what a shame it they didn't succeed, they gave it everything they had and tried their best. I guess the arctic was meant to be the B-29's final resting place.
I watched this entire program when it ran on PBS. So sad. Some time later, the Confederate Air Force's B-29 "FIFI" came through Little Rock. When I mentioned something to the pilot about the program, he let me know that those radial engines and props were in the possession of the C.A.F. Nice to know part of the Kee Bird survives.
I saw the entire documentary some years ago. If I recall correctly after all the effort to restore and to get this bird into flying condition again and given the monumental task at hand, she caught fire during her run up to lift off on a makeshift plowed strip. I think it was a ruptured auxiliary fuel cell that caused it.
To even attempt such an endeavor was the product of passion and a thorough understanding of the war years!
Why can not disarmed and restored. It was obvious that if the place will power in a problem could happen. The plane was there for 50 years. It is naive to think that everything would be fine.
I watch this once a year and I keep hoping they take off. I know, I know...it doesn't..read Hunting Warbirds. You'll get a behind the scenes perspective and meet a few interesting characters. It's good because it's not fiction.
I'm curious about the Russian basically exact copies through reverse engineering of a captured B-29. Do any survive, possibly as a parts source? I think TU-4 is what they called them.
Several TU-4s survive. There's enough of the Kee Bird wreckage to incorporate with other surviving B-29 wrecks. But consider the costs of transporting the pieces verses just finding another B-29 from a museum willing to part with it or trade for another airplane (which museums sometimes do as well.)
Wow. Nice job. There was a plane there. Now there's a big burned pile of shit. Awful nice of you to not bother cleaning up the mess you made, & just consider the fuckin ocean your garbage dump. Out of sight, out of mind hey? Makes for good TV though.
these people where IDIOTS...do u really expect to fly a 50 year old aircraft with minimal repairs that has been sitting in the same spot for so long...even if it got off the ground, everyone would have DIED
@tangler1781 Before you start spouting off about these "dumb fucks" they tried to bring the B-29 out of there to be fully restored. I remember watching this show and I believe that at least two of the rescue crew died while readying the plane for flight
Saw this years ago.......so let see if I remember it right before I see the vid, They spent all this time & effort Toiled so hard. At the last minute they tied down a generator in the tail with some bungee cords, generator broke free, spilled gas everywhere, No-one had an extinguisher & the thing burn't to the ground...........AFU.
Una bonita manera de destrozar una reliquia histórica de la aviación... Estos tipos no son historiadores ni son nada, son lunáticos... Si no puedes rescatar el B-29, por lo menos no lo destroces... Y mira el resultado ¿Cómo va a volar un aparato 50 años después sin un mantenimiento adecuado y expuesto a temperaturas tan bajas?, contando que cada "verano" vuelven a descongelarse ciertas partes, lo que ocasiona: congelación y descongelación la putrefacción de algunas partes y rotura de otras...
"This is my game and I'd do it again", he says... This game's been played and lost. It is really a shame that this happened. I am sure it could have been prevented somehow...
I don't know why they wasted time with gear swings and all the nitnoid stuff they were doing. I can see new engines, props and recovering the flight controls but they were only going to fly 250 miles and then prepared for a much longer flight where tasks could have been done a lot easier. There was some ghost in that airplane. It didn't want to leave.
@bc1969214 Well bc, That is a valid question. B-29's had huge range so I would think 250 miles would be nothing, but, they were limited with their take off distance so maybe the extra weight was a problem. Also maybe they couldn't haul in enough fuel with the caribou for that either. Maybe they would have been better off to take it apart.
@757mech1 another thing I'm speculating on due to lack of knowledge but would they have to purge all the old hydraulic fluid and replace with new? Possibly cycling the gear helped work the old stuff out of the system if it's interconnected. The fuel system was another thing the documentary didn't cover. What did they do with the old fuel and how did they check the tank condition for contaminants so rust and crap wasn't coming loose as the pilot went baha?
Kee Bird was lost because they ran out of fuel and one of the last radio message was that they only had four minutes fuel onboard. I haven't read any accounts from the crew, but they did burn/destroy all classified documents and equipment. It's possible what little fuel was left along with the oil and hydraulic fluid was used for warmth and to destroy equipment, and that the tanks would have been mostly dry afterward.
Very, very sad to see this. Especially after so much work to repair it. But fate has a strange way of working. What would have been the outcome if some structural failure happened to the airframe when it took to the air after 50+years on the ice? Maybe this was the lesser pain that people had to bear, rather than a major loss of life. Usually everything happens for a reason. But still very sad to see such an ignomious end of such a rare and magnificent plane.
Do not get it - when starting such a project, would it not be wise from the beginning to have some firefighters around?? And even as the plane goes to shit at the end, would it not be better to tow it off the lake to keep it from sinking? There are some logical problems here that I cannot follow.
There's no firetrucks on a remote glacial lake. They had extinguishers, but it was a flash fuel fire and they only had seconds to escape before the plane filled with smoke. The plane didn't sink and it is resting on a shallow sand bar. To my knowledge, no permits have been granted for anyone to salvage what's left. It's still there as of 2011.
WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER OFF TAKING THE PLANE APART, AND SHIPPING IT HOME IN PIECES.. I REMEMBER WATCHING THIS WHEN IT AIRED, JUST ASS SAD NOW AS IT WAS THEN...
Sadly an engineer on the team died during the restoration work, partly as a result of working in such harsh conditions. At least he never knew the terrible ending for this plane.
The wreck is sitting on a shallow sand bar and is only partially submerged during the summer months. Strong winds have pushed the tail and other parts around. No new permits to salvage the remains have been given yet, but hopefully one day another team can get what is left of it. There is probably enough to use for parts in another restoration.
omg after putting so much hard work and effort in it, you get this...
thats so depressing
but with all the equipment they had and all the preperations, they didnt bring a fire extinguisor for a TEST flight in a plane thats over 60 years old and sat theyre for about 40 years?
i mean cmon, thats just plain dumb
you do have all the tools you need to swap engines and stuff but no fire extinguisor?
thats just ironic...
and shouldnt theyre be one in a plane at all times???
There was an extinguisher in the plane and someone was in the back where the fire started. He apparently stepped aside to put on goggles because the years of accumulated dust swirling around, and there was a flash fuel fire at the APU. The story is that he had just enough time alert the rest of crew over the intercom before the smoke was bad and they had to get out.
Sad to see the plane that literaly won the Pacific War for America... it's a shame, and i sure do hope mpore artifacts or maybe even Aircraft are found up there, and make it back home.
When I saw this many years ago as a kid it broke my heart to see this beautiful aircraft burn like that. and I have to say it still does! This was very painfull to watch!
I was so saddened to see this episode when I was young. It still breaks my heart to see this 15+yrs later. Turns out it was like disturbing an indian grave. I guess it really wasnt meant to ever fly again...
Don't tar them all with same brush. A lot of vintage aircraft have been saved from the scrapper's torch by salvagers who have the money and expertise to restore them. There are plenty of people still trying to cart them away for scrap value when nobody in watching. I've read recently where Chinese scrappers are active in the South Pacific today.
Read about the island of Morotai, which contained a large collection of combat veteran aircraft, both bombers and fighters. They were on military property and access was limited and in 1988 they were cleared and scrapped by scrap dealers from Java. If only some could have been saved.
@Ferrarikillen The B-29 Super Fortress was the planes that dropped the atomic bomb on Japan on August 7, 1945. Not trying to be an asshole, but there is a difference between a nuclear bomb and an atomic bomb. The nuclear bomb was not developed until 1952 by the united states with the development of the hydrogen bomb. Atomic bomb depends on fission, nuclear depends on fusion. But to answer your question yes, it was a B-29, named the Enola Gay, that dropped the atomic bomb on Japan.
WTF I was seriously expecting an inspirational documentary about resurrecting an old warbird... Then Rick dies, and now this!? I am so fucking depressed at this point... this is seriously a tragedy :(
Strange project really. I kind of enjoyed watching the team behave like 'The A-team' at times. But the reality is, they killed Rick through cutting corners and ignoring safety, and destroyed a beautiful plane.
Rick developed internal bleeding after he was hit by equipment in rough landing. I believe one of the large aircraft jacks struck him. So it was delayed medical treatment which led to his death.
@FiveCentsPlease its difficult to know how much pressure was put on rick behind the cameras to help out during with issues. I think the project leader should be sued.
Vintage aviation has no room for your '' Im gonna Fly her home MYself '' ego! DAMN FOOLS!! Im so pissed right now, wish I had never seen this video. RIP ole girl no more fuckoff wanabe warbird pilots will mess with you anymore.........
The fire extinguisher was in the back? as in the only fire extinguisher!!! These guys have spirit but what fools! If the b-29 is famous for one thing as an aircraft it is that it is a flying matchhead!! Most of the fire troubles were associated with the old 3350engines bet my God shes 60 years old and your going to go highspeed off roading in her! She should have had a full crew, each with a fire extinguisher. If you can get all that crap and parts there you can take her down and carry her home!
So sad to see that happen. Would never have caught an issue like that without a total teardown, lets face it, an APU that size isn't just gonna jiggle if you try to shake it by hand. Glad they at least tried...would have been an even bigger shame to just leave it there to rot, at least it went down swinging.
RETARDED, you have destroyed a piece of history with your stupidity. Money + IDIOT = DISASTER. Not enough checking, too much assuming, no fire extinguishers, a simple bulldozer blade instead of a groomer, IDIOTS! Sickening.
I fucking hate these Idiots! Didn't even look at the plane proper! Not even noticing everything was loose. He even says he'd do it again, please keep him from doing it!
Fucking idiot. If he wasn't playing cowboy, a museum could have dismantled it and shipped it in parts in 1/10th the time. Asshole. "I'd do it again..." Drop dead.
It was possible, just expensive. At least it was assumed that moving it in pieces would have been more expensive than the money value of the aircraft, which is not how history should be treated. The B-29 "Doc" was dismantled and trucked from the China Lake target range, and while there are large pieces it's just a logistical problem.
@FiveCentsPlease But this is in the middle of the Artic without a full size runway, so aircraft capable of lifting large items would be unable to land there.
Yes and no, and I don't know how much room they were working with. The lake is about 3000' wide (and they obviously needed enough to fly the B-29.) They flew in new replacement engines, so they had some heavy lift capability for some parts. SkyCrane rental was an expensive option, but probably the best option even if short-range and fuel-thirsty. The costs of each flight was very high and the project had financial backers expecting a profit, so money was a factor.
@FiveCentsPlease It not just weight but also space. They had the maximum weight capacity of 5 tons with their tractor. But there are size limitations as well. I am not an expert on the b29 but there is no way a wing spar or the air frame will fit into that little cargo plane. Maybe they thought the cost of restoring the aircraft there and flying outweighed the cost and risks than to dismantle it. It makes for a good story anyways.
Look at period photos showing the B-29 major sub-assembly components. What would not fit in a heavy-lift aircraft could have probably been air-lifted out (via Skycrane), but this would have been very costly in equipment rental for the helicopter and for fuel. Skycranes were used for several aircraft recoveries from remote locations in Russia. Costs outweighed risks for this venture, I believe.
@FiveCentsPlease I am sure there are smarter people than me, there are smarter people than you. People make mistakes all the time, that is why we are human, if no one ever messed up the world would be a rather boring place. Whose is this population of Greenland? Mother Nature and about 5 other people. Honestly how many people actually live in Greenland?
There has been (and still is) a lot of raw emotion over how this operation was conducted for many years among historians and vintage aircraft owners, so much that it's still a bitter topic on many forums. It's more about the loss of the rare aircraft than about the mess that was left, although I understand that Greenland (Denmark) was not interested in giving new salvage permits for a while because of this, but have recently allowed new permits. Continued...
@FiveCentsPlease Ok, if they are so distraught over the loss and care so deeply about the aircraft why didnt they fund their own little project to restore their aircraft. It is so easy to criticize people once they mess up and claiming how good they could have been. Maybe they should have actually done it and put their actions to where their mouth is.
Actually an interested group tried to go and recover what was left of the burned plane a while ago, and Greenland said no because of all the mess and trash that had been left the first time. Perhaps another group WILL try some day. A photo from 2011 that I've seen shows that the wind and weather is ripping apart what is left, so perhaps it's too late.
@FiveCentsPlease Ok, I looked up surviving B29 to find more information about the Kee Bird, and I found that there are like 30 other airframes in museums and others being currently restored. There are airframes still around and can still be flyable. It's not like the Kee Birds was the last one on Earth. So lets not get our panties in a bunch and blow this out of proportion.
Could they have succeeded with the flight? Perhaps. Did they get in a hurry and make a mistake? Yup. Was there a better and more conservative approach to recover this historical aircraft? Indeed. Not just my opinion, but echoing the opinion of many, including some smarter and richer than me.
@FiveCentsPleaseYou do not know if they hurried into this, all you know is what PBS showed you. They very well could have planned out everything yet things go wrong. In all great endeavors there is a lot of risk as well as a chance for great success. Patton said "every plan is good until is good until the first shot is fired" Nasa lost 2 almost 3 space shuttles do you think they had hurried and not planned everything out? Life is not set in stone there are many variables which makes it dynamic
I never watched this Nova documentary, and I understand that the show glossed things over. My info comes 2nd hand from people who've talked to the original recovery team and from people working with other large warbirds. This recovery team wasn't stupid, but it was careless to jerry-rig a fuel can that spilled on the hot APU.
@FiveCentsPlease So why are you here if you never watched the video? Why would you come to this video, not watch it, and post comments on here? Let me ask you this have you never made a mistake in your life, have you never been careless? Ill answer that for you, its, no. You have made mistakes just like everyone else in this world. For the other comment: maybe some of these distraught rich people should spend some of their money restoring other B29s instead of just whining over spilled milk.
And who died and made you moderator? I offer comments because they are relevant to subject at hand and I have an appreciable knowledge to help answer questions for those who ask, and I have slightly more info on this subject than a layman and certainly more than you. The other people you criticize for being "upset" do in fact contribute their time, energy and substantial amount of personal money for historic aviation and this is more than you are offering currently.
@FiveCentsPlease And they offer much more than you, a knowledgeable person,who spends all their energy criticizing people who were trying to help restore airplanes. It seems silly to me to go to a video, not watch it, and state your criticisms on it. Perhaps you do you have more information but you have to prove anything you said backed up by a source. You claim you know a lot but but most of what you said was your opinions.
And I freely express my opinions and answer questions unless the video owner tells me not to. If you know anything about aviation, you will know that they don't hand out gold stars for mistakes like you wish to do. The whiners (as you call them) complain loudly because what transpired deserves root cause analysis from every angle--that's what aviators and anyone working in the business is trained to do.
@FiveCentsPlease Obviously he messed up, think about the poor guy, he lost airplane, he lost his friend, he's probably in deep financial trouble. He knows he messed up, why not go easy on him. You do not have to beat him when hes already down. Whining and complaining will do nothing to analyze and help uncover the truth, so why do it at all. You still have not showed me a single source.
This wasn't some guy who emptied his retirement savings for a dream. This project had financial backers for $500K and was a for-profit venture to recover this plane in dramatic fashion and sell it for a profit. This is more speculation from other conversations, but the project and aircraft was probably insured ($2M is the rumor) so leaving the wreck after the accident allowed the backers to collect on the policy. I doubt much money was lost in the end.
@FiveCentsPlease While you at it, criticizing people who messed up, go on some challenger and columbia memorial video and say how they were careless. "they should have thought of everything and made sure all the fuel lines were in place and the tiles we secure" See how you received there.
The Shuttle accidents have been discussed ad-nauseum and were both the subject of public investigations which you can read online, including criticisms of the project and the mission. For you to somehow suggest that those accidents are above criticism after the terrible loss of life is both ludicrous and reprehensible.
@FiveCentsPlease That was not the point I was trying to make, you were saying that these people were careless which why they messed up. I countered by saying that just because you mess up does not mean that you were careless, aka Shuttle accidents. Accidents do require investigations but criticizing the space program is stupid. How many gains and technologies have we benefited from this program? It not like is was a waste of life these people knew the risks.
@FiveCentsPlease What is the difference between astronauts dying in space than soldiers dying Afghanistan or people dying of hunger in America. Why not criticize all causes of death and make attempts to fix them
Wow im really amazed by the sense of adventure and daring. Though the loss of life and the failure at the end didn't stop these men from trying. And i bet they will do so again when an opportunity arises. Cheers Darryl and team, rip Rick.
La parte mas delicada del avión no puede conservarse por 50 años, cables, circuitos etc. Una gran pena invertir tanto para nada.
rodrimachado100 4 hours ago
if only u guys tied a rop to it bcs then u could have tode it back that way
blackhawks430 15 hours ago
what a shame it they didn't succeed, they gave it everything they had and tried their best. I guess the arctic was meant to be the B-29's final resting place.
SEGAjdb 20 hours ago
good thing you "fixed" it...
nhollinger123 20 hours ago
whoah!
Narrator: Richard Creanna
wallerron 1 day ago
damn
zythepsarian 1 day ago
I watched this entire program when it ran on PBS. So sad. Some time later, the Confederate Air Force's B-29 "FIFI" came through Little Rock. When I mentioned something to the pilot about the program, he let me know that those radial engines and props were in the possession of the C.A.F. Nice to know part of the Kee Bird survives.
n5syr01 1 day ago
that was a blessing,,,, good thing it didn't take off with any of these guys in it. Still a real shame.
subron6er 1 day ago
Shit!! ...What a bastard after all that work.
cashman156 2 days ago
they should have taken it apart and moved it out that way then rebuilt it at another location dumb asses they deserve their failure
TheDopedemon69 2 days ago
They taxied the plane way to fast too much bouncing.
djfelon4life 2 days ago
that sucks
byd4201 3 days ago
I saw the entire documentary some years ago. If I recall correctly after all the effort to restore and to get this bird into flying condition again and given the monumental task at hand, she caught fire during her run up to lift off on a makeshift plowed strip. I think it was a ruptured auxiliary fuel cell that caused it.
To even attempt such an endeavor was the product of passion and a thorough understanding of the war years!
Just my two cents worth.
Just my two cents worth.
Tull29 3 days ago
its the ghost of the old crew members who did not want the plane to leave its resting place.
48censor 3 days ago
Sad
RatkoUSA 3 days ago
... A real tragedy.....
Asovtcev 3 days ago
Why can not disarmed and restored. It was obvious that if the place will power in a problem could happen. The plane was there for 50 years. It is naive to think that everything would be fine.
josekosteleta 3 days ago
i would have put a rope on to it and pull it with the caribou bcs of the front tire it would have kept it strait but o well whats gone is gone
blackhawks430 3 days ago
Wasted because of a stupid mistake... How sad..
airbeamer 4 days ago
...just tragic! .. and sad
TheGentleman4u 4 days ago
haha fail
Mw3EliteVids 4 days ago
i know where there is another b29 in hood river oregon . 97031
popingamat 4 days ago
I watch this once a year and I keep hoping they take off. I know, I know...it doesn't..read Hunting Warbirds. You'll get a behind the scenes perspective and meet a few interesting characters. It's good because it's not fiction.
29erJuliet 4 days ago
I'm curious about the Russian basically exact copies through reverse engineering of a captured B-29. Do any survive, possibly as a parts source? I think TU-4 is what they called them.
bc1969214 4 days ago
@bc1969214
Several TU-4s survive. There's enough of the Kee Bird wreckage to incorporate with other surviving B-29 wrecks. But consider the costs of transporting the pieces verses just finding another B-29 from a museum willing to part with it or trade for another airplane (which museums sometimes do as well.)
FiveCentsPlease 4 days ago
Wow. Nice job. There was a plane there. Now there's a big burned pile of shit. Awful nice of you to not bother cleaning up the mess you made, & just consider the fuckin ocean your garbage dump. Out of sight, out of mind hey? Makes for good TV though.
Asses.
spuzzmacher 4 days ago
Human stupidity knows no bounds.
jare72 4 days ago
they burnt it)
olalator 5 days ago
these people where IDIOTS...do u really expect to fly a 50 year old aircraft with minimal repairs that has been sitting in the same spot for so long...even if it got off the ground, everyone would have DIED
USArmy19DScout 5 days ago
Pretty stupid to bounce the aircraft around as recklessly as they did...
duttonvv 5 days ago
I remember watching this on TV many years ago and I feel just as sorry for those guys now as I did back then.
WTP2k 5 days ago
que lastima ,tanto trabajo perdido y dinero a mas de la perdida del aerplano
MrJuan741852963 6 days ago
A piece of history irreplaceable history and they fucked it up! I cannot even describe the feeling i have for these dumb fucks!
tangler1781 6 days ago
@tangler1781 Before you start spouting off about these "dumb fucks" they tried to bring the B-29 out of there to be fully restored. I remember watching this show and I believe that at least two of the rescue crew died while readying the plane for flight
P51ride 5 days ago
I hope they had insurance
boggo58 6 days ago
@boggo58
Yes they did.
FiveCentsPlease 5 days ago
This has been flagged as spam show
I hope they had insurance
boggo58 6 days ago
I hope they had insurance
boggo58 6 days ago
Man that is lot of work to finally go up in smoke. Does make one wonder about fate.
cadude145 6 days ago
how could they make such a boneheaded mistake after all of that work and preparation...got too anxious I guess..
my31and37 6 days ago
that is soo unlucky :( yep what a shame, poor guys... after all that effort.
TtimWh 6 days ago
Saw this years ago.......so let see if I remember it right before I see the vid, They spent all this time & effort Toiled so hard. At the last minute they tied down a generator in the tail with some bungee cords, generator broke free, spilled gas everywhere, No-one had an extinguisher & the thing burn't to the ground...........AFU.
RichardEllisxyz 6 days ago
This has been flagged as spam show
Una bonita manera de destrozar una reliquia histórica de la aviación... Estos tipos no son historiadores ni son nada, son lunáticos... Si no puedes rescatar el B-29, por lo menos no lo destroces... Y mira el resultado ¿Cómo va a volar un aparato 50 años después sin un mantenimiento adecuado y expuesto a temperaturas tan bajas?, contando que cada "verano" vuelven a descongelarse ciertas partes, lo que ocasiona: congelación y descongelación la putrefacción de algunas partes y rotura de otras...
botijote 6 days ago
so they found a b-29, set it on fire and broke it
Stimor 6 days ago
Could be an insurance scam!
Plainsfyre 1 week ago
they were told about the risks when they attempted this. such a useless waste.
mcdonaldluke6 1 week ago
I wish I did not watch this. What a let down
EvlMagus 1 week ago
So sad :(
lordkreigs1978 1 week ago
was not expecting that ending , great film
69vincentblackshadow 1 week ago
"This is my game and I'd do it again", he says... This game's been played and lost. It is really a shame that this happened. I am sure it could have been prevented somehow...
HomeBuiltJunk 1 week ago
sitting around a campfire :P
obama486 1 week ago
:'(((
cosminogloo 1 week ago
Comment removed
IconicSpitters 1 week ago
What a shame, after Rick dies and everyone else's great efforts what a terrible ending.
MrDayd3 1 week ago
I don't know why they wasted time with gear swings and all the nitnoid stuff they were doing. I can see new engines, props and recovering the flight controls but they were only going to fly 250 miles and then prepared for a much longer flight where tasks could have been done a lot easier. There was some ghost in that airplane. It didn't want to leave.
757mech1 1 week ago
@757mech1 I don't know but could they have flown it the 250 miles with gear down as far as drag consuming too much fuel?
bc1969214 4 days ago
@bc1969214 Well bc, That is a valid question. B-29's had huge range so I would think 250 miles would be nothing, but, they were limited with their take off distance so maybe the extra weight was a problem. Also maybe they couldn't haul in enough fuel with the caribou for that either. Maybe they would have been better off to take it apart.
757mech1 4 days ago
@757mech1 another thing I'm speculating on due to lack of knowledge but would they have to purge all the old hydraulic fluid and replace with new? Possibly cycling the gear helped work the old stuff out of the system if it's interconnected. The fuel system was another thing the documentary didn't cover. What did they do with the old fuel and how did they check the tank condition for contaminants so rust and crap wasn't coming loose as the pilot went baha?
bc1969214 2 days ago
@bc1969214
Kee Bird was lost because they ran out of fuel and one of the last radio message was that they only had four minutes fuel onboard. I haven't read any accounts from the crew, but they did burn/destroy all classified documents and equipment. It's possible what little fuel was left along with the oil and hydraulic fluid was used for warmth and to destroy equipment, and that the tanks would have been mostly dry afterward.
FiveCentsPlease 2 days ago
@FiveCentsPlease appreciate all the detail. I also see wikipedia has a page on Kee Bird to check out so I'll read up a bit.
bc1969214 2 days ago
Very, very sad to see this. Especially after so much work to repair it. But fate has a strange way of working. What would have been the outcome if some structural failure happened to the airframe when it took to the air after 50+years on the ice? Maybe this was the lesser pain that people had to bear, rather than a major loss of life. Usually everything happens for a reason. But still very sad to see such an ignomious end of such a rare and magnificent plane.
multirichard007 1 week ago
I want to find a plane. :)
manixcer 1 week ago
Do not get it - when starting such a project, would it not be wise from the beginning to have some firefighters around?? And even as the plane goes to shit at the end, would it not be better to tow it off the lake to keep it from sinking? There are some logical problems here that I cannot follow.
genjuro88 1 week ago
@genjuro88
There's no firetrucks on a remote glacial lake. They had extinguishers, but it was a flash fuel fire and they only had seconds to escape before the plane filled with smoke. The plane didn't sink and it is resting on a shallow sand bar. To my knowledge, no permits have been granted for anyone to salvage what's left. It's still there as of 2011.
FiveCentsPlease 1 week ago
Nothing a bit of 'gaffer' tape couldn't sort out!!!
paulcox60 1 week ago
WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER OFF TAKING THE PLANE APART, AND SHIPPING IT HOME IN PIECES.. I REMEMBER WATCHING THIS WHEN IT AIRED, JUST ASS SAD NOW AS IT WAS THEN...
BUFORDize 1 week ago
xD omg its like a dubstep song with no drop! and wtf really you didn't take a fire extinguisher? smart ass
D4NI3LGONZALEZZ 1 week ago
I would have been so pissed.
ZnOZincOxide 1 week ago
@ZnOZincOxide I ejaculated all over my computer screen.
HelloHansSolo 1 week ago
well, some parts are salvageable.
EquipaPatriot 1 week ago
Nothing like the sound of money going down the drain!
loatherd 2 weeks ago
FAIL.. LOL!
DUSKWERK 2 weeks ago
This is the coolest plane i have ever seen love all the windows in the cockpit.It so sad it ended
up destroyed . I thought it was going to take off for a minute there.Where is a fire extinguisher
when you need one............DAMN..
matt007gehrig 2 weeks ago
Sadly an engineer on the team died during the restoration work, partly as a result of working in such harsh conditions. At least he never knew the terrible ending for this plane.
TheSpiritof1969 2 weeks ago
Ok if they got all of those supplies in to rebuild it, why couldn't they just take it apart and save a cherished part of American history?
arenafootballfan1 2 weeks ago
Thank you for uploading this vid!...so sad,the mechanik who died and then the fire...
boetschge 2 weeks ago
SHITTI PLANE
BanditV8racer 2 weeks ago
fantastic! my grandfather was a flight engineer (r.a.a.f.) on the lancasters in the u.k. in ww2 .this gives me some idea of what they got up too.
thanks for posting this ,my Sunday is now complete
knot4real 2 weeks ago
now the plane will sink to the boddem of the ocean
should have left it theyre where it was
its like its cursed or something
it was wrong in the first place to try and make profit of it (sry for my bad english)
Nelis1992 2 weeks ago
@Nelis1992
The wreck is sitting on a shallow sand bar and is only partially submerged during the summer months. Strong winds have pushed the tail and other parts around. No new permits to salvage the remains have been given yet, but hopefully one day another team can get what is left of it. There is probably enough to use for parts in another restoration.
FiveCentsPlease 2 weeks ago
@FiveCentsPlease
Yeah, im not a aircraft expert but i guess you could use the engines, landing gear, propellors,tail and wings for other remaining B-29's.
Nelis1992 2 weeks ago
omg after putting so much hard work and effort in it, you get this...
thats so depressing
but with all the equipment they had and all the preperations, they didnt bring a fire extinguisor for a TEST flight in a plane thats over 60 years old and sat theyre for about 40 years?
i mean cmon, thats just plain dumb
you do have all the tools you need to swap engines and stuff but no fire extinguisor?
thats just ironic...
and shouldnt theyre be one in a plane at all times???
Nelis1992 2 weeks ago
@Nelis1992
There was an extinguisher in the plane and someone was in the back where the fire started. He apparently stepped aside to put on goggles because the years of accumulated dust swirling around, and there was a flash fuel fire at the APU. The story is that he had just enough time alert the rest of crew over the intercom before the smoke was bad and they had to get out.
FiveCentsPlease 2 weeks ago
lol
Spazzticated2c 2 weeks ago
WTF IS SO SAD ITS A UGLY SHIT PLANE
BanditV8racer 2 weeks ago
@BanditV8racer its history dear sir, history!
MrTrollslayer1996 2 weeks ago
Sad to see the plane that literaly won the Pacific War for America... it's a shame, and i sure do hope mpore artifacts or maybe even Aircraft are found up there, and make it back home.
joemandudeperson 3 weeks ago
When I saw this many years ago as a kid it broke my heart to see this beautiful aircraft burn like that. and I have to say it still does! This was very painfull to watch!
Verdunveteran 3 weeks ago
stupid bastard.
they're crazy
davideariel 3 weeks ago
incredible
YINGYANGPOLARBEAR 3 weeks ago
I was so saddened to see this episode when I was young. It still breaks my heart to see this 15+yrs later. Turns out it was like disturbing an indian grave. I guess it really wasnt meant to ever fly again...
182deuce 3 weeks ago 14
@182deuce
It was meant to fly. But it needed to be dismantled and rebuilt in an air conditioned hangar.
Alpha1Papa 1 week ago 2
this is so sad
Askate 3 weeks ago
Great job!!! All credit, you made it! Dont forget that!! From sweden
mathias577 3 weeks ago
I saw one of these in Memphis, was surprised how small it was compared to B52G
1938dmkdz 3 weeks ago
Beautiful
1938dmkdz 3 weeks ago
what a shame:(
thenitrorcfreak 3 weeks ago 5
This is what greed gets you. I hate aircraft salvagers.
cobrachoppergirl 3 weeks ago
@cobrachoppergirl
Don't tar them all with same brush. A lot of vintage aircraft have been saved from the scrapper's torch by salvagers who have the money and expertise to restore them. There are plenty of people still trying to cart them away for scrap value when nobody in watching. I've read recently where Chinese scrappers are active in the South Pacific today.
FiveCentsPlease 3 weeks ago
@cobrachoppergirl
Read about the island of Morotai, which contained a large collection of combat veteran aircraft, both bombers and fighters. They were on military property and access was limited and in 1988 they were cleared and scrapped by scrap dealers from Java. If only some could have been saved.
FiveCentsPlease 3 weeks ago
Probably the fire saved their asses. Who knows what would have happened after take off.
toddi1971 3 weeks ago
just wasnt meant to be. no hard feelings. look for a new B29 to start up
chevyvictor 3 weeks ago
who needs an extinguisher when you have snow
KBJade39 3 weeks ago
was it a B-29 that dropt Nuces on japan?
Ferrarikillen 3 weeks ago
@Ferrarikillen The B-29 Super Fortress was the planes that dropped the atomic bomb on Japan on August 7, 1945. Not trying to be an asshole, but there is a difference between a nuclear bomb and an atomic bomb. The nuclear bomb was not developed until 1952 by the united states with the development of the hydrogen bomb. Atomic bomb depends on fission, nuclear depends on fusion. But to answer your question yes, it was a B-29, named the Enola Gay, that dropped the atomic bomb on Japan.
SilentM21 3 weeks ago
What a total fuck-up. I feel awful for him.
biggyjeans1 3 weeks ago
unexpected end...
ScrapMetalDriver 3 weeks ago
Rest in Peace Rick...Rest in Peace Kee Bird~!
sandman19681012 3 weeks ago
WTF I was seriously expecting an inspirational documentary about resurrecting an old warbird... Then Rick dies, and now this!? I am so fucking depressed at this point... this is seriously a tragedy :(
dantheman9758 3 weeks ago
In the wintery grave it shall stay...
MrRichie357 3 weeks ago
wow fail guys fail
whitedragon1204 4 weeks ago
Carelessness caused this.
xoio 4 weeks ago
Strange project really. I kind of enjoyed watching the team behave like 'The A-team' at times. But the reality is, they killed Rick through cutting corners and ignoring safety, and destroyed a beautiful plane.
markyboy28able99 4 weeks ago
@markyboy28able99
Rick developed internal bleeding after he was hit by equipment in rough landing. I believe one of the large aircraft jacks struck him. So it was delayed medical treatment which led to his death.
FiveCentsPlease 4 weeks ago
@FiveCentsPlease its difficult to know how much pressure was put on rick behind the cameras to help out during with issues. I think the project leader should be sued.
markyboy28able99 4 weeks ago
@markyboy28able99
One account states that it was his choice and he refused treatment, and when he got worse he was in bad shape and they got him out.
FiveCentsPlease 4 weeks ago
I admire these guys for having a go but seeing that old girl go up in flames kinda made me wish they'd left it well alone.
martin2419 1 month ago
i felt like crying at the end
thamoja 1 month ago
Vintage aviation has no room for your '' Im gonna Fly her home MYself '' ego! DAMN FOOLS!! Im so pissed right now, wish I had never seen this video. RIP ole girl no more fuckoff wanabe warbird pilots will mess with you anymore.........
5mrmotor 1 month ago
The fire extinguisher was in the back? as in the only fire extinguisher!!! These guys have spirit but what fools! If the b-29 is famous for one thing as an aircraft it is that it is a flying matchhead!! Most of the fire troubles were associated with the old 3350engines bet my God shes 60 years old and your going to go highspeed off roading in her! She should have had a full crew, each with a fire extinguisher. If you can get all that crap and parts there you can take her down and carry her home!
5mrmotor 1 month ago
Darryl should have freighted the plane out. This was the result of POOR planning and irresponsible action. More money than sense.
TYMMCHN 1 month ago
Comment removed
DiamondPilotDan 1 month ago
that makes me sad
TheKmk4420 1 month ago in playlist More videos from Dylan1191698
So sad to see that happen. Would never have caught an issue like that without a total teardown, lets face it, an APU that size isn't just gonna jiggle if you try to shake it by hand. Glad they at least tried...would have been an even bigger shame to just leave it there to rot, at least it went down swinging.
wingman7700 1 month ago
My dad always said: "Son, you should start with something small." - A seal perhaps?
LaburnumDorado 1 month ago
NOOOO!!!!!
XTC4rava 1 month ago
RETARDED, you have destroyed a piece of history with your stupidity. Money + IDIOT = DISASTER. Not enough checking, too much assuming, no fire extinguishers, a simple bulldozer blade instead of a groomer, IDIOTS! Sickening.
ToxicHolocaust2050 1 month ago
I fucking hate these Idiots! Didn't even look at the plane proper! Not even noticing everything was loose. He even says he'd do it again, please keep him from doing it!
ACEMAN220 1 month ago
Utter Morons, that left their dreamy eyed emotions over the reality of what the plane really needed.
ACEMAN220 1 month ago
sad all it need was that bit more and it woud fly
88stevenash 1 month ago
What a sad ending to a beautiful war bird.
Lelouch798 1 month ago
how sad
AeroNY28 1 month ago 2
Awe god! This is how it ends?! Man... Poor guy that passed on and the plane goes up in smoke. :( God bless.
MachetePanda 1 month ago
aww you fuckers(caught fire)!
verdemanthe1 1 month ago
You would think they had a fire crew ready on full alert on such ventures. Cutting corners bites you in the ass.
GlennRobert71 1 month ago
That was painful to watch, how sad. I think this is the definition of divine intervention.
scottturchin 1 month ago
Fucking idiot. If he wasn't playing cowboy, a museum could have dismantled it and shipped it in parts in 1/10th the time. Asshole. "I'd do it again..." Drop dead.
KnuckleTheMoose 1 month ago
@KnuckleTheMoose I do not think that is possible...
1airplane21 1 month ago
@1airplane21
It was possible, just expensive. At least it was assumed that moving it in pieces would have been more expensive than the money value of the aircraft, which is not how history should be treated. The B-29 "Doc" was dismantled and trucked from the China Lake target range, and while there are large pieces it's just a logistical problem.
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPlease But this is in the middle of the Artic without a full size runway, so aircraft capable of lifting large items would be unable to land there.
1airplane21 1 month ago
@1airplane21
Yes and no, and I don't know how much room they were working with. The lake is about 3000' wide (and they obviously needed enough to fly the B-29.) They flew in new replacement engines, so they had some heavy lift capability for some parts. SkyCrane rental was an expensive option, but probably the best option even if short-range and fuel-thirsty. The costs of each flight was very high and the project had financial backers expecting a profit, so money was a factor.
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPlease It not just weight but also space. They had the maximum weight capacity of 5 tons with their tractor. But there are size limitations as well. I am not an expert on the b29 but there is no way a wing spar or the air frame will fit into that little cargo plane. Maybe they thought the cost of restoring the aircraft there and flying outweighed the cost and risks than to dismantle it. It makes for a good story anyways.
1airplane21 1 month ago
@1airplane21
Look at period photos showing the B-29 major sub-assembly components. What would not fit in a heavy-lift aircraft could have probably been air-lifted out (via Skycrane), but this would have been very costly in equipment rental for the helicopter and for fuel. Skycranes were used for several aircraft recoveries from remote locations in Russia. Costs outweighed risks for this venture, I believe.
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPlease Well maybe you should have raised the money necessary to rent the Skycrane. Instead of being a backseat driver...
1airplane21 1 month ago
@1airplane21
People smarter than yourself have offered better opinions on this misadventure. Greenland was none too happy with the mess that was left.
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPlease who cares about Greenland, they will get over it! The B-29 is gone forever
tfxbillet 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPlease I am sure there are smarter people than me, there are smarter people than you. People make mistakes all the time, that is why we are human, if no one ever messed up the world would be a rather boring place. Whose is this population of Greenland? Mother Nature and about 5 other people. Honestly how many people actually live in Greenland?
1airplane21 1 month ago
@1airplane21
There has been (and still is) a lot of raw emotion over how this operation was conducted for many years among historians and vintage aircraft owners, so much that it's still a bitter topic on many forums. It's more about the loss of the rare aircraft than about the mess that was left, although I understand that Greenland (Denmark) was not interested in giving new salvage permits for a while because of this, but have recently allowed new permits. Continued...
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPlease Ok, if they are so distraught over the loss and care so deeply about the aircraft why didnt they fund their own little project to restore their aircraft. It is so easy to criticize people once they mess up and claiming how good they could have been. Maybe they should have actually done it and put their actions to where their mouth is.
1airplane21 1 month ago
Comment removed
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@1airplane21
Actually an interested group tried to go and recover what was left of the burned plane a while ago, and Greenland said no because of all the mess and trash that had been left the first time. Perhaps another group WILL try some day. A photo from 2011 that I've seen shows that the wind and weather is ripping apart what is left, so perhaps it's too late.
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPlease Ok, I looked up surviving B29 to find more information about the Kee Bird, and I found that there are like 30 other airframes in museums and others being currently restored. There are airframes still around and can still be flyable. It's not like the Kee Birds was the last one on Earth. So lets not get our panties in a bunch and blow this out of proportion.
1airplane21 1 month ago
@1airplane21
Could they have succeeded with the flight? Perhaps. Did they get in a hurry and make a mistake? Yup. Was there a better and more conservative approach to recover this historical aircraft? Indeed. Not just my opinion, but echoing the opinion of many, including some smarter and richer than me.
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPleaseYou do not know if they hurried into this, all you know is what PBS showed you. They very well could have planned out everything yet things go wrong. In all great endeavors there is a lot of risk as well as a chance for great success. Patton said "every plan is good until is good until the first shot is fired" Nasa lost 2 almost 3 space shuttles do you think they had hurried and not planned everything out? Life is not set in stone there are many variables which makes it dynamic
1airplane21 1 month ago
@1airplane21
I never watched this Nova documentary, and I understand that the show glossed things over. My info comes 2nd hand from people who've talked to the original recovery team and from people working with other large warbirds. This recovery team wasn't stupid, but it was careless to jerry-rig a fuel can that spilled on the hot APU.
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPlease So why are you here if you never watched the video? Why would you come to this video, not watch it, and post comments on here? Let me ask you this have you never made a mistake in your life, have you never been careless? Ill answer that for you, its, no. You have made mistakes just like everyone else in this world. For the other comment: maybe some of these distraught rich people should spend some of their money restoring other B29s instead of just whining over spilled milk.
1airplane21 1 month ago
@1airplane21
And who died and made you moderator? I offer comments because they are relevant to subject at hand and I have an appreciable knowledge to help answer questions for those who ask, and I have slightly more info on this subject than a layman and certainly more than you. The other people you criticize for being "upset" do in fact contribute their time, energy and substantial amount of personal money for historic aviation and this is more than you are offering currently.
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPlease And they offer much more than you, a knowledgeable person,who spends all their energy criticizing people who were trying to help restore airplanes. It seems silly to me to go to a video, not watch it, and state your criticisms on it. Perhaps you do you have more information but you have to prove anything you said backed up by a source. You claim you know a lot but but most of what you said was your opinions.
1airplane21 1 month ago
@1airplane21
And I freely express my opinions and answer questions unless the video owner tells me not to. If you know anything about aviation, you will know that they don't hand out gold stars for mistakes like you wish to do. The whiners (as you call them) complain loudly because what transpired deserves root cause analysis from every angle--that's what aviators and anyone working in the business is trained to do.
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPlease Obviously he messed up, think about the poor guy, he lost airplane, he lost his friend, he's probably in deep financial trouble. He knows he messed up, why not go easy on him. You do not have to beat him when hes already down. Whining and complaining will do nothing to analyze and help uncover the truth, so why do it at all. You still have not showed me a single source.
1airplane21 1 month ago
@1airplane21
This wasn't some guy who emptied his retirement savings for a dream. This project had financial backers for $500K and was a for-profit venture to recover this plane in dramatic fashion and sell it for a profit. This is more speculation from other conversations, but the project and aircraft was probably insured ($2M is the rumor) so leaving the wreck after the accident allowed the backers to collect on the policy. I doubt much money was lost in the end.
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPlease Well think about how guilty he feels, and all the other terms still apply.
1airplane21 4 weeks ago
@FiveCentsPlease While you at it, criticizing people who messed up, go on some challenger and columbia memorial video and say how they were careless. "they should have thought of everything and made sure all the fuel lines were in place and the tiles we secure" See how you received there.
1airplane21 1 month ago
@1airplane21
The Shuttle accidents have been discussed ad-nauseum and were both the subject of public investigations which you can read online, including criticisms of the project and the mission. For you to somehow suggest that those accidents are above criticism after the terrible loss of life is both ludicrous and reprehensible.
FiveCentsPlease 1 month ago
@FiveCentsPlease That was not the point I was trying to make, you were saying that these people were careless which why they messed up. I countered by saying that just because you mess up does not mean that you were careless, aka Shuttle accidents. Accidents do require investigations but criticizing the space program is stupid. How many gains and technologies have we benefited from this program? It not like is was a waste of life these people knew the risks.
1airplane21 4 weeks ago
@FiveCentsPlease What is the difference between astronauts dying in space than soldiers dying Afghanistan or people dying of hunger in America. Why not criticize all causes of death and make attempts to fix them
1airplane21 4 weeks ago
All this expertise, time, money and effort... gone, just makes me sick... you guys should still hold your heads up!
spoonwizzerd777 1 month ago in playlist More videos from Dylan1191698
Wow im really amazed by the sense of adventure and daring. Though the loss of life and the failure at the end didn't stop these men from trying. And i bet they will do so again when an opportunity arises. Cheers Darryl and team, rip Rick.
Tclans 1 month ago
A lesson to you all. Do not disturb history.
puddz2k8 1 month ago
You just knew it was not going to survive all of those ice bumps a ruts.
tiberiousss 1 month ago
Ну не пидерасы? Такой раритет с важным видом угрохали, мудачье.
razump 1 month ago in playlist Favorite videos