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| American B-25J Mitchell |
For today's Sepia Saturday sharing, I selected a photo taken on our February trip to the south at the USS Alabama Hangar and Museum in the harbor at Mobile, Alabama. While the main attraction was the battleship USS Alabama and the submarine the USS Drum, there were many historic planes on display and in the hangar. There was even work in process going on in the hangar which I watched in fascination while Jerry braved the descent into the submarine; the ships were not my cup of tea nor glass of wine.
The B-25J photo is recent but the subject is certainly for times of Sepia, the American B-25J Mitchell a twin engine strike bomber used by the US Army in WWII. There was a crew of 6 men. This plane with it's striking full nose art is in the yard outside. It must have been a frightful sight approaching targets and it was meant to be.
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| Work at the hangar, keeping Sepia alive today |
Wikipedia and other websites provide quite a bit of information about this plane manufactured by North American Aviation. The B-25 was a safe and forgiving aircraft to fly. With an engine out, 60° banking turns into the dead engine were possible, and control could be easily maintained down to 145 mph (230 km/h). The tricycle landing gear made for excellent visibility while taxiing. The only significant complaint about the B-25 was the extremely high noise level produced by its engines; as a result, many pilots eventually suffered from various degrees of hearing loss.
Crew members and operators on the airshow circuit frequently comment that "the B-25 is the fastest way to turn aviation fuel directly into noise". The Mitchell was also an amazingly sturdy aircraft and could withstand tremendous punishment. One well-known B-25C of the 321st Bomb Group was nicknamed "Patches" because its crew chief painted all the aircraft's flak hole patches with high-visibility zinc chromate paint. By the end of the war, this aircraft had completed over 300 missions, was belly-landed six times and sported over 400 patched holes. Was that the first flying quilt?
By the time a separate United States Air Force was established in 1947, most B-25s had been consigned to long-term storage. However, a select number continued in service through the late 1940s and 1950s in a variety of training, reconnaissance and support roles.
For a look at what others share this week, click this link to the Sepia Saturday site and enjoy all the flights.
http://sepiasaturday.blogspot.com/2012/04/sepia-saturday-121-flight.html
Oh my goodness, my hubby would just love seeing this place. Nice photos too, it totally takes flight right! Enjoy your weekend.
ReplyDeleteThat is my favorite kind of museum. I would have loved to have gotten a look inside the AD1 Skyraider they are restoring in the second picture, since I have a couple of kits of it to build. The Mitchell may not have been the best twin engine bomber we had in the war, but it is the most famous and arguably the most successful. Having crawled into one at an airshow, I can say they are even more cramped than a submarine!
ReplyDeleteAahhh, yes, the B-25. The husband of one of my cousins was one of the designers of this aircraft. I don't know what his actual job title was but he was involved in development of a number of planes. During WW II, he had occasion for some kind of business trip which brought him down from WA to CA. During that trip, he visited us in Tracy. As teen age boys, my brother and I were fascinated when he offered to sketch one of the planes he had worked on. The drawing he produced was of the B 25. It has been one of my favorite airplanes since that day. Nice, to pick up on some of the facts surrounding the performance characteristics of the plane. Of course, along with most of the nation, I was thrilled by it's use in that first bombing raid on Japan. Another cousin, army air corps, was an aircraft armorer stationed on one of those pacific islands. He serviced the guns, reloaded ammo and bombs on these and other military craft. A childhood memory rekindled. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteTom
You should have had a glass of wine in your pocketbook to toast the beauty, American B25J Mitchell What a scary looking Babe!! Also enjoyed the Sepia Link, but I AM going to get to the Peeps link today. It's on my LIST!! LOL
ReplyDeleteYour California Buddy,
Sandy
"the B-25 is the fastest way to turn aviation fuel directly into noise" :)
ReplyDeleteTony, I loved that line!
ReplyDeleteYou see, this is what I love about Sepia Saturday. As a reader, you enjoy things, your learn things - it is a splendid way to spend Sunday morning going through all the posts.
ReplyDeleteWow that first photo is incredible. Love the paint job. It's Americana folk art at it's best.
ReplyDeleteNancy
What an interesting museum you visited!
ReplyDeletePat, like you I would also just have stayed outside any submarine crawling and admired these avionics marvels instead.
ReplyDeleteOh, submarines are very cool. Went aboard one as a kid at Pearl Harbor. It was a trip for our Brownie troop and the cook had made us a cake. The cake was big and the table was small.
ReplyDeleteGreat post Pat and that first plane is magnificent.
ReplyDeleteI don't care these pics are recent as they depict a page of history. I would have loved to see this myself, but I'm with you about one thing: confined spaces = no thanks!!
ReplyDeleteThanx 4 sharing!!
HUGZ
Oh, besides the confined space on that sub, the battleship USS Alabama itself gave me willies...nope, I could never have been a Navy guy or gal. Confinement on those clunkers on the high seas...not!
ReplyDeleteWe had a submariner neighbor once. He married. All was going great. Until his wife awoke one morning and he was gone. He returned six months later. His wife was gone. He soon got the papers; she'd filed for divorce.
ReplyDelete