Kristen Nuss • January 15, 2025
Progress Report - December 2024
Wiring, parts and assembly removals from the fuselage, wings and tip tanks continued all month. We are rapidly adding to the hours volunteers have given to the restoration of 23-003. By the end of this year we should have surpassed the 500 volunteer hours mark!! This count does not include the numerous hours that were donated in Florida to de-mate the wing, remove and crate the engines, load everything on the trucks and the hours required to drive back to Wichita.
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With the removal of the windshields, glareshield and remaining instrument panel framework, we now have access to the foam insulation around the forward pressure bulkhead and the most forward fuselage. Ryan Timesch, owner of Best Engineered Performance Coatings (BEPC), and his daughter Raegan, came out on November 14 and 15, 2025 to finish their removal of foam beneath the cockpit floor and these now exposed areas in the forward fuselage. Following completion of the interior foam removal, the fuselage was moved to the north side of the hangar where it will be prepared for the Non-Destructive Inspections (NDI). It will be secured so that, after the NDI, any defective fuselage structure that is found can be repaired or replaced safely without allowing the fuselage to move or twist. The wing was moved to the south side of the hangar. Visitors, November 2025 Shane Johnson and family came out on Friday, November 15, 2025, to witness the dry ice blasting first hand. They were impressed at how easily and completely the dry ice removed the fuselage foam. They were able to see the before and after effects of the dry ice. The latest Flight Safety International (FSI) Model 45 training class visited 23-003 on November 6, 2025. Rick Rowe, CLJF Director of Public Relations, and Ron Forshee, CLJF Board member, provided the tour for the class and their instructors Abe Vidulich and Phil Heseltine.
We continue to work toward preparing 23-003 for the Non-Destructive Inspection (NDI) phase of her restoration. The cabin windows were removed on October 8, 2025. As of October 9, 2025, we are moving forward with the preparation efforts for the removal of the windshields. Lee Aerospace will do the actual removals in order to accurately manufacture duplicate windshields to fit into the existing structural framework and fastener hole pattern. Lee Aerospace will also manufacture new cabin windows for 23-003 N200Y! We are going through the wiring from each connector in the wiring bundle, that was previously removed from 23-003, comparing each wire to the production wiring diagrams to identify the purpose of each wire. This information will be used when we build the new wiring harness to ensure that it accurately covers all of the needs of 23-003. The tip tanks were taken to the K&L Body Shop by owner Larry Ortiz to have the last remnants of paint and aerodynamic filler (Bondo) removed on October 21, 2025. Thank You Larry Ortiz and the K&L Body Shop for coming forward to help with the restoration!
A major step in the restoration of 23-003 N200Y was achieved on September 9, 2025 when it returned from having the paint stripped from the fuselage, tip tanks and horizontal stabilizer. As you can see in the photos, we will have to manually remove the remaining bits of paint (download the full newsletter to view photos). The next step is to complete some additional dry ice blasting and remove the windshield and windows then start the Non-Destructive Inspections (NDI) of the fuselage structure. This will identify any structural components, skin, frames, etc. that will require repair or replacement. The crew that stripped the paint paused in front of the fuselage of 23-003 just before it was loaded onto a Patton Trucking trailer for the trip back to building 14. They are (not in order in the photo): Dave Lewis, Kevin Dome, Harold Haviland, Will Brown, Joseph Irwin, Adam Biggs and Jay Prideaux (not pictured). A big THANK YOU to the anonymous vendor that donated his company’s time and resources to strip the paint! Also, THANK YOU to Patton Trucking for donating their equipment and personnel to take 23-003 to the paint stripping facility and bring her home again.
