Two-B-17s will soar over Dayton as part of Memphis Belle debut

The B-17 Memphis Belle has undergone a years-long restoration at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. It’s set for its first a public debut in decades in May. LISA POWELL / STAFF FILE PHOTO

The B-17 Memphis Belle has undergone a years-long restoration at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. It’s set for its first a public debut in decades in May. LISA POWELL / STAFF FILE PHOTO
Military News
By Barrie Barber
March 6, 2018
X

Two B-17G Flying Fortresses and 130 re-enactors will turn 2018 into World War II when the iconic Memphis Belle debuts at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force this spring.

Memphis Belle, the first U.S. Army Air Forces heavy bomber to complete 25 combat missions over Europe and return to the United States, has undergone a years-long renovation in a Wright-Patt hangar. The plane featured in two Hollywood films is set for a public roll out May 17 — 75 years after the B-17’s last wartime mission against Nazi Germany.

RELATED: Memphis Belle to go on display at Air Force Museum in 2018

Yankee Lady, a B-17 at the Yankee Air Museum in Belleville, Michigan, and Aluminum Overcast, a B-17 based at the Experimental Aircraft Association in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, will be part of the celebration.

The two planes will be on display from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 17-18, weather permitting, the museum said. The bombers are set to land at the museum’s airstrip at 9 a.m. May 16 and take-off about 4:30 p.m. May 18.

RELATED: Flight controls added to famous B-17F Memphis Belle

Re-enactors will congregate at the museums 8th Air Force Control Tower from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 17-19.

The planes and re-enactors are part of a series of celebratory events for the Memphis Belle debut.

In Other News
1
Ohio Air National Guard general nominated for second star
2
Springfield native oversees Navy submarine commissioning, relinquishes...
3
‘No military training value’: National Guard chief criticizes...
4
Military recruits would not be tested for marijuana under House draft...
5
‘We are out of time’: Air Force secretary warns China’s military...

About the Author

Barrie Barber