Warbird Information Exchange

Had to dig deep for these. My apologies for the poor image quallity. They were taken at FCA/KGPI (now Glacier Int'l.) in Kalispell, MT, circa July/August 1974, as I recall. I would have been twelve at the time. They were taken with a Kodak Instamatic, acquired in exchange for cereal box tops. Shutter release had a "trigger pull" of about 25#, causing most of the pics to be out of focus. Used 126 cartridge film. The gentleman on the wing of a/c "12" took me up in it later that day. He was impressed that I knew right off it was a "G" model! (Already owned a copy of "Flying Fortress" by Edward Jablonski at that time.)
Any additional info would be appreciated.

Aircraft "04" is N17W, a B-17F. Aircraft "10" remains unidentified. Aircraft "12" was a B-17G, N6694C (?).

_________________
"There's nothing new under the sun. It's only new to you."

"Deserve's got nothing to do with it."

good. makes me feel less bad for my 1970's kodak work. 126 looks even worse than my 110! cool that he took you up! good old days.

Always cool to see these old pics. One small correction though: N17W is a B-17F, now restored as "Boeing Bee."

SN

Thanks Steve. Duly noted. The ol' memory ain't what it used to be...

_________________
"There's nothing new under the sun. It's only new to you."

"Deserve's got nothing to do with it."

Tanker 10 was 42-102715/N66573; crashed 7-21-79. Parts of it still exist (not sure what parts).
Tanker 12 is 44-85813/N6694C; crashed 4-16-80. Its ID and some components are now being restored as Champaign Lady.

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All right, Mister Dorfmann, start pullin'!
Pilot: "Flap switch works hard in down position."
Mechanic: "Flap switch checked OK. Pilot needs more P.T." - Flight report, TB-17G 42-102875 (Hobbs AAF)

Thanks Chris. Any idea who the operator was at the time of the photos? Were the crashes related to firefighing duties? Was #10 an "E"model?

_________________
"There's nothing new under the sun. It's only new to you."

"Deserve's got nothing to do with it."

Tanker #10 was a G model. There were no E model tankers I'm aware of, and only two Fs: 42-29782/N17W and 42-6107/N1340N (with Aero Flite; converted to Rolls Royce Dart turboprops in 1970 and crashed August 18th of that year on a firefighting mission).

Both B-17Gs you photographed were owned by Black Hills Aviation and lost on firefighting missions. Scott Thompson's book Final Cut has a lot more info on those B-17 tankers.

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All right, Mister Dorfmann, start pullin'!
Pilot: "Flap switch works hard in down position."
Mechanic: "Flap switch checked OK. Pilot needs more P.T." - Flight report, TB-17G 42-102875 (Hobbs AAF)

Thanks again Chris. Wasn't aware that any "G" models had "42-" serials. Obviously, the fuselage of #10 had been modified past visual recognition. I've seen photos of that turboprop conversion you mentioned. I have family connections to FCA, and still own property near Glacier Nat'l. Park. I donated all of my aviation library to the Civil Air Patrol around 1982, so I no longer have any reference materials. Been away from this scene for thirty-odd years, but have suddenly found myself back in it. I will definitely find a copy of the book you recommended. Trying to get back up to speed, working off of forty-plus year-old memories. Many thanks!

_________________
"There's nothing new under the sun. It's only new to you."

"Deserve's got nothing to do with it."