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Re: Selfish?? ... how else would you describe it?!

Posted by Richard Allnutt on Tue Dec 24, 2002 07:42:15 PM

In reply top Re: Selfish?? posted by david j burke on Mon Dec 23, 2002 03:13:28 PM

David

I strongly agree with you that they are his aircraft to do with as he will. However, the way Mr. Allen has approached his collection by binding it in blinding legaleze and squirreling these international treasures away these past several years without even a whisper as to their existence is, by definition, selfish. The secrecy surrounding these aircraft is so tight that there seems a distinct possibility that there may never even be a museum open to the public, even if by appointment only. I seriously doubt you will see them at airshows, though I hope I'm proved wrong on both these accounts.

In a parrallel, it is like someone buying up a large collection of internationally significant art, and then hiding it away soley for their own gratification. Yes, they do own it, and have that right, but the work is much larger than any one person, and deserves to be shared with the public, if only in a small way.

I don't see how Mr. Allen's actions could be described as anything but selfish? If he is genuinely trying to build a museum for the public, he's been going about it in an awfully strange way, unlike any other that I can think of. Maybe he or his lawyers are just extraordinarily paranoid. He seems to be far more public with all of his other activities though, which makes his lack of openness with regards to his aircraft collection doubly strange. Oh well, I guess time will tell, and I hope that you are right and these aircraft become regular fixtures at airshows around the world... but I have my doubts.

On another note, I disagree with your comparison of Mr. Allen to Mr. Weeks. Kermit has an amazing museum, and he has always been very generous to the public with his aircraft. Sure, not many of them fly regularly, and rarely visit airshows, but there has never been any active deterrence to the public. In fact Kermit is very eager to share his enthusiasm and passion for vintage aviation, and I highly commend his approach.

Regards. Richard

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