Antique Attic
Stinson for Two
Are you dreaming about owning a warbird, but cannot afford to join the P-51 owners’ club? Think L-Bird!
That’s what Cindy and Mark Beam, living in Fort Lupton, Colorado, did, acquiring the Stinson L-5 “Sentinel” s/n 42-98794 (N94RN), a fun airplane, and a real warbird to boot. Mark explains their choice: “We were looking for something somewhat unusual, easy to maintain, and with some historical significance. Cindy knew about Stinson L-5, and John Davidson guided us in our search for a suitable example. We eventually ending up buying 42-98794 from him. We flew it from Creve-Coeur airport, near St Louis, transferring it where our jobs sent us a year later. The L-5 is now based at Platte Valley Airport, north of Denver.”
The Stinson L-5 Sentinel was the only mass produced purpose-built and the second most common Liaison/STOL aircraft during WWII, being outnumbered only by the ubiquitous Piper L-4, which was, basically, a J-3 painted in olive drab. The Army procured the Sentinel in 1941, when six commercial model 105 “Voyager” were purchased for evaluation in the observation and liaison roles. These six YO-54, in US Army Air Forces (USAAF) vernacular, were followed in 1942 by 275 O-62 production models. The O-62 retained the civilian Voyager’s high wing layout, fabric covered metal tube construction and 185 hp Lycoming O-435-1 engine, but differed from the commercial three seat craft in having a two seat tandem cockpit, a slightly larger fuselage, higher operating weights and military standard instruments and communication equipment.
Following the delivery of the 275th O-62, the designation was changed to L-5 and seven distinct variants were ultimately produced for a total run of 3590 between 1942 and 1945. S/n 42-98794 was built at the Wayne factory of the Stinson Division of the Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation and accepted by the USAAF on December 11, 1943. Initially assigned to the 1st Troop Carrier Squadron Command at Stout Field, Indianapolis, Indiana, it later went on strength with the 806th and 333rd Air Base Squadron at Baer Field, Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Sold as surplus to the Reconstruction Finance Corporation in 1946, it resurfaced in 1986, after Bob Nightingale, of Chino, California, rebuilt it from parts for Robert K. Jansma, of Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Jansma wanted it to replicate the plane he flew during WWII on the CBI (China Burma India) theater of operations. As his squadron was based in the Assam Valley of Burma, all its aircrafts were carrying the “Assam Dragon” tail art that the L-5 is now sporting in a somewhat modified version. In 2000, Jansma sold the Stinson to Glenn and Vicki Anderson, living in the same town, and turned the L-5 over to John Davidson on June 10, 2005, who sold it to Mark and Cynthia Beam in November 2006.
This young couple is quite involved in aviation, as Mark points out: “Cindy started flying in high school, earning her private pilot license just before her graduation. I started flying during in first year in college. We met while both attending Oklahoma State University (OSU). We both graduated from OSU with the CFI, CFII and MEI, ratings obtained while flying the school’s Cessna trainer.
After graduation, we started flying the Embrear 145 for the same regional airline. We progressed in parallel, obtaining the ATP and Captain rating on the same day. Since we moved onto different airlines, Cindy flying MD-90s while I fly the Airbus 320. Our logbooks pretty much mirror each other with about 8000 hours.”
The Beam’s first airplane came in the form of a his/hers share in a Time Pieces J-3 Cub at Creve-Coeur. Once the two year deal ended, they were ready to moved up and buy their own airplane.
Mark delivers a short pilot report on the Stinson: “Looking at the L-5 on the ground, one would think that it would fly clunky, stiff and slow. In reality, the L-5 is the most beautifully flying aircraft we have ever flown. The controls are very light, smooth and perfectly balanced. It is very nimble and has a very quick roll response. Steep turns can be made at very steep angles, with high load factors, without the plane complaining. It is rated at +10 to -4.6. The elevator and rudders are well balanced and responsive as well. It has been said that the L-5 has a smaller rudder than needed on the ground, and that more than a few people got into trouble on take-off. It is wise to keep tail low on the roll, and allow the airplane to jump when ready to fly.
I would tend to agree with the statement that you cannot buy a bad landing in the aircraft. The main gear has big shock struts that will dampen high sink rates to pillow like landings. However, it can get sporty when landing on concrete, specially if you are light. To prevent this, it is recommended to three point and plant the plane firmly on the ground and let the struts do their job.”
This “entry level” warbird is a lot of fun, and allowed Mark and Cindy to work closely with the Vintage Aero Flying Museum of Fort Lupton, Colorado, and, in the end, fly their WWI replica fighters. Mark comments: “It is such an amazing opportunity to fly a modern day jet and then come home and jump into airplanes from the dawn of aviation.”
All this thanks to a very underestimated warbird.
