.png)
J-8 NC2945
The W.P. Fuller Paint Company originated back in 1857 by William Parma Fuller (1827-1890) in Sacramento. Fuller had many partners and mergers over the years but for the most part had family members overseeing the company for generations. The history of this company is indeed a long one and will not get into the details except for the introduction of Frank W. Fuller, Jr.
Frank was the grandson of William P. Fuller, and grew up with the family business. He graduated from Stanford in 1924 with a law degree.
Frank W. Fuller, Jr.
photo Tom Anusewicz Collection
photo Tom Anusewicz Collection / Historic Images
Frank became the Secretary and Director of W.P. Fuller Paint in San Francisco and a member of the Executive Committee. Frank was an avid sportsman as well as an aviation enthusiast. He had the first flying license issued in the Territory of Hawaii. By the mid '30's, he started competing in air competitions including the Bendix Cup. From 1937 to 1941, Frank was a Director of United Airlines. As WWII approached, Frank became a test pilot for Douglas Aircraft flying many aircraft before delivery to the war effort. He then returned to W.P. Fuller Paint to continue the family business. It wasn't long after WWII that Frank bought his Grumman Mallard, which he flew for 30 years. See more about Frank and Malllard J-8.
.jpg)
photo credit Rudy Arnold / Smithsonian Institution / AirHistory.net photo archive
photo from Alamy (licensed for posting)
John Fuller letter August 13, 1985
.png)
.png)
photo credit Bill Larkins
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
Now and then
N2945
1926 - 2024
Last year, I posted a story about
Grumman Mallard
G-73 / N2945 / J-8 and its owner Frank Fuller but the story continued.​​
​Reid Dennis purchased the aircraft in August of 1974 and maintained ownership for the next 45 years.
Oakland Airport, California - 1974
Reid was a pioneering venture capitalist and adventurer that loved flying. He logged over 9,000 flight hours and that is a lot for someone that was not a commercial pilot. His love for seaplanes was evident with not only the purchase of his Grumman Mallard but with the addition of a Grumman Albatross. This particular Albatross (N44RD), having long range capabilities, saw adventure in 1997 as a filming platform and safety aircraft in support of a globe-circling expedition recreating the
final flight of Amalie Earhart.
See more below.
​
The Mallard saw regular flight time with Reid flying around the country and beyond to fly-in's, family excursions and for just about any reason at all.
He loved flying the amphibians.
​
.png)
1988
.png)
2018
.png)
The Venture Capitalists'
.png)
Reid Dennis enjoyed his seaplanes but also understood the need for his corporate jets to conduct business. IVP not only flew but invested in business aviation and Reid knew the flight plan
for success in all that he did.
Reid Dennis had a long and full life with family, business and adventure. He is missed.
"I started my company in 1980, mainly to sort of keep me off the street and out of the bars as I was retiring from the venture business. Also I don't fly enough hours a year to keep good pilots, because they want to fly. At the same time, I wanted to have good pilots flying with me and my family. The only way I could have both was to go onto business. I have two Citation Encores - seven passenger jets, flown always with two pilots - and we're getting a new plane, a Citation XLS+, in February. Some people have so damn much money that they don't care how much it costs them to own an airplane, but I do, and the business reduces
the cost to where it's
very manageable for me."
Reid Dennis 1989
CTP Aviation was established in 1999
Citation XLS+
Citation Encore
I met Reid Dennis when he stopped in Honolulu during his around-the-world Grumman Albatross flight. He was escorting Linda Finch's World Flight 1997 and her Lockheed Electra 10E recreating Amelie Earhart's world-record attempt.​ I was the Managing Director of Circle Rainbow Aviation and assisted with World Flight at various locations in the Pacific.
photos credit Tom Anusewicz
Reid Dennis sitting in his Grumman Albatross N44RD in 2014
photo credit Gotanero
​Grumman HU-16 Albatross N44RD
Honolulu. Hawaii​
Hiller Aviation Museum
LIFE magazine cover from August 23, 1937 hangs on the forward bulkhead of Reid's N44RD as a reminder of his life long interest in flying boats. As a child he read of the new Boeing Flying Boat "Atlantic Clipper"(Boeing 314) being produced in Seattle, Washington for Pan American World Airways.
The cover photo shows a Martin 130
Tom Anusewicz
The Mallard N2945 photo at top of page also showed Vanpac Carrier's Convair 240 /N112T​. Vanpac Carrier was a moving and storage company originating as Richmond Transfer & Storage in 1921 and in 1976 became part of American Red Ball
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
.png)
​
Charles M. Somers is a prominent aviator and vintage warbird collector based out of Hillsboro, Oregon. He is widely recognized in the aviation community for owning, maintaining, and displaying an extraordinary private collection of historically significant, rare World War II-era military aircraft.
The Aircraft Collection
Somers operates and registers several iconic vintage aircraft out of his Hillsboro base, often working with premier warbird pilots like Steve Hinton Sr. to fly them at West Coast airshows:
-
de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito FB Mk.VI (PZ474 / N474PZ): One of the crown jewels of his collection. Known as the "Wooden Wonder" due to its nearly all-wood airframe structure, this rare, meticulously restored 1945 fighter-bomber frequently draws massive crowds at displays like the Central Coast AirFest and has been hosted at the Planes of Fame Air Museum in Chino, California.
-
North American P-51D Mustang (N551JV): A classic 1944 long-range fighter registered under his name in Hillsboro.
-
Goodyear FG-1D Corsair (N72NW): A iconic 1944 carrier-capable fighter bomber famous for its gull-wing design.
-
de Havilland DH 89B Dominie (N663HG): A 1943 classic British twin-engined biplane short-haul airliner.
-
Pilatus PC-7 (N66PN): A low-wing tandem-seat training aircraft.
His aircraft are regularly preserved in pristine airworthy condition, serving as living pieces of aviation history that fly at regional heritage events.
​