This wartime Beechcraft was built as an AT-7 Navigation trainer serialed 43-33306 with cn 5469. Rebuilt among a contract for 900 modernized, zero timed C-45s in the early 50s and assigned a new cn by Beechcraft. Demobbed in 1963, it went to the Tennessee Valley Authority and is now flying as a warbird in US Army Air Force markings.

Still carrying "Metromex One" name from its days with Petroleum Air Transport, this Lodestar was used for skydiving when photographed. Starting out as 42-56005, the air plane had a long history with such operators as LANICA, US Steel, General Dynamics and was used by the University of Chicago for cloud physics study. It's presently owned by the CAF Airpower Museum (N60JT) and flown in Commemorative Air Force events with its original Air Force serial.

At this point owned by Redmond Air Inc, this is the ex-Mexicana Comet which the Everett Vocational College later painted in BOAC colours, although it never served with them. Now restored for the Museum of Flight, still in BOAC c/s

World War II veteran 42-106638 crashed near Norfolk, England June 22, 1945 on a training flight. Nearly 60 years later, the wreckage was recovered during 2003 - 2004 and the remains rebuilt at Pacific Fighters in Idaho Falls, ID. Flying again in 2008, the Mustang is part of the Historic Flight Foundation collection.

Acquired by the Museum of Flight from the Pacific Northwest Aviation Historical Foundation the year before, and seen here tucked at the back of the hangar, quietly undergoing a 13 year restoration.

VH-EAJ photographed ahead of its delivery flight. I was part of a media party invited to Everett for a briefing on the now forgotten Boeing 7J7 propfan project that coincided with the handover. We were then flown to Fiji on a regular Qantas flight (from LAX) to join VH-EAJ on the final leg of its delivery flight to Sydney which included a pass over its namesake city, Wollongong. Qantas would be the only operator of the aircraft, which flew into storage in 2003 and later scrapped.