Fly Past

12 FLYPAST May 2018

briefi ngs

NEWS THE LATEST IN AVIATION HERITAGE

‘Stretched’ Starlifter being

restored in US

Lockheed YC-141B Starlifter

66-0186 is being restored for

display at the Aviation Wing of the

Marietta Museum of History, next

to Lockheed Martin’s facility in

Marietta, Georgia.

Built as a standard Starlifter,

this aircraft fl ew for the fi rst time

on April 6, 1967. Ten years later

it became the fi rst of its type to

be ‘stretched’ – increasing its

fuselage length by 23ft (7m) and

allowing it to carry more cargo.

The modifi cation programme

included three phases of testing,

all carried out using 66-0186.

After completing trials with special

instrumentation to obtain accurate

baseline data, ’186 was lengthened,

with the second phase of testing

taking place from March 1977. Flight

tests were carried out at both

Marietta and Edwards Air Force Base

in California, fi nishing in August of

that year.

The restoration is being led

by Boone Barnes, a former C-

navigator. Boone reports that the

cockpit is being gradually returned to

its former glory, but many parts are

still needed – the missing items are

currently represented by laminated

photographs. The cockpit middle

window has sustained damage and

will also need to be replaced. The

project welcomes donations. http://www.

mariettahistory.org/aviation-

wing (^) TONY SACKETOS
Former navigator Boone Barnes in the partly restored cockpit.
Lockheed YC-141B Starlifter 66-0186 at
Marietta in February. BOTH TONY SACKETOS
Belgian Mirage being
prepared for display
Dassault Mirage V ‘BD-09’ was recently transported by road
from Bordeaux in France to the former Belgian Air Force base at
Sint-Truiden in Brustem, Belgium. The jet
is destined to be reassembled
and placed on
display within a
new building at the
airfi eld. BENOIT DENET
Workshop volunteers at Pembroke Dock
Heritage Centre are making good progress
on their latest project – restoring the front
turret of a Short Sunderland fl ying boat.
Recovered from Sunderland T9044, which
sank in Milford Haven in 1940, the Frazer
Nash FN.11 turret may be the only surviving
example in the world. PHOTO-MARTIN CAVANEY
Brooklyn, New York’s Historic Aircraft
Restoration Project has completed work on
Grumman JRF-5 Goose N644R. This aircraft
was once fl own from the adjacent Floyd
Bennett Field by the US Coast Guard and
later by the New York Police Department.
It retains the colour scheme it wore while
serving with the latter. TONY SACKETOS