Weick W-1 and W-1A: first safety plane and forerunner of the "Ercoupe"

[Steve Pace]

Here's the Weick W-1A (NASA Langley).

 

[Stargazer]

[NOTE: this aircraft had been posted in the "Flying Cars" topic, but since it wasn't quite appropriate I elected to split the post out and start a new thread instead.]



Here is an account of the Weick W-1 and W-1A in the words of M. C. "Kelly" Viets of the Stilwell, Kansas-based Ercoupe Club, who knew Fred Weick personally and had access to his early documents and data. This was published in The Vintage Airplane Vol. 1, No. 2 (January 1973) and has been slightly adapted for publication here:



Fred Weick was a very methodical and practical man while being blessed with true genius as few men are. In 1930, Mr. Weick set down a list of 25 things which he considered were necessary for the criteria of the ideal light plane design. His preliminary statement of light plane requirements, a one-page memorandum, which was born of discussion with countless pilots, engineers, etc., as well as his own experience, called for a plane with the following characteristics (besides linked controls and freedom from spin and wing-tip stall):

• Ability to land safely at both the greatest angle of attack and the greatest gliding angle maintainable in other words;
• ability to make satisfactory landings without particular respect to the pilot's skill;
• stable "hands off' level flight, i.e., level flight without constant, wearisome fussing by the pilot, as was the case with an old, unstable plane like the Jenny;
• dynamic longitudinal stability as nearly as possible "dead beat", that is, if the nose is raised or depressed, as by a gust, the plane should return to level flight without excessive up-and-down swaying or "hunting";
• inability to maintain a dive at a speed greater than 1.1 times the maximum horizontal speed;
• wide range of vision in the air and on the ground; reasonable comfort in gusty and bumpy air;
• minimum air speed, 30 mph; cruising speed 100 mph;
• take-off run 100 feet; landing run 50 feet;
• rate of climb 400 feet a minute;
• optimum angle of climb about 10 degrees;
• minimum gliding angle, five degrees or less; maximum gliding angle, 27 degrees;
• simple engine and auxiliary controls;
• simple, rugged structure, to keep down repair time and original and maintenance cost;
• vibration, only slight and unobjectionable;
• side-by-side seating, to permit companionship;
• interior quiet enough for normal conversation;
• built-in crash protection for pilot and passenger;
• and the plane as a whole small in size.

Then during the winter of 1933-34 he, along with some friends, constructed his first aircraft which embodied his criteria. The aircraft was a high wing monoplane (unique in 1934) with a pusher engine, twin booms to twin rudders, the main wheels were widely spaced at the rear and .. . "HORRORS!" ... there was a nose wheel.

Now, this really shook up the Civil Aeronautics personnel. The plane was appropriately called W-1. The plane was built following a series of tests with gliding models -built in his basement in slightly over a year's time -the cost approximately $2,000.00. This included a geared drive Pobjoy engine. Built of wood and steel tubing it is interesting to note some of the design figures. The plane had a 30 foot span, weighed 1,150 pounds, wing area was 161 square feet but it only cruised at 80 mph. But it did accomplish its purpose. Its stalling speed was 35 mph, take-off run was 120 feet and landing run was 100 feet.

About this time the Bureau of Air Commerce, under Mr. Vidal, became interested in private flying and started a research program to produce a $700 light plane that would be safe for the average man to fly. The man they placed at the head of this project was Mr. John H. Geisse.

His first step was to contact the NACA. There he met aircraft which met or exceeded their proposed specifications. The Bureau arranged to purchase the plane for tests for $5,000.00. This accomplished, they immediately ran into a typical bureaucratic reaction of aversion at the purchase of a "backyard" aircraft. Therefore, they had Fairchild construct a copy so they could test a "professional" product. This plane was called W-1-A. Similar in all respects except the plane was equipped with flaps instead of the fixed slots on the original. Again, typically, they were so sure something had to be wrong with a nose gear that they ended up destroying the aircraft trying to produce "shimmie" in the nose wheel. All this in the face of the fact that no "shimmie" problem had developed in the original design.
Mr. Weick had been in touch with an old friend, Mr. Henry Berliner, who was head of Erco, a firm of aviation tool makers. Mr. Berliner was, by the way, the son of the inventor of the microphone. From this meeting these men set out to design an aircraft which not only had all the safety principles but would have good looks, sturdiness and utility.


Thus began the story of the legendary Ercoupe, the number ONE mass production tricycle gear.