gary1954 wrote:
:axe: NMF on Everything

and be done wiff da confusion.........the NMUSAF will have to butt out of the paint scheme thing with the Memphis Belle impostor ....should they want to interject, then the Collins Foundation could naturally be required through some arm twisting litigation, to remove all that beautiful paint from 909 as it represents a real B-17 that was shot down during actual armed conflict and someone is "offended" because its like a ghost or something and they are haunted by the fact that 909 was actually shot down....but here it is on a ramp staring at them, daring them to pay money to fly in her......don't see it happening.
I will admit however that it would be nice and proper if the management/operators of the Memphis Belle impostor posted on their information about their particular airframe, that it is a replica of the original on display at the National Museum of the US Air Force.
Personally I don't care how they have her painted, h e l l s bells, paint her up as a formation ship with poka dots....*hands in the air* ...don't care...I just want to see them, touch them, hear those radials cough to life...climb aboard and drink in that smell of an airplane...and when I have done all that, drop my fat a double s in the shade under her wing and relax, reflect on the crews that these types of machines carried into harms way and simply wonder what its like to strap one of these babys on......
Gary, re-read page one of this thread. The MARC B-17 folks entered an agreement with the MBMA. They went back on the agreement. That is where the trouble lies. Amazing that no one wants to place blame on where it belongs.
Also 909 was not shot down. She returned to the states.
We keep touching on the Belle. What about other nose art. What if I want to restore a B-17 and paint it as Texas Raiders. Oh that's right, I'll be sued. You can't even take a picture of the nose art in Midland because it is copyrighted by the CAF. Says so right on the door to the gallery. But no one seems to care to touch on that, only that the NMUSAF called someone out for not honoring a deal with a smaller group.
As someone that works on a static B-17 "Miss Liberty Belle" I can tell you that it sucks having other aircraft with similar or same names. it takes away from your project. When we went to Oshkosh with the tail stinger of ours for display, many thought it was the tail from Liberty Belle (the one with the fire). So we had to be sure to tell them the story of the real Miss Liberty Belle and the 8 men that gave their lives in it. Then Barksdale paints their aircraft up as, you guessed it "Miss Liberty Belle".
So what is worse that a group went back on what they told the MBMA they would do, or the NMUSAF holding them to it.