Your Personal Military Aircraft?

[Stephen Harding]

If you had a few billions of dollars in the bank looking for somewhere to go, what
military aircraft would you buy (assuming of course one actually could buy it)?

I'd still opt for a P-51 especially if I could fly it myself.

But I'm now thinking an MV-22 Osprey might be my aircraft of choice, whether I could
fly it myself or not.

I'd have the interior upgraded to corporate aircraft standards with sleeping
quarters, small kitchen and of course nice leather chairs and couches for lounging.

But...an amphibian could be really useful upgraded to corporate grade interior. A
PBY-4 with more efficient turbo-props might be the ticket! Sort of a flying
combination of RV and boat, that could be quite broadly useful.

I suppose a Martin Mariner PBM-5 would have more room.


SMH

[Jim Wilkins]

"Stephen Harding" <har...@cs.umass.edu> wrote in message
news:oarua5$qtp$1...@dont-email.me...

http://www.columbiapacificaviation.com/trainingsalesetc/aircraftforsale.html

I saw one one at an airshow that had been restored nearly to wartime
condition after being modified to the amphibian (landing gear) version
and fitted as a personal yacht after the war.
http://historydaily.org/flying-yachts-of-the-1950s/

-jsw

[Daryl]

Now, there is RV.

[Peter Stickney]

For sheer flying fun, a DH Vampire - small, nimble, and easy to maintain.
Or, perhaps, a Fouga Magister.
(Yeah, it son't win any drag races, or fly the Atlantic, but it's a
fantastic "I think I want to fly today machine")
For going from place to place - small sedan, a T-39 Sabreliner - the only
aerobatic bizjet.
For a camper, a C-130J with an apartment up front, and a garage back at the
ramp.

The PBY is neat - when you see one up close, you realize it's a lot of
airplane for 2 engines to haul around. (It's the size of a B-17, pretty
much, with half the power.
There's one out in California painted up in the prewar silver/gray/yellow
paint - it turns the old buzzard into a beautiful seagull.


By the way, if you can find a PBM, the FAA Type Certificate is still valid,
so you won't have to call it Experimental.


--
Pete Stickney
Always remember to close all parentheses.
We're not paying to air-condition the entire paragraph.

[Crowell, Jeff]

Stephen Harding wrote:
> If you had a few billions of dollars in the bank looking for somewhere
> to go, what military aircraft would you buy (assuming of course one
> actually could buy it)?
>
> I'd still opt for a P-51 especially if I could fly it myself.

Ooo, this would be fun. (and why have 'em if you can't fly 'em?)

In the Just Plain Fun category, got to be a Scooter. Tinkertoy,
Heinemann's Hotrod, whatever you wish to call it. One each A-4
Skyhawk, please. I'd even prefer the two-seater, TA-4J or F,
so I can bring along a playmate. One of the later versions of
the F-86 Sabre would be tempting, too. The versions with the
slab tail have always been touted as one of the last "pilot's
airplanes."

In the WW Deuce division, that gets tough quickly. A later mark
of the P-38 Lightning, maybe? With something that precious, that
second engine would be nice, Just In Case, to get you back to the
air patch if you lunch an engine. But the Mustang would be hard
to pass up, I never get tired of hearing that Merlin engine. Any
of the Big Round Engine planes would be fun--Hellcat, Bearcat,
Corsair, Thunderbolt--for the historicity as well as the fun.


And having billions-with-a-B would be needed to cover the upkeep
and the go-juice!


Jeff
--
Ignorance killed the cat. Curiosity was framed.
Robert Heinlein

[Ramsman]

A PBY would be great as long as you weren't in a hurry to get somewhere.
The difference in ground speed between having a headwind and a tailwind
of any strength is striking.

--
Peter

[Stephen Harding]

Sold! Just what I was looking for!

Wonder if they'll take a check?


SMH

[Airyx]

On Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at 9:19:28 AM UTC-4, Stephen Harding wrote:
> On 03/21/2017 05:30 PM, Jim Wilkins wrote:
> > "Stephen Harding" <har...@cs.umass.edu> wrote in message

I just want an A-37.

[Jim Wilkins]

"Stephen Harding" <har...@cs.umass.edu> wrote in message

news:oarua5$qtp$1...@dont-email.me...

> If you had a few billions of dollars in the bank looking for
> somewhere to go, what military aircraft would you buy (assuming of
> course one actually could buy it)?

> ....
> SMH

Here's a good start that fits in the garage:

http://www.enginehistory.org/gwhitecol.shtml
"...a Packard built dash one [Merlin] can be purchased for less than
$5,000.00.

-jsw

[Dean Markley]

I believe I'd like to have a Dehavilland Mosquito! Just to annoy the neighbors by flying low and fast.

[Andrew Chaplin]

I like the Mossie because it is has room for all the clobber two would haul
around on the air show circuit and it is rare and beautiful into the bargain.
--
Andrew Chaplin
SIT MIHI GLADIUS SICUT SANCTO MARTINO

[Jim Wilkins]

"Andrew Chaplin" <ab.ch...@rogers.com> wrote in message
news:2b6ad31f-cd5a-4a57...@googlegroups.com...

http://www.mossie.org/stories/David_van_Vlymen.htm
Be careful that yours doesn't come unglued or unhinged.

[Dean Markley]

If it lasted this long, I think I'd be OK.

[Crowell, Jeff]

Jim Wilkins wrote:
> Here's a good start that fits in the garage:
>
> http://www.enginehistory.org/gwhitecol.shtml
> "...a Packard built dash one [Merlin] can be purchased for less than
> $5,000.00.

Worth noting that that $5k price is old enough that the article
tells you to take lots of photos during disassembly "because
film is so cheap," and elsewhere notes that the rices are
starting to rise dramatically.


Jeff
--
It may well be that your purpose in life is to serve
as a warning to others.

[Ramsman]

An interesting article, Jim. The author mentions both Watford and
Leavesden interchangeably, which is understandable as Leavesden adjoins
Watford to the north. The DH factory there became a Rolls-Royce plant
manufacturing such engines as the Gnome and the Gem. It closed down in
1994 and the site was used as a film studio for James Bond and Harry
Potter. It is now called the Warner Bros. Studio Tour London, charging a
huge amount of money to have a Harry Potter experience.

Hatfield also closed in 1994 and was used in filming Saving Private Ryan
and also Band of Brothers. It is now covered in housing and industrial
units. The flight shed and control tower remain as a leisure centre, and
the original 1930s offices are Listed Buildings, used by the
Hertfordshire Constabulary.

I used to live approximately under the point at which the respective
approaches crossed. One of my daughters and her family lived on a house
on the Hatfield site for a couple of years, and her husband works at
Porsche Hatfield which is also there.

--
Peter

[Stephen Harding]

That would be a great antidote to the inconsiderate neighbor running his lawn mower
or chain saw on an early weekend or holiday morning.

Just pull out the old R-2800, point it in his direction and crank it up to 2700 rpm
and 54 inches for 5 minutes!


SMH

[Vaughn Simon]

A CG-4 troop glider in new and flyable condition and (oh yes) a nice
low-time C47 to tow it with.

Yes, I know! That's cheating because it's actually two aircraft. But
can you imagine the hit that combination would make at airshows?

Vaughn

[Jim Wilkins]

"Stephen Harding" <har...@cs.umass.edu> wrote in message

news:ob14a8$ulr$1...@dont-email.me...

I stood as close as permitted behind a Corsair doing just that.

[Jim Wilkins]

"Dean Markley" <dama...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:df42d327-d542-420f...@googlegroups.com...

Sounds like you don't have much experience keeping old cars running.

[Andrew Chaplin]

"Jim Wilkins" <murat...@gmail.com> wrote in news:ob0rd8$s9r$1@dont-
email.me:

>> I like the Mossie because it is has room for all the clobber two
>> would haul around on the air show circuit and it is rare and beautiful
>> into the bargain.
>

> http://www.mossie.org/stories/David_van_Vlymen.htm
> Be careful that yours doesn't come unglued or unhinged.

Yes, I would be watching out for those.

My grandfather, Charles John Chaplin, was a McGill-trained civil engineer
whose speciality was timber mechanics (M.Sc. '08). In the 1930s, he operated
out of the Ministry of Industry's lab at Princes Risborough, Bucks. At the
behest of RAE Farnborough, he did the research that proved the feasability
of the various ply combinations in aircraft construction for the DH.91
Albatros and later did research on what battle damage would do to the
structures of the Mosquito, and how they might be repaired.

As a Canadian who knew humidity--but not monsoon humidity--the casein glues
with which he worked were adequate to the demands of the Canadian and
Western European climates. He would not have had the research on or
experience of gluing up laminations for tropical conditions.

--
Andrew Chaplin
SIT MIHI GLADIUS SICUT SANCTO MARTINO

(If you're going to e-mail me, you'll have to get "yourfinger." out.)

[Jim Wilkins]

"Andrew Chaplin" <ab.ch...@yourfinger.rogers.com> wrote in message
news:XnsA7445A0414192H...@213.239.209.88...

> "Jim Wilkins" <murat...@gmail.com> wrote in
> news:ob0rd8$s9r$1@dont-
> email.me:
>
>

> My grandfather, Charles John Chaplin, was a McGill-trained civil
> engineer
> whose speciality was timber mechanics (M.Sc. '08). In the 1930s, he
> operated
> out of the Ministry of Industry's lab at Princes Risborough, Bucks.
> At the
> behest of RAE Farnborough, he did the research that proved the
> feasability
> of the various ply combinations in aircraft construction for the
> DH.91
> Albatros and later did research on what battle damage would do to
> the
> structures of the Mosquito, and how they might be repaired.
>
> As a Canadian who knew humidity--but not monsoon humidity--the
> casein glues
> with which he worked were adequate to the demands of the Canadian
> and
> Western European climates. He would not have had the research on or
> experience of gluing up laminations for tropical conditions.
> --
> Andrew Chaplin

I built an environmental test chamber that maintained 80C at 80%
humidity for an electronic manufacturer in Brazil. There was some
question whether those conditions would be above or below the local
ambient.
-jsw

[David E. Powell]

The "Tweet" is a really neat aircraft.