1930's GA in Louisiana

That was FANTASTIC. What service was the one with the prop inside the triangle?

FYI, the wing from that Gee Bee (NX72V-"Don Walters") that all the girls were getting their pictures taken in is the only remaining piece of an actual Gee Bee still in the US, and is on display at the EAA museum.

NC72V, Model E, c/n #8

Completed in August of 1931, this ship was delivered to Sloan to replace NC46V which was borrowed for the air tour. NC72V was painted yellow and green. Sloan flew her 990 hours in 4 years before the lingering depression forced a sale.

Don Walters then flew this airplane in Bell Sweet's Air Shows. He hist a truck on the runway while landing. The Granvilles then rebuilt the airplane. It later crashed again when the engine quit and the plane hit a fence during rollout. Walters who was piloting the airplane survived. The wing of this airplane is on display in the EAA museum. That wing wears the coca-cola red and white Gee Bee colors.
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Picture on this site: http://www.daisey-designs.com/nx13688/gb/gb.htm

gbwing.jpg
 
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TangoWhiskey said:
What service was the one with the prop inside the triangle?
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Found it! Those were Civil Air Patrol folks! Color photo in this article:

http://www.incountry.us/cappatches/library/VolMag0611.pdf

The first CAP patch featured the generic Civil Defense blue circle with a white triangle and a red propeller. Later, the initials “U.S.” were added. “This was in case any of our Coastal Patrol fliers were captured, they would be treated as belligerents instead of civilians,” Schell said.
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You can see a "CAP" insignia on the right shirt collar in a couple of the pictures. Cool photos.
 
Interesting pictures Steve! I was wondering if a few of them could have been pictures of participants in an air race since there were big numerals on the sides of some airplanes.
 
There was one toward the end where the pilot favored Howard Hughes.
 
Thanks.
Always interesting to see bits of time from Aviation's distant past.
 
Fantastic... some of the best "people-with-airplanes" compositions I've ever seen, and some terrific classics!
 
Everskyward said:
Interesting pictures Steve! I was wondering if a few of them could have been pictures of participants in an air race since there were big numerals on the sides of some airplanes.
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I don't have any details on the subject photos. In fact, the guy that sent it to me was looking for any info people might have. It's not common knowledge that a great deal of activity regarding aircraft development during the "Golden Age" of aviation took place in south Louisiana. He was hoping to gather more data in that regard.

I suspect the numbered planes are participating in an "air rally" but that's just conjecture. The pictures were taken in 1939.
 
Steve said:
I suspect the numbered planes are participating in an "air rally" but that's just conjecture. The pictures were taken in 1939.
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It was common in those days for flight schools, CAP wings and other fleet operators to identify their aircraft with large numbers in that fashion. They didn't have radios to tell them which of their students was in the pattern, and there was little variation in paint schemes ("Any color as long as it's yellow" -- W.T. Piper), so this was one way to tell them apart.
 

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Steve said:
I don't have any details on the subject photos. In fact, the guy that sent it to me was looking for any info people might have. It's not common knowledge that a great deal of activity regarding aircraft development during the "Golden Age" of aviation took place in south Louisiana. He was hoping to gather more data in that regard.

I suspect the numbered planes are participating in an "air rally" but that's just conjecture. The pictures were taken in 1939.
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Steve,

Tell your friend to sign up at www.houstonspotters.net. This is a group of avid aviation photographers, spotters, and enthusiasts based in Houston, but a number of them really get into the historical aircraft. I did give them a link, and they are able to ID many of the aircraft there, but if your friend is specifically looking for info, they might be a good resource. Especially since Louisiana isn't too far away from Houston...
 
t0r0nad0 said:
Steve,

Tell your friend to sign up at www.houstonspotters.net. This is a group of avid aviation photographers, spotters, and enthusiasts based in Houston, but a number of them really get into the historical aircraft. I did give them a link, and they are able to ID many of the aircraft there, but if your friend is specifically looking for info, they might be a good resource. Especially since Louisiana isn't too far away from Houston...
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Thanks, I passed that information along to him.
 
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