Neyen’s Schraubenflieger

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Emil Neyen’s “Schraubenflieger” was by far one of the crazier looking contraptions devised by mortal man. Despite the machine’s awkward design, prospective passengers are assured they may travel “ohne sturzgefahr!” (without risk of crashing).

“Neyen’s Schraubenflieger” – needless to say – never got off the ground, literally, and figuratively (the design was politely described in a 1910 Polytechnisches Journal article as “problematic”). The purpose of this brochure is to drum up investors; interested gentlemen need inquire only if they bring in more than 25,000 Reichmarks per annum. This is an original brochure – I can’t find much else regarding this venture. 

I am grateful to Felix Wander of the Deutsches Museum for providing additional information on this “flying” machine.

Kaman H-43 Huskie

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Pictured at Paine AFB, WA in the early 1960’s. the H-43 was designed to provide firefighting and rescue in close proximity to its bases. The Huskie was a real workhorse back in the day when aircraft mishaps were a more routine event. Interestingly, the Huskie had no tail rotor; it’s twin, intermeshing rotors provided the required stability.

P5M Marlins of VP-50, NAS Whidbey Island, 1957

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Although the planes are long gone, the base remains.

The hangar seen here was converted in 1977 to house the navy’s department store, the Naval Exchange. Looking nothing like a hangar on the inside (and nothing like a department store on the outside), its parking lot is what you see here: 1942 concrete, the aircraft mooring points still plainly visible today.

Despite its makeover, vestiges of hangar life remain inside. There are aircraft power outlets, and storage rooms that were once offices have hideous green paint from the 1950s.

P2V Neptune of VP-2, NAS Whidbey Island

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It’s open house time, and in addition to the Neptune, we see a P5M Marlin cruising over NAS Whidbey’s Ault Field. They belong, respectively, to VP-2, and VP-47.

Whidbey was home to both aircraft and in the base’s former seaplane days, these dissimilar aircraft operated from the same station but in two geographically separated locales. Reason: Whidbey Island’s topography does not allow for a seaplane base and a landplane base in a single location. Therefore, the former is a few miles distant from the latter.

The P5M Marlin, being a straight flying boat (decidedly non-amphibious), won’t be landing at Ault Field anytime soon; it can only gaze down at the runways below. Conversely, the Neptune (also decidedly non-amphibious) would face a similar quandary while flying over the water/runway at the seaplane base.