Wednesday, August 29, 2007

B-17 'Bit o' Lace' Flies Again---as an RC Model

During World War Two, a B-17 named 'Bit o' Lace' flew with the 447th Bomb Group out of England. She flew 83 missions, and after the war, ended up in Kingman, Arizona, where she was scrapped. A talented RC modeler and RC pilot by the name of Rod Pagel built an RC replica honoring her and flew her for the first time in 2006. The model has a six-foot wingspan, weighs 7.7 pounds, and is powered by brushless electric motors. Rod Pagel lives in Marina del Ray, California. This and photos below from his website at http://www.bates-r-us.org/abitolace/PagelLace/index.htm Well worth a visit. Great photos.

Incredible detail on the RC model by Mr. Pagel.



Bit o' Lace fired up and ready for take-off.



How many B-17s can you fit in the back of a station wagon? One, if it's Bit o' Lace!

This model is absolutely amazing!


The real Bit o' Lace. She flew with the 447th Bomb Group, Eighth Air Force, and completed 83 missions. Visit her home page here: http://www.bates-r-us.org/abitolace/


An outstanding movie of Mr. Pagel's RC B-17 being flown is found at this URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=topydKCULBQ

I believe the film footage at the beginning is from 'The Best Days of Our Lives'. Am I right?

1 comment:

Richard Havers said...

That's a brilliant job. When I saw the top picture I just thought it was the real thing.