The Missus and I spent the day volunteering at the Military Aviation Museum. Each Saturday during the summer we have a program called 'Summer of Flight' where one or more of our planes is showcased with a brief lecture and a flight demonstration. It's super cool and very popular.
This week's plane was the Consolidated PBY Catalina flying boat. The 'Cat was an incredibly versatile aircraft, serving in roles including bomber, anti-submarine patrol, convoy escort, observation and reconnaissance, search and rescue, and cargo plane.
First flown in 1935, the last military Catalinas were retired in the 1980s, but they are still used as firebombers, dropping water on wildfires, in some areas of the world...86 years after its first flight.
