A trainer was needed, money was short and it was the 1930s. The Stearman company of Wichita, KS came up with a winner and were soon bought by Boeing. In the end, over 10,000 PT-17 Stearmans were built and it is estimated that over 1000 are still airworthy today. Back in the day, the normal route a fighter pilot would take in their training would be the PT-17, the T-6 and then onto the Corsair, Mustang, Lightning or the like. This little aircraft of metal, wood and fabric construction made a major contribution to our war effort in WWII.

I’ve had the pleasure to fly in and photograph a number of Stearman and every one has been a delight! This is Ed’s newest PT-17 so we took it up for a shoot. Ed’s a great pilot and even though the Stearman had a little bit of an issue of keeping up with us, it was a great shoot. You can find them in a number of color schemes with all yellow being on of the more common. Many fields offer rides in Stearman. If you ever have the opportunity, jump on it you won’t be sorry.