Divers and salvage crews have successfully raised a WW2 SB2C Helldiver dive bomber from the bottom of a California lake where it crashed in 1945. Now that the plane is free from the mud on the lake bottom, the salvage team will next move the Helldiver to shore. The warplane is expected to be disassembled and send to Florida for restoration and display at the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola.
The SB2C Helldiver crashed in May 1945 when the engine failed during a training flight. The pilot E.D. Frazar and gunner Joseph Metz survived the ditching safely.
NBC San Diego: Helldiver Is Up From the Deep
There is also a video on the Helldiver recovery on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxJOVg3m-9E
Amazing discovery. Looks like the plane is in pretty good shape.
How much is is worth?
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Nice find. Look forward to the restoration.