MARTIN “HAWAII” MARS - Cockpit Audio Flying the Mars

[@jake373]

My Friend lived on this lake when we were kids. We’d hear the planes fire up in the summer, run jump in the boat and jump their wakes as they were scooping water and doing pre flight. I’ll never forget seeing this plane fly a hundred feet above their house. Amazing memory

[@airtightindustries]

These planes are what hooked me for life. Growing up my family spent summers on sproat lake. I have found memories of my dad pulling me on water skis under the wing while moored. I remember in the early 90's the bomber base having the two mars, two pby's a goose and bell ranger. Truly paradise for a ten year old!

[@georgeroberts442]

I've watched a lot of pilots during flight. I don't think I've ever seen such an intent, serious minded, and constantly engaged pilot as this guy. He is really on it every second of the flight. That must take a lot of energy and concentration.

[@Three-LeggedCat]

Just love

[@christophersimmins3181]

As a bush-fire firefighter from Down-Under...I feel very comfortable among those flying grey mustaches. Coulson and your old big bird... thank you all ,for your experience expertise & historic excellence .Captain Kermit thank you for another beautiful, top shelf production.

[@Dbodell8000]

Let's hope both these beautiful planes get preserved in museums.

[@P61guy61]

Wonderful video. Looks like they didn’t cut you any slack Kermit and you appeared to have been prepared. You weren’t just along for the ride. Commendable effort to experience not only the flying but the serious business of being part of the crew. Bravo. Thank you for sharing.

[@firefightergoggie]

As impressive as the aircraft is, the crew coordination caught my attention. Very impressive to listen to the communication.

[@tango9939]

Idk his name, but the gentleman flying seems very cool. Very calm and calculating. Only talks when absolutely necessary.

[@proinseasokiellig4388]

@@tango9939 ..and fully focused!

[@maxflight777]

I like the guy kneeling behind the console, guiding Kermit , very professional.

[@4321rick]

Devery (Dev) Robert Salkeld. Superb pilot. RIP Feb 29, 2020.

[@jacksonmacd]

I worked for one of the forest companies in the 1970s that owned the Mars (BCFP), and saw them fly many times. Passed by the Sproat Lake base and saw them at the bouys many times. This series of videos is by far the best I've ever seen about the Mars. So cool to see the flight deck procedures during pickup. Thanks very much for sharing.

[@viniciusgiordani6238]

(&^%$##^*₩

[@schumacher69]

Why am I in love with these flying boats!? Good stuff!

[@Inferalanding]

Amazing old plane. The longevity of this beast is most impressive. That it's been hanging in there as a working plane and not just a museum exhibit for so many years is fantastic. Thanks for sharing.

[@laura-ann.0726]

One of the reasons that these WWII-era planes are still around, when much newer jet aircraft get scrapped with far less flight hours on them, is that they don't have pressurized cabins to allow for high altitude flight. The lack of pressurization means that metal fatigue in the fuselage structure happens at a slower rate. Jet airliners go through several cycles of pressurization every day of operation, and it's the metal fatigue from this that caps their service life more than any other factor. In the case of the Hawaii Mars and Philippine Mars, Kermit mentions in another video that the inventory of spare parts to keep the engines running is almost gone, and the propellers are coming close to the end of their service life due to metal fatigue. These are unique propellers, no other aircraft still flying use them, and to have Hamilton-Standard fabricate new ones on a custom order just for these two aircraft would be prohibitively expensive.

[@whatwhat1574]

these guys have literally the coolest job in the entire world

[@k1mgy]

As cool and complex and disciplined as a space shuttle launch! Great focus, comms, crm, everything! What a privilege to be aboard as FO! Congratulations Kermit!

[@stevecuz4751]

What a beautiful ship. The exhaustive checklist schedule(s) were amazing to witness.

[@scottsosss]

Looks like a lot of experience on the flight deck, nobody started doing this recently.

[@gat6186]

How cool is this? I had never heard of the Martin Mars but thanks to the wizard of Orlampa and his kermie cam i definately have a new respect for these giants and the work they do. Thank you Kermit

[@BelusTraveller]

I never knew it was so technical, Very much respect for the Captain and Crew of this big bird, Belus

[@bassmith448bassist5]

Awesome video. They treated Kermit like a full-time crewman. Amazing the amount of crew coordination required to operate this machine. Not simply flying her but the water pickup and release. I have never seen the flaps used to control speed and lift like that before. Awesome!!!!!!!!!!

[@corrieyoung4062]

Great video My uncle Mickey used to sit in that seat. So cool.

[@edwardmoes1617]

Just watched the last flight of the Hawaii Mars to its final home, so now watching all Martin Mars videos I can… enjoyed the three part series on the Phillipine Mars… this plane, like other fro the era, is like a living beast make of steel and aluminum, love when it shudders to life like a barely tamed dragon… must be brilliant to fly that creature….

[@57Raz]

Wow. Welcome to crew resource management on a working aircraft! What an awesome experience... a little rough for the new guys always but what a great opportunity to have with such a wonderfully knowledgeable and professional bunch of guys.

[@garyhutchinson7159]

These videos are pure gold..

[@mrvoyagerm]

Fantastic to see these guys in action. All business, no bull, pure professionalism. I used to say to my Dad, "that was a pretty boring flight" and he would smile and say "Your Welcome".

[@rev.andyh.1082]

Flight deck requirements: 1. serious mustaches 2. aviator shades 3. Beemans gum 4. someone named Roger

[@barryroach1980]

lol Over and Out!

[@davidgrenis638]

Rev. Andy H. D. OLD FARTS WITH LOTS OF MONEY.. RETIRED WITH LOTS OF TIME ALSO HELPS .

[@CdoMac]

White hair and shorts

[@endwood]

You forgot old age!😂

[@johnholzhey8149]

@@endwood Roger Roger.

[@dougscott8161]

When the whole crew coordinates together perfectly like that, they make flying that beautiful monster look like a piece of cake. Thank you, Kermit for sharing still another beautiful video with us. If they decide to retire either or both of those beauties, I sur hope you can be there to rescue them and bring them home to Orlampa.

[@MrMiturn]

Can only imagine the concentration level flying a big bird like that down amongst those hills, I didn't blink for the whole time and I was only watching a video, thanks to all involved

[@the1realanalogman]

What a wonderful experience! Well done Kermit, as always. I had no idea so much collaboration was required to fly this beautiful ship! No one Can relax for more than a second! Even I couldn't! Thanks for letting us share the ride!

[@GenasysMech]

So mighty nice.....what an era.

[@christarves167]

I was lucky to spend many summers at Sproat Lake. when I was a kid. Loved watching these incredible planes, practicing etc. Always went to look at them on boat rides.

[@Sirmellowman]

this looks so fun to be a part of the crew and all working together.

[@bcabmac]

One part of training for a new crew member is not just learning reading the aircraft but also reading the crew as they task. I watched the training video so I hope that means I can log a few hours now. These guys aren't just stewarts of the airplane but also the knowledge for maintaining flight capability. And to pass it on. Thanks for sharing an inside look.

[@myronhorvathsk]

What a magnificent aircraft. My hats off to the crew on this plane. So much coordination to make each mission a success !!

[@mongolike513]

Kermit and the martians! My favourites. Kermit I think the boys were a little nervous at times so I thank you for not doing any aerobatic routines. All of you are where we’d be, your audience, if we knew how to pilot an aircraft or two. Sweet.

[@nozmoking1]

What a magnificent privilege it must be to fly one of the greatest aircraft ever produced. And yes, I resent people that make a living having fun, but I'm sure grateful you share the experience.

[@TheTorakka]

Large quantity of thank you from Finland on doing these videos. You seems to have a knack for asking the right questions. :)

[@jerrytee2688]

That is just some cool-ass shit, no matter how many times I watch it.

[@12345fowler]

The exterior shot with the plane crawling / taxying is quite something

[@jasb78]

Not a single computer aboard that airplane. All hand-flown. Wow! Just wow!

[@terryallen9546]

Man! The cool stuff youtube selects for me. This is a good one.

[@jimbaritone6429]

Thank you for this great video! When I was young our family often visited Vancouver Island, and we would always stop at Sproat Lake to see these magnificent aircraft. My dad flew twin-engine night fighters all through WWII, and single & multi piston-engine aircraft after the war. So, he felt very much at home with the pilots and crews. I know he would have felt right at home in that cockpit today, and he would have loved this video. Many years later, I remember seeing the Hawaii Mars at work, doing scoop-and-drop on a nearby runaway forest fire. It was a very hot, dry season in B.C. and Alberta, with many large fires. The Hawaii Mars, as well as many twin-engine CL-215's were hard at work. It was wonderful to watch the Mars in action. The Martin company engineers would, I think, be very proud of the great aircraft they built.

[@MrPlusses]

Have seen it land and take off many times but I've never seen a view from the cockpit. Thanks for posting.

[@fw1421]

What a wonderful opportunity for Kermit. I’m sure this is the largest aircraft he’s flown on,well at least Warbirds.

[@locketom]

I have a place at Sproat Lake, where this plane and 2 other Mars bombers used to live, and have seen them take off, land, do touch and goes many times. These are incredible machines.

[@lionofjudea4146]

As a 1000 Ton Master, I appreciate this, thanks Mr. Weeks! 😊👍

[@brianemery8945]

I don't want to say Kermit was intimidated in that cockpit. But with that coordinated of a crew and that enormous bird. I'm sure he wasn't feeling on top of his game here. Non the less. Awesome communication and great flying. That had to be amazing!

[@gersonsalcedo]

Engineering rules the world. This super machine is amazing!

[@danielledykgraaf6483]

Mr. Week sir. You rock man!.......add the Mars to your experiences. I would just love to see one.....you seen it......boarded it....steered it......preflighted it.....flew it.......YOU DA MAN. Only respect can get you in the right-hand seat. Wow......all i have to.say is wow. Love your videos sir..keep em coming.

[@Paughco]

Thank you for posting this fine video. I totally agree with William Haley's observations below. I got to sit in the pilot's seat on that aircraft back around 1955 or so at NAS Alameda. I was about 9 years old at that time.

[@robertmannel4446]

Whoever designed and built these beautiful monsters? I love you and your fantastic engineering. The love of flying gave birth to these beauties! Thank you, Kermit Weeks for your passion, and sharing with us earthbounds. Love it!

[@arnhemseptember2009]

Fascinating. They have really thorough procedures..

[@yarharyar]

What a beast of a machine.

[@ronmoore5827]

That was amazing sir. Thank you so much for sharing. Love the parts where you guys stand up and look out the roof. Can't do that in a 172.

[@angelreading5098]

What a fantastic flight you have brought us there Kermit,the combined workload in that cockpit is brought home in this video,this sure is a unique machine,thanks for sharing this monster with us all.

[@KrishnaSharma-fq9iq]

I would love to travel in such a flight. Always will be a fantasy.

[@MonkPetite]

This is awesome... well done Kermit,,,!!!!!! I very much like the way instructions where given. Clear with no confusion. Perfect team work

[@andrewnewman6451]

What I wouldnt give to get my sweaty little hands on this beauty !! I visited the Solent Sky museum in Southampton last year with another flying mate of mine, the curator kindly let us enter the Flight deck of the Sandringham (AKA Sunderland) they have there. We sat in the pilots seats for ages going through the Check-list, and after about a half an hour we came to the conclusion that we could fly it "no problem"......but having watched this I am not so sure lol. If you are in the UK please visit this brilliant little museum they have some fantastic exhibits and the staff are knowledgable and kind.

[@richardross3815]

Never get tired of watching this one. The real pity is that its not an amphib....lol.....she sure would look nice sitting on the tarmac at Abbotsford Airshow. Closest I ever got to her was the bar across the lake......thank you for this excellent series....

[@johnpickens448]

Thanks for posting this. Sorry to see that the Mighty Mars may never fly again. Great to have this video to see what it was like to fly. What a beautiful aircraft!!!

[@mudkow5092]

Great video. Could be an entire course in CRM. Looks like a handful, especially during a fire.

[@philipm7054]

Those voice activated throttles are cool. He says climb power etc and the throttles move by themselves.

[@ianwhite6061]

Engineer does it...they are linked

[@MichaelVanHeemst]

Philip Manning yeah how about that

[@insomniac3011]

Yep good old 1943 technology

[@SuperBuzz71]

@@ianwhite6061 You can always count on somebody to not get it. Thank you

[@weheka]

Philip...heads.....over..

[@thequietrebel7695]

Imagine one of these converted into a private luxury airliner like the old school flying clipper ships!

[@GreyGhost-r4z]

THAT's Teamwork. Wonderful Airplane and filming.

[@videopokernetwork6824]

Best 40 minutes I've spent all week. Well Done!

[@shortribslongbow5312]

Outstanding video thanks for the ride. Teamwork makes it all happen, well done.

[@TheOnlooker65]

This an enormous beast and to the uninitiated, very difficult. Thank you. Absolutely fascinating.

[@MarcvanExel]

Pretty freaking awesome! And very nice to see Peter at work.

[@MrROTD]

I got to see these planes in flight they were used for firefighting in Okanagan fires 2003. I lived in Penticton, impressive sight to see them flying over you

[@BEvans-sb3lp]

Gotta love cross-checks in the cockpit!

[@laura-ann.0726]

I visited Sproat Lake in 2007, and both of the planes were there, on their moorings. Someday soon, I suppose they will both be retired to museums, but these videos will still be on KZbin, as memorials to these magnificent airplanes, and all of the people who designed, built, maintained, and crewed them since WWII. I've "flown" the Hawaii Mars in the FSX flight sim - a pale ghost of the real thing, I admit - but even so, it felt amazing. I have sims of the Grumman HU-16 Albatross and the G-21A Goose, and they are all incredibly fun to operate off water. The visuals of the water spray off the hull in the simulation are very crude, since there isn't enough processing power in a desktop PC to have fully realistic graphics of the water spray, but I can watch these videos of the Hawaii Mars and insert the visuals in my imagination when I fly the Mars in simulation. Thank you for posting these vids!

[@allanblack294]

Thanks Kermit. She flies like most other 4 motor airliners, until she alights on the water, then everything changes.

[@TomokosEnterprize]

What a great day. I was once in the wrong place at the wrong time under a Mars dropping a load. It was foamed and was up my toosh, ears, eys and nose. Pretty much in every orfice I have, LOL. Crazy experiance for sure, LOL.

[@TumzDK]

Dear Mr. Weeks. Again, thank you so muck for doing these videos! Please keep them coming! Kind Regards, Tomas, Denmark

[@Spitsz01]

What a beautiful boat! Thank you for sharing.

[@boatrat]

Yeeks. What a handful. What're there... FIVE normal active crew positions just to run this monster? Not including the extra "trainer" role of the guy talking over Kermit's shoulder in this case? That's TWO flight engineers (one of whom I think I heard also doing a "walkaround"), PLUS the bow-man (the other mentioned walk-around)? Poor Kermit. He's just trying to learn about simply(?!) flying this beast. Turns out, you gotta learn the full business about everything involved with water-bombing, too!

[@Bigmack573]

Fabulous video of a big complicated giant of an airplane. I hope they keep both of them flying for a long time Well done Kermit Downunder Lindsay

[@JuicyFruityify]

Kermie, you are a god and the stuff you can fly! Here, you are in an entirely new realm! Flying an office building or flying a submarine... bit of both.

[@bobbreit5244]

WOWZA! What a team effort. Thanks for the inside look. Much respect!

[@mattinsley1721]

An amazing and complex aircraft if the ever was one. I know that these aircraft are being phased out of service. I sure would hope that you , one day, end up with this wonderful machine. F.O.F. would be a great home for her.

[@jamieminton172]

That was pretty intense. Never really thought about the crew coordination in flying older multi-engines, let alone an operational Martin. That was an incredible video. It made me want to be a part of that crew. Know your Job, Do your job, Communicate and we all come home safe. Excellent flight.

[@NesconProductions]

Shows a lot of work & coordination between pilots and and engineers to operate such a big bird. I'm sure a very expensive aircraft to maintain and understand why retired but a bit a shame with all the fires out in the Western US this year I'm sure would have been a welcome sight. Read that Seaplane Global Air Services are purchasing four Be-200 with an option for six more. Think this is a very welcome development for the fire fighting capabilities of the Be-200 seem unrivaled. One way to also to help melt the ice between countries. Thanks as always Kermit & best wishes..!

[@abundantYOUniverse]

Kermit, that was absolutely fantastic!!!!!

[@deronlewis6465]

Wow! Thanks for sharing! What a great view into the art and skill of all involved. Makes me sad to know however that it's not something that can continue for these great aircraft and their crew!

[@johncone9516]

A much better video with the voice over., thanks again,

[@Broeckhoest]

that entry into the plane with that climb to the upper deck is howard hughes all over, another great vid

[@brokefarmerjohn2422]

Thanks for taking us along for the ride. Really cool stuff. Beautiful plane

[@kraut357]

My brother would have like seeing this video. He especially would like the shirt the pilot was wearing. My brother, Joseph Heinz, was a Naval pilot flying, primarily, out of Naval Air Station Patuxent River, MD. He flew the MARS aircraft, both the “Old Lady” and JRM MARS among other aircraft. After WWII, while he was in the Naval Reserve, he flew JRM MARS several times out of Naval Air Station Alameda, CA to Hawaii. My brother passed away in 2015. I enjoyed the video.

[@KermitWeeks444]

Sorry for your loss.

[@aerostock1]

So Sorry. I had a dream last night that my older brother died. I think I'll reach out to my two brothers after years of hard feelings between us. Oddly, I happen to be staying only yards away from where they built and launched the Mars in Middle River MD. across from Martin State Airport. God Bless.

[@brycenew]

Absolutely priceless!!! Thanks Kermit!! Anyone got the latest on what's happening for this amazing old girl?

[@joebessette6565]

Back in '98 this unit would fly directly over our house while fighting the Silver Creek fire on the outskirts of Salmon Arm. As a 12 year old who loved aviation it was absolutely amazing! I remember seeing it sitting in the water on the Shuswap as we were leaving due to being evacuated from the fire. An amazing aircraft I'll always remember and feel connected to

[@arlysshenry3619]

Joe Bessette wow. I was viewing this and remembering this plane work in Salmon Arm BC in 98 and imagined sitting in the open nose hatch on that day with this antique monster bobbing lazily for a needed break and/or waiting for next target. Incidentally, Fire Morel mushrooms growing among the burned forest ashes brought the picker 10 bucks a pound the next year. Growing up in Abbotsford in the early fifties, my memories are of large piston engined sounds of transport and passenger planes arriving low locally or higher in decent to Vancouver. This was just prior to the mergence of the mostly annoying screaming jet engine sounds, more extreme at that time. It was kinda dreamy looking back so I’m imprinted with fond memories evoked by powerful and beautiful sounds. I love seeing this plane is still around and enjoyed it lumbering gracefully in our skies back then.

[@joebessette6565]

@@arlysshenry3619 It's funny you mention picking morel mushrooms afterward because that's also something I remember after these fires, going up Mt Ida and fly hills. Decent money for a young person especially. I started out admiring mostly fighter aircraft and evolved to old propeller aircraft and even airliners eventually. Anything that flies really gets my attention these days, I love aviation! Wish I was more involved.

[@arlysshenry3619]

Joe Bessette like you, I’ve been fascinated by fighter aircraft and sometimes wonder if that’s a past-life experience an an added fascination is of my playing ragtime piano: just a thought floating by. Like you say, whatever catches the attention these days; Interest may become passion that leads to living the vision. Some time ago I found PC flight simulation a lot of fun until the stick went haywire and life moved on. I find watching KZbin flight simulator sites setting out on WW 1 & 2 with both team and solo missions absorbing and get that feeling of freedom above the madding crowd. Setting up with VR is getting there and is an investment. Wheels up.

[@arlysshenry3619]

Joe Bessette by the way I forgot to mention my friend and I picked those mushrooms on mount ida for a week. Getting to the mother lode was hard climbing and seeing a lot of footprints in some areas was a test. But as brawny miners of the past we ultimately set out for the Kamloops casino--over time dumped the lode resulting in deep discussion to not don’t push luck but honour it.

[@joebessette6565]

@@arlysshenry3619 Yeah it is amazing what is out there today. I see some of the fighter simulator videos and listen as they show and explain the actual maneuvers from real flight manuals, figured out and taught by actual pilots. I have the thought that a person should probably get a pilot's license if they're learning and committed to that degree of detail. Never quite that simple though I suppose

[@AlexAnder-ut9es]

Wow! Imagine that these were designed 80 years ago to be flown by 25 year olds in bad weather, poor visibility and possibly under fire even though they have enormously complex take-off, operating and flying procedures and had no radar or modern avionics.

[@UKPete]

Fantastic video, thanks for making it and giving us all an insight into what it's like to fly an a Martin Mars!

[@donaldholman9070]

Absolutely amazing. Thank you for sharing. Such a great plane.

[@tatersalad9416]

Graceful landing. Great video, thank you.

[@josephsener420]

Wow, what a great video. Really complex operation.

[@kevintaylor791]

I kind of want to go to BC to see the last flight of this plane. It's being fixed up to be ferried to a museum in Victoria later this year.

[@kentfield2205]

Wow! Amazing video and audio. Thank you Peter and Kermit.

[@MrFranciscovenci]

I can watch this all day Thank you for sharing love it

[@amlxc5]

Thank you for sharing this video! I had no idea about the history of this plane and I spent most of the video reading the wiki to catch up!

[@liamodonnell5399]

Great video and insight into professional a very experienced crew. Was really great to watch. I wonder though why there are so many people unsecured behind the pilots. Operating near to and touching down on the water, as well as final alighting I would have thought you would want everyone strapped in. What if something goes wrong? You have 3 - 4 guys there ready to go flying forward through the cabin.

[@raysmetaltracks6782]

What an amazing piece of history - thrilled to see it still in action today. Best video I've seen in as long as I can remember. 👍

[@KermitWeeks444]

Many thanks!

[@UmbrellaWatch]

Gotta have one of those awesome T-Shirts! ALOHA!!! That was awesome Mr. Weeks!!!!! Thank You!!!