Boeing666 wrote:
Race 22 Crew wrote:
Quote:
Don't get me wrong - I love the sound of the T-6 and would love to see one land/take off at Orlando Executive Airport while I am working there but will there be less than 50 at OSH? I don't need 50+ texts every time a T-6 lands/takes off. Is there any WWII era plane more common still flying?
Maybe I should have said L-39 or Nanchang CJ-6 in my example of what a noob would text for everytime one of those landed
Didn't realize that T-6's were that well represented at OSH. Although I'd watch each one taking off or landing, I have to agree, that
would be a mass of text for each individual T-6 movement.
I think I need to start planning my first trip.
I know at one time you could get 50 there, not sure now with economy, gas prices etc. The T-6 (inc SNJ/Harvards) will definitely be the most common WWII era warbird there as it is at all warbird airshows. We usually get no less than 12 at Sun N Fun (4 of those being Aeroshell), and usually 6-8 at Titusville. I would rather see 12 Mustangs at Sun N Fun and 6-8 B-17s at Titusville. It wouldn't kill me if a lot of the T-6s didnt show up at one of those shows because I've got several pictures of each and it is usually the same ones that go, there were a couple new ones at Sun N Fun this year and the Spanish Airforce paintjob one changed its registration number. The most common warbirds at Sun N Fun are the Yak-52/CJ-6s, T-6s, T-34s and T-28s. Of course I rather have more T-6s than T-34s, to me a T-34 is just a straight tail Bonanza with a canopy. At least the T-28 and the T-6 sound cool. I am sure at OSH you will have probably 50 T-34s, 30 T-28s, 30-40 T-6s and 70 Yaks/CJ-6s.
Just an observation...not making a statement one way or another.
There was a time where people would be embarassed to show up at an airshow with an L-bird, or a Navion, or a light trainer and call it a 'Warbird'. Bob Love would have called anyone who did a bunch of 'weenies' because 'Warbirds' were Mustangs, P-40's, Sea Furies, and B-25's. Even the guys who showed up with T-6's would kind of slink in and half-associate with the 'Warbirds', but they didn't wear that moniker on their puffed-out chest. Back then, L-birds, PT's, BT's, and the like would hang out in the Vintage/Classic category...and everybody was happy with it.
I really don't care because I like all of them...but I was at an airshow recently where the local 'Warbird group' was hired to put on a show and what the public got was one gaggle of CJ-6's, another gaggle of NAVIONS....not L-17's mind you...but Navions painted up in not-even-close paint jobs flying around 'playing' Warbird. There was one T-6 and one T-28...which was only there on the first day. It was a good thing that the airshow 'host' organization had a couple of fighters to put in the air, because that was NOT a Warbird show.
Times have changed, I guess. In my area we have four or five organizations who all fly fighters and bombers on the weekends for their 'open houses', but none of them support local airshows on much of a level. I'd much rather go to maybe two or three REAL airshows over the summer and see a ramp and sky full of "old school" Warbirds than getting it dished out piece-meal. Obviously the days of great Warbird shows at Madera, Breckenridge, Harlingen, stuff like that, is over....and I guess I just don't like the alternative nearly as much.
Just my .02 cents worth.