Last weekend I visited the Western Aerospace Museumat Oakland Airport in California. Here's a look at what for me was the star exhibit, the lovely Shorts Solent III.
This particular one was built at Rochester for the RAF in 1946 at a Seaford, a development of the Sunderland intended for use in the Pacific. With the end of the war in the Far East meaning that the requirement no longer existed, it was stored for a while, then later returned to Shorts in Belfast for conversion to a Solent III, carrying 34 passengers, 5 flight crew and 3 cabin staff.
It was then used by BOAC on the 4 1/2-day trip from Sothampton to Johannesburg, from 1949 to 1950.
It had spells in Australia and the South Pacific, it last flew in 1958, and was purchased, along with 2 others, by Howard Hughes. Stored at Oakland under armed guard, they were sold off after Hughes' death, the other 2 being scrapped. NJ203 was purchased by the Grant brothers, who later placed it on loan to the Museum.
It was used in the filming of 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' in 1981, with a matte background of jetty and sea added to film of the aircraft on the ground. They also had the starboard outer engine turning over on the starter for the filming, according to our guide this was the last time that one of the engines was turned.
Some exterior views.....
As can be seen, the airframe is in reasonable condition. The museum are carrying out limited repairs, but are very short of funding, as are many similar volunteer museums in the USA.
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