F8F BEARCAT First Engine Start w/ Steve Hinton
YouTube / Planes of Fame
A New Start
Planes of Fame did a stellar job in fixing up this Bearcat. It looked brand new when they were finished! You could not tell that the propeller was rotting away in a garage for over 10 years with how fresh it looked.
What is unique about this Bearcat is its Frankenstein-like construction. Since Bearcat parts are hard to come by these days, the museum resorted to taking parts from inoperable Bearcats. After years of painstakingly hunting for spare parts and following up on orders, at last, the Bearcat could be completed.
About a month after its startup, Steve Hinton took the Bearcat on its first test flight in decades. This is an amazing achievement that they should be proud of.
