April 2018 FLYPAST 15http://www.fl ypast.com
Museum raising funds to repaint Hunter
Sywell Aviation Museum is seeking
donations of military and aviation
books, models and model kits to raise
funds to refurbish its unique Hawker
Hunter F.2 WN904.
The attraction, which is set to open
for the season on March 31, aims
to repaint the jet into its original
257 Squadron markings. It alsowelcomes the gifting of any aviation
artefacts or items relating to wartime
Northamptonshire.
The museum is run entirely by
volunteers, is free to enter and
relies on donations to survive.
For more information please
contact Ben Brown. E-mail:
[email protected]Hawker Hunter F.2 WN904 at Sywell Aviation Museum. COURTESY BEN BROWNDoug Matthews’ North American F-86F
Sabre 52-5116 is being restored to fl y by
Classic Fighters in Titusville, Florida.
When completed, Doug hopes todisplay the jet at airshows across the
US. He already operates F-86F 53-1201,
currently painted in the colours of the
Skyblazers aerobatic display team.
The new project, which Doug acquiredin 2013, will be fi nished to represent
51-12910 Beautious Butch II, the mount
of Capt Joseph M McConnell, who was
assigned to the 39th Fighter Interceptor
Squadron of the 51st Fighter Interceptor
Wing at Suwon during the Korean War.
He is credited with shooting down 16
Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-15 jets, making
him America’s highest scoring jet
combat ace. https://classicfi ghters.org
JOHN GOURLEYNorth American F-86F Sabre 52-5116 is being
restored to fl y in Florida. DOUG MATTHEWS VIA
JOHN GOURLEYClassic jet to fl y again in
the US
‘Nuclear’ F-16 on show in New Mexico
The National Museum of Nuclear Science
and History in Albuquerque, New Mexico
has placed General Dynamics F-16A
78-050 on display after a two-year
restoration.
The aircraft came from the nearby
Kirtland Air Force Base, after being in
storage within Albuquerque’s Sandia
National Laboratories since 1997. It
arrived at the museum in poor external
condition but has now been fi nished in
the livery of the New Mexico Air NationalGuard 150th Fighter Wing, nicknamed
‘The TACOS’. It is displayed with a B
nuclear bomb shell under each wing.
The museum has also recently restored
Boeing B-29 Superfortress 45-21748,
which it acquired from Chanute, Illinois
two decades ago, and has erected a
replica of the ‘Trinity tower’ – the original
was used for testing atomic weapons in
1945 prior to the strikes on Hiroshima
and Nagasaki. http://www.nuclearmuseum.org
ROGER SOUPARTGeneral Dynamics F-16A 78-050 is on display
in Albuquerque. K NIELSEN VIA ROGER SOUPARTStratofortress and MiG receive
attention in FloridaThe Valiant Air Command Warbird Museum of Titusville, Florida, has begun restoring the
cockpit of Boeing B-52D Stratofortress 55-0095, previously on display in Rantoul, Illinois. It
is also working on Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-21UM 664820, a former Czech Air Force trainer. The
B-52 will retain the name of its pilot, Maj F W Elliott, beneath the cockpit window.
http://www.valiantaircommand.com TONY SACKETOSSky Arrow 650 TCNS ERA (Enviromental
Research Aircraft) LV-BME was retired to
Argentina’s EEST No. 4 technical college in
December, which will use it as an instructional
airframe. The distinctively confi gured
monoplane was previously used by the
country’s Institute of Climate and Water, after
being withdrawn from army use. ESTEBAN BREAThe tail fi n of a former KLM Fokker F70 has
been erected in front of the old airport
control tower at Schiphol, Amsterdam as a
tribute to those who built Fokker F28, F
and F70 airliners nearby. The building is
now in use as a restaurant. A total of 48 F
jets were built and at least 30 are believed
to remain in service. ROGER SOUPART