This 1928 Sikorsky S-38B (N28V) has certainly been one of the more unusual visitors we've seen at CYFB.  The restored beauty stopped by on Monday August 23, 2010 on the way from Minnesota to Berlin.  Tom Schrade of Unlimited Adventure is the owner and pilot of the S-38.  It was wet when they arrived on the Monday evening, but the weather was bright and sunny for their departure to Greenland on August 24th.

This S-38B is named Osa's Ark. It is a restored replica of the S-38 flown by American adventurers  Martin and Osa Johnson.  The pair traveled in an S-38 around Africa, the South Pacific Islands and British North Borneo in the 1930s.  They were famous for films, photography and stories of their adventures.

Born Again Restorations of Owatonna, Minnesota began work on the restoration in 2000.  The project took about 40,000 hours. And it is something to behold.  The plane had even had a role in the film "The Aviator".

According to Tom Schrade, there have been 3 other attempts to fly a Sikorsky S-38 across the Atlantic, none of them successful.  This will mark the first!.  They even had live tracking using SPOT technology.

And this project also has a charitable side.  Throughout the flight, they were raising money for The Wings of Help, a group that provides air transportation for children in need of medical treatment in Germany, and air support for medical and emergency relief in crisis situations around the world.