Harvard IV
N542PJ
POA
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INTRODUCTION
The ‘Harvard’ is an American designed aircraft used extensively as a single-engined advanced fighter trainer for military pilots.
After World War II, under the Mutual Defence Assistance Program (MDAP), Canadian Car & Foundry (CC&F) in Fort William, Ontario, built the Harvard Mk. IV Aircraft. The Mk. IV was similar to the US Air Force T-6G Texan.
CC&F built 555 Mk. IVs in total, of which many were supplied to European Air Forces to train post war military pilots, a number of these also went on to serve in post WWII conflicts.
This Aircraft initially served with the West German Luftwaffe until 1955 when it was sold to the Portuguese Air Force. The aircraft saw action in Mozambique following a long military campaign before eventually being retired from Military Service in 1995 and subsequently sold to a Private owner in South Africa. The Aircraft then went through a ‘ground up’ rebuild and is widely considered one of the finest examples flying today.
Manufacturer
Canadian Car & Foundry
Model
Harvard IV
Registration
N542PJ
Serial Number
CCF-4-542
Year Constructed
1953
Airframe Hours
10 since rebuild
Engine
Pratt & Whitney R-1340-AN-1
Engine Hours
10
Propeller
TBC
Livery
Presented in its original West German Luftwaffe livery, with authentic placarding and stencilling throughout.
Avionics
Trig TY91 – 8.33 KHz VHF Transceiver
Trig TT21 – Mode S Transponder
PS Engineering PM1200
Equipment
N/A
History
The newly-formed West German Luftwaffe was the initial operator of this Aircraft, taking delivery as ‘AA+682’. They trained young German military pilots until 1955 whereupon the Aircraft was exported to the Portuguese Air Force and issued with the serial number 1781.
In September, 1964, Portugal sent a number of Harvards (including this Aircraft), re-equipped for ground attack and close-air support, as part of a military response to increasing pressures in Portuguese African colonies of Angola and Mozambique. After a decade of conflict, a ceasefire was agreed in September 1974 but the Aircraft was left in Mozambique where it remained as a war trophy in the capitol city of Maputo. In the late 1980s, the Aircraft was purchased by the South African Government, adding to their nation’s fleet.
The South African Air Force kept the aircraft in storage until they retired their Harvard fleet in 1995 whereupon the Aircraft was sold to a private buyer in South Africa. The aircraft was shipped to New Zealand. Shortly thereafter it was moved to Australia for a complete disassembly and rebuild. The aircraft was registered as VH-JSW. All life-limited parts were replaced with either new (old) stock or freshly overhauled parts. The engine and propeller were both zero-timed. The airframe was restored (in a jig) to ‘as-new condition’, which included completely re-skinning the wings and fuselage. All hoses, cabling and wiring harnesses were replaced. The canopy was rebuilt and fitted with new Plexiglas and both cockpits were restored to original condition (except for any modern requirements).
The completion of the rebuild was undertaken in the USA in St Paul, Minesota, US by Two Borthers Aviation, with the aircraft registed as N542PJ. She flew in July 2018. The aircraft undertook approximately 5 hours of test flights before it was flown to Oshkosh for the 2019 EAA Airventure event. The aircraft was then shipped to South Africa and reassembled where she resides today and is regularly flown.
This stunning aircraft is known around the world to be one of the finest flying examples of a Harvard.
