The Mallard Goes To Sacramento

AlbatrossFlyer · Post by **AlbatrossFlyer** » August 17, 2004 5:57 pm

filed the paperwork to reserve the name Desert Seaplanes Inc.

actually the hanger floor was pretty dirty at the time. but then again the expectation is you should be able to eat off of the floor. (i'm not joking either) the floor is painted with a special epoxy paint that runs about $300 a gallon and seals the concrete, is impervious to aircraft fluids, and is a nice shiny high gloss white. each hanger is 75' x 75' or 5625 sq ft.

RR i'll see about getting some more photos next time i'm up....

the mallard is serial number 8 of 59. approximately 25 aircraft are still thought to be flying. 13 were converted to turboprops, chalks has 3 of the turboprops flying and another 3 in "pieces".

Frank Fuller purchased the aircraft new from grumman and took delivery of the aircraft on December 7th, 1946. for the aviation history buffs, frank won the Bendix Air Race in 1937 & 1939. Frank owned and flew the plane until October 1974 when he sold it to the current owner Reid Dennis. 2 owners, personal use only, that's it... Reid also owns the Albatross i get to play with. (and the 2 citations, plus 3 or 4 other miscellaneous aircraft)

The plane has about 6200 hours on it now and has never been "restored". 2 winters ago the interior was reconfigured back to the way grumman sold the bulk of the planes with 2 side wall couches in the forward cabin. Only a few years ago did we learn that the existing cabin configuration was not stock. Frank had grumman install a custom configuration with only one couch and 2 seats in the forward cabin since his wife suffered from MS and had some mobility problems with the stock layout. the rear cabin area has 4 seats arranged in a club configuration. while the cabin was out for refurb, i installed a complete audio/video system in the cabin including flat panel video displays. the system can display either DVDs or a moving map of the flight plan the aircraft is flying including waypoints, heading and time to destination information.

both the engines and props are the original ones... the aircraft has won numerous awards and is considered to be the most original mallard still flying. it's pristine has been maintained this way for nearly 48 years since delivery. based on it pedigree it's probably worth 2.5 to 3 million

RinglingRingling · Post by **RinglingRingling** » August 17, 2004 7:53 pm

AlbatrossFlyer wrote:filed the paperwork to reserve the name Desert Seaplanes Inc.

actually the hanger floor was pretty dirty at the time. but then again the expectation is you should be able to eat off of the floor. (i'm not joking either) the floor is painted with a special epoxy paint that runs about $300 a gallon and seals the concrete, is impervious to aircraft fluids, and is a nice shiny high gloss white. each hanger is 75' x 75' or 5625 sq ft.

RR i'll see about getting some more photos next time i'm up....
the mallard is serial number 8 of 59. approximately 25 aircraft are still thought to be flying. 13 were converted to turboprops, chalks has 3 of the turboprops flying and another 3 in "pieces".

Frank Fuller purchased the aircraft new from grumman and took delivery of the aircraft on December 7th, 1946. for the aviation history buffs, frank won the Bendix Air Race in 1937 & 1939. Frank owned and flew the plane until October 1974 when he sold it to the current owner Reid Dennis. 2 owners, personal use only, that's it... Reid also owns the Albatross i get to play with. (and the 2 citations, plus 3 or 4 other miscellaneous aircraft)

The plane has about 6200 hours on it now and has never been "restored". 2 winters ago the interior was reconfigured back to the way grumman sold the bulk of the planes with 2 side wall couches in the forward cabin. Only a few years ago did we learn that the existing cabin configuration was not stock. Frank had grumman install a custom configuration with only one couch and 2 seats in the forward cabin since his wife suffered from MS and had some mobility problems with the stock layout. the rear cabin area has 4 seats arranged in a club configuration. while the cabin was out for refurb, i installed a complete audio/video system in the cabin including flat panel video displays. the system can display either DVDs or a moving map of the flight plan the aircraft is flying including waypoints, heading and time to destination information.

both the engines and props are the original ones... the aircraft has won numerous awards and is considered to be the most original mallard still flying. it's pristine has been maintained this way for nearly 48 years since delivery. based on it pedigree it's probably worth 2.5 to 3 million

Thanks AF, I was just talking thru my hat. While the pictures would be great, it would be a big imposition, and not something I could ask for with a straight face. (Yes, it is that "MN Nice thing": wistful, but you never take the cookie until the third offer..

)

Although, I will say this: if you ever did have the time, and did get pictures like that, the least I could do is name my first-born after you.

AlbatrossFlyer · Post by **AlbatrossFlyer** » August 17, 2004 8:15 pm

really not a big deal to take the pics. although my digital camera left with my mom on her cruise today...

do you want the displays on or off?

redwinemaker · Post by **redwinemaker** » August 18, 2004 3:18 pm

Very cool, C. Hope to see ya sometime soon. Hayward is closer to Heinolds anyway

RinglingRingling · Post by **RinglingRingling** » August 18, 2004 3:23 pm

AlbatrossFlyer wrote:really not a big deal to take the pics. although my digital camera left with my mom on her cruise today...

do you want the displays on or off?

on helps with the gauge placement. I can approximate without them, but with lets me get as realistic as possible. (and for the record, there is no real good panel for the Albatross, so you would be getting a lion's-share of the credit for the help.

)