Medium-To-Heavy Bomber And Patrol Aircraft Flew Mostly In The Pacific Theater In WWII

The inaugural Gathering of Warbirds and Legends planned for August 1-4 in Topeka, KS, is pleased to announce a special attraction for those who love the Lockheed aircraft of the Golden age of aviation! The unusual collection slated for Topeka now includes a model 12A, a newly restored 18 (The Lodestar), and not one, but Two Lockheed PV-2s.

The PV-2 was a medium to heavy bomber and patrol aircraft with a maximum gross takeoff weight of 36,000 pounds. It saw action mostly in the Pacific theater during the war and was considered a formidable tool of the time. Rich Suiter is the President and Founder of the American Military Heritage Foundation, based near Indianapolis, Indiana that is in possession of one such aircraft. The AMHF PV-2 “Hot Stuff” is now on the schedule to head west towards Topeka, Kansas where it will meet and park next to the other PV-2 “Attu Warrior” for the first time ever. “This is truly a unique opportunity that we have sought for many years. There are only three of these birds left in the world, so the chance to meet and fly with one of the other remaining examples is something that we truly look forward to. We would love to make a few low passes on that 12,600 foot runway with our sister ship at Topeka. Have your cameras ready, you will not see this again,” Suiter said.

The other PV-2 now committed for Topeka is owned by Dave Hansen and is based in Utah. “I fell in love with this plane and its history in 2006, so I bought it! It has truly been a labor of love to keep her flying, and we have not been presented an opportunity to meet in the middle like this and fly together. The fact that these other Lockheed examples will park with us makes the event that much more unusual.” Mr. Hansen’s web site also features photos and information about his PV-2 Harpoon.

Rounding out the unusual Lockheed section for Topeka’s Warbirds and Legends, will be the Lockheed EC-121 Warning Star. This Lockheed is the military version of the Super Constellation and is owned by the Combat Air Museum of Topeka, Kansas. The EC-121 is not currently airworthy, but will be open to the public for tours, and parked with the rest of the Lockheed family.

“I am truly looking forward to being on that ramp with these other Lockheeds,” commented Scott Glover, of Mt. Pleasant, Texas. Mr. Glover is bringing both an original World War II veteran C-47, as well as his newly restored Lockheed Model 18, or Lodestar. “There are only 9 flyable Lodestars in North America that I know of, and when you look at her, you can see the Lockheed family resemblance in her.”

(PV-2 [top] and EC-121 [bottom] public domain images from file)

FMI: www.WarbirdsandLegends.org