Tight Cockpits

[MIflyer]

Lockheed test pilot Tony Levier described how Jimmy Stewart scared the crap out of him. Stewart came to him and asked to fly a P-38; he had always wanted to. Knowing that Stewart was a highly experienced pilot, Levier checked him out by sitting on the wing and explaining the controls and features. Then he let him go.

Stewart took off and flew away. And did not come back when Levier expected him.

Levier started thinking that he would go down in history as the man who killed Jimmy Stewart. Then, finally, he was relieved to see the P-38 reappear, flying slowly.

After Stewart landed Levier climbed up onto the wing and as he unstrapped from the airplane, not looking at Levier, Stewart admitted that he had forgotten how to lower the landing gear, and it took him a while to figure it out. Unlike most aircraft on the P-38 you first had to power up the hydraulic system and then operate the level for the landing gear. After you took off and raised the gear you shut off the hydraulic pump. If you did not turn on the hydraulic pump, when you moved the gear level to "Down" nothing would happen.

Around 1981 when I lived in the LA area I got to hear Tony Levier describe in person a mid-air he had with an F4U.

 

[Barrett]

A bit of insight to Jimmy Stewart. One of his daughters roomed with my brother's girlfriend at Stanford. On Moving In Day the fathers crossed paths. Galfriend's dad said "Hello, my name's Vern. I'm a grocer." JS said, "Gladtomeetya. My names's Stewart. I'm an actor."

IIRC his favorite role was Elwood P. Dowd in Harvey, which was the most-requested film when The Boyfriends came to visit.

 

[GregP]

I know for a fact that Jimmy Stewart also flew a B-58 Hustler. I was at Grissom AFB in Peru, Indiana when they were one of the last B-58 units in 1969. Jimmy Stewart was coming for a visit and they spruced up a B-58 for him to fly. It had nothing in the pod and about 2/3 fuel. They were 10,000 feet in the air when they crossed the end of the 10,000 foot runway.

He was on base-wide speaker and said (while I was in the mess hall), "This isn't an airplane, it's a Goddamned rocket ship!" He was riding in that plane, but later got to fly it.

Shortly thereafter, they retired the B-58. The next year, as I recall. It surely didn't LOOK like it was worn out!

 

[Airframes]

Would have loved to have seen a B-58, even on the ground, but preferably up in the luft - might not be as dramatic as the Vulcan, but still a heck of a sight I should think.