Area residents and visitors will have the opportunity June 27-30 to experience the “golden age of aviation” by taking a 15-minute airtour aboard a 4-AT-E 1929 Ford Tri-Motor at the Rolla National Airport.

John Hartke of Anchorage, Alaska, will be piloting the flight. Hartke has been volunteering to fly Ford Tri-Motor airplanes for Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), based in Oshkosh, Wis., for five years now.

“You don’t often get to experience a piece of history from 90 years ago,” said Harke. “That is what it is, history.”

The 90 year-old aircraft is surprisingly comfortable. It can carry nine passengers in the back and one up front, plus the pilot.

“The 4-AT-E is utilitarian, but has a lot more room than a modern airplane,” Hartke said. “You have a great view, great picture windows. It doesn’t fly too high or too fast, so you see everything.”

Hartke also flies commercially. When he heard the EAA was looking for pilots, he applied to volunteer.

“They were looking for volunteers and I have been flying airplanes similar to this for a while,” Hartke said. “I was lucky to get selected.”

He rotates with about 15 other pilots who travel around the country with the airplane and give people airtours.

“The airplanes move around and we meet the airplane, spend the week, then go home,” he said.

It was his previous experience with similar older models that makes Hartke a good candidate to pilot the aircraft.

“Older airplanes have different flying characteristics than new ones,” he said. “The engines aren’t as common anymore. They operate with different characteristics than newer ones. Put off more power than most car engines.” 

For example, one of the engines has the same amount of power as three Chevrolet V-8s, but runs on lower RPMs — helpful for the propellers and weighs about one and a half times less than a Chevrolet V-8 — which is what is needed for an airplane to carry more people and fuel. To overcome concerns of engine reliability, Henry Ford built the airplane with three engines — hence the name.

“There is a lot to it,” Hartke said. “It’s enjoyable to fly airplanes, meet new people in different places, hear people say when the get off the airplane that they didn’t think it would be that fun.”

This particular plane, nicknamed the “Tin Goose,” was 146 of 199 built following World War I. It flew for the first time Aug. 21, 1929. It was sold to Pitcairn Aviation’s passenger division, Eastern Air Transport, whose paint scheme is replicated on EAA’s Tri-Motor.

According to EAA’s press release,“This is why our Ford resides in the Pitcairn Hangar at Pioneer Airport. Eastern Air Transport later became Eastern Airlines.”

The aircraft continued to make the rounds, being leased to Cubana Airlines for service between Havana and Santiago de Cuba, flown to the Dominican Republic; then in 1949, returned to the U.S. for barnstorming use. In 1950, it was moved from Miami, Fla., to Phoenix, Ariz., and was refitted with more powerful engines for us as a crop duster.

With two 450 horsepower engines and one 550 horsepower engine, it became the most powerful model 4-AT-E ever flown. In 1955, it was moved to Idaho, and fitted with two 275-gallon tanks and bomb doors for use as a borate bomber in aerial fire-fighting. Then in 1958, it was further modified for use by smoke-jumpers.

After working for a variety of crop-spraying businesses, EAA’s Tri-Motor moved to Lawrence, Kan., in 1964, where its new owner flew barnstorming tours. During this period, it had a variety of roles, including serving as the primary setting for the Jerry Lewis comedy, “The Family Jewels.”

In 1973, the aircraft was being used for airshow rides, including the EAA’s Fly-In at Burlington, Wis., when a severe thunderstorm ripped the plane from its tie-downs, lifted it 50 feet into the air and smashed it to the ground on its back. EAA subsequently purchased the wreckage for its Aviation Foundation.

The restoration process took EAA staff 12 years. With the assistance of Ford Tri-Motor operators nationwide, the old Tri-Motor once again took air in 1985. It was displayed at the EAA Aviation Museum until 1991, when it returned to its former role of delighting passengers on tour.

“Planes have been flying for literally 90 years and this one is really a museum piece,” Hartke said. “Back when this was made, it was only 25 years after the Wright brothers first flew. Not that long, but it had advancements. The cabin isn’t wood, they started transporting people around.”

The old airplanes were mostly made of wood and fabric, and they were built too big to store.

“They couldn’t put them anywhere to keep out of the weather,” Hartke said. “It was a challenge to build all metal airplane and build it lightweight. The solution Ford and other manufacturers came up with was a big advancement. It was the first all-metal airplane.”

Tours are available from 2 to 5 p.m. on Thursday, June 27, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday, June 28-30. For more information or to reserve a seat, visit FlyTheFord.org or call 1-877-952-5395. (To view photographs of this unique aircraft, view The Republican’s website www.GasconadeCountyRepublican.com).