Wings of Freedom returning to Butler County
The Wings of Freedom Tour, the largest aviation event of the year at the Pittsburgh-Butler Regional Airport in Penn Township, is returning from Aug. 15 to 18.
The tour, which features restored World War II bomber and fighter planes, has stopped at the airport for more than a decade and every year for the past four years in its 110-city national tour.
“It's one of the biggest aviation related events of the year. It's the biggest draw by far,” said Ike Kelly, airport manager.
The Collings Foundation, a nonprofit educational foundation in Stow, Mass., owns and operates the planes and the tour to give people a visceral lesson in history.
The bombers are a B-17 Flying Fortress named “Nine O Nine,” a B-24 Liberator called “Witchcraft” and a B-25 Mitchell named “Tondelayo. The fighters are a P-51 Mustang named “Toulouse Nuts” and, new to the tour, a P-40 Warhawk called “Jaws.” They are scheduled to land at 2 p.m. Aug. 15.
“When you're inside these planes and have the chance to crawl around and look at them, what you're seeing is right out of 1944,” said Hunter Chaney, foundation marketing director. “The purpose is to engage people in history as a means to understand and a motivation to want to learn more. We truly hope people remember World War II history and get a slice of it through these aircraft.”
The planes can be viewed from the airport parking lot for free. A $15 admission will be charged for self guided tours of the insides of the B-17 and B-24 and viewing tours of the other planes. Admission for children 12 and under is $5. Tours run from 2 to 5 p.m. Aug. 15 and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Aug. 16 to 18.
This is an excerpt — pick up Friday's Butler Eagle or subscribe online or in print to read more about the event and the pricing for flights in some of the planes.
