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Aviation History And Aircraft Photography
B-17G Flying Fortress
Lyon Air Museum
Santa Ana, CA


B-17

B-17G Fuddy Duddy on tour in 2005 at the Janes Field in Blaine, Minnesota. Fuddy Duddy took the place of the EAA's Aluminum Overcast, which had a landing gear accident in 2004. Aluminum Overcast will be down about two years for repair.

Fuddy Duddy was for many years based at the National Warplane Museum in Geneseo, New York. The National Warplane Museum hosted the highly rated annual Wings of Eagles airshow. A split developed in the membership, with one group wanting to move to a modern airport and grow, while another group wanted to stick to the roots of aviation and stay at the grass strip in Geneseo. With a two-thirds vote, the National Warplane Museum moved to Elmira-Corning, while the remaining members formed the 1941 Historic Air Group in Geneseo. While it hurt the Geneseo group to lose their star attraction, Fuddy Duddy, they continued to put on a world class warbird airshow each year.

Fuddy Duddy was built too late to see action in WWII. She was retired in the mid-50's, and changed hands a few times until be purchased by Columbia Pictures in 1960. After a short movie career, Fuddy Duddy was converted to air tanker service. She flew as an air tanker until 1986, which she was acquired by the National Warplane Museum and converted back to her warbird look. The museum has continued to restore and improve Fuddy Duddy over the years, and she is one of the finest looking B-17s in the air today.

News flash—Fuddy Duddy has been sold to California-based Martin Aviation. The National Warplane Museum has not taken in the gate money it had expected, and its debts grew to over $3.1-million. The sale of Fuddy Duddy, while sad, wiped clean the museum's debt. The museum came close to selling Fuddy Duddy once before, but a $1-million grant saved the day. Martin Aviation operates other WWII aircraft including a B-25. They expect to visit a few airshows in the southwest in 2006, but not do the nationwide tours that Fuddy Duddy has been doing for the past several years.

B-17
News flash #2—Fuddy Duddy has been sold again, this time to warbird operator and retired USAF General William Lyon. Fuddy will be based out of John Wayne Airport in Southern California, and she has been seen flying in the area several times. Lyon recently commissioned some refurbishment on Fuddy, including polishing the bare aluminum skin of the aircraft.

News flash #3—The new Lyon Aviation Museum is now open at John Wayne Airport. It features a collection of warbirds, some that still fly, collected in a fantastic new display hangar by the retired General. The photo below is Fuddy Duddy in its new home.

B-17

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