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This information comes from the listings of Non-Prefixed and Non-Suffixed aircraft reviewed by me in the archives of the National Air & Space Museum, Washington, DC.

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YOUR PURCHASE OF THESE BOOKS SUPPORTS THE WEB SITES THAT BRING TO YOU THE HISTORY BEHIND OLD AIRFIELD REGISTERS

Your copy of the Davis-Monthan Airfield Register with all the pilots' signatures and helpful cross-references to pilots and their aircraft is available at the link. Or use this FORM to order a copy signed by the author, while supplies last.

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http://www.cafepress.com/content/global/img/spacer.gifThe Congress of Ghosts is an anniversary celebration for 2010.  It is an historical biography, that celebrates the 5th year online of www.dmairfield.org and the 10th year of effort on the project dedicated to analyze and exhibit the history embodied in the Register of the Davis-Monthan Airfield, Tucson, AZ. This book includes over thirty people, aircraft and events that swirled through Tucson between 1925 and 1936. It includes across 277 pages previously unpublished photographs and texts, and facsimiles of personal letters, diaries and military orders. Order your copy at the link.

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Military Aircraft of the Davis Monthan Register, 1925-1936 is available at the link. This book describes and illustrates with black & white photographs the majority of military aircraft that landed at the Davis-Monthan Airfield between 1925 and 1936. The book includes biographies of some of the pilots who flew the aircraft to Tucson as well as extensive listings of all the pilots and airplanes. Use this FORM to order a copy signed by the author, while supplies last.

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Art Goebel's Own Story by Art Goebel (edited by G.W. Hyatt) is written in language that expands for us his life as a Golden Age aviation entrepreneur, who used his aviation exploits to build a business around his passion.  Available as a free download at the link.

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Fokker Universal “Special” NC1565

BIGGER & BETTER

This aircraft was a Fokker Universal “Special”, S/N 417 (ATC #Gr. 2), manufactured in August 1927 by the Atlantic Aircraft Corporation, Teterboro Airport, Hasbrouck Heights, NJ.  It left the factory with a 410 HP Pratt & Whitney Wasp engine, S/N 248.  It was a five-place airplane, weighing 3,830 pounds.  It was remodeled by the manufacturer from ATC #9 to accept the Pratt & Whitney engine.  The engine mount and fuselage were reinforced with more and larger steel tubes, and the fuselage was lengthened 3’9”.

It sold (under contract) to William H. Dunning, Jr., Ft. Worth, TX on June 6, 1927.  Less than a year later, on May 21, 1928, Dunning sold it to the Stoody Company, Whittier, CA for $22,000.  The Stoody Company was a welding equipment manufacturer, and NC1565 was used for executive transport. Below, courtesy of the San Diego Aerospace Museum Flickr Stream (SDAM), is a photograph of the Stoody Company's exhibit at Mines Field at the 1928 National Air Races in Los Angeles, CA. Just below the banner sign, I believe, is a small photograph of NC1565.

Stoody Company Exhibit, Los Angeles, CA, 1928 (Source: SDAM)

The company's gas welding equipment is displayed in this photograph. The "STOODITE" sign refers to a type of alloyed welding rod that is still available today. Various alloy mixtures are available, e.g. Stoodite 1, Stoodite 12, Stoodite 21, which have different strength and temperature characteristics. Note the "Snap On" tool sign at right, and the display of Bluepoint hand tools manufactured by the company to this day.

In the corporate transport role, we find NC1565 landing twice at Tucson.  The first time, on May 16, 1928, it was flown by Lt. J.T. Hutchison.  He carried three passengers, including M.L. Stoody, Mike Hogg and one whose name is unreadable in the Register.  This visit was just days before the official sale date closing of the airplane.  They were westbound from Ft. Worth to Los Angeles, CA. This could have been the ferry flight to the new owner. Below, courtesy of SDAM, is an undated photograph of NC1565 wearing Stoody livery.

Fokker Universal NC1565, Date & Location Unknown (Source: SDAM)
Fokker Universal NC1565, Date & Location Unknown (Source: SDAM)

The second landing was on October 31, 1928.  The pilot was Vernon Dorrell, carrying four passengers (Ralph Willis, J.C. Blake and Blake’s wife and child).  They were also westbound from El Paso, TX to Los Angeles.

NC1565 suffered an accident early in 1929 at Whittier, CA.  According to the NASM record, it received “major damage”, but was repaired and relicensed.  It was sold by Stoody on June 21, 1929 to Continental Air Express, Inc., Los Angeles, CA.

On August 8, 1930, the airplane sold to Bob Lloyd and W. Upward (a fine name for an aircraft owner!), North Hollywood, CA.  It was sold to satisfy a lien against Continental Air Express held by the Commercial Aircraft Corporation at Los Angeles Metro Airport.

According to the NASM record, the airplane was “in poor shape during 1931”, and the CAA recommended suspension of its license until a new wing was installed.  The airplane was rebuilt and relicensed as of October 5, 1931.

NC1565 was sold again on November 16, 1934 to Floyd O. Bowman, Southgate, CA, again on June 4, 1936 to O.A. Kier and I.L. Howard, Los Angeles, CA, and finally to Franklin L. Obenhaus, Long Beach, CA on January 16, 1939.

NC1565 suffered an accident on August 8, 1939 near Lamont, CA.  It was “washed out” during a landing on an unlighted strip during a nighttime passenger operation.  No further information.

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UPLOADED: 07/07/06 REVISED: 12/07/14, 01/02/15, 01/16/20

 
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I'm looking for photographs of this airplane to include on this page. If you have one or more you'd like to share, please use this FORM to contact me.

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Winners' Viewpoints: The Great 1927 Trans-Pacific Dole Race is available at the link. What was it like to fly from Oakland to Honolulu in a single-engine plane during August 1927? Was the 25,000 dollar prize worth it? Did the resulting fame balance the risk? For the first time ever, this book presents the pilot and navigator's stories written by them within days of their record-setting adventure. Pilot Art Goebel and navigator William V. Davis, Jr. take us with them on the Woolaroc, their orange and blue Travel Air monoplane (NX869) as they enter the hazardous world of Golden Age trans-oceanic air racing.

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Clover Field: The First Century of Aviation in the Golden State. With the 100th anniversary in 2017 of the use of Clover Field as a place to land aircraft in Santa Monica, this book celebrates that use by exploring some of the people and aircraft that made the airport great.

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