 |
| Paul Kehoe, CEO of Birmingham Airport, welcomes Stinson V77 Reliant N69745 which arrived at the airport last Sunday, 11 December 2016 - the aircraft which was built in 1943.... |
 |
| ... arrived in the UK in January 2016 and is now in Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm markings where it operated as FK877 while still retaining its US Army Air Force serial of 42-46703 |
 |
| The aircraft - Construction Number 77-64 - was built on 12 June 1943 in the US and was shipped as one of a batch of 500 to Royal Navy and Royal Air Force as part of Lend Lease. It served in the Royal Navy Fleet Air Arm as a communications and training aircraft based at HMS Daedalus at Lee on Solent and at RAF Machrihanish on the Mull of Kintyre |
 |
| After war service the aircraft was returned to the USA in 1946 and was rebuilt as a civilian aircraft by Vultee in 1947 subsequently being registered N69745 and has remained active ever since being most recently based at Lexington Park in Maryland |
 |
| In November 2015 Stinson V77 Reliant N69745 was flown to Lakeland, Florida, where it was stripped down in preparation for shipping to the UK.... |
 |
| .... arriving at Oaksey Park, Gloucestershire, in January 2016 where it was rebuilt |
 |
| .... by the Classic Aeroplane Company who are based there |
 |
N69745 had its first test flight in April 2016 and after modifications and an annual service
in September 2016, it was declared serviceable and flew into Birmingham Airport on Sunday 11 December 2016. It is one of the few Stinson's with an Aluminium fuselage and will carry five persons. Its range is around 500 miles With thanks to Paul Kehoe for the photos and background information
Friday 16 December 2016
|
to see more photos "click" HERE to go to the homepage
The BHX Blog
