Airplanes Galleries

Sharon Dad's A-2 Jacket and "Secrut Weapin" : This gallery is a tribute to Sharon's Dad, Lt. Bailey "Bill" Goodell, who was a bombardier on a B-24 (11 of 39 missions on "SECRUT WEAPIN") in the Pacific with the 7th AF, 11th Bomb Group, 98th Bomb Squadron. His pilot was AJ Bell of Tomahawk, WI. Also see the B-24 "Witchcraft " ride album below when Sharon wore her Dad's jacket. I did get a new A-2 jacket (see last photo) and had the back painted as the original. Did this so she could wear it more often than her Dad's without the fear of it "walking off". Vintage A-2 jackets have risen steadily in value. They have sold on eBay for $1,000's. One vendor at the Reading airshow estimated the value of her Dad's jacket at over $4,000! Needless to say, it's a family heirloom and not for sale.

Sharon Dad's A-2 Jacket and "Secrut Weapin"

This gallery is a tribute to Sharon's Dad, Lt. Bailey "Bill" Goodell, ...

Updated: Nov 03, 2009 6:32am PST

Gathering of Mustangs and Legends : Attended the Gathering of Mustangs and Legends, Sept 29-30, 2007 in Columbus, OH. Awesome airshow!

Gathering of Mustangs and Legends

Attended the Gathering of Mustangs and Legends, Sept 29-30, 2007 in Co ...

Updated: Oct 01, 2007 7:51pm PST

October foliage : On Sunday, October 21, 2007, Sharon and I went up flying out of Eagles Nest (W13) to look at the foliage along the Blue Ridge and Shenandoah National Park. Because of the warm weather and drought, the colors weren't very vibrant and a lot of the leaves hadn't turned yet.

October foliage

On Sunday, October 21, 2007, Sharon and I went up flying out of Eagles ...

Updated: Sep 18, 2008 6:38am PST

Lancaster Bomber : Set of pictures of the Lancaster Bomber at the 2006 Reading Airshow. This was a British bomber that had the greatest payload of all the bombers. Probably the most famous Allied bomber of World War II, the Lancaster had impressive flying characteristics and operational performance. The Lancaster was the RAF's only heavy bomber capable of carrying the 12,000-lb Tallboy and 22,000-lb Grand Slam bombs. Of the 7,300 made, there are only two still flying, this one with the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum, and one owned by the Queen of England! See some pictures of this plane in the Gathering of Mustangs and Legends gallery.

Lancaster Bomber

Set of pictures of the Lancaster Bomber at the 2006 Reading Airshow. T ...

Updated: Sep 18, 2008 8:28am PST

B-24 "Witchcraft " ride and hanger dance : On October 18 2008 Sharon and I flew up to Westminster MD (Carroll County airport) to see the Collings Foundation WW II bombers, B-17, B-24, B-25 and their TP-51 Mustang trainer. Ron and Bonnie Roth met us there for the hanger dance they had in the evening. During the day the planes are open for viewing and then they offer flights on the planes (for a costly donation). We went on the B-24 flight as Sharon's Dad was a bombardier on the a B-24 ("Secrut Weapin") in the Pacific. As this is the only flying B-24 bomber (there is another B-24, "Diamond Lil" - see Reading airshow gallery - flying but that is a cargo/transport plane), it was a unique opportunity to experience what her Dad went through during the War. Sharon appropriately wore her Dad's jacket and received numerous comments and admiration from the plane's crew and spectators. It was truly an eye opening experience as the plane is extremely noisy and open to the outside - there are openings every where the wind was coming through. We were "stationed" in the waist gunners position for takeoff but once up in the air we could go every where in the plane, except the cockpit. We headed up to the bombardier's position where Sharon got to sit in the bombardier's seat (a small stool) and viewed ground below. We also went up to the nose gunner's position. The navigator's sextant dome offered a unique view back to the cockpit. Interestingly, we had to crawl through a narrow passage way beneath the cockpit and around the nose wheel to get there. We tried to imagine what it was like to do that in turbulence or during battle conditions. The passage through the bomb bay was also tight on the catwalk between the bomb racks. After touring the front and viewing the cockpit, we headed to the tail and the tail gunner's position. This was also very interesting and offered an exceptional view of the ground below. Obviously, the best seats on the plane were the bombardier, front and rear gunners but also seemed to be the most vulnerable. With enemy fighters coming at you it must have been some experience. The only other positions we couldn't go were the top gunner's position behind the cockpit and the ball gunner's turret in the bottom. We gained a new prospective and respect for all the aircrews that flew on all the bombers and planes of the War. The hanger dance was small but well done. As the dance was early, they had a meal with a picture cake (of the planes) and the band played from about 7 to 9. Ron and Bonnie, two couples in Army uniforms, Steve and Pam Springer of Hagerstown, MD in 40's attire (Steve in a "Zoot" suit), and us were the only ones who were vintage attired. We all were much appreciated by the organizers and veterans who commented that we added to the atmosphere of the music played by the band (a local group from a retirement center). After gassing up the plane, Sharon and I flew home with a nice tailwind in a little more than an hour (compared to a 3.5-4 hour drive, the flight up was 1.7 hour due to the headwind). The night was clear with almost a full moon. We were home by midnight.

B-24 "Witchcraft " ride and hanger dance

On October 18 2008 Sharon and I flew up to Westminster MD (Carroll Cou ...

Updated: Oct 21, 2008 11:58am PST

Visit to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum : On February 15, 2009, Sharon and I visited the Smithsonian Museum's Air and Space, Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center at Dulles airport. Lots of cool planes. Sharon wore her Dad's jacket and checked out the display of flight jackets. Her Dad's was in better shape than some on display! Now Secrut Weapin has been in the Smithsonian.

Visit to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum

On February 15, 2009, Sharon and I visited the Smithsonian Museum's Ai ...

Updated: Mar 19, 2009 5:36pm PST

Flying - April 12 2009 : Paige was home for Easter and Sharon's birthday. Easter was such a nice, clear day we decided to go for a short plane ride out of Eagle's Nest airport where Bill flies out of.

Flying - April 12 2009

Paige was home for Easter and Sharon's birthday. Easter was such a ni ...

Updated: Apr 13, 2009 8:32am PST

Wright Brothers Centennial T6's :

Wright Brothers Centennial T6's

Updated: Sep 23, 2009 1:56pm PST

Wright Brothers: Dare Co airport :

Wright Brothers: Dare Co airport

Updated: Sep 23, 2009 4:39pm PST

Wright Memorial Airshow :

Wright Memorial Airshow

Updated: Sep 23, 2009 7:17pm PST

Wright Brothers Reenactment :

Wright Brothers Reenactment

Updated: Sep 23, 2009 8:25pm PST

Culpeper Airfest practice :

Culpeper Airfest practice

Updated: Oct 09, 2009 9:31pm PST

Collings Foundation 2009 Tour Stop : On Sunday, Oct 25, Sharon and flew up to Warrenton VA (HWY) to see the Collings Foundation planes, a B-17, B-24 and a P-51. We just did the tour as we flew on the B-24 last year. After taking off we could see the B-24 flying around beneath us and we flew parallel to it all the way to Culpeper when they turned back to HWY. On Monday the planes flew over to Shenandoah airport and I took Nick Nicoll over to see the planes. Nick was a Lancaster pilot who was shot down on his 18th mission over Hanover Germany and spent 18 months as a POW. During his stay in Stalig III, he helped dig the tunnel used in the Great Escape but was transferred to another prison just before the escape (probably saving his life as he was on the list to escape and 50 of the 75 escapees were shot).

Collings Foundation 2009 Tour Stop

On Sunday, Oct 25, Sharon and flew up to Warrenton VA (HWY) to see the ...

Updated: Oct 26, 2009 10:40pm PST