CORSAIRS

F2G

THE HISTORY OF THE 1949 THOMPSON TROPHY WINNER #94

BuNo 14693 XF2G-1

        Cook Cleland was able to enter not one, but three F2G’s in the 1947 Thompson Trophy Race.
         Cleland choose to fly  # 74 himself and assigned # 94 to Dick Becker and #84 to Tony Janazzo.

 

 
    (Bud Ricketts)
   BuNo14693 when it arrived in the Cleveland area.
     That is Cook Cleland on the wing.

           In 1947 the aircraft color was white and insignia red. Dick Becker was the leader for a number of laps in
         the Thompson till Cleland passed him in # 74 and won the race giving the Cleland team a one-two finish.

                                                                                                                                          

    
       (Del Bryan collection)
            Dick Becker wins second place in 1947 Thompson Trophy
                                                           

 94 Color Mark Allen adj.jpg (84359 bytes)
   Dick Becker after finishing in second place
     in the 1947 Thompson Trophy Race.

          Well into the Thompson Race in 1948, Cleland was flying # 94 when the redesigned intake cowling
         blew apart. As he prepared to land he felt Becker would go on to win, only to find Becker already
    on the ground with the same problem.

 

 

          (Bill Meixner collection)
      Cleland checking the damage

 In 1949 Cleland, Becker and McKillen all qualified for the Thompson. Dick Becker suffered the
misfortune  of  blowing  the propeller  gear reduction box just as he completed the last pass.
 He  was close  enough  to  the  field  to enable  him  to make a  successful dead stick landing.
  The  engine  could  not  be  repaired  in time for the Thompson Trophy race. Cook Cleland won
   the  Thompson Trophy  for the second time, the only person to win more than once, other than
Roscoe Turner who won three times.

   

        
(Bill Meixner collection)
      Roscoe Turner presenting the Thompson Trophy to
         Cook Cleland with Fred Crawford looking on.

    
                          
            (Burke-Smith Studio)
       #94 at the start of the 1949 race.

                                                       

 
            
(Kevin Grantham collection)
              winner 1949 Thompson Trophy

                                                                                                                          

    
         (Dr. Aaron King)
          Al Bush collection

    

           (Wes Hansen Collection)
         #94 on display at downtown Cleveland

 

 

       

           (Wes Hansen Collection)
        #94 Deteriorating at Cleveland Airport

 

          

               (Unknown) Courtesy Adam Snelly
                A young friend watching #94 having it’s engine removed
               (Sept. ’55)

     
          (Robert Christensen collection)

                   #94 sat on Cleveland Airport property for a number of years. Airport employee’s searched for someone
                     to take it, but could find no one. The Crawford Museum accepted the engine and the propeller, the remains
                 were  delivered  to the  airport fire department to be burned for practice. The "bones of #94 are buried at
   Cleveland Airport, perhaps, some day they will be uncovered.

                                                                              Back to Racing Corsairs

                                                                                               

 

Please send comments to Bill Meixner

You are the Hit Counterth person to pop in on us since May 18th ,2001, Thank You for the touch & go, please take an early flight back....

Site last changed on Monday, February 18, 2013 04:13 PM