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Please see the most recent updates in the "Where did the .com name go?" thread. Posts number 16 and 17.
Wozza NAVY SNJ With Tailhook
- Thread starter FSX68
- Start date
ThinkingManNeil
Charter Member
Shift+1 brings up the options menu for Pitot Cover, Tailhook, Wheel Chocks & Pilot
N.
N.
rdaniell
SOH-CM-2013
The tailhook control lever is located on the right side of the cockpit. Left click once to extend and click once again to retract.
RD
ThinkingManNeil
Charter Member
Owned in England by David Gilmour, lead guitarist with Pink Floyd. Probably one of the rarest aeroplanes in the T-6 family and one that features a few times in my own logbook. Insides are unlike any other T-6 I've every come across. Was developed just at the wrong time and was replaced by the T-34B and the T-28B and C.
Cheers,
Martin
ThinkingManNeil
Charter Member
Believe that was the case, as when sold off onto the civilian market the hooks were removed. It was only placed back on the SNJ-7C (modified from a stock SNJ-5) when it was restored in the 1980s.
Cheers,
Martin
ThinkingManNeil
Charter Member
A year or so ago I was following the restoration of an SNJ-5C online that eventually got sold for a pretty penny over at Courtesy Aircraft. It had a tailhook as original equipment and the restoration team completely restored it and the associated mechanisms to a functional state. As I recall it had a rather plain, overall gloss sea blue paint scheme and no prop spinner, but that hook was functional which likely added to its final price...
N.
Bomber_12th
SOH-CM-2025
There are actually several SNJ's flying today with tail hooks:
N518WW
N3JC
N5615C
N621BC
N1666T
G-BRVG
N7055K (unfortunately was heavily damaged last year)
and a few more I'm sure...
I also know there is one at the Argentina Naval Air Museum (non-flyable) still fitted with the tail hook.
Neil, regarding Chuck Wahl's SNJ which you mention (N5615C), the tail hook (original to the aircraft) is a neat feature, but over-all the reason why it is such a special restoration is that each part has been restored to have the same original factory finish and details it had when originally manufactured, including all of the original inspection stamps (NAA and Navy Pensacola), original 1945-era Alclad watermarks on the metal skins, all original interior factory hardware and equipment, and the list goes on. The exterior glossy blue and markings are also 100% authentic based on specifications in-place when it was originally manufactured. The aircraft never did sell, and remains a very active flyer in Chuck Wahl's possesion (along with his other award-winning restoration, a T-28) - his SNJ has continued to win awards in the time since it originally debuted. The archive of that restoration remains available here: http://vulturesrowaviation.com/snj5c.html
Chuck Wahl ended up forming his own restoration company, and has been working on the ground-up rebuild of a Helldiver and SBD Dauntless which will be flying when completed, and 100%, without doubt, future award winners as well. Following these, there are one or two more Helldiver projects awaiting them, which will also be restored to fly. Having re-manufactured a set of lower landing gear doors for the Helldiver they are currently working on, which are extremely rare (not even the NASM Helldiver has them), they also manufactured a set for the CAF Helldiver and sent them to Ezell Aviation to fit them to the CAF Helldiver. Since earlier this year, the CAF Helldiver, for the first time since it was originally in service, has been flying with the lower gear doors fitted.
N518WW
N3JC
N5615C
N621BC
N1666T
G-BRVG
N7055K (unfortunately was heavily damaged last year)
and a few more I'm sure...
I also know there is one at the Argentina Naval Air Museum (non-flyable) still fitted with the tail hook.
Neil, regarding Chuck Wahl's SNJ which you mention (N5615C), the tail hook (original to the aircraft) is a neat feature, but over-all the reason why it is such a special restoration is that each part has been restored to have the same original factory finish and details it had when originally manufactured, including all of the original inspection stamps (NAA and Navy Pensacola), original 1945-era Alclad watermarks on the metal skins, all original interior factory hardware and equipment, and the list goes on. The exterior glossy blue and markings are also 100% authentic based on specifications in-place when it was originally manufactured. The aircraft never did sell, and remains a very active flyer in Chuck Wahl's possesion (along with his other award-winning restoration, a T-28) - his SNJ has continued to win awards in the time since it originally debuted. The archive of that restoration remains available here: http://vulturesrowaviation.com/snj5c.html
Chuck Wahl ended up forming his own restoration company, and has been working on the ground-up rebuild of a Helldiver and SBD Dauntless which will be flying when completed, and 100%, without doubt, future award winners as well. Following these, there are one or two more Helldiver projects awaiting them, which will also be restored to fly. Having re-manufactured a set of lower landing gear doors for the Helldiver they are currently working on, which are extremely rare (not even the NASM Helldiver has them), they also manufactured a set for the CAF Helldiver and sent them to Ezell Aviation to fit them to the CAF Helldiver. Since earlier this year, the CAF Helldiver, for the first time since it was originally in service, has been flying with the lower gear doors fitted.
ThinkingManNeil
Charter Member
Thanks for that, John; it was very informative. I've been interested in tailhook equipped SNJ's out of their sheer rarity for some years now, and would watch their comings and goings online - when they showed up - at Courtesy. Granted, not all of them were authentic arrestor gear birds, but I always thought it added something to the aircraft, that's why I'm surprised when you say the Wahl didn't sell considering its provenance and the extremely high caliber of its restoration, but i suppose you can chalk that up to the ongoing vagaries of the market.
There was a program on History Television three or so years ago that recounted a visit made to Thunder Bay, Ontario, by the CAF Helldiver where it gave rides to some of the surviving female assembly line workers who built the SBW variant of the Helldiver under license at the Canadian car and Foundry plant during the war. Very interesting show.
N.
There was a program on History Television three or so years ago that recounted a visit made to Thunder Bay, Ontario, by the CAF Helldiver where it gave rides to some of the surviving female assembly line workers who built the SBW variant of the Helldiver under license at the Canadian car and Foundry plant during the war. Very interesting show.
N.
Bomber_12th
SOH-CM-2025
Yeah, it seemed a little like 'testing the water' to see if there was a market for a $375,000 Texan/SNJ - perhaps not really interested in selling anyway, just see if they could get that high of a price for it or not. Chuck posts every once in a while on the Warbird Information Exchange forum, and it seems like he flies the SNJ just about every good weekend or so.