Category: News

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Museum Completes Repaint of World’s Only “Big Tail” SR-71

Yesterday, the Air Force Armament Museum located at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida completed the process of repainting their SR-71 Blackbird.

As previously reported, the aircraft, SR-71A S/N 61-7959, was completed in 1965 and, in 1975, was modified with a nine-foot boom on its aft end carrying Electronic Countermeasures and an Optical Bar Camera. The result earned the machine the moniker “Big Tail” and it would remain the only example of the type to be fitted with the modification, as tests revealed that the equipment provided no marked advantage. The aircraft performed its last flight in 1976, being placed in outdoor storage before being moved to its current home in 1991.

The project utilized 22 gallons of primer, 22 gallons of paint and newly manufactured information decals. Click below to check out images of the completed machine, including a scrollable panorama.

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Nieuport 17 Reproduction Built For “Flyboys” Movie Will Need New Home

While searching for Spitfire parts in a storage container, Gateguards – UK came upon a Nieuport 17 reproduction that has been deemed “surplus to requirements” and will require a new home.

The aircraft was reportedly built for the 2006 film Flyboys and is believed to be full-scale. It is said to employ wood and fabric construction and has been described as “quite well built and not just a backstage replica.”

It remains to be seen whether the reproduction will be offered for sale. Click below to check out the full announcement.

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“Great Condition” Bell UH-1H Huey Offered For Sale

Please Note: This is an archived post. The information presented here may not be current and the associated listing may no longer be active.

A 1966 Bell UH-1H/205 Huey (S/N 66-1080 / N760HP) is now available for sale.

The machine is described as being in “great condition and able to make airworthy again.” It reportedly comes complete with data plate, maintenance logbooks and many of its components, but lacks an engine, transmission, main/tail rotors, some instruments, radios and cowlings.

The machine is currently located in Tampa, Florida and is available for US$60,000. Click here to check out the complete listing on eBay.

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Recently Unearthed Spitfire Wreck To Be Displayed For First Time In Ireland

The remains of a Spitfire unearthed last year in County Monaghan, Ireland will reportedly be displayed for the first time as part of a new exhibition at the Monaghan Museum.

As previously reported, the aircraft (Mk Ia R6992) had served in the Battle of Britain before being reassigned to a weather-monitoring squadron at RAF Aldergrove in Antrim. On November 20, 1942 it suffered an in-flight engine failure, prompting pilot Gordon Hayter Proctor to bail out before it crashed in a meadow in Figullar, Emyvale. Although much of the wreckage was removed by the Irish Army shortly thereafter, 21st century ground surveys revealed that additional artifacts were still present about four meters underground, prompting the 2017 excavation that unearthed components such as the aircraft’s Rolls Royce engine and cockpit door.

R6992 is the only Spitfire ever found in Ireland that had been involved in the Battle of Britain, and the new exhibition will be built around its remains. Titled “The Monaghan Spitfire: Life on the Border with a World at War,” The exhibition is described as exploring “the deadly experience of a county, which existed on the border between two worlds, one tearing itself apart and another, trying desperately to stay out of a global conflict which had almost engulfed it.”

The exhibition is set to open on June 28th and will reportedly run for one year.

(via Monaghan County Museum and thejournal.ie)

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MiG-17 “Complete Aircraft” Project Offered For Sale

Please Note: This is an archived post. The information presented here may not be current and the associated listing may no longer be active.

A Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17 project has hit the market.

The aircraft (nose number 726) was reportedly built under license in Poland and was flown with the Polish Air Force from 1960-1991. Following retirement from military service, the machine was acquired by a new owner and transferred to the US for restoration to airworthy condition, however, the restoration never materialized.

The aircraft has been in museum storage for the past 15 years and is based in Washington State. It is currently being offered for $29,500. Click here to check out the complete listing.

(Image: arz via Wikimedia Commons)

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On-Board Footage Captures Original SPAD XIII’s Flyby With Rafale Fighter [Video]

During the 2018 La Ferté-Alais airshow in France, spectators were treated to a flyby from Memorial Flight Association’s original SPAD XIII and a French Dassault Rafale – an event that encapsulated a century of aeronautical development.

This particular SPAD XIII is the oldest known example of the type in existence, as well as the only original example flying in the world. The aircraft was built in February 1918 by Société Kellner Frères Constructeurs as #4377 and was recovered from an attic in the 1970s by Jean Salis. Restoration began in the 1980s and was completed following its donation to the Memorial Flight Association in 1990. It returned to the air in 1991 and now wears the colors of the machine flown by Henri Trémeau of SPA 83.

The remarkable flight was captured from the ground as well as the air, and can be seen in the video below.

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Restored Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-14 Offered For Sale

Please Note: This is an archived post. The information presented here may not be current and the associated listing may no longer be active.

Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-14 S/N 462707 has hit the market.

The aircraft (D-FMGV) is described as the “only G-14 available worldwide.” It reportedly has 0 hrs on its airframe since overhaul and is powered by a Daimler Benz 605A engine with 35 min TSO by Vintage V12s. An avionics package consisting of a Trig TY91 radio, Becker BXP6401-1 transponder, Becker BE6400 encoder and Kannad 406 AF ELT is also said to be included.

The machine is located in Germany and pricing is available upon request. Click here to check out the complete listing.

(via Trade-a-Plane Top Image: Björn Huber via Wikimedia Commons)

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Kermit Weeks Plans to Bring Four WW1 Aircraft to AirVenture 2018 [Video]

Fantasy of Flight owner Kermit Weeks has announced plans to bring four of his WW1 aircraft reproductions to the 2018 AirVenture fly-in in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

The machines include his TVAL-built Sopwith Snipe and Albatros D.Va, a newly restored Sopwith Pup which is currently undergoing repairs following an “unfortunate incident” during its maiden flight, and his new Fokker D.VII, which was recently completed by noted WW1 aircraft builder Fred Murrin.

It appears that the Snipe is the only machine that could take flight at the event, as the remaining aircraft have not yet amassed the required 10 hrs of flight time, or are currently involved in ongoing maintenance. Click below to check out the update.

Continue reading Kermit Weeks Plans to Bring Four WW1 Aircraft to AirVenture 2018 [Video]

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“Only Flyable” Grumman AF-2S Guardian Offered For Sale

Please Note: This is an archived post. The information presented here may not be current and the associated listing may no longer be active.

Grumman AF-2S Guardian N9995Z has hit the market.

The airframe reportedly has a total time of 1,270 hrs while the Pratt & Whitney R-2800-48W engine has 200 hrs SMOH by Aero Union. The machine is said to have last flown in 2011 and is described as the “only flyable example of the first purpose-built anti-submarine warfare (ASW) carrier-based aircraft to enter service with the United States Navy.”

The aircraft (S/N 126792) has reportedly undergone an overhaul / IRAN which includes an overhauled propeller and propeller governor, an overhauled carburetor, recovered control surfaces, new glass, new main tires and tubes, new tail wheel, new service and hydraulic lines, new wing fuel tanks, airframe soda blasting and a new U.S. Navy livery.

The Guardian is located in Texas and is currently being offered for US$450,000. Click here to check out the complete listing.

(via Trade-a-Plane Photo: RuthAS via Wikimedia Commons)

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Spitfire RW388 Undergoes Trial Wing Fitting As Restoration Progresses [Video]

Spitfire LF Mk. XVIe RW388 has undergone a trial wing fitting at Medway Aircraft Preservation Society as work progresses to restore the iconic aircraft to its former glory.

As previously reported, the machine was built by Vickers-Armstrongs, Ltd. in 1945 and was used for training and towing targets for Navy ships during WW2. Following the war it was used as a gate guard at RAF Benson and RAF Andover before being officially presented to the city of Stoke-on-Trent by the Royal Air Force in 1972. It was installed at the Potteries Museum and Art Gallery in Hanley, Staffordshire in 1985 and has taken a place of honor in their Spitfire gallery, which is dedicated to the type’s locally-born designer, Reginald Mitchell.

In addition to the successful wing fitting, work on RW388’s Merlin engine is also said to be nearing completion. In 2019, the restored Spitfire is slated to return to the museum for display in a new, £6 million glass-fronted extension that will also include a new cafe and city square.

Click below to check out photos and videos of the recent work.

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