http://youtu.be/...
Two flying B-29s that is. For years now, Fifi has been the only operable B-29 Superfortress, but if all goes as hoped, Fifil will be joined by Doc.
Doc's survival is a story of amazing luck. (PDF file of Wingman Magazine - scroll down for story.)
...The Boeing- built bomber, nicknamed Doc, survived more than 40 years on a target range in California’s Mojave Desert before its rescue and eventual transport to Wichita in 2000.
“It was on a bombing range and it just happened to not get hit,” said Tom Bertels, project spokesman, in an interview.
emphasis added
Doc's restoration has taken years; as always time, money and space have been critical issues.
Decades of getting beat up by target practice and the elements left the airplane in rough shape. After years of work, funds ran low and the airplane needed a permanent hangar to complete the restoration. Doc's Friends took over the restoration in early 2013 and has made great progress since then. All four engines and propellers have been installed and the airframe, control surfaces and systems are getting close to completion.
The first flight is not going to be for the faint of heart.
Flying the restored B-29 will take a crew of six — a pilot, co-pilot, flight engineer and three observers.
“It’s a big job,” Murphy said. “This is a very unique airplane.”
The B-29 will burn 500 gallons of fuel and 2.5 gallons of oil an hour and cost close to $10,000 an hour to fly, he said.
Flying is a challenge.
For one, it’s not a good airplane to fly in a crosswind, Murphy said.
“The main reason is there’s no nose gear steering on the airplane,” he said. “You have to steer the airplane with differential braking and throttles.”
That makes it difficult to control under crosswind conditions.
McConnell Air Force Base, which is connected to the Boeing facilities, does not have a crosswind runway.
To fly, “all we have to do is find a fairly calm day with clear skies and temperatures over 50 degrees,” Murphy said.
The first flight will be a milestone event.
The restoration is being tempered by several factors. As originally designed and built, the B-29 had issues with engines; Doc is going to be the beneficiary of some
redesign work and engines with some improvements.
“One of the high maintenance things on Fifi was the exhaust system,” said Bertels. As a result, Doc’s Friends contracted Experimental Aircraft Exhaust in Fargo, N.D., to design a new one for retrofit on both Doc and Fifi.
The engines themselves are actually a hybrid of engines used on the Vietnam War-era AC-119K Stinger gunship and the B-29’s original Wright R-3350s, due to the scarcity of the Wrights, as well as overheating problems with the early versions of the engine.
“The original aircraft was super- charged, but since we’re going to be flying [Doc] down low, we’re not doing that,” said Bertels.
Doc is also going to get modern avionics, a necessity to operate in contemporary airspace.
For those who want more of the details (and some photos and videos), here are some links. Doc's Friends can be found here. Flying Magazine has a feature here. The Wichita Eagle has articles here and here. Wingman magazine (again, PDF file) has the story along with some additional warbird news.