Kermit Weeks and his Fantasy of Flight team are back at their home base in Polk City, Florida, after spending a week earlier this month prepping Howard Hughes’ Sikorsky S-43 for transport. This is the plane that Hughes had originally planned to use for a record-breaking around the world flight. CAA delays and the arrival of a faster plane made him leave this beautiful seaplane on the ramp.
While Hughes was using the Sikorsky for some water landing tests on Lake Mead, a crash landing send the plane to the bottom of the lake, killing two other passengers and almost killing Hughes as well. He had the airplane salvaged and refit it as his personal executive transport business and (ahem) Hollywood starlets to exotic (and not so exotic) locations.
There are only three of these beautiful planes left in the world. Kermit plans on restoring the aircraft to airworthiness.
From the Fantasy of Flight newsletter:
On Thursday, June 27th the Sikorsky S-43 took the next step on its journey as it was welcomed to its new home here at Fantasy of Flight. Local media stations WFLA Channel 8, WTSP Channel 10 and Fox 13 were there to document this historic moment as it rolled through the Fantasy of Flight arch on its way to the hangars. This iconic piece of aviation history will be on display during our Restoration Shop Tour, where it will eventually be restored to its original splendor and will once again grace the skies.
UPDATE: You can read the whole newsletter HERE.
How Weeks acquired the Sikorsky is a great story, and he wrote about it on his blog:
“…Last November ended a very long quest to acquire a very rare and valuable Sikorsky S-43 that was originally owned by Howard Hughes! Howard purchased it in 1937 to fly around the world in an attempt to set a new record. Unfortunately, CAA approval delays, the onset of WWII, and the arrival of a faster airplane forced him to set the Sikorsky to the side and use a Lockheed 14. In 1938 he beat the existing world record by flying around the world in less than four days (91 hours) and enjoyed a ticker-tape parade through New York City for his efforts…”
and:
“…I was invited to Houston for a press conference for the Wings Over Houston Airshow, where I was being honored as the 2012 recipient for the Lloyd P. Nolen Lifetime Achievement Award. I made it a point to reconnect with the agent selling the airplane and we drove down to see it. It had not flown in seven years and needed work. The engines and props had been overhauled but were off the plane. The economy had since tanked and had been in recession for several years.
Another overseas party was in the process of making an offer with the intent of taking the airplane overseas as an investment. Probably for good. None of us wanted to see that and, within a month, I found a way to come up with an offer that made sense for both of us. We cut a deal…”
You can read the whole story on Kermit’s blog HERE.
Make sure you visit the Fantasy of Flight website HERE.