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Shawn Mulligan inside the B-17 Flying Fortress “Ye Olde Pub” shows just how cramped the quarters on the plane actually are. A typical B-17 flew a combat mission with a crew of 8-10, Mulligan said — a pilot, co-pilot, navigator, bombardier, and several gunners.

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Ye Olde Pub
June 23, 2022 1:20 a.m.

Ye Olde Pub

Flying fortress highlights innovation and rigors of warplanes

MOSES LAKE — There’s a rather famous story behind the name painted on the side of the B-17 Flying Fortress bomber, “Ye Olde Pub,” that sat on a runway at Grant County International Airport for the Moses Lake Airshow on Saturday. “The crew of the airplane, they were on a bombing run over Germany,” said Shawn Mulligan, a professional pilot who flies the elderly bomber in his spare time for air shows. “The aircraft was so badly damaged from anti-aircraft fire, and I think some fighters were after it at one point. They ended up struggling to return to England.” ...