Leno.....Witchcraft.....and an original A-2

[T-Bolt]

Check out this video clip of Jay Leno taking a tour of Witchcraft, the Collings Foundation B-24. The interview has some good facts from the Collings rep and some nice shots of the plane. If you watch the whole clip, there is bit with Leno interviewing a WWII vet that flew B-24's in the Pacific. He is wearing his issue A-2 and it is a nice one. At one point, he shows the camera the painted back of his jacket.....pretty cool.

Any guesses what manufacturer made his A-2??

http://www.jaylenosgarage.com/video/vid ... vid=267688


Ted

 

[TankBuster]

Neat Video! They will have the B-17, B-24, B-25, & P-51 about a mile from my
home next weds. Can't wait to check em out. No rides this year though

 

[Hawkeye]

Im going to take a plunge and guess that its a horsehide Dubow. You didnt get a great look at the pockets, but what I saw of them looked Dubow-ish.

 

[Chandler]

Wow, those snaps are pretty high up into the collar. And I'm sort of skeptical at "original" with the way the epps roll forward off his shoulders, but I guess that could be age (both jacket and owner).

Chandler

 

[Andrew]

Neat Video! They will have the B-17, B-24, B-25, & P-51 about a mile from my
home next weds. Can't wait to check em out. No rides this year though

Still sounds like a great excuse to take a trip over there Jeff, I would kill for that chance!

 

[better duck]

great stuff, thanks for pointing us to it. What a pity there is only one out of eightteen thousand Libs left!
What I dislike about the conversation with the vet, is that Jay Leno doesn't let him finish what he's got to say, for example when explaining the Norden. Of course that's the pace a modern day talkshow host has to set, and I can imagine the details of his story won't fit the format of the ten minute or so videoclip. But still it seems a bit disrespectful, and I can only hope that off camera they paid this vet a little more respect, and listened to his whole story!

 

[TankBuster]

Neat Video! They will have the B-17, B-24, B-25, & P-51 about a mile from my
home next weds. Can't wait to check em out. No rides this year though

Still sounds like a great excuse to take a trip over there Jeff, I would kill for that chance!

Don't worry, I'll definitely be there . I'm going to get some photos and see if I run into any
vets again this year. The ride on the B-17 last year was great, but at nearly $500, my wife
won't let me make it a yearly affair

 

[Anonymous]

Im going to take a plunge and guess that its a horsehide Dubow. You didnt get a great look at the pockets, but what I saw of them looked Dubow-ish.

Collar and sleeves aren't really Dubowish to me- I'd say Bronco from the tubular sleeves and collar shape. My computer kinda greyed out the pocket during closeups so I couldn't see if the corners were squared off.

 

[Swing]

Any guesses what manufacturer made his A-2??

I'm gonna guess Aero.

Nice video.

~Swing

 

[Peter Graham]

Wow, those snaps are pretty high up into the collar. And I'm sort of skeptical at "original" with the way the epps roll forward off his shoulders, but I guess that could be age (both jacket and owner).

Chandler

Great footage. I won't make a fool of myself trying to identifiy the jacket but while watching the clip it froze up at an opportune moment and I was able to study the zipper. It is tarnished almost black. Only an original would have this kind of ageing.

 

[RadioJack]

Notice that Jay cut him off when he started talking about the US training chinese nationalists?

 

[dujardin]

simply splendid, many thanks.
i like those kind of video, vet's reporting his history, and flying warbirds.

great great great

byeeeee marcel

 

[Django]

great stuff, thanks for pointing us to it. What a pity there is only one out of eightteen thousand Libs left!

Cool video. It's not the only one left. There are about 25 or so left (still appalling though).

Is it the only one flying? Yes and no. It's the only J model flying. There is also the CAF Ol' 927 (flying with the CAF since 1968) which was converted to an LB-30 transport in 1941 after a training crash (in not the prototype LB-30). It was the 18th B-24A Liberator built and destined for the RAF. That's the gray area. Originally built as a B-24A but converted in wartime to an LB-30. Currently the CAF is working on converting her back into her original B-24A configuration. They have the bomb bay doors, but it will be a MAJOR undertaking to reinstall them. The aircraft will have to go into a giant fixture. Gary Austin, the crew chief at the time, built the rear gun turret from scratch.