They were built in the thousands during world War II, but B-17s in any condition are rare today. Rarer still are B-17 restoration projects. Well, I know of three here in Ohio: The B-17F Memphis Belle at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, an unnamed B-17G (44-85813) at Grimes Field in Urbana, and the B-17E "My Gal Sal" at Blue Ash Airport north of Cincinnati.

America built 12,726 B-17s during World War II, according to the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force. The most common was the "G" model, such as the restored "Shoo Shoo Shoo Baby" on display in the museum. The earlier "E" model was much rarer — only 512 were built, according to the museum.

Only a handful of B-17s are flying today, and only a handful are under restoration. "My Gal Sal," Serial No. 41-9032, is the earliest model of which I'm aware (although the National Air and Space Museum has a "D" model, "The Swoose," in storage.)

"My Gal Sal" is being restored by the Ultimate Sacrifice Memorial Foundation, which hopes to make it the centerpiece of a memorial "dedicated to the brave men and women of the Army Air Force who made the ultimate sacrifice to protect the freedom of this great country, and to illustrate for visitors the tragedies of war."

"My Gal Sal" wasn't a war victim — it never made it to the front. But its story, as compiled by the foundation, is one of luck, pluck and dedication.

It was assigned to the Eighth Air Force's 97th Bomb Group and en route to its base in Polebrook, England, when it ran into bad weather, lost an engine and belly-landed on the Greenland icecap. Nobody knew where it went down, and its 13 crewmembers might have become wartime statistics.

But the resourceful crew hacksawed off the bent propeller tips of its Number 4 engine, allowing them to start the engine and power their radio. A rescue plane fetched them to safety after more than a week on the ice.

The airplane itself was forgotten until 1964, when the crew of a passing airplane spotted it. It was still on the surface, but years of shifting ice had broken it in two. The bomber was recovered in 1995 and shipped to Tillamook, Oregon, where it sat for five years. Cincinnatian Bob Ready bought it in 2000 and had it moved to Blue Ash, where it has been partially restored but not fully reassembled.

The foundation doesn't plan to restore the plane to flying condition but hopes to make it the centerpiece of a memorial that would be housed in a building made to resemble an Army Air Forces hangar. Go to the foundation's website, http://www.ultimatesacrifice.com, for more information.