Warbird Information Exchange

Thanks Sandiego for posting the link to the C-133 information. I was in the 1607th at Dover AFB 1958-1967. We lost a lot of friends in the C-133's. Reading the accident information on the link brings back a lot of memories. We had 6 crashes plus those severly damaged on the ground.

The aircraft that just "disappeared" over the ocean shortly after take-off were hard to understand. We heard a very short radio transmission from one. It was only two words, "prop struck".

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" I am a nobody in aviation, but somebody to my family."

Wow! I had no idea what the tail mounted on Doc had been through!!!

That a-26 is the only restored example I've ever seen with the early style canopy. What was the reason for that? Looks good I'm just curious.

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Always looking for WW2 Half-Tracks and Parts.

I believe the bombardier sat up there as opposed to mounting several .50 cals in the nose. That did at one time have a solid nose,( possibly for civilian use,) but the correct glass nose was put back on for the restoration

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" I am a nobody in aviation, but somebody to my family."

Another survivor of the harsh New England weather

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" I am a nobody in aviation, but somebody to my family."

b-29 tail

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" I am a nobody in aviation, but somebody to my family."

Regarding the restored Invader, I was referring to the cockpit canopy being hinged at the front rather than the sides.

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Always looking for WW2 Half-Tracks and Parts.

Regarding the restored Invader, I was referring to the cockpit canopy being hinged at the front rather than the sides.

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Always looking for WW2 Half-Tracks and Parts.

I've always wondered what they were thinking when they designed that early canopy. It looks like it would really restrict visibility, and opening the thing against the slipstream in an emergency would be impossible. I'm surprised to see one still exists. I don't think they built that many Invaders with the early canopy, and I assumed that any still operating postwar would have had been retrofitted with the later "clamshell" type.

SN

Seeing that B29 surrounded by other larger aircraft really brings things into perspective. It was considered so large when built, and yet now it's not even a medium. We sure have learned a lot since the Wright Bros.

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"I knew the jig was up when I saw the P-51D-20-NA Mustang blue-nosed bastards from Bodney, and by the way the blue was more of a royal blue than an indigo and the inner landing gear interiors were NOT green, over Berlin."

very good point muddy buddy!!

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tom d. friedman - hey!!! those fokkers were messerschmitts!! * without ammunition, the usaf would be just another flying club!!! * better to have piece of mind than piece of tail!!

My guess is that they were designing a "souped" up A-20 when they designed the A-26. Totally different, but similar in many ways. A-20 had a single pilot wide cockpit with lots of framing and then they went to the A-26 with a wider one, though still with only on set of controls, and that may have not thought that out all the way until they built them. Quick production change to the clam-shell doors and, viola!, a better cockpit layout! Just my thoughts.

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"Always remember that, when you enter the ocean or the forest, you are no longer at the top of the food chain."

Yeah we traded them a non airworthy (but still cosmetically acceptable) tail for theirs. I believe they also got our one and only turret out of the deal.

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-Jeremy
Restoration Team
Boeing B-29-70-BW 44-69972 "Doc"
Wichita, Kansas

"That's a B-29, bub... there's no escaping what comes next."

Ownership of combat veteran

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" I am a nobody in aviation, but somebody to my family."