New Fokker Triplane flies

[Baldeagle]

While there was some bad news on the Fokker Triplane front this past weekend, at Grimes Airport in Bethel, PA a new one took to the air last week and was photographed over the field on Sunday



Engine is an 80 hp LeRhone rotary, and the colors are of the machine flown by Lothar von Richtofen, the brother of the Red Baron. Built and flown by Paul Dougherty and a number of helpers-



-

[kzollitsch]

Thanks for sharing! I was at Bethel a couple of years ago, they have a great selection of antique aircraft at the museum.

[Mike]

Very nice Andrew!

So this week's score is up by one, but down by two Dr.1s

[montauk1989]

What happened at Grimes?
Thanks
Dave

While there was some bad news on the Fokker Triplane front this past weekend, at Grimes Airport in Bethel, PA a new one took to the air last week and was photographed over the field on Sunday


Engine is an 80 hp LeRhone rotary, and the colors are of the machine flown by Lothar von Richtofen, the brother of the Red Baron. Built and flown by Paul Dougherty and a number of helpers-



-

[Stephan Wilkinson]

I think he's talking about an accident in England and saying that at Grimes, a new/restored Triplane flew.

Does anybody know if this is a replica or a restoration?

[Mike]

I think he's talking about an accident in England and saying that at Grimes, a new/restored Triplane flew.

Does anybody know if this is a replica or a restoration?

There are no restorations. The last original was burned during the Allied bombing of Berlin in WWII. All Triplanes seen since then are replicas, of varying degrees of authenticity.

There were Triplanes destroyed/ damaged at Geneseo and Duxford the same weekend last month, hence my comment about down 2 and up 1 in the same week.

[montauk1989]

Thanks guys. I just googled it. It was Geneseo not Grimes where the triplane crashed. Here's a link to one of the stories.

http://www.thekathrynreport.com/2011/07 ... w-new.html

There were two accidents that day. The one earlier in the day was a bonanza with four folks on board. Thank goodness no one was seriously injured in either of these accidents.

Dave

[Ryan Keough]

Wonderful news and a tip-top paint scheme in my opinion! I really like the mottled green on Triplanes, but the yellow just makes it pop!

That leads to my next question, how common are LeRhone rotaries these days? It seems like there are more and more accurate WWI replica restorations coming out of the woodwork and I can't imagine accurate rotary engines are exactly easy to obtain. Are there any rotary engine overhaul specialists out there or is most of the overhaul of such engines performed in-house?

Thanks,
Ryan

[Baldeagle]

There is one rotary engine specialist in the US that I know of, Fred Murrin in Greenville, PA. Fred has a rotary powered Triplane also, and a rotary powered Sopwith Camel. I have a 160 Gnome rotary that I re-did myself with Fred's help. They aren't very complicated, but are rarer than they used to be, harder to find and more expensive. Peter Jackson's people in New Zealand are building them from scratch, but not for sale, along with WW1 Mercedes engines and other types. Check out http://thevintageaviator.co.nz/




-

[RandolphB]

Wonderful news and a tip-top paint scheme in my opinion! I really like the mottled green on Triplanes, but the yellow just makes it pop!

That leads to my next question, how common are LeRhone rotaries these days? It seems like there are more and more accurate WWI replica restorations coming out of the woodwork and I can't imagine accurate rotary engines are exactly easy to obtain. Are there any rotary engine overhaul specialists out there or is most of the overhaul of such engines performed in-house?

Thanks,
Ryan

A couple of years ago at Kermit Weeks place I asked how many they had and the reply was "14"....!