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Before takeoff, the EAA crew had to fix an oil leak in one of the propellers.
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The huge plane usually had 10-man crews. At least six of those guys would be manning machine guns.
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The requisite airplane babe.
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The plane has four engines. During WWII, most of the planes were based in Southern England and flew 8- or 9-hour missions over Germany.
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The door to enter the B-17.
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WWII Vet Charles Woodford recalled his time as a tail gunner. On Monday, he flew in the B-17 again for the first time in 70 years.
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The B-17's nose.
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In the radio room in the B-17.
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The B-17's bomb bay. The B-17 dropped more bombs during WWII than any other aircraft.
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The bombardier's view in the nose of the B-17.
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Safely on the ground again.
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A gunner would man this small pod.
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The B-17 getting ready for take off again.
From the outside, Boeing’s B-17 Flying Fortress is an impressive sight. The four-engine plane is massive with a 103-foot-9-inch wingspan, her exterior punctuated by the occaisonal machine gun nozzle. The plane was used during World War II for heavy bombing, particularly over Germany, where the B-17 dropped more bombs than any other aircraft. It was also legendary for its ability to sustain a lot of damage and still fly. One once collided with another plane in midair, and the B-17 still made it home. Not that the men who manned the flying fortresses weren’t risking their lives—if a soldier survived 3 missions, he had beaten nearly imposible odds.
On Monday, the Experimental Aircraft Association brought its refurbished B-17 aircraft (one of only a dozen still remaining) to St. Louis Downtown Airport and gave some World War II veterans and press people a free flight. I sat next to Charles Woodford, who flew 11 missions in B-17s during World War II. This was the first time he'd been back on the plane in 70 years.
“Good thing it’s a nice day,” Woodford said as we buckled in. “Cause this is just a metal box. When that sun hits it, it heats up like an oven.”
We stopped on the runway and the pilot cranked up the engines. They roared with the familiar 1940s warplane buzz. “He’s checking the engines,” Woodford shouted when I asked why we weren't taking off. “He has to make sure all the parts are firing!”
As soon as we were up in the air, we got the all clear to take off our seatbelts. In the very back of the plane is the tail gunner, the position that Woodford manned. In the middle are two more machine guns and a small pod below for another gunner.
“I manned that once too,” Woodford said. “I never knew where I was, 'cause you can spin in any direction. So, they’d say 10 o’clock and I’d think, 10 o’clock, which way is that?’” He was much better off in the tail. “You at least knew which direction you were facing.”
The top of the plane is open above the radio room, just as it would have been in the 1940s. “It was usually 40 below,” Woodford said with a laugh. From the radio room, you cross the bomb bay's narrow catwalk to the flight deck. A quick crawl below takes you into the nose of the plane, where a bombardier would sit and shoot any approaching enemy aircraft.
“What do you think being back in one of these things after all these years?" I asked Woodford as we buckled in for landing. He smiled.
“It’s nice to be be able to fly in one of these things and not have anybody shooting at me," he says.
Flight Plan: The B-17 Flying Fortress Aluminum Overcast will be at the St. Louis Downtown Airport (6100 Archview, Cahokia, Ill.) through Wednesday. On July 4th, the plane will kick off Fair Saint Louis with a flyover. Friday through Sunday, the plane will be at the Spirit of St. Louis Airport (18270 Edison).
Ground tours are offered from 2 to 5 p.m. $10 individual, $20 family, free children under 8 and veterans and active military. Mission flights are offered from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. $409–$475. For more information, click here.
A restored B-17 Bomber will fly over Fair Saint Louis, kicking off festivities. It will also be available for flights and tours at the Spirit of St. Louis airport in Chesterfield.
Text and Photography by Rosalind Early
