Progress Report - April and May 2024

Restoration of 23-003 continues. The April step on the road to total restoration to flight status was the removal of the interior on April 27th. This will allow us access to the inside of the fuselage for the removal of the foam insulation which will then let us evaluate the condition of the fuselage structure. Tim Walker and Joel Weber spent Saturday removing the seats, side walls, carpet, cabinets, partitions, etc. These items will be used as patterns to help manufacture a new "original" interior. A couple of companies have already volunteered to make and donate this interior to us!

The latest work towards the restoration of 23-003 was accomplished on May 19th. The wing flaps, ailerons and spoilers were removed. The left hand aileron had a large, luckily unoccupied, wasp nest inside! Also, we started removing the cockpit instruments from the pilot's panel. Each removal was documented and carefully bubble wrapped and placed in a storage container for future refurbishment and, if needed, calibration.

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Progress Report - October 2026

By Kristen Nuss • November 9, 2026

Our volunteers have been very busy this month. We are preparing the control surfaces for paint stripping by taping over every opening in order to prevent the solution from getting inside. Each control surface will then be thoroughly inspected and repaired if necessary. The stripping will be done by the same company that donated their services to strip the fuselage. Work continues on the huge task of sorting through the wiring diagrams to identify every wire in the harnesses and the part numbers of each connecter, switch, hardware, etc. These part numbers will put on a list and then sent to Incora, who is donating the new parts in order for us to build a completely new wire harness to replace the original 62-year-old harness. Every part removed from 23-003 must be tagged with its part number and, if applicable, serial number, then carefully stored in a known location for future repair, restoration or replacement. Also, every donated part is logged in with its paperwork, then safely stored for future use.

Progress Report - September 2026

By Kristen Nuss • October 2, 2026

Work continues on the removal of the baggage floor. The process includes removing the fiberglass ducts on the left and right sides of the divan floor, then removal of the step between the divan floor and baggage floor. The photo below, looking aft, shows the various parts included in removing the baggage floor. Note that the right side of the baggage floor has been raised to aid in the removal of the right-hand fiberglass duct. Hartney Hummer removed right hand fiberglass duct on September 10, 2026. In the photo on the right below, where the duct has been removed, you can see the fuselage foam insulation that was hidden behind the duct and will have to be removed using the dry ice blasting technique. Major Wing Decision We have made the difficult decision to replace the wing on 23-003. When we first inspected the 23-003 in Florida on July 20, 2022, we observed corrosion on the left lower wing skin and understood the risk that that would present. After we started the detailed evaluation of the wing in Wichita in the fall of 2024, we found the corrosion to be out of structural limits, meaning a major repair or replacement of the skin was necessary.

Progress Report - August 2026

By Kristen Nuss • September 1, 2026

It is amazing the progress that our hard working, very dedicated group of volunteers are making on 23-003. Here’s a sample of the various jobs that they do in a single volunteer day: On Tuesday, August 25, 2026, the team was working in unison on several projects: removal of the aft cabin baggage floor, disassembling the main landing gear wheels, using the wiring diagrams to identify switches, connectors, etc., researching the drawings and parts catalog, tagging and storing removed parts. They also held a team meeting to discuss progress, problems encountered and planning the next day’s work projects. We finished removing the fasteners and the enormous amount of sealant that was on the baggage floor on August 6th.. The floor is now completely loose and moving around. However, we discovered that removing it from the fuselage is going to be a lot harder than we thought! According to Jim Tidball, “Talk about a square peg in a round hole!” We put out a request for assistance from anyone that can help us remove this floor and Wes Lumry, a retiree who has been at Learjet since the early days, volunteered. On August 27th he came out to inspect 23-003 and offer his advice on removing the baggage floor. In order to get enough room to lift and rotate the baggage floor to clear the fuselage structure to remove it, we will first have toremove the step between the divan floor and the baggage floor.