Warbird Information Exchange

As for the Conquest 1 vs Rare Bear debate between Speedy and marine air:

Both of these aircraft have significance in aviation history, but in my eyes I believe Race 1 is a little more significant than Race 77. All six of Conquest One's Reno championships (including an unmatched 5 straight) and its world speed record were accomplished with an R-2800 in a span of just six years. Rare Bear is the current 3km record holder and does have nine Reno championships, but took 34 years and it took an R-3350 to get it done.

N1111L is very worthy of its place in America's Hangar.


Chappie

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Brrring. Dispersal? TWO SECTIONS SCRAMBLE!!

Shane - I fired a mail to Chris Colton when I saw the post. There was another that NMRCAF chased last year which is semi derelict -however in that case ownership was vague ! Moving a C-119 that has been grounded for a while is going to a dismantle job . The guys in Belgium have done it (documented on their website) -I hope this is the right aircraft at the right place!

Speedy- I was driving the kids to grandma's hose yesterday when I was reminded of "Conquest I" with its banana yellow paint and candy corn orange colored propellor.
We were at an intersection next to a guy with a 1960's/ 70's style dune buggy on a trailer. It's gawdy bright blue paint and chrome wheels and VW bug engine reminded me of the purple one my dad had back in those days.
I wish I could have told them it had a fibreglas body like a WW II Ford GPA amphibious jeep or a german Schwimmwagen, but it didn't have that providence. Or maybe the amazing suspension and capability of a VW "Kubelwagen, it was just a collection of modified parts. I wasn't even able to proclaim it had a high performance engine out of a Porsche 912 or 914. Nope, just a beetle engine. All I could say is "your grandpa had a purple dune buggy like that one before he got serious and bought a P-51!"

Threads and news like this depress me. I think everyone of airplane minded would want to see these saved, in just that they are cool looking airplanes and too few survive today. Cant we like airplanes just for the machines they are? Isn't that enough to say they deserve to survive? An airplane doesn't have to be significant to be cool.

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