Our Aircraft

We have 14 WWII era aircraft.  Two are in restoration, one is grounded and is currently a static display; the remaining eleven aircraft are flyable.  Click on an airplane to find out more about it.

CURTISS C-46F COMMANDO

The history of the C-46F “China Doll” is typical of post-WWII surplus transport aircraft.

NORTH AMERICAN PBJ MITCHELL

B-25 PBJ-1 Bomber circling over head

One day before the 23rd anniversary of our beloved B25-PBJ-1J coming to CAFSoCal on May 16th, 1993, the big bird graced the skies of Ventura county once again.

FAIRCHILD PT-19A CORNELL

This beautifully-restored antique training plane is in our ride program. 

GRUMMAN F6F HELLCAT

Painted in the colors of Cmdr. David McCampbell, USN, Air Group Commander of VF-19 on the USS Essex during WWII. 

GRUMMAN F8F-2 BEARCAT

The Southern California Wing is currently restoring the Bearcat and we hope to have her flying again real soon.

MITSUBISHI A6M3 ZERO

The A6M3 was built after the Battle of Midway, with longer wings, folding wing-tips (for carrier use), a more powerful engine and the longest range of all the Zeros.

SUPERMARINE SPITFIRE MK XIV

Supermarine Spitfire Mark 14 parked on the ramp at sunset.

The Mk XIV was the most successful of all the variants at destroying V-1 flying bombs, accounting for 300 kills. 

NORTH AMERICAN SNJ-5 TEXAN

SNJ-5 parked on the ramp with the sun setting behind it

The Commemorative Air Force’s SNJ-5 Texan “290” was originally ordered by the Army Air Corps as 42-84895

NORTH AMERICAN SNJ-4 TEXAN

The Commemorative Air Force’s SNJ-4 Texan “BlueBird” was originally delivered to the US Navy on September 21, 1942 from North American Aviation

FAIRCHILD F-24R

The restoration of this Fairchild F-24 has been successfully completed with a maiden flight on Thursday August 18, 2016.

ERCO Ercoupe

The ERCO Ercoupe is an American low-wing monoplane aircraft that was first flown in 1937. 

NAVION

The Ryan (originally North AmericanNavion is a single-engine, unpressurized, retractable gear, four-seat aircraft originally designed and built by North American Aviation in the 1940s. 

Fieseler Fi 156 Storch

The Fieseler Fi 156 Storch (English “stork”) was a German liaison aircraft built by Fieseler before and during World War II.

Messerschmitt Bf 108 Taifun

The Messerschmitt Bf 108 Taifun (English: “Typhoon”) was a German single-engine sport and touring aircraft, developed by Bayerische Flugzeugwerke in the 1930s. The Bf 108 was of all-metal construction.

Sponsor An Aircraft

You can help “Keep the CAF Flying!” There are several ways you can play a part in keeping our aircraft flying and keeping history alive.

Interested in sharing in the cost of restoring, maintaining, and operating a particular CAF aircraft? Become an aircraft sponsor!

Within its first two decades of existence, the CAF attained one of its major goals, the acquisition of one of each major type of combat aircraft to serve with U.S. forces in World War II. The principal funding for these acquisitions came from the Aircraft Sponsorship Program, which was then, and continues to be now, a key ingredient in the success of the CAF.

In the spirit of the founders of the CAF, the basic concept of the sponsor program is cost sharing. Open to an individual, group, or corporation, the CAF Aircraft Sponsorship Program helps fund the restoration and major maintenance of CAF aircraft.