.png)
Meyers OTW
- J.K. Caldwell
- Mar 18
- 5 min read
Out to Win!
First Impressions: A quick glance at this biplane trainer may trigger your brain to think – Stearman. However, a more careful second look confirms it is definitely something different. Though visually similar, the OTW (Out To Win) stands apart as an outstanding trainer aircraft with a remarkable safety record. Its characteristics, both in flight and on the ground, make it a much sought-after machine to this day.
Background: Al Meyers exemplified the definition of a self-made man. From humble beginnings on as a small farm, he followed his aviation passions to become a respected airplane designer and company owner. After learning to fly, he became an avid barnstormer in the late 1920s and early 1930s. While working at Stinson Aircraft, he designed and built the “Meyers Airplane” (later known as the “OTW”) in his single-car garage in Wayne, Michigan. He first test-flew his prototype airplane in 1936; however, after only some nine hours of testing, he received word that his dear mother was severely burned in a fire. Without hesitation, Al took to the air in his new, barely tested, open cockpit prototype to fly from his home in Michigan to be with her in the Catskill Mountains of New York. Thankfully, she survived, and the Meyers airplane prototype proved its worth in the process. Meyers finished the first two airplanes in a machine shop in Romulus, Michigan before relocating to Tecumseh, Michigan, where his homebuilt “Meyers Airplane” eventually completed Department of Commerce certification.
The Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPTP) was created by the U.S. Congress in 1938 to train civilian pilots, mimicking what European countries had been doing for over a decade. The obvious underlying purpose of building a civilian pilot cadre was preparation for military service. Al Meyers entered his aircraft design, which he named “OTW”, an abbreviation for “Out to Win,” in the CPTP competition for trainer aircraft. The OTW did indeed win, along with both the Ryan PT-21/22 and Waco UPF-7. Eventually, 102 OTWs were built, most (if not all) were used to train thousands of aviators before and during WWII. Al Meyers’s aircraft was both a good and a safe design. Records do not indicate any cadet fatalities in an OTW; a claim not matched by any other aircraft.
Design Characteristics: From 1933 to 1936, Al Meyers barnstormed with Martin Jensen, an early aviation pioneer and designer of the “Jensen Sport Trainer”, a steel tube and fabric fuselage biplane that utilized Curtiss Jenny wings and, eventually, a Warner Super Scarab engine. The first “Meyers Airplane,” designed as an improvement of his friend’s Jensen Sport Trainer, utilized different wings with a RAF 15 airfoil. Interestingly, this is the same airfoil as the British S.E.5 fighter, known as the “Spitfire of World War One”.
Meyers’ expertise was in sheet metal fabrication (a skill he learned and perfected working as a tradesman for Chance Vought, Martin, and Stinson), so it is not surprising that the OTW design includes an aluminum semi-monocoque fuselage. The two sets of wings are fabric-covered with Spruce or Yellow Poplar wood spars and the empennage is a fabric-covered steel tube structure. The two wings are attached to each other (outboard) and to the fuselage (inboard) by steel tube “N” shaped cabane struts. Meyers’ creations consisted of many “out of the box” features that made practical use of “off the shelf” parts. One such example is the fuel gauge, which is a Ford Model A cork bobber gauge found virtually anywhere in the 1930s and 40s. So too, the mechanical brakes were taken from a Ford Model A’s emergency brake (band style). Al Meyers had the perfect background (mechanic, artisan, and pilot) to be an aircraft designer. His designs (including the later Meyers 145 and Meyers 200 models) were sensibly conceived with consideration for the artisans who would manufacture them, the mechanics who would work on them, and the pilots who would fly them.
Once seated in the OTW, it becomes quite clear that this is no Stearman. The cockpit is far more compact, and the forward visibility from the rear seat is significantly better, thanks to the narrower fuselage and the smaller engine. Dee Bradford of Huntersville, N.C., has owned an OTW (serial number 75) for 28 years and enjoys sharing his unique biplane. His plane is painted in Army Air Corps trainer livery (because the USAAC did indeed procure and evaluate at least one OTW), which sometimes further adds to the Stearman confusion (most OTWs were either bare aluminum fuselages or civilian paint schemes).
Bradford’s OTW was delivered to the Fontana School of Aeronautics in Iron Mountain, Michigan (technically owned by the Defense Plant Corporation for a period) and was used during the war to train Army Air Corps glider pilots. His ship’s training logs reveal that his machine flew 5 to 6 hours a day, six days a week. Undoubtedly, serial number 75 trained many of the hero Army glider pilots who flew air assault missions behind enemy lines during the invasion of Normandy, Operation Dragoon, Operation Market Garden, Operation Varsity, the Battle of the Bulge, and even behind Japanese lines to small jungle clearings in Burma. After WWII, serial number 75 stayed at Fontana (by then renamed Fontana Aviation) as a pilot trainer for returning veterans learning to fly under the GI Bill. Today, this unassuming machine enjoys a beautiful grass runway at Bradford Field, N.C. (NC05), with occasional appearances at airshows and fly-ins.
Powerplant: The initial OTWs were equipped with a 7-cylinder, 125 horsepower Warner Scarab 125. This engine proved to be underpowered, so later models were upgraded to the 145 horsepower Super Scarab and, finally, the 5-cylinder, 160 horsepower Kinner R-5 (most recognized for its use on the Ryan PT-22 Recruit). The OTWs were correspondingly designated OTW-125, OTW-145, and OTW-160. However, Dee’s OTW sports none of these engines. Though originally built with a 125 horsepower Scarab, it now has a 165 horsepower Warner Super Scarab SS-165 with an 86” Sensenich wood propeller. The single 24-gallon fuel tank, located immediately behind the firewall and forward of the front instrument panel, limits flights to approximately two hours.
Flight Characteristics: The trim knob wheel, located in the front cockpit, requires the pilot in the rear seat to adjust the trim by pulling on either the top or bottom cable that runs down the left side of the cockpit. Solo flights are conducted from the rear seat only.
The take-off roll reveals no surprises and it naturally wants to track straight. Even with all the biplane drag, at only 1,910 lbs. max gross weight, and with thin-camber wings, the 165 horsepower Super Scarab does a sufficient job to carry the OTW aloft. The “elegant lady”, as some refer to this aircraft, holds neither nasty surprises nor bad habits. Its flight characteristics are appreciably predictable. Aerobatics require some altitude and a pushover to achieve about 120 mph and teaches the student pilot good energy management. The airplane makes an “elegant” landing almost effortless. The wide-stance oleo strut landing gear has generous travel and can turn even a hefty plop onto grass into a smooth landing. It ranks near the top of easy-to-land aircraft.
Although most OTWs are equipped with a full-swiveling tailwheel, some feature a tailwheel lock, which was available as a factory option. Another key difference between the OTW and the Stearman is the significantly larger OTW rudder. This feature proves highly effective throughout the landing roll, and plays a crucial role in its stable and forgiving landing characteristics
Wrap-Up: It’s easy to see why the OTW, alongside the Meyers 145 and Meyers 200, has such a devoted following. Every aspect of the OTW—its design, its craftsmanship, and its flight characteristics—reflects the wholistic forethought of Al Meyers. His first design set the tone for the future and was an obvious winner. Ninety years later, the OTW is still Out To Win!
Stay tuned for Part 2 (Meyers 145) and Part 3 (Meyers 200) of the Meyers series in up-coming “Plane Impressions” articles.
Comments