According to “Pilot” (August 2003; hope this doesn’t result in the thread getting deleted….) Raytheon is scrapping the 40 Starships it owns of the 50 built between 1988-95, quoting prohibitive costs of supporting them due to many parts being unique to the Starship. First the Concorde, now this…. 😡
I believe only two examples were ever exported to Europe, one of them was the Danish-registered OY-GEA pictured below in Roskilde (EKRK) in the mid-90s:
By: EGNM - 23rd August 2003 at 01:15
Originally posted by Moggy C
.By all means find somebody to preserve one airframe, preferably flying and a stock of spares, but you don’t want to get to the stage we have in the UK where every available inch of overgrown scrub on every regional tinpot airfield in the country has an Avro Vulcan falling slowly (or not so slowly) to pieces as a result of corrosion or vandalism or both. Meanwhile you have to travel all day to find a Victor and all month to track down a Valiant.
you mean like the one i saw at BLK for the first time the other day! Fly your Colt up to Elvington SUnday/Monday and you’ll see ya Victor… on a high speed taxi!
By: mike currill - 19th August 2003 at 07:15
Originally posted by BlueRobin
Piaggo P180 Avanti. Close enough?
At least the Avanti won the hearts of its customers enough for Piaggio to put it back in production
By: BlueRobin - 18th August 2003 at 09:16
Originally posted by andrew_airbus
I thought it looked fantastic. A space age shape. May there be many more to come
Piaggo P180 Avanti. Close enough?
By: robbelc - 17th August 2003 at 20:29
Talking of Starships I know somebody who works for the UK Beech authorised manitiance provider and he said they were a night mare to maintain. He said half their parts store was full of Starship parts! I also remember the local paper having a photo of the Starsip flying as people had reported it as a UFO!
I think GA aircraft should deffinetly be preserved if they can not be maintained in flying condition. They have as much right to be preserved than a jet fighter that never flew operationaly. Civil rules!!:D
By: andrew_airbus - 17th August 2003 at 18:11
I thought it looked fantastic. A space age shape. May there be many more to come
By: mike currill - 29th July 2003 at 21:20
To PhantomII,
The only way to make the Starship interesting is to move the canards to the back, give it a proper fin, move the wings forward and turn the engines roun the right way.
To Moggy
Nothing wrong with highwing rag covered Pipers that C G Taylor didn’t improve upon when he came to England
By: Moggy C - 29th July 2003 at 11:41
Originally posted by mike currill
Hey Moggy sorry to get away from the topic but is it true that the Colt started as a design for a 2 seat milking stool and some fool built an aircraft around it?
Only kidding as I know that is was the trainer version of the Tri-Pacer which I have a soft spot for as it was the first aircraft I ever flew in
The PA22 range were always known as ‘The Flying Milkstools’
Never thought I’d take to it, bit of a step down from my previous grouped aircraft.
But what I really like is farm strip flying and bimbling around E Anglia. I’ve found ‘my kind of flyin’ (Though this doesn’t preclude going back to aeros once funds permit)
The Colt is at Le Touquet this coming Saturday if anybody cares to join us? (That’s not a passenger-ride offer, both seats are taken)
Moggy
By: BlueRobin - 28th July 2003 at 20:53
Cheeky moo! 😀
Yeah, I like the Tripe and in fact, any high-wing rag-wing Piper.
Neil
Robin/Jodel pilot
By: mike currill - 28th July 2003 at 20:35
Hey Moggy sorry to get away from the topic but is it true that the Colt started as a design for a 2 seat milking stool and some fool built an aircraft around it?
Only kidding as I know that is was the trainer version of the Tri-Pacer which I have a soft spot for as it was the first aircraft I ever flew in
By: Moggy C - 28th July 2003 at 17:08
It can do if you wish.
Make me an offer.
🙂
Mogs
By: BlueRobin - 28th July 2003 at 15:10
Def. commercially unviable. As someone who has to maintain ultra low volume, low sales, loss making products here at work (shhh, don’t tell the boss!) I am always willing to dump them in favour of ditching, better products or ones that can effectively be self-maintaining hence low overheads.
Moggy. Does the rusting hulk in your back yard come with a cannon? 😉 😀
By: Moggy C - 26th July 2003 at 08:55
US College = ‘Primary School’ in UK language Phantom 😉 😉 😉
I take this point of view on the Beech really just to provoke discussion.
My true interest here, as I think you know, is the FlyPast forum, and my worry about attempts to preserve loads of examples of an insignificant aircraft is that this could elbow out more worthy contenders for the strictly limited amount of indoor display room.
You cannot preserve everything, hard decisions have to be taken.
By all means find somebody to preserve one airframe, preferably flying and a stock of spares, but you don’t want to get to the stage we have in the UK where every available inch of overgrown scrub on every regional tinpot airfield in the country has an Avro Vulcan falling slowly (or not so slowly) to pieces as a result of corrosion or vandalism or both. Meanwhile you have to travel all day to find a Victor and all month to track down a Valiant.
Whilst looking to flashy cul-de-sacs like the Starship, who is preserving good examples of the Piper Apache, Aztec, Tri-Pacer etc, all of which have made a much greater impact on the flying scene?
Over to you 🙂
Moggy
By: PhantomII - 26th July 2003 at 01:29
I saw a Starship fly over sometime last fall one Saturday afternoon at the school where I attend college (or University as you Euro chaps call it). I attend school in Alabama, so I have no idea where this particular machine came from. Can anyone find out the owners of the 10 that are flying?
I think it’s a shame to see them be scrapped. I think they are a very interesting looking airplane.
Don’t understand Moggy’s opinion at all….
By: David Burke - 25th July 2003 at 20:09
No you cannot smelt composites – infact if you have a carbon fibre
fire it can be incredibly harmful. Certainly a respirator job!
By: Moggy C - 25th July 2003 at 10:21
Originally posted by mike currill
Can you smelt composites?
Good point.
Just leave ’em out in the sun and they self-destruct anyway 😉
Moggy
In bad mood – weekend flight to Reims scrubbed on account of the weather. Le Touquet planned for next weekend.
By: Whiskey Delta - 25th July 2003 at 03:07
Originally posted by tenthije
What is going to happen with the other 10. If Raytheon scraps the 40 they own, am I right to assume that they will no longer support the 10 still flying?
I don’t know the exact length of time but I believe that a manufacturer still has to supply parts for a period of time. The exception would be if the company went out of business like Fairchild/Dornier and the Do328. The carriers flying those aircraft are desperately searching for parts at times.
By: Kenneth - 24th July 2003 at 22:17
Moggy, I am only refraining on commenting on your opinion because you are a Piper Colt owner like my late dad was…. 😀
By: mike currill - 24th July 2003 at 22:16
Can you smelt composites?
By: mike currill - 24th July 2003 at 22:14
N39TW used to operate out of Oxford Airport for Tom Walkinshaw before he changed to a Piaggio Avanti
By: tenthije - 24th July 2003 at 19:38
Moggy C
Why put them in museums? They are hardly significant airframes.
They may not be significiant, they are odd and good looking. Only 50 or so were ever build. Over the years so many odd types have already disappeared forever,. It would be a shame if even these days some very odd types were to disappear.
What is going to happen with the other 10. If Raytheon scraps the 40 they own, am I right to assume that they will no longer support the 10 still flying? If so, how will they be maintained. Will they be maintained?
I propose the Aviodrome! Brand new so I guess they may still have some room to spare! (surely you build a new museum with growth in mind! 😀 )
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July 22, 2003 at 10:13 pm