20 years later, model plane ready to fly

Bob Martin knows exactly what will be going through his mind this weekend as he sees his Curtiss R3C-2 model seaplane take to the skies.

“Pride,” said the 64-year-old RC enthusiast and lifelong member of Lake Havasu City’s Desert Hawks RC Club. “I will be as proud as anyone could possibly be.”

Martin will watch the plane that took six men nearly nine months to complete soar in a mock competition celebrating the model’s history in this weekend’s 23rd annual London Bridge Seaplane Classic. The Curtiss will act, in part, as a symbol of the event as it’s nearly as old as the Seaplane Classic itself.

Martin, his stepfather John Hanks, Jerry Leciej, Bob Whelan, Larry Tate and J.T. Scott finished building the craft about 20 years ago, and after flying it in different promotional events, the group sold it to another group. The plane then was lost to the group after its new owner died. Then, a simple notice on a Web site, led to a joyous rediscovery, Martin said, and they decided to purchase the plane back for what Martin says was a hefty sum.

But the price wasn’t important to financial backers Jim Drew and Scott Bahde of Xtreme Power Systems.

“I told Bob that if there was ever an opportunity to buy one of those old planes, we have to get our hands on one,” Bahde said. “But he said he didn’t find just an old plane, he found the plane.”

Martin said it was the one he had to have again not only because of his personal history with the model but the history behind the plane itself.

“It’s one of the most beautiful airplanes ever made and it’s probably the most beautiful one I’ve ever worked on,” he said. “And I’ve done thousands of these.”

The Curtiss is a one-third-scale biplane, modeled after what was once the world’s fastest airplane. Pilot U.S. Army Lt. James Doolittle flew the Curtiss R3C-2 when he secured the first Schneider Trophy on American soil in 1925. Martin said the victory made the plane an instant legend.

“The races were so huge that nations actually funded race teams,” Martin said. “Bragging rights of winning the event meant you were at the head of aviation. To be at the top on American soil is truly something remarkable and special.”

Following the purchase, the group decided it was time for an upgrade and switched the original gas engine out for a modified electric motor.

“We wanted to bring it into the 21st century,” Bahde said. “It was a symbol for aviation in its time and the gas motor wasn’t good enough. (The electric motor) is what the plane deserves.”

Martin said the change was necessary to ensure that the plane could not only take off for this weekend’s events, but also for many years to come.

“A lot of blood, sweat and tears went to building it, so let’s make sure it lasts a lot longer,” Martin said, adding that the rush of working on the plane again after 20 years brought back great nostalgia for him. “It’s like a child has returned to me. I really just can’t think of any other way to describe it. It was a part of all of us for so long. It was a labor of love building it the first time and that’s how I felt again.”

Martin said seeing the plane completely restored and running again is also bittersweet for him.

“Part of me is sad because three of the men that helped build it passed away before we got it back,” he said. “So I’m sad because I’m sorry to have lost them but I’m so proud it’s going to fly again.”

Martin remembered the effort put into building the original model out of balsa wood. “Each ripple you see on the wings, was a separate piece of wood that was glued on by Larry Tate,” he said. “That’s 580 feet of wood glued in those strips that Larry did by hand. And that was just one example.”

Bahde, who will take over as the remote pilot this weekend, said he hopes he can honor the Curtiss the way it deserves.

“It’s a beautiful plane to fly and I can only imagine what Jimmy Doolittle felt like flying in one in 1925,” Bahde said. “ I’m glad that I’m going to be standing on the shore and not in the cockpit. It’s going to be quite a sight for sure.”

The 23rd annual London Bridge Seaplane Classic, hosted by the Desert Hawks RC Club, begins today and runs through Saturday at Windsor Beach State Park.

You can contact the reporter at nbruttell@havasunews.com