Wonwings Diary-a blog with a difference.

[wonwinglo]

***Duncan,I have spent all day trying to find out from the Argentinian authorities,their lips are sealed and I informed them we have a couple of their Pucaras to study,that we captured from them during the Falklands war ! that did not go down too well,however I have other avenues unknown to them,watch this space,and yes more images are on the way,this country is a revelation on what is still extant and the people are so friendly to enthusiasts except the authorities that is,a restorers paradise in fact,she is a little beauty and well worth a model of her.

What is LV- RAA ? Nice shots' date=' any more?[/quote']

[Guest]

Agreed nice subject for a model. I suppose the reg would be available somewhere , if is original. Curious wheels, probably off a motorcycle? P.S. Dont mention the war..la guerrea de liberatione des Malvinos, or something !

[wonwinglo]

Duncan,the Argentinian register is now a dead link,I am trying other sources to find out what type of aircraft this is,possibly an indigenous design ? yes I thought that those wheels look a bit odd ? possibly slave wheels to trundle her around the hangar whilst under restoration.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Aviation in Argentina-Part 2 of a special report.

Following the great interest in this subject, here are another batch of images from the Argentinian tour by Captain Hitchman,some of the types have still to be identified,the interesting machine registered as LV-RAA has now been identified as a Davis V-3 fitted with a Le Bond engine,the aircraft is an old American design.



Petrolini El Boyo,160 made for Argentinian flying clubs.



Schneider DFS 108-49 Grunau Baby glider,c/n 51.



Gloster Meteor.



English Electric Canberra.



Piper Super Cruiser.



Morane Saulnier Paris.

[Guest]

The Gloster Meteor would have made a good "caption" picture!

Such as:

"It's been such a long time since I landed here the dam trees have grown!"

[Guest]

or "green smoke on-GO" !

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Aviation in Argentina-Part 3 of a special report.



Gloster Meteor F.4



Piper J.3C Cub with a Nord Norecrin at the back.



Cessna 170 which has seen better days.



Looks very much like an Auster A.O.P.9 frame.



Nord Norecrin.



Republic Seabee.



Aeronca C.3 with a twisted port wing.

[Guest]

What a goldmine, what a shame.

[wonwinglo]

***I know Duncan,it is just like a time warp and everyone has vanished,the country is full of aviation interest,but seeing the way that Aeronca C.3 wing has twisted made me think what could be lost,amazing how many types of aircraft there are,watch this space as you have seen nothing yet,there are a lot more to come from Argentina this weekend.

What a goldmine' date=' what a shame.[/quote']

[Guest]

I don't think there could be so many Meteors in one place anywhere else in the world. They are also in superb condition and deserve to be properly restored.

[wonwinglo]

***Richard,the Argentinians have always used a lot of British equipment,when the Falklands war started all spares etc were frozen meaning a lot of aircraft were grounded,for example the Canberra aircraft which had been fully overhauled at Samlesbury,the indigenous Pucara twins proved a poor match in war conditions and suffered badly due to their large blown canopies becoming unserviceable.

Yes there are a fair proportion of early marks of Meteor aircraft still extant,something a few British museums would give an arm and a leg for,a rare cache of military vintage hardware,not sure what the climate is like there,but it appears to be kind to airframes,has anyone ever visited this country ?

I don't think there could be so many Meteors in one place anywhere else in the world. They are also in superb condition and deserve to be properly restored.

[wonwinglo]

Wonwings diary-Aviation in Argentina-Part 4 of a special report.

More mouth watering types some never seen in the West,looking at some of these pictures makes me wonder how on earth they got into this state of dis-repair and dereliction ? just as if someone flew the aircraft then left it exactly where it is,even the hangar shots show dusty cowlings lifted,jacks underneath the wings and tools left around,if these aircraft were placed into containers and shipped here they would be flying within a year or so,so OK lets continue the tour-



Aero 45.This is a Czech twin which started its life back in 1945,yes the Russians did use them but this one is in pseudo markings,I have actually flown in one of these back in the UK when Peter Clifford had the agency for them at Kidlington,I remember the flight very well as a faulty micro switch showed one undercarriage leg as not retracted ! thankfully a wheels up landing was avoided by recycling the undercarriage legs and they eventually locked down,well it was a test flight.

Douglas Skyhawk.The Argentinian Air Force had quite a few of these excellent aircraft.



Beech 18.With parts hanging off and well boxed in,the yellow aircraft in the background looks like a kit built Europa.



Norduyn Norseman.All stripped ready for fabric covering,a rugged workhorse.



Curtiss Wright CW.16 E3 Light Sports aircraft c/n 3532.



Beech Staggerwing D17S.Undergoing what looks like a major rebuild.



Nord Norecrin.

[Guest]

Amazing selection. Where are all the Yanquie Dollahs to rescue them? Time Kermit Weeks or similar heard about this cache.

[wonwinglo]

***Dont tell Kermit,he has already cornered too many machines,and made it impossible for others to get aeroplanes at reasonable prices,when relics dry up here then the specialist companies will get together, and bring back containers with five aeroplanes per box to make it viable.

Amazing selection. Where are all the Yanquie Dollahs to rescue them? Time Kermit Weeks or similar heard about this cache.

[Guest]

Yeah agree about Kermit, I just meant somebody with loads of dosh. The Meteors and Canberras should come home. There is a strong SeaBee (international) owners group that would like to know about that one too.