I was searching for something over the Internet and stumped upon this magnificent picture of Long Cheng (Long Tieng) old airfield in Laos.
You can find it if you search it in GoogleEarth.
It is by photographer Dietmar Eckell where his on line gallery can be found here: https://dietmareckell.com/
The photo is in the “r.i.p.” gallery, the 20/51 apocalypse laos, “rest in peace #79” picture (seen when you browse the slide show onwards)
He has fabulously documented things people leave on this planet for nature to reclaim.
His book “happy end” is amazing; about survivable aircraft crashes with aircraft relics lying in peace all over Earth.
Then I searched about the CIA’s secret war referred to in the picture description. I knew about it from Air America movie but had never digged in to it.
I know … most of us have seen the 1990 Air America movie but it is a Hollywood version of the story that presents things the Hollywood way, still with many true facts in it.
So by digging further I then found this year 2000 documentary by History Channel on the “CIA Secret Airline” which I had never seen.
I recommend you see it before its pulled out from YT as many are when there is copyright infringement. (I don’t know, its just a guess).
I post this mainly for the FLYING part of this documentary. Its really worth seeing. Things like dead reckoning in IMC low above terrain in between hills and under ground fire, the ad hoc airstrips made in the middle of the jungle and so on.
Note: Long Cheng airfield of the top nowadays’ picture by Dietmar Eckell can be seen in the above video in 21:22 onwards.
The rest of the content, not about the flying, well … just let sleeping dogs lie as they say since its an off aviation big subject.
BTW, I learned from it a new term I did not know, Plausible Deniability !
Great find, thanks !!
https://www.amazon.com/Ravens-Flew-Americas-Secret-Laos/dp/0517566125
great read
also nice aircrafts in use i would love a Beech like the QU-22 !! GTSIO-520-G engine and 220gal useable fuel, 2636kg MTOW!!
I’d love to have 375hp in my Bonnie :)
Specifications (GTSIO-520-D)
Data from Continental Motors
General characteristics
Type: 6-cylinder horizontally opposed aircraft engine
Bore: 5.25 in (133.35 mm)
Stroke: 4.00 (101.6 mm)
Displacement: 520 in³ (8.51 litres)
Length: 63.63 in (161.6 cm)
Width: 34.04 in (86.5 cm)
Height: 26.63 in (67.6 cm)
Dry weight: 484 lb (219.5 kg) without accessories
Components
Valvetrain: Overhead valve
Fuel system: TCM fuel injection
Fuel type: 100/130 Octane Avgas
Cooling system: Air-cooled
Performance
Power output: 375 hp (280 kW) (Maximum continuous operation at 3,400 rpm)
Compression ratio: 7.5:1
Power-to-weight ratio: 0.77 hp/lb (1.27kW/kg)
3400 rpm is the key 
Power is 2nd power of rpm, IIRC. The engine sucks harder so more fuel goes in.
The problem with geared air cooled aircraft engines is that the cylinder cooling is often the same as (or similar to) the basic un-geared variant of the engine and 25% more power at the same efficiency means 25% more heat to dissipate, meaning higher operating temperature.
Power is proportional to torque times rpm. Aircraft engines typically have a fairly flat relationship between torque and rpm, meaning for these engines power is roughly proportional to rpm. For more highly tuned engines torque drops off beyond a certain rpm, the cylinder doesn’t have time to fill, so increased rpm has a slowly diminishing effect.
Very interesting subject. Anybody here ever heard the story about the golden arm bracelets the pilots were supposedly issued?
Snoopy wrote:
Anybody here ever heard the story about the golden arm bracelets the pilots were supposedly issued?
Tell us about them, no.
Supposedly back in those times airline pilots in the US suddenly disappeared only to return after afew years as if nothing had happened…they all wore a golden bracelet. In case they went down somewhere in Laos etc…they would use the gold pieces to pay locals to get them out safely. The US was never supposed to be there according to some treaties in place so they (CIA) used civilian pilots.
Understood.
Yes this story (not the bracelet) has many strings attached … that’s what I referred to when I mentioned “let sleeping dogs lie”.
