A baby alligator in one of the catchment ponds alongside the runway:
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[/url]This lovely Connie, a fuel-injected version formerly owned by Lufthansa, got here on a wing and a prayer not long ago, and because of various mechanical and legal problems, if it ever leaves, as one museum member said. "it will either be at night, or on a truck".
Too bad... but at least she beat the scrapper.
Another derelict: a very old Beech... the nose is something I've never seen on a Beechcraft before.
First stop on the tour is the working maintenance hangar... just look at all these classics laying around!!
Love this Bucker Bestmann- one of the earliest side-by-side trainers.
A pristine Piper L-4... se was also the day's "flight demo"... more on that later.
A perfectly restored and very rare TravelAir 4000... it sports a J-5, same engine used on Lindbergh's Ryan.
Speaking of engines... Weeks must own half the Allison V-12s in the world. The blue one is not an Allison... anybody know what it is?
Heading over to the storage sheds, we pass another sad relic... a very tired old Martin airliner. the leather interior will be torn out to install in the Connie, or so I was told.
A coconut to whoever can guess what this is. In those containers nearby are a complete P-47 and a Lanc. And the bulk of the collection is across the street in a new warehouse... !!
We disembark at the first shed, and I am confronted with this heart-stopping rarity: A B-23 Dragon, the "missing link" between the B-18 and the DC-1!!! this one was caught out in the open by Hurricane Andrew, along with a B-17... according to our guide. "they became airborne in 180-mph winds, flew in loose formation for about 3 miles, then came to rest". The Dragon will be restored, eventually...
As for the Fortress.... well, most of these parts are B-17 parts. :'(
There's also most of a Ju52 crammed in here... and a rare Stinson(?) that is much as it was found after sitting out for 60 years in Alaska...
Another coconut to the sharp-eyed youngster who can guess what this is:
Can you believe this? A Tigercat and a MiG- 15?!
This Tigercat is very complete and very pristine... I just wanted to dust it off and tell it everything would be OK...
Next: A ride in the D-25!
