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Post by PB on Dec 2, 2015 6:24:28 GMT
"Photo of the Day"
02/12/15The clock turns back to 20 February, 1959, for today's journey into the past. L B Smith Aviation brought their chunky Commando demonstrator, N4086A, to Blackbushe.   N4086A has, or had, quite an interesting time when she was operational. The following I've extracted from "Blueangels.org".... " BuNo 39507 was first assigned USAAF S/N42-23758 (C/N26593) but was one of about 40 C-46As completed with BuAer numbers, as R5C-ls for the US Marine Corps, serving at first with MAG-35 in the south-west Pacific during WWII. She was later transferred to the US Navy and assigned to NAS Corpus Christi and it during this time in 1953 that she served as the Blue Angels support aircraft.
After military service BuNo 39507 entered civilian service registration number N4086A and later was in the service of Intermountain Airways, with registration number N9900Z, in the 1960s. During this time she went under upgrade modifications to a C-46F Super C. Intermountain Airways was formed by the Central Intelligence Agency to perform covert operations in 1963. This C-46 was used to support operations by the CIA.
She was acquired by Evergreen Airlines in October 1975 when they purchased Intermountain Airways and operated it until February 1978.
She was acquired it in June 1978 and Challenge Air Transport was formed with operations starting out of Ormond Beach, FL then later moving operations to Miami, FL. A year later the company was acquired by Bellomy-Lawson Aviation and the company name was maintained.
There hasn't been any sightings or information about this aircraft after 1980. Rumor has it that Bellomy-Lawson Aviation may have been some how linked to the Nicaragua Contra War and that this aircraft had flown operations and possibly disappeared in Nicaragua.
Since this Commando had been used by the CIA, when flying for Intermountain Airways, it is not unreasonable to assume that she may have returned to covert operations and was lost in action. "Some aeroplanes seem to have more fun than others...  N4086A short finals to runway 32The above photo is unusual on two counts. It was the only time I can see recording a Curtiss Commando flying at Blackbushe, and it's one of the few recordings of runway 32 being used for landing. The Airwork complex is seen in the background, the shot being captured as the aircraft serenely floats over the A30. My memory still just about serves up images of arrivals on 32 as recorded from the main Blackbushe car park adjacent to the Terminal. For no apparent reason, one of my 'mental movies' is of a Bristol Freighter powering her way across the main road while descending onto what was then a full length runway 32. What price such magnificent memories before the years finally dissolve them? PB Comment link.. blackbusheairport.proboards.com/post/3006
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Post by PB on Dec 2, 2015 10:36:44 GMT
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Post by PB on Dec 3, 2015 7:07:14 GMT
"Photo of the Day"
03/12/15An historic day. The Royal Air Force have once again been tasked with taking on the dark forces of evil as early this morning the Tornado continued to show its muscle when the need arises. We wish all our crews God Speed and Good Luck.. Be it 1939 or 2015, evil apparently remains evil as elements of the human race would have us eliminated in their bigoted belief that they are the superior beings. Yesterday I stopped by at Blackbushe to survey the scene, and take in another 2+ miles of disused runway walking... As always during these attempts at keeping the body in reasonable condition the airfield yielded its generous supply of images relating to past endeavours on her precious acres. Hours later the Royal Air Force were back in action striking new targets, yet is was not that long ago that RAF crews flew from Blackbushe charged with a similar objective. Knock out the nasties, or Nazis as was the case in the forties.     Winter has swept in since taking this angle a couple of months ago, but the spirit of the past remains unchallenged..Here's to 'Peace in Our Time'....? PB
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Post by PB on Dec 4, 2015 6:49:44 GMT
"Photo of the Day"
04/12/15Friday morning, once the great bridge to be crossed leading to that strange state known as the 'weekend'.. now a more peaceful affair where all I need to do is think "Blackbushe" and see what tumbles out of the cerebral ether. POTD awaits.. Looking back, as we tend to do more than look forward on POTD, aircraft movements on 4th December 'pre-1960' included Pakistan International's L-1049 AP-AFR diversion from Heathrow in 1959, Dr Tigges-Fahrten's Viking D-AFIX in 1955, Aer Lingus Viscount EI-AFV diverted from Heathrow in 1957, BEA Viking G-AHPP arrived with Eagle Airways for conversion in 1955 as did similar Viking G-AJBN and G-AJBP, BOAC arrived on 4/12/57 with G-ALAN one of their Constellations again diverting from hard to find Heathrow. BEA DC-3, G-ALPN, Viscount G-AMOP and Ambassador G-ALZP arrived on this day for the same reasons... I could go on and on, but you get the idea. 4th December, 2015, will probably be a little less interesting? The United Sates Navy would have added their traffic to the list as would the home based airlines... 2015. Passengers still fly from Blackbushe although in lesser numbers than they did prior to 1960. Sitting in a PA-28 on the apron today while glancing at the Terminal, or what is left of it, one can but imagine how it must have looked to the regular passenger once seated and ready to fly...  Eagle's DC-6 returned in 2008. The windows offered very different views to those enjoyed when G-APSA was just one of the many heavy metal residents. The Blackbushe apron. 1950's style... ..but, bye and bye, time took all away...Should you be passing Blackbushe today, December 4th, spare a thought for the sights and sounds that once were a part of her on this day - and every day - when once she was truly London's Blackbushe Airport. Have a good day. PB
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Post by PB on Dec 5, 2015 7:59:46 GMT
"Photo of the Day"
05/12/15Nearly 07.00, running late and the staff at POTD can get a bit tetchy if they're late for brekkie... But sometimes the editorial dept, yes we have a vast number of staff here at POTD, find it takes a little longer than usual for the grey cell to fire up and find some kind of idea that may be shared amid the one-stop formum followers. Either that or the duvet has clamped down making escape from its inner warmth particularly difficult. Talking of inner warmth, I know there are those - much as the POTD creative team do - that find an inner warmth looking back on the golden days at Blackbushe when before 1960 the old airfield produced its daily aviation treasures. An age when aeroplanes had to be 'flown and felt' somewhat more than today's silicon chip guided flying machines. Having said that, the aeroplanes that frequented pre 1960 Blackbushe were extraordinarily primitive in comparison with the technology and performance enjoyed today. Today's commercial aircraft are miracles of technology and while they are 'self managing' to a degree the demands put on those at the sharp end are no less, but they are certainly different. Things can happen faster, but in somewhat greater comfort... Blackbushe today is also very different to her pre 1960 days. From that I have two deductions. One, we are incredibly lucky to still have an airfield called Blackbushe thanks to AVM Bennett, Doug Arnold, BCA and the present consortium of owners. Two, it was an incredibly unlucky day when in May, 1960, the government dropped the axe that severed the Airport's jugular, destroying one of London and the south-east's finest airfields, and placing many out of work while airlines had no choice but to find new bases while some foundered and went out of business as a result. What remains of Blackbushe still offers a greater aviation potential than is currently exploited, and we must wait and see what transpires in the future... The remains of Blackbushe Airport now include areas of Common where some will claim to have seen a Dartford Warbler, although the best I have seen have been magpies and the circling passage of a red kite playing chicken with a jet departing 08.  The only aviation on runway 14/32 nowadays..There is no doubt that one bird will for ever be synonymous with Blackbushe. The magnificent Eagle....Blackbushe was the home base of the country's fastest growing, best loved, independent airline...EAGLE AIRWAYS. Back in 2008 the Eagle's wing spread its span across its old home when one of the old DC-6 fleet returned to the nest..  Was it just the wind blowing across the airfield that produced so many moist eyes that morning?A dream of nearly fifty years came true, the Eagle had landed, but only for a precious hour before it returned from whence it had come..the sky. A couple of years ago the Eagle returned in the form of the one and only Harold Bamberg, Eagle's Chairman and Founder...to officially unveil the "Airlines of Blackbushe Airport" sign that now stands as a permanent reminder of Blackbushe's golden past.  It rained and the wind blew that morning, but nothing could damped the spirit of old Blackbushe!! Eagle's offices alongside the A30 in 1959. They too moved to Heathrow in due course.. Flight magazine...long ago.  The way we were... The run about Various colour schemes would have been seen! multi role operations.. Eagle managed numerous foreign airline's engineering needs Alas, time has swept all away. The golden era of Blackbushe is no more, but some of us are still lucky enough to cling onto memories formed around Blackbushe Airport and the days when the Eagle soared daily from runways that were unsullied by contemptuous bureaucracy... Time for the POTD staff to break for brekkie.. Have a great Saturday.. PB Comment blackbusheairport.proboards.com/post/2988
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Post by PB on Dec 6, 2015 7:30:19 GMT
"Photo of the Day"
06/12/15So we meet again. Six a.m. on a Sunday and once again huddled over a hot desk top...looking for direction as to which way the Blackbushe story might unfold. What surprised me during the week just gone was the element of coincidence. No sooner had I recalled on POTD memories of the Army Air Corp and how good it was when the Middle Wallop boys arrived with their Beavers...  Now they are what you call an aeroplane!!...than one of our old friends, Beaver XP820, arrives back on Blackbushe tarmac. OK, she no longer works for her living, but retains her old colours and I'm sure would still sing the same song from her prop tips under civilian ownership. Sadly, not knowing she was due I missed the chance to once more share the apron with her, go back to the 1962 era and pretend I was a teenager once more. I bet she looks better than some of us after fifty plus years of maturation? Looking at the airfield today and spinning the memory bank back thru' the years that have passed since those days when the Beaver was quite a regular caller one can conclude that much has happened on these hallowed acres, yet at same time those hallowed acres in many ways have achieved far too little. Without the impetus of support from high places and massive capital investment the airfield's potential has for so long been bottled up. The investment placed by BCA into their auctioneering empire that now consumes the north-west of the airfield shows what some cash can produce.  Looking back on the planning issues that dogged Blackbushe back in the sixties - and later - it is quite amazing that any structures have been given the green light on Blackbushe. Every move by the early owners of the airfield was condemned as somehow detrimental to the visual ammenities of the area, and always rejected out of hand. Access from the A30 was prohibited, no building of any shape or form would be considered, and all the old road signs that indicated "Blackbushe Airport" were removed. The non aviation structures that have appeared either on the airfield or within its immediate surroundings is quite astounding given the many reasons why the airfield could not move an inch. A business park on the common where the US Navy hangar was, some kind of heavy machinery compound just beyond the BCA complex and, of course, the massive expansion of BCA themselves... Yet the airfield could not put up a shed to protect the fire and rescue vehicles, could not develop a safe access from the A30, could not build hangars, and possibly had the compulsory destruction of the surviving Terminal Building to consider. As I say, looking back much has happened, we even had hangars for a while thanks to Doug Arnold until BCA claimed them all for their pre-owned vehicle enterpise. The local authority destroyed the east end of the airport, they neglected their half of the Terminal to such a degree that it had to be demolished...but still Blackbushe survives as an aerodrome. The airfield has a stronger beating heart but I fear the current level of operation cannot be considered sufficient to sustain its operational viability.. Just my thoughts, but it seems kind of obvious in these days of financial accountability ruling all?  Nice one! Local sources take out their animosity and their local airfield's assets... Our local press cuttings indicating the "for and against Blackbushe" war that raged. It was not pretty.  1964. The Terminal, the whole Terminal, and nothing but the Terminal.....  Nice one Hampshire County Council. Such was their value for the end of the Terminal conscripted by them...it had to be demolished in the end. All praise to BCA for breathing new life into what was left of the Terminal..
 All praise to Doug Arnold who built fabulous new hangars for the rebirth of many warbirds. Hangars now lost to used car sales.. Real hangars brought new hope to Blackbushe. For a while.I recently heard of where, and how, the hangar steel work was acquired.... Interesting story, but not for these pages. Yes, looking back over the past fifty years much has happened at the old aerodrome. It's played a part in the lives of quite a few of us...and hopefully will for a few more years yet. Either the bells will toll one last time, or the bells will ring and Blackbushe will reach into Churchill's glorious new and sunlit uplands. Had Blackbushe Airport not been sold to the current consortium it would have been closed by BCA, probably by now. Her survival has been tenuous, we look forward with hope to hearing the bells ring a favourable peel?? PB
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Post by PB on Dec 7, 2015 7:04:23 GMT
"Photo of the Day"
07/12/15Isn't it just amazing? Monday. Monday morning, another Monday morning under the tranquil carpet of 'retirement' where life is exactly what you make it to be. Well, not entirely I suppose. The mirror reveals that all is not well in the war on wrinkles and the third week of the second course of topical chemo has turned my head into a zone that resembles some alien place recently attacked by an army of angry wasps. Trouble with mirrors is they are hard to avoid and curiosity wins.. Nothing too seriously life threatening I'm assured, just picturesque and painful, and one of the consequences of enjoying life amid the airlines where the sun had so many opportunities to claw its way toward the grey cell!! Beware the sun's bite should your follicles be challenged.. Must not loiter here too long, the daily encounter with home pharmacy beckons..and the daily squeezing of tubes and popping of pharmaceutical wonders from their metallic bubbles all designed to prolong the time that one can propel "POTD" into the great 'wherever' once I've hit the 'create post' button. Where does it go once I've hit that well worn button? Very strange, 'cos wherever I am in the world, POTD is sure to follow - as does everything else from our silicon chip powered world.. Yes, retirement's a wonderful thing, if it wasn't for mirrors. Today's look into that great mirror seems to have the word 'retirement' written across it.. Enough, perhaps, to make me think of all the aircraft that made Blackbushe such an aviation mecca between war's end and 1960, and their sad retirement. Most of them have fared a far worse deal than your scribe has so far..the scrap heap, the oxy cutting torch, and oblivion. Some may have morphed into new aeroplanes, others, teaspoons perhaps, who knows? Today then, a respectful look at those who are now retired having once played a major role on the great stage known as 'Blackbushe'...pure theatre it was too.              Just some of the once familiar faces who have taken their retirement and moved on.... It was indeed a sad day when the stage curtains finally closed, and the theatre known as Blackbushe ceased to play. Happily the dramatics have continued, but the cast is very different. PB
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Post by PB on Dec 8, 2015 7:11:37 GMT
"Photo of the Day"
08/12/15Farnborough Air Show comes to Blackbushe.. ..or more to the truth Blackbushe goes to the Farnborough Air Show as Saab based their MFI-15 Primary Trainer here for a long past Farnborough Week.  Each afternoon LN-BIV would depart Blackbushe to participate in the Farnborough flying programme, on completion she returned to the Blackbushe apron for another 24 hours rest..  Just another day in the Doug Arnold eraThe above photo I plucked from the vaults for no other reason than it reflects days long past when DA had his Daks giving the place the tiniest hint of 'old Blackbushe'..  They changed colour sometimes.. In Doug's Day we certainly had a degree of variety in our midst...and Doug's pot of gold shows where it's hidden?PB
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Post by PB on Dec 9, 2015 7:28:53 GMT
"Photo of the Day"
09/12/1505.30, windscreen frozen..not used to these conditions! But, the sky looked amazing. Crystal clear, with the planets and assorted stars shining their little hearts out as the lights of someone toward FL350 moved almost silently through the firmament. The world was silent enough for the proverbial pin to be heard dropping, and the morning star could have been preparing for some kind of nativity play. Nothing to do with Blackbushe, but worth sharing with those who missed the morning's marvels.. Today there is much on my plate, proverbially speaking, so time allows only the one photo to be plucked from the vaults. A cold and miserable looking winter's day at Blackbushe on a date I know not when...  The mighty PA-60 Aerostar D-IFWF shivers on Blackbushe's tarmac..Can't tell you much about the moment, I guess it doesn't matter that much. WF featured at the 1980 Hannover Air Show according to a quick glance at the 'web' where she is sitting amid the static park. She looks good wherever she goes. A formidable aeroplane, I just hope that one day Blackbushe becomes a bit more formidable in her air traffic movements... PB
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Post by PB on Dec 10, 2015 7:33:16 GMT
"Photo of the Day
10/12/15Beauty, as they say, is in the eye of the beholder. I tell myself that each time I look in the mirror and see the picturesque effects of my current chemo skin blemish busting treatment..I see a person who perhaps came off worst in a paint ball contest - where red was the only available colour. Quite amusing really, the odd glance I get suggests onlookers think I carry some contageous thing that's about to get them too. Be assured POTD carries nothing infectious - except hopefully an affection for Blackbushe? Ten days to go, the treatment stops and PB should stop emulating the surface of the red planet sometime after... That's the plan. In aviation terms beauty is often a matter of conjecture. It could be the way an aeroplane performs from the accountant's perspective, or the pilot's view point, or maybe just plain good looks. RJ Mitchell must hold the ultimate prize for winning in all three categories, his contribution to aeronautical beauty lives on. However, the Blackbushe apron has seen one or two contenders for the 'not quite so beautiful' award - nevertheless, they may have been winners in other categories...      Of course, the appreciation of beauty is very much subjective, and while today's line-up may not be of the 'page 3' requirements most of them performed their designed duty to great effect, it's just that their beauty was not necessarily on the outside. Or something like that.... PB
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