Thread: B-17 Nine-O-Nine crashes in Connecticut

There seems to be little information so far on the possible cause of the accident, although the report that it was not gaining altitude suggests an engine problem. A pure guess at this time is that one engine failed, and the aircraft groundlooped during the landing, perhaps the result of being unable to feather the prop on a dead engine.

I don't have any real idea of what the ground handling is like on this 1930s design, but (as a pilot endorsed on tailwheel aircraft) I can see how this could happen. And not too sure about the use of a bomber as what seems essentially a passenger aircraft - it seems to have been carrying about ten paying passengers.

I had three short flights in Collings Foundation WW2 aircraft from Santa Ana airport in LA. The foundation tours the USA regularly selling joy flights. I was in a B17, B24, B25. We flew a dangerous daylight mission to bomb Port of Long Beach escorted by the foundations P51. Passengers just climb in and sit on cushions on the floor. WW2 aircrew must have been skinny little guys. I could not fit down the hatch in the B17 from the pilot's position to the nose and it was a very tight squeeze down the narrow catwalk between the bomb racks from the waist guns to the cockpit. My favourite was the B25 Mitchell.

There are numbers of WW2 aircraft flying in the USA. One small country airport I saw, between Bakersfield and Visalia hosted a B17, F4U Corsair, and an F4 Phantom all in civilian livery. Also there is a business there that restores/refurbishes ex-forces C130 Hercules for resale as civilian aircraft. There is a private collection and airstrip in Utah that has probably 20 WW2 aircraft and boasts they all can fly and do so. My favourites were their Griffon-Mustang and Corsair with a four row "corn cob" radial installed. These two probably equate to sprint cars or AA Fuelers in motor sport terms. Money, money, money.

Originally Posted by Bigbjorn

I could not fit down the hatch in the B17 from the pilot's position to the nose and it was a very tight squeeze down the narrow catwalk between the bomb racks from the waist guns to the cockpit. My

In Seattle, I had a flight in a B25 and a B17. In the B17, I was in the bombardier's position.

Pic taken at take-off:

IMGP8737.jpg

Originally Posted by Bigbjorn

I had three short flights in Collings Foundation WW2 aircraft from Santa Ana airport in LA. The foundation tours the USA regularly selling joy flights. I was in a B17, B24, B25. We flew a dangerous daylight mission to bomb Port of Long Beach escorted by the foundations P51. Passengers just climb in and sit on cushions on the floor. WW2 aircrew must have been skinny little guys. I could not fit down the hatch in the B17 from the pilot's position to the nose and it was a very tight squeeze down the narrow catwalk between the bomb racks from the waist guns to the cockpit. My favourite was the B25 Mitchell.

There are numbers of WW2 aircraft flying in the USA. One small country airport I saw, between Bakersfield and Visalia hosted a B17, F4U Corsair, and an F4 Phantom all in civilian livery. Also there is a business there that restores/refurbishes ex-forces C130 Hercules for resale as civilian aircraft. There is a private collection and airstrip in Utah that has probably 20 WW2 aircraft and boasts they all can fly and do so. My favourites were their Griffon-Mustang and Corsair with a four row "corn cob" radial installed. These two probably equate to sprint cars or AA Fuelers in motor sport terms. Money, money, money.

"Griffon Mustang" sounds good to me.
Pickles.

Originally Posted by Pickles2

"Griffon Mustang" sounds good to me.
Pickles.

It did sound good too. I was told the "corn cob" F4U was faster with an actual excess of power that the airframe could not use. The P51 had a highly modified engine for air pylon racing and had propellor problems in that it needed more prop to use the available horsepower but mounting same was quite an engineering challenge. The operation blends their own fuel mix. 115/145 leaded Avgas was no longer available. They were using a "secret blend" of 100LL Avgas, "octane improver" which I suspected was Benzol/Toluene or similar with some methanol, and tetra-ethyl lead. I was surprised to find one can buy tetra-ethyl lead there (and here nowadays). I had an intro to the billionaire owner who took pleasure in showing off his toys to foreign visitors. Very nice guy, personable and hospitable. The operation had bigger and better machine shop and toolroom than most factories in Australia. Sorry, but photography was not permitted.

Very sad and tragic.
Poor buggers.

As is usual with these "accidents" the keyboard experts jump right in. If you weed out the chaff from the grain in the following, there are some sensible comments:

B17 crash at Bradley - PPRuNe Forums

In another life I did some flying in the US(I have an FAA licence), and some of the antics they get up to would see an Australian licence cancelled, along with a court case.

In part of the link post much is made of why the crew did not declare an emergency, which MAY very well have saved all of them. RIP.

Originally Posted by Old Farang

As is usual with these "accidents" the keyboard experts jump right in. If you weed out the chaff from the grain in the following, there are some sensible comments:

B17 crash at Bradley - PPRuNe Forums

In another life I did some flying in the US(I have an FAA licence), and some of the antics they get up to would see an Australian licence cancelled, along with a court case.

In part of the link post much is made of why the crew did not declare an emergency, which MAY very well have saved all of them. RIP.

Yes, there are plenty of armchair experts over there. So many, that after almost 2 decades of membership I haven’t been over there for about 3 years. It’s really a waste of space.