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Gene is
rightfully proud of his restoration of an airplane identical to the one
he flew as a WW II Aviation Cadet in Lubbock, Texas - even down to the
yellow serial number on the tail. The only significant change to
the appearance was the addition of "invasion stripes" although this
airplane never left the U.S. Two hundred of these L-2s were built
for the Army Air Corps, with two later versions produced with the
successive fitting of additional overhead windows and stall strips along
the upper wing surfaces..
Visiting friends at Lake Norman after completing
his RV6, he was asked
what he wanted to work on next. When no immediate answer surfaced, an
abandoned L-2 just down the road was suggested. Gene and fellow chapter
member and neighbor Jack Phillabaum wasted no time in bringing the
project home. The Taylorcraft took Gene far longer to complete than his
RV-6, as it had to be completely disassembled and then the integrity of
each structural member assured before refurbishing and reassembling and
recovering the airplane.
Contact Gene at
ewill177@hotmail.com or 140
Buckberry Drive #1944, Sapphire, NC 28774 for more information.
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Tandem seating, simple cockpit, tailwheel, grass
strip
. . . what a combination! |
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Gene's first flight ever
was in his dad's lap aboard a Linco Flying Circus Waco in 1930.
Since then he's been hooked on airplanes, first building and
flying models, then when not yet 17 lying about his age to get
into the Air Corps, and later flying dozens of missions in C-46s
over the "Hump" in China beginning in 1943.
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