Interesting B-17...is this Fuddy Duddy!?!

[groundpounder]

something funny is going on here because on the outside shot of the plane it is the rear window that is blocked off, not the front one as the inside pic clearly shows. also on the outside shot it appears to show that the rear window has been deleted and skinned over. i dont think that the inside shot is from fuddy duddy. maybe its an old pic.??

[Todd Hackbarth]

Groundpounder,

The photo that you are referring to shows the right side of the fuselage, not the left. The cockpit is to the left in the photo and the waist section is to the right. The stack of radios that you see are normally placed in the right rear corner of the radioroom.

Todd

[groundpounder]

ahaaaaaaa

[Ztex]

This is all very exciting for me!

It seems to be that this is Fuddy Duddy!

To find a picture of an existant, flying warbird in some old photos is way cool!

Thanks for the pictures and of the help...If anyone has any more info to further the confirmation, let me know!

Zane

[Larry Kraus]

Some of the photos of Fuddy Duddy show a ladder to the front entrance hatch.I was never able to get into a B-17 comfortably if the mechanics had a ladder there.The normal way to get in the front hatch is to grab the bar that's mounted just inside and outboard of the door and swing your feet in a la Gregory Peck in 12 0'clock High.

[FlyingFortB17]

The normal way to get in the front hatch is to grab the bar that's mounted just inside and outboard of the door and swing your feet in a la Gregory Peck in 12 0'clock High.

I have always wanted to do that. Someday...

[Ztex]

We had to stop using that to swing in and out of Chuckie...small cracks appeared...after 60 years of that eventually things begin to give.

[chico]

I have always wanted to do that. Someday...

That's one of those things that I've managed to cross off my life's to-do list this year

[daviemax]

[b]483547 (first photo) is a VB-17G that was originally assigned to General Walter Krueger. It remained in USAF inventory as a VB at least until 1957 when the last record card entry was made (and it was inconclusive as to fate - possibly the a/c was dismantled for parts but this is conjecture).

As for aircraft in the 483560 range:

483560 - various roles indicated (QB, DB, TB prior to conversion to QB-17N after June of '57 and apparently expended at Holloman AFB in November of '57.

483561 - similar to -560 was TB until converted to QB-17N in June '57 and expended at Holloman June '59.

483562 - VB until stored at Davis-Monthan before being converted to QB-17N December '56 and expended at Holloman March '57.

483563 - Fuddy Duddy

483564 - VB-17G used until late '56 and then was sent to Eglin and dismantled for parts.

483565 - QB-17G used at the Greenhouse test. Ultimate fate unclear based on present understanding.

483566 - Essentially same history and status as -565.

483567 - Served with 53 WRS before being converted to SB-17G. Destroyed in crash 30 September 1949.

483568 - Also served with 53 WRS before crashing 2 November 1946.

483569 - Again, served with 53 WRS before being sent to reclamation 25 April 1949.

Clearly the aircraft in the photo could be any of the VB's: -62, -63, or -64.

[Warbird Kid]

I have always wanted to do that. Someday...

That's one of those things that I've managed to cross off my life's to-do list this year

Did it at Elmira in 99? 00? with Yankee Lady. End of the day, no one was really around. The ladder was there. But I still swung up.

[aerovin]

With regard to the VB-17G discussion, Tim Bivens had sent me a copy of this photo:



The locale seems similar to that of the photo in the original posting so I would suspect it to be the same aircraft taken at the same location possibly around the same time, and is almost certainly 44-83564. I have a bit more information posted in my September B-17 News update at http://www.aerovintage.com/b17news.htm on this photo.

I suspect it was taken at Kadena Air Base (Okinawa) in the 1950-1953 period.

[mike furline]

A few others,




N39351?

[Chris Brame]

N39351?

43-39356 in movie paint from Lady Takes a Flyer. See link:
http://www.aerovintage.com/lady.htm

[Ztex]

Wow...thread resurrected after 7 years...lol

Great to see the new photos of the other transport B-17's.


I thought I had updated the thread a few years ago with the confirmed info on the ID of the airplane in the first post.



I inherited several hundred of photos from my friend and at the time I was overwhelmed by the volume of photos.

I have since gone through them all and found another copy of the B-17 on Okinawa with the complete number visible.

CONFIRMED it is Fuddy Duddy!

[mike furline]

http://www.warbirdregistry.org/b17regis ... 85778.html





http://www.warbirdregistry.org/b17regis ... 85784.html



http://www.warbirdregistry.org/b17regis ... 85813.html





???