Doc’s Friends, the team responsible for returning the B-29 Superfortress known as ‘Doc’ back to flying condition, released the following update this afternoon ahead of the July 4th holiday weekend. We thought our readers would be interested to hear a little of the details going on behind the scenes leading up to the Superfortress’s first post-restoration flight.
——————————–
The Doc’s Friends flight operations crew has been engaged in conversations with the team at McConnell Air Force Base (MAFB) in Wichita, KS (including the McConnell’s leadership, operations, flight safety and airfield management teams) to schedule medium and high-speed taxi tests. Upon completion of those tests, the Doc team will begin conversations with MAFB personnel to schedule runway access for first flight.
– We are also working to finalize the schedules of the flight crew who will be operating Doc alongside the Doc team for taxi testing and first flight.
– Taxi testing and first flight are weather dependent.
– The airplane is complete and ready for taxi testing and first flight.
– Our communications team is working through a robust plan for first flight media coverage planning and it is our intent to alert the media in plenty of time to allow for coverage plans. Shortly after alerting the media, we’ll share plans with the public regarding first flight schedules.
– We remain committed to returning Doc to flight status to honor the men and women who served our nation and who maintained these warbirds.
– The safety and protection of the crew and the plane are the most important. We will not jeopardize either to meet an arbitrary deadline for flight.
———————————-
WarbirdsNews will be sure to post any updates as soon as we receive them. Many thanks to Doc’s Friends for their latest news. Fair winds and blue skies to all!
Related Articles
B-29 ‘Doc’ Gets Pentagon Approval to Fly From McConnell AFB
FAA Deems B-29 Doc Airworthy, First Flight Imminent
B-29 Doc Taxis Under Her Own Power For First Time!
B-29 Superfortress ‘Doc’ – May 7th, 2016 Restoration Update
B-29 Super Fortress ‘Doc’ – Status Update – April 22nd,…
Doc’s First Engine Runs for 2016 – First Flight Imminent
Richard Mallory Allnutt's aviation passion ignited at the 1974 Farnborough Airshow. Raised in 1970s Britain, he was immersed in WWII aviation lore. Moving to Washington DC, he frequented the Smithsonian’s National Air & Space Museum, meeting aviation legends.
After grad school, Richard worked for Lockheed-Martin but stayed devoted to aviation, volunteering at museums and honing his photography skills. In 2013, he became the founding editor of Warbirds News, now Vintage Aviation News. With around 800 articles written, he focuses on supporting grassroots aviation groups.
Richard values the connections made in the aviation community and is proud to help grow Vintage Aviation News.
To Doc and all involved with this magnificent project and an opportunity of a lifetime. I wish you the best of luck on your taxing low and high speeds and also that you guys are all in my thoughts and prayers during this rigorous testing. Im sure this will be a pins and needles type of situation. Good Luck and if anything this mission will be of utmost honor over Independence day for all veterans and the like who enjoy aviation history. Can’t wait to hear news. Keep em flyin
I was a b-29 tail gunner and during WW-11 I flew 23 combat missions over Japan. My crew was stationed on Tinian and we flew with the 504th bomb group. As I remember there was problems with the engines so severe that we just made it to Iwo Jima and had to land there three times or we have been fish food. Thank you for your good work in restoring this war bird