Warbird Information Exchange

So what was the Bob Hoover connection with the Penhall Mustang? Every photo I've seen of the airplane was just yellow with the red stripe and red number on the tail. I know Bob flew it one year at Reno when Penhall could not race it, but here it has the Bob Hoover Rockwell markings, but still with a version of Penhall's #81. Was Bob between Mustangs at that time or what? Mustangs Mustangs has no mention of a Hoover paint job. http://www.mustangsmustangs.com/p-51/?s ... l/44-74012

As a further note, if I'm not mistaken it was a young Steve Hinton who rode that Mustang into those trees. This might not be the one, but I've heard him mention bellying in a Mustang after OSH back in the 1970s.

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Neal Nurmi

---Wingman Photo---

You're correct about Steve Hinton, there's a good discussion about the incident on MustangsMustangs

http://www.mustangsmustangs.com/p-51/who/case/330

I can't remember about the Hoover connection. I think its mentioned in his book, I'll look through it later.

Connor

I can't believe none of this thread has zeroed in on the guy standing behind the F-86 in the yellow and white checkerboard pants. A reminder that "fashion" was as liberal as the accuracy of warbird paint jobs in the '70's.

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Duplicate post. Sorry.

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Bob's N51RH had an oxygen bottle explode in 1974 (I think). While the plane was being repaired, Penhall let Hoover borrow his racer. They painted over the orange stripe on the spinner and fuselage and applied Rockwell International markings to it, but left the race number on the tail and wing. Steve Hinton was ferry pilot for the plane to OSH and back, and that was when he had the engine quit on departure.

My old buddy Ralph Payne built that plane up for Leroy, and when Leroy showed up at Reno his first year in 1969 Hoover flew it...and said it was the nicest flying Mustang he ever flew. That was one of the reasons Leroy wanted to help Bob out. Anyone who ever flew Ralph's "Precious Metal" said the same thing...that it was a really nice flying plane. But for the late 60's and early '70's, all of Ralph's planes were that way. We used to call them 'Ralphed' because he would disassemble them on the hangar floor down to every nut and washer and then build them up with the best 'new' parts he could find. Standard procedure today, but back then...it was not heard of.

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Not N51RH, but rather N2251D at Oshkosh in 1970. I'm not sure what was wrong with N51RH in 74 for Hoover to use Penhall's 51 in Rockwell colors.

http://www.mustangsmustangs.com/p-51/who/case/295

T J

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Okay on the first photo, the line up is "Color Me Gone" then owned by Johnny Wiliams.(Later crashed) Then "Ge Ge" named after Scott Smith's wife Georgine.(Sold to Bill Clark and later destroyed flying IFR with only a VFR rating) Then "Cripes A Mighty" owned by a guy in Connecticut and later sold to Kermit Weeks. Then "El Gato Rapido" owned by Garland Brown. Then "Miss Kat Brat" I think owned by Bob Ferguson. In the distance was a Harvard in it's original RCAF paint. Quite common back then. The biplane behind "CMG's" canopy was a J2F-6 Grumman Duck owned by John Siedel of Chicago. Seidel also owned a Columbine Superduck but never finished it.
In the second photo, I believe the plain polished metal P-51 was owned by Don Plumb.(Later destroyed flying into a thunderstorm). The Firefly at the end of the row was in great shape and owned by the CWH. Later destroyed doing ground level aerobatics.
Hoover's Mustangs. Okay his first was N2251D. Given that N number because the aircraft was 22 years old at the time. It was having the low pressure oxygen system serviced in Chattanooga and they hooked a high pressure servicing unit to it and blew a huge hole in the rear fuselage. Rockwell then bought N31RH which he flew. N2251D went to Texas until purchased by my dad in 1977.
My guess on why Bob was using Penhall's P-51 was that either his was down for maintenance, damaged, or Rockwell and he had parted ways and it wasn't his to borrow. Probably a money for maintenance issue.

we always called the porta potties corvettes

They were apparently still "in" for 1974...

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Chris

Wow, look a that line up. That must be the group out for the warbird show that day. Sadly, todays shows do not have this level of fighter support.

Back in the day, the warbirds would start up and taxi to airshow center. Later, they would restart and taxi out to do their flybys. Anyone could fly anything, just no aerobatics unless you had the FAA card. So it was quite easy to put all the Navy or British aircraft together, or Grummans and create some neat photo ops. Miraculously no one ever got hurt and there weren't any mid air collisions. No formation card, type ratings, proof of insurance, or any other requirements.

I always get some flak when I say this, but I REALLY miss those great airshows of the 1970s. Nothing today quite matches the relaxed atmosphere and the "fun flying" feel of those shows. Plus after hours you could just wander around, touch the airplanes, and BS with the owners. Everything these days just seems so "precious" -- more money but less fun.

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Neal Nurmi

---Wingman Photo---

One word: Lawyers

The ground atmosphere at Oshkosh is much as it always was. I am always amazed that 99.9% of the airplanes are still not roped off. I was shocked to see Sierra Sue II sitting in the the Mustang Row with nobody around it one morning, no canopy cover, no ropes.
As for Airshows, I long for the days of Max Hoffman doing flybys. I also recall on several occasions back then a Bearcat, Mustang, and Sea Fury getting into an impromptu climb competition at the end of each lap that got progressively higher, faster, and louder. Good times.

I was also wondering about that. Especially since it is parked next to the 51 I think is Max Hoffman's "Boomer". There are however anomalies from photos of CF-USA both prior to and after this Oshkosh convention. Notable are the air vents on the lower cowls, RR badge on the cowl piece behind the vent, gun ports which I've never seen on CF-USA, and the lack of three digit serial on the gear door. The aerial protruding on the lower part of the cowl between the clam shell doors is similar though.

I would also suggest major maintenance or repair as Rockwell kept sponsoring Hoover until the 80s.

T J

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