Skyrocket

Jonathan Baron

Jonathan Baron

New member
I saw an ad on Barnstormers yesterday for a Sky Rocket project - a true project, though not as bad as one of those piles of rust they pull out of a swamp somewhere and try to sell as a P40 project. The guy wanted one hundred grand for it - 100 THOUsand bucks. I'm sure it will be snatched up about as fast as that -3 that has been listed since '03 for 68k <cough>.

Maybe you would know, Dan - whatever became of the Miss Veedoll replica Sky Rocket? I knew it ground looped on that grand antique airplane air tour a few years back, but I've not heard anything about it since.

Jonathan
 
The Miss Veedol Bellanca was fixed after being trucked back to Wenatchee. It has flown a couple times since and is now a hangar queen. The Senior Skyrocket project is an airplane that I've known about for years. I doubt any would bite at 100grand to get started. It'll take at least 150 grand more to finish.
 
Alas....Bellancas of all breeds suffer hardest it seems from incarceration as hangar queens but perhaps my personal experience influences my point of view on this, having purchased one. Wasn't Miss Veedoll created by group or foundation? Was it built to commemorate an anniversary of that non-stop flight from Tokyo, or for the civic pride of Wenatchee, per se? If so, I suppose it will go the way of the St. Louis Cardinal at Sacramento Sky Ranch <sigh>.

It seems that several different rare projects come up for sale from time to time with outrageous asking prices, no takers, and they later appear for sale yet again at the same ludicrous price or higher. Ken Cassens, of Old Reinbeck fame or infamy, has been trying to sell the same Luscombe Phantom basket case for two decades with the price getting higher each time. The relationship of the value a man places on his airplane (oi collection of parts of an airplane) and market reality...well...everyone knows the state of that connection ;) And just think of all the airplanes flying today that had to wait for two or more estate sales before the price and person capable of restoring them came together.

Jonathan
 
The Senior Skyrocket was a development of the original Skyrocket, as I illustrated in our last newsletter. Different fuselage, landing gear and empanage. This was powered by an updated P/W Wasp producing 500 and 550 Hp and a controllable prop. I believe production started in 1934--------along with the Senior Pacemaker. The model designation was 31-50 and 31-55. The Wright powered Senior Pacemaker was 31-42.
 
Dang, Dan - sorry about that; I usually read your article first when a new issue of the Newsletter arrives. You might say, "No kidding - it's always the first article," but I scan magazines back to front. I'll hunt it down directly.
 
The current newsletter, due out in a couple weeks, describes the 'Senior Series' and had a couple nice photos for illustration.
 
Dan- at least you and I are enthusiastic. I'll bet there are other "closet" enthusiasts as well!
 
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