Just like so many events and public spaces that have experienced closures and cancellations this year, the Experimental Aircraft Association was forced to pull the plug on the popular national tour of their beautiful restored B-17 bomber Aluminum Overcast earlier in 2020 because of health concerns arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, with new safety measures in place, EAA has resumed public tour stops of the B-17 Flying Fortress, limited for now to missions that can be conducted out and back from the association’s headquarters in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

B-17 tour organizers explained that for now, the Aluminum Overcast tour stops are for flights only, with no ground tours allowed. The downtime between public flights will give the tour crew time for additional sanitizing of the aircraft between flights using a COVID-19 ionizing fogger. All ground and flight crew plus media and passengers are also required to wear face coverings.

There is not currently a formal tour planned. A stop in partnership with EAA Chapter 33 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, on October 23 to 25 saw 109 prospective riders pre-book, with the B-17 making 14 total flights, despite tricky weather. Aluminum Overcast was scheduled to visit at the University of Illinois-Willard airport in Champaign, Illinois, this past weekend. Further stops are being developed at this time, and EAA advises interested passengers to visit their B-17 web page for updates and information.