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At times, I am terribly given to dreaming and procrastination, and then I sneak into Barnstormers (like many of the rest of you! :)) and look at pretty airplane ads. There are so many neat planes to look at, and I like some of the older types from the 1940s as well as the beautiful Cessna 150. (I was also told that Aeronca Chiefs and Champs are easier to get in and out for the tall and stiff of limb than Cubs!!! Although I have to say that in terms of esthetics, I think the lines of the Cubs and 150s are much prettier and sleeker....the Aeroncas are a little tubby and squat, but from what I am given to understand, nevertheless still a very good airplane to fly. I found out too that there is chap in Ohio near the Saddlebred farm I am going to visit (more horse articles) who gives lessons in Champs! Off a grass strip!

All digressing aside: I couldn't help doing a double take on this one...a modified Chief, a plane of some historical interest but now with an O-200 engine as opposed to its original C-65. What would that do to its performance and weight, and would it be frisky to fly? How would something like this, given its different shape and design, be to fly compared to say a Cessna 150 tailwheeler? Or is that a silly question? Would this have been a good modification, or a mechanic's (and a certifier's) nightmare? With the newer engine, does that make it easier to get parts? The way they have pictured it makes it look like a "go anywhere, land anywhere kind of plane". After that pasture hopping experience in the cherry red Cub, the appetite is sure whetted for more of the same...it was so-o-o fun! It wouldn't matter what the airplane was as long as one could do those sorts of things in it!!!!)

(slow down, Dopey...gotta get your ticket first. Yup. First things first. Sigh....stupid bloody poet types, no sense and practicality, all dreams and stars and cobwebs....)

I am not sure how you make the direct link come up, so I am adding the word file I made of it. The wording of the ad comes at the end of the photos.

Jennifer in Norway

"no sense and practicality, all dreams and stars and cobwebs...." yea! But isn't it fun! If we can't dream, then what's it all good for anyway. I've been know to surf barnstormers. My wife says "but you have a plane, and you really like it!" It's a disease but it's the best one I know of.

Too darned cold to fly the dreaming helps me through the winter. Where in Ohio? and when are you going?

I screwed up adding the file. Trying again. Hope it works this time. Sorry I am so awkward and clumsy...

Jennifer in Norway

Ah! A kindred spirit! Thanks, Jim! It's a terrible disease, because it can be the most awful timewaster. But I sometimes wonder whether the great books, films, musical compositions etc were initially conceived by terrible dreamers. Gotta aim high!

(Or is that making excuses?)

I am planning the visit to America in March. I shall visit my sister in Boston, spend a couple of days with them at their country place in Maine which I absolutely love, and then have a couple of stops in different places to research horse articles. The chap in Ohio is in Centerburg and his name is Bill See. Anybody know him? I hav not yet contacted him, but I am thinking very hard about it. The web page is www.ohiolightaviation.com [ohiolightaviation.com]
I am trying to figure out from the wording of the ad whether one can learn to fly ab initio there. It sounded like a place one might be able to learn on a tailwheel from the get go! I get so discouraged at how the price of things keeps going up and up and up that I am wondering whether I shall get there quicker if I lower my sights and ambitions and go LSA instead, only LSA on the vintage a/c, not those expensive things you see in the ads. Trouble with that is, I can't fly a Cessna 150 then, because they are not LSA

Jennifer in Norway

Well, keep saving them pennies.
Jennifer in Norway

Jennifer, as a young boy from a poor family in Kentucky, all I ever had was dreams. As a young married adult starting a family, I still had my dreams. As my teenagers began graduating from high school, I still had those dreams. One day I took a leap of faith and began to make those dreams a reality. It wasn't cheap, or quick, or easy, but a little bit at a time it happened. Ground school, first flight, first solo, first cross-country... they were all milestones that passed ever so slowly beneath my wings... but one day years after that first leap, it happened! I became a Private Pilot!

You only live once, Jennifer! Almost anyone can afford Ground School, and there's no deadline to get your license. Even one hour a month in the air with an instructor is still an hour logged at the controls of your dream! Don't you owe it to yourself? Take a leap of faith, why don't you?

Jennifer,

I'm sure you'll be on a tight schedule when you come state side, but don't forget to look me up when you reach Maine. My 150 has an extra seat with your name on it, and it will be good to get caught up. I'm sure Cat would love to show you her barn and introduce you the Wyatt and the girls.

Champ is a good go anywhere airplane, as long as you're anywhere doesn't need radios and transponders (though there are ways to install those) and you're in no hurry to get to your destination. It's all about the journey anyway

Andrew

100HP Chief... COOL! Cheifs are great planes. I'm more into the Champ, but the Chief is really the same, just side-by-side. The O-200 is a VERY common engine, easy to keep going. It's probably easier to fly (read: land) than a 150 tailwheel, and it really IS a go anywhere plane. Still not a Super Cub, but it'll get of the ground QUICK and with the conventional gear, those fields you want to check out? Wouldn't be a problem at all. Speed... not all that much faster, but takeoff and climb are so much better.

Looks like you found a real cool plane, now get working on that license!

Jennifer,

Your dreams are in excellent taste.

From the caption, that is a pre-war Chief, which was a completely different airplane from the post-war Chiefs (don't even think there were any compatible parts, although it's been a while since I researched it).

The post-war Chief and Champ were built to be as identical as possible in terms of every single part other than one had tandem seating and the other side-by-side seating. Having flown the post-war Chief and Champ and 150, it's easier to get into the 150, the Chief is a more cramped cabin and the tandem Champ requires a definite sequence of entrance of body parts.

The 65 or 85 hp Chief are delightful airplanes, slow, with pretty good control harmony and gets blown about by every breeze. I don't know what STCs are out there for bigger engines, but I suspect that someone has hung an O-200 on a Chief and received FAA blessing although with the main and aux fuel tanks full, I would think it would be a one-place airplane.

More, here: http://www.aopa.org/members/files/pilot/2005/aeronca0501.html

I think it requires AOPA membership. If so, here's cut and paste:
January 2005 Volume 48 / Number 1
Budget Buys
Amicable Aeronca Chief

By RICK DURDEN

* A
* A
* A
* Print

Capability, agility, and fun in a plain, brown wrapper

It is an unpretentious little airplane, never seeming to seek, or gain, aviation's limelight. Those who have been fortunate enough to make the acquaintance of the Aeronca Chief know that wrapped up in a less-than-$20,000 package is an airplane that is forgiving of the transgressions of inexperienced or distracted pilots, yet perfectly capable of responding surely to the touch of the most able. It doesn't have the continuing cachet of a Piper Cub or a reputation for exciting handling as does the Luscombe, and it is not as fast as the Cessna 120 and 140 series, yet the Chief is possessed of impeccable aeronautical manners, allowing it to hold its own in any gathering.

Aeronca emerged from World War II financially healthy and intending to regain the premier position in sales it had held before being eclipsed by Piper and its Cub just prior to the war. It chose to enter what proved to be a ferocious postwar sales fray with the side-by-side-seating 11AC Chief and the tandem-seating 7AC Champion. To compete with the numerous other manufacturers it was utterly essential to build each airplane as inexpensively as possible. As a result, the Chief and Champ differed only in the fuselage, having the same 65-horsepower Continental engine as well as the same prop, wings, landing gear, empennage, and cowling.

Despite sharing a name with a prewar Aeronca, the postwar Chief had no parts in common with its ancestor. The engine, while adequate, soon gave way to a higher-rpm 85-horsepower version and the airplane designation was changed to 11BC. (There is an approved procedure to convert the 65-horsepower engine to 85 horsepower.) The final version of the Chief, the Model 11CC, also with 85 horsepower but having toe rather than heel brakes as well as some other improvements, was built until 1950. Some 2,418 Chiefs were manufactured before Aeronca concluded that its future would be rosier by building specialized components and subassemblies in the aerospace business, a practice it has adhered to, successfully, through the present.

Over the years, Chiefs have flown, slowly, throughout the world, maintaining their integrity and continually adding to a quiet reputation for capability, pleasant handling, and flexibility. Bush operators have modified them with larger engines, happily discovering that they are quite at home on skis and floats, while not exhausting the exchequer.

A nicely restored 11AC is owned by Ben Ennenga, AOPA 4394361, and is hangared at Grand Haven Memorial Airpark in Michigan. Ennenga advised that there is more than one owners organization for the Chief. An Internet search revealed several individuals and groups that provide guidance and assistance to those who own or like the 11 series.

Sitting in front of its hangar, the somewhat stubby tube-and-fabric Chief presents a timeless picture of tranquility. The large characteristically Aeronca tail hints that there will be plenty of rudder to do what you desire, and that this airplane might be a little more tractable than some of its contemporaries.

Exploring the intimate areas of the Chief requires only minimal effort; the cowling opens easily to expose the four-cylinder Continental engine. Oil quantity is but four quarts. Several types of propellers, both metal and wood, are approved for the Chief. Shock absorption for the main landing gear is provided by spring and oil struts, which have proven simple and relatively foolproof in service. Owners report that parts for the quite-adequate, original Goodyear mechanical disk brakes are now hard to find. The wing spars are wood with stamped aluminum ribs and are the subject of a rather extensive airworthiness directive requiring a one-time inspection. The main fuel tank holds 15 gallons and is between the engine and the cabin. Its location and risk of rupture on impact, leading to fire following an accident, are among the few shortcomings of the Chief. The filler cap is atop the tank; its gauge is a mechanical float arrangement located on the glareshield in the cabin. An 8-gallon auxiliary tank that gravity feeds into the main is behind the cabin. Its filler cap is on top of the fuselage. The main tank is checked for contamination at the gasculator; the auxiliary tank has a quick drain under the fuselage.

A fuel burn of about 4.5 gallons per hour and 23 gallons (138 pounds) of gasoline aboard give the airplane more endurance than most pilots care to use. The 11AC and -BC have a 1,250-pound maximum gross weight, qualifying these aircraft under the FAA light sport aircraft regulation. With a 449-pound useful load for Ennenga's Chief, the amount of fuel to be carried, once two adults are aboard, requires consideration. The 11CC has a 1,350-pound gross weight, which makes the loading equation a bit easier (but bumps it above the light sport aircraft maximum weight limit of 1,320 pounds).

Getting into the Chief presents a challenge, although once inside, the fact that the bench seat is adjustable fore and aft means that the cabin has a bit more legroom than a Luscombe or Ercoupe and is slightly more comfortable. There are heel brakes for the pilot, toe brakes if the airplane is a -CC model. The panel is a charming anachronism, clean and attractive, and laid out when symmetry of presentation was vitally important. Human factors? Bah, humbug. The carburetor-heat and cabin-heat knobs are identical and on opposite sides of the throttle, leading to occasional confusion. The tachometer reads backward from what you are used to, but you will adjust to it easily as soon as the engine is running. The side windows may be opened in flight. On Ennenga's airplane, they slide effortlessly; attention to such a small thing is a good indication that the rest of the airplane is equally well maintained.

Aeronca sent Chiefs on their way into the world from its Vandalia, Ohio, factory without an electrical system. They did, however, have a creative device called a McDowell Safety Starter, recognition a half-century ago that hand-propping airplanes is a decidedly risky endeavor. A long, vertical lever by the pilot's left knee was connected, via cable, to a ratchet device on the crankshaft just below the propeller. Pulling the lever snapped the prop over a quarter turn or so. Sadly, the system proved unreliable to use, and most owners cast them aside, feeling that the weight wasn't worth the benefit.

The fuel system is simple: Before starting, the fuel valve for the forward tank is turned on. If there is fuel in the auxiliary tank, the front tank must be burned down about halfway before the valve to the rear tank is opened, whereupon fuel gravity flows to the front one. If that valve is left on after landing, the three-point attitude will lead to fuel flowing from the front tank into the rear, potentially overflowing and draining onto the ground.

Ennenga uses a simple, elegant setup to reduce the chance that the airplane might move during the start. It consists of a single heavy nylon rope with a snap clip on each end. One clip attaches to the tailwheel and the other to a post by his hangar. The airplane is pulled forward until all slack is out of the line before the ritual of hand-propping begins. Once the engine has lit off and is running smoothly at dead idle with the traditional quiet "knock, knock, knock" sound that has caused generations to refer to Aeroncas as "Airknockers," Ennenga walks to the tail, pulls the airplane aft a short way to confirm it will not move on its own, then releases the rope and boards.

Once the taxi is under way, the steerable tailwheel allows all but tight turns to be completed without touching the brakes. Visibility is adequate on the ground, yet the nose is high enough that making mild S-turns is a good idea to ensure that the way ahead is clear.

Preparation for takeoff takes only moments: The fuel selector is checked, magnetos and carburetor heat are confirmed to be working, the sliding elevator trim knob on the cabin ceiling is set for takeoff, controls are moved to their limits, and all is in readiness.

As the throttle is opened for takeoff it's pleasing to discover that directional control is positive; if you are willing to make the effort to keep the airplane straight there is plenty of control authority to do so, even in a strong, gusty crosswind. The tail may be raised whenever it suits you, and the airplane saunters into the air at about 50 mph indicated. Adjusting things for the climb at 60 to 65 mph, it becomes apparent that not much happens rapidly in this airplane, something you soon find to be an acceptable state of affairs unless there are obstructions ahead. While a Chief may break ground in a reasonably short distance, its climb gradient is fairly flat. Ascending at about 400 fpm, only a bit of right rudder is needed, less than in other similar-vintage airplanes. Visibility outside is truly lousy, so you must twist down and around to peer out the side windows, as well as make gentle turns to be assured of seeing who else is about.

Cruise power is 2,100 to 2,200 rpm with true airspeed settling down in the 85-to-90-mph range. Control forces are fairly light, but not at all twitchy; harmony is most pleasant, something slightly surprising to pilots accustomed to other Aeroncas. Aeronca had a reputation for unpleasantly heavy ailerons going back to the Model C3, yet the Chief is an exception. The sliding knob elevator trim is almost too effective; a very small movement gives immediate results.

Steep turns and slow flight are easy to accomplish with a degree of ?lan. Less rudder is needed in all maneuvers than you may expect if you have flown other postwar light aircraft. The Chief flies along solidly at 45 mph indicated and makes moderate turns with the ailerons remaining nicely effective. Power off, the stall occurs at something on the order of 40 mph, although one may or may not get a true break; the airplane may just gently bob up and down while sinking rapidly. There is only a subtle prestall buffet when power is at idle, occurring about 3 mph before the stall. Buffet is more pronounced at higher power settings. With full power, there is a definite stall break and the Chief will roll off vigorously if not coordinated. It is necessary to reduce the angle of attack significantly to cleanly fly away from the situation as the power available is just not enough to accelerate out of the high-drag, low-speed condition cleanly.

Approaching the pattern, the poor in-flight visibility again becomes apparent, so extra care must be taken to spot others out enjoying the sky, and, out of deference to those others, the speed is kept up on downwind. Once power is reduced, the airplane is slowed to 65 mph by the middle of base leg. Best-glide speed is 67 mph and about now you discover the airplane glides quite well — more than you may expect during the first landing or two. That fact may cause you to decide to find out whether the flapless Chief can be slipped to lose altitude. With the powerful ailerons and rudder, it does so nicely, thank you.

The appropriate speed on final is 60 mph. Either wheel or full-stall (three-point) landings can be made without much effort, as effort is defined in tailwheel airplanes. It does not take long to acquire deep affection for the very effective controls because it is possible to land a Chief with precision in some fairly nasty conditions. As with any tailwheel airplane, you have to be assertive in making it go where you desire; however, the Chief provides you with excellent tools to carry out the task.

After you taxi in, shut down, get out, and look at the airplane again, you can't help but feel that this sort of pudgy-looking machine only appears to be a sheep. There's no wolf inside that clothing; it's more like a smart, old Labrador, agile and capable, that you like to spend time with and that is not likely to turn around and bite unless you do something foolish.

Looks like I need to pay closer attention. Chief not Champ. the rest remains the same... Sorry.

Andrew, you're on! I say yes please in capital letters to the ride, to catching up on news and to see yours and Cat's horse and other barn inhabitants! (And you can bet the barrage of questions for the mentor will start flowing again as soon as flight training has begun!!!! Then you'll be wishing you hadn't been so kind as to step up to the plate as an AOPA mentor....but hopefully, I'll get wiser as I get further into training.

Rick, thanks very much for the article! That was a very informative read. And golly, you make the little Chief sound like the dream tailwheeler, especially for one coming to aviation later in life and needing an extremely kind and forgiving airplane.

Tell me, does EVERYONE get this hankering to look at airplanes and dream of owning their own as soon as the flying bug hits? I've been doing this for years...my family think I have some serious screws loose. Are they right?

Jennifer in Norway