Volunteer to swing wrenches on the airplanes so that you get an intimate introduction to the airplane and its systems. We were told again and again by experienced warbird pilots that the way to get into warbird ownership is to first do extensive homework into the type of airplane you’re interested in while getting to know those who fly them: Go to airshows and talk with warbird pilots, get on warbird owner forums on the internet and let your interest be known as well as your willingness to listen, and do such things as joining the North American Trainer Association ( and attending the National Warbird Operator Conference ( Beth Jenkins, instructor in the Commemorative Air Force’s (CAF) B-25 “Devil Dog,” recommended joining the air museum (we’ll use “museum” expansively to include any nonprofit group that operates a warbird) or CAF wing that operates the warbird that interests you and show up for meetings and work sessions. Due to his hubris, and unwillingness to take more than minimal training, he proceeded to get himself into a jam and took the wrong actions trying to extricate himself. Getting StartedĪs we were researching this article experienced warbird pilots passed along numerous stories of wrecked machines and injured or dead pilots with a common theme: A wealthy pilot of limited experience, large ego and questionable judgment bought himself a fighter. We’ll go into the overall considerations of owning and operating warbirds and then focus on a few examples. While it takes cubic money to acquire and operate big-time warbirds-WWII fighter, bombers and transports and post-war jets-the path toward owning and safely operating an airplane in the major league of general aviation is the same for those armed with bags of money or simply determination: You’ve got to spend quality time in the minor leagues first.
Warbird ownership: “It’s not for the faint of heart, but there’s nothing like it,” according to warbird owner and airshow pilot Stan Musick.
0 kommentar(er)
