Old TV programs and aircraft

engguy · **Joined:** Wed Mar 29, 2006 10:45 am **Posts:** 442

Does anyone remember the TV program called "Airpower" it showed alot of experimental aircraft. I wish there was a place to get it on DVD.

Also a show called "Man and Challenge" really had some cool stuff on it as well. Guess this ages some of us.

mustangdriver · **Posted:** Tue Feb 12, 2008 9:39 pm

Any one remember Riptide, with a pink S-58 in it?

Steve S · **Posted:** Tue Feb 12, 2008 10:07 pm

Wasn't the name of the S-58 Mimi on Riptide.

Elroy13 · **Posted:** Tue Feb 12, 2008 11:27 pm

Steve S wrote:

Wasn't the name of the S-58 Mimi on Riptide.

the "Screamin Mimi"

mustangdriver · **Posted:** Tue Feb 12, 2008 11:36 pm

Yeah that was it! It had a huge shark mouth on the front too.

Steve Nelson · **Posted:** Wed Feb 13, 2008 3:15 am

I saw a pic of that one taken recently (like within the last couple of years.) It was being used for firefighting in California..it was still pink with the garish mouth, but the paint looked decidedely ratty.

SN

mustangdriver · **Posted:** Wed Feb 13, 2008 8:26 am

No Way! It is still around! To be honest I think it even looked ratty on the show.

bdk · **Joined:** Sun May 02, 2004 1:16 am **Posts:** 11332

mustangdriver wrote:

Yeah that was it! It had a huge shark mouth on the front too.

Cool! Maybe "they" should put that on every P-40 flying as well? :twisted:

jbell · **Posted:** Wed Feb 13, 2008 4:42 pm

I'm really going way back! How about "The Whirlybirds"? On 1957-1960. Two guys in a Bell Model 47 getting into all kinds of situations I can remember it but I was only three!........John

tom d. friedman · **Posted:** Wed Feb 13, 2008 5:46 pm

the air power show i remember was a 50's era documentary series narrated by walter cronkite. most all ww 2 original film footage.

Flashonyrsix · **Posted:** Wed Feb 13, 2008 6:13 pm

How about Sky King and the bamboo bomber song bird? Even better the radio version when Sky had his own Jet Fighter.

Norm

pmahaffey · **Posted:** Wed Feb 13, 2008 11:04 pm

tom d. friedman wrote:

the air power show i remember was a 50's era documentary series narrated by walter cronkite. most all ww 2 original film footage.

Yes I have a few episodes on video tape of that show. It was really good considering the era that it was produced. It had a shot of a B-47 doing a JATO takeoff on the opening credits.

Patrick Mahaffey
B-17 "Chuckie" Pilot/Mechanic
B-25 "Pacific Prowler" Pilot/Mechanic

JBoyle · **Posted:** Thu Feb 14, 2008 12:07 am

Whirlybirds...why I learned to fly in a Bell 47!

BTW: the Riptide helicopter was supposed to be an Army surplus H-34..but it was actually a S-58T twin turbine conversion. I believe its' still working in California doing external lift operations.

Loved Sky King's Song Bird. To me the 310B is the prettiest 310 variant.

And a show that is slightly before my time...the old Steve Canyon live action series was filmed at USAF bases and had lots of period jets. I see Milt caniff estate is selling a few DVD episodes on ebay to raise money to restore and release the entire series.

Airwolf...the Bell 222 is a beauty. I got a nice shpot of it in 1985 at the bell distribtor at Van Nuys.

!2 O'Clock High...love B-17s. And of course Black Sheep Squadron...loved the head-on shot of the Corsairs. "Tales of the Gold Monkey" had a Goose.

Though it wasn't an airplane show, the 1914-era adventure series "Bearcats!" from 1971 had a neat Standard J-1 in an episode...and it appeared in all the opening credits.

Another show I've only heard about... Ripcord circa 1961 was about a pair of skydivers...think "Sea Hunt" in the air. Wonder what their drop plane was?

Also from the early 70's...one of Tim Conway's many sitcom failures..had him and Joe Flynn (his costar in McHale's Navy) as airline operators flying a beat up twin beech. Their competitor had a new Beech 99. In the 90s, Wings had the same premise and a Cessna 402 which appeared in the opening credits of the first season or two.

mustangdriver · **Posted:** Thu Feb 14, 2008 1:01 am

Funny thing about that Cessna from Wings. It is N121PB. THat N number was always used in the show. Turns out that aircraft still flies charters from nantucket.

airnutz · **Posted:** Thu Feb 14, 2008 2:44 am

Ahh..Ripcord..pre-Gunsmoke and pre-BHillbillies Festus and Dash Riprock
adventure their way thru the air dropping out of a Cessna 182 . A sort of
a mix of Sea Hunt and Route 66...

No doubt, 310B..super sexy bird, what did Clipper fly??

Remember the "New Bob Cummings Show"...Twin Beech and Taylor Aerocar??

"Whirlybirds"..great stuff!!!

"Riptide"...S-58T, with recip sounds!!! :roll:

Remember the "One Step Beyond" episode with the glider? Just before the
glider is towed in the air in pre-WW2 Germany one of the pilots colleagues
plunges "his" dagger into his heart. The culprit closes the canopy. The glider
launches and the "picnic" never sees him again. The war comes and goes.
The friends show up for a re-union after the war at the same airfield. As
their enjoying their re-union and surviving the war..a glider lands at the
field and rolls to a stop. They open the canopy after a pregnant pause and
instantly find they have a murderer in their midst..as they recognize the
dagger..... :shock:

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