What 8 million dollars will buy these days....

[frankspeaks]

http://www.provenancefightersales.com/sale.htm

Holy cow! Is all I can say...

the corsair is also listed at TAP.

[SPang]

Hi,

Thanks a lot for the link.

I find some pics of the P-47 Thunderbolt of the Fighter Collection.

SPang

[Robbie Stuart]

Who are these folks? Don't believe Ive heard of them before. Sure have some nice looking inventory!
Robbie

[tom d. friedman]

drool drool!! they've got a primo inventory!!!ditto on not hearing of them before!! they must have deep pockets!!!

[Dennis Bergstrom]

Who are these folks? Don't believe Ive heard of them before. Sure have some nice looking inventory!
Robbie

Tony Raftis of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia is the wealthy gentleman who buys and sells the aircraft shown on this web site.

Looks like Simon Brown, formerly of Square One at Chino, is part of the sales team.


Dennis

[Tigercat]

Man o man--------------I can't decide between the Bearcat and the Thunderbolt--------what a dilemma!!!

[wendovertom]

those prices seem a bit high given the bearcat at LSFM is only 1.8M

Tom P.

[global111]

Republic P-47D-25 Thunderbolt
G-THUN s/n 42-26671
$1,800,000


Hmmmmm
This is currently sat in a hangar at Duxford with no engine so wont be going anywhere soon

[O.P.]

those prices seem a bit high given the bearcat at LSFM is only 1.8M

Tom P.

I thought the Bearcat at LSFM hasn't flown in many years. If thats the case, it will take a lot of money to make it ready to fly regularly again. Maybe not 400k, but a lot. The 2.2 is asking anyway, theres probably a little flex in it.

That Bearcat is Tony Bantas and it flys every weekend. It's pretty amazing, it seems like you just look at it and it fires up. I don't think I've seen a round engined plane that starts as easy as that one.

[bentwingbomber]

Republic P-47D-25 Thunderbolt
G-THUN s/n 42-26671
$1,800,000


Hmmmmm
This is currently sat in a hangar at Duxford with no engine so wont be going anywhere soon

I think you are mistaken G-THUN has got an engine in it and is just finishing having its annual inspection.

Saw it today.

And most other days!!

[frankspeaks]

also of note is the spitV for 2.5 mil when its finished and the P40-c at 2.7 mil.... they are on the projects 4sale page.

and about the P-47, Aircraft will be based in UK until August 2006. It will participate in Flying Legends Airshow at Duxford, and then be shipped to California where it will be reassembled and licensed on the U.S. register.

[RickH]

O.P. you're very mistaken. The Lone Star Bearcat is a very nicely done fresh restoration, it only has minimal time on it. Flight test and to and from the paint shop in N. Houston. I saw it this weekend and it's beautiful.
It's finished in Butch Voris' Blue Angel colors, he saw pictures a few weeks before he passed away and sent Ralph Royce a note saying "perfect"!

[global111]

Republic P-47D-25 Thunderbolt
G-THUN s/n 42-26671
$1,800,000


Hmmmmm
This is currently sat in a hangar at Duxford with no engine so wont be going anywhere soon

I think you are mistaken G-THUN has got an engine in it and is just finishing having its annual inspection.

Saw it today.

And most other days!!

Ahh, I must have seen it the day it didn't then. It was DEFINATLEY G-THUN because that was the reason I went! Sorry fot the confusion, I jumped to an incorrect conclusion

[O.P.]

O.P. you're very mistaken. The Lone Star Bearcat is a very nicely done fresh restoration, it only has minimal time on it. Flight test and to and from the paint shop in N. Houston. I saw it this weekend and it's beautiful.
It's finished in Butch Voris' Blue Angel colors, he saw pictures a few weeks before he passed away and sent Ralph Royce a note saying "perfect"!

Hi Rick!

I am by no means dissing the restoration. It is the finest Bearcat in existence. My only thought was, I was under the impression that it has been sitting for a long time. I am probably wrong about that, I saw that it was annualed last year.

The reason I bring it up is because a couple of horror stories a couple of T28 buds told me. Both of them, in different instances, purchased and picked up 100 percent restored, beautiful planes, in annual, that had been sitting idle for 2 and 3 years respectively. In one case the first indication of a problem was a very strong gas smell during the middle of the cross country flight bringing it home.

In both cases, they ended up pulling every hose and gasket out of the planes and having them inspected and replaced if needed and everything retorqued, ect, ect.

I always think about what they told me when I see simular kinds of deals. If it was my money, and the plane had less than X amount of hours on it over X amount of time (TBD by someone who knows better than me), then the plane wouldn't even move until it had super big bob marley giaganto annual done on it.

I figure its what you do, cost of owning one, no biggie. I don't know why, but I've had the impression that that plane, and some of the other LSFM beauties haven't actually flown in quite awhile. I'm probably wrong on that.

I hope that clears up my thinking on it. That is the finest Bearcat out there! I hope it comes out this direction. It'd be nice to see two of them together.

Orvis

[RickH]

Actually the Bearcat was part of a 3 way swap with Quantico many years ago. It was the last deal done by any of the Navy museums before the moratorium.

It has been in restoration ever since. First with Jim Fausz and then it went to Nelson Ezell. They finally took it to paint last fall. It is completely fresh as of the first of this year.