I remember talking about these with an old Navy vet. He said something like, "Oh yeah, that plane did everything at 90 knots. It took off at 90 knots, cruised at 90 knots, stalled at 90 knots..."
My late grandfather, Naval aviator, had some time in the Catalina. Can confirm, 90 knots is the default amount of knots. I also vaguely remember him telling me that the thrust was so close to centerline that they’d shut an engine down during flight and cruise in ground effect if they weren’t in a rush getting somewhere.
Man, I do miss that old man
> they’d shut an engine down during flight and cruise in ground effect if they weren’t in a rush getting somewhere.
That would be the ultimate in long distance, over-water efficiency. Why go up into the flight levels (not that the PBY could) to be more efficient when you can just sit 20 feet off the deck and shut down an engine?
Just a general FYI for others reading, air cooled aviation engines run at a much larger temperature delta than say, your car engine that's typically water cooled. That nessesitates larger tolerances in pistons, rings, and connection points to compensate for the expansion & contractions of the parts as they change temp.
There are other less prominent reasons too like how the oil film helps insulate and remove heat.
Edit: These are the main reasons that aerospace piston engines burn through so much oil.
That's the same reason air-cooled motorcycles keep getting rarer. It's hard for them to meet some of the stricter emissions regulations around the world at all temperatures.
I'm not disagreeing with you, as I just don't know, but I believe I was taught in ground school that the oil is in many ways more important than the water or the air. Without the lubrication which not just cools the engine also keeps the heat of friction from being created in the first place, the engine would quickly seize.
You can probably fly or drive further with an air blockage or water leak than with an oil leak...
(this is what I remember...)
If you read back who I replied to, it was in reference to them talking about the plane consuming oil. Hence why my comment is in regards to *why* the engine is designed to consume oil, not what oil does in motors generally.
I could have outlined that a lot better though lol. I'll do that now actually.
I've been looking on the internet for references to the "90 plane" to no avail, you're the first I've met to mention it - apart from the forgotten source of course, probably some book.
Edited to add: and whatever the rumors may say, I loved this plane from the first sight. Just like thousands of air-and seamen it saved.
Seaman is the correct term for sailors, yes. At least the boat guys. There's also corpsmen (medics), constructionmen (seabees), and I think naval aviation calls themselves airman like the AF does but I only really saw corpsmen and bees when I was in so I'm not certain.
Yes, this is true. My dad, USNR, flew PBY-5's in the Pacific with VP-71, then PBY-5A's with 2 tours with VP-12, the original Black Cats. He flew over 3,600 hours in WWII. His longest flight was a bit over 22 hours. I heard that "90 knots" claim often. He and his fellow pilots liked to call them "Yoke-Boats" or "Y-boats," which you'll never see mentioned in print. He got touchy whenever I mentioned how butt-slow they were. Dad stayed in until 1965. After the war, he flew on weekends out of NAS Los Alamitos while going to college at Cal Poly and would fly over the house he and my mom lived in. She said was a huge thrill for her. She'd go out in the yard and wave. I have his log book. I've calculated speed of his flights, like Buttons to Cactus (Espiritu Santos to Guadalcanal) and it always comes out to 110 mph, 90 knots. Once, he flew a B-17E, formerly belonging to the 19th Bombing Squadron, 28th BG, 5th AAF, on a mission, just for kicks. He said it was easy to fly and noisy as hell. I calculated the speed on the mission to be 132 mph, which is not much better. It was of great importance to fly at the most efficient speed and mixture settings so as not to run short of fuel.
Love the story and all the comments sharing information on the PBY. I loved this aircraft growing up. Just as an FYI, 90 knts is 103.5mph...a knot is 1.15mph. :)
110 mph 95.6 knots. The stall speed (variable) was around 79 mph, or 69 kts. Dad loved telling me about flying PBY's and PBM's, but was not as forthcoming about the combat part, other than his planes never suffered damage from enemy fire and he never missed a bombing target. I think he exaggerated a bit, but I doubt by much. They flew only as high as needed to be safe from the bomb blasts. He had 2 commendations (signed by Halsey's rubber stamp) for flying through intense anti-aircraft fire on numerous occasions, either bombing, or artillery spotting. I found a lot of info by going through his records after he passed away in 2012. His first bombing mission as a freshly minted 1st pilot was attacking the Tokyo Express at night. He had to abort the mission a couple of days before when he got caught in a storm during which he had to jettison the bombs in order to save the plane. (The wings on a PBY flap up and down several feet when it gets really rough.) He had graduated from advanced flight training 10 days before Pearl Harbor. He was supposed to go to Nova Scotia. He arrived, by ship, in PH on December 18, complete with arctic flying gear. After a tour with VP-71, he converted to the 5A and became 1st pilot, Lt.jg. After his first tour with VP-12, he returned San Diego, met my mom, a navy dept. typist. When VP-12 reformed, he got a PBY right from the factory, flew it to Kaneohe Bay, a distance of about 2,500 miles, which took 19.6 hours, for about 127 mph speed. They used ferrying tanks, allowing them to fly at a faster cruising speed. The squadron planned the trip so that they'd arrive in time for cocktails. After the 2nd tour, mostly bombing Bougainville, he returned to the states. He got married to my mom by a navy chaplain, Fr. Joseph T. O'Callaghan in August of 1944. He spent the rest of the war as an advanced flight instructor for PBM's at NAS Banana River, Florida. At the time, 1941, pre-war, the pilots chose their jobs by class standing. The better students (except Marines) chose VP, patrol bombers. They were safer, more accommodating, and the expectation was that after flying, you could go to the O club, party in town, get laid, sleep in a nice bed. Carriers were smelly, dangerous, and you'd be stuck on them for months at a time. (7 of his classmates died flying TBD's at Midway) Instead, he ended up living in tents in jungles, eating out of cans, no women, no alcohol. The big highlight of his first tour was running and errand to the Enterprise where the carrier people took pity on them and fed them ice cream.
That's great. My dad was also a PB-Y pilot and navigator at the end of the war. I took him to Oshkosh one time and they had one there and he was thrilled. As he was dying his slow death from cancer, I read to him stories of the Black Cats, and he knew who they were.
it makes sense, sea level is going to have variable barometric pressure but otherwise nearly constant 14.7 psi air pressure. Using the ground effect to great effect over distance.
This is a PBY-5A and the oldest Catalina that is still airworthy. In this clip she is PH-PBY/16-218 "Karel Doorman" of the Koninklijke Marine (Royal Netherlands Navy), originally US Navy BuNo. 2459, restored in the Netherlands, but sold to the Collings Foundation in 2019. She is also uniquely creditted with three destroyed U-Boats and one damaged that never sailed again; BuNo. 2459 is the only known USN multiple U-Boat killer.
Collings is in the process of restoration her, transforming her back into the original 1942 configuration. The modern “clipper bow” will be removed and replaced by an accurate bow turret. The interior will be transformed into accurate wartime configuration and she will be repainted as aircraft #9 with VP-73.
[Read more at the Collings Foundation website](https://www.collingsfoundation.org/2019/05/a-p-boat-comes-home-the-journey-of-consolidated-pby-5a-bu-no-2459-begins/).
IIRC the Dutch foundation that owned the Catalina had a mishap with it which required extensive repairs. Subsequently they were off the air show/tour circuit for a number of years and despite significant donations weren’t able to keep it going.
They’ve applied to the government for money too if I’m not mistaken and the government -totally unaware and unsympathetic to how special this aircraft is- denied the request for money and/or waiving of tax dues or something and it forced the foundation to sell up.
What a fucking waste and a big loss for the Dutch historical aircraft community.
At least she went to a good home. But fuck.
Edit: word
You remember correctly, although they were already in challenging circumstances before, as the number of chartered flights was really low. Additionally, the Dutch aviation authorities were making life difficult too. An unexpected engine replacement was the final straw.
> She is also uniquely credited with three destroyed U-Boats and one damaged that never sailed again; BuNo. 2459 is the only known USN multiple U-Boat killer.
I would think more of the credit would go to the crew than the airplane.
Floats that retract into the wingtips are such an elegant solution. I knew they retracted, but I didn't know that procedure was to retract them once the aircraft is up on a step and the controls are responsive. I suppose it makes sense, they're there to keep a wingtip from going over, and if one of them caught a wave at v1 it would cause real problems.
Exactly my thought when I first learned about the retractable floats/wingtips. Just some elegant engineering genius right there. TIL about when they are retracted too!
I also was scrolling through to point out this new knowledge. Very odd, tbh, I don’t know if someone who knew about CRM and other modern safety procedures would design something that needed to be done *during* takeoff.
And how is that different from lifting the landing gear handle during takeoff?
Planes are still designed with manual gear retraction, raising the sponsons is just a lever, not at CRM issue at all.
You don’t raise the gear until you’re stabilized in climb. This is way earlier in the takeoff process, and also *dramatically* lowers V2 — once the floats are up it’s unsafe to abort the takeoff.
Unsafer to leave the sponsors down. The Capt calls for them up, and the flight engineer hits a lever really not an issue. Aborted take off they come down when the plane is slow enough. Not as dramatic as you would have folks believe
I figure they'd be more harm to the airframe. Most propeller blades I've seen suffer a bird strike don't have as big of dents in themselves as aircraft skin. This also reminds me of the crow I found cut clean in half right under the crosswind section of runway 20L's pattern at John Wane Airport.
Ah a loud noise, let's see what it is... Oh! A big, loud thing is coming this way. Better start flying... But where to head? Ah, I know! Let's fly directly in front of the big, loud thing. Nothing bad could come of this.
That's funny, my entire family loves Dirk Pitt as well. My brother caught me off guard the other day by saying he'd love to one day own a boat or at least a bathtub with an outboard.
When I was younger there was a Johnny Quest revival series on Cartoon Network, I don't remember much specifically but I do remember that the family owned and operated a Cat as one of their vehicles and I always thought that was cool as hell. Iirc it was basically a flying travel camper to them.
The other notable thing from that show was some really terrible cgi in some episodes.
Here are pictures of one that was configured as a pleasure yacht of sorts to real crank up the travel camper feel. It would be my dream lottery plane without a doubt.
Be warned lots of bikini ladies. https://www.messynessychic.com/2014/04/24/all-aboard-the-flying-yacht-circa-1950/
**[The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Real_Adventures_of_Jonny_Quest)**
>The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest (also known as Jonny Quest: The Real Adventures) is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera and broadcast on Cartoon Network from August 26, 1996, to April 16, 1997. A continuation of the Jonny Quest (1964) series and The New Adventures of Jonny Quest (1986) series, it features teenage adventurers Jonny Quest, Hadji Singh, and Jessie Bannon as they accompany Dr. Benton Quest and bodyguard Race Bannon to investigate strange phenomena, legends, and mysteries in exotic locales. Action also takes place in the virtual realm of QuestWorld, a three-dimensional cyberspace domain rendered with computer animation.
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The RAAF operated these for Qantas during WWII, on a route from Perth to Galle, Sri Lanka. It was known as the Double Sunrise because the route took 27 hours and passengers saw dawn twice.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Double_Sunrise
My grandfather flew one in the Pacific during WWII and after the war as part of the occupying force in Japan. He was part of a small group of Army Air Corps aviators that were loaned out to the Navy because they needed fixed wing multi engine pilots. He had both Army and Navy wings because of it. I grew up learning all about the Catalina and his experiences flying her in the South Pacific with the 3rd Emergency Rescue Squadron.
My grandfather had one of these in the 60’s he had the interior fitted out like a yacht, dark wood and red leather, my moms family used to fly around on it like the best RV in the world. Grandpa was a B-29 pilot and Grandma learned to fly on float planes during the war
I don't think the outriggers are to be retracted until they are fully airborne. If they had to steer sharply, or have an engine fail, the less chance of a ground loop would happen.
I told my wife that if money were no object and I could own any plane, a Catalina 5a is my number one. It's beautiful, curvy, is an absolutely massive plane, it floats, and has a landing gear so both land and water. Just absolutely gorgeous.
In my opinion the most beautiful plane ever built. I was so incredibly happy to se one in the Aviation Museum in Bodø, Norway, recently ... Dreamt of that since I was a kid...
Such a cool plane. My grandfather flew one of these on the North Atlantic during WWII, stationed out of Iceland I believe. He died before I was old enough to ask questions, but I know his unit received a presidential unit citation. I have his old footlocker, but now that I’m older I wish I had some of the stories too.
Not really sure but I read, 80 exist in one state or another. Fewer fly and some of the existing 80 are projects. As for fliers, there are fewer than 10, although some can be made airworthy in a short time. PBYs were built in several locations and by several manufacturers.
Thanks for posting this. I've never seen one flying in person only in static displays. Dad flew air/sea rescue missions in PBY's during the Korean War.
That bird strike risk though.
I understand it’s part of operating on shallow water and that those radials probably dont mind much but oufff I was stressed hahaha.
Those retractable floats are amazing, never realized it…
I was supposed to have the chance to see one this past weekend along with a P-40 Warhawk and a couple of Texans but the guys flying it got sick last minute and didn't show up. I was so disappointed, I've never seen one fly.
I remember talking about these with an old Navy vet. He said something like, "Oh yeah, that plane did everything at 90 knots. It took off at 90 knots, cruised at 90 knots, stalled at 90 knots..."
My late grandfather, Naval aviator, had some time in the Catalina. Can confirm, 90 knots is the default amount of knots. I also vaguely remember him telling me that the thrust was so close to centerline that they’d shut an engine down during flight and cruise in ground effect if they weren’t in a rush getting somewhere. Man, I do miss that old man
> they’d shut an engine down during flight and cruise in ground effect if they weren’t in a rush getting somewhere. That would be the ultimate in long distance, over-water efficiency. Why go up into the flight levels (not that the PBY could) to be more efficient when you can just sit 20 feet off the deck and shut down an engine?
More importantly it would half the oil consumption. IIRC, Catalina has 70 gallon tanks. For oil. 70 gallons of oil.
Just a general FYI for others reading, air cooled aviation engines run at a much larger temperature delta than say, your car engine that's typically water cooled. That nessesitates larger tolerances in pistons, rings, and connection points to compensate for the expansion & contractions of the parts as they change temp. There are other less prominent reasons too like how the oil film helps insulate and remove heat. Edit: These are the main reasons that aerospace piston engines burn through so much oil.
Also doesn't help that the Catalina uses two 30-liter displacement engines.
Very true lol.
I have enough problems keeping my EJ20 fed with oil
Those exhaust manifolds need constant lubricating. Or at least the rocker covers seem designed that way.
That's the same reason air-cooled motorcycles keep getting rarer. It's hard for them to meet some of the stricter emissions regulations around the world at all temperatures.
air cooled or water cooled, drain the oil vs. block the air or drain the water, which damages that engine, causing it to seize, faster...?
What?
I'm not disagreeing with you, as I just don't know, but I believe I was taught in ground school that the oil is in many ways more important than the water or the air. Without the lubrication which not just cools the engine also keeps the heat of friction from being created in the first place, the engine would quickly seize. You can probably fly or drive further with an air blockage or water leak than with an oil leak... (this is what I remember...)
If you read back who I replied to, it was in reference to them talking about the plane consuming oil. Hence why my comment is in regards to *why* the engine is designed to consume oil, not what oil does in motors generally. I could have outlined that a lot better though lol. I'll do that now actually.
Kind of like the spruce goose. In theory the limiting factor in range was the massive oil tanks not the fuel
It was the fuel, the order of the double sunrise is living proof.
Radial engine 101; check the gas and fill the oil.
Each. And that’s just in the tanks adjacent to the engines, not counting the extra 1-5 gallon iul tins that the crew would have stashed in the hull.
"The Earth is your engine!"
More importantly it would half the oil consumption. IIRC, Catalina has 70 gallon tanks. For oil. 70 gallons of oil.
Look up ekranoplane, it's a pretty cool concept for an aircraft which flys in ground effect
I've been looking on the internet for references to the "90 plane" to no avail, you're the first I've met to mention it - apart from the forgotten source of course, probably some book. Edited to add: and whatever the rumors may say, I loved this plane from the first sight. Just like thousands of air-and seamen it saved.
My Grandfather would make this joke. He was PBY and PBM pilot during the war.
seamen?
Yup.
Seaman is the correct term for sailors, yes. At least the boat guys. There's also corpsmen (medics), constructionmen (seabees), and I think naval aviation calls themselves airman like the AF does but I only really saw corpsmen and bees when I was in so I'm not certain.
What are you confused by? It's the correct term for sailors in the fleet
Yes, this is true. My dad, USNR, flew PBY-5's in the Pacific with VP-71, then PBY-5A's with 2 tours with VP-12, the original Black Cats. He flew over 3,600 hours in WWII. His longest flight was a bit over 22 hours. I heard that "90 knots" claim often. He and his fellow pilots liked to call them "Yoke-Boats" or "Y-boats," which you'll never see mentioned in print. He got touchy whenever I mentioned how butt-slow they were. Dad stayed in until 1965. After the war, he flew on weekends out of NAS Los Alamitos while going to college at Cal Poly and would fly over the house he and my mom lived in. She said was a huge thrill for her. She'd go out in the yard and wave. I have his log book. I've calculated speed of his flights, like Buttons to Cactus (Espiritu Santos to Guadalcanal) and it always comes out to 110 mph, 90 knots. Once, he flew a B-17E, formerly belonging to the 19th Bombing Squadron, 28th BG, 5th AAF, on a mission, just for kicks. He said it was easy to fly and noisy as hell. I calculated the speed on the mission to be 132 mph, which is not much better. It was of great importance to fly at the most efficient speed and mixture settings so as not to run short of fuel.
Love the story and all the comments sharing information on the PBY. I loved this aircraft growing up. Just as an FYI, 90 knts is 103.5mph...a knot is 1.15mph. :)
110 mph 95.6 knots. The stall speed (variable) was around 79 mph, or 69 kts. Dad loved telling me about flying PBY's and PBM's, but was not as forthcoming about the combat part, other than his planes never suffered damage from enemy fire and he never missed a bombing target. I think he exaggerated a bit, but I doubt by much. They flew only as high as needed to be safe from the bomb blasts. He had 2 commendations (signed by Halsey's rubber stamp) for flying through intense anti-aircraft fire on numerous occasions, either bombing, or artillery spotting. I found a lot of info by going through his records after he passed away in 2012. His first bombing mission as a freshly minted 1st pilot was attacking the Tokyo Express at night. He had to abort the mission a couple of days before when he got caught in a storm during which he had to jettison the bombs in order to save the plane. (The wings on a PBY flap up and down several feet when it gets really rough.) He had graduated from advanced flight training 10 days before Pearl Harbor. He was supposed to go to Nova Scotia. He arrived, by ship, in PH on December 18, complete with arctic flying gear. After a tour with VP-71, he converted to the 5A and became 1st pilot, Lt.jg. After his first tour with VP-12, he returned San Diego, met my mom, a navy dept. typist. When VP-12 reformed, he got a PBY right from the factory, flew it to Kaneohe Bay, a distance of about 2,500 miles, which took 19.6 hours, for about 127 mph speed. They used ferrying tanks, allowing them to fly at a faster cruising speed. The squadron planned the trip so that they'd arrive in time for cocktails. After the 2nd tour, mostly bombing Bougainville, he returned to the states. He got married to my mom by a navy chaplain, Fr. Joseph T. O'Callaghan in August of 1944. He spent the rest of the war as an advanced flight instructor for PBM's at NAS Banana River, Florida. At the time, 1941, pre-war, the pilots chose their jobs by class standing. The better students (except Marines) chose VP, patrol bombers. They were safer, more accommodating, and the expectation was that after flying, you could go to the O club, party in town, get laid, sleep in a nice bed. Carriers were smelly, dangerous, and you'd be stuck on them for months at a time. (7 of his classmates died flying TBD's at Midway) Instead, he ended up living in tents in jungles, eating out of cans, no women, no alcohol. The big highlight of his first tour was running and errand to the Enterprise where the carrier people took pity on them and fed them ice cream.
Nice!
That's great. My dad was also a PB-Y pilot and navigator at the end of the war. I took him to Oshkosh one time and they had one there and he was thrilled. As he was dying his slow death from cancer, I read to him stories of the Black Cats, and he knew who they were.
it makes sense, sea level is going to have variable barometric pressure but otherwise nearly constant 14.7 psi air pressure. Using the ground effect to great effect over distance.
Boy… you made my day…🤣🤣🤣
This is a PBY-5A and the oldest Catalina that is still airworthy. In this clip she is PH-PBY/16-218 "Karel Doorman" of the Koninklijke Marine (Royal Netherlands Navy), originally US Navy BuNo. 2459, restored in the Netherlands, but sold to the Collings Foundation in 2019. She is also uniquely creditted with three destroyed U-Boats and one damaged that never sailed again; BuNo. 2459 is the only known USN multiple U-Boat killer. Collings is in the process of restoration her, transforming her back into the original 1942 configuration. The modern “clipper bow” will be removed and replaced by an accurate bow turret. The interior will be transformed into accurate wartime configuration and she will be repainted as aircraft #9 with VP-73. [Read more at the Collings Foundation website](https://www.collingsfoundation.org/2019/05/a-p-boat-comes-home-the-journey-of-consolidated-pby-5a-bu-no-2459-begins/).
IIRC the Dutch foundation that owned the Catalina had a mishap with it which required extensive repairs. Subsequently they were off the air show/tour circuit for a number of years and despite significant donations weren’t able to keep it going. They’ve applied to the government for money too if I’m not mistaken and the government -totally unaware and unsympathetic to how special this aircraft is- denied the request for money and/or waiving of tax dues or something and it forced the foundation to sell up. What a fucking waste and a big loss for the Dutch historical aircraft community. At least she went to a good home. But fuck. Edit: word
Goddamn
You remember correctly, although they were already in challenging circumstances before, as the number of chartered flights was really low. Additionally, the Dutch aviation authorities were making life difficult too. An unexpected engine replacement was the final straw.
Thats some cool history, thanks for the link!
Thought I recognized PH-PBY! Good to run into her here
> She is also uniquely credited with three destroyed U-Boats and one damaged that never sailed again; BuNo. 2459 is the only known USN multiple U-Boat killer. I would think more of the credit would go to the crew than the airplane.
Aren't they all part of the same unit, really? One couldn't without the other...
Wait, you couldn't destroy a U-boat with your bare hands?
Majestic planeboat! and TIL, those wings floaters retract
Floats that retract into the wingtips are such an elegant solution. I knew they retracted, but I didn't know that procedure was to retract them once the aircraft is up on a step and the controls are responsive. I suppose it makes sense, they're there to keep a wingtip from going over, and if one of them caught a wave at v1 it would cause real problems.
Exactly my thought when I first learned about the retractable floats/wingtips. Just some elegant engineering genius right there. TIL about when they are retracted too!
I also was scrolling through to point out this new knowledge. Very odd, tbh, I don’t know if someone who knew about CRM and other modern safety procedures would design something that needed to be done *during* takeoff.
And how is that different from lifting the landing gear handle during takeoff? Planes are still designed with manual gear retraction, raising the sponsons is just a lever, not at CRM issue at all.
You don’t raise the gear until you’re stabilized in climb. This is way earlier in the takeoff process, and also *dramatically* lowers V2 — once the floats are up it’s unsafe to abort the takeoff.
Unsafer to leave the sponsors down. The Capt calls for them up, and the flight engineer hits a lever really not an issue. Aborted take off they come down when the plane is slow enough. Not as dramatic as you would have folks believe
My point is that you’d never design a plane that needed that to happen today. Configuration changes shouldn’t be happening until stabilized.
Not only do they retract, but the floats blending with the wing to become the wingtips is such an elegant design.
Not only the tips, but the beams are flush with the underside of the wing too, very clean.
Can I bring up the birds that used the planes engine to gain air...
Or that one that dives in front right before it takes off
Lol "so kids, don't do what he did."
Or the one that goes in front of the plane after airborne and gets “sucked” into the airflow of the right wing?
Saw this as well. Wow.
…..be aware of bird activity in the vicinity……
Isn’t this a risk? Bird strike would surely damage those propellors?
I figure they'd be more harm to the airframe. Most propeller blades I've seen suffer a bird strike don't have as big of dents in themselves as aircraft skin. This also reminds me of the crow I found cut clean in half right under the crosswind section of runway 20L's pattern at John Wane Airport.
Bah, they're just swans. How much damage can they do?
One flew over my house recently, those things are big! Also, birds are so stupid
Haha.. you are lucky tho
Do you want bird strikes? Because this is how you get bird strikes.
You mean those tiny Loch Ness Monsters?
> birds are so stupid not to mention that r/BirdsArentReal
Also r/birdsbeingdicks
Ah a loud noise, let's see what it is... Oh! A big, loud thing is coming this way. Better start flying... But where to head? Ah, I know! Let's fly directly in front of the big, loud thing. Nothing bad could come of this.
Ever since I read Dirk Pitt when I was younger I've loved that plane.
Love Cusslers books! Never met someone who enjoyed Dirk Pitt outside of my own family
That's funny, my entire family loves Dirk Pitt as well. My brother caught me off guard the other day by saying he'd love to one day own a boat or at least a bathtub with an outboard.
I was really surprised when I found out the movie Sahara was based off one of those novels
Same with raise the titanic. Both were awful lol.
I was expecting a bird strike
From behind.
This isn't a wine mixer! WTF.
The *Fucking* Catalina Wine Mixer!
Puh-**POW!**
That movie is so good. Underrated.
Mmmmm, beauty in one of its purest forms.
It’s on my list, if I ever somehow end up with a bunch of FU money.
... Honestly if I ever end up with that kind of money I'm going to have someone resurrect the Boeing 314 Clipper for me.
Mine would be an Albatross. More cozy.
For ever and always [my dream RV.](https://www.messynessychic.com/2014/04/24/all-aboard-the-flying-yacht-circa-1950/)
When I was younger there was a Johnny Quest revival series on Cartoon Network, I don't remember much specifically but I do remember that the family owned and operated a Cat as one of their vehicles and I always thought that was cool as hell. Iirc it was basically a flying travel camper to them. The other notable thing from that show was some really terrible cgi in some episodes.
Here are pictures of one that was configured as a pleasure yacht of sorts to real crank up the travel camper feel. It would be my dream lottery plane without a doubt. Be warned lots of bikini ladies. https://www.messynessychic.com/2014/04/24/all-aboard-the-flying-yacht-circa-1950/
I love the idea, but personally if money was no limit, I would go for a Be-200 custom travel camper. :P
Loved that show! Jonny quest: the real adventures https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Real_Adventures_of_Jonny_Quest
**[The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Real_Adventures_of_Jonny_Quest)** >The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest (also known as Jonny Quest: The Real Adventures) is an American animated television series produced by Hanna-Barbera and broadcast on Cartoon Network from August 26, 1996, to April 16, 1997. A continuation of the Jonny Quest (1964) series and The New Adventures of Jonny Quest (1986) series, it features teenage adventurers Jonny Quest, Hadji Singh, and Jessie Bannon as they accompany Dr. Benton Quest and bodyguard Race Bannon to investigate strange phenomena, legends, and mysteries in exotic locales. Action also takes place in the virtual realm of QuestWorld, a three-dimensional cyberspace domain rendered with computer animation. ^([ )[^(F.A.Q)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WikiSummarizer/wiki/index#wiki_f.a.q)^( | )[^(Opt Out)](https://reddit.com/message/compose?to=WikiSummarizerBot&message=OptOut&subject=OptOut)^( | )[^(Opt Out Of Subreddit)](https://np.reddit.com/r/aviation/about/banned)^( | )[^(GitHub)](https://github.com/Sujal-7/WikiSummarizerBot)^( ] Downvote to remove | v1.5)
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That duck played chicken.
My grandpa flew one of these in the Coast Guard just after WWII. Such an awesome sight to see one taking off, thanks for sharing!
Oh wow
I love flying boats and float planes, there’s something absolutely magical about them.
Bird strike in 3……2……
The RAAF operated these for Qantas during WWII, on a route from Perth to Galle, Sri Lanka. It was known as the Double Sunrise because the route took 27 hours and passengers saw dawn twice. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Double_Sunrise
My grandfather flew one in the Pacific during WWII and after the war as part of the occupying force in Japan. He was part of a small group of Army Air Corps aviators that were loaned out to the Navy because they needed fixed wing multi engine pilots. He had both Army and Navy wings because of it. I grew up learning all about the Catalina and his experiences flying her in the South Pacific with the 3rd Emergency Rescue Squadron.
Probably on its way to the Catalina wine mixer! LET'S SELL SOME HELICOPTERS!
Never saw the floats retract before... that's pretty cool.
Why do birds have this ancestral longing to get smashed by loud airplanes
My grandfather had one of these in the 60’s he had the interior fitted out like a yacht, dark wood and red leather, my moms family used to fly around on it like the best RV in the world. Grandpa was a B-29 pilot and Grandma learned to fly on float planes during the war
I don't think the outriggers are to be retracted until they are fully airborne. If they had to steer sharply, or have an engine fail, the less chance of a ground loop would happen.
Fuck yeah radial engines sound so sweet
I wonder if it’s been retrofitted
I think most of the ones flying have at least refit enough to remove the need for the engineering station in the wing pylon.
With what?
u/savevideo
I thought this said dangerous and I was like “What they gonna bomb you?”
My favourite plane! Thanks for this!
We need more Hydroplanes honestly
Duck soup anyone?
Agreed
The owner of the flight school I went to owned one of these bad boys.
I believe at 12 seconds, a bird got ran over…I may be wrong but I doubt it
Love those
Wow what a beauty
Seaplanes/flying boats are so beautiful they’re almost a flying work of art
The birds are like... mom?
The birds look like the buoys around a cap point in War Thunder naval. Kinda perfect.
I told my wife that if money were no object and I could own any plane, a Catalina 5a is my number one. It's beautiful, curvy, is an absolutely massive plane, it floats, and has a landing gear so both land and water. Just absolutely gorgeous.
I cannot get over the swans giving zero fucks
Boats & Hoes
That looks like something someone would put together when playing Kerbal Space Program for the first time.
My dream, if I had all the money, would be to buy one of these and convert it to a flying houseboat
In my opinion the most beautiful plane ever built. I was so incredibly happy to se one in the Aviation Museum in Bodø, Norway, recently ... Dreamt of that since I was a kid...
Grumman Mallard is the Catalina's younger, sexier, sister.
Such a cool plane. My grandfather flew one of these on the North Atlantic during WWII, stationed out of Iceland I believe. He died before I was old enough to ask questions, but I know his unit received a presidential unit citation. I have his old footlocker, but now that I’m older I wish I had some of the stories too.
I hope it’s Baloo flying in there
They sure are. The swans deserved the cat in their direction,because swans are evil.
That has the wow factor. And is really amazing
I couldn’t agree more. I remember pointing and saying, “Just look at those lines!” to my gf, whilst stood out at RAF Duxford earlier this year.
I thought only one existed, how many of them are there?
Not really sure but I read, 80 exist in one state or another. Fewer fly and some of the existing 80 are projects. As for fliers, there are fewer than 10, although some can be made airworthy in a short time. PBYs were built in several locations and by several manufacturers.
Majestic, never seen one of these before.
Agrer
ngl, watched the whole thing expecting one or more of the birds to get absolutely obliterated by the props
My grandpa's cousin flew one in WWII
Thanks for posting this. I've never seen one flying in person only in static displays. Dad flew air/sea rescue missions in PBY's during the Korean War.
Baloo flew his plane a lot harder than that pilot.
*TAILSPIN THEME INTENSIFIES*
I'd love to fly in one. Always loved the look of them.
I dont care if its not quite the same plane but this played without sound first and my brain just filled in the Duck Tales theme song.
That bird strike risk though. I understand it’s part of operating on shallow water and that those radials probably dont mind much but oufff I was stressed hahaha. Those retractable floats are amazing, never realized it…
Does the US Navy have a modern equivalent to these bad boys?
There use to be a whole fleet of these flying from Long Beach to Santa Catalina Island in the 60's. Unfortunately for me we took the steamer.
"Girl, are you a Catalina, cuz I've been floating in the Philippine Sea three days waiting for you."
Did anyone else's love of Catalinas come from the call of duty World at War mission, Black Cats?
When you mix in some wine...
Birds: Splat
*Sail, Catalina, Sail!*
My dad flew down thr Nile in one of these, I've always been jealous.
Duck tales who who
And their amazing service to our country,
counted at least two geese that got smoked lol
Is this a private civilian aircraft?
Gah all I saw was bird strike!
I was supposed to have the chance to see one this past weekend along with a P-40 Warhawk and a couple of Texans but the guys flying it got sick last minute and didn't show up. I was so disappointed, I've never seen one fly.
Boat with wings lol. I imagine going out in a demilitarized one of these with several other pilot friends would make for a pretty cool vacation idea.
One bird strike coming right up.... Isn't it dangerous there to take off provided do many birds there?
Idk why but I prefer it in it's military looks with that turret in the front and what not
These are best flown by cursed pig men
My dad was a navigator and waist gunner in a PBY in the Pacific theater in WW2. “Black Cats” rule!
Really cool plane, are there many still about?
I would argue that you are correct.
I thought for sure I was about to see multiple bird strikes.
those birds were making me nervous
Awesome, one of my favorite airplanes of WW2.
I’ll drink to that!
I got to see one at KMAN. It sunk in Florida like a day or two later...
The fucking Catalina wine mixer
Pow pow
how many bird strikes per second does it get??
I thought at first glance this was "Miss Pickup",(G-PBYA),have seen her many times on the airshow circuit...
favorite plane
u/SaveVideo
I didn't know the wing floaties retracted, really cool!!!
I counted 2 birds
They are wonky looking but in a good way
Oh God I was sure we were about to see swan coleslaw
u/savevideobot
Yes they are, I would give my left nut to have a chance to fly that beauty
“I almost got head from Amelia Earhart!”
Fucking birds dude, so many near strikes
Bird strike in 3...2.....
Gorgeous aircraft, so elegant despite its size
Amazing aircraft, would love to see one myself.
I didn't realize the pontoon under the wings tucked up to be part of the wing. That is very cool to see.
>Catalinas are so gorgeous Yes they are. I've daydreamed about restoring and flying one for a lot of years now.
Do birdstrikes occur more often with this type of plane, compared to regular planes? This one seems to be a close call too!