After decades of being homeless, the recently restored B-29 Superfortress named Doc has been given a place to call home. The Wichita city council gave the go ahead for a 40-year lease for the B-29 Doc Hangar and Education Center. Construction on the new 32,000-square-foot facility will soon begin at the Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport (ICT) in Wichita, Kansas.
“Doc is a national treasure, and keeping the historic B-29 in Wichita where it was first built in 1944 and then restored by a team of dedicated volunteers is a commitment we made at the beginning of our restoration project,” said Doc’s Friends chairman Jeff Turner. “Building the B-29 Doc Hangar and Education Center at Eisenhower National Airport will give the public the chance to visit, learn and experience the living history of the B-29 Superfortress like no other facility of its kind.”
As soon as Wichita made the commitment to proving a long-term location for the historic airplane, Sedgwick County kicked in $200,000 to help with the construction project. The estimated cost for the facility is $6.5 million. Doc’s Friends hopes to complete the construction of the B-29 Doc Hangar and Education Center within a year.
While a significant portion of the required funds has been raised, the cost of the construction of the facility, its operation and the maintenance of the airplane calls for continued fundraising. Doc’s Friends website is offering commemorative bricks and tiles with a personalized message for a cost of $200 and $400 to help raise funds. The bricks and tiles will be placed in front of the center to honor those who helped make the facility a reality.
