Stoking the engine of the world's only flying B-29 Superfortress, Col. Charlie Tilghman looked over Lunken Field on Monday and began to taxi down the runway.
The army-green interior rumbled as the plane's four 2,200-horsepower engines fired up.
The massive, gray World War II bomber -- filled with nearly 3,400 gallons of fuel -- lurched along the runway with primitive movements compared with modern aircraft.
"I can only steer this thing by using the brakes," said Mr. Tilghman, a Texan who flies jets for Southwest Airlines and has logged more than 100 hours in the bomber. "We're talking about old equipment."
Co-pilot Rod Farley -- entrenched behind a multitude of gauges, levers and lights -- contacted the airport, ensuring that the bomber was cleared for takeoff.
Mr. Tilghman peered through the glass-paneled cockpit, gave the engines one last boost of power -- like revving a car engine at top speed for several minutes -- and the nose of the plane slowly lifted off the ground. Soon it was soaring over the Little Miami River. Welcome to Cincinnati, FiFi.
The B-29 Superfortress, built in 1945 by Boeing and refurbished in 1991, arrived Monday in Cincinnati. The plane is operated by the Confederate Air Force, a group of retired Air Force colonels that displays it across the country to raise money to preserve the military aviation heritage of World War II.
"We bought it for $1," said Mr. Farley, from California. "But they put a lot of money into it refurbishing it."
Approximately 4,000 B-29s were built, but only FiFi is still flying.
It was recovered from a Navy weapons center in the California desert in 1971.
FiFi can carry 20,000 pounds up to 30,000 feet and at speeds of 200 mph. FiFi has appeared in seven movies, including Enola Gay and The Right Stuff.
FiFi arrived in Cincinnati from Columbus and will depart for Parkersburg, W.Va., on Sunday. Tours of the plane and Diamond Lil, the only LB-30 Liberator bomber still flying, are available from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Sunday.
The suggested donation is $5 for an adult and $3 for children ages 9-12; free for those under 9.
