THANK YOU!

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 (available in paperback) with all the pilots' signatures and helpful cross-references to pilots and their aircraft is available at the link. 375 pages with black & white photographs and extensive tables

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 It includes across 277 pages previously unpublished photographs and texts, and facsimiles of personal letters, diaries and military orders.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

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Military Aircraft of the Davis Monthan Register, 1925-1936 (available in paperback) 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 (available as free PDF download) by Art Goebel (edited by G.W. Hyatt) is written in language that expands for us his life as a Golden Age aviation entrepreneur, who used his aviation exploits to build a business around his passion.  Available as a free download at the link.

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Winners' Viewpoints: The Great 1927 Trans-Pacific Dole Race (available as Kindle Edition eBook) is available at the link. This book describes and illustrates with black & white photographs the majority of military aircraft that landed at the Davis-Monthan Airfield between 1925 and 1936. The book includes biographies of some of the pilots who flew the aircraft to Tucson as well as extensive listings of all the pilots and airplanes. Use this FORM to order a copy signed by the author, while supplies last.

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Clover Field: The first Century of Aviation in the Golden State (available in paperback & Kindle Edition) With the 100th anniversary in 2017 of the use of Clover Field as a place to land aircraft in Santa Monica, this book celebrates that use by exploring some of the people and aircraft that made the airport great. 281 pages, black & white photographs.

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FOKKER F-32 NC334N

 

Fokker F-32 NC334N, Peterson Field, CO, April 7, 1930 (Source: PPLD)
Fokker F-32 NC334N, Peterson Field, CO, April 7, 1930 (Source: PPLD)

 

NC334N was the largest, four-engine transport aircraft of its day. Look carefully at the engine nacelle and you'll see another propeller at the back. Two engines, one a tractor and the other a pusher, were mounted in each nacelle.

This airplane landed eight times at Glendale during May, 1931. It worked for T.W.A. flying its west coast route from Los Angeles, CA to San Francisco, CA.

We first meet NC334N when it landed at Peterson Field on April 7, 1930 at 8:45AM. It was flown by Register pilot Silas A. Morehouse, and chances are that many of its landings at Glendale were also made by Morehouse or, as on May 7, 1931 at 10:05AM, by Eddie Bellande.

Below, courtesy of the San Diego Aerospace Museum Flickr Stream (SDAM) is a nice profile of NC334N at GCAT.

Fokker NC334N, GCAT, Date Unknown (Source: SDAM)
Fokker NC334N, GCAT, Date Unknown (Source: SDAM)

Upon close examination, the port engines appear to be running, but there are no passengers visible through the windows. The wheels for the passenger canopy leading to the loading door are visible under the fuselage. An examination of the Register shows most of the flights departing GCAT for San Francisco left near 10:00AM. Given the orientation of the terminal building (see the homepage for blueprints with compass rose), the shadow cast by the tower onto the roof is about right for near that time of day. Are we seeing the preparation for departure to San Francisco on a sunny morning? Below, from the Journal of the American Aviation Historical Society photograph collection, is a painting of NC331N wearing TWA livery. The F-32s were stunning aircraft.

Fokker NC334N, Date Unknown (Source: Link)
Fokker NC334N, Date Unknown (Source: Link)

A good photograph of an unidentified F-32 is at the link. You'll have to scroll down about 2/3 of that page. Note, too, the links therefrom, which exhibit other photographs. The descriptions of the F-32s at those links will make it clear that the airplanes were not very successful; only ten were ever made. Besides the high acquisition cost, they were, even with four engines, underpowered and a nightmare to maintain. They were finally phased out of T.W.A. nee Western Air Express service later in 1931. The technography for NC334N is online at the Peterson Field Web site at the link. Please direct your browser there to learn about this large airplane, and its sister ship NC333N, which also landed at Glendale a total of 17 times during 1930-31.

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THIS PAGE UPLOADED: 06/13/13 REVISED: 12/05/14, 06/18/19