Piper L-4J
Price : £45,000 GBP or ONO
Aircraft Information
Airframe TT is – 9056,36 hrs
The engine : Continental A65 – TT 2794,05 and is flown on condition.
Propellor : About 3 years ago a new Hercules propeller was fitted and with this the aeroplane gets 500 ft/min climb.
Fresh Permit to Fly issued and it is valid until April 2025.
The fuselage fabric is aged and the paint has marbled. It has great patina and the owner is loathed to change it at this stage it looks very authentic. A new owner may want to have the fuselage recovered at some stage in the future.
It flies very well and consumes 15-17 litres /hr- avgas. It averages around 20 hrs per year flying and is given regular oil changes including winter change from W100 to Shell W80.
It has a pre -heat system fitted for winter flying.
1944 Piper L-4J with USAAF serial number 454-467 and MFS 13207.
It was built in Lock Haven in Nov 1944 and arrived in the ETO on the 8th of March 1945.
Not much is known about its WW2 history or units it served with but it was sold as surplus in 1947 in Germany to the French with registration F-BDTB and was based with a flying school at Avranches, Normandy until 1980. It was purchased by a group in the UK and placed on the UK register with reg: G-BILI in Yellow paint.
New wings with metal spars and new tail feathers were fitted about 15 years ago. It was painted in authentic WW2 scheme wearing the codes 44 J which was piloted by Major Jack Blohm of the US 30th infantry Division at Spa (northwest of Malmedy), Belgium, January 1945 onwards.
G-BILI is a frequent visitor to airfields and airshows in the UK and it attended D-Day 70 & 75 to Normandy.
