Friday, November 12, 2010

Confederate Air Force B-29 Arrives at LGB

The Confederate Air Force Boeing B-29A Superfortress N529B/44-62070 (c/n 11647) named FIFI arrived on November 11 to be on display during the AOPA convention this weekend. The plane is on a tour of the southwest and will be heading to Deer Valley Airport in Phoenix November 14-17. FIFI suffered an engine fire four years ago which put down for maintenance. The engine was changed but shortly after that, two other engines were found to be making metal in the oil so they were pulled in for overhaul. The engines came back, were hung on the airplane, then test run. Engine oil analysis shows yet more metal. At this point, it looks like the only solution is to totally re-engine Fi-Fi. This is technically a relatively easy task, and the engines are available. The biggest issue is money. The CAF has made a huge investment in Fi-Fi in dollars, time, and fund raising to have her totally refurbished over the past few years. FIFI only returned to the skies on August 5, 2010. So being that this is the only B-29 flying in the world, I would highly suggest that you make a trip to LGB to see here while she is here.

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