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Classic Wings Magazine WWII Naval Aviation Research Pacific Luftwaffe Resource Center
When Hollywood Ruled The Skies - Volumes 1 through 4 by Bruce Oriss


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PostPosted: Wed May 31, 2023 1:53 pm 
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Don't know how I feel about this. Definitely my favorite replica Tora bird. I know Mid Atlantic has a huge collection, most of which are not on display and those that are outside are getting pretty rough (i.e R4D, P2V, C-119, etc.) I kind of wish it ended up in Geneseo, or at Jerry Yagen's museum, or even Hangar 743 up in Albany where the Tora 101 Zero is now. But that's just me.

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https://www.readingeagle.com/2023/05/31/plane-featured-in-world-war-ii-movie-donated-to-mid-atlantic-air-museum-in-berks/?utm_campaign=socialflow&utm_content=fb-readingeagle&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&fbclid=IwAR04ItAK8uFZyWvNnNFadm0Sg-xEdHs5jIMVzDfX0yESWq9o7gr6TKnJD-k

Plane featured in World War II movie donated to Mid-Atlantic Air Museum in Berks
The plane flew in the acclaimed war movie “Tora! Tora! Tora!”
By MIKE URBAN | murban@readingeagle.com | Reading Eagle


Ken Laird’s plane was best known for appearing in the World War II epic “Tora! Tora! Tora!,” but that 1943 Vultee is recognized in Berks County for a different reason.

The aircraft — which was originally a training plane for Allied pilots during World War II but was refurbished to resemble a Japanese dive bomber for the movie — for more than two decades has flown over Berks during the annual World War II Weekends.

Laird of Hummelstown flew the plane during most of those events, but the 83-year-old recently gave up flying and decided he wanted to donate the aircraft to someone he knew would take proper care of it.

So this month he donated the plane to the nonprofit Mid-Atlantic Air Museum, which is based at Reading Regional Airport in Bern Township and stages World War II Weekend each year.

The 1943 Vultee recently donated by Ken Laird to the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum in Bern Township. (PHOTO COURTESY OF KEN LAIRD)
The plane, a Japanese Val replica, will again fly over the show this weekend starting Friday, though with a different pilot at the controls, museum spokeswoman Betsey Carlisle said.

“It’s a huge addition for us,” she said.

It is now one of 117 planes in the museum’s collection, about 95% of which were donated to the organization, with a few typically added each year, she said.

About 25 to 30 of the planes are on display in the main hangar at any given time, and those are rotated so visitors can see different aircraft.

“Tora! Tora! Tora!,” a 1970 film that dramatized the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, was praised for its historical accuracy and received five Oscar nominations. It is recognized at the USS Arizona Memorial for being the primary source of information for many Americans regarding the Pearl Harbor attack.

Eight similar planes also were turned into replicas for the movie, but only a few have survived and are airworthy, Laird said.

He and a partner originally owned the plane in 1987 and sold it about five years later before he bought it again in 1996.

Laird, who still works as a real estate developer, took the plane to 10 to 15 air shows each year all over the country until about three years ago.

“It was very fun to fly,” he said.

“The plane attracted everyone’s attention, and people were very impressed by it,” he said. “I would feel like a celebrity in town. It was kind of a glory thing for me. I’d have a heck of a good time.”

Of all the events he’s flown in, though, the local World War II Weekend was his favorite, so he knows the plane is now in the right hands.

“It’s the most fun show,” he said.

And it makes Laird feel good that after he’s gone the aircraft will be well taken care of, he said.

“It’s a great airplane,” he said. “People love it.”

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