B-29 Doc Gets Certified for Airworthiness!

War History Online ^ | June 8, 2016 | War History Online

[re_tail20]

The B-29 bomber known as Doc may be flying again before the summer is over.

On May 20th, the nonprofit group Doc’s Friends announced that they had accepted an airworthiness certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration.

Several dozen members of the group, along with other supporters, attended a ceremony at Doc’s hangar at Air Capital Flight Line, the former Boeing Wichita factory complex.

“The biggest thing is how important this airplane is to history,” said Jeff Turner, board chairman for Doc’s Friends. “The light of freedom was growing dimmer (during World War II), and the men and women of our nation rose up and secured our freedom. I don’t want us to ever forget that.”

The certificate was one of the final hurdles in the restoration plan for the plane. The group will now be seeking permission to operate the plane from McConnell Air Force Base.

Jim Murphy, program manager for the restoration, said that the certification announcement came 16 years to the day from when the pieces that make up Doc arrived in Wichita on flatbed trucks from California.

Turner, the former CEO of Spirit AeroSystems, thanked all who had helped with the project over the years. He said that 26 of the volunteers have since died. Over 350,000 volunteer hours were put into the restoration.,,

[odawg]

I don’t know if it would be feasible, cost wise, but I wish they would get out the designs for those old World War II planes and make some new ones, just for posterity.

Same goes for some of the old cars.

[Farmer Dean]

If the government can piss away a billion dollars on muslim refugees then we should be able to build a few vintage aircraft.

[Chode]

i/ve seen Marauders and Mitchells, Lib's and Lancaster's, ridden in a Fort, but never seen a Superfortress

[real saxophonist]

I've passed by this B-29 at the Georgia Veterans Memorial State Park many times:

Amazing how NOT big they are.

[mountn man]

i/ve seen Marauders and Mitchells, Lib’s and Lancaster’s, ridden in a Fort, but never seen a Superfortress

http://www.airpowersquadron.org/#!b29-schedule/c1yws

[M1903A1]

Many of the surviving B-29s--including "Doc" and "Fifi"-- survived thanks to a fluke.

Sometime in the 1950s, the Navy requested a quantity of surplus B-29s from the Air Force, for ground targets at China Lake Naval Weapons Range in California. Thanks to a typist's error (I want to say they requested 15 planes, and it suddenly became...51), China Lake was suddenly inundated with B-29s and was having to move them all over the place to get them out of the way. One collection of B-29s, maybe seven in number, was forgotten in a remote corner of the base until being rediscovered in the late 1970s. Two flyable machines were assembled from parts (Fifi, and "Hawg Wild" now at Duxford, England); most of the rest became gate guards or static displays. "Doc" was the last one removed from China Lake.

[katana]

Indeed.

[CodeToad]

Oooooohhhh! Nice.

[ExNewsExSpook]

It was great when the Commemorative Air Force (formerly the Confederate Air Force) used to stage their World War II shows capped by a FiFi fly-by; at the designated moment, the ground crew would detonate a pyrotechnic device that produced a mushroom-shaped cloud. Alas, even the CAF caved to political correctness and scrapped the simulated nuke.

The B-29 was a tremendous technological achievement. Went through a lot of teething pains and when XX and XXI Bomber Commands stood up, they achieved little in the way of operational success. Making matters more difficult, both organizations reported directed to the joint chiefs in Washington, through Army Air Forces Commander Hap Arnold. Never known for his patience, Arnold wound up firing the first leaders of both commands. It wasn’t until Curtis LeMay arrived in theater (and switched to night, low-level fire-bombing) that the B-29s began to cripple Japanese war production.

[Chode]

damn... the only one i really could have gone to was 6/15-6/19 at Albany, but thx for the link, maybe next year

[fella]

What a beauty, I’ll bet she’s high maintaince but worth it.

[Chode]

100% and it won't cheat on ya...

[West Texas Chuck]

That is awesome! I see Fifi a couple of times a year when they are having the Confederate Air Force in for shows around the Metromess.

Keep 'em flying. Nothing has that sound, those big radials are hard to mistake.

[Chode]

damn right.

[bert]

by march 1945, the field was open at Iwo Jima

I would suggest they landed there either going or coming and were not truly lost

There is an exceptional TV program that is real footage of the mission planning of all aspects. One very detailed part described the deployment of Naval assets all along the way such that if there was a serious problem, there was likely someone to help on the ground/water close by.

I was amazed at the planning and especially the logistics required to provide all the people, fuel and munitions for such a large raid. The gasoline alone is a stupendous effort

and for the record. To see the best aviation museum in the country, visit the museum of naval aviation as NAS Pensacola. It is fabulous

[BRL]

God bless the people who pour money into these projects.

[Chode]

Amen

[OldMissileer]

Years ago I was privileged to sit in the pilot's seat of FIFI (on the ground, of course.) I'll never forget that moment.

Back in the Summer of 1984 I had just graduated college and swore in for my commission from AFROTC. I lived near the campus.

One day I received a call from the Detachment Commander asking if I could pick up some of the AFROTC cadets and go out to the local airport for an Honor Guard for Fifi. The Fifi crew gave us a nose-to-tail tour of that fabulous aircraft. They were charging people $10 to poke their heads up into the plane while the four of us were sitting in the cockpit and going through the plane.

I have seen the updates for Doc on Facebook. The DoD has just given them permission to use the main Alert runway there at McConnell AFB for the high-speed taxi tests and the maiden flight. I wish I could be there. I used to be stationed there.