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Wyoming County Auctioning Vintage Aircraft

Prices range from $25 to $500 per airplane.

A KC-97 set for auction by Big Horn County.
A KC-97 set for auction by Big Horn County. [Public Surplus via YouTube]
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Key Takeaways:

  • Big Horn County, Wyoming, is auctioning 16 vintage World War II and Cold War-era aircraft online, with bids starting as low as $25, to clear county property and recover legal and unpaid lease fees.
  • The aircraft, including models like the C-119, P-2, and KC-97, are largely in disassembled and non-airworthy condition, making them suitable for scrap, parts, or collectors rather than restoration.
  • The county gained possession of the planes after a successful legal dispute against a tenant who failed to pay rent for the land where the aircraft were stored.
  • While the aircraft have become a local landmark, only a portion of the planes at the "boneyard" are being auctioned, with others owned by a different company remaining on site.
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Wyoming’s Big Horn County has a unique problem on its hands—16 vintage aircraft in various states of disassembly, and no way to properly store or make use of them. So county officials turned to the internet and are now in the process of auctioning the airplanes to interested members of the public, some for as little as $25.

On PublicSurplus.com, potential buyers can browse and place bids on the aircraft, most of which date to World War II or the Cold War. Among the lots are Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcars, Lockheed P-2 Neptunes, Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighters, Martin 4-0-4s, and a Lockheed C-130 Hercules. Most are in poor condition, having been stripped for parts over the years, and in some cases only the fuselage remains.

Zach Vasile

Zach Vasile is a writer and editor covering news in all aspects of aviation. He has reported for and contributed to the Manchester Journal Inquirer, the Hartford Business Journal, the Charlotte Observer, and the Washington Examiner, with his area of focus being the intersection of business and government policy.

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