Are there any privately owned "Warbird" OV-10's?

Enemy Ace · **Posted:** Sun Dec 27, 2009 5:59 pm

Are there any privately owned "warbird" OV-10's? If so does anybody have a picture?
I know the State Dept. still uses them for drug eradication in south america but that's not private owners..
I wonder how OV-10 operating costs would compare against something like the OV-1 Mohawk, of which there are quite a few in civilian hands and flying?

Holedigger · **Posted:** Sun Dec 27, 2009 6:08 pm

I am only seeing one listed, Rick Clemens of the Cactus Air Force, Nevada.

The Inspector · **Posted:** Sun Dec 27, 2009 6:13 pm

There are a few ex USAF OV's flying for the BLM as fire spotters, I had some slides I took here @ KPAE several years ago of the four that were here for paint still in USAFR green, but I loaned the slides to someone who I no longer communicate with and will never see them again.

Roger Cain · **Posted:** Sun Dec 27, 2009 6:49 pm

richkolasa · **Posted:** Sun Dec 27, 2009 8:39 pm

It's one of my favs. I have no direct facts, but my friend Jeff was down at Kissimmee in 2007 and said that there were two "apparently civil" OV-10s there, and I was just reading Patty Wagstaff's blog yesterday where she mentioned that the photo-ship for one of her pix at Reno was an OV-10 (Patty is a big fan of the OV-10 too, we've spoken about what a great photo-ship it would be), so maybe that was civil.

Rich

Ztex · **Posted:** Mon Dec 28, 2009 2:11 am

There are two OV-10's in Ft Worth that are on the FAA registry and can fly with the proper application of dollars and manpower.
They are former BLM aircraft...

In BLM colors prior to painting...

Iclo · **Posted:** Mon Dec 28, 2009 3:30 am

It's looks there are at least 3 Bronco flying as warbid here in Europe:
http://www.ov-10bronco.net/germany.cfm

The news isn't recebent, but I'm sure the French one was still flying last year and saw pictures of one of the Belgian taxiing too.

Regards

Enemy Ace · **Posted:** Mon Dec 28, 2009 6:45 pm

that is awesome, thanks everyone for replying!! looks like the clemens airplane is getting a prop vibe analysis done. Are the DFW airplanes for sale? I'll trade 'em a nice Aztec!

K5DH · **Posted:** Mon Dec 28, 2009 7:10 pm

Enemy Ace wrote:

Are the DFW airplanes for sale? I'll trade 'em a nice Aztec!

No. As I understand it, the airplanes are on loan to the OV-10 Bronco Association, but are still property of the US government. If anyone knows otherwise, I would welcome being corrected on this.

Roger Cain · **Posted:** Mon Dec 28, 2009 7:54 pm

Although Enemy Ace is asking about those in civilian hands, since he's in Germany, he may not be aware of all the Bronco's in California operated by CalFire. Owned by the USDA Forest Service, we've got around 15 or so operating as fire directors, so their a regular staple here in CA. Here is my buddy Jimmy Ferreira coming in from a scrubbed call, and me pretending to be a pilot, ha!

oscardeuce · **Joined:** Wed Jul 27, 2005 3:34 am **Posts:** 1021

If memory serves me, an aviation outfit out of Georgia had an OV-10 for sale.

Edit

Earle Aircraft had one for sale. Their website is either down or they are out of businees as I cannot enter their site.

Randy Haskin · **Posted:** Tue Dec 29, 2009 8:06 am

Aren't many of those fire spotter Broncos "public use" aircraft? In other words, still ultimately owned by the Government?

Hunter1 · **Joined:** Tue Dec 12, 2006 7:53 pm **Posts:** 97

Stallion 51's OV-10 Ex Luftwaffe.

Roger Cain · **Posted:** Tue Dec 29, 2009 7:46 pm

Randy Haskin wrote:

Aren't many of those fire spotter Broncos "public use" aircraft? In other words, still ultimately owned by the Government?

I imagine so......

Merlin_FAC · **Posted:** Thu Dec 31, 2009 2:43 pm

Quote:

No. As I understand it, the airplanes are on loan to the OV-10 Bronco Association, but are still property of the US government. If anyone knows otherwise, I would welcome being corrected on this.

No, we were given our OV-10s outright, and they have no restrictions against being flown... someday. Just takes money and time! Ultimately we'd like to take them to airshows.

Much of the rest of our static aircraft collection at the Veteran's Memorial Air Park is on long-term loan from the Naval Aviation Museum. We wanted to get one of the OV-10Ds just retired from State but that didn't work out... we're posting info on the disposition of those on OV-10Bronco.net as it comes in. It's not posted yet (but soon will be) but the one in Florida went to the Lee County mosquito control dept.

As for the Earle Aircraft plane, it was built up from many wrecks that he acquired after they were got shot/blown up during a coup in Venezuela a bunch of years ago. It's never been flown. Last I saw, he was liquidating his airplane parts business (except for the OVs) and was continuing to ask something like $750K for it. That's FAR beyond what anyone is probably willing to pay for such a plane, especially a composite with no US combat history.

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