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Photos by Dave Merchant and Larry Caruso
The Annual Thunder over Michigan Air Show was held over the weekend and some lucky historic bomber enthusiasts were able to take an hour-long ride on the Yankee Lady, a B-17 Bomber that was never used in WWII.
One of our reporters was fortunate enough to win a trip aboard the Yankee Lady, and he plans on keeping his feet planted firmly on the ground from now on.
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In the newspaper business there are a lot of things you get to do for the first time ever in your life.
Such was the case for me on Friday afternoon at Willow Run Airport when I was given the gracious opportunity to fly in a B-17bomber.
I say gracious because I had no idea what to expect and I wasn't sure what was going to happen. The last time I was in a plane was back in 1996 when I was flying back from Kansas for my wedding shower.
Before we boarded the plane were given a history lesson on the plane itself. It seems that in 1945 this plane, the Yankee Lady, was built for World War II but never actually used in combat because the war in Europe was already over.
The plane was nicknamed the "Flying Fortress" because of its size. B-17's flew more than 291,500 combat missions in the European Theatre of Operation between 1942 and 1945. Just more than 4,750 were lost on operation, which cost the lives of 45,000 air force crewmen.
The maximum level of speed for this plan is 287 miles per hour and the maximum takeoff weight is 65,600 pounds. It is around 75 feet long and has a wingspan of nearly 104 feet.
When we got in the plane and started to taxi to the runaway, I was suddenly aware that this was not going to be like a Northwestern commercial flight but something much different. Different can be good and I was expecting (hoping) that this would bode well for me.
One thing that you do not think about is the smell of the fuel and smell before takeoff. Big commercial planes do not have windows that open but this plane had a hatch with a safety bar that stayed open for the entire flight.
Finally after much anticipation it was our time to takeoff. As the plane went down the runway and took off into the blue sky our adventure was underway. After we reached our altitude of 2,200 feet we were able to get up and walk around.
The B-17 took us from Willow Run Airport down toward Monroe and then made a turn to fly up the Detroit River toward the Ambassador Bridge. We were told we took this route so we were out of the way of Metro Airport traffic, which suited me, just fine.
It was amazing to look down and see the houses, land and even street signs you could almost read. The elevation of 2,200 feet was not as high as you might think. I was able to see pools in people's backyards and almost see the people splashing in them.
As we were flying north up the Detroit River there were some amazing sites. I saw Roosevelt High School in Wyandotte and was reminded of the several times I had watched the Bears play football on that field.
One of the crewmembers told us this model of plane was used in the classic war movie "Tora! Tora! Tora!" I thought that was worth mentioning because I am sure a generation of readers remembers that movie.
Once the plane got past the Rouge River and closer to the international bridge, one could tell by the smell in the air that we were in Detroit. It was a lot stronger than riding over the Rouge Bridge on I-75. We cleared over the bridge and looked down at the traffic as the plane veered back toward the south.
One passenger pointed out a house fire that we spotted from the air. It was a different angle than what I was used to looking at in terms of a fire. As we cruised back to the airport it was amazing to think of all the veterans in World War II that had flown in these types of planes.
One of the guides said that crewmembers had to fly 25 missions to make it home but unfortunately the average was 15 missions before something happened to the plane.
These young men who flew to protect our freedom are definitely heroes in my book. I don't think I want to take a second trip in the plane let alone 25 times and that is without someone trying to shoot me down.
I have to say I enjoyed the ride and the experience but I like my feet planted on the ground and my head looking at the stars and not in them!
Dave Merchant is a staff writer for the View and Courier newspapers and can be reached at 734-697-8255 or dmerchant@heritage.com.
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