In 1940 he was able to demonstrate a twin engine model to his potential stock holders, obtaining enough financing to begin construction of the first full size channel wing, the CCW-1.

This aircraft was (is, actually, for it is now in storage at the National Air and Space Museum's Silver Hill facility) an amazing combination of futuristic lines and modest test expectations. Custer is an excellent woodworker, and the streamlined fuselage and carefully built channels are beautiful examples of art.

The airplane had 202.5 square feet of wing area, spread over a most unusual surface. Semi-circular, detachable wing tips were added to a straight chord wing surface, for a total length of nine feet four inches; a six foot channel was attached between the outer panel and the fuselage. Total wing span was 32' 10-1/2 ". The channels were hung under the wing like huge nacelles, and the two Lycoming 75 horsepower four cylinder air cooled engines were mounted about midway in the channel. The 19'11" egg shaped fuselage seemed disproportionately short, and the aesthetics were not helped by a low aspect ration "T" tail empennage. The stumpy landing gear looked like an afterthought.

Yet, despite this unusual appearance, the CCW-1 logged more than 300 hours in a restricted test program aimed primarily at learning how the channels worked, and what new flying techniques were required to guide the channel wing.

Curiously, Willard Custer made the first flight in the aircraft on November 12, 1942, entirely inadvertently. Custer is not a pilot and his test pilot, E.Kenneth Jaquieth was not in town on the day financial backers came to the Custer laboratory to see the airplane. The backers wanted to take some pictures, and asked Custer to taxi the CCW-1 to the small field where Jaquieth had been conducting taxi tests.

The field was only about 200 feet away, up a slight hill, and Custer felt qualified to move the plane. He applied power to get up the incline, and was somewhat disconcerted to see the trees on the horizon disappear. He was airborne, a non-pilot on the first flight of a brand new kind of aircraft. Custer throttled back abruptly, and the CCW-1 settled in, bending the landing gear.

Instead of being upset, the backers were delighted, for their dark horse had flown, albeit briefly. continue...