Turning over a new leaf

Hey everybody, It's me, Patrick.

I'm turning over a new leaf and taking an active part in our Blog (that way it's not just Erin's blog :)

Yesterday I had the unique opportunity of seeing something that, in recent years, very few people have seen.

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One thing you must understand, I love airplanes! Since I can remember, I have had a fascination with airplanes. One of my favorite things to do is fly my radio-controlled airplane several times a week. I'm 35 years old and still every time I hear a plane going overhead, I have to look up to see what kind it is. I've been known to stop by small airports and watch planes take off and land for hours at a time.

I have particular interest in WWII bombers - partly because my great uncle Joseph "Ink" Hannah was a pilot of a B-17 flying fortress and a B-24 liberator in both the european and pacific theaters.
Now, I've seen nearly every documentary on the B-17 flying fortress, as well as the 1990 movie "Memphis Belle" starring Harry Connick Jr. I've seen several B-17's on static display at air force museums. During WWII there were more than 12,000 of these bombers that were built primarily by women on the homefront (Rosie the Riveter). Today, there are only 14 B-17's in the world that still fly. The rest are in museums and scrap-yards. Friday, I got to see one of the few that are still air-worthy.

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This B-17 named the Aluminum Overcast (http://www.b17.org/) is on a nation-wide tour going from one municiple airport to the next. It made a 3-day stop in Ogden, Utah. For me, it was the chance of a life-time to see one of these old birds actually fly. It was a day that I will never forget.

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I watched all morning as the Aluminum Overcast took off and landed 3 times. I took nearly 200 pictures. I hope you enjoy the few that I've posted.