18 FLYPAST August 2018
NEWS THE LATEST IN AVIATION HERITAGE
Sud Aviation Vautour IIA ‘26’ has
been placed on display as a ‘gate
guardian’ at Ramat David Air Force
Base in Israel.
The jet, one of 31 received by the
Israeli Air Force between 1958 and
1972, was revealed to the public on
April 19 this year, ahead of the 70th
anniversary of the State of Israel’s
creation on May 14, 1948.
Meanwhile at the country’s Haifa Air
Force Base Collection, Lockheed C-130E
Hercules ‘316’ has been put on show
along with a pair of General Dynamics
F-16Cs, which have replaced two F-16As.
The latter are now on the other side
of the airfi eld, and not accessible to
visitors. The museum’s collection has
been reduced in recent years, with
several airframes scrapped. PHIL BOYDEN
French-built jet on
Israeli gate guard duty
The National Museum of Nuclear Science & History is set to refurbish Boeing B-47E
Stratojet 53-2280 at its Albuquerque, New Mexico, base. Under the supervision of Brig Gen
Jay Bledsoe, the work is likely to take several years and cost around $110,000 (£82,500).
The 1955-built aircraft is on permanent loan from Ohio’s National Museum of the USAF.
TONY SACKETOS
Extensive restoration awaits
New Mexico Stratojet
Sud Aviation Vautour IIA ‘26’ is on display at
Ramat David Air Force Base. BOTH PHIL BOYDEN
Lockheed C-130E Hercules ‘316’ at Israel’s
Haifa Air Force Base Collection.
WIN A LANCASTER FINE ART PRINT BY
MARK POSTLETHWAITE
To celebrate the fi rst instalment
of FlyPast’s new Story Behind the
Scene series in this issue, we’ve
joined forces with renowned
aviation artist Mark Postlethwaite
GAvA to offer one lucky reader the
chance of winning a print.
Entitled The Last Flight Of
Dark Victor, this 28 x 19in (71 x
49cm) print depicts 617 Squadron
Lancaster JB139/KC-V Dark Victor,
fl own by Flt Lt Don Cheney DFC,
being shot down over France in
August 1944. The original painting
was presented to the people of
Douarnenez in northwestern France,
who sheltered the young Canadian
pilot from the Germans.
This artwork
normally
costs
£50, but for the chance to
win a copy in our free prize
draw, simply visit http://www.fl ypast.com
and fi ll in the online competition
entry form.
Alternatively, send your name,
postal details and, if you have one,
e-mail address to: FlyPast August
Lancaster Print Competition, Key
Publishing, PO Box 100, Stamford,
Lincolnshire, PE9 1XQ, UK.
The winner will be drawn at random
on Friday August 31, 2018, and will
be notifi ed by post/e-mail by Friday
September 7, 2018.
For more about the inspiration
behind this dramatic image and
a vivid account by Don Cheney
himself, see our feature beginning
on page 120.
http://www.posart.com
No purchase necessary. There is no cash prize and the Editor’s decision is fi nal. Competition is not open to employees of Key Publishing, their family members or anyone else professionally connected to the company.
‘The Last Flight Of Dark Victor’ by Mark Postlethwaite GAvA.
COURTESY MARK POSTLETHWAITE