Bréguet's Pre-1914 ID Challenge #060

[Varese2002]

Bréguet's Pre-1914 ID Challenge #060

The new challenge machine



There is an extra 0.5 point to win when you come up with the name of the fearless flyer. No points are allotted for the almost equally fearless passenger (normally called the 'sand bag' )

Any extra information about this beauty is always appreciated! (but will not give extra points).

Have a good time with this one.

Cheers

Kees

Scoreboard at the start of Challenge #060

12.20 Rbailey
9.00 Varese2002
6.00 Cruze
5.70 aerohydro
5.30 matte_kudasai
5.20 Aquilius ===> have to wait 12 hours

4.90 Airarticles =====> may start immediately
4.20 richard B
2.00 joegertler
2.00 Flamingo
1.00 Doc
1.00 paolomiana
1.00 YavorD
0.60 Froggy
0.50 Rod_Filan
0.40 Wind In The Wires

The rules

1. The thread title must be "Bréguet's Pre-1914 ID Challenge #......"
2. The score board, link and rules must be copied to the beginning of each thread, so that we know where we are. The score board and the correct answer to the challenge must also be placed at end of each thread.
3. The flying object must have been dreamt up before 1914 (no limit backwards in time ....)
4. There are no limits to the flying object for the pre-1914 series. There is no ruling that it must be flown, or completely built
5. Machines which exist only as 'paper', that is absolutely no material has been cut to construct it, are excluded from this ID Challenge
6. The picture / drawing must show as much of the flying object as possible, but views showing the machine 'incomplete' are possible (with discretion)
7. Challenges which depict a machine already earlier presented are disqualified
8. If there is any doubt as to the eligibility of a flying object for the challenge details should be PM'd to Breguet BEFORE the object is submitted.
9. Once someone has got 5 correct answers under their belt they belong to the ROYALTY. Once they belong to the ROYALTY they must wait 12hrs after the posting of the new challenge before they can post an answer.
10. To be eligible for correct ID an answer must include at least one characteristic of the aircraft that helped in its identification.
11. The first person to ID the challenge correctly gets to post the next challenge. If this can not be done for any reason Breguet himself will post the next challenge.
12. If a ROYALTY gives the correct answer too early, the challenge is over, he gets no point but has to post the next one. In lieu of the fact that the "novices" have in effect been "cheated" of their "exclusive" time that next post should be a relatively easy one. Anyone repeating the correct answer at the right time gets neither a point nor the right to post the next challenge.
13. The final arbitor in relation to questions about the rules will be Breguet

Previous Breguet's Pre-1914 Aircraft Challenge
Breguet's Pre-1914 Aircraft Challenge

[Varese2002]

It is dead silent, with sure an extra day when the Forum was down . Well these configurations are just as difficult as the endless stream of German tractor biplane reconnaissance planes. They all look the same, BUT ..... when you close in a lot of differnces occur, as here:

• a rotary engine

• a ring around the engine, surely preventing the oil to smear everything of the machine including the pilot

• a special form of undercarriage with assorted tubing

That must be enough hinting, okay we are looking in at 1911 / 1912.

Cheers

Kees

[Aquilius]

I believe your beautiful picture shows the Columbia Biplane of Paul Peck!
(found no other name than Colonel Paul Peck - there was another 'Paul Ward Peck', also known as an US-pilot but he survived the war.)



The Head-on shot (though it's a 'headless' pusher ) in aerofiles shows a similar tailplane, wing-incisions, (gravity?) tank and the skid arrangement could be as well.

I can't make out the engine covering, but other detail pictures in the web have it.

There are a few post cards around from the 8,000 ft. (ca. 2440m) flight at Garden-City.
And with this 50 hp Gyro rotary powered plane the first official US Mail flight took place.

Unfortunately Peck died in 1912 while participating at the Gordon-Bennet race in Chicago.
It is told he was always ignoring bad weather and then an upcoming storm made his 'Columbia' plane to crash.
A truely 'fearless Flyer'!


Cheers

Aquilius

[Varese2002]

Exactly, this is the Columbian Bi-Plane of Col Paul Peck ! The title Colonel was officially allotted to Peck by the governer. I have already clarified a few of the recognition points of this machine designed by Peck. Very characteristic is air-cooled rotary engine built by the Gyro Motor Company (Washington), one of the first American firms to design and build a succesfull air-cooled rotary engine. It was a seven-cylinder engine rated at 50 hp at 1500 r.p.m. The design work was under the direction of Emile Berliner, who probably also financed the operation.

The heavy Gyro engine mounted right behind the pilot (and the passenger!) was fatal in his crash on Cicero Field Chicago on September 11, 1912 as the heavy rotary crashed through the framework hitting Peck. Pushers with the engine behind the pilot were dangerous constructions in case of a crash.

Peck had American pilot licence No.57 and held the USA duration record at 4 hours 23 minutes and 15 seconds set at May 24, 1912.

There is in the picture vaults of the Library of Congress a close up picture of Paul Peck sitting in his Bi-Plane, where the engine and the construction of the landing gear can be seen excatly. This is also due to the record scanning precision, which at the highest level makes the picture 150 MByte (!!). The caption of the LC is not quite correct 'PECK, PAUL. COMMERCIAL AVIATOR. IN GYRO TYPE PLANE SPONSORED BY BERLINER AT MINEOLA, N.Y.' as the machine was named the Columbian Bi-Plane powered with a Gyro engine [the Gyro engine was sponsored by Berliner].

The LC picture can be viewed here.

The point goes of course to Aquilius, congratulations on this exact identification.

Cheers

Kees

[Varese2002]

Identification
The Columbian Bi-Plane of Col Paul Peck

Scoreboard at the end of Challenge #060

12.20 Rbailey
9.00 Varese2002
6.20 Aquilius
6.00 Cruze
5.70 aerohydro
5.30 matte_kudasai ==> have to wait 12 hours

4.90 Airarticles =====> may start immediately
4.20 richard B
2.00 joegertler
2.00 Flamingo
1.00 Doc
1.00 paolomiana
1.00 YavorD
0.60 Froggy
0.50 Rod_Filan
0.40 Wind In The Wires

Next Challenge

Aquilius