What a complete and utter moron! And his words 'this is my game,and I'd do it again' just about sums him up.

S!

After seeing that clip..umm..That guy should only fly model kits or something. With that kind of "expertise" he will ruin more than gain. Losing that B29 to a makeshift installation of an APU that was STILL running when not supposed to just shows the incompetency of the crew to make even basic pre-flight checks etc. Huh huh..

I am crying...
 

And the saddest part of all: when the Plexiglas round window flies away high above the ground is unbearable! Simply unbearable. Heart breaking... Total morons. And one of them said sitting in his lounge: "...It burned to the ground! ;)" I...I...I do not know what to say!!! They have to be in to the jail. For very long time!

I watched this a few years ago as well. The outcry around here for punishment is silly. Believe me, they were substantially punished both financially and emotionally.

I would have loved to see a veritable Disney happy ending with them flying into the blue back to civilization, but this bird wasn't visible or flying before any of this, so treating it as though it were a rare flyable that was enjoyed in air shows by thousands every year is ridiculous.

Personally, I'm glad there are people out there with the money and inclination to undertake such projects. Even if they succeed one in five times, that's one more bird in the fold.

Sorry I don't agree. For the same reason ppl pay money to be put in of those cryostasis coffins.
Would go and just "have a try" if you can resurrect them even though are unsure you can make it?
NO!
See? Let the stuff were it is, it's not going to rot either, and one fine day, somebody who has the required resources available, will give it a try.

They obliviously did not have:

- enough money
- the right equipment
- basic ability of comprehensive reading
- leadership
- needed knowledge

only A LOT of dedication, but they overestimated their own capabilities even more.
Did you notice the tiny fire extinguishers?
They were not even prepared if one of the engines cached fire!

One more thing: I really tried hard, but their emotional pain didn't seem that deep... I would have freaked out so bad.

Personally, I don't need ppl like this, they generally damage more than they can save. No thx.

When I read all these irate comments made undoubtly from the safety of your computer seats, I would like to point out that:

- It was 15 years agon and really warbird interested people know about that since that time...I saw the original outing of the Nova episode: I do not remember venom-laced critics like the ones I just read, and yet there had been many critics at the time

- One of the big issues (as always) was money and extreme climatic constraints: it has been very hard to gather the funds...strangely, none of the critics of the time contributed...the one who did di d not critic (at least overtly)

- In case you did not notice the real painful point is less the unfortunate loss of the Kee Bird when everything seemed ready to go but a lot more Rick Krieger the chief engineer who overworked himself to death, literally...

- Rick was a long time friend of D. Greenamyer: don't you think he is still mourning his loss? DG hesitated for a long time and decided to try to honor his memory...one can only guess th eoutcome woul dhave been different if the chief engineer (who was the project leader) had been alive

- None of us was there, and we can only guess at the state of mind of the rest of the team...hindsight is so much of a marvelous thing, isn't it?

- D. Greenamyer was not really a coming out-of-the-blue moron: Lockheed SR-71 test pilot, held the fastest piston engine speed record for 2 years (over the Messerschmitt 209!), the fastest low altitude speed record (998 mph with a NF-104, 25m high...but was forced to land without the airplane), and won the National Air Races of Reno in "unlimited" category 6 times

Granted, humility and compassion are not very common virtues in this forum, but in this thread they are downright absent...

Who was talking about morons already?

JVM

PS: The engines and wings are there in perfect state for whoever will need them...under ice water in Northern Greenland they will be still in the same shape in 200 years...

:( I wish the title could be amended,i thought something had happened to FiFi :(

S!

JVM, the guys for sure were on low funding, working in harsh conditions. They were also highly credited in being record holders and whatnot but still failed in one BASIC thing that requires NO MONEY, just time and patience to do: pre-flight checks to assure everything REALLY is ready. A test pilot should know this already. Now they missed that APU being a makeshift one, still running and thus caused a blaze resulting in the loss of the plane. Small errors cause big problems is a slogan used by air forces. Even the best and known ones make mistakes that can cost dearly. But again, being wise 15 years later and from armchair is useless as you said.

I know the person who lead the project, that is I talked with him once on another airplane, initials of DG.

He did not strike me as a very careful person, make that more like gun ho.

And yes, that airplane he was also working on crashed and was destroyed.

Agree, see my previous post.