P-51D awaiting Cavalier conversion in 1969 ...

[Mark Allen M]

P-51D N6319T, ex-Army Air Forces 44-74409, photographed in Sarasota, Florida, in February 1969 before being converted by Cavalier. two things stand out. Did it actually get converted? and sadly it looks like a C-54 in the background. RIP to those lost in the Alaska crash.
https://www.aerialvisuals.ca/AirframeDo ... Serial=684

[Thomas_Mac]

Looks to be a Canadair North Star which was based on the DC-4 but Merlin powered among other changes. Was wondering if this was a coincidence seeing them together or if Cavalier ever bought any of these surplus for their engines? Anyone know?

[K5DH]

I can't address the Mustang, but I can say that the aircraft in the background is a Canadair North Star and not a C-54 (note the RR Merlin engines).

[mike furline]

http://joebaugher.com/usaf_serials/1944_5.html
74409 (MSN 122-40949) 1945 To a 3rd Air Force unit of USAAF Air Training Command
Mid 1950 Struck off USAF charge and assigned to the Military Aid Programme.
1950 Assigned to Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) as 9235,
Dec 6, 1950 Brought on RCAF charge ex Pacific Automotive Corp, Burbank, California.
Assigned to No. 417 Squadron (Central Air Command Composite Flight, Trenton, Ontario – a Tactical Fighter
training unit, unit codes CB). Later assigned to No. 403 City of Calgary Squadron at Calgary (unit code AD, later PR).
Nov 23, 1953 Reassigned to No. 402 ‘City of Winnipeg’ (FB) Squadron (Auxiliary) at Stevenson Field, Winnipeg,
Manitoba, also a tactical fighter unit with the code AC on the rear fuselage.
Sep 31, 1954 Placed in storage at Lincoln Park, Calgary. Sep 26, 1956 To APDAL (Aircraft Pending Disposal) at
Lincoln Park, as final withdrawal of the P-51 from RCAF service approached.
Dec 30, 1958 Struck off RCAF charge. Dec 1958-1960 Registered as N6319T to James H Defuria and Fred J Ritts of
Intercontinental Airways, Canastota, New York. Defuria and partners purchased 71 of the 87 surplus RCAF P-51s
bought by civilians from the Crown Assets Disposal Corporation c.1958-1961;
Oct 20, 1960 Transferred to Aero Enterprises, Elkhart, Indiana. Jul 14, 1961 To James H Cunningham, Lexington,
North Carolina. Aug 19, 1962 Sold to Dean J Ortner, Wakeman, Ohio. Jul 1963 Lake Aircraft Company of Michigan
City, Indiana removed the rear fuselage fuel tank and installed a rear ‘buddy’ seat in the aircraft.
May 15, 1968 Sold to aircraft broker (dealer) Joe Bruce Jr, Palm Springs, California.
Jun 3, 1968 Sold to Trans Florida Aviation, later the Cavalier Aircraft Corporation, Sarasota, Florida; they
may have customised/soundproofed the cockpit area, but did no structural work to the aircraft. Bob Tullius
reports that Cavalier actually began to prepare the aircraft for sale to a South American air force and had
already painted it in a camouflage scheme.
Apr 11, 1969 Foreign sale did not go ahead; instead sold to Clint R Hackney, Friendswood, Texas.
Jul 4, 1970 Inadvertently landed gear up by pilot Darrel J. Ward during a ‘Confederate Air Force’ air show at
Galveston, Texas Scholes Field. The aircraft was repaired at Galveston, the prop and scoop being the only areas
damaged. Nov 2, 1971 To Frank D Strickler of Fox 51 Ltd, Denton, Texas. Named ‘Forget Hell’.
Dec 30, 1977 Re-registered as N4409 by Frank D Strickler, now of Grapevine, Texas.
1981 Sold to Peter Bottome, Caracas, Venezuela. Jan 1981 Re-registered N555BM to Gordon W Plaskett, King City,
California and rebuilt at King City. From King City it was flown by George Roberts to Mike Bradshaw’s Golden
Horn Aviation, Fort Pierce, Florida for preparation for repaint.
Painted as Barbara M IV and coded PE-E of 328th Fighter Squadron, 352nd Fighter Group, the individual aircraft
of Lt Col John C Edwards. 1982 Re-registered YV-508-CP to Peter Bottome, Caracas, Venezuela; ferried to Caracas
on internal fuel tanks by George Roberts. Dec 1990 Returned to US in its Venezuelan markings, ferried by Jack
Shaver of Classic Air service, Cape May, New Jersey, and renovated by his company, having flown only 75 hours
in the previous decade, with only 1,200 hours total time on the airframe since new.
Mar 1991 To racing driver Robert C Tullius, Winchester, Virginia. Apr 9, 1991 Re-registered N51RT to Robert
C Tullius/Group 44 inc, Winchester, Virginia: Flown in the markings of the Debden based 336th FS, 4th FG
aircraft ‘413317’ of Capt Donald R. Emerson, who was killed Dec 25, 1944 over Belgium. Apr 19, 1999
Transferred to Robert C Tullius Trustee, Sebring, Florida. In 2003 aircraft donated to RAF Museum by Robert
Tullius following the end of the 2003 air show season. 18 Nov 18, 2003 by road to RAF Museum Hendon.
Put on display at RAF Museum, Hendon Dec 2003. (N51RT) On display at RAF Museum painted in colours of
4th FG, 336th FS with serial ‘413317’, code ‘VF-B’ and name ‘The Duck’.

[Archer]

Photos here: https://www.mustangsmustangs.com/p-51/s ... l/44-74409 and here: http://www.warbirdregistry.org/p51regis ... 74409.html

With this P-51 gifted to the RAFM they had two P-51s in their collection, the other one being 44-73415(2), which is a static restoration using parts from 'Voodoo', see http://www.warbirdregistry.org/p51regis ... 73415.html and https://www.mustangsmustangs.com/p-51/s ... /44-73415p. This second P-51 has been on display at the other location at RAF Cosford, but went into storage in 2003 and was then gifted to an Australian museum in 2022: https://www.key.aero/article/disquiet-o ... g-disposal

[Larry Kraus]

Here is a bit of information on the Cavalier Mustang from the Flight Handbook.

I cropped a few pictures from the handbook showing the airplane followed by some pages from the handbook. No pictures were shown of the rear seat. Probably nothing to write home about unless it was a TF version.

IMG_2756 by tanker622001, on Flickr

IMG_2758 by tanker622001, on Flickr

IMG_2757 by tanker622001, on Flickr

IMG_2746 by tanker622001, on Flickr

IMG_2760 by tanker622001, on Flickr

IMG_2761 by tanker622001, on Flickr

IMG_2759 by tanker622001, on Flickr

IMG_2762 by tanker622001, on Flickr

IMG_2763 by tanker622001, on Flickr

IMG_2764 by tanker622001, on Flickr

Last edited by Larry Kraus on Sat Apr 27, 2024 1:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.

[Chris Brame]

I cropped a few pictures from the handbook showing the airplane followed by some pages from the handbook. No pictures were shown of the rear seat. Probably nothing to write home about unless it was a TF version.

Aaaand another Northstar, or the previous one with a civilian paint job. Hmm...

[quemerford]

So Cavalier used C-54GMs as engine donors? Looks that way.

[JohnB]

For a 1969 story for FLYING Magazine, WIX member, Stephan Wilkinson did a pilot report on a Cavalier Mustang.

https://books.google.com/books?id=F0ai8 ... 51&f=false

Click on Page 51 and enlarge with the icons to the left.

Price for a zero time aircraft was $79,000.

[quemerford]

Its missing military service:

P-51D s/n 44-74409 for Project DEL-3100
Accepted 25May45
Available 22May45
Delivered 25May45
Coolidge 25May45 (tech stop)
El Paso 27May45 (remain overnight)
Jackson 30May45 (remain overnight)
339th AAF Base Unit Thomasville 31May45
2225th AAF Base Unit Moody 21Nov45
2113rd AAF Base Unit Columbus 04Mar46
2537th AAF Base Unit Perrin 24Mar46
3028th AAF Base Unit Luke 10Jul46
3010th AAF Base Unit Williams 02Dec46
4121st AAF Base Unit Kelly (AMC) 23Apr47
3010th AAF Base Unit Williams 27Jan47
4121st AAF Base Unit Kelly (AMC) 25Sep47
To F-51D 01Jul48
Pacific Airmotive Burbank 06Aug50
To MAP (Canada) 30Nov50

[Hooligan2]

I cropped a few pictures from the handbook showing the airplane followed by some pages from the handbook. No pictures were shown of the rear seat. Probably nothing to write home about unless it was a TF version.

Aaaand another Northstar, or the previous one with a civilian paint job. Hmm...

That looks like CF-UXA which was an ex RCAF C-4 operated by Trans Florida Aviation and Turks Air between 1969 and 1975, scrapped at Sarasota in 1976. Probably the RCAF schemed aircraft in the original pic? Trans Florida also handled at least one other North Star which moved on to the El Salvadorian AF in 1967.

Think the only one I've ever seen was the former BOAC G-ALHJ which languished on the fire dump at Heathrow into the early 1980s...

[quemerford]

Think the only one I've ever seen was the former BOAC G-ALHJ which languished on the fire dump at Heathrow into the early 1980s...

The Heathrow Argonaut was a landmark for many years! It's a shame it survived so long but didn't get rescued.

[Larry Kraus]

I read the pilot report in the February 1969 Flying Magazine as posted by JohnB, although I went to the source at Google Books to do so. The writer describes the rear seat as requiring the pilot’s seat to fold forward to get into the rear and that there’s a steel bar at about knee level. He mentions that the position is relatively comfortable except for the canopy being somewhat cramping as far as headroom. He also doubted that there would be any chance of getting out in a hurry in an emergency.

Here’s a cropped section of the last page of the report showing a bit of the rear seat.

IMG_2767 by tanker622001, on Flickr

[Randy Haskin]

Looks to be a Canadair North Star which was based on the DC-4 but Merlin powered among other changes. Was wondering if this was a coincidence seeing them together or if Cavalier ever bought any of these surplus for their engines? Anyone know?

Both.

TFA bought seven Northstars in 1966 at a Crown Assets Disposal sale for the spare engines (as the transport Merlins were the basis of the 724A engines that were in some Cavaliers) that came with the sale. To be more specific, TFA actually bought four of them (17502, 17506, 17507, 17510) and Lindsay's business partner Dave Allyn bought three (17504, 17508, 17516).

Dave Lindsay couldn't get them certificated in the US, so he formed a company in Canada (Cavalier Aircraft of Canada) that owned and operated them. Lindsay formed another company in the US, Air Caicos (later Turks and Caicos Air) that flew CF-UXA and CF-UXB as freight runners between SRQ and MIA to (big surprise) Turks and Caicos.

The Cavalier Aircraft of Canada and Dave Allyn airframes were parts runners for Cavalier until the company closed. CF-UXB was scrapped after a gear-up landing in SRQ in Sept 1971 and CF-UXA was grounded in scrapped in 1976 when (ironically) the engines timed out and Cavalier's engine shop was no longer operating.

One of the TFA Northstars (17507, CF-UOY) was sold to El Salvador in December 67 and became YS-27C and FAS 300. EDIT: I have a note in the working copy of my book manuscript from Bob Lindsay who said that the deal with El Salvador was actually for *two* Northstars, but "something happened to one of them early on, I don't remember what."

Last edited by Randy Haskin on Sat Apr 27, 2024 11:55 am, edited 4 times in total.

[Randy Haskin]

P-51D N6319T, ex-Army Air Forces 44-74409, photographed in Sarasota, Florida, in February 1969 before being converted by Cavalier. two things stand out. Did it actually get converted? and sadly it looks like a C-54 in the background. RIP to those lost in the Alaska crash.
https://www.aerialvisuals.ca/AirframeDo ... Serial=684

The airplane was owned by TFA/Cavalier, but never converted or modified.

Sold to Clint Hackney, Jr, on 11 April 1969.