The restoration of the Yanks Air Museum’s P-63A-7 King Cobra is complete, flying for the first time in 40 years on Friday.
Yanks Air Museum showed footage of the flight, taking off in the early morning on Dec. 1 for its first ride in the sky in decades. Acquiring and restoring aircraft preserves aviation history. The P-63, called Fatal Fang, was acquired in 1978 and restored, ready to fly once again. Comments online praised the work of the museum and the success of the first fight in years. Groups like the EAA commented, saying what most of the comment section was thinking, “Hopefully, we can all see this beauty at EAA AirVenture.”
The museum’s collection began over 40 years ago with the acquisition of a Beech Staggerwing, growing to an impressive collection of over 200 aircraft in varying stages of the restoration process. From the bottom of the Great Lakes of Michigan to an excavation site a world over, the team at the museum has built its collection with rare aircraft as well as real stories and historical accounts from those who lived and served alongside these planes.
A team of highly skilled staff takes the aircraft through an extensive restoration process, each individual aircraft bringing its own specific needs and requirements. Parts and materials used for the restoration can be difficult to find or make, as many are specific to an era and time frame and may not have a modern equivalent. Using these materials helps to accurately restore all of the museum’s aircraft. Normal restoration time can range from years to decades, depending on the condition of the aircraft upon its acquisition and the availability of required parts and materials. The museum has a mission to not only restore these impressive aircraft but to preserve them.
During World War II it was clear that a larger, more powerful aircraft was needed to be a close support fighter bomber. Experimental XP-63’s used the fuselage of the P-39 and added certain aerodynamic improvements. The King Cobra was produced and supplied in large quantities to the USSR and France. The P-63 was outperformed by other warbirds like the P-51 Mustang and P-47 Thunderbolt at higher altitudes, relegating the King Cobra to training duty by the Army Air Force.
More than 300 P-63s were used by the AAF as manned targets. All armament was taken off and duralumin alloy was added to the fuselage and tail for protection. The plane was able to withstand impact from training programs thanks to bulletproof glass, steel plate and a special hollow blade prop. Fatal Fang was delivered on May 8, 1933 to the Base Unit 4th AAF in Portland, Oregon. It was moved in June to the 433 Base Unit 4th AAF in Chico, California and in August it was moved to the 31st Fighter Squad 4th AAF in Palmdale, then again in November to the 421st Base Unit 4th AAF in Muroc, California. In July 1945, the plane was moved to the 405th Base Unit 4th AAF in Paine, Washington and in October it was sent to Ontario, California to be disposed of as surplus.
According to Warbird News, there are now four airworthy P-63 models. After Fatal Fang was sent to Ontario, it was bought in 1950 to serve as an instructional airframe for aviation maintenance students. The P-63 spent years on static display in collections at a museum and an airport before being restored in the 1970s. Though Fatal Fang was restored to airworthiness, it rarely flew and spent most of its days on static display. It was acquired by the Yanks Air Museum and it was not until 2019 that the museum began work to refurbish the aircraft. Work was done on the oxygen and hydraulic systems, gear swing tests were performed and the propeller was overhauled. The project, along with many other restorations, was halted during the pandemic in 2020. In 2021 the plane’s engine was reinstalled and the aircraft ran again for the first time in decades. After an extensive review, Fatal Fang was deemed ready to fly.
On the morning of Dec. 1, the plane was ready to fly again for the first time in 40 years. The museum has not shared additional plans to exhibit or fly the plane but the warbird community can praise the introduction of another piece of aviation history taking to the sky in its original glory once again.
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