PRESS RELEASE!

MAY 3, 2006

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

MID ATLANTIC AIR MUSEUM
Reading Regional Airport
11 Museum Drive
Reading, PA  19605
610-372-7333
Fax: 610-372-1702
www.maam.org
Contact: Russell A. Strine, President

The Mid Atlantic Air Museum has reached yet another milestone on the road to fully restoring and returning its now famous Northrop P-61 “Black Widow” restoration project to airworthy condition.

During the last weekend in April, Museum crews successfully mated the left and right inner wing or engine nacelles with the fuselage, after which the two main and nose landing gears were lowered.

The P-61 is now situated in MAAM’s display hangar, where visitors will get a whole new perspective of the airplane resting unassisted on its own landing gear for the first time since January 10,1945, when this rare night fighter crashed.

The Mid Atlantic Air Museum recovered the P-61B-1-NO Army Air Forces s/n 42-39445 from high atop Mt. Cyclops near the old Hollandia airfield on the Pacific island of New Guinea in 1988, and transported the aircraft to the Museum in 1991.  Restoration began in earnest in 1994 and has continued steadily ever since.  MAAM has invested some $850,000 in the project to date.  It is estimated that an additional 1 million dollars will be required to complete the restoration.

Thoughts of recovering and restoring a P-61 began in 1979 when Museum co-founder, Gene Strine learned of the existence of this particular aircraft.  Recognizing its rarity he and son Russ, also a co-founder and President of MAAM set out together to acquire the airplane for the Museum in1980.  In the meantime, MAAM’s collection has grown to include some 70 historically significant aircraft. 

Three other P-61’s are known to exist today.  Two are P-61C models which were delivered after the end of World War II and are owned by the Smithsonian Institution and Air Force Museum respectively.  The third, a late ”B” model exists in Beijing, Peoples Republic of China where it is an outdoor display at an engineering institute.  Of the surviving examples, MAAM’s P-61B-1 will be the only “Black Widow” to ever fly again!

Gene Strine surveys the P-61 wreck sitting on the side of Mount Cyclops after the jungle foliage has been cleared.

The 'Black Widow's' crew pod on Mount Cyclops.

The same crew pod today, resting on its cradle in the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum's main hangar, waiting to be joined with its inner wings and finally stand on its gear once again.

Volunteer members Betsy Carlisle and Steve Sarmento rig the crew pod for the lift.

Volunteer members Betsy Carlisle and T.J. Radway and crane operator Doug Carlisle adjust the sling on the nacelle prior to mating it to the crew pod.

Machinist Mike Correll takes one last measurement of the spar assembly.

Museum Cofounder Gene “Pappy” Strine, makes a final inspection of the nacelle prior to joining.

Museum founder and President, Russell Strine, checks and adjusts the alignment of the wing bolts. 

Museum co-founder Gene “Pappy” Strine, watches as years of hard work start coming together. 

Volunteer member Jeff Arentz places a crucial part.

Volunteer member T.J. Radway prepares a wing bolt.

Volunteer member Ron Price sets the wheel bearings and attaches the main wheels as the countdown to lift up gets shorter.

Up and off!  Sixty-one years after it crashed, the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum’s P-61 “Black Widow” stands on its own landing gear!

Museum President Russ Strine and volunteers can’t resist taking the  “Black Widow” for a short trip in front of the museum. “Just to help her stretch her legs”

The “Black Widow" sits in front of its new home, the main hangar of the Mid-Atlantic Air Museum”

Back to the hangar where the Black Widow will be completed and become the only flying P-61 night fighter in the world!

photo credits: MAAM and Jack Cutler

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Large, high resolution versions of the photos may be obtained by contacting the webmaster

THE MID-ATLANTIC AIR MUSEUM'S P-61 'BLACK WIDOW' RECOVERY AND RESTORATION PROJECT HAS COME A LONG WAY FROM MOUNT CYCLOPS.   BUT THERE IS A LONG WAY YET TO GO.  APPROXIMATELY A MILLION DOLLARS MORE WILL BE REQUIRED TO FINISH THE JOB.  GIVEN THE MONEY TO COMPLETE THE RESTORATION, THE 'BLACK WIDOW' COULD BE FLYING WITHIN THREE YEARS.  WE DESPERATELY NEED YOUR HELP!
PLEASE, IF YOU SHARE OUR DREAM, DONATE TO THE P-61 RESTORATION FUND.

TO READ MORE ABOUT THE MAAM P-61 RECOVERY AND RESTORATION PROJECT,  ENTER ...