Alien Landings 2

Michelle "Widget" Goodeve performs a perfect, three-wheels-rolling, taildragger landing in the last flying Thruxton Jackaroo in the world. "T.J." started life as a 1937 Tiger Moth and is a genuine "Warbird." The biplane flew all over England throughout WW2, working as a trainer, a squadron transport, and coastal submarine patroller! In 1958, the 21-year-old biplane was converted to a 4-seater and became a Thruxton Jackaroo. Michelle (Ms. Avery on the PBS/CBC series "Degrassi Jr. High") and her partner, Glenn Norman, flew the Jackaroo in a "Trans-Continental Air Dash" while she was still a teenager. Tom Dietrich (of "Tiger Boys" fame) purchased the rare flying machine from the US in the late seventies and restored it to better-than-new condition. TJ is co-owned by Tiger Boy Steve Grey and flies out of Guelph Airpark in Ontario, Canada.
This clip is the second in a series of Sneak Peeks from Fearless Widget Productions' soon-to-be-released DVD, "Alien Landings"; a surreal, slo-mo look at the out-of-this-world universe of antique, classic & grassroots aircraft.
Shot in High definition.
More info at http://www.fearwidg.com
More Sneak Peeks coming soon.
And be sure to visit our new FREE Online, Multi-Media Aviation Journal: www.whyfly.aero

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

Tags:

• alien
• landings
• biplane
• bi-plane
• taildragger
• antique
• airplane
• aviation
• fearless
• widget
• Thruxton
• Jackaroo
• Tiger
• Moth

[fearwidge]

The Tiger Boys' Jackaroo, flown here by Michelle Goodeve, was initially owned by Colchester Airspray and was used as a Crop Duster, so it definitely made money.

The main reason for turning Moths into Jackaroos was the lack of 4-seat aircraft in the UK after the war. Once import bans were lifted, Tri-Pacers & C-170's flooded into England and that was it for the Thruxton Jackaroo. What the aircraft is still great for is getting kids up for their first flight as Mom or Dad can come with them.

[Krusadeer]

That rudder sure was twitching fully left and right...Maybe a tad of overcorrection involved there?

Not being critical but jeez.....the rudder was almost full deflection both ways.....

[fearwidge]

This particular Jackaroo uses Canadian Tiger Moth brakes. It's a weird setup with the brakes located at the far end of the rudder travel . The more rudder you use, the more brake you get. There is a brake handle, but it's hard to reach and can swerve the plane unless set up perfectly. So most Moth pilots "fan" the rudder - hitting left brake then right - to stop the aircraft.

[petermartindale]

there are actually three air-worthy jackaroos left in the world

[fearwidge]

That number changes all the time. When I wrote the text, "T.J." was the only one flying. I've heard there are now two others flying in England (though one is a Rollason Jackaroo - a tapered variant of the original Thruxton version.) I know there was a Thruxton Jackaroo in Australia, but heard it was sold back to England where it's being re-built. Many of the original 16 Jackaroos were returned to Tiger Moth status, which is a shame as this is a great airplane.

[turtlebean2]

Beautiful, love the plane and the landing.

[SproatyMusicChannel]

that LOOKED like a normal landing

[JcXtreme72]

That is a beautiful plane.

[plokij121]

Where is the alien?

[airbutz]

it aint get any better than that.. perfect ..

[LethalHobo]

can you guys post the videos with a normal time sequence added? IMHO its prettier visually, and audibly

[whizbang47]

Did people make money with these, as in sightseeing parties, air taxi, etc.? I'm surprised there were only 16.

I remember seeing one in the transient parking at the old Fitzmaurice field in the '50s.

[pete2778]

Yes it is, look at the small dust cloud when the aeroplane touches down, it hangs in the air too long for this to be in real time. I'd like to have see it at full speed, it's a perfect three pointer.

[pandawaste123]

is it me or did he have to go faster to taxi?

[stuartfraser04]

just a perfect landing