In a very cold, windy and snowy day ( what snow in Atlanta!?) I took few shoots of the B-17 replica of the ‘Memphis Belle’ maintained by the Liberty Foundation.
This is the history of this beautiful airplane ( From Liberty Foundations’s website).
B-17G (Serial No 44-83546) was accepted by the USAAF at Long Beach on April 3, 1945 and went to Topeka, Kansas for modifications before going to Lubbock, Texas for short-term storage. It was then moved to Patterson Field, Ohio for storage and then was converted to a CB-17G (transport conversion) and assigned to Air Transport Command at San Francisco. 44-83546 was then assigned to Washington, DC and then to Germany.
In 1948 it was redesignated a VB-17G (staff transport) and then assigned to Andrews AFB, followed by Offutt AFB and then to Japan during the Korean War. In 1954, 44-83546 was placed in storage at Davis-Monthan AFB and then was released for disposal in April 1959. B-17G (Serial No 44-83546) was accepted by the USAAF at Long Beach on April 3, 1945 and went to Topeka, Kansas for modifications before going to Lubbock, Texas for short-term storage. It was then moved to Patterson Field, Ohio for storage and then was converted to a CB-17G (transport conversion) and assigned to Air Transport Command at San Francisco. 44-83546 was then assigned to Washington, DC and then to Germany.
44-83546 was purchased by National Metals Co. of Phoenix, Arizona for the sum of $2,687.00 and then sold to Fast Way Air of Long Beach, California. 44-83546 became N3703G on the US civil register. In 1960 she was converted to a water bomber and operated as Tanker 78. In 1978 N3703G was sold to TBM Inc. of Tulare, California who continued to operate her as a tanker until the late 1970s. N3703G was purchased by the Military Aircraft Restoration Corporation (MARC) in 1982. MARC, owned by David Tallichet who was a wartime B-17 pilot with the 100th bomber group. He and his staff restored the B-17G to resemble a B-17F. The restoration included reinstallation of power turrets, early tail gunners compartment and an early sperry dorsal turret recovered from a south Pacific wreck and adding a 94th BG paint scheme
In 1989, N3703G was hired for use in the filming of the Memphis Belle movie in England. In July 1989 she crossed the Atlantic with another B-17 to participate in the filming of the movie. Since returning to the U.S., N3703G has continued in the paint scheme of the “Memphis Belle” and continues to fly today to honor our veterans, educate current and future generations as to the high price of freedom and to preserve our aviation heritage.
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i will this B-15
I see this B-17 when it here