B-29 Bomber Delivered to EAFB November 25, 1985

by Duke Doering

     17 members of the South Dakota National Guard’s 740th and 1742nd Transportation Companies had arrived at China Lake Naval Weapons Center in California on this date in 1985. The Guardsmen were on a mission to return a World War II B-29 bomber to Ellsworth Air Force Base in Rapid City, South Dakota.

     The B-29 had already been disassembled and had been prepared for loading when they arrived.  Loading was eventually completed, one piece at a time, onto the seven semi-trailers. The bomber was hauled on seven South Dakota National Guard M-915 Truck Tractors pulling 40-foot flatbeds.

      The unit members began the return trip on November 29, 1985.  They battled snowy conditions, over height and overweight restrictions and heavy traffic on the trip home. The convoy eventually arrived at Ellsworth Air Force Base on December 6, 1985.

      Upon its arrival at Ellsworth the B-29 was taken to a storage dock where a team of volunteers set about unloading the airplane and planning its reassembly.

     Today the restored airplane is standing proudly at the Ellsworth Air Force Base museum near the base’s main gate.