Biography of a Lady

Stinson L-5E-1VW - "Carin' Belle" (AAF Contract No. 44-181143)

N5138B OY-2 (Navy Bureau No. 04013)

by Col. Stanley E. Condon

The Stinson L-5 like Carin' Belle of the Ohio Valley Wing is on of the most important but overlooked airplanes of World War II. Not as glamorous as fighters and bombers, and not as numerous as the Piper L-4 Cub, the Stinson L-5 is relatively obscure. Nearly 4,000 were built by the Stinson Division of Consolidated-Vultee corporation during 1942-1945. a few hundred still survive, like Carin' Belle. The L-5 was robust relative to other liaison aircraft, and flew a wider variety of missions. The aircraft didn't require an airfield, and could be maintained under primitive conditions. Among its duties were artillery spotting, photo reconnaissance, re-supply, search and rescue, evacuation missions, courier dispatch, and personnel transport. Early models of the L-5 are sometimes called "observers" and are easily identified by the slender aft fuselage section and wrap-around rear window. The L-5B and L-5G models are popularly identified as "ambulances" and feature a deeper rear fuselage with a side door hinged downward to accommodate a stretcher.

Serving in nearly every theatre of the war, the Stinson L-5 was called the Flying Jeep by American forces and the Jungle Angel by British troops. Unarmed and unarmored, much credit is due to the pilots who flew the Stinson L-5.

Carin' Belle began her life in 1945 with the Navy, serving with the Marines. Available records report transfer to the Civil Air Patrol/Orlando Naval Training Center in Florida, and operational use by the CAP during the 1960's. The next two decades brought civilian owners until 1982, when steps were taken to bring her into the fold of CAF aircraft. Carin' Belle's current appearance came about with a prop to tail restoration conducted from 1985 through 1992, giving her olive drab on upper surfaces and gull gray on lower surfaces. The insignia that identifies this L-5 is Marine Corps Air Service Standard for Artillery Spotters, Unit AES-12, Quantico, Virginia. Carin' Belle is now the pride of the Ohio Valley Wing and resides at Bolton Field in Columbus, Ohio.

Chronology of an OY-2, Ser. Nr. N5138B

JUL 1945	Delivered to U.S. Navy at San Diego, California.
SEP/OCT 1945	In transit to Guam.
OCT 1945	Pool: CASW F12 Guam.
JAN/MAR 1946	Pool: Pearl Harbor.
APR/MAY 1946	In transit to Norfolk, Virginia.
JUN/AUG 1946	Pool: Norfolk, Virginia.
SEP/DEC 1946	Awaiting reconditioning at Cherry Point, NC.
JAN/MAR 1947	Pool: Cherry Point (overhauled 3/27/47). It is surmised that the 3/27/47 overhaul was, in part, the conversion from 12 volts to24 volts for standardization. Accordingly, the original designation was changed from OY-1 to OY-2. All other features of the (L-5E-1) OY-1 were retained-such as large 8.00 x 6 wheels with reinforced brake drums, ambulance and cargo provision, and the droop aileron system peculiar to the L-5E. A later model OY-2 was produced for the Navy by Consolidate-Vultee and was designated the L-5G. It differs from the L-5E in that the electrical system is now a standardized 24 volt rather than the 12 volt system of earlier models. An SCR-274N command set replaces the radio transmitter and receiver, and provisions are made for alternate radios. Power is supplied by a Lycoming 0-435-11 engine, and the instrument panel was reorganized to include a manifold pressure gauge.
APR 1947/MAR 1949	MCAS (Marine Corps Artillery Spotter) AES12 at Quantico Virginia.
MAR 1949	Overhauled 3/24/49. Presumably the OY-2 was disassembled during overhaul or shortly thereafter, and placed in storage.
10 APR 1956	Aircraft transferred, disassembled, to the Florida Wing of the Civil Air Patrol at Orlando Naval Training Center.
4 APR 1958	Aircraft re-assembled by Gilbert Everhart and test flown.
18 SEP 1958	All L-5 technical data, drawings and rights to manufacture sold to Babb Company of Phoenix, Arizona.
26 JUN 1965/AUG 1966	New fabric, wings and control surfaces applied by Embry Riddle, Miami, Florida.
25 MAY 1967	Engine major overhaul.
24 MAY 1972	Purchased from Navy by Leonard Grasso, Deland, Florida.
5 JAN 1980	Purchased from Grasso by Judith Thom and Margaret Dant, Bloomington, IN.
	Judith Thom, a physician, utilized the OY-2 to reach rural patients. Dr. Thom is the mother of James Alexander Thom, author of many historical novels, from whom the information was obtained.
19 SEP 1982	A group of Ohio Confederate Air Force members calling themselves Ohio Valley Aero Club, purchased aircraft from Dant and Thom.
AUG 1985	OVAC donated the aircraft to the CAF with the newly-formed Ohio Valley Wing retaining possession.
1987	Extensive restoration of wooden wings and stabilizer undertaken by Wing in Columbus, Ohio. Fuselage and control surfaces delivered to Mark Huff, Moraine, Ohio, for major overhaul and restoration.
1 SEP 1993	Main restoration complete at cost of $14,697.28. CAF Check Pilot Russ Cook test flew the OY-2 from Moraine Air Park. Minor adjustments obtained required performance. Later that day, Russ and Curtis Rowe ferried the OY-2 to Bolton Field in Columbus, Ohio, and its new home in Hangar A-5.