Ever ride in a warbird? Or fly?

Close, but no cigar!

My cousin used to fly an OS2U Kingfisher during WW2. After the war, he stayed in the reserves and flew an F4U Corsair. One saturday morning he took me to Floyd Bennet Field to give me a ride while he put in some flight time ( I was a very small ten-year-old at the time). He put me on the forward edge of the seat, between his legs, fired up the engine and taxied out to the runway. While waiting to take off, he said "Oops, we have to go back, they caught us". Someone in the tower saw me in the cockpit. I was crushed. He was in very hot water. I never got that ride.

By the way guys. I do remember that the interior of that F4U was all black, no interior green anywhere! Lots of bare metal showing through the black, pretty beat up.

Eurecka! In a couple of weeks, I am getting a ride in an SNJ out of Republic Airport in Farmingdale. That is where Republic made all of those "Jugs". I hope the pilot will do some fancy flying, not just straight and level.

Pete

My camera got 8 hours in the back seat of a Phantom. I got a couple of nice pictures

Yes
I rode back seat in Leroy Penhall's P-51D in 1974. It was painted up as Bob Hoover's "Ole' Yeller" as his was laid up. Steve Hinton took me up. I was 24 and Steve 21 at the time. We Rat raced with Corky Fornoff in his F8F Bearcat and chased a couple of P-40's across the Detroit river. I have a photo taken while inverted over the P-40's (although only one shows in the picture) while we rolled around thei formation.
The day before I rode backseat in Tom Camp's P-40E with Hinton in the P-51 on one wing and Max Hoffman on the other flying Jack Flaherty's P-63F (I had been crewing for the P-63 and Jack got me the rides in appreciation).
I have never rode in a two seat Spitfire yet but was ground crew on a MK IX s/n MK923 for 22 years and now have been involved with Mike Potter's Mk XVI s/n SL721. He had me in charge of repainting it to an authentic Canadian scheme. There is a rule of thumb in modelling....The larger the scale, the harder the detail is, and this really applys to 1:1 scale.
Cheers
Bob S.

My father paid for me to ride on a B-17 back in 1992 for my birthday/christmas present. I was 23 and had been working on my private license (which I never finished due to financial problems, but I plan on getting them someday). It was here in Zanesville, OH with a B-24 (The All-American...I think). I will have to look at the name of the B-17...I was thinking it was called the 909, but I am not positive since I read so much about the air war in Europe...I could easily get names mixed up. I had a great time with the flight and trying to imagine what it must have been like in combat. I took a lot of video and some stills...they were on 110 film. I will try to find them in the old photo box. I still remember the flight today, the sounds, the hubs turning, how it looked from all postions...except the tail-gunner section and the ball turret. It was just an awesome ride.

Jerry

I live just a few miles from Chino airport where the Planes of Fame museum is located. They give warbird rides - all it takes is $$$$, which I don't have ! Their razorback P-47 is a two-seater - maybe someday........

Jim

I was able to get a couple of rides in an F-4E while Stationed at Seymour Johnson AirPlane Patch. This wasTHE most amazing thing I have ever done. Everyone said the F-4 was a lumbering old relic but when we lit the burners for takeoff it felt like I was being pushed down the runway by a freight train. It seemed pretty nimble to me, but then again, it wasn't something I did everyday. I can't imagine what an F-16 must be like. Out of each of the about 1 hour flights I would say the pilot let me fly about 30 minutes each time. Since I was in maintenance and an aircrew debriefer, I knew the pilots pretty well and they liked to kid around while flying. Always trying to get you sick or breaking hard to make you smack your head against the canopy. I would give almost anything to do it again.

I'm dyin to go up in a WWII fighter.

Someday.

I've crewed a B-17(Fuddy Duddy) and C-47 for a summer while working at the National Warplane Museum a number of years ago. WHAT A RUSH. Been in every position on Fuddy except the left seat and ball turret, while she was flying. Gotta tell ya, sitting down on that seat and reaching to grab those twin .50s in the tail was a rush... just as my hands made contact, we were told to strap in, as we'd be landing in five minutes... almost got to see those 109's comin in at me... oh well...
had to go back to my seat in the waist....

Have not rode in one yet, a little expensive at the moment. CAF charges around $425.00-$450.00 to ride in the B-17 at Falcon Field and besides I rather wait and take a ride on the newly restored B-25 combat veteran that should be in the air not to long from now.

For those who have had thoughts to visit the Champlin Fighter Museum at Falcon Field- DONT- their not here anymore. They are heading for Seattle to become part of the Boeing/Red Barn collection.

Hmmm... okay. Will resend!


Fade to Black...

blackwolfscd,

haven't recieved any emails from ya

Hey dogsbody,

I don't live too far away from Hamilton, I'd be more than happy to take that ride for 'ya by proxy!!


Fade to Black...

As an associate member of the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum , I'm entitled to a yearly FREE ride in one of their trainers. Unfortunatly, I live almost 2000 miles from Hamilton, Ontario and haven't had the time or money to get there yet. Someday......

Hey Tim,

First, did you get that last email I sent, with the scans? If not I'll resend it.

The only "warbird" I've flown in is a little 'ole L-2. I was 14, I think.

Anyhoo, the pilot of this bird had flown into the Geneseo show with his wife, but she got sick and didn't want to fly back. (She's my Dad's cousin, and he was also my 8th grade art teacher. ie; they were local) So I got a ride in this tiny L-2, my first airplane ride ever. Did pretty good until five minutes out...

Hey, flying sideways on a bumpy, rickety old wooden roller coaster (pretty windy up there) swingin' back and forth and up and down at 2500 feet or so will make anyone's fly-in breakfast... nevermind.

But it was my birthday and besides that, it was a great present!




Fade to Black...

That's funny. There will be other opportunities.
Which B-17 was it?

I was THAT CLOSE to a ride in a B-17! We had arrangedd for myself and a buddy to fly. But believe it or not they overbooked the flight and it would've meant leaving my buddy behind. Neither of us would go without the other. Although I missed the ride, I saw the colors of a true friend, and I'll never forget that.

Oh, and the guy who went in "our" place? He got airsick and lost antimatter containment in the back of the plane!!