For Dave Taylor: Bellanca Skyrocket?

SCCutler

SCCutler

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Spike Cutler
Dave, your latest avatar has a stunner of an airplane with the caption, "Bellanca Skyrocket!"

"!," indeed!

I know less than nothing about this bird, and I think of myself as a fairly stout student of minutiae. Tell all. When are you buying the production rights and leasing manufacturing space in Marfa?

Inquiring minds want to know. And so do I.
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
http://www.aviabellancainc.com/

As Troy and I have been discussing, I think the airplane is mostly fiction, although the website claims actual test data
http://www.aviabellancainc.com/

Yes it is a looker, I'd love to get my paws on one.

I was told the co. is owned by the Bellanca heir, a son.
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Very nice! That would be one fast airplane. I'm curious about the 520 engine putting out over 400hp. Is there such an engine in production?
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
As Troy and I have been discussing, I think the airplane is mostly fiction, although the website claims actual test data
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One was built in 1974, and certificated in 1984. It's certified as an Experimental in the Exhibition class. Anybody ever seen it at an airshow?

http://162.58.35.241/acdatabase/NNumSQL.asp?NNumbertxt=771AB

There is no record of it crashing, so perhaps it is still flying?

Let'sgoflying! said:
Yes it is a looker, I'd love to get my paws on one.
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How can you find out where an aircraft is based? I bet the only way we can track it down, if it IS still flying on a regular basis, is to put it on the "follow me" list of one of the Flight Tracking programs, and see where it ends up.
 
From this site, we learn the history of the company and the owner of the current AviaBellanca, Inc. is August T. Bellanca:

http://www.pilotfriend.com/aircraft performance/aircraft manufacturers/AviaBellanca.htm

There is only one Bellanca listed in the FAA's pilot registry, and it ain't August.

The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum site says:

This was a busy time in Bellanca's life. Along with all that was happening in his professional life, he and Dorothy celebrated the birth of their son August T. Bellanca in March of 1927.

With the exception of a few years immediately before and during the early stages of WWII, Bellanca was President and Chairman of the Board from the corporation's inception on the last day of 1927 until he sold the company to L. Albert and Sons in 1954. After his departure from the company, Giuseppe and his son, August, formed the Bellanca Development Company with the purpose of building a new aircraft. It would have increased performance due to the use of lighter materials for its structure. Work on this aircraft was progressing when Giuseppe Bellanca succumbed to leukemia and died on December 26, 1960. After his father's death, August continued the project, and under his guidance, the aircraft first flew in 1973.

In 1993, August Bellanca donated his father's personal and professional papers to the National Air and Space Museum Archives. Prior to that time, they were kept in the Bellanca home near Galena, MD, and administered by Dorothy and August Bellanca.
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The SkyRocket II was shown at AirVenture in 1998: http://southern-aviator.com/editorial/articledetail.lasso?-token.key=441&-token.src=news&-nothing

According to the article, "(The company, by the way, is not related to Bellanca, Inc., which builds wood-wing Bellanca Vikings, which are modified versions of an early Bellanca design.)"

It was to be offered as a kit:

The kit is available in basic and deluxe (pressurized) versions, both with fast-build options. Building it will be “essentially an assembly process,” with very little fabrication required, according to Clark. Build time for an inexperienced builder is estimated at 3,500 hours.
“There are people who give presentations out there who say take the factory estimates and double them, but we suggest that you not take our estimates and double them; because of the precision of our tooling, we genuinely believe that our pieces are going to fit together much better than the average kit out there.”
The basic kit is priced at $85,000, and the fast build option is $97,000. For the pressurized version, the prices are $102,000 and “about” $118,000.
Though the company plans to certify the SkyRocket III for production, it will continue offering it as a kit “as long as the market for it persists,” Clark said.
More information on the SkyRocket is available from the company at 703-860-3823.
Not to be missed: August Bellanca will give a presentation on Bellanca design philosophy in Forum Tent No. 10 on Monday at 2:30 p.m.
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The phone number in the article is not registered to August T. Bellanca; I didn't try calling it. It's registered to:

Paul Phillips
2088 Lake Audubon Ct
Reston, VA 20191-4807
(703) 860-3823

The mystery deepens. I found an email address for the company and have written to see if it goes through and I get a response, or if it is no longer "valid".
 
Dave, you'll like this, from the F.A.I., the international organization that verifies and awards official aviation world records:

You may be interested to know that we have a number of Bellanca aircraft world records in our lists of world-class performances... A Skyrocket II still holds the 'speed over a closed circuit course of 100 / 500 / 1000 km' records in the concerned weight sub-class.

With Best regards,
Thierry Montigneaux
Fédération Aéronautique Internationale
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The www.AviaBellancaInc.com website is run by the www.bellanca-championclub.com guy, Robert Szego (email: robert@bellanca-championclub.com), according to the registration data.

The owner of the domain name is:

AviaBellanca, Inc.
PMB #59
2315 B Forest Drive
Annapolis, MD 21401

I think that's the address I'd try first if trying to track down more information on the plane.
 
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I remember seeing this plane at Sun and Fun in 2000. I did get to speak to one of the people who had help bring it to the show. They had flown it from Wilmington, DE non stop. I do not recall if August Bellanca was still involved with it then. I just remember it was and still is quite a machine. Very fast and lots of range. I was really hoping that it would go into production.

John
 
Let'sgoflying! said:
I hate to see such a good plane stagnate. Tks for the research Troy.
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No problem; I have a letter written to go in the mail tomorrow to that address I found. I'll let you know if I get a reply.

The email to the AOL.com account didn't bounce back, so maybe we'll get something back from that, too.
 
Look at all the attention I can get from otherwise rational adults!

It is just that, sometimes, a plane just *looks* right. This is one such plane.

Another one, the death of which I still mourn: the Windecker Eagle. Just flat beautiful.
 
SCCutler said:
It is just that, sometimes, a plane just *looks* right. This is one such plane.
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Guiseppe Bellanca was some kind of unsung aviation genius.
 
The Bellanca Skyrocket III as it is now called set numerous records in the speed department back in 1976, one of which was 326 MPH. Powered with the Continental GTSIO-520-K (435 HP) this engine was also used in the Commander 685 based on the Turbo Commander 690A airframe, not many were built but Continental did supply this engine. Several attempts were made to put this airplane into production by August Bellanca but to no avail, then an attempt to produce a kit was engaged but this also failed. It is a shame the airplane sits in a hangar somewhere and rots. The technology here was light years ahead of anything available in 1975 when the Skyrocket debuted. I have somewhere the original article written in Air Progress by Budd Davison.

Sometimes ideas are so well executed that they just seem to go nowhere and such is the case with the Bellanca and the Windecker Eagle........
 
Here is one you can use if you don't have it allready

bellancaIII.jpg
 
It's probably composite construction now, if not, would you really want to go that fast on a peice of wood? :)
 
Iceman said:
Very nice! That would be one fast airplane. I'm curious about the 520 engine putting out over 400hp. Is there such an engine in production?
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I'm not sure if it's still in production, but the GTSIO-520K as used on 685 Aero Commanders was rated at 435hp.
 
This, and the Windecker Eagle.

And they sell Cirri?
 
No doubt, Guiseppe Bellanca was a genius in his time. A lot of records set with his designs. A few of us enjoy the fruits of his talents today.
 
infotango said:
Another unique Bellanca!
http://home.att.net/~wcvog/aries.html
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I happened upon an Aries (the one described in the clipping in infotango's post) parked at Grants Pass, Oregon, a few years ago, and snapped this photo:

http://www.airliners.net/photo/Untitled/Bellanca_T-250_Aries/0433555/large/

Giuseppe had nothing to do with this design, however; its designer, Marvin Greenwood, is also known for this early-'50s design:

http://www.airliners.net/photo/Untitled/Anderson_Greenwood_AND-51-A/1254386/large/
 
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August J. Bellanca said:
Greetings,

The Skyrocket is on display at the Bellanca Airfield Museum in New Castle, Delaware.

Best Regards,

August J. Bellanca
302-353-7408
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Holy smokes - Royal Family in the house!

Thanks for the tout - hope to see it some day.

Welcome aboard PoA!
 
I'm glad someone brought to attention to the fact that the original thread was from 2008, because both links in post #2 are total gibberish.
 
August J. Bellanca said:
I am the oldest of August T. Bellanca's grandsons.
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Very cool and pleased to have you on board. If you've got any interesting stories about your grandfather I'm sure I'm not the only one that would love to hear them. The skyrocket was way ahead of its time.
 
Sac Arrow said:
I'm glad someone brought to attention to the fact that the original thread was from 2008, because both links in post #2 are total gibberish.
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What, you don't read and participate in Indonesian online gambling..?? :lol::lol:
 
Welcome, August.
I hope that you are a pilot, with such a famous grandfather.

Tell us more about growing up in the family of an aviation pioneer, if you were old enough to be aware.

We would be happy to learn more even if you are not a pilot, one of the local pilots in the area might invite you for a flight.

EDITED TO ADD:

I am curious as t how you found the thread about your Grandfather's plane designs and career. Looking more carefully at dates, you were likely born too late to have known your Grandfather very well, but congratulations for 'inheriting' a famous name.
 
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Hi August! As the owner of the current Bellanca Aircraft factory I would really enjoy connecting with you! Your family heritage is so highly respected in the aviation community - you have a lot to be proud of! Looking forward to knowing you better! --Rob Swanland
 
What an interesting couple of days this thread has had.
 
August J. Bellanca said:
Greetings,

The Skyrocket is on display at the Bellanca Airfield Museum in New Castle, Delaware.

Best Regards,

August J. Bellanca
302-353-7408
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Looks like the Museum is about a mile from KILG. Any good lunch places nearby? :)

Welcome to PoA!
 
I hope to check out the museum when I am at Flight Safety for recurrent in June.
 
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