The Beast

Although Jane has walked on many different aircraft, her primary mount was the Beautiful Stearman, known as "The Beast".  The aircraft is a 1943 Boeing Stearman PT17. In its beginning, it was a standard 220 Horse Power Stearman, originally used during WWII to train air cadets. 

In 1985 it was rebuilt to its current configuration. It was upgraded to a 450 HP Pratt & Whitney radial engine.  Although the engine is a 450 HP engine, it actually puts out in excess of 500 HP at full throttle.  The airframe was also beefed up and an inverted fuel and oil system, along with extra flying wires were added for sustained inverted flight and greater negative Gs. Airshow smoke was also installed for dramatic airshow effect. The tips of the 9 foot propeller reached supersonic speed as they bit into the air putting out a tremendous amount of noise.  Along with the smoke, it was perfect for the airshow crowd.