One of the stops was to see the aircraft on display at Barksdale Air Force Base in Shreveport, Louisiana.
A variety of aircraft from WWII to the present are on display outside, staged along a walkway. This is an active AFB and strict security is in effect - ID must be shown, no weapons, vehicle searches and the like.
The P51 Mustang was the first fighter with the range to be able to protect WWII Bombers all the way to and from the targets. This particular aircraft apparently had quite the war history based on the markings.
This B17 was the "G" model which provided a forward machine gun to defend against frontal attacks intended to kill the pilots.
This is an example of the most produced bomber of WWII, the B24 Liberator. This is an especially rare 'J' model, the last of its kind in the world.
I was pleased to see the following Beechcraft aircraft. These were made by my company to support the War effort. One model was used as a transport, the other to train navigators and bombardiers.
Examples of other much larger aircraft were also on display. Outdoor storage is hard on museum aircraft and resources to keep them in top shape appear to be lacking. See them sooner rather than later.
