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"The Circus Outbound" conveys the power of eighteen B-24Ds of the American pioneer 93rd Bomb Group as they climb through 21,000 feet into the light of the early morning sun. On this important day of World War II (March 18, 1943), the B-24Ds, joined by B-17s and other bombers, crossed the East Coast of England en route to their target, the submarine base at Vegesack, Germany. This first mission to Germany for the 93rd Bomb Group proved that daylight bombings could be carried out successfully in the face of German defenses.
The B-24 was by far the most difficult American heavy bomber to fly. However, the 93rd Bomb Group excelled at their skills and tactics under the leadership of their commander, Colonel Edward Timberlake. Because the 93rd had been "tasked" to fight over France, North Africa and Italy, they earned the nickname "Ted's Traveling Circus."
"The Circus Outbound" pays tribute to all the brave men who went to war in the B-24. And by showing the vastness of the world we live in, this also honors the power of the earth. Even man's mightiest acts of warfare cannot diminish the world's capacity to endure.
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An artist’s career can rest on the simplest of things. For Keith Ferris, it was
an allergic condition which kept him from becoming a pilot for the Air Force.
But he didn’t let that stop him from making his love of aviation his life.
Instead, he channeled his energy and enthusiasm into becoming an aviation
lecturer, historian, model-builder, inventor and artist known for his
scrupulous accuracy of aircraft and events. It also didn’t keep him from flying
all over the world in almost every type of jet aircraft possble.
His knowledge of the industry and passion for sharing the thrill of flight was
all in the family. He was the son of an Air Force officer and grew up on
military bases in the U.S. and England. He majored in aeronautical engineering
at Texas A&M University and enrolled in the Air Force ROTC. Since then he has
painted for almost every major defense contractor in America and completed a
variety of commissions for the U.S. Government, both practical and creative.
He holds the patents for five air combat camouflage paint schemes and painted
two twenty-five by seventy-five-foot murals for the Smithsonian Institution’s
National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. He has been elected a life
member of the Society of Illustrators and the Order of Daedalians, the national
fraternity of military pilots. He is Honorary Air Force Art Chairman, past
executive vice president of the Society of Illustrators and founder as well as
past president of the American Society of Aviation Artists.
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