History:
The Stratocruiser and its military counterpart, the C-97 Stratofreighter, are rare birds. In over a decade of digging, the only part I've ever unearthed is a wing tip from a unique C-97… found partially buried at one of our favorite boneyards. No leads, no museum, no collection. Just a forgotten piece of USAF aviation history, half in the dirt, waiting for someone to dig it out.
The C-97's story begins with the most famous bomber of the Second World War. In early 1942, months before the B-29 Superfortress had even flown, Boeing was already quietly working on plans for a freighter version of the '29: the Model 367. Engineers retained the B-29's wing, tail, and landing gear, but added a distinctive double-bubble fuselage that created one of the largest cargo aircraft of its era.
The Stratofreighter entered service in 1947, powered by four massive 3,500-horsepower Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major engines. During the Korean War, the type hauled troops, cargo, and wounded personnel, while specialized variants served as airborne command posts for SAC.
The Stratofreighter, however, is best remembered as a tanker. Boeing transformed it into the KC-97, whose flying boom made it the backbone of SAC's aerial refueling fleet throughout the 1950s. Refueling early jets was tricky work… tanker and receiver often had to descend together in a maneuver known as "tobogganing" just to stay above stall speed. Of the nearly 900 built, more than 800 served as tankers before being replaced by the KC-135, though many later returned to transport duty once their refueling gear was removed.
JETs Vol. 26-21:
JETs. Vol 26-21 has been cut from a wing tip found at a boneyard. The wing tip retained its original data plate, stamped C-97F and marked with the serial 51-395 (51-0395), an airframe with an interesting one-of-a-kind service record.
51-0395 rolled off Boeing's Renton line as a KC-97F tanker. It was later converted to a C-97D staff transport, and finally to a C-97K. 395 was the only F-model airframe ever to be converted to the K. The K-model transports sported a distinctive, white-topped fuselage to keep their VIP passengers cool. The airframe was stored at MASDC and ultimately scrapped in 1969.
We tapped 8380 Laboratories to bring 395 back to life in C-97K livery for this release.
Variants: Riveted and Structured. Riveted JETs feature one or more complete rivets. Structured JETs feature heavy structure and/or fasteners and repair patches. All JETs come with a free buddy TRAP (keychain) through release weekend (17-19 July).
Both variants are offered with the option to choose your art. See the included Custom Shop pic for examples of each design.
Also offered are 12 LE (leading edge) cross sections. These are standalone items and come etched with the Sketch artwork. They also come with a TRAP.
The option to add a Unit 1 SHARP is also listed. For more info, visit the SHARPs listing at shopairdrops.com here.
