Who's PBY was this on Spencer's Pilots?

[Jerry O'Neill]

I found this clip from a German version of "Spencer's Pilots" and I was wondering who's PBY this was and if it's still around?
Jerry

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQccIWu7GUc

[The Inspector]

Jerry,
Thanks for kicking the stuffing out of the cobwebs inside my head! I'd forgotten about Spencers Pilots, it only ran 10 episodes in the Fall of 1976. If I recall correctly it was sort of Charlies Angels with guys and airplanes and cast members who were so shallow you could see light through them. A three dimensional 'Big Wheels' except Claude Akins has some acting chops. Shouldn't be too hard tracking down tanker 85 from that time period.

[JohnB]

Tallmantz aviation provided some of the planes used in the series, I recall their rare L-1 (now with weeks?) in one episode.
According to Scott Thompson's website, Frank Tallman, Art Scholl and Frank Pine did flying for the series in the summer of 1977.

I saw a couple of episodes, but I was in college atthe time so I didn't do much TV watching.


BTW: The Claude Akins series was "Movin' On" (in the U.S. anyway)...

[agent86]

OK guys,I'll admit it,it was my PBY,i was running guns to mexico and returning with disney based Pinatas.very profitable.especially the disney pinatas

[The Inspector]

JohnB,
You're correct!! It's funny how all those well written, in depth, Emmy Award winning TV programs seem to run together.

[Warbirdnerd]

I can't watch the video but according to Warbird Directory 5th edition PBY Bu 64041 has been tanker #85 since the mid 1970's.

[mike furline]

A list of Air Tankers,

http://www.ruudleeuw.com/airtanker-id.htm

[David Legg]

I found this clip from a German version of "Spencer's Pilots" and I was wondering who's PBY this was and if it's still around?
Jerry

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQccIWu7GUc

Tanker 85 was PBY-6A N6453C, a Wright Cyclone Super Cat conversion. It was originally BuAer64041 (US Navy). In commercial service in the USA it flew with various sprayer and tanker companies including Hemet Valley Flying Services, probably the operators at the time the film was made. It was originally coded 'E54' and '54' but later became 85 before going to Canada as C-GFFI with Flying Fireman Ltd and variously fleet numbers '10', '9' and '779'. It then passed on to the US subsidiary Flying Fireman Inc as N85U in Washington State where it is still to be found although no longer active as a water bomber. It now carries the tail code '85' based on its registration but possibly aklso linked to the code it wore when N6453C.

[JohnB]

JohnB,
You're correct!! It's funny how all those well written, in depth, Emmy Award winning TV programs seem to run together.

But many are still better than the "reality" and crime procedure shows we get too much of nowdays...
I rather miss Claude Akins and his Kenworth...simpler days anyway.

[Lynn Allen]

Ober, our message is at the 55sec mark....

[Jesse C.]

Todd Susman looks like Paulie Shore! But seriously, he was the voice of the P.A. in M.A.S.H.!

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0839881/

[CAPFlyer]

It now carries the tail code '85' based on its registration but possibly aklso linked to the code it wore when N6453C.

My understanding from Bud was that he put it back to "85" when he brought it back to the US from Canada because the slot was available and he's always been one for maintaining a plane's "history" as much as he can, hence the Hemet-style paint job (although the colors were changed for obvious reasons).