Aero Nostalgia, B-25's in Stockton, Ca in 1985?

[Jack Cook]

Here's Tite P*ssy at Paine Field.
http://warbirdinformationexchange.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=18245&highlight=tite+kittie

[RandolphB]

This is all great information. I am excited to see rcmf who actually owned the aircraft answer....!

So I was hoping that I could talk the wife into a trip to see the plane today, but she followed another thread on the WIX forum and brought home a puppy. She was so inspired by Gary's dog named "Cleco" that she decided we needed a dog like that too....so we now have a pup named "Cleco" too.....I guess that's a fair trade!

Maybe I can get a trip to visit both the B-25 and the B-17, since I live exactly inbetween where they are located. I will try and get too many pictures to share if I can get out there.

I want a copy of the film too...but at least I now know what I am looking for.

[retroaviation]

So I was hoping that I could talk the wife into a trip to see the plane today, but she followed another thread on the WIX forum and brought home a puppy. She was so inspired by Gary's dog named "Cleco" that she decided we needed a dog like that too....so we now have a pup named "Cleco" too.....I guess that's a fair trade!

That's very cool! Be sure to tell the wife to post a picture of "Cleco, Jr." here on WIX.

Gary

[Speedy]

Speedy,
A few mistakes in your post about the B-25. Aero Trader was never owned by Jim and Jan Ricketts of Stockton, CA. Aero Trader has always been owned by Carl Scholl and Tony Ritzman of Chino, CA. Aero Trader is currently one of the leading restoration shops in the US. The Ricketts business was called Aero Nostalgia in Stockton back in the mid 1980s.
Jaybo

Woof!! Total brain fart there. Thanks, Jaybo. In my MIND I was typing Aero Nostalgia. I guess I just got so excited that I actually KNEW the answer my fingers overrode my brain!

Anybody know the whereabouts of the PBY that was in the Aero Nostalgia hanger back in '83?

[kimmer6]

thanx for the pic of my old girl..

a highlight of our Oz trip in '83 was the formation flight over San Fran and the Golden Gate with the B-25 leading plus P-63 [Bob Riser] P-51 [Bob Love] P-40E [John Paul] Sea Fury [Lloyd Hamilton]. John Crocker did my type rating in the '25.

The day Bob Love visited Aero Nostalgia in November 1982 he had me in the back seat of his Mustang. Bob was busy with the details of the filming over the Golden Gate. I got to wander around and see some nice Warbirds. Your B-25 went for a trip around the patch and when the left gear came up it knocked a fitting off the oil tank and an had an emergency landing. That stain on the ground in the picture might be some of that oil. It certainly left a trail. The incident raised some concern but the plane was in good hands.

The most remarkable departure was when Bob Love took me back to Livermore. He requested Stockton's long runway and put some high manifold pressure to it, gear up, and low, low low. I recall seeing Aero Nostalgia's roof being above Bob's shoulder filling the windscreen. There had to be about 50 people watching from outside the hangar. The next thing I saw was the checkerboard water tower dead ahead. He wrapped it around that tower and it disappeared very quickly over my shoulder. What I wouldn't do for a video of that! At Livermore some student in a Cessna 150 was landing long and the tower asked Bob to go around. The tower granted his request to break right about mid field. That was amazing. I lucked out and got TWO rides in my favorite fighter of all time that day.

That was almost 33 years ago. ...Kimmer6

[Russ Matthews]

The movie is called "Ghosts of the Sky". If anyone can find it, let me know.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTQqpnLLRek

[RandolphB]

The movie is called "Ghosts of the Sky". If anyone can find it, let me know.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTQqpnLLRek

OMG!!!!! Finally!!! I have been wanting to see this ever since they were filming it!!!!!!!!! Thanks for posting the link....

[Lon Moer]

nose gear didn't collapse. aircraft towed to Reno. Ricketts and pilot Milo Ticek flew down minimum fuel to get "free" fuel...oops!

Well, whatever happened; it destroyed the plexi-glass in the nose and ruined the tire on the nosewheel, IIRC.

And you are right about the "oops"

I was at Reno crewing for Bob Love the year this happened and Bob was pretty mad that "Jiminy Ricketts" (Bob's name) had wrecked the B-25.
Seems that they had enough fuel for the trip, but they got "lost" flying from Stockton to Reno and that's how they ran out.

[Taigh Ramey]

Jimminy Crickets put on just enough fuel to barely get to Reno from Stockton as I recall the air races promised to top him off. Yes, somehow they got lost on the 124 mile flight from Stockton to Stead and thought Pyramid Lake was Tahoe. By the time they contacted Reno Approach to ID them and get turned around toward Stead it was a too late. I think it was Jan Ricketts that said "it got deafeningly quiet" when the engines quit. I love that quote!

They put her down in the desert and when the nose gear hit a berm the nose gear failed in two spots. The fork came loose from the block that the round fork attaches to just above the tire thus allowing the tire/fork to pivot and hit the fork. The jolt also pushed the drag leg/retract strut back through the bulkhead in the aft end of the gear well. She then came down hard and smashed the whole nose up to the station 70 bulkhead. What a shame as she was one of the nicest B-25 restorations of the time. There seemed to have been a three way competition going on between Dream Lover, Briefing Time and Carol Jean to make the most complete Mitchell. I think Dream Lover only flew a few times before she cracked up.

In the photos you can see where they pulled her out of the desert with an M114 by the tail. It was precarious as the tail bumper banged a few times on the back of the 114. Once back at Stead Carl and Tony brought up a nose, nose gear and props to get her back ferriable and back to Stockton. I remember helping Tony dial the crank shafts and work on the nose installation.

Here are some photos from the adventure that I collected over the years

















































Dream Lover in better days





When she was still at Bogues place at Oakland



Jan Ricketts with her artwork. It was her baby for sure. You can see her leading the procession out of the desert.



She was ferried to Stockton with the nose gear secure down and never flew again. She was sold in a Sherriffs auction and went to Whittingtons place in Florida on a truck where he sold it to Russ Newman in Tulsa.



Russ and his crew brought her back in style. I remember going through their hangar during their push to get her flying and off to OSH and I counted 13 guys working on her. They made it. I think were also one of the first to offer exemption rides in a B-25. Tiny the Crew Chief was a great guy who took great care of her.

One day a guy named John Ward came into my shop and said he wanted a B-25 and I thought of the old Dream Lover right off the bat. From my history with her way back when to watching her go away at the Sheriffs sale when Ricketts went under to seeing her being built back up as Old Glory in Tulsa she was always a beautiful bird and I have had a real soft spot for her. I contacted Russ and made a great deal for John and we brought her home to Stockton once again.

I remember walking around the nose of Old Glory when we were going to bring her back from Tulsa. Tiny, Russ and I were there when Tiny said 'I wish I had a dollar for every time someone had sex in the nose of this old bird'. Russ and I looked at him in shock and Russ said 'I never knew that! Who?' Tiny listed off a bunch of names and Russ just shook his head.

After we brought her back I gave John Ward a lot of flight instruction in Old Glory and he sure is smitten with his beautiful Mitchell. She has to be one of the prettiest B-25's around.

One thing I always wanted to do was to get Old Glory to Reno and back since she never really did complete that trip like she should have. We made Reno and OSH and had a lot of fun with her. Dropping bombs, movie work, air shows and trips around the country. She is a sweet heart.

John keeps her at the old Castle Air Force Base in a nice hangar. I think she gets rubbed with a diaper on a regular basis too. She is well cared for.

Funny how some of these old birds come and go in our lives.

[phil65]

Great story and photos....
What year was the accident, 82 ?

Thanks,
Phil

[Taigh Ramey]

What year was the accident, 82 ?

Yessir that is correct.

[phil65]

OK, I think the Registry has it as 87.

FYI - I just finnished reading HIDDEN WARBIRDS, love the Harpoon story...

Thanks,
Phil

[Taigh Ramey]

I did a little more digging and I came up with a letter that came with the photos. A lot of the photos were from Ron Burda:



"Twenty years from now I hope they bring memories of good times."

Yes, Ron they sure have. Thank you!

[Lon Moer]

I did a little more digging and I came up with a letter that came with the photos. A lot of the photos were from Ron Burda:

"Twenty years from now I hope they bring memories of good times."

Yes, Ron they sure have. Thank you!

Wow, Ron Burda is a name from the past.
I remember coming home from Reno one year with him in his hot-rod Chevy V8 Vega Wagon.

[T J Johansen]

It did happen in 1982. There were also photos of "Dream lover" flying in Air Classics feature on the 1982 Madera airshow. Then in the same issue's "Warbird Report" there was a photo of the 25 missing its nose. Around 1983-84 I bought a number of used Flypast and Air Classics in a second- hand store, and this was my first hint as to what actually still flew of WWII planes. "Dream Lover" was probably one of my favorite B-25s of that time, along with "Laden Maiden" and "Little Brown Jugs".

I notice the same discrepancy in the registry as in Geoff Goodall's Warbird Directory as well. Not so strange as the registry is based upon Goodall's work. Hopefully this will be corrected as time goes by.

To Scott; do you read these posts and make notes of changes that need to be done, or must we comment in the right sub- forum?

To Taigh; Do you recall approx when the photo from Bogue's place was shot?

T J