The B-17

The B-17

Wings of Freedom restored WWII planes to touch down in Port Angeles today

PORT ANGELES — Three pieces of aviation history will land at the William R. Fairchild International Airport as the Wings of Freedom tour begins today.

A TP-51C Mustang fighter modified for two-seat, dual-control training, a B-17G Flying Fortress and a B-24J Liberator will offer tours and flights today through Friday.

The planes are expected to arrive at about noon, although the time is uncertain, said Alan Barnard, the stop coordinator for the tour.

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The public can tour or fly aboard them from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. today, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday and 9 a.m. to noon Friday.

Walk-through tours cost $6 for children 12 and younger, $12 for adults. World War II veterans can tour for free.

Half-hour bomber flights cost $450 per person.

Flight training in the P-51 costs $2,200 for 30 minutes and $3,200 for an hour.

It will be the seventh time the vintage warbirds have come to Port Angeles since 2002.

The bombers flew in the Pacific and European theaters during World War II. The fighters gave protection to them over Europe during the war, and saw limited service against Japan.

Mustangs also served in the Korean War, and many were converted to air racing.

The B-17 in the Wings of Freedom contingent, nicknamed Nine-O-Nine, was built in Long Beach, Calif., by Douglas Aircraft and accepted by the Army Air Corps on April 7, 1945.

It never flew in combat but served in an air/sea rescue squadron and later in the Military Air Transport Service.

The B-24 is the world’s only fully restored and flying Liberator, built at Consolidated Aircraft Co. in Fort Worth, Texas, in August 1944.

After delivery to the Army, it was transferred to the Royal Air Force and saw combat in the Pacific in operations that included bombing and resupply of resistance forces.

It was nicknamed Witchcraft after restoration.

The P-51 nicknamed Betty Jane was built in Dallas and restored as a two-seat version similar to the aircraft that carried Gen. Dwight Eisenhower over the beaches of Normandy on D-Day.

For reservations, phone the nonprofit Collings Foundation, based in Stow, Mass., at 800-568-8924.

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