Martin Mars news and the Philippine Mars restoration plans

[XL446]

It's a pity that it's so difficult to find more news about the proposed ferry flight. I've started chanting alongside you, Dan K, but no success so far...
Perhaps we should take some comfort from the fact that at least it (she? ) doesn't seem to be on the schedule for the Pensacola Beach airshow in July (cf. http://www.pensacolabeachchamber.com/Ev ... rShow.aspx), so we can keep our hopes up.

[Timelapse]

I was at Sprout lake last Sunday,Here is the video of were she is at in the restoration .
Their is a airshow in Comox Vancouver Island this Aug 17 2013,I am guessing that it might be at this show then fly to Pensacola.
http://comoxairshow.ca/?utm_source=CV+Airshow+E-Blast&utm_campaign=comox+Valley+Air+Show&utm_medium=socialshare
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVW6dsVs-BY

[SaxMan]

I wonder how many gallons of paint it took to cover the plane? No matter how many times I see pictures, the sheer size of the Mars is still astounding.

I was at Sprout lake last Sunday,Here is the video of were she is at in the restoration .
Their is a airshow in Comox Vancouver Island this Aug 17 2013,I am guessing that it might be at this show then fly to Pensacola.
http://comoxairshow.ca/?utm_source=CV+Airshow+E-Blast&utm_campaign=comox+Valley+Air+Show&utm_medium=socialshare
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVW6dsVs-BY

Thanks for the recent video from Sproat Lake, Andrew! It looks like they have made some progress and that work is on going. Looks like propellers are still needed on the starboard engines and the National Insignia has not been painted on yet. Please keep us posted on what you hear regarding the dates for the ferry flight. Being that the weekend of August 17-18 is almost 2 months away it would seem that it may be a reasonable time to expect it to be ready to fly. As long as there is no hurricane or tropical storm brewing in the Gulf around that time, it would be a good time to bring it in. That is a week after Thunder Over Michigan, so I should be able to get down to the Florida panhandle if that is them time.

Thanks again!

[cestrian]

According to the engineer who let me in to photograph the Mars two weeks ago,it won't be leaving until at least September as the flight crew are on contract standby and are not available for the ferry until then.

According to the engineer who let me in to photograph the Mars two weeks ago,it won't be leaving until at least September as the flight crew are on contract standby and are not available for the ferry until then.

Thanks for that info., Cestrian! September would probably be better than August and October would even be better!

Let us know if you hear anything else. And welcome to the boards! Looks like a first post after almost 9 years since joining WIX.

[TheBigBadGman]

It pains me that I cannot help on projects like this, but just the same I try to be noticed from time to time.

I haven't heard as to what extent the Coulson people are retrofitting the JRM, so I cannot help but assume that they are simply removing the water tanks and painting it blue. If, however, they are doing some restoration work on the JRM's interior, I took some stills that may help out.

Most of what I could find is wartime pics from The Old Lady:





















However, these last couple are of Marshall Mars:













Truthfully it does not seem to have changed much since then, though I get the impression that they were originally upholstered in the cockpit area.

On a related note, has anyone gotten pics of the Coronado since the NNAM restored its interior? I keep waiting on them to upload its Interior 360 to the virtual tour page and I'm starting to think they wont get around to it. In a perfect world, the NNAM would get the PBM Mariner from Arizona and put it under one big roof with a fully restored Catalina, Coronado, Mars, and Marlin. Alas...

[JFS61]

My dad rode as a passenger on the Mars several times between Hawaii and the mainland back in early 50's (he was serving with an EOD unit based in Pearl at the time) - He said it was one of his favorite rides. They had a Navy nurse on board who acted as a stewardess, and one of his fondest memories was that they served the best hot chocolate onboard that he ever had anywhere.

Last edited by JFS61 on Sat Jul 13, 2013 5:29 am, edited 1 time in total.

[Flying Pencil]

Completely unappreciated marvel of technology.

Deserves much more attention.

[RandolphB]

I sure hope they don't make the ferry flight during the week of the Reno Air Races!!!!

Latest news indicates that the transfer of the Philippine Mars may be stalled by U.S. Government bureauracy. Really a shame and inexcusable in my opinion. Looks like a possibility the ferry flight will not even happen this year.

Hope they can get this straightened out.

And in other Mars news, the future fire fighting career of the Hawaii Mars is continuing to be in doubt.

http://www.albernivalleynews.com/news/216126261.html

[Rocketeer]

"It has to be signed off by the White House," Coulson said. "This is such a high profile asset and there hasn't been a trade since 1992 because of problems internally in the government." Coulson explained his group is supposed to get some ex-military assets in exchange for the Philippine Mars, but wouldn't elaborate on what it is or what it would be used for, citing it's still in negotiation. Add the fact that a Canadian company is trying to get thoseex-military assets, and even more bureaucracy ensues, Coulson said.

"I didn't know there were so many lawyers in Washington D.C. and how every government department has its own lawyers," Coulson said. "It's a work inprogress."

Coulson added he doesn't think the Philippine Mars will be leaving this year. reporter@albernivalleynews.com

Maybe Coulson should consider selling the Philippine Mars to the Experimental Aircraft Association instead - at least it wouldn't be in a corrosive hurricane infested envirnment - and it could be preserved in a "potentially" airworthy condition. The EAA would probably be able to procure a hangar for it much faster than the NMNA could. It would also be visible to many more aviation enthusiasts at Oshkosh.

[Rogue]

Any updates?

[M.P.]

Video: http://www.clipwings.com/clip/1399/

My video with footage done in August 2012 show Hawaii Mars doing the first take off for a test flight after repair of the elevator and some work at the Philippine Mars. Will these planes still flying in 2014?

[SeptRepair]

All staff have been let go with the exception of the Director of Maintenance ( who is also the flight engineer) and a helper. So for even a ferry permit to fly one way, the aircraft will require a substantial amount of work for the remaining two people.