SpitfireMK461
Well-Known Member
Which is sad because the US has a massive graveyard of hundreds of planes just chilling out, those lucky enough not to get chopped up (like F-14s).
The only US info I could find from Airliners.com was that the US can't sell current generation stuff. But I don't see civilian F-15's for sale.
Others state, the US will never sell any fighter jet.
Going back further theres 1 F-4 in civilian hands.
.... Who do you call when the flight control computers act up?
I also read the story many years ago of how the first civilian AH-1 Cobra was born (now RedBull operate one).
No link to the article?
Aaron started his flying career as a crop duster flying helicopters over the cotton fields of South Carolina. The son of an Air Force pilot, he's been around aircraft his whole life.
After selling his helicopter flying business, Aaron got into the business of rebuilding helicopters. After several years spent overhauling various civilian machines, he "tripped over a Cobra helicopter for sale."
It was a former U.S. Army Bell Cobra attack helicopter that had been damaged on the ground and sold for scrap. Aaron managed to repair the fuselage, round up the missing parts and build himself a refurbished Cobra.
This prompted him to rebuild a few more Cobras, the last of which Red Bull CEO Dietrich Mateschitz bought because he had a pilot who thought it would be cool to have a Cobra. Mateschitz befriended Aaron and eventually approached him about doing an aerobatic routine in a helicopter.
Now, this is just sad. Pictures are taken at MAKS-2011. This is a Buran space shuttle, as the visitors get to see it:
This is the same Buran, as more meticulous visitors may see it:
...