The story
By 1939 Waco had spent a decade building cabin biplanes in Troy, Ohio, and the Model E was the company saving its best for last: a slim four-to-five-seat luxury biplane with plywood-skinned staggered wings and wire bracing where earlier Wacos wore struts. The flagship SRE cruised at 195 mph behind a Wasp Junior radial, on fixed landing gear, keeping pace with the retractable Beechcraft Staggerwing it was built to fight. Only 30 were made before the war shut down civil production in 1942, and the Army promptly drafted about half of them as UC-72 staff transports. A handful survive, and a few still fly.
The New York Daily News bought one new in 1939 as a flying photo platform, with enlarged windows for the photographers, camera mounts, and a quick-release parachute door. The paper hired a former flying-circus daredevil who had performed as "Diavalo" to fly it. That airframe hangs in the EAA Aviation Museum today.
Quick answers
How do you identify a E Aristocrat?
A big staggered-wing cabin biplane with faired fixed gear and wheel pants. Think Beechcraft Staggerwing, but the wheels stay down. Prewar civil paint, almost always near a vintage fly-in or a grass strip, and rare enough that one overhead is an event.
What does a E Aristocrat sound like?
A deep, even round-engine rumble from the Wasp Junior; pure 1940 at a grass strip.
How fast is the E Aristocrat?
Top speed is 176 kts (202 mph, SRE).
How many passengers does the E Aristocrat carry?
Up to 4. A typical layout is Pilot and three to four passengers: two adjustable front seats and a rear bench.
How far can the E Aristocrat fly?
Range is about 930 nmi (SRE).
How big is the E Aristocrat?
It is 27 ft 10 in long and 34 ft 9 in (upper wing) across the wings.
When did the E Aristocrat first fly?
Its first flight was in 1939.
How many E Aristocrats have been built?
30 (21 SRE, 5 HRE, 4 ARE) built.
How rare is a E Aristocrat in Bogey?
COMMON. Everyday traffic. You will catch plenty of these, and every first catch still counts. Your first E Aristocrat catch is worth 25 points.
