Motorists traveling along Interstate 80 on Wednesday may have seen an unusual vehicle traveling down the highway.
It was a hybrid.
Not that type of hybrid. Those are everywhere.
This one was a combo truck/airplane that kind of looked like an older Space Shuttle that was cut in half and then put on wheels.
The Frankenstein-vehicle is actually a 1943 Douglas DC-3 aircraft that was used by the U.S. Navy during World War II in South America.
A family from Michigan bought the plane in a junkyard after it was destroyed in a tornado and welded it onto an International truck frame. After a lot of work, it became street legal.
Now the “Fabulous Flamingo” is fairly well-known in offbeat RV circles.
What it was doing in Wyoming is not known — at least by us.
But the Wyoming Highway Patrol Association shared the photo on Facebook and fans shared what they knew about it.
Our favorite comment was from Amy Varland who called it the “turducken of trucks.”
One fan shared a photo of it gassing up in Rock Springs while another showed it in action from Iowa two weeks ago.
Why build such a vehicle?
Aviation appears to be in the creator’s blood. He’s a pilot, mechanic, and aviation inspector.
“I always wanted to build one, since I was 12-years-old, and I just wanted to make an airplane out of a motor home,” said Gino Lucci from Nashville, Michigan. “The truck won’t fly, but the airplane drives.”
It’s probably good for business too. He sells vintage airplane parts from the 1920s through the 1960s.
If you are excited to see what the interior looks like, you might be disappointed if you were expecting something amazing.
It looks kind of plane (pardon the pun).
But beauty is in the eye of the beholder so this is a no judgment zone.
It does have a bathroom complete with a working bathtub so there’s that bonus.
For a much more in depth look at the Fabulous Flamingo, watch the video below.
