World War II-era B-25J bomber visits as part of Regional Air Festival

EDITOR'S NOTE: Both the Friday and Saturday shows will open with parachute demonstrations.

By looking at her, you wouldn't know she flew 15 World War II missions and was almost completely scrapped for parts after years of varied uses and storage took their toll.

Sitting on the runway at the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport, Maid in the Shade, the B-25J twin-engine bomber, is in immaculate condition as she awaits visitors who will come this weekend during the Cape Girardeau Regional Air Festival.

David Baker, one of the plane's pilots and a member of the Arizona Commemorative Air Force, tells her tale.

The plane was built in Kansas City, Mo., in 1943, and flew missions in the 319th bomb group off the French island of Corsica during the war in 1944. After the war, the plane was used by the Army Air Corps for transport. She hit the auction block sometime in the 1960s, where she was sold to a smelting company. A group of men bought the plane to turn it into an insect sprayer, and she was used that way for some time. Later, when the plane became too expensive to operate, she was going to be sold for parts to restore another plane, but the Commemorative Air Force, a not-for-profit group made of veterans, pilots and others, found her. They spent 28 years restoring the plane, which later was named with the help of a play on words after a hangar was built to shade the work being done.

Maid in the Shade will be on display this weekend. (Laura Simon)

Just to get the plane to Arizona from Minnesota when it was first bought took four days, Baker said.

"It was a basket case," Baker said. "There were a lot of stops made so oil could be put in."

Now Maid in the Shade is not only a delight to aviation and military history lovers, she flies, too. Baker said only a handful of the 10,000 or so B-25s manufactured for the war are available for the public to enjoy. Fewer than 30 can still fly, and about 12 more sit in museums throughout the country.

"It's a very rare war bird," Baker said.

The Commemorative Air Force tours the country each year with the plane, mostly from late May through October. This week they are in Cape Girardeau in conjunction with the air festival, which is making a return Friday and Saturday after a two-year hiatus. Rides in the plane are available to those willing to pay -- the approximately half-hour long air tours range from $650 to sit just behind the cockpit to $395 to ride among the guns farther in the back. The money the group makes from the rides goes to pay for the restoration and flying operations of the plane and other historical aircraft. Ground tours, where visitors can see the interior of the plane, also are available for $5.

Baker said the air tours are especially a draw for those who have a family connection to World War II or are veterans. Others just want to "experience the romance of the era," he said.

"For a lot of people, it's a bucket-list thing," Baker said. "And it's worth a lot to them because it's one of those things that if you wait, there's less of a chance you'll ever get to."

Baker said the overall purpose of the group and its tours are to educate the public and commemorate the history of World War II.

Maid in the Shade will offer tours Friday through Sunday, and the plane will be on display throughout the air festival. Call 1-480-340-7417 for more information or to schedule a ride.

Other on-the-ground attractions during the airshow will be a jet-powered school bus that is part of the performer lineup; the United States Tennis Association's SmashZone Mobile Tour, an interactive tennis display; the U.S. Air Force's Rapid Strike Simulator; various children's activities; demonstrations by the Missouri State Highway Patrol and local firefighters; and the Commemorative Air Force Red Tail Squadron's Rise Above Traveling Exhibit, which tells the story of the Tuskegree Airmen, the military's first African-American pilots.

Scheduled to perform Friday night and Saturday are the Aerostars Aerobatic Team, which performs tricks in a tight formation and close pass-bys; Kent Pietsch, a pilot who performs an aerial comedy act and drop tricks in a plane, sponsored by the Jelly Belly Co.; Bill Leff, a pilot who performs an aerobatic routine and uses pyrotechnics at night in an T-6 Texan; Randy Ball, who performs in a MiG-17F fighter jet; and a pilot flying aerobatics in a SU-26 plane.

Gates open at 5 p.m. with opening ceremonies at 6:30 p.m. Friday. On Saturday, gates open at 10 a.m. with opening ceremonies at noon. Added to Friday night's show will be a fireworks display and a skylantern launch in which the public is encouraged to participate. Each day also will include parachute demonstrations.

General admission tickets bought in advance for the airshow are $5 for children ages 7 to 11 and adults and can be purchased at Rhodes 101 locations in the area. Children 6 and younger are free. Tickets sold at the gate this weekend are $5 for children and $7 for adults. Premium seating is $15 and includes seating with tables in a shaded tent and unlimited sodas and snacks. The premium tickets are available online only for a limited time. Visit capegirardeauairfestival.com for more information.

Main sponsors of the air festival include Loyd Ivey, the Southeast Missourian, Rhodes 101 Stops, River Radio and Cape Air. The theme of the festival is "Heroes and Legends: A Salute to Those Who Serve, honoring those who serve our country."

eragan@semissourian.com

388-3627

Pertinent address:

Cape Girardeau Regional Airport, Cape Girardeau, Mo.