What happens to old P2Vs?

A lucky few are transformed into fire fighting aircraft. The planes are completely overhauled and stripped of their military hardware, refitted with hardware appropriate to fighting forest fires and put into service protecting our national parks and forest lands.

I was recently contacted by Mr. Jay Powelson, ADC, USN (Ret) who now works for Hawkins & Powers Aviation, an aerial fire fighting company located in Greybull, Wyoming. He was surfing the net looking for info on some of their planes, found this website, and E-Mailed to tell me he was installing a J-34 jet engine  on BuNo 140441 and that the plane had been assigned to VP-23. Jay also said that of the 15 P2's owned by H & P, at least four including the two shown in the fixed wing picture gallery had at one time been assigned to VP-23. He says his research shows BuNo (s) 140441,140443,145905 and145906 all did time in VP-23.

Jay said he will look for pictures he thinks would be of interest to us here on this page so I'll keep my fingers crossed and hope he finds something.