Your Favorite Warbird

[Fight2FlyPhoto]

Mine is FHC's P-40C Tomahawk, as seen in my signature before its final reprint last year.

[sandiego89]

hmmmmm tough one. Guess I will have to go with the one airframe that really makes me think the most when I look at it: B-29 44-86292, Enola Gay, for it's historical sake. Got to touch it while it was dissasembled at Garber years ago, they actually encouraged we touched several panels that had been preserved with different coatings to see which held up the best.

[fritzthefox]

It appears as if the plane of choice for many people is the one they know.

I'm very fond of the Twin Mustang, especially as it was designed with the Merlins. (You can keep the Allisons, thks. There is a reason that plane ended up carting its own mechanic around with it.) I'm really looking forward to the XP-82 restoration.

I'd settle for a Spitfire, though.

Or anything with wings, really.

Feel free to give me whatever you have. I'm not picky.

[Noha307]

I'm very happy with the amount of responses this generated - I was hoping it would turn out that way. The addition of a poll was kind of an afterthought on my part - I figured why not add one? I'm glad I did, it generated interesting results!

I understand the gist of your question but I think to narrow it down to a specific airframe is asking a little too much. For instance, I have a favorite bomber/attack- A26K, Favorite fighter-P47 favorite airshow warbird-TBM. Really tough to narrow it down to a specific type let alone a singular airframe. I also like the Martin Mauler at P'cola.

Yea, maybe it was too much to ask. But I can try, can't I? And, to be honest, I don't actually mind the non-airframe-specific responses. They're still very revealing.

The Swoose. Beautiful lines, great history... Plus it's going to look cherry once the restoration is finished.

The Swoose is definitely up there on my list, maybe even 2nd. Thanks for reminding me.

In the interest of warbirds we've been involved in (in my case merely seeing on a regular basis): Of the aircraft at the TSWM I have to go with our P-40M, NZ3119. I'm not entirely sure why though. Thinking on it, the paint scheme is excellent, the airframe has at least a bit of history behind it and through it I learned of stories from the war I had never known otherwise. Plus, it's just friggin' cool.

I guess I'm just a sucker for the airframes with history on them.

This post is by no means intended as an end to the thread - keep 'em coming!

[Forgotten Field]

I think this one does it for me. Massey Aerodrome November 2010- first flight after magneto overhaul.

[Steve T]

This question is always going to have changing responses as the Warbird scene changes. And I can't cite just one. I'll break it out by American, Commonwealth, and Axis, though...

American: My all-time favourite American Warbird, sadly, is now gone, and its history is really almost entirely civilian, but it will always be in my top two or three. Goodyear F2G-2 Corsair, Bu88463/NX5577N.

Commonwealth: For all kinds of reasons...deHavilland Mosquito FB.26, KA114. (Honourable mentions to B.35s RS709 and RS712, which are the two Mossies I've seen in the air so far.)

Axis: Long grounded and unlikely ever to fly again, but for sheer scarcity and a remarkable story, Nakajima Ki84 Hayate, formerly N3389G of The Air Museum, which was flying in the Sixties with its original Homare radial.

A fourth category might be "the one I'd like to own". That'd be Hawker Sea Fury WG567/N878M, ex-RCN...

Fun thread.

S.

[Ken]

Neal Melton's A-1H Skyraider: an airplane with a ton of history still wearing some of its original combat paint; a real tribute to an oft forgotten and honorable segment of an unpopular war. If there was a "crisp salute" smilie, that's what I'd inject here.

Ken

[wendovertom]

P-61 Black Widow - just a totally cool airplane and I will want to speand the money to go see it fly when MAAM gets thier to that point. A long way from Utah but what a cool plane!

Tom P.

[gary1954]

B-25

What he said. ...it's like two fighters tied together...

[BCA]

My favs are the FW190D-13 at FHC and the FW190D-9 at the NMUSAF. Both have combat history and IMHO way cooler than any Mustang.

Third and fourth would be the He162 and the Ar234 at the Smithsonian. Both ground-breaking aircraft.

[Rod Schneider]

My favorite war bird is the B-17. As far as a specific airframe, I'd have to say it would be N390TH, otherwise known as "Liberty Belle". It was the first B-17 that I was able to get "hands on" and help to work on it. I also was able to get about 2.5 hours of right seat time and actually fly the plane. I never in my life thought I'd ever get to do that! Now, I get to work on "The Movie Memphis Bell", which is spending the winter about 3 miles from my house! Living the dream.........

[kalamazookid]

My favorite warbird is the P-47 "Hun Hunter XVI" at Tennessee Museum of Aviation, although the WB-50 at NMUSAF is a VERY close second.