Warbird Information Exchange

After reading "THE LAST FLIGHT OF BOMBER 31", I was wondering if the remains of this aircraft still exist there, and if so, are there any recent pictures of this wartime vet. The Ventura went down December 1943 after running out of fuel on a mission to the Japanese held Kurile Islands. Last picture I have seen after scouring the internet, was taken in 2002 from aprox 2000' feet above. If I can only get the Dodge out there.....

Here's early pics....I think?





Something is odd. This link says Bomber 31 is on a Russian island. Is Bomber 31 and plane #31 the same? There might be two PV-1's in question at different places....Agattu Island and Kamchatka Peninsula

http://www.pacificwrecks.com/reviews/bo ... z3mnwfGUUL
http://www.pacificwrecks.com/aircraft/pv-1/34641.html

Gary,

There are some photos at this site that includes photos from the author of the book. I don't have the book (yet), so I don't know if these were included in the book or not.

http://www.norpacwar.com/#!bomber31/cxl1

For anyone interested, there is a lot of good info on the site regarding the PV-1 & Navy squadrons in the Aleutians including info & photos on PV-1 losses.

http://www.norpacwar.com/#!pv-1-losses-alaska-and-aleutian-islands/c20jf

Mac

_________________
WWII Naval Aviation Research - Pacific
https://www.ww2nar-pac.com/

Sorry, didn't mean to confuse...Bomber 31 did indeed crash in Russia 25 March 1944. It was in the book about Bomber 31 that I found the info on the crash landed PV-1 on Agattu Island.
Bomber 31 was US Navy Bu No 34641

Jim, thanks for passing along the web site, a lot of great info and pictures. Book is a great read...and the pictures that you have are all in the book.

Here you go.....from the Ventura Memorial Flight files.....apparently taken from a USCG C-130.....

Another one from the files. I believe this was during a survey in the 1970's......

....and just one more......

....and the story with your original photo.

Thanks for the updated photos Hercat. Would be interesting to see some recent pictures of her. What would be really cool is to see a wartime vet PV-1 back in the air.

Amen! Although I'd be happy to see any Ventura flying.

Thanks for sharing, folks.

_________________
Zac in NZ
#avgeek, modelbuilder, photographer, writer. Callsign: "HANDBAG".
https://linktr.ee/zacyates

"It's his plane, he spent the money to restore it, he can do with it what he wants. I will never understand what's hard to comprehend about this." - kalamazookid, 20/08/2013
"The more time you spend around warbirds the sooner you learn nothing, is simple." - JohnB, 24/02/22