OT - Why no modern float plane/flying boat

[rtrapasso]

Yeah - something like this is always a consideration in making your purchase (BTW - this LA-8 eventually sank at the airshow, always guaranteed to drum up purchasers: [X(] [:D])

[Dixie]

Found a pic of the Cat crashing [:)]

As a young lad I (obviously) thought it was great, and I got home in time to see it again on the local news from a different angle [:D] I've also been told that I kept asking 'Why did he do that? Did he mean to?'

[rtrapasso]

So - where's the pic?? Inquiring minds want to see it !!! [:'(]

EDIT: if it is at Airliners.Net - they have something like 1,000,000+ photos - and the search engine is not fabulous.

[Dixie]

ORIGINAL: rtrapasso

So - where's the pic?? Inquiring minds want to see it !!! [:'(]

The pic in the post above? [&:] Or are you just messing with my mind (not a difficult task really)

And here it is shortly before impressing a small child [:'(]

Copyrighted pic, see it here

[DuckofTindalos]

Uh, Dixie... There's just a banner from airliners.net...

[rtrapasso]

ORIGINAL: Dixie

ORIGINAL: rtrapasso

So - where's the pic?? Inquiring minds want to see it !!! [:'(]

The pic in the post above? [&:] Or are you just messing with my mind (not a difficult task really)

And here it is shortly before impressing a small child [:'(]

All i see in the pic in the post above is "Contact Airliners.Net for how to display our photos":

EDIT: Here is what we see:

[Dixie]

ORIGINAL: Terminus

Uh, Dixie... There's just a banner from airliners.net...

Strange, it shows up fine of my PC. [&:]

'Cause it's copyrighted, see it here

[rtrapasso]

ORIGINAL: Dixie

ORIGINAL: Terminus

Uh, Dixie... There's just a banner from airliners.net...

Strange, it shows up fine of my PC. [&:]

<removed because lawyers rule the world>

I knew there was a reason I got my own webspace [:D]

WOW!! Dixie, do you think he MEANT to do that??? [:'(] [:'(]

Yeah, in linking stuff sometimes from different web sites, the poster can sometimes see stuff they linked, while the rest of the forum sees something entirely different!

[rtrapasso]

ORIGINAL: Dixie

ORIGINAL: rtrapasso

So - where's the pic?? Inquiring minds want to see it !!! [:'(]

The pic in the post above? [&:] Or are you just messing with my mind (not a difficult task really)

And here it is shortly before impressing a small child [:'(]

SO, it impressed you so much, you decided to go into the RAF where you could see things like this close up on a regular basis??? [X(] [:'(]

[Feinder]

That pic is copyrighted, not supposed to post it like that btw...
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-F-

[Dino]

ORIGINAL: Feinder

That pic is copyrighted, not supposed to post it like that btw...

-F-

I think this classifies as "Fair Use".

[Dixie]

As Feinder pointed out the pics are copyrighted, so I've removed them from my earlier posts. There's a link to the website where I found them instead. Better to be on the safe side [:)]

[DrewMatrix]

There is at least one scheduled&nbsp;commercial run by float plane (a DeHavilland Otter IIRC) between Vancouver and Victoria. We took it and it's a lot of fun. Very 1930's. You walk out of the Empress Hotel&nbsp;in Victoria, wheel your carryon across the street, get on the float plane and zip over to Vancouver.
&nbsp;
And, as someone pointed out, float planes are useful in Canada and Alaska but those are tiny planes used to get hunters/fishermen into remote spots. Not big planes like the Pan American Clippers.
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What I want to fly in next is a diridgible/blimp

[panda124c]

ORIGINAL: AW1Steve

ORIGINAL: wdolson

ORIGINAL: qgaliana

On the other hand, civilian float planes still seem to be in reasonable use.

They are used a lot in Canada and Alaska. I don't know if it's still in operation, but there was a float plane airline that flew between Lake Union in Seattle and Victoria, BC.

The last two Matrin Mars flying boats are still operated as fire bombers. They are kept on a lake in British Columbia.

Bill

The airline in Seattle is Kenmore air , and yes, they still operate floatplanes. But float planes are generally used where either there is no real need for an airport or it's too expensive to build one. With the exception of the Russians, Japanese or Chinese , I'm not aware of any other governments using them . The Japanese are phasing out their flying boats and I don't think any government (other than state or provincial for game wardens or such) use float planes. I understand that the Mars flying boats are about to be retired and several groups are trying preserve them for museums. I'm not sure If Chalks airline is still flying Albatros flying boats from Miami to Nassau any more , they were the last airline use of flying boats.[:(]

Chalk's was denied a license to operate Albatrosses they were using turbo versions of the Goose. I did a search and am sad to say the they apparently do not operate seaplanes and more. I loved to watch them take off in the Miami ship channel opposite the Cruise liners. Their offices were right next to where the Goodyear Blimp launched during the winter, seaplane and blimps all on one little island. So sad to say all of that is gone..[:@]

[panda124c]

It appears that even the Hemisphere Dances is no longer flying. [:-]

One SA-16 owned by one J. Buffett.

[AW1Steve]

ORIGINAL: pbear

It appears that even the Hemisphere Dances is no longer flying. [:-]

One SA-16 owned by one J. Buffett.

Yeah , who formerly owned one goose. Let's hope this Albatros has a better fate![:(]

[Wolfie1]

Is there a URL where we can see the pic?

[qgaliana]

North of 49, we've got plenty of hills, trees, and flat water. Flat open space is perversely located in uninteresting places.&nbsp;The little float planes aren't as impressive as the big flying boats, but they're kind of cool to see all stacked up at some of the larger hydrobases.
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http://www.airsaguenay.com/index_en.php?categories=3
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I note,&nbsp;however that most of the models they fly date to the 60s. Wonder if anything with floats is flying that isn't at least 20 years old?

[DrewMatrix]

"Flat open space is perversely located in uninteresting places.&nbsp;"
&nbsp;
Hey! I have friends in Alberta!
&nbsp;
<G>
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&nbsp;

[wdolson]

ORIGINAL: Feinder

There's a somewhat eccentric millionaire in Lakeland, Kermit Weeks, that spends his fortune restoring warbirds and other historical aircraft. He hosts a museum (Fantasy of Flight). Behind the place is really big man-made lake that hosts working seaplane pier, for his Sunderland flying boat.

99% of the time, it's in the hanger. But it is still flyable, and I guess he (yes he does fly them) was returning from an airshow somewhere, because it came in low over my house about a year ago (I recognized it, and knew it must have been on approach to Lakeland).

-THAT- was cool.

For a private museum, it's exceptional. Not the crates of junk that you see at the side of regional airports. It's certainly nothing on the scale of Dayton or Pensacola, but I'd say it's better the 8th AF museum in Savanna. Definately worth the stop if you're in Central Florida.

It seems that lots of cool stuff flys over my house (in Pasco county, not Tampa actually).

That travelling B-17 and the B-25 have buzzed over while on approach to Zypherhills. And whatever is lined up for the Bucs games on Sunday usually goes right over as well (B-2, pairs of F-18s and F-16s).

-F-

Kermit Weeks is interesting. In the warbird circles, he's a bit of a legend. His goal is to have one of each type of aircraft in flyable condition. His B-24 doesn't fly anymore, but at one time it was one of 2 flying. He also has a B-26A that crashed in Alaska in early 1942. An entire flight of them went down in the wilderness and someone recovered them in the late 1970s. Parts were mixed and matched to get one flying at Chino, CA. When I was a kid, we used to go to Chino a few times a year and I remember the B-26s sitting out at one of the restoration places there. (Chino is far, far better than Disneyland if you're into planes like I am/was.)

The B-26 is no longer flyable either, unfortunately.

Hurricane Andrew hit Weeks' museum and damaged or destroyed some of his planes. A number of them were sent to restoration facilities all over the US for repair. I think one of his hangers collapsed.

Bill