Every so often an assignment occurs that will stick with a journalist forever. The story we worked on previewing a visit of the Liberty Belle, a World War II B-17 bomber, was one of those assignments for me.
Times-Call reporter Pierrette J. Shields and I worked to track down a handful of WWII vets who served aboard the Flying Fortress. Their stories were incredible. Meeting and talking with them for only a few hours was a true privilege.
Looking back today I realize that Thursday, April 19, 2007 was probably a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me — boarding the “Liberty Belle.” Hearing the veterans’ recollections of running missions over enemy territory years past, helped me visualize, albeit to a lesser degree, what life aboard these extraordinary planes must have been like. Their days flying missions deep over enemy territory were much more harrowing than my half-hour ride.
As I read this past Monday that the Liberty Belle suffered a catastrophic fate, a piece of me mourned. An important and majestic relic of history unfortunately burned in a corn field in Illinois. Luckily none were hurt and the Colorado pilot that day, Lawrence “Bud” Sittig, 64, performed his job well.
“There was no thought, just reaction,” Sittig told The Denver Post on Wednesday. “Fear never entered my mind, but the one thing that did occur to me was what landing in a field was going to do to this beautiful, historic aircraft.”
His reaction was guide the aircraft down safely, save the crew and salvage what they could.
Liberty Foundation Chief Pilot Ray Fowler, who co-piloted my flight in 2007, wrote on his blog: “Let me go on the record by thanking the flight crew for their professionalism. Their actions were nothing short of heroic and their quick thinking, actions and experience led to a “successful” outcome to this serious in-flight emergency. John and Bud (and Cullen) did a remarkable job under extreme circumstances and performed spectacularly.”
I can say with certainty that I will miss the Liberty Belle.
-Joshua Buck
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This photo provided by Bob Mudra via the Daily Herald shows a World War II-era B-17 bomber engulfed in flames after making what appeared to be an emergency landing in a cornfield in Oswego, Ill., Monday, June 13, 2011. The vintage plane had taken off from nearby Aurora Municipal Airport. All seven people on board escaped before it was consumed by fire, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. (AP Photo/Bob Mudra via the Daily Herald) MANDATORY CREDIT
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Oswego Fire Protection District and other area fire departments extinguish flames in the wreckage of a World War II-era B-17 bomber after it burned following an emergency landing in a farm field in Oswego, Ill., Monday, June 13, 2011. The vintage plane had taken off from nearby Aurora Municipal Airport. The Federal Aviation Administration believes the seven people on board the plane escaped uninjured. (AP Photo/The Beacon-News, Brian Powers)
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Smoke billows from a World War II-era B-17 bomber after it burned following an emergency landing in a farm field in Oswego, Ill., Monday, June 13, 2011. The vintage plane had taken off from nearby Aurora Municipal Airport. The Federal Aviation Administration believes the seven people on board the plane escaped uninjured. (AP Photo/Daily Herald, Rick West) MANDATORY CREDIT
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A Sugar Grove, Ill., firefighter sprays down the wreckage of a World War II-era B-17 bomber after it burned following an emergency landing in a farm field in Oswego, Ill., Monday, June 13, 2011. The vintage plane had taken off from nearby Aurora Municipal Airport. The Federal Aviation Administration believes the seven people on board the plane escaped uninjured. (AP Photo/Daily Herald, Rick West) MANDATORY CREDIT
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Workers survey the damage to a World War II-era B-17 bomber that burned after making an emergency landing in a farm field in Oswego, Ill., Monday, June 13, 2011. The vintage plane had taken off from nearby Aurora Municipal Airport. The Federal Aviation Administration believes the seven people on board the plane escaped uninjured. (AP Photo/Daily Herald, Rick West) MANDATORY CREDIT
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Emergency personnel are seen by a World War II-era B-17 bomber after it burned following an emergency landing in a farm field in Oswego, Ill.,. Monday, June 13, 2011. The vintage plane had taken off from nearby Aurora Municipal Airport.The Federal Aviation Administration believes the seven people on board the plane escaped uninjured. (AP Photo/Daily Herald, Rick West) MANDATORY CREDIT
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The Liberty Belle, a WWII era B-17 bomber, makes a pass over Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport in Broomfield on Thursday, April 19, 2007. (Times-Call photo by Joshua Buck)
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Stevens Aviation Line Service Tech Reid Hill looks back to the Liberty Belle, a WWII era B-17 bomber, after he guided the aircraft to the taxi ramp for take off at Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport in Broomfield on Thursday, April 19, 2007. (Times-Call photo by Joshua Buck)
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The Liberty Belle, a WWII era B-17 bomber, takes off at Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport in Broomfield on Thursday, April 19, 2007. (Times-Call photo by Joshua Buck)
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A view out of the glass nose of the Liberty Belle, where the bombardier would sit and look out of the Norton bomb sight. (Times-Call photo by Joshua Buck)
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A view through The Liberty Belle's original Norton Bomb Sight. (Times-Call photo by Joshua Buck)
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John Bode, who piloted the Liberty Belle, a WWII era B-17 bomber, during a flight on Thursday, April 19, 2007, talks with people on the ground from the cockpit. (Times-Call photo by Joshua Buck)
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The Liberty Belle, a WWII era B-17 bomber, visits Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport in Broomfield on Thursday, April 19, 2007. (Times-Call photo by Joshua Buck)
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Drew Hollenbeck, a crew member on the Liberty Belle, a WWII era B-17 bomber, looks out the open hatch during a flight on Thursday, April 19, 2007. (Times-Call photo by Joshua Buck)
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A view looking back on the Liberty Belle, a WWII era B-17 bomber, from an open hole in the roof on Thursday, April 19, 2007. (Times-Call photo by Joshua Buck)
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John Bode, a pilot with The Liberty Belle Foundation flys the WWII era B-17 bomber on Thursday, April 19, 2007. (Times-Call photo by Joshua Buck)
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