Some more old Reno Warbirds

[Neal Nurmi]

The Air Museum stock Mustangs get confusing, but here is one at Reno 1983:

[Speedy]

This is the original "Spam Can"...I believe it's currently painted as "Dolly".

At Reno '83 it was in Glamorous Glennis III colors, but temporarily marked up as Budweiser Light II.

[Neal Nurmi]

So where did the airframe that became the new 7715C come from?

[Speedy]

Pretty sure that it was a hodgepodge of parts. Something in my mind says it was some of the Indonesian Cavalier parts that had made their way back in the early '80's. I don't think it was a single 'airframe' per se.

Now Wee Willy II.

[Badman]

So where did the airframe that became the new 7715C come from?

These 2 airframes seem to cause a lot of confusion as the top one, Spam Can, used to be painted for a long time as the 357th's G4 U (and now painted as Dolly). The bottom one is I believe one of the Steve Johnson ex-Indonesian AF P-51s that Steve Hinton acquired around 1980(?) and used the former Red Barron's tail number on (I've seen so many posts wrongly referring to this P-51 as the "former" or "re-built" Red Barron). Steve Hinton's Mustang has been painted as the 357th's G4 U for a lot of years now.

[Neal Nurmi]

Here is the first Spam Can, before it was named. This is Mojave 1978, with the late (and very much missed) Jimmy Maloney learning how to race.

[T J Johansen]

Just curious. Has anyone seen "Spam Can" in full 357th colors like the ones "Wee Willy II" has? All the photos I have seen of "Spam Can" while so painted includes the G4*U codes, but with a yellow spinner and cowl. No red checks or stripes whatsoever.

T J

[Badman]

Just curious. Has anyone seen "Spam Can" in full 357th colors like the ones "Wee Willy II" has? All the photos I have seen of "Spam Can" while so painted includes the G4*U codes, but with a yellow spinner and cowl. No red checks or stripes whatsoever.

T J

My recollection is Spam Can didn't get the red stripes and checkers on the nose until the Chuck Yeager paint job.

[Neal Nurmi]

Here is 7715C at Reno 1990 -- Kevin Eldredge learning how to Race...

[sledge39]

N5441V with unfinished paint ...Chino local May 1973 ...pilot Jim Maloney

[Neal Nurmi]

I actually like it a lot just like that ! My taste in Mustang paint has always run to the simple.

Great bit of history there, Sledge.

[Neal Nurmi]

Here it is at Reno 1995 -- much less pretty...

[Neal Nurmi]

Jim Maloney landing the Planes of Fame Corsair -- Reno 1978.

[bdk]

N5441V had the bars from the stars and bars on the fuselage with no gap to the green upper surface. http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry ... rtxt=5441V

This aircraft actually has a long history with the museum, being purchased right off of McClellan AFB at auction in 1957.

The markings in that scheme were lower on 7715C. Little (if anything) from the Red Baron was used in the later plane. It was a relatively complete airframe. http://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry ... rtxt=7715C

John Marlin obtained the crashed Red Baron wings as I recall for use on his MB5 replica.