilating and  combustion  air  to  the  heat 
exchanger  is  metered  by  5-  and  6-inch 
orifices.  By  means  of  special  valves  and 
interconnections,  it  is  possible  to  bring 
widely  varying  volumes  of  gas  at  different 
temperatures  to  both  sides  of  the  heat 
exchanger,  for  testing.  Every  refinement 
is  provided  in  order  to  insure  the  accuracy 
of  the  test  results. 

An  added  feature  of  the  test  stand  is 
the  provision  for  a  gasoline  engine  to  sup- 
ply combustion  air,  in  place  of  the  gas 
furnace,  when  special  tests  of  simulated 
aircraft  engine  combustion  is  required  to 
study  such  effects  as  lead  bromide  deposits. 

Because  heat  exchanger  design  and 
fabrication  is  a  highly  specialized  activity 
and  a  Heat  Exchanger  Test  Stand  is  a 
relatively  costly  piece  of  test  equipment, 
few  such  installations  are  available  for 
research  work.  With  this  excellent  new 
tool,  Ryan  high  temperature  engineers  can 
design  even  more  efficient  and  ingenious 
high  temperature  metal  components. 


L^AFT  &  TRANSPQfi 


Jack  Lucast  (center),  Ryan  Field  Service  representative,  discussing  results 
of  the  Navion  clinic  inspection  with  Wally  Taylor  Heft),  Traffic  Manager, 
and    Oscar    Hendrickson,    General    Manager   of    Los    Angeles-Seattle    Motor    Express. 


Midwest  Next  tor  Ryan 
Sales  and  Service  Team 


Having  just  returned  from  a  suc- 
cessful three-week  trip  of  the  South, 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Company's  soles- 
service  team  has  left  the  San  Diego 
factory  for  a  similar  Navion  tour  of 
the  Midwest. 

Headed  by  William  P.  "Doc"  Sloan, 
assistant  to  the  vice-president,  the 
factory  specialists  are  cooperating 
with  Navion  distributors  in  offering 
owners  free  inspections  and  check 
flights. 

The  latest  trip,  on  which  Jock  Lu- 
cost,  field  service  expert,  occomponied 
Sloan,  included  stops  at  Phoenix  and 
Tucson,  Arizona;  Clovis,  New  Mexico; 
Baton  Rouge,  Louisiana;  Memphis; 
Birmingham;  Orlando,  Florida;  Atlan- 
ta; Hendersonville,  North  Carolina, 
ond  Oklahoma  City. 

Coordinoting  o  field  service  trip  of 
its  own  with  the  Ryon  schedule.  Con- 
tinental Motors  Corporation  provided 
on  engine  specialist  at  each  stop  to 
make  similar  "on-the-spot"  inspec- 
tions by  factory  experts. 

Well  in  advance  of  the  dote  the 
Navion  sales  and  service  team  orrived, 
every  owner  in  the  orea  was  advised 
of  the  factory  inspection  service.  Then, 
the  distributor  contacted  the  owner  to 
make  a  definite  appointment  for  him 
to    bring    in    his    plane.    Response    of 


owners  on  the  first  two  service  trips 
was  more  enthusiastic  than  the  fac- 
tory had  anticipated,  some  40  to  50 
percent  of  owners  in  each  area  coming 
in  for  service  checks. 

While  Lucast  was  making  inspec- 
tions ond  supervising  the  distributors' 
mechanics,  Sloan  offered  a  check- 
flight  in  the  owner's  own  plane  to 
suggest  better  operating  procedures, 
discussed  factory-approved  power  set- 
tings for  cross-country  flying,  and 
demonstrated  piloting  techniques  for 
increasing   performance  and  economy. 

Depending  on  the  number  of  plones 
in  each  areo,  the  factory  representa- 
tives spend  from  one  to  six  days  at 
each  stop.  Every  day  6  to  8  Novions 
ore  completely  inspected,  check  flown 
and  recommendations  submitted  to 
owners  to  improve  the  performance 
and  serviceability  of  their  planes. 

A  Northwest  tour  recently  com- 
pleted by  Sloan  and  Lucast  included 
one-  to  five-day  stops  in  Northern 
California,  Portland,  Seottle,  Boise  and 
Denver. 

Not  only  are  the  tours  providing  a 
real  service  to  owners  and  developing 
a  closer  factory-distributor-owner  rela- 
tionship; they  also  give  the  factory 
team  o  chance  to  survey  distributor 
focilities,  and  to  moke  suggestions  for 
improving  Navion  sales  and  service. 


ACCENT  ON  JET  POWER 

(Continued  from  page  I) 
to   design    and    develop    a    complete    new 
accessory  case,  including  the  fuel  and  con- 
trol  systems,   and   modify   the  engine   to 
run  on  gasoline  instead  of  kerosene. 

All  of  this  probably  sounds  quite  simple, 
but  it  was  a  staggering  task  for  all  con- 
cerned. We  had  to  feel  our  way  along  be- 
cause there  were  so  many  unknown  ele- 
ments in  this  field  which  was  then  new 
to  us. 

Undoubtedly,  one  of  the  advantages  we 
had,    and    which    helped    us    during    this 


we  returned  from  the  first   trip  to  Eng- 
land. 

Production,  in  the  meantime,  had  been 
going  full-blast  on  the  J-42  jet  engine, 
and  first  deliveries  commenced  in  Novem- 
ber 1948,  16  months  from  the  starting 
time.  The  job  which  production  per- 
formed in  this  work  can  best  be  appreciat- 
ed when  it  is  realized  that  more  than 
1000  design  changes  were  made  in  the 
1100  drawings  between  the  time  we  first 
went  to  England  and  the  time  we  deliv- 
ered the  first  production  J-42  powerplant. 
These  drawings  covered  1088  different 
kinds  of  parts  in  the  J-42  Turbo-Wasp — 
or  7022  pieces  in  all. 


Most  powerful  jet  engine  now  flying  in  the  United  States  is  this  Pratt  and 
Whitney  J-48  Turbo-Wasp.  Nozzles  in  the  afterburner  spray  additional  fuel 
into  engine's  incandescent  exhaust  gases  to  give  tremendous  boost  in  jet  thrust. 


period,  was  the  well-established  policy  of 
sub-contracting  large  parts  of  our  produc- 
tion contracts.  Normally,  we  have  about 
half  of  the  production  man-hours  on  all 
Pratt  &  Whitney  engines  supplied  outside 
our  own  plant  by  some  12  50  other  con- 
cerns such  as  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany. It  was  this  practice  which  assisted 
materially  in  rapidly  expanding  the  pro- 
duction of  our  company's  piston  type  en- 
gine during  World  War  II,  and  which  also 
accounted  in  part  for  our  success  in  rapid- 
ly looking  and  preparing  for  production 
of  the  new  jet  type  powerplants. 

Engineering  was  successful  in  building 
a  completely  Americanized  experimental 
engine  and  had  it  running  in  March,  1948, 
only  8  months  after  receipt  of  the  draw- 
ings. Our  first  J-42  Turbo-Wasp  success- 
fully completed  the  standard  Navy  ISO- 
hour   qualification    test    1 5    months    after 


Since  the  end  of  the  war,  we  have  been 
continuously  engaged  in  development  of 
gas  turbine  powerplants  of  our  own,  still 
more  advanced  designs  which  have  passed 
important  milestones  under  Navy  and  Air 
Force  contracts.  These  projects,  and  the 
work  done  on  them  by  sub-contractors 
such  as  Ryan,  are  classified  and  we  are 
not  at  liberty  to  discuss  them  in  any  de- 
tail. 

Since  we  believed  prior  to  the  war's  end- 
ing that  the  piston  engine  still  had  a  long 
life  ahead  of  it  for  the  long-range  weight- 
lifting  airplane,  we  decided  it  would  be 
best  to  organize  the  engineering  depart- 
ment into  two  parallel  groups  under  the 
Engineering  Manager,  Wright  A.  Parkins, 
one  for  the  turbine  type  engines  and  the 
other  for  the  piston  engine.  This  has  paid 
dividends.  Not  only  have  we  continued  to 
maintain  leadership   in   the  piston  engine 


field  with  our  R-4360  Wasp  Major  and 
R-2800  Double  Wasp  models,  but  in  ad- 
dition, we  have  come  a  long  way  in  im- 
proving our  competitive  position  in  the 
turbine  engine  field. 

At  the  time  we  took  on  the  J-42  Turbo- 
Wasp,  we  recognized  that  this  size  power- 
plant  would  only  be  a  stop-gap  as  engines 
of  considerably  greater  power  would  be 
needed  soon.  With  the  further  assistance 
of  Rolls-Royce,  the  J-48  was  designed 
and  developed.  This  new  Turbo-Wasp  is 
the  most  powerful  jet  engine  now  flying 
in  the  United  States  and  has  a  basic  dry 
rating  of  62  50  pounds  static  thrust  at 
sea  level.  It  is  equipped  with  water  injec- 
tion and  an  afterburner,  both  of  which 
provide  large  power  increases  over  the 
basic  rating  for  short  periods.  It  was  de- 
veloped in  this  country  under  the  aus- 
pices of  the  United  States  Navy  and  is 
now  in  the  Grumman  Panther  F9F-5  ad- 
vanced model  Navy  carrier-based  fighter 
and  the  North  American  F-93A,  the  lat- 
ter a  swept-wing  Air  Force  penetration 
fighter  developed  from  the  F-86  Sabre 
which  holds  the  world  speed  record  of 
670  miles  an  hour  with  full  combat  equip- 
ment. 

At  the  operating  speeds  of  these  fight- 
ers, the  J-48  provides  each  plane  with 
greater  power — about  11,000  equivalent 
horsepower — than  that  used  to  drive  a 
four-engined  bomber  of  World  War  II 
type.  It  is  a  centrifugal  flow  turbo-jet 
using  a  single  stage  compressor  with 
double  faced  impeller  and  double  air  en- 
tries. The  J-48  will  operate  on  kerosene, 
gasoline  or  special  jet   fuels. 

At  the  operating  speeds  of  the  fighters 
in  which  it  is  installed,  the  J-48  dehvers 
the  equivalent  of  five  horsepower  per 
pound  of  engine  weight.  This  is  in  distinct 
contrast  as  to  the  one  horsepower  per 
pound  of  engine  weight  from  the  most 
powerful  piston  engines. 

This  summer  as  Pratt  &  Whitney  Air- 
craft celebrates  its  2  5  th  anniversary  our 
East  Hartford  plant  will  be  in  production 
on  both  the  J-42  and  J-48  turbojet  en- 
gines. In  addition  other  turbojet  and  tur- 
boprop engines  of  our  own  design  have 
reached  an  advanced  stage  of  develop- 
ment. Thus  Pratt  &  Whitney  Aircraft  is 
the  only  aircraft  engine  manufacturer  en- 
gaged in  active  development  of  all  three 
basic  aircraft  power  types — piston,  turbo- 
jet and  turboprop. 

All  of  our  facilities  in  East  Hartford, 
including  the  new  $12,000,000  Andrew 
Willgoos  Turbine  Laboratory,  are  private- 
ly owned  by  United  Aircraft  Corpora- 
tion's 30,000  stockholders  and  are  devoted 
to  the  important  task  of  delivering  en- 
gines of  greatly  increased  power  to  the 
military  services  in  the  minimum  amount 
of  time. 


20 


Working   wifh   the   REAC   computer  at   Reeves   Instrument   Corp.,    Ryan    engineers   Forrest   Warren    and    John 
DeBevoise    "quiz"    the    electronic    automaton    to    find    solutions    to    XQ-2    pilotless    target    plane    problems. 

REAC  "FLIES"   RYAN  XQ-2 


One  of  the  newest  and  most  startling 
electronic  machines  has  been  harnessed  by 
the  Ryan  Engineering  Department  to  de- 
termine the  flight  characteristics  of  the 
jet-propelled,  pilotless  Ryan  XQ-2  target 
plane.  Called  the  REAC,  or  Reeves  Elec- 
tronic Analog  Computer,  this  mathe- 
matical automaton  is  a  development  of  the 
Special  Devices  Center  of  the  Office  of 
U.  S.  Naval  Research  and  Reeves  Instru- 
ment Corporation  of  New  York  City.  Un- 
til recently  a  top-secret  device,  the  REAC 
is  available  to  American  industry  for 
short-cutting  mathematical  and  engineer- 
ing problems  with  fantastic  brevity. 

With   a   capacity   for   solving  intricate 


problems  thirty  times  faster  than  can  be 
done  by  conventional  methods,  the  REAC 
occupies  a  space  no  larger  than  five  filing 
cabinets  and  is  plugged  into  an  ordinary 
electrical  outlet.  Only  twelve  minutes  are 
required  for  setting  up  equations  in  the 
machine,  very  much  like  plugging  in  a 
telephone  switchboard.  The  results  are  in- 
stantly read  as  a  series  of  curves  on  a  six 
channel  graph  recorder  or  plotting  board. 
Essentially,  the  REAC  takes  the  mathe- 
matical formulae  fed  to  it,  translates  them 
into  electrical  voltages  and  produces  a 
graphic  picture  of  the  solution. 

Ryan    engineers    Forrest    Warren    and 
John  DeBevoise  are  at  the  Reeves  Instru- 


ment Corporation  "flying"  the  XQ-2  jet 
plane  to  determine  its  performance  in  con- 
junction with  an  auto-pilot.  By  setting  up 
equations  in  the  machine  they  are  essen- 
tially saying  to  it,  "this  is  an  airplane  with 
certain  characteristics  and  an  automatic 
pilot  control.  It  is  flying  at  20,000  feet 
with  definite  weight,  speed  and  atmos- 
pheric conditions."  The  Computer  anal- 
yzes the  flight  and  detects  any  bugs  in 
design  or  operation  without  expensive 
models  and  flight  trials  being  necessary. 
Engineers  can  add  a  variety  of  disturbing 
and  complex  factors  to  the  "flight"  of  an 
unbuilt  plane  such  as  wing-icing,  explo- 
(Continned  on  page  22) 


21 


Keeping  posted  on  what  is  now  in  the  guided  missile  field,  key  members  of  the  Com- 
mittee on  Guided  Missiles  of  the  Research  and  Development  Boord  were  visitors  to  the 
Ryan  Aeronoutical  Company  plant  during  a  recent  Western  Inspection  Tour.  Pictured 
above  studying  Ryan  technical  equipment  ore  Rear  Admiral  G.  B.  H.  Hall,  Director  of 
the  Navy's  Guided  Missile  Division;  Reor  Admiral  C.  M.  Bolster;  Copt.  Charles  R. 
Fenton;  Harry  Sutton,  Ryan's  Director  of  Engineering;  Bruce  Smith,  Chief  Engineer  of 
Ryan's  Airplane  Division;  and  Rolph  Monsees  and  J.  E.  Glines,  Ryan  engineers.  At 
far  left,  partially  obscured,  is  T.  Claude  Ryan,  company  president.  Aircraft  corriers 
and  Convoir's  turbo-prop  XP5Y-1  flying  boat  in  Son  Diego  Boy  ore  seen  in  background. 


Military  Visitors  from  Here 
and  There  See  Ryan  Products 


T.  Claude  Ryan,  president  of  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  (left I  discusses  the 
Ryan  Navion  Super  260  with  General  Antonio  Cardenas  Rodriguez,  (center)  Chief  of 
the  Mexican  Air  Force,  ond  Lt.  Luis  Herroro,  Aide  to  the  General.  The  General  and  his 
Aide  flew  from  Los  Angeles  to  the  Ryon  factory  at  Son  Diego  in  a  1950  De  Luxe 
Ryan  Navion  205  to  personally  verify  the  exceptional  performonce  of  the  260  series. 


.  11  JULY   19,   1950 

Publhhed  By 
Ryan  Aeronautical  Compa 
Lindbergh  Field 
San  Diego  12,  California 


Member  Southern  California  Industrial 
Editors  Association,  affiliated  with  the 
International  Council  of  Industrial  Edi- 
tors. 

Frances  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  editor 

Robert  F.  Smith,  Navion  news  editor 

William  P.  Brotherton,  technical  editor 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographer 

William  Wagner,  editorial  director 


ON  THE  COVER 
Pine  trees  and  vopor  trails  surround  a 
Super  260  Ryan  Navion  coming  in  for 
a  jonding  on  the  6,850-foot  altitude 
strip  at  famous  Big  Bear  Lake  in  the 
San  Bernardino  Mountains  of  Southern 
California. 

Don  Downie,  chief  photographer  for 
the  Posadena  Star-News,  took  the  pic- 
ture while  on  special  assignment  with 
the  Super  260  for  Skyways  Magazine. 


REAC  "FLIES"  XQ-2 

(Continued  from  page  21) 
sive  effects  of  gunfire  and  loss  of  control 
and  still  get  authentic  flight  data  to  guide 
the  development  of  the  actual  structure. 

Indicative  of  the  tremendous  savings  in 
time  and  money  which  are  realized  with 
this  miracle  of  mechanical  computers  is 
the  solution  of  one  problem  for  $5,240 
which  would  have  cost  $73,72  5  if  worked 
out  by  orthodox  methods.  In  another  case, 
the  REAC  produced  the  answer  to  a  com- 
plex problem  in  108  man-days  against  an 
estimated  1 1  man-years  required  for  ordi- 
nary computation.  A  vast  number  of 
problems  in  the  fields  of  electronics,  air- 
craft design,  jet  and  rocket  development, 
automotive  research  and  civil  engineering 
are  ideally  fitted  to  the  speedy  analysis  of 
this  machine. 

The  REAC  can  be  used  in  three  general 


22 


ways:  as  a  simulator,  as  a  tester  and  as  a 
computer.  As  a  simulator,  it  can  be  used  to 
check  the  design  characteristics  of  an  ex- 
perimental machine  before  its  construc- 
tion, avoiding  expensive  trial  and  error 
methods  for  learning  design  data.  As  a 
tester,  the  REAC  will  actually  "fly"  or 
"road  test"  a  new  plane  or  system  under 
operating  conditions.  This  enables  tests  to 
be  performed  near  design  limits  which 
might  be  too  dangerous  to  life  and  equip- 
ment under  actual  operating  conditions. 
As  a  computer,  the  "brain"  will  solve 
simultaneous  differential  equations  to  the 
seventh  order  with  high  accuracy  and  un- 
canny saving  of  time. 

For  several  months,  Warren  and  De- 
Bevoise  will  feed  problems  to  the  REAC 
which  involve  the  XQ-2's  design  and  per- 
formance characteristics  in  order  to  an- 
ticipate changes  in  design  of  its  sleek  form 
or  its  electronic  controls.  As  each  series 
of  computations  is  resolved,  it  will  be  sent 
to  Ryan's  engineering  department  and  si- 
multaneously integrated  with  continuous 
engineering  development  of  the  jet  target 
plane.  Undoubtedly  the  use  of  this  inven- 
tion will  substantially  accelerate  the  devel- 
opment and  research  program  by  handing 
the  engineers  performance  information 
they  would  otherwise  take  months  or  years 
to  obtain. 


HARNESSING  EXHAUST 
GASES 

(Co II till II I'd  from  page  1) ) 
the  engine  itself,  and  allowed  to  move 
with  it,  or  suspended  from  the  engine 
mount  and  flexibly  connected  to  the  en- 
gine exhaust  ports.  In  addition,  the  design 
must  provide  for  a  method  of  absorbing 
inter-cylinder  vibration. 

When  the  exhaust  system  is  mounted 
on  the  engine,  it  is  extremely  important 
that  the  design  is  carefully  calculated  so 
that  the  weight  of  the  exhaust  system 
does  not  impose  undue  loads  on  the  engine 
itself  nor  impair  the  fine  balance  built  into 
the  engine  by  the  manufacturer.  If,  on 
the  other  hand,  the  exhaust  system  is 
mounted  on  the  engine  mount,  all  of  the 
connections  to  the  engine  exhaust  ports 
must  be  flexible  to  allow  for  the  normal 
engine  operating  motion.  When  one  con- 
siders the  extreme  conditions  of  tempera- 
ture and  weight  for  which  this  gas- 
resistant  joint  must  be  designed,  it  can  be 
understood  why  engineers  get  gray  hairs. 

RYAN  has  successfully  emerged  from 
this  dilemma  by  designing  many  types 
of  unique  exhaust  systems  for  various 
high-performance,  high-horsepower  en- 
gines. One  of  these  unique  types  is  the 
"ball  and  socket"  or  universal-joint  type, 
which  allows  for  normal  engine  movement 
and  yet  remains  leak-resistant.  This  assem- 


Robert  L.  Clark  (right),  newly  appointed  Assistant  Soles  Manager  for  the  Metol 
Products  Division  of  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company,  discusses  production  of  on 
important    Jet    engine    project    with    Herbert    Bowling     (left I,    Production    Manager. 

ROBERT  CLARK  APPOINTED 
ASSISTANT  SALES  MANAGER 


Robert  L.  Clark,  for  the  past 
seven  years  a  key  production  execu- 
tive of  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany, has  been  appointed  Assistant 
Sales  Manager  of  the  Metal  Products 
Division. 

In  his  new  assignment  Clark  will 
serve  as  assistant  to  Sam  C.  Breder, 
Sales  Manager.  The  post  was  for- 
merly held  by  Joseph  A.  Small,  a 
veteran  employee  with  the  Ryan 
organization,  who  recently  resigned. 

Clark  brings  to  his  sales  assign- 
ment a  wide  and  extremely  valuable 
background  of  production  and  fac- 
tory management  experience.  As  the 
point  of  contact  between  the  pro- 
duction departments  of  the  Metal 
Products  Division,  and  the  many 
airframe  and  engine  companies  for 


which  Ryan  builds  components, 
Clark  is  in  a  position  to  apply  his 
extensive  knowledge  in  giving  coun- 
sel and  service  to  Ryan  customers. 
He  is  a  practical  shop  man  as  well 
as  a  production  executive. 

In  1943,  Clark  came  to  Ryan 
from  the  automotive  manufactur- 
ing industry.  He  has  held  many  key 
production  and  management  posts 
at  Ryan  including  those  of  Produc- 
tion Manager  and  Manager  of  Pro- 
duction Control  and  Scheduling. 
Most  recently  he  has  been  on  spe- 
cial assignment  as  Assistant  to  G.  C. 
Woodard,  Executive  Vice  President. 
In  that  capacity,  he  was  charged 
with  setting  up  a  master  plan  of 
Manufacturing  Control,  in  which 
he  has  worked  closely  with  Herbert 
Bowling,  Production  Manager. 


biy,  consisting  of  a  tube  with  a  cupped 
end  enclosing  another  tube  with  a  metal 
ball  attached,  makes  it  possible  to  mount 
the  exhaust  manifold  on  the  engine  mount 
and  relieve  the  engine  of  all  of  the  weight 
of  the  manifold.  Another  version  of  this 
leak-resistant  joint  consists  of  a  tube  with 
a  cupped  end  enclosing  another  tube  with 
a  similar  cupped  end.  Greater  life  and 
ease  of  installation  is  provided  by  these 
Ryan-designed  devices. 

Ryan  stainless  steel  exhaust  manifolds 
perform  many  extra  functions  in  addition 
to  their  main  purpose  of  channeling  the 
hot  gases  from  aircraft  engines.  Ryan  de- 


sign engineers  have  put  waste  exhaust 
heat  to  work  to  do  many  vital  jobs  in  the 
airplane.  Enormous  quantities  of  heat 
energy,  amounting  to  millions  of  B.T.U.s 
each  hour,  are  ejected  to  the  atmosphere 
by  modern  aviation  engines.  Every  use  of 
this  heat  for  a  necessary  job  in  the  air- 
plane adds  speed  to  the  craft  because  of 
the  elimination  of  the  weight  of  heaters 
and  fuel  otherwise  needed.  The  harnessing 
of  this  exhaust  energy  is  accounting  for 
greater  range,  higher  altitudes  and  better 
performance  of  modern  transport  and 
military  aircraft. 

— William  P.  Brotherton 


23 


TWO  BETTYS,  TWO  NAVIONS 
SHARE  AIR  RAGE  HONORS 


1948  Ryan  Navion  to  victory,  posting 
10  hours  and  44  minutes  for  the 
1475-mile  roee.  Betty  lost  70  minutes 
on  the  ground  near  Baltimore  because 
of  bod  weather. 

In  last  year's  all-woman  transcon- 
tinental race  sponsored  by  the  Ninety- 
Nines,  Betty  Gillies,  flying  a  Navion 
that  year,  too,  placed  second.  Her  co- 
pilot in  the  1949  San  Diego-Miami 
race  was  Barboro  London. 

Betty  has  been  a  pilot  since  1928. 
She  did  instruction  ond  charter  flying, 
but  with  the  coming  of  war  was  the 
first  pilot  to  sign  up  for  the  WASP 
(Women's  Auxiliary  Ferry  Service). 
She    served    with    the     Air     Transport 


Pat  and  Betty  Gillies 

A  mother-daughter  teom  flying  a 
Super  260  Navion  recorded  fastest 
time  in  the  Son  Diego-Greenville,  S.  C, 
transcontinental  air  race,  and  an  air- 
line hostess,  piloting  Arthur  Godfrey's 
Ryan  Navion,  won  the  Montreol-West 
Palm  Beach  event.  Both  races  staged 
in  June,  were  for  women  pilots  only. 

Although  not  the  handicap  winner 
of  the  transcontinental  race,  Mrs. 
Betty  Gillies  and  her  daughter,  Pat, 
posted  the  best  elapsed  flying  time  of 
any  of  the  33  planes  which  took  off 
June  11th  from  San  Diego.  Flying  one 
of  the  first  Super  260  Novions  off  the 
production  line,  Betty  and  Pat  were 
scored  101%,  indicating  on  average 
speed  slightly  in  excess  of  the  260's 
advertised  170  miles  on  hour  cruising 
speed,  to  best  the  only  planes  in  o 
comporoble  speed  class.  Handicapped 
at  14  hrs.  28  min.,  the  Gillies'  mother- 
daughter  team  posted  on  elapsed  fly- 
ing time  of  14  hrs.  12  min. 

In  the  Montreal  to  West  Palm  Beach 
classic,  brunette  airline  hostess  Betty 
Haas    of    Scorsdale,    N.    Y.,    flew    the 


Betty  Haas 

Command  and  was  WASP  Squadron 
Commander  at  the  New  Castle  Army 
Air  Base  in  Delowore.  Her  co-pilot 
daughter,  Pat,  became  16  three  days 
before  start  of  the  roce.  Her  mother 
and  father,  B.  Allison  "Bud"  Gillies, 
who  is  well  known  in  aviation  circles, 
too,  have  alternated  as  Pot's  flying 
instructors. 


VETERAN  "FLIERS" 


(Continued 
week  period  he  flew  over  15,000  miles, 
going  as  far  as  Phoenix  and  Los  Angeles 
from  his  home  in  Plattsburg,  New  York. 

By  the  end  of  the  summer,  the  Navion 
smartly  dressed  with  the  V.F.W.'s  Cross 
of  Malta  painted  on  both  sides  of  its 
fuselage,  will  have  landed  at  least  twice 
in  each  state. 

"The  Navion's  superb  performance  has 
helped  me  carry  out  my  V.F.W.  duties  in 
a  manner  far  beyond  my  fondest  expecta- 


froni  page  15) 

tions,"  is  Lewis'  comment.  "It  has  enabled 
me  to  travel  rapidly  and  directly  to  my 
destinations.  I  not  only  go  into  big  cities, 
but  stop  at  the  smallest  towns  and  villages 
as  my  business  demands.  No  transfers 
from  airliner  to  train  or  bus  are  neces- 
sary." 

Lewis  is  a  capable  pilot.  He  brought  ex- 
tensive Air  Force  experience  to  his  present 
job  as  "flying  Commander."  During  and 
after  the  last  war,  he  flew  everything  from 


a  B-17  down  to  a  Cub.  The  Ryan  Navion, 
he  says,  is  the  best  of  them  all. 

"Besides  time  saved  and  the  fundamen- 
tal excellence  of  the  Navion,  what  has  im- 
pressed me  most  about  business  flying,"  he 
adds,  "is  the  good  service  that  is  available 
everywhere.  I  have  been  able  to  obtain 
proper  inspections  and  maintenance  at 
practically  every  airport  I've  visited.  I  tell 
Harding  Breithaupt,  sales  manager  of  Avi- 
ation Consultants,  Inc.,  Reading,  Pa.,  who 
sold  us  the  'Spirit  of  the  V.F.W.'  as  our 
plane  is  called,  that  this  is  an  added  advan- 
tage to  owning  one  of  these  wonderful 
Navions. 

"The  Veterans  of  Foreign  Wars  and 
myself — with  our  'Spirit  of  the  V.F.W.' — 
are  proud  to  be  included  as  satisfied  Ryan 
Navion  owners,  and  to  be  helping  prove 
that  safe,  efficient  business  flying  has  be- 
come part  of  the  American  way  of  liv- 
ing." 


NAVION  GOES  A 
SALE-ING! 

(Continued  from  page  17) 
range  to  fly  employees  and  their  families  to 
and    from    their   vacation   destinations   at 
their  convenience. 

"With  full  confidence  in  the  Navion's 
safety,  I  see  to  it  that  my  wife  and  two 
sons  have  full  use  of  the  plane,  too.  Be- 
cause the  pressure  of  business  requires  us 
to  take  our  family  vacations  piecemeal — 
only  a  day  or  so  at  a  time — we  have  to 
make  every  minute  away  from  the  office 
count.  So  it  isn't  unusual  for  us  in  a  day's 
time  to  go  to  church  in  York,  Pa.,  have 
lunch  at  the  National  Airport  in  Wash- 
ington, D.  C,  or  at  a  favorite  restaurant 
in  New  York  City,  and  arrange  to  visit 
friends  or  see  a  famous  museum  or  zoo. 
Without  the  Navion,  we'd  simply  have  to 
forego  such  relaxing,  interesting  moments 
away  from  daily  routine. 

"It  has  also  been  my  pleasure  to  roll  out 
my  Navion  for  service  to  many  commu- 
nity groups,  including  the  Boy  Scouts, 
Chamber  of  Commerce,  Lions,  the  Jewish 
Club,  Rotary,  Exchange  Club  and  Ki- 
wanis.  The  plane  is  also  listed  at  the  local 
airport  for  emergency  flights,  as  in  search- 
ing for  missing  persons. 

"I'm  what  you  might  call  a  Ryan  Na- 
vion booster  because  of  personal  experi- 
ence. I've  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  this 
plane  in  action,  thereby  learning  the  many 
extra  advantages  it  affords.  And  you  may 
be  interested  to  know  that  my  insurance 
rates  have  been  reduced  as  a  result  of  my 
record  of  safetv  with  the  ship.  I  say  again, 
'It  all  adds  up  to  Ryan  Navion,'  which 
helps  explain  why  I'm  looking  forward  to 
owning  a  new  Super  260." 


24 


PLAY  BALL! 

(Continued  from  page  16) 
Members  of  Ryan  Management  Club 
who  are  giving  a  helping  hand  in  getting 
the  Little  League  under  way  are:  Bill 
Hudson,  Chairman;  Jim  Bunnell,  Coun- 
cil Representative;  Bill  Billings,  Team 
Manager,  who  is  also  a  scout  for  the  Pitts- 
burgh Pirates;  Fred  Ferguson,  Ass't  to 
the  Manager;  Chief  Walker,  Charlie  Mar- 
tin, Herb  Rasp  and  Dyche  Clarke, 
Coaches;  Dave  Bentley,  Walter  Russ,  Bill 
Ferguson,  Don  Walker,  Waldo  Opfer, 
Transportation;  Stu  Fraser,  Public  Rela- 
tions; Ralph  and  Darwin  Whetstine,  Field 
and  Equipment;  John  Considine  and  Brad 
Langdale,  Player  Selection;  Harry  Hod- 
getts  and  Ray  Sanders,  Scorekeepers. 

Other  Ryan  employees  although  not 
members  of  the  Ryan  Management  Club 
arc  willingly  devoting  their  time  to  de- 
veloping a  winning  team  as  Assistant 
Coaches;  they  include  Roy  McCollum, 
Erv  Marlett,  Jack  Marlett,  Jack  Billings, 
Emerson  Akey  and  Bob  Jamison. 

The  boys  who  have  been  chosen  for 
the   first   team   are: 

David   Bolger  Out   Fielder 

Howard    Collins  End    Fielder 

Tom    Hoeltzel Right    Field 

Ernie    Medina     Short    Stop 

Robert    Mendoza Second    Base 

Joseph  Merino  First   Base 

Jerry    Trushinski     Center    Field 

Richard     Smidt  Catcher 

Terry    Sparks Pitcher 

Walter    Thorp     Pitcher 

Ronnie    Svalstadt  Left    Field 

David    Washington  Third    Base 

Substitutes 
Roy   Barber  Trent  Castricone 

Douglas  Davis  Lewis  McCollum 

Paul   Oxley  Norman    Secord 

Two  of  the  boys  are  sons  of  Ryan  em- 
ployees —  Ray  McCollum,  Foreman  of 
Sheet  Metal  Department  and  William 
Oxley,   Welding   Inspector. 

Little  League  Baseball  captures  the 
imagination  of  all  who  hear  about  it. 
They  fully  realize  that  learning  good 
sportsmanship,  comradeship,  the  spirit  of 
competition  and  the  value  of  hard  work 
through  the  great  American  sport  of  base- 
ball, will  make  better  men  out  of  these 
boys. 

NAVION  STEALS  THE 
SHOW 

(Continued  from  page  11) 
Pismo   Beach,   75    miles    from    Corcoran. 
Twenty  eager  vacationists  made  the  trip 
to  dig  giant  Pismo  clams. 

Bill  Wagner  and  Bob  Smith,  Ryan  sales 
promotion  men,  are  coordinators  for  the 
movie  project.  Actual  production  is  being 
done  by  the  staff  of  Paragon  Productions, 
commercial  movie  studio  with  headquar- 
ters in  San  Diego.  Robert  Montague,  vet- 
eran  U.    S.    Navy   combat   photographer. 


and  before  that  a  Ryan  School  of  Aero- 
nautics flight  dispatcher,  handles  the  cam- 
era duties,  while  MacDonald  Brink  has 
charge  of  script  preparation.  Bob  Smith 
will  do  the  narration.  At  least  six  portions 
of  the  sound  track  will  carry  the  voices 
of  principal  characters,  who  for  the  most 
part  are  real-life  Ryan  Navion  owners. 

Besides  the  San  Joaquin  Valley  se- 
quences, important  scenes  have  been 
filmed  on  location  featuring  the  Ace 
Foundry,  Ltd.,  of  Los  Angeles;  the  Na- 
tional Steel  and  Shipbuilding  Corporation, 
San  Diego;  radio  and  screen  stars  Arthur 
Godfrey  and  Robert  Young;  Carl  Logan, 
businessman  and  farmer  from  Leoti,  Kan- 
sas; Sammy  Mason,  famous  air  show  pilot; 
Ray  Henning,  Bakersfield,  California, 
farmer;  Appell  Drilling  Co.,  Alice,  Texas, 
and  such  widely  acclaimed  resorts  as  the 
Shadow  Mountain  Club,  Palm  Desert  Air- 
park, Big  Bear  Lake,  Mt.  Palomar,  Lazy 
H  Sky  Ranch,  Del  Mar  Turf  Club  and 
Lake  Arrowhead. 

PURTHER  valuable  footage  of  Navions 
'  on  the  job  has  been  contributed  by  sev- 
eral Ryan  Navion  distributors  and  dea'ers. 
Aircraft  Service  Company,  Boise,  Idaho, 
arranged   with   the   Idaho  Department   of 


Aeronautics  for  the  use  of  excellent  scenes 
of  Navions  in  service  for  ambulance  duty 
and  wheat  field  and  power  line  patrol.  Tlie 
latter  scenes  originally  appeared  in  the 
Department's  movie,  "The  Air  Age." 
Mallard  Air  Service,  Teterboro,  N.  J.; 
Clover  Leaf  Aviation,  Santa  Monica,  Cali- 
fornia, and  the  Southwest  Air  Rangers,  El 
Paso,  Texas,  also  helped  in  obtaining  sim- 
ilar good  material. 

Credit  for  collaboration  on  important 
script  ideas  goes  to  Hugh  Eudy,  president 
of  Carolina  Aeronautics,  Hendersonville, 
N.  C;  Rex  Howard,  president  of  Howard 
Aviation,  Peoria,  Illinois;  and  Arch  Mc- 
Ewen,  president  of  St.  Louis  Flying  Ser- 
vice, St.  Louis,  Missouri. 

Assistance  from  the  Corporation  Air- 
craft Owners  Association,  the  National 
Flying  Farmers  and  A.O.P.A.  has  been 
instrumental  in  completing  those  parts  of 
the  movie  treating  operational  costs  and 
plane-owner  organizations. 

Action-packed,  full  of  color  and  vari- 
ety, the  Ryan  Navion  movie  promises  to 
be  a  film  that  Navion  distributors  and 
dealers  can  proudly  sponsor  before  any 
audience.  Distribution  has  been  tentative- 
Iv  set  for  late  August.  Watch  for  showing 
dates  in  your  community. 


PAPER  SAUCERS  GO  FLYING 


Recently  citizens  of  Binghamton, 
N.  Y.,  reolly  did  see  flying  saucers 
over  their  city.  However,  it  was  all 
very  harmless.  The  "saucers"  were  a 
promotion  stunt  staged  by  the  Ansco 
Division  of  General  Aniline  &  Film 
Corporation,  and  local  theater  inter- 
ests. 

Paper   plates  were    imprinted   "This 


Flying  Saucer  comes  to  you  from  'The 
Man  on  The  Eiffel  Tower,'  Paris, 
Fronce.  Be  sure  to  see  him  in  the 
Ansco  Color  movie  now  showing  at 
the  Binghomton  Theater." 

Thousands  of  the  flying  saucers 
were  token  aloft  by  Monroe  Sweet, 
Ansco  physicist,  and  dropped  from  his 
Navion  over  Ansco's  home  town. 


Getting  ready  for  the  "Operation  Saucer"  mission  are  <!.  to  r.):  Pilot  Monroe 
Sweet,  in  the  cabin  of  his  Navion;  Howard  Blakeslee,  on  Ansco  physics 
researcher  who  originoted  the  idea;  Edward  Stamboulian  of  Ansco's  Motion 
Picture  Sales   Dept.  ond  Joseph  Hazlett,  manager  of  the  Binghamton   Theater. 


RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY 
LINDBERGH     FIELD 
SAN  DIEGO  12,  CALIFORNIA 


POSTMASTER:   If  undelr 


able  for   any  reason,    notify 
1  3H7,  postage  for  which  is 


EXHAUST  SYSTEMS.  Manifolds,  collector 
rings,  short  stacks  and  other  stainless  steel 
assemblies  are  engineered,  built  and  serviced 
by  Ryan.  For  more  than  a  decade  Ryan  has 
been  recognized  for  outstanding  leadership 
in  the  entire  field  of  high-temperature  air- 
craft   engine   applications. 


AIRFRAME  COMPONENTS.  In  addition 
to  its  own  prime  airframe  contracts,  Ryan 
has  for  over  20  years  built  for  other  manu- 
facturers; produced  complete  airplanes  to 
another  company's  design;  built  wings,  con- 
trol surfaces,  fuel  tanks,  and  fuselage  sec- 
tions for  bombers,  fighters  and  transport  air- 
craft  in   war    and    peace   times. 


W^^ 

s 

1 

iBIPWf  e 

K 

^B 

ll 

f^M 

w 

JET  AND  ROCKET  engine  components. 
Ryan  is  the  only  jet  components  manufactur- 
er who  also  engineers  and  builds  jet  and 
rocket-powered  aircraft  and  guided  missiles. 
Obviously,  you  get  technical  advantages  not 
enjoyed  by  others  when  Ryan  designs  and 
builds  heat  and  corrosion  resistant  compon- 
ents  for  you. 


WHY  RYAN  IS  BEST  QUALIFIED  TO  HELP  SOLVE 
YOUR  STAINLESS  STEEL  FABRICATING  PROBLEMS 


A  partial  list  of  aircraft  embodying 
Ryan-built  components  reads  like  o 
blue  book  of  aviation: 

EXHAUST   SYSTEMS 

AiResearch  heaf  exchangers;  Manifolds 
for  Boeing  B-29,  B-50,  377  Stratocruiser, 
C-97  Stratofreighter;  Continental  1790 
tank  engine;  Convoir  240  Convair  Liner, 
PBY  flying  boats,  PB4Y-2  anti-icing  kits; 
Exhaust  systems  for  Douglas  A-20,  B-23, 
DC-3,  C-47,  DC-4,  C-54,  DC-6,  C-74, 
C-124;  Foirchild  C-82  ond  C-119  Packets; 
Goodyear  Blimps;  Lockheed  P2V  Nep- 
tunes  Grumman  F6F  Hellcat;  Martin 
AM-l';  North  American  AT-6  and  B-25, 
Northrop     P-61     and    B-35    Flying    Wing; 


Piasecki    Helicopters;    Pratt   and    Whitney 

4360  series  engine;  Republic  P-47  hoods; 
Wright  Aeronautical  3350  series  engine 
exhaust  system. 

AIRFRAME  COMPONENTS 
Boeing  377  and  C-97  rear  fuselage  sec- 
tions, cargo  doors  ond  floor  beams;  Boeing 
B-47  Stratoiet  components;  Convair  B-24 
and  PB4Y-2  wings  and  toil  surfaces;  Novy 
SOR-1  scout  observation  planes;  Northrop 
P-61  tail-  surfaces;  various  engine  cowls, 
gun  turrets,  etc. 

JET    AND    ROCKET   COMPONENTS 
Aerojet  Aerobee   Sounding    Rockets;   com- 
ponents   for    AiResearch;    Allison    Division 

of  General  Motors;  Bell  tailpipes  for  Boe- 


ing B-47  ond  Convair  B-36  "pods";  com- 
ponents for  M.  J.  Kellogg;  Flader  turbo- 
let;  General  Electric  J-47;  General  Tire 
and  Rubber;  Giannini  jet  engine;  Mar- 
quardt  rom-iet;  McDonnell  F2H-1  Banshee 
Ranger  let  engine;  Pratt  and  Whitney; 
Ryan  Firebird  oir-to-air  missile;  Wright 
Aeronautical  T-35  Typhoon. 

Take  full  advantage  of  Ryan's  en- 
gineering leadership,  advanced  pro- 
duction techniques  and  service  ex- 
perience in  high-temperature  metal- 
lurgy. Let  Ryan  apply  its  "know- 
how"  to  your  problems  in  the  design 
stage. 


Metal  Products 


DIVISION    OF    RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY     •      LINDBERGH    FIELD 

Exhaust    Systems      •      Jet    and    Rocket    Engine    Components 


SAN    DIEGO,    CALIFORNIA 

Airframe    Components 


48-TON  SUIT  OF  ARMOR 


^ji-s^-^'^** 


'4  >';'  1  /'  ^ 


Ryan  and  Continental  form  a   new  engine-exhaust  system  teem   fcr  helping  build  potent  M-46  General   Patten  tank — rated  world's  best. 


With  a  proven  performance  record  for  aircraft 

manifolds,  Kyan  now  builds  exhaust  systems 

for  American  combat  tanks. 


Ryan  inspector  peers  in- 
^o  the  center  section  of 
'stainless  steel  exhauit 
system  for  M-46  General 
Patton  Tonk.  Extreme 
precision  is  required  to 
fabricate  these  aviation 
type  manifolds  which  are 
fitted  to  the  810  h.p. 
Model  1 790  Continental 
engine.  This  power  plont 
is  the  largest  of  a  new 
group  of  light-weight  en- 
gines   for   heavy   vehicles. 


RYAN  exhaust  systems  are  going  to  war 
in  tanks.  With  a  distinguished  record 
of  performance  in  planes,  bumps  and 
hehcopters.  Ryan  manifolds  are  now 
being  installed  in  the  mighty  M46  General 
Patton  Tanks.  Reputed  to  be  the  world's 
best  medium  tank,  this  4  8-ton  monster  is 
one  of  the  fastest  and  deadliest  sluggers 
of  its  weight  class  It  is  equipped  with  a 
new  Continental  1790  engine  and  ALison 
transmission  which  gives  it  startling  mo- 
bility and  extreme  flexibility  over  the 
roughest  terrain. 

It  may  be  surprising  to  know  that  tank 
manufacturers  are  now  as  weight-con- 
scious as  aircraft  designers  in  planning  a 
new  model.  Although  they  blithely  talk  in 
terms  of  "tons"  instead  of  aeronautical 
"pounds,"  the  tank  men  have  the  same 
basic  set  of  compromises  to  tussle  with. 
Each  tank  design  is  a  compromise  of  speed, 
armor,  firepower  and  maneuverability. 
Every  pound  that  is  devoted  to  armor 
weight  reduces  speed.  Increases  in  the 
weight  of  the  engine  restrict  mobility 
and  the  poundage  which  can  be  allocated 
to  armor  protection. 


In  the  postwar  General  Patton  Tank, 
the  Army  has  its  best  combination  of  de- 
sirable characteristics.  Within  its  massive 
metal  hulk,  it  provides  swift  3  5  miles- 
per-hour  speed — deadly  90-mm  firepower 
— deceptively  low  9  ft.  1  in.  silhouette 
and  a  shifty  maneuverability  which  would 
evoke  the  admiration  of  the  Green  Bay 
Packers. 

The  Ryan-built  exhaust  systems  being 
fitted  to  these  tank  engines  are  fabricated 
of  stainless  steel,  type  347,  sheet  metal — 
fashioned  in  the  same  manner  as  aircraft 
exhaust  systems.  This  weight-saving  tech- 
nique is  in  distinct  contrast  to  that  em- 
ployed with  former  types  of  tank  engine 
manifolds  which  were  made  of  heavier 
cast  metal.  Exacting  manufacturing  pre- 
cision is  required  on  the  engine  exhausts, 
which  are  welded  with  electric  arc  and 
gas  methods.  Each  of  the  twelve  exhaust 
port  flange  faces  must  be  machined  and 
aligned  so  that  it  falls  within  .005  inches 
of  a  perfectly  flat  plane — a  high  require- 
ment for  sheet  metal  fabrication.  Thermal 
expansion  of  the  exhaust  system  is  accom- 
modated by  the  inclusion  of  specially  de- 
signed slip-joints.  Consisting  of  centerless 
ground  collars  and  tubes,  these  fittings 
must  be  held  to  a  plus  zero  and  minus  .00  5 
inches  outside  diameter  and  plus  .005 
inches  and  minus  zero  inside  diameter, 
respectively. 

The  engine  used  in  the  M46  Tank  is 
one  of  a  newly  developed  family  of  power 
plants  which  Continental  Motors  has  de- 
signed for  a  wide  range  of  heavy  vehicles. 
Also  drawing  upon  their  extensive  avia- 
tion experience.  Continental  has  achieved 
a  remarkable  saving  of  weight  in  this 
group  of  air-cooled  motors.  For  instance, 
in  their  2  50  horsepower  model  they  have 
attained  a  weight  of  only  777  pounds,  as 
compared  with  2400  pounds  for  a  liquid- 
cooled  engine  of  corresponding  power. 
This  same  air-cooled  model  can  be  oper- 
ated in  a  vertical  position  and  requires 
little  more  space  than  the  liquid-cooled 
engine  must  have  for  its  radiator  and  fan 
alone.  The  saving  of  1600  pounds  in  en- 
gine weight  in  this  case  not  only  is  of 
utmost  importance  in  transporting  com- 
bat vehicles  to  the  front  by  plane,  but 
also  results  in  enormous  savings  in  steel, 
aluminum    and   other  metals   in   wartime. 

By  eliminating  the  need  for  radiators, 
water  pumps,  and  other  cooling  accessor- 
ies found  on  liquid-cooled  engines.  Con- 
tinental has  accomplished  a  weight-horse- 
power ratio  of  only  three  pounds  per 
horsepower — between  one-third  and  one- 

(Continjied  on  page  19) 


(Above)      Precision    machining    the    exhaust    port    flange    for    one    section    of    the    Ryan 
exhaust    system     for    M-46     tank    engine.     Tolerances    allowed    are     only     .005     inches. 


(Below)     12-cylinder,    V-type    Continental    engine    with    Ryan    exhaust    system    installed. 
Weighing    only    3    lbs.    per    h.p.,    this    power    package    is    result    of    aviation    know-how. 


Above:  The  Kay-Brunner  Navion  frequent- 
ly lands  on  this  short  landing  strip  (see 
arrow)  at  Libby,  Montana,  when  they  call 
on  the  J.  Neils  Lumber  Mill.  The  field 
is  about  2,000  feet  long  and  sits  in  a 
volcano-like  hole.  Though  only  2020  feet 
elevation,  a  climb  to  8500  ft.  must  be  made 
right  after  take-off  to  clear  the  mountains. 


Left:  After  30  minutes  flying  time  com- 
pared to  three  hours  by  car,  the  Kay- 
Brunner  Navion  lands  at  the  Libby  field 
from  Kalispell,  Montana.  Van  Howell, 
President,  and  George  Martin,  Manager  of 
the  Mountain  Tractor  Company,  were  flown 
there    to    coll    on    the    J.    Neils    Lumber    Co. 


ummm  mmm 
ity  AIR 


One  emergency  service  call  alone  represented 
more  than  the  cost  of  the  Navion. 


By  J.  F.  Brunner,  Jr.,  Manager,  Equipment  Bivision,  Kay-Brunner  Steel  Products,  Inc. 


HAS  your  company  thought  of  owning 
an  airplane?  Have  you  considered 
the  cost  of  fast,  personal  transportation? 
Have  you  considered  the  dividends  pos- 
sible from  being  able  to  schedule  your 
own  air  freighter,  or  company  owned 
small  airliner? 

These  questions  were  asked  by  the 
powers  that  be  in  our  company,  and  a 
small    two-place    plane    was   first   put    to 


the  test.  As  with  many  organizations, 
the  last  war  planted  a  seed  in  the  minds 
of  our  management  regarding  the  air 
power  which  played  such  a  large  part  in 
final  victory.  Our  executives  were  will- 
ing to  consider  the  possibility  of  utilizing 
a  plane  in  our  business  to  save  time  in 
transportation  of  personnel.  This  would 
make  it  possible  to  cover  more  territory 
saleswise  and  be  able  to  oiler  better  service 


when  the  occasion  demanded  in  supplying 
replacement  parts.  The  part  an  airplane 
might  play  in  a  public  relations  aspect  was 
also  carefully  considered. 

At  the  outset,  it  was  decided  the  only 
way  we  could  get  the  right  answers  to 
many  of  our  questions  was  to  actually 
fly  a  small  inexpensive  plane  in  our  busi- 
ness for  a  long  enough  period  of  time  to 
(Conthiued  on  page  22) 


Kay-Brunner    Steel    Products    say    the    Navion    attracted    more    interest  than   logging   equipment   at   the    recent   Logging    Congress. 


The    new    Fairchild    Pack    Plane    can    fly     into    a    field,    have    its    fuselage    "pod"    quickly    detached    and    be    ready    to    take    off 
to     pick    up    another    fuselage    within     a    matter    of    minutes.     The  XC-120  melds  the  trailer  truck  principle  with  the  airplane. 


FLYIE  TRAILER  TRUCK 


IkJ  EWEST  thing  in  the  skies  is  a  trailer 
'  ^  truck  with  wings — Fairchild's  ex- 
perimental XC-120. 

Like  its  sister  Fairchild  cargo  and  para- 
troop  planes,  the  famous  C-82  and  the 
C-119  Packets,  the  new  XC-120  "Pack 
Plane"  is  equipped  with  Ryan  exhaust 
systems  to  handle  and  use  the  hot  gases 
of  its  two  3250  horsepower  Pratt  and 
Whitney  engines. 

The  Pack  Plane,  in  effect,  melds  the 
trailer  truck  principles  with  the  airplane. 
In  appearance,  it  resembles  the  C-119 — 
except  that  its  fuselage  is  detachable  from 
the  remainder  of  the  plane.  The  plane 
itself — engines,    cockpit,    booms    and    tail 


surfaces — is  able  to  fly  without  the  fuse- 
lage, much  as  the  cab  of  a  trailer  truck 
is  driven  minus  its   trailer. 

The  chief  advantage  of  the  Pack  Plane 
is  that  it  eliminates  the  long,  costly  periods 
on  the  ground  while  cargo  is  being  loaded 
or  unloaded.  A  Pack  Plane  can  fly  into 
a  field,  have  its  fuselage  "pod"  quickly 
detached,  and  be  ready  to  take  off  to  pick 
up  another  fuselage  within  a  matter  of 
minutes.  In  addition  to  providing  greater 
utility  of  the  plane  itself,  the  reduced 
ground  time  lessens  the  potential  aircraft 
damage  in  case  of  wartime  attack  to  the 
relatively  inexpensive  fuselage  compart- 
ments. 


Once  it  is  detached  from  the  plane, 
the  XC-120's  fuselage  pod  can  be  unload- 
ed at  the  most  convenient  time  for  ground 
crews,  then  re-loaded  and  stored  until  it 
is  ready  to  be  picked  up  by  another  flving 
truck  cab.  It  has  both  front  and  rear 
clam  shell  doors  which  open  the  entire 
cargo  compartment  for  quick,  direct 
loading. 

As  an  alternate,  the  pods  themselves 
can  consist  of  built-in  units — hospital?, 
machine  shops,  control  towers,  communi- 
cation centers,  offices,  etc. — and  be  ready 
for  use  as  soon  as  they  land. 

Fuselage  packs  that  can  be  dropped  by 
parachute     (six-ton     howitzers    are    now 


dropped  from  the  C-82  and  C-119  Pack- 
ets) will  be  the  next  step.  Variations  on 
this  theme  include  droppable  boats  for 
air  rescue  work,  droppable  landing  barges 
equipped  for  beachhead  operations,  sig- 
nal units  for  communications  centers  in 
inaccessible  places  and  droppable  shelters 
for  Arctic  rescue  work. 

Another  highly  practical  use  of  the  de- 
tachable fuselage  is  for  transportation  and 
storage  of  fuel — ""flying  tank  cars"  in 
which  the  fuel  remains  in  the  "pack"  for 
storage  after  it  has  been  flown  to  an  air 
field. 

Because  of  the  revolutionary  character 
of  the  new  Fairchild  Pack  Plane,  a  num- 
ber of  unusual  design  and  production 
problems  were  faced  and  solved. 

So  that  the  pod  can  be  loaded  or  rolled 
away  from  either  end,  a  gear  different 
from  conventional  models  was  needed. 
The  XC-120  is  the  first  plane  ever  to 
have  a  quadricycle  gear.  The  plane  itself 
rolls  on  four  dual- wheeled  main  gears,  two 
on  either  side.  The  two  gears  on  each 
side  retract  together  into  the  plane's 
nacelles. 

(Contiinieil  on  page  17) 


Above:  Two  of  these  large  exhaust  systems  are  installed  on  the  XC-120  to  harness  the  ex- 
haust gases  of  the  two  3250  horsepower  Pratt  and  Whitney  engines.  Bob  Chase  of  Manifold 
Development  gives  this  one  a  lost  minute  check.  Below:  Fairchild's  chief  test  pilot, 
Dick  Henson,  and  his  assistant,  E.   R.  Gelvin,   inspect  the  quadricycle  gear  of  the  XC-120. 


WITH  L-17S  IN  KOREA 


Ryan  Navion  L-17s  are  doing  their  job 
Tvell  in  the  Korean  battle  zone. 


RYAN  Navion  L-17B  all-purpose  liai- 
son planes  have  been  in  the  thick  of 
the  Korean  fighting — so  thick  in  fact  that 
at  least  one  L-17  Field  Forces  pilot  has 
had  a  run-in  with  two  Yak  fighters. 

According  to  a  Scripps-Howard  cor- 
respondent with  U.  S.  Forces  in  Korea — 
Two  Yak  fighters,  bearing  the  Red 
Star  insignia  of  Russia,  made  passes 
at  an  American  L-17  Navion  liaison 
plane  over  the  Korean  battle  zone 
in  mid-July,  but  failed  to  hit  it. 

Lieut.  John  B.  Stanton,  of  Extcr, 
Mo.,  flying  his  eleventh  mission  of  the 
war  was  over  Umsong,  about  60 
miles  southeast  of  Seoul,  when  the 
Yaks  jumped  him. 

With  him  as  observer  and  co-pilot 
was  a  fellow  officer  whose  name 
Stanton  couldn't  remember  in  the 
excitement  of  getting  back  safely  to 
base. 

"We  were  about  3000  feet  when 
we  heard  the  guns.  Then  we  saw  red 


tracers.    They    missed  —  must    have 
been  poor  shots. 

"The  next  thing  we  knew  the  two 
Yaks  passed  under  us,  about  50  feet 
below.  They  were  marked  with  the 
Red  Star  insignia.  It  was  just  a  plain 
red  star,  no  circles  or  anything  else. 
(The  North  Koreans  use  a  red  star 
in  a  yellow  circle.) 


"I  peeled  off  to  get  down  out  of 
there.  The  L-17's  cruising  speed  is 
150  and  it's  not  supposed  to  dive 
faster   than    175.   I   didn't   have   time 


to  look  but  that  old  needle  must  have 
been  bending  itself  around  the  pin. 

"We  got  down  on  the  deck,  and  I 
mean  down.  I  think  we  had  some- 
thing like  10  feet  between  us  and  the 
ground.  I  had  to  pull  up  to  miss  the 
tall  bushes. 

"The  Yaks  climbed  into  the  sun 
for  another  pass  but  we  were  on  the 
deck  by  that  time.  When  we  got  back 
we  checked  over  the  plane  and  it 
didn't  have  a  scratch." 

The  most  spectacular  work  being  ac- 
complished by  the  L-17  Navions  is  some- 
thing they  were  never  designed  to  do. 
J.unes  B.  Stalnaker,  Ryan  representative 
at  Wright  Field,  has  gathered  several  re- 
ports of  the  part  they  have  played  in 
combat,  acting  as  "bird  dogs"  for  Air 
Force  fighter   bombers. 

Because  of  poor  weather  and  visibility, 
ihc  F-51s  and  F-SOs  have  been  having 
a  hard  time  locating  targets.  L-17s  are 
being  used  to  spot  targets  and  le.»d  the 
fi "liters  into  the  attack.    In  one  case  an 


L-17  spotted  i  line  of  tanks  moving  up 
He  tried  unsuccessfully  by  radio  to  direct 
the  rocket  laden  F-51s,  with  which  he 
was  working,  to  the  target.  They  were 
unable  to  locate  the  tanks  from  iheii- 
higher  altitude,  due  to  the  fact  that  this 
was  a  twilight  action.  Finally  the  L-17 
pilot  told  the  F-51s  to  follow  him  in 
as  he  had  the  target  located  exactly.  He 
dropped  his  landing  gear  and  flaps,  turned 
en  his  landing  lights  and  dove  on  the 
tanks.  The  F-Sls  followed  him  in  ami 
made  successful  runs  on  the  tanks. 

In  a  second  incident,  a  group  of  F-Hs 
were  stuck  on  top  of  the  clouds  at  about 
11,000  feet  because  of  a  low  ceiling 
Suddenly  an  L-17  popped  out  beside  them. 
Calling  to  them  over  his  radio,  "Come 
on,  boys,  follow  me  down;  I've  got  a 
thousand  commies  staked  out  for  )0u 
below."  When  the  F-51s  pulled  up  to 
wing-on  positions  with  him,  the  L-17 
pilot  led  them  down.  They  caught  the 
commies  in  the  open,  strafed  them  and 
had  them  running  for  cover. 

In  still  another  case,  an  L-17  was  fly- 
ing alongside  an  F-51  when  the  latter 
was  destroyed  by  gun  fire.  Parts  of  the 
F-51  struck  and  severely  damaged  the 
L-17,  but  it  was  able  to  get  back  of 
the  lines  and  make  a  belly-landing  with- 
out injury  to  the  crew. 

A  news  correspondent,  covering  the 
war  in  Korea  for  United  Press,  has  also 
reported  enthusiastically  on  the  job  being 
done  by  liaison  aircraft  in  action.  "The 
job  they're  doing  in  this  show,"  he  says, 
"is  of  hard  value  to  estimate,  especially 
because  of  the  great  distances  the  fighters 
have  to  fly  to  their  targets.  Jet  combat 
planes  have  little  fuel  for  actual  combat 


This   photograph   token    by    Lieut.    Horry    Cottrell,   formerly    of   the    Ryan   engineering 
department  shows  o  group  of  L-17  Novions  at  a  maintenancs  base  at  Nogoyo,  Jopon. 


operations  so  must  pick  their  targets 
quickly  and  accurately  in  order  to  make 
their  attacks  effective.  There's  a  character 
over  here  with  a  Ryan  Navion  L-17  who 
delights  in  hanging  over  a  target,  like  a 
buzzard  over  suspected  prey,  so  the  jet 
boys  in  the  F-80s  can  make  no  mistake 
about  where  the  North  Korean  tanks  and 
equipment  are  located.  They're  doing  a 
wonderful  job." 


Military  versions  of  the  Ryan  Navion 
have  been  in  Army  Field  Forces  service, 
principally  as  flying  staff  cars,  with  the 
Armies  of  Occupation  in  Japan  and  Ger- 
many since  more  than  150  were  delivered 
some  1 8  months  ago.  Former  Ryan  em- 
ployees in  Japan  have  sent  pictures  of  the 
L-17s  in  use  there,  and  have  written  ac- 
counts of  how  the  planes  were  being  used. 
(Continued  on  page  20) 


Lieut.  Horry  Cottrell,  formerly  of  Engineer- 
ing, some  months  ago  visited  Komoki  Air- 
drome at  Nogoya,  Japan,  where  he  took  the 
photograph  of  the  L-17s  shown  above.  He 
is  now  flying  with  a  B-29  Superfortress 
squadron       operating       out       of       Okinawa. 


It's  bock  to  the  wars  for  Captain  William  H.  Holt,  formerly  of  Navion  production 
flight  test.  After  this  World  Wor  II  picture,  taken  while  home  on  leave.  Holt 
returned  to  work  at  Ryon,  but  is  now  in  Korea  flying  with  a  Fighter  Squadron. 
He  wrote  lost  summer  that  the  Field  Forces'  Novions  were  a  fovorite  with  everyone 
in  thot  area.  His  fellow  employees  in  the  picture  below  ore  (left  to  right  I  Ed  Sly, 
Johnny    Cameron,    Louis    Hillis,     (Capt.    Holt),    John    von    der    Linde    and    Roy    Ryon. 


Bank  of  spotwelding   machines  which    Ryan   uses  to   "stitch"  stainless    steel    half-stampings    together    prior    to    seamwelding    them. 

RYM  WELDIIG  IHOflTIOIS 


IN  the  year  2000  B.C.  some  primitive 
metallurgist  alloyed  copper  with  tin  to 
get  bronze — a  14th  century  ironmonger 
fused  iron  and  carbon  to  make  steel — and 
in  the  19th  century,  man  successfully 
welded  one  ferrous  metal  with  another. 
Since  these  metallurgical  milestones,  no 
period  in  history  has  been  so  productive 
of  fast  new  welding  techniques  as  the  past 
ten  years.  The  urgency  of  the  need  for 
fighting  machines  in  World  War  II  turned 
the  country's  industrial  plants  into  a  vast 
laboratory  for  finding  streamlined  meth- 
ods of  fabricating  metals. 

Under  this  impetus,  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Company,  one  of  the  world's  outstanding 
producers  of  high-temperature  accessories 
for  aircraft  engines,  forged  ahead  in  the 
technique  of  joining  stainless  steels.  Ryan 
perfected  rapid  welding  methods  to 
"stitch"  together  over  100,000  huge  stain- 
less steel  exhaust  systems  for  the  engines 
of  America's  warplanes. 


Automatic  heli-arc  welding  machine  for 
joining  stainless  steel  sections  with  smooth 
continuous  seams.  Process  is  exceptionally 
clean  and  uniform  in  both  strength  and 
appeorance. 


Using  a  stack  of  stainless  steel  sheets 
each  month  weighing  more  than  a  dozen 
freight  cars,  Ryan  pours  over  100  miles 
of  welding  rod  into  the  molten  seams 
which  join  the  metal  together  by  metallic 
arc  welding.  Staggering  quantities  of 
electricity,  oxygen,  hydrogen,  acetylene 
and  flux  are  consumed  in  the  oxy-acety- 
lene  gas,  electrical  resistance  and  atomic 
hydrogen  welding  of  the  steel  structures. 
Ryan  metallurgists  and  welding  engineers 
have  devised  new  fusion  techniques  as 
well  as  adapted  the  welding  procedures 
of  other  industries  to  the  special  needs 
of  aviation.  The  advantages  gained  by 
continual  research  are  passed  along  in  the 
form  of  improved  and  more  rapid  produc- 
tion to  the  airframe  manufacturers  who 
for  the  past  dozen  years  have  used  Ryan 
exhaust  systems  as  standard  equipment. 

Ryan  welding  supervisors  devised  a  new 
t\pe  of  oxy-acetylene  gas  welding  torch 
which  has  two  tips.  This  torch  steps  up 
the  production  of  exhaust  systems  by 
performing  two  operations  simultaneous- 
ly; trimming  the  extra  flange  metal  and 
welding  the  seam.  Previously,  it  was  neces- 
sary to  trim  this  flange  with  a  "jitterbug" 
cutter  and  then  spot-tack  the  sections  to- 
gether prior  to  seam  welding. 

The  tips  of  the  torch  direct  the  heat 
against  opposite  sides  of  the  flange.  The 
(Continued  on  pai^c  24) 


Specially-designed  Sclaky  welding  tool 
which  permits  access  to  very  restricted 
locations.  It  is  water  cooled,  air- 
pressure  operated  and  is  counterbal- 
anced for  ease  of  use. 


Dramatic  view  of  a  Ryan  employee  seomweiding  a  General  Electric  jet  cone 
with  electrical  seomwelder.  This  fast  machine  produces  a  series  of  over- 
lapping spotwelds  which  form  a  gas-tight  seam  in  metal.  Rotating  copper 
discs  revolve  under  water  and  conduct  the  current  to  fuse  the  steel  sheets. 


f-1 


...  .^  r-^#a 


MEN  IN  A  NAVION 


when  you  btiy  a  Navion  tvith  partners,  you 
buy  inexpensive  air  transportation. 


IIOWDY,  Partner!" 
'  •  Not  the  typical  greeting  of  the 
Wild  West,  its  just  a  friendly  salutation 
in  Philadelphia,  Indianapolis  and  the 
scores  of  other  places  where  businessmen 
are  partners  in  owning  a  Ryan  Navion. 

How  does  one  of  these  air-inspired 
partnerships  work?  For  an  answer  let's 
look  in  at  Indianapolis  where  suppliers 
aren't  surprised  anymore  when  they  re- 
ceive payment  for  their  goods  in  the  form 
of  a  printed  check  bearing  the  name,  "The 
Navion  511  IK,"  and  the  joint  signature 
of  two  doctors,  an  electrical  engineer  and 
a  druggist. 

In  this  smoothly  running  arrangement 
Rex  Brock,  the  druggist,  keeps  things  or- 
ganized. At  his  store  he  has  a  log  book 
in  which  he  enters  requests  for  the  plane 
as  telephoned  to  him  by  his  partners.  Each 
man  lets  Brock  know  in  advance  when 
he  needs  the  Navion  and  how  long  he 
intends  to  keep  it. 


Left  above:  These  four  Indianapolis  busi- 
nessmen formed  a  Navion  partnership  which 
has  worked  out  to  their  mutual  advantage. 
Their  checks  are  printed  with  the  name, 
"The  Navion  91760."  Standing  insids  the 
cabin  is  Dr.  Herbert  Egbert  with  Dr.  Basil 
Fausset  at  the  controls.  Paul  Bradley  and 
Rex  Brock    1 1,  to  r. )    standing  on   the  wing. 


Left  below:  Four  Philadelphians  hove  dis- 
covered one  secret  of  low-cost  airplane 
operation.  These  four  men  own  a  Novion  in 
partnership.  (I.  to  r.)  S.  Rhen  Gundrum, 
J.  B.  Anderson,  Donald  S.  Tunnell  and 
George  Peterson,  Jr. 


Paul  Bradley,  the  engineer,  uses  the 
plane  primarily  to  attend  electrical  shows 
in  other  cities  and  for  weekend  recreation 
with  his  family.  He  also  has  a  plan  which 
provides  outings  in  the  Navion  for  his 
eight  employees.  Two  of  his  most  "anjoy- 
ablc  flights  were  to  Cuba  last  year  and 
to  the  Ryan  factory  in  San  Diego  this 
spring  when  he  picked  up  NHllK.  Pre- 
viously the  partners  owned  Navion  91760. 

For  Doctors  C.  B.  Fausset  and  H.  L. 
Egbert,  the  plane  is  a  means  to  get  away 
from  their  offices  for  the  relaxation  so 
vital  for  professional  efficiency.  They  also 
use  the  Navion  to  attend  patients  all  over 
Indiana  and  surrounding  states.  Such 
calls  are  often  on  short  notice  and  the 
only  way  the  doctors  can  be  available  is 
by  fast  air  travel.  Medical  conventions 
and  clinics,  too,  are  reached  in  the  Navion 
quickly  and  effortlessly. 

Golf  trips  are  Brock's  favorite.  He  flies 
to  famous  links  all  over  the  U.  S.  Also 
fond  of  fishing  and  aquatic  sports,  he  has 
the  custom  of  flying  to  Acapulco,  Mexico, 
or  Kev  West,  Florida,  when  the  season  is 
right  and  the  big  ones  are  running  or  a 
water  show  is  being  held. 

The  four  partners  divide  their  plane's 
operating  expenses  equitably.  For  each 
hour  they  use  the  ship,  they  pay  $7.  Each 
partner's  share  of  overhaul  costs  is  in 
proportion  to  the  total  number  of  hours 
he  has  flown.  When  extra  equipment  is 
added,  the  price  is  split  evenly.  They  all 
appreciate  the  fact  that  because  their 
Navion  is  well  utilized,  the  operating  cost 
per  mile  is  much  lower  than  that  for  a 
less  frequently  used  plane. 

About  their  approach  to  plane  owner- 
ship, Bradley  says,  "We  think  our  plan 
has  worked  wonderfully  and  hope  it  will 
serve  as  an  example  to  other  business  and 
professional  men  to  form  this  type  part- 
nership.     Individually,    we're    getting    at 


minimum  cost  nearly  as  much  use  from 
the  plane  as  we  would  if  we  owned  it 
solely." 

A  quartette  of  Philadelphians  has  fol- 
lowed much  the  same  tack.  George  Peter- 
son, Jr.,  a  consulting  engineer,  speaks  for 
the  group — which  besides  himself  is  made 
up  of  a  distributor  of  steel  tubing,  a  glue 
and  fertilizer  manufacturer  and  a  vanilla 
salesman. 

"We  use  the  Navion  mostly  for  busi- 
ness, but  from  time  to  time,  such  as  the 
National  Air  Race,  we  all  pile  in  for  a 
weekend  of  recreation.  We  have  a  central 
clearing  house — the  secretary  of  one  of 
the  partners.  When  a  partner  wants  the 
Navion,  he  calls  her  and  reserves  it.  If 
another  partner  already  has  his  bid  in, 
the  two  get  together  and  decide  who  needs 
it  most,  always  remembering  that  the 
partner  with  the  least  time  can  demand 
its  use. 

ALL  of  us  cover  an  extensive  territory, 
from  Boston  to  Atlanta  and  West  to 
Dayton,  frequently  traveling  much  the 
same  routes.  In  the  majority  of  cases  we 
find  we  can  go  together.  When,  for  ex- 
ample, a  short  time  ago  I  wanted  to  go  to 
Dayton  and  found  out  that  another  part- 
ner had  reserved  the  Navion  ahead  of  me, 
I  called  him  up  and  learned  that  he  want- 
ed to  go  to  Youngstown,  Ohio.  So  we 
flew  together  to  Youngstown,  where  I 
left  him  and  went  on  to  Dayton.  On  the 
way  back,  I  picked  him  up  and  we  head- 
ed for  home  together,  both  perfectly 
satisfied. 

"Each  partner  owns  one-quarter  share 
of  the  Navion.  All  expenditures  which 
do  not  depend  upon  flying  time,  such  as 
new  equipment,  hangar  rent,  insurance, 
etc.,  are  divided  equally.  Direct  operating 
expenses  are  figured  separately  on  the  basis 
of  the  percentage  of  hours  each  partner 
(Continued  on  page  17) 


11 


Wright's   Turbo-Cyclone   compound   engine   is  slated   for  this   Lockheed    P2V-4,  the    Novy's    latest   anti- 
submarine  bomber.   This  engine   has  a   20%    increase   in   power   with    no   increase    in    fuel    consumption. 


POWER  COMPOUNDED 


Wright  has  merged  the  piston  engine  and  the  turbo-jet  in  a  single  power  package  by  "compounding." 
This  method  of  power  recovery  pipes  the  exhaust  gases  from  the  piston  engine  directly  to  three 
small    gas   turbines    Instead   of   to   the    atmosphere.    This  drowing  shows  how  o  compound  engine  works. 

12 


This  Ryan-built  nozzle  box  as 
against  the  turbine  blades  ot 
Wallace   Adams  of   Inspection' 


HIGH-TEMPERATURE  e>diau 
ponents  for  the  recently  ann 
Wright  Turbo-Cyclone  1 8  Compel 
gine  are  among  the  newest  prod 
Ryan's  Metal  Products  Division. 

Amazing  increases  in  engine  p| 
ance  are  made  possible  by  the  "coin 
ing"  principle.  A  boost  of  5  5C 
power,  20  percent  increase  in  rar. 
substantially  larger  payloads,  are 
the  premiums  in  performance 
"compounding"  adds  to  the  basic 
1 8  engine  without  the  combusti 
single  additional  drop  of  gasoline. 

First  compound  engine  to  pass 
acceptance  tests  and  be  placed  in  < 
production,  the  Turbo-Cyclone 
for  installation  in  the  U.  S.  Navjji 
est-range  anti-submarine  patrol 
— the  Lockheed  P2V-4  and  Martirll 


(Illy  directs  the  flow  of  gas 

the  right  angle  of  attack. 

iss   his  stamp  of  approval. 


A  Wright  Turbo-Cyclone  engine  nears  the  end  of  the  assembly  line  at  the  Wright  Aeronautical  plont 
in  Wood-Ridge,  N.  J.  Arrow  points  to  one  of  the  three  small  turbines  in  which  is  housed  the  nozzle 
box    assembly     ll.t     being    manufactured    by    Ryan.  This  assembly  is  fabricated  of  -310  stainless  steel. 


(om- 

cced 

En- 

of 


irm- 
ind- 

I  rse- 
1  and 
jjof 
inich 
ilone 
of   a 

!!  cary 

ated 

i'ng- 
Ibers 


Aeronautical  engineers  have  long  recog- 
nized the  inherent  respective  advantages 
of  the  piston  engine  and  the  modern 
turbo-jet  power  plant  and  have  yearned 
to  glean  the  exceptional  features  of  both 
for  a  single  engine  design. 

Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  developed 
the  first  composite-powered  aircraft  with 
the  FR-1  Fireball  which  combined  the 
punch  of  a  General  Electric  1-16  turbo- 
jet and  a  Wright  Cyclone  9  piston  engine. 
The  conventional  engine  endowed  this 
carrier-based  fighter  with  long  range,  and 
the  light-weight  jet  engine  added  greatly 
to  its  high  speed  performance.  Subsequent 
aircraft,  such  as  the  North  American 
AJ-1  and  Martin  P4M-1  have  followed 
in  the  trail  blazed  by  the  Fireball  by  team- 
ing the  two  types  of  power  plants,  and 
jet  pods  are  currently  being  added  to  the 
Consolidated  B-36  bombers. 


Now,  Wright  has  merged  the  piston 
engine  and  turbo-jet  in  a  single  power 
package  by  means  of  "compounding" — a 
method  of  power  recovery  in  which  the 
exhaust  gases  from  the  piston  engine  are 
piped  directly  into  three  small  turbines 
instead  of  being  exhausted  to  the  atmos- 
phere. 

Four  basic  types  of  power  recovery 
systems  are  available  to  augment  piston 
engines:  (1)  the  collector  ring  type  which 
gathers  exhaust  from  the  cylinders  into 
a  common  manifold  and  channels  it  to 
the  air,  (2)  the  jet  stack  type  consisting 
of  individual  nozzled  exhaust  stacks  de- 
signed to  produce  jet  thrust  by  accelerat- 
ing gas  flow,  (3)  the  pressure  turbine 
form  of  compounding  which  involves  use 
of  a  gas  turbine  energized  by  high  pres- 
sure exhaust  gas,  and  (4)  the  blowdown 
or  velocity  turbine  type  of  compounding 


such  as  that  used  by  Wright  engineers  in 
compounding  the  Turbo-Cyclone  18.  This 
latter  means  of  power  recovery  is  the  most 
efficient  for  long  range  applications  be- 
cause it  produces  only  a  slight  increase  in 
back  pressure  on  the  cylinders.  Ryan  has 
long  designed  and  built  exhaust  systems 
of  the  collector  and  jet  thrust  types  and 
now  also  makes  components  for  the  newer 
types  of  power  recovery  applications. 

Over  3,000  hours  of  experimental 
ground  and  flight  tests  have  been  amassed 
on  the  Wright  Compound  power  plant 
which  has  the  lowest  fuel  consumption 
per  horsepower  of  any  engine  in  the 
world.  Designated  the  R-33  50-30W,  the 
Turbo-Cyclone  consists  of  a  basic  engine 
of  twin  banks  of  nine  cylinders  each,  and 
three  power  recovery  turbines  which  are 
an  integral  part  of  the  engine.  Each 
(Contitined  from  page  IS) 


13 


HAVE  you  ever  bought  a  used  aifplanc 
sight-unseen?     Jim     Dalby     of     La 
Guaira,  Venezuela,  has. 
It's  Hke  this — 

Answering  an  ad  for  a  used  plane  in  an 
aviation  magazine,  Capt.  James  M.  Dalby, 
a  TACA  de  Venezuela  airlines'  pilot,  wrote 


Expressing  complete  faith  that  the  air- 
plane would  be  exactly  as  described.  Cap- 
tain Dalby  showed  his  confidence  by  send- 
ing Eudy  a  check  for  payment  in  full  be- 
fore ever  seeing  or  flying  the  used  Navion. 

Arriving  at  Hendersonville,  Captain 
Dalby   obtained   Eudy's   help   in   working 


SOUTH  IMERICl  FOR  $142 


the  advertiser  saying,  "The  price  is  higher 
than  I  planned  to  pay  for  a  used  Navion, 
but  from  your  description  of  the  airplane 
and  the  fact  that  you  are  a  Ryan  dis- 
tributor, I  feel  that  I  may  be  talked  into 
paying  your  price.  I  worked  several  years 
for  Ryan  as  a  pilot  and  know  they  are 
quite  particular  about  their  distributors 
and  dealers.  This  will  be  the  first  airplane 
I  ever  bought  sight-unseen,  and  you  must 
realize  that  I  naturally  have  a  number  of 
misgivings.  For  example,  I  want  to  know 
if  the  ship  will  do  what  the  manufac- 
turer says  it  will." 

Captain  Dalby 's  letter  was  addressed  to 
Hugh  A.  Eudy,  president  of  Carolina 
Aeronautics,  Inc.,  of  Hendersonville, 
North  Carolina,  who  replied  that  "You 
will  find  this  airplane  to  be  exactly  as 
we  have  represented  it,  for  we  certainly 
would  not  have  a  customer  come  all  the 
way  from  Venezuela  and  find  the  Navion 
not  as  represented." 


A  shot  of  the  recently  discovered 
Angel  Falls  and  the  jungle  covered 
valley  in  the  Gran  Sabana.  These 
2,800-foot  falls  are  the  world's 
highest  and  no  one  has  ever  pene- 
trated   the    jungle    to    explore    them. 


out  a  temporary  back-seat  auxiliary  gas 
tank  arrangement  for  the  return  flight  to 
South  America  through  the  islands  of  the 
Caribbean.  After  returning  to  Venezuea 
with  his  "new"  used  Navion,  Dalby  wrote 
a  complete  report  of  his  flight.  Because  it 
weighs  the  advantages  of  the  Florida- 
Island  route  against  the  flight  through 
Central  America,  Dalby's  experience 
should  prove  of  interest  to  anyone  con- 
templating a  trip  to  the  Latin  American 
countries. 

"The  weather  wasn't  too  sharp  the 
Sunday  I  left  Hendersonville.  I  stayed 
contact  until  I  was  able  to  reach  Sparten- 
burg  radio  and  get  a  clearance.  From 
there  to  Jacksonville  I  flew  solid  instru- 
ments, and  then,  had  to  make  a  let-down 
with  a  400-foot  ceiling  at  Jacksonville. 
Flying  a  trip  like  that  on  needle-and-ball 
plus  radio  range  was  quite  a  change  for  a 
fellow  who  is  used  to  a  full  gyro  panel 
.Hid   ADF.   If   the  Navion   hadn't   proved 


itself  such  a  wonderful  instrument  ship, 
I  don't  think  I  would  have  continued  on 
past  Jacksonville  that  day. 

"After  refueling,  checking  the  weather 
and  asking  for  advice  of  every  airline  pilot 
I  could  corner,  I  took  off  for  Miami  .u 
dusk.  I  hit  the  overcast  at  about  300  feet 
and  stayed  on  instruments  until  I  got  to 
Daytona  Beach.  There  the  clouds  stopped 
abruptly  and  there  wasn't  another  all  the 
way  to  Miami.  After  being  assured  the 
rest  of  the  route  was  contact  I  changed 
my  flight  plan  to  VFR,  turned  off  the 
range,  tuned  in  Guy  Lombardo,  slid  the 
seat  back  so  I  could  stretch  my  legs,  and 
watched  the  lights  of  the  towns  along  the 
Florida  coast  slip  by  be'ow  me.  What 
luxury!  The  trip  was  such  a  pleasure  that 
I  hated  to  land  when  I  arrived  over  Miami 
at  about  9:00  p.m.  Next  morning,  I 
started  getting  my  permits  and  was  very 
happy  to  find  I  would  be  able  to  do  every- 
thing in  two  days. 

"I  was  in  the  air  at  5:00  a  m.  Wednes- 
day and  climbed  to  8,000  feet.  The 
weather  was  good  with  a  few  scattered 
clouds  at  about  6,000  feet.  For  the  next 
hour  or  so  there  wasn't  much  to  look  at 
because  it  was  fo  dark  I  couldn't  even  see 
the  ocean.  Finally  the  sun  came  up  and  I 
could  see  the  Cuban  coast  line  ahead.  I 
landed  at  Camaguey  three  hours  after 
leaving  Miami. 

"After  taking  off  from  Camaguey  for 
Port-au-Prince  I  ran  into  my  real  enemy 
— headwinds,  as  much  as  40  mph  from  the 
ground  on  up.  As  a  result  the  42  5  miles 
from  Camaguey  to  Port-au-Prince  took 
over  four  hours.  At  Port-au-Prince,  I 
again  gassed  and  went  over  the  airplane. 
When  I  checked  with  the  Weather  Bureau 
they  said  I  was  going  to  encounter  head 
winds  possibly  stronger  than  I  had  on  my 
previous  flight  and  they  would  probably 
remain  the  same  for  several  days.  One  day 
was  as  good  as  another  so  I  decided  to 
continue  on.  The  air  was  so  rough  flying 
over  land  between  Port-au-Prince  and  the 
Dominican  Republic  (and  because  I  didn't 
want  to  have  the  boys  in  Ciudad  TrujiUo 
think  I  was  an  unfriendly  aircraft  from 
Haiti),  I  swung  out  to  sea  as  I  passed  by 
the  Dominican  Republic. 

"Time  passed  slowly  between  the  Do- 
minion Republic  and  San  Juan  because 
I  only  averaged  about  90  m.p.h.  It  was 
starting  to  get  dark  just  as  I  reached  the 
Puerto  Rican  coast  at  Borinquen  and  to 
complicate  matters  I  was  having  to  flv 
through  a  lot  of  rain  showers  which  cut 
visibility  quite  a  bit.  I  finally  arrived  at 
San  Juan  at  7:30  p.m.  after  having  flo\\  n 
nearly  four  and  a  half  hours.  I  had  been 
up  since  three  that  morning  and  had 
flown  over  1 1  hours.  If  it  hadn't  been 
(Continued  on  page  20) 


(Above)  Peons  on  the  ranch  of 
Capiton  Carlos  Gonzoles  y  Rin- 
cones  pose  in  front  of  Dolby's 
Navion  on  the  landing  strip 
which  hod  been  cleared  only  a 
few   days   before    Dolby    landed. 


(Right)  Capt.  Jim  Dolby  gets 
help  from  one  of  the  ranch  re- 
tainers to  refuel  his  Navion 
before  taking  off  from  the  im- 
provised landing  strip.  (Below) 
Map  showing  the  route  Captain 
Dolby  flew  from  Hendersonville 
to  his  Caracas, Venezuela,  home. 


Copt.  James  Dolby  in  his 
TACA  uniform.  Hie  started 
flying  in  San  Diego  in 
1938.  In  1942,  he  went  to 
work  for  the  Ryon  School 
cf  Aeronautics  and  flew 
some  1,300  instruction 
hours  in  Ryan  PT-22s. 
He  now  has  8,400  hours 
cf  flight  time  to  his  credit. 


ST  JOHNS 


ON  THE  COVER 

Three  more  Boeing  C-97  oft  fuselage 
sections  move  along  production  lines  in 
Ryan's  huge  final  assembly  building. 
After  completion  of  assembly  opera- 
tions and  pressure  testing,  they'll  join 
others  for  the  trip  by  roil  flat  car  to 
the  Boeing  Airplane  Company's  plant 
at  Seattle,  Wash.,  where  the  Air  Force's 
Stratofreighter     transports     are     built. 


NEW  MILITARY  ORDERS 
ROOST  RYAN  PRODUCTION 


As  its  part  in  the  expanded  military  aircraft  production  program,  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company  has  ^vork  already  under  -way  on  the  largest  single 
order  since  World  War  II.  In  announcing  first  details  of  the  company's 
role,  T.  Claude  Ryan,  president,  said  that  the  order  brought  to  over 
$10,000,000  new^  contracts  received  in  the  first  six  ■weeks  of  the  Korean 
conflict. 

Under  the  neMr  contract,  Ryan  -will  greatly  increase  its  production  of 
fuselage  sections  for  Air  Force  military  transports.         iCoiitniticd  mi  page  17 ) 


16 


NEW  MILITARY  ORDERS 
BOOST  RYAN 
PRODUCTION 

(Continued  from  page  16) 

For  the  past  18  months  Ryan  has  been 
building  fuselage  sections  and  other  trans- 
port components.  Now  the  schedule  will 
be  built  up  rapidly  to  a  peak  monthly 
production  rate  which  will  then  be  con- 
tinued far  into  the  future. 

Under  new  military  security  regula- 
tions the  number  of  units  to  be  built, 
dollar  value  or  delivery  schedules  of  in- 
dividual contracts  cannot   be  revealed. 

In  addition  to  this  fuselage  order, 
production  planning  is  under  way  for 
odier  contract  increases  scheduled  but  not 
yet  firmed  by  formal  orders.  Ryan  is  now 
producing  most  of  the  important  products 
on  which  increased  volume  is  planned 
and  the  necessary  production  machines, 
tooling  and  key  personnel  are  available. 
Placing  orders  with  firms  already  pro- 
ducing important  assemblies  for  military 
planes  permits  the  fastest  possible  accel- 
eration in  American  air  power. 

Volume  military  work  Ryan  is  presently 
doing  includes  production  of  stainless 
steel  components  for  jet  and  gas  turbine 
engines,  fuel  tanks  which  are  reportedly 
the  largest  ever  built,  and  exhaust  systems 
for  transport  and  bomber  planes,  all  re- 
ported scheduled  for  accelerated  produc- 
tion. 

During  the  past  three  months  Ryan  has 
added  over  500  new  employees.  Current 
level  is  approximately  2000  workers  which 
may  be  built  up  over  a  period  of  months 
to  around  4000. 

In  anticipation  of  the  expansion  pro- 
gram Ryan  began  stepping  up  production 
and  delivery  of  all  orders  on  hand  imme- 
diately after  the  outbreak  of  hostilities 
In  Korea.  This  advance  planning  is  per- 
mitting Ryan  to  "clear  the  decks"  for 
the  influx  of  additional  contracts  now 
being  received. 

Besides  its  sub-contract  work,  Ryan 
also  holds  prime  contracts  with  both  the 
Air  Force  and  Navy  Bureau  of  Aeronau- 
tics, for  jet-propelled  target  planes,  guid- 
ed missile  research,  new  applications  of  jet 
propulsion  and  exhaust  systems,  and  other 
such  advanced  work. 

In  addition,  the  company  is  producing 
Ryan  Navion  executive  business  planes 
at  a  two-a-day  production  rate.  Several 
hundred  military  versions  of  the  Navion, 
known  as  the  L-17,  have  been  built  for 
the  Army  Field  Forces  and  National  Guard 
for  use  as  liaison  planes  and  for  personnel 
transportation. 


STALNAKER  NAMED  RYAN  REPRESENTATIVE 
AT  BOEING  AIRPLANE  COMPANY 


James  B.  Stalnaker,  veteran  representa- 
tive of  Ryan's  Metal  Products  Division,  is 
the  company's  new  representative  ot  Seat- 
tle, it  has  been  announced  by  Sam  C.  Breder, 
Director  of  Customer  Service.  Stolnoker  will 
open   the  Seattle  office  October  first. 

The  assignment  of  a  full-time  representa- 
tive at  Seattle  will  permit  closer  liaison  be- 
tween Ryan  and  the  Boeing  Airplane  Com- 
pany for  which  Ryan  builds  fuselage  and 
other  airframe  components  as  well  as  exhaust 
systems  and  J3t  engine  tailpipes  for  several 
Boeing   models. 

Because  Stolnoker's  principal  work  will  be 
on  Boeing  matters,  he  will  also  provide  rep- 
resentation for  Ryan  at  Boeing's  Wichito 
plant,  where  the  B-47  is  in  production.  On 
the  occasion  of  his  visits  to  Wichita,  Stal- 
naker  will  also  include  Fort  Worth  in  his 
itinerary  to  provide  necessary  contact  with 
Convair  at  that  city. 

For  the  post  eight  years,  Stolnoker  has 
been  at  Ryan  in  various  production,  engin- 
eering and  customer  relations  capacities.  Fol- 
lowing his  technical  training  at  the  Univer- 
sity of  California  and  prior  to  going  into  the 
company's  Engineering  Department,  he  ob- 
tained invaluable  shop  experience  as  a 
welder  and  in  other  production  capacities 
in  the  Metal  Products  Division. 

During  five  years  in  the  Engineering  De- 
partment, he  served  as  project  engineer  on 
many  exhaust  system  designs,  including 
work  on  such  projects  as  the  Boeing  6-29, 
Douglas  C-54  and  C-74  transports  and  the 
Northrop  B-35  flying  wing,  as  well  as  Ryan's 
jet-plus-propeller    FR-1     Fireball    fighter. 

In  1946,  Stolnoker  went  east  as  a  Metal 
Products  engineering  representative,  working 
out  of  the  company's  Washington  office  in 
a  technical  capacity,  consulting  with  such 
firms  as  Pratt  &  Whitney,  Wright,  Moitin, 
Fairchild,    Republic,    Chance-Vought,    West- 


inghouse,   Piasecki  and  the    Navy   Bureau  of 
Aeronautics. 

Stolnoker  opened  the  company's  eastern 
soles  office  in  1947,  with  headquarters  at 
New     York    City,    later    establishing     Ryan's 


James  B.  Stolnoker 

Dayton  office  to  provide  liaison  with  the  Air 
Force  and  to  be  centrally  located  to  service 
other  Ryan  customers  including  General  Elec- 
tric at  Locklond,  Ohio,  where  the  J-47  en- 
gine, for  which  Ryan  builds  important  com- 
ponents, is  being  assembled.  Other  important 
contacts  were  established  with  the  Allison 
Division  of  General  Motors  and  Continental 
Motors  Corp.,  and  Stolnoker  was  instrumentol 
in  working  out  the  Ryan  exhaust  system  for 
the  Continental-powered  M-46  General  Pot- 
ton  Tank  being  built  at  the  Detroit  Arsenal. 


FLYING  TRAILER  TRUCK    FOUR  MEN  IN  A  NAVION 


{Continued  from  page  5 j 
In  addition,  the  fuselage  has  four 
smaller  dual-wheeled  gears,  two  on  either 
side,  which  permit  it  to  be  towed  and 
moved  away  from  the  plane.  When  the 
pod  is  attached  to  the  plane,  these  wheels 
are  removable  for  stowing  in  the  fuselage. 
The  pod  is  held  to  the  plane  by  four 
ball  socket  connections,  the  top  of  the  pod 
fitting  into  the  under  section  of  the 
plane.  For  raising  and  lowering  the  pod, 
four  electrical  cable  hoists  are  used,  two 
on  either  side  of  the  plane. 

The  conception  and  design  of  Fair- 
child's  46-year-old  French-born  chief  en- 
gineer, Armand  J.  Thieblot,  the  XC-120 
will  be  used  extensively  to  test  a  number 
of  different  theories  and  principles  of  a 
detachable  fuselage  airplane.  Already, 
several  modifications  of  the  basic  XC-120 
design  which  offer  improvements  in  con- 
struction and  performance  are  under 
study  at  Fairchild. 


(Continued  from  page  11) 
has  flown  for  each  month.  Charges  for 
100-hour  checks  are  made  on  the  per- 
centage of  hours  flown  since  the  last  100- 
hour  check.  Majors  are  charged  on  per- 
centage flown  since  the  last  major. 

"The  final  problem  that  faces  a  part- 
nership is  that  there  may  come  a  time 
when  one  partner  finds  it  necessary  to 
leave  the  group.  Our  agreement  is  that 
he  may  sell  his  share  only  to  someone  who 
meets  the  approval  of  the  three  other 
partners.  If  time  does  not  allow  him  to 
find  an  agreeable  purchaser,  the  other 
partners  buy  his  share  at  the  book  value 
and  then  look  around  for  another  partner 
themselves. 

"We  have  a  great  deal  of  pleasure  and 
profit  from  the  ownership  of  our  plane 
.  .  .  made  possible  only  by  our  partner- 
ship. And  what  has  proved  so  excellent 
and  flexible  for  us  can  well  be  adopted 
by  others." 


17 


NAVION  GOES  TO  SCHOOL 


"Nothing  is  impossible  to  the  man 
with  a  Novion,"  is  the  opinion  of  Ted 
J.  Peters,  President  and  General  Man- 
ager of  the  State  Distributing  Com- 
pany, Grand  Rapids,  Michigan. 

"To  most  folks  it  would  appear  too 
far  for  me  to  visit  my  son  at  St.  John's 
Military  Academy  in  Delafield,  Wis- 
consin, very  frequently.  But  with  my 
Navion  I'm  able  to  go  there  as  often 
as  I  like  without  losing  time  from  my 
business.  I  land  right  on  the  school's 
small  9-hole  golf  course  close  to  my 
son's  dormitory.  Although  the  course 
is  pretty  rough,  I  don't  have  ony 
trouble;  the  Navion's  landing  gear  al- 
ways takes  it  like  a  soldier. 

"This  unique  field  is  short,  too,  and 
has  trees  practically  all  around  it.  As 
a  result,  one  doesn't  have  much  usable 
landing  and  take-off  distance  —  the 
greatest  possible  being  about  800  feet. 
That's  ample  for  me  to  get  the  Navion 
in  and  out  nicely   in  every  direction." 

The  St.  John's  trips  are  frosting  on 
the  flying  cake  for  Peters.  He  takes 
additional  pride  in  his  plane  because 
of  the  job  it  performs  in  connection 
with  his  business  of  distributing  major 
appliances.  Commuting  by  air,  he's 
able  to  personally  manage  offices  in 
Grand  Rapids  and  Detroit  as  easily  os 


if  they  were  next  door  instead  of  140 
miles  apart. 

"The  Navion  saves  us  a  lot  of  time, 
too,  when  we're  making  colls  on  manu- 
facturers in  Chicago,  Rockford,  Nash- 
ville, Cleveland  and  other  cities.  An 
example  or  two  will  demonstrate  what 
I  mean. 

"After  0  business  trip  out  west  re- 
cently, I  left  San  Diego,  California, 
one  morning  at  1  1  o'clock.  Albu- 
querque was  my  stopover  that  night. 
Next  morning  I  was  on  my  way  to 
Grand  Rapids  where  I  hangared  the 
Navion  that  same  evening. 

"On  another  morning  not  long  ago, 
I  stuck  around  my  Grand  Rapids  office 
until  I  completed  reading  the  mail  at 
about  10:30.  I  figured  that  would 
allow  me  to  moke  it  to  Chattanooga, 
Tennessee,  in  time  for  a  business  ap- 
pointment at  1  :45  that  afternoon.  As 
it  turned  out,  I  landed  in  Chattanooga 
with  time  to  spore,  kept  my  appoint- 
ment, got  in  1  8  holes  of  golf  and  at- 
tended 0   banquet  that  night. 

"Trips  like  these  not  only  save  much 
valuable  time  and  get  more  things 
done,  but  they  also  work  wonders  in 
advertising  and  provide  fine  oppor- 
tunities to  entertain  customers  .  .  . 
who  are  always  pleased  to  ride  in  a 
Navion." 


POWER  COMPOUNDED 

(Continued  from  page  13) 


turbine  uses  the  exhaust  energy  from  six 
cylinders  to  spin  turbine  wheels  which 
feed  the  power  thus  generated  back  into 
the  crankshaft  system  without  impairing 
basic  engine  efficiency  or  adding  stresses 
on  reciprocating  parts.  This  power  is  fed 
to  the  crankshaft  by  an  ingenious  gear 
and  fluid  coupling  arrangement  which  iso- 
lates the  crankshaft  from  vibration  forces 


and  prevents  the  reciprocating  forces  from 
being  passed  onto  the  fast-spinning  tur- 
bines. The  fluid  coupling  keeps  the  tur- 
bines under  load  at  ail  times  and  eliminates 
the  need  of  synchronizing  engine  and  tur- 
bine speeds. 

Six  exhaust  pipes  carry  the  rushing  gas 
to  each  of  the  three  turbines  by  an  ar- 
rangement in  which  each  pair  of  cylinders 


are  "siamesed"  into  a  single  duct.  Two 
front  cylinders  are  "siamesed"  into  one 
port,  two  rear  ones  are  similarly  treated 
and  a  front  and  rear  cylinder  are  then 
combined.  This  last  merging  originally 
caused  difficulties  because  the  difference 
in  channel  lengths  produced  adverse 
scavenging  and  overlapping  exhaust.  This 
was  corrected  by  an  aspirated  hook-up 
between  the  front  and  rear  cylinder  ducts. 
Ryan  fabricates  the  intricate  nozzle  box 
assemblies  for  the  turbines  which  are  the 
"hot  boxes"  containing  the  inferno  of 
exhaust  energy.  These  nozzle  boxes  direct 
the  flow  of  supersonic  gas  against  the 
turbine  blades  at  precisely  the  right  angle 
of  attack  and  are  capable  of  withstanding 
severe  temperatures.  They  are  fabricated 
of  If 3  10  stainless  steel  castings  which  are 
welded  to  Inconel  sheet  stock.  The  weld- 
ing operation  is  a  critical  one  because  of 
the  extreme  variations  in  metal  thicknesses 
between  the  heavy  castings  and  the  In- 
conel, tending  to  cause  uneven  heat  ab- 
sorption at  the  weld  area. 

THE  velocity  of  the  gas  at  the  turbine 
is  greater  than  that  of  sound  waves  in 
air  and  the  temperatures  are  between  1400 
and  1500F.  The  turbine  wheel  assembly 
is  composed  of  57  Stellite  blades  welded 
to  a  high-tensile  strength  steel  wheel  1 1 
inches  in  diameter.  It  whirls  at  a  furious 
16,000  r.p.m.,  or  eight  times  the  crank- 
shaft speed.  By  employing  welding  meth- 
ods for  attaching  the  blades,  instead  of 
mechanical  means,  substantial  savings  in 
weight  are  realized.  The  blades  can  be 
replaced,  in  the  event  of  damage,  by  sim- 
ply welding  another  in  place. 

A  graphic  picture  of  the  ruggedness  of 
the  design  can  be  visualized  by  the  fact 
that  the  turbine  can  be  operated  with  as 
many  as  seven  buckets  (half  blade  sec- 
tions) missing.  The  unbalance  is  com- 
pensated for  by  means  of  specially-devised 
spring-loaded  damper  plates.  Tests  have 
divulged  the  consoling  truth  that  most 
types  of  turbine  failure  would  simply 
cause  a  loss  of  power  from  the  turbme 
without  other  adverse  effects  upon  the 
basic  engine. 

Terrific  heat  generated  in  the  turbine 
nozzle  box  requires  a  system  of  cooling 
to  prevent  blade  expansion  beyond  critical 
limits.  This  is  provided  by  a  fan,  mount- 
ed below  the  wheel,  which  pumps  air 
through  holes  at  the  base  of  the  blades. 
Originally  picked  up  by  a  scoop  at  the 
front  of  the  engine,  this  cooling  air  is 
collected  on  the  aft  face  of  the  wheel  by 
a  snout  which  protrudes  into  the  turbine 
exhaust.    This  achieves  the  double  advan- 


18 


tage  of  obtaining  an  aspirating  effect  to 
augment  the  cooling  system  and  prevents 
afterburning  when  the  air  is  mixed  with 
any  unburned  exhaust  gases. 

Ryan-patented  ball-and-socket  joints 
are  built  into  the  connections  which  serve 
each  of  the  main  inlet  ports  feeding  the 
turbines  in  order  to  absorb  vibration  and 
engine  movement.  These  same  types  of 
universal  joints  are  used  to  isolate  the  ex- 
haust ports  running  to  each  set  of  cylin- 
ders of  the  basic  engine. 

By  compounding  the  Cyclone  18  en- 
gine, Wright  engineers  have  increased  its 
basic  2700  h.p.  to  a  whopping  32  50  h.p. 
for  take-off.  This  premium  power  is  avail- 
able without  the  use  of  extra  fuel  or  the 
addition  of  operating  controls.  Another 
dividend  from  the  happy  combination  is 
the  vast  improvement  in  noise  and  flame 
suppression  which  compounding  accom- 
plishes. Aircraft  designers  can  elect  to 
utilize  the  advantages  of  compounding 
to  attain  greater  speeds  and  payloads  or 
greater  range. 

Altitudes  at  which  maximum  ranges 
are  experienced  with  the  Turbo-Cyclones 
are  reported  to  be  between  10,000  and 
15,000  feet.  For  higher  altitude  oper- 
ation, often  necessitated  by  weather  or 
combat  conditions,  these  power  plants 
could  be  turbo-supercharged  because  only 
two-thirds  of  the  available  thrust  of  the 
exhaust  gas  is  used  for  compounding. 
Wright  designers  are  working  on  studies 
to  harness  the  other  portion  of  the  ex- 
haust energy  for   turbo-supercharging. 


4  8 -TON  SUIT  OF  ARMOR 

{Continued  from  page  I) 
half  that  experienced  in  liquid-cooled 
counterparts.  Unlike  the  conventional 
motors,  the  new  air-cooled  types  will 
operate  satisfactorily  under  extreme  tem- 
perature conditions — at  the  Equator  or 
the  Pole. 

THE  M46  Tank  is  powered  by  the  larg- 
est of  this  group  of  engines — the  810 
horsepower,  12-cylinder,  V-type.  Desig- 
nated AV-1790,  it  is  particularly  well 
adapted  for  mass  production  and  servicing 
in  the  field.  A  unique  feature  of  these 
engines  is  the  fact  that  all  of  them,  from 
the  12  5  horsepower  to  the  most  powerful 
type,  use  only  two  basic  cylinders,  either 
4/8  or  5%  inch  diameter.  Increases  in 
power  are  obtained  by  adding  cylinders 
and  stepping  up  compression  ratios.  This 
innovation  has  tremendous  advantages  in 
simplification  of  field  maintenance.  Dur- 
ing World   War   II,   six   different   engines 


Sam  C.  Breder,  Director  of  Metal  Products  customer  service  (left),  and  Richard 
White,  newly  appointed  Chief  Administrative  Engineer  of  the  Metal  Products  Division, 
discuss   latest  developments  on   an   important  aircraft  jet  engine   component  project. 

Richard  White  Named  Head  Of 
IVIetal  Products  Engineering 


Stepping  from  his  Commander's  bil- 
let in  the  Bureau  of  Aeronautics' 
Power  Plant  Division,  where  he  headed 
the  power  plant  installation  and  ac- 
cessories branch,  Richard  E.  White  has 
joined  Ryan  as  Chief  Administrative 
Engineer  of  the  Metal  Products  Divi- 
sion. 

In  his  new  civilian  responsibility, 
he  will  see  that  Ryon  engineering 
work  on  exhaust  systems  and  jet  en- 
gine components  is  completed  as  eco- 
nomically and  expeditiously  as  pos- 
sible, cooperating  closely  with  Metal 
Products'  customer  and  service  staff 
and  the  engineers  of  firms  for  which 
the  company  builds  accessories. 

Fourteen  years  service  with  Wright 
Aeronautical  Corporation  preceded  his 
tour  of  Naval  duty  which  lasted  from 
June,  1942,  until  June,  1950.  While 
with  Wright  he  wos  in  charge  of  ex- 


perimental engine  installation  and 
flight  testing,  personally  getting  in  a 
hand  at  the  controls  on  test  work. 
Just  prior  to  his  entry  into  the  Navy, 
he  was  Vice-President  and  Treasurer 
of  Wright  Aero,  Ltd.,  West  Coast 
soles  and  service  subsidiary  of  the 
Wright   Aeronautical    Corporation. 

A  pilot  since  1923,  White  is  now 
flying  Ryan  Novions,  currently  oper- 
ating on  a  commuter's  schedule  be- 
tween the  factory  and  Edwards  Air 
Force  Base  at  Muroc,  California,  where 
Ryan    projects  are    in   work. 

Coming  to  Ryan  is  a  homecoming, 
for  he  and  his  family  have  lived  in 
Son  Diego  since  1933.  Off  the  job, 
an  ardent  skeet  shooter.  White  was 
captain  of  the  Navy  team  which  cap- 
tured the  1948  Service  Champion- 
ship. 


were  used  in  medium  tanks  alone,  neces- 
sitating six  different  sets  of  tools,  tech- 
nical literature,  trained  groups  of  mechan- 
ics and  5,165  separate  spare  parts.  Thou- 
sands of  these  parts  had  to  be  stocked  in 
every  front-line  supply  depot.  With  one 
standard  tank  engine  in  all  medium  tanks, 
the  number  of  spare  engine  parts  can  be 
reduced  to  954  and  the  same  mechanic 
will  be  able  to  maintain  and  repair  the 
smallest  and  largest  equally  well. 


Ryan  exhaust  systems  serving  these 
power  plants  are  similarly  designed  for 
maximum  service  life  and  simplicity  of 
installation.  It  is  possible  to  replace  any 
section  of  the  manifold,  serving  individual 
cylinders,  quickly  and  simply  in  the  field. 

An  unusual  feature  of  the  General  Pat- 
ton  Tank  is  its  ingeniously  designed  trans- 
mission which  has  been  engineered  by 
Allison  Division  of  General  Motors.  This 
(Conf'niited  on  page  20) 


19 


CHARLES  KINNEY  HEADS 
RYAN  DAYTON  OFFICE 


Contacts  with  Mid- 
west customers  of 
Ryan's  Metal  Prod- 
ucts Division  are 
now  the  responsibil- 
ity of  Charles  Kin- 
ney, newly  appointed 
Customer  Service 
Representative  for 
the  company's  office 
at  Dayton,  Ohio. 
Well-known  in  military  and  commer- 
cial flying  circles,  Kinney  for  thirteen 
years  was  crack  field  and  service  execu- 
tive for  Consolidated  Vultee  Aircraft 
Corporation,  working  in  conjunction  with 
the  Army  Air  Force,  Navy  and  major 
airlines.  Eleven  of  these  years  were  spent 
setting  up  service  operations  for  Convair 
planes  in  Panama,  Puerto  Rico,  Venezuela, 
Colombia  and  other  foreign  countries. 

During  the  War,  Kinney  established 
the  Convair  office  in  London,  England, 
which  he  directed  for  27  months.  His 
first  aeronautical  training  was  received 
as  an  engineering  student  at  Syracuse 
University  and  as  a  naval  aviator  at 
Pensacola. 

At  Dayton,  Kinney  will  provide  liaison 
between  Ryan  and  the  Air  Materiel  Com- 
mand at  Wright  Field,  as  well  as  con- 
tacts with  such  jet  engine  components 
and  exhaust  systems  customers  as  General 
Electric  at  Lockland,  Ohio,  Continental 
Motors  at  Detroit  and  Muskegon,  Mich- 
igan, and  the  Allison  Division  of  General 
Motors  at  Indianapolis. 


4  8 -TON  SUIT  OF  ARMOR 

{Coiitimied  from  page  19) 
unit,  which  actually  weighs  more  than  the 
engine  itself,  provides  an  infinitely  vari- 
able continuous  power  and  speed  ratio. 
Working  in  conjunction  with  the  steering 
system,  the  transmission  makes  possible 
pivot  turning  under  finger-tip  control  and 
torsion  bar  suspension  that  results  in 
superior  riding  qualities  over  rough 
ground. 

In  spite  of  the  extremely  acute  bends  in 
the  design  of  the  Ryan  exhaust  systems 
and  the  high  precision  demanded  by  the 
engine  tolerances,  Ryan  has  delivered 
many  hundreds  of  engine  sets  without  a 
single  rejection.  Undoubtedly,  this  new 
Continental  engine  and  Ryan  manifold 
combination  will  be  used  on  a  number  of 
other  heavy-duty  vehicles  and  prime 
movers. 


A  pilot  of  the  25th  Infantry  Division  rolls  out  to  the  runway  In  a  Ryan  L-17  Navion 
Spring   Field,  Osaka,  Japan,   ond   waits  for  takeoff  clearance   from   the   control   tower. 


L-17S  IN  KOREA 

(Continued  from  page  7) 
Other  reports   have   reached   the    factory 
through  Army  Times,  an  unofficial  mili- 
tary services  newspaper. 

A  year  ago,  Jack  Lucast,  field  service 
representative,  made  a  two-months  L-17 
inspection  and  maintenance  training  tour 
of  the  American  occupation  zone  of  Eu- 
rope, including  Germany,  Austria,  Italy 
and  Trieste.  A  similar  trip  to  the  Far  East 
had  been  scheduled  for  this  year. 

Lieut.  Harry  R.  Cattrell,  formerly  of 
Engineering,  and  a  brother  of  W.  M.  Cat- 
trell of  the  Engineering  Laboratory,  some 
months  ago  visited  Komaki  Airdrome  at 
Nagoya,  Japan,  where  a  number  of  L-17s 
were  based.  Since  the  start  of  hostilities  in 
Korea,  Lieut.  Cattrell  has  been  flying  as 
Navigator  with  a  B-29  squadron  operating 
out  of  Okinawa,  and  reports  some  "close 
shaves"  on  bombing  missions  to  North 
Korea. 

Other  reports  of  Navions  in  Japan  have 
come  from  Majors  Dean  Conard  and  Mer- 
rill Carlton,  both  former  commanding  of- 
ficers of  Ryan  School  of  Aeronautics  war- 
time pilot  training  detachments.  Major 
Carlton  was  engineering  inspection  officer 
for  the  Fifth  Air  Force  at  Nagoya  when 
Lieut.  Cattrell  visited  there. 

Capt.  William  H.  Holt,  formerly  on 
production  flight  test  in  the  Navion  final 
assembly  department,  and  most  recently 
in  Japan  at  Itazuke  Air  Base  with  the  80th 
Fighter  Squadron,  as  engineering  officer, 
wrote  last  summer  that  "I  have  seen  some 
of  the  Field  Forces'  Navions  over  here, 
and  they  are  well  liked  by  evervone  who 
can  wangle  a  ride."  At  that  time  Holt 
was  Flight  Commander  flying  F-51  Mus- 
tang fighters,  which  have  proven  so  valu- 
.iblc  in   the  Korean   fighting. 


SOUTH  AMERICA 

[Continued  from  page  1\> 
for  the  strong  winds,  the  trip  would  have 
been  about  three  hours  shorter  and  really 
enjoyable. 

"The  next  morning  I  was  off  again  at 
7:00  a.m.  with  the  winds  still  against  me. 
It  was  still  raining  when  I  left  San  Juan 
and  I  wasn't  too  eager  to  leave  under  such 
circumstances  but  by  the  time  I  had 
reached  8,000  feet,  I  was  well  on  top  of 
a  broken  overcast  and  I  was  enjoying  the 
warm  morning  sunshine.  I  was  feeling 
pretty  good.  I  had  this  broken  overcast 
with  me  most  of  the  way  from  San  Juan 
to  the  Venezuelan  coast  line.  I  could  have 
maintained  better  visual  contact  with  the 
various  islands  if  I  had  flown  under  the 
clouds  at  about  15  00  feet,  but  I  feel  much 
safer  flying  fairly  high  when  over  water. 
Also  the  winds  weren't  quite  so  strong  at 
8,000  feet. 

"  A  BOUT  two  and  a  half  hours  later, 
'  '  I  spotted  Antigua  under  a  low 
hanging  cloud  and  landed  at  the  airport 
on  Antigua  about  three  miles  east  of  the 
town  of  St.  Johns.  The  next  hop  was  to 
Castries  on  St.  Lucia.  The  trip  took  about 
three  hours  because  I  was  still  bucking 
the  headwinds. 

"I  had  planned  to  fly  non-stop  to  La 
Guaira  with  dog-legs  over  Grenada  and 
Nueva  Esparta  but  because  the  overcast 
became  pretty  solid  and  I  couldn't  see  my 
check  points,  I  angled  over  to  the  Vene- 
zuelan coast.  All  the  way  from  Miami  to 
St.  Lucia  I  had  been  heading  in  an  easterly 
direction  and  running  against  strong  east 
winds.  Up  to  St.  Lucia  the  ocean  was 
covered  with  giant  white  caps.  However, 
when  I  finally  did  see  the  ocean  again  a 
few  miles  south  of  Grenada  the  sea  was 
almost  calm. 

"The  wind  hadn't  died  down  complete- 
\\  though,  because  I  was  able  to  average 


20 


152  mph  during  the  5 JO  miles  to  La 
Guaira.  I  arrived  at  Maiquetia  airport  just 
after  dark  in  good  shape,  happy  to  be 
home  and  with  a  nice  airplane  to  show  off. 

"The  jury-rigged  auxiliary  gas  tank  and 
refueling  system  I  installed  before  leav- 
ing North  Carolina  worked  fine.  When  I 
got  ready  to  refuel  I  would  slow  up  to 
about  70  mph  and  half  flap,  open  the 
hatch  to  the  first  notch  and  slip  the  rub- 
ber hose  over  the  tube  on  the  wing  root 
gas  cap.  When  I  wasn't  refueling,  I  had 
the  tube  covered  with  scotch  tape  so  the 
gas  wouldn't  syphon  out.  After  I  had  the 
hose  in  place,  I  would  close  the  hatch  until 
it  was  against  the  hose,  pull  up  the  flaps, 
resume  cruising  speed  and  start  pumping 
away  on  the  tire  pump.  I  was  able  to  pump 
the  entire  22  '/2  gallons  out  of  the  auxiliary 
tank  in  about  15  minutes;  then  I  would 
have  to  slow  the  airplane  up  again  and 
reverse  the  process  to  disconnect.  Not  very 
handy  but  it  was  safe  and  it  worked. 

"All  direct  expenses  from  the  time  I 
left  Miami  until  I  reached  Venezuela 
amounted  to  $142.00.  This  includes  the 
consul  fees  in  Miami  as  well  as  gas,  land- 
ing fees,  customs  fees,  tips,  food  and  lodg- 
ing. I  would  like  to  see  anyone  make  the 
trip  for  anywhere  near  that  via  the  Cen- 
tral American  route  to  Venezuela.  On  a 
clear  day  the  only  time  that  you  are  out 
of  sight  of  land  is  on  the  direct  route  from 
Miami  to  Camaguey.  If  a  pilot  always 
files  a  flight  plan,  I  think  that  it  is  as  safe 
as  via  Central  America,  has  better  weather 
and  is  easier  to  fly. 

"The  first  day  I  had  off  after  my  return, 
I  flew  the  Navion  down  to  a  friend's 
hacienda.  The  trip  by  road  takes  16  hours; 
by  Navion  1  hour.  My  friend  had  cut 
a  little  strip  out  of  the  forest  near  his 
home  and  had  a  case  of  champagne  wait- 
ing for  the  first  airplane  to  land.  The 
Navion  was  first  to  land,  but  to  be  sure 
it  would  also  be  the  first  to  take  off  suc- 
cessfully, I  had  him  cut  down  a  few 
more  trees  at  the  end  of  the  runway. 

"While  we  were  at  the  ranch,  I  decided 
to  try  out  the  16  gage  gun  I  bought  in 
Hendersonville.  The  gun  is  wonderful  but 
there  were  so  many  doves  that  I  had 
trouble  choosing  which  one  to  shoot. 
There  are  hundreds  of  wild  pigs  on  his 
ranch  so  the  next  time  I  go  down  there, 
I  am  going  to  take  the  30-30  and  get  me 
a  nice  fat  pig. 

"One  parting  comment  about  the  Na- 
vion before  I  close.  It  is  the  most  com- 
fortable ship  of  that  type  I  have  flown 
in.  I'm  six  foot  one  inch  and  after  two  or 
three  hours  in  the  average  personal  plane, 
I  can  hardly  walk  when  I  get  out.  In 
the  Navion,  I  can  stretch  out  and  be  com- 
fortable. On  the  trip  down,  not  once  did 
I  feel  cramped  when  I  got  out.  And,  re- 
member, I  flew  over  1 1  hours  the  first 
day  out. 


Newest  convenience  for  Navion  owners  is  the  Luggage  Master  exterior  baggage 
door,  now  available  through  authorized  distributors  and  dealers.  Baggage  con  now 
be  loaded  with  complete  ease  from  the  outside,  yet  is  available  in  flight  from  the 
cabin  merely  by  tipping  forward  the  rear  seat  bock  rest.  A  sturdy,  safe  locking 
handle  is  provided.  An  additional  convenience  factor  with  the  new  baggage  door 
is  the  quick  access  it  gives  to  the  battery.   It's  available  in  kit  form  for  all  Novions. 


"Good  luck,  and  thanks  a  lot  for  sell- 
ing me  such  a  good  airplane." 

Friends  Use  Dolby  Plane  for 
Vacation  to  U.  S. 

After  Dalby  had  arrived  in  Venezuela, 
he  made  the  unfortunate  discovery  that 
personal  planes  which  didn't  use  to  need 
an  export  permit,  now  required  them.  One 


Copt,  and  Mrs.  Richard  H.  Barker 
bid  good-bye  to  their  two  sons  at 
Miami  as  they  leave  on  their  six- 
weeks'  tour  of  the  United  States 
and  Canada   in  Copt.   Dolby's  Navion. 


of  his  fellow  TACA  pilots,  Capt.  Richard 
H.  Barker,  who  wanted  to  go  on  vacation 
in  the  States,  offered  to  fly  the  airplane 
back  to  complete  the  necessary  paper 
work.  On  that  trip.  Captain  Barker  was 
accompanied  by  his  wife  and  two  sons. 

During  the  six  weeks  Captain  Barker 
and  his  family  were  gone  from  their  home 
in  Caracas,  Venezuela,  they  flew  the  Na- 
vion as  far  north  as  the  Canadian  border, 
covering  over  8,000  miles.  The  northward 
route  was  the  same  as  that  flown  by  Cap- 
tain Dalby  in  taking  the  plane  to  Vene- 
zuela. It  is  some  2,224  miles,  or  800  miles 
further  than  the  direct  over-water  dis- 
tance. Captain  Barker  reported  that  there 
were  but  two  times  when  he  couldn't  see 
land.  Once,  between  the  British  Windward 
Island  and  Puerto  Rico;  then  again  be- 
tween Cuba  and  Florida.  However,  the 
longest  hop  flying  up  was  three  hours  and 
13  minutes  between  Port-au-Prince  and 
Camaguey  (410  miles).  Flying  time  for 
the  more  than  2,200  miles  was  17'/2  hours. 

"Our  travels  in  the  States  took  us  to 
New  Orleans,  Detroit,  Buffalo,  Baltimore 
and  back  to  Miami,  for  a  distance  of  some 
3,800  miles,"  says  Barker. 

"For  anyone  who  can  navigate  by  dead 
reckoning  in  the  States,  I  would  say  that 
island-hopping  would  be  found  quite 
simple.  The  return  trip  after  vacationing 
in  the  States  was  made  by  the  same  route 
over  the  Caribbean." 


21 


LAND-OFFICE  BUSINESS 
BY  AIR 

(Contiutted  from  page  3  ) 

get  sufficient  experience  to  properly  eval- 
uate all  costs — hidden  and  obvious. 

Consequently,  in  November  1946,  we 
purchased  a  used  two-place  Culver  V 
airplane,  and  began  our  operations.  The 
airplane  only  had  2  5  total  hours  on  it 
when  it  was  purchased,  so,  for  all  prac- 
tical purposes,  it  was  a  new  one.  We 
flew  the  Culver  200  hours  in  the  one 
year  we  had  it,  and  reached  these  con- 
clusions: 

1.  Sales  territories  could  be  enlarged 
about  two-fold. 

2.  Key  production  men  could  be  taken 
on  service  calls  as  they  were  not  away 
from  our  manufacturing  plant  as  long 
as  had  been  the  case  when  we  were  using 
other  means  of  transportation.  Generally, 
these  higher  skilled  men  could  overcome 
trouble  quicker  and  did  a  better  and 
longer   lasting   job. 

3.  In  many  cases  it  was  possible  to 
better  educate  the  field  operator  of  our 
equipment  as  to  operating  limitations, 
proper  servicing,  and  correct  maintenance 
and  overhaul  methods,  due  to  the  fact 
that  travel  time  saved  allowed  more  time 
with  our  customers. 

4.  Fuel  and  oil  costs  were  less  than 
with  our  company-owned  automobiles, 
and  repairs  were  very  low. 

5.. A  two-place  plane  did  limit  the  use 
to  transportation  of  personnel  only,  so 
was  not  entirely  practical  so  far  as  service 
calls  were  concerned.  If  a  service  man 
was  taken,  there  was  not  sufficient  room 
for  parts  or  tools. 

Equipped  with  these  answers,  our  com- 
pany bought  a  four-place  Navion  in  De- 
cember, 1947.  This  airplane  really  has 
proven  to  be  a  necessary  piece  of  equip- 
ment. Due  to  its  speed,  range,  low  cost 
of  operation,  pay  load,  flying  characteris- 
tics and  dependability,  we  found  we  flew 
it  just  twice  as  much  as  we  did  the  Culver 
the  first  year  of  operation.  The  Navion 
has  been  from  coast  to  coast  and  border 
to  border  in  all  kinds  of  weather,  and 
has  performed  beautifully.  We  have  made 
several  emergency  service  calls  where  the 
money  saved  on  one  call  alone  represented 
more  than  the  cost  of  the  airplane. 

A  typical  example  was  a  year  ago  last 
spring  when  a  quick  thaw  in  the  North- 
west was  causing  severe  flood  conditions. 
We  received  a  frantic  call  from  Mountain 
Tractor  Company,  Allis-Chalmers  tractor 
dealers  at  Missoula  and  Kalispell,  Mon- 
tana, that  they  needed  parts  for  one  of 
our  Power  Control  Winches  operating   a 


Bulldozer.  This  particular  Bulldozer  was 
used  to  build  and  maintain  dams,  dikes, 
and  control  the  river  and  stream  flows. 

THE  bulldozer  was  just  about  holding 
its  own  when  one  of  our  winch  parts 
wore  out.  The  entire  town  where  this 
tractor  was  working  was  in  danger  of 
being  completely  flooded,  if  not  partially 
washed  away,  if  the  tractor  did  not  get 
back  into  operation  that  day.  It  was  a 
case  where  continuous  maintenance  on  the 
dikes  would  contain  or  control  the  water, 
but  if  they  ever  broke  through  in  any  one 
spot,  the  water  would  be  entirely  out  of 
control  from  then  on.  Thousands  of  dol- 
lars of  property  were  at  stake,  and  prob- 
ably,  many  lives. 

Van  Howell,  President  of  the  Mountain 
Tractor  Company,  called  about  eight  one 
morning,  telling  us  of  this  particular  situ- 
ation. We  loaded  the  necessary  parts  into 
the  Navion  and  were  winging  our  way 
toward  Missoula  at  ten.  Our  Navion  has 
an  auxiliary  20-gallon  fuel  tank,  so  we 
were  able,  with  favorable  winds,  to  go 
all  the  way  to  Missoula  with  only  one  re- 
fueling stop  at  Salt  Lake  City.  The  trip 
took  just  a  little  over  eight  hours,  so  that 
by  midnight  the  tractor  was  back  into 
operation.  Tens  of  thousands  of  dollars  of 
property  were  saved  by  this  fast  action, 
and  certainly  represented  many  times  the 
cost  of  the  Navion. 


This  is  just  one  instance  where  our 
Navion  has  paid  dividends  to  our  custo- 
mers. There  have  been  many  other  times, 
while  not  as  dramatic,  where  fast  service 
has  paid  off.  We  feel  that  our  company 
owes  this  "fastest  possible"  service  to  our 
customers,  particularly  where  the  public 
welfare  is  concerned.  Actual  emergencies 
do  not  arise  very  often,  but  the  plane  is  al- 
ways ready  to  go  when  the  occasion  pre- 
sents itself.  In  cold  dollars  and  cents,  it 
would  be  hard  for  us  to  show  an  increase 
in  our  business  that  can  be  attributed 
directly  to  the  Navion,  but  we  can  show 
where  time  saved  enroute,  actual  trip 
costs,  increased  territory  coverage,  pres- 
tige and  general  customer  relations  has 
been  worth  many  times  this  investment. 

Following  is  a  breakdown  of  one  year's 
operation  of  the  Navion  vs.  the  Culver, 
and  also  portions  of  a  typical  log  on  a 
trip  from  Montgomery,  Alabama  to  Los 
Angeles  to  show  how  we  maintain  our 
records.  The  total  distance  was  1941 
miles.  Two  fuel  stops  were  made,  at 
Dallas  and  El  Paso.  Gas  consumption  for 
the  trip  was  under  10  gallons  per  hour. 
It  was  rather  a  long  day,  but  important 
I  be  back  in  Los  Angeles  that  evening. 
I  cannot  help  but  compare  the  Navion  to 
the  time-tested  DC-3  and  C-47  airplanes; 
very  comfortable,  easy  to  fly,  range,  good 
speed  for  its  class,  extremelv  rugged,  and 
just  about  the  most  reliable  airplane  in 
the  air. 


400  HOURS 

ONE  YEAR 

Navion 

$1392.00 

Gas 

36.00 

Oil 

420.00 

Hangar 

700.00 

Insurance 

500.00 

Repair    &    Allowance    Towards 
Total 

New    Engine. 

$3048.00 

$7.65  Per  Hour 

$.05  8  Per  Mile 

$.0145  Per  Seat  Mile 

200  HOURS 

ONE  YEAR 

Culver 

$324.00 

Gas 

18.00 

Oil 

240.00 

Hangar 

200.00 

Insurance 

100.00 

Repair 
Total 

$882.00 

$4.41    Per  Hou 

r                     $.04  Per  Mile 

$.02   Per  Seat  Mile 

Elapsed  Time 

Over  Check                Ground 

Settings 

Date       From              To 

Point   Distance      Speed 

RPM          Hg.   Temp.C 

■      Alt. 

10  July  49 

El  Paso      Columbus          :32           76           141.5 

2100           24           25 

6000 

EI  Paso      Rodeo 

1.06         158           144.0 

2100           22           20 

SOOO 

El  Paso      Chocise            1:27         211            145.0 

2100           20           12';. 

11000 

El  Paso      Tucso 

n             1:52         270           144.5 

2100           20           12'2 

HOOD 

El  Paso      Phoen 

ix           2:36         381            146.0 

2100           20           12'. 

UOOO 

El  Paso      Blvthe              3:40         535            146.0 

2000           20           10 

11000 

El  Paso      River 

ide        4:50         691            142.0 

1750            20            10 

UOOO 

El  Paso      Glend 

ale          5:12         750            144.0 

1750            20            10 

11000 

PLANT  TOUR 


Unfortunately  we  don't  have  the  opportunity  to  show  many  readers  through  the  Ryan 
factory,  but  we  can  ask  you  to  join  us  in  this  column  while  we  go  through  the  plant 
and  meet  some  of  the  people  ivho  help  make  Ryan  a  better  place  to  tvork. 


BACK  TO  SCHOOL.  New  methods  of 
production  management,  presented  to 
Ryan  and  other  industry  representa- 
tives this  summer  at  the  University 
of  Iowa's  Manage- 
ment Course,  are 
already  being  ap- 
plied and  found 
valuable  in  daily 
use,  company  offi- 
cials report. 

Organized  eleven 
years  ago  as  an 
effective  means  by 
which  manufactur- 
ing executives 
could  exchange  ideas  on  problems 
common  to  their  operations,  the  Man- 
agement Course  is  devoted  to  sem- 
inar study  of  production  plonning, 
job  evaluation,  motion  and  time 
study,  wage  incentives,  plant  layout 
and  related  subjects.  Instructors  are 
drawn  from  the  top  bracket  of  Amer- 
ican business  and  industrial  executives 
and  University  professors. 

Ryan  was  represented  at  the  Man- 
agement Course  by  Ernest  F.  Mellinger, 
recently  appointed  General  Supervisor 
of  Methods  Engineering.  An  eleven- 
year  employee,  Mellinger  was  selected 
by  the  company  to  attend  the  two- 
week  course  conducted  on  the  Uni- 
versity campus  at  Iowa  City.  Ryan 
was  the  only  aircraft  manufacturer 
participating  in  the  program  which 
is  held  annually  for  factory  managers, 
industrial  engineers,  analysts,  cost  ac- 
countants, foremen  and  office  execu- 
tives. 

Mellinger  was  one  of  82  students 
from  leading  manufacturing  com- 
panies all  over  the  world,  including 
foreign  representatives  from  Egypt, 
Sweden,  Scotland  and  England. 

The  training  Mellinger  received  has 
proven  so  valuable  that  the  company 
will  probably  select  a  different  super- 
visor each  year  to  attend  the  Man- 
agement Course.  Shortly  after  return- 
ing from  the  course,  Mellinger  took 
over  his  new  assignment  which  was 
created  to  establish  standard  factory 
and  office  procedures,  and  to  plan 
facilities  which  will  assure  the  most 
efficient  utilization  of  manpower  and 
equipment. 

FOLLOWS  IN  DAD'S  FOOTSTEPS. 
Charles  Jeffery,  Jr.,  has  a  proud 
father  working  as  a  Navion  flight  line 
mechanic.  The  reason  for  Charles  E. 
Jeffery,  Senior's  pride  is  the  fact  that 
Charles  Junior  earned  his  private 
pilot's  license  on  his  1 7th  birthday. 
Last  year  on  his  16th  birthday,  he 
mode  his  first  solo  flight  and  was 
planning  then  to  try  for  his  private 
pilot's  license  on  the  day  he  was 
17  —  minimum   age   for   o   license  of 


this  type.  Bill  Bouck,  his  instructor 
at  Gillespie  Field,  is  a  former  Ryan 
School  of  Aeronautics  pilot  whom 
many  company  employees  will  remem- 
ber. On  schedule  for  celebrating  young 
Jeffery's  18th  birthday  is  his  com- 
mercial   pilot    license    examination. 

Jeffery  Senior  has  been  with  the 
Ryan  company  for  ten  years  and  a 
flying  enthusiast  himself  since  1915. 
He  finds  nothing  astonishing  about 
his  son's  development.  After  all,  he 
took  Charles  aloft  for  the  first  time 
when  he  was   1 3. 

YOURS  TO  FLY,  recently  completed 
motion  picture  starring  the  Ryan  Na- 
vion, hod  its  premiere  public  showing 
before  members  of  the  Ryan  Manage- 
ment Club  at  their  August  31st  meet- 
ing at  the  San  Diego  Club.  Joe  Wil- 
liams, Club  Program  Director,  arranged 
the  scoop  appearance  of  the  color  film, 
being  assisted  by  Don  Walker.  Bill 
Wogner  and  Bob  F.  Smith,  who  han- 
dled planning  for  the  movie,  and  Bob 
Montague,  producer-director  and  war- 
time Ryan  dispatcher,  were  introduced 
at  the  meeting.  Present  plans  call  for 
screening  of  the  film  for  other  Ryan 
employees  during  the  coming  weeks. 
John  van  der  Linde,  Chuck  Therrien, 
Ralph  Flanders,  Pete  Girard,  Basil 
Morrow,  Elye  Korn,  Marie  Sieczkowski, 
Horry  Hodgetts,  Stan  Steinbeck,  Harry 
Zuahlsdorf,  Dorothy  Maple,  John 
Cameron,  Bob  West,  Lois  Green,  Herb 
Olmon,  Frances  Kohl  and  Bill  Brother- 
ton  ore  among  Ryanites  who  turned 
in  acting  stints  for  the  production. 


RYAN    LITTLE    LEAGUE    WINNERS. 

Ryan  Little  Leaguers  defeoted  Convair 
in  the  League  play-off  gaining  the 
victory  by  a  3-1  edge  in  a  best  of  five 
series.  The  club  played  excellent  boll 
and  received  fine  pitching  from  Bobby 
Mendozo  and  Terry  Sparks.  The  boys 
were  guests  of  their  sponsors,  the  Ryan 
Management  Club,  on  August  31st 
at  the  San  Diego  Club. 

The  Son  Diego  Little  League  All 
Stars  journeyed  to  Son  Bernardino  for 
the  California  State  Championship  and 
defeated  San  Bernardino  in  the  first 
gome  5-0.  In  this  one,  Bobby  Mendozo 
turned  In  a  no  hitter,  and  in  the  sec- 
ond gome  San  Diego  defeated  Santa 
Marie  I  0-3  to  qualify  for  the  Regional 
play-offs  at  Austin,  Texas,  in  a  best 
two  out  of  three,  the  winner  to  go  to 
Williamsport,  Pa.,  for  the  National 
Championship. 

This  All  Star  Club  was  chosen  prior 
to  July  15th  by  the  managers  of  four 
San  Diego  clubs  for  eight  to  twelve 
year  olds.  The  winning  manager  in 
the  local  play-offs — Ryan's  Bill  Bil- 
lings— automatically  managed  the 
boys  in  the  State  and  Regional  play- 
of.'s. 

The  Regional  play-offs  were  held 
in  Austin,  Texas,  on  August  17  and 
18  with  Texas  winning  the  first  on  a 
no-hitter  by  a  score  of  5-0,  while  San 
Diego's  Bobby  Mendozo  who  pitched 
0  four-hitter  was  a  victim  of  two  er- 
rors   in   the   sixth    inning. 

California  defeated  Texas  in  the 
first  gome  of  the  double  header  Sat- 
urday 10-3  and  in  a  brilliantly  pitched 
game,  Texas  won  the  third  game  4-1. 
This  win  sent  the  Houston,  Texas,  boys 
on  to  the  Notional  finals.  It  was  a 
long  ride  home  for  the  San  Diego  kids, 
but  Texas  played  fine  baseball  and 
went  on  to  win  the  final  game  of  the 
World  Series  and  Notional  Champion- 
ship at  Williamsport  on  August  26. 


A  few  of  the  California  Little  League  Champions  from  Son  Diego  ready  to  leave 
for  the  Regionol  play-off  at  Austin,  Texas.  In  cor:  Walter  Thorp  (P),  Billy  Smidt 
(C) ,  and  Joe  Merino  (IstB).  In  front  of  car  (I.  to  r.)  :  David  Washington  (O.F. ), 
Bill  Hudson,  Ryan  Management  Club  Rep.,  Terry  Sparks  (P)   and  Robert  Mendozo   (P)  . 


RYAN  WELDING 

INNOVATIONS 

(Continued  from  page  9) 
outside  tip  has  a  smaller  diameter  because 
it  is  the  pre-heating  tip.  It  pre-heats  the 
metal  and  permits  the  welding  speed  to 
be  raised  from  2 '  2  to  7  ^2  inches  a  min- 
ute. One  adjustment  takes  care  of  both 
tip  flames.  The  increased  temperature 
derived  from  two  tips  both  strips  the 
flange  from  the  assembly  and  welds  the 
remaining  seam. 

Another  unique  welding  torch,  which 
was  designed  and  built  at  Ryan,  has  three 
flame  tips;  a  special  pair  of  natural  gas 
tips  in  addition  to  its  oxy-acetylene  tip. 
The  natural  gas  is  burned  ahead  and  be- 
hind the  welding  tips  to  provide  pre-heat- 
ing and  post-heating  of  the  stainless  steel. 
Natural  gas  flows  ahead  of  the  weld  zone 
to  pre-heat  the  metal  and  escapes  through 
tip  perforations  to  maintain  weld  area 
temperature  after  the  weld  is  made.  This 
post-heating  is  done  so  that  the  material 
will  not  cool  too  rapidly  behind  the  weld 
and  cause  cracking. 

Stainless  steel  has  a  high  coefficient  of 
expansion,  twice  that  of  mild  steel,  and 
therefore  it  is  particularly  subject  to  dis- 
tortion. The  effect  of  too  abrupt  a  heat- 
ing before,  and  cooling  after,  causes  a 
scissors-like  stress  of  the  weld  which 
cracks  the  metal.  The  greater  the  weld- 
ing rate,  the  more  pronounced  is  this 
effect.  Yet,  rapid  welding  of  stainless 
steel  is  very  desirable  because  it  reduces 
the  loss  of  corrosion  resistance  of  the  steel. 
With  this  new  torch,  welding  speed  can 
be  increased  to  six  inches  a  minute  with 
excellent  results. 

An  advantageous  feature  of  this  weld- 
ing torch  is  the  prevention  of  oxidation 
of  the  metal  by  the  flow  of  post-heating 
gas  which  protects  it  from  the  air.  In 
order  to  prevent  oxidation  of  the  internal 
weld  seam  in  long  closed  sections,  a  novel 
technique  is  utilized.  Natural  gas  is  in- 
troduced into  one  end  of  the  structure 
and  the  other  end  is  sealed  with  wet  as- 
bestos. As  the  gas  burns  within  the  tube 
it  reduces  the  atmosphere  and  effectively 
prevents  the  oxidation  of  the  weld  area 
by  consuming  the  available  oxygen. 

The  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  was 
one  of  the  first  aircraft  companies  to  in- 
stall atomic  hydrogen  welding  equipment 
in  1939.  This  process  had  proved  itself 
superior  in  many  ways  in  other  industries 
but  little  information  was  available  upon 
its  use  with  the  light-gage  stainless  steels 
of  aviation.  Ryan  designed  light-weight 
electrode  holders  weighing  half  as  much 
as  the  standard  holders  supplied  with  the 
equipment.  These  torches  made  it  possible 
for  large  numbers  of  women  to  be  used  in 
the  atomic  welding  program.  At  Ryan, 
ninety  percent  of  the  wartime  atomic 
welding  operators  were  women. 


ATOMIC  hydrogen  is  one  of  the  clean- 
est and  fastest  methods  of  joining 
stainless  steel.  It  adds  no  undesirable  car- 
bon to  the  welded  metal  and  costs  about 
one  half  as  much  per  foot  of  weld  seam 
as  oxy-acetylene  gas.  It  derives  its  speed 
from  the  extra  heat  obtained  from  the 
molecular  change  of  the  hydrogen  gas 
which  is  added  to  that  generated  by  the 
arc  stream.  The  hydrogen  absorbs  energy 
as  it  passes  through  the  arc  and  changes 
from  molecular  to  atomic  in  structure. 
Upon  striking  the  metal,  it  is  transformed 
back  into  its  molecular  form,  releasing 
large  quantities  of  heat. 

In  addition  to  increased  speed  and  re- 
duced costs,  atomic  hydrogen  produces  a 
more  ductile  weld  with  superior  micro- 
structure.  It  lends  itself  nicely  to  the 
design  requirements  of  the  exhaust  mani- 
fold industry. 

To  attain  top  speed  in  the  welding  of 
tubular  sections  of  stainless  steel  with 
atomic  hydrogen,  Ryan  has  designed  and 
built  automatic  machines  which  make 
rapid  atomic  welding  possible.  Fast, 
smooth  welding  at  the  rate  of  28  inches 
a  minute  is  performed  by  these  machines. 
This  rate  forms  a  striking  comparison  with 
the  oxy-acetylene  rate  of  5  inches  per 
minute  or  the  10  to  12  inches  for  metallic 
arc  welding. 

One  of  Ryan's  greatest  aids  in  taking 
the  manufacturer  of  exhaust  manifolds 
from  a  hand  method  to  a  mass  production 
system,  was  their  development  of  the  use 
of  rapid  "spot-tacking"  for  the  assembly 
of  stainless  steel  half-stampings.  Before 
this  innovation,  the  half-stampings  were 
taken  from  the  drop-hammers,  thoroughly 
cleaned  and  assembled  v.'ith  clamps  for 
seam  welding.  The  parts  had  to  be  very 
carefully  held  together  in  the  clamps 
so  that  the  edges  would  fit  correctly  for 
the  seam  welding. 


J 

No.  5 

— 'RtPORTERf 

VOL.  II 

SEPT 

20,    1950 

Published  By 

Rya 

n  Aeronautical  Compat 
Lindbergh  Field 

ly 

Sa 

Mcrnhcr 

n   Diego 

2,  California 

tdustrial 

Southern 

California      I 

Editors   Association, 

affiliated   uith 

the   In- 

tcrnationa\ 

Council 

of   Industrial 

Editon. 

Frances  L 

Kohl,  ar 

and  production  editor       | 

Robert 

F.  Smith 

Navion   news 

editor 

William 

P.  Brotherton,  technics 

editor 

Don 

Doerr,  c 

lief  pJiotograp 

icr 

WiUia 

m  Wagne 

r,  editorial  dir 

ctor 

With  the  new  technique,  the  half- 
stampings  are  quickly  spot-tack  welded 
together  without  the  need  for  adjusting 
holding  clamps.  The  operator  holds  the 
parts  in  alignment  while  as  many  as  120 
spots  per  minute  are  located  to  "stitch" 
the  parts  together  prior  to  the  seam  weld- 
ing. 

Perhaps  the  most  novel  spot  welding 
machine  in  the  Ryan  plant  is  a  portable 
gun  built  by  the  Sciaky  Welding  Com- 
pany. Although  this  welder  weighs  60 
pounds,  it  is  easily  handled  by  a  woman 
because  it  is  suspended  by  a  counter- 
balanced cable  which  holds  it  in  any  posi- 
tion. The  electrodes  are  air  pressure  op- 
erated and  water-cooled.  Because  it  an 
be  inserted  into  narrow  openings  of  less 
than  3  '/2  inches  of  vertical  clearance,  it 
is  employed  for  many  difficult  jobs  of  spot 
welding  such  as  the  fabrication  of  engine 
cowlings  and  fire-walls. 

No  story  about  welding  methods  would 
be  complete  without  mention  of  the  fast 
accurate  electric  seamwelding  process. 
With  this  means,  a  series  of  rapidly-placed 
overlapping  spotwelds  can  be  made  to 
accomplish  a  gas-tight  seam  in  stainless 
steel  and  other  metal  structures.  The 
melting  starts  and  stops  with  the  arc.  By 
varying  the  current,  exactly  the  right 
amount  of  heat  for  good  fusion  can  be 
applied.  Careful  supervision  of  all  of  the 
factors  of  cleanliness,  fit  and  design  must 
be  maintained  in  order  to  assure  the  high 
performance  of   this   process. 

Probably  the  highest  quality  weld 
which  can  be  made  is  accomplished  by 
flash  welding  machines  which  bring  two 
edges  together  in  butt-to-butt  fashion  and 
establish  an  arc  between  them.  When  the 
metal  becomes  molten,  the  arc  is  extin- 
guished and  the  two  edges  are  pressed  to- 
gether, or  forged,  in  a  shower  of  sparks. 
This  weld  will  be  free  of  impurities  re- 
sulting from  exposure  to  the  atmosphere 
at  high  temperatures  because  a  blanket  of 
molten  metal,  which  is  later  expelled, 
protects  the  plastic  weld  zone. 

The  contributions  which  the  metallur- 
gists and  other  laboratory  scientists  have 
made  to  the  advancement  of  welding 
practices  are  enormous.  Working  with  the 
metallograph,  the  spectrograph,  carbon 
determinator  and  many  other  marvelous 
research  machines  have  paved  the  way 
for  metal  progress. 

We  should  not,  however,  forget  that 
the  welding  supervisor,  the  plant  engineer 
and  the  actual  welding  operator  have  all 
supplied  industry  with  a  generous  share 
of  their  know-how  to  obtain  our  modern 
welding  techniques.  Most  of  the  stream- 
lined procedures  and  new  devices  in  this 
field  have  been  introduced  by  these  ex- 
perienced men  and  women  who  put  their 
practical  resources  to  the  solution  of  in- 
dustrial  problems. 


24 


Sure,  some  misi'akes  were  made.     Bad  ones. 

Soviet  Russia  was  given  important  concessions  in  Asia  for  entering  the  war  against  Japan,  even 
though   we   had   the  Japs   already   beaten. 

The  Marshall  Plan  and  Atlantic  Pact  were  created  to  stem  the  Red  tide  in  Europe  but  we  turned  our 
back  to  the  danger  of  Communism  in  Asia. 

American  occupation  forces  were  withdrawn  from  Korea,  leaving  only  a  token  group  of  "military 
advisors." 

Personal  security  was  placed  ahead  of  nationol  security. 

The  recommendations  of  Congressional  committees,  the  Joint  Chiefs  of  Staff  and  non-partisan  com- 
missions  which   warned   of  the   dangers   of   insufficient   military  strength,   were  disregarded. 

There  was  too  much  interest  in  getting  back  to  normal  and  enjoying  the  luxury  of  America's  peace- 
time living  standards. 

Today  America  is  paying  for  these  and  other  mistakes — paying  for  them  in  American  blood. 

As  a   nation  we   have  taken  a  stand  against  Communist  military  aggression. 

Now  as  individuals  we  must  follow  through  on  that  decision.    We  must  do  a   bit  of  soul-searching. 

What  can  we  do? 

We  can  shift  into  high  gear  in  our  work  on  the  job  here  at  Ryan  where  production  is  a  direct  pert 

in  America's  military  requirements. 
We  can  keep  from  wrecking  the  economic  boat. 

That  means  resisting  the  temptation  to  buy  any  food,  nylons,  tires  or  anything  beyond  actual  needs. 
It  means  an  end  to  the  policy  of  "I'll  get  mine  while  the  getting's  good  and  to  hell  with  its  effect 

on  the  general  welfare"  which   has  been  so  prevalent   on    the   part   of   both    businessmen   and 

labor  in  respect  to  prices  and  wages. 
It  means  selflessness  in  place  of  selfishness. 
It  means  thinking  more  of  national  security  and   less  of  personal  security. 


25 


RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY 
LINDBERGH     FIELD 
SAN  DIEGO  12,  CALIFORNIA 

POSTMASTER:    If  undelivcrable  for   any  reason,    notif 


Sec.  34.66,  P.  L.  a^  R. 

U.  S.  POSTAGE  PAID 

San  Diego,  California 
Permit  No.  437 


With  19,000  Flying  Hours  Between  Them- 
Four  Businessmen  Tell  Why... 


J 


w 


RYAN   NAVION  HAS  THE  QUALITIES 
PROVEN  MOST  IMPORTANT 


-BEN,  WILLARD,  ROBERT  AND  TOM  McGAHEY 


"More  pleased  with  our  choice  every  day,"  write 
four  businessmen-brothers,  all  former  transport 
or  military  pilots,  now  operating  their  own  Chrys- 
ler-Plymouth dealership  in  Miami,  Florida.  "We 
spent  many  hours  testing  the  various  personal- 
business  planes,  but  we  chose  the  Navion  as  it  had 
the  qualities  proven  most  important  for  our  pur- 
pose." Two  to  ten  thousand  hours  experience  as 


Air  Force,  Navy  and  Pan  American  pilots  taught 
these  4  men  to  recognize  the  value  of  the  Navion  s 
unique  combination  of  speed  and  safety;  ruggedness 
with  ease-of-flying.  They  found,  too,  the  Navion 
"flies  like  a  big  plane;  rides  like  a  big  plane.  Service 
pilots  should  know  that  the  Navion  handles  hke  a 
real  plane.  It's  comfortable,  good  looking;  and  the 
tricycle  gear  makes  cross-wind  landings  simple." 


riif^Mt.  ^t€i4/£4nf. 


NAVION  DELUXE  205.  Room  for 
four  big  people  with  plenty  of  luggage 
in  cabin  so  big  it  permits  changing 
seats  in  flight.  Superbly  sound-proofed 
and  ventilated.  Equipped  with  dual 
controls,  VHF  radio,  cowl  flaps.  Safe 
and  easy  to  fly. 


NAVION  UTILITY  205.  The  ideal  plane 
for  those  who  want  modern,  safe  air 
transportation  at  minimum  cost.  Fea- 
tures 205  hp.  Continental  engine,  has 
55  cu.  ft.  cargo  space,  lifts  1029  lbs. 
payload  with  full  tanks.  Ideal  for 
ranchers,  contractors,  etc. 


NAVION  SUPER  260.  Lycoming- 
powered  to  cruise  at  an  honest  170 
mph.  Ten  minutes  to  10,000  ft.  Out- 
cruises,  outclimbs,  lands  shorter  than 
anything  in  its  class.  The  260  is  the 
Navion  at  its  very  finest.  Write  today 
for  complete  free  information. 


y 


"^b 


REPORTED: 


m>^ 

/..   1 

■  7' 

1  / 

f  ^ 

A 

fc'^^ 

,/fittfc. 

\ 


rOL.  »  NO.'i 


ilEAIttlNG 

STAINIESS  STEEL 

PABWCATOt 

FOI  THB 

AIICRAIPT  ANP 

AIICBAIT  ENGINE 


INiUSTlY 


RMOn  Metal  Products 


DIVISION    OF    RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY      •      LINDBERGH    FIELD      •      SAN     DIEGO.     CALIFORNIA 

EKhaust  Systems   •   Jet  and  Rocket  Engine  Components 


51  mm  IS  "SUPER 


V 


WITH  .1  season  of  virtually  mainte- 
nance-free service  experience  behind 
it,  the  Super  260  Ryan  Navion  is  now 
coming  off  the  San  Diego  assembly  line 
as  a  1951  model,  incorporating  further 
refinements  for  greater  comfort  and  im- 
proved operation. 

Since  the  introduction  of  the  Super 
Navion,  Ryan  has  taken  great  interest  in 
obtaining  from  owners,  distributors  and 
dealers  their  comments  about  operation  of 
the  new  model,  and  has  been  unusually  re- 
sponsive to  suggestions  from  the  field. 
Some  minor  changes  were  made  during  the 
first  season  of  production,  without  even 
waiting  for  a  change  in  model,  in  order 
that  maximum  owner  satisfaction  would 


be  assured.  Now,  further  improvements 
have  been  added  to  those  already  made. 

Principal  refinements  in  the  1951  ver- 
sion involve  vastly  improved  cabin  cool- 
ing, more  luxurious  interior  styling,  an 
exterior  baggage  door  and  availability  of 
a  new  all-metal  Hartzell  propeller. 

None  of  the  Navion's  famous  safe  and 
easy-to-fly  characteristics  have  been  sac- 
rificed in  giving  the  Super  Navion  its 
sparkling  170  mph  cruising  performance 
and  12  50  ft.  per  min.  rate  of  climb.  The 
1951  model  obtains  its  maximum  cruise 
at  6000  feet  with  the  propeller  turning 
1765  rpm  and  the  engine  2750  rpm  with 
23  inches  manifold  pressure.  That  is  75% 
of  the  rated  power  of  the  smooth-running 


260  h.p.  Lycoming  engine.  With  only 
50*^  power  at  11,200  feet  using  20  inches, 
2400  rpm,  true  airspeed  is  156  miles  an 
hour,  and  at  that  setting  gasoline  con- 
sumption is  just  under  10  gallons  per 
hour.  During  climb  and  at  maximum 
cruise,  consumption  is,  of  course,  higher. 

What  the  pilot  new  to  the  Super  260 
first  notices,  however,  is  the  tremendous 
increase  in  rate  of  climb  and  accelerated 
take-off.  It  isn't  just  the  climb  itself  that's 
important;  it's  what  that  climb  makes 
possible  in  the  way  of  cruise.  With  the 
Super,  you  can  climb  quickly  to  higher 
altitudes  to  get  cooler,  smoother  air,  and 
take  full  advantage  of  winds  aloft.  Cross 
country  speeds  in  excess  of  180  mph  are 
regularly  obtained  and  reported  by  Super 
260  owners. 

The  new  "reverse-flow"  ventilation  sys- 
tem has  been  developed  to  give  increased 
fresh  air  circulation  in  the  cabin.  While 


The  beoutiful  new  custom  interiors  are  styled  by  Charles  of 
California  and  use  colorful  leather  trim  with  pleated  fabrics. 
Thicker    foam    rubber    mokes    seats    more    comfortoble    than    ever. 


New  accessories  for  '51  are  visors  and  curtains  to  stop 
glare  in  the  cabin.  Visors  adjust  over  almost  entire 
windshield.  Curtains  snap  on  over  center  and  rear 
windows  and  are  easily  stowed  in  glove  compartment. 


Hortzell's  new  all-mstol  selective  pitch  propeller  is  now  available 
for  the  Ryan  Navion  Super  260.  Streamlined  metal  spinner  is  also 
obtainable  as  a  desirable  extra  equipment  item  for  the  1951   model. 


former  ventilation  systems  brought  air 
into  the  cabin  in  ducts  which  passed 
through  the  engine  compartment  and 
firewall,  the  new  system  provides  an  ad- 
justable external  scoop  at  the  rear  of  the 
canopy  to  bring  completely  fresh  outside 
air  directly  into  the  cabin.  It  is  then 
forced  forward  through  the  cabin,  push- 
ing any  "dead"  or  heated  air  ahead  against 
the  firewall  where  it  is  sucked  out  by 
external  vents  located  forward  of  and  be- 
neath the  instrument  panel. 

The  beautiful  new  1951  Super  Navion 
interiors  are  styled  by  Charles  of  Califor- 
nia, and  give  all  standard  models  what  is, 
in  effect,  custom  upholstery.  Generous 
amounts  of  red,  green  or  gray  leather  trim 
are  used  with  soft  but  durable  harmoniz- 
ing fabrics.  The  side  panels  of  the  cabin 
are  of  pleated  broadcloth  and  seats  and 
seat  backs  are  of  pleated  barkweave. 
Thicker  foam  rubber  is  used  throughout 


to  make  the  seats  and  back  rests  even 
more  comfortable.  Map  pockets  are  now 
built  into  the  backs  of  the  front  seats. 
Sun  visors  for  windshield  and  curtains  for 
the  large  side  and  rear  windows  are  avail- 
able this  year. 

All  19n  models  have  the  distinctive 
Super  260  Navion  two-tone  enamel  fin- 
ishes: Chariot  Red  and  Ivory  with  red 
interior,  Hawaiian  Bronze  and  Beige  with 
green  upholstery,  and  Pacific  Blue  and 
Ivory  with  blue  interior. 

The  Navion's  Luggage  Master  exterior 
baggage  door  is  provided  as  standard 
equipment  to  assure  easier  loading  and  un- 
loading without  the  necessity  of  passing 
baggage  through  the  cabin,  yet  brief- 
cases and  luggage  are  accessible  in  flight 
by  tipping  forward  the  divided  rear  seat 
back-rest.  The  new  exterior  luggage  door 
.ilso  provides  easy  access  to  the  battery. 

The  instrument  panel  now  incorporates 


New  "reverse  flow"  ventiloflon  system  gives  greatly  increased 
fresh  air  circulation.  Bracing  outside  air  enters  through  an  adjust- 
able scoop  at  rear  of  cabin   and   leaves   by  forward  suction  vents. 


Convenient  new  push-button  starter  located  on  the 
instrument  panel  is  now  standard  equipment.  The 
green  and  sunmist  gray  panel  colors  are  new  and 
were    selected    to    increase    eye    appeal    and    comfort. 


Exterior  Luggage  Master  baggage  door  is  an  important  feature 
now  standard.  It  permits  loading  baggage  without  entering 
cabin.   Folding  rear  seat  back  allows  access  to  baggage   in   flight. 


a  push-button  starter  for  easier  operation, 
.md  the  manifold  pressure  dial  has  been 
changed  for  easier  reading.  The  color  com- 
bination of  the  new  green  and  sunmist 
gray  instrument  panel  is  designed  to  be 
easy  on  the  eye  and  creates  a  soft,  cool 
feeling  for  the  interior  decor. 

Some  minor  details  which  were  im- 
proved in  the  later  1950  Super  Navions 
are  also  worthy  of  mention  in  connection 
with  the  new  model.  To  assure  positive 
identification  of  the  carburetor  heat  and 
fuel  mixture  controls,  the  former  now 
has  a  square  knob,  while  the  mixture  con- 
trol is  round.  The  oil  dip  stick,  which 
formerly  had  markings  for  both  conven- 
tional and  tricycle-geared  airplanes,  now 
has  only  the  appropriate  oil  level  marks 
for  the  Super  Navion  installation. 

Though  concern  was  expressed  by  some 
observers  that  the  91  octane  gasoline  spec- 
(Contintied  on  page  20) 


RESEARCHERS  IN  METALLURGY 


■^' 


J.  R.  Fullerton  using  the  Spectrograph  which  "electrocutes"  a  tiny  parti- 
cle of  any  metal  and  snaps  a  picture  as  it  vaporizes.  He  is  shown  here 
analyzing     composition     of     a     Ryan-built     stainless     steel     exhaust     section. 


'^v. 


-^-^ 


vs' 


Typical  picture  which  you  might  see  if 
you  looked  into  the  Metallograph.  It  is 
an    etched    photomicrograph    of    1 8-8    steel. 


SHERLOCK  HOLMES  and  Dr.  Watson, 
the  famous  Baker  Street  detectives, 
never  followed  a  clue  nor  tracked  a  sus- 
pect with  more  scientific  avidity  than  the 
members  of  Ryan's  Engineering  Labora- 
tory display  in  their  constant  quest  to 
solve   the   questions   of   modern    industrv. 

Under  the  able  direction  of  William 
Vandcrmeer,  General  Supervisor,  this  staff 
of  investigators  collects  the  most  inti- 
mate facts  about  the  materials  which 
Rvan  uses,  and  the  processes  employed. 
This  knowledge  is  channeled  to  Rvan  pro- 
duction departments  and  accounts  in  large 
measure  for  the  excellence  of  Rvan  prod- 
ucts. 

Divided  into  Metallurgical,  Chemical, 
Physical  Test  and  Radio  and  Instrument 
sections,  the  Engineering  Laboratorv  oper- 
ates on  two  broad  paths;  analvtical  con- 


With  the  aid  of  this  120,000  lb.  tensile  testing 
machine,  W.  M.  Cattrell,  Physical  Test  Engineer, 
tests     a     swivel     joint     noting     its    tensile     strength. 


Laboratory  Analyst  Ruth  Oswald  is  comparing  film  exposed  in  the 
Spectrograph  with  a  standard  spectrogram  on  the  viewing  screen 
of    the    Comparative    Densitometer    to    determine    elements    present. 


trol  and  research.  It  controls  the  standards 
for  all  materials  and  processes  used  in 
manufacturing.  Incoming  stocks  of 
metals,  such  as  corrosion-resistant  steels, 
aluminum  alloys  and  magnesium,  must  be 
carefully  analyzed  to  see  that  they  are 
chemically  correct  and  modified  by  heat- 
treating  and  other  processes  to  meet  their 
specialized  use  in  aircraft  applications.  All 
plant  processes,  such  as  welding,  plating, 
pickling,  anodizing,  heat-treating  and  de- 
greasing,  are  developed  by  the  Laboratory 
and  remain  under  the  watchful  surveil- 
lence  of  Laboratory  technicians. 

In  this  role,  the  Laboratory  must  main- 
tain scientific  specialists  to  apply  tech- 
nical knowledge  to  the  unforeseen  prob- 
lems which  suddenly  arise  in  any  produc- 
tion process.  As  Vandermeer  puts  it,  "If 
a  weld  seam  fractures,  a  casting  breaks,  a 


Will  Vandermeer 
directs  the  En- 
gineering Labora- 
tory Sections.  Sev- 
enteen years  with 
Ryan,  he  received 
technical  education 
in  the  Netherlands. 


chemical  bath  doesn't  perform,  or  a  part 
begins  to  corrode,  we  must  find  the  an- 
swers in  a  hurry.  We  must  also  anticipate 
problems  in  advance  of  their  arising  and 
devise  methods  for  meeting  them.  Our  as- 
signments are  perhaps  the  most  varied  and 
interesting  in  the  plant. 

In  the  field  of  research,  the  Laboratory 
seeks  and  helps  develop  newer,  better  ma- 


terials and  more  efficient  ways  to  manu- 
facture Ryan  products.  Wilson  Hubbell, 
Chief  Metallurgist,  is  a  key  man  in  this 
work  because  Ryan's  major  products  are 
fabricated  from  corrosion-resistant  steels. 
Hubbell's  knowledge  is  extended  by  the 
use  of  the  most  modern  Laboratory  equip- 
ment: the  Metallograph,  Spectrograph  and 
Comparative  Densitometer. 

With  the  Metallograph,  which  magni- 
fies metal  particles  2000  times,  Hubbell 
can  peer  into  the  grain  boundaries  of 
metal  samples  and  actually  see  the  inter- 
locking pattern  between  the  particles  of 
the  metal.  Or,  he  can  photograph  this 
same  pattern  and  enlarge  it  in  size  to  bet- 
ter study  the  grain  size,  amount  of  carbon 
precipitation  and  other  important  clues  to 
the  Metal's  properties. 

(Continued  on  page  22) 


Ryan's  Chief  Metal- 
lurgist, Wilson  Hub- 
bell scrutinizes  mi- 
crostructure  of  metal 
sample  which  is  en- 
larged 2,000  times 
by  use  of  microscope 
on    the    metallograph. 


To   the    nation's    Flying    Businessmon-of-the-Yeor  will   go   this   handsome     gold     trophy     suitobly     engraved.      Title-holder    will     be 

the  Navion  owner  who  logs  the  most  flying  time  on  his  Navion  during  the  twelve-month  period  beginning  on  November  1,   1950.  | 


WHO  WILL  BE  THE  FLYIIfi 


No  need  to  send  in  box  tops,  letters  or  a  dime — 

What's  needed  in  this  contest  is  lots  of  flying  time. 

When  tve  get  your  entry  blank,  tve'll  send  it  to  our  seer — 
Perhaps  you'll  be  '^Flying  Businessman-of-the-Year." 


\Y/  HO  among  the  Navion's  more  than 
''"   2000  owners  is  America's  "Flying- 
est  Businessman"? 

To  answer  this  question  and  to  direct 
national  attention  to  the  increasingly  wide 
usage  of  business  planes,  the  Ryan  Aero- 
nautical Company  is  establishing  an  an- 
nual trophy  to  be  awarded  to  the  business- 
man who  logs  the  most  flying  time  yearly 
in  his  Navion.  The  initial  prize  will  be 
presented  in  the  fall  of  1951  by  Earl  D. 
Prudden,  vice-president,  for  the  12-month 
period  beginning  November   1,   1950. 

To  generate  continuing  interest  in  the 
competition  among  Navion  owners,  news 
magazines,  business  journals,  trade  publi- 
cations and  newspapers,  Ryan  will  also 
make  a  total  of  16  monthly  and  quarterly 
awards.  Each  month  during  the  year  a 
bronze  plaque  will  be  awarded  to  the  "Fly- 
ing Businessman-of-the-Month,"  and  after 
each  quarter  a  special  silver  plaque  will 
be  given  for  the  greatest  amount  of  flying 
time  logged  by  a  Navion  owner  in  the 
preceding  three-month  period. 

Ryan's  regional  Navion  distributors 
will  award  the  plaques  at  suitably  arranged 
occasions. 

Under  rules  of  the  contest,  no  owner 
can  receive  a  monthly  award  more  than 
once  a  year.  In  an  instance  where  one 
owner  logs  enough  hours  to  earn  monthly 
top  honors  for  a  second  time  in  one  year, 
the  monthly  award  will  go  to  the  owner 
with  the  next  highest  logged  time.  Simi- 
(Continiied  on  page  17) 


Special  bronze  plaques  will  honor  as  the  Flying  Businessman-of-the-Month  the  owners 
of  Novions  who  log  the  highest  total  hours  during  each  month  of  the  year  begin- 
ning November  1 .  There  will  also  be  silver  plaques  for  the  four  Navion  owners 
who  log  the  most  time  on  their  planes  during  the  three-month  quarters  of  the  year. 


BUSIMSSMM-OFTHE-YMR? 


UmU  the 
MRLIMS 


Ryan  Custovter  Service  Representatives  are 

Johnny-on-the-spot  when  their  services 

are  needed  —  anytime,  anytvhere. 


As  REPORTS  come  in  daily  about  the 
excellent  operation  and  service  life 
of  the  exhaust  systems  used  on  commer- 
cial airline  planes,  it  is  gratifying  to  know 
that  Ryan's  combined  manufacturing  and 
engineering  experience  plays  an  important 
part  in  scheduled  transport  safety,  econ- 
omy of  operation  and  dependable  flight 
schedules. 

The  company's  experience  with  com- 
mercial airline  exhaust  systems  dates  back 
to  introduction  of  the  Douglas  DC-3  and 
has  continued  to  the  present-day  era  of 
the  Ryan-equipped  DC-6,  Convair  Liner 
and  Boeing  377  Stratocruiser. 

DOUGLAS  DC-3 

Ryan  has  produced  approximately  40,- 
000  exhaust  systems  for  the  DC-3  Pratt 
&  Whitney  engine  combination  and  these 
have  operated  successfully  through  the 
long  years  of  military  and  commercial 
service  with  various  operators  throughout 
the   world. 

This  exhaust  was  a  combination  of  de- 
signs tried  out  prior  to  the  Ryan  develop- 
ment of  this  particular  system  and  was 
nowhere  near  as  complex  as  are  those  in 
use  today.  However,  there  were  many 
initial  problems.  The  system  had  to  be 
made  serviceable  from  a  maintenance  and 
engineering  standpoint  on  commercial  air- 
planes and  had  to  give  satisfactory  service 
during  normal  engine  overhaul  periods 
and  engine  life.  It  was  designed  so  it 
could  be  removed  by  disturbing  only  a 
few  parts  adjacent  to  the  engine  for  easy 
maintenance  at  overhaul  periods.  The  as- 
sembly was  broken  down  into  small  parts 
so  it  could  be  easily  handled  and  stored  in 
airline  spares   facilities. 

The  other  thing  that  made  this  exhaust 
system  attractive  was  that  there  were  no 
right  or  left-hand  assemblies,  and  parts 
were  interchangeable.  It  was  manufac- 
tured from  Type  347  18-8  stainless  steel, 
using  special  techniques  developed  by 
Ryan  over  many  years  experience.  The 
system  was  comprised  of  sections  that 
picked  up  front  and  rear  cylinder  exhaust 
ports  and  had  a  slip-joint  collar  in  be- 
tween each  of  the  sections.  This  assem- 
bly was  quite  simple  in  that  very  few  man 
hours  were  required  to  install  or  remove 
it  at  overhaul  periods.  The  wear  and  nor- 
mal deterioration  caused  by  long  service 
hours  was  very  simple  to  inspect  and  cor- 
rect. Almost  all  DC-3s  in  service,  and 
(Continued  on  page  23) 


This  Boeing  plane  of  20  years  ago 
required  an  exhaust  system  capable 
of  handling  only  the  heat  energy 
from    three    525    horsepower    engines. 


^ 


^- 


C.  L.  Foushee,  Jr. 
Service   Manager 


A  manifold  service  check  is  easily 
made  on  the  Convair  240's  exhaust 
system  by  the  "orange-peel"  cowl- 
ing surrounding  the  two  2400  horse- 
power    Pratt     and     Whitney     engines. 


Modern  commercial  transports  like 
this  Boeing  377  place  tremendous 
demands  upon  the  Ryon-built  ex- 
haust system  because  each  of  the  four 
engines    develops     3500     horsepower. 


How  remarkably  accessible  your  favorite  summer  resort  is  when  you 
go  there  in  your  own  plane  is  pleasantly  shown  in  this  poolside 
scene  filmed  at  the  Palm  Desert  Air  Park  near  Palm  Springs,  Calif. 


"MacTovish,"  pet  Sealyham  terrier,  is  a  featured  player  in  "Yours 
To  Fly."  He's  appearing  with  his  mistress,  Mrs.  Maxine  Whrteside, 
who  tells  the  increasingly  important  place  of  women   in   aviation. 


f? 


mu  TO  E\ 


?? 


Tbis  is  no  ^^ staged"  production,  but  an  actual 

on-the-scene  documentary  film  of  how 

the  Ryan  N avion  can  tvork  for  you. 


IF  you've  talked  to  the  program  director  of  your  club  lately, 
you've  probably  noticed  he's  smiling  again,  having  put  aside 
the  worried  look  that  means  there's  no  program  in  view  for 
next  month's  meeting. 

Responsible  for  his  new  light-heartedness  is  the  new  color 
motion  picture  just  released  entitled  "Yours  to  Fly."  Sporting 


a  sound  track  replete  with  dialogue,  music  and  narration,  this 
16  mm  club  special  is  beginning  to  make  the  rounds  of  organ- 
izations across  the  country. 

As  your  program  chairman  will  tell  you,  it  fills  the  long 
felt  need  for  a  motion  picture  that  tells  the  story  of  business 
and  family  flying  as  done  in  "private  airliner"  planes  that  can 


The  part  played  by  the  most  vocal  Navion  owner  of  them  all, 
Arthur  Godfrey,  is  a  favorite  with  audiences  everywhere.  See  and 
hear  this  favorite  as  he  checks  his  Ryan  Navion  at  Teterboro,  N.  J. 


The  rugged  utility  of  today's  business  planes  is  demonstrated  by 
owners  like  Harold  Dyer,  trucking  operator  who  uses  his  Navion  to 
transport  both  mechanics  and  repair  parts  to  equipment  on  the  road. 


10 


Lou  Hansen,  cattleman  in  close-up,  speaks  for  pilots  who  started 
flying  after  passing  fifty.  "I  use  my  Navion  nearly  everyday," 
he   soys.   A  round-up   on    his   ranch    is   a    high-light  of   the   movie. 


Farm  monogers  like  these  of  the  famous  Maple  Leaf  Farms,  in  one 
of  their  routine  days  of  flying,  supplied  enough  dramatic  material  to 
fill  several  movies.  The  best  sequences  appear  in  "Yours  To  Fly." 


be  safely  and  profitably  owned  and  operated  by  both  companies 
and  individuals. 

The  script,  of  course,  is  synonymous  with  the  story  of  the 
Ryan  Navion.  So  it  was  natural  that  the  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Company  should  set  out  last  May  to  produce  such  a  2 3 -minute 
film  designed  to  acquaint  people  everywhere  with  what  is  being 
accomplished  regularly  in  business  and  pleasure  flying  with  a 
modern  personal  plane  like  the  Navion. 

Producing  ""Yours  To  Fly"  was  a  precedent.  So  is  seeing  it. 
For  there  has  never  been  an  aviation  movie  quite  like  this  one 
which  stars  the  owners  of  Navions  themselves,  telling  the  story 
in  their  own  words,  much  as  they  would  if  you  were  to  ask 
them  in  conversation  how  they  used  their  planes.  No  mock-ups 
nor  Hollywood  "sets"  appear  in  this  film.  Its  stage  is  the  oil 
field,  farm,  cattle  ranch,  factory  and  a  dozen  other  real-life 
backgrounds  where  you  will  find  Navions  at  work  every  day. 

And  just  as  the  movie  was  produced  a  bit  unconventionally 
— without  a  costly  Hollywood  studio  figuring  in  the  job — so  its 
distribution  is  being  handled  in  a  manner  out  of  the  ordinary. 
Instead  of  a  professional  distribution  service  being  retained  to 


arrange  showings  around  the  nation,  the  distributors  of  Ryan 
Navions,  who  are  the  men  most  interested  in  the  success  of  the 
picture,  are  now  distributing  movies  as  well  as  aircraft. 

And  should  it  be  possible  that  your  club's  program  chairman 
hasn't  heard  about  ""Yours  To  Fly,"  you  will  be  doing  him  a 
service  by  acquainting  him  with  it  and  with  the  Ryan  Navion 
distributor  nearest  your  city.  The  latter  is  ready  to  arrange  for 
service  clubs,  women's  organizations,  professional  societies, 
trade  associations,  chambers  of  commerce,  fraternities  or  other 
groups  to  see  the  picture.  He  also  is  prepared  to  supplement  the 
showing  with  a  few  words  about  the  development  of  personal- 
business  aviation  in  your  own  area.  He  offers  free  a  half-hour 
entertainment  package  that  will  supply  your  club  with  an  out- 
standing aviation  program. 

Although  you  are  invited  to  contact  your  nearest  Ryan 
Navion  distributor  or  dealer  directly  for  promptest  service  in 
reserving  the  date  you  desire,  you  are  also  most  welcome  to 
contact  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company,  Lindbergh  Field,  San 
Diego  12,  California,  which  will  be  pleased  to  assist  in  comply- 
ing with  your  request. 


Vacationists  have  their  day  as  the  motion  picture  cameraman 
records  an  outing  at  a  Western  dude  ranch.  Even  the  horses  hove 
a   chance  to   "get  into  the  act,"  but  don't  look  for  them  to   fly! 


An  invitation  to  fly  with  him  in  his  Navion  wins  a  host  of  new 
friends  in  every  audience  for  radio-screen  star  Robert  Young  and 
for    private    flying.    He    flies    extensively    for    his    personal    tours. 


Large  aluminum-alloy  fuel  tank  sections  are  welded  with  the  Heli- 
arc  Automatic  Welding  Machine  by  George  Lone  ot  Manifold  Weld- 
ing. Once  the  voltage  is  selected,  the  machine  automatically  main- 
tains constant  voltage  by  a  compensating  device  which  actuates 
the    welding    head.    Filler    wire    is    fed    from    on    automatic    spool. 


ELECTRII 


Heliarc  tvelding  producer 
and  stainless  steel  alloyi 


WITH  twenty-eight  years  experience 
in  the  fast-moving  aviation  indus- 
try, Ryan  has  achieved  wide  recognition 
for  successfully  tackling  the  tough  "hot" 
jobs  of  aircraft  development.  This  is  the 
critical  manufacturing  field  of  heat-resist- 
ant exhaust  systems  where  the  blasting 
temperatures  of  jet  and  piston  engines 
test  the  knowledge  of  metallurgists  and 
the  skill  of  workmen.  It  is  a  torrid  "bat 
tlefield"  where  super-alloys  are  pitted 
against  volcanic  gases  in  an  atmosphere 
of  flame,  corrosion  and  vibration.  It  is 
the  kind  of  work  that  requires  intimate 
knowledge  of  metals  and  experience  in 
fabrication. 

Ryan  has  designed  and  built  thousands 
of    exhaust    manifolds,    heat    exchangers, 


June  Underwood  of  Monufocturing  Inspection  checks  the  weld 
seam  produced  in  on  aluminum-alloy  ring  by  the  Kleliorc  welding 
process.  Of  61S  alloy,  it  is  easily  welded  with  the  Heliarc  method 
and   exhibits  sound,   smooth   weld   seams   when    tested   by   X-ray. 


12 


IGEDLE 


found  tvelds  in  aluminutn 
vithout  the  use  of  flux. 


tail-pipes  and  other  high  temperature 
components  for  all  types  of  jet,  rocket 
and  reciprocating  type  power  plants.  The 
key  metals  which  have  made  it  possible 
for  exhaust  system  engineering  to  keep 
pace  with  the  demands  of  rapidly  expand- 
ing power  plants  have  been  the  stainless 
steels.  A  steady  stream  of  white  alloys 
of  steel  have  poured  from  the  research 
laboratories  to  be  tested  and  formed  into 
these  important  components.  Some  of  the 
new  metals,  the  "super-alloys,"  should  not 
properly  be  called  "steels"  because  they 
contain  less  than  2  5  percent  of  ferrous 
materials. 

To  "stitch"  these  new  metals  together 
into  intricate,  indestructible  configura- 
tions, modern  industry  has  evolved  the 
versatile  tools  of  welding.  Since  the  days 
of  the  village  blacksmith,  no  other  indus- 
trial process  has  developed  into  such  a 
powerful  tool  for  production.  In  count- 
less operations  welding  is  replacing  fasten- 
ing by  bolts  and  rivets  and  is  assuring 
ever-wider  use  of  lightweight  alloys.  Be- 
cause Ryan  is  the  largest  producer  of  air- 
craft exhaust  equipment,  which  is  uni- 
versally made  of  welded  stainless  steels, 
this  company  fabricates  more  welded 
stainless  structures  than  any  manufacturer 
in  the  aircraft  industry. 

Among  the  first  manufacturing  con- 
cerns to  adapt  the  advantage  of  spot-weld- 
ing, gas  welding  and  atomic  hydrogen 
welding  to  the  requirements  of  aviation, 
Ryan  has  also  quickly  converted  a  large 
portion  of  its  welding  facility  to  the  new- 
er process  of  Heliarc,  or  inert  gas,  weld- 
ing for  many  types  of  aircraft  compon- 
ents. This  recent  development  in  the 
field  of  arc  welding,  involves  the  use  of 
a  non-consumable  tungsten  electrode  im- 
mersed in  a  flow  of  inert  gas,  such  as 
Helium  or  Argon.  Although  basically 
tested  some  years  ago,  inert  gas  welding 
was  not  used  commercially  until  the  needs 
of  World  War  II  made  it  necessary  to  de- 
vise welding  which  did  not  require  the 
use  of  a  welding  flux. 

The  Heliarc  technique  is  excellent  for 
joining  the  hard-to-weld  metals  of  alumi- 
(Continued  on  page  IS) 


George  Lane  of  the  Manifold 
Welding  deparfment-  sets  the 
controls  on  the  automatic 
Heliarc  welding  machine  to 
weld  aluminum  tank  sections. 


Bill  Kupifik,  Welding  Fore- 
man, inspects  the  smooth 
seams  of  jet  engine  cones 
made     by     inert-gas     welding. 


Mike  Garcia,  Manifold  Weld- 
ing, uses  o  water-coolsd 
hand  torch  for  closing  the 
seam  of  a  Navion  fuel  tank 
without    the    use    of    a    flux. 


13 


Shown  inspecting  the  new  Allison  T40  turbo-prop  aircraft  engine  is  Ron- 
ald M.  Hazen,  Allison  Director  of  Engineering.  In  the  foreground  is  the 
J35    turbo-jet    engine    which    is    now    in    wide    use    by    the    military    services. 


Allison  Bids  For  Jet  Leadersliip 


by  T.  S.  McCrae,  Assistant  Director  of  Engineering, 

Allison  Division,  General  Motors  Corporation 


14 


By  simultaneously  developing  and  building  axial  and  centrifugal  type 
turbo-jets  phis  turbo-props,  Allison  presses  its  bid  for  jet  leadership. 


AMASS  flight  of  10,000  airplanes  cir- 
cling the  world  at  the  equator,  flying 
500  miles  an  hour — 

Any  such  single  achievement  would 
stretch  the  imagination  to  the  bursting 
point.  Yet,  if  all  the  flight  experience 
with  turbo-jet  engines  built  by  Allison 
Division  of  General  Motors  in  the  last  live 
years  could  be  lumped  together  in  one 
tremendous  project,  that  could  be  the  re- 
sult. 

Instead,  however,  experience  comes  in 
small  pieces  and  the  nearly  500,000  hours 
of  flight  time  with  Allison  engines  has 
been  built  up  by  many  flights  over  many 
spots  of  the  world  and  under  widely  dif- 
fering conditions. 

It's  that  kind  of  experience  which 
makes  progress  possible  and  which  has  re- 
sulted in  improved  dependabihty  and  in- 


creased power  ratings  for  the  J3  3  and  J3  5 
turbo-jet  engines  which  Allison  now  is 
delivering  to  the  military  services. 

Allison  entered  the  jet  engine  field  in 
1945,  near  the  end  of  World  War  II, 
when  jet  engines  were  so  new  there 
weren't  blueprints  of  models  available  to 
use  in  pricing  or  preparation  of  a  produc- 
tion schedule.  Yet,  when  it  was  agreed 
that  this  country  needed  both  develop- 
ment and  production  programs  in  jet  en- 
gines, Allison  applied  the  experience 
gained  in  the  production  of  over  70,000 
liquid-cooled  reciprocating  aircraft  en- 
gines and  proceeded  to  turn  out  jet  en- 
gines on  schedule. 

These  jet  engines  developed  far  more 
power  than  the  biggest  reciprocating  en- 
gines but  they  had  short  life  and  were 
plagued   with   all   the   troubles  of   a   new 


product.  Today,  many  problems  still  re- 
main but  as  a  result  of  hard  work  and 
experience,  tremendous  progress  has  been 
made.  For  example,  the  J3  3,  first  turbo- 
jet engine  made  by  Allison,  originally  was 
rated  at  3750  pounds  thrust.  Present  pro- 
duction models  develop  5400  pounds  of 
thrust  with  water/alcohol  injection.  In 
1945  this  engine  weighed  1960  pounds  in 
comparison  with  its  present  weight  of 
1775  pounds.  Formerly  the  J3  3  had  a  life 
of  less  than  10  hours  on  the  test  stands. 
Now  it  is  allowed  more  than  300  hours 
between  overhaul  periods.  At  the  same 
time  there  has  been  a  10  percent  improve- 
ment in  fuel  consumption. 

No  one  single  discovery  made  this  im- 
provement  possible  because,   in   all,   there 
were    1500    changes    involving    virtually 
(Continued  on  page  1 6) 


Easy    and    quick    engine    change    is    one    of    the    assets    of    the    turbo-jet   engine.    Here    a   J35    turbo-jet    is    being    replaced    in    o 
USAF    F84    Republic    Thunderjet   at   the    Allison    installation    hongor.    Total    time    for    this    change    was    only    thirty-five    minutes. 


every  part  of  the  engine.  Some  of  these 
changes  which  have  been  important  to 
the  advancement  of  the  engine  are:  A 
weight  reduction  in  the  turbine  wheel  of 
5  5  pounds  .  .  .  The  compressor  rotor  is 
now  assembled  in  three  parts  instead  of 
being  machined  from  one  casting  .  .  . 
Changes  in  the  design  of  the  blades  have 
increased  the  compressor's  efficiency  .  .  . 
in  fact,  air  flow  capacity  has  been  in- 
creased by  20  percent  at  the  same  com- 
pressor speed. 

In  1947  Allison  added  another  type 
turbo-jet  engine  to  its  development  and 
production     program  —  the     axial     flow 


The  Convair  240  Turbo-liner  purchased  by  Allison  as  a  flying  test  bed 
to  provide  experience  in  turbine-powered  transport.  It  will  have  two 
T38  turbo-prop  engines  which  develop  more  horsepower  for  each  pound 
of     weight     thon     any     other     propeller     type     engine     ever     flight-proved. 


Above:  Allison  J35  turbo-jet  engines  on  the  final  assembly  line.  This  engine  is  rated 
ot  5,000  lbs.  thrust  and  is  an  axial  flow  compressor  type.  Below:  A  T40  twin  turbo- 
prop engine  driving  two  counter-rotation  propellers  is  installed  on  the  Douglas  XA2D 
Skyshark,  the  powerful  new  Navy  attack  bomber  which  can  operate  from  smallest  carriers. 


J3  5.  Like  the  J33,  the  J3  5  has  under- 
gone extensive  development.  Thrust 
has  been  increased  45  percent  per  pound 
of  engine  weight,  to  its  present  rating  of 
5  000  pounds  of  thrust,  and  it  also  is  al- 
lowed 300  hours  between  overhauls. 

Two  still  newer  engines  recently  have 
been  added  to  the  Allison  gas  turbine  fam- 
ily. Developed  for  the  U.  S.  Navy,  they 
are  the  T38  and  T40  turbo-prop  engines, 
which  develop  more  horsepower  for  each 
pound  of  weight  than  any  other  propeller 
tvpe  engine  ever  flight-proved. 

A  single  unit  axial  flow  type  gas  tur- 
bine, the  T3  8  has  a  17  stage  compressor, 
S  combustion  chambers  and  a  4  stage 
{ContinucJ  on  page  IT) 


16 


ALLISON  BIDS  FOR 
JET  LEADERSHIP 

(Continued  from  page  16) 
turbine.  It  develops  2  500  horsepower  for 
only  122  5  pounds  of  weight  and  is  con- 
nected to  a  reduction  gear  through  an  ex- 
tension shaft. 

Two  of  these  engines  are  scheduled  for 
installation  in  a  Convair  240  Turbo-liner 
purchased  by  Allison  as  a  flying  test  bed 
to  provide  experience  in  turbine-powered 
transports. 

^ECOND  new  engine  is  the  T40  turbo- 
*^  prop  which  actually  is  two  T3  8  en- 
gines coupled  together  into  one  twin 
power  plant.  The  T40  develops  5  500  horse- 
power and  weighs  2  500  pounds.  Contra- 
rotating  propellers  are  driven  through  two 
extension  shafts  and  a  common  reduction 
gear.  Four  T40  twin  turbo-prop  engines 
power  the  U.  S.  Navy  XP5Y  Convair  fly- 
ing boat  at  speeds  well  in  excess  of  3  50 
miles  an  hour.  One  T40  also  powers  the 
Douglas  A2D. 

Activity  with  these  four  engines  makes 
the  Allison  Division  the  first  manufac- 
turer to  simultaneously  develop  and  build 
axial  and  centrifugal  type  turbo-jets  plus 
turbo-props.  With  continuing  effort  go- 
ing forward  on  these  four  projects  simul- 
taneously, Allison  is  making  its  bid  to 
keep  its  place  among  the  leaders  in  tur- 
bine engines  both  in  this  country  and 
abroad. 


FLYING  BUSINESSMAN 
CONTEST  FOR  19  51 

(Continued  from  page  7) 
larly,  only  one  quarterly  award  a  year  can 
be  received  by  any  one  owner.  Airport 
operators,  charter  services  and  Navion 
sales  representatives  are  not  eligible  for 
the  contest. 

And  farmers,  doctors,  architects,  ranch- 
ers and  other  agricultural  and  professional 
people  owning  Navions  are  reminded  that 
they  are  included  under  the  title,  "Flying 
Businessman,"  just  as  are  the  company 
executives  and  salesmen. 

As  soon  as  an  entry  blank  is  received  at 
Ryan,  an  additional  blank  for  the  next 
month's  competition  will  be  forwarded  to 
the  owner.  Entry  blanks  call  for  total 
time  logged  at  the  end  of  the  previous 
month  and  the  final  logged  time  at  the 
end  of  the  current  contest  month. 

Contest  winners  can  look  forward  to 
more  than  the  national  recognition  they 
will  receive  as  "Flying  Businessmen" 
award  recipients,  for  with  each  prize  will 
go  the  opportunity  to  capitalize  upon  their 
reputations  as  progressive  flying  executives 
in  their  local  business  activities. 


HUGE  NEW  ENGINE  LATHE  INSTALLED  IN  TOOLING  DEPARTMENT 

To  machine  Ryan-built  jef  engine  and  exhaust  system  components  with  maxi- 
mum speed  and  precision,  the  company  has  recently  installed  in  the  Tooling  Depart- 
ment o  new  25-inch  Selective  Head  Engine  Lathe  of  the  most  modern  and  powerful 
type.  Designed  by  Lodge  and  Shipley,  this  new  tool  provides  the  ultimate  in  powerful 
cutting  facility,  whether  the  requirement  is  one  of  unusually  close  limits  of  accuracy 
or  one  where  speedy  removal  of  metal  by  heavy  hogging  cuts  is  necessary. 

With  the  addition  of  this  new  machine,  Ryan  production  of  tooling  for  jet  engine 
and  high  temperature  structures  has  been  accelerated.  It  is  now  possible  to  handle 
25-inch  diameter  tooling  with  speed  and  simplicity,  where  formerly  it  had  to  be 
machined  on  the  Vertical  Turret  Lathe  or  sent  out  of  the  factory.  Both  of  these 
alternatives  involved  additional  handling  and  consumed  extra  time.  Now,  deliveries 
to  prime  monufacturers  will  be  speeded  up.  Typical  tools  which  lend  themselves  to 
production  on  the  Lodge  and  Shipley  machine  are  those  used  in  fabricating  the 
Pratt  &  Whitney  and  General  Electric  tail  cones  for  jet  engines,  which  encompass 
large  diameters  and  high  precision. 

The  machine  is  mounted  on  a  rock-like  base  which  gets  its  rigidity  from  on 
exclusive  elliptical  girth  design.  The  carriage  is  wider  and  deeper  than  previously 
available.  All  lift  or  twist  of  the  carriage  is  completely  prevented  by  the  combination 
of  flat  and  taper  guide  way  construction  of  the  long  single  guide  formed  by  the 
front  bearing  of  the  bed.  Unusually  large  bearing  surfaces,  which  ore  automatically 
lubricated,  contribute   to   the    smooth,   powerful   action. 

All  requirements  of  modern  lathe  operation  are  met  by  an  ingenious  quick-change 
georing  arrangement  which  allows  65  feed  and  threod  changes  ranging  from  the 
extra  fine  feed  of  .0033"  to  the  very  coarse  feed  of  .832"  and  from  Vz  to  128 
threads  per  inch.  The  controls  ore  conveniently  grouped  together  on  the  carriage 
ond  apron  to  give  the  operator  greater  ease  of  control. 

The  massive  heodstock  and  toilstock  elements  are  equipped  with  anti-friction 
spindle  bearings,  automatically  oiled  by  filtered  oil.  A  combined  pump  and  splash 
system  insures  continuous  lubrication  to  every  bearing  surface  of  the  apron,  carriage, 
bed  and  heodstock  components.  The  quick-change  gear  box  and  end  gearing  ore 
lubricated  by  o  one-shot  arrangement. 

The  accessible  lever  controls,  on  the  front  of  the  heodstock,  provide  a  selection 
of  12  spindle  speeds  ranging  in  geometric  progression  from  8  to  331  r.p.m.  This 
flexibility,  when  combined  with  the  65  threads  and  feeds  available,  permits  an 
amazingly  wide  range  of  work  which  will  occommodote  any  job  within  the  machine's 
capacity. 

Simplicity  and  massive  construction  keynote  the  design  of  this  modern  produc- 
tion instrument.  It  embodies  the  accumulation  of  experience  in  engine  lathe  con- 
ception since  1839.  It  is  typical  of  the  new  machines  which  Ryan  is  continuously 
adding  to  its  facilities  in  order  to  give  its  customers  the  best  combination  of  skill 
and  equipment  which  it  is  possible  to  attain. 


17 


It's  always  a  happy  occasion  for  T.  Claude  Ryan  to  present  service  pins  and 
especially  to  such  oldtimers  as  II.  to  r.)  Walter  Balch,  15  years;  John  van  der 
Linde,  20  years;  Ryan;  and  Eddie  Oberbouer,  15  years.  Sam  C.  Breder  who 
received    his    15-year    service    pin    was    absent    when    photograph    wos    taken. 


SERVICE  PINS  PRESENTED 


Four  Hundred  and  Fifteen  Years  of 
work  with  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany was  represented  by  the  forty-two 
men  who  attended  the  recent  presenta- 
tion of  10-  and  15-year  service  pins 
made  by  T.  Claude  Ryan,  president. 

In  addition  to  the  ceremony  of  receiv- 
ing their  service  pins,  the  veteran  Ryan 
employees  were  given  a  special  showing 
of  the  recently  completed  color  and  sound 
motion  picture  "Yours  To  Fly"  telling 
the  story  of  the  Ryan  Navion's  use  in 
industry  and  on  the  farm. 

Joining  the  "Real  Old  Timers"  Club 
were  John  van  der  Linde,  Airplane  Pro- 
duction Superintendent,  who  received  o 
Twenty-Year  service  pin  with  four  dia- 
monds and  Walter  Balch,  Airplane  Serv- 
ice Manager;  Sam  Breder,  head  of  Metal 
Products  and  Eddie  Oberbouer,  Assistant 
Foreman,  who  all  received  Fifteen-Year 
service  pins  with  three  diamonds. 

Recipients  of  Ten-Year  pins  with  two 
diamonds  were:  Giles  Barton,  Manufac- 
turing Control;  Gilbert  Bell,  Manif.  As- 
sembly;    Calvin     Bowen,     Manif.     Small 


Ports;  Maurice  Creley,  Methods  Eng.; 
Donald  Donnelly,  Mfg.  Inspection;  Floyd 
Dungan,  Manif.  Assy.;  Lester  Fleming, 
Tool  Design  &  Mfg.;  Frenchy  Foushee, 
Customers'  Service;  Charles  Gondy,  Manif. 
Assembly;  Ralph  Gottschalk,  Manif.  As- 
sembly; Gerald  Haight,  Cutting  &  Form- 
ing; Archie  Hammock,  Production  Engi- 
neering; Frederick  Herpich,  Airplane  Sub- 
Assembly;  James  House,  Welding  &  Pre- 
Jig;  Bill  Immenschuh,  Airplane  Eng.; 
Chorles  Jorvie,  Methods  Eng.;  Noland 
Johnson,  Drop  Hammer;  Kenny  Krull, 
Experimental;  Loyal  Kunde,  Mochine 
Shop;  Larry  Larson,  Processing;  George 
Lawton,  Jet  Assembly;  Kenneth  Mar- 
shall, Mech.  Moint.;  Jess  Martin,  Weld- 
ing; Chief  Peter,  Plant  Protection;  Fred- 
erick Pierson,  Plant  Protection;  Charles 
Rockerhousen,  Purchasing;  Elmer  Russell, 
Mech.  Moint.;  Fred  Simonides,  Airplane 
Sub-Assembly;  Miguel  Sanchez,  Monif. 
Assembly;  Doc  Sloan,  Airplane  Soles; 
Richmond  Starkweather,  Mech.  Maint.; 
Don  Walker,  Prod.  Control;  Owen  Walker, 
Jr.,  Drop  Hammer  and  William  Walter, 
Manif.  Assembly. 


ELECTRIC  NEEDLE 

(Continued  frovi  page  1}) 
num,  magnesium,  brass,  nickel,  inconel 
and  silver  and  is  the  only  fusion  welding 
method  which  successfully  welds  alumi- 
num and  magnesium  without  flux.  It  has 
opened  up  a  new  philosophy  in  design  be- 
cause the  engineer  no  longer  need  be  con- 
cerned with  flux  entrapment  and  after- 
weld  cleaning.  This  is  valuable  in  the  de- 
sign of  fuel  tanks,  for  example,  because 
fluxes  tend  to  become  corrosive  and  are 
sometimes  impossible  to  completely  re- 
move after  welding. 

Heliarc  is  progressively  replacing  acety- 
lene-gas welding  in  a  wide  variety  of 
applications  due  to  its  freedom  from  flux, 
slag  and  oxides,  and  greater  speeds.  It 
is  excellent  for  use  with  stainless  steels 
because  its  pin-point  concentration  and 
high-speed  narrow-band  heating  minimize 
or  eliminate  carbide  precipitation  and  loss 
of  corrosion  resistance.  Ryan  has  installed 
modern  Heliarc  equipment  with  which 
all  magnesium  fabrication  and  90  per  cent 
of  the  aluminum  alloy  structures  are 
welded.  The  same  type  of  fiery  needle  also 
stitches  75  per  cent  of  the  stainless  steel 
welds  which  were  formerly  joined  by  gas 
welding. 

Typical  parts  which  are  welded  with 
the  new  manual  and  automatic  Heliarc 
machines  are  aircraft  fuel  tanks,  ranging 
all  the  way  from  the  three  20-gallon  Ryan 
Navion  fuel  cells  to  the  largest  external 
wing  tanks  ever  built  for  military  planes. 
Although  the  metal  of  this  huge  tank, 
61-S  (aluminum  alloy),  is  classified  as  a 
weldable  material  by  the  aluminum  com- 
panies, most  manufacturers  avoid  welding 
it  because  it  is  sensitive  to  cracking  under 
welding  temperatures.  With  the  fast, 
modern  automatic  Heliarc  machines  at 
Ryan,  no  cracking  problems  have  oc- 
curred. The  welding  heat  is  applied  rapidly 
and  confined  to  a  very  narrow  band  of 
metal. 

Very  thin  magnesium  flight  fins  for  the 
Aerobee  high-altitude  sounding  rocket  are 
welded  with  the  Heliarc  process,  which 
produces  high  quality  magnesium  welds 
of  such  smooth  contours  that  a  minimum 
of  finish  grinding  is  necessarv.  All  exhaust 
equipment  of  Uniloy  19-9DL  alloy,  such 
as  the  Ryan  exhaust  manifolds  for  the 
Convair-Liner  and  the  Boeing  Stratocruis- 
er,  are  welded  mainly  by  the  Heliarc  proc- 
cess.  19-9DL  stainless  steels  contain  a 
large  per  cent  of  the  stabilizing  elements, 
of  columbium,  titanium,  molvbdenum  and 
tungsten,  which  are  vaporized  bv  the 
heat  of  slower,  conventional  types  of 
welding.  Heliarc's  speed  prevents  the  boil- 
ing away  of  these  vital  elements  and  re- 
tains the  corrosion  resistance  of  the  allov. 


18 


The  Heliarc  torch  consists  of  a  single 
tungsten  electrode  which  conducts  the 
electric  arc  to  the  work,  using  either  AC 
or  DC  power  supply.  At  Ryan,  AC  with 
superimposed  high  frequency,  is  employed 
for  welding  aluminum  and  magnesium  al- 
loys. DC  current  is  used  for  welding  stain- 
less steels.  An  inert  gas  is  dispensed  around 
the  electrode  to  prevent  oxidation  and 
eliminate  the  need  for  flux.  The  gas  also 
aids  in  cooling  the  electrode.  The  combi- 
nation of  non-consumable  electrode  and 
blanket  of  inert  gas  creates  a  clean  weld- 
ing environment  which  produces  the  pur- 
est quality  of  weld. 

FOR  straight  line  welding  jobs,  the  big 
automatic  Heliarc  machines  are  amaz- 
ing in  their  performance.  The  three  flows; 
current,  argon  gas  and  water,  for  cooling, 
are  automatically  controlled  by  electronic 
devices.  In  addition,  the  voltage  is  main- 
tained at  a  constant  by  an  electronic  com- 
pensator which  automatically  raises  and 
lowers  the  welding  head  to  lengthen  or 
shorten  the  arc.  Automatic  starting  and 
stopping  is  accomplished  so  that  the  head 
movement  is  coordinated  with  the  work. 
Filler  wire  is  fed  to  the  weld  area  without 
supervision.  All  the  operator  has  to  do  to 
weld  the  seams  in  a  large  structure  such 
as  the  Ryan-built  General  Electric  J-47 
jet  engine  tail  cone  is  to  set  the  controls, 
start  the  machine  and  then  wait  until  the 
work  is  done.  Welding  speeds  up  to  150 
inches  per  minute  are  reached  by  this 
equipment. 

A  large  number  of  manually  operated 
hand  torches  are  used  throughout  the 
Ryan  plant.  These  are  both  air  and  water 
cooled,  depending  upon  their  capacity, 
and  run  up  to  300  ampere  current  flows 
and  speeds  of  50  inches  per  minute.  The 
gas  flow  is  controlled  by  a  solenoid  valve 
which  is  actuated  by  the  welding  switch 
and  allows  the  gas  to  flow  from  1  to  1 5 
seconds  after  the  current  is  cut,  in  order 
to  protect  the  electrode  while  cooling. 
Water  is  circulated  through  the  torch  and 
the  welding  switch  is  automatically  cut 
off  if  the  water  flow  fails,  to  avoid  over- 
heating. 

With  this  new  equipment,  Ryan  de- 
signers and  engineers  are  creating  entirely 
new  aircraft  components  which  were  not 
possible  a  few  years  ago.  The  welding  of 
aluminum  and  magnesium  has  been 
brought  from  an  experimental,  unsatisfac- 
tory process  to  a  sound, usable  technique. 
A  remarkable  method  for  joining  the  new 
"super-alloys"  has  been  developed  which 
IS  particularly  adapted  to  the  exacting 
demands  of  these  critical  metals.  With 
these  outstanding  features  in  mind,  Ryan 
began  to  convert  a  substantial  amount  of 
welding  equipment  to  the  Heliarc  process 
sometime  ago.  Today,  the  Ryan  plant  is 
utilizing  this  modern  technique  to  achieve 
higher  standards  of  product  quality. 


From  the  deck  of  the  Escort  Carrier  "Badoeng  Strait"    (CVE-116),   a   Ryan    Navion 
L-17  "General  Headquarters"  plane  of  Army  Field  Forces  takes  off  for  combat  lone. 


NAVIONS 
AT  WORK 

FOR 
UNCLE  SAM 


Navions  like  this  bottle-dressed  L-17  are 
logging  up  to  100  hours  per  month  in  front 
line     tactical     air     control     work     in     Korea. 


Whoever  thought  of  the  Navion  as  a 
carrier-based  plane?  Certainly  not  the 
designers  of  the  L-17  liaison  planes  nor 
the  workers  at  Ryan  Aeronautical  Com- 
pany who  build  them.  Yet  carrier  opera- 
tion is  one  of  the  many  unexpected  war- 
time combat  jobs  the  versatile  Navions 
have  been  called  upon  to  perform  in  the 
Korean    War. 

Tactical  air  control  direction  by  Navion 
and    other    liaison    planes    is    on    entirely 


new  development  in  aerial  warfare.  L-17s 
fly  reconnaissance  into  enemy  territory. 
Then,  as  the  F-51  Mustang,  F-80  Shoot- 
ing Star  and  F4U  Corsair  close-support 
aircraft  come  in  to  attack  enemy  targets 
inside  the  bomb  line,  the  L-17  liaison 
pilots  point  out  the  targets  to  the  flight 
leaders. 

The  Army  Field  Forces  ore  also  contin- 
uing test  work  with  Jato  Junior  for 
shorter  toke-offs  with  greater  loads. 


At   Ft.   Bragg,   N.   C,  tests  continue  with  Aerojet  Engineering   Corp.   "Jato  Junior" 
rockets  attached  to  Army  L-17  Navions  to  further  shorten  take-offs  with  heavy  loads. 


19 


RYAN  EXHIBITS  AT  S.A.E.  MEETING 


Presiding  over  the  exhibition  booth  at 
the  recent  Society  of  Automotive  Engi- 
neers' annual  West  Coast  Meeting  in  Los 
Angeles  were  C.  L.  Foushee,  Jr.,  (above) 
and  Jack  Zippwald,  representatives  for 
the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company's  Metal 
Products  Division. 

During  the  three-day  meeting,  Foushee 
and  Zippwald  acquainted  representatives 
of  the  country's  largest  aircraft  and  en- 
gine manufacturing  firms  with  the  high 
quality  exhaust  systems  and  jet  engine 
products  fabricated  by  Ryan. 


Purpose  of  these  annual  S.A.E.  meet- 
ings is  to  give  the  members  of  related 
industries  a  chance  to  exchange  new 
engineering  ideas  and  technical  informa- 
tion. Conferences,  talks  and  educational 
exhibits,  like  the  one  of  Ryan  products 
in  the  picture,  point  out  new  advances 
and  skills  in  oeronoutical  manufacture  as 
well  as  in  other  fields. 

Hanging  just  below  the  sign  is  a  new 
Ryan  product — on  exhaust  system  for  the 
Continental-powered  M-46  General  Pat- 
ton  heavy  combat  tank. 

Tholograph   courtesy   of   Western    Flyhig    M,:gazttte 


'51  NAVION  IS  "SUPER" 

(Continued  from  page  3  ) 
ified  for  the  Lycoming  engine  might  not 
be  readily  available,  this  has  not  proven 
to  be  a  problem.  Neither  owners  nor  dis- 
tributors report  any  difficulty  in  this  re- 
gard. 

LANDING  characteristics  of  the  Super 
260  are  practically  identical  to  those 
of  the  205  Navion.  With  the  big  Navion 
flaps  full  down,  approaches  are  steep  and 
slow,  and  the  roll  is  only  470  feet  with 
full  28  50  lb.  load  in  no  wind  at  sea  level. 
Take-off  requires  but  400  feet,  and  is 
more  remarkable  than  ever  with  the  great- 
er power  of  the  Lycoming  260  h.p.  engine. 
Incidentally,  the  Super  260  uses  the  same 
engine  cowl  as  the  205.  This  is  one  of 
the  few  cases  where  as  much  as  25% 
greater  power  has  been  installed,  with  no 
increase  in  frontal  drag.  For  performance 
from  high-altitude  fields  and  over  moun- 
tainous terrain,  the  Super  260  has  "get  up 
and  go"  like  no  other  plane  in  its  class. 


To  give  the  best  in  cross-country  fly- 
ing, Ryan  provides  a  20-gallon  auxiliary 
fuel  tank  at  no  additional  charge.  With 
normal  39' 2-gallon  fuel  load  (which  gives 
415  mile  range  at  full  cruising  speed,  and 
up  to  595  miles  at  lower  power  settings), 
passengers  and  baggage  totaling  660 
pounds  can  be  carried.  This  means  that 
four  people  averaging  as  high  as  170 
pounds  each  (total  680  pounds)  plus  36 
gallons  of  fuel  can  be  carried.  Practical 
experience  has  shown  the  weight  of  four 
people  carried  averages  around  60  pounds 
less  than  680  pounds,  so  whatever  that 
difference  is  can  be  carried  in  additional 
fuel  or  baggage. 

When  20  additional  gallons  of  fuel  are 
also  carried  in  the  auxiliary  tank,  range  is 
increased  to  640  miles  at  170  mph  and  up 
to  900  miles  at  lower  power  setting  and 
speed.  The  120-pound  weight  of  the  extra 
20  gallons — which  give  the  increased 
range — must  be  taken  from  the  passenger 
and  baggage  load.  This  allows  whatever 
combination   of   the   660-pound   load   for 


passengers,  baggage,  and  extra  fuel  that 
is  most  desirable  for  the  specific  flight. 
With  regular  and  auxiliary  tanks  full 
this  means  three  170-pound  persons  and 
30  pounds  baggage.  Statistics  show  that 
on  extended  cross-country  trips  the  aver- 
age passenger  load  is  less  than  three  people 
so  the  flexibility  of  loading  and  range  of 
the  260,  permitting  extra  fuel  and  range, 
is  a  distinct  advantage,  even  though  ob- 
tained in  exchange  for  some  of  the  other 
useful  load. 

Because  the  engine  is  geared  120:77  the 
Hartzell  metal  propeller  is  very  efficient 
and  amazingly  quiet,  turning  only  1765 
rpm  at  maximum  cruise.  A  low-pressure 
carburetor,  with  engine  driven  and  auxil- 
iary electric  fuel  pumps,  is  provided.  The 
float-type  carburetor  operates  at  pressures 
of  'j  to  5  psi;  is  very  dependable;  re- 
quires no  adjustment,  and  was  selected  for 
its  ease  of  maintenance  feature.  Use  of 
carburetor  heat  will  give  a  temperature 
rise  of  up  to  108°,  and  is  extremely  effec- 
tive. Slight  decrease  in  manifold  pres- 
sures, caused  by  icing,  are  relieved  by  heat 
control  in  a  matter  of  seconds. 

Most  new  models  have  a  lot  of  "bugs" 
that  need  to  be  worked  out,  but  Ryan's 
policy  of  service  testing  the  Super  260 
before  production  and  following  up  with 
continuing  surveys  to  purchasers  and  dis- 
tributors to  analyze  and  correct  any  defi- 
ciencies gave  owners  a  relatively  worry- 
free  airplane  even  in  the  first  models  built. 

In  introducing  the  Super  Navion  this 
past  season,  Ryan  and  Lycoming  did  so 
with  an  established  policy  of  giving 
prompt,  competent  field  service  so  that 
the  new  model,  from  the  start,  would  set 
a  high  standard  for  operating  efliciency 
and  serviceability.  The  reputation  of  the 
Super  260-Lycoming  combination  to  date 
confirms  the  soundness  of  the  manufac- 
turers' policies  and  the  value  of  regular 
factory  service  tours. 

THE  Super  260  airframe  is  the  same 
tried  and  true  structure  that's  been 
used  in  more  than  2000  Navions  flying  all 
over  the  world.  The  engine  is  a  higher- 
horsepower,  geared  version  of  the  reliable 
power  plant  used  in  thousands  of  wartime 
L-5's  so  there's  been  no  concern  on  that. 
The  reduction  gear  is  the  product  of  years 
of  careful  Lycoming  study  and  know- 
how,  and  was  designed  to  meet  require- 
ments for  a  400-horsef>ower  engine.  As  a 
result,  the  gears  are  quiet  and  dependable 
as  the  transmission  of  a  new  automobile. 
Owners  of  Super  Navions.  after  a  sea- 
son of  operating  experience,  report  the 
plane  has  consistently  proven  that  at  full 
gross  weight  it  will  take  off  in  a  shorter 
run,  climb  faster  and  fly  faster  at  any 
altitude    than    other    planes   in    its   class. 


20 


PLANT  TOUR 


Uufortitnately  tve  don^t  have  the  opportunity  to  shoiv  many  readers  through  the  Ryan 
factory^  but  ive  can  ask  you  to  join  us  in  this  column  ivbile  we  go  through  the  plant 
and  meet  some  of  the  people  who  help  make  Rya7t  a  better  place  to  tvork. 


WINS  MERIT  AWARD.    Dole  H.  Ock- 
erman,    Asst,    Secy.-Asst.    Treas.    of    the 
Ryan   company,  was   presented  the  Merit 
Award   of    the    National    Office    Manage- 
ment Association  at  a 
recent  dinner  meeting 

rof    the    San    Diego 
*■  Chapter    of    N.O.M.A. 

held  at  the  San  Diego 
.  .„♦  Club. 

A  Key  and  Scroll 
^^  were  presented  to 
^^  Ockerman  by  Ander- 
son Borthwick,  presi- 
dent of  the  First  Na- 
tional  Bank.  The 
award  is  in  recognition  of  meritorious 
services  given  by  members  to  chapters 
and  usually  requires  six  years  of  sustained 
effort  to  qualify.  Ockerman  is  the  third 
San  Diegan  to  be  so  honored. 

Ockerman,  a  charter  member  of  the 
local  chapter,  has  each  year  been  an 
officer  or  an  active   committeeman. 

JUNIOR  ACHIEVEMENT!  The  Ryan 
Aeronautical  Company  has  joined  twenty 
San  Diego  business  leaders  in  a  coop- 
erative plan  with  the  city  and  county 
schools  to  train  local  youth  in  the  prob- 
lems and  opportunities  in  business  and 
industry. 

Under  this  Junior  Achievement  Move- 
ment, between  200  and  300  high  school 
students  will  have  an  opportunity  to 
form  and  operate  production  corporations 
during   the    present  school   year. 

The  Management  Club  of  Ryan  Aero- 
nautical Company  is  sponsoring  two  clubs 
— one  in  the  metal  working  field  and  the 
other  in  plastics. 

Ryan  employees  who  are  members  of 
the  board  of  senior  advisers  are  Sam  R. 
Kroschel,  Manager  of  Contracts  and  Ex- 
ecutive Assistant;  William  G.  Ferguson, 
Internal  Audit;  John  von  der  Linde,  Air- 
plane Production  Superintendent;  Fred 
B.  Coffer,  Customer  Service  Coordinator; 
Ray  Ortiz,  Manifold  Production  Superin- 
tendent; and  Sfuart  M.  Fraser,  Materiel 
Manager.  L.  J.  Underwood,  Controller, 
is  on  the  Board  of  Directors  for  the  Junior 
Achievement  Movement  in  San  Diego  and 
William  Wagner,  Public  Relations  Mana- 
ger, is  serving  in  a  part-time  advisory 
capacity   assisting    the    senior   advisers. 

Under  the  program,  the  senior  advisers 
will  give  the  benefit  of  their  counsel  to 
young  people  between  the  ages  of  1 5 
and  21  to  educate  them  in  the  funda- 
mentals of  the  American  business  sys- 
tem. The  youngsters  will  form  miniature 
corporations,  sell  stock,  produce  and  sell 
marketable  products,  and  liquidate  their 
companies  at  the  end  of  the  school  year. 

The  youths  who  run  the  corporations 
will  call  upon  their  senior  advisers  for 
answers  to  problems  which   they  are   un- 


able to  solve  themselves.  All  students 
in  the  Junior  Achievement  Movement 
must  also  own  stock  in  the  miniature 
companies  they  form  and  operate. 

"Much  of  the  success  of  the  Junior 
Achievement  Movement  depends  upon 
the  senior  advisers,  who  must  furnish 
good  adult  leadership  for  the  successful 
operation  of  these  small  corporations," 
said  Walter  Herbert,  former  director  of 
the  Junior  Achievement  Movement  in 
Toledo,  Ohio,  and  now  director  of  the 
San    Diego  venture. 

BACK  TO  SCHOOL.  Ryan  folks  have  front 
row  seats  in  San  Diego's  adult  education 
classrooms.  Four  employees  teach  at 
various  evening  centers  about  town  and 
large  numbers  of  others  attend  a  long 
list  of  courses  ranging  from  business  low 
to  metallurgy.  Ernest  Mellinger,  General 
Supervisor  of  Methods  Engineering,  is 
European  History  instructor  at  San  Dieno 
Junior  College,  where  also  Bob  F.  Smith, 
of  Public  Relations,  teaches  Public  Speak- 
ing. At  La  Jolla  High  School  Walter  J. 
Willoughby,  Engineering  Illustrator,  con- 
ducts twice-weekly  sessions  in  painting. 
Among  his  best  students  are  G.  M.  An- 
drew,Chief  Aerodynamicist,  himself  a  for- 
mer university  professor  in  Warsaw,  Po- 
land, and  Francis  A.  Pall,  also  of  Engi- 
neering. Fourth  Ryan  night  teacher  is 
Marvin  Tooley,  Machine  Shop  Leodmon, 
on  the  faculty  at  Son  Diego  Vocational 
School,  where  he  guides  a  Machine  Shop 
class. 

A  sampling  of  ambitious  Ryan  people 
in  evening  school  student  bodies  includes 
Bill  Kupilik,  Assistant  Foreman  of  Weld- 
ing; Ted  Hacker  and  Pat  Carter  of  Engi- 
neering; Stuart  Fraser,  Materiel  Manager; 
Don  Wright  of  Customer  Service:  Jerry 
Lowe,  Tooling  Inspector,  Wilson  Hubbell, 
Metallurgist;  Bob  Betts,  Statistical  Anal- 
yst; Kay  Engler,  Engineering;  John  Dole. 
Assistant  Supervisor  of  Tool  Control;  Earl 
Beary,  Experimental;  and  Byron  Roper, 
Facilities  Control.  They're  enrolled  at  La 
Jolla,  Sweetwater,  Hoover,  Pacific  Beach 
and  Balboa  University  as  well  as  the  sev- 
eral centers  of  San  Diego  Junior  College. 

HOME  AGAIN!  A  college  homecoming 
had  nothing  on  Barbara   Deane  Dimock's 

recent  visit  with  old  friends  in  the  admin- 
istration-office building.  Formerly  Super- 
visor of  Office  Service,  Barbara  left  Ryan 
for  Bethel,  Alaska,  three  years  ago  after 
a  seven-year  career  here  that  began  at 
the  Ryan  School  of  Aeronautics.  Her  hus- 
band, Ed  Dimock,  now  in  the  insurance 
business,  was  a  Ryan  flight  instructor  at 
Hemet  during  the  war.  Having  just  put 
the  finishing  touch  on  a  special  govern- 
ment training  course  in  Seattle,  Barbara 
is  on  her  way  bock  to  Anchorage  to  take 
charge  of  the  Reconstruction  Finance 
Corp.  office   there. 


THIS    ONE    DIDN'T    GET    AWAY!    Two 

Ryan  employees,  Hugh  King  of  Experi- 
mental and  Don  Wilcox,  Salvage  Engi- 
neer of  Inspection,  were  there  when  it 
happened — the  fish  story  to  end  all  fish 
stories — and   brought   home  the    proof. 

On  a  recent  Saturday,  Copt.  Hugh  King 
decided  to  try  for  marlin  in  his  I  5-foot 
boot,  the  Marilynn,  powered  by  a  1927 
Star  motor.  On  the  first  day  out.  King 
and  his  friends  Don  Wilcox  and  Bud 
Stauff,  Wilcox'  brother-in-law,  overshot 
the  mark,  heading  west  about  20  miles. 
All  they  got  that  day  was  one  albacore 
and  a  5-foot  blue  shark. 

Next  day,  fishing  about  2  or  3  miles 
off  Ocean  Beach  with  live  sardines  as 
bait,  Wilcox  hooked  a  marlin,  but  the 
line  parted.  Stauff,  suspecting  his  bait 
hod  also  been  killed,  reeled  in  to  examine 
it  when,  only  about  1 5  feet  from  the 
stern,  a  second  marlin  struck,  took  the 
bait  and  started  off  at  streamliner  speed. 


WILCOX  AND   KING 

King  reports  that  the  marlin  leaped 
from  the  water  I  5  times.  It  was  later  dis- 
covered that  the  swordfish  had  thrown 
the  hook  and  it  had  become  hooked  in 
the  bony  part  of  his  tail,  which  left  him 
free  to  head  in  any  direction  he  chose. 
He  decided  on  Korea  and  lit  out  in  a 
course  straight  for  his  goal  in  about  1  5 
fathoms  of  water. 

Some  scene,  3  hours  and  1 5  minutes 
later:  The  marlin  was  still  on  course  tow- 
ing the  boot  and  passengers.  Hanging  on 
and  speeding  the  motor  to  ease  the  drag, 
the  three  fishermen  were  unable  to  turn 
him.  The  hour  was  getting  late  and  the 
carburetor  was  giving  an  occasional 
cough — the  engine  was  just  about  out  of 
fuel. 

King  was  wondering  what  to  do  next. 
He  knew  there  was  only  a  jug  of  water 
and  a  can  of  sandwich  meat  left  and 
something  had  to  be  done.  He  then 
noticed  an  almost  imperceptible  slacken- 
ing of  the  boat's  speed.  At  long  last,  the 
tired  marlin  gave  up  and  after  much 
heavy  labor  was  loaded  on  the  boot.  The 
boot  was  too  small  to  hold  both  the  pas- 
sengers and  fish  inside,  so  the  marlin 
rode  home  lashed  across  the  stern. 
Weighed  in  at  the  Sportfishers'  Landing, 
the  swordfish  tipped  the  scales  at  136'/2 
pounds. 


21 


RESEARCHERS  IN 

METALLURGY 

(Continued  from  page  5  j 

Another  metallurgical  marvel  is  the 
Spectrograph.  This  machine  "electrocutes" 
a  tiny  particle  of  any  metal  and  snaps  a 
picture  as  it  vaporizes.  The  Spectrograph 
consists  of  a  pair  of  carbon  electrodes 
which  produce  a  3  5,000  volt  high  fre- 
quency spark  at  a  point  where  a  small 
sample  of  metal  is  placed.  This  heats  the 
metal  particle  to  incandescent  tempera- 
ture. The  light  generated  is  passed  through 
a  slit  (which  limits  its  height  and  width), 
and  directed  to  a  diffraction  grating.  The 
grating  is  a  polished  concave  surface  upon 
which  are  ruled  48,000  lines  within  two 
inches. 

The  grating  directs  the  light  to  a  spe- 
cial strip  of  film,  breaking  it  up  into  its 
various  wave  lengths,  much  the  way  a 
prism  does.  A  photograph  of  this  light  is 
made  and  the  resultant  picture,  or  spec- 
trogram, is  placed  on  the  screen  of  the 
Comparative  Densitometer.  Here,  it  is 
projected  to  magnified  proportions  upon 
a  ground  glass  screen  where  the  individual 
wave  length  lines  for  each  element  can 
be  visualized.  By  comparison  with  master 
spectrograms  of  known  elements,  it  is 
possible  to  tell  which  elements  are  pres- 
ent in  the  original  sample  and  in  exactly 
what  quantities. 

Ruth  Oswald,  Laboratory  Analyst,  says 
it  is  possible  with  the  Spectrograph  and 
Densitometer  to  detect  traces  of  elements 
which  are  as  slight  as  1/lOOOth  of  1  per- 
cent of  the  volume  of  the  sample  being 
tested.  Sometimes  these  elements  are  not 
detectable  by  any  other  means. 

As  a  result  of  their  research  efforts, 
Wilson  Hubbell  and  his  staff  have  devel- 
oped a  substantial  amount  of  important 
data  concerning  the  desirable  formulae 
and  characteristics  of  corrosion-resistant 
steels.  A  wide  variety  of  these  steels  are 
constantly  being  analyzed  to  determine 
the  best  materials  for  each  high  tempera- 
ture exhaust  system  or  jet  engine  applica- 
tion. Hubbell's  findings  relative  to  the  ap- 
propriate finish  for  exhaust  system  stain- 
less steels  have  been  adopted  by  the  steel 
rolling  mills.  His  investigations  concern- 
ing the  relative  merits  of  Titanium  and 
Columbium  stabilized  types  of  corrosion- 
resistant  steels  have  been  published  in 
many  scientific  journals  and  technical 
magazines. 

AMONG  the  important  studies  con- 
ducted by  Hubbell  and  his  assistants 
are  the  investigations  of  carbon  pick-up 
by  stainless  steel  exhaust  manifolds  in  ser- 
vice, and  the  effect  of  this  carbon  upon 
the  corrosion  resistance  of  the  metal. 
Studies,  too,  have  been  made  of  the  effect 


of  stabilizing  and  stress  relief  of  welded 
18-8  stainless  steel  by  heat  treatment.  In 
this  field,  Hubbell  has  uncovered  the 
peculiar  behavior  of  these  metals  under 
sustained  high-temperature  service  life  and 
has  contributed  extensively  to  the  out- 
standing results  which  are  being  exper- 
ienced with  Ryan-built  exhaust  systems 
and  jet  engine  components. 

Heading  the  Chemical  Section  of  the 
Laboratory  is  Bernard  Floersch,  Chief 
Chemist,  who  is  assisted  by  J.  R.  Taylor. 
In  this  section,  Floersch  makes  use  of 
analytical  equipment  ranging  from  sen- 
sitive scales  to  the  Two  Minute  Carbon 
Determinator.  Chemists'  scales  will  actu- 
ally weigh  quantities  as  small  as 
l/10,000th  of  a  gram — or  the  weight  of 
a  small  pencil  mark. 

The  Two  Minute  Carbon  Determinator 
is  an  imposing  array  of  glass  structures 
and  a  small  electric  furnace  hooked  to- 
gether. This  device  will  accurately  show 
the  presence  of  carbon  in  a  metal  sample 
within  two  minutes.  A  small  chunk  of  the 
metal  is  finely  ground  and  placed  into  the 
tiny  electric  furnace  which  heats  it  to 
2400°F.  At  this  elevated  temperature, 
the  metal  vaporizes  and  any  carbon  it  con- 
tains combines  with  oxygen  to  form  car- 
bon dioxide.  This  gas  is  piped  to  the  glass 
structure  and  the  exact  amount  of  carbon 
in  the  original  sample  can  be  read  directly 
from  a  scale  which  measures  the  volume 
of  carbon  dioxide  gas  produced. 

The  Carbon  Determinator  will  detect 
traces  of  1/1, 000th  of  one  percent  and 
is  used  extensively  because  of  the  role 
carbon  plays  in  the  ductility,  formability 
and  corrosion  resistance  of  stainless  steels. 

Floersch  and  his  staff  have  developed 
many  types  of  specialized  chemical  baths 
and  processes.  One  of  their  most  valu- 
able  contributions   is    the   extremely   effi- 


EPORTt  R   i 


VOL.  II 


DEC.  6,  1950 


Published  By 

Ryan  Aeronautical  Company 

Lindbergh  Field 

San  Diego   12,  California 

Member  Southern  California  hiiluslrial 
Editors  Association,  affiliated  with  the  In- 
ternational   Council    of   Industrial    Editors. 

Frances  L.  Kohl,  art  and  production  editor 

Robert  F.  Smith,  Navion  news  editor 

William  P.  Brotherton,  technical  editor 

Don  Doerr,  chief  photographer 

William  Wagner,  editorial  director 


cient  molten  salt  bath  which  he  developed 
for  the  special  treatment  of  19-9DL  stain- 
less steels.  Ryan  was  the  first  fabricator 
to  use  19-9DL  stainless  for  exhaust  sys- 
tems for  commercial  airliners,  having  de- 
signed and  built  the  Convair  240  exhaust 
equipment  and  the  Boeing  377  Strato- 
cruiser  manifolds  of  this  new  metal.  It 
was  early  determined  that  the  conven- 
tional Nitric-Hydrofluoric  acid  baths 
used  for  the  removal  of  furnace  scale  after 
heat-treating  would  not  be  satisfactory 
with  this  new  metal.  This  was  due  to  the 
fact  that  the  welding  process  produced  a 
grain  growth  along  the  weld  boundaries 
in  19-9DL  which  rendered  the  metal 
susceptible  to  attack  from  the  standard 
acid  bath  and  pickle  procedure. 

The  Laboratory  went  to  work  on  this 
important  problem  and  soon  came  up 
with  a  tailored  salt  bath  and  pickle  solu- 
tion which  not  only  does  the  job  of  re- 
moving the  oxide  scale  quickly  and  with- 
out attacking  the  stainless  steel,  but  has 
increased  production  by  400  percent.  A 
corollary  of  this  change  has  been  a  reduc- 
tion in  sand-blasting,  a  rather  expensive 
process,  by  75  percent.  In  addition,  the 
new  acid  bath  has  reduced  costs  of  the 
pickling  process  by  40  percent.  Entirely 
new  equipment  was  built  upon  the  basis 
of  Floersch's  investigations,  and  the  re- 
sults have  proven  most  satisfactory.  This 
is  but  one  typical  example  of  the  valu- 
able work  which  the  Laboratory  performs 
and  how  it  affects  production  costs  and 
product  quality. 

A  NOTHER  interesting  group  work- 
'  •  ing  on  metallurgical  problems  is  the 
Physical  Test  Section  under  W.  M.  Cat- 
trell.  Physical  Test  Engineer.  This  is  a 
sort  of  "torture  chamber"  department 
where  metals,  fabrics,  springs,  castings 
and  every  type  of  material  is  subjected  to 
tension,  compression,  torque  and  shearing 
forces  to  determine  their  stamina.  Huge 
machines  which  can  tear  a  strip  of  metal 
apart  with  a  force  of  120,000  pounds  and 
others  which  simulate  high  altitude  freez- 
ing chambers  are  a  part  of  this  section's 
equipment.  Included  in  this  department 
is  a  complete  machine  shop  where  Chief 
Machinist  G.  F.  Strickland  fabricates  spe- 
cial testing  machines  which  will  rub,  vi- 
brate, heat  and  cool,  twist,  hammer  and 
bend  test  samples.  Even  the  strongest 
metals  fail — but  not  before  Catirell  has 
recorded  their  elongation,  tensile  strength 
and  modulus  of  elasticity. 

Unsung  technicians  among  the  Labora- 
tory's group  are  the  speciaHsts  of  the 
Radio  and  Instrument  Section,  such  as 
Winn  Alderson,  Douglas  Erickson,  R.  K. 
Young,  Lowell  Silvernail,  J.  R.  Fullerton 
and  Secretary  F.  Kreiser. 

{Continued  on  page  23 ) 


22 


Each  of  the  Laboratory's  experts  per- 
forms a  part  in  the  program  of  findmg 
the  answers  to  industry's  questions.  Each 
contributes  a  clue  which,  when  all  are 
assembled  by  Supervisor  Vandermeer, 
forms  a  composite  picture  of  the  map  of 
Ryan  progress.  More  than  any  other  de- 
partment, the  Laboratory  unlocks  new 
doors  for  manufacturing  science  and 
points  the  way  to  better  processes  to- 
morrow. 


JOHN  ATHA  HEADS  METAL 
PRODUCTS  OFFICE  AT  DAYTON 


Appointment  of  John  Atha  as  Midwest 
Representative  of  the  Ryan  Aeronautical 
Company's  Metal  Products  Division  with 
headquarters  at  Dayton,  Ohio,  has  just 
been  announced  by  Sam  C.  Breder,  Cus- 
tomer Service  head. 

Atha  has  joined  the  Ryan  organization 
following  many  years'  service  with  the 
Curtiss-Wright  Airplane  Division  where 
his  most  recent  assignment  was  as  that 
company's   representative    at   Dayton. 

Ryan's  new  representative  reHeves 
Charles  Kinney  who  has  recently  served 
on  temporary  assignment,  providing  liai- 
son with  the  Air  Materiel  Command  at 
Wright-Patterson  Field  and  with  Ryan's 
midwest  exhaust  systems  and  jet  engine 
components  customers.  Kinney  returns  to 
the  company's  San  Diego  headquarters 
where  he  will  be  associated  with  C.  L. 
Foushee,  Jr.,  Service  Manager,  in  provid- 
ing close  coordination  with  customers  of 
the  company's  Metal  Products  Division. 

Atha  is  well  known  at  Dayton  having 
been  with  the  Air  Materiel  Command 
in  a  wartime  civilian  capacity  for  five 
years.  Following  that  he  joined  Curtiss- 
Wright  at  their  Columbus,  Ohio,  plant, 
where  he  was  Chief  Contract  Administra- 
tor prior  to  assignment  as  Dayton  rep- 
resentative of   the  Airplane   Division. 


RYAN  BOARD  OF  DIRECTORS 
MAKES  NEW  APPOINTMENTS 

Announcement  of  the  advancement  to 
new  finance  posts  for  two  key  executives 
was  made  following  a  recent  meeting  of 
the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company's  Board 
of  Directors. 

L.  L.  Underwood,  who  became  Assistant 
Treasurer  last  year  after  eight  years'  ser- 
vice with  the  company,  was  named  Con- 
troller. He  joined  the  Ryan  School  of 
Aeronautics  of  Arizona,  at  the  company's 
wartime  pilot  training  center  at  Tucson. 
After  the  war  he  transferred  to  the  parent 
company's  accounting  staff. 

Dale  H.  Ockerman,  Assistant  Secretary 
of  the  corporation,  was  elected  to  serve 
also  as  Assistant  Treasurer.  Ockerman  is  a 
ten-year  veteran  with  Ryan,  having  served 
in  many  accounting  capacities.  Just  re- 
cently he  was  presented  the  Merit  Award 
of  the  National  Office  Management  Asso- 
ciation. 

Another  recent  advancement  is  that  of 
Sam  R.  Kroschel  who  is  now  Manager  of 
Contracts  in  addition  to  his  duties  as 
Executive  Assistant  to  C.  A.  Stillwagen, 
Secretary  of  the  corporation  and  Director 
of  Materiel  and  Contract  Administration. 


ON  THE  COVER 

Ryan  employee  Charles  Gandy  of 
Manifold  Welding  Department  peers 
into  the  brilliant  arc  of  the  automatic 
Heliarc  welding  machine  as  he  adjusts 
the   rate   of   travel. 

This  machine  produces  sound  seam 
welds  in  stainless  steel  jet  engine  cones 
at  high  speed  and  without  the  use  of 
flux. 


SERVING  THE  AIRLINES 

(Continued  from  page  9) 
all   Pratt  &  Whitney-powered  DC-3   air- 
craft, use  the  Ryan  exhaust  system. 

DOUGLAS  C-54 

At  the  start  of  the  war,  Ryan  was 
called  in  by  Douglas  to  design  and  manu- 
facture an  exhaust  system  for  the  C-54. 
It  was  designed  to  have  a  minimum  of 
parts  required,  yet  it  had  to  be  serviceable 
and  easy  to  install  and  remove.  There  were 
three  major  assemblies  in  the  collector  ring 
which  was  mounted  by  four  support 
brackets  to  hnks  attached  to  the  exhaust 
mount  proper.  The  collector  was  coupled 
to  the  engine  by  a  series  of  ball  and  socket 
assemblies  which  took  care  of  the  differ- 
ential expansion  and  engine  motion.  The 
series  of  mounting  links  took  care  of 
normal  thermal  expansion. 

After  the  war  when  the  C-54s  became 
DC-4s  and  were  transferred  to  commercial 
type  operation,  there  were  changes  made  to 
correct  some  of  the  problems  that  had 
been  experienced  in  the  field  under  mili- 
tary operations.  It  was  noted  that  the 
problems  encountered  on  the  military  air- 
planes were  of  one  type,  while  DC-4s  used 
by  commercial  operators  showed  other 
service  problems.  A  complete  survey  was 
made  by  Ryan  field  service  representatives 
under  the  direction  of  C.  L.  Foushee,  Jr., 
service  manager,  to  determine  what 
changes  were  feasible  in  order  to  correct 
all  difficulties  and  give  trouble-free  service 
during  normal  engine  periods  which  were 
constantly  increasing.  Numerous  im- 
provements were  made  in  material,  col- 
lector ring  supports  and  ball  and  socket 
joint  assemblies. 

Service  life  has  been  increased  from 
around  1000  hours  up  to  about  3000  hours 
trouble-free  service  on  the  exhaust  system 
as  a  whole.  Various  parts  of  the  exhaust 
system  have  operated  as  high  as  6000  hours 
without  any  difficulties.  One  of  the  big- 
gest problems  with  the  commercially  op- 
erated DC-4  was  that  of  the  increased 
service  periods  of  the  engine  which,  of 
course,  required  that  the  exhaust  system 
would  have  to  go  the  same  amount  of 
hours  with  trouble-free  service.  With  en- 
gine overhaul  periods  climbing  rapidly 
from  500  hours  to  1000  hours,  it  was 
necessary  to  always  be  on  top  of  any  new 
problems  that  might  occur.  Ryan  kept  a 
continuing  and  complete  operational  his- 
tory from  each  of  the  airlines  to  aid  in 
proper  follow-through  service  as  engine 
overhaul  periods  went  up  and  up. 

DOUGLAS  DC- 6 

The  DC-6  is  unique  in  that  it  has  the 
first-ejector-type  exhaust  system  ever  de- 
signed for  a  commercial  plane.    The  ex- 
(Continued  on  page  24) 


2J 


SERVING  THE  AIRLINES 

(Continued  from  page  2}) 
haust  system  is  quite  complex,  is  inter- 
changeable between  right  and  left-hand 
engines  even  though  there  are  numerous 
sections  involved,  and  the  installation  and 
removal  problems  have  been  greatly  sim- 
plified. It  is  a  great  improvement  over 
prior  systems  on  commercial  airliners,  and 
was  designed  to  improve  engine  operation 
and  aircraft  performance.  This  ejec- 
tor system  is  the  first  which  has  success- 
fully operated  during  normal  engine  pe- 
riods, trouble  free. 

The  exhaust  port  diameter  was  used  as 
the  basic  cross-section  of  the  assemblies. 
The  complete  installation  is  a  series  of 
pipes  grouped  into  two  outlet  assemblies 
with  four  exhaust  pipes  each.  These  ex- 
haust pipe  assemblies  are  attached  to  the 
engine  by  bolting  the  front  rear  cylinder 
flanges  directly  to  the  engine,  and  the 
front  cylinders  to  a  connecting  tube 
which  in  turn  is  supported  by  a  bracket 
from  the  rocker  box  pads.  During  its 
early  stages  in  commercial  service  there 
were  a  few  service  problems  which  re- 
quired the  careful  attention  of  Ryan  field 
service  representatives  and  the  complete 
cooperation  of  the  airline  operators.  At 
Ryan's  suggestion,  the  airlines  adopted  a 
method  of  marking  the  exhaust  system 
components  for  service  time  at  engine 
overhaul  periods.  It  was  found  that  num- 
erous problems  occurred  at  much  higher 
service  life  than  we  had  been  told. 

In  inaugurating  this  system,  a  great  deal 
about  the  actual  life  of  the  various  assem- 
blies was  learned.  This  permitted  careful 
study  of  service  problems  so  that  the 
necessary  improvements  were  quickly 
worked  out.  Ryan  also  recommended  and 
aided  in  setting  up  a  series  of  jigs  and 
fixtures  to  permit  commercial  airlines  to 
align  the  exhaust  systems  correctly  zo 
there  would  be  no  difficulty  experienced 
in  installation  at  time  of  engine  overhaul. 
By  doing  this,  other  prob'cms  were  cor- 
rected and  service  life  of  the  exhaust  sys- 
tem increased  in  ratio  to  the  care  it  re- 
ceived during  the  normal  overhaul  periods. 

Today  all  the  DC-6s  have  the  Ryan 
ejector  exhaust  system  which  continues 
to  be  improved.  Almost  every  month 
some  improvement  is  added  to  give  trou- 
ble-free service  for  as  much  as  5000 
hours.  This  exhaust  system  was  designed 
so  that  the  service  life  would  be  for  one 
engine  period,  trouble-free.  However, 
with  constant  improvement,  we  can  now 
look  forward  to  trouble-free  service  with 
a  minimum  of  maintenance,  fewer  spare 
parts  and  improved  service  up  to  4000  or 
5000  hours.  Manufacturing  techniques, 
engineering  developments,  and  service  ex- 
perience have  proven  that  Ryan  can  build 


a  satisfactory  ejector  stack  system  for  any 
airline  operator  or  for  any  type  of  aircraft. 

CONVAIR  LINER 

Following  closely  on  the  heels  of  the 
DC-6  exhaust  system  was  the  ejector  stack 
design  for  the  Convair  240.  This  system 
was  also  somewhat  unique  in  that  it  was 
designed  to  exit  into  the  entrance  of  an 
augmentor  tube  which  provided  for  the 
removal  of  the  hot  air  from  the  engine 
compartment  during  normal  engine  op- 
eration. The  19-9DL  corrosion-resistant 
steel  was  quite  an  improvement  since  this 
material  offered  many  advantages  over  the 
common  18-8  type  347  material.  To  date 
the  problems  have  been  very  few  and  the 
service  life  on  the  Convair  240  exhaust 
system  has  been  very  good.  However,  it 
should  be  pointed  out  that  Ryan  field 
service  representatives  played  an  import- 
ant part  in  correcting  all  problems  in  the 
field  on  this  exhaust  system  as  the  service 
time  increased  on  the  airplane.  Tours 
were  made  to  each  of  the  airline  operators 
resulting  in  design  and  manufacturing  re- 
finements which  now  assure  up  to  3000 
hours  of  service-free  operation.  On  the 
Convair,  the  point  of  overhaul  of  the 
exhaust  system  at  engine  periods  has  been 
stressed  and  Ryan  has  made  various  recom- 
mendations to  be  followed  so  that  trouble- 
free  service  is  being  assured  during  the 
normal  engine  periods. 

BOEING  STRATOCRUISER 

The  Boeing  377  Stratocruiser  was  de- 
signed to  operate  at  extremely  high  alti- 
tudes with  increased  performance  over 
earlier  commercial  airliners.  Ryan  was 
called  in  to  make  the  first  turbo-super- 
charged commercial  exhaust  system  in  use. 
It  is  by  far  the  most  complex  exhaust  sys- 
tem ever  designed  for  commercial  planes. 
As  service  experience  is  accumulated, 
problems  that  may  exist  in  the  present  de- 
signed system  are  quickly  corrected.  This 
exhaust  has  a  series  of  assemblies  which 
attach  directly  to  the  exhaust  ports  on 
the  cvlinders  carrying  exhaust  g.is  aft  into 
a  collector  ring  which  in  turn  dumps  the 
exhaust  gases  into  the  turbo-supercharger 
and  then  overboard. 

The  complete  assembly  is  mounted  to 
the  engine  with  header  sections  and  col- 
lector rings  mounted  directly  to  the  en- 
gine bv  a  series  of  links  and  supports. 
The  tailpipe  Y  section  is  mounted  to  the 
nacelle  structure,  being  connected  to  the 
outlet  bv  a  large  ball  and  socket  assembly. 
The  flight  hood  carries  the  exhaust  gas 
out  of  the  turbo  and  away  from  the  side 
of  the  aircraft  nacelle.  This  was  the  first 
commercial  airliner  system  designed  of 
19-9DL  corrosion-resistant  steel  and  as  a 
whole  it  has  proven  very  satisfactory. 


It  should  be  noted  that  as  engine  horse- 
power has  increased,  exhaust  system  prob- 
lems have  likewise  increased;  and  as  en- 
gine time  increases,  exhaust  system  service 
problems  can  increase,  the  result  being 
that  the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  has 
found  it  helpful  and  desirable  to  set  up  a 
service  group  to  visit  the  various  com- 
mercial and  military  bases  to  find  out 
everything  possible  about  the  various  ex- 
haust systems  Ryan  manufactures.  In 
doing  so,  the  service  life  of  exhaust  sys- 
tems has  been  lengthened  to  a  very  great 
extent. 


SMITH  AND  IMMENSCHUH  FILL 
NEW  ENGINEERING  POSTS 

Appointment  of  Bruce  Smith  to  the 
position  of  Director  of  Engineering  of 
the  Ryan  Aeronautical  Company  was  re- 
cently announced  by 
T.  Claude  Ryan, 
president.  For  Smith, 
the  appointment  is 
an  advancement  to 
the  company's  top 
engineering  post 
from  his  former  posi- 
tion as  Chief  Engi- 
neer of  Ryan's  Air- 
plane Division. 

Smith  is  a  veteran 
Bruce  Smith  of    20   years   aircraft 

engineering  activity. 
Prior  to  his  association  with  Ryan  in 
1949,  he  served  nine  years  as  Chief  De- 
sign Engineer  for  Consolidated  Vultee 
Aircraft  Corp. 

Announced  concurrently   with  Smith's 
appointment  was  the  promotion  of  Wil- 
liam  T.    Immenschuh    to   Executive    En- 
gineer, principal  aide 
1     ^ifffiH^  to    ^^^    Director    of 

Engineering. 

Ten  years  in  derien 
work  on  Ryan  mili- 
tary contracts,  in- 
cluding experience  as 
project  engineer  on 
the  Ryan  FR-1, 
XFR-4  and  XF2R-1 
"Fireball"  series  of 
jet  -  plus  -  propeller 
Navy  fighters,  pre- 
ceded Immenschuh's 
recent  promotion  to  the  Executive  Engi- 
neer position  with  responsibility  for  proper 
functioning  of  all  engineering  operations. 
Immenschuh's  appointment  is  the 
climax  of  a  "local  boy  makes  good"  career 
that  began  when  he  joined  the  Ryan 
engineering  department  after  graduation 
from  San  Diego  schools  and  the  engineer- 
ing division  of  the  Ryan  School  of  Aero- 
nautics. 


W.  T.  Immenschuh 


24 


There  was  PLENTY  for  ALL 

. .  •  only  when  men  were  Free  to  \^ork  for  Themselves 


Did  you  know  that  the  Pilgrims  nearly  starved  to  death? 
That  they  suffered  hunger  for  two  long  years,  with 
never  enough  food  in   the  Colony's  storehouse? 

Have  you  heard  how  the  Governor  and  his  councilors 
had  complete  control  of  the  land  and  w^hat  people  pro- 
duced? How^  they  tried  to  rouse  the  Colonists  to  raise 
more  grain;   and  how  they  found  a  w^ay  that  ■worked? 

During  their  first  year,  food  was  scarce.  Even  after  the 
1621  harvest  -was  gathered,  the  daily  ration  was  only 
about  a  quarter  of  a  pound  of  bread  for  each  person. 

In  the  spring  of  1622,  the  Colonists  complained  they 
w^ere  too  w^eak  to  w^ork  raising  food.  Although  they 
w^ere,  on  the  w^hole,  deeply  religious,  some  were  so  hun- 
gry that  they  stole  food  from  their  starving  fellow- 
workers. 

Young  men  complained  because  they  had  to  w^ork  hard 
to  feed  other  men  and  their  -wives  and  children.  Strong 
men  w^ho  -were  heads  of  families  griped.  They  said  that 
even  though  they  put  in  long  hours  and  raised  good 
crops,  they  and  their  children  received  no  more  food  or 
clothes  than  men  who  were  unable  or  unwilling  to  put 
in  more  than  a  few^  hours'  vi^ork  a  day. 

Women  rebelled  w^hen  ordered  to  cook  for  men  not  their 
husbands,  or  w^hen  requested  to  -wash  their  clothes.  And 
w^hat  about  the  husbands  of  w^omen  who  had  been  set  at 

Reprinted  courteiy   The  Inleri 


these  jobs.  Their  w^ives,  they  gro^wled,  ^vere  little  better 
than  slaves,  and  many  men  declared  they  ^vouldn't  per- 
mit their  womenfolk  to  do  that  kind  of  -work. 

After  months  of  bitter  complaints,  the  Governor  and 
chief  men  of  the  Colony  came  to  the  conclusion  that  they 
were  making  a  bad  mistake.  As  Governor  Bradford  said, 
they  had  thought  they  ^vere  "wiser  than  God."  And  so, 
in  1623,  they  turned  away  from  government  dictation 
and  gave  each  family  a  parcel  of  land  for  its  o^wn  use. 

Then  what  a  change  took  place!  Even  the  women  went 
into  the  fields  willingly,  taking  their  children  along  with 
them.  All  —  men,  women  and  children  —  planted  as 
much  corn  as  they  felt  they  could  possibly  work. 

People  who  had  formerly  complained  that  they  were  too 
weak  to  dig  or  hoe,  declaring  that  it  was  tyranny  to 
make  them  undertake  field  -work,  gladly  undertook  to 
plant  and  cultivate  for  themselves. 

And  when  the  harvest  w^as  gathered,  instead  of  famine 
they  had  plenty.  And  so  they  all  gave  thanks  to  God. 
And  what  a  Thanksgiving  they  celebrated! 

No  wonder  they  gave  up  for  all  time  their  sharing  of 
poverty  .  .  .  their  belief  that  it  was  good  for  all  to  suffer 
scarcity  together.  They  found  that  it  is  better  for  each 
man  to  work  for  himself  to  produce  plenty,  because  that 
benefits  everyone. 

lalmn^l   Nickel  Co.,  Inc. 


25 


RYAN  AERONAUTICAL   COMPANY 
LINDBERGH     FIELD 
SAN  DIEGO  12,  CALIFORNIA 


POSTMASTER: 
sender  stating  re 


g7     80 


EXHAUST  SYSTEMS.  Manifolds,  collector 
rings,  short  stacks  and  other  stainless  steel 
assemblies  are  engineered,  built  and  serviced 
by  Ryan.  For  more  than  a  decade  Ryan  has 
been  recognized  for  outstanding  leadership 
in  the  entire  field  of  high-temperature  air- 
craft  engine    applications. 


AIRFRAME  COMPONENTS.  In  addition 
to  its  own  prime  airframe  contracts,  Ryan 
has  for  over  20  years  built  for  other  manu- 
facturers; produced  complete  airplanes  to 
another  company's  design;  built  wings,  con- 
trol surfaces,  fuel  tanks,  and  fuselage  sec- 
tions for  bombers,  fighters  and  transport  air- 
craft in   war   and   peace  times. 


J  ET  AN  D  ROCKET  engine  components. 
Ryan  is  the  only  jet  components  manufactur- 
er who  also  engineers  and  builds  jet  and 
rocket -powered  aircraft  and  guided  missiles. 
Obviously,  you  get  technical  advantages  not 
enjoyed  by  others  when  Ryan  designs  and 
builds  heat  and  corrosion  resistant  compon- 
ents for  you. 


WHY  RYAN  IS  BEST  QUALIFIED  TO  HELP  SOLVE 
YOUR  STAINLESS  STEEL  FABRICATING  PROBLEMS 


A  partial  list  of  aircraft  embodying 
Ryan-built  components  reads  like  a 
blue  book  of  aviation: 

EXHAUST   SYSTEMS 

AiResearch  heat  exchangers;  Manifolds 
for  Boeing  B-29,  B-50,  377  Stratocruiser, 
C-97  Stratofreighter;  Continental  1790 
tank  engine;  Convair  240  Convair  Liner, 
PBY  flying  boats,  PB4Y-2  anti-icing  kits; 
Exhaust  systems  for  Douglas  A-20,  B-23, 
DC-3,  C-47,  DC-4,  C-54,  DC-6,  C-74, 
C-124;  Foirchild  C-82  and  €-119  Packets; 
Goodyear  Blimps;  Lockheed  P2V  Nep- 
tunes;  Grumman  F6F  Hellcat;  Mortin 
AM-1;  North  American  AT-6  and  B-25; 
Korthrop    P-61     and    B-35    Flying    Wing; 


Piasecki   Helicopters;    Pratt   ond    Whitney 

4360  series  engine;  Republic  P-47  hoods; 
Wright  Aeronautical  3350  series  engine 
exhaust  system. 

AIRFRAME  COMPONENTS 
Boeing  377  and  C-97  rear  fuselage  sec- 
tions, cargo  doors  and  floor  beams;  Boeing 
B-47  Stratojet  components;  Convair  B-24 
and  P84Y-2  wings  and  tail  surfaces;  Navy 
SOR-I  scout  observation  planes;  Northrop 
P-61  toil  surfaces;  various  engine  cowls, 
gun  turrets,  etc. 

JET   AND   ROCKET  COMPONENTS 
Aerojet  Aerobee  Sounding   Rockets;  com- 
ponents  for    AiResearch;    Allison    Division 

of  General  Motors;  Bell  tailpipes  for  Boe- 


ing B-47  and  Convair  B-36  "pods";  com- 
ponents for  M.  J.  Kellogg;  Flodcr  turbo- 
jet; General  Electric  J-47;  General  Tire 
and  Rubber;  Gionnini  jet  engine;  Mar- 
quardt  ram-jet;  McDonnell  F2H-I  Banshee 
Ronger  jet  engine;  Pratt  ond  Whitney; 
Ryan  Firebird  oir-to-oir  missile;  Wright 
Aeronouticol  T-35  Typhoon. 

Take  full  advantage  of  Ryan's  en- 
gineering leadership,  advanced  pro- 
duction techniques  and  service  ex- 
perience in  high-temperature  metal- 
lurgy. Let  Ryan  apply  its  "know- 
how"  to  your  problems  in  the  design 
stoge. 


Metal  Products 


DIVISION    OF    RYAN    AERONAUTICAL    COMPANY      •      LINDBERGH    FIELD 

Exhaust    Systems      •      Jet    and    Rocket    Engine    Components 


SAN    DIEGO,    CALIFORNIA 

Airframe    Components