Liberty Foundation brought 'Movie' Memphis Belle to the San Francisco Bay Area this weekend, so I booked a seat. It's my third B-17 experience. My bucket-list goal is to fly in every surviving airworthy B-17, but I doubt I'll ever achieve that since not all of them take passengers, and the only one left that routinely tours this far west is Nine-O-Nine (which I definitely plan to fly in next year).
I first went up in the Liberty Belle a few years ago. Last year I flew in Aluminum Overcast. Also, a couple of years ago I flew in Collings' B-24, Witchcraft.
I think B-17s are amazing, even if these restorations are homages rather than combat survivors.
Although Movie Memphis Belle was originally built as a B-17G, as far as I know it is the only restored plane flying with earlier F features. As people here know most differences are small, but one is pretty dramatic in flight: the waist gunner windows are wide open in the F series, no plexiglass. The amount of wind that was tearing through the rear of the plane in flight was unbelievable, but the views through open windows sure beats anything I saw when flying in B-17Gs.
Flying at 1,500 feet as a sightseer is obviously a very different thing than flying at 30,000 feet in sub-zero temperatures, being shot at by fighter planes and flak guns. Still, it is possible to get a small sense of what it must have been like for those young boys who flew these planes on long, dangerous missions.
But instead of experiencing the terror they must have felt, I got to enjoy one of the most scenic views imaginable: a slow, low altitude pass above San Francisco, over the Golden Gate Bridge, then turning around for a second pass over the bridge and crossing over Alcatraz, the Bay Bridge, circling around Treasure Island, and back over the Bay Bridge before landing. The weather could not have been more idyllic -- 78 degrees and crystal clear.
I wish these tiny pictures could convey even a fraction of the real life thrill.
Movie Memphis Belle:
Taxiing to the runway:
Lift-off:
During takeoff I sat in the radio operator's seat; the top of that compartment is wide open. Once we were airborne people could stick their heads out of the top of the plane for a great view over the tail:
The Bay Bridge, with downtown San Francisco in the background:
In the cockpit with the pilots, looking out the side window:
The pilots at work:
Looking out over San Francisco:
Flying over the Golden Gate Bridge before circling around for a second pass:
Alcatraz:
Circling around the new eastern span of the Bay Bridge (supposed to open in September) with the original 1936 bridge alongside:
The first time I flew in a B-17 I called it the experience of a lifetime. I never really thought I would become addicted to it and keep doing it.
One of the lucky benefits today was that I was on the first flight out so we got to go through the whole run-up, making the entire experience about an hour long. Frankly, I was concerned that the clouds of exhaust coming into the radio room during run-up might provoke an asthma attack, but fortunately I had no trouble. It was really a thrill to peer through the bomb bay and see the pilots revving the engines.
I'm seriously considering going back up tomorrow. Alas, common (and financial) sense will probably prevail. But wow, what a day.
Login
Register
FAQ
Search
