Warbird Information Exchange

There seems to be an increase in the number of P-38's, Spitfires, P-40's that are / will be flying soon, But there seems to be a decrease in a few that we are, at least on the west coast, used to seeing at airshows ... i.e. ... Hellcats. I hate to say it, but the Hellcat (my favorite) seems to have become an "ultra, ultra-rare" warbird that may need some re-thinking as to it's flying career. We lost one in 1995 and we have none that I'm aware of that are being restored to flying condition. I don't believe there are any anywhere that could be restored to flying condition anytime soon, if at all. As with some animals, there are simply a few warbirds that will be gone for good, unless they are manufacturered new ... i.e. .. flukwerk, The Hellcat has so much history, even Wildcats are becoming easier to find to restore. Just go to lake Michigan. Corsairs are even still being found to restore, I guess the poor Hellcat is going to become extinct from flying soon.

I agree with you on the Hellcat. It just seems like there are none around. Of course I say this before I've taken a look at the warbird registry.

I'd love to see a Hellcat in person. They are beautiful machines with a wonderful history.

Cheers,

David

I have been spoiled for years by being able to see the CAF So Cal F6F, POF's F6F (until lost in 1995) and the F6F from Palm Springs, but still there are simply no new examples on the horizon ... I'm worried ...

the POF Hellcat was lost in Oct 2005, not 1995. It was also involved in a mid air with a Cessna in 2003

Oops, I mean't 2005 ... sorry

Tom Friedkin's Hellcat has spent most of its time in Chino as well.

A few things.

First, the POF's example was lost in 2005, not 1995.

Second, there is one that will be returned to flying condition. That is Paul Allen's example from the FHC. I don't know where it currently is at, but it is the former Doug Arnold, "Flying A Services" example. I believe it was in flying condition when it was bought, but I really doubt it will fly again until it has received a "proper" restoration that is up to the FHC's standards. So, it WILL fly again, no doubt, to be based up at Payne Field, near Seattle.

Third, we still have Compton's early model F6F that is still in pieces from it's crash in the 70's. Jack Cook has a lot of info on that plane and did an extensive thread about it within the last year or two with current pictures. I don't believe it is being considered for restoration any time soon, but it probably will eventually get into the hands of a restorer.

Fourth, I've heard rumors of at least 1 or 2 Hellcats in storage somewhere, (California maybe?) that are "off the radar", so to speak, that could be restored to flying condition.

Yea, it's too bad there aren't more examples around, as the Hellcat is one of my favorites, but there will probably be 1 or 2 more flying within the next decade. Unfortunately, because they weren't really popular after the war, it has severely limited the number of survivors.

***edit*** - I see you have already been corrected on the year.

interesting, I thought Paul Allen's planes rarely fly, if at all, ... but that sounds wonderful if you are correct ... and again, I mean't 2005, not 1995, I'm still living 10 years back ... lolol

According to their website the FHC Hellcat is on display.

http://www.flyingheritage.com/TemplateT ... ntentId=17

Let's not forget that Kermit Weeks has a complete Hellcat waiting in the wings as well.

I don't know what the current policy is, but a few years ago, when the FHC "went public", their stated goal was to fly every flyable airplane in their collection at least 3 to 4 times a year. On their website, they used to have the flight schedules so people could go to the airport to observe the flights. Does anyone know if this is still their policy?

Ah yes, thank you, I forgot about that one. According to one of Kermit's mechanics who posts here, the restoration on that plane has begun. If any of the previous restorations are any indication, it should be stunning when finished!

There can't be that many Hellcats around. Most got shoved off of the end of a carrier into the deep sea didn't they?

T

_________________
"There are two types of people here; airshow whores and airshow prostitutes. The whores, like you and I, do airshow stuff for free, whereas the prostitutes are paid" - Reg Urschler

the registary lists three under restoration plus one in storage at fantasy of flight(cant remember where the ones under restoration are).
it's seems odd that even with losses some types are coming back at a large rate and yet some that were working for a living until the sixties (p-61,f 15, grumman gardian and prabably a few others)have all but vanished and yet some types that were extinct even 15/20 years ago are now flying or getting close(boomerang,fw198and maybe a couple of others)

Wonderful news ... My beloved Hellcat ... I almost had a chance to see 4 Hellcats at Chino a few years back, but Yanks didn't bring theirs out ...

Does anyone have any current photos of the FHC hellcat and P-40C? ... Would love to see some current photos. Their P-40C is a treasure. If you ever really want to see just what the AVG really flew, go see that P-40C, just a wonderful airplane, probably one of the most rare Warbirds around.

Either that or scrapped. Let's see, they were too slow to be racers after the war, and too small to be fire bombers, and too obsolete to see service in Korea. All of that translates into not many survivors.