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Boeing B-17D "The Swoose" Restoration Begins(April 2023)
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- Опубліковано 19 кві 2023
- The National Museum of the U.S. Air Force is beginning the restoration/conservation of the B-17D The Swoose(April 2023). The only early "shark fin" B-17 known to exist and is the only surviving B-17 to have seen action in the Philippines in the opening days of WWII in the Pacific.
During its service life in combat, it was known as Ole Betsy. After seeing initial combat in the Philippines, it was evacuated to Australia in 1942. While undergoing depot repairs, the tail of another B-17D was attached to the original aircraft, and the aircraft was renamed The Swoose - a combination of a swan and a goose. At that time, new art was added to the right side of the aircraft. The aircraft never returned to combat, and ultimately became a transport aircraft for General George Brett, serving in that capacity until its retirement in December 1945. During its later service life, additional modifications were done to the aircraft wings and other structures.
In considering how best to preserve the aircraft, the NMUSAF is opting to take a combined restoration/conservation approach to bring the aircraft back to life in its transport configuration. The numerous modifications done over the years; the existence of original art and markings; and the components the NMUSAF possesses all point to this configuration being the best choice. By combining both restoration and conservation, the NMUSAF intends to preserve as much of the original markings as possible.
NMUSAF estimates the work will take at least 7 years.
www.nationalmu...
![Дон ДОН, Алаудинов и СБЕЖАВШИЕ из под Курска ахматовцы 😁 [Пародия]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/dEfCf5IK26Q/mqdefault.jpg)
This just put a massive smile on my face seeing that this important part of the B-17 story is finally getting the love she deserves.
Thank you USAF museum for all you do.
We are so thrilled for this project!!!
Did it see service?
@525Lines, it was in the Philippines when the war began and was one of the few Flying Forts to escape destruction in the initial attack on Clark Field. The Swoose took part in many early missions against the Japanese. By early/mid-1942, it was considered worn out and obsolete compared to newer E model B-17's. It was then converted to a General's personal transport, which is how it spent the rest of the war. It is significant not only for its war record but also being the sole surviving example of the "shark tail" Flying Fortress.
Cool!
“This is where the fun begins”
That's a big project & I hope it goes perfectly for you all. I'm looking forward to regular updates, preferably along the lines of Kermit Weeks' Mechanics Corner or Neville Wheeldon & the restoration of Lancaster NX611 please!
Thanks once again for the monumental task of restoring and preserving such a historical aircraft. I had forgotten that this gem was hiding in the shadows waiting for the chance to show the world its majesty.
Best part of my Thursday! Thank you and your staff for ALL that you do...
Thank you for the work on this glorious plane ❤
This is so neat. My grandfather flew with Capt. Frank Kurtz. He was the navigator. I still have his oxygen mask with the hose still attached! Happy for this restoration
Magnificent Job !
What a worthy cause. Time for everyone to make a bit of a donation, if at all possible. She will be a wonder addition to the museum.
Can’t wait to see it! I hope Swoosie Kurtz will still be around when it will is put on display.
After seeing it stored in the Restoration Hanger for many years, I am happy to hear that the real restoration is set to begin. I hope that I live long enough to see it completed and placed in the museum.
I'm so excited that restoration has resumed! I hope you guys invite Swoosie Kurtz to come see her namesake when you finish her, I don't think she's ever had the chance to see her!
Loved her in “Mike & Molly”. Hope she gets to see her dad’s plane when it is finished
About time fellas! I’ve been waiting years to see the last known B-17D survivor from MacArthur’s airforce and general Brett’s personal plane. Fixer pretty boys, the old gal deserves it!
@@dgansz705 dugout Doug met have been in command of that disaster but his air forces fought overwhelming odds. In the early days of the war they flew and fought with no available spare parts for their planes and many of the nes they had left were rebuilt out of the wreck’s of several other aircraft. The Swoose goose is the only survivor of those machines. I may spell the name wrong but look up the history and folklore of a B-17 pilot named hearle pease or a B-17 bomber named the eager beaver or perhaps the Suzuki q!
Ok, On Board. Show us a good build with lots of updates please
YESSSSSSS LETS GOOOOOOOOO
If what I am seeing is correct... this project is off the “back burner.” Excellent!
So at last off the 'backburner'. The 'Swoose' (B-17d 40-3097) languished for 50+ years outside Andrews AFB and then Ivey Hill warehouse until NMUSAF took ownership around 2005. How fortunate we are that this ac didn't just disappear in the depths of our governmental morass. Also, the NMUSAF is just now (0523) beginning full restoration!! They have had it for 18 years! Why so long? NMUSAF displays ac that never flew combat and here we have an ancient warrior that flew combat in the earliest and most desperate days of WWII. We should have done better.
This will be quite the interesting project, as NMUSAF will be using a combination restoration and conservation/preservation approach for, as near as I can tell, essentially the first time. Pretty much all of their projects up to this point have been straight restorations, so I'm looking forward to seeing how the new process works.
Oh yeah. Gonna get this old girl done up right! Can`t wait to see this on display!
I just hope they can finish restoration before Swoozie Kurts dies (She's 78), so she can be present at the unveiling of the plane her father named her after.
Like the phoenix rising from its own ashes
I would pay good money just to go in there and stare at history for fifteen short minutes!
Let's do it !!! 🤩
I hope to see this restored because it's like the earliest B17 and I really love the design
The beautiful Art Deco lines of a B-17 are so distinct, you know this was designed in the 30's. Will the finished plane be polished aluminum surfaces?
See info in the comments.
The control surfaces on the tail were covered in canvas, correct?
Close, they were fabric, but either cotton or linen, not canvas.
I think being the only Shark Tail B-17 around, I would think restoration of the aircraft to its former glory would be more appropriate than a General's Transport Aircraft.
We have all the parts for the transport version.
There is a Great War Movie from 1943 " AIRFORCE " Very Loosely Based on the Adventures of the 19th Bomb Group during the Early Months of Americas War in the Pacific Theater Just Before the Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, until the Battle of Midway ,Featuring the SHARK-FIN TAILED B17S ! The Star of the Movie is B-17C the " MARY-ANN " ! The SWOOSE as we Know is a B-17D ! But There is Some Great Video of these Magnificent B-17s !
Restoration of b-17D the swoose will be a big challenge since the restoration of b-17f the Memphis belle.
I realize lots of work has been done on sub assemblies, but overall it looks about the same as the last time I visited the shop many years ago.
Where are all the parts coming from? Not many B-17's left to pull parts from.
We have all the parts to restore to transport version.
Will it be restored to flying condition or just static display?
static
@@USAFmuseum Thanks!!
Are going to leave the plane like that?
Where are they going to fit the B-17D when it is done after seven years?
See the link in the comments.
@@USAFmuseum Are you kidding????? How are you going to fit that in the WWII Gallery in the early years????
Will she fly
To fly again or for display only?
We only restore to static display.
Is she possibly the oldest B-17 ever?
The fact that the aircraft is being reverted back to it's bomber configuration is a complete folly IMHO. It should have been left alone as The Swoose, not a stock B-17D. It ignores its history and why it still exists today.
From what I have been told by NMUSAF, they will restore it to the VIP configuration of 44/45. There were too many mods/non-standard mods made between 1942 and 1945 to restore it to the bomber version of 41/42.
@@donjay9302 I hope you are right. I visited the museum 4 years ago and they had already installed the gunner's tub. I hope they pull it.
@@donjay9302 Ahh, I just read up on it. Thanks for the correction. I am thrilled they are leaving the aircraft alone!! To revert it back to bomber configuration would make the plane a reconstruction. At least now, the true history of the aircraft will be respected.
The Swoose is an A model I think
It's a D actually.
@@Chilly_Billy Technically, it mostly a "D" with some "B" and "E" parts mixed in.
It was built as a 'D' model, sn 40-3097, and flew as such between 1941 and Sept 1942 when it returned to the states. Along the way it was repaired and modified many times with bits and pieces available to include a tail from another B-17D-hence the name 'Swoose' . NMUSAF is restoring it to the VIP configuration of 44/45 but it is still a B-17D.