Randy continues "I've spent a lot of time researching the history of this bird, and I really have very little. I know it was built in December '47 and transferred to the USAF somewhere in NY (I don't have the info in front of me, so these details are a little fuzzy, hehe). Immediately after the AF accpeted it from Ryan, it was turned over to the Army. The difficult thing about the Army is that they never maintained a master log of what units or locations Liason aircraft were assigned to. The only place this information was annotated was in the aircraft's individual logbooks. Since this a/c's original logs were lost, I have only sketchy information about where it went and what it did. I know from doing a repair to the skin a few years ago that it was progonally painted in the true olive-drab paint scheme. After researching paint T.O.s, this scheme only appeared on Korean L-17s. From researching the Serial Number, I know this a/c was one of a batch assigned to the 3rd Divison as well as the 8th Light Division, though I don't know the time frame reference. There is a famous movie of Ike landing in Korea in a Navion painted OD, and the tail number is very close to this one. From Korea in the early 50s, my father believes that it went to Europe, more specifically, Belgium (this is from conversations with the people he purchased the airplane from as well as the physical evidence (packing and crating holes) of the overseas shipment. At some time in the late 50s, the a/c was part of an Air Force flying club somewhere. It was apparently traded to the Washington Wing of the Civil Air Patrol in '60 or '61. It was shortly after this that my Father purchased it in Renton, Washington. It was registered originally as N7734C, but changed shortly thereafter to N77BH. Today it's based at Auburn Municipal (S50) in Auburn, Washington. The plan is to refurbish the interior (it's in pretty ragged shape right now) then strip and repaint in original military colors, but I don't know when that's going to happen. The photo is of the same paint scheme that may father painted it in 1962 after getting it from the CAP. Apparently, his intent was to give it colors that could be seen in any terrain in case of a rescue. My dad was an air rescue pilot when he was in the Air Force, so he thinks like that."

Randy Haskin