AVENGER RESTORATION
The Canadian Warplane Heritage Avenger (TBM-3E) was built by General Motors,
Eastern Aircraft Division in 1945. It flew with the US Navy until the early
1950's when it was retired. Later it was converted to a sprayer which operated
in California from 1963 to 1972.
In 1976, Forest Products Ltd. of New Brunswick purchased it and
the aircraft continued to fly in a similar role until it was finally retired
from commercial service in 1992.
In 2000 it was sold to a French aircraft preservation group but they
were unable to arrange transport for it across the Atlantic. CWH acquired
the aircraft with the assistance of a generous donor in late 2009. Below
is how the Avenger restoration looked on February 23, 2010.
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| February 2010: The restoration of the forward
portion of the airframe is in an advanced state of restoration. What's
nice about CWH is the fact that the restoration area and the exhibits share
common floor space thus affording any visitor a good look at what's going
on behind the scenes. |
 |
| February 2010: Some parts of the aircraft like the bombay doors are
missing so they will have to be fabricated if no spares can be located. |
 |
| February 2010: Front of Wright Cyclone R-2600-20
engine. The R-2600 was a 2-row version of the R-1300. There was a fundamental
difference in design philosophy between Curtiss Wright and Pratt &
Whitney. Wright seemed to prefer big(ger) cylinders while P&W
designed with medium-size cylinders and more of them. |
 |
| February 2010: Rear of engine. Luckily, this
engine has a low amount of hours on it which means it will not have to
be rebuilt. |
| All photos in this table by Jerry Proc |
AVENGER READY TO FLY
CWHM’s Grumman Avenger is ready to fly!
Posted on July 14, 2020 by Al Mickeloff
So close…if it were not for delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic,
the latest aircraft restoration at the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum
would be airborne by now.“We’re nearly there,” said Glen Craigie who, along
with 14 other volunteers, have put in about 50,000 hours of restoration
work on the aircraft since it arrived on the back of two flatbed trucks
on Oct. 21, 2009.
The aircraft — a Grumman Avenger — is an American torpedo bomber most
recognized for military action during the Second World War at the Battle
of Midway. In June 1943, future U.S. President George H.W. Bush was shot
down while flying an Avenger. Another famous Avenger aviator was Paul Newman,
who flew as a rear gunner.
In Canada, a total of 125 U.S. Navy Grumman TBM-3E Avengers were taken
on strength with the Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) in the spring of 1950, making
the Avenger the most numerous aircraft to serve in the RCN. The Avenger
replaced the Fairey Firefly because of its long range, heavy load carrying
capability, rugged construction, and the easy procurement of spare parts.
After taking delivery of their TBM-3E Avengers in May 1950, the RCN modified
the aircraft for a specialized anti-submarine role. Avengers were flown
from the air station HMCS Shearwater and the aircraft carrier HMCS Magnificent
until they were officially retired in July 1960.
The Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum’s Avenger was built in 1945 by
the Eastern Aircraft Division of General Motors and flew with the U.S.
Navy until the early ’50s. It was then converted into a spray plane and
flew over parts of California from 1963 to 1972. In 1976, the aircraft
was acquired by Forest Protection Limited in Fredericton, N.B., where it
continued as a budworm spray aircraft until it was retired in 1992. Eight
years later, the aircraft was sold to a French preservation group who were
unable to arrange for transport across the Atlantic. In October of 2009,
the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum acquired the Avenger thanks to the
help of a generous donor.
Craigie, a retired airframe mechanic, flight service engineer and tech
support person at Bombardier, recalled the Avenger was in rough condition
when it arrived. “It was a mess,” he said.
Over time, the aircraft was stripped down to the bare fuselage and soda
blasted (using baking soda instead of sand to remove old paint). New bomb
bay doors were added and the aircraft was repainted in the colours of a
Royal Canadian Navy Avenger.
Hopefully, later in 2020, things will return to normal and the Avenger
can take to the skies once again!
