Air Museum announces sale of ‘Yankee Lady’

A statement released by Michigan Flight Museum President and CEO Kevin Walsh last week explains the recent sale of the Museum’s treasurered Yankee Lady B-17 bomber. The sale of the World War II bomber has shocked local museum supporters.
The statement reads:
“For almost four decades, the Museum has been honored and privileged to be the restorer and caretaker for an important, valuable piece of American aviation History: the B-17, Yankee Lady. However, after evaluating the future of the aircraft and its role in our organization, the board of directors unanimously has determined the Museum is no longer the best option for continuing as its caretaker.. Furthermore, it was determined by the board of directors that now is the time to entrust this beautiful aircraft’s future to another caretaker.
“The Yankee Lady has become a significant generator of revenue for the Museum, to the extent that we have developed an unrealistic dependency on it. Simply put, interruptions in its revenue stream due to the aircraft’s inability to participate in our flight program have become hardships for the Museum. In other words, we don’t feel the museum can ensure her flying future to the extent we feel is appropriate for an historical artifact of her importance and rarity.
“This was a difficult and emotional decision for all concerned, but it was deemed appropriate to ensure the future well-being of the aircraft and museum. The Yankee Lady is headed to a new home and new owner who has the resources to ensure her preservation and flyability for decades to come.
“Looking forward, the Museum will continue to offer exciting flight experiences aboard its Historic Flying Aircraft Collection well into the future!”
The original name of the Yankee Air Museum was recently changed to Michigan Flight Museum & Air Adventures and Walsh told the public the name change was not related to the sale of Yankee Lady.
The identity of the new owner of Yankee Lady and the sale price has not been released because of a non-disclosure agreement, Walsh said.
He said he could tell the public the plane is going out of this region and heading west and will be based in the United States. He said while the Yankee Air Museum paid $250,000 for the plane when it was purchased in 1986, they have sold it for a whole lot more than that.
The plane has never been in combat and was in storage until 1946 when it was transferred to the Coast Guard and used for air-sea rescue. It was put up for disposal by the Coast Guard in May 1959, according to Wikipedia. On May 11, 1959, the airplane was sold to Ace Smelting, Inc. for $5,887.93. It was assigned civil registration N3193G by the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA). In November 1959, Fairchild Aerial Survey Company purchased the aircraft and used it for aerial survey work. In 1966, the plane was sold to Aircraft Specialties, Inc. of Mesa, Arizona. This company used numerous B-17s as air tankers to fight forest fires and apply pesticides on crops and trees.
During 1969, the aircraft was one of five B-17s flown to Hawaii and used in the filming of the film Tora! Tora! Tora!, released in 1970.
In 1985, the airplane was among four other B-17s that were put up for sale at an auction held by Globe Air, the successor company to Aircraft Specialties.
Yankee Air Museum purchased the plane for $250,000 in June 1986. After several test hops, the aircraft was flown from Mesa, Arizona, to Willow Run Airport on July 2, 1986. It did not fly again for nine years.
A comprehensive inspection and repair/rebuild program was initiated almost immediately after the B-17 arrived at the museum. The primary goal was to return the aircraft to safe flying condition, with the secondary objective of reinstalling as much authentic combat equipment as was obtainable and practical.
Yankee Lady was one of several World War II-era planes operated by Yankee Air Museum for flight experience rides open to the public.
In April 2023, the Yankee Air Museum announced that Yankee Lady would be grounded “out of an abundance of caution” and would not be expected to fly for the rest of 2023. By July 3, 2023 Yankee Lady had been found compliant with the airworthiness directive that had grounded the plane earlier in the year, and resumed a regular flying schedule.
The following is a July 5, 2012 Yankee Air Museum news release to the Independent:
The “Yankee Lady” returned home on June 25, concluding the first month of an ambitious summer tour.
Yankee Lady is the meticulously restored and expertly maintained World War II B-17 bomber flown out of Willow Run Airport by the Yankee Air Museum.
Now the historic Flying Fortress will offer Flight Experience [FLEX] rides locally on select dates punctuating the balance of the air show season.
“Traveling with Yankee Lady must be a lot like touring with a rock star,” said Norm Ellickson, the YAM’s B-17 Crew Chief. “She really attracts a crowd. People of all ages come miles to see, touch, and photograph her. Many enthusiasts take a FLEX ride.”
Ellickson said a combination of good weather and an improved economy have contributed to “gangbuster” turnouts and scores of FLEX riders in Long Island, N.Y.; Bridgeport, Conn.; Reading, PA; and Teeterboro, N.J.
He said it’s time to build thundering enthusiasm here in Southeastern Michigan.
“Yankee Lady is the proverbial treasure in our backyard,” said Bob Hynes, chairman of the YAM’s Public Relations Committee. “Anyone can get herded onto a jetliner, but for the pure ‘once in a lifetime’ flight, nothing will compare with our B-17.”
…“We hear the words ‘awesome,’ ‘amazing,’ and ‘sweet’ a lot. ‘She rocks’ is a personal favorite,” Ellickson said with a chuckle. “But it’s the reaction of the World War II veterans, especially B-17 crewmen, which evoke our greatest sense of purpose … to preserve this history and keep this aircraft flying.”
Ellickson said that he sees a lot of men who served in World War II who have never talked about the war. Somehow, when they see Yankee Lady, memories find their voices and they start to talk. The grown children of these men, many of whom are grandparents now themselves, are amazed by the stories finally spoken.
Yankee Lady was the 13th from the last B-17 built and was delivered in July 1945. More than 12,700 Flying Fortresses were built in all and now only about ten are still flying. This heavy bomber was the mainstay of the Allied air forces in the European theater of the war and dropped more bombs than any other type of aircraft.
“You can’t keep saying, ‘Someday I’ll fly in a B-17’ because someday may never come and someday, like all of us, Yankee Lady will retire,” Hynes concluded.