B-17 Close to Flying Again

Flight Journal, Jun 2004 by Budde-Jones, K T

DURING THE FIRST WEEK OF MARCH, the B-17 Liberty Belle, owned by the Liberty Foundation that was founded by Don Brooks, saw the light of day again at the Flying Tigers Warbird Restoration Museum. For 14 years, it had been undergoing a complete restoration in the museum's hangar at the Kissimmee Gateway Airport in Florida.

Originally built in May 1945, this B-17 flew until 1967, when it was put on static display at the Bradley Air Museum in Connecticut and remained there until a tornado damaged it badly in October 1979. Tom Reilly moved the B-17 to his museum's hangar in 1990 and started the laborious task of restoring it to flying condition in 1992. Recently, the B-17 was extracted from the museum's hangar with only inches to spare after being reassembled in its confines over the past 12 years.

The B-17 is set to fly again this year, and it will be decked out in its new 390th Bomb Group paint scheme. Don Brooks' father flew in the 390th Bomb Group, and Liberty Belle will be painted to honor him along with the thousands who served in 390th based in Framlingham, England, and for all the men and women who gave us the freedoms that we enjoy today.

Museum visitors can see the daily progress, as this B-17 Flying Fortress is on display at the Flying Tigers Warbird Restoration Museum, 231 N. Hoagland Blvd., Kissimmee, FL 34741. For more information, call (407) 933-1942.

-K.T. Budde-Jones