Warbird Information Exchange

Ok, I just reieved my lastest edition of the Disabled American Veterans magazine and it has an article in there about how they took Pancito, put her on a barge and sent her up river in New Orleans.

They only had a few photos. Does anyone have anymore?

I assume you mean Larry Kelly's B-25 'Panchito'? Why would they put it on a barge and ship it upriver when it's perfectly capable of flying to places upriver? Clarification please....what's going on here?

Mark

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Mark Morris

It was placed up river in N.O. on the riverfront for display.

I will have to see if I can get more information from the article for you guys.

http://dav.org/news/news_20070803.html







DISABLED AMERICAN VETERANS

807 Maine Ave., SW · Washington, D.C. 20024 · Phone (202) 554-3501 · Fax (202) 863-0233

Media Alert



Contact: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Rob Lewis, (513) 616-2351 August 3, 2007






HISTORIC B-25 TO VISIT SPANISH PLAZA

‘Panchito’ celebrates 65th anniversary of Doolittle’s Raid in New Orleans

On Friday, August 10, the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) is bringing the legendary B-25 “Panchito” to New Orleans’ Riverwalk in celebration of the its 86th National Convention Aug. 10 – 14.

The public is invited to attend a special welcome ceremony Friday, Aug. 10, beginning at 5:30 p.m. on the section of the Riverwalk adjacent to Spanish Plaza. The ceremony will feature country music singer Aaron Tippin, and the Marine Forces Reserve Band’s Jazz Combo.

“Panchito” is a restored World War II B-25 Mitchell bomber, the plane which enjoys the reputation of achieving the impossible during one of America’s darkest hours in World War II.

On April 18, 1942, just months after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Lt. Col. James Doolittle led a squadron of sixteen B-25s from the aircraft carrier USS Hornet on a daring, top-secret mission against the enemy. Though conceived as a diversion that would boost American and allied morale, the Doolittle Raid was the first U.S. air strike on the Japanese home islands and a bold first step on the long road to victory. This year marks the 65th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid and 60th anniversary of the U.S. Air Force.

With special assistance provided by David P. Schulingkamp of M.G. Maher & Co., the New Orleans Port Authority and American Commercial Lines, “Panchito” and her crew will travel from Oshkosh, Wisconsin to the New Orleans Lakefront Airport where the bomber – all 53 feet and 30,000 pounds of her – will be carefully loaded aboard a commercial barge and readied for passage through the Intracoastal Waterway to the Mississippi River. The historic warbird will travel upriver past the Vieux Carre to her final destination along the Riverwalk adjacent to Spanish Plaza where she will be offloaded and remain on public display through Aug. 14.



Media flights are available on Tuesday, August 7 at the New Orleans Lakefront Airport. Space is limited so please RSVP at your earliest convenience to Marvona Welsh at (585) 748-2428. Due to limited space availability, we must limit the number of passengers to two per news organization.



Disabled American Veterans (DAV) is committed to building better lives for disabled veterans through service programs, a volunteer network, and legislation. DAV’s staff of wartime disabled service officers provides free benefits counseling and representation for veterans at 86 offices across the country. The DAV also operates a nationwide Transportation Network to help sick and disabled veterans receive needed care. With more than 1.3 million members, DAV is a congressionally chartered organization founded in 1920.



For more information, contact Rob Lewis at (513) 616-2351.