t0r0nad0
Pattern Altitude
According to Wikipedia, in May of 1947, a B-17 (well, actually, a PB-1W) with the BuNo of 77235 was assigned to the VX-4 squadron at NAS Quonset Point. Her later military career had her assigned to VW-2 at NAS Patuxent River, and VW-1 at NAS Atsugi, before being retired to NAS Litchfield Park, Arizona, in 1956. In 1957, she was purchased by the Aero Service Corporation of Philadelphia, PA, and given the civilian registration of N7227C. She was then used as a high-altitude aerial surveying platform with a wide variety of equipment at different times.
In 1967, the (then) Confederate Air Force purchased N7227C from Aero Service Corporateion for $50,000.00. She was repainted olive drab with a dark green camouflage pattern. It was decided that they would not choose to commemorate a single particular aircraft that flew during World War II, so she was named "Texas Raiders" during her first CAF restoration in the 1960s. Nose art was later applied, consisting of the Texas flag and “Texas Raiders” in white block lettering. She has undergone many changes to put her back in the B-17G configuration used by the USAAF in WWII. In 1972, she was transferred to the Gulf Coast Wing of the CAF, whose care she is still under today.
Starting in 1972, CAF Col. Van Skiles became the first and only pilot to re-enact the single-wheel landing scene from the movie Tora! Tora! Tora!. According to CAF Col. Chris Ebdon:
Some photos of this act, courtesy of Bill Word:
From 1983 to 1986, Texas Raiders went through an extensive restoration and rebuild process, followed by an interior overhaul and new paint job in 1993, when the current nose art was applied. She continued to hop rides and entertain airshow crowds until 2001, when the FAA released Airworthiness Directive 2001-22-06, citing corrosion in the wings. After testing it was determined that N7227C did have corrosion damage, and new wing root hardware would need to be manufactured. The GCW decided to take this opportunity to completely refurbish her inside and out, and overhaul the engines. She has not flown since 2001, and has undergone extensive maintenance at Hobby Airport in Houston ever since...
...until today. I'm very pleased to announce that at around 12:30p CDT today, the B-17G Flying Fortress 'Texas Raiders' took to the skies for the first time in 8 years! It did its high-speed taxi tests, then took off for a short flight around the Houston area. Sadly, I was unable to be physically present, but I was listening on LiveATC.net from my office as history came to life once again.
Congratulations to everyone in the Gulf Coast Wing of the Commemorative Air Force (of which I am not a member, but have several friends who are - it's a lack of free time thing) for all of the hard work they did to make this special day possible. Kudos!
In 1967, the (then) Confederate Air Force purchased N7227C from Aero Service Corporateion for $50,000.00. She was repainted olive drab with a dark green camouflage pattern. It was decided that they would not choose to commemorate a single particular aircraft that flew during World War II, so she was named "Texas Raiders" during her first CAF restoration in the 1960s. Nose art was later applied, consisting of the Texas flag and “Texas Raiders” in white block lettering. She has undergone many changes to put her back in the B-17G configuration used by the USAAF in WWII. In 1972, she was transferred to the Gulf Coast Wing of the CAF, whose care she is still under today.
Starting in 1972, CAF Col. Van Skiles became the first and only pilot to re-enact the single-wheel landing scene from the movie Tora! Tora! Tora!. According to CAF Col. Chris Ebdon:
Some photos of this act, courtesy of Bill Word:
From 1983 to 1986, Texas Raiders went through an extensive restoration and rebuild process, followed by an interior overhaul and new paint job in 1993, when the current nose art was applied. She continued to hop rides and entertain airshow crowds until 2001, when the FAA released Airworthiness Directive 2001-22-06, citing corrosion in the wings. After testing it was determined that N7227C did have corrosion damage, and new wing root hardware would need to be manufactured. The GCW decided to take this opportunity to completely refurbish her inside and out, and overhaul the engines. She has not flown since 2001, and has undergone extensive maintenance at Hobby Airport in Houston ever since...
...until today. I'm very pleased to announce that at around 12:30p CDT today, the B-17G Flying Fortress 'Texas Raiders' took to the skies for the first time in 8 years! It did its high-speed taxi tests, then took off for a short flight around the Houston area. Sadly, I was unable to be physically present, but I was listening on LiveATC.net from my office as history came to life once again.
Congratulations to everyone in the Gulf Coast Wing of the Commemorative Air Force (of which I am not a member, but have several friends who are - it's a lack of free time thing) for all of the hard work they did to make this special day possible. Kudos!
