Four-Eyed Buck,SASS #14795 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Article in the REP over the weekend. There's a group in Urbana,Ohio( near Dayton) that's putting together a B-17. Using scrounged parts,used parts, and, with the help of blueprints from the Smithsonian making new parts for ones they can't get. Picture showed the fuselage in bright aluminum and it's got nose art on it already, "Champaign Lady" is the name. They are hoping to make her airworthy as well. This was an AP article........ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheyenne Culpepper 32827 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 cool, that's Doc Eells territory, wander if he's in on it????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linn Keller, SASS 27332, BOLD 103 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Had the pleasure of going through the Confederate Air Force's B17 "Sentimental Journey" at the Guernsey County Airport many moons ago. My mentor on the fire department flew 17s during the Second Disagreement so he went the day after I did, when they were preflighting her for takeoff. Once they found out Hoss flew 17s "For Real" they grabbed him around his skinny waist and dunked him in the right hand seat. That skinny old so-and-so, a half century almost to the day since the last time he sat the right seat, went through the preflight checklist. From memory. Flawlessly. Well, he did miss one fuel crossover switch that wouldn't have made a bit of difference, but that was all. I do look forward to this Urbana bird taking wing, they're building her to fly! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocWard Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 The aircraft is being built at Grimes Field, just north of Urbana, about twenty minutes from me. It is called "Champaign Lady" because it is in Champaign County. They also have some other aircraft up there, including an A-26 Invader, a DC-3 (actually a C-47), and the "Grimes Flying Lab." The Flying Lab was used as a testbed for lighting. Grimes Field is also where the B-25s staged and returned after flyovers for the Doolittle Raiders at Wright-Patt. http://www.champaignaviationmuseum.org/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Dan Troop 70448 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Once they found out Hoss flew 17s "For Real" they grabbed him around his skinny waist and dunked him in the right hand seat. That skinny old so-and-so, a half century almost to the day since the last time he sat the right seat, went through the preflight checklist. From memory. Flawlessly. Well, he did miss one fuel crossover switch that wouldn't have made a bit of difference, but that was all. They must have been funning him. No crossover fuel switches. There are fuel tank transfer valves, but to do this, one has to go aft of compartment to transfer fuel from one tank to another, otherwise each engine depended on its own tank, plus the auxilliry outer tanks filled for long missions. This would be the start of the check list, actually step 5, and maybe what he missed, he would have to get out of seat and walk to bulhhead to check. Actually, the first 6 steps are co-ordinated between pilot/co-pilot and ground crew. Because the first 6 steps inolved making sure switches are closed/off and ground crew are turning the props over. So if they invited him to sit in seat, they propable did the first 6 steps already. The fuel gauge is located second row far right main instrument panel, and had 6 positions for each tank. Shut off valves which were opened, located on cowl panel. I think he did good to do this from memory. Real good, seems somethings stick forever in procedures you could do in your sleep. MT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abilene Slim SASS 81783 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 The fuel gauge is located second row far right main instrument panel, and had 6 positions for each tank. The T-34 I used to fly had a single guage and a toggle switch for checking fuel levels in each wing. Is that how the B-17 works -- single gauge and 6-position switch? If so, how often do you check fuel levels in flight? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Dan Troop 70448 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Same, 6 postion switch. When I co-piloted, I usually kept it on the #3 position. Normally to sure they worked, a couple times an hour. MT Might bring some memories back. http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z72/marshaltroop/combat/SDC13939_zps7d9df345.jpg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abilene Slim SASS 81783 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 Very cool, thanks Marshal. Fuel check interval was the same in the T-34 and turned out to be critical on one long cross country when I found the right tank wasn't feeding at all. As you can see from the pic, my life was much simpler in a single engine trainer as compared to a B-17. For some reason I never took pics of the cockpit, but this was a typical layout Panel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linn Keller, SASS 27332, BOLD 103 Posted March 4, 2014 Share Posted March 4, 2014 They must have been funning him. No crossover fuel switches. There are fuel tank transfer valves, but to do this, one has to go aft of compartment to transfer fuel from one tank to another, otherwise each engine depended on its own tank, plus the auxilliry outer tanks filled for long missions. This would be the start of the check list, actually step 5, and maybe what he missed, he would have to get out of seat and walk to bulhhead to check. Actually, the first 6 steps are co-ordinated between pilot/co-pilot and ground crew. Because the first 6 steps inolved making sure switches are closed/off and ground crew are turning the props over. So if they invited him to sit in seat, they propable did the first 6 steps already. The fuel gauge is located second row far right main instrument panel, and had 6 positions for each tank. Shut off valves which were opened, located on cowl panel. I think he did good to do this from memory. Real good, seems somethings stick forever in procedures you could do in your sleep. MT I could be misremembering what he told me. 'Twas 36 years ago that he spoke of it. Or Hoss could have been pulling my leg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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