In 2023, the American Heritage Museum added a Republic P-47D Thunderbolt to its collection through an exchange with the National Museum of the United States Air Force (NMUSAF), trading its Tuskegee PT-17 Stearman for the wartime fighter (click HERE for our article). The aircraft, a P-47D-40-RA built at Republic Aviation’s Evansville, Indiana facility under construction number 399-55706, officially entered U.S. Army Air Forces inventory on May 29, 1945, carrying serial number 45-49167.
Rob Collings, President of the American Heritage Museum, recently shared new details about the restoration effort. The Thunderbolt is currently being returned to airworthy condition by American Aero Services in New Smyrna Beach, Florida, with Ashley Ezell overseeing the project. Technicians have completely disassembled and cleaned the cockpit and interior fuselage, addressing corrosion and safeguarding original factory markings. Among these preserved elements are handwritten notes and signatures from Republic workers—the “Rosie the Riveters” whose contributions defined the era.
Over the past year, the restoration team has performed major structural work on the fuselage and wings, repairing damage from the aircraft’s postwar career in Peru and the deterioration it suffered while displayed outdoors in Florida during the 1970s. The upcoming stages of the restoration will focus on rebuilding the turbosupercharger system and completing a full overhaul of the Pratt & Whitney R-2800-59 powerplant.
Once the project is finished, the P-47D will return to the American Heritage Museum, where it is expected to become a highlight of an upcoming expansion dedicated to aviation history. The museum’s objective is not only to bring the Thunderbolt back to flying condition, but also to honor the individuals who built, maintained, and operated it—preserving both the technological legacy and the human stories connected to the aircraft. Additional information on the restoration, along with ways to support it, can be found at the American Heritage Museum’s website.
