Bob H
11-14-2019, 07:42 PM
We had a speaker at our Pilots Assn meeting, Pete Johnson, who was a B-17 bombardier over Germany in 1944 and gave much praise to the P-51 escourts that kept the ME-109s away on his missions. Afterward, I thought how much this spry, 96 yr old gentleman would appreciate a ride in a P-51. I found that a ride could be available in Southern Calif for $1800 at Camarillo. That price is just too high for me to cover; something more like $250 I could do for perhaps a ~10 min ride?
Seems to me that for those crew members of WWII bombing missions, the warbird community might arrange a short ride for those still alive at a price that family members/friends could afford.
I know that maintaining/flying these planes is expensive and folks with money get the rides now. But I know how much a ride would be appreciated by someone who put his life on the line as a 19 yr old kid and is coming to his life's end shortly.
Seems to me that for those crew members of WWII bombing missions, the warbird community might arrange a short ride for those still alive at a price that family members/friends could afford.
I know that maintaining/flying these planes is expensive and folks with money get the rides now. But I know how much a ride would be appreciated by someone who put his life on the line as a 19 yr old kid and is coming to his life's end shortly.