Cold War S-A-C flew World War Two B-25 Mitchells

SAC=Strategic Air Command

These photos were taken in the late 1950s by the father-in-law to Russel Sharp.

Russel Sharp (the guy in the uniform) was a crew chief (aka maintainer) and flight engineer on B-25s flown by SAC, out of Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas.

Between 1954 and 1959, U.S. Air Force SAC used the World War Two U.S. Army Air Force B-25 Mitchells as trainers for incoming nuclear bomber crews.  Doctor John Garrett, 17th Training Wing historian, explains that “This specific aircraft was built in 1944 and was converted in 1945 from a bomber to a trainer model. It flew as a trainer until 1959 and its last years were in Dyess. This plane was kept downtown in San Angelo, and in 1983 Charlie Powell, former wing commander, rescued it from San Angelo.”

U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Scott Jackson, 02AUG2017.

On 02AUG2017, Russel Sharp returned to Goodfellow AFB to check-out the B-25 gate guard installed near Jacobson Gate.  Going by the tail number it is the same B-25 that Sharp spent more than 9-hundred hours flying on.   Sharp said the connection was made when an old Air Force buddie saw the gate guard and was sure the tail number was the same.

Video interview by Airman First Class Jessica Ray:

B-25 FLAMIN’ MAIMIE WAS AS COLD AS ICE!