Radial Engines

[1958 M274]

Dedicated to All Who Flew Behind Round Engines, Author unknown

We gotta get rid of those turbines, they're ruining aviation and our hearing... A turbine is too simple minded, it has no mystery. The air travels through it in a straight line and doesn't pick up any of the pungent fragrance of engine oil or pilot sweat. Anybody can start a turbine. You just need to move a switch from 'OFF' to 'START' and then remember to move it back to 'ON' after a while. My PC is harder to start. Cranking a round engine requires skill, finesse, and style. You have to seduce it into starting. On some planes, the pilots aren't even allowed to do it ... Turbines start by whining for a while, then give a lady-like poof and start whining a little louder. Round engines give a satisfying rattle-rattle, click-click, BANG, more rattles, another BANG, a big macho fart or two, more clicks, a lot more smoke, and finally a serious low pitched roar. We like that. It's a GUY thing ... When you start a round engine, your mind is engaged, and you can concentrate on the flight ahead. Starting a turbine is like flicking on a ceiling fan, useful, but hardly exciting. When you have started his round engine successfully, your crew chief looks up at you like he'd let you kiss his girl, too! Turbines don't break or catch fire often enough, leading to aircrew boredom, complacency, and inattention. A round engine at speed looks and sounds like it's going to blow any minute. This helps concentrate the mind! Turbines don't have enough control levers or gauges to keep a pilot's attention. There's nothing to fiddle with during long flights. Turbines smell like a Boy Scout camp full of Coleman lamps. Round engines smell like God intended machines to smell. Pass this on to an old World War II pilot (or his son who flew them in Vietnam) in remembrance of that "greatest generation".

[Ron Luebke]

joe ,i live close to you and it sounds like i need some flight time with you

[1958 M274]

joe ,i live close to you and it sounds like i need some flight time with you

Hi Ron,
Wish I could help you with that, but I'm not a pilot. Although, if you want to invest enough money for flight lessons and the purchase of an aircraft I'd be happy to work towards that as a goal!!!!!

[Ron Luebke]

sounds like we better stick to air/tram,how boring .i did take a flight on the navy bi plane out of the kennesaw airport ..

[1958 M274]

My Dad worked on that N3N in Kennesaw when it was being restored, if I remember correctly...

[Rudi]

We have Avengers that are part of FPL's Forest Fire Fighting Fleet. They are based when active in our area about 600 yards away from me.. and the sound is just amazing. Same as when they take off and when they flare out for landing.. whewwww!!!!!!!

These TBM's (this one is now part of the Atlantic Canada Aviation Museum) flies or I should say, have flown over my house 100's of times in the last 20 years I guess...

The Tracker in the background was a sweet sounding aircraft as well.

The sound of a radial engine is something once heard can never be forgotten. I love the sound of one particular plane I heard only once or twice and that was when I was in Diego.. an A4D-Skyraider.. wow Blow you away.

A Lanc sounds pretty good too, so does the Mustangs and the Spits and a few of those classic aircraft. I used to love the air shows.. the radials and the v-12's etc with the super-chargers were awesome. The roar really was sweet.

However.. Speedbird was pretty awesome as it flew over our heads on take-off from the Greater Moncton Airport a few years ago too

[PageRob]

Nothing like a radial engine, I totally agree. I'm planning on getting a pilot's liscence sometime (sure...), and would love nothing more than to have some radial-powered machine. A Beech-18 or some old warbird would be unbelieveable, but even a relatively new Stearman would be awesome (and not nearly as expensive).

[George Willer]

Nothing like a radial engine, I totally agree. I'm planning on getting a pilot's liscence sometime (sure...), and would love nothing more than to have some radial-powered machine. A Beech-18 or some old warbird would be unbelieveable, but even a relatively new Stearman would be awesome (and not nearly as expensive).

Rob,

I've had my pilot's license for 40 years but no longer fly. You've named a couple unbelievably expensive airplanes to own and fly. At one time I was planning to build my own plane, a 3/4 scale Stearman because I expected it to be much less costly. I still have the plans but have sold the engines and parts I had collected.

Jimmy Carter put a damper on my plans to build an aircraft that would burn 30 Gal/Hr with the mismanagement that resulted in the long gas lines of the '70s.

The engine and spare I had were Lycoming R-670's... 300 HP radials (roundmotors). The engines have been put to good use. On the prototype Waco Taperwing serial #A1A.

[Ron Luebke]

when i went up the pilot had me take off my headphones so i could listen to the engine, i want ever forget that sound . i got to fly for a little while ,then he took over and started doing hammerheads and barrel rolls and stalls it was a pretty cool flight.next time i want a little more speed and a few more g's. you know make me scream at my shoes!!!!!

[PageRob]

You've named a couple unbelievably expensive airplanes to own and fly.

Oh don't I know it. They're on my "to do when I win the lottery" list.

The closest I'll probably ever come to them is at the airshows... Oh well, its nice to have dreams.

[Harold R]

Somebody talkin 'bout airplanes and flying. Whose the best pilot I ever saw???

http://airlinepilotcentral.com/web_video/now_showing/bob_hoover_2006051534.html

[johnbron]

Somebody talkin 'bout airplanes and flying. Whose the best pilot I ever saw???

http://airlinepilotcentral.com/web_video/now_showing/bob_hoover_2006051534.html

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Harold, When I read your comment the first thing/name that came to my mind was Bob Hoover. I used to go to the Reno Air*Races yearly in the late 60s & early 70s and I saw that man do unbelievable aerobatics with his Shrike.

[Harold R]

Yep! He put in all the work, Yeager got the glory.

[Cub-Bud]

These are what came to mind when I read that..........

Grumman G-164B Ag-Cat.



Grumman G-164C Ag-Cat.



Local air service used these back in the 80s and 90s. The B model was replaced with an Ayers Thrush Turbine and the C model was converted to a turbine.

[George Willer]

You've named a couple unbelievably expensive airplanes to own and fly.

Oh don't I know it. They're on my "to do when I win the lottery" list.

The closest I'll probably ever come to them is at the airshows... Oh well, its nice to have dreams.

If you win the lottery maybe you could consider a different Beechcraft... the model 17 Staggerwing? That one is CLASS!