WIX Archives
More on the PNG P-38s
Posted by Dave on Fri May 24, 2002 08:32:18 PM
In reply top null posted by null on null
Just received the May news letter from Pacific Wrecks...
http://www.pacificwrecks.com/news/p38
WORLD EXCLUSIVE! Read the truth about happenings with intact P-38's in New
Guinea. PWD presents the facts behind the attempted illegal export of a P-38
Lightning from near Arufi, in the Fly River Delta. The booms and wings of
the aircraft have been seized at Lae in March 2002, marked for export to
Australia. They will now be returned to the control of the PNG Museum, but
sadly, this remarkably intact wreck was gass-axed apart to fit into
containers. Quite incredibly, the thief, when caught at Lae, asked curator
of the PNG Museum, to allow him to continue with the salvage otherwise he
would not get paid by his boss in Australia!
It now appears that s two previous exports of other intact P-38s are
technically illegal. An Australian claimed in his export permit that they
were retrieved from Finschhafen, dug up from a forgotten dump pit, where
they had been buried. These airframes were then sold to private parties in
the United States, none of whom responded to emails or phone calls for
comment.