Sea Furys at Auburn Calif Airport "Thunder in the Sky"

Argonaut (with the yellow prop spinner) firing up with 2 other planes to go up and do a flight at the Auburn Airport in Calif. Pilot Mark Watt at the controls. Tom Dwelle from Nella Oil is seen here coordinating the engine starts. Airfair was held on August 2, 2008. This years major sponsors were TGH Aviation and Nella Oil Company.
Agronaut is a FB-11, 460 MPH, Wright 3350-26WD Radial engine, 2,800 Horse Power. Sea Fury #105 with wings folded is another FB-11 flown by Ellsworth Getchell of San Jose. The 105 has an original Bristol Centaurus 18A engine, 2600HP, and uses a sleeve valve design instead of having traditional valves in the cylinder heads. The black Yak-11 is flown by Kent Carlomagno from Petaluma, Pratt & Whitney R2000-4M engine at 1,450 Horse Power. Excerpt from Sanders Aviation web site follows, One of the fastest piston engine aircraft ever built, Hawker's magnificent Sea Fury/Fury has always had the ability to inspire awe amongst everyone from airport kids to jet fighter pilots. It continues to attract fans at airshows and air races around the world and leaves most other aircraft of the era well behind.

Hawker was designated to work on the land-based version, the Fury, and responsibility for the naval conversion was assigned to Boulton-Paul Aircraft Ltd. In April of 1944 contracts were placed for 200 aircraft for each the Royal Air Force and Fleet Air Arm. The first Sea Fury prototype flew on February 21, 1945, but the first full naval version with folding wings did not fly until October 12, 1947.

The Sea Fury was to see significant involvement in the Korean War, mainly in the ground attack role alongside the Fairey Firefly. The aircraft also had the distinction of shooting down a Mig-15, the first by a piston engine fighter, this being achieved by an 802 Squadron aircraft flown by Lt. P. Carmichael on August 9, 1952.

Hawker Sea Fury FB. 11, N19SF "Argonaut", was originally delivered to the Royal Canadian Navy as TG114 in May 1947. Frank Sanders of Chino, California acquired it in 1970 and used parts from it for other restoration projects. It was transferred to Sanders Aircraft in 1990 and was rebuilt based on the cockpit section of Sea Fury TG114 (former N232J) which was itself restored from parts of VR918 and VR919. Its Bristol Centaurus engine was replaced with a Wright R-3350-26WD radial engine, driving a Douglas Skyraider propeller, and first flew after restoration on July 30, 1994. It was named "Argonaut" and assigned race number 114.

The Sanders brothers, Dennis and Brian, are renowned experts in the field of Sea Furies and aircraft restoration in general. "Argonaut' has been equipped with smoke generators on both wing tips, allowing it to visually demonstrate the effects of wing tip vortices and its awesome performance while performing warbird aerobatics at select airshows.

Over the years, "Argonaut" has also been a regular Unlimited participant at the National Championship Air Races, "the world's fastest motor sport", held every September in Reno, Nevada. This immaculate aircraft has relatively few race modifications. To keep oil temps under control, spray bars are used on the oil cooler, and it is also equipped with an ADI system, allowing it to run a typical race power setting of 55 in.Hg. Abs at 2,900 rpm. In 2005, Matt Jackson flew 'Argonaut" to a first place finish in the Unlimited Class Silver Race on Sunday afternoon at a speed of 410.369 mph, just ahead of rookie Stephen Patterson in "Southern Cross" by only .36 mph.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Argonaut
• Sea
• Fury
• Auburn
• Calif
• Aircraft
• Sanders
• Ione
• TGH
• Nella
• Matt
• Jackson
• Ellsworth
• Getchell

[canals22]

you noticed the props turn in opposite directions on those Furies ?

[sniperjdp]

@canals22 Yes, the one on the right has a Bristol Centaurus 18A engine, the original engine that came in the Sea Fury`s. Most of the Sea Furys that race have the Wright 3350-26WD engine. Click the arrow thing just to the levt of "VIEWS" under the video for a complete explaination.

[carlosmurphy4u]

Dose the Sea Fury have a 2 or 3 row engine?

[sniperjdp]

@carlosmurphy4u It has 2 rows of cylinders, 18 cylinders in all. Under the video where it says "Views", click the box to the left of that to expand the explination of the planes in the video.

[klesmer]

@nanchuanwushu1 Amen. Bristol powered anything is getting rare nowadays.

[nanchuanwushu1]

I like the ORIGINAL Sea Fury, the white one, because it has it's own original engine, the Centaurus (easy to realize because it turns counter clockwise and the prop has 5 blades). Also this egine has an amazing sound

To bad the other Fury has the Wright engine.....

[1888junkteam]

excellent work!

[ChargerMiles007]

Nice vid, I love hearing the big engines fire up !!! :)

[jrrm3]

Great sound. Would have been good to see some flying footage.