P-38, Glacier Girl's First Air Show

[Hickmaann90]

What a beatiful Girl.

I can´t wait to see the other P-38s

I hope they can recover those B-17, too.

[MrDjvaughn]

THAT IS SO COOL TO SEE A "P-38" THAT THEY FOUND AND "REBUILD"HER"AND"FLY"AGAIN",,!­..

[planeguy52]

A p38 flying wing with an A10 Wharthog. Incredible.

[pryletoncyo]

Majestic. I think the rescue of this plane from under hundreds of feet of ice was worth it. It's a beautiful plane, very non-standard configuration even for the time. The double tail reminds me of the Electra that Amelia Earhart flew last. It's so nice to see an original P-38 restored to flying condition after spending almost a half a century under ice.

[rjo3737]

The enthusiasts trying to recover the aircraft ran out of money. And time.

Roy Shoffner funded the rescue. Without him, the rescue may never have happened in time.

I worked for Roy's son John, in the UK at their plastics plant, so took a keen interest in the events.

I do not understand the implied criticism in an earlier post about the sale of the aircraft, insinuating disloyalty.

Bravo to Roy Shoffner and those guys.

[MrJerry196]

I watched the programme about this aircraft, rescued from it's icey tomb,getting it back to their home location and then re-building her to flying condition using 80% of the original parts is a fantastic feat, the restorers,deserve a good pat on the back for bringing this fantastic aircraft back to airworthiness for us all to enjoy and also a fitting tribute to all those that flew the P38 during and after WW2

[titansteelminer]

Yes, Glacier Girl is a wonder. However, as anything else in this world, money talks and the current owners aren't the rebuilders. The Shoffner family in Middlesboro KY, along with other investors, sold the P38 after it was constructed.

Sad fact of life for us here in KY. Enjoy your toy, but this wasn't her first air show, maybe for you guys but not for us here in Bell County KY.

[rcavi8tor]

Yeah, but at least it isn't the *(%& elevator music drowing out the engines like on a DVD you pay $20 for. Never could figure out why the people that produce those think I want to listen to elevator music when a P-38 or Mustang engine is running. That commercial jet's timing could have been a lot better.

[TravisModel92]

I swear there always has to be a damn jet in the back ground to cover up the sound of WWII birds

[FiveCentsPlease]

@TravisModel92

Precisely the reason I stopped going to airshows. The jets are flight prepped and the noise drowns out the experience of the old warbirds. Planners should allow time between flight displays. It's bad enough to have to listen to an airshow announcer who likes to listen to himself talk or horrible music blasting from 20-foot tall speakers. Small airshows without the fuss are much better.

[tejastiger61]

GLACIER GIRL is with out a doubt the most beautiful airplane in the modern world. The men who brought this plane back to live should recognized by the Congress along with the President and receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom. 

[critchley3819]

to good to be real

[trimar42]

ave

je suis admiratif devant le talent , la passion  qu il faut pour faire , de nos jours , conserver et faire voler encore ce vainqueur de la WW2

en france , hélas , il n existe rien de pareil ,

car , tres peu de francais , ont FAIT REELEMENT la guerre !

fred

[JackFlemingFan]

Glacier Girl is a knock out!!

[carlosmurphy4u]

The maiden flight landing was SPECTACULAR, I have it on tape somewhere but can't find it on u-tube.

[southern8127]

I saw this plane the day it arrived, I saw its first flight, and its last flight in town, When the plane was sold and flown out it circled town touched down and took back off passing 50 feet over my house, just imagining WWII and hundreds of these in formation is amazing. I hated to see it leave i grew up watching the restoration, hope to see it again sometime.

[Ms11565]

Did the Allison V-1710 engine in the P-38 have a supercharger? They didn't on the A model P-51 Mustang...

[rcavi8tor]

All P-38 versions from the F through the L variant used a version of the Allison V-1710 engine. Perhaps you are confusing the P-38 with the P-51 that did use the Merlin Rolls Royce engines although the original P-51 variant, the A model, used Allison engines. The B/C model Mustangs and D Mustangs all used the Merlin.

[herculesstrong]

p38's used merlins

[FiveCentsPlease]

@herculesstrong

A Merlin-powered P-38 was proposed, but none were built. All P-38s flew with Allisons.

[herculesstrong]

@FiveCentsPlease My mistake I was thinking of the Mosquito

[crazy7997]

What is funny. She was probably made by mainly women origanaly. Just glad there is people out there willing to spend the money to save our history. couple questions. What type of starter they using? What's the comprestion ratio of the engine. 8:1? and do they use a gear box between the engine and prop? And maybe that is why they were turning the engine over manually? to make sure everything is lube.

[FiveCentsPlease]

@crazy7997

Compression ratio is 6.65:1, there is a reduction gear on the front of the crankshaft for the prop (the P-39 had a gearbox since the engine was in the middle), the starter is inertial starting with an electrically spun flywheel.

[crazy7997]

Got to see a p-38 years ago flying with several other war birds. But what I remember the pilot never really got her up to the speed. Several of the other planes past it up. Just hard to imagine now an air craft carrier or two worth of those planes in the air now. That must of been a sight. The number of bombers and escorts that would be in the air at one time. Now days it's just one jet that you can't even see on radar.

[crazy7997]

Got to see a p-38 years ago flying with several other war birds. But what I remember the pilot never really got her up to the speed. Several of the other planes past it up.

[mindeloman]

how much did it cost to fully resurect this plane? I remember it was 1 million and change. Can you not buy one cheaper than the cost and effort to retrieve this one? How many p-38s are left?

[letnamsiew]

GREAT AIRCRAFT !

[JackFlemingFan]

Excellent!! Glacier Girl is a knock out!!

[HappyFoxIsHappy]

Facepalm@ the people spinning the prop at 3:11 , they're lucky the engine didn't kick on and slice one or two of them in half.

[rcavi8tor]

@HappyFoxIsHappy

Rotating the props is standard procedure to prevent hydraulic lock on radial engines which would severely damage the engine when it is started. The ignition is not on while this procedure is done so there is no chance of the engines starting. Since the P-38 uses inline Allisons it shouldn't have been necessary. They were probably being cautious since they had just finished the eleven year restoration just two days before this was taped.

[BB1951]

@rcavi8tor Thanks for the info. I always wondered why ground crews hand rotated the props on examples like the B29 bombers of WWII. Interesting.

[WildWillys]

@HappyFoxIsHappy

Give yourself a facepalm there smart guy!

[PirateSygnal]

@HappyFoxIsHappy Negative. The magnetos are turned off. It won't fire up.

[GreenBeret7259]

only warbird today with it's original engines =)

[laliux32]

is a very beautiful airplane ... one of my favorite aircraft of World War II, we see that is in excellent condition, being under the ice I keep it very well, wonderful restoration work, thank you very much for uploading the video ...

[hugewil38]

Great plane and the video is top notch, good job thanks!

[kolbpilot]

Gotta love the counter rotating props. I wonder how it would fly without 'em & wheather its' ever been done. I've read accounts of the OV-10 in Vietnam getting either two 'rights' or two 'lefts' & it flew just fine.

[909part2]

@kolbpilot it flew just fine, but by accounts you had to hold the rudder hard left on take off lol

[grazyarnie]

@kolbpilot

the counter rotating props...are to avoid the critical engine phenomenon ...it has no effect on the flying when both engines are working. Nice video, anyhow I learned from my uncle, who was a child during the active days of the P38 overhead Germany that espescially that bird was known to hunt down cows, horses and kids..he is no Nazi....I just wonder if You heard from stories like that...I dont blame the allies for fighting the Wehrmacht...no I know it was necessary...

[kolbpilot]

Interesting quote & perspective of your uncle. Some Allied pilots viewed livestock as part of the war effort & had no qualms shooting them up. On the other hand there are stories of P47 pilots who were sickened of the slaughter of horses once they saw what their guns were doing to transport columns.

[metallicastarwarsfan]

A B-25 is set up like that. They seem to work just fine. Then again fighters don't quite have the size that bombers do. But no doubt there were same-direction props sometimes.

[Redhawk092]

I saw the Glacier Girl's Dayton Airshow debut. What a beautiful bird. I also got to see her at the Gathering of Mustangs and Legends 2007.

[jrichardson524]

I knew Mr. Schnoffner personally. He was such a great man. I wish everyone could have seen the twinkle in his eye when he talked about his "girl".  The maiden flight was awesome. It is so amazing to think that I was there to experience history.

[lander4545]

Beautiful! 100% American engineering!

[jgstargazer]

The P-38 is such a beautiful plane. Next chance I get I'm heading down to the hobby store to buy me a model of a P-38 1-72 or larger scale and paint it just like Glacier Girl!

[jeanmiropica]

That's a good idea, mate! :)

[alainanoel]

wow they had a donation tbl at a show we went to and glad to see our $ flying now!! It's beautifull!!! I love it!!

[NSResponder]

It's just incredible to me that a plane under 300 feet of ice could be restored to flying condition. I would expect the pressure to have destroyed the structural integrity of the airframe.

-jcr

[ad356]

magnificent simply magnificent. this aircraft are living, breathing history lessons. i hope they can continue to fly for MANY MANY years, maybe forever.

[Pyromaster365]

seeing that beautiful aircraft still flying after 60yrs under the ice proves what a tough girl the p38 really is even a mighty b17 couldn't hold up under that kind of PRESSURE ! GOD I LOVE THAT PLANE! Has anyone seen the Liberty Belle, I'm not talking about that cracked bell ether. its a fortress thats been beautifully restored. and those engines! they make the ground quake on takeoff

[Rcracer867]

I can't believe they found the Glacier Girl and restored her to fly again. Amazing.

[joecichlid]

From what I remember of the story there are still two more P-38s over there in the ice just waiting to be saved.  The B-17 was pretty much a total loss from what I recall.

[rcavi8tor]

Should be 4 more as there were 5 that landed on the glacier. Last word I heard at Osh Kosh a year ago was that they were planning to go back to get some more of them.

[joecichlid]

I am not sure why I was thinking it was two more. Thanks for the info. If it wasn't for the 250+ feet of ice I am sure someone would have gotten them by now and started restoring them. I hope someone does and soon as those planes are just amazing if you ask me.

[Yamaha950]

theres just something that lightnings and mustangs have that no jet will ever be capable of gaining, even though I dont know what makes them so much cooler.

[brg73]

the p38 looks invisible at times. I do not know as a single engined jet could do what that did. It is also a favorite in gamiong, flight sims. Even bad graphics shows advantages.

[chicagocubsforever]

those old planes are awesome and are far more legendary than todays jets. i got to see the B17G Sentimental Journey fly, and another B17 Nine O NIne. they were so beautiful flying, and theyre engine sounded so awesome. I got a poster of the Sentimental Journey above my bed.

[redleg269]

The P38 was always my favorite plane of World War 2.

[marc3075]

I have a authenticated original wing panel to Glacier Girl - It's from the left upper wing area and about 4' x 2'.

One of my prized possessions.

[54spiritedwill54]

Wow, what an outstanding plane, so far ahead of it's time.

[doomantia]

What a majestic sight!!

[Lurvakt]

That was awesome footage of my favorite ww2 plane! Thanks for uploading that! I only wish I coulda been there in person for that show! :D

[amoswt]

It gave me a good feeling to see those two freedom fighters flying side by side.The P38 and the A10.A great display of Americas peace though strength policy.

[gruntythirst77]

Amen, seeing them side by side in the air evokes more feelings than words can express.

[scudlington]

What a beautiful aircraft...does anyone know of any footage of the recovery? I vaguely remember them recovering the 20 mil' cannons and firing them at some oil drums...spectacular stuff...though I could have been dreaming.

[jstins]

yes. I just watched it on The History Channel. It was very interesting. Some unusual methods of recovery for sure. Now they're airing a recovery of a Black Widow P61 from New Guinea mountains.

[scudlington]

Thanks Jstins. I'll look out for it.

[TBM3EAvenger]

The P-61 you're refering to is now sitting on it's undercarriage at the Mid Atlantic Air Museum (MAAM) being restored to flying condition, last newsletter I received stated that both tail booms are complete and also the tail fins, should be interesting to see her during WWII weekend on June 5-7 09' think those are the correct dates

[rcavi8tor]

There is a video that I think was shown on PBS TV. Probably could get a copy through Glacier Girl web site. Or might contact the Planes of Fame Museum in California for a copy since they do all the piloting for it.

[davidwaters62]

The superchargers are not functional on GlacierGirl.

[TBM3EAvenger]

Is that because they're afraid that if the superchargers were functional, and one let go, the engine could ingest some of the debris, as I've heard of that happening before on some other supercharged warbirds.

[rocketsam1]

nice!!!!

[hellbilly074]

its a shame that they had to sell this wonderful piece of history. it was about the only thing middlesboro had going for it!

[PunkRock13131313]

I bought the model kit that thgey made and this plane is awesome, too bad no one can buy a real one.

[arpnlaei]

I think it's amazing what technology can do these days, I'd think a 70 year old airplane covered in 300 feet of ice would never be flown again, letalone found, but here's the proof!

[BaseCommander007]

Sometimes I miss the time spent around the plane during the reconstruction process.

I touched the underside of the left wing when only original paint and the green primer existed.

It's good to see another Warbird in the sky!

[mhstsax07]

i love the sound of her engines as she roars thru the sky. i am proud to call my town (middlesboro, ky) home of glacier girl!

[Irvine5312x6ma]

Love the sound of the two Allisons on take off...magnificent video fellow, keep up the good work!!! 8-)

[sb6lb3]

p-38s are the coolest planes to date. same with sr-71s

P-38S F O L I F E!

[mbandarra3]

Beautiful. Thanks!

[375GTB]

While I love P&W R-2800's, above all other aircraft piston engines, the two, along with the P-40's Supercharged AllisonV-1710 serve to muddy up the exquisite SOUND of the rare early model P-38's Turbocharged V-1710 Allisons, as do the Republic A-10's jet engines.

CAVU

Jesse

[Drakedragon1315]

Beautiful aircraft... All part of my favorets. I love the WWII Planes.

[icenlemonz]

amazing i remeber getting the the about glacier girl fantastic to see her flying

[ovationpdh]

You are right. I messed up, the F-22 is the Raptor.

[ovationpdh]

The A-10 is called the Thunderbolt 2, or Warthog, The F-22 is called Lightning.

[celicapilot]

If you're going to talk about this stuff, GET IT RIGHT! The F-22 is called the Raptor and the F-35 is will be called the Lightning 2 after the P-38.

[MuerteQuerida]

The A-10 Lightning and the P-38 Lightning flying together is one of the most beautiful scenes that I had seen!

[pepasso]

la ostiaca de avion mi favorito

[bigbob6556]

2:10, my favorite plane!!! the P-47 = ) P-38 my second favorite

[Love1968]

NOTHING sounds better than a P-38!

[guysmalley]

She looks cool now I can only imagine how cool it was in 1939!

[ssgd1960]

Simply Beautiful!!!

[1946Nuckl]

How sweet!

Actually, sour grapes from the original home of the Glacier Girl, Middlesboro, KY.

Ah, America! Where everything is for sale.

We all hope that everyone (other than us) get to enjoy watching it for years to come.

Take your grandchildren!

[Napalmdog]

Actually, I think the home site of the Glacier explains it well. They couldn't afford to keep their child. Why not give her a home that can afford the enormous upkeep for such a beast?

[DogEars93]

I think that there are onely 2 p-38s left in the world...

[rcavi8tor]

That was all that I knew of, Glalcier Girl & 123 Skidoo the repainted Porky II, that were flying, maybe another one somewhere, until I went to the Gathering of Mustangs. There was a new one that just got in the air this year. The paint was finished at 8:00am and was in Osh Kosh at 10:00am. It dried on the way. It is called Ruff Stuff. The owner is Ron Fagen from Granite Falls, MN

[thegoosebrain]

There are several dozen. One was just discovered on a Welsh beach in the UK just this summer.

[ad356]

glacier girl looks very proud. cant believe major parts of that airframe were berried in a glacier. incredible. looks awesome flying with that A10. i like these heritage flights ive seen over the years. it truely honors their military roots. i saw a f16 with a p51, that was cool too.

[rcavi8tor]

I talked to them at the show and they said it contained 80 % of the original parts.

[arrycat]

Wouw!

I read the book over Glacier girl some years ago and now it is a great luck for me to see her in the air!

[scorpiooooooh]

Wow, what an outstanding plane, so far ahead of it's time. The A-10 P-38 flyover was freak'n sweet.

[dhfiuejfdhjfoiewdjmn]

truly amazing

[morbidfrost]

P-38s where fast as all hell, fork tailed devils!

[rcavi8tor]

Glacier Girl used to be kept in Middlesboro, Ky until it was bought by Provenance Fighter Sales in Murrrieta, CA a few months ago. They tried to make a crossing known as OPERATION BOLERO II, to England with it for the Duxford Air Show. It got as far as Goosebay, Greenland but had to turn back due to engine problems. After Osh Kosh it was announced that Provenance had sold it to a private collector in Texas. There has been some talk of an OPERATION BOLERO III.

[peugeotjasper]

wow unbelievable! I read about the dig up in the ice 12 years ago in a science magazine and completely forgot about it until now :)

How cool! I fly this baby a lot in IL2. Great plane!

[Dionysos709]

What a beautiful old bird!

Never fired a shot in anger.That'snice in a way.

[N00bInItUp]

I know a guy who used to part owner of glacier girl..sold it a while back

[Kornball426]

Great story, I love to hear that history is being preserved and saved from certain doom under ice. Too bad the Key Bird's story ended so tragically. It actually brings a tear to my eye when I think about it.

[dannaryeguy]

nice plane. if only it didnt have them allison engines itd be a great plane, good to see her going though.

[wallyworld]

Incredible story. Great vid. Thanks.

[ClaudieBee]

Great to see Glacier Girl's first public appearance--I did go to the Chino Air Show in May and saw her with 2 other P-38's, I think the only 3 flying in the world today. Loved the A-10 Warthog Heritage Flight in your video, too.

[rcavi8tor]

Thanks, Glacier Girl was recently sold and is now kept in Chino.

[planeboy1324]

An awesome bird cant believe glacier girls flying again! P.S. if u want to see her go to the planes of fame air show

[toddi1971]

Sorry to use german, i don't have any proper english words for it. Einfach nur geil! :-D

[Powellz]

Very cool video, very cool plane!

I like how they have it fly with an A-10.. It's quite big in comparison..

[MTFDarkEagle]

i looooooooooove this plane!

[NSResponder]

What a beautiful memory of the genius of Kelley Johnson. Absolutely inspirational.

-jcr

[germurph51]

Can't say anough about this video documentary. Truly magnificent. Ends with the lovely inquisitve little girl's voice exclaiming to her Daddy to boot. She knew.

[propfan2k]

SWEET! Great close-up shots. My faves are the P-38 and Spitfire.

[topgun51]

Great video, the P38 AND THE A10, Looked great, the money spent to recover Glacier Girl from the ice, was money well spent.. AAA+++

[germurph51]

What a beautiful bird! A real testimny to American engineers, not to say Fighting Men! What a beautiful airplane. No wonder the kids are eager (as I was( to touch those props, those wheels.

The overall video is simply great. Worthy of this magnificent fighter. I urgew all to go onto Wikipedia and read it all.

[RedNavy]

Awesome vid. I like to attend air shows, nothing beats the sound of a Vintage WW2 Pro-driven plane flying overhead. Two summers ago I got an opportunity to fly onboard a B-17 Flying Fortress for an hour. It was incredible, they let us move around the plane, including over the bomb-bay doors(With nice safety rigging ofcourse). Kinda chilly in there.

The P-38 is tied with the P-51 as my favorite WW2 aircraft, beautiful machine.

[germurph51]

Yes, very hard to decide between those fantastic birds. Fabulous aircraft. Fabulous.

[Iwantmymommy14]

I love the old warbirds, thanks for the video!

[proffromgview]

Great Story....but don't they have ANY safety regs in MO?  My God, kids running around the plane, close to it as it taxis away! You couldn't do that in Osh-Kosh or Chino

[rcavi8tor]

There are fences to keep the public at a safe distance that you don't see in the video. The "kids" you see belong to the ground crew and obviously were well behaved and schooled on staying clear of the plane.

[iowaguy1]

Those kids were "pulling thru the props" to circulate a bit of oil that builds up where it shouldnt be so that when the engine fires it isnt damaged

[MarineCorp]

What he said, Thsoe kids were not running around the plane as it was taxiing, They wouldn't put up a video of kids running around planes while they taxi on the runway, all those people would've been sent to prison. Well behaved children they are.

[proffromgview]

I've been to a lot of airshows, runouts, and special events for VIPs, etc., and children or not of the folks, you NEVER see kids as close as those were

[slickstig]

I was there when it First Took Flight after the ten year Project in Middlesboro Kentucky.

[burningcow422]

The B-17s are in really bad shape and will never be flyable. Too damaged. They are lucky to have restored that p38.

At least that's what they said in the documentary. Cool shit though.

[zaphodb777]

Wow, a Thunderbolt, and Lightning, at the same show, in formation, you lucky @#&! !!!

[isthisit15]

i love the four machine guns in the front they really make the p-38 look tough. (er) lol :D

[samuraikensai]

P-38 has a cannon too...not just 4 x .50s...

[Eliotthecool]

Lovely Aircraft isent it

[bdrws6]

Glacier Girl is not far from me. Thanks for the video!

[mmamajor]

Thanks rc

[mmamajor]

Why would they "turn the props" when it's not a radial engine?? I know radials require that procedure before start up to bring oil to the top cylinders, but on an inline engine?? never seen THAT done.

[rcavi8tor]

A radial is turned over to prevent hydraulic lock in the bottom cylinders, not get oil to the top cylinders. They probably turned over the P-38 as a precaution. I think the Allison engines are mounted inverted in the P-38 which would make them subject to a possible hydraulic lock also.

[FiveCentsPlease]

No, the Allison engines are not inverted in the P-38.

[intensetazer]

great vid, hope they do get the rest out from under the ice. i heard there's five more. although the b17's are supposedly too badly crushed to bother recovering. (at least thats what i heard on a documentory)

[GohanDBZ]

I saw that P-38 at Oshkosh

[rcavi8tor]

Was that in 2003? That was the year they finished the restoration and when the video was shot. I saw at Dayton in 2004 but that was the last time. Last thing I heard is that another group is going back to get the rest of the P-38s out from the ice and maybe even the B-17s.

[GohanDBZ]

I saw it in 2005

[AR15fan]

a P-38, P-40, F6F and F4U in formation. Loved it!

[rcavi8tor]

The sound on the video is pretty good but still doesn't do justice to being there.

[TheRealNeill]

Great job on the video. The P-38 has always been one of my favourite planes.

[5151Biff]

Hi, I was the ground crew in the video, great video, I would love a copy!

[weaselpants]

Absolutely awesome.