Restoring a B-25 Mitchell becomes a link to aviation's past as interested youth learn skills that open their eyes to a potential aviation careers

By Anthony J. Liberatore

At the north end of the Oshkosh airfield in the outdoor display area next to the Warbird Cafe, the Warbirds of Glory Museum will be displaying the forward fuselage section of the only Russian B-25J known to exist. While this fuselage section is being restored for static purposes only, this Lend-Lease Russian B-25J has also served as a parts donor for the WOG's restoration of their B-25J Sandbar Mitchell, as well as a training tool for one of their four youth mentorship programs called KittyHawk Academy.

Incorporated in 2013 the Warbirds of Glory Museum is currently located at Brighton Airport, Brighton, Michigan. (45G), It is co-located with the On-Line Aeronca Museum, which includes some static display Aeronca's hanging from the ceiling. However, this location is temporary - their North-25J 44-30733's restoration and the success of their training program, which has led many teens with an interest in aviation to pursue promising aviation careers, have caused them to outgrow their current facility. Museum director Patrick Miahlek, and trustee Todd Trainor, have their sights set on a permanent facility at Livingston County Airport. As their project grows, graduates from the early days of the KittyHawk Academy are currently well along their way on their journey towards careers in aviation, pursuing disciplines including aviation management, professional piloting, mechanics, and engineering.

The Sandbar Mitchell was recovered in July of 2013, from a dry sandbar on the Tanana River in Alaska. 44-30733's life was always stateside, as it had never seen action in WWII. It was via a stint as a water bomber in Alaska in 1969 that 44-0733 crash landed on the sandbar and it was left abandoned after its most fungible components were removed. In his youth, Pat dreamed of restoring a B-25, and as an A & P who makes his living restoring warbirds for others, this is truly a dream come true. In January 2013, with the proper ownership and permits in hand, the volunteers embarked upon moving and transporting the Mitchell, even using services of a heavy lift helicopter that came to the effort in an almost miraculous fashion. Since then Patrick, Todd, and a host of volunteers have been scouring the web for rare parts, as they are currently in the process of rebuilding the wing center-section, which is most critical and intricate structural component of the air-frame. 44-0733 will be restored in honor of Ship 8Z from the 340th Bomb Group/488th Bomb Squadron, which crashed on March 24th, 1945 in Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy.

The restoration of 44-0733 has become a marvelous backdrop and a tool for the Kittyhawk Academy which was a series of youth programs before it's official incorporation and naming in 2017. This program offers Workshop Skills, Toolsmanship, Mechanical Comprehension, and an Introduction to CAD/CAM/CNC, which uses Solidworks. The titles of these for programs do not do justice to what is covered under umbrella, as many Aero-News readers might take for granted their intrinsic knowledge of ideas such as using the proper tool for the proper job, machine shop safety, and aviation/technical vocabulary. These modules introduce the students to all of this and more, and the program is a truly a hands-on introductory mentorship program that is getting our youth away from their handheld devices and getting their hands on tools used by "aircrafters". One newer class that the Kittyhawk Academy students can partake in CAD Design, is a bridge between the new and old schools.

These free classes, which meet for four Saturdays in a row, takes the students from ground zero to being able to crate 3D Models, including an intro to the sheet metal module. This class currently is held twice a year at the Brighton Chamber of Commerce with hardware supplied the museum and software supplied by Solidworks resaler DASI Solutions. The students model actual B-25 parts from the original drawings, which exposes them to the engineering side of the ledger, including the skill of blueprint reading. I had the pleasure to volunteer as a lab assistant to instructor Joe Benavides for this class, and it was very rewarding to see the progress the students made by the classes completion.

Todd Trainer summed up the mission of the Kittyhawk Academy best when he said, "Kittyhawk Academy is part of a growing nationwide focus to develop future talent in order to retain our world leadership in manufacturing, aerospace, and high-tech industries. To best prepare a student for a successful career in one of these fields, we believe that students need to engage in the mechanized world with tools and machines at an early age. Early exposure is essential to pique mechanical curiosity, develop and understating of practical physics and problem solving skills. With all of the museums  progress with 44-0733 and the museum academy' educational programs, they have already proved that this is a worthy and achievable mission. Their need to move into a larger facility is a testament to their success and will be a way for them to continue growing and to continue bringing education and opportunity to the aviation community.

(Images courtesy of The Warbirds of Glory Museum)

FMI: www.warbirdsofglory.org, www.Facebook.com/SandbarMitchell