On Wednesday, October 17, 2018 at 5:53:31 PM UTC-4, Bill wrote:
Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 10/17/2018 4:44 PM, Its Me wrote:
On Wednesday, October 17, 2018 at 4:28:00 PM UTC-4, Mr. Luddite wrote:
On 10/17/2018 2:54 PM, Its Me wrote:

And I am pumped about it!

http://www.libertyfoundation.org/index.html

They'll be at a event at Owens Field in Columbia this weekend to raise
money for Camp Kemo. There are only 15 B-17's left in airworthy
condition, and it'll be amazing to get a ride in one.



There is another group ... the Collins Foundation ... that tours the USA
with a B-17, a B-24, a B-25 and a Mustang P-51. They were just at the
little municipal airport near where I live last month.

The rides in the B-17 and B-24 are fairly reasonable because they can
carry several passengers who share the operating cost. But the one I
wanted a ride in was the P-51 Mustang but not enough for the $2,800 cost
for half an hour.

Ouch. I'd love a ride in a P-51, but that's pretty steep. One seat on
the B-17 is $450, but they carry 9 at a time. They do let you roam
around the plane to take pictures out of the gun turrets, and it lasts 30 minutes.

A couple of years ago my wife and I went up in a 1942 Waco biplane down
in Key West. That was a blast. We sat up front, and the pilot sat in
the rear flying and talking to us. The guy was good, I could barely
feel the wheels touch down when we landed. If I remember correctly it
was $300 for 20 minutes.



I took a bunch of pictures but I'll be dipped if I can find the folder
on this computer where I saved them. Found one so far:

http://funkyimg.com/i/2McLd.jpg

Best on I have is of a group standing around an old guy in a leather
jacket and Army Air Force hat. He was a WWII pilot of a B-17 and was
answering questions about what it was like.



Wife gave me an hour in a T-6 Texan. Got an education in loops and rolls..
I got to do some loops and rolls under the pilots guidance. Wife has
gifted me some great stuff over the years.

Nearly 20 years ago the company owner's son gave me a call on Sunday morning saying that he "Needed a victim". We went to the local airport and went up in a Zlin, a 2 seater side-by-side fully aerobatic plane the father had bought. They had both had lessons so we strapped on single use chutes, buckled down in 5 point harnesses, and went up. A few loops, rolls and hammerheads later, he did a couple of stall/spins. The first was OK, but on the second he let it tighten up for about 4-5 rotations before recovering. We pulled -1.5 and +3 G's. The plane was rated for -3/+6. We saw "sparkles". He got queasy, so we went back. That was a blast!