World War II aircraft coming to Swanton, Ohio

The Monroe News
·2 min read

SWANTON, Ohio – The AirPowerHistory Tour, featuring World War II aircraft, is coming to Toledo Express Airport Aug. 9-10. Public tours and rides will be offered.

The B-29 Superfortress “Fifi” and the B-24 Liberator “Diamond Lil” will land at the Federal Aerospace Institute ramp at Eugene F. Krantz Toledo Express Airport, 11371 W. Airport Service Road. The aircraft will be accompanied by a T-6 Texan, a PT-13 Stearman and a RC-45J Texan.

The B-24 Liberator “Diamond Lil” is coming to Toledo Express Airport in Swanton, Ohio, in August.
The B-24 Liberator “Diamond Lil” is coming to Toledo Express Airport in Swanton, Ohio, in August.

From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Aug. 9-10, visitors will be able to view all aircraft up close, purchase rides on the featured and supporting aircraft and tour the B-29 and B-24 cockpits when the aircraft are not flying.

The B-29 flights on Aug. 9-10 are at 9 and 10:30 a.m. The B-24 flights on Aug. 9-10 are at 9:30 and 11 a.m.

Access to the ramp is $20 for adults, $10 for youths ages 11-17 and free for children age 10 and under. Rides may be booked in advance at AirPowerTour.org.

The event is presented by the Commemorative Air Force, which brings its AirPower History Tour to airports across North America each year.

The B-29 Superfortress “Fifi” is shown. The aircraft is coming to Toledo Express Airport, Swanton, Ohio, in August.
The B-29 Superfortress “Fifi” is shown. The aircraft is coming to Toledo Express Airport, Swanton, Ohio, in August.

The Boeing B-29 Superfortress, the largest and most technically advanced aircraft of its time, was first flown in 1942, the Commemorative Air Force said. It began active service in the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1944 and is best known as the aircraft whose missions over Japan helped bring an end to World War II. The B-29 also was used in the Korean War in the early 1950s and was a staple of the U.S. Air Force until 1960. “Fifi," one of only two B-29s in the world still flying, was acquired by the Commemorative Air Force in 1971. It began touring in 1974.

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The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was the most produced American warplane of WWII with over 18,400 aircraft rolling off assembly lines across the country, the Commemorative Air Force said. Most were manufactured at Ford’s Willow Run assembly plant in Ypsilanti. Diamond Lil was one of the first B-24s produced and still one of only two B-24s in the world still flying.

To learn more about the Commemorative Air Force, visit commemorativeairforce.org.

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: World War II aircraft coming to Swanton, Ohio