Published: March 24, 2009 11:11 am      

Flying Tiger bids Gainesville goodbye

Heading into the sky over Gainesville, the restored P-40 Curtiss Warhawk climbed and turned into the wind after 2-years of restoration to join the Commemorative Air Force (CAF) tours in Texas and Florida.

Ray Kinney flew the Warhawk.

Kinney, one of the owners of the Circuit Breaker Sales (CBS) Hanger at the airport, flew in to pick up the plane. After meeting with friends who helped to restore the World War II (WW II) aircraft, the pilot checked out the P-40 Curtiss Warhawk.

Kinney donned his leather flying helmet, taxied up the runway and then flew over the airport several times before tipping the aircraft wings several times in salute, and roaring off toward his destinaiton.

CBS was one of the main sponsors for the renovation of the P-40 Curtiss Warhawk, the plane made famous in WW II.

Kinney said “I’ve been in love with aviation all my life. On Jan. 19, 1967, right after I graduated from North Texas, I went straight to the airport and bought some aviation lessons.”

“I was in the Navy flying aircraft after submarines in early Vietnam,” said Kinney.

“For me, this is just about as good as it gets, flying the P-40 Curtiss Warhawk.” said Kinney

The U.S. Air Force Fact sheet on the craft says the P-40 Curtiss Warhawk served in numerous combat areas during the war, including the Southwest Pacific, the Aleutian Islands, the Far East, the Middle East, Italy and some went to Russia. Though other aircraft often outperformed them in speed, maneuverability and rate of climb, the P-40 earned a reputation in battle for extreme ruggedness.

According to historians, before the U.S. entered WW II, many U.S. volunteer pilots flew for China, Canada, Britian and the Soviet Union.

A group of them — reads the web site www.flyingtigersavg.com — helped China as the country struggled against Japan and the American Volunteer Group of the Chinese army became known as the Flying Tigers and flew under the command of Gen. Clair Channault. Their P-40s were painted with the Chinese stars on the tops and bottoms of each wing, to identify the plane as a war ally and not an enemy plane.

When the Warhawk left the CBS hanger, it was a replication of the Texan Flying Tiger Tex Hill’s plane. His name and war battle scorecard are painted on the left side of the plane. The Flying Tiger logo and the “Flying Panda’s (one group of the Flying Tigers) are also painted on the plane as well as the Chinese stars .

“I had a long, wonderful history with Tex Hill,” said Kinney. “He was as sharp a man as you could ever meet, even well into his 90’s.”

Kinney said that he has a real connection with these WW II pilots. “The men who flew them were the age of my father,” said Kinney. “I met a lot of them personally.”

Aircraft and Engine Mechanic Larry Lange was the primary mechanic and had the responsibility of overseeing the whole restoration of the P-40 Curtiss Warhawk at the CBS Hangar.

Machinists Norb Mages of Lindsay and Dennis Lopez of Thackerville, Okla. came to see the plane off. Both worked on the airplane and oversaw projects that involved retrofitting and overhauling.

“This has been a great experience,” said Mages. “We’ve been doing this off and on for two years.”

“We’re fortunate to be a part of it,” said Lopez. “There are a lot of things that go through the machine shop but this takes the cake.”

Lange said that Mark Zello, owner of “Flying Colors,” was responsible for painting the plane, including the famous shark teeth.

Retired pilot Mike Cavanagh came by to see the Warhawk off.

“I think every pilot is proud of Ray Kinney, the P-40 Curtiss Warhawk, and the work that Larry did,” said Cavanagh.

“I would just come in and enviously watch it,” said Cavanagh. “I just watched it being put together, like a painting.”

To learn more about the CAF, how to become involved with WWII aircraft, or to find the groups touring schedule, go to www.commemorativeairforce.org.