Salina,
Kan. (July 9, 2009)- It was a surreal experience the majority of my
generational counterparts will only know through the silver screen and one
that many of the more than 700 visitors to the Wings of Freedom Tour knew
all too well, a flight in the last operational B-24 Liberator in the world.
The
"Witchcraft" is a beast of aviation machinery, the Consolidated
B-24J Liberator has a wingspan of 110 feet and weighs 36,500 lbs-
empty. If its sheer size didn't catch your eye, the fact that it is
home to ten .50 caliber machine guns demands plenty of attention.
The
sound of the engines could only be described as a deafening grumble pulling
onto the taxiway in front of us. Sitting behind the pilots in the
navigator's seat, my heart raced as I made my feeble attempt to tighten the
65-year-old buckle around my waist. Taking in the sights, sounds and
even the smells of the aircraft, I couldn't fathom what our young fighting
men would have been feeling during World War II.
In
a matter of minutes we were in the air over the Salina Municipal Airport
and free to roam around the plane. My first mission was to get into
the nose gunner's seat. This proved to be a lesson in humility, as I
had some trouble hoisting myself into position. I looked in awe as we
flew through the Kansas skies and wondered how Europe looked to the young
nose gunner positioned there watching bullets zoom past him like
lightening.
Wanting
to make the most out of this once in a lifetime experience, I wiggled out
of the seat, determined to make it to the tail gunner's post. I was
crawling on my hands and knees through the nose of the plane when it
occurred to me that many panicked young men before me had scrambled over these beams in combat, many of whom never made
it home. It was sobering to say the least.
Teetering
through the bomb bay past the dummy ordnance, I was haunted with the images
of those men in uniform more than half a century ago. After
negotiating my way past the ball turret, I found myself in the belly
of the "Witchcraft" with a .50 caliber mounted machine gun
mounted on either side of me sticking out of the massive open
windows. We weren't allowed in the ball turret, but it looks like a
treacherous place to be in.
When
I made it into the tail gunner's seat, another lesson in humility, I felt
like someone had knocked the wind out of me. It was breathtaking,
sobering and humbling.
When
the bailout bell rang to signal it was almost time to land, it was over all
too quickly. I found a seat in the belly behind the ball turret and
had to have help figuring out my seat belt again. I had the good
fortune to be sitting next to World War II veteran who had flown in the war
bird so many years ago. As we landed, the distant look in his eyes
spoke volumes and told me that he was 24 again, safely coming home.
-30-
The
Wings of Freedom Tour will be at Executive Beechcraft at the Charles
Wheeler Downtown Airport in Kansas City, through Sunday. Call
1.800.568.8924 or visit the Web site to schedule your own flight
experience.
