FHC's ME-262 restoration

[Michel Lemieux]

Wow Dave...then if the case....all the better.

I only remember an old Fly Past magazine news section showing the tail unit and it looked 100% new to me!

In the end it all boils down to traceability. At least today with digital photography it is easier to better document disassembly and the whole restoration / recreation process for prosperity.

Any pics to share

[DaveM2]

Full report/pictures in CW after it flies, so a while yet.

I have also pulled the other info, now that you have read it...To follow protocol anything related to the restoration must be OK'd by FHC management before being made public, even if just a few words. Better safe than sorry

[marine air]

IF this is the same plane that was at CHino outside for decades, it was was in pretty darn good condition. THe nose was formed out of steel and very heavy, (for C.G. purposes.) THis aircraft came to the U.S.for flight evaluation and then served out west and was a "Watson's Wizards" aircraft. The first all jet fighter squadron in the U.S. was actually comprised of Me-262s, not P-59s or P-80s.
I was shocked that the Maloney's allowed it to leave the collection.

[Speedy]

My guess is that Steve consulted with Ed before letting it go...and my other hunch is that Paul Allen paid a pretty penny for the airframe, which went a long ways towards keeping the other planes in the collection flying.

[Mike]

From what I remember Brad, the sale proceeds were used to fund another hangar at PoF.

I saw the 262 when it was in the UK being worked on, as others have said, the main part that was replaced was the steel nose section, most of the rest was original.

[bdk]

I believe the 262 was Ed Maloney's personal property, but I could be wrong.

[Zac Yates]

This is one of those projects I keep forgetting about! It's great to hear of progress and I look forward to the CW coverage (BTW the mag arrived and was quickly devoured, Dave )

Any chance someone who has/has looked through the book can say if there is any content about the Stuka project?

[JohnTerrell]

I received the book today (having pre-ordered back in July) and I'm very impressed by the quality, with many more photos than I expected - numerous photos for each aircraft in the collection covered, inside and out (most shot like studio photos, as well as some air-to-air), many of which are either full page or full-spread, and it's a good-size coffee table book. Much of the written portions of the book provide general histories/developments pertaining to the aircraft as well as individual histories of each aircraft and how FHC came to own them and who was responsible for the restorations and other specific details. For the Me-262, it has 9 photos (two minor) from the restoration included, including a photo of the unfinished cockpit and one of the Jumo 004 engines coming along. There are interior photos for each aircraft covered, with most of them having multiple interior photos. There is no mention of a Stuka in the book - the only mention of Junkers, for that matter, is in regards to their Me-163, as it was Junkers which built FHC's example during the war.

[Zac Yates]

Thanks for that, John.

[Fight2FlyPhoto]

I'm incredibly proud to say that I actually have five images in that book, including the one of the Spitfire on page one!

[51fixer]

I do have the same question....how much of the original aluminium will be left?

Except for old static ground bound museum airframes, NO flying warbirds are original today. Some may have been into the early 60&70's but not in 2014.




My 2 Canadian centavos.....

The 262 also features a great deal of steel and wood.

Exactly what do you mean by 'Original"?
I maintain several non-original A/C that have mostly original skins, structure and parts on them.
I don't ascertain they are original like in the service but they have been maintained in airworthy condition and are very original in terms of their structure.
Not every flying warbird has been recreated with all new parts.
Even most static aren't original to when they were built. Very few are original to wartime standard and even fewer are original to actual wartime condition.

The the big O argument needs a great deal of context IMHO.

[AURktman]

I am going to assume they used an original engine, 3D scanned many of the components, and are having many of the components 3D printed or milled to match those original parts. That would be the most cost effective route.