Aircraft bring out veterans, war stories
PENN TWP — Veterans shared stories from under the wings of the same planes they flew in World War II during a living history event Thursday at the Pittsburgh-Butler Regional Airport.
Four historic airplanes are on display at the airport through Saturday. Crowds can see a B-17 Flying Fortress, a B-24 Liberator, a B-25 Mitchell and a P-51 Mustang. Planes are available for touring on the ground or for short flights in the skies.
At the airport Thursday, several veterans on the ground shared stories of their days aboard the planes. A tail gunner and a pilot both recalled their days defending the country abroad.
Standing under the B-24's tail-gun, 94-year-old Vito Morabito of Penn Township stared up at the little perch he used to cram himself into and admitted that he couldn't do it today. Not that he'd like to.
“On my last mission, the pilot said 'Be prepared to bail out,'” Morabito said. “I cried.”
Smaller guys like Morabito were recruited for tail gunner roles due to its cramped space. The parachute wouldn't fit inside with him, he explained, so bailing would have required him to somehow get it from outside the gunner seat.
Morabito produced a document from his wallet that shows every mission he flew during World War II. He flew 50 missions for a total of 480 flying hours, according to the document. He regularly spent more than eight hours in the gunner's chair.
“I never thought I'd be here at 94,” Morabito said.
Frank Ekas, 95, said he experienced similar stress in the pilot's chair.
“We had white knuckles all the time,” Ekas said.Some who came to see the planes stood in awe of the old giants.John Bradrick, 91, said his job baking food for soldiers during World War II kept him safe from gunfire in the skies, but he still developed an appreciation for the equipment of the time.“I have an interest in the aircraft that we used,” Brad-rick said. “These were marvels of engineering at that time.”Others, like Mike Mamula, came for the history.Mamula visited for his fourth straight year Thursday. He brings a different grandson each year.His father, Pete, flew a B-17 in World War II, Mamula said.“I wanted to let them know what went on,” Mamula said. “I wanted them to know what their great-grandfather did. It keeps history alive.”The planes are here as part of the Wings of Freedom Tour. They are some of the last of their kind still flying today.Its organizers travel the country for 300 days, according to Robert Pinksten, a 22-year-old who is one of the pilots.Tours of the planes are cheap, but flying is pricier. The cheapest rides are the B-17 and B-24 at $450 a person.Rest assured that the old machines still fly fine, according to Pinksten.“We wouldn't be flying them if weren't safe,” he said.But weak stomachs ought to stay away from the B-24 for the same reason Pinksten says it's his favorite to fly.“It's really unruly,” Pinksten said. “It's still a task after flying it for over 1,000 hours.”
