WWII – WASP Ferry Planes Headed for Russia in 1944
Listen to My Podcasts: Bravo 369 — Warplanes to Siberia, Episode 6
This week’s blog is going to be short, but sweet. In it I’m offering links to TWO PODCASTS that I did last month.
The originator of these podcasts is the Bravo 369 Flight Foundation and the guys in charge have become friends of mine: Craig Lang and I met in 2014 when I was at the Museum of Flight in Seattle to do a WASP presentation; and Jeff Geer, Chairman of BRAVO 369 — who I have yet to meet in person — but we’ve talked a lot. Jeff and I have established a mutual admiration society via phone and the two podcasts.
Bravo 369 Mission Statement:
The BRAVO 369 Flight Foundation is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization dedicated to education and the preservation of historical aircraft and aviation history through books and documentary film . Our main objective is to offer unique educational opportunities for students, teachers, and the general public to actively participate in a series of interactive and educational flight re-creation projects. https://bravo369.org and https://www.warplanestosiberia.com
The project that I joined them on this summer is “Warplanes to Siberia.”
Q: Why am I, the author of books about the WASP — the women who flew in World War II —participating in a “Warplanes to Siberia” project?
A: WASP who flew for the Ferry Command in WWII ferried P-39 and P-63 warplanes [pursuits also known as fighter aircraft] to Great Falls, Montana, in 1944. There, U.S. male ferry pilots flew them on to Fairbanks, Alaska. There, Russian pilots picked them up and flew them to Siberia — or wherever else the Russians wanted them to go.
Q. Why didn’t the WASP take the planes on to Alaska?
A. The base in Fairbanks could not accommodate them with bed and board. Besides, ferrying across western Canada was risky. If a ferry pilot went down in those dense forests, rescue could be a problem. The Ferrying Division, Air Transport Command, did not want to put the women pilots in that kind of danger.
Part of WWII’s Lend Lease Program
Through my podcasts with Jeff and Craig, you will learn lots more about this wartime Lend Lease program and the the role the U.S. women pilots of WWII played in it.
Episode 6: Parts 1 and 2, please listen:
August 26th podcast — Here’s the link: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1181306/5018117
September 2nd podcast — Here’s the link: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1181306/5018696
This from Jeff: The podcast is listed with several major podcast directories such as Apple Podcasts, Apple iTunes, Spotify, Google Podcasts etc. The full list of Warplanes to Siberia podcast episodes may be found at https://warplanestosiberia.buzzsprout.com/
Enjoy!!!
*****
From Sarah: Thanks for reading my books. Here’s where to find them online:
https://www.amazon.com/Sarah-Byrn-Rickman/e/B001JS2MSA?
Coming October 15 from Flight to Destiny Press, Sarah’s latest:
