Lockheed Vega
Designed in 1927, the Lockheed Vega was one of the earliest cantilever cabin monoplanes and was the product of the engineering genius of two legendary aircraft designers John Northrop and Allan Lockheed. The Vega was ahead of its time and such notable pilots as Wiley Post, Amelia Earhart, and Roscoe Turner used their Vegas to set speed and distance records. Wiley Post even used his Vega with a supercharged engine and a custom made pressure suit and helmet to pioneer high altitude flight.
Rare even among Vegas
The aircraft featured here is owned by John Magoffin and is rare even among Vegas in that it is one of the last Vegas made and more importantly is one of only nine Vegas produced with a metal fuselage.
Only flying Lockheed Vega
This Vega saw use as an executive transport, an airliner and during World War II as a liaison aircraft during the construction of the Alaska Military Highway. After the war, the Vega remained in the north as a bush aircraft until eventually returning to the lower 48 states and ended up in storage, eventually being acquired by Mr. Magoffin. In his care the Vega was put in the very capable hands of Rick Barter where it went through a comprehensive restoration culminating in its return to the sky on December 17, 2013.The finishing touch was the distinctive paint scheme of the Y1C-12 used by the 36th Pursuit Squadron as a personnel/cargo aircraft. This is currently the only flying Lockheed Vega.
