MPM's 1/72
Ryan PT-20/STM-S2

By Norm Filer

History

Ryan. Isn’t that the same company that built Charles Lindbergh’s "Spirit of St. Louis"? Well yes, maybe. Like many of our American Aviation pioneers, things get a little convoluted and complex.

T. Claude Ryan, after learning to fly in the Army after WW I, came home to San Diego and started a flying school. Not a plan for big success as time would tell. Along the way he bought and rebuilt six war surplus trainers as four passenger airplanes and started Ryan Airlines, flying from San Diego to Los Angeles. This venture was modestly profitable, so he added the only Douglas "Cloudster" to the line.

About this time, the government started turning over the airmail routes to private operations and Ryan designed and built the M-1 Mailplane that lead Charles Lindbergh to his door. With fame and fortune just around the corner, Ryan sold the manufacturing part of the business to his partner, B. F. Mahoney. The name was changed to the B. F. Mahoney Aircraft Co. and it moved to St. Louis, but the resulting airplanes were still called Ryans.

Ryan stayed in San Diego, expanded his flying school and changed the name to Ryan Aeronautic Co. At this point the "ST-Sports Trainer" started to materialize. His long experience with the various trainers left him feeling like he could build a much-improved airplane. But he was not an engineer. So he hired two engineers and went to work. The results were the Ryan ST. This neat little bird was popular on the civilian market prior to WWII. When the military started seeking a new primary trainer, the ST with only minor changes became the STM (Sports Trainer, Military) PT-16, then the PT-20.

The Kit

As expected, this is not a big airplane. With a wingspan of only 30’1" and a length of 22’5", the kit is almost dainty. All the parts are on one tree with just the hint of a bit of flash here and there. MPM has continued to improve the quality of each new kit, and this one approaches the "big guys" in detail and crispness. The fuselage is smooth with fine recessed panel lines and the fabric-represented wings and tail surfaces are impressive. It is necessary to look at the wings just right to see the fabric texture, but it is there. Fine raised ribs complete the impression of fabric. No sagging, no heavy rib or fabric detail, just very subtle detail, very nice.

The interior is simple. A floorboard, rear bulkhead that includes the head rest for the rear seat, two very simple L -shaped seats, somewhat oversized control sticks, and two instrument panels that have indentations where the instruments should be. While this is not going to be a model that will allow you a grand view of the interior, some work will be required to fix the simple seats, add seat belts and do something with the panels. This is going to be a cute little thing when finished and a nice interior will really help. The windscreens are the usual vacu-form, and there are no spares, so that could really pose a challenge.

Decals are for an Army PT-20 Trainer in natural metal and yellow, a green/brown and sky blue STM from the RAAF in the East Indies, and the float version from the Netherlands East Indies Army in silver and yellow like the U. S. Army trainer.

Alternate parts are provided for the twin float version sold to the Netherlands East Indies Army. Like most twin float kits, I suspect getting them aligned and installed will be a real challenge. But when done and rigged, I think it could be a very pretty little model.

Conclusion

The lack of trainer kits has always been something of a mystery to me. All of us had to learn to fly in something, so it would seem to me that the appeal of trainers is universal. Apparently this is not the case at all with plastic kits. So when a good one comes along, like this, I am happy. This is a nice little kit that will not take forever to correct or build. The improvements to the small interior and the rigging will take a delicate hand but the payoff should be a very impressive little model. If you choose the float plane version, the attachment of the floats will keep your attention focused for a while, but again, the results will be worth it. Do we dare hope that MPM might continue the trend with the quite different but very similar PT-22? Or how about a Vultee BT-13, N3N, PT-13 or 17 or the endless series of Stearmans?