Goodyear FG-1D Corsair - NZ5648

During World War Two, Corsair fighters were primarily built by Chance Vought (F4U), but many were also built by both Goodyear (FG) and Brewster (F3A). This Goodyear-built FG-1D (NZ5648) is one of the few remaining Corsairs of the 424 that were delivered to the RNZAF from early 1944.

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Corsair NZ5648 in its RNZAF colour scheme when the aircraft was owned and operated by the Old Flying Machine Company in the UK.  Photo: © Kurt Saxkjaer

 Year: 1939  Built: 12,571  Serial:: NZ5648 Registration\: ZK-COR Top Speed: 670 km/h at 6,095m  Wingspan: 12.5m  Height: 4.9m  Length: 10.13m Engine: 2,000hp Pratt and Whitney Double Wasp R-2800-8 radial piston   Ceiling: 11,300m Armament: 6 x 12.7mm (0.50in) machines guns with 8 x 127mm (5.0in) high velocity air-ground rockets and/or 1,800kg bombs.

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    • By the time the RNZAF Corsairs were operational in the Pacific Theatre, very few Japanese aircraft remained airworthy, so the Corsairs were used mainly in a ground attack role.

    NZ5648 never saw active service, and spent most of its life with the RNZAF in storage in New Zealand. Following the end of the war most active Corsairs were returned to New Zealand and stored, pending post-war scrapping. One squadron of aircraft were sent to Japan as part of the occupying J Force, but those aircraft were pushed into a pile and burnt before the unit returned to New Zealand in the late 1940's.

    Languishing in the Rukuhia scrapyard for many years post-WW2, the aircraft was restored to taxi in 1963 and was displayed at the opening of the Hamilton Airport (where it made an unexpected short flight). In 1971 it was sold to an American and after a succession of owners it made its first post-restoration flight in July 1982. In 1998 it was acquired by Ray Hanna’s Old Flying Machine Company in the UK, and subsequently returned to New Zealand in Feb 2004.

    Corsair in Kiwi Colours: During the Warbirds Over Wanaka airshow in 2004, Ray Hanna, Nigel Lamb, Lee Proudfoot and Keith Skilling performed their last public airshow displays as the Breitling Fighters team. During that event ZK-COR was painted in RNZAF colours. This video shows some previously unreleased footage of the aircraft, from that event.

    The design goal of the Corsair was to fit the largest possible engine available into the smallest possible airframe in order to produce a high performance aircraft-carrier fighter. The engine selected for the aircraft required a large diameter propeller, which in turn required very long landing gear units. As the aircraft was to be carrier based, this wasn’t ideal, so the characteristic 'inverted gull wing' was developed, which kept the prop away from the ground, and yet allowed the landing gear to be as short as possible.

    Corsair NZ5648 in its RNZAF colour scheme at Warbirds Over Wanaka in 2004.  Photo: © Historical Aviation Film Unit

    The RNZAF started to re-equip with Corsairs in 1944, and these replaced the air force's Curtiss P-40 Kittyhawks which had been operational in the Pacific Theatre during 1942-1943. Between 1944 and 1947 over 420 Corsairs equipped thirteen RNZAF squadrons in the Pacific.

    More Videos:

    • Arrival of NZ5648 At Omaka Aerodrome

    • Listen To The Corsair Howl As It Dives

    • Awesome Corsair Display By Keith Skilling

    • Another Great Corsair Display At Classic Fighters



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