marine air wrote:
The P-51D “Precious Metal” was a very fast, Reno contender, and at the time of the photo had a 24k gold spinner. This was later replaced because of vibration. It also had an H model rear fuselage and tail feathers. Owned by the Whittington brothers, it ran out of fuel over the Gulf of Mexico and had to be ditched. It was retrieved several months later and never flew again.
The P-51D “Passion Wagon ” was owned by George Enhorning of Connecticut. He was a prince of a guy and flew a lot. He owned a mobile home manufacturing plant and bought the XF8F-1 project that he only flew about ten hours before selling to Howard Purdue. Enhorning had invested heavily in a start up factory that was to build ultralight aircraft, the big fad at the time. He lost a lot of money and had to sell the Bearcat. He later died in his P-51. He was over the airport when the engine failed and he spun in.
He’s one of the reasons the FAA approved programs like Stallion 51 which has enhanced flight training greatly.
The “ Tora Zero” in the pics was owned by the EAA for several years. It has since been quietly sold.. The AD-4NA Skyraider is the first Skyraider Jack Spanish got flying from the several he imported from Chad. It was painte Navy gray VA-176 with the hornet on the tail. He had a rash of accidents with it. Landed short of the runway and also the tail got blown into the roofline of Hangar 2 at Nashville ( BNA) . So, he parked it and restored another painted in SE Asia markings. This one was lost when he flew into a mountain in IMC flight conditions returning from an airshow in North Carolina. He was only rated for VFR single engine and flew into IMC conditions.
I really enjoy these behind the scenes anecdotes. Keep em coming!!!
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