Beijing Aeronautical Institute Museum P61

[O.P.]

I honestly don't know anything about the plane or how it was aquired. I'm with Mike though, if it wasn't there, it would be gone.

It is their plane though. And they aren't going to sell it, trade it or anything else. Hopefully people going to look at it, and the presence of it here, on the internet, will make someone there will take a bigger interest in preserving it.

Just having "Beijing Aeronautical Institute Museum P61" on the ole interweb means someone in the gubmint there has seen this or is going to see it soon.

As it is though,,,,There are a lot of folks over there that need the love more than that airplane....just a little perspective

[Mike]

Interestingly, the La-9 now flying in New Zealand came from that museum, and was exchanged for the Harrier GR3 which is presumably still on display there (Orvis?)

The deal took Ray and Mark Hanna 10 years to put together, and goes to show that there are ways of getting airframes out of that particular museum, not all of them involving wading in waving a large check and expecting results.

[O.P.]

You're right Mike!

There is a Harrier there. That must have been where it came from.

I'm sorry I didn't take more pictures of everything, I just wasn't interested in anything but those four airplanes.

Here is a link I turned up. Looks like someone thought, or thinks they can aquire the P61......
http://forums.ubi.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/ ... 106293/p/1

It's a couple years old...

[Mike]

Did you get any photos of the La-11? For me, the second most interesting airframe there (after the P-61)

It's certainly an interesting place, and it's great that it's open to the public for a nominal charge. I visited there in 1998, but didn't get the 'behind the barriers' access that you got, Orvis. Oh, and do they still close for lunch?

[O.P.]

Did you get any photos of the La-11? For me, the second most interesting airframe there (after the P-61)

It's certainly an interesting place, and it's great that it's open to the public for a nominal charge. I visited there in 1998, but didn't get the 'behind the barriers' access that you got, Orvis. Oh, and do they still close for lunch?

I didn't, sorry man.

I got there at noon and they were closed for lunch, opened back up at 2pm, heheheeeee.

I went to the tennis club down the street and drank beer for two hours and went back. Maybe thats where the courage came from.

Li e bei tsing tsao........

Some of the most beautiful words I have ever learned

[daveymac82c]

About the rust hole in the back of the fuselage... Wasn't that part of the Black Widow glass anyway? Maybe they needed to replace the glass portion with something after it was damaged? Maybe?

Just a guess.

Cheers,

David

[mustangdriver]

By the way the plane ended up there because their government stole it.

....and thereby saved it from being scrapped. Do you REALLY believe that it would have survived otherwise?

Yeah you are right, it is in much better shape than scrap. But my point is not about it reamining, but about how it is one of their most treasured items and importatn to their country. Come on! At any rate the pics are great, and I do thank you for posting them. The only other pic I had ever seen of it was on a fast google search and it took time to find it.

[bilwor]

All your photos are terrific Thanks for sharing for those of us who can't go there.
bill word

[Dennis Bergstrom]

Great pictures of a very rare warbird! Thanks for sharing them.

Dennis

[Warbird Mechanic]

Very nice photos. Thanks for sharing. I was told this plane is actually a P-61A Black Widow, but it looks like its painted and marked as a P-61B. The original P-61A's were painted OD and had a white nose. Kermit Weeks tried to acquire this plane from China many years ago, but the Chinese refused to sell it. He offered them 8.5 million in gold for it and they turned him down. The Chinese really should put this plane indoors in a climate controlled building if they really want to perserve this plane for future generations. The inside structures of this P-61 I'm sure are already badly corroded by now if its been sitting outside for many years. The windows are badly crazed. It would take a lot of work to restore it back to a museum quality static display. The tail section of the fuselage looks like it was added later. Should be a pointed plexiglass piece there back where the radio operator sits. If they have a big walk-in oven, 3/8 inch thick plexiglass and a mold, someone there could make a good replacement window for the airframe. Hope someday the Chinese realize they need to preserve this plane by restoring it or else it will end up in a scrap pile somewhere, just like so many other old warbirds I have seen sitting outside in the elements. Such a shame and what a waste of aviation history when they get that bad.

Jim

[marine air]

Outstanding job O.P.! I think your Chinese translates to ; May I have another Tsing Tsao Beer please?! (In the green bottle)
How can it be a national history? It wasn't designed built or operated by the Chinese, wasn't involved in a major operation (think Bay of Pigs, etc.)
And doesn't represent nearly as much of their WW II history as say a P-40, B-25, C-46,BT-13, etc. that they actually operated. Is this the one that was for sale in Trade A Plane for $2 mill. a couple of years ago? I think it's true value could be put at maybe a $1mill. like the A-20 Havoc. It's in worse shape but there aren't anymore out there.
Oh, and if it would be possible to trade them something ex military that might pique their curiosity, may I suggest a few T-43 Firefly's ex USAF, or maybe an SR-71 or F-14? I hear they're mothballing the F-117's , maybe one of those?

Is that an Arado Ar 234 in the background ??

[Mike]

Is that an Arado Ar 234 in the background ??

Nope. And there's no such thing as 'an' Arado Ar 234 nowadays, only 'the' Ar 234 (in the NASM collection) - the only survivor.

What you see is either an Il-28 Beagle or a Harbin H-5 (the Chinese-built version)

[Glyn]

Hook 'em!!!

[DaveM2]

Take a look in your own back yard before slamming another museum about how they treat exhibits..how long did the unique warbirds waste away along the fence line at NAS Willow Grove for example? Happens all over

Dave