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February 2009
Mission Update! News from the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum |
Vol 3, Issue 1 |
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175 Bourne Ave
Pooler, GA 31322
912.748.8888
Open daily 9:00 a.m - 5:00 p.m.
(Closed New Year's Day, Easter, Thanksgiving & Christmas) |
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She's Here!
Our B-17, from the National Air and Space Museum, is finally home.
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(Museum crew unloading B-17 Tail)
The Museum received a total of four trucks with all the parts of our B-17. On January 8, 2009 the first tractor trailer with the tail, wheels, wing sections, and even some rusty bombs arrived at the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum. Rick Ennis, John Barnard, Ernie Johnson, Luis Vargas, and Jeff Mayne unloaded several crates and large sections of the plane. 
(forklift unloading B-17 wing)
On Friday January 9, 2009, four engines and the rest of the wings arrived on a flat bed truck. Rick used a forklift to move each engine into the Museum.
(one B-17 engine lifted from truck)
January 14, 2009 was a very proud moment in Museum history. The final truck with the fuselage arrived. Years of hard work, determination, and patience paid off and the Museum now has its very own World War II Flying Fortress B-17 Bomber, which has been named "City of Savannah."
(B-17 fuselage arrives at the Museum)
Once all the pieces of our airplane arrived, the rebuilding began. Chuck Mosely and his crew from All Coast Aircraft Recovery steadily worked reassembling the aircraft. It only took a few days for the plane to take shape again and Museum visitors had an exciting opportunity to watch its reassembly.
Michael Jordan, of the Coastal Heritage Society, created a video of the fuselage arrival and its entry into the Museum. It also includes interviews from Walt Brown and others.
Click here to watch the YouTube video.
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| B-17 City of Savannah Specifications |
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B-17 Flying Fortress - City of Savannah
In storage at the National Air and Space Museum hangar for 25 years, this authentic B-17 Flying Fortress now finds its permanent home at the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum. This bomber is named in honor of the City of Savannah, a B-17 of the same name that left Savannah and Hunter Army Air Field, birthplace of the 8th Army Air Force, in 1944 and flew bombing missions to Germany with the 388th Bomb Group on Knettishall airbase in East Anglia. That aircraft was celebrated as the 500th B-17 to leave Savannah for England. The Museum's City of Savannah will be restored to its wartime configuration and historical accuracy. You can be part of the restoration. Please inquire about opportunities to do so.
Specifications
Wingspan: 103 feet, 9 3/8 inches
Length: 74 feet, 9 inches
Height: 19 feet, 1 inch
Empty Weight: 36,135 pounds
Service Ceiling: 35,000 feet
Range: 2,400 miles
Maximum Speed: 263 mph at 25,000 feet
Cruising Speed: 150 mph
Landing Speed: 90 mph - initial climb rate 900 feet per minute
Maximum Weight: 72,000 pounds
Crew: 10
Armament: 13 M2 .50 cal. Browning Machine guns
Powerplants: Four Wright R-1820-07 cyclone radial with General Electric B-22 turbosuper-chargers, each rated at 1200 hp for takeoff and 1000 hp at 25,000 feet. | |
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Museum Staff
Dr. Walter Brown
President & CEO
Brenda Elmgren
Chief Administrative Officer
Tom Cannon
Development Director
Rochelle Conley
Admission & Group Tours
Susan Eiseman
Meetings & Events Director
Rick Ennis
Facility Manager
Tameka Ford
E-Commerce and Membership
Peggy Harden
Memorial Gardens
Mandy Livingston
Meeting & Special Events Assistant
Jean Prescott
Library Reference Specialist
Vivian Rogers-Price
Research Center Director
Sheila Saxon
Executive Assistant
Pam Sconyers
Finance Director
Henry Skipper
Marketing & Public Relations
Allison Stelljes-James
Marketing & Public Relations
Felice Stelljes
Museum Gift Store Manager
Heather Thies
Education Director
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Call for Volunteers
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Do you have a few spare hours? Need something fun and exciting to do? Do you enjoy meeting people from all over the country and World? If you answered "Yes" to any of the these questions, the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum is the perfect place for you to volunteer your time.
Volunteers Ed and Betty Robarts
To be a volunteer or for more information, please call Heather Thies, 912.748.8888 ext 106, or email her education@mightyeighth.org
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New in the Research Center
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One of our very
dedicated volunteers in the library, John McCamish, has graciously donated a
newly published book:" The 351st Bomb Group in WW II". This book is
larger and more complete than the original unit history.
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Upcoming Features!
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Be sure to see our next edition of the "Mission Update!" online newsletter for the latest news, "What's New in the Archives", "World War II Memorial Updates", and much more.
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| Super Museum Sunday! February 8, 2009 |
Mark your calendars! Super Museum Sunday is February 8, 2009, and you are in for a real treat if you are in or near Savannah on this date. Admission for the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum is FREE all day. Also, there will be activities for families.
There will be free face painting and tattoos for the kids, and special discounts in the store. Super Museum Sunday is the perfect day to become a Museum member since we will be offering discounted membership fees. And we are also offering to everyone who signs up or renews their membership one-time only discounts of 25% off gift store purchases. Bring the whole family to the Mighty Eighth
Museum for Super Museum
Sunday, where you are sure to enjoy a tour of the Museum, tasty lunch in our Cafe, and a visit with Annette.
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What's New to the Archives
A
Downed Pilot's Evasion Costume By Tiffany
Bueno
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Photo: Bill's daughter, Lynda Davis Wilson proudly displays her
father's evasion costume at the Roger A.
Freeman Eighth Air Force Research
Center.
These
clothes - a French beret, shirt sewn from parachute silk, patched gabardine
trousers, and leather flying shoes - disguised downed American fighter pilot Captain
William "Bill" Davis as he trekked through Nazi-occupied France in the
summer of 1944. On 7 July 1944, Bill's
P-38 was hit by flak as he strafed a Nazi train near Orleans, France.
He crash landed in a field at Les Longs Reages.
After hiding in the French countryside for several days, Bill met Monsieur
Robinette, a local leader in the French Underground, who gave him this beret
and trousers. Bill continued to wear his
flying shoes, which are also part of this new collection. A few days later, Bill was moved to the farm
owned by Madame Combre, a key figure in the French Underground in Boisville, France. He stayed for two weeks and befriended her
son, Gilbert, who looked up to him as a big brother. During his stay, Madame Combre sewed this
shirt for Bill from a parachute used to drop supplies to the local French
resistance. After the war, Bill kept his
evasion costume, which his daughter, Lynda Davis Wilson, donated to museum's Roger A.
Freeman Eighth
Air Force
Research Center
on 13 January 2009.
These
clothes enabled Bill to pass as a French civilian as he biked through the
countryside to Fretval
Forest, one of several
camps for downed Allied airmen run by the British Special Operations Executive
(SOE) after the Underground closed its escape routes following D-Day because of
increased danger to both helpers and evaders. The bicycle was too big for Bill, who was
rather short, and he had to repair his trousers as the bike wore them thin. During his stay Bill helped in the daily
operations of the camp, which included guard detail and gathering supplies
dropped by the SOE. Fretval Camp was
liberated in August 1944 when the U.S. 3rd Army moved
through the area. Bill wore his costume
throughout his evasion experience and took great care of it after the war, as
seen in the photograph. Bill's evasion
costume is one of many treasured collections in the Roger A. Freeman Eighth
Air Force
Research Center.
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B-17 Ball Turret Gunner Visits the Museum
by Allison Stelljes-James
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 (Photo: Alfred "Al" Anderson, B-17 Ball Turret Gunner, in front of the Museum's B-17)
On January 29, 2009 the Museum was visited by Alfred "Al" Anderson, a WWII B-17 ball turret gunner. Al took a moment to speak with me about his service during the War. He entered service in February 1943 and flew 26 missions on his B-17 "Million Dollar Baby." Al was a member of the 94th BG, 410 Fighter Squadron, 3rd Division. Luckily, he was never injured but does remember one frightening mission. As he and the crew were over Cuxhaven, their plane was hit by flak which blew a hole through the Co-Pilot's window, injuring both him and the Radio Operator. "Million Dollar Baby" was blown out of formation and the crew was in danger. As Al dressed the Radio Operator's wounds, the Engineer took over the Co-Pilot's position and righted the plane for a safe landing in Roughman Field.
After the war, Al stayed in the Air Force but did not experience combat again. He and his family moved around world. He spent time on a B-29 in Guam but did not feel the B-29 was as reliable as the B-17. He was then a recruiter for the Korean War and worked in the Direct Air Support Center (DASC) in Vietnam. Al spent three years working in the National Military Command Center at the Pentagon, which he nicknamed "Disney World" because of the 36,000 people who worked there on a daily basis. He was also stationed in Bangor, Maine and Dover, DE.
Al says it is an amazing feat for 18-20 year old men to learn to fly four engine planes in perfect formations. "You had to be young to do what we did," he said. When speaking of his service, he says he can never talk about WWII without giving gratitude and credit to the ground crew. He says their working every day in the English elements, without any shelter, is the reason his plane kept flying. Al retired in February 1971 after a 28 year career in the Air Force and lives in Rehoboth Beach, DE.
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Featured Wedding in the Chapel of Fallen Eagles:
Sean and Whitney Brown
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 The Chapel of Fallen Eagles has been the location of countless weddings. Our quaint and intimate chapel is a warm and inviting spot for couples to begin their lives together. Pam Sconyers, Director of Finance at the Museum, is the proud mother of Whitney who was recently married in the Chapel.
Sean Brown and Whitney Sconyers are high school sweethearts who were married on August 16, 2008. Their wedding was picture perfect as they were surrounded by family and friends. After the wedding ceremony, the reception began in the Museum's Rotunda. Dancing, food, fun and laughter were shared by all.
Sean is in the Army and stationed Iraq for eighteen months. We all pray for his safety and quick return to his beautiful bride.
(Photo: High School sweethearts; Sean and Whitney Brown. Married August 16, 2008 at The Mighty Eighth Air force Museum)
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Upcoming Museum Events
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March 14-17, 2009 - Special St. Patrick's Day Admission Rates
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The Eighth Air Force Roll of Honor
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The interactive kiosk is integrated with the
beautiful Eighth Air Force Roll of Honor Book
that is found within the Mighty Eighth
Air Force Museum Hall of Honor in the Museum's exhibit area.
Listed in this very special book are the individual names of each 8th Airman known to have died while based on British soil between the years of 1943 - 1945. Each day a page in the open book is turned so that over the period of a year all names are shown, paying homeage to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for the cause of freedom and liberty. When all pages have been turned, the process begins again.
The book will be reprinted once each year in order to insert additional names that have been brought to the attention of the museum, researched, and found to qualify for inclusion in the book.
The Eighth Air Force Roll of Honor Book is available for viewing as a part of your Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum tour experience.
(Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum Roll of Honor kiosk)
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| B-17 Project Participation |
Be a part of the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum B-17 project. The airplane will need major restoration once it arrives. The Museum appreciates all financial gifts, and for contributions of $100 or more you will receive a certificate of participation, suitable for framing, which recognizes your part in this historic Museum event.
Please make all checks payable to "B-17 Project" and mail to the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum, 175 Bourne Ave, Pooler, GA 31322. If you would like to pay by credit card, please call Tameka Ford 912.748.8888 ext 101. | |
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| The Mighty Eighth Store |
| The Mighty Eighth Air force Museum Gift Store is a unique shopping experience. In it you will find everything from clothing, jewelry, and books to models, patches and pins, and collectibles found nowhere in this area. Click link to begin shopping today. Mighty Eighth Online Store
B-17 Flying Fortress T-Shirt
 B- 17 Flying Fortress T-Shirt Also available:
P-51, B-24,
P-47, & P-38.
Pilot Suit with Helmet
The Childs Air Force Pilot Suit will take kids from the bedroom to the flight deck wit ease. Looks and feels like the real thing.
Sizes: xs (2/3) - xl (12/14).
B-17 Flying Fortress DVD
 . The Roaring Glory Warbird series
is your passage to adventure
on board the most famous
bomber of them all!
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Tell Us What You Think!
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You are
very important to us. We have created a short survey to help us improve
membership privileges and encourage others to join. Please take a moment to answer the questions
and offer suggestions. We are open to ideas and want to hear from you. Click here to begin the survey. |
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