Ground Support Equipment in Aviation Museums

[Noha307]

Part 4

[Noha307]

Part 5

[Noha307]

David D. Jackson of the websites Warbirds and Airshows and The American Automobile Industry in World War Two was kind enough to send me some pictures he had taken of GSE at various aviation museums he had visited. For those interested, he has a page about the history of the Clark Equipment Company. Note that, like last time, this will take a couple posts to upload all of the images. First up is the:

GSE at the Aviation Museum of Kentucky

• Clark Model E Truckloader
  

  

  
  

  

• Clark CT50 (Type D) Towing Tractor - Serial Number CT 25 5117
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  

[Noha307]

Part 2

GSE at the Champaign Aviation Museum

• Clarktor 6 MILL-44 - Serial Number CM4448258
  

  

  
  

  

  
  

  

Also, AirCorps Library recently posted a collection of supply catalogs for GSE. They include:

• Special Airframe Tools and Ground Handling Equipment
• Special Airframe Tools and Ground Handling Equipment
• Ground Handling Equipment
• Miscellaneous Ground Handling Equipment

[bdk]

I have a 1943 Clark Carloader forklift (similar to the red forklift pictured) at Chino Airport I'll let go for $300 if someone can pick it up. The engine is apart for overhaul but it is all there.

[wendovertom]

I have a 1943 Clark Carloader forklift (similar to the red forklift pictured) at Chino Airport I'll let go for $300 if someone can pick it up. The engine is apart for overhaul but it is all there.

That would go great with our C-54! But at the moment the museum has a Burma bomb truck in the rebuild process and another rebuild project probably isn't in the cards. Now where did I put that lotto ticket. . . .

Tom P.

[bdk]

I have a 1943 Clark Carloader forklift (similar to the red forklift pictured) at Chino Airport I'll let go for $300 if someone can pick it up. The engine is apart for overhaul but it is all there.

That would go great with our C-54! But at the moment the museum has a Burma bomb truck in the rebuild process and another rebuild project probably isn't in the cards. Now where did I put that lotto ticket. . . .

Tom P.

Bring a trailer! I'll give you a ($300) discount...

[Lon Moer]

Back when Frank Taylor owned "Dago Red"

rcer4b1.jpg (9.69 KiB) Viewed 10142 times

[Noha307]

I have a 1943 Clark Carloader forklift (similar to the red forklift pictured) at Chino Airport I'll let go for $300 if someone can pick it up. The engine is apart for overhaul but it is all there.

That would go great with our C-54! But at the moment the museum has a Burma bomb truck in the rebuild process and another rebuild project probably isn't in the cards. Now where did I put that lotto ticket. . . .

Tom P.

Bring a trailer! I'll give you a ($300) discount...

Man, I'll be happy if this thread actually leads to piece of GSE going to a good home!

GSE at the RAF Manston History Museum

• 1940s F.C.Hibbard & Co, 'Planet' Model C aircraft tug, marked as 10210546, it was restored from a blue paint scheme in 2016[1][2]
• Mk 10 crashtender, Martin-Baker sticker on right side door[3]
• TACR2, license plate 09 AY 60[4]
• MJ-4 stores lift[5]
• Unknown airstair, white[6]

The museum also has at least one replica "lorry" from the movie Flyboys.[7]

GSE that formerly served at RAF Manston, but is now located elsewhere has been mentioned in two previous posts (1, 2).

[Noha307]

Here's a quick one: A white tug that may belong to the Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada was seen positioning a Harvard in a picture from a recent news article.

[Noha307]

I came across three excellent walkarounds of British GSE today:

• RAF Ground Service Carts - IWM Duxford
• RAF WWII Starter Trolley (Accumulator Trolley)
• WWII RAF (Fordson) Airfield Tractor

After finding these, I started to wonder what the "accumulator" in accumulator trolley referred to. One quick search later and lo and behold I had found just the answer I was looking for (and a good summary of start cart technology to boot): The ‘Trolley Acc’ – an indispensable tool of WW2

[Noha307]

The Yanks Air Museum has a dark blue tug that appears to be a United Tractor model:
[Link to Image]
(Source: Reddit)

In addition to the tug mentioned in a previous post, the Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum also has an apparent United Tractor tug:
[Link to Image]
(Source: Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum)

Finally, for reference, pages 11-106 through 11-123 of the technical manual Equipment Data Sheets for TACOM Special Purpose Equipment from June 1985 have depictions and specifications of tug-like vehicles (aka Materials Handling Equipment) that were in use by the U.S. Army.

[Noha307]

Along with some other ground vehicles, the National American Huey History Museum has a nicely restored Clark-style tug painted olive drab and marked as "369-803-049":
[Link to Image]
[Link to Image]
(Source: National American Huey History Museum)
[Link to Image]
(Source: YourNewslocal.com)

[ZRX61]

TFC's Trolley Acc....

[Noha307]

The March Field Air Museum was mentioned in a previous post. However, not mentioned were two A/S32A-42 Mid-Range Tow Vehicles I recently came across pictures of in a Facebook group titled "Warbirds Photography California".

A yellow one coded "SJM064":
[Link to Image]
(Source: Facebook)

...and a white one coded "SJM073":
[Link to Image]
(Source: Facebook)

Interestingly, at least the latter is marked "U.S.S. MIDWAY" on the rear.[1]