Re-creation of the inaugural flight of the China Clipper

[stearmandriver]

Hi there,

For the last year or so, I've been working my way through re-creating the first commercial flight of the China Clipper, the M-130 flying boat operated by Pan Am that completed the first commercial service across an ocean, in 1935.  I've stuck to period navigation techniques, as best I could replicate them in the sim: dead reckoning supplemented with position lines from celestial observations and the rudimentary HF direction-finding that Pan Am was pioneering at this time.  I've been putting together YouTube videos of them as I go, and I've posted about this on other forums, but I figured that it's only fair to share here as well, considering I'm using your M-130 model (THANKS to whoever put that together!!!).

I suspect many of us frequent these other forums as well, so I feel I ought to be clear that I'm not trying to spam multiple forums in a hunt for "likes", "subs", and whatever else I hear Youtubers pleading for.  I don't care about numbers and barely know what some of that means... I just want to share the story with as many interested folks as possible. 

4 legs are complete so far, and I'm prepping the final leg to Manila now.

These all got longer than I intended, but there are timeline links in the descriptions, so it should be easy to jump to the parts that interest you.  The basic format is video segments of me narrating what I'm doing and why, interspersed with slideshows of historic photos of the trip and screenshots from my journey in FSX.

Leg 2, Part 1 details my workflow for dead reckoning and simulating the HfDf (a user over at the A2A forums helped by adding the huff-duff stations to his already excellent Weatherships guage).

Leg 1, Alameda - Honolulu





Leg 2 (Part 1 of 2), Honolulu - Midway Island





Leg 2 (Part 2 of 2), Honolulu - Midway Island




Leg 3, Midway Island - Wake Island




Leg 4, Wake Island - Guam




Leg 5, final leg, Guam to Manila

[hermankreimes]

So far I have only started watching a bit of your first video, and I can see all the effort that you have put in, representing this most historic period of time. Enjoying it greatly.

Herman

[darrenvox]

stearmandriver im your 100th sub

[Deleted]

Excellent work Stearman Driver, love the videos have not watched them all as I have just done the flights myself but not a recreation of the very first flight as you have done which is informative. I can only agree, it was an amazing effort and so was there capacity to keep it going as a regular service with passengers and mail etc, which is the time period I recreated my flight.


I envy your video making skills and loved the little touches of photos from the era now and then. I only went as far as Guam and stopped there after 45 hours of sim time I had had enough. Not of simming but hours and hours of ocean and cloud. I did some sextant work but I am still having issues with my setup to get it working 100% (the gauge gets a bit unstable for some reason). I like the HUFFDUFF thing and I had also forgotten about the navlog spreadsheet tool, I do a plan on paper and revert to pencil and a Jep hand held computer to work it out.

You have really showcased the incredible capacity of the sim to do things like this and I can only agree with the M130 it seemed to be on the numbers as far as performance was concerned.

Seems Tom and Cal Classic have been run over (not taken over) by flying boat folks from the 1930s at the moment. As you say it really gives you an appreciation of what these people actually achieved and now I can know what it was like in detail.

Great work very much enjoyed it all.

[Deleted]

I did occur to me to say but I forgot, Tom and others, I think this is extraordinary actually, 3 of us her at Cal Classic separately and without consultation or any idea of what the other was doing, have all been doing the Pan Am Clipper Flights basically all at the same time. I give the first prize to Stearman Driver that is great effort done completely like real, sextant and all. The videos are completely absorbing as well.

[stearmandriver]

Thanks Mike. It really is amazing what this sim is capable of! And it is a great coincidence that several of us have been doing this flying at the same time; "great" not only in the sense of large, but good as well. I really feel like this is a great age of exploration and advancement that (maybe because it really only lasted about 10 years) is in danger of being forgotten.

I only wish I'd seen the post about your sceneries before I started. I threw in a couple generic docks on the atolls, but the videos would have been better with proper scenery!

I know what you mean about getting burned out on the long ocean flights. My navigation, plotting lines of position etc. keeps me busy... but I still needed a break after arriving at Wake (in unexpected fog). Hence the year break lol. I'm psyched to make the last video and include all the Manila photos.

[Deleted]

Good Luck with that. The two flights I wish to do now are both seriously long haul. The Shorts Calcutta only did about 90 knots so that is what I call slow and even the venerable Shorts S23 only got along at 155 knots. So by my reckoning London to Sydney works out at 8-12 days at 5-7 hours a day flying. Scenery is a lot more interesting than the wide blue pacific. I know why my mates who flew Qantas used to call it the pond, they also said if they also wanted to neck themselves after doing it for years and years and would bid for anything but that run. Me well for my sins I spent a long time over water as a maritime patrol pilot but at least we got to look for and chase stuff on the water but there were some days when it was a solid 12 hours of well just blue. But I can relate to the lonely sky effect that the Pan Am guys endured. I drew the short straw one Xmas Day and spent the entire day running between Darwin and Townsville via all points north, Gulf, Coral Sea etc. Just us and not a soul on the airways, nobody else was flying that day.

[awralls]

These are inspirational! Thanks so much for posting them. I learned a heck of a lot from your celestial navigation vids and these compliment them beautifully. Well Done!

Andy

[Erik]

Andrew,

Thank you very much indeed. I have now watched all five videos and am looking forward to the Guam-Manila leg. Like your dedicated celestial nav videos, these taught me a lot. I have already downloaded the great flight log spread sheet from the A2A forum. It seems like something I have been hoping to exist, for quite some time. Next up will be some direction finding equipment and I think a drift meter, all available from generous freeware developers (and to be used as applicable to era and aircraft of course).

Earlier on I thought I had understood it's best to get a course line first, then a speed line, as the course line is less time-critical and could still be used if the speed line is delayed. Meanwhile I realise you explain the opposite: get the speed line first, so it's on time. If the weather then delays the course line and the speed line has to be advanced, do you advance it by a distance based on the speed its own (timely) measurement gave you? And if so, is there still an advantage over doing it in reversed order?

I also just had a lot of fun watching, for all the things so familiar among people flying MSFS, the touch of humour and even the times at which you recorded the videos. It is, obviously, past midnight as I type this.


Many thanks again,
Erik

[stearmandriver]

Hi Erik,

Glad you enjoyed the videos. As far as your question about which sextant shot to take first, the speed or course line, I think you understand the reasons each way. So I'd say it doesn't really matter, as long as you know how to work with the information you're getting. I'm flexible; if I have more concern about one thing or the other I'll take that shot first. So if I'm concerned about drifting off course and missing land, course first. If I need a progress check, speed line.

As far as advancing a LOP, yes, I always use the most current groundspeed that I've calculated.

[Erik]

Great, that does help, thanks a lot Stearmandriver!

Erik

[herkpilot]

What is most amazing about PanAms 1936 scheduled service across the pacific is that the first crossing to Hawaii occurred only 11 years earlier in 1925. Navy Commander John Rodgers in a Boeing PN-9 flying boat departed Alameda on Sept 2,1925 and arrived in Kauai on Sept 11, having sailed the machine for 10 days after running out of fuel and putting down at sea. The next try by the Army’s Lt Maitland and Hegenburger landed at Wheeler Field on June 29,1927 in a Fokker C-2 after a 25 hour flight. The Dole Derby, a race to Hawaii, launched in August of 1927 and cost 8 aircraft destroyed or gone missing and 10 lives. Only two of the entrants made it to Hawaii.

Against this background, the start of commercial flights to Hawaii in 1936 and acceptance by the public only nine years after the tragedy of the Dole Derby is amazing. Trans Atlantic commercial flights were still several years away.

Two books that cover the story are Jason Ryan “Race to Hawaii” just recently published and Stan Cohen “Wing to the Orient” about PanAms conquering of the Pacific

[warbaby]

I've had the sextant gauge for some time, but I've never really taken the time to mess with it. But thanks to the videos I have new interest, and I've been using it. It works!
Allen

[Jorge]

AJ,

Wonderful series and very informative! Definitely worth the time to watch. It makes those of us flying today more thankful for the pioneers that came before us!

Jorge

[stearmandriver]

Final leg is FINALLY done... that was a journey! It feels oddly worthwhile though... thanks to anyone who came along!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=975YtYq6pOQ&list=PLMtqQ_JsCX4Kf9OpS8Tj6QolWk8NahOmy&index=6