Flying Through History - Wild Blue Adventure Company

Flying Through History: The Story of Our Stearman Biplane

If you’ve ever looked up at the skies over the New River Gorge or Summersville Lake and seen a bright blue and yellow biplane cruising along with a classic rumble, there’s a good chance you were watching our beautiful Stearman in action. But this isn’t just any old plane—it’s a flying piece of history.

Let’s rewind all the way back to September 1940 when the first Stearman Biplane was born (well, manufactured) in Wichita, Kansas by the Boeing Stearman Aircraft Division. Boeing, as you might know, is known for its giant planes, like the 737, 747 or the Triple 7. It is also the same company that produced some of the most legendary planes of World War II—like the B-17 bomber. Our particular Stearman was built in 1943 for the U.S. Army Air Corps and cost a cool $10,412. (Remember, at this point in history, there were only 2 branches of the military, the Army and Navy.) Back then, the Stearman was the primary trainer for young pilots who were preparing to head off to war.

Between 1940 and 1943, Stearmans made their way through two well-known pilot training schools: Cal-Aero Academy in Ontario, California, and Grand Central Flying School in Glendale, California.

By November 1943, our Stearman was reassigned to the Hawthorne School of Aeronautics in Orangeburg, South Carolina, where it trained not just American pilots, but French pilots too. Then in early 1945, it landed at Palmer Field in Bennettsville, SC. Not long after, the Army officially retired the plane and handed it over to the Reconstruction Finance Corporation, the government agency responsible for figuring out what to do with surplus military gear.

Fast forward to 1949—our Stearman found a second life. A private buyer snapped it up and transformed it into a crop duster. For decades, it soared low over farmland throughout the southern U.S., helping farmers take care of their fields.

After years of hard work, the plane was retired again in the late ’80s and placed in storage. But that wasn’t the end of its story. In the mid-1990s, a passionate aviation enthusiast bought the aircraft, took it completely apart, and lovingly restored it to its original 1940s condition as a military trainer.

And today? This incredible piece of aviation history is still doing what it was built to do—fly. Only now, instead of training pilots for battle, it’s giving people unforgettable views of the New River Gorge’s breathtaking landscapes.

Next time you hear that unmistakable roar overhead, take a moment to appreciate the journey this old bird has taken—from training America’s WWII pilots to crop dusting, and now, to bringing joy and awe to anyone who sees it in flight. The excited (and sometimes nervous) energy our passengers have matches the cadets who sat in that very cockpit, learning the ropes before heading into the skies of Europe or the Pacific.

Want to take a ride or just see the Stearman up close? Come visit us and say hello!