Above is N401Y when owned by George Rivera at Oakland, CA. He had this one
as well as N500MR which was rebuilt and later sold to Bill Farrell as "Gator Invader".
The above three images taken by Glen Chatfield were of N401Y at
Du Page airfield, Illinois in August 93
Serial #: 44-35326 Construction #: 28605 Civil
Registration: N2889D N40Y N401Y Model(s): A-26C B-26C
On Mark Marketeer Name: None Status: Restoration Last info: 2002
History: Registered as N2889D by ???, 19??. On
Mark Engineering Corp, Van Nuys, CA, 1957. - Registered as N40Y. - Converted as prototype On Mark Marketeer 1957 Youngstown
Sheet & Tube Co, Youngstown, OH, 1957. Boothe Leasing Corp, San Francisco, CA, 1963-1966. - Registered as N401Y. Business
Aircraft Lessors, Elyria, OH, 1969-1970. Active Air Inc, Wakeman, OH, 1977. George J. Rivera, San Jose, CA, 1981-1984. Endless
Turn Inc, Leoti, KS, 1987-1988. Stallion Aircraft, Bensenville, IL, May 1990-1995. Air Classics Aircraft Museum, Chicago-Du
Page, IL, 1995-1996. - Restored to airworthy, 1995. Air Classics Inc, Chicago, IL, Jan. 17, 1997-1999. - Last flew,
May 1998. - Parked, Rockford, IL, 1998-2001. Courtesy Aircraft Inc, Rockford, IL, June 15, 1999-2000. Keith Taurman/Tidewater
Wings Inc, Virginia Beach, VA, Dec. 1999-2002. - Under restoration, Rockford, IL, 2000-2002. - Marked as 435326/BC-326.
Above, N400E prior to its full Marksman conversion
Above, N400E at Benghazi - Benina (BEN / HLLB), Libya on 7th March
1969
The three shots above, shows N60XY at Heathrow airport in 1974
on route to Beirut
Serial #: 44-34761 Construction #: 28040 Civil
Registration: N67158 N400E N60XY N60XX Model(s): A-26B
On Mark Marksman Name: None Status: Unknown Last info: 2002
History: Delivered to Reconstruction Finance Corp
as 44-34761, 19??. - Immediately put up for dispossal, 1945-1946. Superior Oil Co, Lafayette, LA, 1954. - Registered
as N67158. Colorado Interstate Gas, Colorado Springs, CO, 1961-1964. - Registered as N400E. Occidental Leasing Corp,
Los Angeles, CA, 1966-1969. - Operated by Occidental Petroleum, Las Angeles, CA, 1966-1970. - Operated by Holiday Inns
Of America, 1968. Occidental Chemical Corp, Los Angeles, CA, 1970-1972. - Registered as N60XY. - Ferried from Beirut
to USA, Feb. 13, 1974. Registered as N60XX by ????, Fort Lauderdale,
FL 1976-2002. - Sale Reported.
Thought to have been lost during smuggling operations.
Above is N4000K in 1966
The above shot shows N4000K at Biggin Hill in May 63
This was the A-26 I flew in back in '68, when she was undertaking aerial
photographic work at Jesselton, Sabah
Serial #: 44-34762 Construction #: 28041 Civil
Registration: N67800, N4000 N4000K Model(s):
A-26B Wold Invader Executive Name: None Status: Abandoned Last info: 1986
History: Delivered to Reconstruction Finance Corp
as 44-34762, 19??. - Immediately put up for dispossal, 1945-1946. Swiflite Aircraft Corp, New York, NY, 1954. - Registered
as N4000. - Converted by Wold Corp to B-26 Invader Executive. Earl Slick/Slick Airways, San Antonio, TX, 1956. -
Registered as N4000K. Aero Service Corp, Philadelphia, PA, 1963-1966. Aero Service Corp, Manila, Philippines, 1969-1972. -
Damaged during wheels up landing, Manilla International Airport, July 4, 1972. Withdrawn from use and abandoned, Dili,
Portuguese Timor, 1975-1986.
Note
NTSB Identification: OAK73DJY09 14 CFR Part
91 General Aviation Event occurred Tuesday, July 04, 1972 in MANILA,ASIA, Philippines Aircraft: DOUGLAS A-26B, registration:
N4000K
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FILE DATE LOCATION AIRCRAFT DATA INJURIES FLIGHT PILOT DATA F S M/N PURPOSE ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6-0078 72/7/4 MANILA,RP,ASIA DOUGLAS A-26B CR- 0 0 2 NONCOMMERCIAL COMMERCIAL, AGE 49, 9903 TIME - 1815 N4000K PX- 0 0 5 PLEASURE/PERSONAL TRANSP TOTAL HOURS, 644 IN TYPE, DAMAGE-SUBSTANTIAL OT- 0 0 0 INSTRUMENT RATED. NAME OF AIRPORT - MANILA INTL DEPARTURE POINTINTENDED DESTINATIONLAST ENROUTE STOP SINGAPORE MANILA,RP,ASIA KUCHING,MALASIA TYPE OF ACCIDENTPHASE OF OPERATION WHEELS-UP LANDING: LEVEL OFF/TOUCHDOWN GROUND-WATER LOOP-SWERVE LANDING: ROLL PROBABLE CAUSE(S) AIRFRAME - LANDING GEAR: NORMAL RETRACTION/EXTENSION ASSEMBLY AIRPORTS/AIRWAYS/FACILITIES - AIRPORT CONDITIONS: HIDDEN HAZARD REMARKS- RT MN GR WOULD NOT RLS FM UP-LOCKED POSIT DUE TOMISG CLEVIS PIN AT RELS ROD ATTACH PT.
The above shot taken by Gerry Asher, shows N4050A looking rather tired when
she was at Opa Locka in the 80's
This plane was used in the movie "Badlands" with Martin Sheen
4050 landing in the film "Badlands"
Serial #: 43-22523 Construction #: 18670 Civil
Registration: N4050A Model(s): A-26C B-26C
On Mark Marketeer Name: None Status: Displayed Last
info: 2002
History: Korda Leasing Corp, New York, NY, 1963-1964. -
Registered as M4050A. - Gear collapsed during landing, Madison, WI, Aug. 20, 1964. DEC Aviation Corp, Madison, WI, 1966. May
Air Inc, Boulder, CO, 1969-1970. I.N. "Junior" Burchinall, Paris, TX, 1976. Ronald Bryant, Springfield, MO, 1977. Reported
derelict at Fort Lauderdale, FL, Oct. 1979-1981. Hill Air Company Inc, Fort Lauderdale, FL, Oct. 4, 1984-1987. Jim ricketts/Aero
Nostalgia, Stockton, CA, 1987-1990. - Trucked from FL to CA. - Static restoration for USAFM. - Parts from 44-34156
used. USAFM, Vance AFB, IK, 1990-2002. - Displayed as 434156/BC-156.
Note
NTSB Identification: Unknown 14 CFR Part 91
General Aviation Event occurred Thursday, August 20, 1964 in MADISON, WI Aircraft: DOUGLAS A-26B, registration: N4050A
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FILE DATE LOCATION AIRCRAFT DATA INJURIES FLIGHT PILOT DATA F S M/N PURPOSE ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2-0621 64/8/20 MADISON WIS DOUGLAS A-26B CR- 0 0 2 MISCELLANEOUS COMMERCIAL, AGE 25, 3000 TIME - 2133 N4050A PX- 0 0 3 DEMONSTRATION TOTAL HOURS, 100 IN TYPE, DAMAGE-SUBSTANTIAL OT- 0 0 0 INSTRUMENT RATED. NAME OF AIRPORT - MADISON MUNICIPAL TYPE OF ACCIDENT PHASE OF OPERATION OVERSHOOT LANDING: ROLL GEAR COLLAPSED LANDING: ROLL PROBABLE CAUSE(S) PILOT IN COMMAND - MISJUDGED DISTANCE AND SPEED PILOT IN COMMAND - IMPROPER OPERATION OF BRAKES AND/OR FLIGHT CONTROLS MISCELLANEOUS ACTS,CONDITIONS - HYDROPLANING ON WET RUNWAY
Above is a modified photo by Richard E Fulwiler taken
from theL.B. Smith Tempo II brochure interior drawing overlaid
on May 1960 Flying Magazine photo of N4204A ( scan and use of photo by permission; J. Mac McClellan, Editor-In-Chief,
Flying Magazine )
The above two shots show Tempo II N4204A as she appeared in
her " Prototype " Display paint scheme, circa 1960.
They are taken from the May 1960 issue of Flying Magazine " Flying
News Reel " section ( page 52 ). Permission to scan and use these images came from J. Mac McClellan, Editor-In-Chief, Flying
Magazine. He is being Cc'd on this mail, along with Graham.
Above is "4204" seen at Santa Monica, CA Cloverfield Airport.
Desert Reserch Institute - Atmospheric testing
Larry Rea and Paul Lage (orange sweater) above, loading
silver iodide and flares on the wing pods
Edwin Berry of the UNR Desert Research Institute
wrote below:
Those wing pods were a lot more than flare holders. They originated
a whole new way to instrument an aircraft. All prior instrumented aircraft had the instrumentation specially built into the
plane. Instrumentation in those days was analog and took a lot of calibration and debugging. When the instrumentation is built
in then the technicians must do all their calibration and debugging inside the aircraft. It was slow and tedious and usually
did not work. I changed all that by having the technicians, headed by Paul Lage shown in the orange sweater alongside
Larry Rea, build everything in the lab rather than in the aircraft. There was the electronics package in racks that
could be quickly mounted on the floor inside the aircraft, the instrument sensors mounted on the two pods made from former
fuel tanks, and the cabling between them. The trick was to have the technicians build two exact copies of the cabling: one
for the lab and the other for the aircraft. When the two cabling units were fully calibrated, one of them was installed in
the aircraft running from the cabin to the instrument pods. The other remained in the lab to be used for calibrating and debugging
the instruments. It worked like a charm. When ready for a research flight, we simply moved the package and the pods from the
lab to the aircraft. We never had an instrument failure during any flight.
The weather radar is the first ever aircraft radar to paint a
picture referenced to the ground, and this was long before GPS made it easy. We would make a copy of a sectional map on clear
plastic and mount the plastic map over the storage scope shown here. We used a local Vortac as a point of reference. We could
dial the position of the Vortac on the scope and then position the map. Then our analog computers would add aircraft heading
to the radar angle with respect to the aircraft to get north orientation. Then our analog computers would add our position
according to the Vortac and put the north orientated radar signal on the scope. Viola, a ground position radar. Finally, we
could keep track of our position with respect to clouds. We could seed a cloud and fly back into the area we seeded. We could
watch clouds moving.
This was my own invention. I helped the Air Force use this concept
for their hurricane monitoring. They had been using rotation radar antennas on top of aircraft to look at the hurricanes,
thinking they needed to rotate the radar to get a picture. Add a piece of information: the larger an antenna the better the
radar image. The problem then is how do you put a larger antenna on an airplane and still fly the airplane. Simple. Replace
the large door on the side of a C-130 with a radar antenna mounted behind a new door made of radar dome material. Now, to
get a picture of a hurricane simply fly a 360 circle and use ground positioning of the signal, like we did on the B-26, to
paint a ground referenced high-resolution picture. It worked like a charm and produced the finest hurricane radar picture
ever at that time.
In March 1980 the plane went down between Lake Tahoe and Sacramento.
Ed no longer worked for DRI. All four crew died in the crash. Crash reports are unclear whether icing or mechanical breakdown
caused the crash.
Ed states: I am convinced the B-26 went down because of ice for
two reasons. First, we encountered icing on a few of our flights through Sierra Nevada winter storms. I know how the B-26
can be overwhelmed by ice. Its inflatable boots on the wing leading edges were not able to remove ice as fast as it can build
up. In both the B-26 and the C-45 we hit ice that caused loss of altitude. We could have crashed. It was dangerous work. Tom
Wells always had a plan that saved us for another day. He had a way of following the low terrain when we could not maintain
altitude until we were low enough so the ice would melt.
The second reason is the report of an eye witness to the
crash. He said the B-26 rolled over as it came out of the cloud. This is caused by having ice. Ice increased the stall speed
and ice can break off one side before it breaks off the other side. When ice is bring a plane down any attempt by the pilot
to pull back the elevators too much can cause the plane to stall. In icing it is very likely one wing will stall before the
other wing. This would cause the plane to roll, as reported by the witness.
In March 1980 the plane went down between Lake Tahoe and Sacramento.
Ed no longer worked for DRI. All four crew died in the crash. Crash reports are unclear whether icing or mechanical breakdown
caused the crash.
Ed states: I am convinced the B-26 went down because of ice for
two reasons. First, we encountered icing on a few of our flights through Sierra Nevada winter storms. I know how the B-26
can be overwhelmed by ice. Its inflatable boots on the wing leading edges were not able to remove ice as fast as it can build
up. In both the B-26 and the C-45 we hit ice that caused loss of altitude. We could have crashed. It was dangerous work. Tom
Wells always had a plan that saved us for another day. He had a way of following the low terrain when we could not maintain
altitude until we were low enough so the ice would melt.
The second reason is the report of an eye witness to the
crash. He said the B-26 rolled over as it came out of the cloud. This is caused by having ice. Ice increased the stall speed
and ice can break off one side before it breaks off the other side. When ice is bring a plane down any attempt by the pilot
to pull back the elevators too much can cause the plane to stall. In icing it is very likely one wing will stall before the
other wing. This would cause the plane to roll, as reported by the witness.
Note:
By Richard E. Fulwiler
Richard grew up near the Van Nuys Airport, home of On Mark, and had access
to their facility until Marksman C #7 and 8 were started, coinciding with the B26K modifications. He was present on the return
of the prototype of the YB26K (#35634) from its first flight when he was 16.
Richard wrote: "I was informed, however, by Bill Boone
of the On Mark Engineering Co. that the Tempo II did not retain the excellent flying qualities of the original Douglas Invader
design. By moving the wing attachment points some 20 inches away from center, the assymetrical thrust of single engine operation
was increased. This necessitated moving the vertical tail plane aft to maintain rudder effectiveness. To correct the resulting
shift in center of gravity, the nose was extended to increase the overall fuselage length to around 9 1/2 feet over standard."
Thanks Richard for the clarification
Serial #: 44-35640 Construction #: 28919 Civil
Registration: N4204A Model(s): A-26C B-26C Smith Tempo II Name:
None Status: Destroyed Last info: 1980
History: L. B. Smith Aircraft Corp., Miami, FL, 1960. -
Registered as N4204A. - Acquired from USAF disposal, Hanscom AFB, MA, Nov. 27, 1957. - Rebuilt as prototype for Smith
Temp I & II. - Test Flying, Miami, Oct. 1959-1962. Pinellas Aircraft Inc., St. Petersburg, FL, Mar. 7, 1963. Appliance
Buyers Credit Corp, St. Joseph, MI, Apr. 18, 1963-1966. North Phoenix Aviation, Phoenix, AZ, Nov. 1966-1967. A. Newton
Ball, Dillingham, AK, Jan. 1, 1967. Robert L. Carleton, North Hollywood, CA, Feb. 23, 1967-1968. University Of Nevada,
Reno, NV, June 12, 1968-1980. - Stalled and Crashed due to airframe icing during weather research flight, Georgetown,
CA, Mar. 2, 1980.
Note
NTSB Identification: LAX80FA060 14 CFR Part
91 General Aviation Event occurred Sunday, March 02, 1980 in GEORGETOWN, CA Aircraft: DOUGLAS B-26C, registration:
N4204A
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FILE DATE LOCATION AIRCRAFT DATA INJURIES FLIGHT PILOT DATA F S M/N PURPOSE ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3-3755 80/3/2 NR.GEORGETOWN,CA DOUGLAS B-26C CR- 2 0 0 COMMERCIAL COMMERCIAL, AGE 56, 9220 TIME - 1115 N4204A PX- 2 0 0 OTHER TOTAL HOURS, 240 IN TYPE, DAMAGE-DESTROYED OT- 0 0 0 INSTRUMENT RATED. DEPARTURE POINT INTENDED DESTINATION RENO,NV LOCAL TYPE OF ACCIDENT PHASE OF OPERATION STALL: SPIN IN FLIGHT: DESCENDING PROBABLE CAUSE(S) PILOT IN COMMAND - IMPROPER IN-FLIGHT DECISIONS OR PLANNING MISCELLANEOUS ACTS,CONDITIONS - AIRFRAME ICE FACTOR(S) PERSONNEL - OPERATIONAL SUPERVISORY PERSONNEL: DEFICIENCY,COMPANY MAINTAINED EQPMT,SERVICES,REGULATION WEATHER - ICING CONDITIONS-INCLUDES SLEET,FREEZING RAIN,ETC. WEATHER BRIEFING - BRIEFING RECEIVED-METHOD UNKNOWN WEATHER FORECAST - UNKNOWN/NOT REPORTED SKY CONDITION CEILING AT ACCIDENT SITE BROKEN 3700 VISIBILITY AT ACCIDENT SITE PRECIPITATION AT ACCIDENT SITE 5 OR OVER(UNLIMITED) SNOW OBSTRUCTIONS TO VISION AT ACCIDENT SITE TEMPERATURE-F BLOWING SNOW 38 WIND DIRECTION-DEGREES WIND VELOCITY-KNOTS 270 4 TYPE OF WEATHER CONDITIONS TYPE OF FLIGHT PLAN IFR IFR REMARKS- ATMOSPHERIC RESH.ACFT NR AFT CG LMT,NO LONGTDL STABLY STUDY.O/B INSTRN INDCD IN ICG CONDS 19.5MIN.
The above shot shows the instrument cluster on the nose mounted
boom. The angle of incident vanes are mounted on an anti vibration and shock isolated tube, to which the internal platform
is rigidly attached inside the aircrafts nose.
The pitot static head and the circular housing of the pressure
tranducers and electronics are seen on the aircrafts right hand side and above and at the end of the boom.
The image above clearly shows two Tempo II's ( with the second
prototype N4214A in the right side of the image, next to its sister ship N4204A ).
Along the right border of the photo is what looks to be a rudder-less
vertical tail of a third Invader ( Tempo II ? )
If anyone has further data on this aeroplane it would be appreciated
Serial #: 44-34127 Construction #: 27406 Civil
Registration: N4214A, XB-ZOA Model(s):
A-26C B-26C Smith Tempo II Name: None Status:
Last info:
History: L. B. Smith Aircraft Corp., Miami, FL, 1960. -
Registered as N4214A. - Rebuilt as 2nd prototype for Smith Temp I & II. - Test Flying, Miami, 1959-1962.
Above, N437W is shown here between owners at Loiusville, Bowman field
in Dec 71
The above 4 shots by Rick Kuhl, shows N437WG at Chicago/Rockford International
Airport.
The above shot sent to me by Paul Cicci, was taken in 1974 at Hutchinson,
Kansas.
The above shot was kindly donated by Glen Chatfield.
This shot of N437W, is a shot he took from a car window looking
over a fence at Denver Jeffco Airport (Now Rocky Mountain Executive - BJC) in 1972, Thanks Glen
Serial #: 44-35201 Construction #: 28480 Civil
Registration: N8025E N137WG N437W Model(s): A-26C B-26C
On Mark Marketeer Name: None Status: Unknown Last info: 1977
History: L.B. Smith Aircraft Corp, Miami, FL, 19?? -
Registered as N8025E. Woodward Governor Co., Rockford, IL, 1963-1966. - Registered as N137WG. Supreme Machine Products,
Rockford, IL, 1969-1970. - Registered as N437W. Stan Burnstein, Tulsa, OK, 1972. Lester Risley, Anchorage, AK, 1976-1977.
Les (Risley, the last owner) was taking off from the Aniak Airport
and the flap control rod failed on the right wing causing Les to lose control of the aircraft and it struck some trees off
the side of the runway. He left the aircraft there. Last information on it was the airport took the wreckage to the dump.
After completing operations in South east Asia, Blue Goose returned to
the US and was handed over to the Operational Evaluation & Training (OE & T) Squadron, like its sister ship N67623
that was to follow later. So the story goes, the On Mark B-26s: were picked up two from Intermountain. They gave them
to the OE&T as no one wanted them. One was landed nose gear up at Norton and it is not known what became of it.
The B-26 was equiped with a DC-7 nose so two pilots could
fly side by side. It had a place for an Electronic Warfare Officer over the wing box and in the back were seats and a back
door for jumping and jump lights.
It seems that the Blue Goose did not survive with the OE&T
for very long – probably because it had been damaged beyond repair in that accident. A former member of the maintenance
personnel assigned to the 1198th OE&T Squadron recalls that he was involved in "the total dismantling of both of those
aircraft. One in Thailand and the other at Norton and they were sold for scrap. They both had the same problem. Nose gear
failure. This seems to have happened some time after the April 68 accident, as on 18 September 68, the registration of the
aircraft was officially cancelled as "scrapped"
On Mark Marksman
“ Blue Goose “ Specifications
MANUFACTURER:Douglas
CONVERSION:On Mark“Marksman”
DESCRIPTION: Pressurized
Twin Engine Light Freighter or Executive Transport with rear, bottom cargo door
ENGINES:2500 HP with Water Methanol InjectionR2800CB16/17
USABLE FUEL:7500 lbs.(1250 gal.)
RANGE (Dry Tanks):1600 N.M.(AtT.O.Gross Wt.40,000
lbs.)
RANGE WITH 3 HOUR RESERVE (Loiter
Power):1150 N.M.(Note:Average range equals .215 N.M. per lb. of fuel used)
NORMAL CRUISE SPEED:
230 kts.
GROSS WT.(T.O.):FAA rated 35,000 lbs.;can be operated 40,000 lbs.
EMPTY WT: 27,148 lbs.
CARGO CAPACITY:4,000lbs. / 120 cu. ft.
PASSENGERS: Seven plus
crew of three
SPECIAL PURPOSE: Aerial
resupply, low-level penetration
SYSTEMS:
Navigation:
1EDOLoran
2Doppler / Nav computer(Dual)
3TASIndicator
4DualVOR /
ILS
5DualADF
6DualDME
Communications:
1HF(CW
hand key or voice)
2SSBwith upper
or lower side band,AM,CW modes
3DualVHF
4Transponder
Special:
1SperrySP-40Auto pilotFlight Control System
2Periscopic sextant and mount
3Radar Altimeter
4Terrain following radar with:
aMapping mode (PPI) sector only
bAutomatic Terrain Following and Autopilot
cManual Terrain Avoidance(Vertical and Lateral)
5“BSTR” electronic jamming(ground)
6“ATIR”electronic jamming(air)
7“ Vector Sector”electronic position (air)
Recreationof original document
Description of the On Mark attached to George Doole’s letter of
28 March 67 (in: UTD/Bisson/B5 microfilm reel 4)
Recreated from the above source material in readable text format by Richard E. Fulwiler,
18 December 09
This B26, N46598, was painted blue with white trim stripes and nicknamed
the "Blue Goose". It was also affectionately referred to as the "Blivit" which implied something-stuffed full of more then
it could hold. This was true, as it had everything from A to Z when it came to electronic equipment and then some!
The Blue Goose was considerably different from the WWII Douglas A26 Invader;
a medium bomber whose designation was changed to B26 in the 1950's. This hybrid B26, arrived with many of the modifications
taken from the OnMark Company's corporate Marksman C and a few from the OnMark USAF B26K attack bomber also known as
Nimrods when flown at Nakhon Phanom in eastern Thailand.
The similar modifications consisted of wing tip tanks, copilot
instruments and controls, and enlarged rudder for better control, oversized anti-skid brakes and an air stair door on the
starboard side. The engines had reversible props and with water injection, gave each P&W engine 2500 hp on take off. Also
our Blue Goose had the bomb bay doors removed and the addition of a large couch with several seats as in the corporate Marketeer
modification.
The paramount changes featured in this B26 were Terrain Following Radar; precise
navigational gear and a cargo drop ramp. These additions enabled "598" to deliver supplies at night, at low level and in most
any kind of weather. The TFR was new at that time. In fact, the only aircraft to have it was the new USAF F111, an all weather
twin jet fighter bomber not yet deployed in SEA. Installed in the B26 nose, this unique radar enabled it to fly low at night
over any terrain getting to the drop area and away from it as quickly as possible. The auto pilot could be coupled to the
TFR and the navigational equipment was checked before and after each flight with exceptionally accurate results.
The other major feature in AA's B26 was its cargo drop ramp, similar to that
in the C123 and the Caribou aircraft, but much smaller. A pallet of approximately 500 pounds of supplies was pushed out of
the 26's cargo ramp by the Air Freight Specialist (AFS) or as commonly called, the kicker
Serial #: 44-34415 Construction #: 27693 Civil
Registration: N60042
N60043
N5002X
N46598 N900V
Model(s): A-26C B-26C
On Mark Marksman Name: None Status: Unknown
Last info:
History: Reg'd 12th July 1962 N500X gulf Air Inc,
Miami
30th Jan 63 Intermountain Aviation
1964 On Mark Eng Corp for conversion to on Mark Marksman
and re-registered N900V
15th feb 64 sold to Intermountain Aviation as N900V
Aug 64 Sold to Atlantic General Enterprises Inc
29th March 65 Sold back to Intermountain Aviation
3rd Feb 67 sold to Pan Aero Invest, Reno
5th Feb 67 Sold to Air America as N46598
Officially reregistered as N46598 on 11 April 67 it was ferried
to South-East Asia in mid-April 67, then used for training at Udorn from the second half of April to June 67; seen at Udorn
April 67 and July 67; between 31 May 67 and 11 June 67. the plane was then ferried from Savannakhet to Udorn and back to Savannakhet,
and used for nightly low-level supply drops over Laos, but proved unsuitable for the task, because the aircraft was too fast
and too similar to a B-26 bomber.The plane continued to fly for Air America, but just doing transportation flights.
N46598 was then sold to Overseas Aeromarine Inc, Seattle, on
30 March 68, and registered to them as N46598 on 4 April 68, flown to Takhli Royal Thai Air Force Base in mid-April 68; damaged
on take-off from Takhli on the ferry flight to the USA in mid-April 68 and burned. The crash was caused by a anti-shimmy poppet
valve in the nose strut. The plane had been parked in Laos for several months and had deteriorated badly.
Note: Sister ship of N46598
S/n 44-35698
c/n 28987
Douglas A-26C-45-DT Invader
Participated in Bay of Pigs invasion.
To civil registry as N5001X.
Converted to On Mark Marksman N800V, N58071, N67623. “Blue Goose” sister
ship.
N67623,
was intended for the same role as N46598, but never used.
In
the end, both aircraft were handed over to the 1198th Operational Evaluation and Training (OT&E) Squadron at Norton Air
Force Base, San Bernardino, California, a unit known for alleged participation in agent dropping and other clandestine missions
in Southeast Asia (Project Heavy Chain). The Squadron evaluated the two Marksman, but apparently found no use for them and
scrapped both aircraft, which suffered from a chronic Invader issue of nose gear failure.
Above is 4813 somewhere in Dec '74
Above, when she was with the Environmental Protection Agency, in October
1980
Above is the crash site in Copper Park, where there are three wooden memorial
plaques on an adjacent tree which read as follows:
ED COUNSELMAN 7-27-43 / 6-2-88
BILL MURRAY 5-4-52 / 6-26-88
In loving memory Our Bill ~ Dad and Mom May 4, 1952 - June 26, 1988
There were numerous ball caps in the wreckage marked "Douglas A-26 Invader".
There was also found a very faded circular patch. The surface was almost illegible,
but by turning it over and reading it as if in a mirror, you could make out the words, "302 SPECIAL OPERATIONS SQUADRON
- ANYWHERE ANYTIME". The central image appeared to be a helicopter diving into a valley.
There were wheels and wreckage up in the trees, and other parts over a fairly
wide area. No single piece of wreckage was much bigger than a backpack. When the plane struck the mountain, it created a crater
about 20 feet across and 10 feet deep filled with debris. We saw about thirty ball caps lying about, as well as pieces of
clothing and a pilot-type briefcase. We found the patch described above, and also the plane's radio.
Serial #: 44-35964 Construction #: 29243 Civil
Registration: N4813E Model(s): A-26C B-26C
Monarch 26
Name: None Status: Destroyed Last info: 1988
History: Rock Island Oil & Refining Co, Wichita,
KS, 1960-1963 - Registered as N4813E. - Planned conversion to Monarch 26 not completed. Aim Aviation Inc, Houston,
TX, 1966-1970. Environmental Protection Agency, Las Vegas, NV, 1975-1977. Edward G. Counselman/Combat Air Museum, Topeka,
KS, 1984-1988. - Flew in camoflague scheme. - Crashed and destroyed, Cinmarron, NM, June 26, 1988. -- Counselman
killed.
Note
Evidently, Counselman and Murray had purchased the plane surplus
and were flying it to an air show "in Taos". They encountered a violent storm in the Baldy area that disabled their navigation
equipment. Knowing that they needed power to clear Baldy, they put the throttles ahead full. Unfortunately, the plane was
not level at the time, and instead was nose down. Accordingly they essentially did a full-power dive into the side of French
Henry.
NTSB Identification: DEN88FA138 . The docket
is stored on NTSB microfiche number 37248. 14 CFR Part 91: General Aviation Accident occurred Sunday, June 26,
1988 in CIMARRON, NM Probable Cause Approval Date: 9/19/1989 Aircraft: DOUGLAS A-26C, registration: N4813E Injuries:
2 Fatal.
THE PLT RCVD A WX BRIEFING BEFORE TAKEOFF, BUT DID NOT
FILE A FLT PLAN. DRG THE FLT, THE ACFT (DOUGLAS A-26C, N4813E) CRASHED IN MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN AT AN ELEV OF ABOUT 11,200'
NEAR BALDY MOUNTAIN. SCOUTING PERSONNEL, WHO WERE CAMPED IN THE VICINITY, RPRTD THE WX WAS POOR WITH A LOW CEILING, RESTRICTED
VISIBILITY, RAIN & HAIL. AN EXAM OF THE CRASH SITE REVEALED THE ACFT IMPACTED IN A STEEP, RIGHT WING LOW, NOSE LOW ATTITUDE.
MUCH OF THE WRECKAGE COLLAPSED INTO THE IMPACT CRATER. THE DEGREE OF DESTRUCTION WAS CONSISTENT WITH A HIGH SPEED IMPACT.
CHORDWISE SCRATCH MARKS WERE FOUND ON THE PROP BLADES. SEVERAL TREE BRANCHES & LIMBS AT THE CRASH SITE HAD SMOOTH CUTS.
THE PLT WAS TYPE RATED IN THE A-26, BUT HIS CERTIFICATE HAD A LIMITATION THAT RESTRICTED HIM TO FLYING IT IN 'VFR ONLY.' NEITHER
THE PLT NOR THE RATED PASSENGER HELD AN INSTRUMENT RATING. THE RATED PASSENGER DID NOT HAVE A TYPE RATING IN THE A-26, BUT
THE PLT POSSESSED A WAIVER TO FLY N4813E AS A SINGLE PLT AIRPLANE.
The National Transportation Safety Board determines the
probable cause(s) of this accident as follows:
VFR FLIGHT INTO IMC..CONTINUED..PILOT IN COMMAND AIRCRAFT
CONTROL..NOT MAINTAINED..PILOT IN COMMAND SPATIAL DISORIENTATION..PILOT IN COMMAND
Contributing Factors
LIGHT CONDITION..DUSK VISUAL/AURAL PERCEPTION..PILOT
IN COMMAND TERRAIN CONDITION..HIGH TERRAIN WEATHER CONDITION..LOW CEILING WEATHER CONDITION..FOG WEATHER CONDITION..RAIN WEATHER
CONDITION..HAIL WEATHER CONDITION..OBSCURATION LACK OF TOTAL INSTRUMENT TIME..PILOT IN COMMAND TERRAIN CONDITION..MOUNTAINOUS/HILLY
Ah, the Tallmantz Invader, that ramp rat sitting at Orange County
Airport while busy B-25s came and went. Well, it was a case of "always a bridesmaid..." for A-26C* N4815E with Tallmantz.
The Invader, s/n 44-35505, had been sold as surplus equipment around 1960, purchased by Rock Island Oil and Refinery Co. of
Wichita, Kansas, along with numerous other surplus Invaders. They were slated for conversion by Rock Island into Monarchs
but only a few were converted and the rest put up for sale.
In 1980, Tallmantz President Frank Pine sat back in his chair in his office
and just shook his head when asked about the Invader. Afer a minute, he recalled the time in 1962 or 1963 when the new company
was quite busy with numerous projects. Besides filmwork, they did much photography for Douglas Aircraft at nearby Long Beach
and Santa Monica, shooting new DC-8s and DC-9s for customers and/or company advertisements. Pine remembered that it must have
really irked someone at Douglas that Tallmantz was using a competitor's product, the North American B-25, to fly formation with their airplanes for the photo work. They suggested that Tallmantz convert
an Invader for the filming. Patient conversation ensued, explaining that the A-26 wasn't suited for filmwork since it lacked
a tail gun position for a camera mount, the waist positions were lacking, the fuselage was cramped, and access from the cockpit
to the nose was limited. Nonetheless, Tallmantz ceded to the pressure and purchased N4815E in 1963. It had a custom-built
Cinerama nose constructed to fit the Invader, and the airplane was fitted as best as possible as a camera plane.
Pine recalled that Tallmantz proudly flew their new camera ship on its first
flight of air-to-air photography with a Douglas airliner, sure that Douglas would be very happy with them. After a few runs,
the Douglas photographer noted that he needed tail shots and the Invader did not seem to have a tail position for him to shoot
from. Lacking an alternative, N4815E turned back to Orange County and a B-25 was prepped for the mission. Fini.
That was about as much use as Tallmantz got out of the Invader. It did earn
its keep a few times on some specialized military programs that didn't need the aft camera mounts, or could take advantage
of the speed advantage offered by the A-26. As a personal note, in observing operations on the Tallmantz ramp from 1966 to
1976 (when the Invader was sold), I not once saw the Invader fly, nor even have its engines run. The only interest that I
saw in the airplane was when someone stole an engine cowling off the airplane.
In 1976 Tallmantz sold the airplane. It first appeared to have been sold to
Jim Ricketts, later of Aero Nostolgia fame, but that deal fell through. It was soon sold to Tallmantz employee Al Redick for
a sum in the $10,000 range. Al Redick had the airplane moved over to Chino, no doubt the Tallmantz employees waving a fond
farewell to their ex-ramp hog. It went through several more owners in the next few years, and reportedly was siezed by the
government after a attempted drug run south of the border. According to one source the airplane ended up at the War Eagles
Air Museum at Santa Teresa, New Mexico, but that has not been confirmed.
A long Cinerama camera nose was custom built for the Invader,
shown here in this early 1960s view. Otherwise, the airplane was pretty much stock. The paint scheme was similar but did not
match the Tallmantz B-25s. (Al Hansen)
The Tallmantz A-26 was under-utilized, as it lacked the versatile
waist and tail camera positions. The airplane was "urged" on Tallmantz by Douglas Aircraft, which wanted a Douglas product
used to photograph its new DC-8s and DC-9s for advertising and customers. Unfortunately, without a camera position in the
tail, it was rarely used. (Norman P. Thompson)
Tallmantz wisely got rid of the Invader in 1976, and here it
seen at Chino in June 1977. The airplane remains on the U.S. civil registry, shown as "registration pending." At one point,
it was registered to "OnMark Aviation" of Knoxville, Tennessee. One report shows the airplane siezed after a drug run south
of the border, and ending up with the War Eagles Air Museum at Santa Teresa, New Mexico.
Serial #: 44-35505 Construction #: 28784 Civil
Registration: N4815E Model(s): A-26C B-26C Name: None Status:
Stored Last info: 2001
History: Rock Island Oil & Refining Co, Wichita,
KS, 1960 - Registered as N4815E. - Planned conversion to Monarch 26 not completed. Tallmantz Aviation Inc, Orange
County, CA, 1963-1976. - Modified with lengthened nose for Cinerama Cameras. Albert Redick, Chino, CA, 1977 On Mark
Aviation, Knoxville, TN, 1978. Rose Diehl, Chino, CA, 19??. Sold, reported flown on drug run to South america, impounded
on return to USA. John MacGuire/War Eagles Air Museum, Santa Teresa, NM, 1990-2001.
Serial #: 44-34609 Construction #: 27888 Civil
Registration: N4819E Model(s): A-26B B-26B Name: None Status:
Stored Last info: 2002
History: Rock Island Oil & Refining Co, Wichita,
KS, 1960. - Registered as N4819E. - Planned conversion to Monarch 26 not completed. John Hamacher, San Francisco,
CA, 1963-1969. Thomas W. Hammon, Phoenix, AZ, 1970. Global Air Museum, 1972. - Stored at Litchfield Park, AZ. Don
Underwood/Donaire Inc, Phoenix, AZ, Feb. 1981-1996. Dawn R. Adrian, Phoenix, AZ, Apr. 4, 1996-2002.
Open Storage, configured as tanker, Buckeye, AZ, 1978-2002.
Serial #: 44-35217 Construction #: 28496 Civil
Registry: N4820E CF-FIM C-FFIM Model(s): A-26C B-26C
Monarch 26 ( Part Conv'n) Name: None Status:
Crashed Last info: 1984
History: Rock Island Oil & Refining Co, Wichita,
KS, 1960. - Registered as N4820E. - Planned converstion to Monarch 26 not completed. Flight Enterprises Inc, Prescott,
AZ, 1963-1972. - Flew as tanker #C29. Air Spray Ltd, Edmonton, Alberta, May 1973-1983. - Registered as CF-FIM. Air
Spray Ltd, Red Deer, Alberta, 1983-1984. - Registered as C-FFIM. - Flew as tanker #5. - Crashed near Calgary,
Alberta, after suffering wing failure, July 13, 1984.
This was possibly the one flown in by myself out of Kota Kinabalu,
Borneo circa '68-69
Serial #: 44-34768 Construction #: 28047 Civil
Registration: N67162 N4852Y Model(s): A-26B Grand Central A-26 Name:
None Status: Unknown Last info: 1970
History: Delivered to Reconstruction Finance Corp
for disposal, 1945. - Never delivered to USAF. Superior Oil Co Inc, Lafayette, LA, 1950-1952. - Registered as N67162. H.L.
Brown/Brown Paper Mill Co, Monroe, LA, 1852-1954. - Registered as N4852Y. - Converted to pressurized executive configuration
by Grand Central Aircraft, Glendale, CA, 1952-1953. Jonnell Leasing Corp, Dallas, TX, 1963-1964. Coastways Associates
Inc, Miami, FL, 1965-1970. - Mineral survey operations, Liberia & Dakar, May 1965. - Equipped with tail magnetometer
boom & underwing fuel tanks. - Marked with title Minn Aerial Survey. - Based Luton, July-Aug. 1966. -- Marked
with titles Hunting Geology & JMC Aero Associates.
Serial #: 44-35952 Construction #: 29231 Civil
Registration: N67166 N1S N4984N/U
Model(s): A-26B B-26B Le
Tourneau B-26 Name: None Status: Unknown Last info:
