Third Generation Pilot Finds WW2-Era Engine. You'll Never Guess Where.

Peter Thompson, a realtor in Fallbrook, CA, wasn't looking for extra work, but what appeared very much like a windmill atop a 30-foot tower structure beckoned to him. That's because it wasn't a windmill. It was an engine -- specifically, a Fairchild PT-19 engine -- a rare thing dating back to World War Two. And therein lies a tale.

The Fallbrook Village News reports Thompson, a former RAF mechanic specializing in electronics, had listed the property for sale about two years ago. He knew there was a good chance the new owners wouldn't want the ungainly structure or the mast. So he contacted the San Diego Aerospace Museum.

Sure, said Tony Beres at the museum, we'd love to have the engine. When can you deliver it?

That was what the British would call "a real poser." Lucky for Thompson, his brother, Derek, is a contractor. The two climbed into a restored, one-ton 1961 Chevy dump truck and headed off to retrieve the engine.

It was delicate work. They had to climb to the top of the mast, hacksaw the engine from its mount, use a rented crane to lower the engine to the bed of the dump truck and drive rather carefully to the museum.

But there was another problem. The museum had no way to unload the hefty engine from the truck. Well, that's not exactly true. There was a forklift, but it was busy holding up one of the museum's exhibits. Solution: the Thompson boys left the truck at the museum overnight, until the forklift could be freed up to lift the engine from the bed of the dump truck.

"Oh, great," thought Assistant Curator Al Valdes when he heard the engine was coming. "Of course, we were thinking it was a new engine."

Not so. In fact, after looking it over, Valdes told ANN, "The only thing missing was barnacles." The engine had an oil leak, lots of rust and, oh yeah, a birds nest inside.

What was the engine doing up on that 30-foot mast anyway? It was used to move the air over an avocado orchard during near-freezing weather. Frost is less likely to form in moving air.

Two years later, the engine is now restored -- "in pristine condition," Valdes said -- and is on display at the San Diego Aerospace Museum with about 50 other aero engines dating back to the Wright brothers.

FMI: www.aerospacemuseum.org