WATCH: One of the historic aircraft on display at the Abbotsford Air Show is the recently restored B-17 bomber. Chris Gailus takes a flight back in time.
The engines roar to life and it’s hard to believe the B-17 Flying Fortress bomber is more than 70 years old.
The World War II-era bomber is named ‘Sentimental Journey’ after the hit song by Doris Day and will take people on a trip back in time at this year’s Abbotsford Air Show.
B-17s were the high-performance workhorses of the United States Air Force, dropping bombs and engaging enemy fighters in the skies over Europe. More than 12,000 were made but only 10 exist today.
Flying at up to 35,000 feet and equipped with 13 machine guns, B-17s brought down many German fighters while avoiding most anti-aircraft fire. But they were cold and cramped. At that altitude, temperatures could drop as low as -40 degrees.
The Sentimental Journey never saw European combat, but it still has a colourful war history.
Many say the phrase “the whole nine yards” came from the B-17. The plane’s machine gun belts, which held 600 rounds of ammunition, were nine yards long, so if you unloaded the whole thing you gave ’em “the whole nine yards.”
The nose of the plane features an iconic image of actress Betty Grable, the most popular pin-pinup girl of the era.
Grable’s estate gave permission to use the image, and then donated money to the Commemorative Air Force Museum for the extremely rare Norden bombsite, a top secret piece of technology in the nose of the plane that greatly improved bombing accuracy.
WATCH: Abbotsford Air Show 2015 kicks off
Sentimental Journey served in the Pacific Theatre, mainly photo reconnaissance and mapping. It left service in the late 1950s and spent time as an air-sea rescue plane and even a water bomber before the Commemorative Air Force (CAF) of Arizona took it on as a restoration project.
“The top turret actually came from a gentleman who had a B-17 sitting as the roof of his gas station,” said flying crew chief Alex Shelton. “And he had the only complete top turret that was available. So they traded some sheet metal and some plastic work to get his plane looking cosmetically looking nice.
“We’re the only B-17 that has the complete top turret assembly in the world.”
And they say she has her own unique personality.
“She loves to mark her territory,” said Shelton. “When we come into a spot, she makes sure she drips some oil in her spots and she likes to say, ‘this is where I’m at and this is where I want to be.'”
The crew likes to say the B-17 was built for combat, not for comfort. The catwalk over the bomb bay is only a few inches wide and it’s hard to believe anyone fit inside the ball turret hanging below the belly of the aircraft.
Up front, pilot Jim Kimmel has a personal connection to the plane. His father flew 50 combat missions in B-17s, and they’ve flown together in this one too.
Now that the plane is back to wartime specs, the CAF crew takes it around North America, so others can experience it too.
“Cruising around B.C. on a beautiful blue day, this is the best seat in the house.
-With files from Chris Gailus
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