Sentimental Journey, one of only three B-17 bombers still flying worldwide, landed at Camarillo Airport for a five-day visit that wrapped up Sunday, Sept. 13.
The World War II-era Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress arrived Wednesday, Sept. 9, as part of the Flying Legends of Victory Tour through California and Utah. The Commemorative Air Force SoCal Wing, based at 455 Aviation Drive at the airport, hosted the stop.
The visit offered ground tours and rides aboard the 81-year-old bomber. Standard tour tickets ran $10 per person or $20 per family, the CAF SoCal Wing posted on Facebook on Sept. 12. Ground tours were free with paid museum admission.
The plane is one of only three B-17s still airworthy, the Camarillo Acorn reported. The number of flying B-17s worldwide has continued to decline, according to Vintage Aviation News.
Nearly 13,000 B-17s were built during the war. This one rolled off the Douglas Aircraft assembly line in late 1944 and served in the Pacific Theatre. Its nose art features the famous Betty Grable pin-up, and its name comes from the 1945 Doris Day song, according to an Esprit de Corps profile of the aircraft.
After the war, the bomber spent years on photo-mapping duty in the Philippines and air-sea rescue operations in Florida before fighting forest fires for 18 years. In 1978, it was donated to the Arizona Wing of the Commemorative Air Force. Volunteers restored it through the 1980s.
Before Camarillo, Sentimental Journey stopped at the Planes of Fame Air Museum in Chino from Sept. 2 through Sept. 6.
The CAF SoCal Wing museum is open Thursday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. More information is available at (805) 482-0064.
