When the McChord Air Museum rolls its latest completed restoration project, a B-18 Bolo, out of the restoration hangar and to its permanent location on Heritage Hill, it may bring tears of sadness to some sets of eyes.

For the last 22 years, a group of nearly 30 museum volunteers have worked tirelessly to restore the aircraft so that it could one day be displayed next to the many other symbols of McChord's rich aviation history.

The 17th Bombardment Group, based at March Air Force Base, received its first B-18 in early 1940 before moving to McChord later that year, becoming the first aircraft assigned to the new base. The 12th Bombardment Group, also a McChord based unit, flew B-18s from the base until 1942.

"They've grown so attached to it," said hangar chief Chuck Bowen, who supervises the volunteers. "They want to keep it in the hangar away from the elements."

Of the 30 volunteers that started the project, only three or four are still alive.

In all, Bowen estimates there are more than 47,000 hours of labor invested in the B-18. Some volunteers even traveled to Hawaii and eastern Washington to scout crash sites for parts.

"These are retired guys who are doing something they've never dreamed of - whether it's making aircraft parts or punching rivets - and they love the heck out of it," said Ray Jordan, who's served as the museum's curator for the last five years. "Some even have shops at their house and take parts home to work on them."

Jordan has worked tirelessly to build up the museum's collection of static aircraft in last few years. The B-18, plus a restored C-45 Expediter and a soon-to-be completed PBY Catalina and C-130 Hercules, will soon add to the 12 aircraft already on display at Heritage Hill.

"We're just waiting on funding for the cement and lights," Jordan said.

Volunteers are currently working on installing the wings on the Catalina, as extraction crews sawed off the previous set of wings to dislodge it from a grove of trees after a crash landing.

"We can see the light at the end of the tunnel," Bowen said.

Jordan hopes to add in the future a B-25 Mitchell, a C-54 Skymaster and perhaps a B-17 Flying Fortress.

"There is room for more growth," he said.

That growth could also apply to the museum itself, as Jordan has been in talks about perhaps moving the other indoor displays into an old chapel building (which has been slated for demolition) across from Heritage Hill.

The move would bring the museum closer to the static displays and save visitors a trip across the base.