The highlight of this video is our operational footage of the Greatest Generation Aircraft museum's ("GGA") On Mark Engineering B-26K Counter Invader, named "Special Kay" at a Spirit of St. Louis Airport Airshow in September 2019. GCA is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas.
Experience pre-start, engine startup, warm up, taxi-out, flybys, landing rollout, and taxi-in with a very brief cockpit "tour". However, beforehand we give a broad technical and historical overview of the B-26 Invader (the baseline airframe for the -K) as well as some of the B-26K Counter Invader historical and technical details. We also discuss all the confusing designations related to this aircraft.
Shortly after this video was uploaded I was contacted by Jim Reynolds, chief pilot for Special Kay and the museum. He thanked me for doing the video and kindly elaborated further on some of our presentation contained therein, and pointed out a few errors that he said were minor. His comments are summarized as follows, including a few of my additional comments:
Firstly, Vintage Flying Museum ("VFM") did not restore and does not operate Special Kay. They are simply the hangar landlord for GGA and their other aircraft, along with the Commemorative Air Force's ("CAF") B-29/B-24 Squadron. However, VFM's website states that their aircraft inventory includes the subject B-26K as well as the CAF bomber aircraft, among others which, for perhaps me only, resulted in a minor confusion.
Mr. Reynolds also addressed the B-26K's designation issues. For some background, the B-26K is best known for its operations with the 609th SOS (Special Operations Squadron) out of Nakhon Phanom, Thailand from1967 and well into 1969, under the call sign "Nimrod". The Nimrods flew exceedingly dangerous covert night missions over Laos, and were thus given no public recognition for their heavier-than-normal sacrifices. For political reasons, the Thai government required the B-26K designation changed to "A-26A" before allowing basing in Thailand, which is discussed in this video.
While the aircraft seems to be best know as the "B-26K", the Nimrod organization understandably prefers the official designation "A-26A". But that designation is easily confused with the original baseline airframe designated A-26 Invader which flew in World War II.
Nonetheless, GGA developed a great relationship with the current-day Nimrod organization, and a few of the Nimrods even helped GGA with the Special Kay restoration, along with some of the other Air Force/CIA/Cuban pilots who flew this aircraft in the earlier Congo uprising. GGA seriously wanted to commemorate the Nimrod squadron as much as, if not more than, aircraft itself, and the designation "B-26K/A26A" was ultimately decided upon.
Another correction is that I said that in 1972 a "civilian concern" pulled Special Kay out of Davis Monthan boneyard and flew it to to Georgia. To drill down, it was the Forestry Department of the State of Georgia who did that with three such aircraft, but it was a stillborn attempt to convert it to a fire bomber. Over time Special Kay wound up with a few private owners, and was subject to a "minimal effort" restoration out of Billings Montana that was reported to have appeared in a few airshows into the very early 2000's. After the last private owner died in 2005, the aircraft was acquired by GGA in 2011, where a complete restoration to 99% original military spec was ultimately accomplished by 2018.
Finally, in the video I make reference to the landing gear components of the Counter Invader as utilizing "KC-135 brake components". While this is, unfortunately, verbatim from at least one secondary source, the Counter Invader's main landing gear actually used C-119 components, including the wheels.
One more correction. One viewer who was with the 609th at NKP pointed out an error in our presentation when we said the internal bomb bay was rarely filled with bombs on missions. That is incorrect, he says that the internal bay was loaded on most missions with either 20 lb. frag clusters and/or M32 Thermite "funny bombs". See his comments in the comment section.
Thanks for watching and hope you enjoy it.
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John A. Reed
j.reed3930@sbcglobal.net
1 окт 2019
