Bluebonnet Belle

Special to The Highlander

Karl Ritter, of Brady, generously donated the “Texas Zephyr” to the Commemorative Air Force’s Highland Lakes Squadron based at Kate Craddock Field in Burnet. The Texas Zephyr was manufactured in 1945 by the Douglas Aircraft Company in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Ritter, the donor of the airplane, expressed that he wished to see the Texas Zephyr restored to its original glory and believes that the Commemorative Air Force’s Highland Lakes Squadron would be best suited to do just that after spending thousands of hours restoring the Bluebonnet Belle.The Zephyr is currently positioned at the Brady Curtis Airfield in Brady, and will require some mechanical work prior to relocation to Burnet. This will hopefully take place by the summer of next year, just in time for the Bluebonnet Air Show which is scheduled for Sept. 26, 2020. 

By Lew K. Cohn

Managing Editor

The Highlander

The famed Bluebonnet Belle C47 Skytrain, which assisted in Hurricane Harvey relief efforts and was an integral part of the Highland Lakes Squadron of the Commemorative Air Force, crashed Saturday morning at Burnet Municipal Airport's Kate Craddock Field in Burnet while attempting to take off for an air show in Wisconsin.

Fourteen people were aboard the Belle, headed for the annual Oshkosh Air Show when the plane left the runway shortly after 9 a.m. Saturday and crashed before catching fire and eventually exploding. Miraculously, all 14 people aboard the craft survived the crash and made it out of the plane before the explosion.