Walter A. Musciano

Walter A. Musciano was one of the most outstanding individuals I have ever known. He was so honest and forthright, so down to earth. I had dinner with Walter along with several other modelers in NYC on Dec. 2002. I was on my way to Spain and I stopped off to meet him. We had a wonderful dinner and conversations. Kudos to Curtis Mattikow of NYC, fellow modeler who organized the whole thing. He also paid the restaurant bill. Lol. Really nice guy. Walter wrote me a lot and we had many...

Walter A. Musciano was one of the most important figures in promoting air-mindedness in the post-WW-2 era. His modeling articles and wonderful designs captured the adventurous and optimistic spirit of aviation at the time, and inspired many youngsters to enter the aviation field. I personally looked forward to seeing his latest models every month or so in American Modeler, Model Airplane News, and other publications, and he was always a good source for tips on construction and design. He...

While a young man in grade school in the 1950’s, one of our ‘adventures,’ would be to go with our class about once a month to the town library. It was there that I discovered Walt’s books: Building and Flying Model Airplanes, and Building and Flying Scale Model Aircraft. I used to scale up Walt’s drawings on brown paper from an unfolded grocery bag.

While I had built a number of smaller rubber powered kits, I couldn’t afford the larger gas model kits, but Walt’s designs filled...

When I was in grade school, a school bus would periodically be taken by a school bus to the town library. Walt’s book, Building and Flying Scale Model Airplanes was the only book they had on building flying models, and I checked it out many times. Ultimately, in the 1990’s, I discovered e-bay, and was able to buy that book, as well as many others that he had written. I also found his address, and was able to correspond with him about his “Pee Wee Pal,” among others.

My first...

Before owning a kit by Walt I had flown models I hadn't built, and built models I didn't fly. But the first one I actually built that I was able to fly was a Musciano design.
I am eternally grateful to him for enabling me to get started in this wonderful hobby and not give up, but realize I could also be an active participant. Thank You Walt, from all like me who got their start because of you.

It was sad to hear of Mr. Musciano's passing. I built a number of his excellent scale model airplanes when I was a kid.

Walt was a terrific person. He was perhaps the most prolific model airplane designer in the history of modeling. It is impossible to pick up a Model Airplane News from the 1960s without seeing a Musciano design. He was always ready to help you with building model airplanes. I was able to provide him with copies of his own designs that he was missing and he was very grateful for that. In turn he sent me countless tidbits of information. We maintained a correspondence for several years. ...

As a child of the 50's, I grew up with Walt vicariously by building his wonderfully designed Scientific Model Company balsawood Control Line, engine powered flying models. Life went on and so did I. Decdes later, during a career as an Army Officer, friend, Hal Howard and I talked about Walt. We had both grown up in the "Scientific Airplane" era and were wondering if Walt was still around. I contacted the Academy of Model Aeronautics who directed me right to Walt. Walt and I spoke at length...

As a boy I grew up building his model airplane designs. Much later I had the honor to meet my boyhood hero at a model airplane competition in Kalamazoo, Michigan. We became pen pals after that. I always marveled at how much Walt packed into a single lifetime and how he overcame adversity to achieve so much. You will be in the heart of the model airplane community forever.