Dennis Fisher, Dirk Septer and Mike Clayton all sent me this photo report of a bear attack on Piper PA-18 N9368D (18-6633), registered to Jonathan Miller since 15May2003, he flies it from Lake Hood.
Apparently a bear attacked this plane while parked in a remote field in Alaska. The plane had not been cleaned out after a long fishing trip and the bear smelled it, went for a taste..
The images show 'repairs bush style' using a lot of duct tape to be able to get it home.
Couldn't resist to add it here, though I have no name to credit the photographer, sorry.
Think they must have applied the tailnumber again to make flying legal..?

When I visited the bookfair on 21Nov09 at Lelystad's Aviodrome, I noticed C-47A N473DC 'Drag 'Em Oot' was still here.
It had been participating in various WW2 commemorations in Holland, but I would have thought that a return to the UK had been the logical thing to do. It transpired that the stay wasn't voluntarily...

On 02Dec09 a replacement engine was brought in, from Miami to Amsterdam flown on a Martinair MD-11 freighter and by road to Lelystad, which was needed to replace the faulty no.1 engine... Only 18 hours after departure Miami it arrived at the Aviodrome.

Raymond wrote me: "..on 05Dec a first test to no.1 was applied, at 13hr45, followed by increased power run around 15:00 and at 15:45 a full blown test flight of 45 minutes took place, resulting in a thumbs up and a clean bill of health!"
"On 06Dec a return to Ol' Blighty should take place and we are looking at a return to the Continent next week, for commemorations of the WW2 battles fought in the Ardennes."
(Raymonds message was in Dutch, translation by the Webmaster)

Raymond also told me that DC-3 G-DAKK, next to N473DC on the photo, is still for sale, inquiries are regularly made and referred to owner Tony Holden but as yet a sale has not been made.

For more (2009) photos taken at the Aviodrome, see HERE.. And more on C-47A N473DC see HERE..

A 2017 (photo) update on G-DAKK can be found on South Coast Airways.

Fred Barnes wrote me in Oct.2009:
"I was in Canada in September, with my good friend Ray Turner. After visiting Kenora Air Service (16Sep09) we were given details to find Kuby's Yard and arrived there OK.
There was a derelict Norseman fuselage, which we were unable to unidentify. Could you add a request for information on your website?"

"We also saw derelict Beech 18s :-
C-FKEL c/n BA-565
C-FBCC c/n CA-3
CF-WYR c/n CA-49 (wing)
plus 2 others unidentified.
And Beech 18 C-GEHX c/n CA-112 (also referenced as A-712 in the larger Beech D18S c/n series -Bob Parmerter) was parked for the winter."

EMAIL me if you have information that would help Fred solve these mysteries???

Rodney Kozar of http://noorduynnorseman.com thinks the unidentified Norseman is c/n 427, ex CF-GYY. Any further confirmation would be useful. There is a possiblility that the other Norseman frame is c/n 423, ex CF-GTP. Their histories can be found on www.norsemanhistory.ca/Aircraft.htm

Gary: "I am with the understanding the Dutch roundel was orange, with no white surround. Japanese roundels were red with a white surround, so you can understand the problem!"

Stig Jarlevik provided following interesting information:
"As far as I know the Fokker D.VIII referred to as in 'Japanese' hinomaru is in fact the WNr 3264 (Bestelnummer D.VIII 509/17) and is shown in Dutch colours.
It was one of about 15 reportedly brought to Holland in 1919. At this time no Dutch civil registration existed and the orange roundel was simply a way to mark the aeroplane. It took part in the famous ELTA exhibition in 1919 and was flown by Mr Anthony Fokker himself."

"The Japanese example was WNr 3262 and it arrived in Japan still in German colours with both crosses and lozenge camo intact. A photograph of it shows its wheels to be devoid of any tyres. It is in fact doubtful if it ever flew in Japan..."

Herman Dekker, authority on the Dutch Registry and markings, added:
"Both photos are from 'Profile No.67', written by J.M. Bruce. He says the photos depict Dutch markings and I don't doubt him for a second. Nor what Stig wrote, I have little to add to that.
The roundel is indeed the Netherlands orange roundel used in the pre-N.L.R. era.
Not sure if it was an LVA roundel, or a deviation of it. I would suspect the latter.
The most well-known applications of that roundel was by Anthony Fokker himself, on 'FOKKER's LUCHTTOURISME' (Fokker's aerial tourisme) aircraft C.I and LVG B.III
That is all I can think of to add!"
(Note: answer by mr Dekker provided in Dutch, translation by Webmaster)

Richard Roberts wrote me in Nov.2009 with good news:
"CF-CPY was indeed taken down from its old location due to airport improvements. There is now a road where the plane was located.
However, all was not lost, as the plane and its plinth was relocated at the (now) airport entrance on the grounds of the Yukon Transportation Museum. It still revolves with the wind!
I was president of the Museum Society in 1992 when the ownership of the DC-3 was transferred from the Whitehorse Flying Club to the Museum for a fee of $1.00.
A few years ago the plane was taken off its plinth, for a couple of years in order to undertake an external refurbishment, being cleaned and repainted, with tail surfaces being refrabriced."
To make sure, Richard added this timeline: "the DC-3 was originally placed on the pole during the 1980s period. It was taken down for refurbishment July 1998 and replaced in September 2001. It was taken down in July of this year (2009), spent a week on the ground and was then towed down the Alaska Highway the .5km to its new location at the Transportation Museum."

More on the biggest windvane ever on my 2003 visit to Alaska and the Yukon!

Jaap Haasnoot sent me this photo which he took upon a visit in 2008 at Aero Union's base in Chico,CA.

P-3A 22-24 is indeed an ex/ Spanish AF aircraft. but I found 22-24 to have been stored at Greybull,WY for many years. A photo can be seen on my Guest pages (18) as Aero union's latest airtanker, #17 (N917AU).

John Vogel from California sent me a nice 2015 update; see Photo by Friends & Guests p.44

My JP Airline Fleets edition 1990 has the fleet reduced to the 2 above mentioned Cessna's

Ben provided the following historical details:
"Ward Gay (Sea Airmotive founder) used to own the spot on the point at Lake Hood, in the 1950’s. He sold it to Bill Cunningham, who started Alaska Air Guides at that time. 
My father bought the service from Bill in 1975 and operated from Lake Hood until he sold out in 1995, to Jim Bern and his wife Lisa, who operated it as Jim Air."

More photos provided by Ben Cogger at my page Photos by Friends & Guests (22) and PAGE 24

Martin Prince Jr wrote: "Bethel received a new Beaver this past fall, I finally got a shot of it this evening near sunset.
N95DG belongs to JP Air and is seen landing Runway 18R, 12Nov09."
N95DG was registered 09Apr2009 to Aircraft Marketing and Leasing LLC (Fairbanks,AK).

More photos by Martin Prince Jr HERE and HERE

On my very first page dedicated to material sent in by Friends & Guests, an issue was raised to identify a low flying DC-4. It was determined to be N898AL of Brooks Fuel. Subsequently the question was put forward what had happened to this radial-engined workhorse...

We can now reveal its fate but first a tribute, through photography of Marc van Hilton.

air-to-air: over the northside of the Alaska's Brooks Range, above the Anaktuvuk Pass, while en-route to Fairbanks. The DC-4 was flown by Frank Moss and Jay Moore. Marc van Hilton took this photo flying Brooks' other DC-4 N90201 (Winter of 1993/94)
Right, below: location 30km south of Point Lay Alaska (Frozen ice strip - runway is plowed lake). Temperature minus -42 degrees, wind 25 knots, RH #4 kept running while offloading...
Top, left and below, left: N898AL at an unknown, desolate landing strip, during winter. Because of the absence of a forklift truck, the common (?) practice was to lower the tail, so that the DC-4 cargo floor was closer to the ground, facilitating easier loading/unloading by the ground crew!!!
[Thanks to Michael Prophet for forwarding the photos and text].

This photo was found on pub36.bravenet.com : N898AL being put to a last use, an aid to prevent further coastal erosion! Pity I could not find the photographer's name, to add as credit. Aad van der Voet (OldWings.nl) contributed the folowing: "Kivalina is one of the Alaskan communities that is gradually being washed away by the ocean, due to natural erosion, expedited by the effects of global warming. The ocean now no longer freezes up during early autumn, before the storms come, but much later in the year. The wreck of N898AL was broken up by the locals late September 2005, and large sections of the aircraft's wings and fuselage were used to strengthen the seawall on the island's southwestern coastline. Some photos here: http://pub36.bravenet.com But these people are fighting a losing battle (merely buying time to prepare for relocation), and these aircraft sections have probably already disappeared into the ocean during later storms. It would be fairly safe to assume that N898AL is gone.."

Jacques Hémet wrote me in Nov.2009:
"I was in Asmara,Eritrea, around 1980, and have these photos to share. They may be of interest to your readers/viewers."

More photo by Jacques Hémet further below on this page.

Fernand van de Plas remembered the tradition of school outings to the airport in the 1950s & 1960s, and of course the class had to pose in front of an aeroplane! Schreiner Airways' DC-3 PH-DAC (c/n 9410) sits in the background.
Fernand obtained this photo at a fair in Rotterdam.
Herman Dekker's website offered the following info on c/n 9410-
Douglas DC-3C 9410
901 --- JZ-PDC, PH-DAC
20.03.1963 KLM NV, Den Haag
12.09.1963 Schreiner Aero Contractors NV, Den Haag
30.10.1967 KLM NV, Den Haag
19.12.1967 Registration cancelled
OO-VDF, N6907, C9-ATH, 5X-TAL(?), C9-ATH, 3D-ATH(?), EL-AWB, 3D-ATH
In 2000 the aircraft was abandoned at Mbuji-Mayi and was reported there in 2004 with tailnumber C9-ATH
In 1963 a sale to Libya was not taken up.

On my website, in the Bill Hill Collection gallery, I have a photo of this C-47 operated by Delta Air Transport (DAT) , reg'd OO-VDF.

Rod Cork added this on Yahoo's Classic Propliner forum:
"Marshall Airways was a charter/ Ad hoc operator based and Bankstown Airport, near Sydney, Australia. It was owned by Sid Marshall and he owned an eclectic collection of old aircraft including 2 DC2s, Avro Ansons, DH Dragon and a Tiger Moth. Also stored in his hangar roof were a number of WW2 fighters. It existed into the early 1970s.
As a kid I used to ride my bike to his hangar and he charged us to sit in the aircraft. I suspect his airliner collection were leftovers from the combined military/civil airline operation of WW2 which included aircraft and staff from Australia, USA and Dutch military and all the Aussie airlines. Certainly that is the source of the DC2s. I also suspect that he intended to run an airline, but was prevented by the Federal Government under their 2 airline policy that existed in Australia until the late 1990s.
The DC-2s were for many years dismantled in a field adjoining Bankstown Airport and then 1 was parked on the other side near the DH facility, awaiting a ferry to the US for the Confederate Air Force. However that never happened and it eventually disappeared."

These photos show a type of aircraft I had not heard of before; Jacques wrote-
"This aircraft was produced for the Luftwaffe, by the French, and later for the Armée de l'Air under designation NC 701 or NC 702, depending on the nose configuration.
The Argus engine was later changed to a Renault 12S, 12 cylinder V. I am not a specialist, I am writing this from memory.
In Algeria the aircraft was used for ambulance and for mail transport.
The photo was taken at Reghaïa air base in 1958
To clarify, Hémet never operated Siebel aircraft, perhaps these aircraft were used by the French Armée de l'Air during the Algeria war.
To the best of my knowledge very few Siebel were operated by civilian companies. Maybe one in Sweden, for aerial photography, and another in Algeria. Poor reliability of the Argus engines was probably the cause"

Wikipedia had limited information on Siebel and none on this type of aircraft: "Siebel, originally Flugzeugbau Halle, was a German aircraft manufacturer in Halle an der Saale.
It was revived in 1948 as Siebelwerke/ATG (SIAT) before being absorbed by MBB in 1970."
Then I found information under a different designation: Siebel Si 204

Jacques Hémet also sent these images of Hémet's DC-3 F-OCUY (c/n 7390):

Picture taken on Jean Mayen airstrip.

Jan Mayen Island is a volcanic island in the Arctic Ocean, 55 km (34 miles) long (southwest-northeast) and 373 km2 (144 mi2) in area, partly covered by glaciers [Wikipedia, more...]

In the next few days AF technicians dismantled wings and horizontal stabilizer, then two Signals warrant-officers were dispatched to prepare the airframe for towing into the down-town. They simply hacked the tail section off (down to the loading ramp) using simple axe and a push-pull felling saw!
The crippled hull then was towed to the rear fire gates of the Kagnew station (opening to Beirut street) and man-handled inside by combined efforts of the Soviet advisers team (the General would not leave the scene and was running around, adding to the confusion, shouting and directing privates and colonels alike – a big crowd of local bystanders quickly assembled, and Ethiopians were having BIG time, nearly laughing their heads off).
After two hours of pulling, pushing and swearing aloud, the crippled An-12 was placed against the wall of the former Officers Club.
In the next few days Soviet soldiers had dropped the hull on the worn-out car tires, appended it with skillfully carved wooden stairs 'Russian traditional village-style', lined the interior with canvas (tents taken from cargo trucks) and brought in beds and chairs.

One thing should be kept in mind – Asmara lays at an altitude of approximately 2.500 meters ASL, if I’m not mistaken. Therefore it is rather cold at night – and our soldiers had to sleep in their winter field jackets and Army shapkas, sometimes even covering themselves with mattresses against cold and moisture mountain air... During day time, it was all different and African sun was heating the aircraft metal mercilessly and the night shift signal operators had to strip off even their underwear trying to get some sleep in extricating oven heat!
The Commanding General, Chief Military Adviser, 2nd revolutionary Army group Asmara, Mr Cherevaschenko would not hear of complaints… he just had one more of his dreams come true and proudly presented his 'Invention' to the visiting Ethiopian and Soviet dignitaries alike…
There is some history behind this simple playground toy for Eritrean kids…. Here it has found a home– at least we’d left something good for kids to play with behind us: http://www.asmera.nl/asmara53.jpg

Courtesy Google Earth I can present the following photo to illustrate Oleg's story:

In gallery of Searching For there is the saga of the disappearance of DC-3 ECT-025. While on this subject, another DC-3 disappearance was brought to my attention.

Lothar Grim sent me this and wrote:

"Here is a newspaper clip from a Baden-Baden newspaper from February 17, 1981.
If the story to this (VERY funny) picture is true, one of the disappeared aircraft had no connection to the Spanish A/F."

The German text explains how Mr Kurfiss managed to talk the price down of an acquited DC-3, but had to sweeten the deal with crates of whiskey and foot the bill for the Ugandan General, his 3 wifes and.... his 28 children!

Stephen Whitaker and I agreed on the following translation:
--18 000 dollars, Five Cases of Whiskey and a Hotel Bill for an old DC-3...--
Gunter Kurfiss, during his worldwide search for old aircraft, may have seen everything as he built his collection. This story proves to be one example:
In Kampala / Uganda, Kurfiss had discovered an old DC 3 and entered negotiations with a Military official there to acquire it.
A high General came as a negotiating partner to Kampala and he demanded 75.000 dollars for the airplane. But Gunter Kurfiss, a seasoned pilot and knowledgeable in the dealings of the airline industry, knew how to negotiate. After three days of tough negotiations he brought the price down to 18.000 USD.
However, he also had to throw in five cases of whiskey, as a gesture. After all negotiations were completed the Ugandan General told Gunter Kurfiss that he should also take care of the hotel bill for his family, who the General had brought with him.
Innocently, Gunter Kurfiss agreed. He later discovered the General had not only his three wives with him, but also his 28 children.
Ironically, this DC-3 disappeared, for some unknown reason, during the ferry flight and has remained missing to this day.

Lorne Brett sent me this image in Sep.2009; it was taken in 1997.

Lorne wrote: "I live in Thunder Bay Ontario and have seen the Beech 18 between Sioux Lookout and Upsala several times over the years while fishing in the area.
When I last visited the sight the plane was in much better condition. I suspect that this airplane has sadly been the victim of high scrap prices for aluminum a couple of years ago, but I may be wrong.
Although somewhat remote, the sight is accessible by vehicle.
I have a short history of the plane, although I can in no way guarantee its accuracy since the information was given to me by a friend, who had talked to somebody, who had lived in the area for many years.
The plane was used by the United States Air Force ( the markings are still on the plane ). It crashed into a small lake, beside the railway tracks, in the 1950's. I was told there were no fatalities. The plane was pulled up on shore, where the engines and other parts were salvaged.
I think that the fact that the railway was used up until about 15 years ago kept the plane in a fairly unvandalised state. Unfortunately this is no longer the case".

More on this aircraft, and others, on my page ABANDONED PLANE WRECKS OF THE NORTH

Sam Warren Jr sent me these photos, of what seems to be a DC-4 during landing 'touching' ('touch-and-go'?) a van with its right maingear...
How do you explain to your car insurance that an aeropplane has landed on your vehicle?!
Sam wrote about these photos: "I came across these photos, they were taken at Harvey Airfield in Snohomish, WA.
Harvey airfield has a very short runway.
I met the pilot and copilot. They told me another funny part of the story, of which there is no picture: they took out an old snag (a dead tree) on the approach before landing on the illegally parked Ford Van. The plane left skid marks across the top of the van!"

Following suggestion was sent to me:
"Well, I’m certainly not able to determine which DC-4 this is... BUT... if the time frame is 1982-86 then I have a great suspicion that it is N96361.. [below photos show it to be N96359! - Webmaster, Dec.2011]
To say the owners were rogue would be an understatement!
I first met them at Arlington WA in summer of 1982; the head honcho there gave me a walk around once I had him impressed with my DC4 knowledge (not that hard to do!!!). One story he gave me was they used to park at Paine Field, but were evicted for their bad behaviour and too much alcohol being consumed around the plane!
They looked like a bunch of bikers (although that describes many involved with propliners in that period) and mainly did the contracts during fishing season in Alaska."

"Here is the write up of the disappearance of their plane in 1986. Their story has never been believed, the drifting around at sea in a raft for 16hrs only wearing street clothes was impossible!
And who goes flying VFR on Christmas Eve
Most locals believe it was an insurance fraud, but nobody has ever found the plane. Maybe it 'went south'?! There is a mix up in many databases, claiming it was sold to Central Air Services in 1984 (I made that mistake, see link ITEM ON N96361 below- webmaster). I am sure this is an error and some dyslexia with the military serial..
http://www.aircraftone.com/aircraft/accidents/20001213X35440.asp
http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/GenPDF.asp?id=SEA87LA041&rpt=fa
http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/brief.asp?ev_id=20001213X35440&key=1
Looking at your photos above, that first photo: there appears to be a stripe extending to the nose?
I have an old photo of N96361, when it was seized by customs in about 1977, which shows it still with the military livery white/grey and one cheatline stripe. However, the airplane as I saw it always had a thick brown stripe finishing under the cockpit window...
So, maybe this is not the same plane, but still a plane with a typical 'Hollywood' tale to it !
Maybe someone else can chime in and identify it for sure."

SEE ALSO THIS ITEM ON N96361 (this tailnumber N96361 has been erroneously quoted for N6816D c/n 27368)

Jürgen Scherbarth sent me this image of N96361, taken at Arlington, WA. in Aug.1982; the cheatline does not match with the photos above, concluding that above 'rogue landing' did not involve N96361...

But this one matches! Jürgen wrote (Dec.2011):
"I've found the mystery C-54 with the brown cheatline! Seen here at the air show in Washington state. It was scrapped at an unknown date and is still registered (N96359 R05Jul78 Starbird Inc., Reno,NV) as of today..."
This N96359 is C-54E c/n 27330 ex/ 44-9104 - see also Warbirdregistry.org

Bil Bailey wrote (dec.2011):
"I've flown into Harvey Field on quite a few occasions and the tale of the DC-4 was well known (though the registration was not).
The photos supplied by Mr. Warren are on the wall of the airport café and are the only known photos of the landing.
It occurred during a fly-in and the reason it hit the tree and skipped across the roof of the van was due to the short length of the runway - just over 2.600 feet.
I'm told by those who were there that the landing gear straddled the runway (now 36 feet wide, but narrower then).
I imagine the takeoff was even more exciting all things considered!
Recent photos of the airport show the trees to the left of the runway that were still there the last time I was (mid 90s) have since been cut down, probably a good thing.
They were rather close to the sod runway that's to the left of the paved one."

Nicolai Musante found the incident even made it onto WIKIPEDIA!

John Olafson sent me this summer shot in Sep.2009 and wrote:
"I was in Penticton BC recently and had a chance to come to the Air Tanker Centre, to see their group of tankers which were on standby there."

"C-FFKF Tanker 44 and C-FEKF Tanker 45 have been very busy this fire season, as have all the other air tankers in the fleet.
Do you notice how green the grass around the ramp is? I don't know if you are aware that the retardant contains a lot of nitrogen; when they wash off the ramp and collect all the spillage some of it gets used to irrigate the lawns there and thus the luxurious, golf course type green grass grows! The greener the grass, the busier the fire season..."

UPDATE on C-FEKF:
C-FEKF CV-580 Air tanker crash-lands in northwest Alberta!
"Two pilots are in hospital after crash-landing an air tanker Thursday near Manning, Alta.
No passengers were on board when the plane slid off the runway at Manning Municipal Airport.
Neither pilot is in serious condition, according to Eleanor Miclette, the acting chief administrative officer for the County of Northern Lights.
Miclette said the air crew lost control of the plane's steering and crash-landed at the end of the runway around 4 p.m. The aircraft, a Convair 580, leaked fuel following the crash but there was no fire.
The pilots, who haven't been identified, made the emergency landing after fighting fires near Manning. The airport is part of a government-run forestry base, though Miclette couldn't confirm whether the plane is privately or government-owned.
"We're just glad that both pilots came out of this alive, and that no serious injury was caused," she said.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation, so the airplane hasn't been moved.
Manning is almost 600 kilometres northwest of Edmonton."
Source: www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/air-tanker-crash-lands-in-northwest-alberta

From Aviation-Safety Network (ASN): May 5th, 2016 C-FEKF of Conair Aviation at Manning Airport,ALB:
"The aircraft, the Convair CV-580 (turboprop conversion 340-32) engaged in fire suppression activities, experienced a loss of directional control and subsequent runway excursion upon landing at Manning Airport (CFX4), Manning, Alberta.
The airplane sustained substantial damage and the two pilots onboard received minor injuries.
The aircraft ran into a depression/ditch running 115 feet (35 m) to the rght hand parallel to runway 23.
Photos from the scene suggest the nose landing gear collapsed as a result. The no.2 engine prop separated completely while the no. 1 engine prop was severely damaged."

On the Yahoo Airtanker forum a message stated:
"Conair CV-580 Tanker #445 C-FEKF has sustained major damage to the aircraft and may be written off.
On Thursday (5-5) Tanker #445 was returning to Manning Tanker Base in Manning,Alberta having dropped on fires in the Loone Lake/ Red Earth Creek area (not the Ft McMurray fire).
Around 16:00 local Tanker #445 was setting up for landing when the Pilot experienced some kind of medical problem, the Co-pilot took control of the aircraft.
Tanker #445 exited the runway and came to rest with the nose gear collapsed or folded and heavy damage to the fuselage aft of the cockpit (buckled) .
Both Engines look like they have also sustained heavy damage.
Both crew members survived the accident but the extent of the medical issue with the pilot or injuries sustained in the accident were not available at time of report."

Photo by John Olafson from my page Photos by Friends & Guests (3),
click on the thumbnail for a larger image.

Ron Mak sent me this 'jungle shot' in Sep. 2009:

Ron: "I departed the following day from Leticia and enjoyed a flight onboard an Aeropesca C-46 for some 4 hours, and all that time nothing but jungle below us, a remarkable experience!"

As explained on the first page of Ron's photos, two Curtis C-46A Commando's have flown in Colombia with tailnumber HK-388: c/n 25796 was destroyed somewhere and c/n 26796, Aeropesca's, seems to have vanished, its ultimate fate obscured...
Source: ATDB

MORE OF RON MAK'S PHOTOGRAPHY ON THIS WEBSITE HERE...