• Home
  • News
    • Politics & Government
    • Business & Economy
    • Crime / Courts
    • Health / Medicine
  • Sports
    • High School Sports
    • Radio Iowa Poll
  • Affiliates
    • Affiliate Support Page
  • Contact Us
    • Reporters

Radio Iowa

Iowa's Radio News Network

You are here: Home / Human Interest / Rare B-17 making flights in Iowa

Rare B-17 making flights in Iowa

June 27, 2006 By admin

A rare airplane is making a few stops in Iowa this week. A fully-restored B-17 bomber called “Aluminum Overcast” is at the Eastern Iowa Airport in Cedar Rapids today (Tuesday). Iowa native and World War Two veteran Carl Jensen took a tour of the four-engine plane and went for a flight, recalling his service on the same type of plane in 1944. Jensen was a volunteer.

Jensen says “Somebody had to do it. I had several (people) try and talk me out of it as we were going through training, but I was gonna fly. That’s what I enlisted for.” Jensen was with the 388th Bomb Group, 561st Squadron, and he and the crew were shot down in December of 1944. He was one of four from the crew of nine who survived.

He says “The only time I was really scared was after I was shot down. The last I remembered in the plane was when the navigator landed on top of me. When I came to, that was after the plane had blew up.” Aluminum Overcast is one of only about a dozen B-17 warplanes still flying. Tours are available today and tomorrow in Cedar Rapids. The plane will be in the Des Moines area at the Ankeny Airport Friday through July 2nd. For more information, surf to “www.b17.org”.

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

Filed Under: Human Interest, Military

Featured Stories

Governor signs Iowa Renewable Fuels Standard into law

Jury returns guilty verdict in shooting death of State Trooper

A haboob, a dust storm black out, hits northwest Iowa

Summit has easements for 20% of carbon pipeline route through Iowa

Morel mushroom hunters on hold without warmer conditions

TwitterFacebook
Tweets by RadioIowa

Iowa’s Huckstorf garners national award

Iowa Special Olympics Summer games set to open in Ames

Radio Iowa/Baseball Coaches Association High School Poll 5/16/22

Iowa assistant coach Kirk Speraw to retire

Northern Iowa prepares for Missouri Valley Conference softball tournament

More Sports

eNews and Updates

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Archives

Copyright © 2022 ยท Learfield News & Ag, LLC