To celebrate the ratification of the new IAM contract with Boeing, here's a special rarebird that spent quite a bit of time at HNL. This Grumman SA-16A Albatross arrived in HNL in the middle of December 2005 to start a promotional surf tour sponsored by Billabong and Hawaiian Airlines. This aircraft kept in the maintenance hangar for about a week. It then was moved over to Elliott on Christmas Eve, where I took a special ride out to get this shot.
Billabong got this aircraft to do a special 2 year tour to find the best surf spots around the world. It actually spent a lot of time in HNL before leaving the state. I remember the aircraft still being at HNL, parked by the HCC aviation school on the South Ramp when I went on my trip in May 2006.
4 comments:
Its now parked at Carlsbad airport, aka Palomar, in North San Diego county. Its been there for roughly 8 months or so. You can see it driving west on Palomar from El Camino Real.
Yo, trying to get this bird up to alaska...anyone have contact info for the current location?
dmahay@yahoo.com
Here is the latest from FlightAware:
http://flightaware.com/live/flight/N121FB
It's not an SA-16A. It was built as an SA-16A (a Grumman model or design no. G-64 i.e. short-wing, c/n G-339, built for the USAF as their serial no. 51-7249) but then it was transferred to the Coast Guard as a UF-1G, serial no. 7249. After that, it was converted into a long-wing UF-2G for the USCG which after 1962 was re-designated as an HU-16E. THEN even after that, it was converted once more - into a model G-111 during the 1979-1983 time frame. Officially, it is now a Grumman model G-111 which is a significant distinction. The 13 aircraft converted as models G-111 are the only versions of the Albatross approved under Part 25 Transport Category standards that make them eligible for commercial operations (i.e. carrying paying passengers for hire.)
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