eBay Oddity - PBY Catalina Amphibian
This week's unusual airplane for sale on eBay is more a rarity than an oddity. It is a World War II vintage Consolidated PBY amphibian. Designed primarily as a long range patrol bomber, it was also used successfully for reconnaissance, anti-submarine and search and rescue missions. (There is a scene in the famous movie "Midway" where a group of PBYs are sent out to locate the Japanese carriers before they could find the U.S. Navy fleet.) Also, the amphibious nature of the PBY was used to rescue many downed pilots in the Pacific ocean during the war.
Although I've seen a few PBYs in museums, flying ones are pretty rare. (I believe Jacques Cousteau, the famous French oceanographer, owned one that he used to support his diving expeditions.) This one on eBay is suppose to be very close to flying condition, but the seller is estimating at least another $200k to get it airworthy. At the time of this entry, bidding is up to $51k, but with the seller claiming they've already sunk $1.7M into the restoration, and considering the rarity of the plane, it's going to take a lot more bidding to win this one. A good web site for learning more about the PBY series of aircraft is PBY.com.
Although I've seen a few PBYs in museums, flying ones are pretty rare. (I believe Jacques Cousteau, the famous French oceanographer, owned one that he used to support his diving expeditions.) This one on eBay is suppose to be very close to flying condition, but the seller is estimating at least another $200k to get it airworthy. At the time of this entry, bidding is up to $51k, but with the seller claiming they've already sunk $1.7M into the restoration, and considering the rarity of the plane, it's going to take a lot more bidding to win this one. A good web site for learning more about the PBY series of aircraft is PBY.com.
Comments