[136][137] Luftwaffe fighter pilots likened attacking a B-17 combat box formation to encountering a fliegendes Stachelschwein, "flying porcupine", with dozens of machine guns in a combat box aimed at them from almost every direction. The small force of B-17s operated against the Japanese invasion force until they were withdrawn to Darwin, in Australia's Northern Territory. This B-17F-27-BO (41-24585; PU-B) was crash-landed near Melun, France by a crew from the 303d Bombardment Group on December 12, 1942 and repaired by Luftwaffe ground staff. 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. For other uses, see, "Flying Fortress" redirects here. These aircraft were primarily used for agent drop missions over the People's Republic of China, flying from Taiwan, with Taiwanese crews. [111], By September 1944, 27 of the 42 bomb groups of the 8th Air Force and six of the 21 groups of the 15th Air Force used B-17s. [102] 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. It is the third-most produced bomber of all time, behind the four-engined Consolidated B-24 Liberator and the multirole, twin-engined Junkers Ju 88. Although initially deemed repairable, 40-2049 (11th BG / 38th RS) received more than 200 bullet holes and never flew again. The AAF's worst accident rate was recorded by the A-36 Invader version of the P-51: a staggering 274 accidents per 100,000 flying hours. All of these modifications made the YB-40 well over 10,000lb (4,500kg) heavier than a fully loaded B-17F. Other factors such as combat effectiveness and political issues also contributed to the B-17's success. [103] The Luftwaffe also fitted heavy-caliber Bordkanone-series 37, 50 and even 75mm (2.95in) cannon as anti-bomber weapons on twin-engine aircraft such as the special Ju 88P fighters, as well as one model of the Me 410 Hornisse but these measures did not have much effect on the American strategic bomber offensive. 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]. Frisbee, John L. "Valor: Colin Kelly (He was a Hero in Legend and in Fact). 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. The Americans, on the other hand, were proponents of daylight, precision bombing using their state-of-the-art and top-secret Norden bomb-sight. [36] Experiments on this aircraft led to the use of a quartet of General Electric turbo-superchargers, which later became standard on the B-17 line. [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. Footage from Twelve O' Clock High was also used, along with three restored B-17s, in the 1962 film The War Lover. On 3 March 1943, 13 B-17s flying at 7,000ft (2,000m) bombed the convoy, forcing the convoy to disperse and reducing the concentration of their anti-aircraft defenses. Ten of the 12 Fortresses survived the attack. No products in the cart. Frisbee, John L. "Valor: Gauntlet of Fire". 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. It was a very effective weapons system, dropping more bombs during the . Additional armament included an additional dorsal turret in the radio room, a remotely operated and fired Bendix-built "chin turret" directly below the bombardier's accommodation, and twin .50in (12.7mm) guns in each of the waist positions. [73] A squadron of B-17s from this force detached to the Middle East to join the First Provisional Bombardment Group, thus becoming the first American B-17 squadron to go to war against the Germans. Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theater of Operations and dropped more bombs than any other aircraft during World War II. For the video game, see. Designating the aircraft Fortress Mk I, the aircraft performed poorly during high-altitude raids in the summer of 1941. It had a crew of ten and could carry 6,000 pounds of bombs at 300 miles per hour for a range of 2,000 miles. The RAF's No. Forty-five planes survive in complete form, 38 in the United States. 2012-03-07 01:27:07. Life and Death Aboard a B-17, 1944. The 8th Air Force then targeted the ball-bearing factories in Schweinfurt, hoping to cripple the war effort there. Gift of Austin Loree, 2011.160.029, Flying Fortresses dropping bombs and smoke markers over Goppingen, Germany in 1945. [131] These aircraft were nicknamed Dumbos, and remained in service for many years after the end of World War II.[132]. [164] One hundred and seven B-17s were converted to drones. Quote: "At the peak of production, Boeing was rolling out as many as 363 B-17s a month, averaging between 14 and 16 Forts a day, the most incredible production rate for large aircraft in aviation history." [180], Many B-17 crew members received military honors and 17 received the Medal of Honor, the highest military decoration awarded by the United States:[197], Data from The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft[38], Hollywood featured the B-17 in its period films, such as director Howard Hawks' Air Force starring John Garfield and Twelve O'Clock High starring Gregory Peck. 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. [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. [104], Such high losses of aircrews could not be sustained, and the USAAF, recognizing the vulnerability of heavy bombers to interceptors when operating alone, suspended daylight bomber raids deep into Germany until the development of an escort fighter that could protect the bombers all the way from the United Kingdom to Germany and back. The Ball turret itself has inspired works like Steven Spielberg's The Mission. The B-17 finally had a fighter which could escort them in and out of Germany, and began to overwhelm German defenses and industry. [72], The B-17 began operations in World WarII with the Royal Air Force (RAF) in 1941, and in the Southwest Pacific with the U.S. Army. The YB-40s with their numerous heavy modifications had trouble keeping up with the lighter bombers once they had dropped their bombs, so the project was abandoned and finally phased out in July 1943. [144], After examining wrecked B-17s and B-24s, Luftwaffe officers discovered that on average it took about 20 hits with 20 mm shells fired from the rear to bring them down. Donald, David. [103] Additionally, 122 bombers were damaged and needed repairs before their next flights. German ground-based antiaircraft artillery and 300 fighters shot down 60 of the aircraft, with 600 crewmen killed or taken prisoner, the largest Army Air Force loss of the war to date. The ammunition load was over 11,000 rounds. As the Americans flew further into Europe and Germany, the missions became deadlier. [41], Opposition to the air corps' ambitions for the acquisition of more B-17s faded, and in late 1937, 10 more aircraft designated B-17B were ordered to equip two bombardment groups, one on each U.S. To enhance performance at slower speeds, the B-17B was altered to include larger rudders and flaps. It had a crew of ten and could carry 6,000 pounds of bombs at 300 miles per hour for a range of 2,000 miles. B-17s were used in early battles of the Pacific with little success, notably the Battle of Coral Sea[120] and Battle of Midway. Though many were shot down, many more severely damaged aircraft were able to return their crews safely to base. [7] Attacks began in April 1943 on heavily fortified key industrial plants in Bremen and Recklinghausen. A 14th aircraft, the YB-17A, originally destined for ground testing only and upgraded with the turbochargers,[57] was redesignated B-17A after testing had finished.[39][40]. [62][63], The YB-40 was a heavily armed modification of the standard B-17 used before the North American P-51 Mustang, an effective long-range fighter, became available to act as escort. [160][163] Coast Guard PB-1Gs were stationed at a number of bases in the U.S. and Newfoundland, with five at Coast Guard Air Station Elizabeth City, North Carolina, two at CGAS San Francisco, two at NAS Argentia, Newfoundland, one at CGAS Kodiak, Alaska, and one in Washington state. The Americans believed the B-17, with the Norden bomb sight, could be that bomber. Frisbee, John L. "Valor: 'I Am the Captain of My Soul'". At the Arcadia Conference, held in Washington, DC, from December 24, 1941 to January 14, 1942, the Western Allies agreed to a Germany First policy to govern global strategy, but the question where to engage Germany, and when, remained unsettled. [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. In July 1940, an order for 512 B-17s was issued,[43] but at the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor, fewer than 200 were in service with the army. [103] Pilots of average ability hit the bombers with only about two percent of the rounds they fired, so to obtain 20 hits, the average pilot had to fire one thousand 20mm (0.79in) rounds at a bomber. And of those 276,000 planes, 68,000 were lost. 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. [223][224] Works such as The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner by Randall Jarrell and Heavy Metal's section "B-17" depict the nature of these missions. These turbo-superchargers were incorporated into the B-17B. A 1943 survey by the USAAF found that over half the bombers shot down by the Germans had left the protection of the main formation. [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. One of the two "E" Flying Fortresses was photographed late in the war by U. S. aerial recon. 11,846 helicopters According to the Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association, a total of 11,846 helicopters were shot down or crashed during the war, resulting in nearly 5,000 American pilots and crew killed. [157], Following the end of World War II, the B-17 was quickly phased out of use as a bomber and the Army Air Forces retired most of its fleet. The FEAF lost half its aircraft during the first strike,[117] and was all but destroyed over the next few days. Depends on when they flew. [30] One suggestion adopted was the use of a preflight checklist to avoid accidents such as that which befell the Model 299. [128], At their peak, 168 B-17 bombers were in the Pacific theater in September 1942, but already in mid-1942 Gen. Arnold had decided that the B-17 was unsuitable for the kind of operations required in the Pacific and made plans to replace all of the B-17s in the theater with B-24s (and later, B-29s) as soon as they became available. [34][35] The 13th Y1B-17 was delivered to the Material Division at Wright Field, Ohio, to be used for flight testing. Japanese fighter pilots machine-gunned some of the B-17 crew members as they descended and attacked others in the water after they landed. info@nationalww2museum.org The 4x Hornet Radial Engines could produce 750 HP at 2100 meters. [163] They were used primarily in the "Dumbo" air-sea rescue role, but were also used for iceberg patrol duties and for photo mapping. These modifications resulted in a 20% increase in aircraft weight. Tora! Losses were so heavy on the mission it became known as Black Thursday." Additionally, 122 bombers were damaged and needed repairs before their next flights. However, B-17s were operating at heights too great for most A6M Zero fighters to reach. [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. A New Orleans native, James Linn first became involved with the institution then known as The National D-Day Museum in 2001 as an eighth-grade volunteer on weekends and during the summer. 223 Squadron, as part of 100 Group, operated a number of Fortresses equipped with an electronic warfare system known as "Airborne Cigar" (ABC). [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. Linn joined The National WWII Museum staff in 2014 andservedas a Curator until 2020. It was a four engine, heavy bomber which first flew on July 28, 1935. Bomber wrecks were fewer but more expensive. However, the USAAF continued using the B-17 as a day bomber, despite misgivings by the RAF that attempts at daylight bombing would be ineffective. Lieutenant General James Doolittle, commander of the 8th, had ordered the second Schweinfurt mission to be cancelled as the weather deteriorated, but the lead units had already entered hostile air space and continued with the mission. [12], The first flight of the Model 299 was on 28 July 1935 with Boeing chief test-pilot Leslie Tower at the controls. The XB-38 was an engine testbed for Allison V-1710 liquid-cooled engines, should the Wright engines normally used on the B-17 become unavailable. Gift of Peggy Wallace, 2010.308.034, B-17 Flying Fortress bomber dropping bombs on targets in Europe, 1944-45. It should have been a peaceful Sunday morning in Hawaii. In 1964, the latter film was made into a television show of the same name and ran for three years on ABC TV. With its usual nose-mounted armament of four MK 108 cannons, and with some examples later equipped with the R4M rocket, launched from underwing racks, it could fire from outside the range of the bombers' .50in (12.7mm) defensive guns and bring an aircraft down with one hit,[147] as both the MK 108's shells and the R4M's warheads were filled with the "shattering" force of the strongly brisant Hexogen military explosive. By 1944, a further upgrade to Rheinmetall-Borsig's 30mm (1.2in) MK 108 cannons mounted either in the wing, or in underwing, conformal mount gun pods, was made for the Sturmbock Focke-Wulfs as either the /R2 or /R8 field modification kits, enabling aircraft to bring a bomber down with just a few hits.[103]. [citation needed], In July 1945, 16 B-17s were transferred to the Coast Guard via the Navy; these aircraft were initially assigned U.S. Navy Bureau Numbers (BuNo), but were delivered to the Coast Guard designated as PB-1Gs beginning in July 1946. This production rate was, however, surpassed by that of the, This is a commonly misreported error. [127] On the morning of 4 March 1943, a B-17 sank the destroyer Asashio with a 500lb (230kg) bomb while she was picking up survivors from Arashio. Gift of Peggy Wallace, 2010.308.040. [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. These aircraft were painted dark blue, the standard Navy paint scheme which had been adopted in late 1944. Many historians have written about the famous Buffalo Soldiers of the all-Black 92nd Infantry Division, who fought with distinction during World War II. 21 never had a major effect on the combat box formations of Fortresses. B-17s flown by the Eighth saw some of the fiercest combat of the war. The bombardier essentially took over flight control of the aircraft during the bomb run, maintaining a level altitude during the final moments before release. [130], B-17s were still used in the Pacific later in the war, however, mainly in the combat search and rescue role. [28], A total of 155 B-17s of all variants were delivered between 11 January 1937 and 30 November 1941, but production quickly accelerated, with the B-17 once holding the record for the highest production rate for any large aircraft. [ Via] B17f-42-30336 landed in a field at Norholm Estate near Varde Denmark on 9.10.1943 after developing engine trouble, the crew baled out and the pilot landed the plane . The operation did not work as expected, with 90 Squadron's Fortresses being unopposed. [70] Initially designated SB-17G, a number of B-17Gs were also converted for search-and-rescue duties, later to be redesignated B-17H. It was a four engine, heavy bomber which first flew on July 28, 1935. The aircraft was powered by four Pratt & Whitney R-1690 Hornet radial engines, each producing 750 hp (600 kW) at 7,000 ft (2,100 m). Given German Balkenkreuz national markings on their wings and fuselage sides, and "Hakenkreuz" swastika tail fin-flashes, the captured B-17s were used to determine the B-17's vulnerabilities and to train German interceptor pilots in attack tactics. [176] In a well-publicized mission on 12 May of the same year, three Y1B-17s "intercepted" and took photographs of the Italian ocean liner SS Rex 610 miles (980km) off the Atlantic coast. 206 Squadron RAF sank U-627 on 27 October 1942, the first of 11 U-boat kills credited to RAF Fortress bombers during the war.[86]. All were Allison powered. Shores, Christopher, Brian Cull and Yasuho Izawa. [116] A series of disputed discussions and decisions, followed by several confusing and false reports of air attacks, delayed the authorization of the sortie. [95] The raid helped allay British doubts about the capabilities of American heavy bombers in operations over Europe. Although the conversion was not complete until mid-1943, B-17 combat operations in the Pacific theater came to an end after a little over a year. Over 5,000 B-17 bombers were lost in combat missions in world war II. Instead of building models based on experimental engineering, Boeing had been hard at work developing their bomber and now had versions ready for production far better than would have been possible otherwise. [note 1] Boeing also claimed in some of the early press releases that Model 299 was the first combat aircraft that could continue its mission if one of its four engines failed. ", "Chapter 18: Rouen-Sotteville, No. how many b17s were shot down during ww2. British authorities were anxious that no similar accidents should again occur, and the Aphrodite project was scrapped in early 1945. How many B-17s were shot down during World War 2? More than 250 aircraft crashed or made emergency landings in Switzerland during the Second World War. [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. And by 27 April 1945, 2 days after the last heavy bombing mission in Europe, the rate of aircraft loss was so low that replacement aircraft were no longer arriving and the number of bombers per bomb group was reduced. ", Last edited on 24 February 2023, at 16:26, "intercept" and photograph the Italian ocean liner, List of Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress variants, a gunner's position was added in the new tail, the campaign against German aircraft forces, raid on the German capital ship Gneisenau, National Museum of the United States Air Force, List of surviving Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses, Accidents and incidents involving the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, Aircraft in fiction B-17 Flying Fortress, Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress, B-17 Flying Fortress units of the United States Army Air Forces, Accidents and incidents involving the B-17 Flying Fortress, List of military aircraft of the United States, "Army's Biggest Bomber Has Rotating Nose. [122][124] Actual Japanese fighter losses for the day were seven destroyed and three damaged. He also broke the west-to-east coast record on the return trip, averaging 245mph (394km/h) in 11 hours 1 minute. On 1 June, Seigrist and Price returned and picked up Smith and LeSchack using a Fulton Skyhook system installed on the B-17. In 1946 (or 1947, according to Holm) the regiment was assigned to the Kazan factory (moving from Baranovichi) to aid in the Soviet effort to reproduce the more advanced Boeing B-29 as the Tupolev Tu-4. Though initially surviving the impact, Hill died within a few hours, and Tower on 19 November. [39] Once service testing was complete, the Y1B-17s and Y1B-17A were redesignated B-17 and B-17A, respectively, to signify the change to operational status. 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. [84], As use by Bomber Command had been curtailed, the RAF transferred its remaining FortressI aircraft to Coastal Command for use as a long-range maritime patrol aircraft. [173], The B-17, a versatile aircraft, served in dozens of USAAF units in theaters of combat throughout World WarII, and in other roles for the RAF. the B-17 was a fourengine heavy bomber aircraft used by the U.S. Army Air Force during World War II. The Soviets restored 23 to flying condition and concentrated them in the 890th bomber regiment of the 45th Bomber Aviation Division,[153] but they never saw combat. As the war intensified, Boeing used feedback from aircrews to improve each new variant with increased armament and armor. The oldest of these is a D-series flown in combat in the Pacific on the first day of the United States' involvement in World War II. As of November 2022, four aircraft remain airworthy, none flown in combat. The B-17 was designed by the Boeing Aircraft Company in response to a 1934 Army Air Corps specification that called for a four-engined bomber at a time when two engines were the norm. See answer . [93][94] The operation, carried out in good visibility, was a success, with only minor damage to one aircraft, unrelated to enemy action, and half the bombs landing in the target area. Gift of Peggy Wallace, 2010.308.082. Did any American B-17 crewman ever shoot down a German fighter plane while flying over Germany during World War II? [114], By 1941, the Far East Air Force (FEAF) based at Clark Field in the Philippines had 35 B-17s, with the War Department eventually planning to raise that to 165. One of these Taiwan-based B-17s was flown to Clark Air Base in the Philippines in mid-September, assigned for covert missions into Tibet. ", Frisbee, John L. "Valor: The Quiet Hero.". Originally, the B-17 was also chosen because of its heavy defensive armament, but this was later removed. (06/2. He finished the war with 9 enemy planes destroyed. The first two ex-USAAF B-17s, a B-17F (later modified to B-17G standard) and a B-17G were obtained by the Navy for various development programs. The B-17 was reported as shot down by observers, but it survived and brought its crew home without injury. Also on board were Wright Field test observer John Cutting, and mechanic Mark Koegler. By the end of the war, the B-17 was an obsolete aircraft which had been surpassed by another Boeing bomber, the B-29 Superfortress. This articleis part of an ongoing series commemorating the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II made possible by Bank of America. [155], Official Swiss records identify 6,501 airspace violations during the course of the war, with 198 foreign aircraft landing on Swiss territory and 56 aircraft crashing there. Launching Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortresses" and Consolidated B-24 "Liberators" from bases in England's eastern countryside, the Americans bombed their targets . Bigger WWII bombers like e.g. Operational History. [225][226], "B-17" redirects here. Dozens more are in storage or on static display. Craven, Wesley Frank, James Lea Cate and Richard L. Watson, eds. Arriving over the target, LeMay's bombers encountered little flak and were able to place approximately 300 tons . The first B-17 raid in Europe took place on August 17, 1942, when 12 planes attacked the railroad marshaling yards in Rouen, France. Almost all of the other bombers suffered some level of damage. [168], Thirty-two B-17Gs[169] were used by the Navy under the designation PB-1W, the suffix -W indicating an airborne early warning role. Date: American aircraft struck targets in Schweinfurt and Regensburg on August 17, 1943. . ", "Langley B-17s paved way for independent Air Force", "World War II General Electric Turbosupercharges", "Flying Fortress (B-17G): A Survey of the Hard-hitting American Heavy Weight. ", "Army Bomber Flies 2,300 Miles In 9 Hours, or 252 Miles an Hour; New All-Metal Monoplane Sets a World Record on Non-Stop Flight From Seattle to Dayton, Ohio. ", "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.