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First Customer Lear Jet To Be Restored
The world’s oldest Lear Jet is on its way to its birthplace where a group of enthusiasts hopes to restore it to flying condition. (r.smartbrief.com) Más...Sort type: [Top] [Newest]
Even if/when it is restored to flying condition: 1) I hope it is restored with the original Grimes oscillating tandem type beacons; 2) I hope it is not flown but instead, loaned to a museum. It is too rare of a bird to take the risk of flying it...especially with the ever increasing number of aviation boo-boos, mishaps and 'close calls'.
Would love to read the history of the old Jet. My Dad used to fly Lear Jets of the era out of Van Nuys with Clay Lacy and the company partly owned by Danny Kaye.
IMHO your first flight in any 20 series was akin to hanging on to the tail of a tiger. There was no question about what was ahead of whom, nor would the slow catch up in a trip or twenty! Didn't take long to figure out that throttles were the answer! Learning to open or close the Door was a right of passage for some and I observed more than one Captain exceed the flap retract speed as we rapidly approached the 2000' level off restriction out of ADS, still at max. epr. goin' thru 250. OOOhh duh, 82% was the magic # after gear up call and you really don't need a 15 degree deck up angle to get to 2000' from a 644' elevation base.
The reality was, there was no sim training, duty times were, umm, flexible and FEDEX MEM call outs meant it was Christmas or the weather sucked and their guys weren't goin' and the supplemental LrJets, Falcon 20's and 'believe it or not' an occasional Hansa Jet flew that 'absolutely had to be there overnight' merd that got there. Freight doggin' was the right of passage for many and the Lear was the predominant tool. type and ATP ride in a Lr. 25 was my iniation to the 'club' of jet drivers and I look back on it fondly.
The reality was, there was no sim training, duty times were, umm, flexible and FEDEX MEM call outs meant it was Christmas or the weather sucked and their guys weren't goin' and the supplemental LrJets, Falcon 20's and 'believe it or not' an occasional Hansa Jet flew that 'absolutely had to be there overnight' merd that got there. Freight doggin' was the right of passage for many and the Lear was the predominant tool. type and ATP ride in a Lr. 25 was my iniation to the 'club' of jet drivers and I look back on it fondly.
These old Lears are still the best-looking small jets.
Hot machine but they were so thirsty, the moment you reached cruise altitude you had to be looking for a place to land.
Maybe that is where the saying came from "Fly high, fly fast, look for gas."