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The Last Airworthy Mars Flying Boat Makes Final Flight

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a plane flying in the sky

On Monday afternoon, February 10, 2025, I was sitting with a colleague in a meeting in Palm Springs. Suddenly, we heard a loud noise and stepped outside, looking up to see a giant black propeller-driven aircraft overhead with a small P-51 Mustang chase plane accompanying it. Little did I know at the time I had witnessed history: the last flight of the Mars Flying Boat, a storied aircraft dating back to 1945.

Last Airworthy Mars Flying Boat, Philippine Mars, Makes Final Flight To Arizona…And I Looked Up And Saw It!

As World War II groaned on, the Martin Company (which would merge with Lockheed decades later) created an aircraft called the JRM Mars that was intended for use by the U.S. Navy as a maritime patrol bomber. Seven were ultimately manufactured. Over time, the aircraft was used to transport supplies between Hawaii and the Pacific Islands. After being retired from military use in 1956, a pair of the aircraft were used as firefighting water bombers as late as 2015, including to fight California wildfires in 2009.

The last Martin Mars Flying Boat was meticulously maintained in British Columbia over the last several years and recently acquired by the Pima Air and Space Museum in Tucson, Arizona. Over the weekend, the last Flying Boat, called Philippine Mars (each of the Flying Boats had a special name including Hawaii Mars, Philippine Mars, Marianas Mars, Marshall Mars, Hawaii Mars II [after the original Hawaii Mars was destroyed], and Caroline Mars) made its final stop.

First, it traveled to San Francisco, where it spent Sunday night parked at the Alameda Naval Air Station near San Francisco Bay. The following day, it took off, flew over the Golden Gate Bridge, then flew south. As the aircraft approached Palm Springs, California, it was joined by several historic aircraft, including the world’s last remaining airworthy Consolidated PB4Y-2 Privateer (N2871G), a World War II-era patrol bomber, as well as a P-51D Mustang (N44727), which escorted the aircraft for rest of the journey to Lake Pleasant, Arizona.

Sadly, I took no pictures…it was all over in the blink of an eye and I wasn’t even sure what I was watching.

Philippine Mars
FlightRadar24

Here are some pictures from the Bay Area:

Here’s a video of Philippine Mars landing at Lake Pleasant, Arizona. From there, it will be partially disassembled before being trucked to Pima Air and Space Museum, where it will join 400 other aircraft on permanent display.

May she rest in peace!

a drawing of a plane

About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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2 Comments

  1. JoeMart Reply

    Next road trip you can catch a glimpse of it at the Pima Air and Space Museum in Tucson, AZ.

  2. cairns Reply

    Isn’t the Hawaii Mars also airworthy or am I wrong?

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