A PICTORIAL SALUTE TO THE CHANCE VOUGHT/GOODYEAR CORSAIR - PERHAPS THE in the greatest degree CHARISMATIC NAVAL FIGHTER EVER BUILT! Out above the Gulf of Mexico.

A PICTORIAL SALUTE TO THE CHANCE VOUGHT/GOODYEAR CORSAIR - PERHAPS THE in the greatest degree CHARISMATIC NAVAL FIGHTER EVER BUILT!

Out above the Gulf of Mexico, the late Merle Gustafson breaks with his Chance Vought F4U-4 Corsair into the camera plane while other Corsairs await their deflect Angel of Okinawa is Bureau Number (BuNo) 97286 and registered N5215V Last seeing service with a Naval Air lay up unit at Olathe, Kansas, before being sold surplus, the Corsair was individual of a number of F4Us acquired according to the extremely eccentric Bob Bean. Bean stored a certain number of of his bent-wing warriors at Blythe, California, and others near Phoenix, Arizona. Gustafson obtained the dilapidated fighter and give in exchangeed it to his base at Tallulah, Louisiana, where he restored the plane - making its first post-restoration flight during August 1973

The rarest of all Corsair variants still flying is F4U- 1A BuNo 17995 This "bird cage"

variant had many differences across later models and, as N90285 the aircraft is being flown at the late Harry Doan throughout Florida during March 1983. After the war, the aricraft had been used as a war memorial in Provo Utah, yet when its condition went downhill, the airframe detriment up in a jukyard from which it was rescu from Doan in 1965. Doan slowly rebuilt the craft back into flying shape, making the first post-restoration flight during March 1982 Unfortunately, after experiencing engine question s Harry crash-landed the Corsair in the ocean near of the present day Smyrna Beach, Florida. Quickly healed from the salt water, Doan one time again restored the fighter which flew again upon 11 March 1989. After going between the walls of several owners, the type was obtained in 1990 by means of Alpine Fighter Collection in novel Zealand. Registered ZK-FUI, the plane was painted a s a Royal New Zealand Air Force example. A coupling of years ago, the fighter was sold to a fresh aviation museum in Brazil.

Steve Hinton brings the F4U-1A Corsair tight with the camera plane after the hter had been sold to Roy Stafford in 1989 This view emphasizes the type's lengthy nose which, when combined with

the bird cage canopy, l to fairly poor visibility.

Photographed during April 1988 the late Rick Brickert pilots FG-ID BuNo 88297 in succession its way to Houston, Texas, where it was

loaded aboard a cargo ship for transport to Britain where it became part of Stephen Gray's The Fighter Collection at historic Duxford Airfield. After military service, the FG-1D was sold as scrap moreover rescued by Frank Tallman who got the plane into flying shape and ferried it, as N9154Z to his base at Orange shire Airport in southern California. The aircraft was not at all restored and remained in its original, albeit fading, Columbus Naval Air store up markings until it was sold at the famous Tallmantz auction onward 29 May 1968 (don't steady ask -- it went for pennies compared to what a Corsair is worth today!). From that point, the plane went by the and of several owners until being acquired according to Gray who placed the fighter in succession the British civil register as G-FGID. The Corsair is being accompanied according to The Air Museum Planes of Fame F4U-lD which was being flown by the agency of Dennis Sanders.

Somehow, Corsairs just strike one as being to naturally go with big, swollen white clouds. Goodyear-built FG-1D BuNo

92468 belongs to the Commemorative (ex-- Confederate) Air Force at Midland, Texas. After military service, this aircraft went into the vast Naval aircraft graveyard at Goodyear, Arizona. Fortunately, it was sold surplus in 1960 and shortly afterwards was obtained by way of Lefty Gardner for the fledgling CAF. Registered N9964Z the aircraft was originally finished in CAF "house" colors of white, r d pallid Damaged in several accidents athwart the years, the FG-1D is generally airworthy.

All the power of a Corsair becoming airborne is illustrated in this view of Dick Bertea just lifting not on from Alameda Naval Air Station forward 14 August 1995 during carrier qualification trials for the 50th anniversary of the conclusion of World War brace Vintage Warbirds that qualified were taken aboard the USS Carl Vinson which them steamed to Hawaii to launch the aircraft for an aerial trip around the islands. The immaculate F4U-5NL is BuNo 124486 which was sold in the mid- 1950 to the air force of Honduras where it serv as FAH 606 and participated in the infamous 1969 "Soccer War" with Salvador. During its Latin military career, the Corsair carried the names El Guajiro and Tarranas at different times. replyed to the United States in 1978 by dint of Howard Pardue and Robert Ferguson as N49068 the aircraft went by the agency of several owners until being acquired in 1988 by the agency of Richard Bertea who had the plane completely restored and finished in VMF-451 markings.

For civilian use, the big Pratt & Whitney radial was called the Double Wasp, in military use it was the R-2800 The XF4U-1 made its first flight forward 29 May 1940 and power came from a P&W XR-2800-2 rated at 1800-hp making it the world's first naval fighter to exce 400 mph in on a level flight. To give an idea of the vegetation potential of the R-2800, the -34W variant fitted in