Bombs Away

‘I wonder if I can make that’

TBM Avengers Reunion Successful Despite Rain

Story and photos by David Cook

Since the first TBM Avengers Reunion was held in 2016 at the Illinois Valley Regional Airport in Peru, the event has evolved into one of the area’s most popular events.

Thousands of spectators from throughout the Illinois Valley visit each year to see the ever-changing line-up of vintage war planes that always includes the rare gathering of several of the famous torpedo bombers. Other attractions include aerobatic shows, flying demonstrations, plane rides, veteran recognitions, music, food, and more.

This year’s air show, held May 20-21, attracted good crowds during Friday’s day and evening events, but inclement weather canceled Saturday’s opportunity to take off into the skies above. For those who weren’t able to attend, or who just want to see and learn more, this collection of photos will help until the 2023 event lands.

Safety is always an important part of flying, and this photo shows a safety briefing between the Aeroshell team and ground personnel before an aerial performance began. The Aeroshell Aerobatic Team was in attendance with their AT-6 Texans. This plane is also known as The Pilot Maker because it was used to train so many pilots of the era. It features a maximum speed of 212 miles per hour in level flight and a range of 870 miles.

Top: The Aeroshell Aerobatic Team on approach.

The folding wings of the Avengers allowed for easier transport on aircraft carriers.

Fans enjoyed walking along the flight line to inspect the many Avengers on display.

Flight crews remained busy ensuring their aircraft remained ready to take to the skies. Before taking flight, pilots made sure everything was running properly as their engines warmed. Though the engine was only at idling speed, the propeller can still be seen flexing as it rapidly cuts through the air.

Jim Howard of the Yankee Air Museum in Michigan is shown putting the final touch on the B-17’s necessary maintenance.

The B-17 in attendance, the Yankee Lady, was a massive plane and arguably the most popular one of the show because there was always a crowd inspecting it. People were also allowed to experience the interior where a crew of 10 served.

Families from across the Illinois Valley enjoyed attending the May 20th show of the TBM Avengers Reunion and Air Show at the Illinois Valley Regional Airport in Peru, and many enjoyed exploring this B-25. The B-25 medium bomber was used in every theater of World War II and remained in service for four decades. It had a crew of five and could carry 3,000 pounds of bombs, and it had a range of 1,350 miles and a top speed of 272 mph.

This Beechcraft C-45 Expeditor was one of the most stylish of the vintage aircraft on display. Roughly 4,500 of these were built between 1939-1945 for the war. Different variations were used for bombing and navigation training, aerial photography and mapping, and light transport and cargo duty.

The Placid Lassie, a C-47, can be seen here in flight with its engine, Eager Eileen, hard at work. The other wing’s engine is known as Idling Ada.

A Douglas DC-3 was also seen circling the sky above the airport. This plane was also adapted for combat as the C-47.

It’s easy to see why jets captured the imagination of the public during the early days of the jet age. This is a Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star, and it has a top speed of nearly 600 mph. While it debuted late in WWII and saw limited combat, it was used extensively during the Korean War.

The Flying Fortress has a wingspan of nearly 104 feet and a length of almost 75 feet. With four 1,200 horsepower engines, a ceiling of more than 35,000 feet, a range of 3,750 miles and a 9,600-pound bomb load, the B-17 was an indispensable plane for the Allied efforts.

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“The A stands for auxiliary. They’re all combat ships and were made to cruise at about 16 knots (18.4 miles per hour), which isn’t very fast, but it was faster than the older days. If the ship was empty, we could get it to 20 knots (23 mph).”

When asked about his time with the Navy, he talks about how funding had decreased because of protests in the United States. The money that was once there was skimpy as the country had burned itself into a hole financially. This forced the ships to have only 80 percent of a normal warship’s company. Being shorthanded, Olson remembers long days and long nights with extra watches.

“We would sail from the Philippines and load the ship with fuel,” Olson said. “Our decks were full of containers for fresh food, and we also had pallets and pallets of 5- and 8-inch ammunition stacked on the decks to send to other ships. We may be on the ship for a week, maybe a little longer, or maybe just four days. It was just however long it would take to unload everything from the ship. We then turned around and went back to the Philippines to load again. It was a constant stream back and forth.

“We went right through the Seychelles, which is a contested area where China has since built an airfield. We would make just a slight dogleg to avoid running aground there as we sailed across. There was no sleep while you were on duty. There wasn’t any sleep while you were in the Philippines either because if you weren’t loading things up, you were partying.

“The only sleep you got was the roughly two days it took to sail back and forth,” he said.

Upon returning to the states, Olson married Ellen, a now-retired schoolteacher who taught in Ladd, and he became a mining engineer. They had two sons – Eric, who is 44 and spent nine years in the Navy and now works at the Quad City Nuclear Plant, and Ryan, who is 42 and an attorney with Country Financial in Bloomington.

He first came to Illinois because of a three-year opportunity to work in sand minds. He went back to Wisconsin to work for an engineering company but then returned to Illinois.

Olson had a second career in manufacturing and equipment design, including the rights to two patents for a crushing system he developed for a company in Milwaukee. Always busy, he also did business consulting in the Philippines and Africa.

Although he enjoys looking back as he spends time with his wife of 46 years come November, being able to still be part of a crew on a ship allows him to bring home a hero.