{"id":38521,"date":"2016-01-22T11:42:10","date_gmt":"2016-01-22T16:42:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/?p=38521"},"modified":"2016-01-22T11:42:10","modified_gmt":"2016-01-22T16:42:10","slug":"the-wings-of-freedom-tour-of-the-wwii-vintage-aircraft-display-in-fort-myers-at-page-field-airport-from-february-8-11","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/2016\/01\/the-wings-of-freedom-tour-of-the-wwii-vintage-aircraft-display-in-fort-myers-at-page-field-airport-from-february-8-11\/","title":{"rendered":"The Wings of Freedom Tour of the WWII Vintage Aircraft Display in Fort Myers at Page Field Airport from February 8 \u2013 11"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"In honor of our WWII Veterans ~ The Collings Foundation\u2019s Wings of Freedom Tour Brings Extremely Rare Bomber and Fighter Aircraft for Local Living History Display as Part of 110-city Nationwide Tour<\/strong><\/p>\n

WHAT:\u00a0 Participating in the Collings Foundation\u2019s WINGS OF FREEDOM TOUR, the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress \u201cNine O Nine\u201d WWII Heavy Bomber, Consolidated B-24 Liberator \u201cWitchcraft\u201d WWII Heavy Bomber and P-51 Mustang fighter, will fly into\u00a0Page Field Airport\u00a0in\u00a0Fort Myers, FL\u00a0for a visit from February 8 to February 11. This is a rare opportunity to visit, explore, and learn more about these unique and rare treasures of aviation history. The B-17 is one of only 8 in flying condition in the United States,\u00a0the B-24J and Full Dual Control P-51C Mustang are the sole remaining examples of their type flying in the World. Visitors are invited to\u00a0explore the aircraft inside and out\u00a0– $12 for adults and $6 for children under 12 is requested for access to up-close viewing and tours through the inside of the aircraft.\u00a0WWII Veterans can tour through the aircraft at no cost. Discounted rates for school groups. Visitors may also experience the\u00a0once-in-a-lifetime opportunity\u00a0to actually\u00a0take a 30-minute flight\u00a0aboard these rare aircraft. Flights on either the B-17 or B-24 are $450 per person. Get some \u201cstick time\u201d in the world\u2019s greatest fighter! P-51 flights are $2,200 for a half hour and $3,200 for a full hour. For reservations and information on flight experiences\u00a0call\u00a0800-568-8924<\/a>.<\/p>\n

WHERE: The WINGS OF FREEDOM TOUR will be on display at\u00a0Page Field Airport\u00a0in\u00a0Fort Myers\u00a0located at 5200 Channing Page Drive at the ramp on West end of field<\/p>\n

WHEN:\u00a0The WINGS OF FREEDOM TOUR will arrive at\u00a0Page Field Airport\u00a0at\u00a012:00 PM\u00a0on\u00a0February 8\u00a0and will be on display at Page Field Airport until the aircraft departs\u00a0February 11\u00a0after\u00a04:30 PM. Hours of ground tours and display are:\u00a012:00 PM through 4:30 PM\u00a0on\u00a0Monday, February 8;\u00a09:00 AM through 4:30 PM\u00a0on\u00a0Tuesday, February 9;\u00a09:00 AM through 4:30 PM\u00a0on\u00a0Wednesday, February 10;\u00a09:00 AM through 12:00 PM\u00a0on\u00a0Thursday, February 11. The 30-minute flight experiences are normally scheduled before and after the ground tour times above.<\/p>\n

WHO: The Collings Foundation is a 501c3 non-profit educational foundation devoted to organizing \u201cliving history\u201d events that allows people to learn more about their heritage and history through direct participation. The Nationwide WINGS OF FREEDOM TOUR is celebrating its 27th\u00a0year and visits an average of 110 cities in over 35 states annually. Since its start, tens of millions of people have seen the B-17, B-24 & P-51 display at locations everywhere. The WINGS OF FREEDOM tour is one of the most extraordinary and unique interactive traveling historical displays of its kind.<\/p>\n

WHY: The WINGS OF FREEDOM TOUR travels the nation a flying tribute to the flight crews who flew them, the ground crews who maintained them, the workers who built them, the soldiers, sailors and airmen they helped protect; and the citizens and families that share the freedom that they helped preserve. The B-17 & B-24 were the backbone of the American effort during the war from 1942 to 1945 and were famous for their ability to sustain damage and still accomplish the mission. Despite the risks of anti-aircraft fire, attacking enemy fighters, and the harrowing environment of sub-zero temperatures, many B-17s and B-24s safely brought their crews home. The P-51 Mustang was affectionately known as the bombers \u201cLittle Friend\u201d \u2013 saving countless crews from attacking axis fighters. After the war, many aircraft were scrapped for their raw aluminum to rebuild a nation in post-war prosperity and therefore very few were spared. The rarity of the B-17, B-24 & P-51 – and their importance to telling the story of WWII is why the Collings Foundation continues to fly and display the aircraft nationwide. At each location we encourage local veterans and their families to visit and share their experiences and stories with the public. For aviation enthusiasts, the tour provides opportunity for the museum to come to the visitor and not the other way around! Visitors can find out more by visiting our website at\u00a0www.collingsfoundation.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In honor of our WWII Veterans ~ The Collings Foundation\u2019s Wings of Freedom Tour Brings Extremely Rare Bomber and Fighter Aircraft for Local Living History Display as Part of 110-city… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38521"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=38521"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/38521\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=38521"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=38521"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=38521"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}