In early March of 2000, I was completing the details for building and finalizing the plans for my first twin, the Remmington Burnelli model RB -2. Already, during my childhood (in the 30's), my brother and I were fascinated by airplanes and eventually became accomplished scratch model builders. In recent years, to our gratification, we both have also become accomplished RC flyers. As we continued to seek that special subject to build over the years, we were increasingly attracted to the rare and more inventive designs.

In the early eighties my sister-in-law offered me an old 8X10 photo of an unusual twin-engine biplane out of the mid-twenties. I immediately recognized that it should be a very good applicant for a twin project some day. Hand printed on the bottom of the picture was "Remmington-Burnelli Transport - 1925". I wrote the Smithsonian Archives Division on two occasions for any information relating to this subject and twice received a package of photocopies and newspaper articles. Late last year, I searched for "Burnelli" on the internet and found a website: "www.aircrash.org" with fascinating information on the Burnelli "lifting body" designs fueling the fires of interest and intrigue.

A successful first flight after many hours of research, design and building is all one really expects of a project - however adding the real story involving Mr. Goodlin and the "Rocket," the Burnelli story, and the several Burnelli supporting new EMAIL friends has made this project a most gratifying experience and the project of a lifetime. This is the story of that experience.

By the end of April 2000, the new twin was completed and ready to have the engines run. One engine was started, trimmed for a reliable idle and strong full throttle then shut down. The second engine was started and trimmed also and then both were run and final trimmed to be synchronized at full throttle. BEWARE! Once you have run a pair of twin engines and listened to them in synch from idle to full throttle, you may instantly become hooked on twins for it is a totally unique and contagious experience.

As a first flight can be very exciting and have its surprises and disappointments, I contacted my flying buddy Ed Perls and said, "I'm heading to the field with the Burnelli"! Ed's immediate reply was "oh boy - see you at the field".

FIRST FLIGHT - Very briefly we filled both 10 oz. fuel tanks, checked the onboard battery voltage and started the engines. With the engines running we checked each channel for proper operation (ailerons, elevator, rudder and throttle) and the engines were once more tuned for a reliable idle and synchronization at full throttle. With the preliminaries completed we taxied out into take off position and rechecked all moving surfaces for correct operation and with all systems go, the engine throttle was increased to about 2/3 rds. power.

First, let me tell you about the model: it is a standoff scale model of the Remmington Burnelli model RB -2. It is approximately 1/12 scale and has a wing span of 76", cord 10", weight 9.6 lbs., twin K&B .45 Sportster engines, each with a 10 oz. fuel tank and is of built up balsa and some light plywood. The fuselage is 1/8 sheet balsa covered and the model final covered with Century 21 heat-shrink plastic covering. I chose these engines as the head and piston may be rotated 180 degrees so the exhaust / mufflers exit their respective side (left engine left side - right engine right side) with no loss of power.

As the engines strained in synch, the big bird began rumbling down the grass runway --- as the speed increased she bounced a few inches and settled, then bounced again and settled, and with a third bounce and more up elevator she was airborne. The climb out was gradual, smooth and deliberate --- a right turn almost completing a full circle, a left turn and a right turn, then left turns onto downwind leg, base leg, and onto final approach.

With engines throttled back the bird dropped rather quickly but up elevator and she flared out and settled in floating gently back onto the grass runway once more with a nice run out.

As left turns are standard procedure after take off from our field, Ed admitted following the flight that he really believed the Burnelli was in trouble, however the right turn was into a light breeze, rather than turn left into a cross breeze and thus avoiding a possible wing stall at the lower climb out airspeed. Our knees were still knocking and hearts pounding following the successful first flight touchdown and we were a couple of kids again. Triumphant, we packed it in and headed for home.

Not knowing just what to expect, I was elated with the good stability and the somewhat slow and deliberate handling characteristics which I attribute to 1) the gentle sweep back on each wing providing dihedral effect and 2) the additional stabilizing effect from the lifting body feature also significantly enhancing stability. The late Vincent Burnelli determined that close to 50% of the total lift was provided by the lifting body feature.

Nearing completion, I realized I needed to determine its original colors and again contacted the Smithsonian. They replied that "we believe the fuselage to be of medium blue and the wings and tail aluminum" and to my surprise they also sent the address of the Burnelli Co. with the suggestion I contact them directly, which I did. A few days later I received a letter specifying the same color-scheme as described by the Smithsonian and signed "Chalmers H. Goodlin". In mentioning Mr. Goodlin's name to my modeling friend Ed, he responded "oh yes, that must be "Slick" Goodlin, test pilot of the famous Bell X-1 "Rocket" from the late forties". Indeed - this was the case! There was so much more to this project than simply building a model!

SUBSEQUENT FLIGHTS - On the second flight she was on the climb out and the right engine quit - as the "bird" began to turn gently to the right my heart began to pound, however I was able to correct with rudder and flew her back to a good landing on the runway. On the fourth flight she was on a long climb out into a bit of a breeze and over a tree line when the left engine quit and in attempting to hold altitude to clear the trees she rolled and went into a diving spiral with the good engine full throttle and into the hay field adjacent to the tree line. I really did not want to look at the resulting damage but I was elated, as it was beyond belief, to find the bird without even a noticeable scratch and validating the claims made regarding the inherent safety of the Burnelli lifting-body technology. In the subsequent flights I have had many engine failures and being new at twins have had success with flying only about half of them back onto the relatively small grass runway primarily due to occurring at low altitude on climb out. Two of the engine outs occurred near a one story farm building on take off and actually flew behind the building and out of sight - in both cases the bird settled into the alfalfa (following over 100 yards of blind flight) maintaining it's single engine powered glide path. The engine failure problem was solved by using propellers with a larger pitch resulting in more pull and running the engines richer in fuel feed. I have not had one engine "out" since, have adequate pull on two engines and should maintain altitude better on one engine . In addition, the lower RPM provides a more realistic sound and it is easier to synchronize the engines.

The RB-2 is very stable with one engine out and will pull to the out engine side slowly, so applying a little rudder to the side of the running engine and having sufficient altitude one can fly it back to the runway with ease.

VINCENT BURNELLI - Having recently become aware of the life long desire and dream of the late Vincent Burnelli to provide the flying passenger a safer passage inherent in all of his "lifting body" designs, I think of him each time I learn of a plane crash and the many related victims. After flying a scaled down model of a Burnelli RB-2 lifting body design, and considering Mr. Goodlin's description of his experiences while piloting an original CBY-3 (a later Burnelli lifting body design) which match my experience to whit: the gentle, stable and excellent low speed flight characteristics, I am convinced current flight can and must be made considerably safer by applying the basic principles of the Burnelli "lifting body" and I highly recommend that everyone visit the "www.aircrash.org" website to learn the complete Burnelli story and just why we do not have today's skies filled with safer, superior "Burnelli" airliners.

Nevertheless, when I had completed the first flight successfully, I believed the project to be completed, however, little did I know that the real project was just beginning.

SHOW TIME - LAMS meet Tunkhannock, PA - I had never taken a model to an open meet before but already had the feeling this subject would draw considerable attention. Being my first, I was very excited with the anticipation of displaying the newly completed Burnelli model. As I had received several 8X10 photos and informational sheets from Mr. Goodlin, I prepared a display board reflecting the original RB -2 freighter including my original photo, a display of Vincent Burnelli's many key patents being applied today and some of his later designs, reference to website www.aircrash.org and finished it with a framed plexiglas front. The informational display is placed alongside the model and the stage is set.

I quickly found the "bird" (as Mr. Goodlin often refers to her) attracts everyone from serious scale enthusiasts, to the curious, to young bright-eyed children as she is so unusual and strangely attractive - perhaps some people subconsciously recognize the simplicity and natural validity of this design principle? I cannot describe how rewarding and fulfilling it is to answer the many questions and in promoting the genius of the late Vincent Burnelli. I was so elated with the interest created by the model at the first meet that I began plans to attend additional local meets.

WAYMART WINGS Memorial Fun Fly - at "Lum's" (Vladmir Kellachow Sr.'s private airstrip) The field is immaculate, the crowd enthusiastic and growing, and the weather is perfect. The first hours before noon the RC models fly between arrivals of real aircraft and skydiving demonstrations while the kids trim up their rubber powered models. The afternoon is alternating rubber band competition, RC flying, skydiving, aircraft departures and arrivals and abundant food and soft drinks. With a total estimated attendance of between 300 to 400, this first time memorial funfly, in memory of the late Vladmir Kellachow Jr., was a great success and again the Burnelli received much attention.

RHINEBECK, NY - now this is really prime territory as it is a very large meet where real WWI aircraft are flown and the models are limited to scale model entries of 1939 or earlier with most primary attendees being history and scale modeling buffs. From time to time we heard several : "Look! A Burnelli!" or "Look at this one" and most read the display with intrigue then studied the model. I am convinced that after describing the flight characteristics, several are now interested in building the RB-2 when the plans become available.

OUTSTANDING SUBJECT - I highly recommend building the RB -2 to anyone favoring biplanes and generally comfortable with flying models as it exhibits all of the following favorable characteristics; stronger and roomier fuselage, ultra stable flight, very gentle handling with deliberate flight characteristics even with one engine out, and a longer glide with lower air speed and with absolutely no stall tendencies. A scale model of a Burnelli lifting body design will attract attention wherever it is displayed and I believe that all of the several Burnelli designs will exhibit the foregoing positive flight characteristics due primarily to the ingenious "lifting body" influence.

I wish to thank my brother Scott Heim for his patience, guidance and for his contagious love of flight, Jessie Frees for the rare old photograph making this project possible, the Smithsonian and especially Chalmers H. Goodlin (test pilot extraordinaire, outstanding crusader for safer flight and Grand Champion of the Burnelli "lifting body" design) and Ernest Zavala (author and researcher) for providing extensive support and incentive and in putting my  project in proper historical perspective, Ed Perls (photographer) for support on and off the field, and Judy, my dear wife and perpetual supporter, for her patience, understanding and mostly her enduring tolerance of the hobby. I also wish to extend due appreciation to Walter Purdy of the Keystone RC Aero Sqdn. for his guidance and support and "Lum" and Gary Pozza for making possible and creating the Waymart Wings club as a means for interested youngsters to experience the joys of flight.

--- An old photograph - not only does it tell of the past but it also can lead to the future.

Safe Landings,

Alan Heim