'Feel the thunder': Soar above the Albuquerque skies in World War II planes

Metro area residents will be able to ride inside not just one, but two World War II-era planes.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, people can go on a flight in the historic B-29 “Doc” and/or the P-51 “Gunfighter.”

“People don’t just take a ride on these historic warbirds,” B-29 “Doc” Executive Director Josh Wells said in a news release. “They feel the thunder under their feet, the weight of history in the cockpit and they walk away with a whole new appreciation for what the Greatest Generation endured.”

The ride flights will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday at Cutter Aviation, 2502 Clark Carr Loop SE. Tickets, which range from $617 to $1,235 for the B-29 “Doc” and $2,500-$4,000 for the P-51, can be purchased online.

The B-29 “Doc” is one of two B-29 Superfortress bombers that remain airworthy out of the nearly 4,000 B-29s built by Boeing during World War II, and is one of 1,644 B-29s built by Boeing in Wichita, Kansas, Wells said.

The P-51 “Gunfighter,” which will be making its first appearance in Albuquerque, was built at North American Aviation’s Inglewood, California, facility and was accepted into the U.S. Army Air Forces in March 1945. That month, it was shipped to England, where it was assigned to the “Mighty Eighth” Air Force, he said.

People will learn about those who built and maintained the planes, said Joe “Rifle” Shetterly, one of the P-51 pilots.

“We want to inspire the next generation to do great things and also tell a story of the generation that did so many great things so that we can enjoy the freedoms that we have today,” he said.

Shetterly said his dad taught him and his brother how to fly antique airplanes. Later, Shetterly flew combat missions and served as the Air Force’s A-10 Demonstration Pilot — flying nearly 250 demonstrations across the world. He has also flown more than 300 aerobatic performances in civilian aircraft — holding an unrestricted waiver for solo and formation aerobatics in multiple aircraft types, according to the P-51 “Gunfighter” website.

After World War II, the P-51 Gunfighter was assigned to Olmstead Field in Pennsylvania before being transferred to the Air National Guard, serving with units in New Mexico, Wyoming, Illinois and Kentucky. In 1956, the plane was sold on the civilian market. Today, it offers ride flights and performs at airshows, Wells said.

“Often when I’m giving these rides the passenger and I sort of come to this moment where we go, ‘This is fun and all, but imagine being in this plane fighting for your life and fighting to protect other people’s lives,’” Shetterly said. “That gives me chills.”