Hellcat raised from the lake
WAUKGAN -- A historic World War II F6F-3 Hellcat fighter plane was raised from Lake Michigan on Monday and was greeted by the CEO who financed the operation, the grandson of the pilot and the son of the man who built the airplane to challenge Japanese Zeros.
"My father flew (a Hellcat) 52 years ago," said Andy Taylor, chairman and CEO of Enterprise Holdings, parent company of Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Alamo Rent A Car, and National Car Rentals. His father received two Distinguished Flying Cross medals and five other medals while flying off the USS Enterprise, which is the company namesake.
His donation in honor of his father, Jack Taylor, will allow the plane to be refurbished at the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pennsicola, Fla., and then put on display there.
"This is amazing," he said as the plane was lifted in stages. It was found 53 miles southeast in Michigan waters about 260 feet down. The plane was recovered by Chicago-based A&T Recovery and brought to Waukegan's Larsen Marine to be lifted out of the water.
Hunter Brawley is the grandson of the pilot, Lt. Walter B. Elcock, who is 89 and still living in Atlanta along with Brawley.
"He told me to look for a pack of Lucky Strikes he left in the cockpit," said Brawley, "That's his sense of humor."
"I'm flabbergasted," Brawley said as the plane came into view.
He said his grandfather told him that he was brought in too low and too slow by the carrier crew and lost his lift. The plane landed on the carrier but went off the side, one wing breaking on a catwalk. It was Jan. 5, 1945.
"Then it hung there for 10 or 15 minutes, and then it fell into the lake. He had to crash through the ice to get out, and then the Coast Guard picked him up right away," he said.
Brawley was the first person to sit in the plane since his grandfather did.
"It was unbelievable. I'll never forget it. The gauges and throttle were all there, and you could read 'transmitter' on the transmitter box. This has been a treat. My Christmas came early," he said.
Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corp. built the Hellcat fighter plane for the Navy, and David Grumman, 75, of Evanston said his father designed the folding wings of the plane using paperclips and an eraser.
"Twelve thousand five hundred of these were made between 1942 and 1945. At the peak of production, they were making one every 20 minutes," Grumman said.
"My father (Leroy) came up with the design. It doubled the amount of planes you could get on a carrier, and it was safer," he said.
"We were outclassed by the Zeros. They talked to the pilots and came up with the Hellcat," Grumman said.
James Chernich, 77, of Kildeer dropped by to see the plane because he worked on them as a teenager at Chicago Vocational High School, where they were learning to be airplane mechanics. Chernich eventually became a pilot.
"It's amazing how well preserved it is," he said. "It scared the hell out of the Japanese because it was so fast," he said.
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/newssun/photos/1912770,gallery-fighter-plane-...
"My father flew (a Hellcat) 52 years ago," said Andy Taylor, chairman and CEO of Enterprise Holdings, parent company of Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Alamo Rent A Car, and National Car Rentals. His father received two Distinguished Flying Cross medals and five other medals while flying off the USS Enterprise, which is the company namesake.
His donation in honor of his father, Jack Taylor, will allow the plane to be refurbished at the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pennsicola, Fla., and then put on display there.
"This is amazing," he said as the plane was lifted in stages. It was found 53 miles southeast in Michigan waters about 260 feet down. The plane was recovered by Chicago-based A&T Recovery and brought to Waukegan's Larsen Marine to be lifted out of the water.
Hunter Brawley is the grandson of the pilot, Lt. Walter B. Elcock, who is 89 and still living in Atlanta along with Brawley.
"He told me to look for a pack of Lucky Strikes he left in the cockpit," said Brawley, "That's his sense of humor."
"I'm flabbergasted," Brawley said as the plane came into view.
He said his grandfather told him that he was brought in too low and too slow by the carrier crew and lost his lift. The plane landed on the carrier but went off the side, one wing breaking on a catwalk. It was Jan. 5, 1945.
"Then it hung there for 10 or 15 minutes, and then it fell into the lake. He had to crash through the ice to get out, and then the Coast Guard picked him up right away," he said.
Brawley was the first person to sit in the plane since his grandfather did.
"It was unbelievable. I'll never forget it. The gauges and throttle were all there, and you could read 'transmitter' on the transmitter box. This has been a treat. My Christmas came early," he said.
Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corp. built the Hellcat fighter plane for the Navy, and David Grumman, 75, of Evanston said his father designed the folding wings of the plane using paperclips and an eraser.
"Twelve thousand five hundred of these were made between 1942 and 1945. At the peak of production, they were making one every 20 minutes," Grumman said.
"My father (Leroy) came up with the design. It doubled the amount of planes you could get on a carrier, and it was safer," he said.
"We were outclassed by the Zeros. They talked to the pilots and came up with the Hellcat," Grumman said.
James Chernich, 77, of Kildeer dropped by to see the plane because he worked on them as a teenager at Chicago Vocational High School, where they were learning to be airplane mechanics. Chernich eventually became a pilot.
"It's amazing how well preserved it is," he said. "It scared the hell out of the Japanese because it was so fast," he said.
http://www.suburbanchicagonews.com/newssun/photos/1912770,gallery-fighter-plane-...
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- Community
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- History, Historical
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yargarita
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A bit of history from my hometown. It is not much but enjoy!
- 2 years ago
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yargarita
