New mission: Here’s how restorers spent decades saving the Memphis Belle’s legacy

“It’s a really big deal to me and to my co-workers because we’ve been working on this for so many years and to end in a big event that everybody can celebrate,” said Simmons, an aircraft restorer. “…It’s hard to see it done, but I’m glad to see it done. It’s a lot of headaches trying to work mainly with people and get things where everybody is happy.”

Museum curator Jeff Duford said the Memphis Belle “is very special in that it is an American treasure,” comparing its symbolism of 30,000 airmen lost over the skies of Europe to the Marine flag raising on Iwo Jima or the battleship USS Arizona memorial at Pearl Harbor. “There are these objects that really represent who we are as a people and our national experience and the Memphis Belle is one of those icons.”

Based in England, the Memphis Belle was the first U.S. heavy bomber to complete 25 missions over Europe and return to the United States.

The bomber will be displayed like no other in the museum’s collection of hundreds of aircraft, officials say. But they’re mum on details.

» Iconic Memphis Belle’s debut in Dayton: Everything you need to know

With the plane under theatrical lighting, 20 cases filled with more than 200 artifacts from Memphis Belle crewmen will be on display as part of a new strategic bombing exhibit.

“This will be a very immersive and engaging exhibit,” said Greg Hassler, museum chief of exhibits. “You’re going to be able to go completely around the airplane. We’ve done things in the exhibit area that we haven’t done before.”

Aircraft restorers and volunteers spent more than 55,000 hours working on the plane, he said.

And while the exterior will be finished, restorers will keep adding parts and refurbishing the interior, Duford said.

Brought to the museum in 2005 from Memphis, Tennessee, originally officials hoped the plane would be put on display years sooner, but other projects — such as the addition of a giant new museum hangar in June 2016 — took priority, Hassler said.

» RELATED: ‘Memphis Belle’ will rumble over real-life version in Dayton

The Memphis Belle Memorial Association worked for years to restore the bomber and raise money for its future preservation in Tennessee until funds ran short, remembered Harry Friedman, co-author of the book “Memphis Belle: Dispelling the Myths,” and a long-time member of the association.

“We knew (the museum) wanted it,” he said. “We kind of knew in our hearts knew they had the capability of doing it.

“It’s heartwarming to see what’s been done and the other nice thing with the atmosphere in the museum now they’ve allowed us to be a part of that restoration in one form or another,” he said.

The painstaking process took patience and persistence in the face of pressure to complete, restorers said.

“There was a lot of pressure knowing that it’s the Memphis Belle, and that everyone’s watching and that a lot of people will be a critic of what you do,” Simmons said.

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Now the unveiling this week will draw thousands around the country and the world to Dayton, organizers say.

The plane’s World War II roots in England will bring 13-year-old Thomas Harrison with his family to the museum in Dayton.

His father, Simon, said in an email the two built a plastic model of the Memphis Belle, and traced the real-life version’s whereabouts to the museum at Wright-Patterson.

After visiting RAF Bassingbourn, where the plane was based during the war, and writing to the Air Force museum, they decided to cross the Atlantic for the unveiling.

“Last year we were invited to attend the roll out,” Simon wrote in an email, “how could we refuse.”

» CONTINUED COVERAGE: Two Memphis Belles and a Mustang will be in Dayton