CAFs FIFI Returns To Flying After Engine Re-Fit
Unlike our April 1st spoof about Enola Gay, this flying B-29 is
for real. The Commemorative Air Force (CAF) says the world's only
flyable B-29 Superfortress FIFI, will return to the skies Tuesday,
June 29, at 0800. The CAF Airpower Museum will open its doors at
0700 on Tuesday and Wednesday of that week so that visitors who
would like to get a front row seat for FIFI's pre-flight
preparations and first flights can do so. Visitors to the museum
will be ushered to the main hangar for an up-close view of the crew
preparing this massive bomber for her first flight in four years.
Once FIFI begins to head for the runways, visitors will be escorted
to a prime viewing area, to witness the B-29s first taxi and
take-off.
FIFI CAF Image
"The Midland/Odessa community has offered such great support for
the B-29 during the last four years, we are excited to invite our
neighbors out to see her first flight in four years," said CAF
President/CEO Steve Brown. "This has been an extensive project and
the CAF is proud of the member-volunteers who worked tirelessly to
get FIFI back in the air so quickly."
The B-29 was originally fitted with the Wright R-3350-57AM
engine, which had a less-than-desirable reputation since its
inception. True to this reputation, FIFI has experienced
numerous problems with her engines in the 30-plus years she has
been flying with the CAF. Following the discovery of metal
shavings in the engine oil, the B-29/B-24 Squadron held a lengthy
series of meetings with CAF personnel and experts in the field of
aircraft restoration and the decision was made to not fly the plane
again until it could be fitted with engines that are a custom built
combination of the R-3350-95W and R-3350-26WD engines. The refit
required reworking the engine mounts and some of the engine
cowling, making it a lengthy undertaking.
FIFI CAF Image
When the Commemorative Air Force (then Confederate Air Force)
began searching for a B-29 for its collection of historical
military aircraft, World War II had been over for 21 years. The
Superfortresses that helped end it had long since yielded to new
generations of jet-powered strategic bombers and vanished.
According to the United States Air Force, no B-29s remained in
inventory, even at storage or disposal depots. But the CAF colonels
had faith and it paid off.
In 1971, a pilot reported sighting a number of what might have
been B-29s in the California desert near China Lake. The CAF
learned the aircraft were indeed Superfortresses that had been
parked at a Navy weapons center for 17 years. They had been used
for gunnery targets and abused by heat, sand and vandals. After
much negotiation, paperwork and a painstaking process of
elimination to find the best survivor, the CAF added B-29
SN44-62070 to its fleet. That was just the beginning of the task.
The complete restoration to CAF standards of airworthiness was a
long and expensive project involving more than three years of
fund-raising and hard work. Late in 1974, the CAF's B-29 was
christened FIFI and joined the other World War II fighters and
bombers to preserve the memories and teach lessons of mankind's
greatest war.
FIFI CAF Image
The CAF Airpower Museum is located near Midland International
Airport. Admission to the museum is $10 for adults age 18-64, $9
for teenagers age 13-17 and seniors age 65 and older, $7 for
children age 6-12 and children age 5 and under receive free
admission.