Google earth shows a PB4Y Bomber at Casa Grande airport

[george]

Could it be there for a GossHawk restoration? Or maybe its just being stored at the airport. Would be interesting to know why its out there.

[Chris]

The aircraft is based there.

[mrhenniger]

I have it listed at this location...
Aerial Visuals - Location Dossier - Goss Hawk Unlimited - Ki-43, P-4, Reliant
...and it is just based there. Apparently it is airworthy.

Airframe history...
Aerial Visuals - Airframe Dossier - Consolidated P-4, s/n 66302, c/r N2871G

Eye candy...


Mike

[george]

Thanks, Chris and Mike.

Aren't the Privateers' fire fighting days over? Please correct me if I'm wrong on that.

[skippyscage]

http://skippyscage.com/aviation/wy/pb4y-2/index.php

[george]

Thanks for that excellent link, Paul. It answers all the questions I had about the plane. The comments were also very interesting.

[TROJANII]

So, why did they have a single rudder instead of the twin rudders on the B-24?

[Mike]

Is it still active? I saw it at a few events last year, but nothing this year. Has it been seen out and about in 2012?

[Warbird Kid]

Is it still active? I saw it at a few events last year, but nothing this year. Has it been seen out and about in 2012?

I thought it flew out this year to a show.

[Mike]

Trawling the web I can find pictures of it at en event in Phoenix in early-March, nothing since then.

[shrike]

Valle in June as well

[Scott Rose]

Registry Profile

[C VEICH]

This coming weekend is the Copperstate fly-in right there at Casa Grande so maybe she will be active for that one as well.

[Steve Nelson]

Does anyone know what the current plans are for this aircraft? Recent pics show the tanks have been removed and functional bomb bay doors fitted. Are there plans to restore her back to military configuration?

So, why did they have a single rudder instead of the twin rudders on the B-24?

From what I've read, the single-fin configuration was more stable in flight, and less complex to build/maintain. There were a number of experiments conducted modifying B-24s with single fins, I believe the first using a tail swiped from a C-54. The final production version of the Liberator was to be the single-tail B-24N, but only a few prototypes were built. By the time it was ready for production, the war was winding down and there was no need for it.

SN

[TROJANII]

Does anyone know what the current plans are for this aircraft? Recent pics show the tanks have been removed and functional bomb bay doors fitted. Are there plans to restore her back to military configuration?

So, why did they have a single rudder instead of the twin rudders on the B-24?

From what I've read, the single-fin configuration was more stable in flight, and less complex to build/maintain. There were a number of experiments conducted modifying B-24s with single fins, I believe the first using a tail swiped from a C-54. The final production version of the Liberator was to be the single-tail B-24N, but only a few prototypes were built. By the time it was ready for production, the war was winding down and there was no need for it.

SN

Thanks for the answer!

For some reason, it looks kinda goofy with a single tail.