Thhunder Over Michigan - 2003 Pictures

[MichiganRick]

This year had some very interesting aircraft.

[kentj]

Post more from 2003 if you have them. Thanks

[MichiganRick]

[kalamazookid]

Nice pics! Thanks for sharing. I really miss seeing "Naked Fanny" at airshows. Dr. Schloss used to do an excellent routine in that aircraft, including aerobatics. I also really miss the MATS Connie. Another great year at Thunder.

[seabee1526]

Great pics. That was before I started going to shows. Thanks for posting.

[Boeing666]

Thanks for posting. I am confused on something though with the Collings B-24. Am I learning something new? Was the Dragon and His Tail only painted on one side of the plane and All American on the other or were these shots from 2 different years? I had always thought it was painted All American then later repainted The Dragon and His Tail. When I saw it flying over Panama City Beach in 1998 while I was on spring break it was painted All American on both sides - or at least didn't have the dragon on it yet.

[kalamazookid]

Thanks for posting. I am confused on something though with the Collings B-24. Am I learning something new? Was the Dragon and His Tail only painted on one side of the plane and All American on the other or were these shots from 2 different years? I had always thought it was painted All American then later repainted The Dragon and His Tail. When I saw it flying over Panama City Beach in 1998 while I was on spring break it was painted All American on both sides - or at least didn't have the dragon on it yet.

It was painted differently on both sides. She only carried the "Dragon" art on the right side of the aircraft.

[Pat Carry]

Nice. How much do we miss seeing the MATS Connie here in the US?

[Boeing666]

Thanks for posting. I am confused on something though with the Collings B-24. Am I learning something new? Was the Dragon and His Tail only painted on one side of the plane and All American on the other or were these shots from 2 different years? I had always thought it was painted All American then later repainted The Dragon and His Tail. When I saw it flying over Panama City Beach in 1998 while I was on spring break it was painted All American on both sides - or at least didn't have the dragon on it yet.

It was painted differently on both sides. She only carried the "Dragon" art on the right side of the aircraft.

But she didn't for very long right? I never saw her at a show when it had the dragon art, but I remember seeing it at Selfridge in 1992 and then in Panama City in 2006 and 2008 and I don't recall it having the dragon.

[Boeing666]

Nice. How much do we miss seeing the MATS Connie here in the US?

Is that the one that went to Korea for a static display? Is this also the one that used to belong to Travolta?

Are there any Connies still flying in the U.S.? The TWA "Save a Connie" is still flyable but hasn't due to high insurance rates. The MATs one and the Save A Connie are the only 2 I have seen flying.

[kalamazookid]

But she didn't for very long right? I never saw her at a show when it had the dragon art, but I remember seeing it at Selfridge in 1992 and then in Panama City in 2006 and 2008 and I don't recall it having the dragon.

I don't remember exactly when they switched over to "Witchcraft" but I want to say it was 2005. I think the first big B-17 gathering at Thunder was the first time I saw her painted as "Witchcraft."

Nice. How much do we miss seeing the MATS Connie here in the US?

So, so much. The MATS Connie was a star everywhere it went. I remember seeing it fly at Willow Run twice, seeing it at South Bend a couple times, Kalamazoo and maybe Muskegon once. Nothing like seeing and hearing all four of those R-3350s come to life. It's a shame it ended up in Korea.

Really wish the AIrline History Museum would get the TWA Connie back in the air. Last I heard they had done engine runs a few years ago, but I never heard anything about any flights.

[warbirdguy]

Thanks for posting. I am confused on something though with the Collings B-24. Am I learning something new? Was the Dragon and His Tail only painted on one side of the plane and All American on the other or were these shots from 2 different years? I had always thought it was painted All American then later repainted The Dragon and His Tail. When I saw it flying over Panama City Beach in 1998 while I was on spring break it was painted All American on both sides - or at least didn't have the dragon on it yet.

It was painted differently on both sides. She only carried the "Dragon" art on the right side of the aircraft.

But she didn't for very long right? I never saw her at a show when it had the dragon art, but I remember seeing it at Selfridge in 1992 and then in Panama City in 2006 and 2008 and I don't recall it having the dragon.

The B-24 was "All American" from 1989-1998 and "Dragon and His Tail/ All American" 1999-2004. Kalamazookid is right, 2005 was the first year for "Witchcraft."

[Boeing666]

The B-24 was "All American" from 1989-1998 and "Dragon and His Tail/ All American" 1999-2004. Kalamazookid is right, 2005 was the first year for "Witchcraft."

Ok thanks for the answer. I had last seen her in 1998 like I said while on Spring Break it was doing low photo passes along the beach one afternoon in Panama City with a Beechcraft flying along side it. The next day Nine Oh Nine was doing passes with a Beech. The plane had to only be a couple hundred feet off the water. I was on the 10th Floor balcony of the Holiday Inn Sun Spree Resort and I swear I was level with it. Does anyone have any old warbird magazines of them doing photo shoots in Panama City??

I never saw her between 1998 and late 2004 so I missed out on the dragon colors, which I would have to say was the coolest paintjob and I never got a picture of it.

I didn't see it again until late 2004 at New Smyrna Beach Florida, where I later found out Collings Foundation gets their winter maintenance done on their B-17, B-25, B-24 and Corsair. I was driving by and I saw a B-24 parked in dark green with no props on it. I thought that it was a restoration project because I didn't know of any B-24s in the dark green color. I thought I had heard only 2 were flying back then and I knew Diamond Lil was that pinkish color and All American was Silver. I didn't go by New Smyrna Beach Airport again for a while after that, even though I was only living 10 miles north in Daytona Beach. Then I saw her at the 2005 Thunder show. I went by New Smyrna Beach again in December 2005 and there she was again with her props off getting maintenance along with the B-17 with tarps over the props. The guys at American Aero (or I thought was Baker Aviation then) were cool and let me in to walk around and take some pictures.

[JimH]

at the time we thought 4 B-17s was a big deal...

[Pat Carry]

Nice. How much do we miss seeing the MATS Connie here in the US?

Is that the one that went to Korea for a static display? Is this also the one that used to belong to Travolta?

Are there any Connies still flying in the U.S.? The TWA "Save a Connie" is still flyable but hasn't due to high insurance rates. The MATs one and the Save A Connie are the only 2 I have seen flying.

Yes, the MATS Connie went to Korea where it is a ground pounder and there are no Connies flying in the USA.