Andy Lennon (September 1, 1914 - November 24, 2007) is most notably associated with his work in advanced

model aircraft A model aircraft is a small unmanned aircraft. Many are replicas of real aircraft. Model aircraft are divided into two basic groups: flying and non-flying. Non-flying models are also termed static, display, or shelf models. Aircraft manufactur ...

design.

Background

Lennon was involved in

aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air craft such as hot air ...

since the age of 15, when he went for a short ride in a

Curtiss Robin The Curtiss Robin, introduced in 1928, was a high-wing monoplane built by the Curtiss-Robertson Airplane Manufacturing Company. The J-1 version was flown by Wrongway Corrigan who crossed the Atlantic after being refused permission. Design The ...

. He soon joined the Montreal Flying Club and began flying D.H. Gypsy Moths and early two-place

Aeronca Aeronca, contracted from Aeronautical Corporation of America, located in Middletown, Ohio, is a US manufacturer of engine components and airframe structures for commercial aviation and the defense industry, and a former aircraft manufacturer. Fr ...

cabin monoplanes. He was educated in Canada at Edward VII School,

Strathcona Academy Strathcona is a 19th-century variation of "Glen Coe", a river valley in Scotland. The word was invented for use in the title Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal, first used for Donald Smith, 1st Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal, Donald Smith, a Canadi ...

, Montreal Technical School,

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

and the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by resident ...

, (

London, Ontario London (pronounced ) is a city in southwestern Ontario, Canada, along the Quebec City–Windsor Corridor. The city had a population of 422,324 according to the 2021 Canadian census. London is at the confluence of the Thames River, approximate ...

Involvement in Manufacturing

Lennon entered the Canadian aircraft manufacturing industry and later moved to general manufacturing as an

industrial engineer Industrial engineering is an engineering profession that is concerned with the optimization of complex processes, systems, or organizations by developing, improving and implementing integrated systems of people, money, knowledge, information a ...

. Throughout his career, he continued to study

aeronautics Aeronautics is the science or art involved with the study, design, and manufacturing of air flight–capable machines, and the techniques of operating aircraft and rockets within the atmosphere. The British Royal Aeronautical Society identifies ...

, particularly aircraft design, aviation texts,

NACA The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) was a United States federal agency founded on March 3, 1915, to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958, the agency was dissolved and its assets ...

and

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

reports and aviation periodicals. He tested many aeronautics theories by designing, building and flying nearly 25 experimental R/C models-miniatures of potential

light aircraft A light aircraft is an aircraft that has a maximum gross takeoff weight of or less.Crane, Dale: ''Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms, third edition'', page 308. Aviation Supplies & Academics, 1997. Light aircraft are used as utility aircraft c ...

. One model, the Seagull III was a flying boat with wide aerobatic capabilities. Lennon was a licensed pilot in the United States and Canada.

Contributions in Literature

Lennon was a contributing editor to ''

Model Airplane News '' Model Airplane News'' is a monthly magazine focusing upon the hobby of radio control airplanes. ''Model Airplane News'' reviews radio control aircraft from backyard flyers, to giant scale airplanes, and features how-to articles, product re ...

'', ''

Model Aviation ''Model Aviation'' is the monthly full-color publication written, prepared and distributed by the Academy of Model Aeronautics beginning in 1936 and established as an independent publication in July 1975. The magazine is based in Muncie, Indiana. ...

'', '' Model Builder'', '' RC Modeler'', '' Fly RC'' and '' RC Models and Electronics''. He wrote several books: "Basics of R/C Model Aircraft Design", "R/C Model Airplane Design" and "Canard: A Revolution in Flight." His last book was published in 1996, has been reprinted twice since. Andy's authority in aerodynamics and related studies are well acknowledged by leaders in the aviation industry. His book "Canard: A Revolution in Flight" had the foreword written by

Burt Rutan Elbert Leander "Burt" Rutan (; born June 17, 1943) is a retired American aerospace engineer and entrepreneur noted for his originality in designing light, strong, unusual-looking, and energy-efficient air and space craft. He designed the record- ...

, a fitting authority in Canard design. For his last book "Basics of R/C Model Aircraft Design",

Bob Kress Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: Places *Mount Bob, New York, United States *Bob Island, Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica People, fictional characters, and named animals *Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters *Bob (surname) ...

, who designed the

F-14 The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is an American carrier-capable supersonic, twin-engine, two-seat, twin-tail, variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was developed for the United States Navy's Naval Fighter Experimental (VFX) program after the ...

, among other designs, wrote the introduction. Image:AGL_Robin1.jpg, Note the traditional profile found in many of Andy's designs. Image:AGL_Robin2.jpg, Andy Lennon's Robin shown in kit form.

Model Design Development

Lennon, since 1957, has designed and published a wide range of model aircraft in various publications. These designs each represented features specific to that particular plane. The current list of his published designs is as follows, in order of publication:

Oct. 1957: Flamingo Flying Boat
Sept. 1980: Elseven - Sport (pronounced EL-Seven)
Jan. 1981: Canada Goose Canard
March/April 1983: Crane

STOL A short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft is a conventional fixed-wing aircraft that has short runway requirements for takeoff and landing. Many STOL-designed aircraft also feature various arrangements for use on airstrips with harsh conditio ...

July 1984: Gull Sport
Oct. 1992: Sea Hawk - Float & Land Plane
Sept. 1993: Swift - Sport
Nov. 1994: Dove - Glo Powered Glider
Jan. 1996: Wild Goose - 3 Surface Model
Aug. 1996: Crow

May 2000: Robin

, USA
Jan. 1987: Sparrow Hawk - Sport
Oct. 1987: Sea Loon - Twin Boom Flying Boat

Model Builder, USA
Oct. 1989: Swan - Canard
June 1991: Osprey - Float & Land Plane

R.C. Modeler, USA
Jan. 1989: Snowy Owl Sport
Oct. 1992: Seagull III - Flying Boat

Radio Control Models & Electronics, UK
Feb. 1998: Wasp - Tandem Wing Biplane

Although all designs are dear to Andy, he has noted that he"''Robin and the Seagull III, are both my favourites.''"
Lennon's last design was the Robin. (officially) Unsurprisingly, the majority of Mr. Lennon's unpublished designs are preserved in the hands of Ken Charron, principal designer who Andy collaborated with in the development and release of the "Robin" kit — the only known design of Andy Lennon's to be produced in itform.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lennon, Andy 1914 births Model aircraft 2007 deaths McGill University alumni