Catalina - the flying yacht

[Eric Mc]

When did this happen?

[IanMorewood]

2011 at a guess.

[jpringle819]

Fishtigua said:

Jimmy Buffett, the Parrot-head singer, had one as a 'yacht'. Well his uncle is Warren Buffett, the billionair.

I am fairly sure they aren't related. Jimmy Buffett had/has a Grumman HU-16C Albatross. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemisphere_Dancer

[Eric Mc]

And, because of the thread on USAF and US Navy aircraft designations, you should now understand why the Navy referred to the Catalina as the PBY.

[Boatbuoy]

I hate it when people use acronyms.

[Eric Mc]

Boatbuoy said:

I hate it when people use acronyms.

Don't blame me, blame the US Navy.

And it's all explained in the other thread.

But if you're too lazy to look, I'll explain it here too -

The old US Navy's designation system (prior to 1962) was tortuous.

Each airframe manufacturer was given a company code letter.

Each aircraft role was given a code letter or letters.

And each individual aircraft was given a number based on the number of different types that had been ordered from the particular manufacturer.

For instance, Grumman had the letter "F". Thus the Wildcat was designated the F4F which worked out as "F" for Fighter, "4" for the 4th Grumman design ordered by the Navy and "F" for Grumman.

The Douglas Devastator was the TBD, with "TB" for Torpedo Bomber and "D" for Douglas.
The Avenger was TBF, if built by Grumman or TBM, if built by General Motors.
The famous DC-3 was known as the R4D in Navy service. It was the C-47 in USAAF service.

In the specific example of the PBY,

PB stood for Patrol Boat
Y was the US Navy's designator for the Consolidated Aircraft Company , the manufacturers.

[Simpo Two]

So what would our a/c - Spitfire, Hurricane, Lancaster, Mosquito etc look like with US-style names?

I suppose a Spitfire would be P-something-S (for Supermarine)...?

[Ginetta G15 Girl]

Please explain how PBY is an acronym.

[Eric Mc]

Simpo Two said:

So what would our a/c - Spitfire, Hurricane, Lancaster, Mosquito etc look like with US-style names?

I suppose a Spitfire would be P-something-S (for Supermarine)...?

It would depend on who was operating it as to what designation system it would have ended up under. As it is, the US did operate a number of British types during World War 2 (Spitfire, Beaufighter, Mosquito etc are good examples) and they didn't allocate these aircraft any sort of designation other than their names as given by the British.

The manufacturer's letter given on US Navy aircraft was not based on the first letter of the company name. It was just a letter given in order of allocation by the US Navy Bureau of Aeronautics

F - Grumman
D - Douglas (a coincidence)
Y - Consolidated
A - Brewster

[Boatbuoy]

Relax everyone! I was having a gentle prod Eric, you know how some people get lost in the acronym heavy aviation world.

[Eric Mc]

Including me - especially if they are really obscure and only used by "service" or "ex-service" chaps and chapesses.

[perdu]

Ginetta G15 Girl said:

Please explain how PBY is an acronym.

I always thought it were a descriptive label and now its acronyminous

Wow

[Ginetta G15 Girl]

Because, of course, it's not an acronym is it?

At best it is an initialisation.

At worst it is a code.

I like to think of it as a TLA.

[jamieduff1981]

Ginetta G15 Girl said:

Because, of course, it's not an acronym is it?

At best it is an initialisation.

At worst it is a code.

I like to think of it as a TLA.

What we really need is a thread explaining the difference between an acronym and an abbreviation.

All acronyms are abbreviations. Not all abbreviations are acronyms.

[hwajones]

Took me a while to remember/get around to uploading...
These are before the accident.
I have pictures of us trailing it up out of the water with the Manitou but cant find them atm.

[hwajones]

[hwajones]

[Simpo Two]

It's a great pity the link I started this thread with no longer works and the photos have gone. That's the danger of the internet - lots of amazing/valuable info there one day - pfft, gone the next. Cloud or no Cloud, it doesn't bode well I think for the long term archival of important things.

[IanMorewood]

Ok so a new link with some gratuitous flying yacht pictures and the odd young lady wearing a bikini, finishes with some pictures of Kendalls derelict PBY.

http://www.messynessychic.com/2014/04/24/all-aboar...

Edited by IanMorewood on Monday 19th January 19:25

[Simpo Two]

A pity they couldn't give the brown fellows some return fire.