ALAMEDA, Calif. (KRON) — There was an actual seaplane in Alameda’s Seaplane Lagoon Monday morning. Ferry riders and other people out on their morning commute or dog walk were treated to the spectacle of the Philippine Mars, a World War II-era flying boat anchored in the lagoon, just a couple hundred yards away from the ferry terminal.
The hulking vessel is one of the last two remaining Martin JRM flying boats, according to a report in Vintage Aviation News. The Philippine Wars saw action in the Second World War, first as a transport aircraft, and later as a water bomber.
The aircraft left its previous base on Sproat Lake on Vancouver Island in British Columbia on Sunday morning and landed in the waters off Alameda shortly after Super Bowl kickoff at around 4 p.m. The Alameda landing was a homecoming of sorts for the Philippine Mars, which was based at the old Alameda Naval Air Station when it was an active-duty naval plane.
According to the plane’s operator, Coulson Aviation, the Philippine Mars is on its way to its final home at the Pima Air and Space Museum in Tucson, Arizona.
The plane was originally scheduled to depart for Arizona back in December. However, it was postponed due to engine issues.
The Philippine Mars, which according to the San Francisco Chronicle, flew cargo between Hawaii and the Pacific Islands during World War II, will remain anchored in Alameda for two days before resuming its journey.
ALAMEDA, Calif. (KRON) — There was an actual seaplane in Alameda’s Seaplane Lagoon Monday morning. Ferry riders and other people out on their morning commute or dog walk were treated to the spectacle of the Philippine Mars, a World War II-era flying boat anchored in the lagoon, just a couple hundred yards away from the […]
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