B-25J-25-NC SN 44-30748 "Heavenly Body"
History
The B-25J-25-NC SN 44-30748 now flying as "Heavenly Body" was delivered on February 20, 1945. Delivered surplus to war needs and initially stored at Garden City, Kansas. In April of 1945, she was transferred to storage at South Plains, Texas. She was moved to storage in Pyote, Texas in July of 1947. Her first assignment was Barksdale Field, Georgia in November of 1948 as a pilot trainer. She was reassigned to Vance Air Force Base, Oklahoma in June of 1949 were she was used as an advance multi-engine trainer. Her next assignment was October of 1951 to Reese Air Force Base. She went through a Hayes modification in December 1954, being converted to a TB-25N. After modification, she was assigned to a training wing at Reese Air Force Base. In December of 1958, she was flown to storage. The following summary of assignments are listed on her record card:
Base Assignments
| Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 02/22/1945 | Garden City, KS | Storage |
| 04/04/1945 | South Plains AAF, TX | 4168 Base Unit Storage |
| 07/23/1947 | Pyote AFB, TX | 4141 Base Unit Storage |
| 12/06/1948 | Barksdale AFB, LA | 3500 Pilot Training Wing |
| 06/27/1949 | Vance AFB, OK | 3575 Pilot Training Wing |
| 05/18/1951 | Scott AFB, IL | 3310 Training Wing |
| 07/17/1951 | Vance AFB, OK | 3575 Training Wing |
| 08/25/1952 | Brookley AFB, AL | Maintenance |
| 10/16/1952 | Reese AFB, TX | 3500 Primary Training Wing |
| 12/15/1954 | Birmingham, AL | Maintenance to TB-25N |
| 03/15/1955 | Reese AFB, TX | 3500 Primary Training Wing |
| 12/1958 | Davis Monthan AFB, AZ | Storage |
| 01/1959 | Davis Monthan AFB, AZ | Surplus |
On May 19, 1959, she was sold to Ace Smelting of Phoenix, Arizona. A civil registration was initially reserved as N3447G, but was never used. She was then sold to Alson-Niblock Flying, Inc. and her current registration of N8195H was assigned. In December of 1959, she was sold to Christler and Avery Aviation of Greybull Wyoming. In January of 1960, Agricultural hopper and spray bars were installed. In Late 1969, she was sold to Filmways, Inc. of Hollywood, California for use in the movie "Catch 22". She was prepared and operated by Tallmantz Aviation of Santa Ana, California. During the movie, she was assigned the tail code of 6H, but carried no name or nose art. She also appears later in the movie as one of the white "M&M Air Force" B-25s. She was sold to Milan S. Pupich, George S. Pupich and Stephen H Crowe, Jr in March of 1972, and restored to airworthy. On April 21, 1992, she was the first of two B-25s that launched off the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Ranger to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid. In January of 2014, she was sold to the Erickson Aircraft Collection.
- Model: B-25J-25-NC
- Serial Number: 44-30748
- NAA Mfg. Number: 108-34023
- FAA Registration: N8195H
- Mfg. Plant: Fairfax - Kansas City, Kansas
- Completion Date: February 16, 1945
- Delivery Date: February 20, 1945
- Status: Flying
- Owner: Erickson Aircraft Collection
- Location: Madras, Oregon
- Website: http://www.ericksoncollection.com
- Notable info: She was used in the filming of "Catch 22" as "M&M" and "Miss Renee". In April of 1992, she was one of two B-25s that launched off the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Ranger to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid.
Photos
This page represents the most current information we have on this aircraft. The information above was last updated 09/2017 with information provided by Bob Haney. Our goal is to have the most current and correct information possible. If you have any information about this aircraft not listed here or see anything posted in error, please contact the B-25 History Project so we may update our records.