Grumman F8F Bearcat Flight Demonstration - MONSTER Pratt & Whitney Radial Engine Sound !

This video was taken at the 2006 airshow at Jacqueline Cochran Airport in Thermal, California. This Grumman F8F-2 Bearcat is a member of the Southern California Wing of the Commemorative Air Force and is based in Camarillo, Calif. Their Grumman Hellcat also attended the show. These aircraft attend most SoCal airshows, even the very small ones. This is at no small expense. Thank you very much!

This is my favorite Grumman "Cat" and I think the video really illustrates Grumman's "smallest possible airframe built around the P&W R-2800 engine" concept. What a beast! This thing is ALL engine. This aircraft was run at a substantially higher power setting than what you would normally see at an airshow, much to the benefit of us warbird enthusiasts! Enjoy the great sights and sounds. I got a little buffeted by the prop wash and also had to wash the oil droplets off my lens filter after the engine startup. Ah, y-e-s!

The town of Thermal was not so named because it is the most temperate spot in California, but is rather often the hottest place in the USA in the summer. Thermal is located approx. 33 miles southeast of Palm Springs and is in the central bowels (and I do mean bowels) of the California low desert :).

However, this airshow is held in November and the weather is just delightful. This is a relatively small, predominantly warbird-oriented show and being in SoCal, many nearby warbirds attend. Definitely worth going to if you live in SoCal or are visiting! Warbirds from the Planes of Fame Museum (Chino, Calif.), the Palm Springs Air Museum and the Southern California wing of the Commemorative Air Force attend, along with modern U.S. military aircraft and other historic, privately-owned warbirds (see my other videos).

If you'd like, please also check out my other warbird videos. Thanks and happy warbirding!

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

Tags:

• WW2
• WWII
• Grumman
• Bearcat
• Spitfire
• Chino
• Zero
• P-38
• Mustang
• Hellcat
• P-51
• P-47
• P-40
• B-17
• B-24
• B-25
• Duxford
• Japanese
• Harley
• NASCAR
• UK
• U2
• Ferrari
• Thunderbolt
• Japan
• Germany
• Korea
• Corsair
• Lockheed
• EADS
• Northrop
• Airbus
• adventure
• travel
• hotels
• airfares
• vacation
• Boeing
• Jet
• Jets
• Business
• Charter
• Canada
• Canadian
• Lightning
• France
• Renault
• Porsche
• California
• Biplane
• Helicopter

[longrifle2T]

@BushPilot444

Yeah, Political Correctness is always Political and rarely correct. 

Still love the old Warbirds. Old planes period. There is a lot to like with the modern stuff, but the old birds are where it's at.

[Rammkommando]

10 people were flying buffalos when they saw this

[badmanblottclott]

@Rammkommando no, 10 peaple didnt like bombs not being dropped on new jersey for fun.

[smith45acp]

How much do these old warplanes in such good condition sell for? Millions I imagine

[Vermiliontea]

@OHNGAI Dear Ohngai, I would not have an argument with Leroy, since he would understand and agree with my point. Your comment with the Me 109 is an excellent example of how we don't communicate. Regardless whatever other good or bad attributes the Me 109 had, less demanding fighter mission than what the Me 109 was designed for is hard to imagine. Only the russians and the italians had fighters with less range & payload.

[OHNGAI]

@Vermiliontea GO AND ARGUE with the designer and test pilot,for everything you say are your words ,what i typed was a 'quote' from the men directly responsible for the whole project of this aircraft,and the 'designer' Leroy Grumman said those so YES i do take them as gospel...you state the germans never built a more capable fighter! the top 100 aces in ww2 were flying Me 109's

[Vermiliontea]

@OHNGAI I understand that you need things to be very simple. Well, prepare for a confusing life.

The Hellcat was built to do a vastly more demanding mission. The germans never built any as capable fighter. Not even Bf110 or Me410. Those "words" you take for gospel are only understandable when you consider what exactly they meant by "better". "Better" is an easy word at 50% more power/weight ratio.

...But I would have thought I made those things perfectly understandable already.

[bigtopbollocks]

Reckon you could richen the mixture touch more on start?

[chasyes1]

The Bearcat was a fearsome machine and much loved by it's pilots and hanling crews. On a carrier it was easy to position and load. Developed in response to the Kamikaze threat it could climg very well and performed extremely well in the air, and it could carry heavy loads. because of the jets coming into service and the fact the war ended before it could really get in on it, it's performance is largely forgotten, but it was a honey in every way. it was tested against all,only P-47N kept up!

[Alisterwolf66]

@segestaview Man, that had to be an impressive sight and sound (really... is there a more beautiful sound than a round motor going all-out?). I'd love to have seen it!

[the82spartans]

she sounds beutiful!

[Landoforpresident]

Bearcat vs Frank: what a fight!