Warbird Information Exchange

I was talking about a P-38 named jerzey lilly. He would fly to Reno with passengers. Are you aware? I do not see what P-38 question. I found nothing on the Net.

Regards

Fred

Nothing. Even with a similar name ?

So anyone have heard about a so called P-38 ? on another forum, Fred and I are facing a fantastic and lucky man, who have flown on the backseat of many many warbirds !!! it even seems to me that his next experience will be the space shuttle...

By the way, can one of you confirm that any of the airworthy P-38 are fitted with a backseat ?

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The Red Bull P-38 has a back seat.

The name "Jerzey/Jersey Lilly/Lily" just isn't a familar one for me for a P-38.

Any idea about when these flights to Reno were taking place? (1950s? 1970s?, etc.) This would help with the detective work.

Two-seat P-38's, huh? I'm sure other old timers like me remember a couple of examples.

44-53097, now displayed as a P-38L with the Museum of Flight, is actually a true P-38M and was operated in that configuration from the end of the war up through its years with the Doug Champlin collection.

Yanks' 44-27183 also flew in a two-seat configuration for many years. It was converted (back in the 1950's I believe) for Mark Hurd Aerial Surveys with a pressurized set-up. Junior Burchinall also owned this example for a few years, so I suppose a number of people received P-38 rides during that time.

Any other clues you could supply would be helpful.

Has the fellow with the fantastic stories provided any pictures?

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It was a good idea, it just didn't work.

Unfortunately, the boy speaks a lot but always forget to take pictures.
He said that Reno could make a tour of P-38 or P-40. The passenger seat was installed in place of a fuselage tank....


Forget the details of such flights, I find it hard to believe....

There's no fuselage (fuel) tank in a P-38, and a second seat was always tricky to fit, the best being the 'droop snoot' versions with the seat in a bombardier position in place of the gun nose.

The second seat (when fitted) in a P-51D Mustang replaces a fuel tank.

With the P-40 and P-47, a second seat can be fitted behind the pilot ('razorback P-47s only) but I don't think - without checking - this is in place of a fuel tank, but radio or other equipment.

From the description it could be he's misremembered a P-51D flight rather than P-38 - the number of engines in the aircraft would be some kind of proof!

HTH.

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James K

"Switch on the underwater landing lights"
Emilio Largo, Thunderball.

www.VintageAeroWriter.com

IIRC The P-40 Aux tank must come out for a rear seat.

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Taylor Stevenson

Lefty Gardner's P-38 White Lightnin' had a rear seat, and was a Reno regular, so I suspect that is what your friend (mis)remembers.

The Planes of Fame example also has a rear seat.

The guy fred and I are talking about, seems to have taken too much pills...He told us about about flights he made at Reno on the backseat of a P-38, Tigercat...he told us these flights were made in the less than ten past years !!!

I was almost sure there was no backseat equipped P-38 flying in this time, furthermore, the White Lightning, now Red Bull, which has a backseat, was not flying at this time...so...

I think Fred and I are facing a big liar

Is it possible to make such flights in Reno ?

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