Warbird Information Exchange

Henning, sorry to sell out and choose the F-4 over the F-86 but it's kinda analagous to choosing the most charismatic Hollywood starlet...F-4 is sorta like Marilyn Monroe with the stunning looks, ear-splitting noise, exceptional performance but unacceptably high maintenance/operating costs--I wouldn't want it in my hangar but I'm happy to see it perform in a show.... whereas the F-86=Grace Kelly with classic, elegant looks, good athleticism, little to no bad habits or vices...and for the high quality you're getting, acceptable maintenance and operating costs. The F-86 is less likely to embarass you in front of your buddies...like Marilyn, the F-4 has to be artificially induced to get going (afterburner) and to get stopped (drag chute)...We could even substitute a cheerleader for Ms. Monroe and a gymnast for Ms Kelly, though I'd have to defer to Bill Greenwood for expert analsysis on the cheerleader since I only dated a pom pon girl in college--and she was high maintenance enough so I fired her, but that's for a different thread. Henning, I hope this clears things up for you.

for me any seaplane or flying boat, tigercat, p-40, japanese tony & dinah, a-20 havoc.

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tom d. friedman - hey!!! those fokkers were messerschmitts!! * without ammunition, the usaf would be just another flying club!!! * better to have piece of mind than piece of tail!!

I agree..if Richthofens triplane is the icon of WW I this is one for the WW II..a warbyrd with a BIG W.

Paul, Re. those cheerleaders, while I can't offer any info on their long term maintenance, I can offer a somewhat informed opinion that like a Spitfire they look cute and are very maneuverable at close range. If God had really wanted college guys to spend all their time studying, he would not have put so many distractions there. I used to be as big on football as now on planes. My freshman year Texas won the National Championship, beating Navy with Staubach at the Cotton Bowl. I missed a few classes! Phone me if you get out to your condo.

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Bill Greenwood
Spitfire N308WK

My freshman year Texas won the National Championship, beating Navy with Staubach at the Cotton Bowl. I missed a few classes! Phone me if you get out to your condo.[/quote]

Wow! Beating Staubach/Navy...that's huge! When I was a student at Wisconsin in the mid-late '80s, the Badgers were horrible, but I still had plenty of distractions and fun if you recall, err I mean read/heard about in respectable news outlets our frequent mention in Playboy's top ten party schools

We're planning to catch the last week of the ski season this Apr 8th-15th in Snowmass....will give you a ring when it's carved in stone. Hope there's enough snow left!

I'll take Grace Kelly any day of the week.

Actually, I would vote for the T-33 as being one of the most graceful of the early jets. Beautiful lines. And those tip tanks really help her stand out nicely, especially when she rolls.

Actually, I would vote for the T-33 as being one of the most graceful of the early jets. Beautiful lines. And those tip tanks really help her stand out nicely, especially when she rolls.[/quote]

I'll go along with that! From the cockpit, it looks like a couple of torpedoes on the wingtips! Kelly Johnson knew what he was doing--the old saying "if it looks good, it flies good" applies here. A lot current warbird and former military pilots that flew the WWII fighters thru the cold war jets still name the F-86 as their favorite. During a Warbirds-in-Review session for P-38 Glacier Girl at Oshkosh in 2005, I heard someone ask Steve Hinton what his favorite warbird to fly was and he responded, "the F-86 because it's the best."

It has to be the Hawker Hurricane. Not as pretty as the Spitfire and less recognised for the contributions it made due to this fact. Definately rarer nowadays.

I always thought the F-86 would be one helluva cool ride, with the cockpit sitting out there on the nose in front of the wings. When you look out the front, I imagine you see nothing but sky.