Hello, from new owner.

[dbk]

John: Thanks for the reply. I chuckled at your improvised 50 cals but only because I would have done the same.

x 2. :lol

 

[Wwabbit]

That Gruman flying boat is awesome. Is that a Goose ? Love the port hole. I am planning a flight to Tenn. soon in my 182 Amphib.

Please tell me your favorite lake and river spots down that way?

PilotJPW1-
Great to meet another amphib driver - it's a Grumman Albatross HU-16E. 36,000lbs at take off, 1100 gallons on board, flies 10 hrs as shown, can do more with drops. 12 seats but can go to 20, but I don't have that many friends - hell, I'll take anybody though, so never mind. One problem it has however, it tends to collect stuff on the tail and in the nose compartment. See pics. Come on down. Lot's of lakes around, busy in the summer. We are near Douglas, but Norris and Watts Bar are really nice. Great water, clear, good camping if you are into that. If the big bird in in annual at the time (or not broken) we'll join you.

Cheers.

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Do you ever make the Air Show in Reading PA?

... Apparently its owned by a concern up in Canada. I think the other ME is White 6 that has been mothballed in England.

Above are the story and copy of the painting of one of the best Thunderbolt storys ever.

Cheers.

Waxer-
Was in Reading in 2004 last. Nice show. Yep, the Canadian '109 is owned by Canadian Warbirid Heritage Museum. We usually run into them at the Willow Run show (Detroit). Nice plane.
And, yes, that Thunderbolt story is an all time favorite. We have the large painting in the museum down here. Great, great story. Speaking of warbirds, we are restoring two P-38's right
now. Another cool plane.

Not Benz powered of course, but take a look at this - especially what's tucked into the corner.

View attachment 24344

What is that? Looks like maybe a FW190 ?? but the gear seems a bit tight.

interesting fun fact based on the pic above is the number 40 of the "Hun Hunter" and the 44 of your "Wicked Wabbit".... the original GT40 was 40" high off the ground (making for interesting head room issues for us taller guys) and the new Ford GT which you have added to the stable is 44" high... kind of funny given the number of your plane and wingman :biggrin

Wow! Your'e right. I missed that. Those are the correct and original squadron numbers on the planes. Cool. Good eye, mate!

John

Wwabbit you are a good man. Can only imagine the COLs memories!

Drop down next Fall to Midland TX with the P47. CAF HQ AirSho plus a nose art display and more.

A few GT owners here as well plus a few independent war birds. You would be welcome.

dm

Thanks, but THEY are the real men. Loosing them fast though. Was in midland in '05 in the Thunderbolt. It's a fur piece down thar. And hotter' snot. How do you boys survive that stuff?
Thunderbolt hits 125 in the cockpit in that kind of weather. Tried rolling the window down once and it just got hotter. Forgot I was sitting behind a 2000hp heater. Boils my Gatorade.

Thanks for the great welcome.

John

 

[djs]

"John - are you by any chance going to the Doolittle Reunion at WPAFB April 14-19 ? My dad flew B-24's out of Italy in WWII and they invited him to 'try his hand' at Flying the B-25 next weekend. ( He was invited last summer and had a chance to fly a B-24 from Pittsburgh Pa to Johnstown Pa. )

I plan to meet him in Urbana Ohio where they are 'staging' 20 B-25's. On April 17 if I recall, they plan to take off every 1min 30 seconds to fly to WPAFB in a tribute to Doolittle's take-off pattern heading to Tokyo."
Andy:

I had no idea that there were still 20 + airworthy B-25s left. My dad flew in B26 Marauders and A26 Invaders. I think all of the B26s are gone, although quite a few A26s apparently remain, (we even saw one years ago in California for use against forest fires).

 

[AJB]

I will give you an actual count as to how many of the B-25's are actually there.... I will meet them at Urbana Ohio and then go to WPAFB with dad and brother to the Air Force Museum this weekend.

-The B-24 Dad flew last year from Pittsburgh was 'nose-art' "Witchcraft"
-The B-25 this weekend 'nose-art' is "Tondaleyo"
Both craft from the Collings Foundation.

andy (AJB)

 

[GT38]

"My dad flew in B26 Marauders and A26 Invaders. I think all of the B26s are gone, although quite a few A26s apparently remain, (we even saw one years ago in California for use against forest fires).

A few B-26's still exist:
http://www.39thsquadronmarauders.org.uk/page57.html

What is that? Looks like maybe a FW190 ?? but the gear seems a bit tight.

It's a two-seater - PM sent with more info.

it's a Grumman Albatross HU-16E. 36,000lbs at take off

For five years in the mid-70's I flew the only amphibious aircraft in the USAF inventory at the time, the Sikorsky CH-3E that weighed in at "only" 22,000#. 302nd Special Operations Squadron at Luke AFB. The photo is one of our two "slicks" that we normally used for water work (the other was 676, which is now in the USAF Museum at Wright-Patterson http://usafhpa.org/blackmariah/mariah.htm). The squadron was formerly the 302nd Air Rescue Squadron which flew the HU-16 from 1956-1971, so I flew with several very high-time Albatross pilots who had transitioned to helicopters - still see them at squadron reunions, but the ranks are getting thinner.

 

[Wwabbit]

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Really cool photo. I've never seen one on the water. Thanks.