Wittman Flying Service

Warbirds in Review
Featured Aircraft - MiG-17F and T-2 Buckeye
Aircraft Owners - Randy W. Ball and Fighterjets, Inc. and The Warbird Heritage Foundation
Guests - Commander Randall “Duke” Cunningham and
Commander William “Willy Irish” Driscoll

Flying the F-4 Phantom, Duke Cunningham and Willie Driscoll shot down their first North Vietnamese MiG on January 19, 1972. They scored their second MiG kill on May 08, 1972. On May 10, 1972, they became the first American fliers to qualify as Aces in the Vietnam War when they shot down three MiG's in a single action. In addition to becoming the first Vietnam Aces, the two became the first Team of Aces, the first to score a triple kill over Vietnam and the first U.S. all-missile Aces.

THE LIVE STREAM IS ONLY AVAILABLE BETWEEN 6PM-7PM CST.

ARCHIVE VERSION WILL BE AVAILABLE SOON AFTER BROADCAST:
https://air2airtv.com/categories/aviation-live

Col Charles McGee earned his wings and commission on June 30, 1943, part of class 43-F. McGee remained on active duty 30 years. He flew fighter aircraft combat tours in three major military conflicts, completing 405 missions for the Army Air Forces and the Air Force. During his time in World War II, he flew the Bell P-39Q Airacobra, Republic P-47D Thunderbolt and North American P-51 Mustang. He is the only known fighter pilot who flew 100 or more combat missions in each of the following wars: World War II, Korea and Vietnam. George E. Hardy was called to active duty in July 1943 for basic training. In December his group was transferred to Tuskegee Army Air Field for Aviation Cadet training, as part of Class 44-H. He completed combat flying training in early February 1945 in the P47. He was shipped overseas to Italy and flew 21 combat missions over Germany in the P-51. His long military career included the Korean War serving with the 19th Bomb Group at Kadena Air Base, Okinawa where he flew 45 combat missions over Korea in the B-29 aircraft.

He retired with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in 1971. The CAF Red Tail Squadron’s P-51C Mustang, named Tuskegee Airmen, is an authentic and fully restored operational fighter from the WWII era. This awe-inspiring aircraft sparks conversations to educate young and old alike about the often-overlooked history of the Tuskegee Airmen that flew this same model as their signature aircraft in WWII. It is quite simply a museum without walls… and an awe inspiring one at that!

The 1949 Bendix race winner P-51C Thunderbird was owned by WWII Colonel (later Brigadier General) bomber pilot and academy award winner Jimmy Stewart. Jackie Cochran, the Speed Queen, also owned Thunderbird. Today Warren Pietsch is the keeper of this very historic aircraft. Warren engaged AirCorp Aviation to restore her to her former glory.

Thunderbird weighed just 6223 lbs and raced on a special mix of 150 octane gasoline produced by General Petroleum Company. As Thunderbird streaked across the Cleveland finish line with Joe DeBona in the pilot’s seat, the staggering average speed of 470 miles per hour set a Bendix record for piston airplanes.
Thunderbird was finished with 48 coats of primers and the iconic gloss cobalt blue paint. Polished to a high shine, the paint job reportedly added 8 mph to the speed of the aircraft.

Thunderbird, with its red Pegasus horse, gloss paint scheme, celebrity owners and pilots continues to be one of the most notabable and recognizable P-51s in the world.

In December of 1949, after the triumph of that year’s Bendix win, Jimmy Stewart (sole owner, for Joe De Bona Racing Co.) sold Thunderbird to Jacqueline Cochran for “$1.00 and other consideration.”, and she went on to set 3 world speed records with the aircraft. Jackie Cochran had owned Thunderbird for just over three years when, on 20 January 1953, she sold it back to Jimmy Stewart for “$1.00 and other consideration.”

Thunderbird is truly a people’s airplane because of the many folks involved with the dream since the beginning and tasked with bringing the project to life. In 1999, Warren purchased what he originally believed to be a damaged P-51A in Scottsbluff, Nebraska. It was only later that he discovered that the wreck was actually “Thunderbird”, the iconic blue P-51C that had been flown by Joe DeBona in the Bendix Air Races. Once Warren learned that his wreck in Nebraska was Jimmy Stewart's Thunderbird, the story alone was enough to inspire a tribute restoration. The modified P-51C is ripe with history from air racing to coronation tapes and speed records.

Twenty-some years later, after gradual progress on the P-51C; the Thunderbird project arrived at AirCorps to finish the job.

Warren Pietsch’s dream is to create a P-51C that not only represents Thunderbird’s unique history and the rich story of Thunderbird’s famous owners, but also to recognize the many people who have inspired, influenced, and helped Warren. The most important goal is to make this a flying piece of history that can be enjoyed by everyone, from Mustang and air racing enthusiasts to air show attendees.