USAF Museum Stearman

Mon May 02, 2005 2:23 pm

The USAF Museum has this Stearman PT-13D on display...

http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/ac/pg000039.htm

The webpage states that this example was the last Kaydet produced. From the book "Boeing Aircraft Since 1916" last contruction blook sequence it 75-8732 to 75-8808. You might conclude that the USAFM Kaydet is then c/n 75-8808, but this was an N2S-5 not a PT-13D.

Of course there is no guarantee that 75-8808 represents the last Kaydet built. That one may have been a c/n from another block.

QUESTION #1: Does anyone know the ID of the USAF Museum Kaydet?

Currently there USAF Museum Kaydet is marked with "531" on the nose. However when I was there in 1996 I photographed a Kaydet with no markings on the nose, even though it was in the same colour scheme.

QUESTION #2: Has the USAF display two different Kaydets in the past? Or may they have changed the markings of a single airframe?

Mike

Mon May 02, 2005 7:25 pm

Mike,

Here's the short version, I emailed you the long version.

According to Peter M. Bowers book "Wings of Stearman"

The last Kaydet (at Dayton) was an E75, a special PT-13D, 42-17794. The manufacturer serial number was 75-5963, and was proclaimed by Boeing to be the 10,346th Kadet built. (It has a false id on it of 42-17800 from another PT-13D)

This was not the highest serial number carried, and a number of military contracts were cancelled, thus the apparent production numbers were shown much higher than they actually were. The serial numbers were not adjusted to fill in the gaps due to cancelled contracts.

The highest serial number used was 75-8808, but the Navy N2S-5's were actually completed before the Army PT-13D's were built. It is believed that only 8,585 Kaydets were ever built.

Tue May 03, 2005 6:41 am

Thanks Roger!

Mike

Tue May 03, 2005 7:03 am

Actually something about the article you sent me doesn't quite make sense. The following statements were made...

"The last "Kaydet delivered was an E75, a special PT-13D 42-17794... ...The c/n was 755963"

"The Museum accepted c/n 755963 on September 28, 1958, and it is now on permanent display in prewar trainer colors but with Army serial 42-17800 from another PT-13D"

Now you would conclude from these statements that c/n 75-5963 is actually USAAF s/n 42-17794 and is mearly displayed at the USAF as USAAF s/n 42-17800. HOWEVER... "Boeing Aircraft Since 1916" includes this production block: 42-17227/17863 PT-13D E75 755390/756026

The problem is that from this production block c/n 75-5963 is actually 42-17800! ??????

So which source of information is correct? Am I reading this correctly?

Mike