So You Wanna Fly A Warbird

YOUR GUIDE TO THE WARBIRD EXPERIENCE

- Budd Davisson

Is there an aviation enthusiast alive who hasn’t wished that he or she could taste what it was actually like to be at the controls of a World War II fighter or manning the gun positions in a bomber—preferably, without being shot at? No, that individual doesn’t exist. The visceral attraction of the warbird is universal, and at one time, that was quite frustrating.

One has to go back only a couple of decades to find a time when it was next to impossible to even get a ride in something like a Mustang, much less receive flight instruction. Plus, there were so few B-17s and other bombers flying that dreaming of hitching a ride in one wasn’t even worth wasting the mental energy on. That, however, has changed—big time!

Today there are numerous operators—some working out of fixed facilities and others literally barnstorming around the country, giving rides or instruction in a wide variety of warbirds. This is the result of an interesting intersection between warbird operators and the regulatory agencies, specifically the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The Regulations Rule