Let’s be honest, most of us aren’t just car nuts, we are fans of all things transportation. From a very early age, I’ve been fascinated by airplanes, the mechanics of flight, and the hardware it takes to make a 3+ ton machine stay airborne! I also find all things military quite interesting, so when I spotted this field full of North American T-28 Trojans, it caught my interest. And when I say a field full, I mean a literal field filled with these former Navy training crafts. These planes were built primarily for advanced flight training, but some saw action during the Vietnam War, as a matter of fact several of these planes have documented combat history. So what does a field of planes run these days? Well this seller is asking just $595,000 for all 40 shells plus all the new parts to make 5 of these airborne and they are listed here on PlatinumFighters.
Now, I won’t pretend like I know anything about restoring an old airplane. I do know it’s not nearly as simple as restoring a car. When you’re finished restoring a classic car, it just has to run, steer, and slow down, but an airplane needs to do all of those things in the air! Getting just one of these craft back in the air will be a massive undertaking and once you get it put together it still has to pass an FAA safety inspection. 18 of these planes do have registration numbers and log books, which should make things a bit simpler on the FAA front. The real challenge for me would be deciding what to do with them. They weren’t designed to haul passengers, so you couldn’t start your own airline and with just barely over a ton hauling capacity they wouldn’t make very good cargo planes. I guess you could use them as personal transportation and with a top speed of 340 mph it would be considerably faster than the typical Cessna!
So if you were to buy these, what would you do with them? Restoring them all would be insanely expensive, but if they really do have all the parts needed to fix up 5 of them. You might be able to put together 5 and sell the rest for scrap. What do you think? Do you see any of these ever flying again?
As a lover of aircraft, this is indeed a find. Okay, so here’s the scenario. Reassemble the 5 airframes and get them flying again. Take 10 from the collection and assemble for static displays, and give them to whoever wants them. Take 15 more and dismantle them ,store the parts (wings, airframe ribs, stringers, panels, etc) for future sale to the owners of any of the other flyable T-28’s in the world. Scrap the remaining 10.
From the pictures, it appears they are located in 2 different sections of the country. The pictures with the mountains in the background looks very much like a place near me in Nelson, NV. I’ve ridden past the place many times. Don’t know where the field pictures are though.
I’ve been trying to figure out what’s going on with the locations. I’m wondering if the dealer moved them to their location in Redondo Beach, CA or if they are just split between two places. It seems strange that someone would split them up.
And the seller isn’t saying, either!
Very interesting. I have no clue on values, but at around 15k each, it seems like the cost of aluminum scrap makes these a bargain. I envision something like moto-art does, make them into furniture. I imagine even with all the parts, restoration would be cost prohibitve. IT would be great to hang in the living room though. Or turn in to a playhouse. Or setup one hell of a flight simulator
price of aluminum scrap is going down faster than anything @.25 per pound it might bring something but most scrap yards subtract for the size of items and that price is for compete clean scrap for irony is something like $.08 per pound. So saving the planes as a history piece would be better than scraping them
This is just the find I have been waiting for! The T-28 is one of the most common aircraft among the old warbirds. Parts are abundant and there are many in flyable condition. Once restored, these will give their possessor the 15th (or so) largest air force in the world. I will recruit the most skilled and cunning pilots from the Viet Nam era, and together we will finally establish my rightful position as leader of some hapless third-world country. Benevolent Dictator… has a nice ring to it…
Haha I love it! I won’t lie, that same thought crossed my mind as I was writing this post. They aren’t heavily armed aircrafts, but compared to the air forces of many small countries, they would easily dominate the skies!
Josh you will be my Minister-for-Life of the Air Force. I will pay you the same as the pilots, all the beer you can carry.
With a 1 ton capacity, that’s a lot of beer!
A quick check on pricing is from about $155,000.00 to $350,000.00. There are different letter designations on type but I don’t know what the differences are.
It does sound like a pretty good deal but it would require a lot of space and some deep pockets.
I will buy them and offer to Canada as an F35 alternative, I will call it the Canuck-EH ! I wonder what the idea of having all of them was
I went with my older brother a Used military plane lot a long long time ago. Mostly old Navy dive bombers and torpedo planes. They had their engines and were sitting on their wheels and were going from between fifteen and twenty five hundred dollars as is.
One of the most important things included in the sale is the paperwork. These would be scrap without it. Too many military aircraft have been scrapped, so I hope someone purchases these and gets a few flying. Perhaps someone with deep pockets and a love of aviation like Kerman Weeks or an organization like the EAA would be interested.
David, the listing says 18 have complete logs.
I attend the Experimental Aircraft Association Air Venture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin every year and 20-25 of these A-28 Trojans are on display in the “Warbirds” section of the show. All are beautifully restored/maintained in prime flying condition. I imagine some of those owners would be interested in these planes for parts. Of course, setting outside in the weather is not the best of conditions as they will deteriorate at a rapid rate. Hopefully someone will come to the rescue and salvage some of these old warriors!
My Dad and Uncle had a T-28 in the early ’70s, I remember him taking me up a few times, good memories.
That is mind blowing. Wonder what the story is. I could spend days looking around
If I had the $$$ those hulls would be in my back yard awaiting restoration.. Several years ago there was a War Bird Museum here in Kissimmee, Fla. The flight line had a B25, two T-6s and a T-28 that you could hitch a ride in.. The first aircraft I ever started up and ran was a T-28 at Lackland AFB, Texas., Sent chills up my spine.. The sounds and smells still linger in my memory.. Great aircraft..
War Birds Adventures, at Kissimmee Air Fields. Still there and doing well.
I flew T-28s while at Pensacola in 1965-66 in VT3, VT5, VT6. Carrier qualed in a C model. Cs had tail hook. (Maybe even one or two on these).
Always thought if I ever played lottery & won I’d love to buy one. It was quite an aircraft for a newbie in training. I miss them.
The biggest problem that I have with the my 49 Beechcraft Bonanza is finding parts. With enough parts anything can be done. Are they willing to let someone pick and choose what they want? If so all will take is time and more money. Think about the Sandy’s from that Vietnam era. The government wore those aircraft out. The Dehavelin Miskito was one of the best if not the best aircraft that Brits had during WWII. But being made out of wood there is only one flying. They built just short of 5000 airplanes. I would hope some one with deep pockets or a group of individuals would put together a holding company and start a business that restores as many of these aircraft as possible. I believe that there is a new generation of buyers that would be very interested. Covington Aircraft in Okmogee, Oklahoma could probably rebuild the Pratt and Whitney Engines. Do the program as a non for profit. Who knows, there may be some other country might put them back in service. There those that would purchase these birds after they are restored. Those that aren’t going to become airworthy, but could be static displayed also offers a business opportunity. The EAA may want to increase their fleet. Vintage aircraft, CAA. Who would step up and start the process. It could easily be a 5 year project that needs investors, volunteers and just folks interested being part preserving history. I would be interested in getting involved.
Mike, if that is a picture of you and your Banana – wow! Not even the 1 pc windshield mod! They are rare when they are as original as this one. Beautiful! Can’t you just feel the ghost of Kirby Grant smiling on you?
Wonder how many people today know who Kirby Grant was and the significance of TriPower Vette’s quote! Great quote by the way….. Will be interesting how many reply knowing about Kirby Grant and why he was mentioned in the post.
As Sky King would say: “Songbird,” over and out!
I flew flight mech at Whiting Fld. in Fl. Probably could still work em blindfolded. Many hours on them i’d say put all 18 in the air if the logs are there. Then put what you could on display all over very proud history goes with them. Maybe I should just buy them and get busy. Transportation would be a nightmare from Colorado back to Florida.
old topic , when were u at Whiting and which squad, shift?
If I recall correctly, these were fighter trainers and performed very well in their time.. It’s a shame that they all cannot be made airworthy and put back up in the blue where they belong.. Except for the cost of operation, I’d own a few myself.. Great birds, very stable and responsive..
The seller doesn’t wish to reveal where these are located. So, here’s another: there’s a similar collection near Mojave, Calif, mostly commercial airliners. Don’t know if it’s open to the public or not, and there are no signs, directions, etc. but shouldn’t be hard to find.
The warbirds museum is still in Kissimmee, but the restoration and storage hangar, along with the B25 and T28 and a few other planes are gone.. The guy who owned all that including 3 B17s, a P38 and one F4u Corsair are all gone.. I’ve been there and was informed by the current museum owners that no one knows where the original owner went to.. Sad.
Price has dropped to $330,000 – Package Price for Everything
We here at the Aviation Cadet Museum, Inc. are looking for a T-28 to put on a pole at our entrance. More than that, a memorial to two USAF pilots who were shot down in Vietnam while serving in the Air Commando’s. One was my last AF flight instructor at Vance AFB, he was a great guy and friend. So, will the owner donate one or enough parts so we can build our memorial? We are a 501(c)3 not-for-profit and all donations are tax deductible.