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What is suspected to be the fuselage of a Beech Bonanza thrown in the dark recess of one of the hangars of the Juhu Flying Club. |
First established in 1928, Bombay Flying Club has been the alma-mater of many Aviation Pioneers of India. Many stalwarts like JRD Tata and the Engineer brothers graduated from this club as fliers in the late 20s and 30s. In May 2003, The club completed 75 years of existance, making it one of the oldest in India.
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An airworthy Piper Cub is one of the two seen at the club. |
| This red nosed aircraft is the second of the Piper cubs to be present at the Club. |  |
On a recent visit to the Bombay Flying Club at Juhu, Our correspondent Kapil Chandni stumbled upon a veritable treasure trove of tail dragging aircraft. One of the Hangars at Juhu was left only for the aircraft that were not current and were not in flying condition.
On view at the flying club was the derelict fuselage of a Beech Bonanza. The Bonanza is too far gone to be of any use and it seems that the club can niether dispose it off nor keep it and it is lying in limbo ever since.
| One of the airworthy tail draggers still flying is a Luscombe Silvaire VT-DDI. | |
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The tubings of a fuselage of another Piper Cub dumped in the hangar of Juhu Flying Club. |
Foremost among the active aircraft that were of interest to us were two Piper Cubs and a Luscombe Silvaire, all of them in good flying condition. The Silvaire is privately owned and has been flying for some 25 years at this club till date. The Piper cubs are also in good condition and are owned by the Club.
Another derelict that can boast of a history from the Second world war was the fuselage of a Stinson L-5 Sentinel. The Sentinels have been used as flying ambulances in the dense jungles of north east and Burma. Quite a few found their way into the private hands after the war. This particular example is lying in the hangar minus its wings, which have been stowed elsewhere. The fabric / skin has been torn in places, and it was only because of its Triangular shaped window panels were we able to recognise this type!
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The triangular window panels are a sure-shot give away about this fuselage as that of a Stinson Sentinel |
