STOLEN WARBIRD ALERT - PHX
Sat Dec 08, 2007 5:28 pm
Here's hoping the WIX community might have seen this and can aid in the prosecution and recovery...
Cockpit section of USN R5D (C-54Q) stolen Saturday, 01 December 2007 from Memorial Airfield, Chandler, Arizona. Aircraft was in open storage. Unrestored cockpit section measured appx. 12' x 12' x 25' from nose cone to sleeper compartment bulkhead. Weight is appx. 5500 to 6500 pounds.
USN R5D-3 (C-54Q) Bureau No. 56528, built Douglas Aircraft Corp. accepted 28 July 1945 FAA Reg. No. N44915, formerly operated by Biegert Aviation, Inc. Aircraft cockpit is an assest purchased by AN Vintage Aircraft Restorations, Ltd. Mesa, AZ and slated for display with Wingspan Air Heritage Foundation, Mesa, AZ on a long-term loan.
Witnesses last saw the aircraft cockpit headed down Interstate 10, west-bound, mid-day on Saturday, 01 Dec. Cockpit was loaded on a commerical truck-trailer combination, possibly by a commerical carrier. Those who saw it last assumed it was being removed by the owner or the intended museum group. It wasn't.
Cockpit was obviously targeted by an aircraft afficionado as it had to have been purposely loaded at the airfield onto a large trailer with a crane or heavy piece of lift equipment. Law enforcement officials believe it was not taken for salvage, as other aviation related items including outer wing panels, a trailered Douglas DC-7 nose section and a trailered aircraft tail section were not touched.
This Navy cockpit section is nicknamed "The Admiral" for its role in a 1950s south pole mapping mission the military code named "Operation Deep Freeze." The Admiral was the second C-54 (R5D) reported to have landed on the pole ice cap. Retired from service at Litchfield Naval Air Facility, Phoenix in excess of 25,000 TT airframe hours, it eventually was purchased by Biegert and slated for conversion to become a spray aircraft. The conversion never took place and "The Admiral" became an engine and propellor donor for other R5D aircraft in the fleet. Because of its Naval history, the owners tried to donate the airplane back to the US Navy for preservation, but the expense to ready the airplane for ferry flight and apparant lack of interest from this service branch lead to its demise in January 2006. The cockpit section was retained to preserve a portion of the aircraft for future generations to see and appreciate.
Please view the enclosed photos and alert any of the names in this posting if you've seen this aircraft cockpit. Note the special "brass" placard holder under the pilot's sliding window, spray paint "X 1st" marking on fuselage. A reward is offered for the safe return of "The Admiral." And for those who illegally removed the cockpit, this is now an issue for law enforcement officials unless owner/museum staff is contacted first and the asset is located.
Contacts:
Officer C. Wilcox, Gila River Indian Community Police Department, Sacaton, Arizona, reference DR#2007-038594 (520) 562-4511
Robert Kropp - ANVAR - (602) 708-3942 Phoenix, Arizona (or PM "'Pooner" via this message board).
Jeff Furnari - Executive Director, Wingspan Air Heritage Foundation, Mesa, Arizona (480) 226-9283
Thanks, WIXers. Hate to be the bearer of bad news. The older I get I become less and less tollerant of thieves and airplane vandals. I'll keep ya'll posted as to how this plays out.
- 'Pooner
Cockpit section of USN R5D (C-54Q) stolen Saturday, 01 December 2007 from Memorial Airfield, Chandler, Arizona. Aircraft was in open storage. Unrestored cockpit section measured appx. 12' x 12' x 25' from nose cone to sleeper compartment bulkhead. Weight is appx. 5500 to 6500 pounds.
USN R5D-3 (C-54Q) Bureau No. 56528, built Douglas Aircraft Corp. accepted 28 July 1945 FAA Reg. No. N44915, formerly operated by Biegert Aviation, Inc. Aircraft cockpit is an assest purchased by AN Vintage Aircraft Restorations, Ltd. Mesa, AZ and slated for display with Wingspan Air Heritage Foundation, Mesa, AZ on a long-term loan.
Witnesses last saw the aircraft cockpit headed down Interstate 10, west-bound, mid-day on Saturday, 01 Dec. Cockpit was loaded on a commerical truck-trailer combination, possibly by a commerical carrier. Those who saw it last assumed it was being removed by the owner or the intended museum group. It wasn't.
Cockpit was obviously targeted by an aircraft afficionado as it had to have been purposely loaded at the airfield onto a large trailer with a crane or heavy piece of lift equipment. Law enforcement officials believe it was not taken for salvage, as other aviation related items including outer wing panels, a trailered Douglas DC-7 nose section and a trailered aircraft tail section were not touched.
This Navy cockpit section is nicknamed "The Admiral" for its role in a 1950s south pole mapping mission the military code named "Operation Deep Freeze." The Admiral was the second C-54 (R5D) reported to have landed on the pole ice cap. Retired from service at Litchfield Naval Air Facility, Phoenix in excess of 25,000 TT airframe hours, it eventually was purchased by Biegert and slated for conversion to become a spray aircraft. The conversion never took place and "The Admiral" became an engine and propellor donor for other R5D aircraft in the fleet. Because of its Naval history, the owners tried to donate the airplane back to the US Navy for preservation, but the expense to ready the airplane for ferry flight and apparant lack of interest from this service branch lead to its demise in January 2006. The cockpit section was retained to preserve a portion of the aircraft for future generations to see and appreciate.
Please view the enclosed photos and alert any of the names in this posting if you've seen this aircraft cockpit. Note the special "brass" placard holder under the pilot's sliding window, spray paint "X 1st" marking on fuselage. A reward is offered for the safe return of "The Admiral." And for those who illegally removed the cockpit, this is now an issue for law enforcement officials unless owner/museum staff is contacted first and the asset is located.
Contacts:
Officer C. Wilcox, Gila River Indian Community Police Department, Sacaton, Arizona, reference DR#2007-038594 (520) 562-4511
Robert Kropp - ANVAR - (602) 708-3942 Phoenix, Arizona (or PM "'Pooner" via this message board).
Jeff Furnari - Executive Director, Wingspan Air Heritage Foundation, Mesa, Arizona (480) 226-9283
Thanks, WIXers. Hate to be the bearer of bad news. The older I get I become less and less tollerant of thieves and airplane vandals. I'll keep ya'll posted as to how this plays out.
- 'Pooner
Sat Dec 08, 2007 6:45 pm
i've seen it all now!!! like the dumb schmuck thief is going to be able to conceal that theft. time will tell, he'll be revealed.
Sat Dec 08, 2007 6:50 pm
The only part that surprises me is that it didn't happen here in West Virginia.
Hope you all get it back. You'll laugh, but in a way its so darn funny if you called CNN, they'd put it on the air and I'll bet that someone would turn it in....................
Mark H
Hope you all get it back. You'll laugh, but in a way its so darn funny if you called CNN, they'd put it on the air and I'll bet that someone would turn it in....................
Mark H
Sat Dec 08, 2007 7:10 pm
Biegert Aviation...I'm guessing that this is the same Biegert (Max & Thelma) who purchased the former Santa Fe branch to the Grand Canyon & turned it into a very profitable & successful railroad operation before selling it just a year or so ago. I had heard that they had been involved in aviation prior to getting involved with the railroad.
I worked for them during the summer of '99 in Williams, AZ. Nice town to live in & a great place to work.
Hope the nose is located!
I worked for them during the summer of '99 in Williams, AZ. Nice town to live in & a great place to work.
Hope the nose is located!
Sat Dec 08, 2007 8:25 pm
What is this world coming to? I'm really sorry to hear about the nose section being stolen. I hope it is recovered quickly and undamaged.
-David
-David
Sat Dec 08, 2007 10:27 pm
maybe this will help....
http://www.ruudleeuw.com/tmp-photos-11.htm
are you sure it was stolen - seems weird that he would send photos to a website
http://www.ruudleeuw.com/tmp-photos-11.htm
are you sure it was stolen - seems weird that he would send photos to a website
Last edited by skippyscage on Sat Dec 08, 2007 10:50 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Sat Dec 08, 2007 10:45 pm
One of those photos is dated Feb 12, 2007.
Sat Dec 08, 2007 10:53 pm
it the default camera version of the date - looking at the EXIF data...
yyyy:mm:dd = 2nd Dec 2007
Original Date/Time = 2007:12:02 01:48:35
yyyy:mm:dd = 2nd Dec 2007
Last edited by skippyscage on Sat Dec 08, 2007 10:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Sat Dec 08, 2007 10:58 pm
RickH wrote:One of those photos is dated Feb 12, 2007.
That is correct if you read the date as most in the US do, but if you read it as most of the rest of the world, it is Dec 02, 2007. I have called Pooner and let him know.
Sat Dec 08, 2007 10:59 pm
I would hope it dosn't come down to hard on him. It looks as though he thought he was doing the right thing. It's quite possible that someone could have given him the impression that it was going to be destroyed if someone didn't remove it. I guess someone should shoot him an E-mail and let him know what is going on (if someone hasn't done so already). That way he can have a chance to make it right.
Sat Dec 08, 2007 11:03 pm
Ruud who runs the website has the guys info - bear in mind that he is in Holland so you won't get a reply for a few hours.
Sat Dec 08, 2007 11:19 pm
I sent an E-mail with a link to this thread through Ruud.
Sun Dec 09, 2007 5:52 am
Thks guys,
I'll forward this to Dan
Am sure that Dan is no criminal, spoke to him yesterday and he is very open and enthusiastic about the whole thing. If anything is wrong, he is likely a victim to someone else's wrong doing... He got 2 days notice to make a deal and remove it as it this DC-4 was heading for the scrapman; so he hired material and got friends to help him out and meet that deadline. Certainly no covert action and he volunteered the pics and 'tons more to come'
Keep you posted
Ruud
I'll forward this to Dan
Am sure that Dan is no criminal, spoke to him yesterday and he is very open and enthusiastic about the whole thing. If anything is wrong, he is likely a victim to someone else's wrong doing... He got 2 days notice to make a deal and remove it as it this DC-4 was heading for the scrapman; so he hired material and got friends to help him out and meet that deadline. Certainly no covert action and he volunteered the pics and 'tons more to come'
Keep you posted
Ruud
$
Sun Dec 09, 2007 6:55 am
If I am reading this right, this is another group and not CAF. I wonder how much $$ the "museum" was going to get from the scrapper? And you guys found this missing item so quick, got any WMDs, how much is the reward for that?
Sun Dec 09, 2007 8:36 am
Pooner - Do you have any information on this Wingspan museum? I don't find any references to it anywhere, is it a new museum that's not open yet?
Just interested because that R5D has quite a history (known about it before this) and was hoping that a museum would save it.
I do hope this is worked out because it does indeed look like some unfortunate misunderstanding.
Just interested because that R5D has quite a history (known about it before this) and was hoping that a museum would save it.
I do hope this is worked out because it does indeed look like some unfortunate misunderstanding.