H. Capelis Tandem-Wing Airliner Projects

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The Capelis XC12 prototype transport [X12762], built after a patent issued to Greek immigrant Socrates H. Capelis, of El Cerrito, in 1930. It was the sole product of the Capelis Safety Airplane Corp., based at Oakland Airport and El Cerrito, Calif. The aircraft was funded by local Greek restaurateurs as a promotional aircraft, and constructed at the Alameda airport with help from University of California students.

The funding, apparently, was insufficient for such an ambitious project, as Capelis ended up in debt. The local sheriff put a padlock on the hangar door and the plane was not to be moved until all bills had been paid. Story has it that Capelis "cut the lock one morning and before the sun was up, he took off for parts unknown". And after landing at Glendale's Grand Central Airport, the C.A.A. and the sheriff were there waiting for him... The XC12 was grounded for good by the C.A.A shortly after that.

The most unusual features of the Capelis design was its triple-fin biplane empennage and its string of narrow rounded windows. Construction of the XC12 presented many faults: The main spar was bolted together and the leading edge and wing fairings were held in place by P.K.'s (sheet metal screws) rather than rivets. These tended to vibrate loose, requiring tightening or replacing every few flights.

Unexpectedly, the XC12 enjoyed a notable career, not as a flying transport but as a movie prop, appearing in ground roles in several motion pictures ("Five Came Back" in 1939, "Flying Tigers" in 1942 and others). The studios just taxied it and used it as a background. A scale model was built and was used in a flying sequence for one of the movies. The XC12 was eventually scrapped.
 

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Hi,

Mr. H. Capelis who designed the XC-12 twin engined medium transport aircraft,we spoke about
it before,he developed his design into two Projects,the first was four-engined tandem-wing
aircraft,and the second was a six-engined aircraft,also with a tandem wing.

http://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,19680.msg209528.html#msg209528
http://www.aerofiles.com/_ca.html

https://books.google.com.eg/books?id=ZqSyaqHhvMcC&pg=PA244&dq=capelis+airplane+magazine&hl=ar&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjFy_i6o_fKAhWIVxoKHRs6Ay4Q6AEIGjAA#v=onepage&q=capelis%20airplane%20magazine&f=false

https://books.google.com.eg/books?id=b9zKW7_lSwwC&pg=PA151&dq=capelis+airplane+magazine&hl=ar&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjFy_i6o_fKAhWIVxoKHRs6Ay4Q6AEIIDAB#v=onepage&q=capelis%20airplane%20magazine&f=false
 

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Hi,

need confirm,this designer drew a bomber Project,based on his concept,was that right ?.

Old Info on the Internet
 
Hi,

need confirm,this designer drew a bomber Project,based on his concept,was that right ?.

Old Info on the Internet
I have no information on a bomber version as such. However the aircraft played a bomber in the movie "Flying Tigers".
 
Beware Greeks designing aircraft"!
I have no information on a bomber version as such. However the aircraft played a bomber in the movie "Flying Tigers".
I haven't looked. If you can't find it, I certainly cannot. Were it not for its fate as a movie prop, the XC-12 would be even more obscure, and there would be no interest at all in his follow up ideas. The pre-WWII period was full of of designers of varying abilities working out of their garages or basements, with dreams of challenging the major players. The US "Popular Mechanics" thpe magazines were full of articles about them.
Unfortunately no more Info about him on Net ?.
 
In April 1938 the XC-12 had an accident with a gear up landing after running out of fuel. In May that year the aircraft was sold to Charles H. Babb of Glendale. It remained unflown until March 1939 when it was sold to RKO Radio Pictures.

The aircraft was rented several times by RKO to several other studios and there was a joke that the machine spent more time being shunted between sound stages than it had ever done in the air!

The Capelis XC-12 appeared in several movies including "The Flying Tigers" as a makeshift bomber "Five Came Back" with its windshield sloped back and even as a German troop transport aircraft in "The Immortal Sergeant" . It also had minor roles in "Passport To Destiny"and "Daredevils of the Clouds". In all cases the flying scenes were undertaken by models and the XC-12 remained on the ground.

Its possible that the possible bomber variant mentioned by Hesham in reply #4 came from its film appearance as a bomber in the John Wayne movie "Flying Tigers"

There was a full description of the XC-12 by John Raymond, Fred Freeman and William Larkins in a 1995 issue of Skyways from which these notes were originally taken.

The lead engineer on the XC-12 was Dr James Younger (seen in Reply #2 holding the model of the XC-12).

Attached is a 1933-34 leaflet on the Capelis Safety Airplane Corporation Limited.
 

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Last edited:
From, Back to the Drawing Board Aircraft That Flew, But Never Took Off.
 

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The leaflet lists the consulting engineer as Prof. John E. Younger rather than "Dr James Younger".
 

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