6|FLIGHTPATH
News
AttheendofAprilthenewlyrestoredMesserschmitt
108D-EOIOmadeitsfirstpublicappearanceduringa
private gathering of classic aircraft in Ober-Mörlen,
northofFrankfurt(seepage14).Builtin1939(serial
number2086)fortheSwissAirForce,itwasfoundin
France in poor condition by restorer Dirk Bende some
yearsago.Theraretouringaircraftwasrestoredfrom
thegroundupbyBendeandhisteamathisworkshopin
Hangelar,nearBonn.Thehandsomemachinereceived
an original Argus As-10C engine which was also re-
stored by Bende. Although it served with the Swiss Air
Force, as ‘A-212’, the new owner decided not to replicate
theoriginalscheme,butinsteadpaintedittorepresent
the elegant look of former factory machine ‘D-IOIO'.
In the coming months, further check flights will be
performed in Germany before the historic Taifun is
handed over to its new owner. It will then be based in
Wels,Austria,wherewellknownvintageaircraftcol-
lector Josef Ecker will ensure it is maintained in first
class condition.Stefan SchmollOriginal Bf108 restored in Germany
The aircraft’s lines are accentuated by a typically simple, but attractive, factory scheme.[Stefan Schmoll]The Taifun in exceptionally fine company.[Stefan Schmoll]TheTemcoT-35Buckaroowasadevelopmentof
the Globe Swift for the 1949 USAF trainer com-
petition, eventually won by the Beech T-34 Men-
tor(althoughthecontractwasthencancelled).
Twenty-six Buckaroos were built, but the only
majororderwasplacedbytheRoyalSaudiAir
Force (RSAF). One of the ten aircraft ordered
survivesintheRSAFmuseuminRiyadh,and
anotherwasrestoredtoflybytheSwiftMuseum
inTennessee,buthasn’tflownforanumberof
years.Acoupleofothersincivilianhandshave
beenseenseparatelyatfly-ins,butSun‘nFun
2017 was the first time two had been together for
many years, with the newly-restored N4PB (se-
rial 50-0739) joining fly-in regular N68773 (se-
rial 50-0740). Remarkably, besides the consecu-
tiveserialnumbers,theaircraftareinfacttwoof
theoriginalthreeYT-35machinesevaluated by
the USAF in 1949.Nigel HitchmanTemco T-35 Buckaroo
The newly-restored Temco T-35 Buckaroo N4PB (50-0739) and N68773 (50-0740) at this year’s Sun ‘n Fun.