Blast from the past: Flying through memories from WWII in a B-17 Flying Fortress

BROOMFIELD | It wasn’t just an old war plane, my ride on a B-17 Flying Fortress was a giant time-travel portal back to World War II.

My guide when I got to Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport in Broomfield was Frank LaBlotier, former staff sergeant with the 91st Bombardment Group of the 8th U.S. Air Force during World War II. At 92, he buried me in his enthusiasm and vigor. He was brimming with snapshot memories and anecdotes of war.

Flight on a B-17 Flying Fortress at Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport June 2, 2014. Flights and tours are available to the public June 7 and June 8. Photo by Nick Petrak/Aurora Sentinel

“We were one of the first groups to arrive there in early ‘42 and didn’t leave until ‘45,” said LaBlotier, referring to Bassingbourn Royal Air Force station, located just outside of Cambridge. “Clark Gable flew five missions with us. Jimmy Stewart worked down the road as colonel of a B-24 group.” LaBlotier affectionately referred to the B-24 by its wartime monikers of “flying coffin” and “widowmaker,” which was — as the name suggests — notoriously difficult to fly. The veteran’s true affection, however, lies with the Boeing B-17 “Flying Fortress,” which saw him through over 300 missions as a waist gunner.

It was the Boeing B-17 that drew LaBlotier and me, among a handful of other journalists, to the airport on blazing blue afternoon. We all welcomed the chance to fly aboard one of the most recognizable bombers in World War II. And though the flight lasted just under 30 minutes, the experience provided me a glimpse of our country’s heroic past, as well as memories (and photographs) to last a lifetime.

This was nothing like your typical flight on Southwest Airlines from DIA to O’Hare. For starters, I had real legroom. Taking the seat of the Radio Operator, a radio desk complete with a “straight key” for Morse code sat before me. Sunlight streamed in through a 2-by-3 foot opening in the ceiling, similar to a car’s moonroof, that remained open for the duration of our flight. Foam earplugs were passed out for good reason, as four, 1,200 horsepower propeller engines make a lot of noise.

Once up in the air, we were given the thumbs-up to unfasten our seatbelts and explore. Navigating the crawlspace that leads from cockpit to the nose turret made me feel like of a five-year-old creeping through a secret fort. But unlike any childhood fort I’ve ever known, the B-17’s nose compartment hosted two Browning M-2 .50 caliber machine guns capable of firing 13 rounds per second. I watched in awe as propellers whirred just outside the small windows on either side of the turret.

After several jaw-dropping minutes spent admiring the flatirons through a glass ball at the plane’s forefront — a stunning view used by bombardiers to locate their targets during flyovers — I got the signal that it was time to return to my seat and prepare for landing. For the first time ever, I wanted a flight to last longer.

Before taking off, I had asked LaBlotier about his most memorable moment on a B-17.

“Getting home safely,” he answered without hesitation. While in the air, I tried to channel the courage crews from the mid 1940s mustered every time the plane left the ground; B-17s bound for the hellfire of European war zones meant a high probability of death. I never will be able to fully comprehend it, but those 20-30 minutes spent rolling through the sky magnified the tremendous respect I already had for the service of Frank LaBlotier and men like him.

The Boeing B-17 “Flying Fortress” will be open to the public and available for flights and ground tours this Saturday and Sunday, June 7 and 8. Call 918-340-0243 to schedule a flight or visit libertyfoundation.org for details.

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