Catalina PBY-5A splash-and-go flight (onboard) Long Version
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- čas přidán 7. 10. 2013
- asimplyfab.life/ For 7 seven years, we've been watching the magnificent Catalina fly over our home, and each time promising ourselves to book a flight. Well, that time came. We booked two tickets. WOW. A flying boat has to be the pinnacle of adventure. And this one comes with such history and has been so lovingly restored.
MODEL: High-quality 1/144 diecast scale model of the Catalina: airmodels.net/consolidated/24...
We forget that this aeroplane is over seventy years old and has had a distinguished career during world war two. Doing what it was designed for - reconnaissance and anti-submarine duties. After the war, it served as a firefighter and then even as a cargo plane.
This one has been lovingly restored and kept in flying condition by a not-for-profit organisation in the Netherlands and is based at the Aviodrome in Lelystad, Netherlands. It was a pleasure to finally be able to get an onboard flight on this amazing piece of history. As old-school as they come (just like an old Land Rover)...
Read our travel journal: asimplyfab.life/catalina-pby-... Sadly Catalina PYY-5A "Karel Doorman" is no longer flying in the Netherlands (ask the government) but is in process of restoration in Florida. Check them out at www.catalina-pby.nl/ or follow their Dutch Facebook page / dutch.catalina
Thanks for watching and hoped you enjoyed the flight!
#aviationlovers #flying #catalinaflyingboat - Auta a dopravní prostředky
1/144 diecast scale model of a 1941 Royal Air Force Consolidated PBY-5A Catalina seaplane: airmodels.net/consolidated/241-consolidated-pby-5a-catalina.html?aff=71
I lived in Southeast Alaska as a little kid, and I flew on one of these between Annette Island and Ketchikan. We took off from a runway so I was taken by surprise when we landed on water. I don't remember where I sat in the plane, but I do recall the "upside down waterfall" outside my window when it landed. Noisy and thrilling. Been in love with these ever since.
Love her enthusiasm. My partner didn't get why I was so into 'those old aeroplanes', until A, she heard a Spitfire flying low overhead, and B, she saw the Red Arrows performing. Now she 'gets it'! 😁
Nice to hear!😊 There's nothing quite like the passion for these old machines being maintained and passed on to the next generations... If I am not mistaken 'Karel Doorman' is now at the Heritage Museum in Florida US where they are restoring back to flying order. Cheers and thanks for the comment 👍
Beautiful aircraft, beautiful lady.
From the video you can see why the Catalina was such a great air - sea rescue, reconnaissance and anti-submarine aircraft during WW2. Visibility access was excellent.
Great plane!
Such a shame it has been sold/retired to the US. I hope it can still offer the public an insight and a trip onboard
This girl was a great passenger. It's satisfying to see someone so thrilled with the experience. It was a great ride too what with the splash-and-go it was a lot more fun than just flying around the pattern. About the manual flight controls, I read that Catalina pilots all had arms like gorillas. This bird was hands-on from takeoff to landing.
Thanks so much for your comments. Victoria loved every second of it. The plane is an incredible machine, and it's wonderful that non-profit orgs like this keep them well maintained and flying.
Worth it just to see the smile on her face!
That is just too cool, I'd sell my baby brother to fly in one of those. I heard mention the oil leaks. Something you should know about radial engines if you can step over the oil puddle all is good, if you have to jump over it get the mechanic. Oh , and about the baby brother. I tried to sell him once but even his wife wouldn't buy him.
Haha, cheers for the comment!
The sheer joy in the ladies voice tells us that this was money well spent. Looking in to it, the fee is 185 Euro's for a half hour flight ..... reasonable considering the cost to operate such an aircraft. May have just added an item to the bucket list!!
Worth every penny (and €20 for a T-shirt!) Iam still trying to calculate how they keep her in the air - just recently needed a new engine (maybe €25 000) and the old avgas seems to cost a couple of bucks as well. If you're ever near Lelystad... do yourself a favour....
I really enjoyed your video. In the mid 70s I flew the wonderful, heavy Canso fire bombers in northern Canada. Amazing aircraft. First flight for this type was in 1935! Wow!
I've had the honour of being a passenger on this plane, sadly it was also the flight that crippled her. after losing one of the nose wheel doors during the splash and go the pilots were forced to engage emergency power to overcome the drag on the airplane and lift it out of the water. this ripped the nose wheel door off and locked the hydraulic system, essentially blocking the nose wheel.
thanks to the great skill and knowledge of the crew, and the absolute ruggedness of the plane's construction however, we all made a safe, 2-wheel landing at lelystad airport, after wich we were debriefed.
the sound of those engines breaks my heart, because I will never hear those three stages of hell during warmup, taxiing or takeoff since the plane has been retired after the refit was too expensive to mantain.
Much love from the NL, thank you for this video, now I can kind of hear those engines roar again.
Wow! That must have been quite a frightening experience as a passenger! But, as you said, the crew are (were) very professional and the old girl stood up to seventy years of use (despite the unusual locking mechanism on the rear entry (bubble) window - some rope...😉😊).
Having lived in Lelystad Haven we heard the plane coming over many times...
I hope Karel Doorman is still in the air somewhere over Florida🛫
That engine sound is extremely intoxicating.
2 of the essential, yet unsung Aircraft of WW2: the Westland Lysander & the Consolidated-PBY Catalina. What an honour it would be to fly in 1 of these Legends.
"a flying landrover with all the oil leaks" made me laugh :)
great video
p330hne Just want everyone to know that we designed and built these in the U.S.A.
Yeah no worries patriot
The commentator is British and made a little joke comparing it to something he can relate to.
And as I used to have a land rover I could also relate to that unstoppable oily mess on the driveway. :)
p330hne I'm still saving for a flight on a B-17. My Uncle told me wonderful stories about the reconnesence and harrasement of the Japanese in the WW2 Pacific Theater, not to forget the incredible SAR work the PBY's did.
I'm actually lucky enough that there is a flying one based near me
+p330hne Radials don't leak oil.They mark their territory.
I love the glass viewing area it's really cool... I SAID I LOVE THE GLASS VIEWING AREA IT'S REALLY COOL.
I see what you did there... ;-)
It is not a glass viewing area it is where one of the 20 cals would sit to shoot attacking fighter planes in ww2
Displeased Onion 50cal. Or 12.5 mm 😉
Ruhan Karsten Gaming darn I messed up
I heard you the first time. Hahahaha
A Landrover in the air - ol leaks - and lots of noise. Amazing aircraft.
Was delighted to see the name “Karel Doorman” on the nose of this ship. Doorman was the Dutch admiral who led the courageous but doomed naval defense of the East Indies against the Japanese in March/April 1942. Nice to see the Dutch remember one of their heroes.
Thanks for the piece of history. Very interesting - and important to keep these memories alive.
Sadly the old Catalina is now in the US (being restored by the Heritage Museum in Florida I think) after the trust was unable to continue keeping it flying...
I actually flew on that plane together with the son of Karel Doorman, Theo Doorman. it was the 15th of august 2017, during a memorial overflight of the india monument in the hague.
Theo had escaped Java as a child during WW2, in such a catalina. the landing then was bad, so the owners of this catalina offered another trip in some 75 years later to make up for it.
Once upon a time, there was scheduled service from Annette (a Coast Guard Air Station) to Ketchikan, Alaska (that didn't have an airstrip at the time) that used Grumman Geese (and, according to Wikipedia, PBYs). Many first time visitors didn't realize what the strange landing gear implied when it took off from the tarmac at Annette and would grow increasingly anxious as the plane dropped closer and closer to the water in front of town. The sploosh! down on to the water and taxi to the dock. Gone now with the construction of the airport on Gravina Island.
Yea,....she’s a gem. My favorite plane.
Love how the smile never left her
I think I'm in love!
The Catalinas pretty good too.
I think I've never seen a woman express such unbridled joy in a You tube video before. I simply must do this someday and I don't want to wait 7 years! Thank you for doing this vid!
Thank you so much for your kind words. Please let us know what your experience is like when you get the chance to enjoy this fabulous flight ;-)
I don't know when we can get to Europe but this video has pushed our tentative plans up front and center. If we do pull this off soonish, I will definitely try to remember to let you know : )
Definitely a bucketlist item!
you can fly in one out of Mount Hope (Hamilton,Canada)
rik moyle thanks for the tip 👍
She's so happy! Nice.
I have only seen one under the water in 18 meters near Largs, Scotland. It sank wile anchored in a storm. A prank by divers was to leave an lead bar painted with gold paint in the back of the wreck for trainee divers to find.
John Nicolson wow, that must have been an amazing dive! a really cool wreck, quite surreal?
Wow, deze had ik nog niet gezien, wat een pracht. Victoria echt op het eind precies wat ik net dacht
het is de Land Rover onder de vliegtuigen. Zulke mooie en goeie beelden, precies wat ik wilde zien.
Die inklapbare drijvers en wielen en het instrumentarium, alles te mooi om waar te zijn.
Erg bedankt voor het delen van deze mooie beelden, en hartelijke groeten.
You lucky lucky people !
I've always had a soft spot for 'the cat.' - more so than for any Shorts or Roes. Maybe s Mariner would come close?
Imaging a 14hr Atlantic sweep in one of these back in the day!
🤘😎
🤔 Martin Mars? (different beast!)
What a GREAT Video, THANKS for sharing!! She's so HAPPY! AWESOME!!!
Happy girl video, I can see that. How about the airplane in flight???
Fantastisch! Heb m zien vliegen bij Tom, airshow Oostwold. Bedankt voor het delen!
Groet'n oet Grun'.
Bedankt! Als je ooit in de gelegenheid bent - het is het waard! Groet'n oet zud Frankriek!
They say if a radial isn't leaking oil, somethings wrong!!
That's a "seep". "A seep requires three shop rags to clean it up. You can fly with a seep. A leak is four or more rags; you don't fly with that". - Junior Burchinal
It means oil is finished that is a problem.
So cool to see you enjoying it, and not just a basic video
Fabulous 'home vid'. Very well done folks.
Wow, I had fun watching and seeing the smiling face!
My favorite WWII plane ❤️
She made me smile! Thanks from Cali
Wow! Nice video, almost as good as being there....wonderful.
So nice to see someone to actually FLY the plane more so someone really got soft in the knees ;) great stuff. Thanks for sharing.
Great plane, great flight.
Awesome sound, great experience.
To experience a flight in that fantastic bird is magnificent, but to have the extreme pleasure of such a beautiful and happy guide as well is heartwarming! May she always keep that lovable personality and never loose the positive outlook on life! Made my New Years eve!
JOY OH JOY OH BOY. Love it.
I really enjoyed how passionate the Lady was about Aviation,a plus that it was a PB Y. Very 😎 indeed.that made my day .Thank you for posting .
Glad you enjoyed it!
I asked an old A&P mechanic... aren't you worried about all those oil leaks? he said... only when they stop!
paul young that is so true! A loved Landie quote too🤗
Love PBY's. I use to look at one at Opa Locka FL. all the time. Great video.
Back, way back in the late 50s or early 60s I was living with my folks in the Mendocino National forest, in Ca, They brought in a PBY to see how they'd work for drops. Lake Pilsbury, is a SMALL lake, We lived on Hull Mtn Lookout. I was little but I recall standing next to the tire, looking UP to see the top. My mother got to fly, standing over the pick up nozzle, while they made a run on the lake. Worked pretty well. I also recall the B-17s dropping in there too. I always like the looks of the PBY, odd, but elegant.
One of those few 'form follows function' designs that is so ugly it's beautiful - if you know what I mean? And it was very effective as well... Nice story about the lake - we have quite a few Canadairs here for the forest fires, a similar kind of plane. Check this out while they're practising (our lake is a bit bigger than Pilsbury me thinks): czcams.com/video/PcTr4LCwo2o/video.html
Rick Cratty I used to fly in PBY N9521C and we landed on the airstrip there to go shooting rifles. Would come in over the lake and set 'er down just beyond the road. About 1992.
The ultimate mobile home 😍😉
thanks for posting
Just so ya'll know there are many airworthy Catalinas that fly passengers
where?
I am also lucky to have the Canadian Heritage Warplanes Museums' Lancaster fly over my house, some-times 3-4 times on a week-end! Can always hear it coming...
Awesome sound, that Lanc pust be way loud!
It’s almost a surprise that some classic aircraft haven’t been resurrected with newer materials and engines. They just *work* so well and could still fill a niche in many parts of the world or for private or recreational use.
As to resurrecting these old birds, it would be a massive project.
First off they were never intended for or designed for the civilian market. Submitting and get approval for design and construction would be a major project.
Grumman Albatross sit on the market for long times. Few people can take on the upkeep, operating and insurance costs.
A rebirth of the Albatross with turbine engines would be intriguing.
I thought no display of IAS was going to be shown, but I was wrong. Thank you very much for showing the IAS and the manifold.
THIS IS NOT THE ONLY ONE WE HAVE ONE HERE IN NEW ZEALAND AT ARDMORE AIRPORT WHICH YOU CAN RIDE IN JUST JOIN OUR CLUB
Amazing experience aboard and incredible flying machine!
They don't make them like this anymore...
Pilates and Catalina. Thug life without shooting. Just fly away. And fly...
fantastic vid, lov how its real sights and sounds
+motoalchemy Thanks, it was an incredible experience. That sound ... wow.
I used to marvel at PBY streaming water behind as they took off from Pensacola Bay at Naval Air Station Pensacola back in the '50s. Enjoyed this video very much; a classic bird and vital for USA, especially in the Pacific theater.
Yeah, she a beauty - one of the few offering passenger flights, so if you're ever in Holland make sure you book a flight ;-)
Perfect reaction
Excellent film footage, dialogue, scenery and sound.
Great video, amazing aircraft! And wonderful to see you so happy with the flight! ☺ Congrats from Portugal, Sam
Thanks Sam. For a 70-year-old plane, it was ahndling pretty good!
You probably see quite a few Canadairs living in Portugal (as we are in south of France) ? Incredible pilots - and a similar vibe to the old Cat! Here's a couple practising on the lake near us (czcams.com/video/PcTr4LCwo2o/video.html)
Woohoo!! That's my country let's go netherlands!!
Great to see how much you enjoyed yourself. What a great old kite.
Thanks - lovely old bird! 😎
YEAH! ITS REALLY COOL. Sounds like flying in an empty beer can. Flew B-25s, they were only a bit, relatively quieter. Radial engines were in about the same location behind the cockpit. Had 1600 HP each.
Love that sound! Wow - B25,! Same engines as the PBY? (as you can see this thing does not fly fast!)
7:23 Fantastic! I was wondering if they upgraded her when they restored her. Thats awesome!
When I was a young boy I Spent a lot of time at San Diego bay watchin the PBY's and the coast guard Sikorsky's come and go. A lot of the PBY's had no landing gear. and a crew would position a dolly under it and winch it to the hanger. I ask my father who was in the air force why the had no wheels? These were reconnaissance planes. less wieght meant they could fly further and faster. I loved the PBY. See Black Cats another role the PBY played, or the Aleutians of Alaska
Joe D thank you so much for sharing your memories, that's so interesting! 👍🤗
Fantastic video, thanks for posting. I made a flight with the PBY in 2006 and I enjoyed just as much as the young lady. Sorry to say that the good old 'cat' is leaving the Netherlands this year. Not only financial problems and the fact that finding qualified people to maintain this beatiful bird is hard to do, but also (let's put it midly) the very strickt regulations made up by the authorities, made an end to a beautiful dream that lasted more than 20 years. The Duch autorities won't rest until the last classical aircraft has left the country or has been grounded for ever.
abwo47 thanks for your comment 🙏🏼 was just reading that the Cat won’t be around in NL anymore 😭 crazy! Any idea where it’ll go to?
To the States, don't know who the buyer is. I will ask around, I work as a volunteer in Aviodromemuseum on Lelystad Airport
abwo47 thanks so much, and for all the work you have done so we could have had such an incredible experience 💗
No thank you for posting this fine footage, your enthusiasm cheered me up. All the best fm NL. Let's keep up the good things (in the air). Coming sunday I am 'on duty' in the historical radioroom of Aviodrome and I hope that she will fly that day.
A beautiful experience and God save us all from “ well intentioned bureaucrats”.
Bush plane company I worked for as a teenager in the 60s had one of these. I used to gas it up every now and then and I took a ride on it once to Cree Lake and back
I would love to have done this trip...just awesome....Steve.
What a buzz!
cuando rcn terminado mi curso d pilotage tuve la suerte q m dieron la oportunidad d volar d copit en un PBY 5 un buen tiempo en vuelos regulares internos,fue un placer pr q m sentia un piloto d avion d guerra cn gran experiencia,puedo dcir q es un gran avion noble d pilotear esta maquina q m sirvio de experiencia cuando ni se soñaba navegar cn un GPS.
Great virtual flight, I save my money.
Daniel Morales glad you likes it - although of course there is nothing like the Real thing! 😀
Tours and Tales.com, were does that flight take place?
Daniel Morales Lelystad , The Netherlands - if you look up: Stichting Catalina you can get more info and the history of the plane 👍😎
Tours and Tales.com, thank you, greetings from Puerto Rico.
It's a freakin Catalina Wine Mixer!
I used to watch them take off and land in Biscayne Bay, at the U.S. Coast Guard Station in Coral Gables, Florida.
Way cool!
I'm a trucker who always wished for my wings. A few years ago, I was working at the decommissioned Alameda Naval Air Station near Oakland, California. The old Pan Am clipper boats, then PBY base was where we loaded end dump trailers with mud from the bottom of the "sea plane lagoon" as it was called. Huge cement ramps that still had the big iron rings that were used to tie down the plane after they were hauled up out of the water. Later on, I was given a private tour of the old airport lounge, complete with the old kitchen/cafe. It is a museum now, but it was mostly closed at that time. These same planes once populated those old ramps. Not only nice to see one still airworthy and flying, but in Holland too. Geweldig!
That's so cool, thanks for t he comment! Sadly PBY5A will be leaving Holland due to some random government regulation changes, no more funding and a piece of history is lost... Not sure where to... Really sad
A Simply Fab Life
Echt jammer! Leave it to government to spoil a good thing. Like the G.I.'s who swarmed across Europe back in the day, the operators of this PBY will have to write somewhere "Kill Roy was here", and move on. Lol! By the way, what airport is it (was it?) operating out of? Bedankt!
1allanbmw Hoi, dit is luchthaven Lelystad (wordt ook verbouwd om nu 737's te ontvangen - dus de onbeheerde luchtruim verdwijnt ook voor de kleine privé toestellen. Dààr is dus wél budget voor...). We vlogen over Ijsselmeer en Markermeer...
A Simply Fab Life
Ze zijn van harte welkom in Provo, Utah hoor! Vernieuwd vliegveld, en Utah Lake 100m weg!! Lol! Bedankt
I watched one of these call into one of our lakes by a couple who were touring the world back in the 80's Tasmania doesn't see the likes of these or any float planes so it was an eye opener when this plane came overhead and landed for a weeks fishing .
SUNGEAR59 the just scream adventure, don't they. Cool story about that couple. Wouldn't that be cool to do? Wow.
Touring the world in a Catalina? Back in the 80's? Okay, coolest thing I've heard ever!
Really cool you would think a modern version would be a big market
very nice only wish I could be on one
A really nice plane ! I use to fly it on Flight Simulator X... I wish I could experience this one time in my life, but there is no Catalina in France ^^
NOT COUNTING THE WRIGHT FLYER the three most beautiful production aircraft are, in no particular order, the: Mega Connie, the 2-6-2, and the Cat. 3. Magic designs.
Thats a fancy Catalina... Nothing like the original. You should update to all modern electronics.
Era yo un niño cuando veía pasar algún catalina por el cielo de Bahia Blanca, Argentina. Era un sonido mostruoso que lo diferenciaba de todos los demás aviones. El sonido se correspondía con su imponente belleza. Era una vista mística, como cuando buceando veía pasar al lado mio una ballena. Además su nombre se correspondía con el de mi bisabuela italiana. Esas cosas inmensas ya no se ven. Prueben de bucear en el sur argentino, tal vez puedan hacerlo al lado de una ballena. Però ora non é permitido. Busquen un lugar oculto del golfo donde nadie los vea. ArrivederLa. Good bye. Chau. Carlitos
Thanks so much for your comment!
She wasn't warming up the engines. It was doing the run up.
It's a before take off procedure where pilots check if everything is ok to go (magnetos check, propeller unfeather/feather function, lean/rich mixture check and eventually carburator heat-if installed).
Makes sense to a non-pilot such as me (obviously) and also that running an old radial is a whole different ballgame to a turbofan! Thanks for the explanation👍
素晴らしい飛行艇だと思うね。
maybe the most beatifull iconic non-combat airplane of WWII
non combat? look up the black cats, a night patrol outfit of catalinas in the pacific, very cool stories. this specfic catalina pictured also saw combat, sinking or damaging at least 3 submarines and one submarine tender in the north atlantic!
Old vista cruiser with props
But I´m the owner of a picture, taken by me at the Narssarssuaq Airfield December1970 of the Catalina PBY 5A Esk.721 Royal Danish Airforce, on her last trip to Keflavik Island for refueling into the trip towards Karup Airfield. She had a long journey behind her for the Icerecco at Greenland there. She was Decommissioned at Spring 1971.
I do also have the last taken picture on the DC7, at her last flight to Keflavik AFB from Narssarssuaq, ending the duty of Icerecco and transportation crew for the danish navy.
Jackson Roos, Ret. Engineer
Wow, that is Very cool (with a capital V). I wonder how many airmiles these birds had on them (on average)?
Howdy buddy. I don´t know on this very day, how many flightours there logged in the book. The other pics I do have, is also named as a C-54 Military Speach, and DC-7 in civilian shape. Thank´s to You, sir, for the notice and reaction on my input concerning the Cat.
It may be loud but for us wanna be's, but that's part of the thrill.My Dad drove B-17's around, he'd probably agree with you.
First, tat's "running up" the engines, not "warming up". And can you image being in one of those things for a 20-hour patrol flight? Your head would ring for days!
+justforever96 Thanks for the heads-up,. Hats off to the guys out there on extended patrols. Loud, slow, uncomfortable and a permanent head on a swivel - must have been exhausting.
@@muddyboots1881 my father was a pilot and flew these, and he would say Warming Up the engines .
Nice to know there are beautiful women who are as enthusiastic about round engine planes as myself. Alas though you few and far between
I have Got to go on this beautiful plane. I have a model kit, I might try and recreate this plane!
This plane PH-PBY was sold to the Colling Foundation In Smyrna Beach Florida. As a small non-profit, they were unable to keep her going. Sold in Oct2018 and flown over to USA in mid-2019. Here is the NL website: catalina-pby.nl/nieuws/voorbereidingen-ferryvlucht-lelystad-naar-new-smyrna-beach/
And the Collings Foundation: www.collingsfoundation.org/
Sad to see her leave Nethermands - but going to a good home.
TAKE OUT THOSE PT BOATS!
we have 1 at hars here in australia
Wow. I would love the experience of landing on water. I love flying boats but an amphibian will do
Would have preferred landing and takeoff shots from blister or flight deck. View of lady is good too.
Would have preferred it too, but we had to take our seats for landing (also, too many people in the back is too much for the trim - pitching up the nose with alarming calls from the pilots upfront ;-))
I understand, I'm a pilot- wt and bal can be critical.
I REALLY ENVY YOU 2 WHAT AN EXPERIENCE. FEEL SICK & JEALOUS. PURE CLASS, WAS IT NOISY ?
+598spitfire Yeah' it was noisy - but what a beautiful sound!
Love that sound, because if it stops it means you have a big problem.
It's not the only airworthy PBY that offers flights to passengers; the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum does it as well...
www.warplane.com/aircraft/collection/details.aspx?aircraftId=11
Wow, that looks really cool - quite a collection of warbirds!
they flew these as passengers service between long beach and catalina island twenty miles off the coast socal--50ties to in the 60ties
Here is a video of the PBY Catalina N9505C in Ephrata WA September 2016 - czcams.com/video/6k62hmtUE4k/video.html
Nice one. Lovely old planes... If you get the chance to get on board a splash-and-go - take it...
Where do I book! Love these old PBY’s would have one in my garage just so I could look at it!
PH-PBY has sadly moved on from the Netherlands due to funding (ran by a non-profit). As far as we know it is now somewhere in the US - hopefully continuing to fly.
Lovely old bird!
We used to have one of these beauties based @ Watertown international airport when I was a kid, mostly sat on ramp..was flown to Italy, sadly a poor landing on the water was her demise..poor bird, deserved better..
helped to win at Midway.?what if some were airborne at Pearl 12/01/41 0500?
The PBY was what won the war against the Japanese it's long range gave the US the advantage battle of midway even with code being broken. It could have gone bad for the American fleet if the Japanese could not be found that easily
blastman8888 thanks for the info. amazing planes 😍
blastman8888 I love PBY's fantastic planes but the Enola Gay won the war. They played their part no doubt.
There may be an argument for all the planes playing their part in some way, but I guess the Cat gets overlooked the most - it's probably not as sexy, a bit of an ugly duckling... ;-)
I kind of thought of it as the jeep of the naval aviation. I'm sure it was easy to learn to fly stable aircraft with high wing and very reliable radial engines. Probably could handle bad weather as long as they could navigate if they ran out of fuel land use their HF radio. It was also higher effective against submarines in those days most subs ran on the surface only diving to shoot or avoid. What aircraft would you want to be in a fighter or a PBY that could land anywhere.
Yeah, Jeep sounds about right - did the job intended very well, and more besides! I'd rather have a PBY as a floating lifeboat (wasn't there some story about that somewhere?) than have to ditch and take my chances....
Nice vid of smiling girl, must be thousands of such vids on the net. Would have been very interesting to have some footage of the plane in flight, not just vid looking out the window. Great opportunity to video a great old airplane flying and doing splash and goes. Badly lost opportunity. Girls are everywhere, planes like this one are rare indeed.