Some relevant points.
The Centurions weren't "sold to the public". The whole fleet (less a handful retained for museums) and 250 tons of spares were sold to one tenderer, who then proceeded to develop a business selling to collectors and making conversions for the mining industry.
The NZ M113s were readily for sale by the NZ Govt, who didn't have a problem with private ownership (and actually finalised the process of selecting tenders!), but the US Govt did have a problem, and used the notion of end user certificates to kybosh the sale to private owners. As the Leopards are of German origin, the US Govt should not be able to intervene in the sale in the same way.
The French Govt raised a storm with a proposal to ban private ownership of ex-military materiel, technically covering everything from Sherman Tanks to a Remington Typewriter. This caused a PR goof right before Normandy, and there was some furious lobbying and backpedalling going on.
It is much safer and more manageable for any Govt to say NO, than try to deal with the issues of someone asserting their right to do something different. It is up to the collecting community to demonstrate that private ownership is a viable and complementary way to preserve our heritage, without danger to the wider community and security. As Keith pointed out in the Maralinga thread, for many years the Civil Aviation Authority strongly disapproved with private flying of ex-mil aircraft. Gradual persistance allowed a change in the rules, and now we benefit from a thriving Warbird scene. 50 years ago, all that could easily have been lost forever.
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17-09-07, 16:03
Hybrid Mode
