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Airplane Pictures
This is one of the planes Jim worked on during his time as a volunteer at the National Air & Space Museum's restoration shop. It is the very rare HE-219, a World War Two German night fighter. It's a large twin engine airplane equipped with radar for finding targets at night. This is the only known surviving example in the world.
What you see in this photo is the main fuselage with the German cross. In the foreground is the horizontal stabilizer. There were twin vertical stabilizers mounted on the horizontal stabilizer. All these components are currently removed and are being preserved.
The fuselage and tail of this plane have been completed and are now at the Steven F. Udvar Hazy Center of the National Air & Space Museum at Dulles International Airport. It is very impressive looking, even though the wings and engines have yet to be restored.
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HE-219 Gun Bay
This is the section of the HE-219 that Jim is working on. It's the gun bay that mounts on the belly of the plane. It houses two or four 20 millimeter cannons which are designed to fire forward. This particular airplane had only two cannons in the gun bay. |
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Stinson L-5
This Stinson L-5 is currently in the final stages of restoration at the Garber shop. It is serial number one - the first one delivered to the USAAF during World War Two. It's been in storage at Garber for forty or fifty years. The fabric covering was so brittle it had to be replaced. The crew that is working on it has done a great job.
When this L-5 goes on display in the new museum it will have the little known "Brodie System" attached to it. The Brodie System was a cable take off and landing system developed to allow special forces to enter areas without runways. This system was also used on ships at sea.
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Stinson L-5 nears completion
The Stinson L-5 "Sentinel" is nearing completion at the Garber shop. Here you can see the final paint color that matches the original US Army Air Force paint. The rondel has been applied, as well as the tail numbers. Lots of little details remain at this point, but it won't be long till this little bird is complete.
Below, you can see the finished propeller & a closer view of the tail numbers and original camouflage scheme.
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