"Airbus" wrote in message
...
After an ILS to 04 at KSCH the other day, we broke out into decent VFR,
so I asked for some closed pattern work. On downwind, they asked us to
hold 360 degrees "Traffic is a Boeing B-17, your twelve o'clock, two
miles . . ." Then "Number two, behind the Boeing . . ." I followed him in
from left base and watched him land, did a go-around just to fly over and
get a look at him, coasting lazily across the ramp. A couple of patterns
later he was lined up for takeoff again, and I got a full base-leg view
of him lumbering off runway 22. How many times have I told myself you
should always have a digital point-and-shoot in your flight bag . . .

That's one of the great aspects of flying, you just never know what you're
going to encounter. A B-17 is a rare find as there aren't that many of them
left flying. We are fortunate here in Texas to have a flying B-17s based
here, so you occassionally run across it flying around. They are restoring
another one to flying status in Houston also.

Just the other day I made a fuel stop at KGEY and spotted two PB4Y-2
Privateers on the ramp (both looked airworthy) and an old military aircraft
graveyard off to the side of the runway.