A Once-in-a-Lifetime Flight Aboard the B-29, Doc

For a warbird enthusiast, pilot, and student of aviation history, the trip around Seattle in the restored aircraft pushes all the buttons.

Meg Godlewski

Wednesday, May 18, 2022 at 05:44 PM ET

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FLYING staff writer and technical editor Meg Godlewski aboard Doc. [Photo: Meg Godlewski]

Key Takeaways:

"Doc" is one of only two airworthy B-29 Superfortresses in the world, restored and operated by the nonprofit Doc's Friends, Inc. to offer unique historical flight experiences.
Its restoration involved 16 years and 450,000 volunteer hours, costing nearly $30 million, with ongoing operations sustained by all-volunteer crews and passenger revenue.
The B-29 flight experience offers passengers a rare, immersive look inside the historic, "experimental" aircraft, highlighting its complex operation and unique design features like the connecting tunnel.

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One of the best parts of being an aviation journalist is that it gives you access to some pretty unique and special aircraft—such as Doc, one of the last airworthy B-29s in the world. Recently, I had the opportunity to fly aboard this rare machine. I was part of a media flight staged out of the Museum of Flight in Seattle where Doc paid a house call. And I nearly had kittens when I made the call to the edit team to relay the news:

“Wolf gets to fly aboard Doc…”