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Update on B-17G 44-85740 (Aluminum Overcast): July 25, 2023

Update on B-17G 44-85740 (Aluminum Overcast): July 25, 2023

A short update on the status of B-17G 44-85740 (N5017N), better known as the EAA’s Aluminum Overcast. For the week of AirVenture at Oshkosh, the disassembled B-17 was pulled out of the EAA’s Kermit Weeks maintenance hangar to make room for other EAA airshow activities. It sat alone and a bit forlorn on the opposite side of the airfield from where the big airshow and convention was being held, and surprisingly did not seem to be attracting much attention.

Aluminum Overcast was rolled out of the EAA maintenance hangar for the AirVenture week at Oshkosh. Here is the fuselage sitting in a remote corner of the airport. As per the current FAA AD, the FAA has approved the proposed repair for the wing attach structure so the work and reassembly of the B-17 can continue. Announced plans still hope the airplane will be ready to go again by the early summer of 2024, but time will tell.

For those who are not aware, this was the B-17G that suffered some structural issues in March 2021 that led to the EAA grounding it at Punta Gorda, Florida. The specific structural issue was the failure of one of the wing terminal attach fittings on the left wing, a condition that also caused the FAA to issue an Airworthiness Directive (AD) against all U.S. operated B-17s effective this past June. Happily, the four currently airworthy B-17s passed the inspection requirements without much trouble, leaving only Aluminum Overcast in the condition of needing a repair.

The inboard and outboard wing sections are seen stored here after being pulled from the EAA maintenance hangar. Work will commence to implement the FAA-approved repair to the wing attach structure so the B-17 can be reassembled.
The left inboard wing section is seen here in temporary outside storage during AirVenture week at Oshkosh.

As per the current FAA AD, the FAA must approve any such repairs to the wing structure and/or attach fittings prior to them being performed. The EAA reports that the FAA has indeed approved the proposed repairs to the affected wing attach fittings so now the EAA can move forward with the repair work. The timeline still appears to be to get the B-17 back in the air by the summer of 2024, but obviously it will take as long as is needed to do the job correctly.

The damage caused by Hurricane Ian in September 2022 (while the airplane was still in Florida) has largely been addressed, that being mostly confined to the the vertical fin and rudder. It was after that hurricane that the EAA decided to just disassemble the B-17 and truck it back to Oshkosh for the required work. It arrived back at home base, shrink wrapped to boot, in February of this year.

The vertical fin damaged as a result of a September 2022 Florida hurricane is being replaced by another unit that can be seen in place in this photo. Most of the hurricane damage was caused by a partial hangar collapse that fortunately caused only minor damage to the B-17.
The damaged vertical fin is seen hanging from the ceiling of the EAA maintenance hangar. The damage to the top of the fin caused by a hangar roof collapse during a Florida hurricane is evident. This component has not yet been repaired; instead, a replacement vertical fin has been fitted to 44-85740.

So, all in all, progress is being made toward reassembling 44-85740 and getting it back to flying condition. It was missed during the AirVenture week, but Yankee Lady (B-17G 44-85829) from the Yankee Air Force filled in nicely and could be seen periodically making overflights during its passenger-carrying operations from nearby Appleton airport.

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