May 03, 2013
It was the aircraft on which Russian fighter pilots once trained.
The Aero Vodochody L-29 Delphin, or "Dolphin," was first designed in the 1950s.
A New Jersey aircraft enthusiast plans to store a 1970s model of this training fighter jet at an undisclosed location here in the Poconos.
Jon Socolof, 49, of Fairfield, New Jersey, a licensed pilot who builds and restores experimental aircraft as a hobby, plans to fly his restored L-29 Delphin to Monroe County Saturday.
Socolof is paying less to store the jet here than what he currently pays for airport hangar storage in Wilmington, Delaware.
"What time I'll be leaving Delaware for the Poconos on Saturday depends on weather," he said. "It also depends on whether (U.S. Vice President) Joe Biden will be going anywhere or returning home that day, since his home is near Wilmington. When he's traveling out or coming in, the airport shuts down."
Socolof bought the L-29 Delfin from Air Investment in Blaine, Minn., in 2011.
It was one of 15 similar aircraft Air Investment had imported in crates from Russia in the 1990s and then reassembled to sell to museums and aircraft enthusiasts like Socolof.
"I became excited about (this particular model of ex-military jet) after doing some specialized training in another ex-military jet for my pilot proficiency," Socolof said. "I found this particular jet on the Internet, contacted Air Investment and paid $40,000. These ex-military jets can be had relatively cheaply, but cost to restore and operate is another thing."
Socolof said his jet hadn't been flown since 2006 and that he's restored it to flying condition.
The prototype of the L-29 Delfin trainer, called the XL-29, first flew in Czechoslovakia on April 5, 1959, powered by a Bristol Siddeley Viper turbojet engine, according to the Warbird Alley website.
The second prototype, first flown in July 1960, was powered by the Czech-designed M701 engine, which was to become the standard installation.
In 1961, the L-29 was entered in a competitive design evaluation to find a new Warsaw Pact basic/advanced jet trainer to replace the piston-engine trainer fleet, according to the website.
The other competitors were the Russian Yakovlev Yak-30 and the Polish TS-11 Iskra.
The L-29 won and subsequently became the standard trainer in all Eastern bloc counties except Poland.
"The jet warbird community is small and although I myself have never been in the military, most of the operators are ex-military and some of the best pilots in the world, including astronauts and Top Gun graduates," Socolof said. "This is a unique kind of flying. It's demanding and requires you to be at the top of your game. Flying these jets is serious business and the (Federal Aviation Administration) makes us prove our proficiency through intense annual check rides."
http://www.tinfeathers.com
http://registry.faa.gov/N8164C
http://www.warbirdalley.com
Story and Photo: http://www.poconorecord.com
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