Current status of the "Kee Bird" B-29 Superfortress

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Member for

14 years 7 months

Posts: 144

[QUOTE=tankbarrell;1443554]


But the shadow you can see on the ice is clearly the shadow of a DH-4 Caribou, possibly the (Kee Bird II) same one used for the operation?
QUOTE]

It looks like a C-130 to me.

On closer inspection, i think your right. The caribou's vertical stab. is a lot more angular.
Come to think of it i think C-130's have been sporadically stationed at Thule AFB.
It just makes me wonder when these pics were really taken and possible reasons?

If I was stationed within reasonable flying distance, I'd want to be nosey and fly over to have a look. Perhaps the C-130 crew were just curious.

Steve

Member for

11 years 3 months

Posts: 1

B-29 in water in Holland

As there is already a complete B29 in Holland (in which they have no interest), I am sure that no Kee Bird parts made it to Holland. Those parts by by the way, were all in place where Kee Bird ended or 2 years ago.

BW R

Were exactly is the B-29 in the water in Holland?

Member for

9 years 2 months

Posts: 5

Kee Bird is still in Greenland:

In September 2014 I had the pleasant fortune to visit Washington Land in NW Greenland - and the Kee Bird site! She still sits in the middle of shallow lake (c. 3 feet deep).
With 20 cm of clear ice on the lake it was easy to walk to the aircraft and take a few photos.

As mentioned above, the tail are now lying upside down in front. Possibly blown over in a storm.

One thing puzzles me: In the Nova film we see how they change the old bend propellers with new black ones (which did not get harmed or bend during the fire). But the propellers mounted now are clearly not the same. They are the old and bend ones. Why would Greenameyer replace them again...?!

A few pictures:

http://www.bigwall.dk/billeder/2014-KeeBird/2014-WashingtonLand-MH-078.jpg

http://www.bigwall.dk/billeder/2014-KeeBird/2014-WashingtonLand-MH-081.jpg

http://www.bigwall.dk/billeder/2014-KeeBird/2014-WashingtonLand-MH-100.jpg

http://www.bigwall.dk/billeder/2014-KeeBird/2014-WashingtonLand-MH-111.jpg

Regards
Michael Hjorth
Copenhagen

Were the props borrowed for the recovery, and needed to be returned? Still odd to refit the old ones to the wreck if this is the case.

Member for

20 years

Posts: 3,902

Really great report and photos - welcome to the forum, Michael.

Its such a sad tale, but very interesting to see how things are now.

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18 years 3 months

Posts: 2,025

I watched this quite recently, and have been wondering, was it ever going to get up off that "runway;" (I use the word advisedly) looking at the fire, and the lack of action to fight it, the question in my mind is "was it insured"?

Member for

14 years 11 months

Posts: 1,755

I watched this quite recently, and have been wondering, was it ever going to get up off that "runway;" (I use the word advisedly) looking at the fire, and the lack of action to fight it, the question in my mind is "was it insured"?

It very likely would have, and it was not insured. A good read on the venture is Hunting Warbirds, by Carl Hoffmann.

Member for

14 years 4 months

Posts: 1,665

Michael, those photos and your video are fantastic! Thanks for posting them, and may we see more?

The propellers aren't the originals, the ones removed as seen on the documentary had blade cuffs at the root. Some (okay, a lot..) of the damage looks to be deliberate, and that was my thought with the bent prop blades. My guess is the bulldozer had a stab at what was left, and wind and erosion has done for the rest - including paint off the blades themselves.

The site doesn't look to have been cleaned up much.

Kind regards,

Rich

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16 years 1 month

Posts: 818

Yes thanks for sharing, and think we would all like to see more, personally I would love to see something B-29 in the Wings Museum (or parts of at least!!)

Member for

9 years 2 months

Posts: 5

Thnx for the kind words.
It was indeed extraordinary to be this far north in a kind of in-between-season. But actually the best/only season to visit The Bird: No show cover, and lakeice the walk on!
Weather was fantastic, with clear sky, light wind and -5 deg C / 23 deg F.

Here comes a few more from same or different angles. I will refrain from comments, as my knowledge about the aircraft is low.

http://www.bigwall.dk/billeder/2014-KeeBird/2014-WashingtonLand-MH-082.jpg

http://www.bigwall.dk/billeder/2014-KeeBird/2014-WashingtonLand-MH-086.jpg

http://www.bigwall.dk/billeder/2014-KeeBird/2014-WashingtonLand-MH-097.jpg

http://www.bigwall.dk/billeder/2014-KeeBird/2014-WashingtonLand-MH-098.jpg

http://www.bigwall.dk/billeder/2014-KeeBird/2014-WashingtonLand-MH-113.jpg

Michael

Member for

9 years 2 months

Posts: 5

Our reason for being in Washington Land / North Greenland was for demobilizing a mineral exploration camp close to Petermann Glacier. The gear and fuel was slung c. 50 miles down to Cass Fjord and barged out. Position of Kee Bird is c. 50 miles further east.

http://www.bigwall.dk/billeder/2014-KeeBird/2014_WashingtonLand_map.jpg

I put some simple video clips together from our work, finishing (at 8 minutes) with footage of Kee Bird. Enjoy:

http://vimeo.com/113048792

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20 years

Posts: 3,902

Until you watch the video footage, you just do not quite appreciate just how desolate and remote the site is.

Cracking bit of film, Go-Pro perhaps ? It's only Jan 21st, but I say ''Post of the Year '' (so far...:) )

Member for

9 years 2 months

Posts: 5

@Michel: Of cause, no problem!

I was thinking: Kee Bird history IS a good story, and many people have an interest and feelings about it. So those pictures should get a larger audience.
The cat is of cause already out, but maybe it can still be guided in a sensible direction?! Anyone who has an idea of a magazine in US who would publish?

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14 years 4 months

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Michael,

Contact Key Publishing, surely they would love to feature this? Flypast sells worldwide.

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20 years

Posts: 3,902

Michael,

Contact Key Publishing, surely they would love to feature this? Flypast sells worldwide.

I would approach National Geographic, it is right up their street, ie strong geographical context, environmental issues, and a compelling human interest aspect.

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14 years 4 months

Posts: 1,665

i'd be tempted to do both. Kee Bird's a hot topic to aviation enthusiasts, not many of them purchase National Geographic.

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24 years 2 months

Posts: 3,208

I would approach National Geographic, it is right up their street, ie strong geographical context, environmental issues, and a compelling human interest aspect.

A little research shows that NG do not accept unsolicited submissions.

http://www.nationalgeographic.com/siteindex/submissions-faq/