B-17E Desert Rat Restoration Update – Spring 2025

Over the past six months, the restoration team working on B-17E Desert Rat (s/n 41-2595) in Marengo, Illinois, has continued to push forward with painstaking efforts across several fronts—despite seasonal slowdowns and the ongoing challenges that come with reviving such a historically rare aircraft. Project lead Mike Kellner and his dedicated group of volunteers, including longtime contributor Bill Riedel, have made incremental yet significant progress, from structural repairs to system reassembly and even a few side projects that help support the broader restoration environment. But before we share how you can help, we thought you’d enjoy a recent conversation with Bill Stanczak, a dedicated volunteer and project manager with the FAA. Monetary donations can be placed HERE.

Cockpit and Nose Section Progress One of the primary areas of focus since the last update has been the aircraft’s nose section. Volunteers have continued fabrication work on the complex nose frame, including the installation of new glass. As with many aspects of this project, custom parts and rare fittings have proven difficult to source, often requiring the team to machine them from scratch. Lead times for specialized extrusions—often exceeding 20 weeks—continue to slow progress, not to mention the steep costs involved.

Meanwhile, inside the cockpit, Mike and Chris have been working to reinstall control pulleys that route cables for the aircraft’s control surfaces and engine systems. Since many of these components were originally installed before the outer skin was added during factory assembly, accessing and fitting them post-restoration has been particularly tricky. The team has also resumed work on the central control pedestal, including the mounting panel for the throttle quadrant, magneto switches, and landing gear/flap controls. With the box itself largely rebuilt, the crew is now fabricating the top plate and locating appropriate switches to complete the setup.

Tail Wheel and Structural Components At the rear of the aircraft, progress has been made on the metal tail wheel well and surrounding structure. The shroud and walkway platforms around the wheel assembly have been riveted in place, with rubber surfacing to be applied closer to project completion. On the subject of landing gear, the team is expecting the return of the refurbished tail wheel assembly and main gear oleo struts in the coming months. A fellow restorer has been assisting with this rebuild and plans to deliver the components from out of state—another example of the collaborative spirit that fuels this ambitious effort. Bomb Bay and Wing Developments One of the most ambitious structural undertakings remains the forward fuselage around bulkheads four and five—critical to supporting the bomb bay and wings. Volunteers have been busy installing the carry-through spars, wing terminal fittings, and other internal supports, though locating appropriate NAS close-tolerance bolts (especially in longer lengths) has been a major bottleneck. Work has also resumed on the Desert Rat’s outboard wing panels. The right-hand panel in particular has seen substantial progress: damaged ribs along the trailing edge have been repaired and re-skinned, and old skin sections are being carefully reinstalled to preserve original material where possible. Once that’s complete, the team plans to begin leading-edge repairs—a complicated process due to damaged mounts originally designed for push-pin attachment. These had been heavily damaged during the aircraft’s time in the scrapyard. The left outboard wing has also entered active restoration, with early repairs underway on its own trailing edge ribs. A major sticking point for both wings continues to be the corrugated aluminum used for their inner structure. Finding a supplier capable of producing new corrugation to original spec—and with acceptable quality—remains an elusive goal. As Bill noted, one other B-17 restoration project has attempted to manufacture their own, but the results weren’t satisfactory. As such, the team is now exploring the possibility of press-braking their own sections.

Vertical Stabilizer Nearing Completion The Desert Rat’s vertical stabilizer has long been nearing completion, and as of this spring, it’s just about ready for paint. The remaining tasks include installing the closeout panels—small curved fairings located just forward of the rudder—which are attached using rivnuts. Volunteers have been busy fitting these, and once the navigation lights are wired and installed, the entire vertical fin will be essentially finished. Top Turret Another exciting development is the expected return of the aircraft’s Sperry top turret. Being professionally restored on the East Coast, the unit may be delivered back to the Marengo facility sometime this summer. If all goes well, it will arrive fully functional and ready for reinstallation—a major milestone in recreating the original combat appearance of this early-war B-17E.

The Challenge of Bomb Racks—and the Price of Precision One notable challenge unique to the B-17E is its bomb bay layout. Unlike the later F and G models that carried standard 6,000 lb loads with modernized racks, the E-model was originally equipped to carry 2,000 lbs across four stations. These racks were stripped out when Desert Rat was converted into a cargo transport post-war, and new racks must now be fabricated from scratch. Complicating matters, two different extrusion profiles are required to replicate both long and short bomb rack rails. The cost to produce both from scratch? Roughly $8,500—just one example of the high-dollar challenges involved in returning a one-of-a-kind aircraft to its wartime configuration.

What’s Next? As the team continues its work on the fuselage jig and wing assemblies, the goal is to eventually reunite the bomb bay and main fuselage so the aircraft can be transferred to a mobile cart for easier access and movement. With warmer weather ahead, the coming months could see key progress across multiple systems—especially if additional funding and parts support can be secured.

Link Trainer, and a Willys Jeep Off the aircraft, other pieces of WWII aviation history are also coming back to life. A 1942 Willys Jeep—originally part of the restoration hangar’s support equipment—recently received a replacement “Go Devil” engine after the original was found to have a cracked block. The team sourced a replacement engine from Wisconsin, which is now en route to a Jeep restoration shop for overhaul.

Meanwhile, the project’s Link Trainer—a WWII-era flight simulator—has also seen impressive restoration progress. Volunteer John has been working on the trainer one or two days per week for several years. The airframe and tail surfaces have been recovered and painted, and many of the internal mechanical and electrical components have been restored, including the vacuum turbine and Telegon Oscillator. Two of the project’s three Link Trainers are now partially functional, while the third is being cosmetically restored for potential display or resale. How to Help The Desert Rat team is actively seeking financial support and specialized components—particularly NAS bolts, extrusions for the bomb racks, and help sourcing or producing accurate corrugated aluminum sections. Donations and in-kind support can make a tangible difference in keeping this historically significant B-17E restoration moving forward. We’ll continue to provide regular updates on the project as progress unfolds. Monetary donations can be placed HERE.

Desert Rat also has its own dedicated Facebook page HERE which some of our readers may enjoy viewing too. If you wish to contribute to the restoration of this important aircraft, whether it be with parts, labor or cash, please contact the Desert Rat team HERE. Monetary donations can be placed HERE.