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Unique WWII bomber ride experience offered in Urbana for limited time

Unique WWII bomber ride experience offered in Urbana for limited time

Yahoo11-06-2025
Previous aviation coverage above.
DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) – Have you ever wanted to ride in a WWII TBM Avenger torpedo bomber aircraft?
The Capital Wing of the Commemorative Air Force (CAF) will offer warbird rides at Grimes Field on Monday, June 23 and Tuesday, June 24.
The airport is located on Route 68 at 1636 N. Main St., Urbana.
'We're thrilled to be returning to one of the significant airports in aviation history and offering warbird rides in the largest single-engine bomber of WWII,' said Pete Ballard, Capital Wing Warbird Rides Coordinator.
MAP: Miami Valley county fairs 2025
The Doris Mae is one of the few warbirds that two people can fly in alongside the pilot.
There will be a limited number of tickets available for this experience. All riders must be 12+ and able to climb in/out of the cockpit unassisted. It is $900 for the observer seat behind the pilot, $450 for the turret seat – or $1,250 for both. To book a spot, click here.
'A warbird ride is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. We tell people not to miss the opportunity when it comes around,' said Ballard. 'Riding in the TBM Avenger engages all your senses: sight, sound, smell, and touch. You become a part of the warbird. You experience living history.'
For people visiting Grimes Field to observe the aircraft, there are also three aviation museums nearby.
The Champaign Aviation Museum, where a B-17 bomber is being restored.
Grimes Flying Lab Foundation and the Ohio Restoration Wing of the Mid-America Flight Museum.
The National Museum of the United States Air Force is located in Dayton, just 30 miles from Grimes Field.
To see the Capital Wing TBM Avenger in action, including engine start, wing unfold and taking off, click here.
Flights not sold in advance will be available on a walk-up basis at the airport.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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‘Children like me had to carry bodies': Japan A-bomb survivors urge world not to forget 80 years on
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‘Children like me had to carry bodies': Japan A-bomb survivors urge world not to forget 80 years on

She was only eight when she saw people with their skin peeling off, faces swollen beyond recognition, stumbling through a city in flames. For Keiko Ogura, a survivor of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, the morning of 6 August 1945 was the day her childhood ended. She remembers the moment the bomb fell: Hiroshima flattened in an instant, as if a giant had stomped the city into the ground. 'Buildings were crushed, and fires broke out everywhere. That night, Hiroshima burned. The entire city kept burning through the night.' Ogura's family had moved a year earlier to the far side of a small hill just outside the city centre – a decision, made by her father to avoid air raids, that ultimately saved their lives. The hill stood between their home and the bomb's hypocentre, shielding them from the full force of the blast. Scenes of horror surrounded Ogura in the days after the bombing. 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