Jeff

most likely .............

Just wondering , as I have sent him numerous emails,and have not heard one word back. We used to email practically every day, and nothing for a month or two.....he didn't mention anything to me, I am hoping all is well, he was very prolific on this site, with his heavy equipment builds......

man that would be cool...

You're welcome Fred, I do sincerely hope it as of some value.... and Stephen Skinner's book is FANTASTIC https://www.amazon.com/STAND-Final-Flight-English-French/dp/0764330950 And for the record, I have NEVER been lucky enough to see a real Spad.....

I guess no one has answered you, Fred, so I will weigh in......it seems Frank Luke flew several Spad XIII's and I guess it depends on which one you want to model...there is so much out there about Frank Luke, some of it good and some , well, not so good....I well remember as a young boy reading "Balloon Buster" by Charles Coombs, must have read it a dozen times.... I have a huge interest in Frank Luke and a couple years ago my wife Cathy bought me the definitive research vessel, a book extremely well researched and written by Stephen Skinner called "The Stand"..... and excellent book with ALL the details, and has put the myths to rest, Mr. Skinner has done a masterful job on this subject. According to The Stand, Luke flew at least 4 different machines Old 26 and there is no known serial number for that one, S.7984 with NO side number, S.15156 or 15319 number 21, and possibly S.7805 #26. I am assuming you are thinking of the most famous of them , the one most of us 'believe' was the one he flew most often and was 'lost' with..... according to all the information obtained by Stephen Skinner, and there is a fair bit of it, and some from one of the ground crew members he researched. It turns out through research that 'Old 26" a Bleriot built machine,had been condemned in late September 1918 due to damage during operational flying, and was flying another Bleriot machine on September 12, number 21 which was brought down due to combat damage and abandoned with the #5 Balloon Company. It is known that there was another"#26" being prepared for Luke in Late September but wasn't ready for operational use, and he never flew that airplane so the machine he was subsequently lost with was S.7984 a Bernard built Spad and had no number on the fuselage. Mr Skinner has researched the colors and cammo patterns through hundreds of photos, and it seems the French manufacturer painted their machines in a unique and consistent variation of the cammo patterns. The cammo colors have been determined by examining hundreds of pieces of real fabric and 6 original Spad airplanes, so it is determined that the upper colors of the Spad in 1918 is as follows, five colors are, dark green, light green, chestnut brown,beige and black, the under surfaces, were either a uniform very light bluish grey, or a yellowish color called 'eeru'. According to Mr. Skinner, nearly all the swatches of fabric they looked at was the latter color. So as, is known the fact that Luke was in constant ops in the third week of September, his airplane took a beating, his ground crews were constantly repairing the machine, it is also known that by 17 Sept, that it had been well used and became bits and pieces of all sorts, the lower left wing had been replaced, had new upper wing fabric,fabric repairs behind the cockpit,and many other patches, and it is generally accepted that none of these patches or repairs matched the original factory paint as they were done in the field. Apparently complete records of Luke's airplanes is no longer available so an absolute definite isn't in the cards. In photos it is generally believed that no flight color on the radiator, and that the machine appears new, and was only at Rembercourt for a very short few hours with the Squadron, so it is unlikely that it carried any squadron markings of any sort. I hope this is of some help and just didn't open a bigger can of worms....... Jeff

AWESOME !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks, I hate to be 'heavy handed' but you are right... the Provincial Union is quite the organization for sure, and yes the ferry folks...... the couple times we went out, certainly wasn't worth it on any level.... and we were legislated 'essential service' so we were screwed, ....................all it did was make everyone mad at us and we lost pay.. and never did get any 'raise'......so it isn't worth it.... I just really hate being held hostage...... I get they have some issues, but it would be better to get the public ON their side instead of making folks upset at the crucial time of year............... or do I have that backwards??

Well, one thing is for sure, no matter what kind of outrageous raise they get, ( I was in highways maintenance for 38 years and for the last 10 we got NO raise ) it is going to cost US more.... and FWIW, rurally, everything is contracted out, our 'Post Office" is a little kiosk at the local drug store.......................and the service stinks...... our mail lady is so snotty, and she is a contractor, I don't even try to speak to her any more.....AND, if they have been negotiating for almost a year, why are they striking NOW?? To hold us all hostage?? and to get more bang for their issues.......................... just my 2 c worth....

You're an example to ALL of us Dale...... Proud of you for slugging it out Mate...

Kent............... I agree with Tom, for those of us who cannot make it there, your explanation and the few photos are awesome, many thanks for sharing, I only wish there was more, so as I and maybe others can get a grasp on the size of it all , and what it all looks like... I'm surprised there aren't more photos posted by all that went there......may be a bit redundant for those who went, but a larger majority of us couldn't be there, thanks for sharing your experience, it was ( is ) great, and really interesting....

I also have corresponded with Russ, and again I concur, 99, that's awesome !..........................................but I will say one of the BEST connections I made was with W/C Hugh Godefroy, we corresponded over many years and made a meet in Vancouver,over a long lunch, wow he was a GREAT fellow, and two more were extremely wonderful was Al Harley and Don Morrison, both who were very generous to me, and became lifelong friends, and that's not even to mention G/C Hamish Mahaddie, who had my family to his home in England...................... sad to say they are all gone now............. but I'd like to think I'm a better person for the contact I made with these fellows.......

It is also so cool he is still with us..

I agree, I have corresponded with him in the past, he even sent me some paper items from his own collection for me to make copies of, photos, and written accounts....., and I faithfully returned them to him with much thanks and gratitude, he is a VERY nice man , and a real gentleman.... the items I have copied from him along with personal letters in my collection are highly prized by me, and hold a special spot... I also have his book Kitty Hawk Pilot, first edition autographed ....... good stuff.....as well if I dig deep enough I also have a copy of his art print in my collection..... Jeff

AND maybe they should take ONE PACE closer to the RAZOR in the morning??? WTF is that?? I know when I was in the Canadian Forces, that kind of scruffy facial hair was NEVER allowed, no matter what.................. cold shave in the field.....................

Yup, that's it, R/T aka "Random Thoughts", that's what they call IPMS Canada journal.....