Just a few pics of the B-17G 44-8543 Madras Maiden / Ye Olde Pub from my personal archives documenting the B-17s I have had the good fortune to see in person. She was painted as the Madras Maiden when I visited the Erickson Collection in Madras, Ore., during the summer of 2017. I drove down there in hopes of photographing this plane while doing an interview for an article I am writing for the 447th BG newsletter. At that time the Liberty Foundation had started touring her so that veterans and vintage aircraft buffs across the country could appreciate it. I did get to photograph her the following year, and in fact had the very good fortune of getting a short flight in this Flying Fortress when the Liberty Foundation brought her to Renton, Wash., as part of their 2018 tour.
This plane has since been converted to resemble an F model and repainted as Ye Olde Pub and I had the good fortune to see her flying during the 2023 air show at McChord. The Erickson team even sent a Messerschmitt Bf109 to fly with her representing the famed incident captured in the book “A Higher Call”. I was using a brand new 400mm zoom lens so some of the shots I was able to capture from so far away that the heat ripples caused distortion (they said the tarmac was measured at more than 140 degrees.