My flight in a B-25. And the jacket for the occasion was ...

[Stand By]

Quite the experience. I'd very much like one day to get a run in one of those old warbirds, though I'm also very glad I'll never have to deal with doing it 'for real'. My primary school headmaster was an RAF navigator during the war and had terrible experiences of the RAF, of being sent out with only one engine working (and branded LMF for bringing the whole crew home safely with only one engine, rather than completing the run with that meaning certain death for them all), of being a PoW in a German camp, of being treated even worse by the Brits when he did what he felt was his duty and escaped back to England... THe worst of it for him, though, was the long term guilt: as the navigator, it was his job to operate the bomb doors, and he carried with him long after the war a sense of responsibility for the civilian lives he ended, especially the children. THat's why he got into teaching, to feel like he was in some way making up for it. I've long had serious issues with Arthur Harris and Churchill over some of what was done, but the embarassment and treatment of the poor buggers sent out on those bombing runs after the war was shameful.

It’s unfortunate that that was the experience for many. I read “The Forgotten Highlander” and it’s an astonishing tale of one soldier’s brushes with death and his fortitude as a POW when Singapore fell and coming back from the Far East, he’s treated like a VIP in the US, and later, nobody comes to meet them when he disembarks the ship in Scotland - no band, no people, no government. He just walked home. Suffice to say, he was bitter and I would be too given what he went through! It’s a remarkable book and one worth reading.
War is hell and it brings out the best in some and the worst in others.

 

[Peacoat]

Just saw this thread: Wow, that was a great experience you had. The Mitchell B-25 had a big history in WWII. I believe it was the first to have bombed Japan in retaliation for Pearl Harbor after having taken off from an aircraft carrier (The Doolittle Raid). A good write up of your flight; thanks. Now I want to do it.

 

[Stand By]

That's awesome! I'm really jealous!
Did you wear a parachute?
How noisy, hot, windy, stinky was it?
Did you see a lot of sharp edges inside waiting to rip or snag your jacket?

Many years ago I had a ride in the backseat of an F-4. The F-4 was the first plane I remember seeing as a kid, I saw one at an air show doing lots of low level turns with the burner on- it was the loudest thing I ever heard to this day, so I was really pumped to go up, but it turned out to be a little underwhelming in that aside from the massive acceleration on take off, I felt like I was a victim of sensory deprivation; can't see anything out of the back unless you're upside down.

Interesting observations on the F-4, Big J! I can strangely imagine how that might feel, actually – and there being no flying-by-the-seat-of the-pants sense of flying either! But I would find it thrilling all the same! And you were lucky to fly in an F-4 too. They’re one of the most beautiful ‘planes ever made, IMO.

And it was chilly in there on the day. Saturday was a total washout with lots of rain, and it had just cleared out when I took the flight the next day, so it was very damp and cool, so inside the plane it was a little cold, but okay.

And yes, stinky with the exhausts and that made for a feeling of nausea when combined with flying backwards, but it was much better when the window up front was opened and I was moving about.

And no, there were no sharp edges to worry about as there were no .50Cal ammo boxes or crates to fall on to or anything like that. And the Aero ANJ-3 is goatskin, so it’d shrug off anything other than something truly sharp. I wasn’t concerned at all, crawling on my hands and knees into the rear gunner position, which is a fairly tight squeeze. And there was a lot of steep banking and a faux touch-and-go at the end, but no harsh evasive escape maneuvers like a “corkscrew” which would have been prevalent then – or when the pilot would get a fighter off its tail by hitting the flaps and killing the engines momentarily this getting it to overshoot past it as though the pilot had suddenly hit the handbrake – and then the B-25 is behind the fighter and can bring the 10 x .50cals to bear (8 in the nose, 2 in the top turret). Imagine being raked with that lot! Lordy! They’d turn anything into Swiss cheese.

And no, no parachutes. We boarded through the rear belly hatch behind the bomb bay – and were told how to open it in an emergency and also the side hatch. But that’s it.

But what really struck me a bit later was when we were flying at fairly low level and the fields were rushing by, and then I suddenly thought to imagine if the ship was at that altitude (as they were often on low-level strafing missions) and was shot up and an engine was on fire and at risk of blowing up – and suddenly there was the absolute need to bale out – and at that height when the ‘chute may not have time to open. Would I do it? Hell, could I do it? Or would I stay with the plane as it went down and hope for the best? I honestly couldn’t say.

Thankfully, so many others did what they all did so that I’ll never have to find out. Bless them all.

*Thanks again to Nick123 for getting the photos up for me and posting due to restrictions at my end. Thanks for making this thread possible!

 

[jonesy86]

Really fun reading. Thanks. I flew from SF to NY today. Didn't wear a flight jacket, just my favorite HBD. I saw an United pilot in the airport in SF wearing a cool looking black flight jacket. Almost walked back to ask him "what jacket are you wearing today", but would probably have missed my flight.

 

[Stand By]

Funnily enough, Big J, about your comment about snagging my jacket in there, when I was at the museum shop afterwards, one of the things I picked up was the Blu-Ray of “Reunion Of Giants”; the documentary about the flight of the Canadian Lancaster across the Atlantic and it’s visit to the UK.
I put it on last night and it’s really good and very well done.
And when the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight crew, who fly the British Lancaster out of RAF Conningsby saw it in their hangar for the first time and marvelled it, they then went aboard and were visibly shocked by its interior as their own version has been maintained just as it was/should be, namely full of wartime equipment and stores - and sure enough, there’s no way anyone’s crawling around easily in there in an Irvin! They couldn’t believe the space and the seats and that one could actually stand and move about!
They showed brief stills of each plane (requiring the pause button!) and the Canadian Lanc has some nice seats in tandem on the port side and space as a galley to move up and down the fuselage. One of the RAF crew comments that he’s in two minds about it as it’s not as it should be, but then again, it allows the public access to something exceedingly rare and special, which can only be a good thing and only happens in Hamilton, Canada! (and the B-25 was done the same, so I found this very interesting!).
And the seats on the Lanc look very much in keeping - and face forward!

 

[Doctor Damage]

This morning while on my walk the B-25 flew over at around 1,000 feet, being tailgated by a C-130, and trailing behind them a smaller WW2 bomber with twin tails and D-Day stripes (I don't know what that was). It was part of a now-annual flyover they do for Remembrance Day and it was a great thing to see. After about half an hour, two WW2 fighters flew over twice (one in training yellow, the other dark blue I think), although I wasn't positioned well to see them.

 

[Stand By]

This morning while on my walk the B-25 flew over at around 1,000 feet, being tailgated by a C-130, and trailing behind them a smaller WW2 bomber with twin tails and D-Day stripes (I don't know what that was). It was part of a now-annual flyover they do for Remembrance Day and it was a great thing to see. After about half an hour, two WW2 fighters flew over twice (one in training yellow, the other dark blue I think), although I wasn't positioned well to see them.

Hi DD,
The aircraft you saw was their Beechcraft Expeditor - yours to fly in for a whopping $80! (plus the price of a year's membership to CWHM - it's members only. You get discount in the gift shop with that too).
http://www.warplane.com/aircraft/flights/buy.aspx
It must have been so gratifying to see that flypast! Wow! I'd love to attend the service they put on for Remembrance Day at the main hangar with the Lancaster - and there's also a big swing dance coming up and attendees are encouraged to wear 40's civilian and military gear!
When I was driving back from my flight, I was feeling very good about my decision to opt for the shorter and more dynamic ride in the B-25 over the Lancaster ... and then, as I drove back along the QEW, the Lancaster sailed into view above me, flying almost overhead and in the opposite direction back to base and it was just a magnificent sight and it was in no hurry whatsoever and what a special sight ... and then I wasn't quite so sure!

 

[Big J]

@Stand By, that's totally awesome, and I'm really jealous!
My F-4 flight was in a 29 Sqn F-4 at RAF Conningsbury, home of the BOBMF.
In the same way that my over-riding memory of the F-4 is how dirty it was, my over-riding memory of the BOBMF Lancaster is that while it was very, very shiny and clean, every single panel I could see was rippled, nothing was smooth and flat.

 

[Stand By]

@Stand By, that's totally awesome, and I'm really jealous!
My F-4 flight was in a 29 Sqn F-4 at RAF Conningsbury, home of the BOBMF.
In the same way that my over-riding memory of the F-4 is how dirty it was, my over-riding memory of the BOBMF Lancaster is that while it was very, very shiny and clean, every single panel I could see was rippled, nothing was smooth and flat.

Indeed! And when I was up close to the Lancaster in Hamilton, I was amazed at how thin the metal skin was - it was like tin and obviously offered no protection at all from all the flak and cannon fire! Amazing bravery.
My girlfriend showed me this link last night - I'd not seen it before although it is a couple of years old now. It's a segment of Rick Mercer's show and each week he travels to somewhere in Canada to show off a Canadian place or event.
In this one, he takes a flight on the Lancaster out of Hamilton to Niagara Falls! It's beautifully shot by the camera crews and gives a great flavour of what it must be like ... simply wonderful.

 

[Doctor Damage]

rippled skin = it doesn't go fast so aerodynamics isn't a huge issue
thin skin = weight savings so they could carry other weight

 

[Worf]

Ah'm so jealous my haids' about to explode. Only been a WWII buff since forever.... Only flew EVERY combat flight sim since "Their Finest Hour"! Arrrgh! Great photo's, great ride, sweet jacket! Thanks for sharing!

Worf

 

[Dumpster Diver]

I have some analog photos of that B-25 from when It spent time In the Hamilton Air museum, I remember the 6 50's on the nose...an interesting Retrofit in Lieu of a Bombardier's view.

 

[Big J]

@Stand By, Doctor Damage, yeah, memory is notoriously unreliable (especially mine!) so my memory of dirty F-4s and rippled Lancaster panels might have departed from reality, but those details made a huge impression on me.

One thing about the Lancaster I never appreciated from WWII movies is how good visibility is from the cockpit. It's really open and light feeling. Compare that with pokey B-15 cockpits- it's like flying from inside a mailbox! When I was a kid, I don't think I ever saw any footage from inside a Lancaster flying in daylight. Being able to see that really gives you a different insight into the experience (no pun intended).

Pilots must have felt terribly exposed.
And check out those jump-seats! B-15 seats must have seemed luxurious by comparison.

I'm so glad I never had to do it, and thankful that they did.

 

[Stand By]

Thanks very much to all for the very kind comments. I'm very glad that this thread has been enjoyed ...!
I just looked and realized that I have some extra photos from my new iPhone and if I can get them to Nick, will ask him to add them ... and one is the view from the rear gunner position. Wow!

 

[Stand By]

View attachment 94570

View attachment 94577

 

[kowalski]

ja ENVY

 

[Stand By]

Thanks for posting the images, Nick!
It should be noted that I was NOT flying upside down! I don't know why the images came out that way (it must be an Apple thing! I'm a PC guy and I used my new iPhone SE and have no clue how to edit Apple images!). If any bartender can fix, please do!
Thanks again, Nick!

 

[nick123]

Great photos David. I think it's a device thing, as pics look alright to me. Mods please fix if possible.

 

[Stand By]

Great photos David. I think it's a device thing, as pics look alright to me. Mods please fix if possible.

I'm so glad they look okay to you, Nick! To me it looks like I'm barnstorming in a Boeing Stearman! And then I would be using the Sick Sacks!
Thanks a lot for all your invaluable help, Nick, and making this thread entirely possible! You're a star!