Only 39 CL-44s have been built, and this aircraft was the last one. It first flew in March 1965, and was delivered to Loftleidir of Iceland a year later, as TF-LLI. Unfortunately it came to a premature end when it crashed on approach to Barranquilla, Colombia on 6 July 1988.

Guyana's national airline made two weekly fligths into Miami, using two Tupolev 154s. One was leased from TAROM (YR-TPJ) and operated in TAROM colours, the other was this very nice Tu-154M in full Guyana livery. Today I was lucky, and I was able to capture this rare bird landing on Miami's southern runway. It was sold to Cubana in 1988 as CU-T1276, then became RA-85818 with Omskavia, EP-MAJ with Iran Air Tour, then back to RA-85818. Last noted in 2009, fate unknown.

Note the background !

With engine no.3 shut down, prop feathered, AESA's venerable workhorse YS-05C is seen here on another one of Miami's routine three-engined arrivals. Less than two years later, on June 29, 1988, this aircraft crashed at Comalapa, El Salvador, during take-off for yet another flight to Miami.

A Constellation in flight… Sheer grace and beauty. If only today's boring Boeing/Airbus shapes could be replaced by this...! This is what Miami still used to be like in the early 1990s. This Connie, and another one, then a DC-7 and a Mexican DC-6 would all pass this point on short final runway 09L within 20 minutes… Paradise!

A 1946 aircraft that is flown in the experimental category as it is modified, including the removal of the more normal tailplane mounted small fins

USAF 49-3038 remanufactured from an unknown AT-6, to Spanish AF E16-63, to N5451M registered Jun-1984, to N66TY

N36A to N2783B to N146HA to N146H, cancelled Aug-2012. On the aft fuselage it carries the badge and titles of Valiant Air Command

With very faded previous operator Pacific Air Transport titles

An experimental VTOL aircraft, intended to take off and land as seen here. The identity of this aircraft is uncertain. Most say that it is the first prototype 138657, mysteriously painted as 138658. But reliable sources state that only parts (engine and props) of 138657 survived testing by Hiller Aircraft in the late 1950s. The second prototype 138658, left incomplete and without an engine when the design project was cancelled, went on display at NAS Los Alamitos and later at NOLF Imperial Beach until it disappeared in the early 1990s. Then in the mid 1990s the aircraft in this photo suddenly popped up in Florida. It seems likely then that this is in fact the real 138658 (with the props from 138657) and that it was painted correctly.

Unusally, this aircraft also carries its registration on its nose.

Was converted to freighter about a year later.

Seen at the George T Baker Aviation School close to Miami airport.

Highly polished and simply stunning

The sign in the cockpit says 'For sale.' It had a number of further owners until it was seized in Colombia in 1980. There it became HK-3994 with Sadelca in 1995 and was re-registered HK-4189 in 2001.

Incorrectly marked as N-48063