B-17G ride. Anybody had one?

That Memphis Belle rep (not the real one, obviously) was at our local airport up in NY giving rides about 15 or so years ago. I cheaped out and didn't do it. Back then it was $250 and I've kicking myself in the ass for not doing it ever since .

 

For a long time we lived close to Willow Run airport in Michigan and they often had B-17's for the fly in, but one year I was working in the shop and heard a different sound of engines, ran out to take a look and it was a B-24 doing a low and slow approach right over us. My dad was visiting and I shouted for him to come out and take a look. He came out, looked up, said "I've seen lots of those doing bombing runs", then went back inside.

He was was in Japanese occupied territory as a kid, so his view is from the other side of the operation.

They're awesome machines, would love to take a ride, but it's not a cheap seat.

 

I did the ground tour a couple years ago. Just that was awesome. It was the end of the day and they said we had an engine with an oil leak, if you all promise to stand back you can watch us start it and check it out. Way cool.

Then a month ago I'm driving through rural BF Iowa and think I'm seeing things. Get closer and yep, it's that same B-17 flying parallel to the road I'm on. I looked and they weren't giving tours or anything at the airport. Must have stopped there on their way somewhere else.

 

Gee thanks for the pic to remind me of how old I am now, Marc.

Seeing the pics of the girls now from the last time we got together I truly feel over the hill.

 

This thread got me thinking...The Collings Foundation is flying the only operational B24 left. Amazing considering that 10's of thousands of these were produced. I missed the schedule for 2018 but will make every effort to get a flight in 2019....Thanks!

 

Those that are into Bombers and war birds this is a must see... can’t find the full movie but have watched it over and over.. great documentary...

 

That's a damned shame. According to Bob Morgan, when he left the B17 for the B29, and said that the 29 was dangerous right out of the box. I think that he said something like every mission there was a problem with the 29, and he had to decide if the problem at hand was worth turning back or keep going. I think I read that aborts were at least 23% on every mission.

Those Kee Bird boys were probably lucky.

 

It's a shame they could salvage the engines, landing gear and such. B29's were in service well past WWII, I wonder how many are still around? They say the B29 project cost even more than the Manhattan project.

 

I remember seeing Fifi with the CAF years ago. I have pics someplace.

 

There are only two flying.






I flew on Aluminum Overcast last year. You can go everywhere but the tail and the ball turret. Last month I got to check out the "Maid in the Shade" B-25, no flight though.

Speaking of Aluminum Overcast, it's here for it's annual visit right now. Just noticed on a flight tracker.

 

I saw that documentary when it aired really late at night on PBS. That part where they're sitting on the lawn chairs watching it burn, after all of that work and the death of the chief mechanic is is really testament to the quality of their character. Lesser mortals would have just keeled over.

This is a neat book I have, I was surprised to see they have it on Amazon when I googled it. I see it is in the library of Congress but every public library should have it. It belonged to my childhood next door neighbors, the husband, a spectacular human being, was in the 831st bomb squadron so I think he got it as a gift. My parents became their caretakers and guardians when they couldn't take care of themselves, but after they passed we had to clear out their place and luckily I found this in one of the boxes that was already in the trash.

It describes all their missions in B-24'a from 44-45 in the European theater. It is pretty dry, logbook style entries, but it is real, and the details are amazing, both inspring and terrifying, a sample entry "Tail section of aircraft 657 came off and the aircraft plunged to earth. One chute seen."

 

The wife and I did a flight last time one of the them was at Burbank
Jay Leno turned up to see it as it
Flight was great, if you are used to modern planes it’s so small can’t believe how you could do those missions to Germany in one
Tip is to be one of the first to get on so you can jump up quickly to get up front

 

My Dad , a B24 vet, didn't talk much about his WWII experiences. He did say that they lost more crews to equipment failures when 750 miles out over the ocean than to Japanese action. He was also pretty talkative about Japanese AAA. Said it was much worse than fighters. I'm sure other vets would have different views, but that was his. He was 7th AF. One of my regrets (and I have many) is that I didn't talk to him much about these things. The more I read about their experiences the more I am amazed. (PS, my picture is his squadron insignia)

 

Interested. Care to enlarge?

 

Like many WWII vets I remember from my youth, they didn't talk much about their experiences...at least to the family. I know from talking with his fellow airmen at his funeral that they did talk between themselves. I figure it was just their way of putting it in the past. Old fashion PSTD I guess. What I do know after looking at the "Strawberry Bitch" at Wright Patterson is that these planes were not much more than flying beer cans. To a kid in 1943 it probably looked state of the art but it's pretty flimsy to me. He told me that the Japanese Ack Ack would pass right through the plane. You would find out you were hit by seeing the holes after the schrapnel had already passed through. I have read where the Japanese had radar guided AAA that was pretty good.

 

Doing a track day at Heartland Park in Topeka Kansas, B-17 just flew over.

 

I may have mentioned this before in another old thread on this, but my understanding of why this airplane burned to the ground was a jury-rigged gas can supplying a generator in the back of the plane came undone...truly sad after all that work.

 

It was a fire extinguisher falling off if I am not mistaken...

 

My grandfather was a turret gunner and togelier in B-17s over Europe. His UK based plane was shot down during his mid-tour trip home. Finished his 25 out of Italy.

 

The video clip said something about a gas can and generator.