Today, Harry, Alaina, and I headed out to the Concord Airport to see the Memphis Belle (not the real plane, but the one used in the movie; the real Memphis Belle is not in flying condition). It was an amazing airplane. The weather didn't really cooperate (it was rainy all morning) but that worked out in our favor because we were able to tour the airplane since it couldn't go out for flight tours (we couldn't afford the flight tours at $450 per person for a 30 minute flight).
This is the Memphis Belle (yesterday) flying over our house.
The Memphis Belle, today (notice how the weather changed).
This gun turret was underneath the plane and SO tiny! I had to take the picture because the area was too small for Harry to climb underneath the plane.
Due to the bad weather, they opened up the airplane to ground tours while we where there... bonus!
This is where the bombardier sat. It was in the front of the plane underneath where the pilots sat.
The cockpit
Alaina and me at the radio operator table. On a side note, this is the first airplane Alaina has ever been in... that's going to be a funny story later on.
This was how you accessed the rear of the plane (the rear gunners and the tail gunner had to walk down their tiny plank over the bombs to access their equipment. It was scary to walk over without it being airborne, loaded with active bombs, and being shot at. I can't imagine what it was like in battle.
The hatch for the gun turret underneath.
Rear Gunner
Harry at the rear gunner window. There was another gun directly to his left, as well.
Alaina and me at the wheel (not the steering, but landing).
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