A trip on the PBY-5A Catalina - Airshow Dispatches S05E07 BONUS FILM
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- Опубликовано: 27 сен 2022
- A short bonus feature covering the PBY-5A Catalina's journey from Jersey to Melun for Air Legend Paris - Villaroche 2022.
Watch the full film from Air Legend here: • Air Legend Paris - Vil...
Music by Silent Partner and Scott Buckley (www.scottbuckley.com.au/). A special thank you to The Catalina Society, especially Seb Mazzuchetti, David Barlow and the rest of the crew, and Jeff Boyling. Also with appreciation to PlanesTV.
My dad's brother crewed on a PBY in WWII. I built a scale model of the PBY when I was 10 years old. Great to see the inside of this magnificent airplane!
It makes me incredibly happy this gorgeous plane is coming back into production
The Catalina holds a special place in Australian military history> During the dark days of the Pacific War the Catalinas' provided the only direct contact between Australia and Europe. Unarmed and beyond help they flew passengers and mail from Perth, Western Australia to Sri Lanka (Ceylon) and they were known as the 'double sunset' flights. The longest flight between Australia and Ceylon was a staggering 32 hours. Sadly, after the war these magnificent aircraft were confined to a watery grave just off Rottnest Island.
I really enjoyed that there was less-than-perfect weather for your journey 🙂 - the Cats of legend didn’t always have blue skies and bright sunshine, either!
Thank you for a great short presentation 🥇! Gave an excellent feeling for what the real journey must have been like.
I love Catalinas, and unfortunately videos like this are, in all likelihood, the closest I will ever get to one of them 🙂.
Glad you enjoyed it! The weather certainly added a sense of adventure. On the return trip to the UK we had perfect clear weather, which was immensely enjoyable but didn't tell nearly such a good story.
When I was in the RCAF in Vancouver in the early 60s, we had 3 PBYs sitting across the field - all serviceable!
My grandpa captained Catalinas in the Aleutians during the WWII. Thanks for the look inside.
Wow the aleutians!
Seen walk-through, other Cat. museum displays. First onboard flying experience. Fantastic for less than a half hr. Guys who did 18 hrs. missions must have been tough lot. Thanks guys Dave
Thanks for the video! My old man flew the PBY for anti submarine patrols off the gulf coast during WWII. The USNR used it for new pilots to get their training hours in and what better place than off the US coast with 0 chance of chance of being shot down. Got his wings in April 1944 at 20 yrs old and moved up to B 24's. He was to be part of the invasion of Japan but that never happened. Good to see the inside of a PBY, looks pretty roomy!
It was roomy enough that, even with a crew of 6 and 2 passengers (comparable to the size of a small wartime crew) there was plenty of space to move around and it was always possible to find an unoccupied pocket of seats to relax in. The only time it ever felt cramped was when we were passing a landmark and all of the available crew crammed into a single blister to take a look.
The cabin configuration has changed a lot, of course: longitudinal desks and instrument panels for the navigator and ratio operator have been replaced by two rows of airline-style seating and a loading hatch, for example. The tiny gap between the two bulkheads would once have been home to the crew chief AND galley. In the rear cabin, there would have been two levels of bunks on either side of the cabin; these have been stripped out on both sides, and replaced with seats on one side only. Most of the windows are post-war additions, without which it'd feel much less pleasant - that includes the blisters, where the gun stations have been removed and new, larger blisters installed.
In its post-war configuration, it feels nicely spacious and is a very comfortable way to fly indeed. With a full wartime crew on a long mission, I imagine it would have felt very cramped.
@@ThisisFlight Thanks! 🙂
bro just casually getting a free ride in my all time favorite airplane!
I love these huge windows. You would need an army to get me away from it.
I Like the Blister Windows. PBY -5A Catalina are My Favorite Seaplanes.
Nicely done, thanks for posting!
I must take a ride in the one they have here in Hamilton, at the War Plane Museum!
I remember watching a guy tell of the first time they took a Catalina into combat against a Japanese flying boat. He said just about anything that the enemy flew was more than a match.
A short flight is probably perfect in that noisy old beast. Going on an 18 hour mission might cool anyone’s ardor for the plane. But increase their respect for the folks who flew it.
I particularly love the example with a Texas boat license number painted on the bow. Does it need boat registration in Europe too? And a boat name?
On the boat registration question: not so far as I know... but it may depend on what you want to do with it.
The noise level wasn't as bad as I expected, although the crew do advise using earplugs. With some little rubber bungs in my ears, the circa 5 hours of flying we did over two days was perfectly pleasant considerably more comfortable than a commercial airliner in every respect. Although, of course, we had nicer seats than the WWII crews, regular toilet stops, and we weren't being shot at...