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http://www.fl ypast.com

May 2015 FLYPAST 7

Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer N2871G

returned to the air on February 20

at Casa Grande, Arizona, following a

thorough restoration by GossHawk

Unlimited.

Owned by 4Y-2 LLC, the former

fi re-bomber has been undergoing

maintenance and refurbishment at

Casa Grande. Its previous colours were

removed in 2013 and replaced with a

more authentic overall silver scheme

with national insignia. Its owners will

soon make a decision on its fi nal livery,

likely to be representative of either a

US Navy or US Coast Guard machine.

The possibility of it having different

markings on either side is also being

considered.

The machine was kept in airworthy

condition for most of its tenure with

GossHawk, but had not fl own since

returning from an airshow at Chino,

California, in May 2014. The team has

carried out substantial work on the

Privateer both before and since then,

including removing two of the engines

for inspection, repairing the cockpit

fl oor, opening up previously faired-

over waist windows and fi tting them

with Plexiglas, as well as restoring the

ailerons and cabin seats.

The fi rst post-restoration fl ight was

undertaken by former T&G Aviation

Privateer pilot Woody Grantham and

co-pilot Bruce Brockhagen. GossHawk

boss Dave Goss and crew chief Robert

Kropp were also on board. Save for a

minor oil leak and a few other small

issues, the test fl ight programme

was a complete success. The aircraft

is likely to be appearing at several

airshows across the US this year,

including the EAA AirVenture at

Oshkosh in July.

Meanwhile, GossHawk is continuing

to work on the fuselage of what will

become the second airworthy original

Focke-Wulf Fw 190, White One, on

behalf of the Collings Foundation,

alongside a Flugwerk-built FW

190A-8/N. WITH THANKS TO LINDSEY GOSS

http://www.gosshawkunlimited.com

Privateer takes to the air in Arizona

Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer N2871G lifts

off at Casa Grande in February.

COURTESY ZDENEK KASPAR

Yorkshire Hawker Hunter being repainted

Hawker Hunter FGA.78 N-268 is

currently being repainted into a Qatar

Emiri Air Force (QEAF) scheme at

Elvington’s Yorkshire Air Museum. The

jet had previously been displayed in

Dutch markings.

Built under licence in Holland by

Fokker-Aviolanda in the 1950s, the

machine served with the Royal Dutch

Air Force as an F.6 from 1957 to 1963

before being re-purchased by Hawker

Siddeley and converted to an FGA.

ground attack model. It was among

a batch of several former Dutch and

Belgian Hunters refurbished for Qatar

where it served as QA-10. The aircraft

was delivered in December 1971 and

fl ew with the nation’s air arm for

around a decade, based at Doha.

A deal to return it to the UK in

airworthy state did not come to

fruition, and the aircraft was instead

used as a source of spares. It was

eventually delivered to Elvington in

1992 for static display.

“Stuart Armstrong and Richard

Kimber are leading the repaint, under

the guidance of the aircraft engineering

team,” communications manager Ian

Richardson told FlyPast. “We’re putting

the aircraft back into original QEAF

colours to celebrate its historical

signifi cance and the fact that Qatar has

always been a close Middle East ally.

“We are also planning to put a live

engine into QA-10, for ground running

purposes only, although our initial

investigations show that the airframe

is still in excellent condition. The

museum is keen to make a special

event of the roll-out following

completion of the refurbishment.”

http://www.yorkshireairmuseum.org

JAMIE EWAN-WITH THANKS TO IAN RICHARDSON

The Old Warden, Bedfordshire-based Shuttleworth Collection rolled out its completed

Sopwith Camel reproduction G-BZSC on March 5, following an extensive programme of work

by its engineering team. The Great War replica was originally built by Northern Aeroplane

Workshops of Yorkshire in 2001. It will now undergo engine trials and is expected to fl y this

summer. http://www.shuttleworth.org DARREN HARBAR

Sopwith Camel completed

Hawker Hunter FGA.78 N-268 midway through its refurbishment at Elvington on February 9. JAMIE EWAN

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