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  B-18 Bolo Serial Number 36-446 Tail 50R 81
USAAF
50th RS

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Click For Enlargement
February 1941

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Gary Larkins 1980s

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Ryan Hoagland 2000

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Jason Marshall 2008
Pilot  Captain Boyd Hubbard, Jr. Adair, Iowa
Co-Pilot  2nd Lt Francis R. Thompson
Engineer  SSgt Joseph S. Paulhamus
Radio  Pvt William Cohn
Passenger  Pvt Fred C. Seeger
Passenger  Pvt Robert R. Stevens (WIA)
Crashed  February 25, 1941

Aircraft History
Built by Douglas, constructors number 1747, the last B-18 built in the "36-" series. Accepted by the US Army on April 15, 1938. Assigned to the 50th Reconaissance Squadron (RS) and assigned aircraft number 81. Engines R-1820-45 serial numbers 36-394 and 36-567. At the time of its loss, this aircraft had a total of 1,023 hours 15 minutes of flight time.

Mission History
On February 25, 1941 took off at 7:00pm from Hickam Field. One of four B-18s, including this aircraft took off for a training flight for inter-island night navigation on instruments. Over Hawaii, while flying on instruments at 10,000', it suffered a main bearing failure in the left engine and crashed into the Kohala summit swamps west of Waimanu at 3,500'. The crew only suffered minor injuries and waited at the crash site to be rescued.

Search
The next morning, 24 bombers from Hickam Field searched for the missing B-18 and located it at 9:00am, and later in the afternoon they dropped supplies to the crew including blankets and hot coffee.

Rescue
At dawn on Thursday, February 27, a rescue team departed from Upolu (Suiter Field). On horseback, they followed the Kohala Ditch Trail from Kaukini Camp for 2 ½ hours, then had to cut a new trail on foot for eight miles through marshland and heavy brush for another four hours before nearing the crash site. The rescuers fired revolvers into the air and then listened for a reply. They were about to give up, when they finally heard a burst of machine gun fire and flares which guided them to the crash site, and they reached the crash scene at noon.

Wreckage
When the crew was rescued, only the bombsight and instruments were salvaged. Further salvage was impossible due to the remote location.

During the 1980s, Gary Larkins visited this B-18 and photographed it with top turret intact. Internal fittings and the top turret were removed, including the retractable top turret and nose cone. These parts are to the USAF Museum for use in their restoration of B-18A Bolo 37-469, but the turret did not fit their aircraft.

Today, the wreck remains 'in situ' on the Laupahoehoe Nui LLC property, Hamakua, Hawaii on Kohala, north of Mauna Kea.

Chris Rathbun adds:
"I am part owner of Laupahoehoe Nui LLC, the owner of the property where this B-18 crash landed. The plane is still sitting in a gulch on our property. Recently, the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum contacted us about possibly recovering the plane. The plane came to rest hanging over Waikaloa stream. Later it slid into the gulch, where it remains today. It appears to be surprisingly undamaged. Unfortunately people coming in by helicopter in recent years have taken everything that isn't nailed down, and the Air Force apparently made a salvage raid to restore the B-18A in their museum. This appears to be one of only two B-18's still in existence. Clearly it has historical importance and so we have some questions before we give it away."

Relatives
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References
USAF Biography - Boyd Hubbard - Unusual Experiences
Star Bulliten "First pictures of Army bomber wrecked on the big island" February 1941
Air Pirates / Gary Larkins B-18 Bolo (page down since 2006)
Accident Report - B-18 36-446 via Aviation Archaeological Investigation & Research
Thanks to Chris Rathbun for additional information

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Do you have photos or additional information to add?

Last Updated
April 18, 2023

Tech Info
B-18

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