Catalina PBY

I wish I had the money!

I dont know how useful this will be but nevertheless its still interesting.

That is so cool. I was just telling my brother the other day that one of the first things I would do if I won the powerball is find a PBY Catalina, completely restore/modernize it and then go on an adventure flying around, exploring, camping and surfing the most excellent and remote breaks.

I love that my favorite airplane is coming back.

stickman248, change surfing to diving and you have my dream too!

I love that plane!

Every plane has to have a name. Id call mine "Strawberry 5".

Back in the 80s there was a PBY Catalina parked at an airport in North Texas about seven miles from here. It had a kangaroo painted on the tail. I read later that it had crashed while being flown to Australia.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Texas Bob C.,

quote:

Originally posted by Captain Morgan:
Every plane has to have a name. Id call mine "Strawberry 5".

I wonder how many people will pick up on this.

quote:

Originally posted by Captain Morgan:
Every plane has to have a name. Id call mine "Strawberry 5".

I see what you did there.....

I remember reading somewhere the navy had an even bigger flying boat during World War II.
It had bunk beds and a small kitchen in it.

quote:

Originally posted by 71 TRUCK:
I remember reading somewhere the navy had an even bigger flying boat during World War II.
It had bunk beds and a small kitchen in it.

PBM Mariner

That was the Martin Mars. I believe two of them are owned but not used by a firefighting company in Canada. Not sure if there are any flyable.
Flight engineers could walk into the wing to fix engine problems.

quote:

Originally posted by Loswsmith:
stickman248, change surfing to diving and you have my dream too!

I love that plane!

Getting a diving license is something I’ve been wanting to do for a while now. My wife has one and has been bugging me to quit being lazy and get my license. She isn’t wrong.

the Catalina had a small kitchen and a 10 man crew. Most likely it had bunkbeds.

I'm glad there is a perceived market for new planes. It may be that when enough money is spent on an original one, it implies a market for an updated and more efficent new one. 2029 is a long wait to see what a new one looks like.

If I recall correctly, Jimmy Buffet has or had one. Great way to island hop.

Maybe my favorite airplane of WWII, I always thought flying a PBY over the Pacific would be the what I'd like do do were I there, then. Although I'd pray for heavy clouds if enemy fighters were around!
Thanks for posting the link HRK.

Reviving The PBY Catalina For Modern Warfare Is This Company’s Goal

quote:

Originally posted by 71 TRUCK:
I remember reading somewhere the navy had an even bigger flying boat during World War II.
It had bunk beds and a small kitchen in it.

There was quite a few flying boats during the 20's and 30's. Pan Am's Flying Clippers and United Airlines made their mark on the industry transiting across the Pacific in their Boeing B-314s and Martin M-130's.

In May, 1985, We lived in Lewistown, Montana where a couple of guys crashed one of these. The plane had been stored for years while under repair by a friend of mine. It was believed they were trying to fly off without paying a bunch of accrued taxes. Speculation. I was there shortly after the incident and took some photos that are buried somewhere around here. I see if I can dig them up.


Link

quote:

Originally posted by bettysnephew:

If I recall correctly, Jimmy Buffet has or had one. Great way to island hop.

I don't know about the PBY, but he has (or had) a Cessna Caravan with amphibious floats, registration number N208JB, similar to the one in this photo.