Golf tournament shoots down a B-17’s visit

There’s some irony — somewhere — in the inability of a World War II bomber to land at the Anoka-Blaine airport on the Fourth of July because of a nearby golf tournament.

Aluminum Overcast, the B-17 bomber operated by the Oshkosh-based Experimental Aircraft Association, was supposed to drop into the airport on Independence Day as part of a holiday celebration.

But the 3M Open, a PGA tour stop, begins the same day at the TPC Twin Cities golf course, a private club in nearby Blaine.

As with most major sporting events, it’s anticipated the Federal Aviation Administration would restrict airplanes near the site of the event.

The local EAA chapter posted on its Facebook page this week that city and federal authorities have turned the plane away because of security concerns.

Good enough to liberate Europe; not good enough to fly around Anoka County.

Instead, the B-17 will land in downtown St. Paul, where it will be on display, provide rides, and not be a threat to people who play or watch golf.

St. Paul will also be the first stop on a nationwide tour for the EAA’s newly restored B-25, as a tribute to EAA Chapter 237 that contributed thousands of volunteer hours to the project, according to EAA spokesman Dick Knapinski.

Archive: A flight in a B-17 (NewsCut)

The unnecessary death of a B-17 (NewsCut)