WWII bombers to visit

MANCHESTER -- For three days the Aviation Museum of New Hampshire will host a visit of two rare bombers at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport, Sept. 19-21. A Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and Consolidated B-24 Liberator will be on display near the Aviation Museum on the airport's east side (off Harvey Road in Londonderry). The nonprofit Collings Foundation sponsors the "Wings of Freedom Tour" to allow the public an opportunity to see, explore and ride in aircraft from a bygone era.

Walk-through tours of the B-17 and B-24 will be conducted for a donation of $10 (adults) and $5 (children under 12). The public can arrange a once-in-a-lifetime, 30-minute ride aboard one of the aircraft for $425.

The Aviation Museum of New Hampshire will be open to the public during the "Wings of Freedom Tour" on Tuesday, Sept. 19 and Wednesday, Sept. 20, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days, and Thursday, Sept. 21, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.). A special exhibit highlighting the airport's years as a World War II Army Air Corps Base (Grenier Field) will be open.

Tickets are also available for the N.H. Aviation Historical Society's annual banquet on Friday, Sept. 22, beginning at 5:30 p.m., at the Manchester Country Club, 180 South River Road, Bedford. For information, call 669-4820 or visit