On a gloomy, cold New England day in early April, a steady rain falls on the metal roof of the Collings Foundation’s (www.collingsfoundation.org) 44,000-square-foot hangar in Stow, Mass. The rain’s soft cadence seems to accentuate the history and significance of the vintage World War II aircraft displayed inside. A grass airstrip beckons from just beyond the hangar’s broad rolling doors, and knowing that most of the foundation’s aircraft are both airworthy and authentically restored makes the day’s weather—unwelcomed by winter-weary New Englanders—even more abhorrent. A warm, sunny day could coax the foundation’s CEO, Rob Collings, to take one of the planes out for a spin over the apple orchards of central Massachusetts. But today, thanks to uncooperative Mother Nature, appreciation for these winged military marvels must be appreciated within the cold confines of a hangar built to accommodate the foundation’s aircraft collection, one that began 27 years ago.

From the hangar’s third-floor balcony—a space that houses seven Indianapolis 500 racecars and more than a dozen other racing vehicles—Collings surveys the nine vintage planes below. His commentary on each model reflects a lifelong passion for flying and for the machines that made such flight possible. From a 1944 TBM Avenger that Collings says "flies like a truck" to a Fieseler Fi 156 Storch, a German reconnaissance plane capable of taking off and landing in short spaces and one that Collings says "tells a remarkable story and represents something pretty unique," the private collection comprises an impressive array of 22 rare aircraft (stored in three states), many of which share a common theme: a significant role in the battles and war missions that dictated the outcome of World War II.

Unlike the classic car market, where the presence of original parts is of the utmost importance, with vintage military aircraft, the résumé of a particular plane is more valuable than how many original components it has retained. In fact, for the Collings family, where the plane’s ability to fly is paramount, original components are less enticing, since they must be replaced to make the aircraft a safe flyer. Given the nature of the aircraft that the family is after, a history of service in various missions implies inherent damage and subsequent repairs. "Combat history adds considerably to [a plane’s] value, but the significance of originality isn’t as important," Collings says. "Not many aircraft made it back from World War II unscathed."

Autos and Aviation
A decade before the family acquired its first plane in 1984—a PT-17 Stearman, one of the most recognizable World War II training planes ever built—Bob Collings, cofounder of the foundation and Rob’s father, started a prewar, classic American car collection with the purchase of a 1928 Packard model 533 sedan. From there, the collection slowly grew to its current size—approximately 75 cars prominently displayed alongside vintage signs and clothing from the eras, all housed within a 50,000-square-foot barn built specifically for the collection.

Vintage planes and vintage automobiles share some similarities. The vintage aircraft community puts great stock in restoration efforts aimed at returning a plane to the point where it is as authentic as possible to the period in which it flew, even if some parts are newer. That emphasis has defined the classic car market for decades, and, as Bob Collings explains, "the same is true for a lot of aircraft. You want to see them as they lived their lives, and their values are dictating that."

There’s also an overlap in audiences, as the Collings family can attest. "Is there a connection between cars and airplanes?" Rob Collings asks. "I’d say yes. It’s a passion for the mechanical, whether it’s a racecar or an airplane. Guys who like one will inevitably like the others, though they won’t be a collector of both. You have to house them and fly them. It creates a barrier for many people."

And therein lays the greatest difference between classic cars and classic planes. Although passion drives both types of collectors, the sheer number of vintage-automobile collectors is significantly greater than the number of aircraft collectors. "How many car auctions are there around the world where you find the best of the best?" Collings asks rhetorically. "Many. Within a few months you can buy something that’s very special. Aircraft that are very special come along very, very infrequently. And in some cases, never."

Because of that, the community is defined by those who are in the know. Advertisements spotlighting vintage planes for sale rarely appear; instead, news of historic planes coming to market travels mostly by word of mouth or via specialty publications like Trade-A-Plane (www.trade-a-plane.com). Even then, Collings acknowledges that "the most significant airplanes are all private sales. The buyers know who the sellers are and vice versa."

Born To Fly
Rob Collings was born the same year that his father purchased the 1928 Packard that started the family’s classic car collection. Logic would dictate that Rob, growing up in a family that revered historic, restored automobiles and living in a home that was only 100 yards from a 50,000-square-foot, custom-built facility that displayed them, would grow up an automotive enthusiast. However, logic does not always prevail.

Sure, he appreciates antique cars. But if his father’s calling was to the road, Rob’s was to the sky. "He always had an interest in flying," Bob says, recalling a costume party that the family hosted in the late 1970s where Rob—only 4 years old at the time—came downstairs in leather boots and an aviator helmet. "It’s always been in his blood."

Rob Collings took to the skies as soon as he could, logging his first solo flight when he was 16, getting his private pilot’s license when he was 17, and securing his commercial pilot’s license a year later. When he went off to college in a suburb of Boston 20 miles away, he brought that passion for flight with him. There he met his roommate, Chris Nicotra, a fellow New Englander who came from a family of classic car enthusiasts. Predictably, the two bonded immediately, and by their sophomore year, they were rushing off after class—and sometimes instead of class, as Nicotra remembers—out to the 70 acres of the foundation’s property where Collings would take them up in an AT-6F Texan, a small two-seater prop plane with a cockpit haloed by a sliding glass canopy.

"I’d left class to take off in a Ferrari," Nicotra remembers, "but I’d never left class to take off in an airplane." Fortunately, Nicotra, a self-described daredevil, was familiar with Collings’ competency in the pilot’s seat and also his dry sense of humor. "I remember putting the headset on for the first time and Rob assuring me that there was a parachute in the plane but that he didn’t know how to use it so not to worry about it," Nicotra says.

"We’re not at a high enough elevation to jump out anyway," Nicotra remembers being told. "So we’re probably screwed."

A Collector’s Mission
When it comes to the Collings Foundation’s mission, however, both Rob and his father are 100 percent serious. The foundation was created in 1979 with the intent to organize living history events, where spectators could learn about their heritage through hands-on participation. At the time of the foundation’s inception, those living history events included classic car rallies, hill climbs, and carriage or sleigh rides. Once the family began to amass a collection of World War II aircraft, however, the spectrum of events widened to include air shows, barnstorming, historical reunions, and joint museum displays. Since 1989, the foundation has produced a "Wings of Freedom Tour," a nationwide circuit of more than 2,300 flying events that spotlight rare and instrumental World War II aircraft, including a B-24 Liberator, a B-17 Flying Fortress, and the world’s only dual-control P-51C Mustang fighter plane.

Because it is a recognized nonprofit organization, the Collings Foundation boasts a vintage aircraft collection that would be difficult for many private collectors to duplicate. Only because of its 501(c)(3) status and its commitment to present its collection to the public through living history events and the Wings of Freedom tour was the foundation able to secure a TA-4J Skyhawk, a light fighter jet that was prominent during the Vietnam War.

A newcomer to vintage aircraft collecting could learn quite a lot from the Collings family. For starters, as Rob declares, the commitment to restoration is "not for the faint of heart." He points to a P-51, the most recognizable fighter plane from World War II. As an aircraft that is maintainable and in large supply, the P-51 is a plane that many enthusiasts could add to their collections. But as obtainable as it might be, the cost of a restoration is predictably high. The power source for a P-51 is a V-12, liquid-cooled engine built by Packard, known as a Merlin, which easily can require a $200,000 overhaul.

And then there’s the factor of time. "To restore an airplane can be upwards of 20,000 to 40,000 hours," Rob says. "A B-17 or B-24 is upwards of 100,000 hours. That’s 50 years for someone working a normal workweek. They’re very difficult due to the size and complexity. A body of a car might be a bit rusty and you’ll just sand it and paint it but you can’t do that with an airplane."

Of course, not every private collector is amassing a collection with the intention of flying each machine. Therefore, some concessions could be made when restoring a plane to static, museum-quality condition. But even for collectors who do not have a pilot’s license, it is what a vintage aircraft represents that makes ownership of it so special. "Cars, as beautiful as they might be and with as much provenance and pedigree on the racetrack, did nothing of the significance that these warplanes did," says Rob. "We love mechanical stuff, but it goes beyond that because of the appeal of the connection to these veterans, and what these planes mean to them, and what you’re giving back to them by making sure that these planes continue to fly."

Such a statement reflects what is likely the greatest difference between collectible automobiles and collectible aircraft. Where a collector of vintage automobiles may be influenced or motivated by a car’s performance or its monetary value, Collings says that most collectors of vintage aircraft are drawn to a plane for its historical significance and its connection to events that shaped the world. "World War II was the best thing that ever happened to them," Rob says of the veterans and their reactions to the foundation’s collection of aircraft. "I’ve heard that statement many times. They’re so proud of the fact that they came together as a group and did nothing less than save the world. When are you ever a part of something as big as saving the world?"