Photo: Apex Aircraft
We love vessels that float along the water just as much as we do cars and planes. If you're able to take one of those two paradigms and combine them into something altogether different, that's even better in our book. Check out this beautifully restored 1944 Grumman G-44 Widgeon we think might be a better buy than a speedboat at the same price.
First, the basic facts. This adorable flying boat left the Grumman aviation factory in Bethpage, New York, back in 1944. At the time, it was the smallest flying boat of the Grumman fleet, out-sized by the Goose and the Albatross, respectively. One Widgeon crew even managed to locate and sink a German U-Boat off the coast of Lousiana on On August 1, 1942.
This particular example wasn't the one that felled the mighty U-Boat. It's just a couple of years too young for that, unfortunately. Even so, there's quite a lot to like about these plucky little flying boats. This one's even been modified in a couple of different ways. Firstly the inverted Ranger six-cylinder piston engines were replaced with Lycoming GO-480 ones for better fuel consumption, takeoff and maximum speed.
This was performed at McKinnon Enterprises of Sandy, Oregon. While there, this Widgeon received the full suite of modern navigation, communication, and avionics systems all modern FAA-approved flying machines can't take off without. That includes a Garmin GTN750 NAV/COM/GPS unit, a King KMA24 Audio Panel, and a Garmin GTS800 Traffic System, among other modern technology upgrades.
It may not be number's matching anymore, but it's not like this Widgeon is a timeless classic fighter plane like other aircraft Grumman designed - do the F6F Hellcat and the F-14 Tomcat ring a bell? We're joking, of course, but you get our point. If there was any Grumman plane worth restomodding, it was sure this one. At $275,000 before tax via Apex Aircraft of Canada, this flying boat is still less expensive than a 2020 Pavati AL26 speed boat, and you can't generate lift in one of those.
This particular example wasn't the one that felled the mighty U-Boat. It's just a couple of years too young for that, unfortunately. Even so, there's quite a lot to like about these plucky little flying boats. This one's even been modified in a couple of different ways. Firstly the inverted Ranger six-cylinder piston engines were replaced with Lycoming GO-480 ones for better fuel consumption, takeoff and maximum speed.
This was performed at McKinnon Enterprises of Sandy, Oregon. While there, this Widgeon received the full suite of modern navigation, communication, and avionics systems all modern FAA-approved flying machines can't take off without. That includes a Garmin GTN750 NAV/COM/GPS unit, a King KMA24 Audio Panel, and a Garmin GTS800 Traffic System, among other modern technology upgrades.
It may not be number's matching anymore, but it's not like this Widgeon is a timeless classic fighter plane like other aircraft Grumman designed - do the F6F Hellcat and the F-14 Tomcat ring a bell? We're joking, of course, but you get our point. If there was any Grumman plane worth restomodding, it was sure this one. At $275,000 before tax via Apex Aircraft of Canada, this flying boat is still less expensive than a 2020 Pavati AL26 speed boat, and you can't generate lift in one of those.
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