Wheelair III-A Drawing (company brochure) and photo (David Hatfield coll)
  Wheelair III-A [NX31223] (Frank Rezich coll)

III-A 1947 = 4pClwM; 190hp Lycoming O-435 pusher; span: 37'0" length: 26'7" (?>26'10") load: 1150# v: 140/120/52 range: 580 ceiling: 11,500'; ff: 4/x/47. Donald Wheeler. Also with 170hp Lycoming GO-290-AP. Prototype all-metal, twin-boom, rudderless twin-tail, tricycle-gear, post-war "plane of tomorrow" based on Wheeler's prize-winning design in a national magazine. Two-control system. Tomorrow never came, and company filed bankruptcy in 1949. $5,000-5,500; POP: 1 [NX31223] came out a bit boxier than the artist's sleek proposal.

Express c.1985 = 4pClwM for home-builder market; no data. Evolved into c.1997 Express.

165 c.1965 = 1pClwM; 65hp Continental A-65; span: 23'8" length: 17'6" load: 324# v: 120/96/60 range: 250. M Whittenburg.

  Baby White (Aerial Age via Joe Martin)
  Baby White motor (clip from unknown magazine)

Baby White 1916 = 1pOhwM; c.15hp motorcycle engine and chain-driven pusher propeller; span: 18'0" length: 16'0" v: 50. The first kit-form aircraft offered in the US; test-flown at the Ascot Speedway in Los Angeles. Canard configuration with trailing-edge ailerons; reverse tricycle gear. POP: 1, plus an unknown number of kits for home-builders.

  White Sport Monoplane (ad: 1919 Aerial Age)

Sport Monoplane 1919 = 1pOmwM; 12-20hp Harley-Davison or similiar; span: 22'0" length: 14'0" v: 45 gross wt: 200#. Home-builder project advertised in kit form for $365, sans motor, but with a "neat landing gear."

  White Trans-Pacific Flyer Side-view (1919 Aerial Age)

Trans-Pacific Flyer 1919 - 3pOmwMF; two 180hp and one 300hp Hisso; span: 82'0" length: 39'0" load (est): 4200# v (est): 100. Laminated plywood construction; truss-braced wings, twin pontoons; side-by-side cockpit in front, plus a single cockpit well aft, probably carrying someone more for c/g reasons than anything else. A most ambitious project that never came to pass, despite announced prestigious support from Pacific Aero Club and Aerial League of Canada, even his honor, the Governor of Alaska.

1928 = 1pOhwM ornithopter. The wingtips moved 17' when the pedals were pushed 14". With "a smaller craft," 14 flights were made with up to 140 yards distance and 7' height.

A-R 1938 = 3pChwMAm; 165hp Ranger. POP: 1 [NX77Y].

D-25B 1940 (108 2-557) = New Standard D-25 production, bought from Jones Co, repowered with 285hp Wright J-6 for use as a crop duster. POP: 5, of which 2 were destroyed in a 1940 hangar fire at Monroeville AL [NR25317, NR25318], and 2 went to Dept of Agriculture in 1941 [NR25319, NR25320]; the fifth, actually a D-25A airframe, was delivered to White Co in 1942 [NR25313].

Gull 1939 = 4pChwMAm; 160hp Menasco pusher. Design modified from Argonaut. POP: 1. Project was shelved when a market failed to materialize.

PT-7 1939 = 2pOB; 200hp Warner Super Scarab; span: 31'0" length: 24'3". Planned primary trainer for CPTP with acquisition of rights to the 1930 Verville AT, but production never got under way. The "PT" was White's designation, not the military's (actual PT-7 was a Mohawk product). POP: possibly 1 prototype.

Longhorn 1967 = 1pClwM; ff: 6/x/67.

WW-1 Der Jäger D.IX 1969 = 1pOB; 115hp Lycoming O-235-C1; span: (upper) 20'0" (Lower) 16'0" length: 17'0" load: 354# v: 145/133/54; ff: 9/7/69 [N3610].

Whirlwind 1959 = 2pChwM; 108hp Lycoming O-235-C1; span: 20'0" length: 20'0" v: 160/140/60 range: 400; ff: 6/25/59 [N126V]. Looked like a combination of Tailwind and Cougar.

A, A Special 1928 = No data; Velie or Anzani. POP: 1 [349 c/n 12, 350 c/n 11].

  White's Hummingbird   Barnstormer J Herman Banning

Hummingbird 1926 = 3pOB; 90hp Curtiss OX-5; span: 33'2" length: 23'6" load: 1000# v: 93/85/28 range: 375. $2,150. POP: reported about 25, with most unregistered [3046/3047 found].

In the book, Black Eagles, by Jim Hastings, on page 60, J H Banning states: "In 1924 Des Moines, I found WW1 ace [?] Raymond Fisher to teach me to fly." Banning then buys his own Hummingbird biplane, naming it Miss Ames. (— Ron Billman 1/20/02)

Banning attended Iowa State College, and became the first black to receive a CAA pilot's license, #1324. He bought the Hummingbird to use in the 1928 Iowa Goodwill Air Tour. (— John M Jarratt2/2/02)

Sport C-1 (aka A), C-2 (aka B) 1928 = 2pOhwM; 60hp LeBlond 5D (C-1) or 55hp Velie M-5 (C-2); span: 31'1" length: 18'4" load: 415# v: 121/97/35. Harold White. $2,450. POP: 2 with 70hp Velie [10459 c/n 19, 12092 c/n 26], and some with various other motors [399 c/n 15, et al].

Sport C-3 1932 = 60hp Anzani. POP: 2 [814 c/n ?, 10586 c/n 1000, 12947 c/n 28].

  White's Sport S-30 [571W]

Sport S-30 aka Burdette S-30 1931 = Larger, slower version of C-1 with 40hp Szekely SR-3; span: 35'0" length: 18'11" load: 442# v: 70/58/30. $1,495. [571W] c/n 25.

W-K Special 1937 = 1pOM; 85hp Schilberg. [X18219].

1911 = 1pOH. A multi-rotor type consisting of an open, tubular framework, carrying two rows of 6' lifting screws on either side of the central frame. Probably the vehicle was powered with Whitehead's own engine, fueled by acetylene. It is unlikely the machine ever left the ground.

  Whitehead (William J O'Dwyer coll)
  Whitehead Line art (cover of 1937 bio by Stella Randolph)

Number 21 c.1901 = 1pOmwM; reportedly had an acetylene gas-powered motor. Silk-covered, twin-tractor powered glider with a birdlike appearance (one of some two dozen Whitehead designs) was claimed by Whitehead, and his many supporters, to have attained powered flight two years before the Wright brothers, on 11/21/1901, but there apparently is no grounded substantiation. Whether he actually did beat the Wrights to it or not, his contributions to aviation and a place in history cannot be denied, but it is up to future researchers and scholars to solve to finality. A replica of this craft was built by Otto Timm, for the 1938 film, "Men With Wings," and another by Andy Kosch in 1986.

Amphib 1930 = 3-4pOBAm; 110hp LeBlond 7DF pusher; span: 37'0" length: 28'9". Remanufacture of Taft Kingfisher.

   Whittelsey Avian [367] (Eric Blocher coll)

Avian 1929 = 2pOB; 90hp Cirrus Mk III. British Avro folding-wing sportplanes manufactured under license. $3,845; $450 extra for Handley-Page wing slots.

   Whittemore-Hamm (clipping from unknown magazine)

L-2, L-3 1917 = 2pOB; 100hp Hall-Scott A-7; span: 36'5" length: 25'6" v: 75/x/45. Fabric-covered, laminated-wood fuselage trainers developed for Army interest, of which there was none; L-2 sold to Boston Post. POP: 1 each. As was often the case with early planes, each one had its own designation.

  Mono-Special Matilda [NR500W]

Mono-Special 1933 = 1pOmwM; 110hp Cirrus Hi-Drive Mk III. Clayton Folkerts. Bull-nosed racer, modified from Folkerts SK-1 [NX/NR500W].

  Whittenburg [N8707R] (Bernhard C F Klein coll)

1965 = 1pClwM; 65hp Continental; no specs found; ff: 6/x/65. A conglomerate of Luscombe wings and cowling with parts from two J-2 Ciubs and a PT-22. Total expenses: $575.00; POP: 1 [N8707R].

  Wichita Cadet [NC9026]

Cadet 1929 = 2pOB; LeBlond. Floyd Copeland. Sport trainer, development of 1p Wilson Cadet [NC9026].

Cadet Captain, Major - Two versions planned but apparently never built.

A Bluebird 1955 = 4pChwM; 115hp Lycoming; span: 33'0" length: 21'0" load: 750# v: 120/100/45 range: 300. All-metal construction by Boeing engineer Wickham, later repowered with 135hp Lycoming. [N4944V].

B 1967 = 5pChwM; two 160hp Lycoming O-320; span: 39'0" v: 150/x/60. Fixed gear. [N1343].

1934 = 2pOB; 100hp Curtiss OXX-6. [13694] c/n JW-53. Reg cancelled 8/1/37. One reference found as being [5249]—possibly a rebuild of American Eagle A-1 c/n 159?

1964 = 1pOAg; 72hp McCulloch O-100; rotor 20'0" load: 250# v: 75/60/15. Experimental open-frame autogyro. The engine could be pivoted to direct prop blast against a 4-bladed stub rotor located above the main rotor. [N3W].

1931 = 2pOM; 80hp Anzani. [998M] c/n M-2A. Sold 3/15/37 and relocated in NJ, scrapped 3/17/38.

White Ghost 1910 = 2pOB; 60hp Rinek.

  Collier T-21-1 [109E] (Tulsa Air & Space Museum)

T-12-1 Sport Trainer 1930 = 2pOB; 110hp Warner Scarab (originally a Siemens); span: 31'6" length: 21'7". [550V]. Wilcox ran an airport, located NE of Tulsa in Verdigris, that consisted of associated hangars and an office on 300 acres. William Collier built a number of planes there, reportedly including the T-12, until he relocated to Kansas. At least one of the hangars with the Collier name was still standing, overgrown and unused, in the '80s.

  Wilde Ornithicopter (unknown source)

Bicycle Bird 19?? = Photo cap: 'This Bicycle Bird will fly, insists inventor Lehman Wilde. For 34 years Wilde has dreamed of his ornithicopter, now it is ready for its final tests at Curtiss Field on Long Island. The machine weighs 275 pounds and is composed mostly of wings. There is a sprocket-and-gear arrangement that flaps these wings while a pilot treadles, as one would a bicycle.'

1934 (561) = 2pOB; 40hp Straughn AL-1000 (Ford conversion); span: 28'6" length: 19'9" load: 393# v: 82/70/28 range: 110. From Straughn-Holmes A. $1,438, $1,692 in 1935.

WRK Gyroplane 1931 = 1pOAg; 85hp ACE Mark III; span: 23'0" rotor: 30'0"; v: 180/x/30. Repowered with 165hp Jacobs. POP: 1 [X794W]; ff: 8/5/31 (p: Frank P Brown). Wings were later removed and the ship made hundreds of successful flights before its crash in 1935, killing pilot Joseph McCormick. Model designation from initials of Wilford and German aero engineers Walter Reiseler and Walter Kreiser, upon whose patented 1927 designs the ship was based. A second version in 1934, for USN and NACA tests, was built up from a Fleet N2Y-1 fuselage and tail group as Pennsylvania XOZ-1 [8602].

  Willard 1910 (Chicago Historical Society coll)

1910 = 2pOB; 63hp Curtiss V-8 pusher; ff: 8/12/10. Willard, who had been leasing a Curtiss airplane for his exhibition flights, returned it, and reportedly designed a similar machine customized to his requirements, but still leased the motor from Curtiss (the one used on Curtiss' Rheims Racer). This apparently was distinct from the 1910 Banshee Express, which he implied was his design, but was really another Curtiss product (52hp Curtiss V-8; span: 32'0"). POP: 2, the second of which, christened simply The Express, had 50hp five-cylinder Gnôme rotary. Willard set a payload record with this craft by carrying two passengers with him on 8/14/10.

1907 = 1pOH; 63hp Adams-Farwell. First design of a single-rotor helicopter, based on the French Vuitten- Huber, failed to fly with its 8hp Curtiss motor, but futher experiments in league with Emile Berliner produced a two-engine, two-bladed (rotor: 18'8") machine weighing 460# that lifted the 150-lb Willams off the ground in a tethered flight on 6/26/09. SEE Berliner.

  1908 J Nwton Williams (Tom Heitzman coll)

1908 = No specs or data found about this helicopter designed by Williams and shown here assembled at Hammondsport NY with what appears to be a 40hp Curtiss B8 motor, the same as used on the AEA Red Wing. Possible brief tethered flight.

c.1924 = 1pOH. A helicopter project, believed to have involved Williams, was underway in Connecticut—the only information comes from two photos showing a prototype or a test stand. The engine looks like a LeRhône rotary. Coaxial, contrarotaing rotor system. The two-blade rotor wings were attached rigidly to an elongated hub using two offset spars.

  Williams (1913 Jane's)

1908 = An oddity with four parafoil-type wings over an A-frame. Flight record unknown.

1911 = 1pOB; 40hp Curtiss pusher; span: 31'0". Tricycle gear, originally with a biplane forward canard. Although the first of Williams' aircraft was not of his or his wife's design—the builder was described only as "a local resident"—its airworthiness was so marginal that Williams modified and improved it to such extent that it might as well have been his. In final form it had a 60hp Curtiss, Farman-type gear and trailing-edge ailerons, and flew successfully in exhibitions. POP: 1.

1912 = 1pOB; pusher motor; span: 40'0" length: 26'0". Inez Williams, based on a standard Curtiss design. Gross wt: 900#. POP: 2. One aircraft flown extensively in demonstrations and exhibitions throughout the Great Lakes and northeastern states by Williams test pilot, Elling O Weeks.

1913 = 2pOB; geared Curtiss tractor. Headless, twin rudders, tricycle gear.

1914 = 2pOBFb hydroaeroplane.

1917 (Mobile AL) = No data.

Model 5 1915 = 2pOB; 125hp Williams V-8; span: 51'0" length: 29'8" v: 90. Similar in general, but larger than, Curtiss JN-4. This is the first one that an "official" model name or number was found to have, and the 1911-14 designs might assumably be Models 1-4.

1911-1914 = 1p and 2pOB; 80hp Curtiss (the 1911 original had a 60hp Hall-Scott motor); no specs. Several built apparently following the Curtiss design as exhibition ships; later models with fabric-covered fuselage and rounded wingtips made them quite modern for their day. Williams soloed his own creation at Hyde Park Aviation Field (Pasadena CA) on 8/26/11 at age 19 as the world's youngest licensed pilot, according to Aero Club of America officials (and, ostensibly, its youngest aircraft manufacturer.)

1912 = 1pOB; 40hp Williams. Described as being a "combination Farman and Howard Wright."

Monoplane c.1927 = OlwM; 150hp Hisso A. POP: 1, specially built by Szekely for W C Williams of San Antonio TX [910]. Crashed Oct 1927 as a reported "total washout."

750-PW 1936 = Racer. 1pOM; 300hp Lycoming; specs unfound; ff: (possibly) 5/9/36. [15781] c/n WX-21R; reg cancelled 6/1/37.

W 1937 = 2pOB; 36hp Aeronca E-113. Repowered with 40hp Continental A-40. [N18986].

Special 1948 = 1pClwM; 85hp Continental C-85; span: 19'6" length: 17'0" (?>16'5") v: 180/140/x. Midget racer Estrellita (p: Clifford "Kip" Mone) [N44183] with elliptical wing; destroyed at an air show on Sep 4, 1950.

W-17 Stinger 1971 = 1pCmwM; 100hp Continental O-200; span: 19'0" length: 15'11" v: 250. Art Williams. Midget racer [N21X].

WC-1 Sundancer 1973 = 1pCB; 100hp Lycoming O-290-D2; span: (upper) 19'9" (lower) 12'9" length: 16'3" v: 200. Carl Cangie, Art Williams. [N1AE].

-Gully Special 1949 = 1pClwM; 85hp Continental C-85. Midget racer [N66732].

Skeeter Hawk 1959 = 1pOB; 85hp Continental; v: 150/130/x. Fully aerobatic. [N7795B].

c.1970 = 1pOB; [4473].

W-2 c.1972 = 1pClwM; 65hp VW 1600cc; span: 24'0" length: 13'0" load: 233# v: 105/90/55; [N77BW].

  Williams V-Jet II (Scaled Composites)

V-Jet II 1997 = 4pClwM rg; two 550# FJX-1 turbofans; span: 35'4" length: 31'1" v: 345/311/x range: 1840 ceiling: 30,000'. (Burt Rutan, Dr Sam Williams); airframe built by Scaled Composites, Mojave CA. Forward-swept wings, V-tail. POP: 1 proof-of-concept prototype.

c.1908 = 1pOmwM. Williams' first design and the start of his company. No data was recorded about this or his other cantilever-wing aircraft experiments reportedly lasting until WW1.

1926 = 1pOhwM; 80hp (later 120hp) LeRhône rotary. George Carroll, George Williams. Prototype of Commercial-Wing.

C-4 1928 = 5pO/ChwM; ff: 10/x/28. Four passengers in an enclosed cabin, pilot in an open cockpit behind the wing.

  Williams Texas-Temple Commercial-Wing [3801] (Joe Juptner coll)

Commercial-Wing 1927 (45) = 2-3pOhwM; 220hp Wright J-5; span: 39'4" (?>42'0") length: 25'10" load: 950# v: 130/112/35 range: 550 ceiling: 18,500'. George Carroll, George Williams. $10,500 with inertia starter, brakes and metal prop. POP: 3 [173, 2506, 3801], one with 100hp Curtiss OXX-6.

Speed-Wing 1928 = 1p Commercial-Wing as a mail carrier with 500# payload; load: 1055# v: 135/120/42 range: 500. $9,500. Also advertised as a 1-2p sportplane. POP: 1 [3801]. First had 150hp Hisso A and 39'4" wingspan.

Sport (Sportsman) 1929 = 2pOhwM; 100hp Cirrus Mk III. POP: 3; prototype [480 c/n 1, 852H, 987N c/n 107].

Trimotor 1929 = Unknown type; three 60hp Velie. Photo-survey plane.

Roadrunner 1970 - 1p flying motorcycle project. No data found.

  Willoughby Pelican
  Willoughby Pelican on wheels (Library of Congress)

Pelican 1911 = 1pOB/OBF. "Modernized" Wright-type hydroaeroplane with a 50hp tractor engine; span: 30'0". Patented double tails, brass-sheathed twin pontoons, a side-mounted wheel for pitch control, a control column that worked the rudders for yaw, shoulder-operated ailerons, and a spring-mounted pedal accelerator as in an automobile but working in reverse—depress to close the throttle, and foot off for full speed! One can imagine the busy calisthenics required to coordinate all those functions!

War-Hawk c.1910 = No data found but a description in Aero 10/14/11: "[Willoughby}, who built the famous War-Hawk, perhaps the largest biplane ever constructed..."

  Willoughby (?) Undated postcard identified only as "Willoughby."

1909 = OB; two chain-driven pusher props. Appears to be a Wright copy in essence, except for wings with one lateral rib, around which the surfaces are bowed in an airfoil shape.

1913 = 1pOB. Motion picture and stunt pilot Al Wilson's first effort as a teenager, a Curtiss pusher type that only gained 50' altitude and refused to turn. It was abandoned because of structural fatigue after a few hard landings.

1917 = 2pOmwM; 80hp rotary. Blériot copy built for Cecil B de Mille's film, "We Can't Have Everything."

Cadet 1928 = 1pOB; no data, but most likely the prototype for 2p Wichita Cadets (qv). Floyd Copeland. [NC9026].

Mid-Wing 3-B 1930 = 3pOM; 150hp Axelson B, later 220hp Wright; span: 37'0" length: 27'0" v: 125/110/44. Empty wt: 1600#. E H Gustavson. Reportedly passed all flight tests successfully with no changes in engineering and production was planned, but did not materialize. [124W].

Baby Cyclone 1959 = 1pCmwM midget racer. Not raced until 1965 at Reno. Qualified ninth at 162 mph. [N121W].

  Wilson Li'l Rebel [N66317] (K O Eckland coll)

Li'l Rebel 1948 = 1pClwM; 85hp Continental C-85. Midget racer [N66317] (p: M L LeFevers, Jimmy Wilson), from salvage of Pack C racer.

Sky Mouse 1950 = 1pClwM; 85hp Continental C-85. Midget racer [N6840].

  Windecker Eagle Prototype [N801WR] (Avn Week via Ron Dupas)

Eagle, Eagle I (A7SW) 1969 = 4pClwM rg; 285hp Continental IO-520B; span: 32'0" length: 28'5" v: 220/212/63 range: 1100 ceiling: 18,000'. Dr Leo J Windecker. All resin materials, the first of the all-composite construction aircraft. Prototype was Eagle (aka X-7) [N801WR], production models were Eagle I (aka YE-7). $36,000; POP: 8 [N801WR/804WR, N4195G/4198G]. NASM has Eagle [N4197G] s/n 6 at Silver Hill and will transfer the plane for display at their new Dallas facility.

YE-5 1973 = Militarized Eagle I c/n 008 with Continental IO-540G; POP: 1 [73-01653]. Reportedly at Ft Rucker Museum.

The first military stealth airplanes, the Army CADDO (delivered in 1972) and the USAF YE-5 (delivered in 1973), were both derivatives of the Eagle. 49 patents issued in Dr Windecker's name, covering all aspects of composite structure and manufacturing, were assigned to Dow Chemical Co, who funded his research. Those patents made up the "stealthy" technology licensed by Dow to the major stealth contractors Lockheed-Martin and Northrup, but Windecker received no royalties from any of the licensing agreements. (— Ted Windecker 6/29/01)

YF-80 c.1977 = 1pClwM rg half-scale Lockheed F-80 powered by a modified V-8 piston engine mated with a Davis cold-jet unit producing 220#; span 18'6" length: 17'3" load: 400# v: 300/x/90 range: 490.

  Wing Derringer [N7597V] (company ad)

Derringer 1964 (A9WE) = 2pClwM rg; two 150-160hp Lycoming IO-320-B; span: 29'2" length: 23'0" (?>22'9") load: 980# v (unsupercharged): 225/x/67 range: 1000+ ceiling: (unsupercharged) 23,000' (supercharged) 32,500'; ff: 5/1/62, crashed in testing. John Thorp, scaled up from his Twin Sky Skooter design. All-metal. Initial production with 150hp, ATC in 1966; second production with 160hp. $40,500; POP: 1 prototype with 115hp Lycoming, 5 initial production, of which the first 3 were built by Wing's Transland company; unknown second production.

S-2 1931 = 1pOB; 35hp Continental. [11192] c/n 14. Crashed at Imlay City MI on 8/2/31 and reg cancelled.

1904 = 1pOM; human power. Two wing panels mounted on a bicycle. Above the cyclist was mounted a sort of stabilizer with an elevator in the front end. According to Wings Over Idaho, Winslow, a riverboat pilot, pedaled his "airship" downhill toward a cliff on the Lewiston side of the Snake River, hoping to sail across to Clarkston WA. Fortunately the bike's front wheel collapsed before he got airborne, preventing a more serious accident.

  Winstead Restoration [2297] (Paul Dougherty Jr)

Special 1926 = 3pOB; 90hp Curtiss OX-5; span 29'6" length 23'-0" Empty Wt" 1281# gross wt: 1800#. Hybrid with Travel Air fuselage and Swallow wings used for sport racing competition [2297] (p: J J Davis). Remains were found c.1975 in storage and are thought to have been restored.

I currently own this aircraft and restored it a few years ago. The Winstead Brothers built it in Wichita. The fuselage is believed to be the steel tube fuselage Walter Beech and Lloyd Stearman built while working for Swallow, but their idea of steel tubing was shot down by Jake Moellendick, president of Swallow at that time. The fuselage was set aside, then sold, we believe to the Winsteads. Events that followed were well documented as far as Travel Air Corp and the key players.
    Not well known is the history of the Winsteads. Carl worked at Swallow as a mechanic, then for himself for a while with his brother. Guy worked with Clyde Cessna in building the prototype Travel Air 5000. Carl also worked for Cessna, and was one of the first hired craftsman at Cessna building the A series. Carl later became Cessna's chief test pilot; he was killed test flying the 190 series airplanes in the '40s. The Winsteads were well placed in the Wichita aviation community but not very well remembered.
    As for the plane it had a wonderful history. Carl flew it with the Flying Aces Air Circus, Jessie Woods walked its wings. Carl also raced it and barnstormed with it. The next owners, the Marvin Mara family, used it for racing and barnstorming. It changed hands several times until the Davis Family of Ary NB purchased it in 1935 and took it apart for a rework in 1937—it was never reassembled until we purchased it in 1994. The restoration took several years and is currently in the configuration and paint scheme as when Carl flew it with the Flying Aces, and is based at The Golden Age Air Museum in Bethel PA and is flown regularly for museum visitors. It is a beautiful flying old airplane, and I'm glad I can share it with you. (— Paul Dougherty Jr 1/7/01)

  1910 Wiseman (Western Aerospace Museum coll)

1910 (San Francisco) = 1pOB; 50hp Wiseman-modified local-make auto engine pusher; span: 24'0" length: 25'0"; ff: 4/23/10—which makes puts this among the earliest California-built aircraft to fly. Auto racer Wiseman and his mechanic, Peters, used their race winnings to construct this pusher (aka Wiseman-Peters)—admitted by Wiseman to have incorporated design features of Curtiss, Farman and Wright from notes, photos, and sketches of these planes seen at air meets — with innovations like laminated wing ribs, front and rear elevators, and trailing-edge ailerons on all wings. First flown in Sonoma County (p: Wiseman), then, with 60hp Hall-Scott A-2, at Petaluma on 7/24/10 (p: Peters).

  Noonan-Wiseman (Western Aerospace Museum)

1911 (Petaluma) = A second Hall-Scott-powered aircraft was built, practically a duplicate of the first, for use by "Wiseman the Fearless" in exhibition flights throughout the West, as well as for the first Post Office-sanctioned air mail flight, 2/17/11, from Petaluma to Santa Rosa (SEE Air Mail feature). Restored in 1985 for the Smithsonian's Postal Museum. The names Wiseman-Cooke and Noonan-Wiseman often appear in conjunctive reports—Ben Noonan, a Santa Rosa butcher, supplied finances for Wiseman's projects; Weldon B Cooke (an aircraft builder in his own right) purchased Wiseman's 1911 machine, thought to have been repowered with 75hp Roberts, to fly in exhibitions after his Black Diamond (qv) was retired.

  Wisenant (Aerial Age via Joe Martin)

1920 = Early experimental 1pOmwM with wings mounted in a folded-back manner above two outboard 7' propellers, shaft-driven by a 90hp Maximotor (later replaced by 300hp Hisso). Stability of this design was proved in low-level test flights, and offered a 1:28 glide ratio and spin-proof characterictics. Twin tails, with elevators serving also as ailerons for banking. Although the War Department reportedly expressed interest, nothing came of the novel concept.

Claims that during the war, "... the work was greatly aided by the War Dept, which assumed security and forbade any publicity." If true—and I'm skeptical—it probably means the War Dept didn't want to be further embarrassed by its aircraft program! (— Joe Martin 2/12/03)

WA-6 1922 = 2pOB; 75hp Anzani 6A; span: 27'0" length: 19'3" load: 472# v: 120/85/40 range: 255. With about 100 hours flying time logged, it ended up in a treetop on 8/2/22 upon experiencing aileron problems, was extensively damaged, and was not repaired.

WA-9 c.1923 = 2pOB; 80hp LeRhône rotary; span: 32'0" length: 20'8" load: 545# v: 95/80/30 range: 280. Side-by-side seating. POP: 3, plus 4 unidentified planes built by others at Indianapolis and Sidney using various surplus Wissler components.

1907 = 1pOB; 40hp Wright pusher. Featured a swiveling tailwheel, which was quite an advance in technology back then.

1907 = 1pOT; 40hp Wright pusher. Between 1908-14 the firm built many planes for notables of the time: Bud Mars, Ruth Law, Capt Thomas Baldwin, Lincoln Beachey, Cecil Peoli, Harold Blakesley, and others.

1911 = 1pOB; 60hp Hall-Scott pusher. SEE ALSO Baldwin Red Devil.

1913 = 1pOB. Curtiss-type; one of several produced 1913-14.

1919 = SEE Sundstedt-Hannevig.

1923 = 1-2pOB; 400hp Liberty 12. POP: 25 modified de Havilland DH-4s for mail carrying. The last of the company's efforts before filing bankruptcy.

  Barling NBL-1 (Roy Nagl coll)

NBL 1921 = USAS Barling bomber, construction contract let by Engineering Division, McCook Field (qv). POP: 1 as NBL-1 [AS64215].

  Wittemann-Lewis T-T (Aerial Age via Joe Martin)

-Lewis T-T 1918 = 2pOB; 100hp Hisso or 90hp Hall-Scott; span: (upper) 42'0" (lower) 34'0" length: 27'0" v 70/x/35 range: c.200. A Francis Arcier. Deperdussin control system. Of interest is that no Wittemann aircraft ever suffered a fatal or serious accident.

Big X 1945 = 4pChwM; 130hp Franklin 6AC; span: 29'0" length: 24'10" load: 1050# v: 165/150/55; ff: 1/6/45 [NX/N31637]. Repowered with 150hp 6A4 in 1950. Design, an evolution of W-5, was also evaluated by Fairchild Corp; however, the Wittman leaf-spring gear, along with the airplane, was instead purchased by Cessna Co (and later repurchased by Wittman). Restored in 1980.

  Wittman Bonzo Original version
  Wittman Bonzo [NX13688] (Arthur Martin coll via WASM)
  Wittman Bonzo Wittman with post-war version [N1292] (Steve Wittman coll)

Bonzo aka Midwing 1934/1948 = 1pCmwM; 435hp Curtiss D-12; span: 15'4" length: 17'6" v: 325. Thompson trophy racer [NX13688], the last to use a water-cooled engine. Wittman reapplied the name to his Goodyear midget racer in 1948 [N1292]. Both are presently (2006) at EAA Museum.

Buster 1947 = 1pCmwM; 85hp Continental C-85; span: 16'0" length: 17'10". Rebuilt from 1931 Chief Oshkosh [R/NX14855] (p: Bill Brennand, Bob Porter, others). Retired from racing 1954.

  Wittman Chief Oshkosh [R12047] (Steve Wittman coll)

Chief Oshkosh 1931 = 1pCmwM; 90hp Cirrus; span: 16'0" length: 17'10". Racer [R12047=R14855] for the Nationals. Repowered with 115hp Cirrus Hermes in 1932, 125hp Menasco C-4 c.1935. Crashed in 1938, rebuilt in 1947 as midget racer Buster. Published plans shown many variations, typical of racing aircraft—1931: span: 18'9" length: 17'9"; 1933: span: 15'6" length: 18'4"; 1935: span: 14'6" length: 19'4"; 1937: span: 12'6" length: 19'6". Take your pick.

Hardly-Ableson 1923 = 1pOhwM; 14hp Harley-Davidson; span: 20'0" length: 17'0". With this plane 19-year-old Wittman tried to teach himself to fly, and he would have if it had been able to clear the barbed-wire fence around the field.

0&0 Special 1986 = 2pChwM; 225hp Continental; v: x/210/52. A large version of Tailwind, used as a fast cross-country tourer between Wittman's homes in Oshkosh WI and Ocala Fl. [N41SW]. Crashed on 4/27/95, killing Wittman and his wife.

V-Witt 1970 = Formula-V racer. 1pCmwM; 60-65hp VW 1600cc; span: 17'6" length: 18'2" load: 270# v: 170/150/48 range: 400. [N3259].

W-5 Buttercup 1937 = 2pChwM; 85hp Continental A-85; span: 28'6" length: 21'0" load: 550# v: 147/135/40 range: 540. Initially had 50hp Lycoming O-145; v: 125 [NX/N18268]. Evaluation in 1938 by Fairchild Corp as a possible 3p production plane failed to materialize with the advent of WW2. Design evolved into Big X, rebuilt in 1962 with variable-camber wing and full-span flaps.

  Wittman W-8 [N4149]

W-8 Tailwind 1953 = 2pChwM; 150hp Franklin 6-AC (also 90hp Continental C-90-12F, 115hp Lycoming O-235); span: 21'11" (?>22'6") length: 19'3" load: 600# v: 170/150/60 ceiling: 15,000'. Marketed plans for home-builders.

  Wittman W-9 [N4JB]

W-9L Tailwind 1958 = 2pChwM; 160hp Lycoming O-320-B1A; span: 20'0" length: 19'3" load: 650# v: 198/180/55 range: 600-700. Based on W-8, but with tricycle gear. Prototype [N374].

  Wittman W-10 [N55AY]

W-10 Tailwind 1958 = 2pChwM; 150hp Lycoming O-320 or 145hp Continental O-300 or 130-135hp Oldsmobile F85 or Buick V-8; v: 210/180/40-43 range: 466. Tricycle gear. Prototype [N37SW].

Sport Wing 1931 = 3pOB; 90hp Curtiss OX-5. Wogen, when at age 98, recalled buying plans from a newspaper advertisement, built the biplane, and registered it as [12000] c/n 1, but did not know its fate. License issued 6/16/31, cancelled on expiration 4/1/35.

W-11 Boredom Fighter 1979 = 1pOB; 65hp Continental A65; span: 20'0" length: 15'9" load: 297# v: 118/100/42 range: 466; ff: 8/30/79.

S-12 1936 = 1pOM; 40hp Continental A-40. [16475].

CR-1 Little Monster 1955 = 2pChwM; 65hp Continental A-65; span: 25'9" length: 19'0" v: 120/95/40 range: 400. Some Piper J-3 parts used in construction. [N2752C].

Liten Vinge (Little Wing) 1963 = 1pCB; 85hp Continental C-85-8; span: 22'0" length: 17'0" load: 465# v: 125/115/x range: 400; ff: 5/x/63. Aerobatic capable. [N201DW].

CF-1 196? = 1pOB; [N46W].

CF-4 Four-Runner 1974 = 4pChwM; Lycoming IO-360-A1A; span: 25'3" load: 1000# v: 175/155/55. [N73CW].

SL-1 1973 = Formula V racer. 1pCmwM; 65hp VW 1600cc; ff: 6/23/73. [N31549].

1935 = 2pOM; 65hp LeBlond. Noel English. [NC11583].

English was a mechanic, and this was his third plane. The first crashed in testing (no date), the second was successful and sold to a Biloxi man—the report I have is that it was being flown in 1933. Wood & English were planning to build commercially, even designed their own 60hp engine. (— John M Jarratt 7/5/02)

Special 1929 = 1pOhwM; 110hp Anzani. [899E] s/n OL2-29. Described to CAA simply as "An arch-wing monoplane of Special Design." Reg cancelled 1/6/33.

  Woodson 2-A (Lesley Forden coll)

Express 2-A, 3-A 1925 = 1-3pOB; 260hp Salmson 2A-2; span: 32'1" length: 25'0" load: 600-1195# v: 138/x/40. Plywood veneer-covered fuselage. $3,500; POP: 5 or 6 as mail and cargo carriers [2593, 2647, 5859, et al], plus an unknown number of sport versions [3181/391V, 4313, 491M, et al].

Foto 1925 = 3pOB; 260hp Salmson Z-9; span: 29'6" length: 23'3" v: 130 range: 400. Passenger compartment convertible to mail or cargo hold; all-wood fuselage [699].

M-6 1927 = 2pOlwM; 60hp Detroit Air Cat; span: 28'0" length: 18'0" range: 800. Side-by-side cockpit; bonded plywood construction. Basic design evolved into Simplex Red Arrow. POP: uncertain, but published production figures claim 14 in 1927, and 6 in 1929 [X1556, et al].

  Woodson Sport 3-A (William Anderson)

Sport 3-A 1926 = 5pOB; 200hp Wright or 230hp Salmson 2A; span: 32'1" length: 25'0" load: 1400# v: 135/x/45 (data for Wright). Evolution of Express 2-A; POP: unk [7153 c/n 14, 11193 c/n 141] (quite a jump in c/ns!) Also with 150hp Hisso A (v: 118) or 180hp Hisso E (v: 122) for around $4,000.

Transport 4-B c.1927 = 5-7pO-CB; 230hp Salmson 2A; span: (upper) 39'0" (lower) 42'6" length: 28'6" load: 1620# v: 110/92/32 range: 450. Advertised as not a regular production airplane, available only on special order. DH-4 wings. $2,000; POP: 1 known to have been built.

  Woodward Aero Navigator 1917 Aero Exposition (Aerial Age via Joe Martin)

Aero Navigator c.1917 = Seaplane, no info found.

460 1958 = STOL modification of Cessna 182G/H; 260hp span: 36'7" length: 28'1" v: 170/151/31 range: 1150. Slotted full-span flaps, high-lift canards added to nose section; take-off and landing in 300'. POP: reported 34 conversions.

460 Beta STOL 1968 =

Light Sport 1928 = 1pOhwM; 50hp Anzani; span: 25'0" length: 17'6". [7926] c/n 5, sold in 1930, then reported to CAA as no longer in use with engine removed; reg cancelled 3/14/30. Wright also was secretary-treasurer of Western Airplane & Supply Co in Burbank at the time and might have had a large part in the construction or design of their 1928 Western Sport (qv).

Experimental 1928 = 2p rotorcraft with 150hp Hisso E. Tandem 53'6" wings. Patent was granted, but possibly this was never completed and flown. References mention a 1929 model, which might be a date error, or a different craft.

1933 = 1pOB; LeBlond. [15185].

  Wright-Hughes H-1B Replica [NX258Y] (unknown photographer)

H-1B 2002 = 1pOlwM rg. Exact replica of Howard Hughes' racer wearing original registration [NX258Y]. Broke existing world speed record on 9/13/02 (352.38 mph). Crashed at Yellowstone Park with engine problems on 8/4/03, killing builder-pilot Wright.

Flyer 2003 = 1pOB; pusher; specs and construction techniques reportedly identical to the original 1903 Wright brothers' machine. Flying replica built to coincide with the 100th anniversary celebrations, with first flight date set for 12/17/2003. [N203WF] c/n WOW1903-02. FAA Special certification in category of Experimental-Exhibition issued 3/15/2003.

Pup 1932 = 1pChwM; 40hp Aeromarine AR-3; span: 32'0" length: 21'0" load: 425 v: 100/80/33. Noel Hockaday, Guy Poyer. Prototype [X12546] built as shop class project, the first one ever designed and built in a public high school; ff: 8/18/32. Around $1,800; POP: 2 or 3. The last one was sold to Porterfield Aircraft and introduced at the 1935 Detroit Air Show as Porterfield Flyabout with 70hp LeBlond.