I'll have to swing by and see if they're still there.
Wings Of Freedom
- Thread starter A Life Aloft
- Start date
I'll have to swing by and see if they're still there.
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mmmmmm wine
Witchcraft is the only true B-24 flying today in the United States, and has combat history. Nine 0 Nine did serve when she was built, but did not see combat. She has however, been the subject to 3 nuclear explosions then sold for scrap. She flies like a dream today, but she has had a pretty argues past.
knot4u
Repeat Offender
Lyon Air Museum has a very nice, albeit small (for a museum) facility and collection. I've done a bunch of work next door at Martin Aviation, I think they're both owned by the same person. I was told that all of the aircraft at the museum are airworthy, not sure how often they fly. Definitely worth the time for a visit when in Orange County.As part of the Wings of Freedom tour which is a traveling display of rare bomber and fighter aircraft that allows visitors to learn about the planes that served as the backbone of the U.S. effort during World War II, they landed today at SNA.
The nationwide tour, which touched down Wednesday and will be here through May 8 at the Lyon Air Museum at John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, which serves as a tribute to the flight crews who flew them, the ground crews who maintained them, the workers who built them, and the soldiers, sailors and airmen who helped protect them.
At the Lyon Air Museum, four rare planes will sit on the tarmac, having arrived under their own power, still operational. Alongside the B-24 Liberator will be the B-17 Flying Fortress, B-25 Mitchell and P-51 Mustang, the sole remaining example of its type in the world.
Retaining such planes to showcase has been a feat, Mitchell said, since many were scrapped for their raw aluminum after the war. The scarcity is the reason the Collings Foundation — a nonprofit education organization that recreates historical events — continues to fly and display the military aircrafts nationwide. The Collings Foundation also has Korean War, Vietnam War and other collections of aircraft.
In Orange County, visitors will be able to explore the aircraft for $12, or $6 for children 12 and younger. WWII veterans will be admitted to the ground tours at no charge. And $450 will buy a 30-minute ride on the B-17 or B-24; $2,200 covers a half-hour flight on a P-51.
Collings Foundation will present four fully-restored WWII bomber and fighter aircrafts to Lyon Air Museum at John Wayne Airport as part of the national Wings of Freedom Tour.
The tour, now in its 27th year, visits an average of 110 cities in more than 35 states annually. Officials estimate that 3.5 million people have seen the display.
Mitchell said the tour's primary goals are to honor the sacrifices made by veterans and to educate visitors, particularly younger Americans, about the country's history and heritage.
"Our emphasis is to pass the future to children and get them interested in careers like aviation or mechanics," said Mitchell. "This opportunity gives you a sense of freedom, and it's all the more symbolic when you're sitting in a military aircraft."
Mark Foster, president of the Lyon Air Museum, has helped bring the tour to Santa Ana each year since 2010.
As part of the tour, Foster said, guests may also walk through the museum and study machines, operational aircraft and automobiles that helped define the 20th century.
He said it was important for the air museum to reconnect veterans to the past and tell the story of the planes' role in World War II.
Despite the risks of anti-aircraft fire, the B-17s and B-24s safely brought the crews home, he said.
"It's an intimate setting for visitors and World War II veterans to share historic experiences," Foster said of the tour. "It gives any visitor a better understanding of the aircraft than reading about it in a book."
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Their B-17 and A-26 fly.
n156499000
I-am-a-pirate. I do not need credentials!
There's two or three of them and they are just sitting on the north west side of the field, parked next to the two Canberra bombers. I never see anyone working on them but they were moved to their current location about a year ago and at least the tires are kept inflated so someone must take at least some time to work on them. Which is more than can be said of some of the regular GA planes on the field.
A Life Aloft
Well-Known Member
Thanks for the info. There are Martin Canberras there as well? Wow. We gotta get some pics of those bad boys. NASA is still using/flying three of them. Hell, they're as old as I am. lol Man, the stuff you can find at smaller airports.
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Gear up, Marky.
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mmmmmm wine
Oh snap, the Mitchell driver in da house!!
Where? I thought it was you
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Nah I just pretend
n156499000
I-am-a-pirate. I do not need credentials!
Not sure if they are Martin or English Electric builds. They are painted in Royal Navy markings with overall grey paint but the yellow and black belly paint usually associated with test aircraft. One even has wing tanks. If you Google search Falcon Field Canberra you can see some photos of them.
A Life Aloft
Well-Known Member
I didn't even know there was a museum there. If those are the English versions, I wonder how the hell they wound up there. The pics are good though. Just looked at the registrations (which are expired) and it says they are the TT18's and registered to The Jet Aviation Historical Society in PHX. Interesting.
A Life Aloft
Well-Known Member
Oh hell, I posted and didn't see your post. That would be great if CAF grabbed them.
n156499000
I-am-a-pirate. I do not need credentials!
Yes, it's called Steak and Stone. I haven't had a chance yet to try it despite driving by it every time I go to work.
Tyler Pinkerton
Well-Known Member
The Colling's 17 is not the real Nine-O-Nine. The real one served in the ETO and was scrapped once it came back stateside. The real identity of the "Nine-O-Nine", 44-83575, did indeed serve with the air sea rescue as well as MATS
Also the overrun at my home airport in 1987. She left our field in better shape then when it arrived, though the Collings will never admit that.
We were given the opportunity I'm told to buy Tondelayo for 25K back when it was still hoosier honey and had been sitting at our museum for a few years due to MX. Man I wish the museum would have done it...
Tyler Pinkerton
Well-Known Member
Haha a 4 year complete restoration is a little bit more than just a little beat lol.
Road Mx is always the fun stuff though, especially at a show when you get to meet other the people from other outfits who offer to help you or need helped.
I'm just thankful we have never had any major failures on the road with our C-123. Everything big we have ever encountered with it over the last 22 years has always happened at home or on the way home and we were close enough to make it back.
Road Mx is always the fun stuff though, especially at a show when you get to meet other the people from other outfits who offer to help you or need helped.
I'm just thankful we have never had any major failures on the road with our C-123. Everything big we have ever encountered with it over the last 22 years has always happened at home or on the way home and we were close enough to make it back.
A Life Aloft
Well-Known Member
Well that's interesting. Thanks for the clarification. I got the info from here: http://www.azcentral.com/story/news.../wings-freedom-tour-wwii-era-planes/82916060/
as the tour had just been in Arizona last month. So much for accurate/detailed reporting then.
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