City of Yuma

IN 1949, AN AERONCA SEDAN

LIGHT AIRCRAFT SET AN INCREDIBLE

ENDURANCE

RECORD BY

STAYING

ALOFT FOR NEARLY 47 DAYS

Before the United States entered World War Two, a frantic program of building new aircraft and airfields was undertaken by the government -- finally recognizing the threat posed by the Axis. In Arizona, a large bombing and aerial gunnery range was located between Yuma and Gila Bend. In Yuma, city supervisors suggested to the Army that funds be allocated to their local Fly Field to make it into a functional Army Air Corps base.

This was done with work being completed in January 1942. Two paved runways (4200-ft by 150-ft) were completed and in June further funds were advanced to create a major training facility. Captain Barry Goldwater told Yuma businessmen that the field would be very important to the American war effort and the first class arrived in January 1943.

Needless to say, this facility - along with other military installations in the Arizona desert - brought a great deal of prosperity to Yuma and the region. However, the end of the war saw a major cutback to these installations and Yuma Army Air Field was declared surplus in September 1946. The Fly Field portion of the base went back to the county but the government still maintained control over the military hangars and other buildings although they were empty.

The closing of the air base and facilities led to a very steep drop in the economy of Yuma and nearby communities. This left the city fathers in a dilemma - how could they promote Yuma assets such as clear skies, sunshine, and unrestricted visibility in an attempt to bring business to the area? In a January 1949 chamber of commerce meeting, it was noted that a record flight at Fullerton, California, had generated a lot of publicity for the area. The aircraft was an Aeronca Sedan named The Sunkist Lady.

Accordingly, a decision was made to obtain an Aeronca Sedan and attempt a record flight to promote that fact that Yuma had 365 flying days a year. City officials reasoned that this might cause the air base to reopen.

Aeronca Sedan N1156H was loaned by local businessmen Claude Sharpensteen and Mickey Lorang. Marsh Aviation made its hangar facilities available along with their head mechanic. A small group of workers was assembled to modify the Aeronca for the record flight. The Model 15AC Sedan was a four-seat light aircraft that was the last plane to be produced by Aeronca before the company abandoned aircraft to concentrate on military subcontracts and other work. The Sedan appeared in 1947 and entered series production the next year. However, the market was flooded with surplus aircraft and new planes from other designers and the post-war general aviation boom never materialized. Several hundred Sedans were built before Aeronca tossed in the hat.

Standard fuel capacity for the Sedan was 36 gallons. To add fuel for the record, two extra tanks, associated hoses, and pumps were installed in the fuselage - one horizontal, one vertical and both in the baggage area. The tanks took up all the baggage area and part of the rear seat.

During the flight, the off-duty pilot would use a hand-operated rotary pump to transfer fuel from 2.5-gal cans (transferred to the plane from a speeding Buick convertible) into the fuselage tanks and, later, into the wing tanks. With the extra tanks, fuel capacity increased to a bit over 80-gal. Another system was designed and installed that allowed monitoring of oil quantity in the crankcase along with a means to add and extract oil from the crankcase - making 100-hour oil changes possible.

Bob Woodhouse and Woody jongeward, both ex-Navy pilots, became the pilots for the record flight. News releases were sent out to papers and radio stations across the country. The plane was painted up as The City of Yuma with "The City with a Future" emblazoned along the fuselage.

The first attempt started on 21 April 1949, but the plane came down after 74 hours with engine problems. A second attempt started on 5 May but the plane landed with engine detonations after 155 hours in the air. However, the third attempt was a success -- it should be noted that the plane had to stay airborne at least 1010 hours to beat the previous record set by The Sunkist Lady. Starting on 24 August, the Aeronca took to the air and the wheels did not again touch ground until 10 October - after 1124 hours, 14 minutes, and five seconds airborne which totaled nearly 47 days aloft.

Refueling took place from Fly Field with the Buick speeding down the runway while the pilot flew formation and the other pilot would make a grab for the fuel cans, food, and other supplies. This alone was a very difficult processes and over 1500 "formation flights" were required during the record run.

The event did brine a lot of publicity to Yuma and the military eventually did move back to the airfield - today it is MCAS Yuma.

And what of the valiant Aeronca? It was eventually sold and disappeared. Most involved with the record flight believed the plane was destroyed in a crash.