The Pietenpol Sky Scout is a

parasol wing A monoplane is a fixed-wing aircraft configuration with a single mainplane, in contrast to a biplane or other types of multiplanes, which have multiple planes. A monoplane has inherently the highest efficiency and lowest drag of any wing confi ...

homebuilt aircraft Homebuilt aircraft, also known as amateur-built aircraft or kit planes, are constructed by persons for whom this is not a professional activity. These aircraft may be constructed from "scratch", from plans, or from assembly kits.Armstrong, Kenn ...

Development

The Sky Scout was a lower cost follow-on to the Pietenpol's first homebuilt design, the

Pietenpol Air Camper The Pietenpol Air Camper is a simple parasol wing homebuilt aircraft designed by Bernard H. Pietenpol. The first prototype that became the Air Camper was built and flown by Pietenpol in 1928.Bowers, Peter M.: ''Guide to Homebuilts'', 9th ...

. Using a lower cost

Ford Model T The Ford Model T is an automobile that was produced by Ford Motor Company from October 1, 1908, to May 26, 1927. It is generally regarded as the first affordable automobile, which made car travel available to middle-class Americans. The relati ...

engine, rather than the more current Ford Model A engine of the time. The aircraft was redesigned for the heavier, lower power engine by reducing it to a single person aircraft. The new pilot location required a section called a "flop" to be installed, essentially a section of the wing that was hinged up to allow the pilot to stand up when getting into and out of the aircraft. The aircraft was designed to be built of

spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' (), a genus of about 35 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal (taiga) regions of the Earth. ''Picea'' is the sole genus in the subfami ...

and

plywood Plywood is a material manufactured from thin layers or "plies" of wood veneer that are glued together with adjacent layers having their wood grain rotated up to 90 degrees to one another. It is an engineered wood from the family of manufactured ...

. The drawings were published in the 1933 Mechanix Illustrated magazine.

On display

* A Sky Scout is on display at the

Pioneer Flight Museum Pioneer commonly refers to a settler who migrates to previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited land. In the United States pioneer commonly refers to an American pioneer, a person in American history who migrated west to join in settling and de ...

in Kingsbury, Texas. This Scout is powered by a Model A engine. It is intended to be a flyable aircraft but for the present is only occasionally run up. The number one Pietenpol with a Model T engine can be found at the Model T Ford Club of America Model T Museum in Richmond, Indiana. * Sky Scout N1933A on display at

Western Antique Aeroplane & Automobile Museum The Western Antique Aeroplane and Automobile Museum (WAAAM) is located in Hood River, Oregon, United States, adjacent to the Ken Jernstedt Memorial Airport. WAAAM is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization committed to the preservation of, and educatio ...

* Also one on display at Fountain, Minnesota Historical Center which is just 15 miles from B Pietenpol's home town of Cherry Grove. Bernard Pietenpol is also buried in Fountain.

Variants

*Claude Sessions developed a finned head modification on his Sky Scout for lighter weight air-cooling. The engine was featured in Modern Mechanics magazine in 1931 and formed the basis for the American Flea Corporation Universal 50-60 engine. *

Specifications (Pietenpol Sky Scout)

References

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External links