Youngest pilot in the CAF flies the B‐29 Superfortress | News

CARBONDALE, IL (KFVS) - A former SIU student is the youngest pilot to fly the B‐29 Superfortress in the Commemorative Air Force.

David Oliver, 30, is the aircraft commander of one of the Commemorative Air Force's most rare and valuable airplanes, the FIFI B‐29 Superfortress. According to a press release the FIFI is one of only a few remaining B‐29s in the world, and the only one still flying.

We're told he is on a mission to tell a story about the airplane and the generation of people who flew in them under much different circumstances than he does today. To him the airplane is a way to pass those stories on to younger generations.

“It’s kind of fitting that I have been trained to fly this bomber by a former B‐29 military pilot,” Oliver said. “For us, it’s all about passing on the heritage to the next generation.”

By the time David went off to college he was a flight instructor teaching fellow students how to fly. His senior year he was selected as captain of the Southern Illinois University aerobatic team. They went on to win the Collegiate Championship that year with David taking top honors as the individual National Collegiate Aerobatic Champion.

The B29/B24 Squadron of the CAF is based in Addison, Texas.

Copyright 2012 KFVS. All rights reserved.