Sun, Nov 23, 2003
Winning Bid Helps Pay for Repairs from Sept. 25th Belly
Landing
Following a six-year restoration, the Collings
Foundation’s Chance-Vought F4U-5NL Corsair is flying again in
honor of its Korean War veteran roots. Its journey to pristine
flying condition was not without its share of problems, and in
September of 2003, the road got rough.
On September 25th, 2003, on its second test flight out of New
Smyrna Beach (FL), the Corsair was unable to extend the right main
landing gear due to hydraulic system problem To minimize damage,
the left gear was retracted and the decision was made to carefully
belly-land the aircraft on the runway. Pilot Dale
“Snort” Snodgrass did an excellent job and damage was
limited to the propeller, flaps, and light scraping of the landing
gear doors. Only a month and a half later, on November 14th, the
repaired aircraft took to the skies again without a trace of the
incident of September 25th thanks to the hard work of the crew at
American Aero Services in New Smyrna Beach.
To help pay for the repairs, the Collings Foundation is
auctioning one of the propeller blades from the incident. This is
your chance to not only own a piece of one of the most beloved
aircraft in American aviation history, but own a story as well!
This is one of the actual blades off the Corsair’s Hamilton
Standard 23E60 propeller that was damaged in the belly landing on
September 25th. Standing nearly 6 feet tall and weighing over 70
lbs, the prop blade will make an incredible conversation piece in
an aviation-oriented office, den, or living room! Look for the prop
on eBay.
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