flight of Nieuport 28, America's oldest fighter airplane 

I was fortunate enough to have been able to visit the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome a few times with my boys and took them on a flight in a biplane that flew over the Hudson River Valley. This is a must for all of us who were interested in planes and early aviation.

The airman of that era must have had balls of steel flying these machines in combat, especially with no parachute.

What an era. Surprisingly fast !! I expected more of a kite like other airplanes of the era. This Nieuport had thin wings where if memory serves me right, reduced wind resistance but we’re prone to shedding the covering and even the lower wing itself in a power on dive. I can’t even imagine flying this in combat!!! Ricky backer flew this and scored a number of his kills in it. Eternally grateful for the opportunity to gaze on this marvelous part of aviation history. Thank you all!!

I have a piece of Lt. Quentin Roosevelt's crashed Nieuport 28 Number 14. It was given to me by my Grandpa who recovered it in 1918. My Grandpa was in the 32nd Div, 107th engineers company D. He built the first fence around Quentin's Grave. Its a piece of brass, probably from the gas tank. Grandpa fashioned it into a 'Crush-proof' for his wooden matchbox.

My favorite era of aviation. I can't even explain why, it just is

At 10:43, kind of eerie to see the Nieuport fly overhead and in the background of the sky beyond, at 30,000 feet, a jet airliner with 120 passengers flying at 550 MPH.

Mikael Carlson is a legend - what a talented pilot! Impressive work by those that restored this beauty!

My mother's mother was a Biship-Billy Bishop is a relative! Billy flew the Nieuport in WW I ! When I was a captain on the B727-we spent the weekend there, and always got to watch a Great show. Owen Sound , ONT is where Billy is buried. Billy actually was a hero, and not many people know, Billy pinned the wings on his son , also a Spitfire pilot. They both witnessed a fast forward in aviation. Superbia !! GDW

5:42 I love the mind game that has to go on to get these engines started. I’m still amazed at the number of cylinders they have that must work in perfect fraction of a second synchronization. Marvelous!

"The Nieuport 28 C.1, a French biplane fighter aircraft flown during World War I, was built by Nieuport and designed by Gustave Delage. Owing its lineage to the successful line of sesquiplane fighters that included the Nieuport 17, the Nieuport 28 continued a similar design philosophy of a lightweight and highly maneuverable aircraft.. By the time the Nieuport 28 was available, the SPAD XIII "...

My great Uncle flew these in the 95th aero " kicking ass" squadron in ww1 he would have loved to see this.. he once held the guiness record for the oldest licensed pilot in the USA ( decades ago)

Wow! I thought it was a big RC plane at first, it's smaller than I thought, also it's a LOT louder than I thought it would be and quite a bit faster. I'm surprised they would risk such a jewel! I had never seen one ground turned that way but it makes sense. Got to be a thrill.

one of my favorite planes, i built a plastic one and a balsa wood model of it when i was young.

The Nieuport to me among the most beautiful WW1 aircraft!

Amazing flight. The pilot's proper use of the rudder was refreshing and very effective. Well done, thanks for posting.

These were followed by the SPAD XIII in early April, 1918. My grandfather was a crew chief for the 94th Aero Squadron, USAAS during this period. By American they mean an AC used to equip US forces. In this case designed and built in France.

Damn. That engine is perfectly tuned. Started right up and runs perfect on all selectors.

It may have not been the best, but I think the Nieuport 28 is probably the most elegant of all WW1 fighters. What a beautiful airplane, and Mikael handles it like an artist!

Interesting fact: this plane had a ROTARY Engine. This is the first generation (or two, depending how you count generations) of Radial Engines! Due to the metallurgy of the time, they couldn't prevent the metals from getting too hot and weakening in an air-cooled engine if it was mounted in what we think of the standard way to mount engines. So, they bolted the engine's crankcase to the propeller and bolted the crankshaft to the firewall. At about 5:40 you can see the engine rotated as the ground crew "hand over the engine one and a half times" or "pull three and a half blades" before trying to start the engine. You can also see why so many early ground crew didn't always have all of their fingers, and in some cases missing an entire hand! This is also why a few engines were more popular with people because you started them by flipping them in the opposite direction to start them! The magneto would fire just before "top dead center" of whatever cylinder it was and give just enough "ummph" to get the next cylinder to fire. Then as the engine started, the ignition timing shifted to give the engine maximum performance.

Such a good design that it still flies 100 years later

I had a 5/8-Scale Nieuport 17 Replica. It was really fun to fly. It had a bigger rudder which turned out to be the primary flying control. If you didn't watch the ball, the ailerons lost grip and the only way to break the incipient spin was to apply lots of rudder. I had many dogfights patrolling the Canadian/US border.:)

I fondly remember Old Rhinebeck and Cole Palin. We had a program signed by the old "Black Baron" himself. What a great place and great memories.

The Neuport 28 was one of my dad's favorite WWI airplanes, mine is the Neuport 17. What a SWEET, SWEET SOUND that rotary engine makes.

Just viewed this not long after re-reading my original copy of Eddie Rickenbacker's book Fighting the Flying Circus from 1919. The 28 was the plane he flew first before the Spad. This is a fantastic book, a great read even today. Really puts you in the cockpit and gives you a feel for what it was like. One thing they did not want to be was "late to the party" their slang for a dogfight.

Beautiful. Love that US "Hat in the Ring" insignia too.

Thanks for loading this! What a piece of history! Especially great to hear that engine! ✈🛩😀👍

It had a rotary engine. At higher RPM, the Rudder worked as the elevator, and the elevator worked as the Rudder.

the effect of frame rate on prop visualization always fascinates me

That was mesmerising. and for the first time I was actually able to understand the sound of the engine... especially in the air. Just fantastic. Kudos Kudos Kudos to the people who keep it flying.

Simply Wonderful. Awesome engine sound. Thanks for showing us this absolute gem.

Magnifique ! C’est dingue d’oser encore voler sur ces machines! Magnifique restauration.Merci de faire vivre le patrimoine mondial et de le partager 👍

My grandfather was in WW1 and thank you for putting this together

I was there to witness this flight. They also have amazing exhibits of aircraft, cars, tanks and much more!

Can't get enough of this stuff. Thanks for posting!

Congratulations to the pilot fantastic airmanship and engine management a real pleasure to watch a craftsman at work

My grandfather, John Paul Label flew Blériot 67 in 1916. He was from Lorraine France and passed away in Virginia in 1953.

This is a rotary engine and not your 'common' radial. The cylinders and crankcase rotate around the crankshaft. This created an incredible gyroscopic effect and resulting rudder corrections. The Gnome engine generated over 150 hp.

When the pilot and the aircraft are almost the same age you know this man Knows his STUFF !! Very impressive , Thank You Sir !

masterful flying when you consider there's no throttle..... either full blast or nothing..... seems they have a gentle interrupter which gives a sort of idle..? also the gyroscopic action of the engine giving the pilot more to worry about.... bloody magic Mate!

Nice landing with all or nothing engine. Sounds fabulous.Great flying. Great record. Thanks.

Beautiful, simply beautiful. Thank you.

Fantastic video, thank you for sharing.

EEhhhh...! Beautiful! Thanks for posting!

Wow what an absolute privilege to see that in action, never mind being the pilot!!

09:35 - loved how the butterfly cruised into the frame...the butterfly factor!

This looked like an engine whose cylinders rotated while the crankshaft stayed motionless. Beautiful old bird.

Thanks to Cole Palen for rescuing all those planes from Roosevelt field so many years ago. Old Rhinebeck field is an American TREASURE. Original aircraft, NOT reproductions!

Perfectly timed to see this as I'm reading Eddie Rickenbacker's "Fighting the Flying Circus" gives me a great visual

Fantastic sight, thank you. 👏🏻

Very skilled airmanship - very impressive! And, a very beautiful girl.

And to think the Wright brothers had their first flight just 15 years prior to the Neiport first fly, that’s insane.

Thank you for this...excellent video!

Is this clip from Rhinebeck New York? I've been there a couple of times it's a fantastic experience. I love vintage aircraft. I built several, radio control models, pretty large ones. I enjoy flying them, and they look great in the air. Thank you for this post. Today is December 9th 2022

👍👍👍👍👍👍 AWESOME! Thanks for sharing.

My ultimate Favorite WW I aircraft. Spads, Sopwith, Fokker... Nothing compares in my eyes.

Watched this while I was eating some French Fries, America's favorite food.

these rotary motors are amazing, thanks for sharing :)

That is one incredibly brave and talented pilot. I can't imagine flying that death trap back in the old days. The material science and technology was bleeding edge back then. I'm not a safety Sally but wow lots of skill and fairly dangerous.

What a blast to fly this ole girl!

Wow, that was absolutely great! The only thing I'd have done differently is cut the first third of the video off- cuz we're sitting here waiting, you know.

If you have not been to the old Rhinebeck you need to go it is a really cool place a bunch of nice old aircraft.

From this perspective the length of the prop looks like 1/2 the wingspan.

So very cool! Thanks so much for sharing this.

great footage and awesome sound

My great uncle Jim was a mechanic in the American army air corps at Orly field near Paris during WW1. He said if a pilot didn’t want to fly, he’d kick holes in the fabric on his plane.

Wow, what a beautiful little airplane!

Great video , Great plane and great flying ! Keep'm flying !

Excellent quality video! But I am not sure why it is listed as American? Nieuport was a French designed and made aeroplane which came out in 1917. Chris B.

I remember a picture in Eddie Rickenbaker's autobiography of him standing next to a chunk of wing from his Nieuport fighter that had shed its skin. He did not look pleased. He was happier in a Spad.

Amazingly high-tech for the time they were built, literally 5 years after the first successful flight. Astounding machines!

Nice job! Excellent video and sound... even if you missed a bit. Makes your appreciate how hard these were to fly... look at all those tall tree in the way.

My first real " big book" i read when i was like i dont 5 , 6? No Parachute by a WWI pilot named Arthur Gould Lee. He flew Pups for RAF, then moved into a camel. Book is out of print but you can still find it. Fantastic read.

Очень нравятся бипланы, супер. 👍🤝

What a jewel this video is--Thanks

And the first tank American fought in was also a french machine also during WW1. The Renault ft 17.

a primer on how not to prop start an airplane. Never wrap your fingers around the back of a propeller. Use the flat of your hand against the airfoil so you can get out of the way faster.

Magnificent!

This is impressive. Nicely done, gents.

Il fut développé par Gustave Delage (société Nieuport) et son premier vol eut lieu en juin 1917. Il était le successeur du Nieuport 27 et était équipé d'un moteur plus puissant Gnome 9N de 160 ch. Les mâts de liaison entre les ailes étaient à présent parallèles et non plus en forme de « V ». Initialement, cet appareil était destiné à équiper en grande quantité les escadrilles de chasse françaises et américaines, mais l'aéronautique militaire française a annulé toutes les commandes en privilégiant le SPAD S.XIII. Les avions furent donc livrés au American Expeditionary Force (AEF) qui en reçut 287 exemplaires.

Oh hey, I was there. That’s kinda cool. It’s insane how fast biplanes take biplanes take off due to the two wings

I love the final approach 👏 🙌 👌 ❤️

I love the Army Mule chasing the plane down at 14:02. Those are really fun to drive.

Very impressive‼️‼️👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽

9:35 the butterfly is also a fan of early aviation

Why does this bring me to tears ?

i like how the ground crew holds the wing to make it turn. would a rotary run backwards if you turned it the wrong way to start it? what exactly causes the prop to appear in stop motion when filming it?

Seeing this makes me a little bummed out that I didn't get to see Rhinebeck aerodrome's Fokker D.VIII fly. It just did a few taxi runs cause they didn't like how it was running, but man hearing a rotary is like nothing else

That was awesome!

Nothing quite like a Caster Oil spewing Rotary engine to get one attention in the morning. ^~^ Excellent job, beautifully done.

Awesome piece of history.

Looks like the Nieuport 28 Robbie restored on My Three Sons.

Awesome!!

It would take awhile for me to get used to the bump switch in a glide/ and manage the gyroscope effects of turning on the grass...

what a grand old beauty. sweet bird.

That's nuts. Wasn't sure if it was a flying example.....yup, it is. lol nice.

Im assuming that this is a very accurate replica? With a Rhone or Clerget 7 cylinder rotary it sounds amazing. The fact that they have no throttle control and have to blip, must make it a handfull to taxi!

Fantastic!

Really amazing!

Nice work, guys!

Thing of beauty!