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Entered service in 1944, this aircraft has seen many roles ! The iconic Hawaii Mars II, known for its years of fighting British Columbia’s wildfires, is on sale with a $5 million price tag !
Aviation broker Platinum Fighter Sales has listed it in it's site , with it's Airframe Flying Hours of 23,497.8 Hrs (TTSN) , fitted with four "Curtiss Wright R-3350-24WA" engines and "Curtiss Electric, C644S-B314" propellers.
Wearing a Red & White Livery for Coulson Flying Tankers, the former flying boat is located at "Sproat Lake, Port Alberni, BC, Canada" at present with its interior and exterior quality rated as in 9 out of 10 condition, as per the site, and it also displays information of last annual flight inspections in 2016.
The Martin JRM Mars was conceived in 1941 as a patrol bomber, intended to scale up the already existing Martin PBM Mariner. The prototype, designated as XPB2M-1R, went into test phase in November 1941 and first flew in June 1942. Being the largest flying boat ever to enter Allied service during WWII, it was soon assigned the role of a transport aircraft instead.
After successful tests in 1943, the Navy originally decided to order 20 aircraft. Later they reduced the order to only the five which were already being manufactured. Those five aircraft were designated as Marianas Mars, Philippine Mars, Marshall Mars, Caroline Mars, and Hawaii Mars. Unfortunately, several weeks after conducting successful test flights, the first Hawaii Mars crashed in Chesapeake Bay.
Even though this four-engined giant had to wait until January 1944 to officially enter service with the Navy , it continued to be employed after the war as a useful asset.
Used mainly for exhibition purposes, Caroline Mars set a world record for passenger loads on 4 March 1949 by carrying 269 people from San Diego to Alameda, CA. Marshall Mars , was lost in 1950 after an engine caught fire whilst in Hawaii.
Despite malfunctions, the four surviving Martin JRM Mars aircraft served with cargo duties until 1956, when they were officially retired. The aircraft were almost sold for scrap, but in 1959 they were given a second chance.
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British Columbia 's forest industry came together to purchase and convert four of the war planes into firefighting machines, that became a powerful solution to the province's wildfires later.
A Canadian company, Forest Industries Flying Tankers, purchased them to serve as part of their forest fire prevention inventory. The conversion enabled the aircraft to carry 7,200 U.S. gallons of water, covering an area of up to 4 acres.
The planes designated as Marianas Mars and Caroline Mars were the first to become water bombers. In 1961 Marianas Mars suffered an accident while participating in a firefighting operation near Northwest Bay, BC, Canada. Just two years later, Caroline Mars had a similar accident.
Afterward the remaining two Martin JRM Mars planes, Hawaii Mars II and Philippine Mars, were both converted into water bombers and remained in service until Hawaii Mars II eventually retired in 2015 - far beyond anyone’s expectations.
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· Crew: four (with accommodation for a second relief crew)
· Capacity: JRM Mars - 133 troops, or 84 litter patients and 25 attendants or 32,000 lb payload, including up to seven Willys Jeeps
· Water/foam load: Mars waterbomber - 60,000 lb
· Length: 117 ft 3 in
· Wingspan: 200 ft 0 in
· Width: 13 ft 6 in Hull beam
· Height: 38 ft 5 in afloat, 48 ft beached
· Hull draught: 5 ft 6 in
· Wing area: 3,686 sq ft
· Empty weight: 75,573 lb
· Gross weight: 90,000 lb
· Max takeoff weight: 165,000 lb
· Fuel capacity: Hawaii Mars: 6,485 US gal
· Powerplant: 4 × Wright R-3350-24WA 18-cylinder radial engines 2,400 hp each
· Propellers: 4-bladed Curtiss Electric, 16 ft 8 in diameter variable-pitch propellers
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· Maximum speed: 221 mph (192 kn)
· Cruise speed: 190 mph (170 kn)
· Range: 4,900 mi (4,300 nmi)
· Service ceiling: 14,600 ft
· Drop speed: 138 mph (120 kn)
· Landing approach speed: 115 mph (100 kn)
· Touchdown speed: 92 mph (80 kn)
· Fuel consumption (cruise): 420 US gal per hour
· Fuel consumption (operations): 780 US gal per hour
· Operations duration (normal): 5 1/2 hours
· Area covered, single drop: 3 to 4 acres
· Drop height: 150 to 200 ft
· Full water tank load: 7,200 US gal
The Website says ,
"More recently, Hawaii Mars II starred at the EAA’s 2016 Air Venture, thrilling many enthusiasts when simulating “fire attacks” on the Oshkosh Airfield. Today, Hawaii Mars II remains the only airworthy example of it’s type in the world."
It further added ,
"The opportunity to purchase and preserve a unique part of aviation history is now available for the discerning buyer, or donor."
