EAAers in action
at the museum
EAA’s Bleriot XI
Building a 100-year-old airplane
DANA HEIMOS, EAA 834980
One hundred years ago this
month French inventor and
aircraft designer Louis Bleriot
carved his place in aviation history
when he became the first person to
fly across the English Channel. He
performed that feat in an aircraft
he designed himself: a sleek and
nimble monoplane he called the
Bleriot XI. In 2006, EAA volunteers
began constructing a Bleriot XI of
their own, with hopes of performing
demonstration flights for visitors to
EAA’s Pioneer Airport.
After obtaining original Bleriot
drawings, volunteers began constructing
a set of wing ribs at EAA AirVenture
Oshkosh 2006. They later learned the
wing ribs were not only too short but
also constructed of the wrong material
(plywood). Aviation historian Pierre
Duval helped the team get back on track
by offering a new set of wing drawings,
and in 2007 a set of wing ribs were made
from ash, the original wood used.
Following the construction of the
ribs, the wings were assembled using
handcrafted wing spars. Volunteers
then began constructing the fuselage
frame. At the same time, EAA staff
members began a search for a three-cylinder Anzani fan-type engine, the
same engine used by Louis Bleriot to
cross the English Channel in 1909.
With a bit of luck they were able to
locate a 25-hp Anzani engine built in
1910. Volunteers Gene Ely and Ted
Mosman soon began an overhaul. “The
big question was if this engine was
capable of running after having been
in storage for nearly 100 years,” said
Gerard Putzer, who was responsible
for fabricating a metal frame that
resembled the wooden frame used to
hold the engine in place during test
runs. “It had a lot of missing parts,
so it was up to us to fabricate those
parts and make calculations on how
they would work.” Spending countless
hours tweaking rpm, fabricating valves,
The fuselage of EAA’s Bleriot XI still awaits
the control system, Poly Fiber covering,
rigging, and tweaks to the pilot’s seat.
Bonnie Kratz
EAA’S BLERIOT XI SPECIFICATIONS
Length: 26 feet, 3 inches
Height: 8 feet, 6 inches
Wingspan: 28 feet, 2 inches
Gross Weight: 748 pounds
Empty Weight: 484 pounds
Powerplant: One 25-hp Anzani
Wing Area: 182 square feet
a throttle, and a special magneto,
making test runs, and burning
numerous quarts of castor oil, the
team was able to showcase a running
Anzani engine at EAA AirVenture 2008
to enthusiastic crowds.
The Bleriot project is kept at EAA’s
Kermit Weeks Hangar in Oshkosh,
Wisconsin, where on any given day
a volunteer or two may be found
fabricating metal parts, cutting wood,
or finding new ways to overcome the
obstacles of building a 100-year-old
airplane. Fortunately, EAA hasn’t had a
shortage of help. Local companies and
individuals from across the country
have been instrumental in the project’s
progression. “This is not a normal
airplane,” says Gary Buettner, project
leader for EAA’s Bleriot. “But we’ve
been fortunate to have volunteers
with knowledge of homebuilding,
machining, or cabinetmaking that
can be applied to this project. Much of
the progress on this airplane could not
have been made without the help of
volunteers Jim Orvedahl, Ken Terrio,
Gene Ely, Jim Martin, Don Moder,
Dave Hanschke, Ken Voss, and Ryan
Thompson.”
