B-25J "Panchito"

[RMAllnutt]

http://www.rmallnutt.com/panchito

Just thought that you might like to see some photos I took this past weekend while we polished Panchito and got her ready for Oshkosh. Polishing is very hot work, but the results are well worth it. It is amazing how much effort goes into maintaining these aircraft though. Polishing being just the tip of the iceberg. You can't just get in her and fly around whenever you want without a lot of other work taking place. Panchito's owner, Larry Kelley, is one of the nicest guys around. We have a lot to thank people like Larry who invest so much of their time, money and hard work in keeping the spirit of these old birds, and the veterans who flew them, alive. It couldn't be done without the legions of volunteers either.



It was amazing actually, because one of the volunteers you see scrubbing in the photos is Pete Patson, a former B-25 crew chief from WWII. At 84 years of age he was game enough to spend three solid days polishing in the heat.... now that's dedication! I hope I have that amount of energy at 84 too!

Cheers,
Richard

[Al Moore]

I thought it was a lot of work waxing my car!!!
Even though it may not be totally authentic, I like seeing bare polished aluminum. I think these aircraft deserve the amount of care it takes to keep them gleaming.

[Lynn Allen]

That's a lot of corn starch. Looks great....

Lynn

[RMAllnutt]

Thanks guys, I know Larry would be happy to hear that. We were all pretty grimy by the end of the day, but it was a lot of fun! It reminded me a lot of Tom Sawyer painting his fence, which made me laugh, as I was thoroughly enjoying myself. The polished aluminum does look great, doesn't it!

Cheers,
Richard

[DSmith]

Met Larry and his crew back iin 2002 when he had "Panchito" and his Cessna Bamboo Bomber here in Elizabeth City at the fly-in. Great bunch of guys.

The photo by my name is "Panchito" when we were flying formation with her in the CAF C60 Lodestar.javascript:emoticon(':D')
Very Happy

[Jack Cook]

She sure looks good but it's a never ending process and at shows everyone wants to touch it and get their finger prints all over it.
Anytime someone suggested that we polish the Rabbit they usually got chased acrossed the ramp with a big stick. We usually just
keep her clean and she looks pretty good and authentic. Keep up the good work you guys are doing a great job!!

Our starting point.

Our finishing point.

[B-29 Super Fort]

Panchito sure shined up nice.

[RMAllnutt]

Panchito sure shined up nice.

Yes she did! Thanks, I'm sure the rest of the crew will be very happy to hear that. I only had the chance to work on her the one day myself, but it was a great deal of fun taking part.

Cheers. R.

[Glenn Wegman]

Hello Richard,

Many years ago "Panchito" was based at the strip where I am located and was used as an ag airplane for spraying the citrus crops. The pilot/previous owner is still based here and now uses AT-402 Air Tractors, although they are not nearly as much fun! He sure has some good stories about using that airplane in the groves.

Glenn

[RMAllnutt]

Hello Richard,

Many years ago "Panchito" was based at the strip where I am located and was used as an ag airplane for spraying the citrus crops. The pilot/previous owner is still based here and now uses AT-402 Air Tractors, although they are not nearly as much fun! He sure has some good stories about using that airplane in the groves.

Glenn

That must have been quite something to see the B-25 flying so low to spray the citrus groves! Are there any photos of Panchito doing this? I sure would love to see them, and here some of the stories Glenn. Thanks for posting.

All the best,
Richard

[Jase]

Richard:

Thanks for posting the pics. Good to see Steve out & about. Please let him know, if you see him soon, that the RedHead and I said hello.

[RMAllnutt]

Richard:

Thanks for posting the pics. Good to see Steve out & about. Please let him know, if you see him soon, that the RedHead and I said hello.

Will do Jase. Would love to come by to see the BT sometime too. I've been meaning to ever since Andrews, but it's been crazy busy these past two months. I'm off to Alaska for three weeks on monday too. I'll be going to the Elmendorf show on 12 or 13th Aug. I saw that CAF's P-51 is scheduled to be there... is this going to happen?

Cheers,
Richard

[Jase]

I'd be willing to bet that the P-51 scheduled for Elmendorf is Gunfighter, sponsored by Reg Urschler.

Come on by the hangar second Saturdays, 9-2 or so. Open hangar day...

[RMAllnutt]

Many thanks on both counts Jase. Hope to see you in september!

All the best,
Richard

[bdk]

The "before" picture looks like it was taken in front of Aero Trader.