Doc’s Friends Inc., Wichita, Kansas, has confirmed that the B-29 DOC History Restored Tour stop planned for later this month at Cleveland’s Burke Lakefront Airport has been rescheduled for September because of ongoing maintenance on the aircraft. The Cleveland stop is now scheduled for September 10-13. The revised event will also include P-51 Mustang Gunfighter, which has been added to the Cleveland schedule.
“Two of DOC’s four engines have been undergoing extensive maintenance and inspection since December as part of our continued commitment to the safety and reliability of the aircraft,” said Josh Wells, B-29 DOC CEO. “One of the two engines was reinstalled on the aircraft in late April, but the second engine is still being repaired by our engine vendor and is not expected back on DOC’s airframe until later this month. While we had hoped to begin our tour season in April, the extended timeline for the engines to return to Wichita has required additional maintenance and testing before the aircraft can safely return to flight operations. This has driven our decision to postpone the event in Cleveland until September.”
DOC is one of 1,644 Boeing B-29 Superfortress bombers built in Wichita, Kansas, during WWII, and one of only two B-29 bombers still airworthy and flying today. P-51 Gunfighter is a D-model Mustang and one of fewer than 150 surviving examples from the 15,000 Mustangs manufactured during the war. The Cleveland stop also carries a local connection. In 1987, Cleveland native and U.S. Air Force veteran Tony Mazzolini began his effort to find and restore a B-29. It took nearly a decade for him to persuade the U.S. Navy to release one of the last remaining B-29 airframes from China Lake Naval Air Weapons Station in California’s Mojave Desert. In all, the restoration took more than 30 years, with volunteers from California and Wichita helping return the aircraft to flying condition.
During the four-day visit, DOC and Gunfighter will be open for public tours, with cockpit access available for the B-29. Ride flight experiences will also be offered on both aircraft. DOC and Gunfighter are scheduled to arrive in Cleveland on Tuesday, September 8. Public tours with ramp and cockpit access will be available Thursday, September 10, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. B-29 DOC Flight Experience rides are scheduled for Friday through Sunday, September 11-13, at 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. each day, followed by public tours from noon to 4:30 p.m. Gunfighter ride flights will also be available Friday through Sunday. Ramp and cockpit tour admission will be $10 per person or $20 per family, with tickets available at the gate during the event. Ride flight prices vary, and tickets are on sale through B-29 DOC rides and P-51 Gunfighter schedule. Public access for tour and ride flight ticket holders will be through the main terminal building at 1501 N. Marginal Road, Cleveland, Ohio. For more information and to support the B-29 DOC, click on this link: www.b29doc.com.
