Jack Lane flew a Luscombe 8A in competition at the Salem Sportsman contest in 1976 on a beautiful Saturday in June. The next day he joined other competitors in flying a local air show; Giles Henderson in his clipped wing cub, Herb Cox flying his “Drunk Farmer Stole a Cub” routine, Jerry Spear and Charlie Wells flying their high decibel Pitts Special routines as Jack flew his smoke routine including his famous 16-point hesitation roll in his non-inverted 65 hp Luscombe.

Coverage of the 1976 and 1977 Sportsman only contest comes from one of IAC chapter 61's archived newsletters. (LINK) The archive article "Remembrance of IAC Chapter 61", by John Ford (with some corrections and addition by Jerry Spear) include the figures flown at the contest.

According to a Pirep based on his flight in a Luscombe 8A with 65 hp, by Budd Davisson (LINK) wrote regarding the airplane's aerobatic capability, "Stalls with that much wing happen around 40 mph and are anticlimactic, but I could see where it wouldn't take much rudder to kick it into a nice spin. Incidentally, a lot of people think the Luscombe would be a great aerobatic trainer, and, in fact many people do use the airplane for aerobatics. It may be time, however, for us to re-evaluate that kind of thinking. Yes, it will do loop, roll and spin type of maneuvers, but we're talking about airplanes that are 50-60 years old. Most have never been completely gone through and the airplane has a lot of boxed-in areas that can't be easily inspected for corrosion. Personally, I'd never aerobat a Luscombe that hasn't had both the wings and the tail completely opened up and inspected."

And finally, John Morrissey shared a photo (right) of his beautiful 1946 Luscombe, powered by a Continental A-65 (65hp). The plane was built in the Luscombe factory in New Jersey and John purchased it in 1987. His first solo in a Luscombe took place in 1957. His plane is pictured at the airport in Lincoln, Missouri. It is a 40-minute flight from his local airport and a favorite place for breakfast or lunch at the Hi Way Cafe.

John never flew his Luscombe in competition, "When I began competing in 1975 it was not unusual to see a Luscombe in Sportsman. I flew a Starduster Too in competition and was the Sportsman National Champion flying it in 1976 and 1977. "

For those feeling nostalgic for the Luscombe, a recent article (May 2021) online from Pilot magazine (LINK ) says that the Luscombe 8F is to go back into production. "The new Luscombe Aircraft Corporation has been created by Steve Testrake and Stephen Young, who acquired the Luscombe assets in June, 2019."