Summer 2024 Report

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First up, a short overview of the increasing number of Norseman in Joe McBryan’s collection;

In Yellowknife Joe has his personal Mk V, serial N29-29, CF-SAN floatplane although the latest news indicates it has yet to fly this season. Also in the hangar are a dismantled Mk VI, serial 625, CF-FQX and the fuselage of Mk VI, serial 242, CF-NJK. Down in Red Deer, Alberta we have the latest acquisition of Mk V, serial N29-23, N45TG as mentioned in the previous post. Another Mk V, serial N29-31, CF-ECD is in pieces sitting beside an unidentified Norseman that apparently came from Argentina. Lastly are a couple Mk VI fuselage airframes, serial 564, CF-NJV and what is believed to be serial 421 last registered as CF-GOB.

Going eastward in Canada, there are a few exciting Norseman events on the horizon to look forward to;

Red Lake will have the annual festival on July 12, 13, and 14 followed by Aviation Day at the Red Lake airport on July 20.

Final plans are coming together to have CF-JIN back in the air! Originally a Mk IV model for the RCAF this beautiful restored Norseman now wears its military colours again and how appropriate with 2024 being the 100th anniversary of the RCAF.

The legendary Norseman lives on to the extent that CF-JEC is returning to commercial service next year! The new owners, Air Mont-Laurier plan to operate this metalized fuselage Mk VI privately for 2024 and it will remain in Quebec after the recent purchase.

With the sales of N45TG and CF-JEC hopefully down in the USA a new buyer can be found for N164UC. The price has been reduced to $195,000 USD and is now open to offers. Search up the details at barnstormers.com

With the ongoing activity the Norseman list was updated and can be seen by clicking on the following link; AIRWORTHY NOORDUYN NORSEMAN as of 1 July 2024 Page 1 of 3

Have a great summer!

Alberta Bound

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Actually about two weeks ago, Norseman N45TG was loaded on a trailer in Baudette, Minnesota and had a long road trip angling into Canada then west to Red Deer, Alberta.

This Mark V model was CF-BSH in northwest Ontario with the last Canadian operator being Pikangikum Air Service.

New owner, Joe McBryan will probably use the aircraft for spares to keep his personal Mark V CF-SAN flying. If Joe’s plans come together he would also like to rebuild another Norseman from his collection and have a second one active. The next blogpost will take a quick review of the collection located in Red Deer and the three additional Norseman in Yellowknife. Thanks to Dave From for sending me some photos.

 

 

 

 

Buyer’s Market Status Update

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Buffalo Airways (Ice Pilots NWT and Plane Savers fame) has purchased Norseman N45TG that was featured in the previous blogpost. The plan is to have the airplane moved by road to the Red Deer airport in Alberta where Buffalo has a large maintenance and storage operation.

Founder Joe McBryan is an avid Norseman enthusiast and this Mk V, Noorduyn serial N29-23 will join four other airframes in Red Deer. In total, Joe will now have 8 Norseman frames varying in condition from spare fuselage tubing to airworthy Mk V CF-SAN. This could now constitute the largest collection in the world. Northland Aircraft Service in Ignace, Ontario is the only other outfit that has Norseman and parts for them at this scale.

In the USA, Norseman N164UC has had a $20,500 price reduction to $224,500 USD. The other N registered Mk VI that is being actively marketed, N78691 remains priced at $169,500 USD.

The Airworthy Norseman list was updated at the beginning of 2024 with minor edits and CF-BSB moved to the not active page because it last flew in October of 2021.

AIRWORTHY NOORDUYN NORSEMAN as of 1 January 2024 Page 1 of 3

Click or tap the above link to see the PDF.

Buyer’s Market

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Mk V Norseman, N45TG has been in open storage at the Baudette airport, Minnesota for many years and the owner would like to sell the airplane and all associated parts as a total package in the near future. The airport operator is asking for the airplane to be moved from the property and this will necessitate dismantling and a relocation soon before the coldest parts of winter arrive.

If you are looking for a project or need Norseman spares, contact Todd Griffen at 218 556-2589.

May 2022. Photo credit – Raymond Oostergo.

This started me thinking about other Norseman presently for sale and there are quite a few.

In Alaska, N78691 (Mk VI, Noorduyn serial 637) is advertised at 169,500 USD. Operated commercially on wheels it is now parked awaiting a new owner as the current owner switched to turbine powered equipment. See; N78691

On Platinum Fighter Sales (link here) is an add for Noorduyn serial 224 with the interesting registration of N164UC. This is a play on the Norseman’s USAAF designation of UC-64. Asking price is $245,000 USD.

Not actively listed although still on the market is Norseman floatplane CF-JEC located near La Motte, Quebec. Last advertised at $197,500 CAD, this Mk VI with Noorduyn serial 469 is featured on a beer label by Bush Pilot Brewing! If you are interested please call owner Olivier Lemieux at 819 727-4080 or email; olivier.lemieux@servicesgfe.ca

Other Norseman that are presently inactive and potential buys are CF-FOX and CF-LZO. For information, email; c46commando@hotmail.com

Norseman Status 2023

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The Norseman Festival is only a few weeks away and for those interested here is the latest information about where these classic bush planes continue to operate. A few highlights follow;

The biggest news is the sale of CF-IGX to Clark’s Outposts where it will be operated privately shuttling supplies from their base at Cedar Lake, Ontario to 25 Fly-In Outposts. The Norseman is well suited for this type of work and hopefully IGX can make an appearance at this next edition of the festival.

In southern Ontario, preparations are underway to have CF-JIN back flying after a complete restoration to its first chapter of existence as RCAF 2482. If you want to own a piece of history see; http://www.cfjin.ca

CF-JEC is not being used this summer and is for sale at $197,500 Canadian dollars.

A couple Norseman in the USA have come back on the market. One of these, N78691 is in Alaska and the owner is switching to a turbine powered airplane.

Please send me an email or call if you know any other Norseman news. Contact information is at the bottom of page 1.

Click to see the full list;

AIRWORTHY NOORDUYN NORSEMAN as of 1 July 2023 Page 1 of 3

Norseman Warbird Restorations USA

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Above photo – Vultee BT-13 Valiant in foreground. February 15, 2023.

As a follow on to the last blogpost, we will look at a couple of the restorations presently occurring in the USA. There certainly is no shortage of Norseman rebuilds going on and first up is Noorduyn serial 163 at Boulder, Colorado.

This UC-64A model was delivered to the USAAF as 43-5172 in July 1943 and after the end of WW II went onto the US civil aircraft register in mid 1946 as N61853, the same registration it carries to this day. After a time in Minnesota it went north to Wien Air Alaska in 1951, then eleven years later it was purchased by Parachutes Incorporated and modified for use as a skydiving jump ship. In need of a major overhaul, N61853 sat idle from 1980 to 1984 and was in poor shape when sold at auction in October 1984 to Wanda and Glen Courtwright.

Over a few years they restored the Norseman to its military configuration and painted it in the totem insignia of the Alaska Rescue Unit of Air Transport Command.

In 2006, J W Duff Aircraft acquired the airplane and in April of 2014 ownership was transferred to its present owner, Dave Elliott who intended to fly the Norseman but unfortunately or perhaps fortunately some barely visible cracks were discovered in a wooden wing spar. Fast forward to 2023 and two sets of brand new wings are being created to get this Norseman back in the air! Interestingly, 853 might take up skydivers again and provide flight seeing along the front range in Colorado.

 

Next up is another UC-64A with Noorduyn serial 139, USAAF serial 43-5148 in Yanks Air Museum located at the Chino airport, California. Immediately transferred via Lend-Lease to Canada this Norseman became a standard RCAF Mk VI model, serial 790. Although it was never actually operated by the USAAC or USAAF, Yanks will likely finish it in markings as 43-5148.

 

 

Not surprisingly, the revived flight instrument panel of serial 139 looks very similar to serial 163. Norseman production was ramping up fast for the war effort and only a few weeks separated their delivery dates.

The following history is repeated from a previous post on December 10, 2021; https://www.norsemanfestival.on.ca/yanks-air-update/

After serving as RCAF 790, it went to Georgian Bay Airways of Parry Sound, Ontario in August of 1955 becoming CF-IJG on the Canadian Civil Register. Unfortunately, the aircraft sank on July 18, 1966 after a hard glassy water landing on Antiguois Lake, Quebec. Fortunately, there were no injuries.

Apparently in the 1970’s, Lloyd Street bought the Norseman “as is” from the insurance company, made temporary repairs with the assistance of Gordon Hughes and ferried the aircraft out from the lake. For many years it languished on a farm near Gravenhurst, Ontario until being moved to the FAA registry for Yanks in the summer of 2010, now N420QN.

Excellent craftsmanship is apparent in this ongoing restoration. Photo taken on February 28, 2023.

There is no definitive timeline for the completion of this project but in due course we should see yet another Norseman up and flying. As of this March 2023 there are eleven active airworthy Norseman in the world and the status is changing with increasing interest in warbird reincarnations. Even though they usually only fly during the warmer times of the year, the many exciting developments going on will probably increase the future chances for a Norseman enthusiast to go for a flight in one!

Norseman News Roundup

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One of the last commercially operated Norseman in Canada sporting the latest Wings Over Kississing titles. BHU is a Mk VI, serial 506 based at Channing waterdrome, Flin Flon, Manitoba.

The restoration project of Norseman serial 668, LV-FFH in Argentina has come to a halt. Fortunately the airframe is stored in a hangar and awaits a new owner to complete it. Hopefully one day this Norseman will return to the air as the sole example flying in the southern hemisphere.

In Europe, work continues to return three UC-64 (Mk VI) Norseman to airworthy status. LN-TSN, serial 780 operated by the Norwegian Spitfire Foundation is in need of a routine engine overhaul and could be airborne in the spring of 2023. Across the North Sea in the Netherlands, serial 365 and 774 are being worked on by the Dutch Transport Museum and the Aviodrome, respectively. All three Norseman will be operated as warbirds and carry markings from their original military service.

Norseman N164UC (Note – 64UC is a play on UC-64) made another appearance at Oshkosh last summer and is presently the only flying one in the Lower 48 since N364FQ ferried up to Alaska from Minnesota in June 2022. As in Europe, there are three Norseman warbirds under restoration in the USA. These are Noorduyn serial 139, current civil registration N420QN; Noorduyn serial 163, N61853 and Noorduyn serial 797, N797TS.

Yet another project in the works is located in northern Canada at Yellowknife where owner of many Norseman airframes, Joe McBryan plans to get one flying again. This timeline was stalled by the recent chaos of the last 2 plus years and should get started shortly. Elsewhere, in Sarnia, Canada preparations continue with CF-JIN/RCAF 2482 for its inaugural post restoration flight. This aircraft originally built in 1941 as a Mk IV is on rebuild number four after sustaining major hail damage at Red Lake, Ontario in July 2017. Speaking of Red Lake, the 2022 Norseman Festival itself was absent of a flying example but C-FFUU and CF-ZMX were seen in the area over the summer. Being that they are no longer operated commercially, these private Norseman are flown on a limited basis and might not be at Red Lake during festival time.

Mk IV C-FFUU, June 7, 2022.

Mk VI CF-ZMX, August 21, 2022. Howey Bay, Red Lake.

Subject: Norseman List 2022

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Please email me for the latest listing on the status of 38 Norseman in the world today. Another list from last year gives the additional locations of 18 Norseman in museums or mounted on pylons in Canada and the USA.

email: c46commando@hotmail.com

Mk IV, Serial 44 as seen at the Saskatchewan Aviation Museum on August 31, 2022. This restoration is gaining momentum and hopefully a fully operational engine will allow ground runs to bring this artifact of history alive. The aircraft served during WW II as RCAF 2471. See, https://saskaviation.ca/1941-noorduyn-norseman-mkiv-rcaf-2471-s-n-44/

CF-AYO Replica

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Restoration work appears to be moving along at a greater pace in the Montreal Aviation Museum with their Norseman C-FGYY. This Mark VI, serial 427 was originally USAAF number 43-35353. The museum acquired the aircraft in derelict condition during 2017 and decided to depict it in the colours of AYO’s first commercial operator, Dominion Skyways who named it Arcturus.

For authenticity, this new static display has replaced GYY’s Pratt & Whitney R-1340 with the Wright Whirlwind R-975 that first powered AYO. When viewing this completed project, the observer will be seeing a replica of the Norseman serial 1, CF-AYO as it looked in early 1936. If one wishes to see the wreckage of the actual AYO you will need to travel almost 1,000 km’s to the west where it is located at the Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. https://bushplane.com/exhibits/bushplane-collection/norseman-mki/

Note how the rear door hinges upward. This is not a feature of AYO and is unique to GYY. Normally this door would hinge forward.

The wings are the last major airframe structure getting restored.

This is an exciting addition to the museum that also has a large aviation art gallery. If you are visiting Montreal, the city where the Norseman was created in 1935, check out the fantastic job the dedicated volunteers are doing with this Norseman display. https://www.mam.quebec/discover-our-museum-2/

Memory Lane

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From 1935 to 1959 Norseman were in production at the Cartierville airport in Montreal. By the 1990’s this property was prime land for redevelopment as the city grew to cover almost all of the Island of Montreal. See https://www.norsemanfestival.on.ca/norduyn-now/ and https://www.norsemanfestival.on.ca/norduyn-now-redux/

Very near the spot where the huge complex rolled out the Norseman utility airplane by the hundreds during WW II, now reside townhouses in the Bois-Franc neighbourhood. In a nod to the history of the prior land use, this housing is called Square Norseman. It is likely few, if any new homeowners realize the significance or reason why Norseman is in the name. This is the last corner of the old airport site to be redeveloped and little evidence exists other than the remaining large Bombardier aviation building. This too will probably shrink in the next few years as Bombardier has downsized its scope of operations.

Signage pointing to the SQUARE NORSEMAN townhouses. February 21, 2022.

Speaking of downsizing, I plan to post less frequently going forward. Perhaps four times a year depending on fleet activity with more of a focus on just where the airplanes are moving to with new owners, etc. It has been a great six year run and many Norseman or related subjects have been covered. The only constant is change itself and formats appear to have changed from webpage blogposts to more popular social media, whether legacy sites or alternative news.

If anyone still has questions about the Norseman or Noorduyn Aviation please email; c46commando@hotmail.com and I will do my best to answer. Also, I plan to keep the active Norseman list up to date on a yearly basis. Email me for a current copy if you do not see it at the Norseman Festival website.

Thanks Norseman fans and I hope you enjoy the posts as much as I like writing them!