WARBIRD HISTORY ... whats your point of view ?

[radioflite]

https://youtu.be/JzJfe-r-1HY

[Prowler901]

A Warbird can't truly be appreciated unless it's seen in action. Static displays in museums are great. But, they're lifeless. As long as the aircraft are maintained and flown responsibly, then I think that they should be flown.

[VOODOO]

I agree that flight demos are the ideal way to appreciate warbirds, or any aircraft, for that matter. Economics unfortunately make this a most improbable possibility. The cost of maintaining and flying a warbird is out of reach for, I would guess, 99 & 44/100ths % of the population. Too bad there are no more Kermit Weeks out there to finance more Fantasy of Flights.

I'm lucky to live 35 miles from the SUN-N-FUN location, so it's easier for me to enjoy aircraft in flight than most.

[JFandL]

I think seeing an old WWII or WWI aircraft in flight is something to behold. Not the same , seeing them in a video for sure.

John

[radioflite]

I love ..LOVE. seeing and hearing a WWII / KW warbird
Roaring bye overhead .
I feel sick when another one of these rare classic warbirds is lost and in some cases the
Loss of life. If I could , I would buy as many as I could for preservation sale .Was it president Carter that had planes destroyed ?
My dad was in the in the South Pacific in WWII , he said the Corsair and there brave young pilots saved his ass (his words) more than once . He felt it was important to preserve the history of all our ships ,tanks , aircraft etc .I agree.

[wrongroad]

G'day gang,
I agree that there is nothing better than watching a Mustang, Spitfire or the like going past the spectator line in full voice. The sight and sound sends shivers down my spine and the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
However, I would much prefer to see a warbird in a museum then becoming a smoldering wreck in a field.
I spoke to a P-51D Mustang pilot in January at a near, local airshow and he said that there is a movement to severely restrict what stunts can be performed in public. He stated that it is in an effort to save the machines and lives in what are becoming very old aircraft. He was in full agreement with the idea.
A simple fly by is more than sufficient for most of us fans of the piston engined fighters.
Regards and respect
Daryl

[TSHobbies]

what Daryl said..I agree...I get chills too lol I know there is/was a company over seas making copies of the Tiger II tank, and if I recall, the Me 262...It would be great to see someone create a business that produces modern remakes of these birds, like the P-61 etc I would think in the long run it would be cheaper than trying to restore a derelict scrap heap.

[fhhuber]

Keep em flying while they can be safely operated.

Then, as with the Stormbirds ME-262,s... make reproductions from improved, modern materials.

[Aros]

I am all for keeping them flying whenever possible. Paul Allen has a fine collection here in the Pacific Northwest of vintage WWII warbirds that we get to see fly every year on Aviation Day. It's such a thrill to see the P-51, P-47, FW-190, BF-109, B-25, P-40 and a lot more, soaring above the airfield. These aircraft are well maintained and knock on wood there have been no accidents.

I think there should always be a percentage that still flies and a percentage that is preserved for static display. I also wonder why we can't simply re-manufacturer many of these warbirds using modern technology from original blueprints? I think that would certainly be a viable solution to preserving these warbirds (albeit replicas) without the possibility of destroying the originals. As long as we have access to original files and blueprints, there's no telling the difference between an exact replica and original.

[Grossman56]

I tend to agree with Aros, back in the 80's I was lucky enough to see a carbon fiber full size P51D and you wouldn't know the difference. Then there's the group in Australia that has built original WWI birds from the original blueprints and drawings, right down to making the original motors. Absolutely amazing video if you get to see it.
Its enough to bring me to tears to see a warbird crash, but what raises me spirit is when I see outfits like the one in England that remade the Spitfire Mk1a. They are basically making new Spitfires, considering the one they started off with sat on a beach in France since the forties, so you can imagine what was really original and what was remade .
I just hate to think that I've heard my last roar of a Merlin engine. Maybe we need to question the person who owns, maintains or flies these birds.
Its a tough question.

Grossman56

[radioflite]

I think flying replcas is a great way to preserve the original aircraft that served and saved our country and others . I was on Cape cod when the P51 passion wagon crashed ..it was horrific and the sense of loss was overwhelming , the loss of the pilot & machine .
God bless the brave men that took to the sky in these beautiful creations in the name of freedom & liberty.