Progress is also being made on long time Helena resident EC-121T 52-3417 (N4257L). As reported previously on this website, the Evergreen Air and Space Museum acquired this aircraft in May 2009 and plans to restore and fly the veteran aircraft to its McMinnville, Oregon museum facility. Karl Kruger, a former instructor at the UM-Helena College of Technology, has joined the museum as the Director of Restoration and is the museum’s project point man in Helena. Constellation experts JR Kern and Tim Coons traveled to Helena in late July and performed a thorough inspection of the aircraft. JR and Tim reported that the inspection revealed a few things that need attention, but overall the aircraft proved to be in remarkably good condition for having been exposed to the great Montana outdoors for 28 years. Apparently the biggest issue is going to be the removal of 28 years worth of bird droppings and nests. The condition of the engines is still in question, but the museum is hopeful that the current engines can be coaxed into making the short ferry flight to Oregon. The current plan is to get a crew to Helena next month to start the process of removing the accumulated bird droppings and nests. After this is completed, the aircraft will be towed off the school’s property and moved to another location on the airport. Evergreen curator Stewart Bailey has been in touch with Frank Wright of the Yanks Museum and Frank has provided him with some good advice on how to best proceed with the project. Bottom line is that it looks like the aircraft can be made airworthy for the ferry flight, which probably won’t occur until at least the summer of 2010.
http://www.conniesurvivors.com/1-connie_news.htm#AUG26A
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I stopped by the airport today, and the folks there opened the door for me and let me have at it.
The sequence of shots start and stop in the cockpit with a trip all the way to the tail. I hope you enjoy and maybe they will be of some help to the Connie project underway.
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