dj51d wrote:
I don't know anbody at Amjet, and the only time I've seen the hanger doors open since Polar closed is for a minute or two while they tow the Howard 500 out, so no news on the Seafire either. Maybe someone else here has better connections than I do. I was hoping to find out if the Gannet is still here in MN, but they didn't even pull the 500 out on Sat(though it could be out of town, it's still used in the role it was designed for).
The P-82 project is slowly coming along. I talked to a guy I know at C&P for a few minutes Saturday morning and he said one fuselage was currently in the works and that other had not yet been touched, no mention of the outer wing panels. I didn't make the treck down to their hangar to look at it. Considering the size and complexity of this project, it's going to be a very long wait to see that 'ol girl airborn again!!!
The Gannet is still at Amjet. In fact the pilot was in town and there were plans to pull it out of the hangar and run it Saturday, but the wx just did not cooperate at all. I looked for my buddy that works there (So I could get the low down for Y'all on whats been going on there) but I was told it was very likely that he would not be out...Of course that lead to a little slanderous speculation as to why! RR you should have been there to defend yourself! Rumor has it work is continuing at a slow pace on the Seafire.
Th Howard 500 was left in the hangar partially due to the wx and also because they are hip deep in the restoration of the other 500...guess they felt like being reclusive!
Had a chance to talk to Mike Rawson and look in on the progress of the SB2C. It's slowly taking shape. New from my last visit were two bombay doors that were already hung on the fuselage and the left wing was getting skinned. Most all of the skins on the right wing were complete Cleco'd in place. Lex Crawley was there so we took a few minutes to BS a bit about his settlement. Some conversation was taking place about his recent settlement and the real likelyhood of more legislation in the near future that will benifit the warbird community. Guys we all owe Lex a debt of thanks for taking one in the chops for us! We also need to thank our allies in the senate that REALLY went to bat and put this one to bed post haste! One of our other distinguished wixers may...or may not have more info on this encounter......
I talked to Greg Fiber for a bit late Saturday afternoon and he confirmed for me that Sam Torveck, (The former JRS Enterprises Merlin man) had indeed deliverd himself to the pearly gates a couple weeks ago. No details. I added this because some of you out there may have known Sam and may not have been aware of his recent fate. RIP Sam.
Anybody who has followed the fate of the DC6 that has been in open storage at Holman Field in St.Paul MN for many years may be able to confirm a story I heard on Sunday. I was told it was finally ferried out of there a couple of weeks ago....Does anybody have anymore details?
Hopefully we will see a lot of you at the show in Red Wing MN this upcoming weekend.
John
CC Red Tail Mustang