The Airplane Thread

[vreihen16]

^^^^^ ^^^^^

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by vreihen16

^^^^^ ^^^^^

An obsolete jet fighter isn't worth that much, but a WW2 combat aircraft such as a B-17 or P-51 is worth a pretty penny these days. Thousands of those aircraft ended up in the USA's desert southwest and were made into aluminum cans or whatever.

Just after WW2, my father was the maintenance officer of a Navy F8F squadron that lingered a while in Saipan. The squadron had a critical shortage of tailwheel tires. The very same part was used on the older F4F/FM Wildcat and dozens of Wildcats were being loaded on barges and dumped in the Pacific offshore. My Dad went to inquire about possibly getting some tires off the Wildcats before they were dumped. Some supply officer turned him down: "Nope, we have to dump the complete airplane."

[vreihen16]

Originally Posted by Llarry

An obsolete jet fighter isn't worth that much, but a WW2 combat aircraft such as a B-17 or P-51 is worth a pretty penny these days. Thousands of those aircraft ended up in the USA's desert southwest and were made into aluminum cans or whatever.

I also get sad hearing the local accounts here about how the USAF dug a huge trench in the corner of their base and burned multiple squadrons of F-86's when they were being phased out.....

[ezaircon4jc]

I can't find a picture of the whole aircraft, but this shot is pretty classic...

[Lady Jane]

Originally Posted by ezaircon4jc

I can't find a picture of the whole aircraft, but this shot is pretty classic...

That's from the 1985 movie Dragnet.

[Lady Jane]

Douglas XB-19. At the time, it was the biggest bomber but the timing was not on it's side with the introduction of the Convair B-36.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_XB-19

Sidebar: They would have to turn to prop by hand prior to start-up to get the oil up to the 18 cylinders engine.

[Lady Jane]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

That's from the 1985 movie Dragnet.

ezaircon4jc

It took me awhile but here it is:

Story here:
https://wings-on-film.fandom.com/wiki/N638TC

[M-technik-3]

Anyone notice that the FAA released an Airworthy Directive yesterday on B-17's? The front spar bolts are failing and any flying one needs to be inspected. Guess they may not be seeing any at airshows in the immediate future

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by M-technik-3

Anyone notice that the FAA released an Airworthy Directive yesterday on B-17's? The front spar bolts are failing and any flying one needs to be inspected. Guess they may not be seeing any at airshows in the immediate future

That's a shame but they are 80 years old.

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

Douglas XB-19. At the time, it was the biggest bomber but the timing was not on it's side with the introduction of the Convair B-36.

Not to mention it had the same powerplants as the B-29 but was bigger and heavier; in this case, no doubt a good decision not to proceed.

[Lady Jane]

Boeing 307 Stratoliner turned into a party boat.

https://mikeshouts.com/plane-boat-cosmic-muffin/

[Llarry]

The finale for the F-4 Phantom is coming...

-- Greece's 338 squadron is apparently getting rid of the last F-4Es in the Greek Air Force. Depending on what source you consult, they may already be gone.

-- South Korea has 69 F-4Es left in service but their retirement is imminent.

-- Turkey has 48 left and they are probably the best F-4s ever, as they've been upgraded by Israeli Aircraft Industries. Nonetheless, the end cannot be far away.

-- The outlier is Iran. Iran is credited with 63 F-4Es in service. Iranian combat aircraft tend to live forever, though how serviceable and effective they are is an open question.

The F-4 first flew in 1958 and entered squadron service in the U.S. Navy in 1961. It has had a very good run.

[Llarry]

The last operational fleet floatplane in the U.S. Navy was the Curtiss SC (S for scout, C for Curtiss), which first saw action in the summer of 1945 as the war in the Pacific was drawing to a close. SCs were stationed aboard battleships and cruisers and were primarily used for gunfire spotting and scouting, though they could also be used to rescue downed aircrews if in the water.

When on land, the SC's floats could be removed, and non-retractable landing gear could be fitted.

Floatplanes were catapulted to take off from a short rotating ship's catapult, but couldn't be used when seas were rough; they would land near the ship and taxi onto a mat, then be hoisted aboard by an aircraft crane.

By 1948, helicopters had supplanted floatplanes as the Sikorsky HO3S entered service aboard ship. The arrival of the helicopter meant that catapults and aircraft cranes could be removed from the ships.

[Lady Jane]

Diamond DA62 Civilian and Multi Purpose versions. Diesel power from Austria.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_DA62

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

Diamond DA62 Civilian and Multi Purpose versions. Diesel power from Austria.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_DA62

What a cool airplane! Composite construction! Gullwing doors! Where do I sign up?

[Llarry]

Best photo I've seen of the Chinese copy of the U.S. E-2 Hawkeye. Top: Xi'an KJ-600 AEW aircraft; Bottom: Grumman E-2 Hawkeye. Slight difference in the tail is all I see.

The ultimate topper would be if the Chinese nickname is the Yingyan (Hawkeye)!

[Lady Jane]

Nord Gerfaut

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nord_Gerfaut

[Lady Jane]

Another Nord: Griffon 1500.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nord_1500_Griffon





Bonus trivia: Can you identify the plane in the back with the engines at the wings tips?

Hint: Another French made aircraft.

[Llarry]

One of the most important adversaries of the F-4 Phantom was the MiG-21 (NATO reporting name Fishbed); as we learned earlier, almost 14,000 were produced, making the MiG-21 the most-produced supersonic fighter of all time.

The Chinese copied the MiG-21 design, designating it as the J-7, and have modified it over the years and exported to various third-world countries. 444 are still in service in China, Pakistan and in smaller numbers elsewhere. Note in the second photo that the Chinese have enlarged the wing of this Pakistani J-7 slightly; it is no longer a pure delta.

The MiG-21's numbers are dwindling, just like the F-4's. The biggest current user is the Indian Air Force with 128 and Syria still has over 50. The total number of MiG-21s still in service is about 320.

[Lady Jane]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

Bonus trivia: Can you identify the plane in the back with the engines at the wings tips?

No takers? Very disappointing.

The mystery aircraft is a Sud Ouest Aviation 9000 Trident.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SNCASO_Trident

[Llarry]

The development history of the MiG-21.

The MiG-21's beginnings start in the early 1950s, when the MiG bureau started work on a new high-performance fighter. The first prototype was the Ye-2, a swept-wing design which first flew in 1955. Performance wasn't as expected, and the bureau decided to try a different wing -- a delta wing. This was the Ye-4, which flew later in the year and proved more successful. A Ye-5 with more power followed and pre-production Ye-6s were built in 1956.

The design was finally ready for large-scale production in 1959 as the MiG-21F. Not many were built and a revised larger vertical tail resulted in the MiG-21F-13, which was the first large-scale production model. Pattern examples were provided to Czechoslovakia and China, both of which produced their own aircraft, although chaos in China (the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution) delayed production for years. (The Chinese designated the aircraft as the J-7; J meaning fighter.) The MiG-21F-13 was produced for the Soviet air force from 1960-62, then moved to a separate plant for export production from 1962-65.

The second generation Fishbed (as NATO called the aircraft) was produced starting in 1962 and had improvements in the air intake, radar and engine, among other areas. The MiG-21PF was also produced in special variants for the Indian and Vietnamese air forces. Further improvements resulted in the MiG-21PFM which was produced in 1964-65 and for export for several years following.

The MiG-21's third generation debuted in 1965 with further improvements as the MiG-21S. It was succeeded by the MiG-21SM in 1968 and that version remained in production until 1974. The final variants of the third generation were the MiG-21M and then MiG-21MJ which were built until 1975. Each variant brought improved electronics and an enlarged spine to accommodate equipment and extra fuel -- the fuel capacity was always a shortcoming of the -21.

A fourth and final generation was introduced in 1972 as the MiG-21bis with further enhancements and a further enlarged dorsal spine.

Just as Soviet NATO bomber names started with the letter B, fighters started with the letter F. Two-seat trainer versions of fighters were considered to be miscellaneous aircraft and had NATO names starting with M. The first two-seat version was the MiG-21U (NATO reporting name Mongol), which first flew in 1960 and was built until 1966. A second-generation trainer, the MiG-21US (pictured), was built for four years beginning in 1966 and a final MiG-21UM third-generation trainer succeeded it.

Meanwhile, the Sino-Soviet rift meant that no more technical support from the USSR was available for Chinese J-7s and so the Chinese embarked on a separate road to upgrade their MiG-21 copies. I will leave that story for another day.

[3.0L]

Originally Posted by Lady Jane

Douglas XB-19. At the time, it was the biggest bomber but the timing was not on it's side with the introduction of the Convair B-36.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Douglas_XB-19

Sidebar: They would have to turn to prop by hand prior to start-up to get the oil up to the 18 cylinders engine.

Attachment 3184065

Attachment 3184066

Also, to remove oil that has settled into the lower cylinders, thus preventing potentially damaging hydraulic lock.