There is only one original complete PBY-5 Flying Boat surviving in the world, that belongs to the US NASM/Smithonian, but is on display in the USN Aviation Museum at Pensacola, who also have the cutaway PBY fuselage which is also a PBY-5 Flying Boat hull (former RAF aircraft).
All other Catalina's surviving elsewhere in the USA, South America and UK/Europe are amphibians as either PBY-5A, Canadian Canso's(Canadian built PBY-5A) or PBY-6A, as the utility of the Amphibian saw them retained for various post war roles including fire fighting whereas the pure Flying Boats were quickly retired and replaced as land planes replaced the type in all roles.
However there are the following 5 pure "Flying Boats" surviving in Australia/NZ.
"A24-30" PBY-5 Flying Boat Composite at Lake Boga (Victoria)
"A24-46" PBY-5 Flying Boat Composite stored in WA
"A24-88" PBY-5A(M) "Flying Boat" (RAAF wartime field modification) fuselage ANAM Moorabbin (Victoria)
A24-386 PB2B Flying Boat PG Taylor's "Frigate Bird II" Powerhouse Museum Sydney (NSW)
VH-SBV Canso/PBY-5A "Flying Boat" (TAA post war Field modification) RNZAF Museum (NZ)
"A24-30" in the photo above is now under cover in its own museum building onsite, joined by the forward fuselage of a rare ex RAAF / ex NEIAF Dornier DO-24 Flying Boat.
Although presented as A24-30 as a pure PBY-5 Flying Boat, and holding certain components from that airframe (wing centre-section and portion of fuselage I believe?), the Lake Boga Cat is a composite of many parts recovered in the area from numerous Cats scrapped on site at the end of the war, including PBY5A's and PB2Bs.
A second similar composite PBY-5 "A24-46" also survives in Australia - stored in WA, it was sourced from Victoria and used many of surplus parts left over from the Lake Boga project, including the cockpit and tail of A24-46 from where it gains its identity.
There is only one PB2B Flying Boat surviving in the world today, that being PG Taylors VH-ASA "Frigate Bird II" hanging in the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney the former RAAF A24-386.
Two PBY-5A's survive converted back to pure Flying Boat configurations.
A24-88 is one of 46 PBY-5A's received for service by the RAAF, and is one of 29 (more than 1/2 of those received) modified back to pure flying boat configuration by the RAAF in a field modification to increase its payload and range for service as a "Black Cat" and replace older PBY-5 aircraft.
It is the sole surviving combat veteran Black Cat in the world, having served operationally with RAAF 42 Sqn in 1944/45 and participated in the mining of Manila Harbour to support General MacArthurs landings, it is now in the collection of the Australian National Aviation Museum at Moorabbin for eventual restoration in its wartime "Flying Boat" configuration.
(It is however also the only survivor from the 49 PBY-5A's that served with the RAAF)
http://www.aarg.com.au/Catalina.htmVH-SBV is a former RCAF PBY-5A operated in New Guinea as a post war airliner with TAA, and eventually modified back to pure flying boat configuration as its PNG operations were all water based and the increased payload and range were again important benefits, it is now in the collection of the RNZAF museum, being restored as an RNZAF PBY-5.
The RAAF eventually received 168 Catalinas, consisting of 2 early PBY-4 flying boats transferred from the Dutch East Indies, 66 PBY-5 Flying Boats, 46 PBY-5A Amphibians and 54 PB2B Flying Boats. A total of 29 PBY-5A Amphibians were modified locally at Lake Boga and Rathmines in a 1500 manhour conversion back to pure Flying Boat configuration, to reduce weight by removal of the undercarriage to increase range and payload. These newer PBY-5A (M) aircraft then replaced the older PBY-5 in the famous "Black Cat" squadrons mining enemy harbours and sealanes while the remaining amphibians and flying boats undertook Air Sea rescue and Patrol dutues.
It is therefore fitting that today that RAAF survivors in preservation in Australia include 2x PBY-5 Flying Boats, a PBY-5A(M) Flying Boat and a PB2B Flying Boat representing each of the 3 main models that served in Australia.
Of interest, a very rare ex RAAF/NEIAF PBY-4 Flying Boat (ex A24-28 or -29) also still survives "in part", with its fuselage heavily modified into a houseboat with little more than the hull being retained, and now fitted with side paddles it still ply's the Murray River as "Paddle Cat", and at least 2 other Catalina "houseboats" still survive elsewhere in Australia.
So there are a total of 7 Catalina pure "Flying Boats" in various conditions surviving in the world, with 5 being in the South West Pacific where they nearly outnumber the 6 local amphibian examples of:
"USN" PBY-5A Bull Creek WA
"RAAF" Canso/PBY-5A RAAF Museum (Victoria)
"RAAF" PBY-6A HARS (NSW)
"RAAF" PBY-6A Catalina Memorial (NSW)
"QANTAS" PBY-6A* QANTAS Founders (QLD)
"RNZAF" PBY-5A Flying in NZ (NZ)
These are all imported Amphibian aircraft from overseas painted/displayed to represent locally serving aircraft, the tall tailed PBY-6A's are all representing "Flying Boat" PB2Bs as the amphibious PBY-6A were never operated in Australia.
There is a 7th PBY Amphibian in Australia/NZ if you count the USN PBY-5A amphibian fuselage in NZ imported to support the flying PBY-5A in NZ, and now on static display at Tauranga NZ.
regards
Mark Pilkington
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