By Randy Malmstrom
WACO Model UBF-2/U.S. Navy XJW-1, s/n 3692. This particular aircraft was built in 1933 by Waco Aircraft Company (WACO, and originally Weaver Aircraft Company of Ohio) and is fitted with a Continental R-670-23 engine. It was in this particular aircraft, fitted with floats, that the film character Indiana Jones escaped off a river in South America (filmed in Hawaii) in the film “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” While the aircraft was provided for the film by (Junction City, Oregon resident) owner (along with his wife Alice) and pilot (at the time) Henry “Hank” Strauch, it was Hawaiian Air Lines DC-8 pilot Fred Sorenson who flew the aircraft in the film and also portrayed the WACO pilot “Jack” (by his own admission, Sorenson was the only pilot flying seaplanes in Hawaii at the time).
For filming, the aircraft was flown from Oregon to LAX (the floats were trucked to LAX to be met up with the plane), disassembled and loaded on a DC-8 of the Flying Tiger Line (bought by FedEx Corporation in 1988), and once in Honolulu it was reassembled and painted in the Markings of “Air Pirates” (the “OB-CPO” call sign on the aircraft in the film was an inside joke for “Star Wars” movie fans and in reference to the Lucasfilm “Star Wars” characters Obi-Wan Kenobi and C-3PO). The plane was flown to the island of Kauai, and the river takeoff scenes were filmed on a small river next to the Menehune Fish Ponds near Lihue. It is now owned by Ronald W. Braatz of Bend, Oregon. My photos at Erickson Aircraft Collection in Madras, Oregon.
Approximately 11 UBF-2 aircraft were built. In 1934, two of them, designated “XJW-1” and equipped with skyhooks, were delivered to the USS Macon (ZRS-5) for use by the U.S. Navy as hook-up trainers for the Curtiss F9C Sparrowhawk airship-borne fighters. Powered by a Continental W 670-23 radial engine.
About the author
Randy Malmstrom grew up in a family steeped in aviation culture. His father, Bob, was still a cadet in training with the USAAF at the end of WWII but did serve in Germany during the U.S. occupation in the immediate post-war period, where he had the opportunity to fly in a wide variety of types that flew in WWII. After returning to the States, Bob became a multi-engine aircraft sales manager and, as such, flew a wide variety of aircraft; Randy frequently accompanied him on these flights. Furthermore, Randy’s cousin, Einar Axel Malmstrom, flew P-47 Thunderbolts with the 356th FG from RAF Martlesham Heath. He was commanding this unit at the time he was shot down over France on April 24th, 1944, and spent the rest of the war as a prisoner of war. Following his repatriation at war’s end, Einar continued his military service, attaining the rank of Colonel. He was serving as Deputy Wing Commander of the 407th Strategic Fighter Wing at Great Falls AFB, MT, at the time of his death in a T-33 training accident on August 21, 1954. The base was renamed in his honor in October 1955 and continues to serve in the present USAF as home to the 341st Missile Wing. Randy’s innate interest in history in general, and aviation history in particular, plus his educational background and passion for WWII warbirds, led him down his current path of capturing detailed aircraft walk-around photos and in-depth airframe histories, recording a precise description of a particular aircraft in all aspects.
