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| John & B-17G |
Just a couple weeks ago, I had the opportunity to see and explore a couple warbirds from the
Collings Foundation that were making a stop in San Luis Obispo. I had been tracking the tours a few months back but not recently and almost missed this one. We just happened to be out at the SLO Airport seeing our daughter off when all of a sudden the B-17G Flying Fortress lands and is soon followed by the
B-24J Liberator. A
P-51 Mustang fighter was delayed until the following day so I went back to check it out too and to get a second look at the big birds.
The B-17G was of special interest. You may have read the previous blog entries regarding my mom's brother, my Uncle Jule (Juke) Steunenberg, who survived the war only to be killed on July 20th, 1946 in a post war accident when two B-17G's clipped wings while searching for three missing
P-47 Thunderbolts off Coiba Island, Republic of Panama. I will include links to the accident report and about Uncle Jule at the bottom of this post.
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| B-17G landing |
While touring the B-17G and B-24J, and working my way fore and aft (crawling and squeezing) through the fuselage of each, one certainly gains a greater appreciation for the 10-man crews flying in far off regions and often under a heavy barrage of flak. Many never made it back home.
So enjoy a few pics of of these wonderful old Warbirds on this Memorial Day weekend, and please reflect on all the men and women who have been lost in service to our country.
Starting with a few pics and will probably add more as I go. Click on any of the pics for the enlarged slide show.
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| B-24 landing |
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| P-51 landing. |
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| Flying over my house! |
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Lying on my back looking up through the
open bomb bay doors. Don't drop the bomb! |
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| Nine-O-Nine |
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| Turret was not open for tours. I wouldn't fit |
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| 1st class with back cushion |
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| Tail gun |
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Looking down at the top on the belly turret. X marks the trapdoor through which the
crew member would enter. A tight fit. |
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| This one from the Collings Foundation website.Bombardier station. |
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| Here's one I took of the bombardiers station from the outside. |
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| ARC-5 series radios. |
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| BC-348 in the radio room. |
Of course I had to make a stop in the radio room. We see the venerable BC-348 on the right and ARC-5 Command radio's on the left. Similar were used in the B-24. I have a couple setting around here and there. As we know, Uncle Cal was the radio guy, U.S. Army Signal Corp during the war and lifetime Ham Radio Operator. Click on link below.
Monday, May 25, 2009: "CQ,CQ,CQ, this is W6WFV....William 6, William, Frank, Victor...CQ, CQ, CQ" ...Memorial Day 2009...and "dits" and "dahs"
You can see a little more radio stuff if you scroll about half way down over in the right hand column of this blog.
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| This pic from the Collings Foundation website as they couldn't drop any bombs on the fly byes. |
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| Crew names |
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| Witchcraft |
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| Nose Guns |
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| Top Guns |
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| Dual cockpit/dual seater so you can take a ride. I watched a couple guys
check off a bucket list item at $2,200 for 30 minutes or $3,200 for a
full hour. |
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| From the Collings Foundation website since I wasn't able to get up close to the cockpit. |
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| Next in |
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| Betty Jane |
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| Taxi anyone? |
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| Take-off |
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| I couldn't leave without a B-17G T-shirt. |
Related Blog Post & Links
Monday, September 3, 2012
Dog Tags, Ribbons & Pins
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Jule "Juke" Steunenberg killed in air crash 7/20/1946
Monday, November 10, 2008
Veteran's Day November 11, 2008 - Staff Sargent Jule Steunenberg
Army Air Forces Report of Major Accident (may be prompted to grant permission for download)
397th Bombardment Squadron
If you are family, friend, veteran, historian, etc. and have any more info on the above squadron, the accident, the B-17G
pilot Paul J. Hydo or my Uncle Jule Steunenberg―I would love to hear from you.
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| 397th Bombardment Squadron emblem |
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B-17 patrolling the Panama Canal zone WWII.
Click on the pic and go to my Fold3 account for better viewing. |
MISC:
B-17 ‘Texas Raiders’ To Fly in the Heart of Texas…
Crew Positions on a B-17G
B-17G “Lacey Lady” Safely in The Hangar
Jerry Yellin, World War II Veteran Interview
Chuck Childs Recalls Days In B-17 Bomber
Former B-17 pilot reflects on World War II, D-Day
'Get up close and personal' with B-17 at museum opening
From the above link: Lacey Lady (then Sky Chief) above it's former home over a Texaco station in Milwaukee, Oregon.
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| Can't believe we missed this on our trips through Oregon. |
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