Training electra

Air Classics, Feb 2002 by Henderson, Joe

I've enjoyed Air Classics and am now a regular subscriber. You've done an outstanding job on the Lockheed 12A, "Baby Electra". I started my flying career at the original American Flyers flight school at Meacham Field, Fort Worth, Texas, in 1958.

Flyers had a Lockheed 12 for multi-- engined training. While I don't remember the N #, I do remember the nameplate said it was made in 1938. Over the next several years, I remember it experienced two wheels-up landings from hard landing practice with students. It always took the rest of the year to get it flyable. It was always spectacular on takeoff with the flat pitched props ripping the Texas air. I would think if you could handle a 12A you could really handle any multi-- engined aircraft. The three-point attitude and sharply swept back cockpit windows keep you on your toes on takeoffs and landings. I'm not sure when Flyers got rid of it. When I later resumed flight training at Ardmore Air Park near Ardmore, Oklahoma, with American Flyers, I remember several oil companies flying their L-12As in and out. Lockheeds certainly were favorites with many small oil companies. Philip Makanna's color pictures of the "Last Hudson" were spectacular!

Joe Henderson, Captain A330 US Airways

Editor's Note: The Model 12 to which Mr. Henderson refers was c/n 1266 which was delivered to the US Army Air Corps as C-40B s/n 38-582 on 20 March 1939 with experimental tricycle landing gear (illustrated on page 48 of the December 2001 issue). On 22 June, the aircraft was transferred to Wright Field for further testing before being converted back to a standard C-40A in November 1940. The plane was returned to Lockheed for further work on 14 July 1941 and was surveyed (which means that it was surplus to military needs) at Wright Field on 12 September 1944. It was sold to Delta Air Corp. on 23 January 1945 as NC14999 - an example of how surplus aircraft were being sold before the war was over. Work on converting the plane to a civil transport was completed on 15 May 1945. The aircraft was then used for VIP flights, training, and survey work. After going through a couple more owners it was acquired on 24 May 1949 by Reed Pigman for his American Flyers Airline Corp. Pigman died in the crash of an L-188 Electra on 22 April 1966 and, apparently, N14999 crashed sometime after that at Ardmore, Oklahoma. Paul Bryce bought the wreckage and sold the fuselage to the Perras brothers and the rest of the plane went to Robert Parker and Joseph Shepherd. The registration was transferred to Model 12A c/n 1252 which is currently flying.