PRIVATE PLANES - A look at Post-World War II General Aviation

Love how you worked those production numbers, the marketing folks were correct just 50 years out, perfect!

I always enjoy a new post from your channel! Thank you.

A nice walk thru history. Very interesting. All I remember from the 50's was the mass marketing of cars to the general public and the marketing of military aircraft models. Never saw much about civilian aircraft and the marketing of such. It just seemed limited to Sky King and Whirlybirds on TV and not in real life. Thanks for sharing.

Thank you for highlighting GA. My first flight in a GA plane was in a C150 from the rustic Fremont Airport near the edge of the San Francisco Bay in 1973. I was eleven years old, with my older brother as the pilot. Years later I earned my CFI certificate, courtesy of my brother's motivation...and Cessna! Priceless memories.

General aviation aircraft of the post war era have lots of personality. Many of them are still flying, in good numbers, today. They are some the most affordable, fun aircraft you can fly. Enjoyable subject matter.

Nice video, Mike! I think you could have included the Mooney M-18 Mite in this since it was truly developed with returning fighter pilots in mind. It was a pilot only design with a sliding bubble canopy and manual retractable landing gear. Just like a mini fighter...leave the family at home! I really liked that Bonanza on your thumbnail, was that your art work?

Another great video on civilian aviation great photos.

Ted Smith was also responsible for the Aerostar .

Another great one Mike. The twin-commanche I got my multi in had that exact panel in 1989.

Sky King..Flying Doctor

Am really reminded of Popular Mechanocs, pop sci covers. Was so thrilled my parents gave me a subscription each Christmas.

Great Mike!, ...as all your videos. Thanks!

Never knew that about the Navion name!

Interesting video Mike. What year did the market for the 200,000 airplanes materialize as the Cessna 172 is still in production?

Wonder where they were goin to put that canoe on that SeaBee? Another great video!

Thank you for the extensive research into this perspective comprising 80 years of progress. Well thought out.

Great video! I really enjoyed it.

Very well-done and informative. I think this was a case of the aviation industry engaging in wishful thinking about the market potential for private plane ownership. One can understand their dilemma: they had massive production capacity in-place due to the war effort, but once that spigot was turned off, they were no doubt anxious to figure out a way to keep it going.

No Aeroncas and Champions? Hmm.

What does "A million missions proved your post-war plane" actually mean? I'm drawing a blank...

Cherokee C, I wonder where they landed the damned thing

Cessna 172s sold like hot-cakes

My uncle and cousin both owned 150s for years (and gliders as well). The 150s are gone now but my uncle replaced it with a Bonanza. It was always great visiting and getting to tow someone up in a glider or towed up yourself in one.

Another wonderful program, Mike...

Another great watch. I think the reason I enjoy your videos is because since 1961 I have lived close to the west end of Torrance Airport with planes going over my head everyday. As kids the airport was one of our hangouts. After a long day your videos are a fantastic way to end a day. As always thanks for your time and work......

If you would have added aero commander in those numbers you would have just about been rite on the mark

Congratulations, it's a joy seeing your videos with lots of fascinating facts about no so well known airplanes

The Beech model 35 Bonanza was designed in 1945 not 1947. It went into production in 1947. Also, the model 35 ended production in 1982, not the late 70’s. The model 35 was in production for 35 years and survived until the 50th anniversary of Beechcraft.

Great program again Mike!!!

Wonderful! Never knew about the little Douglas.

I wonder if that Douglas Cloudster II whitewall tires (I assume they were all whitewalls) was painted on. Although back in the day there were whitewall tires that were whitewall on both sides. Or it might be a whitewall applique you could get (and still can). My favorite representation of white wall tires on an airplane, hands down, are on General Dreedle's (Orson Welles) B-25 in the movie "Catch 22". I laughed out loud. I recall it also had little flags on the front, like on the front fenders of a general's car.

Mentioning both the V-Tail Bonanza and Meigs Field in Chicago. My earliest memory of seeing an airplane up close was when I was very young and my parents took us to somewhere near the end of the field for a picnic. We could watch the planes take off. Even at something like age 4 or 5 I thought the look of that plane was unique. Of course later, Richard M. Daley was in league with others to eliminate Meigs Field and in a dastardly move to speed up the contentious process had bulldozers carve big X's across the runway in the dead of night. And he just sort of skipped little details like notifying the FAA and such. Stranded planes were later given permission to take off from the taxiway. I guess that's sort of the opposite of "Celebrating Aviation".

The decade from 1945-1955 was the golden age of general aviation. My plane is a 1948 Navion A and I wouldn't trade it for anything produced today.

Fun look back. My only critique would be the Ercoupe would, indeed, stall - it touted it wouldn't spin, due to the two part controls which eliminated the rudder pedals.

Sky King would dangle Penny on a rope from the back of his Beech, and she would "waterski" thru the air on top of the clouds, while wearing cowboy boots and a cowboy hat with a very tight chinstrap!

When I fly my R/C Cessna 150 I'm going to rename my landing configuration program in my transmitter to Land-O-Matic now instead of just Land ConFig, which is what I have now.

I enjoyed this episode very, very much.

Great vid and super pictures as always, a lot of those GA planes are still flying like that C-150 from 74. Most cars from that era are long gone.

Striking resemblance between the old SeaBee an the modern Icon A5 amphibias planes. Would love to own either. My father owned a Bonanza and I, of course, took my solo in that same airplane. Then my father and I went in on a nice Cessan 310 and achieved our multi-engine IFR ratings. Great times!

I thought Taylor worked for Piper and designed the Cub, then split from Piper to start his own company which was Taylorcraft,

Interesting tidbit that the Aero Commander was born out of the A-20. I'll have to remember that.

The Navion, while still having rudder pedals, does also have a rudder-aileron interconnect, giving (mostly) coordinated flight. Also, the engineering team that designed the P-51 were the same ones who did the Navion. In Chandler King's (who was the powerplant engineer on the project) recounting of it, Dutch Kindleberger (NAA chief) realized in January of 1945 that all those AAF contracts would soon disappear, and wanted a project to justify keeping his best engineers around. The prototype Navion (with fixed pitch wood prop) rolled out just before Christmas that same year. Chan's 2 volume history of how the Navion came to exist is kind of like being a fly on the wall of the drafting hall when these things were being designed.

You mentioned Beechcraft and Cessna right after each other, but didn’t mention what they have in common: Wichita, KS. Wichita could be an interesting video topic, they don’t call it the air capital for nothing.

Our USAF Command Pilot had his twelve-year old flying co-pilot on numerous Navion Family Services outings.

That skilled co-pilot was yours truly.

Saw Moray Zeggar yesterday. Love the shirt you showed him.

I have flown in two Bell 47 helicopters that were both built in 1947. One is now in the Smithsonian.

I remember the Beech Bonanza V-tail being called a “butterfly” tail

Great vid , 🥹✈️