Slow death of a Mustang - Cuban P-51 deteriorating

[Swiss Mustangs]

folks

sometimes i feel like screaming.....

just received an actual photo of the ex-FAR F-51D on display at Havana, Cuba.... it made me cringe....

look at the photos below.... first photo was taken approx. 5 years ago.... the a/c looks fairly intact, but sure shows sign of being exposed to the elements for many years, especially the canopy turned yellow-ish and has spiderweb-cracks... I also doubt that there still is an engine in situ...



now for the actual shot...... although there's a new layer of paint, the canopy has been replaced by a botched thingy.... bomb racks are gone, main wheel doors are gone, lower part of rudder is either dented or a part is missing, the a/c needs to be propped up.... IMHO it's a shame to see an aircraft dying like this....



comments ?

Cordially
Martin

[Steve Nelson]

Sad..but considering Cuba's precarious economic situation, not surprising.

The rudder and inner gear doors were likely damaged by lawn mowers. I remember reading that when the the Shiden-Kai that used to be on outdoor display at NAS Willow Grove was restored, it had suffered quite a bit of damage from years of being banged into by lawn mowers, or hit by flying debris they kicked up.

SN

[Dan K]

And the canopy? They replaced that compound-curved monstrosity with a simple-curved, low-profile. Someone's gettin' ready for Reno!

[Nathan]

By the looks of the new photo the place hasn't been mowed in years! Perhaps they realized lawn mowers are an endangerment to static display aircraft!

[B-29 Super Fort]

I wonder if someone has ever approached the cash-strapped Cuban government to purchase it and maybe swap it with a fiberglass replica if they'd let it go.

[Swiss Mustangs]

there's another P-51 reported in Cuba... with sawn-off wings.... this small piece of evidence I found on the web eons ago.....

no info whatsoever on location and ID, though



Martin

[marine air]

A 23 year old lineman at our FBO is from Cuba and he swears Castro is dead already. No new video footage except those shots of him in his pajamas for a year now. Castro used to do daily photo ops.
I have dreamed all my life of the collapse of Communism in Cuba and will be making a trip down there as soon as the Cuba regime collapses! He said the newest American cars are 59 models and when he went back a year ago his rental car was a 39 Chevy! He believes there are a lot of junk airplanes down there, maybe a Sea Fury or two.

[PeterA]

I wonder if someone has ever approached the cash-strapped Cuban government to purchase it and maybe swap it with a fiberglass replica if they'd let it go.

Perhaps you should ask yourself the broader question. Why is Cuba cash strapped?

The cold war is over, the wall is down, the 'velvet revolution' has been and gone in central Europe.

This a fine museum and I have visited.

Rather than make them an approach to purchase, surely a modest appeal for funds to purchase or a donation of a replaced 'time ex' Warbird canopy glazing would be more appropriate.

PeterA

[peter]

From what I can see, the mainwheel doors have been retracted and a jack or support is not holding them closed?

[Andrew Semon]

Is that part of the collection just located outside of the city of Havana...Is it open the public as we have been to Cuba quite a few times over the past 10 yrs and would I would luv to visit the collection...

Andrew

[mtpopejoy]

A 23 year old lineman at our FBO is from Cuba and he swears Castro is dead already. No new video footage except those shots of him in his pajamas for a year now. Castro used to do daily photo ops.
I have dreamed all my life of the collapse of Communism in Cuba and will be making a trip down there as soon as the Cuba regime collapses! He said the newest American cars are 59 models and when he went back a year ago his rental car was a 39 Chevy! He believes there are a lot of junk airplanes down there, maybe a Sea Fury or two.

I felt likewise until talking to 2 technicians I had in my shop in South Florida. The canopy replacement pretty much sums up the way things are fixed. I told him I wanted to go down there and get a 57 Chevy he said there would be nothing left worth restoring...everything is cabobled. You can't exactly run down to the local Auto Zone or hit Year One on the internet in Cuba.

[paulmcmillan]

I wonder if someone has ever approached the cash-strapped Cuban government to purchase it and maybe swap it with a fiberglass replica if they'd let it go.

OK if you are not american, but if you were then you would be breaking the United States Embargo Against Cuba

[Andrew Semon]

I have seem some pretty nice late 50's american iron in Cuba...yes some are using diesel tractor engines but still nice...

[Django]

There is a documentary out there about how the people keep their cars running year after year. Very dedicated people and lots of ingenuity who are forced to make due with very little.

It looks kinda neat in Cuban colors. Sad to see it going down hill... but at least it is still there! And would be much easier to restore than most other survivors at this point.

[bdk]

Where is the outpouring of love for the Harvard behind the P-51?

http://www.airliners.net/photo/Cuba---A ... 1045616/M/

This one shows the P-51's original canopy in place in 2006:

http://www.airliners.net/photo/Cuba---A ... 1045617/M/

Check out the T-28 canopy:

http://www.airliners.net/photo/Cuba---A ... 0440841/M/

Mmmmm.... A-26!

http://www.airliners.net/photo/Cuba---A ... 0440840/M/

Note the Centaurus sittung next to it.