PBY-5A Catalina PH-PBY take-off and landing from lake Markermeer September 5 2015 скачать в хорошем качестве

PBY-5A Catalina PH-PBY take-off and landing from lake Markermeer September 5 2015

The Consolidated PBY, also known as Catalina, was designed in the late Thirties and was used extensively in WW 2 in a number of roles. Originally a flying boat, the model 5A was fitted with a retractable tricycle landing gear, to turn it into an amphibian and this proved to be the most successful variant, as well as the most built. For some 15 years the oldest airworthy PBY-5A was flown by the Dutch Catalina Foundation. Most flights were made from land and included a spectacular so-called "splash-and-go" or two. But occasionally there was an opportunity to relive the complete Catalina experience, starting with boarding from a launch, taking off from water, with a "spash-and go" thrown in and then landing on water again. In this video first my own flight and then a view of the next flight, from the port of Hoorn, an historic town on lake Markermeer. I feel very fortunate to have made a number of flights on this incredible aircraft. Obviously taking off and landing from water in a flying boat is a unique experience, but once in the air the view from the blisters is also incomparable. Sadly, for Europeans that is, this aircraft is now back on the other side of the pond, with the Collings Foundation.