Air Zoo Getting Lake Michigan Wildcat

[kalamazookid]

Per the Air Zoo's Facebook page:

WE HAVE BIG NEWS EVERYONE! The Air Zoo has been selected by the National Naval Aviation Museum to restore a World War II era FM-2 "Wildcat" that was recovered from the bottom of Lake Michigan after nearly 70 years. The plane will be here straight from EAA AirVenture Oshkosh and be on display at 1 p.m. on Monday, August 5. You are all welcome to join us for this momentous event! We will be right out front on the walkway with the mussel covered craft, so we'll be easy to spot!

I'm guessing that it's the aircraft covered in this release on the EAA website:

http://www.eaa.org/news/2012/2012-12-12_enthusiasts-invited-to-see-rescued-wildcat.asp

[bdk]

So they'll restore it and give it to Glenview, or is the Glenview deal kaput?

Either way it will be nice to see it get restored.

[Warbird Kid]

Or will they sell the "flyable" one they have and keep this one?

[kalamazookid]

Or will they sell the "flyable" one they have and keep this one?

Considering that was the first fighter aircraft Pete Parrish owned when he started the collection that later became the Air Zoo, I doubt it.

[Chris Brame]

So they'll restore it and give it to Glenview, or is the Glenview deal kaput?

I'll go by the NAS Glenview museum and ask them this weekend.

[Steve Nelson]

That's great news..it'll make a nice companion for the SBD. I may try to get over there Monday and take some pics.

SN

[marine air]

The first warbird Pete Parrish owned was the F8F Bearcat in silver Thai markings. Then he bought John Ellis' T-28 A/D in Blue Angels markings to help bale out John Ellis' Kal-Aero business. It was a blur after that. Maybe the Wildcat which although he flew those in training, his combat mount was the F4U-4. I think Sues P-40 came before the Corsair, then the Tigercat, then the Hellcat, P-47 and P-39 and on and on. For a while there they won Grand Champion Warbird every year at Oshkosh with a new restoration in the 1980's.

[kalamazookid]

The first warbird Pete Parrish owned was the F8F Bearcat in silver Thai markings. Then he bought John Ellis' T-28 A/D in Blue Angels markings to help bale out John Ellis' Kal-Aero business. It was a blur after that. Maybe the Wildcat which although he flew those in training, his combat mount was the F4U-4. I think Sues P-40 came before the Corsair, then the Tigercat, then the Hellcat, P-47 and P-39 and on and on. For a while there they won Grand Champion Warbird every year at Oshkosh with a new restoration in the 1980's.

Nope. http://www.warbirds-eaa.org/who/hof.html Really wish I had my old stack of Air Zoo newsletters right now. The 25th-anniversary newsletter had the complete story on how Parish acquired the FM-2 and how the museum started.

The Bearcat was owned by Gunther Balz and was later purchased by Parish (the article here says "donated" but that doesn't gel with what I've read elsewhere). If I'm remembering correctly, the museum opened with eight aircraft: the N2S, T-6, Wildcat, P-40, FG-1D, Hellcat, Bearcat and Hispano.

[Rob W]

I'll be there on Monday for a short time.

[Chris Brame]

Well, I spoke to the docents at the Glenview museum today, but they don't know what will happen either. Guess we'll stay tuned.

[Russ Matthews]

So they'll restore it and give it to Glenview, or is the Glenview deal kaput?

When I saw the Wildcat wreckage at Oshkosh on Tuesday (July 31), it was displayed with a rendering of the finished Glenview museum display. That leads me to think your first instinct is the correct one and Air Zoo is doing the restoration only.

[Pat Carry]

Glenview getting the Wildcat is contingent on a new building constructed to house it. I'm sure in the long run they will be able to raise the necessary funding expecially since the Wildcat will be in Kalamazoo for quite sometime being restored.