Ohio Plane Graveyard

“…a book ought to be written about the early “got while the getting was good” warbird collectors..”

Karl Hoffman’s “Hunting Warbirds” is a good starting place: Though primarily focussing on the likes of Gary Larkins and Darryl Greenamyer – it has a good chapter on Soplata too. The story of how he built up the Ohio collection, dragging planes home across country behind the family car, is extraordinary

…Just to add, a book ought to be written about the early “got while the getting was good” warbird collectors..
S.

Here is an interesting “later day” story by a average (I.e. not super rich) guy who saves a now-rare aircraft.
It’s a rather lengthy, but nonetheless interesting, thread from WIX…

http://warbirdinformationexchange.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=38160

…Just to add, a book ought to be written about the early “got while the getting was good” warbird collectors..
S.

Here is an interesting “later day” story by a average (I.e. not super rich) guy who saves a now-rare aircraft.
It’s a rather lengthy, but nonetheless interesting, thread from WIX…

http://warbirdinformationexchange.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=38160

…Just to add, a book ought to be written about the early “got while the getting was good” warbird collectors…some were vilified as hoarders from time to time, and one or two genuinely were (Ernie Simmons certainly), but present-day enthusiasts owe them a great deal.

S.

Yorkie–

Well not necessarily; but the departure of any other relics from Newbury would depend on Mrs Soplata, who seems–quite understandably–simply to wish to be left alone. Walter sold eight or nine aircraft and parts of others over the years: the aforementioned F2G and Mitchell, an FG-1D, one and a half P-82 Twin Mustangs (both of which are slated to fly again), a P-80, one and a half BT-13s, an O-52 Owl and an F-84F, plus, many years ago, a wrecked P-51 and a prewar American Eagle biplane which had reportedly tried to take off by itself when Walt was doing an engine run!

And yes, as John points out, Ernie Simmons was a similarly fascinating character up here in Ontario. He collected anything and everything mechanical: cars, trucks, tractors, aircraft, and motorcycles, which latter items became targets for theft…in 1969 Ernie fired one of his collection of shotguns at some would-be bike thieves, was cleared of any wrongdoing, but was himself then shot when another group of thieves turned up, and ended up in hospital in the dead of winter, returning to his insufficiently-heated house earlier than the doctor said was wise, contracted pneumonia and died in early 1970. His massive mechanical hoard was auctioned on Labour Day weekend in 1970, and the aircraft fleet at that time consisted of thirty-six NA-64 Yales and seven Fairey Swordfish, plus a vast quantity of Anson parts and probably some Lysander stuff too (his one intact Lizzie he’d sold in the 60s…it was eventually restored to fly by Dwight Brooks and went to USAFM then NASM, where it remains on show at Dulles). All but about two surviving Yales are ex-Simmons, and most of the extant Swordfish came from that hoard as well. Vintage Wings Canada’s Swordfish, HS554, was registered C-GEVS, Ernie’s initials, by its restorer and initial operator Bob Spence, in tribute to a remarkable collector.

S.

I’ve not seen this either, so thankyou. I take it they are just going to be left where they are?

Airplane fans have been talking about Spolata’s collection for as long as I’ve been alive.
If he’s new to you, you also may find the story of Canadian Ernie Simmons equally interesting…though his personal story has an unhappy ending. Still many of the surviving Swordfish, Yales and IIRC, Lysanders are here because of him.

Yep, Walt Soplata’s place has shown up here and elsewhere on the net many times, but as “mostlyharmless” points out, there’s always someone who hasn’t yet heard about Walt and his fleet of stray-cat Warbirds…so certainly no need for anyone to delete the thread! Most of the plums from Walt’s fleet have moved on, with two, a B-25 now belonging to Jerry Yagen and an F2G Corsair racer belonging to Tom Ungurean, having flown again…of course the F2G is no more, having crashed, tragically killing restorer Bob Odegaard, two years ago in North Dakota…just as Walter always feared would happen if any of his Warbirds flew again. (He had sold the F2G to the Crawford Museum in Cleveland for restoration for static display, but the museum resold it and a flying rebuild was commissioned from Odegaard, who had earlier restored the other surviving F2G racer to fly. That one still operates, occasionally, with Ron Pratte out west, usually flown by Larry Perkins.)

S.

If you want a scrap B25 you don’t have to travel to the wilds of Ohio.
There’s one at Booker.

I’d never seen, so thanks!

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