Catalina over The Hoe (merged)

[Akrotiri bad boy]

Just glimpsed a Cat heading out to sea this morning, presumably having taken part in Plymouth Air Day yesterday.

Can anyone fill me in on who? what? why? where? when? Did it alight in the Sound or land at Roborough? Aaaaaaaaargh so many questions, are there any answers?

:8

[chevvron]

G - PBYA called Farnborough about 10 min ago inbound to them.

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

It usually lives at Duxford. If it helps, my wife and I flew on the New Zealand one a couple of years back!!! (Sorry, but couldn't resist).

[overfly]

did I really just see a Grumman Goose flying north unusually low over Wokingham area, possibly out of Blackbushe or Farnborough?

Mods - pls shift to spotters' corner if that's more relevant.

[chevvron]

More likely the Catalina which was scheduled to validate at Farnborough at 1410 local.

[Tyres O'Flaherty]

Would that have been why I saw what I thought was a Cat from some distance near Aylesbury Mon middayish ?

[AirShowJunkie]

Is that Plane Sailing's Cat? In the white US Navy scheme? I saw it flying near Milton Keynes on Monday 1300ish- i was actually at Bletchley Park :ok:

Cheers

[pigboat]

If it helps, my wife and I flew on the New Zealand one a couple of years back!!!

When I knew it, it looked like this. :p

http://www.catalina.org.nz/documents/49/htmlimport_austin5.jpg

[Akrotiri bad boy]

I was driving at the time but from the wee glimpse I got the Cat was in US Navy colours. It was quite something to see a Cat over the old moorings and flying boat sheds at Mountbatten.

Thinking along nautical lines, is this particular Cat "seaworthy" or is she purely land based?

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

Pigboat... Many thanks for that. It looked like this when we flew in it:
ZK-PBY Consolidated PBY5 Catalina. Bren and Ruth flew in this aircraft at the Omaka Air Show, New Zealand on 7 April, 2007 :: ZKPBY.jpg :: Fotopic.Net (http://www.brendan-mccartney.fotopic.net/p40431074.html)

Thirty quid each and we were on it for an hour; who could turn it down?

[Groundloop]

Very unlikely it would land on seawater - too much trouble to try and get all the salt off afterwards to halt corrosion - salt and aluminium just don't go together.

[treadigraph]

Their original Cat certainly dipped its toes in the briney from time to time; whether this caused the corrision in the nosewheel door linkage that led to it sinking after alighting on the Solent...

[HEATHROW DIRECTOR]

Didn't that one end of at Lee-on-Solent with another Cat? Haven't noticed them there for a while so does anyone know what happened to them? I had them logged as "JV928" and N423RS. Any further info appreciated.

I just love Catalinas. First I saw was N4938V at Croydon in 1957ish..

[overfly]

that'll be it - thanks

[treadigraph]

I think JV928 (the original Plane Sailing Cat) was under rebuild at Lee, and eventually moved to Ireland? N423RS was also there - a rather attractive rainbow scheme as I recall, not sure where it went.

There was also the orange ex Doug Arnold Catalina at North Weald for a while, last I heard it was heading towards Israel and blew an engine in France. And a rather nice blue US Navy schemed Cat was at NW at the same time - where'd that one go?

First one I ever saw was a survey aircraft over Southampton in '77 - it's now is the USAF Museum I think. Also at Southampton at that time was one of the Antilles Sandringhams doing joy rides.

[Mike7777777]

White Catalina was in residence at Duxford today, 1030hrs

[pigboat]

Pic was taken 44 years ago HD. Not JCV, but another machine. That's me on the left. :p
The Captain - on the right, - was ex-RAF, one of the finest pilots I ever had the privelege to fly with.

http://i100.photobucket.com/albums/m8/Siddley-Hawker/scan0004-1.jpg

[stolport]

Can anyone fill me in on who? what? why? where? when? Did it alight in the Sound or land at Roborough? Aaaaaaaaargh so many questions, are there any answers?

Yes it was parked up at Plymouth for a few nights for the display on the Hoe.

YouTube - Catalina Plymouth Air Day 13/07/10 2 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxS9p09Pvi8)

[Mechta]

Overfly you could well be right.

There is a 'Triple S G21 Super Goose' listed amongst the static exhibits at Farnborough, so unless it is going to taxi there up the Basingstoke Canal...

[Planemike]

overfly ...............

Not inconceivable you did see a Goose the other day as I see one is reported as being at Farborough N221AG. Should not be too difficult to tell it apart from a Catalina. Short stubby wings with long thin engine nacelles, as it is Turbo Goose.

Planemike