Kermit B-26 Flying...old but very neat.

[Michel Lemieux]

Wondering when or if we may ever see one flying again.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jk2q_E-elmA

[mike furline]

Nope

[AG pilot]

It is a beautiful aircraft, and a good video!

[LysanderUK]

It's a very nice simple edit, let's the aircraft speak for itself in a way. So sad that there are so few B26's around with pretty much no chance of there ever being another flyer.

EDITED

Last edited by LysanderUK on Thu Apr 29, 2021 4:57 am, edited 1 time in total.

[menards]

Kermit's B26 is a bit of a time capsule, many on here will already know that even the paint is original (well, the control surfaces were re-covered and repainted).

This is not a true statement. There are relatively easy to find photos of 40-1464 at Chino in the 70s sporting NMF.

https://pacificwrecks.com/aircraft/b-26/40-1464.html

Post Recovery Photo...this is likely “original paint”

https://abpic.co.uk/pictures/view/1412418

Kermits B-26 likely had more than one repaint...

https://aerialvisuals.ca/AirframeDossie ... erial=3949

[wendovertom]

So, since I have no knowledge - was there an accident with this plane that would require a full restoration or just the decay incident to age and time?

I would love to see it fly again but given there are so few left in any condition, thats a tough call.

Tom P.

[phil65]

I decided to watch a video of his B-24, I didn't realise it was so original...

Phil

[Kyleb]

So, since I have no knowledge - was there an accident with this plane that would require a full restoration or just the decay incident to age and time?

I would love to see it fly again but given there are so few left in any condition, thats a tough call.

Tom P.

Kermit has a pattern of restoring aircraft (or buying flyers) flying them a little, then parking them. The B-26 was restored, then flew the airshow circuit for a brief time (a couple of years, IIRC) and went into hibernation. I never heard there was a particular problem with the aircraft, but best I can tell, it simply fell into disuse and non-flyable status. That's easily recoverable after 6 months, but I'm guessing the -26 hasn't flown in nearly 20 years, so it would probably need a lot of work to fly again.

[garbs]

I saw it on the ground at OSH the one year it made the trip. Apparently they pulled the screens when they got there and one of the engines was making metal, so it sat on the ground the whole week (understandably so). I am pretty sure it flew over my house a couple months later after they hung a new engine to get it home.

Still have a slight hope I can get a photo of it in the air someday. Maybe right after I get a Typhoon or a Tempest

[Matt Gunsch]

So, since I have no knowledge - was there an accident with this plane that would require a full restoration or just the decay incident to age and time?

I would love to see it fly again but given there are so few left in any condition, thats a tough call.

Tom P.

It was restored from a wreck, it was one of the Million Dollar Valley Marauders, and the restoration was not that well done. After Kermit bought it, Aero Traders spent a lot of time going thru it to get it up to airworthy condition. Kermit's B-26 is one of the first produced, it is a short wing B-26, it is not even a B-26A, it is that early.

[Maty12]

As someone who has never seen a B-26 fly up close and probably never will in my lifetime, this was a very pleasant surprise, even if it is all old footage. I really should pay FoF a visit at some point.

[JohnH]

I’m really lucky to have been around Chino in the early 90s when this was going back together. The one Saturday I didn’t go to the airport I missed the first flight and also the David Price Hurricane’s first flight all in same day. Was crushed I missed that. But 16 mos later very lucky to be the first person to get air to air pics of it - just fat dumb luck because we went to Flo’s and Ross Diehl invited us to come and get pics. Also thankfully got to see more flights in Feb 1998, when Carl Scholl flew it for a group of Marauder Men. I think it was mentioned here or on FB the last flight was 1999. On July 11 this airplane will turn 80 years old.

[LysanderUK]

Apologies for the mistake, in the UK press at the time it was stated that it was the best of the Million Dollar Valley airframes and was flying in almost as-recovered condition, including the paint. Oh well!

Thanks for the correction.

[TAdan]

Really nice video. I'm impressed they had the foresight to add the camera on the tail. Its common place these days but back in 98 I bet it required a bit more effort to pull off than just putting a go-pro on.

[tulsaboy]

I believe that in his recent post about this airplane, he noted that one engine was making metal, was replaced, and then the other one started doing so. Now that it hasn't flown for 22 years, I would suspect that new engines would be the minimum that would happen before this airplane ever took flight again. I'm kinda sorry that none of the other B-26s available (MAPS or Pima) have been restored to airworthy. There are a handful preserved static, including those at NMUSAF and NASM. Would be fun to have a flyer. But as always, it's certainly not my money!
kevin