P-40E N5673N (RAF AK987, RCAF 1068)
This P-40E was part of the Curtiss production of the export version of the P-40E (or P-40D, depending upon the history you are reading). It was transferred from the RAF to the RCAF pretty much upon delivery in late 1941 or early 1942, so if it carried the serial of AK987 it was only briefly. It became RCAF 1068 though its actual RCAF utilization remains unknown at this point.
It was part of the group of surplus RCAF Kittyhawks obtained by Fred Dyson in September 1947, after which it was barged from Victoria (BC) to Seattle’s Boeing Field. It evidently was assigned the CAA registration of N1237N at this point, though that is not clear from the record (yet). Early records are missing, but the airplane was photographed at Spokane’s Felts Field in 1947, or at least that’s the reported date.
Initial Civil History of P-40E N5673N (RCAF 1068)
Jerry Vernon details a complex history for N1237N that is just summarized here. He records that this P-40E was owned by Duane Myler in 1948, and that he sold the airplane to Robert L. Holderman of Fostoria, Ohio, on June 8, 1948 for $675. The civil registration was reportedly changed to N5673N at that time. Holderman reported to Jerry Vernon in a letter that his P-40 was one of two based at Fostoria, Ohio, the other being N5672N (RCAF 1064) that was owned by Joe Uhlhman. They had some local airshow plans for the airplanes but those never materialized, and the airplane sat at Fostoria (located about 40 miles south of Toledo). Jerry Vernon records the N5673N was sold to Harrison Rogers of Quincy, Michigan, on September 8, 1949, for $200. As put together by Jerry Vernon, Rogers or his associates came to Fostoria to fly the airplane out. There were some fuel tank issues that ended up being resolved, but the pilot had a takeoff accident and the propeller was bent and the nose case of the engine cracked. It remained at Fostoria, and ended up being traded to Charles Finkenbine of Coldwater, Michigan, in November 1952. Shortly afterwards, Finkenbine, or someone he hired, also came to Fostoria to fly the airplane out. It was repaired but, from one account, the engine oil was not flushed out and when the engine was run, it was ruined by contaminated oil. It thus remained at Fostoria, its condition going downhill.
Frank Tallman Purchases P-40E N5673N
Frank Tallman entered the picture on September 9, 1957, when he purchased N5673N from Finkenbine. The photo below shows the airplane’s condition at Fostoria at about the time that Tallman purchased it…pretty marginal but flyable with some work.
Frank Tallman Trades N5673N for N1207V
Tallman needed something flyable without work, however, for what purpose remains unknown at this point. Tallman traded N5673N for a flyable P-40E, N1207V, owned by Wally Erickson, with $2,000 thrown in by Tallman. Tallman moved on with N1207V but, to continue the story, Erickson quickly sold N5673N to Charles Doyle of Rosemont, Minnesota, on February 2, 1959. That sale occurred fast enough that Erickson never officially held title to the P-40E as far as the FAA was concerned: the paperwork showed a direct sale from Tallman to Doyle.
Subsequent History of P-40E N5673N: To NMUSAF
Charles Doyle tried to get the airplane flyable but had an accident in the airplane shortly after takeoff on December 1, 1958 (pre-dating the bill of sale from Tallman). The airplane was damaged in an off-field landing about five miles from Fostoria. The landing gear was driven up through the wings. At that point, according to Jerry Vernon, Doyle offered the airplane to the USAF Museum at Dayton for free, “as is-where is,” and offer the museum declined. So Doyle and Erickson dismantled the airplane and moved it back to Doyle’s base at Rosemont, Minnesota. Eventually, a trade deal was worked out between Doyle and the USAF Museum. There were complications in the trade agreement but the P-40E ended up with the USAF Museum, now the National Museum of the USAF, and the airplane remains on display at the museum site at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, Ohio.
