Warbird Information Exchange

Hi guys,
I am revising our tailwheel ab inito training sylabus and would greatly appriciate it if someone has these two images on hand:

- a Sea Fury approaching or touching down on the deck, which clearly shows the aircraft in three-point attitude

- the tailwheel centering device used on FAA carriers. This was a kind of a Y shaped track that forcibly centered the tailwheel on a very short distance of a few feet before take-off. A shot of this device with an aircraft in it, would be perfect.

Thanks,
Saso

If you're looking for a picture of a Sea Fury doing a three point landing, that'll be tough to find. The Fury doesn't like three pointers...even on the carrier. Carrier landings in the Fury were typically tail low wheel landings, and the hook would bring the tailwheel to the ground. I'm not saying it's impossible to three point one, but it dang sure doesn't happen often.

As a matter of fact, the only "true" three point landing I believe I've seen in a Fury was when Howard Pardue landed his at Reno, right after takeoff, when the engine burped and farted...eventually quitting.

Gary

Is that the one where the camera crew set up an incockpit camera and turned the fuel selector off!

Yup. ESPN crews knocked the fuel selector handle in between the detents, but not enough to where it could be readily seen. There was enough fuel getting to the engine for the runup, but not enough for takeoff power. It was pretty scary to watch from the ground. Ironically, I've never seen any of the in-cockpit footage of it.

Gary

Well here is a close up of Sea Fury TT gear. Don't know if it has anything to do with what you are looking for? I have the negatives, so high res is possible. Have 263 Sea Fury negs with descriptions on the neg envelopes, but would be a LOT of work to start scanning them to see all the different carrier landings and take-offs, to make a list..

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barnstormer, I'm curious what your carrier landing shots of the Sea Fury look like. I don't want to cause you a bunch of extra work, but do they look like tailwheel low wheel landings, or three point landings?

I'm just wanting to check to see if my memory is somewhat accurate. I don't want to be giving folks bad info.

Gary

As I understand Aereform's description, the Y-shaped track device would be a fixture on the carriers deck
at the launch station where the aircraft normaly marshalled for take off, Barnstormer.

Yup some Sea Fury pics in all manner of operation would be be great!

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DBF

That was some great flying by Howard to get it back to the runway....

Lynn