The Wings of Freedom Tour

The Collings Foundation’s The Wings of Freedom tour of World War II bombers touched down at the Spokane International Airport this week. B-24 Liberator, and a B-25 Mitchell delighted the crowds of aviation enthusiasts. Missing was a B-17 Flying Fortress. It had developed engine trouble in route from Seattle to Spokane and had to make a quick landing at Everett, Washington’s Paine Field for repairs. I got a chance to fly on the B-17 from Seattle. Though the ride was short, I got a good sense of what the bomber crews from WWII endured during flight. That is minus the anti-aircraft flack and machine gun rounds from German fighter ripping through the thin skin of the plane. The B-17 as well as the B-24 and B-25 made up the backbone of the bomber fleet during the war.

Section:Video