WESTSIDE - Oftentimes, when people are asked to identify a World War Two bomber, they recognize the mighty Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress. The B-17, along with the Consolidated B-24 Liberator, was largely responsible for winning the war in Europe and defeating Germany. But today fewer then a dozen are still gracing the skies over the United States and England.
One of these mighty warbirds recently visited the Arkansas Air and Military Museum at Drake Field in Fayetteville. Mike Eckels, staff reporter/ photographer for Westside Eagle Observer, had a chance to fly in the B-17 toTulsa’s Riverside Airport.
“When Warren Jones (Executive Director of the AAMM and personal friend) asked me what I was doing tonight (June 26th), I was surprised. I replied that I had to work at 2 a.m. but other than that I was free,” Eckels recounted.
“Good, then you’re going to Tulsa with us,” Jones said.
It was at that point that Eckels realized he was about to take a dream ride aboard the B-17 Flying Fortress, Aluminum Overcast, owned by the Experimental Aircraft Association, based in Oshkosh, Wis.
This was not Eckels’ first flight in a B-17.
“I had the chance to fly the Confederate Air Force’s B-17, Texas Raider, three times, once to Springfield, Mo. Each trip was a unique ride into the past,” Eckels remembers.
Eckels was joined on this trip by five other friends and museum workers. Along with Jones were Jim Raynor, Bill Seymour, Chuck Lange and Zac Hale. Hale, the youngest of the party at 19, has worked for the museum for five years. Eckels recalls,” I remember Zac when he first walked into the museum. He was very eager to help in any way he could. He is just like me, loves aviation, including flying. I told Zac that trips like the B-17 are things he needs to grab onto and savor the experience.”
The party of six had to go through a preflight safety briefing before boarding Aluminum Overcast. At around 5 p.m. the group, led by Jones, climbed through the hatch in the right waist and into their seats. Eckels, Jones and Hale sat in the radio room with Eckels sitting at the radio operator’s station. Raynor, Seymour and Lange, just behind the waist gunners station close to the tail. An eerie quiet came over the group as they buckled up.
Then the aircraft came to life. The auxiliary power unit began to sing. A loud gear noise resonated through the B-17. This was the hydraulic pumps moving fluid through the wings and forward fuselage.
“After the auxiliary power unit and hydraulics came on, I knew it was only a matter of time before the engines started and the bombay doors closed,” Eckels said. “First engine to start was the left inboard number 2. Then the left outboard number 1, followed by the right inboard number 3, and last the number 4 right outboard engine. The roar of those four Wright 1830 radial engines brought goosebumps to me. I was in heaven,” Eckels recalled.
By 5:30, the B-17 Flying Fortress, Aluminum Overcast, was on her way to Tulsa. During the 45-minute flight, the passengers were allowed to move about the aircraft, experiencing each position - the tail and ball turret were not accessible.
Eckels recounts his experience sitting in the bombardier’s station: “I looked out through the large plexiglas bubble that covered the nose of the ‘seventeen’ to see a haze horizon. Looking through the bomb sight and seeing the ground slip by, I suddenly knew the intensity the bombardier must have felt entering the initial point of the bomb run. His eyes glued to the bomb site, his fingers poised over the bomb release toggle switch. I felt cold and alone as I sat in the nose.”
“I feel a little guilty,” Jones remarked. “We are on this flight for pleasure and so many fought and died in these aircraft for our freedom.”
Almost as soon as it began, the flight into the past was over. Aluminum Overcast was once again safely on the ground.
On the drive home,Eckels recalls that nobody talked. He believes it was probably everybody’s time to reflect on the many Americans who gave their lives in planes like the Flying Fortress to restore the freedom nearly lost by World War II.
“The thousands of warbird enthusiasts who put in so many hours to fly and maintain these classic aircraft from WWII, Korea, Vietnam and Desert Storm do so, not to glorify war, but to remember and honor all those that fought in these symbols of freedom,” Eckels reflected. “To allow the new generations of Americans the chance to touch a piece of history and share the memories of their grandfathers and grandmothers, fathers and mothers, aunts and uncles, bothers and sisters. This is why we fly !”
News, Pages 10 on 07/24/2013