Warbird Information Exchange

Can anyone give us an update on the restoration of the B-25 at the Alberta Aviation Museum?

Well seeing as I'm the Executive Director what would you like to know?

The aircraft as I am sure you are aware is being restored to static for financial reasons.

We are very thankful to the family that donated the main airframe and many parts.

When it arrived it had major damage to the Port waist position (if had been brutally cut out) no wings and pretty gutted, but solid.

The waist position is well repaired, the nose has been repaired and re installed, most fuselage repairs are completed and 80% of the fuselage polished to look for problems.

Inside has been throughly cleaned and repainted in the correct primer shade. Right now all of the correct, for the 50's 418 "City of Edmonton" Squadron radios, instrumentation and other gear are being collected and prepped for install.

Most glazing is back in place, some in the nose still to go. There is no top turret, an astro dome bubble instead...which is the way 418's were equipped in the 50s.

The side mounted 50 cal replicas have been test mounted and the covers are currently being massaged for a good fit, then paint and install.

(2) Core R-2600's are installed and (1) is currently be worked on to eventually be a ground runner, possibly a 2nd someday. Props have been redone (contracted) for eventual spinning as a ground runner.

Fabric surfaces have all been redone.

Wings have been a nightmare...they were purchased and on arrival musch worse than anticipated. Chuck McLaren (92 years young, working on aircraft since he was 13) has lead the charge on getting them into reasonable static condition for display...(2) years later they are getting close to paint.

There is still a ton of work to go, guess 1.5 to 2years of volunteer time before she is ready for roll out.

When done she will be representative of the 418 "City of Edmonton" Squadron B-25s that operated in the 1950s from the hangar that is now our museum.

That would be a reasonable summary.

Tom

Thanks for the update Tom.

Wonderful update! Any chance of some photos?

Cheers,
Richard

See what I can do...guess it's time I figured out this photo posting thing.

Tom

My father use to work for Terry Harrold (fellow who donated this Mitchell) back in the 1970's. The first photo is when it was still on Terry's farm back in 2000. Second photo is shortly after it arrived at the musuem. Third photo was taken last Summer (2009) and last photo is the repair of the side blister. Regarding Tom's comment on the side blister, the story is that the crew (owners) of B-25 "Silver Lady" which at one time Terry owned (purchased from Bob Diemart in Carmen, Manitoba) used a circular saw and cut it out for repairs they needed for their fuseluge.

Tks for the update Tom.

Any news on the Vent ?

Waht an epic reccovery that was !

Last I heard was that they where looking it to be a flyer.

Michel

Interesting photos! Looks like it was in real bad shape there for awhile.

Thanks for the pix Tanker 336

We are very grateful to the Harold family for their donation of the B-25

Pat it really was a very solid airframe, but I understand she was the parts queen for their water bombing operation...so it wasn't so much bad shape as scavanged, other than that waist window...it was a tough fix.

Michel

The Ventura is cash stalled...parts are all collected, information is all their (man has the VMFA have an extensive archives on type...its amazing) but the project remains cash stalled.

The Ventura Memorial Flight Association is sticking to the plan of a 1943 accurate RCAF restoration to full flying but trying to get cash in this part of the world is like @#R!@*$R.

But we are stubborn...20 years into the recovery, archiving catelouging and resto.

I have total faith it will eventually fly.

Tom

According to my father, Terry & his partner at the time picked up this airframe from Vulcan, Alberta back in the late 1960's. The RCAF had mothballed several types there. Claresholm was another dumping spot for ex-RCAF airframes, I believe the Nanton Lancaster was saved from the Claresholm depot. I still remember playing in this old Mitchell back in the early 1970's as a kid when my father use to take me out to the airport when it was parked at St.Albert airport where Terry's company "Northwestern Air Lease" was situated.

Actually Nanton Lancaster FM159 came from Vulcan not Claresholm. I found a piece of B25 at Vulcan when I was taking video of the hangars.(actually tripped over it)

Here's another view of how they cut the side blister from this Mitchell.