the bomb bay doors, which currently feature
the names of over two dozen veterans, the
aircraft they served on, numbers of missions
they ew, and in many cases the full crew
roster for their particular aircraft.
In addition to giving B-17 veterans
the opportunity to give their children and
grandchildren a better idea of ‘what Grandad
did in the war’, for many, it is far more than
that.
The chance to tour the aircraft, assume
their former position, or even leave mementos
as a tribute to fallen comrades often helps
provide a sense of closure.
Gilmore related one such story. “A little
more than two years ago, we had a World
War Two B-17 radio operator come here to
look at the airplane. He asked, ‘Can you
guys do me a favour?’ We said ‘Sure.’ He
requested, ‘Would you take this dollar bill and
put it in the tail gunner compartment?’ We
said yes and asked why. He replied, ‘Before
one of our missions, I borrowed a dollar from
our tail gunner,’ and for some reason he didn’t
go on that mission and the airplane was shot
down and everybody was killed, so he never
had a chance to pay the tail gunner back. He
said ‘I want to pay that dollar back,’ and we
did it. Way down inside, there’s a dollar bill
stuck in the tail gunner position. Stuff like
that just makes our day.”62 Aviation News incorporating Classic Aircraft May 2016Left: CAF Airbase Arizona Chief Pilot Russ
Gilmore (on the right) ies Sentimental
Journey over the desert near its home base
at Falcon Field Airport. Jay Beckman
Below: The B-17G looks stunning in the
sunshine and re ects the care CAF Airbase
Arizona lavishes upon it.58-62_b17DC.mfDC.mf.indd 62 06/04/2016 16:31