Warbird Kid wrote:
I've often hoped that Collings would acquire another Liberator since they seem to be invested in rotating their Wings of Freedom tour aircraft for maintenance. (i.e. P-51C, B-17G, etc.) One would assume that if they are adamant in overhauling Nine O Nine and replacing her with the ex-Evergreen B-17, then the B-24 probably needs the same treatment.
I don't think it's necessarily that Collings is interested in rotating all their aircraft for maintenance as it is that when an aircraft such as the B-17 is down for maintenance for a long period of time, 6 mos to 1 year, etc., the "cash cow" quits producing money. The Collings foundation has found the successful formula for a money machine and it involves the tour aircraft. They generate a SIGNIFICANT amount of money, i.e. - millions each year, that funds the entire Collings operation. When you take an aircraft such as a B-17 out of commission for a year, they will lose a significant portion of their annual income. From my acquaintenences that I know who work for Collings, I've heard profit numbers that are staggering and put the CAF to shame. You take an important revenue generator such as a B-17 out of the tour, it has a huge impact on the bottom line. The heavy bombers have been on the foundation tour for decades and their restorations are decades old. They run them hard and eventually the aircraft will need to be "re-restored". That was the case with the TP-51C Betty Jane. Even though she was a relatively "new" restoration, she is/was the highest time Mustang in the world, according to many. So, "909" would have eventually needed to be taken off the tour, but now that they have the other B-17, they can do it without losing significant portions of their tour income.
BTW, the Evergreen B-17 was part of a package deal. I don't think it was necessarily that Collings was looking for an additional tour aircraft as it was that the package deal allowed Collings to obtain some very important aircraft for their collection at greatly reduced prices. The Collings foundation is very, very smart. When they see an excellent opportunity to acquire warbirds for a fraction of what they are worth, they seize on the opportunity. I think that's what happened with Evergreen. The court ordered them to liquidate and Collings was able to get a smoking deal on a major portion of their collection.
Warbird Kid wrote:
I hope one day somebody with deep pockets and a fondness for the B-24 tools up production for a short run / restoration of B-24s.
Unfortunately, that will never happen. That would require someone to come in with tens and multiple tens of millions of dollars. The final product would not be worth that much considering they would essentially be replicas, plus the B-24 is just not popular with collectors and gets no respect. If somebody had about 100-200 million to waste on a production line, I would rather they build a flyable B-36. Now, that would be cool!
Warbird Kid wrote:
Especially this one.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atka_B-24D_LiberatorIn my opinion, it does no one any good to have a derelict crashed B-24 hulk resting on an inhospitable island at the end of Alaska chain vs being restored to fly and tour across the country.
I agree, but since it is part of the National Park system, it is unlikely to ever fly, much less be recovered and displayed out of the elements.
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