SBD/A-24 Wind Machines

[Dan Jones]

A number of our surviving Dauntless and Banshee aircraft spent time as wind machines after the war, but I’ve never seen any pictures or footage of a wind machine being used. Anybody got any?

[JohnB]

I have seen several photos of them, but not actually in use.
I have a book on the history of the MGM backlot in Culver City, I will check to see if there are any photos.

The MGM machines were well known as being part of their huge auction in the early '70s, which happily coincided with the early days of the warbird movement, so the aircraft found buyers.

[Dan Jones]

I think the POF was one, as was Yanks. I think POF has another one (it was outside last time I saw it). Weeks has one, and there’s another one in Texas that’s ex-Nimitz museum. But I’ve never seen one being used as a wind machine. What’s that book called, John?

[Dan Jones]

I think the POF was one, as was Yanks. I think POF has another one (it was outside last time I saw it). Weeks has one, and there’s another one in Texas that’s ex-Nimitz museum. But I’ve never seen one being used as a wind machine. What’s that book called, John?

[JohnB]

The wind machine photo in the book shows an incomplete SBD. The fuselage is missing aft of the pilots seat, and the sides of what remains is cut down so it looks like an operator could stand while operating it. The complete wing roots are in place, it is standing on its original gear but in a tail high attitude.
The engine us unveiled the prop is a large 4- bladed unit (P-47, F4U?) with narrow blades.

Large 6-8" tubes extend from the wing root down to the ground, forward to in front of the prop, raising in an "A" frame to the hub. Probably so people don't walk into the spinning prop.

Elsewhere in the book there is shot of Van Johnson in a B-25 Ruptured Duck from Thirty Seconds over Tokyo.

There is a mention of several aircraft parked in the storage Lot 5 including "several near complete.DC-6s.." but no photos. No idea what the DC-6s are from, might be a wrong ID by the author.

A shot from the auction catalog shows a large (10'?) model of a Navy blimp (likely from the little seen/remembered 1963 film "A Ticklish Affair" where a boy floats away with large balloons and is rescued in midair by the blimp) and a very large model of a 727 hanging from the rafters. Considering the time of the auction, the 727 was a new aircraft.

The book is MGM Hollywood's Greatest Backlot

I tried to post a photo, but it is too large for the site's software. Sorry.

[kennsmithf2g]

a very long time ago Air Classics had a picture of a Corsair being used as a wind machine to test windows.

[mike furline]

https://www.militaryaviationmuseum.org/ ... he-engine/

[mike furline]

https://www.warbirdregistry.org/corsair ... 92304.html

[JohnB]

Mike Furline

That is the airframe shown in the MGM book...unless they had more than one with that configuration.