Chopstick
08-09-2006, 12:23 PM
The Bell P59. In 1942, when the plane was first being tested at Edwards Air Force Base, it was one of our country's most closely held secrets. At the time, no one had ever seen or heard of a jet aircraft and the whole notion of an airplane flying without a propeller was completely outrageous. Whenever they moved it around they put a shroud over it and a fake wooden propeller on the nose.
http://www.edwards.af.mil/moments/images/photos/oct-2002/0273-1.jpg
All of the test pilots work for Bell and were civilians. There were also some military P-38 pilots stationed there at the other end of the field. Naturally, down at the local watering hole there was a bit of a competative spirit between the military pilots and the civilian test pilots. My plane is better than yours, that kind of thing. Well, one of the test pilots let it out one night that they were testing a plane that didn't have a propeller. Of course,the army pilots maintained that such a thing was impossible and that the Bell pilots were a bunch of liars.
Well, a test pilot named Jack Woolams figured out how to get their point across without breaking too may rules. He took a trip down to Hollywood to a costume supply house and rented a gorrilla suit. He took off the next morning wearing the gorilla suit, a derby hat and a big ole cigar in his mouth. He flew around until he found a P-38 flying alone. He pulled up right next to him and waved at him, giving him his first close up view of a jet aircraft.......being flown by a gorilla in a derby hat, smoking a cigar. /ccboard/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
<font color="blue">My kind of guy. Think about it. Who's this P-38 pilot going to tell about it and what is he going to tell them? </font color> /ccboard/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
That evening at the Rosamond watering hole, Woolams asked the gathered army pilots if they'd heard that a gorilla had escaped from a nearby traveling circus and was seen near by. Well they all said they hadn't seen any gorilla. They didn't say anything about a propellerless aircraft anymore either. /ccboard/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
http://www.edwards.af.mil/moments/images/photos/oct-2002/0273-1.jpg
All of the test pilots work for Bell and were civilians. There were also some military P-38 pilots stationed there at the other end of the field. Naturally, down at the local watering hole there was a bit of a competative spirit between the military pilots and the civilian test pilots. My plane is better than yours, that kind of thing. Well, one of the test pilots let it out one night that they were testing a plane that didn't have a propeller. Of course,the army pilots maintained that such a thing was impossible and that the Bell pilots were a bunch of liars.
Well, a test pilot named Jack Woolams figured out how to get their point across without breaking too may rules. He took a trip down to Hollywood to a costume supply house and rented a gorrilla suit. He took off the next morning wearing the gorilla suit, a derby hat and a big ole cigar in his mouth. He flew around until he found a P-38 flying alone. He pulled up right next to him and waved at him, giving him his first close up view of a jet aircraft.......being flown by a gorilla in a derby hat, smoking a cigar. /ccboard/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
<font color="blue">My kind of guy. Think about it. Who's this P-38 pilot going to tell about it and what is he going to tell them? </font color> /ccboard/images/graemlins/laugh.gif
That evening at the Rosamond watering hole, Woolams asked the gathered army pilots if they'd heard that a gorilla had escaped from a nearby traveling circus and was seen near by. Well they all said they hadn't seen any gorilla. They didn't say anything about a propellerless aircraft anymore either. /ccboard/images/graemlins/laugh.gif