[video] B-17 flight

SteveR

SteveR

Pre-takeoff checklist
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SteveR
A few months ago I finally got my first flight in "Chuckie", the B-17 at the Vintage Flying Museum in Ft. Worth. Two years worth of work on (some) weekends finally paid off. We flew out to Granbury and back, and buzzed (two passes, 1,000'AGL) Pecan Plantation (a local private strip) on the way over. I don't have time to do a full write up now (I wouldn't do it justice anyway), but I did edit a video, hopefully that is good enough for now.

I'll try to make a better video later...keep in mind this was my first time using the new camera, first time editing video, and I was trying to do other "crew duties" while taking the video, so a lot of it didn't turn out great.
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Most of the video is probably too loud, I need to adjust that...

http://www.wotelectronics.com/B17.wmv
 
Wow, awesome video! Thanks for posting it.

What "crew duties" were you performing.
 
Nav8tor said:
What "crew duties" were you performing.
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Not a whole lot during the flight. Make sure the engines aren't bleeding oil, etc., etc., occasionally I would get a request from the pilot to look at or check something. I did do a lot of the pre-flight though (3hr pre-flight!). Filled it with a few hundred gallons of 100LL, check the oil, pull the props through, operate the pre-oiler, man the fire extinguishers during startup, etc., and I've done several hundred hours of maintenance over the last couple of years. Helped pull and replace a couple of turbos, fuel tanks (the original "bullet resistant" tanks!), and a lot of other miscellaneous stuff. We finally got it flying late last year after performing a wing spar corrosion inspection to comply with an AD.

Dave, they don't really "rent" the plane. The estimated cost to fly it is $3,000/hr, although in reality, with the man-hours involved, I'd say it is a lot more than that. It is kept flying by volunteers & donations. Fuel burn alone is 200 gph of 100LL. It consumes more oil in cruise than my Pietenpol consumes fuel. :D
 
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cool!

I keep meaning to post my own video from Hilton Head - Jesse helped me out. let me find it...
 
SteveR said:
Dave, they don't really "rent" the plane. The estimated cost to fly it is $3,000/hr, although in reality, with the man-hours involved, I'd say it is a lot more than that. It is kept flying by volunteers & donations. Fuel burn alone is 200 gph of 100LL. It consumes more oil in cruise than my Pietenpol consumes fuel. :D
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Dayamn... I really liked what I saw of it!
 
Dave, if you were willing to pay your "pro-rata" portion of the flight (so that no FAR's are violated), I bet you could get a ride. That is their concern...don't want to get in trouble with the FAA. I moved to OK from TX a few months ago, so I'm not able to volunteer there much anymore. Otherwise I'd ask for you if you are serious.
 
SteveR said:
Dave, if you were willing to pay your "pro-rata" portion of the flight (so that no FAR's are violated), I bet you could get a ride. That is their concern...don't want to get in trouble with the FAA. I moved to OK from TX a few months ago, so I'm not able to volunteer there much anymore. Otherwise I'd ask for you if you are serious.
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I've always felt kinda like I'm saving that type of flying for if I ever lose my medical. Until then, I feel much better about the effort involved for me if it's hands on the yoke or stick.
 
Wow Steve! Now that is Sexy! I love those old birds. When those engines come to life, ain't nothin like it! Thanks great video.
 
AdamZ said:
When those engines come to life, ain't nothin like it! Thanks great video.
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Can you imagine what it must have sounded like to the Germans when 1,200 of these things came overhead at 15,000 for a bombing run?
 
Steve, thanks for posting that! It brought back memories of my ride in "The 909" a few years back, an experience I will never forget.
 
Bill Jennings said:
Can you imagine what it must have sounded like to the Germans when 1,200 of these things came overhead at 15,000 for a bombing run?
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rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR
BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOM
RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

Better up there than down here.


If I ever hit the super bankroller lottery on a stick and have Bill Gates as my septic tank cleaner, I will have 500 B-17's built just to feel them fly over my house at 400 AGL and blot out the sky just once. I'll settle for a time machine and a week vacation off the end of the runway where they build them.
 
Awesome video. Great to see those birds still flying.
 
Bill Jennings said:
Can you imagine what it must have sounded like to the Germans when 1,200 of these things came overhead at 15,000 for a bombing run?
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My mom gives a pretty good discription.:(
 
Henning said:
My mom gives a pretty good discription.:(
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Have you evern sat down and talked about and hopefully recorded some of her thoughts from those times? I'd think future generations would liek to know.
 
woodstock said:
ok, here is my video, and thanks to Jesse for putting it on his website. This is only in midair, from the little hole in the roof. I couldn't get over that I could stick my head out and take pictures...

http://www.jesseangell.com/video/elizabeth/b171.wmv
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Wow...that is awesome. I hope to get to go up again sometime this summer.
 
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