PORT ANGELES — A once-in-a-lifetime flight aboard a vintage B-17 Flying Fortress on Monday linked families with a part of their heritage.
Alan Barnard, Port Angeles stop coordinator for the Wings of Freedom traveling exhibit of World War II-era military aircraft, arranged for several families with ties to the iconic war bird to take a half-hour flight from William R. Fairchild Memorial Airport on Monday.
“My goal is to connect the people with the airplanes,” Barnard said.
Judging by the expressions on the faces of those who flew, Barnard accomplished his goal.
“What an incredible journey,” said David Upham of Sequim, who was 5 years old when his father, Hudson Hutton Upham, died while co-piloting a B-17 on a secret postwar mission in Western Europe.
Joan Quigley of Port Angeles was invited to fly in memory of her late husband, Bruce Quigley, a U.S. Army veteran who always wanted to fly on a B-17 but died March 19.
“It was very, very special,” said Quigley, who said she sensed that her husband was flying alongside her.
“He was my hero.”
Hudson Upham and seven others died when they crashed into the glaciated face of Mont Blanc on the border of France and Italy on Nov. 1, 1946.
Efforts are under way to piece together clues about the little-known crash and to raise a memorial at the site using a B-17 propeller found nearby.
“I’ve been thinking about that [his father’s last mission] on the whole flight,” David Upham said.
“It made me realize what my dad went through to serve his country back then, and how we, today, take so much that they did for granted. I salute my dad and all the people that flew with him.
“I thought about that as I sat in that open airplane and realized that there would be no cabin attendant coming with drinks.
“This was a flying coffin for many people, but again, it kept the country free.”
Sydney Upham Soelter of Port Angeles, Hudson Upham’s granddaughter, echoed her father’s assessment of the bomber that helped the Allies win the war.
She and others said the experience of flying on a B-17 made them appreciate the sacrifice of those who died defending the country.
“It’s not very safe in there,” Soelter said of the Flying Fortress.
“The bomb doors, if you step on them you’re going to fall out. It’s not safe by the standards that we normally live by.
“It just has this feeling of ‘I’m kind of vulnerable up here.’ That was sort of what struck me, is just how comfortable we are all the time.”
Joan Quigley flew with her daughter, Kristen Brye, whose husband was in the Air Force.
Bruce Quigley was an Army radioman who fought for Gen. George Patton in the 3rd Infantry Division. Joan Quigley said her husband of 58 years rarely talked about the war, but when he did, he credited heavy bombers like the B-17 for helping the Allies defeat the Nazis.
“He was in the Battle of the Bulge, and he said they were pinned down, and it was snowy and cold and foggy,” Joan Quigley said.
“Really, we were losing the war.”
Bruce Quigley heard the sound of the bombers before they arrived to drop in much-needed supplies and establish air power over the troops.
“He said the planes covered the skies, and he said, ‘All of I could think of was we’re sure glad they’re ours,’” Joan Quigley said.
“That [air power] is what saved us in the Battle of the Bulge, he always claimed.”
After Monday’s VIP flight, Clallam County Commissioner Mike Chapman read a proclamation from the county declaring June 19-25 as Wings of Freedom Week.
“Clallam County is home to many of these heroic pilots and crew who played such a key role in creating the freedom we enjoy today as Americans,” the proclamation read.
Chapman, who is Joan Quigley’s son-in-law and Brye’s brother-in-law, then talked about Bruce Quigley. He described his father-in-law as “one of the most amazing men I’ll ever know.”
“Folks, he was true American hero,” Chapman said.
“He’s just one of thousands and thousands of American heroes who served our country. In the prime of life, they went off and served their country.”
Joan Quigley said she was moved when Chapman invited her on the flight during a Memorial Day family barbecue.
“I cried,” she said.
Meanwhile, Barnard and event sponsor Howie Ruddell of Ruddell Auto Mall donated their own VIP seats to the winner of a Father’s Day essay contest, “Why I Love My Dad.”
Claire Henninger of Sequim, 10, won the contest with an essay about her father, Ray Henninger.
“I’ve been on some older aircraft, but nothing like this,” Ray said. “It was just very fun.”
Claire summed up the experience in one word:
“Awesome.”
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-417-3537 or at rob.ollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com
