Grand old dame not far from flying again

A group of New Plymouth aircraft enthusiasts are carefully restoring a 70-year-old World War II flying boat.

Brothers Brett and John Emeny, with friends Don Barr and Mike Jackson, have poured about 6000 hours into painstakingly repairing the Catalina over the last two years.

They are part of a six-member team chipping away at the plane's restoration.

The Catalina Preservation Society bought the plane for $400,000 about 20 years ago from a Frenchman who operated African Safari tours, and took visitors up and down the Nile River.

For the last 70 years, the plane had been at the mercy of the elements and was starting to show signs of "skin cancer," Brett said.

"We have been overhauling the plane progressively over the whole time. When we paint it right up, she'll be shiny and new, and will be right for the next 20 years."

It would be a further six months before the plane was airworthy.

Flying the plane was an experience in itself, Brett said.

"You definitely know you're flying a Second World War 1940s bomber. It's quite heavy on the controls. It is all manual and you have two 1200-horsepower engines there rumbling away."

He said trying to land the plane in the water was like "lowering a 12-tonne speedboat in the water at about 85 miles per hour (140kmh)".

It was important to restore the Catalina because it was a very special plane with a rich wartime history and that should be preserved, Brett said.

The preservation society had raised $250,000 toward repair works and a further $100,000 is needed to finish the job.

It would set the society back by more than a $1 million for it to be commercially repaired.

The plane's spare parts were sourced from around the world and tracing them could be a mission, Brett said.

Any spare parts that were not available were made at the Bell Block hangar.

The Catalina was built in Montreal, Canada, in 1944 and was used by the Royal Canadian Air Force.

People wanting to donate money or volunteer their time towards the Catalina's restoration can contact Brett Emeny on 027 442 7735.