THE FLYER Commemorative Air Force, Inc. B-29/B-24 Squadron q
September 2012
B-29/B-24 B 29/B 24 Squadron S d Officer & Staff Listing Position
Name
Telephone
Squadron Leader
Neils Agather
817-946-9950
vnagather@agathertx.com
Executive Officer
Stuart Watkins
011-964-780-563-4304
stuarth20@gmail.com
Adjutant & Personnel Officer
Debbie Travis King
469-688-1709
Squadadjutant@gmail.com
Crew Chief
Rick Garvis
972-380-8800
rgarvis@me.com
Finance Officer
Gerald Oliver
312-953-0357
goliver@behringerharvard.com
Maintenance Officer
Don Obreiter
580-471-3048
obreiter@cableone.net
Marketing & Communications Officer
Leslie Deese Garvis
713-819-4371
marketing@cafb29b24.org
Operations Officer & B-29 Tour Coordinator
David Oliver
630-853-9624
B29ops@gmail.com
Px Officer
Micah Starkey
214-683-8375
micahstarkey@aol.com
Ride Coordinator & Tour Media Coordinator
Kim Pardon
432-413-4100
kmpardon@yahoo.com
Safety & Training Officer
John Flynn
717-632-4497
jnaflynn@embarqmail.com
Scheduling Officer
Chuck Burton
972-243-1316
charlesdburton@msn.com
Facility Manager
Jim Neill
972-306-1051
jakat2@verizon.net
Plane Captain
Henry Bordelon
972-406-0644
pixiee@sbcglobal.net
Tour Guide & Docent
Jack Bradshaw
214-987-1963
jackbradshaw@sbcglobal.net
Webmaster
Rick Greer
The Flyer y Editor
Konleyy Kelley y
rgreer4@gmail.com
214-995-5184
konman@gte.net
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Fall Tour Dates
Tyler, TX September 18-20
Little Rock, AR September 21-23
Fayetteville, AR September 24-26 September,
Tulsa, OK September 27-October 2
Oklahoma City, y, OK October 3-8
AIRSHO Midland, TX October 12-14
Addison Fly Day Addison, TX October 20
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Neils Agather
Squadron q Report p We never seem to rest. While FIFI is down for in-between tour maintenance, Rick, Don and their crews are busy working on getting her ship shape for our Fall tour. This next tour is shorter in duration and nearer in distance, so perhaps some of our o r members who ho can't join the tours to rs that go far away will have a chance to participate. Please come out and see the fun we have on the road with FIFI. She heads out September 18th. Diamond Lil's repair p has been temporarily p y pput on hold while the focus has been switched to FIFI to get her maintenance taken care of in time for the Fall tour. However, Rick and Don have been active acquiring a new nose section and other new parts. With some good luck and hard work Lil will be airworthy soon. It is unfortunate we cannot do this faster, but we have to continue our priority on keeping FIFI up and flying, since she is what supports everything we do. The Squadron staff had a good meeting last month. I refer you to the notes from the meeting attached to THE FLYER and on the Squadron website. In general, you will see the effort being made to have your elected Staff meet more regularly and to communicate more thoroughly the decisions being made. Also news on the upcoming Squadron elections and plans for our end of year meeting. Last, please be sure to look at the latest issue of Sport Aviation with FIFI proudly on the cover. Neils Agather Squadron Leader
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Stuart Watkins
Executive Officer Report Howdy everyone from sunny Iraq. Just a thought for this report‌I p was researchingg the battle historyy of the B-29 effort in WWII and was struck by the shear numbers involved of both aircraft and crew members. Colonel Henry C. Huglin, Commander of the 9th Bombardment Group (VH), 313th Wing, 20th Air Force made the following points in a speech he gave in 2004. " In the 14 months th off their th i operations, ti B-29s B 29 fl flew 380 combat b t missions i i consisting i ti off 31,000 31 000 sorties and dropped 171,000 tons of bombs and mines, with a loss of nearly 500 airplanes and 3,000 air crew members." I could stop right there but as you compare that sacrifice with the 2000 deaths in Afghanistan in 10 years of conflict it gives one pause. Any loss in combat is an equally tragic i sacrifice ifi andd the h nature off the h conflicts fli are radically di ll different. diff The Th magnitude i d off the accomplishments of our B-29 forces was never really fully clear to me. Not as clear as those of the 8th Air Force in Europe for example. So many folks today have no clue what the level of sacrifice was or for that matter is today for those in harms way. We as a Squadron are entrusted with getting the word out so that the magnificent history, sacrifice and accomplishments of our B-29 and B-24 crews are known and appreciated by this generation and the next generations to come. Thank you all for the great work you are doing. I can't wait to get back to serve with you and to be around people who know and appreciate the US Armed Forces. Hooah, and Scanners, watch your engines. God Bless you All! Stu and Katy
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Rick Garvis
Maintenance Report FIFI We are just finishing up the last bit of maintenance on FIFI getting her ready for the “Final” Tour of the year – Thank God! I just want to give a heartfelt thank you to all the members who helped make this a very successful maintenance year for FIFI. Like I always say, we can not do it without your support. Just remember to keep your calendars open for helping with the winter inspection on FIFI. Winter maintenance officially starts October 22nd. As usual, there is more to do than time available to do it, so please email or text me and let me know when you are available to come out and help, especially if you will be coming from out of town. I will be the FE/Crew Chief for the first part of the Fall tour, tour then Shad and then Don will be bringing her home. I invite everyone to come out to Midland and enjoy the last airshow of the season for FIFI. A good time will be had by all!
Diamond Lil Unfortunately, Lil is still under construction.... I would like to make a call out to anyone who has extensive aviation sheetmetal experience. I need someone to come out and help me with all the sheetmetal work that needs to be done. I can cover hotel and some expenses if you are coming from out of town. We also have to do the winter maintenance on Lil in addition to the repairs. We are still working towards having her up by Early Spring. Rick Garvis Crew Chief
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John Flynn
Training g & Safety y Report The Midwest Tour was a success and it was completed without incident or injury; thanks to all of our hard working squadron members who pitched in to help. We need to keep up this good work as we depart on the Fall Tour and conclude the season with AIRSHO at Midland.
We have some relatively new squadron members heading out on the Fall Tour. This will be the first tour for Larry Jeffus and Charles Cotropia. Raymond Nygard, who joined the squadron when we were at Mobile on the Florida Tour earlier this year, will also be on the tour. The "old heads" in the squadron always need to help make the newer volunteers aware of the potential hazards while working on and around the aircraft during g the tour.
REMEMBER: IF THE JOB IS DONE RIGHT, IT IS SAFE! John Flynn S f t Offi Safety Officer
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David Oliver
Flight g Operations p Report The Fall tour is now in the final preparations stage and we are moving very quickly toward our departure date of September 18th. The cities have been finalized and we are working with each stop to firm up the details. Please take a moment to view the tour calendar attached to this newsletter. With the addition of Rocky Smith and his wife Alma who will now be selling our PX, PX we have reduced our standard crew from 14 to 12 crewmembers. Please contact John Flynn if you are interested in touring with the airplane. Also remember that anyone can volunteer on the tour at any time, but only billeted slots and crewmember positions are compensated with hotel rooms and per diem. I am also very proud to announce that Debbie King was chosen by the Flight Evaluation Board as the next candidate to transition as a co-pilot in the B-29. Debbie is slatted for training this fall and will join the ranks of the B-29 crew this next tour. Be sure to congratulate Debbie when her training is complete. Debbie marks the first female B-29 co-pilot that the squadron has ever had. We are proud to have her as a member, a squadron officer and a very accomplished pilot. Discussions are already underway for next years squadron tour schedule. This year we are discussing a West Coast Spring Tour. The tour would run for the entire month of March through the first two weeks in April. It would include the southwest, Los Angeles, Vegas, and possibly Colorado. I personally feel like this would be a very enjoyable tour through some beautiful parts of our country. I am also already receiving calls for Airshow bookings in 2013. We will be excited to attend ICAS this year and continue to pursue the Airshow venue. It is important to see that many of our top 10 tour stops this year were Airshows. They comprise a very important revenue stream for the squadron and we will continue to take bookings in 2013. Stay tuned!
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David Oliver
Flight g Operations p Report (cont.) Manual Revisions I also want to make everyone aware that we have made a few revisions to the B-29 checklist. The new revision is Change 1 dated September 1, 2012. We have also updated our B-29 flight manual, which is now dated 15 July 2012. The updates were implemented to increase flow and ease of use along with a few operational updates. Please visit the members website to download the latest manuals. David Oliver Flight Operations Officer
“Bucket of Bolts” with “Rosie the Riveter” at Warbirds on Parade, Lancaster, Texas on September 1, 2012
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New Members
We would W ld like lik to t welcome l the th following f ll i new members that joined the Squadron in August:
Loney Duncan Bruce Granger Ed Krischke Michael Monette William D. Smith Michael Brazell William Scheibelhut
Welcome to the B-29/B-24 Squadron!
Squadron Monthly Meeting Saturday, September 15 3 p.m. @ the Addison Hangar
B-29/B-24 Squadron Elections: Executive Officer, Finance Officer and Squadron Commander are up for election at the November meeting. The nominations committee consists of: Kim Pardon, Jon Oliver, Roz Torcolleti, Al Benzing and Chuck Burton. Members should contact these committee members for election information or to place names for nomination.
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Members in the News
B-29/B-24 Squadron q Tour Guide and Docent, Jack Bradshaw, was featured recently in Timeless Voices, an EEA video production. To see Jack’s story, input the link below.
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Painting g
“FIFI” by Konley Kelley Bill Bowermaster is a friend of mine. We’ve been friends for at least ten years. Our daughters have known each other since they were toddlers. T d (hard Today (h d to t believe) b li ) they th are both b th sophomores in high school. Bill Bowermaster and his painting of “FIFI”
Bill was born in Jamestown, OH. He remembers seeing air shows at Wright Patterson Air Force Base. From 1962-65, Bill served in the U.S. Air Force in the Air Police. Bill has always dabbled in the arts and most of his life has played bass guitar in country western bands. He’s traveled the country with musicians such as Moe Bandy, Joe Stampley, Red Steagall and Johnny Bush. He’s appeared on HEE HAW, AUSTIN CITY LIMITS and the GRAND OLE OPRY.
Bill playing with Moe Bandy on HEE HAW
As an artist, Bill enjoys painting subjects from the Old West. Awhile back, I invited Bill to come see the B-29 and B-24. I encouraged him to think about painting a picture of one of our beautiful aircraft. I will treasure his gift of this painting of “FIFI” and will hang this ppainting g in our briefing g room so our Squadron q and visitors to the hangar in Addison can enjoy it.
Bill’s artwork
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Share y your best shot of 2012 For the end of the y year THE FLYER issue, send in yyour single g best Squadronq related picture from 2012. Send your pic to Konley Kelley at konman@gte.net.
Photo courtesy of Larry Popp, May, 2011
From the new THE FLYER Editor I’m excited I’ it d tto bbe th the new editor dit off THE FLYER. FLYER I hope h you enjoyed j d this issue of THE FLYER and look forward to future issues. Please send your story ideas, pictures and feedback. Let’s continue to use THE FLYER to document the incredible past, present and future of our aircraft, veterans and Squadron. Konley Kelley Edi Editor THE FLYER konman@gte.net 14
Honor Their Service A Capitol Campaign of the B-29/B-24 Squadron
Sponsor a Living Legacy Become a part of the CAF story
Ask us how to become an Aircraft Sponsor including adding your name or the name of your loved one on the side of the aircraft. Various donation levels available. The planes of the Commemorative Air Force are kept flying as a living memorial to veterans of all ages. The Commemorative Air Force is a flying museum accredited by the IRS as a 501 Š 3 not-for-profit corporation. All donations are tax deductible.
See www.cafb29b24.org for more information
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“Honor Their Service” Campaign CAF B‐29 / B‐24 Squadron www.CAFb29b24.org
“HONOR THEIR SERVICE” GIFT APPLICATION Name of Donor Making the Gift:________________________________________________________________ Address:_____________________________________ Phone:_______________________________________ City:________________________________________ State:_____________ Zip:________________________ Email Address:_________________________________________________________________________ (Please fill in your gift amount in the box)
Sustaining Sponsor…….……...
for gifts of $10 to $99
Silver Sponsor…………….………
for gifts of $100 to $1,499
Gold Sponsor……………….…….
for gifts of $1,500 to $4,999
Platinum Sponsor……….……..
for gifts of $5,000 to $49,999
Commemorative Sponsor...
for gifts of $50,000 and above
Payment (Please check method of payment) Cash
Check
Credit Card
Credit Card Number: Expiration Date (Please circle the type of credit card)
Visa MC Signature:____________________________________
Name on the Aircraft Gold, Platinum and Commemorative Sponsorships also include the right to affix a name on the aircraft. The name can be your own, a loved one, veteran or any other person or concept you wish to memorialize (examples are: Capt. Fred Jones, USAF; Micah Crimmins; Freedom; etc.). You have up to 30 letters and spaces max (sorry, no exceptions). The names are guaranteed to be displayed on the aircraft for at least 5 years and on the “Wall of Honor” in our hangar for perpetuity. Please print the name exactly as you would like for it to appear on the aircraft and on the “Wall of Honor” in the boxes below. Please leave a blank space between names. Each punctuation mark counts for a space. For example, Capt. Fred Jones, USAF is equal to 22 spaces. Please designate the aircraft you would like this name displayed on: B‐29 B‐24 Please affix the name in the boxes below to the “Wall of Honor” (for all gifts) and to the aircraft (for Gold, Platinum and Commemorative Sponsors) in the designated spaces:
Send this application to: Commemorative Air Force, 4730 George Haddaway, Addison, TX 75001
Squadron Mtg. 3 p.m.
Tyler, TX
Little Rock, AR
Fayetteville, AR
Little Rock, AR
Tulsa, OK
Tulsa, OK
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Tulsa,, OK
Oklahoma City, y, OK
AIRSHO, Midland, TX
Oklahoma City, OK
Squadron Mtg. Local Fly Day Addison, TX
AIRSHO, Midland TX Midland,
Winter Maintenance
Winter Maintenance
Winter Maintenance
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B-29 / B-24 Squadron Addison Airport 4730 730 Geo George ge Haddaway dd w y Drive ve Addison, Texas 75001 www.cafb29b24.org 972-380-8800
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