Memphis Belle
B-17F-10-BO serial number 41-24485 rolled of the assembly
line at Boeing's Seattle plant on 02 July 1942 and was accepted by the
Army Air Force 13 days later on 15 July 1942. Lieutenant Robert K.
Morgan and crew were scheduled to pick up their new B-17F at Gowen Field,
Idaho, but only six of the 91BG's B-17s were there. Many crews had to take
older B-17s to Dow Field, Maine. On 1 September 1942, he was introduced
to the B-17 that he would name "Memphis Belle". Lieutenant Morgan dubbed
his new plane Memphis Belle after his Memphis sweetheart Miss Margaret
Polk. The Memphis Belle flew to England on 25 September 1942, and joined
the 91 Bomb Group 324 Bomb Squadron based in Bassingbourn, England. There
it had its now famous “Petty Girl” nose art applied by Corporal Tony Starcer,
who also painted “Shoo Shoo Baby”, “Nine O Nine”, and “Outhouse Mouse”
to name a few. Her first mission was on 7 November 1942, to bomb submarine
pens in Brest, France. Belle flew 25 missions against various targets in
France, Belgium, Holland, and Germany. In those 25 missions she was hit
by flak, 20mm cannon shells, and machine gun bullets. One mission Belle
took 62 hits by bullets and flak. During her time with the 91BG she had
9 engines, both wings, both main gear, & two tails replaced due to
damage sustained in combat. In six months of combat, Belle logged more
than 20,000 combat miles and dropped more than 60 tons of bombs, returning
her crew home without any casualties every time.
When the Army decided to end tours of duty at 25
missions because they were so hazardous, Morgan and his crew were the first
to reach that goal on 17 May 1943. Since the crew flew another plane when
Belle was being repaired, they reached 25 before she did. Belle flew her
25th mission against shipyards in Kiel, Germany on 19 May 1943. Memphis
Belle and crew returned to the US on 16 June 1943 for a coast to coast
war bond tour to help the war effort at home. They returned home to a hero's
welcome, the first American bomber and crew to survive twenty-five combat
missions over Europe.
During the tour the glimmer faded and when the tour
was completed Belle was reassigned to McDill Field, Florida. Morgan delivered
the Memphis Belle to McDill on 23 December 1943. Morgan and other crew
members returned to new units and most saw combat again. Morgan went to
the Twentieth Air Force in the Pacific flying B-29s against Japan. Belle
remained stateside, mostly at McDill Field, to train new B-17 crews till
the end of the war. When the war was over Belle was sent to an airplane
graveyard near Altus, Oklahoma assigned to the Reconstruction Finance Corp.
as surplus to be scrapped.
This could have been the end of the Memphis Belle
story if a newspaper reporter writing a story on the efficiency of the
"breakers", had not discovered the famous bomber at Altus. He recognized
the nose art and after confirming the serial number, wrote a story on the
reclamation of the Belle. When the story reached Memphis, it mobilized
civic leaders to have the bomber transferred back to Memphis. The Mayor
procured the Memphis Belle from the RFC for $350. The price of $350.00
was the cost to procure or borrow on loan a B-17 from US Government. Since
the city of Memphis was going to receive the aircraft for "Historical and
Educational purposes", then the agreed payment was for $350.00. So the
Memphis Belle remains property of the US Air Force on permanent loan to
the Memphis Belle Memorial Association. In March 1946 a group from Memphis
arrived to ready the Belle for a flight to Memphis. After several days
of preparation Memphis Belle took to the air for the last time on 17 July
1946 in the hands of a veteran B-17 pilot. It was suppose to be a test
flight, however things were going so well the crew flew her straight to
Memphis.
She sat outside a hanger at Memphis Municipal Airport
until 1950 when she was put on a pedestal outside the old National Guard
Armory. The entire time the plane was outside subjected to the elements
and vandals. Attempts in the fifties and sixties at preservation resulted
in inaccurate markings being applied. In 1967, Frank Donofrio formed the
Memphis Belle Memorial Association, a group of volunteers and concerned
citizens to care for the Belle. When the National Guard sold the facility
in 1977 Belle was returned to the airport. At the airport volunteers from
the Tennessee Air National Guard, Memphis area Vocational-Technical School
and Blytheville Air Force Base worked with the Memphis Belle Association
to restore the Memphis Belle back to glory.
After studying the problem of the Belle's deterioration,
Colonel Richard C. Uppstrom, director of the USAFM, told the city to properly
preserve the Memphis Belle or lose it. The USAFM claimed ownership and
threatened to take it to Dayton, Ohio, for care at the main museum. This
sparked the "Save the Belle" campaign to raise money from companies and
citizens throughout Memphis. Almost a half a million dollars later the
new pavilion housing the Memphis Belle was dedicated 17 May 1987.
There is currently a battle waging on where
the Memphis Belle should be located. According to Mr. Brent Perkins, President
of the Memphis Belle Memorial Association, the Mud Island facility doesn't
provide adequate protection from weather, birds and vandals. He also states
that none of the revenue from the $4.00 admission to Mud Island is given
to the Memphis Belle. The only income for preservation and restoration
is their gift shop. Mr. Perkins reports that a good deal of progress towards
a proper and fitting structure for the Belle. The final location of the
Belle is still to be determined.
November 2004
Memphis Belle was moved starting in January
2003 to a restoration facility, building N7, at the Millington airport.
The plan was to restore Memphis Belle and place her in a climate controlled
facility. In the spring of 2003, through the work of the Memphis
Belle War Memorial Foundation and the Memphis Belle Memorial Association
(MBMA), approval was made for a 43,000-square-foot Memphis Belle Museum
and World War II Memorial on 25.2 acres located in Shelby County.
In a letter dated
29 September 2004, the Air Force announced that it would terminate
the loan agreement of the Memphis Belle and return her to The National
Museum of the United States Air Force. The MBMA has been in contact
with state legislators in a campaign to reverse this decision. Their
efforts have been noticed because the Air Force has put a "self
imposed strategic pause in recalling the Memphis Belle" while it re-examines
all the relevant facts. The MBMA has never been closer to properly
restoring Memphis Belle and placing her in a quality museum. Lets
hope that the Air Force will once and for all release the Memphis Belle
permanently to the MBMA so the can complete their plans for Memphis Belle
to stay in Memphis. If you can make a pledge to keep the Memphis
Belle in Memphis, please visit the Official
Memphis Belle Web Site.
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Photo from the Official Memphis Belle
Web Site.
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Photo from the Official Memphis Belle
Web Site.
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Photo from the Official Memphis Belle Web
Site.
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Photo from the Official Memphis Belle Web
Site.
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Photo from the Official Memphis Belle Web
Site.
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Photo from the Official Memphis Belle Web
Site.
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Col. Robert K. Morgan (ret.)
has a web page about the planes he piloted, Memphis Belle and B-29 Dauntless
Dotty.
It also offers some memorabilia for the WWII collector.
If you have any comments or have found information on my page that
is incorrect, please e-mail
me!
If you know of a surviving B-17 that is not on my page, please let
me know!
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Copyright © 1997-2004 Brian A. Nick. All rights
reserved.
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