EAA’s WWII B-17 Aluminum Overcast will be open for flights and ground tours at the Manassas Regional Airport, 10600 Harry J. Parrish Blvd, Manassas, VA 20110, from Friday through Sunday, October 19-21, 2018. Come visit!
Each day, weather permitting, the plane will fly in the morning, and open for ground tours when flight operations cease. The first flight of the day is usually at 10:00 AM, and ground tours typically begin by 2:00 PM. If you want to check the schedule on a specific day to decide when to arrive, you can call the crew that day at 920-371-2244. You’re always welcome to come out to the airport and watch her fly from our viewing area right up close; there’s no charge just to watch from the ground!
If you’d like to book a ride, your best bet is to do it in advance either on the EAA website (www.b17.org) or by calling 800-359-6217. Buying early saves money: you’d get the discounted pre-book price of $409 for EAA members and their guests; or $449 for non-members, who become members with their first ticket purchase. Pre-booking helps the tour plan efficiently for the stop, so buy now and save!
The flight price goes up once the plane is officially on-site, which happens about 5:00 PM on Thursday, October 18, 2018; at that point, the website sales shut down, and seats become $435 for EAA members and guests, and $475 for non-members. Once the website sales close, you’ll need to call the crew at 920-371-2244 to buy flights. Don’t count on seats being available if you walk up on the day; call ahead if you can!
Unlike flight sales, ground tours don’t go on sale until we’re actually ready to run them each day Friday through Sunday, from the time the plane stops flying until the end of each day at 5:00 PM. We’ll stop selling tickets some time before 5:00 based on the crowd size, to make certain that everyone who buys a ticket will be able to get through the plane before 5:30 PM, or a bit earlier if we need to schedule a late afternoon flight to accommodate the demand. Ground tour tickets are $10 for an individual, or $20 for a whole immediate family, no matter how many kids you’ve got! Ground tours are always free to veterans and active duty military, and kids under 8 are free with a paid adult or a vet.
The B-17 has plenty of fun merchandise available to buy from her van on the field: bring your cash or a credit card and indulge in caps, t-shirts, patches, pins, books, DVDs, tin signs, magnets, toys, Christmas ornaments, and more! Best of all, the money the airplane earns from seats, tours, and merchandise sales goes back into keeping her flying on tour around the country.
The EAA Chapter 186 Grill trailer will be onsite to serve up food and drinks, so don’t worry about going hungry while you visit. And don’t miss checking out the Freedom Museum in the airport terminal while you’re here: there’s no charge for admission, and you’ll learn a lot about the history of the U.S. military from the Spanish American War to the present, with a special emphasis on the stories of local military veterans.
Basically, this is a fun weekend event for the whole family. Experience history up close and personal, in a visceral way no static museum display alone can provide. Join the flight!
