Don't Miss Any Special Deals - Sign Up To Our Newsletter! Aircraft Search Squadron Search Signature Search Artist Search SPECIAL OFFERS Product Search
CLICK HERE FOR A FULL LIST OF ALL GERALD COULSON PRINTS BY TITLE

Please note that our logo is used on our website images only and does not appear on our products. Jacks Unusual Design by Stan Stokes. (B) John K. Jack Northrop was one of the pioneers in American aircraft design and production. He was the chief designer for Lockheed, developing that companys first aircraft, the Vega. In 1939 he formed his own aircraft company. Jacks passion was the tail-less aircraft, or flying wing, a concept he supported passionately. The B-2 bomber of today exhibits many of the design attributes which were pioneered by Jack Northrop in many of his ill-fated, but highly-charged forays in the world of the flying wing. The N1-M was a small flying wing prototype which Northrop demonstrated in 1940-41. The N-9M was built in several different versions to test out some design concepts for Jacks ultimate goal, development of the long-range B-35 flying wing bomber. Northrop eventually succeeded in winning an initial government contract to develop the very large B-35 Flying Wing. This 172 foot wingspan aircraft with a takeoff weight in excess of eighty tons, was conceived by Northrop as the ultimate long range strategic bomber. With a design objective of having a 10,000 mile range with a 10,000 pound bomb load, the B-35 would be a true intercontinental bomber. Under the command of Northrops test pilot Max R. Stanley, the prototype aircraft exhibited a range of 7,500 miles at a cruising speed of 240-MPH. One of the most unusual-looking aircraft ever developed, the XB-35 was powered by four large piston engines powering counter rotating propellers mounted in the pusher position on the aft portion of the wing. The program was plagued with more than its fair share of problems, and it became clear that the design needed to be modified to a jet powered aircraft. Only fifteen of the piston powered aircraft were built, although at one point during the project 200 were on order. The YB-49 was the jet-powered evolution of the B-35 program, and B-35 airframes were modified to take the jet engines. Three prototypes were ultimately produced utilizing the modified B-35 airframes. The YB-49 was powered by eight Allison jet engines, and was capable of a top speed of more than 490-MPH. With a cruising speed of roughly 420-MPH, the jet-powered flying wing had a range of more than 3,000 miles. Northrops Chief Test Pilot Max Stanley piloted the YB-49 on its maiden flight on September 29, 1947, and worked with the B-49 until it was turned over to the Air Force in October of 1947. The slim silhouette of the B-49 provided a small radar target, and during tests off the California coat, the B-49 was able to penetrate air space without being picked up by radar. As depicted in Stan Stokes painting, which is dedicated to the memory of Jack Northrop and his passion for the tail-less aircraft, the B-49 is put through its paces over the mountains surrounding Edwards Air Force Base in California by USAF Chief Test Pilot Major Robert Cardenas. Cardenas flew the B-49 from December of 1947 until May of 1948. He was then scheduled to go back to school, but after one B-49 crashed in June of 1948, he was called back to continue flight tests. Cardenas, who retired from the Air Force as a Brigadier General, flew the B-49 from California to Washington, D.C. in February of 1949. While in Washington, President Truman toured the aircraft, and then requested a tree-top fly-by of the B-49 down Pennsylvania Avenue. Several weeks later Cardenas received a 35mm photo taken by a tourist of the B-49 passing just over the Capitol Building. The annonymous sender could not stand the pressure of having a picture of the Air Forces latest top secret space plane. Item Code : STK0173B Jacks Unusual Design by Stan Stokes. (B) - This Edition TYPE EDITION DETAILS SIZE SIGNATURES OFFERS YOUR PRICE PURCHASING PRINT 225 prints from the signed limited edition of 4750 prints, with signature of Stan Stokes and pilots, and a remarque. Image size 16 inches x 11.5 inches (41cm x 30cm) Cardenas, Robert L Stanley, Max R + Artist : Stan Stokes Signature(s) value alone : £40 £10 Off! Now : £125.00 All prices on our website are displayed in British Pounds Sterling

Other editions of this item : Jacks Unusual Design by Stan Stokes. STK0173 TYPE EDITION DETAILS SIZE SIGNATURES OFFERS YOUR PRICE PURCHASING PRINT Signed limited edition of 4750 prints. Supplied with signed and numbered certificate of authenticity. Print size 16 inches x 11.5 inches (41cm x 30cm) Artist : Stan Stokes £15 Off! Now : £35.00 VIEW EDITION... PRINT Prints from the 225 prints from the signed limited edition of 4750 prints, with signature of Stan Stokes and pilots. Image size 16 inches x 11.5 inches (41cm x 30cm) Cardenas, Robert L Stanley, Max R + Artist : Stan Stokes Signature(s) value alone : £40 £40 Off! Now : £95.00 VIEW EDITION... General descriptions of types of editions :

Extra Details : Jacks Unusual Design by Stan Stokes. (B)

About all editions : A photo of an edition of the print.

Signatures on this item
*The value given for each signature has been calculated by us based on the historical significance and rarity of the signature. Values of many pilot signatures have risen in recent years and will likely continue to rise as they become more and more rare.
Name	Info
Max R Stanley *Signature Value : £15	Max Stanley's first employment as a professional pilot was by Lockheed as a co-pilot ferrying newly built Hudson bombers from the Burbank factory to the East Coast. These aircraft were then shipped by boat to England. With the advent of America's Lend Lease Program, Lockheed loaned Max to Pan Am where he spent two years as a Captain shuttling all types of twin-engine aircraft from Miami across the South Atlantic to British forces in Africa, Egypt and India. When Pan American terminated its ferry operations, Max was employed by United Air Lines as a Captain of four-engine cargo/passenger aircraft flying the route from San Francisco to Australia. In early 1943 Max resigned from United and accepted an offer of employment from Northrop as an experimental test pilot. His war time work included serving as the primary test pilot on the P-61 Black Widow program, where he made the first flight in all variants accept the XP-61. He also recorded first flights in the Northrop F-15, the Trimotor Pioneer, and the Trimotor C-125 Raider. Max also participated as a test pilot in the F-89 Scorpion and T-38 Talon programs. His most significant test pilot assignments involved his participation in Jack Northrop's Flying Wing program. Max made numerous flights in the N-9M, which was a 1/3 d scale model of a large flying wing bomber. When the first full size aircraft was ready, the X13-35, Max was selected as Chief Test Pilot of the huge flying wing for the Contractor Phase 1 Test Program, and began preparing for the first flights. As the program evolved, Northrop's designers converted the B-35, which was powered by four huge piston engines, into the Y13-49, which was powered by eight early jet engines. Max was also selected to be Northrop's Chief Test Pilot on the B-49. During the course of this program Max would set a World Record for jet aircraft with a non-stop, unrefueled flight of 3,950 miles in a little over 9 hours, while carrying a simulated 10,000 pound bomb load. Once the Air Force accepted delivery, Max turned over primary test pilot chores to his Air Force counterpart on the program, Bob Cardenas. Max's next assignment was with the SM-62 Snark missile program where he served as the Chief Pilot for the numerous manned aircraft which were used during the development and testing of the missile. Max Stanley is a Founding Fellow of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots and he served for several years as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots Scholarship Foundation. Max is also a member of the Caterpillar Club, having qualified on two occasions. After a twenty-eight year career at Northrop, Max is generally known as the 'Dean' of Northrop test pilots.
USAF Brigadier General Robert L Cardenas *Signature Value : £25	Bob Cardenas began his military career as a Private in the Army Coast Artillery. He applied for flight training and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the Army Air Corps in July of 1949. He Flew B-24s in Europe and was shot down over Germany. He escaped and made his way to Switzerland, and eventually France prior to D-Day. Upon his return to America, Bob became an experimental test pilot. He has flown more than thirty different types of aircraft. Bob served as operations officer for the XS-1 supersonic project, and he piloted the B-29 that launched Chuck Yeager into the realm on supersonic flight on October 14, 1947. Later in 1947 Bob received word that he would participate in testing of the B-35 and YB-49 'flying wing' projects at Muroe Air Force Base. He was the Chief Air Force Test Pilot on the jet powered YBA9, and he points out the similarity of design and size between the flying wing and the B-2 bomber. During the Korean War he tested jet fighters and bombers at both Wright Field and Edwards Air Force Base. Later he would serve as Commander of the 18 th Tactical Fighter Wing on Okinawa at the time of the Gulf of Tonkin incident. Cardenas Flew the F- 105 Thunder Chief during the Vietnam War as Commander of a Squadron based in Korat, Thailand. Later in the conflict he was assigned to McConnell AFB in Kansas as Commander of the 835th Air Division, which trained flight crews for the F-105. Cardenas graduated from the Air War College and later was Chief of the Aircraft and Missile Programs Division at The Pentagon. He then served as Chief of the Special Operations Division at US Strike Command Headquarters in Tampa Prior to assuming Command of the Air Force Special Operations Force. Later in his career he would serve in Europe as Vice Commander of the 16th Air Force, where he had the dubious distinction of negotiating with Mulimar Quadaffi. He then served as the US Deputy to Live Oak under SACEUR. Prior to his retirement from active duty in 1973, he spent two years as Chief of the JL Division of the Joint Strategic Targeting Staff that was responsible for US Nuclear War Planning. Cardenas spent ten years in industry prior to being appointed to the White House as Coordinator for President Reagan's Southwest Border Economic Action Group. Later Bob was appointed by California Governor Dukernejian as Chairman of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Advisory Group and as a member of the California Council for Criminal Justice. He was also appointed to the California Veterans Board in 1987 and in 1992 was elected Chairman. The University of New Mexico honored General Cardenas in 1993 for his 'Outstanding Professional Contributions and Leadership', and in 1994 the Air Force Experimental Test Pilots School honored him as a 'Distinguished Alumnus,' and in 1995 he was inducted into the Aerospace Walk of Honor at Lancaster, California. Bob is currently Chairman of the Board of the Flight Test Historical Foundation, which is the force behind the establishment of a Flight Test Museum at Edwards AFB. Bob resides in San Diego with his wife Gladys, where they both enjoy spending time with their children and grandchildren.