While Walt Disney used various commercial and business aircraft to support his many entertainment, entrepreneurial, and philanthropic projects, the one most closely associated with the man and his dreams was his beloved Grumman Gulfstream I.
Think about it: in one way or another, whether through movies, TV, or a visit to the âHappiest Place On Earth,â the talents of Walter Elias (Walt) Disney have touched all of our lives.
Disney was a gifted storyteller and visionary with uncommon curiosity. And one thing he was particularly interested in was the various means by which one could visit far-off places.
âWalt was interested in all forms of transportation. We all know how much he loved trains, but he was also intrigued by ocean liners,â explained Rebecca Cline, director of the Walt Disney Archives. âHe traveled the country extensively by train and made frequent crossings to Europe.â
Cline said Disney had also been intrigued by aviation. In 1911, as a 10-year-old, he and his older brother Roy ran two miles to see Calbraith Perry Rodgers land the Vin Fiz Wright Flyer EX in Swope Park in Kansas City during the first transcontinental flight.
But, while various factors kept flying out of reach, they never left his heart. It wasnât until years later, while on one of his trips to Paris, that Walt finally realized his dream of flight.
âWalt was in Paris at the end of World War 1 and while on tour, he spotted a French military airplane sitting in a field,â explained Ed Ovalle, senior archivist at Walt Disney Archives. âHe wanted to take a flight, but the officers told him it was only for French military personnel.â
His philosophy was, âthe way to get started is to quit talking and start doing.â So, he did. As he related the story, later on, Disney said, âBut 50 francs I had saved up made a French aviation mechanic wink at the law, and I had my thirst to fly satisfied for the first time.â
Disney Moves into Business Aviation with a Queen
While Disney understood the benefits aviation would bring to his growing movie production business, aviation in the 1930s and '40s, like ink and paint animation, was very expensive. But, as his business grew, he increasingly used commercial flying to complement his travel needs. Aviation introduced him to a new world of efficiency and flexibility.
âIn the late 1950s and early '60s, he was traveling so much between California and his various projects in the central and eastern U.S. that he decided to try private aviation,â Cline said. âHe started chartering airplanes out of Burbank, and then in 1963 he purchased his first airplane, a new Beechcraft Queen Air 80.â
But, as capable as the Queen Air was, as his projects continued to grow and spread across the country, its limited speed and range couldnât keep up with Disneyâs demanding schedule.
âIn particular, he was making frequent trips to New York in preparation for the 1964 Worldâs Fair,â Ovalle added. âTo make those trips easier, Walt bought a new Grumman Gulfstream I turboprop. Now he could make it from California to New York nonstop.â
While there were undoubtedly early-generation business jets available to him, Disney was sold on the Gulfstreamâs long, large, and comfortable 15-place stand-up cabin.
âThe Gulfstream allowed him to no longer rely on commercial airlines. He could set his schedule and go wherever he wanted,â Ovalle said. âHe had several projects in the works, and the airplane allowed him to visit many airports that the airlines didnât service.â
One interesting side note is that the Gulfstreamâs original N-number was 732G, which it kept until 1963 when it was changed to 234MM. While âMickey Mouseâ would seem the perfect âvanity plate,â according to Ovalle, the company didnât request the number; it was what the FAA changed it to. Perhaps it was just Oklahoma Cityâs way of paying homage to Disney.
Anyway, it wasnât long before N234MM was nicknamed âthe Mouse.â Cline added that as air traffic controllers became aware of the airplaneâs owner, it was often called November 234 Mickey Mouse.
âHe really loved his flying office,â Cline said. âThere was no wasted time when he flew. He could have his home team of Imagineers on board, which was point-to-point working. That was Walt. The airplane was a great business tool for him.â
And while Disney wasnât a licensed pilot, he loved to spend time in the flight deck. Another nod to his interest in flying, his crew had his favorite seatâin the back, left corner of the cabinâequipped with an altimeter, a Mickey Mouse clock, and a dedicated phone he could use to talk to the pilots.
With its range and ability to land at smaller airports, Cline explained that the big turboprop was a great asset when Disney and his team went on scouting missions looking at locations and details for new attractions or movies.
âFor example, because Walt was a stickler for accuracy when they started to research the setting for a new attraction at Disneyland, they flew down to San Juan, Puerto Rico, to visit the famous Castillo San Felipe del Morro fortress,â Cline said. âThat became one of the locations found in our Pirates of the Caribbean attractions.â
And, of course, there were frequent trips from California to Central Florida as Disney and the team began âThe Florida Project.â It was probably the regularity of those cross-countries that the decision was made to upgrade to a new Gulfstream II jet.
Unfortunately, Disney passed away before the new jet was built, so the order was canceled.
G1 Recast into New Role
While the Gulfstreamâs primary mission was for business use, the much-loved Mouse made frequent family vacation flights around California and to the Disney familyâs weekend home in Palm Springs.
In fact, Disneyâs last trip on the Gulfstream was flying back from Palm Springs to Anaheim on Nov. 30, 1966.
After his passing, the airplane continued to serve the companyâs missions in the western U.S. until it was transferred to full-time operations out of Orlando in 1985.
With Walt Disney World open and cross-country flying being taken over by jets, the Mouse became a full-time flying ambassador for the companyâs numerous charitable and educational outreach programs.
After 20 years in that role, on Oct. 8, 1992, Disneyâs beloved G1 made its last landing on World Drive in the center of Disney World property. During its nearly 30 years of service, the G1 had accumulated almost 20,000 flight hours and transported an estimated 83,000 passengers.
âBecause of its significance to Walt, the decision was made to make the Gulfstream part of the Backstage Studio Tour at the then-recently opened Disney-MGM Studios theme park,â Cline said. âAfter nearly 20 years as an attraction, and with the reimagining of the park, the airplane was moved to a non-public location in 2014.â
âThatâs when we started trying to decide what to do with it for the long term,â she added. âOur Imagineers in Orlando took care of it the best they could. The engines and cockpit had all been removed when it was relocated to the park, but the windows were leaking, and it had other areas of corrosion. It was never going to fly again.â
Waltâs Winged Mouse Gets New House
After much deliberation, Cline said the decision was made to refurbish the exterior of the Gulfstream and truck it to southern California for display during the D23 Expo, a fan event held in September in Anaheim.
Before being disassembled and trucked from Orlando to Anaheim, Disney Imagineers repainted the airplane in the orange and black Walt Disney Productionsâ scheme Disneyâs wife, Lillian, selected back in 1963.
âWe were kicking off the Disney Companyâs birthday celebration, and we felt D23 was a great way to show off Waltâs airplane,â she explained. âWhen D23 ended, the airplane was disassembled and trucked to the Palm Springs Air Museum for long-term display.â
âEveryone here is extremely excited to welcome Waltâs airplane to our collection,â said Fred Bell, vice chairman of the Palm Springs Air Museum. âI saw the airplane on display 35 years ago and said it needed to be in a museum. Weâre thrilled itâs coming here.â
Bell said that initially, the airplane will be put in the museumâs outdoor display, but a new indoor facility is under construction. Phase one of the exhibit is scheduled to open on December fifth to celebrate Waltâs 101st birthday.
âThe plan is to get a donor Gulfstream I to use for replacing airframe parts that are beyond repair,â he continued. âUltimately, we will refurbish the cockpit and cabin to give visitors a chance to see what it was like when Walt used it.â
âWeâre also going to put vinyl coverings over the windows, and the one beside Waltâs seat will have his silhouette in the window,â Bell said. âIt will be a neat easter egg for Disney fans.â
âWalt had a family vacation home in Smoke Tree Ranch in Palm Springs, which is very close to the airport,â Cline added. âHe and his family flew in and out of there a lot, and I think having the Mouse on display at the museum would make him very happy.â