Category: News

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TVAL Debuts New Albatros, Sopwith Pup at Hood Aerodrome

Yesterday, The Vintage Aviator, Ltd. (TVAL) debuted new Albatros D.Va and Sopwith Pup reproductions at Hood Aerodrome in Masterton, New Zealand.

The Albatros (seen above) is painted in the colors of a Jasta 11 machine flown by Ltn. Carl-August von Schoenebeck and bears the unit’s signature red on the nose, struts and undercarriage, while the pilot’s personal color, lilac, is applied to the tail surfaces. The new Le Rhone-powered Sopwith Pup wears the colors of N6185 “ANZAC” of 4(N) Squadron, RNAS, flown by FSLt C.J.Moir.

It is not yet known when the machines will make their public debut, as TVAL is not hosting any public flying weekends for the 2017/18 season.

Click below to check out a photo of the new Pup.

Continue reading TVAL Debuts New Albatros, Sopwith Pup at Hood Aerodrome

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F-86F Sabre N86F4 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.

F-86F Sabre N86FR S/N 52-4959 has hit the market.

The aircraft was originally manufactured in 1952 and delivered to FA Argentina as C-109 in 1960. It was recovered and assembled in Coleman, Texas in 1989 and received its airworthiness certification a year later. The machine is currently flown as FU-201/S/N 31201.

The airframe has reportedly amassed 4417.4 total hrs, while the GE J-47-GE-2 engine has 402 hrs since major overhaul. The aircraft is equipped with two 120 gallon wing aux tanks, a smoke system, strobe lights, ELT, as well as an avionics package.

The F-86 is currently located at the Valiant Air Command Museum in Titusville, Florida and is being offered for $475,000. Click here to check out the full listing.

(Top Photo: Valder137 via Wikimedia Commons Additional Information via Warbird Registry)

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WW1 Ace’s Letters Sharing Combat Experience to Hit Auction Block

An archive of letters from WW1 American ace Lt. Edgar Taylor sharing his wartime experiences is set to hit the auction block.

Taylor was born to English parents in Rhode Island in 1897 and enlisted in the RFC in 1917, where he was assigned to 79 Squadron flying Sopwith Dolphin D3727. During the month of August 1918, he claimed four balloons and a Fokker D.VII before being killed in action on August 24.

The earliest letter in the collection is dated April 14, 1918, before he was transferred to France, while the second was written on May 23, detailing “a little adventure” which saw his guns jam while attacking an enemy aircraft, leaving Taylor “very much disappointed.” The collection records Taylor’s experiences and routines at the aerodrome, as well as harrowing details of his combat flights, one of which was revealed in a letter dated June 14, 1918: Continue reading WW1 Ace’s Letters Sharing Combat Experience to Hit Auction Block

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Rare KB-50 Superfortress Arrives at New Home, Restoration to Follow

The Air Mobility Command (AMC) Museum at Dover AFB in Delaware has reported the arrival of their newly acquired KB-50 Superfortress.

As previously reported, the aircraft (S/N 49-0389) was originally built by Boeing as a B-50D and delivered to the USAAF around 1949. During its service life it was converted to a KB-50 variant carrying auxiliary fuel tanks and a hose pod under the wings. In 1958 it was again modified, this time to a KB-50J refueling tanker which included the addition of two turbojet engines. In 1965 it was flown to Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, where it became part of the USAF Museum collection. It remained at the museum until 1996, when it was loaned to MacDill AFB in in Tampa, Florida.

The machine was relocated by Worldwide Aircraft Recovery of Bellevue, Nebraska with the final parts arriving on January 19th. The AMC aircraft restoration team will reportedly begin working on the aircraft shortly, although a timeframe for completion/display has not yet been announced.

Click below to check out photos of the KB-50’s arrival.

Continue reading Rare KB-50 Superfortress Arrives at New Home, Restoration to Follow

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Possible B-24 Liberator Wreck Discovered in Himalayas

A team of locals searching for aircraft wrecks in northeastern India may have discovered the remains of a US WW2 aircraft.

India’s NorthEast Today magazine reports that the types and locations of the parts suggest that it is was used in WW2 and went down while attempting to cross over the Himalayan range of Arunachal Pradesh, referred to as the “hump” by US airmen.

A lack of equipment prevented a thorough examination of the site, although it has been marked for future exploration. As for the newly discovered parts, positive identification is still needed, but based on the examination of photos, experts at HistoryNet believe it’s possible that they came from a B-24 Liberator or a C-87 Liberator Express.

A team from the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency had previously conducted search and rescue operations in the area, locating the remains of airmen lost in the crash of a B-24J in 1944.

(NorthEast Today via AirForceTimes via Fox News)

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Airworthy Jet Provost Mk.4 / T.5A Trainers 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.

North Weald Heritage Aviation is offering Jet Provost Mk. 4 (G-BXLO / PAC/W 19986) and Jet Provost T.5A (G-JPTV / EEP/JP/1002) cold war-era trainers for sale.

The Mk.4 (pictured above) is described as “an increasingly rare marque of Jet Provost” and “one of the most well maintained, and visually striking jets on the UK circuit.”

The ex-military Mk T.5A is also operating on the UK circuit and is touted as one of the best examples of the type in the country in terms of looks and condition. It has reportedly been maintained to a “truly high standard” and wears a livery intended as a “respectful nod” to the Jet Provost aerobatic and display team known as “The Poachers.”

Both machines are powered by Bristol Siddeley Viper turbojet engines and are said to have benefited from indoor parking for at least the last decade. Click below for additional details.

Continue reading Airworthy Jet Provost Mk.4 / T.5A Trainers Offered For Sale

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EAA Meets Fundraising Goal For Airworthy Restoration of B-25

The EAA’s $400,000 fundraising initiative to restore their B-25H to airworthy condition has been successful.

The aircraft (S/N 43-4432) was originally delivered to the USAAF in 1943 and went on to serve as an administrative aircraft at several bases around the US. Following the war, it passed through the hands of several owners, including Tallmantz Aviation, who used the machine in the 1970 film Catch-22.

The B-25 was donated to the EAA Museum in Oshkosh, Wisconsin in 1972 where it was restored to flying status as “The City of Burlington.” However, it was damaged in a landing accident in the 1980s, which resulted in cosmetic repairs and static display at the museum. Continue reading EAA Meets Fundraising Goal For Airworthy Restoration of B-25

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de Havilland Vampire Vandalized After Temporary Removal From Park Display

de Havilland Vampire A79-612, which has stood as an RAAF monument at Wagga Wagga, Australia’s Bolton Park for decades, was vandalized by graffiti after being temporarily removed from its perch earlier this week.

On Wednesday, the aircraft was lowered to accommodate nearby road work and was positioned behind a construction fence. However, within the first 24 hours it had been hit with spray paint – an incident that has been attributed to a recent increase in graffiti vandalism around the city.

A suspect has been arrested in connection to the surge, however it is not yet known if he is responsible for the vandalism of the Vampire. Thankfully, plans were already underway for the aircraft to be inspected and restored prior to being returned to its familiar position within the park.

Click below to check out news video detailing the project.

Continue reading de Havilland Vampire Vandalized After Temporary Removal From Park Display

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Spitfire RW388 Begins Journey Toward Restoration

The Potteries Museum and Art Gallery in Hanley, Staffordshire temporarily closed its Spitfire gallery on Wednesday as part of an extensive project that will see Spitfire LF Mk. XVIe RW388 “reborn.”

The aircraft, which was built by Vickers-Armstrongs, Ltd. in 1945, served in a training role during WW2 and also towed targets for Navy ships. 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 museum 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.

The museum closed the gallery in order to begin the process of disassembling the aircraft so it can be removed from the museum for restoration “to its former glory.” The full museum will be closed beginning on January 22nd so relocation can be carried out, with reopening scheduled for February 10th. Continue reading Spitfire RW388 Begins Journey Toward Restoration

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Extremely Rare, Airworthy Lysander 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.

National Steel Car Corp. (Westland) Lysander 3A C-FVZZ, one of only three airworthy examples of the type in the world, has hit the market.

The machine’s fuselage reportedly came from S/N 1206 (RCAF 2365), built by the National Steel Car Corp., while the wings were sourced from another unconfirmed ex-RCAF airframe. It was initially restored to airworthy condition by Harry Whereatt and later restored again by Vintage Wings of Canada before returning to the air in June 2010.

The Lysander’s airframe reportedly has a total time of 990.9 hrs since new. Since its rebuild, the airframe and Mercury XX engine (S/N 57337) have amassed 74.7 hrs. The livery represents National Steel Car Lysander 416, the first built by the company in 1939.

The Lysander is currently being offered for US$950,000. Click here to check out the complete listing.

(via Platinum Fighter Sales Additional Information via Vintage Wings of Canada Photo: Jean-Guy Pitre via Wikimedia Commons)