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Great Lakes 2T-1MS

Back to 1919-1940 - Golden Age

Photo of Red Great Lakes in flight

Great Lakes 2T-1MS

  • : United States
  • : 1931
  • : Menasco Pirate
  • 125
  • 28 ' 6"
  • 110 mph (176 km/hr)
  • 1580 lbs (717 kg)

  • : Static Exhibit
  • 20 ' 4"
  • : Original

This aircraft, NC304Y, was used by the Great Lakes Aircraft company for advertising in various aviation magazines of the 1930s. It went on to be used as a trainer at the Bridgeport, CT airport in the 1930s. The Great Lakes was a favorite of Cole Palen’s and other famous pilots such as Paul Mantz and Tex Rankin were also known to enjoy it.

Cole found the Great Lakes in the body of a wrecked tractor-trailer where it had been stored for approximately 25 years. It was restored by Cole, Mike Lockhart and Andy Keefe in Florida in the early 1970s and was a regular performer at the Aerodrome until the early 2000s. It is powered by a 125 HP Menasco Pirate engine.

This Great Lakes was featured in a 1970s Mounds/Almond Joy commercial, during which Cole held candy bars up to the camera while performing aerobatics and acting “like a nut.”


Click for more information about the Great Lakes 2T-1MS


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Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome Copyright © 2023
9 Norton Rd., Red Hook, NY 12571 (Driving Address)
PO Box 229, Rhinebeck, NY 12572 (Mailing Address)
Telephone: (845)752-3200
Fax: 845-758-6481
info@oldrhinebeck.org