Noted Japanese ace Sabur Sakai is credited with this kill, and in the process, came to respect the ability of the Fortress to absorb punishment.[119]. [115] When the FEAF received word of the attack on Pearl Harbor, General Lewis H. Brereton sent his bombers and fighters on various patrol missions to prevent them from being caught on the ground. Between 1 March and 4 August 1937, 12 of the 13 Y1B-17s were delivered to the 2nd Bombardment Group at Langley Field in Virginia for operational development and flight tests. [21] Doyle notes, "The loss of Hill and Tower, and the Model 299, was directly responsible for the creation of the modern written checklist used by pilots to this day. It was not until the advent of long-range fighter escorts (particularly the North American P-51 Mustang) and the resulting degradation of the Luftwaffe as an effective interceptor force between February and June 1944, that the B-17 became strategically potent. [40] The Y1B-17A had a maximum speed of 311 miles per hour (501km/h), at its best operational altitude, compared to 239 miles per hour (385km/h) for the Y1B-17. B-17s flown by the Eighth saw some of the fiercest combat of the war. The competition for the air corps contract was to be decided by a "fly-off" between Boeing's design, the Douglas DB-1, and the Martin Model 146 at Wilbur Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio. Sakai, Saburo with Martin Caidin and Fred Saito. The 19th Bombardment Group had deployed to Clark Field in the Philippines a few weeks before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor as the first of a planned heavy bomber buildup in the Pacific. The 4x Hornet Radial Engines could produce 750 HP at 2100 meters. As the war intensified, Boeing used feedback from aircrews to improve each new variant with increased armament and armor. Of the surviving aircraft, 17 were so badly damaged that they were scrapped. Two experimental versions of the B-17 were flown under different designations, the XB-38 Flying Fortress and the YB-40 Flying Fortress. [7] Attacks began in April 1943 on heavily fortified key industrial plants in Bremen and Recklinghausen. A retirement ceremony was held several days later at Holloman AFB, after which 44-83684 was retired. Footage of a B-17 bombing raid that was attacked by German flak and Bf-109's in which bombers are hit and shot down. Gr. [citation needed], The B-17 was noted for its ability to absorb battle damage, still reach its target and bring its crew home safely. [92] It has been alleged that some B-17s kept their Allied markings and were used by the Luftwaffe in attempts to infiltrate B-17 bombing formations and report on their positions and altitudes. Many historians have written about the famous Buffalo Soldiers of the all-Black 92nd Infantry Division, who fought with distinction during World War II. ", "Durable B-17s hard for pilots to forget: Love for plane outweighs bitter memories of war", "World War II War Production Why Were the B-17 and B-24 Produced in Parallel? Did the gunners aboard B-17 bombers in WWII manage to shoot down enemy Frisbee, John L. "Valor: Gauntlet of Fire". Dozens more are in storage or on static display. ", Frisbee, John L. "Valor: The Quiet Hero.". Moreover, German fighter aircraft later developed the tactic of high-speed strafing passes rather than engaging with individual aircraft to inflict damage with minimum risk. Of the 291 B-17s in the attack force, 60 were lost, 17 were heavily damaged and most of the others incurred some damage, but were repairable. Forty-five planes survive in complete form, 38 in the United States. ", "B-17 Flying Fortress to join CF - the Collings Foundation", "414th Squadron Planes and Crews circa 1943", "Memphis Belle bomber newly restored and unveiled at US Air Force museum", "Going from lucky in love to lucky to be alive in 1943", "The Swoose comes home to roost at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force", "A Higher Call: autographed by JG 27 Bf-109 ace Franz Stigler and Charlie Brown of the B-17 "Ye Olde Pub", "Airpower Classics: B-17 Flying Fortress. One of the worst days of the war for the B-17 and its crewmen was the second raid on German ball bearing production in Schweinfurt, Germany on October 14, 1943. Thomas, Geoffrey J., and Ketley, Barry, "KG 200 The Luftwaffe's Most Secret Unit", Hikoku Publications Ltd., Crowborough, East Sussex, UK, 2003, Correll, John T. " Rendezvous With the 'Rex'. Also on board were Wright Field test observer John Cutting, and mechanic Mark Koegler. These losses amounted to 25 percent of the attacking force. The first B-17 raid in Europe took place on August 17, 1942, when 12 planes attacked the railroad marshaling yards in Rouen, France. For other uses, see, "Flying Fortress" redirects here. Four B-17s were shot down in these operations.[171]. M/SGT Michael Arooth shot down 17 enemy aircraft to reach triple "Ace" status. By the time the B-17s and escorting Curtiss P-40 Warhawk fighters were about to get airborne, they were destroyed by Japanese bombers of the 11th Air Fleet. [140] Despite an inferior performance and smaller bombload than the more numerous B-24 Liberators,[179] a survey of Eighth Air Force crews showed a much higher rate of satisfaction with the B-17. These turbo-superchargers were incorporated into the B-17B. Wikipedia says: Defensive armament increased from four 0.50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns and one 0.30 in (7.62 mm) nose machine gun in the B-17C, to thirteen 0.50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns in the B-17G. World War 2 . Clearly, something had to be done because the bomber was not getting through. [150][151] One B-17 of KG200, bearing the Luftwaffe's KG 200 Geschwaderkennung (combat wing code) markings A3+FB, was interned by Spain when it landed at Valencia airfield, 27 June 1944, remaining there for the rest of the war. The ammunition load was over 11,000 rounds. "The Battle of the Bismarck Sea", pp. One of the two "E" Flying Fortresses was photographed late in the war by U. S. aerial recon. [98], Operation Pointblank opened with attacks on targets in Western Europe. As he maneuvered his unarmed B-17 bomber over the island of Oahu, U.S. Army Lt. Robert Thacker was puzzled. The experience showed both the RAF and USAAF that the B-17C was not ready for combat, and that improved defenses, larger bomb loads and more accurate bombing methods were required. From then on, red and white neutrality bands were added to the wings of Swiss aircraft to stop accidental attacks by Allied aircraft. [50] The B-17C changed from three bulged, oval-shaped gun blisters to two flush, oval-shaped gun window openings, and on the lower fuselage, a single "bathtub" gun gondola housing,[51] which resembled the similarly configured and located Bodenlafette/"Bola" ventral defensive emplacement on the German Heinkel He 111P-series medium bomber. How many b-17 bombers were shot down during World War 2? Over 5,000 B-17 bombers were lost in combat missions in world war II. Losses to flak continued to take a high toll of heavy bombers through 1944, but the war in Europe was being won by the Allies. The bomber's topside surfaces were repainted a dark olive drab, but retained its light gray under wing and lower fuselage surfaces. [160][170], B-17s were used by the CIA front companies Civil Air Transport, Air America and Intermountain Aviation for special missions. [95] The raid helped allay British doubts about the capabilities of American heavy bombers in operations over Europe. Artists who served on the bomber units also created paintings and drawings depicting the combat conditions in World War II. The prototype B-17, with the Boeing factory designation of Model 299, was designed by a team of engineers led by E. Gifford Emery and Edward Curtis Wells, and was built at Boeing's own expense. Special airdrop B-17s supported Australian commandos operating near the Japanese stronghold at Rabaul, which had been the primary B-17 target in 1942 and early 1943. Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress - Wikipedia [110] The escort fighters reduced the loss rate to below 7%, with a total of 247 B-17s lost in 3,500 sorties while taking part in the Big Week raids. Gift of Peggy Wallace, 2010.308.044, Group of B-17 bombers over Europe with vapor trail flowing behind them, 1944-45. [citation needed], Two additional groups arrived in Britain at the same time, bringing with them the first B-17Fs, which served as the primary AAF heavy bomber fighting the Germans until September 1943. Frisbee, John L. "Valor: The Right Touch". [140], After the first Y1B-17s were delivered to the Army Air Corps 2nd Bombardment Group, they were used on flights to promote their long range and navigational capabilities. [37] Scheduled to fly in 1937, it encountered problems with the turbochargers, and its first flight was delayed until 29 April 1938. Top Image:Close-up of a B-17 Flying Fortress bomber in flight, 1944-45. Frisbee, John L. "Valor: Battle Over Bougainville". The two "E"s were used to develop B-17 air combat counter-tactics and also used as enemy aircraft in pilot and crew training films. But he wasn't a fighter pilot. Nonetheless, this deed made him a celebrated war hero. The first combat use of the B-17 came not with the USAAC (U.S. Army Air Forces after 1941), but with the Royal Air Force. [16] On 20 August 1935, the prototype flew from Seattle to Wright Field in nine hours and three minutes with an average cruising speed of 252 miles per hour (406km/h), much faster than the competition. In January 1938, group commander Colonel Robert Olds flew a Y1B-17 from the U.S. east coast to the west coast, setting a transcontinental record of 13 hours 27 minutes. Of the 291 attacking Fortresses, 60 were shot down over Germany, five crashed on approach to Britain, and 12 more were scrapped due to damage - a loss of 77 B-17s. [103] However, due to the slow 715mph velocity and characteristic ballistic drop of the fired rocket (despite the usual mounting of the launcher at about 15 upward orientation), and the small number of fighters fitted with the weapons, the Wfr. [154], During the Allied bomber offensive, U.S. and British bombers sometimes flew into Swiss airspace, either because they were damaged or, on rare occasions, accidentally bombing Swiss cities. Almost all of the other bombers suffered some level of damage. Mayday! [103] Additionally, 122 bombers were damaged and needed repairs before their next flights. Army Air Forces. Of 2,900 men in the crews, about 650 did not return, although some survived as prisoners of war. Who manufactured the Norden bombsight? - TimesMojo The iconic bomber of the European theater, the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, carried the fight to the Germans in the skies over Europe. These aircraft had landed with mechanical trouble during the shuttle bombing raids over Germany or had been damaged by a Luftwaffe raid in Poltava. Blast damage was caused over a radius of 5 miles (8.0km). While the US Fifteenth Air Force also had B-17s, the most famous group to fly them during the war was the US Eighth Air Force based out of England. "Operation Pointblank: Evolution of Allied Air Doctrine During World WarII". 60 Of the 291 attacking Fortresses, 60 were shot down over Germany, five crashed on approach to Britain, and 12 more were scrapped due to damage - a loss of 77 B-17s. [156] The three bombers, which still contained their top secret Norden bombsights, were ferried to Japan where they underwent extensive technical evaluation by the Giken, the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force's Air Technical Research Institute (Koku Gijutsu Kenkyujo) at Tachikawa's air field. But help soon arrived when the North American P-51 Mustang began to reach the beleaguered Eighth Air Force in large enough numbers to make a difference. [172] N809Z was used to perform a Skyhook pick up in the James Bond movie Thunderball in 1965. Designed by Dr. Sanford Moss, engine exhaust gases turned the turbine's steel-alloy blades, forcing high-pressure ram air into the Wright Cyclone GR-1820-39 engine supercharger. As the raids of the American bombing campaign grew in numbers and frequency, German interception efforts grew in strength (such as during the attempted bombing of Kiel on 13 June 1943[96]), such that unescorted bombing missions came to be discouraged. Photo-recon analysts never made the connection to it being a captured B-17 until after the war. the Germans broke off to refuel having shot down 15 B-17s. [163] They were used primarily in the "Dumbo" air-sea rescue role, but were also used for iceberg patrol duties and for photo mapping. The loss was not total but Boeing's hopes for a substantial bomber contract were dashed. The B-17 was reported as shot down by observers, but it survived and brought its crew home without injury. As the Americans flew further into Europe and Germany, the missions became deadlier. [7] Of the roughly 1.5 million tons of bombs dropped on Nazi Germany and its occupied territories by U.S. aircraft, over 640 000 tons (42.6%) were dropped from B-17s.[8]. [112], On 7 December 1941, a group of 12 B-17s of the 38th (four B-17C) and 88th (eight B-17E) Reconnaissance Squadrons, en route to reinforce the Philippines, was flown into Pearl Harbor from Hamilton Field, California, arriving while the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor was going on. [7] The USAAF bombers attacked by day, with British operations chiefly against industrial cities by night. Next worst were the P-39 at 245, the P-40 at 188, and the P-38 at 139. [87], The air corps renamed United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) on 20 June 1941 used the B-17 and other bombers to bomb from high altitudes with the aid of the then-secret Norden bombsight, known as the "Blue Ox",[88][89] which was an optical electromechanical gyrostabilized analog computer. This made a formation of bombers a dangerous target to engage by enemy fighters. Tragically, the plane stalled and spun into the ground soon after takeoff, bursting into flames. coast. [69] Many B-17Gs were converted for other missions such as cargo hauling, engine testing, and reconnaissance. 1, 17 August 1942", "How Allied Air Attacks Evolved During World War II", "Combat Chronology of the U.S. Army Air Forces: April 1945.". The Germans shot down 36 aircraft with the loss of 200 men, and coupled with a raid earlier in the day against Regensburg, a total of 60 B-17s were lost that day. Kelly's B-17C AAF S/N 40-2045 (19th BG / 30th BS) crashed about 6mi (10km) from Clark Field after he held the burning Fortress steady long enough for the surviving crew to bail out. [105] German fighters needed to respond, and the North American P-51 Mustang and Republic P-47 Thunderbolt fighters (equipped with improved drop tanks to extend their range) accompanying the American heavies all the way to and from the targets engaged them. [6] But it was primarily employed by the USAAF in the daylight strategic bombing campaign over Europe, complementing RAF Bomber Command's night-time area bombing of German industrial, military and civilian targets. The electrical systems were less vulnerable to damage than the B-24's hydraulics, and the B-17 was easier to fly than a B-24 when missing an engine. [122] Five of the Japanese fighters strafing the B-17 aircrew were promptly engaged and shot down by three Lightnings, though these were also then lost. [74] In July 1942, the first USAAF B-17s were sent to England to join the Eighth Air Force. On 8 August 1934, the USAAC tendered a proposal for a multiengine bomber to replace the Martin B-10. [107][108], A third raid on Schweinfurt on 24 February 1944 highlighted what came to be known as "Big Week",[109] during which the bombing missions were directed against German aircraft production. Frisbee, John L. "Valor: Colin Kelly (He was a Hero in Legend and in Fact). [76] The British heavy bombers, the Avro Lancaster and Handley Page Halifax, dropped 608,612 long tons (681,645 short tons) and 224,207 long tons (251,112 short tons)[77] respectively. Its famous nickname came from the fact it carried 13 .50 caliber M2 Browning machine guns for protection, and had a legendary toughness for carrying its crew home on one engine or even with the tail shot away. The first raid on 17 August 1943 did not result in critical damage to the factories, with the 230 attacking B-17s being intercepted by an estimated 300 Luftwaffe fighters.
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