THANK YOU!

YOUR PURCHASE OF THESE BOOKS SUPPORTS THE WEB SITES THAT BRING TO YOU THE HISTORY BEHIND OLD AIRFIELD REGISTERS

Your copy of the Davis-Monthan Airfield Register 1925-1936 with all the pilots' signatures and helpful cross-references to pilots and their aircraft is available at the link. 375 pages with black & white photographs and extensive tables

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The Congress of Ghosts (available as eBook) is an anniversary celebration for 2010.  It is an historical biography, that celebrates the 5th year online of www.dmairfield.org and the 10th year of effort on the project dedicated to analyze and exhibit the history embodied in the Register of the Davis-Monthan Airfield, Tucson, AZ. This book includes over thirty people, aircraft and events that swirled through Tucson between 1925 and 1936. It includes across 277 pages previously unpublished photographs and texts, and facsimiles of personal letters, diaries and military orders. Order your copy at the link.

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Military Aircraft of the Davis Monthan Register 1925-1936 is available at the link. This book describes and illustrates with black & white photographs the majority of military aircraft that landed at the Davis-Monthan Airfield between 1925 and 1936. The book includes biographies of some of the pilots who flew the aircraft to Tucson as well as extensive listings of all the pilots and airplanes. Use this FORM to order a copy signed by the author, while supplies last.

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Art Goebel's Own Story by Art Goebel (edited by G.W. Hyatt) is written in language that expands for us his life as a Golden Age aviation entrepreneur, who used his aviation exploits to build a business around his passion.  Available as a free download at the link.

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Winners' Viewpoints: The Great 1927 Trans-Pacific Dole Race (available as eBook) is available at the link. This book describes and illustrates with black & white photographs the majority of military aircraft that landed at the Davis-Monthan Airfield between 1925 and 1936. The book includes biographies of some of the pilots who flew the aircraft to Tucson as well as extensive listings of all the pilots and airplanes. Use this FORM to order a copy signed by the author, while supplies last.

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Clover Field: The first Century of Aviation in the Golden State (available in paperback) With the 100th anniversary in 2017 of the use of Clover Field as a place to land aircraft in Santa Monica, this book celebrates that use by exploring some of the people and aircraft that made the airport great. 281 pages, black & white photographs.

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Quote, center, top, from: Forden, Lesley. 1972. The Ford Air Tours 1925-1931: A Complete Narrative and Pictorial History of the Seven National Air Tour Competitions for the Edsel B. Ford Reliability Trophy. THE NOTTINGHAM PRESS. Available for sale here.

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I'm looking for information and photographs of pilot Lees and his airplane to include on this page. If you have some you'd like to share, please click this FORM to contact me.

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WALTER E. LEES

 

“It was big country, and lots of it. Endless
stretches of lonesome prairie, the wind blowing a
gale, gas gauges knocking on Empty and the sun
going down behind a mountain range ’way out there
a thousand miles ahead of you…”

Walter E. Lees, Date Unknown (Source: Web)

 

 

Walter Lees landed once at Peterson Field, on Monday, September 22, 1930. He and a gaggle of other aircraft and people were part of the sixth National Air Tour that passed through 31 U.S. and Canadian cities in 1930, starting and finishing in Dearborn, MI. Colorado Springs was the 23rd stop on the Tour. Fourteen aircraft manufacturers were represented in the Tour by 18 airplanes. The quote, above, is from the 1972 book by Leslie Forden cited in the left sidebar and in the link in the next paragraph.

Lees' airplane is of interest. He flew the Waco he identified clearly as NC4N. It was an HTO model, powered by a Packard diesel engine, DR980. I say clearly identified, because in this REFERENCE, Chapter VI, tabulated on page 133, the registration number is given as NR4N. However, in the same reference, Chapter VII, page 147, is a photograph of the airplane, below, that clearly shows NC4N on the rudder. Lees is at right with knickers and socks.

Waco NC4N, 1927 (Source: Forden)
Waco NC4N, 1927 (Source: Forden)

 

Regardless, Lees and his airplane were not competitors in the Tour, rather his was the "Official Tour Plane, Packard Motor Co." NC4N was the only airplane on the Tour powered by a diesel engine. As passenger he carried the Tour manager, Ray Collins.

Later, in May, 1931, Lees and copilot Frederic A. Brossy set an unrefueled endurance record above Jacksonville, FL flying a Bellanca Pacemaker, NR782W (not a Register airplane), with a Packard diesel engine for 84 hours and 33 minutes. Below, from Popular Aviation (PA) magazine, August, 1931, is a report of that flight. Lees stands at left in the photograph. A more complete, and recent, report appeared in Air & Space magazine, April-May 2018 at the link (PDF <1Mb).

Endurance Record, Popular Aviation, August, 1931 (Source: PA)

Lees has a good Web presence. One good biography with photographs is at the Wisconsin Aviation Hall of Fame Web site at the link. Lees was inducted into the Hall of Fame November 6, 2004.

Lees was born July 16, 1887 (another reference has the year as 1889) at Janesville, WI. He flew west on May 16, 1957 at age 69. He flew carrying Transport pilot certificate T1086.

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THIS PAGE UPLOADED: 07/29/14 REVISED: 06/04/2018