Spitfire 944 - Short Film

This short film came through my email a couple days ago.  Really a great story showing a veteran film footage of his landing mishap for the first time!  Check out Spitfire 944.

Warbirds Over Addison

We did not make it over to the event but thanks to Scott Slocum we can watch the highlights from Warbirds Over Addison 2013.  It is always great to see a good crowd enjoying the sights and sounds of vintage Warbirds!

Links - Scott Slocum/Aero Media Group - Cavanaugh Flight Museum

2013 Chino Warbird Airshow Photos

One of the best airshows in the country to see unique Warbirds in the air is the annual airshow in Chino, California.  The Planes of Fame museum pulls out their amazing collection of flyable Warbirds and invites friends of the museum to join them each May.  A couple weeks ago they hosted six P-38 Lightnings to highlight this years show.  Five were flown during the event and one was on static display.  Check out the link below for an extensive photo gallery full of amazing images captured by Britt Dietz.  Don't miss the night time photos towards the end of the gallery.

Chino Airshow 2012 - Day One Photos

(Be sure to check back in the next week or so for more coverage of the show on Britt Deitz's site.)

Another stand out aircraft at this years show was the early model P-40.  Look at this shine on this beautiful restoration!

Once you take the time to look through the airshow photos click back to the home page and treat yourself to ALL the Warbird photos!  Thanks to Britt Dietz for allowing us to post his photos and links.

Links - Warbird Photos by Britt Dietz - Planes of Fame

Howard 500 - Journey Home video

Back in January we posted an awesome video of the Howard 500s owned by TPAero.  Another video has been produced and posted for all to enjoy.  This one featuring N500LN on its journey home from Europe.  The entire flight is not made at 20,000 feet.  They were down in the beautiful scenery making the most of the sights the trip had to offer.  Sit back and watch 9 minutes of spectacular video footage of this vintage powerhouse.




Links - Previous post on this blog of the Howard 500 - TPAero

Lockheed 10 for the Seattle Museum of Flight

Lockheed 10 arrives in Reno

The latest news on Lockheed 10, serial number 1015, N72GT is that the Seattle Museum of Flight will add the aircraft to the museums collection.  

Reno arrival

1015 was originally delivered to Northwest Airlines as a 10A registered as NC14900.  In 1942-1944 it was flown by the United States Army Air Corps.  For the 60th Anniversary of Amelia Earhart's historic flight it was modified by Linda Finch into a Lockheed 10E and flown around the world in 1997.  After the flight it sat outside for a few years on the ramp at the Denton, Texas airport.  Since that time it was not flown regularly.  In 2010 is was seen stored in a hangar in New Mexico.  It returned to flying status in 2011 and was flown to California with another planned world flight.  Those plans fell through and it was listed for sale again in 2012.

Lockheed 10, s/n 1015

It was recently flown to Reno, Nevada and Fred Austin sent the featured photos (taken upon its arrival) with the following note:

"The airplane is under going some minor maintenance and cosmetic detailing prior to it's delivery to the museum this fall. Taight Ramey and Alby Redick flew the airplane in from California. Alby's company Aviation Classics prepared the airplane for the flight."

Thank you Fred for the update.

The museums "Project Amelia" has a web page featuring the details of the acquisition.  Visit the web page by clicking here.

Links - Seattle Museum of Flight - Lockheed 10 survivors

Lockheed Vega Restoration

Brent Taylor visited the Lockheed Vega restoration making progress in Arizona and posted an update over on the Antique Airfield web site earlier this month.  Wow!  What an amazing airplane!

Click on this link to read the update - Lockheed Vega Restoration Update

Links - Antique Airfield

Flying Heritage Collection F6F Hellcat First Flight Video

The Flying Heritage Collection's Grumman F6F Hellcat made its first flight following its recent restoration.  Steve Hinton made the flight at FHC's base at Paine Field in Everett, Washington.  Watch the  video below captured by Jason Fortenbacher.  Thanks Jason for the video!



Links - Flying Heritage Collection - Fight To Fly Photography on Facebook

Sky Siren - Travel Air Restoration

In California at the restoration shop called Aerocraftsman they are putting the finishing touches on a beautiful Travel Air.  A Travel Air biplane they are calling Sky Siren.  Check out this awesome art deco paint scheme on this ship!

More photos can be seen by clicking on this link.  Hats off to the crew at Aerocraftsman!

Links - Aerocraftsman

Aviation Collectibles - Greatest Generation Aircraft Auction

B-25 Pacific Prowler

Collecting, it is what we do when we gather things of meaning and importance to us. Some like to gather memorabilia to bring back memories from times gone by. In this day and age we see numerous TV shows filling the cable channels that highlight people hunting, searching and digging for collectibles all over the country. Cars, airplanes, toys, antiques and all manner of items!  Maybe to add that specific item to their personal collection, turn it into a decorator piece, show off in their "man cave" or to sell for a profit to perpetuate the collecting addiction!  To feed my curiosity... ok... and my own addiction I found a local auction to attend.

It was a cold morning inside the Vintage Flying Museum hangar at Meacham Field in Fort Worth.  Too cold for me to be out early on a Saturday morning but I sure did want to see the aviation collectibles, memorabilia, military gear and vintage aircraft parts that were to be sold at the charity auction.  The Greatest Generation Aircraft collection  was looking to attract bidders to raise funds to pour back into their collection of vintage aircraft. Jim Terry and his crew operate the B-25 "Pacific Prowler" and the C47 "Southern Cross." Also a part of the collection, waiting in the back of the hangar, was the B-26K "Special K" receiving attention from the volunteer restoration crew.

Jim Terry

The hangar opened early for bidders to preview the auction items. I arrived about 8:30 am to look around.  The museum hangar had several areas set up to showcase the auction items. The heated side room was most popular on this cold morning.  Aircraft parts, flying helmets, engines, military gear and artwork had collectors scribbling notes in their auction catalogs.  Aviation enthusiasts could hardly contain their excitement at the prospects of owning these unique offerings and in knowing that the funds would be used to maintain vintage aircraft.

About forty people gathered in the hangar before auction start time at 9:00 am, but it quickly swelled to seventy as the auctioneer started the opening bids. A few bidders established themselves as serious buyers and most items sold well.

Highlights...

Bartlett Hayward wooden propeller - $1700

Cowtown Cyclone tribute art cowling - $600

F-86 drop tank shark art - $2000

Beechcraft Bonanza wing section - $500

Remote control glider with 14ft. Wingspan - $225

T-28A Trojan - $7000

Other highlights...

Customized KC 135 crew seat - $600

Wright Cyclone R-2600 - unsold as it did not meet reserve - this R2600-3 would have been installed on a Boeing Clipper or an A-20 Havoc.

B-25 cowling nose ring - $1300

B-17 cowling - $1500

The auction wrapped up at about noon.  Hats off to the Greatest Generation Aircraft and the Vintage Flying Museum for a smooth auction.

My personal aviation memorabilia collection includes autobiographical books of famous aviators, vintage magazines, aircraft manuals and aircraft models.  (I do offer some items for sale on occasion using eBay - Link to eBay items.)

What do you collect?  What are some of your prized possessions?

Links - Great Generation Aircraft - Flying Cowboys - Vintage Flying Museum

Red Bull P-38 and Corsair Video

Wow... you must take the time to watch this video showing The Flying Bulls collection P-38 Lightning and F4U Corsair flying in the skies over Austria!

When I was young I saw these two Warbirds flying in the skies over Texas.  Now years later they fly together again!  Red Bull campaigns these two vintage fighters, as well as a large fleet of other cool airplanes around Europe from their base in Salzburg, Austria.

Enjoy the video and then click thru to their web site - Hangar 7 "The Flying Bulls"

Be sure to check out the awesome architecture of their two cool hangars!  One day I will go visit!

Golden Age Air Racers

Roscoe Turner's Bendix trophy and racer at the Smithsonian

My aviation interest does cover a broad range of aircraft.  Mainly types between 1920s and 1950s.  For a few years I studied almost exclusively 1930s Golden Age air racers.  Delmar Benjamin burst on the airshow scene back in the 1990s with his Gee Bee R-2 replica and that really brought out the interest in the racers amongst the aviation minded public.  Few original racers exist so most of the Golden Age aircraft seen today are replicas.  Gee Bee's of various models, Travel Air Mystery Ship, Roscoe Turner's racers, de Haviland Comet racer and more are so unique that to see them in any form today is worth the effort from the owners to showcase an awesome time in aviation history.

Comet

Where would you see them today?  Well, some are shown in museums, others in private owners hangars and a few that are currently being built will hopefully make it to local and national airshows.

Pete Groves and I have corresponded over the last couple years from our mutual interest in the Ryan STA.  Pete also has an interest in Golden Age air racers.  So much so that he is building up a Laird Super Solution.  Take a few minutes to check out the build progress on his Super Solution at his blog...

http://supersolutionproject.blogspot.com

To catch up on the latest progress of other air racer projects you MUST see the photos included in one of Pete's most recent blog posts!

http://supersolutionproject.blogspot.com/2013/01/golden-age-projects.html

The photos that have me captivated are the ones of Jim Moss's Gee Bee "Super" QED.  WOW!

I can't wait to see more photos of when these awesome ships take to the air!

Eicher/Kimball Gee Bee Z

Still my favorite Gee Bee replica is the model Z built by Jeff Eicher and Kevin Kimball.  It now lives at Kermit Weeks Fantasy of Flight.  The yellow and black racer is just powerfully cool!

What are your favorite Golden Age Air Racers?