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AN marked McArthur seat unknown type aircraft


P-59A
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I just bought this seat and have no idea what it was used on. The construction and AN stamp lead me to think late or post war construction, Any ideas? On a side note I posted this last night and the post is missing, this is a repost.

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I see the basic frame looks the same and minor changes on the seat bucket and a few added items. I would think my seat is an older version of the seat you found. I have no idea what kind of transport that is. It looks like a transport aircraft to me. Good job!!

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So, I'm trying to find aircraft with that front windshield set up with that round window aft of the cockpit. I still think this is a prop job and it looks like 50's era. It looks like a grey paint job, so maybe Navy?

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I'm not saying this is a match, but does anyone have interior pics of the early model B-52? The windshield on this bird looks better than the Neptune and I saw early exterior pic of a B-52 with the round portal aft of the flight deck.

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The more I look at the picture I posted of your seat, I think the aircraft in my pic might not be US...the lap belts are wrong style, and I have never seen those style jump seats in a US aircraft...

 

I believe your seat to be US and used in a US plane ...my pic shows your seat or variation of your seat

 

the cockpit windows are 8 panel front with two large side windows...unusual on a US 1940s aircraft...

 

the B-52 would have ejection seats..even the early ones

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I looked at the lap belts. What I did see was the double box X stitching and that was common to US lap belts in WW2. They stopped doing that in the early post war years. You are right in that the belt style is wrong for a US lap belt. The jump seats are an issue. I agree they are not US WW2. The US did make aircraft and seats used by other country's. I don't know much about British aircraft, but that is the vibe I get from your photo. In as far as the windshield...I don't know if the insolation is covering glass or not.

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One of the things that is slowing me down is the shear number of odd ball one offs the military experimented with from the late 40's well into the 50's. The Airforce and Navy looked at all sorts of things. It boggles my brain.

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This is not proof, only an indication that the British used the flair lap belt with the box X stitching, also note the bang box release. This photo is a Spitfire seat, notice the leather seat pad.  I also noticed the British seem to like the black shoulder harness on their seats.  It's clear the shoulder harness rig on the seats in the photo is not US in any way.

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This is a short history of the Warren McArthur company. It states the company folded in 1949, so that gives the time frame for this seat to have been made.  "Warren McArthur Corp. moved into the Bantam facility in 1938 after renovations. The company’s experience using light aluminum framing in its furniture led to contracts with the United States government during the Second World War to design and produce aircraft seats. Before the war, the company had employed approximately 28 people; by 1945 that number had grown to over 1,500. It was estimated that Warren McArthur produced between 75 and 85 percent of all seats used in American military aircraft. Aside from the sheer number of seats produced in Bantam, McArthur’s most notable technological contribution was the design of seats made from a magnesium alloy tubing which saved precious war-needed materials. While light, the seats were strong, meeting structural tests for loads exceeding 2,400 pounds. General Douglas McArthur’s command chair in Japan was built at the Bantam plant. After the war, Warren McArthur began to produce seats for commercial airlines, however it went out of business by 1949."

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To me that flight deck looks like it was from a large flying boat type plane for some reason. The windshield stuff reminds me of something from Consolidated or maybe a Martin?  Martin Mars perhaps?

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Now that I know what the seat is, the question becomes what do I do with it? It's clear in it's original configuration the seat back looked allot like the P-51/T-6 seat. Should I have it repaired to its original configuration, complete the modification into what the Canadians did or not touch it at all? I have a WW2 Navy stamped lap belt and shoulder harness, but with the seat the way it is now the shoulder harness would get damaged on the seat back. Thoughts please.

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Do you a SM shop near you...easy project if you are good with SM and bending tubing, worth a shot, but if not, maybe strip of U channel door seal on top to protect the straps...or leave it..

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2 hours ago, phantomfixer said:

Do you a SM shop near you...easy project if you are good with SM and bending tubing, worth a shot, but if not, maybe strip of U channel door seal on top to protect the straps...or leave it..

I have a metal fabricator a few miles down the road and I have a P-51D seat. Being both seats were made by McArthur It seems to me they would have used the same tooling. What I don't know is if the seat in the Canadian photo was modified by them or the USN. I'm not sure what direction to go. The seat shown in the news reel and print story is the proto type as seen in its tail configuration. Did the Navy order changes in the seat on the production run birds?

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TheCrustyBosun

P-59A’s black and white cockpit photo is of a twin engined aircraft. Notice the throttle quadrants. The Mars is a four engine beast. 

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Thanks for the observation, Look at the B&W photo next to the color photo. It looks to be the same cockpit and the color photo is the Mars. The focal points of the the two cameras are different and the Mars has had many upgrades over the years. More to the point the seats are the same, just modified. If you have a better photo of an aircraft with this seat please post it so everyone can reconsider the information provided. 

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