Allison-engined Bf 109 of the Erickson Aircraft Collection flies

On April 22, John Romain made the first flight of Bf 109G-10 registered N90602 in Madras, Oregon. It is a Hispano Buchón, re-engined with an Allison engine.

The engine cowlings are identical to those of wartime Bf 109G, giving the aircraft an identical appearance. The only visible difference is that the propeller is a shortened DC-3 propeller. This choice of engine offers several advantages. The Allison engine is far more available and cheap than the original DB 605 engine, with more readily available spare parts as well as cheaper operating costs and easier maintenance.

More information can be found on the Erickson Aircraft Collection Facebook page.

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3 comments

    • James Feuilherade on May 11, 2017 at 8:24 AM
    • Reply

    That looks great! Often wondered if it were possible to mount a Buchon engine, in many cases a Merlin, inverted, to get the correct look to the 109 nose. I guess the Alison lends itself to that! With electronics these days a fuel injection system should be doable? I would think keeping it carburetted would be complicated. What mods to the oil system I wonder? Very interesting. Looks great!

    • DW Will on June 19, 2017 at 4:53 AM
    • Reply

    Looks real good!

    • Claus Gustafsen on May 21, 2021 at 4:36 PM
    • Reply

    The engine is upright as usual with exhausts made to look the part. If you turn an engine upside down you will be destroying the lubrication system, the german engines were built to be inverted from the start. There are pictures on the net showing this.
    There is a video showing it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=su0aiNhaosU

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