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One Motor, Many Planes

The Southern California Wing of the Commemorative Air Force features a number of spectacular pieces of World War II flying history.

Their first acquisition was the massive Curtiss C-46 Commando, the largest twin-engine plane built by the allies during the war.

The pride of their fleet is the North American PBJ maritime patrol bomber, the very last PBJ that still flies.

And the museum is quite proud of its beautiful Grumman F6F Hellcat fighter, an immensely important carrier airplane from WWII.

Although these three planes carried out vastly different missions, were built by completely different companies, and were operated by two different branches of the military, they all have one thing in common: the Wright R-2600 Twin Cyclone engine.

The R-2600 Twin-Cyclone is a 14-cylinder radial engine – where your car has 4, 6, or 8 cylinders arrayed in a line or a Vee, the radial’s 14 cylinders are arrayed in a circle around the engine’s crankshaft. It’s a big motor that weighs about a ton.

One of the advantages to this rotary layout is the power it achieves. Where your Toyota Camry cranks out about 200 horsepower, and a new Dodge Charger pushes out less than 300, the R-2600 generates a whopping 1,800 horsepower.

Another advantage is that these engines are air-cooled, like in a VW bug. Standard engines have a radiator full of coolant. A radial engine does away that, using passing air as coolant. They look different, with those big, finned cylinder heads, because they need a lot of air to stay cool.

Our story gets interesting because the R-2600 engine was developed specifically for the Curtiss C-46 Commando. Wright, the engine manufacturer, was a division of Curtiss-Wright, the maker of the Commando.

The engine proved to be robust, and quickly became a huge success among aircraft manufacturers.

In fact, North American Aviation put them into their new B-25 and PBJ bombers, the last of which is the pride of the CAF fleet.

And Grumman Aircraft Engineering put them into their new F6F Hellcat fighters.

When installed in the PBJ bomber, the two R-2600s could move the 18,000 pound airplane at 245 mph on its bombing runs against Axis submarines and warships.

In the much heavier, 48,000 pound C-46 Commando, the engines pushed her along at 135 miles per hour over the Himalayas and into China to thwart the Japanese invasion there.

That same engine, when mounted in the much lighter, 8,100 pound Grumman F6F Hellcat, gave the pilot a brisk 376 miles per hour in dogfighting Japanese Zeroes to defend the American carrier fleet.

Three different airplanes. Three widely different roles. One engine.

Curtiss eventually opted to fit the C-46 Commando with the even more powerful Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double-Wasp, 18-cylinder engines, which are what you’ll find on the China Doll.

Interestingly, Grumman also moved up to the 2,000 horsepower Double Wasp for the Hellcat, and that’s what you’ll find on display in Camarillo.

The PBJ still features the original Wright R-2600s.

In the annals of WWII aviation history, each of these three aircraft was a standout performer, contributing more than their share in defeating the global threat to democracy.

And all three of those airplanes, among literally dozens of others, got their start on the historic Wright R-2600 Twin Cyclone radial engine.

Marvelous Air Museums is part of the John D Reinhart content family. Writer, illustrator, videographer, and accidental filmmaker — find the whole story at JohnDReinhart.com.

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Grumman F-14 Tomcat

The variable-geometry F-14 Tomcat first left the ground in December of 1970, and served all the way through to September of 2006.

The big fighter took it’s first tour aboard the USS Enterprise in 1974, replacing the wing of aging F-4 Phantoms. The twin-engine, supersonic, two seat carrier fighter was a natural match for the Phantom’s role as air superiority, ground attack, and reconnaissance airframe.

The unique variable-geometry wing system, first developed for the General Dynamics F-111, sweeps the wings forward for more lift during take-off and landing, and then pulls them in close to the fuselage for supersonic flight.

According to test pilot George J. Marrett, the Tomcat was far and away his favorite airplane. He’s credited with the first-ever “supersonic missile kill,” having fired a missile from an F-14 while above Mach-1

The air-to-air missile sped away from the supersonic Tomcat, climbing as it went, to drop almost ballistically onto the target, a drone displaying the characteristics of the vaunted Mig-21. The drone never saw it coming. Both Marrett and the F-14 were credited for the kill. Neither aircraft were ever within visual range of one another.

The Tomcat provided the backbone for the US Navy through the Gulf, Afghanistan, and Iraq wars, to be replaced by the nimble A/F-18 in 2006.

These images were taken at the Point Mugu Missile Park in Port Hueneme, CA, and Estrella Warbirds Museum in Paso Robles.

Marvelous Air Museums is part of the John D Reinhart content family. Writer, illustrator, videographer, and accidental filmmaker — find the whole story at JohnDReinhart.com.

Saab S-35 Draken

Imagine a dogfight where a Soviet MIG 17 pilot has the six of a Swedish Saab S35 Draken, his jet fighter directly behind the Swedish plane, looking right down the tailpipe, ready to launch a missile. There’s nothing the Draken pilot can do – no matter which way he turns, the MIG is right behind him.

Suddenly, the MIG pilot sees the Draken’s nose whip straight up, and to his amazement watches as the other airplane stalls, hanging in the air like a kite. The MIG whips past, its pilot wondering what had just happened.

Just as fast, the Draken’s nose comes back down, behind the MIG. And now the Draken pilot has the 6 position on the MIG, and is ready to fire the missile that will end the dogfight.

It sounds like something from Top Gun, but the Saab S 35 was the first airplane in history to be able to make that maneuver. The Draken’s double-delta wing arrangement gave it an insane degree of maneuverability, allowing it to invent and perform what’s been called the Cobra Manuever.

Modern fifth- and sixth-generation fighters, like the Lockheed F-35 Lightning II and the Sukhoi Su27 felon are among the few aircraft that can capably handle the maneuver today.

The little Draken was built between 1955 and 1974 in Sweden by the Svenska Aeroplan Aktiebolaget – we know them as Saab. The long, distinctive delta wing that starts at the air intakes and continues the whole length of the fuselage is augmented by a second set of deltas breaking away at a different angle about 2/3rds of the way back.

The Draken was the first aircraft to pioneer this double-delta innovation that led to increased stability in supersonic flight and yet offered the intense lift needed for the short runways from which the plane was expected to operate. In 1960, a Draken passed Mach 2 in level flight – another first for a Western European fighter jet.

Although it never fired a shot in anger, the versatile, efficient Draken was a mainstay in the Western European arsenal during the Cold War. They stayed in service right into the 1980’s, when they were phased out in favor of the JA 37 Viggen.

The example at the Mojave Air Museum Legacy Park is actually a T 35 Draken, a two-seat training version. You can see the periscope device mounted to the canopy bow over the front seat. This allowed the trainer sitting in the back to monitor the student’s performance.

A little dustier, and waiting for its time in the refurb shop, the S 35 at Estrella Warbirds is a good example of the Draken in its combat configuration.

^{Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saab_35_Draken}

These images were taken at the Mojave Air Museum Legacy Park in Mojave, and at Estrella Warbirds Museum in Paso Robles.

Marvelous Air Museums is part of the John D Reinhart content family. Writer, illustrator, videographer, and accidental filmmaker — find the whole story at JohnDReinhart.com.

North American PBJ Maritime Patrol Bomber

The PBJ-1J “Mitchell” flew into Camarillo from Midland, Texas in April, 1993.

After inspection, the aircraft was put into our long restoration process, and at the conclusion this “Mitchell” is as brand-new as it was when it came off the assembly line.

The B-25 Mitchell is painted in the colors of a Marine Corps PBJ-1J, named “Semper Fi” with Globe and Anchor painted on the starboard nose.

^{Source: https://www.cafsocal.com/our-aircrafts/our-aircraft-and-history/north-american-pbj/}

The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Brigadier General William “Billy” Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation.^[2] Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served in every theater of World War II, and after the war ended, many remained in service, operating across four decades. Produced in numerous variants, nearly 10,000 B-25s were built,^[1] It was the most-produced American medium bomber and the third most-produced American bomber overall. These included several limited models such as the F-10 reconnaissance aircraft, the AT-24 crew trainers, and the United States Marine Corps‘ PBJ-1 patrol bomber.

^{Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_B-25_Mitchell}

These images were taken at the Commemorative Air Force Southern California Wing museum in Camarillo, CA.

Marvelous Air Museums is part of the John D Reinhart content family. Writer, illustrator, videographer, and accidental filmmaker — find the whole story at JohnDReinhart.com.

McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II

The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II first took to the skies in 1959. Right off the runway, it set 15 world records, including absolute speed and absolute altitude.

The big, twin-engine fighter’s history is inextricably linked with the Vietnam War, in which it played a critical role for the United States Air Force, Marine Corps, and the Navy. It performed air superiority, ground attack, and even reconnaissance functions for all three services.

The 41-ton Phantom soldiered on after the Vietnam War, providing air superiority throughout the Cold War. In fact, the F-4 went on to provide suppression of enemy air defenses during the Gulf War.

The Mach-2 fighter was finally retired in 1996, being replaced by the more modern F-14 Tomcat, F-16 Eagle, and F-16 Fighting Falcon.

The importance and ubiquity of the F-4 cannot be overstated, perhaps best illustrated that you’ll find one is almost every air museum in California.

These images were taken at the Point Mugu Missile Park in Port Hueneme, CA, Estrella Warbird Museum in Paso Robles, Santa Maria Museum of Flight in Santa Maria, and at the Mojave Air Museum Legacy Park in Mojave, CA.

Marvelous Air Museums is part of the John D Reinhart content family. Writer, illustrator, videographer, and accidental filmmaker — find the whole story at JohnDReinhart.com.

Curtiss C-46-Commando

The history of the C-46F “China Doll” is typical of post-WWII surplus transport aircraft.

“China Doll” was one of 234 C-46Fs built at the Curtiss plant in Buffalo NY. She rolled off the assembly line and was accepted in July 1945, with Curtiss Construction No 22486 and AAF serial No 44-78663. Records indicate that early assignments included Sedalia Army Air Base (now Whiteman AFB, home of the B-2 bomber), Greenville SC, Brookey AL, and other bases in the southeastern United States. Used as a transport and glider tow plane, she flew with the military until the early 50’s.

Surplused and sold to Meteor Air Transport of Teteboro NJ, she was given the new number N53594, a new civilian paint scheme, and was put to work hauling clothing to Detroit and auto parts back to New Jersey. She was even used as a Christmas holiday transport, hauling toys and Santa sleighs. A radio remote was broadcast from the plane on one Christmas eve over New York City, according to Ken Johnson, chief pilot at Meteor.

Meteor went out of business in 1958, after which the plane changed hands many times … Riddle, Zantop, Universal, and several companies owned by Ortner Air Service of Wakeman OH. The last civilian owner was Plymouth Leasing of Detroit, who leased the plane to Rosenbaum Aviation, who in turn cut holes in her sides, put spray booms on her wings, and used her as a pinecone beetle sprayer.

The CAF acquired the plane from Plymouth Leasing in Feb 1978, along with the C-46 N78774. Both of the old girls were tired and needed lots of “TLC”. N78774 got lucky early and went to the Oklahoma Wing to become “The Tinker Belle”. “Ol’ 594” had to wait. She was finally assigned to the East Texas Wing, located at Conroe TX, where she was given the name “Humpty Dumpty” in honor of the C-46s that flew over the Himalaya Mountains (i.e., “the Hump”) during the war. She also received a Chinese color scheme and clever nose art , showing a Chinese egg jumping over mountain peaks.

An engine failed in 1980. This posed a bigger problem than the East Texas folks wanted to handle, and the plane sat in non-flying condition until the summer of 1981. The newly formed So Calif Wing wanted a plane, and they were offered the C-46 if they could come up with two new engines and hang them on the plane. Who could refuse an offer like that?

It took the entire summer of 1981 to replace the engines. Then, on her first test flight, she skidded off the runway into axle-deep mud. With lots of coaxing, she finally left Conroe and flew to Airsho81 at Harlingen TX, where two main oil lines let go.

During Airsho81 the C-46 was officially assigned to the So Calif Wing. On Columbus Day 1981, she was flown to Van Nuys airport, in Los Angeles, and then to her permanent home at Camarillo Airport in the spring of 1982, where work began in earnest to make her a “star airshow airplane”. This wasn’t just a line fed to an ol’ country girl. The California Colonels really meant it. Over the course of several years they cleaned up corrosion, patched up lots of sheet metal, overhauled the propellers, replaced the passenger windows, and gave the plane a new coat of shiny aluminum paint and bright USAAF markings.

Still not satisfied, the So Calif Colonels gave her a new name and glamorous new nose art. In honor of the oriental flights of her sister ships, the name “China Doll” was chosen . Tony Starcer, the famed GI artist who painted the original “Memphis Belle” nose art plus hundreds of others, applied the new name and art. It was to be Starcer’s final nose art painting. When the plane was repainted in 1994, the nose art was re-done by artist Patricia Sica.

_{Source: https://www.cafsocal.com/our-aircrafts/our-aircraft-and-history/c-46-china-doll/}

These images were taken at the Commemorative Air Force Southern California Wing museum in Camarillo, CA.

Marvelous Air Museums is part of the John D Reinhart content family. Writer, illustrator, videographer, and accidental filmmaker — find the whole story at JohnDReinhart.com.

Commemorative Air Force Southern California Wing

The Southern California Wing of the Commemorative Air Force is nestled against the south side of the Camarillo Airport, just west of the Santa Monica Mountains in Camarillo. It’s a sprawling complex of hangars jam-packed with World War II aircraft.

And they are beautiful examples of airplanes from both sides of the conflict. You’ll find a huge Curtiss C-46 Commando (the largest twin-engine plane ever flown by the US Army), a Grumman F-6F Hellcat, an F-8F Bearcat, and a Fairchild PT-19 trainer sitting alongside a North American SNJ-5 advanced trainer in its original, glorious yellow paint. There is a wonderful Messerschmitt BF-108 Taifun, and an in-process restoration of a Fiesler Storch. The Supermarine Spitfire MkXIV, with its menacing 5-bladed propellor is a must see, as is the Mitsubishi A6M3 Zero.

The star of the show, and the pride of the museum, is the North American PBJ Maritime Patrol Bomber. It took 23 years of loving restoration to clear the corrosion from this impressive, beautiful airplane which, at a first glance, looks like a B-25J Mitchell Bomber.

“It is the same airframe,” said Lucien Pillai, the museum’s public information officer, “except this one was built for the US Navy, not the Army. They called theirs B-25s, but the Navy called theirs P for patrol, B for bomber, and J because the plane was built by the North American Aircraft company. We traced out her tail numbers. This is the only surviving PBJ in the world.”

Like the PBJ, nearly all the other airplanes are either fully restored or in the process of getting back to their original, flying condition. The Bearcat and the Storch, for example, are currently missing their wings. The museum has the wings, but they’re being rebuilt.

Most importantly, you’ll find an oil-drip pan parked beneath each aircraft, because the CAF flies these beauties whenever they can.

Colonel Ron Fleishman, the museum’s historian, quipped that if an airplane doesn’t drip oil, there’s something wrong with it.

To prove the point, a meticulously restored T-34 Mentor in stunning Coast Guard graphics rumbled past us as we were crossing the tarmac, heading into a hangar towards a waiting drip pan.

And here’s something: you can book a ride one of these guys! Can you imagine, sitting in the front seat of the open-cockpit PT-19, rumbling through the Southern California skies? Or sitting in the all-Perspex nose of the PBJ as she thunders down the runway? Clear your calendar for the second Saturday of each month, and visit the museum’s website for ticket information.

One of the many fun things about the Southern California Wing of the Commemorative Air Force (based in Harlingen, Texas, but with museums, called “wings,” all over the world), is that everyone you meet is an officer, as in a military officer. We met with the Public Information Officer, Lucien Pillai. He introduced us to the SoCal wing’s historian, Colonel Ron Fleishman. Ron explained that, as the title “colonel” is an honorarium, everybody’s a colonel in the CAF!

The museum also houses an impressive collection of World War II artifacts, including a semi-melted engine from a P-38 Lightning that crashed into the Camarillo hillsides back when Camarillo Airport was the Oxnard Air Force Base. You’ll also find an actual ball turret, a fiberglass replica of the lower turret that was used in B-17 and B-24 bombers. And a huge number of model airplanes, from World War I right through to the present day.

And don’t miss the Link Trainer, a flight simulator so authentic that one student pilot actually bailed out of it!

There’s a lot to see at this easy-to-find, engaging museum.

We put together a video tour of the museum that you might like. But we strongly encourage you to go visit this great collection of vintage airplanes for yourself!

Get off the 101 Freeway at Las Posas Road, go south, make a right on Pleasant Valley, and a right on Eubanks, and you’re there. You can’t miss the huge Hamilton Standard propeller!

Visit them online at CAFSoCal.com, or call them at +1 805 482 0064. They’re open Fridays and Saturdays, 10-4, and Sundays 12-4.

Marvelous Air Museums is part of the John D Reinhart content family. Writer, illustrator, videographer, and accidental filmmaker — find the whole story at JohnDReinhart.com.