Warbird Information Exchange

When I was in high school, I attended the 1986 Valiant Air Command's (Tico) airshow. Jets were still pretty new to the Warbird scene then and my favorite was Art Wolk's F9F Panther. At the '86 show, there was a second F9F Panther in attendance that had just recently been restored and cleared to fly. The two flew a couple of formation passes and then the second one landed due to a mechanical issue. It did not fly for the remainder of the two day airshow.

Does anyone have info on this second F9F, who owned it, where it is today? I know that the Wolk F9F suffered a landing accident in 1996 at Oshkosh but I don't remember ever hearing much anything at all on the other Panther.

Here is a photo of the two jets at Tico 1986, taxiing. Not my photo but I do think I may have an old VHS tape around with the two flying in it.

Didn't the other one crash a few years later in the Gulf, killing the pilot?

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All right, Mister Dorfmann, start pullin'!
Pilot: "Flap switch works hard in down position."
Mechanic: "Flap switch checked OK. Pilot needs more P.T." - Flight report, TB-17G 42-102875 (Hobbs AAF)

The other F9F I believe is the one on display at Cavanaugh these days.

Chris, you may be thinking of the Whittington Cougar which went missing and is assumed to have gone down in the Gulf.

Right - that's the one I was thinking of. Checked the NTSB site under "Grumman" but there was no record - guess because it wasn't located.

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All right, Mister Dorfmann, start pullin'!
Pilot: "Flap switch works hard in down position."
Mechanic: "Flap switch checked OK. Pilot needs more P.T." - Flight report, TB-17G 42-102875 (Hobbs AAF)

Don't know the answer to your question, but just felt like commenting that I find it interesting that everyone remembers or describes Grumman F9F-2 Bu. no. 123072 (206-V) as the "Wolk" Panther, but according to the EAA Sport Aviation's Warbirds at Oshkosh '84 article that I have saved and coveted for many years, Art Wolk was only a subsequent owner of the Panther in question - and the one who infamously crashed it - but it was actually first obtained and put into restoration by partner-owners Bill Pryor and Jack Levine and the actual restoration work was done by Harry Drummond and Dennis Gile in Pontiac, MI. Just always felt that they should get more credit for it than they seem to get - 'cuz when it was done, it was a thing of absolute beauty! Possibly my single all-time favorite warbird....

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“To invent the airplane is nothing. To build one is something. But to fly is everything!” - Otto Lilienthal

Natasha: "You got plan, darling?"
Boris: "I always got plan. They don't ever work, but I always got one!"

Remember, any dummy can be a dumb-ass...
In order to be a smart-ass, you first have to be "smart"
and to be a wise-ass, you actually have to be "wise"

Yes, thank you for that info. I always referred to it as "Wolk's" just because of the "Air Classics" articles of the day. It certainly was a thing of beauty and seeing it fly on a few occasions was a wicked treat. The first time seeing it in person was at one of the New England Escadrille airshows in Manchester NH. There was a MiG-15 as well at the show and they did a bit of mock air-to-air...awesome!

I remember reading years ago an NTSB report about a two-seat (TF-9J) Cougar that went missing on a ferry flight from California going back east somewhere. If that's the one you're talking about, I never realized or heard before that it had anything to do with the Whittingtons - I assume you mean the brothers who owned Road Atlanta, raced both cars and airplanes, and who were convicted of smuggling drugs and money laundering in the mid-late 1980's.

From what I've heard, the Whittington brothers had another "Grumman" go missing as well. Ex-Grumman JRF-6B s/n 1147 was NC709 for a while after the war with Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) in Alaska (1946 - 1957) before it was sold to and converted by McKinnon Enterprises Inc. in 1957-1958 to become a four-engine (340 hp. Lycoming GSO-480-B2D6 piston engines) 12,499 lb. McKinnon G-21C, s/n 1201 and re-registered as N150M.

In June 1960, N150M was further converted with a 36-in. extension and four extra passenger seats in its former nose baggage area to become the one and only McKinnon G-21D, s/n 1251, and then in 1965-1967, it was the test bed for McKinnon's very first turbine conversion per STC SA1320WE and became what McKinnon referred to as a model G-21D "Hybrid" turboprop with two 550 shp United Aircraft of Canada Ltd. (aka Pratt & Whitney Canada Ltd.) PT6A-20 engines.

Hal Beale of On Mark Aviation told me personally that he sold N150M to the Whittingtons around 1982 or so. The last anyone ever heard about it, several years after their drug-related legal problems in Florida, rumors started circulating that N150M had been seized and eventually scrapped in Haiti because of its involvement in those same illegal smuggling activities. That's a real shame because it was a truly unique aircraft. It was actually still on the FAA registry as belonging to Water Fowl Inc. of Ft. Lauderdale, FL from 1982 until it was finally purged just last year.

_________________
“To invent the airplane is nothing. To build one is something. But to fly is everything!” - Otto Lilienthal

Natasha: "You got plan, darling?"
Boris: "I always got plan. They don't ever work, but I always got one!"

Remember, any dummy can be a dumb-ass...
In order to be a smart-ass, you first have to be "smart"
and to be a wise-ass, you actually have to be "wise"

Jack Levine's/ Wolks Panther was highly detailed and similar to the one in the lead of that photo. Is it possible that the Panther with no unit markings, just Navy and U.S> insignia went on to be the one purchased by Cavanaugh and then properly restored?
I only remember Levine's, then Cavanaugh's, and then the Whittington's Cougar. Howard Pardue had a Panther project but didn't put too much money into it before selling it. What kind of shape was Cavanaugh's aircraft when he bought it? My dad was pretty good friends with Jack and his girlfriend Jill. I remember going to dinner with them the first year he had it at Sun N Fun. He said there were only about 3 of those engines even available on the civilian market. His engine was the only airworthy one and it was borrowed from somewhere, like Pensacola.

Panther certainly is a beautiful jet. Such a shame that we don't have more U.S. jet warbirds.


Chappie

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Brrring. Dispersal? TWO SECTIONS SCRAMBLE!!

The Panther with no unit markings is the one now owned by the Cavanaugh Museum... That year at TICO I believe it was still owned by Harry Doan and was being flown by John Verdi - who was the later pilot of the missing Whittington Cougar...
Mike

That's right! Had forgotten about the Doan example being restored. These were the best, the rest having been outdoors forever as gate guards or on playgrounds. ALso, around 1983, while on TDY with the Marines at NAS Key West, I spotted a Cougar at a small museum near the Key West lighthouse. It was painted blue, no markings.
Always thought this was the Cougar that ended up at Riley's place in Kissimmee.

The aircraft taxiing in lead is the Levine/Wolk F9F. It was pretty awesome seeing the two of them fly together.

So, back to my original question, I guess I can conclude that the "non unit marked" F9F is currently on static display at Cavanaugh flight museum (though their web site makes no mention of it...?) in TX and that there are currently no flying F9Fs out there.

Correct... Mr. Cavanaugh bought the Panther at the Doan Estate Auction and I believe John Dilley restored it for the museum... If I remember correct - he also bought a B-25 at the auction which is now "How Boot That"...

Correct... Mr. Cavanaugh bought the Panther at the Doan Estate Auction and I believe John Dilley restored it for the museum... If I remember correct - he also bought a B-25 at the auction which is now "How Boot That"...[/quote]

Thank you for the info. A few times when I'd mention I once saw two Panthers fly at an airshow, people would think I was blowing smoke! "Nah, the other plane was probably a T-33 painted blue..." , etc. Almost convinced myself I hadn't!

Thank you for the info. A few times when I'd mention I once saw two Panthers fly at an airshow, people would think I was blowing smoke! "Nah, the other plane was probably a T-33 painted blue..." , etc. Almost convinced myself I hadn't![/quote]



I was at TICO that year as well... It was definitely a sight to see with both of them flying together !!!