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My years working on the KC 97's in the 321st AREFS SAC Sg were the best. A great aircraft for it's time. A lot of maintenance with an extremely good airframe, flight characteristics, and safety record. We held the record on engine hours at about 1100 for a long time.Good crews, good maintenance, good aircraft. Sometimes it seems like yesterday, Cheers for the KC-97 F&G....

I was the Adjutant of the 1700th Test Squardron (Turbo-Prop) at Kelly AFB, TX from 1955 to May 1957. The purpose of our squadron was to test the Pratt & Whitney turbo prop enjines asnd the Hamilton-Standard propellers to determine maintence requirements. The squadron completed it's mission in July,1957

My father flew the YC-97 out of Biggs AAF/AFB for the 1st SAC Support Squadron in the late 1940's.

Flew over 5000 hours in various duties and models of the 97 including the VC 97 designated to be Gov. Dewey's Presidential aircraft. Super stable and reliable; brought me and my crew down safely after losing both inboards just after refusal speed on max weight take off. Unique moment; did "Charley-Charley" landing in Hong Kong with my Mother seated on the flight deck.

Was a passenger on a flight from March AFB to RAF Brize Norton, by way of Goose Bay Labrador. A beautiful airplane and my first experience hearing prop ice thrown against the fuselage - strange noise for a newcomer, but all was totally well. A great airplane.

We here at the BAHF own & are preserving a C97G Strat N522718 of Airworthy status. We are making HER into a of Cold War History & Nostalgia.When the project is complete we hope to present our C97G on the USA airshow circuit. The BAHF is a nonprofit,tax exempt,all volunteer Aviation Foundation & also flys a C54 Skymaster on the airshow circuit,which is a

My dad flew was a flight engineer on the KC97, KB50 and KB29 for nearly 30 years, both in the Air Force and finishing with the Tennessee ANG 134th ARG at McGhee Tyson ARPT Knoxville. I was lucky enough to get checked out as a boom operator and serve along with him in Tenn ANG from 1967 to 1977. Dad always said the 97 was so safe because it was about the last aircraft built on a cost plus contract basis, thus lots of redundant back up systems and components. I remember taking off from SDF in Louisville KY after a guard open house with only 3 engines turning, one of the props had sprung a leak and had to stay shut down for the flight. We flew the L model with two GE J47 jets that made quite a difference in performane and safety in all flight phases. The 97 was a great bird! One of ours from Knoxville is on display at Castle AFB Air Force Museum Merced, CA tail number 53-354. Check her out!

I flew the KC-97G from 1958 to 1963 in the 55th ARS at Forbes AFB, Kansas. The mission of the 55th ARS, a squadron of the 55th Reconiance Wing, was to refuel the Wing RB-47s anywhere in the world. I flew as copilot for 3 years and upgraded to Aircraft Commander just before the Cuban blockade in 1962. It was a grand aircraft of it's day which required extensive aircraft system knowledge of all five crewmembers.

As a controller at Atlanta ARTC Center, we had many opportunities to fly in the KC-97 tankers from TYS(Knoxville, TN) with the Tennessee ANG, and observe A/A refueling in AR-633.

Was a recip engine mech with the 1502nd FLMS @ Hickam AFB
(58-61) working transient AC. Working the was a pleasure compared to the C-124. Loved cranking those old 4360's.

From 1956 to 1059 I flew the KC-97 F/G models out of Dow AFB, Maine with the 341st ARS. Having expieranced about 2000 hrs and millions of pounds of fuel off loaded to B-47's and B-52's in SAC I can can say it was indead a great ride for the times.

I flew G's with the 70th, 509th and 100th Air Refueling Squadrons between July, 1961 and December, 1965 as a navigator. People that call the 97 a Cadillac are right. The only other aircraft I flew that had the room for the cockpit crew the 97 had was the C-5. Left the plane with just over 1500 hours in it.

That flight engineer extraordinary, Chas Bos, was the flight engineer that instructed and checked me out in KC97 as a FE at Lockourne AFB after being a crewchief on the 97 for seven years. That was the Cadillac of the AF as for my opinion.The flight engineer occupied the 'CAT BIRD'S seat!!!!!

I flew the KC-97F/G as a Copilot and Aircraft Commander from 1961 to 1965 for a total of 1,500 hours. The bases were MacDill AFB, FL; Dow AFB, ME and Pease AFB, NH. It was a grand old plane.

I flew KC-97F & KC97G from 1953 to 1963 and C-97 from 1963 until 1972 as a flight engineer in SAC. It was a big improvement over the B-29. The engines took lots of maintenance but I loved that aircraft. It was a flight engineers aircraft.

Thanks for the memories. Flew the '97 for eleven years. The E,F, and G models. I've refueled B-47's, B-52's and one B-66.

I flew KC-97s at Whiteman AFB and Little Rock AFB between Nov 57 and Oct 63 and have about 1700 hours as pilot and copilot. At Whiteman we had a KC-97G which we called a +G 1/2." I can't remember how it differed from the standard G, but it flew very differently. It was tail number XXX333.

Have over 6000 hours serving as a Loadmaster in the C97g, with over 1,000 of those hours flying in the Biafra Airlift in Africa. Eight of the C97G's barrowed from the USAF were used. One crashed at Uli, the rest brought home and one still resides in the Pema Air Museum in Tuscon.