Pilot Report: A World War II commemoration flight over Washington, D.C.

This is Part II of Syd’s story about flying in the World War II commemorations. Read Part I here.

By SYD JONES

If Hawaii represented America’s first World War II battlefield, then Washington D.C., represented the center of gravity of how America came to fight the war, both on the front lines as well as the home front.

To prepare for the Washington, D.C. flight, lots of information had to be passed on to the appropriate authorities for background checks. All participants had to take the DC Special Flight Restrictions Area (SFRA) course. This time I would not be delivering a B-25 to its destination. Owner Larry Kelley would fly “Panchito” to the starting point.

There were profound differences between the two fly-overs.

Virginia was far less apoplectic about COVID than Hawaii had been, and only required a brief daily online check-in for us out-of-state residents. Except for wearing masks when in public, there was little change in normal activities.

There were far more experimental category aircraft participating in this event, and all had been granted a waiver to fly over the Capitol and populated areas like the rest of us.

The organizers of the D.C. fly-over had meticulously planned timing that would give each different flight of planes an exact two-minute spacing over the Mall regardless of their speed differences.

There were many more types and numbers than had flown in Hawaii, including two P-40s, two Corsairs, four TBM Avengers, a Tiger Moth, Stearmans, T-6/SNJs, a Bearcat, the same Wildcat that had flown in Hawaii, a Mosquito, a Hurricane, a Spitfire, a PBY, four B-25s, two B-29s, a B-17, an A-26, there C-47s, L-4s, L5s, C-45, P-39, P-51s, and others.

To make this work, the organizers set up a number of hold points, some closer or further from the Mall. Not all planes were staged from the same field. The B-29s and B-17 were based at Manassas Regional Airport/Harry P. Davis Field (KHEF), and the rest of us flew from Culpepper Regional Airport (KCJR).

The plan was for a precise takeoff time and speed for each aircraft to the designated hold point, to orbit at a certain assigned altitude while other flights assigned to the same hold orbited above or below.

Each specific flight would be called at its precise time, maintaining its pre-arranged speed while descending to 1,000 feet while following the Potomac River towards the Lincoln Memorial. Upon reaching the Lincoln Memorial, each flight would turn east and fly past the Washington Monument and the World War II Memorial before turning south over Reagan Washington National Airport (KDCA) and departing the SFRA back to base.

There would only be one practice flight before the actual fly-by to get everyone on the same page. Larry Kelley had also arranged for “Panchito” to be a photo ship for some post practice aerial photography of a Mustang formation, Corsair formation, C-47 formation, and B-29 formation. We removed “Panchito’s” tail guns and rear-most tail gun glass to make room for the still and video cameramen from the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA).

Larry gave a detailed briefing for all the participants based on his years of experience as a B-25 photo ship at Oshkosh. In addition to our on-board cameramen, a video-equipped helicopter would record the takeoffs of the practice flight. 

I was flying “Panchito” with Paul Nuwer, leading a flight of four B-25s. During the practice each different flight of airplanes took off at its assigned time, joined up, and headed to its designated hold at the prescribed altitude and speed. We then waited for ATC to call us in to our next heading at the pre-set time. That completed, I led the B-25s back to Culpepper, where “Panchito” separated from the flight as briefed and proceeded to our photo hold point about 10 miles away. 

Flying a photo ship that the subjects follow requires a constant bank angle, altitude, and speed control to make it as easy as possible. As each group of planes joined or departed from us, I could only see them from some distance. I could tell they were in place when Paul relayed the photographers’ directions to the planes behind us. After the photo shoot I got to see some of the outstanding images taken. These would be even more important in a few days.

The practice flight had gone pretty well with just a few improvements discussed during the debrief. We were all ready and excited about the big day, confident that the complicated traffic plan would work as it did during the practice. 

Sept. 25 dawned under grey skies and low ceilings. TSA made its early morning sweep of the aircraft and cleared the ramps. We prepared the airplanes for the flight as briefed, and the Tiger Moth and Stearman flights took off on time for their holds. Just as the Stearmans got aloft, the word came down the flight line: The fly-over was cancelled due to low ceilings over the Mall and KDCA. 

We returned to the briefing hangar for the official synopsis. Flying the next day if the weather didn’t cooperate was already baked in to their plan. We would try again tomorrow.

Sept. 26 turned out just like the previous day. The Arsenal of Democracy fly-over was officially cancelled. The beautiful video of the gathered aircraft and takeoffs taken by the helicopter and our photo mission would serve as the public face and acknowledgment of the event. KT and I would return to Florida later that day as other participants winged home.  

Neither event turned out exactly as the planners, donors, or participants had expected. The people who served, worked, fought, and died during World War II experienced a much more dangerous and uncertain world than the one we live in. Somehow Coronavirus, mechanical problems, and the bad weather that we experienced in trying to honor them paled in comparison to their challenges.

It was still a great honor for me to fly a B-25 in both commemorations.