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Re: F3F from (fresh) water

Posted by SRS on Wed Jan 23, 2002 11:27:21 AM

In reply top Re: F3F from (fresh) water posted by Rob Mears on Wed Jan 23, 2002 11:14:17 AM

Yes, the F4F Wildcats are from Lake Michigan. The F3F is not the same aircraft! It's the 'Flying Barrel' biplane, the same type as was reproduced recently in Texas. Their F3F was definately in salt water.


: : The National Museum of Naval Aviation in Pensacola has a
: b
: : eautiful Grumman F3F restoration of an original that was
: p
: : ulled from the Pacific, off the California coast. Looks
: g
: : ood enought to fly now, but no telling how much of the o
: ri
: : ginal metal remains, or in what condition.
:
: All of the F3F Wildcats and SBD Dauntleses in the NMNA are
: airframes recovered from Lake Michigan (fresh water). I
: believe there are two of these Wildcats, and three of the
: recovered SBD's on actual display inside the NMNA (as of t
: wo years ago). Where an airframe exposed to salt water wi
: ll immediately begin suffering the effects of intergranula
: r corrosion, the same airframe submerged in fresh water wo
: uld actually remain fairly well preserved over the long ru
: n. I dare say the 20+ warbirds recovered from Lake Michig
: an so far would all prove to be good candidates for restor
: ation back to flying condition. I know of at least one F4
: F Wildcat that spent 50 years submerged in Lake Michigan w
: hich took to the skies not long after being hauled up (it
: was at Oshkosh this past year...for sale).
:
: Currently, plans to recover an F6F Hellcat as well as an F
: 4U-1 Corsair from Lake Michigan are underway. This Corsai
: r constitutes the oldest surviving (complete) example, and
: is slated to become the prime Corsair display on the floo
: r of the NMNA in the near future.
:
: Rob Mears

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