A piece of America’s military history soared over Helena at high noon Friday before settling at Helena Regional Airport for the weekend.

Through Sunday afternoon, Helenans can stop by and see the Senitmental Journey, a restored B-17 Flying Fortress of World War II vintage.

The bomber is maintained by the Arizona Wing of the Commemorative Air Force, a nationwide nonprofit that maintains a fleet of some 150 planes and has a handful that tour the country each summer.

The bomber touched down shortly after noon, following a short flight from Billings. By early in the afternoon, several curious onlookers made their way onto the fry-an-egg-hot tarmac to walk around, under and through the historic silver aircraft complete with a Betty Grable pinup on the fuselage.

“We live three miles from the airport and we saw it fly in,” said Dorothy Wegner, who brought her 4-year-old granddaughter over for a look. “She likes it when we see planes take off. She’s very interested in planes.”

Airport workers, National Guardsmen and other aircraft enthusiasts also took time to check out the historic four-prop plane.

Frank Nagle, a retired police officer from Huntington Beach, Calif., travels with the Sentimental Journey and serves as crew chief. He said he’s seen every reaction imaginable from people approaching the historic aircraft — especially those who used to fly it.

“I’ve had people turn the corner and just turn around in disgust because of what they went through,” he said. “I’ve had others come up, touch the plane and start to cry. It was their time, and for 50 years they’ve never talked about it, and all of a sudden it gets them when they see the plane. It’s a very moving experience.”

As a working bomber, the plane carried a crew of 10 along with 8,000 pounds of bombs. Nagle said he’s touring the country with a team of eight, flying the American skies from March through November. The plane leaves for Great Falls on Monday morning.

The plane is open for viewing from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. There’s a suggested donation of $5 to tour the inside of the airplane. Rides are available, too, at $425 for 20 to 30 minutes of flying time. Interested passengers can call (602) 448-9415 to arrange a ride, and Nagle said the flight schedule will be set once six passengers are ready.

Reach John Harrington at 447-4080 or

john.harrington@helenair.com