It has been over 30 years since Flight International operated its own editorial aircraft and despite the scores of pilots employed with the magazine, no serving member of the editorial team has ever fully owned or operated their own aircraft. These two deficiencies have been corrected in a timely fashion, to coincide with the 100th year of the magazine.
Flight's Senior Technical Artist Joe Picarella is proud to introduce you to his Piper L-4B "Grasshopper" - G-FINT.
The aircraft in full profile:
G-FINT (Piper serial number 9444) was the 92nd of 980 L4Bs built specifically for the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) and received into service on the 18th August 1942 as serial number 43-583. While aircraft from either side of 9444 on the production line would find themselves in combat zones around he world, 9444 would serve with several US Army ground force units in the United States until 1946.
Postwar she went through the 4168th Air Material Command (AMC) - South Plains Field TX, 3136th AMC - Tinker Field Dallas TX, 32nd Civil Air Patrol (CAP) Base Unit and Air Defence Command - Hensley Field Dallas TX, 3565th Basic Training Wing (Air Training Command) and 3565th Aircraft Observer Training Wing - James Connally AFB TX and finally to the CAP at Love Field TX.
Flight's Senior Technical Artist Joe Picarella is proud to introduce you to his Piper L-4B "Grasshopper" - G-FINT.
The aircraft in full profile:G-FINT (Piper serial number 9444) was the 92nd of 980 L4Bs built specifically for the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) and received into service on the 18th August 1942 as serial number 43-583. While aircraft from either side of 9444 on the production line would find themselves in combat zones around he world, 9444 would serve with several US Army ground force units in the United States until 1946. Postwar she went through the 4168th Air Material Command (AMC) - South Plains Field TX, 3136th AMC - Tinker Field Dallas TX, 32nd Civil Air Patrol (CAP) Base Unit and Air Defence Command - Hensley Field Dallas TX, 3565th Basic Training Wing (Air Training Command) and 3565th Aircraft Observer Training Wing - James Connally AFB TX and finally to the CAP at Love Field TX.
In March 1956 the aircraft was transferred (donated) from the USAF to
the Texas wing of the CAP (the civil auxiliary branch of the USAF),
where she continued in her roll as a primary trainer/patrol aircraft.
By the late 1970s 9444 was becoming a little "tired" and in 1981, after nearly 40 years in service she finally stood down and was offered for sale by the CAP. She went through one owner before being purchased by an airframe and engine (A&P) mechanic in 1988 and restored to factory finish as a stock L-4B once again.
In the winter of 2007, after almost two years of searching for the right "Warbird" to operate, Joe and his wife decide that the time was right to purchase an aircraft again (following the sale of their T-6 Airframe in 2002) and they purchased 9444 from its owner in Texas.
With the deed done, several months of planning fell into place.
The first task was to get the aircraft ferried from its former home in Texas to Florida. While only around 1000 miles (a two-day flight for a Grasshopper!) it took a couple of weeks to plan and accomplished with the assistance of the former owner. Once in Sarasota FL, the aircraft was first delivered to Columbia Air Services, where it was expertly dismantled and crated into a 20ft shipping container and then it was passed on to Don Ratliff at American King Air Ferries, Inc. Don did a fabulous job of managing all of the legalities and shipping issues and in mid April, after 5 weeks at sea 9444 arrived in the UK.
In the meantime the real problems of aircraft ownership in the UK were being tackled, namely finding hangarage in the South of England and starting the transfer of an aircraft from the US N-register to the UK G-register.
Good friend of Joe Clive Edwards (of Edwards Bros Aviation) performed the assembly and addressed the engineering issues of re-registering the aircraft. Clive, who is internationally known for his "larger" warbird activities, such as DC-3, Catalina, Constellation and B-17 maintenance and restoration, also owns a Tiger Moth and Super Cub and turns his hand expertly to lighter vintage types.
With all of the official paperwork in hand, thanks to Phil Lowe of Certification Limited, and following the removal of three defunct wasps nests from the airframe - a surprisingly common problem with aircraft restorations - G-FINT was re-christened "Helen" (after Joe's wife) and is now the oldest L-4B in Europe.
G-FINT will be operated as memorial to the Liaison pilots and crews that operated these aircraft in combat and as such Joe and G-FINT will be attending as many fly-ins as they can fit into their yearly schedule, so keep a look out for them at the shows and why not come and say hello to them.
Type history
The L-4 was a militarised version of Piper's legendary J3 Cub. Between 1931 and 1946 over 20,000 Cubs and derivatives were be built, of which over 5,500 were produced for all branches of the US military during the WWII as the L-4.
In their wartime training role almost 75% of all US pilots (435,000+) and 80% of all military pilots received their basic training in the Civil Pilot Training Program (CPTP) on Piper Cubs and L-4 Grasshoppers.
In its military role the L-4 would become an instant success over the battlefields of North Africa, the Mediterranean, Europe and the Pacific. Used for artillery spotting and reconnaissance the Grasshopper became a required element of the battlefield, providing intelligence over the ever-changing frontlines. Initially launched from aircraft carriers and modified LSTs over the beachheads of the US invasion forces of North Africa, Sicily, Italy, Normandy and South Pacific, L-4s would within hours be operating alongside the infantry on the beaches, dirt tracks and fields. They were soon used as airborne command centres for the commanding officers, giving them what is now known as "real-time" views of the battlefronts. Generals' Eisenhower, Patton, Bradley and Marshal to name but a few, were often found above combat zones in L-4s, as was Winston Churchill on one occasion. In combat the Grasshopper would also be used as air ambulances, downed-pilot recovery, VIP taxis and even Bazooka equipped strike aircraft.
The L-4 would also become the "little friend" to the GIs on the ground and often re-supply ground troops with ammunition and the all-important mail. With "L-birds" in the air, enemy artillery and troop movements were put on hold, as any indication of activity would result in a hail of incoming artillery or fighter-bomber strikes on emplacements and vehicles. Typically operated between 500 and 800ft - the safe zone above snipers and below enemy fighters - the various "L-birds" would become so effective, that by 1945 the destruction of one would result in either a weeks furlough for a soldier or two bottles of Champaign or two points towards a medal for the Luftwaffe's fighter pilots. In all, over 350 (of the 2,330+) L-4s operated in the ETO would be lost in combat.
Having ushered the United States into their first WWII seaborne invasion (North Africa) in November 1942, it is fitting to note that the last reported air-to-air combat of the European war was between an L-4 and a Fieseler Fi156 "Storch" on the 8th May (VE Day) 1945, when Lieutenants' Francies and Martin "forced" the Luftwaffe aircraft down with their Colt 45 pistols!
After WWII L-4s operated in the Korean conflict for a short while, until replaced by newer L-types and eventually the helicopter.
Today the legacy of this little artillery/reconnaissance spotter can be seen in the myriad of reconnaissance helicopters and UAVs operated over modern battlefields.
Engine testing
By the late 1970s 9444 was becoming a little "tired" and in 1981, after nearly 40 years in service she finally stood down and was offered for sale by the CAP. She went through one owner before being purchased by an airframe and engine (A&P) mechanic in 1988 and restored to factory finish as a stock L-4B once again.
In the winter of 2007, after almost two years of searching for the right "Warbird" to operate, Joe and his wife decide that the time was right to purchase an aircraft again (following the sale of their T-6 Airframe in 2002) and they purchased 9444 from its owner in Texas.
With the deed done, several months of planning fell into place.
The first task was to get the aircraft ferried from its former home in Texas to Florida. While only around 1000 miles (a two-day flight for a Grasshopper!) it took a couple of weeks to plan and accomplished with the assistance of the former owner. Once in Sarasota FL, the aircraft was first delivered to Columbia Air Services, where it was expertly dismantled and crated into a 20ft shipping container and then it was passed on to Don Ratliff at American King Air Ferries, Inc. Don did a fabulous job of managing all of the legalities and shipping issues and in mid April, after 5 weeks at sea 9444 arrived in the UK.
In the meantime the real problems of aircraft ownership in the UK were being tackled, namely finding hangarage in the South of England and starting the transfer of an aircraft from the US N-register to the UK G-register.
Good friend of Joe Clive Edwards (of Edwards Bros Aviation) performed the assembly and addressed the engineering issues of re-registering the aircraft. Clive, who is internationally known for his "larger" warbird activities, such as DC-3, Catalina, Constellation and B-17 maintenance and restoration, also owns a Tiger Moth and Super Cub and turns his hand expertly to lighter vintage types.
With all of the official paperwork in hand, thanks to Phil Lowe of Certification Limited, and following the removal of three defunct wasps nests from the airframe - a surprisingly common problem with aircraft restorations - G-FINT was re-christened "Helen" (after Joe's wife) and is now the oldest L-4B in Europe.
G-FINT will be operated as memorial to the Liaison pilots and crews that operated these aircraft in combat and as such Joe and G-FINT will be attending as many fly-ins as they can fit into their yearly schedule, so keep a look out for them at the shows and why not come and say hello to them.
Type history
The L-4 was a militarised version of Piper's legendary J3 Cub. Between 1931 and 1946 over 20,000 Cubs and derivatives were be built, of which over 5,500 were produced for all branches of the US military during the WWII as the L-4.
In their wartime training role almost 75% of all US pilots (435,000+) and 80% of all military pilots received their basic training in the Civil Pilot Training Program (CPTP) on Piper Cubs and L-4 Grasshoppers.
In its military role the L-4 would become an instant success over the battlefields of North Africa, the Mediterranean, Europe and the Pacific. Used for artillery spotting and reconnaissance the Grasshopper became a required element of the battlefield, providing intelligence over the ever-changing frontlines. Initially launched from aircraft carriers and modified LSTs over the beachheads of the US invasion forces of North Africa, Sicily, Italy, Normandy and South Pacific, L-4s would within hours be operating alongside the infantry on the beaches, dirt tracks and fields. They were soon used as airborne command centres for the commanding officers, giving them what is now known as "real-time" views of the battlefronts. Generals' Eisenhower, Patton, Bradley and Marshal to name but a few, were often found above combat zones in L-4s, as was Winston Churchill on one occasion. In combat the Grasshopper would also be used as air ambulances, downed-pilot recovery, VIP taxis and even Bazooka equipped strike aircraft.
The L-4 would also become the "little friend" to the GIs on the ground and often re-supply ground troops with ammunition and the all-important mail. With "L-birds" in the air, enemy artillery and troop movements were put on hold, as any indication of activity would result in a hail of incoming artillery or fighter-bomber strikes on emplacements and vehicles. Typically operated between 500 and 800ft - the safe zone above snipers and below enemy fighters - the various "L-birds" would become so effective, that by 1945 the destruction of one would result in either a weeks furlough for a soldier or two bottles of Champaign or two points towards a medal for the Luftwaffe's fighter pilots. In all, over 350 (of the 2,330+) L-4s operated in the ETO would be lost in combat.
Having ushered the United States into their first WWII seaborne invasion (North Africa) in November 1942, it is fitting to note that the last reported air-to-air combat of the European war was between an L-4 and a Fieseler Fi156 "Storch" on the 8th May (VE Day) 1945, when Lieutenants' Francies and Martin "forced" the Luftwaffe aircraft down with their Colt 45 pistols!
After WWII L-4s operated in the Korean conflict for a short while, until replaced by newer L-types and eventually the helicopter.
Today the legacy of this little artillery/reconnaissance spotter can be seen in the myriad of reconnaissance helicopters and UAVs operated over modern battlefields.
Engine testing
on December 16, 2008 7:38 PM | Reply
You wouldn't get me up in that thing for all the tea in Sutton. It's like flying a Cutaway!
on March 13, 2009 5:34 PM | Reply
I flew many hours in this aircraft while a cadet in the CAP 1971-1973. It was assigned to the Hustler Composite Squadron in Fort Worth Texas. It was based at Sycamore Strip, Bluemound Airport and Luck field. I remember the data plate saying 1942, June? Several years later I noticed a neighbor, Ronnie Anderson had a fuselage in his back yard. This would be in the late 1980's..I went and investigated and on the dash was the number, it was N10491, the same CAP L4 I used to fly in....Great flying experience.