marine air wrote:
He said they got there and there were about 850 BT’s. They were given a paper list. Jesse said “ no BT-15s ( Wright engine) only 13’s with the coveted P&W R-985. The next day they called him as there still had 600 to choose from. So, he said “ none of the wooden ones,” Each day they eliminated more from the list. They only looked at the ones that looked perfect. Tattered fabric on control surfaces, or a flat tire, then scratched off the list.
All of the airplanes were full of fuel. Finally they would open the canopy and flip on the master switch. If the battery was low or dead, that BT was eliminated. After five days they found six absolutely perfect airplanes, fired them up and headed east to Nashville.
Thanks for sharing this. Ever since I did a bit of research into the Corsairs that Ed Maloney recovered from boneyard, I've wondered about how you make a decision in this sort of situation. You're faced with a field full of surplus airplanes, but you only need a few. How do you pick? Do you go with the ones that are at the front of the line and easiest to tow out? (Supposedly,
this is the reason that the steam engine that was the inspiration for the book
Polar Express was saved.) Do you pick the aircraft based on some semblance of historical value? (Ira Kepford's Corsair was marked as #39 and BuNo 92132 is
pictured as having that same number when it was recovered from the boneyard. Was it a coincidence or a deliberate decision?) Or, as you have now supplied evidence for, do you spend the time trying to find the examples in the best condition? (Then, on the other hand, you have cases like the
first B-17 that Art Lacey was given, where it was clearly a war-weary aircraft.) I guess the short answer is that it depends on the person on the spot and their goals, but it would be nice to have some more anecdotes for reference.
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