Venerable.

Elegant.

The backbone of the Empire State's military might.

Introduced in 1932, the Grumman E-1 series was intended to be the cornerstone of the Empire State's defense forces. In recent days, however, military and aviation experts have been critical of the Avenger's dated design, citing advancements from Hughes Aviation—most notably, the Bloodhawk—as being more in step with the needs of modern militias.

On the other hand, the Avenger's supporters frequently praise the plane's sturdiness, elegance and power. Major Loyle "Show-stopper" Crawford swears by the Avenger. "In the Avenger, Grumman struck a happy medium between a plane that looks great and one with the power to back it up."

One would think the two camps were speaking of different planes altogether.

So, with the help of the Empire State government, the Broadway Bombers, and Bryce Crawford (who suggested that Air Action Weekly profile the Avenger), we bring you the latest in our series of field reviews of today's most innovative aircraft...

The Test
Typically, when I review an aircraft, I put the crate-in-question through simulated strafing and bombing runs, obstacle courses and other fairly mundane tests.

Not today.

I'm met just outside of Albany by none other than Loyle Crawford himself, at Saratoga's famed aero-speedway. With him are two Grumman Avengers (the current model, the E-1C): a brand new bird (resplendent in the Empire State blue-and-gold) and Crawford's own "Madison Dawn."

Today's test: a simulated dogfight against one of North America's premier pilots.

This is going to be great.

The Plane
The Grumman E-1C Avenger is one of the most attractive planes I've ever seen. The lines are graceful and elegant, the design comfortable and familiar. At the same time, there's no question this bird is built for fighting. The chrome grillwork—which looks almost like bared fangs to me—and no-nonsense, traditional design all point to a plane that can walk into a furball...and back out again.

When I popped the canopy and strapped myself in for the first time, I was struck by the (there's that word again) elegance of the Avenger. The cockpit instrumentation was recessed into a gracefully curving mahogany dashboard. Every control, every switch, every dial was grouped together by function and system, all easy to reach and all laid out artfully in an eye-pleasing pattern.

On the ground, at least, the Avenger is my dream plane. But how does she handle in the air?

Performance
The rules of the mock dogfight were simple: we had to stay within the racing area in the aero-speedway. The first pilot to stay on the other's tail for one full lap was the winner.

The Avenger's superb twin Feldman-16 engines thundered to life immediately. Take off was smooth and even, though I noticed a slight shimmy as I trimmed her out.

The dogfighting was to begin after I shook down the plane a bit; two laps later, I had noted the fairly wide turning capability, a slightly sluggish climb rate, and moderate—but not exceptional—acceleration. My initial elation was beginning to wane.

The Dogfight
Okay, enough of the technical stuff. Crawford drew even with me, gave me a brief salute...and firewalled his throttle, roaring ahead of me like I was moving backwards.

The object of the exercise was to see who could stay on who's tail longer. I'm no slouch in a furball, so I figured Crawford could duck me for a lap or two, but by the third I'd have him.

I was pretty confident. Like I said, the stick was kind of sluggish, and the added weight of the Feldmans would slow us both down.

Six laps later, I hadn't been able to set the "Madison Dawn" in my sights for more than three seconds at a time.

Crawford reportedly has more than 2,000 hours in the Avenger, and it shows. Despite the deficiencies I noted in the Avenger, in his hands it was responsive, agile...and deadly.

By lap eight, I capitulated, but not before I managed to follow Crawford through a twisting half-barrel roll, into a shallow inverted dive, and out into a corkscrew loop.

Once you get the hang of the stick—you have to anticipate, rather than react—the Avenger performs very well.

Evaluation
The Avenger is easily one of the most attractive planes I've ever flown, designed with a lot of attention to detail. Her handling requires some getting used to, but once mastered, is one of the deadliest planes in the skies today.