B-29 kee bird questions

CoastieJohn · **Joined:** Fri Feb 11, 2011 5:37 pm **Posts:** 1380

Well.....seeing as how data plates seem to be the "it" thing to start with, is the data plate still up there?

Pat · **Posted:** Tue Jan 06, 2015 8:52 pm

whistlingdeathcorsairs wrote:

Well my whole idea and most practical aircraft to help would be a c-47. That could at least take the props and smaller things out. As for the biggest pieces I would look at where the fort was assembled when built. Even if rivets needed to be bucked to break the plane up, I would do that for the safety of the team and ensure the plane a safe trip. Don't get me wrong on any level here. What's these guys did was an amazing effort guided by guts and will power.

If a fire broke out while taxing, imagine what could of happened in the air over that type of territory

Technical question for Whistl…sairs: Why would you need to buck rivets to break the plane up?

marine air · **Posted:** Tue Jan 06, 2015 10:32 pm

A C-46 say chartered from Buffalo Airways would be , IMO, better than a C-47. Rugged, can carry more weight, and larger pieces. THe C-46 has a much longer range and this might help the avgas availibilty problem.

My vote would be for the Antonov AN-12. Very rugged, even larger than the C-46, can carry it all out in one trip (maybe) and the JET A can be used to run diesel equipment and generators. SHould be cheaper than C-130.

whistlingdeath77 · **Posted:** Thu Jan 08, 2015 10:45 am

Pat wrote:

whistlingdeathcorsairs wrote:

Well my whole idea and most practical aircraft to help would be a c-47. That could at least take the props and smaller things out. As for the biggest pieces I would look at where the fort was assembled when built. Even if rivets needed to be bucked to break the plane up, I would do that for the safety of the team and ensure the plane a safe trip. Don't get me wrong on any level here. What's these guys did was an amazing effort guided by guts and will power.

If a fire broke out while taxing, imagine what could of happened in the air over that type of territory

Technical question for Whistl…sairs: Why would you need to buck rivets to break the plane up?

Possibly to disassemble certain sections of skin that may now be melted together

Warbird Kid · **Posted:** Thu Jan 08, 2015 12:18 pm

This may be an obvious observation but, I believe (in my humble and honest opinion) that we look at the Kee Bird tragedy as something that could have been prevented. Once you get past what has happened, we try to rectify inside ourselves what could be done to salvage whats left. To see this adventurous project become a total waste is almost too much for probably most of us. If the remains were recovered and used in conjunction with other B-29 parts to cobble together another flyer (or at least a static example) we would all feel a lot better and rest a bit easier at night. Saying to ourselves: "See! It wasn't a complete waste, what was usable has been used and it ended at least on a good note!" Having the remains of a burnt B-29 still out there makes us feel uneasy and unsatisfied.

cooper9411 · **Posted:** Thu Jan 08, 2015 12:29 pm

Agree 100%! :drink3:

whistlingdeath77 · **Posted:** Thu Jan 08, 2015 12:36 pm

Well put Chris. Another attempt to try and salvage what is left is worth it,( if it goes to other projects.) it's probably the greed inside me were I want to see more b-17s, b-29s, Mustangs or corsairs etc. every part has a place.

cooper9411 · **Posted:** Thu Jan 08, 2015 12:54 pm

I don't think I'd call it greed. More like passion, so let's get a crew together and go salvage what's left! :drink3:

4RG.I.'S · **Posted:** Thu Jan 08, 2015 1:25 pm

I would agree, passion is the term. It's -4°F with a -20°F or so windchill here today, seems like great weather to train in...

cooper9411 · **Posted:** Thu Jan 08, 2015 1:29 pm

4RG.I.'S wrote:

I would agree, passion is the term. It's -4°F with a -20°F or so windchill here today, seems like great weather to train in...

Hah! Its about the same here in balmy northwest Ohio! So what time does training begin? :lol:

4RG.I.'S · **Posted:** Thu Jan 08, 2015 1:42 pm

Hah! Its about the same here in balmy northwest Ohio! So what time does training begin? :lol:

[/quote]

Yeah, if this weather keeps up I may have to unpack the long sleeve T shirt to blow snow this afternoon.

CoastieJohn · **Joined:** Fri Feb 11, 2011 5:37 pm **Posts:** 1380

Warbird Kid wrote:

This may be an obvious observation but, I believe (in my humble and honest opinion) that we look at the Kee Bird tragedy as something that could have been prevented. Once you get past what has happened, we try to rectify inside ourselves what could be done to salvage whats left. To see this adventurous project become a total waste is almost too much for probably most of us. If the remains were recovered and used in conjunction with other B-29 parts to cobble together another flyer (or at least a static example) we would all feel a lot better and rest a bit easier at night. Saying to ourselves: "See! It wasn't a complete waste, what was usable has been used and it ended at least on a good note!" Having the remains of a burnt B-29 still out there makes us feel uneasy and unsatisfied.

Seems like a good way to frame that perspective. If someone could get some productive use out of the remains and has the $$ to do it, why not?

whistlingdeath77 · **Posted:** Thu Jan 08, 2015 2:55 pm

I guess before I'd look at going thousands of miles to the kee bird I would try my hand at getting other state side war birds inside and not let them sit outside

4RG.I.'S · **Posted:** Thu Jan 08, 2015 3:11 pm

whistlingdeathcorsairs wrote:

I guess before I'd look at going thousands of miles to the kee bird I would try my hand at getting other state side war birds inside and not let them sit outside

Completely agree, there are too many of these memorials to aviation corroding into the earth. Unfortunately the gummint owns most of them and we little people don't have much input as far as getting them inside. For an abandoned aircraft like Kee Bird, as shown we can at least try to recover and save them even if we fail.

Iclo · **Posted:** Mon Jan 12, 2015 5:08 pm

Feeding an engine by gravity, without a fuel pump was used on very old collection cars. It's the case on the 1928 Citroen owned by my father and I'm restoring with him.

Not kidding, but last month when I was buying a fire extinguisher for this car, the sad story of Kee Bird came back in my mind and between the two potential extinguisher models, I bought the biggest one, just in case..., as a fuel leaks will come directly on the running engine and the car structure is made in wood.

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