Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress

From The Air Combat Wiki

Contents 1 Fighter Ace Screenshots 2 Fighter Ace Ratings 3 Fighter Ace Performance 4 Historical Statistics 5 Strengths 6 Weaknesses 7 History 8 Sources 9 See Also

Fighter Ace Screenshots

Screenshot by HG_CO_KenJr	Screenshot by HG_CO_KenJr	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ
Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ	Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ
Fighter Ace museum screenshot by Doug@HQ

Fighter Ace Ratings

Durability: 10

Speed: 5

Maneuverability: 6

Firepower: n/a

Climb Rate: 1

Ground Attack: 10

Fighter Ace Performance

Top Speeds						Climb Rates
	Sea Level	4921' 1500m	9843' 3000m	19685' 6000m	Best Speed	Best IAS	to 1000m	to 3000m	to 6000m
mph	221	239	250	277	287@ 24934'	152 mph	4:50	13:58	32:22
mph WEP	235	254	265	290	303@ 24934'
kph	356	385	403	445	461@ 7600m	245 kph
kph WEP	378	408	426	466	487@ 7600m

Historical Statistics

Service Date: November 1943

Defensive Guns: 2x Browning M2 0.5" (12.7mm) machine guns with 400 rpg in chin turret, 1x Browning M2 0.5" (12.7mm) flex machine gun with 300 rpg in port cheek, 1x Browning M2 0.5" (12.7mm) flex machine gun with 300 rpg in starboard cheek, 2x Browning M2 0.5" (12.7mm) machine guns with 500 rpg in dorsal turret, 2x Browning M2 0.5" (12.7mm) machine guns with 500 rpg in ventral ball turret, 1x Browning M2 0.5" (12.7mm) flex machine gun with 600 rpg in port waist, 1x Browning M2 0.5" (12.7mm) flex machine gun with 600 rpg in starboard waist, 2x Browning M2 0.5" 12.7mm) machine guns with 575 rpg in tail turret

Ordnance: 24x 100 lb (45 kg) or 16x 250 lb (113 kg) or 12x 500 lb (227 kg) or 8x 1000 lb (454 kg) or 4x 2000 lb (907 kg) bombs in internal bomb bay, plus 2x 500 lb (227 kg) or 2x 1000 lb (454 kg) or 2x 2000 lb (907 kg) or 2x 3877 lb (1758 kg) bombs on underwing racks. Maximum load of 17,600 lbs for short-range work.

Engine(s): 4x Wright Cyclone R-1820-97 radials rated for 1,200 hp each at sea level (1,320 hp with WEP)

Int Fuel Capacity: 16,542 lbs (7,500 kg)

Ext Fuel Capacity: none

Maximum Speeds: 300 mph (483 kph) at 30,000 ft (9,144 m)

Ceiling: 35,000 ft (10,668 m)

Loaded Weight: 55,000 lbs (24,948 kg)

Wing Area: 1420 sq ft (132.1 sq m)

Wing Loading: 38.7 lbs/sq ft (188.9 kg/sq m)

Strengths

Durability: No other plane in the game can absorb as much damage as the Flying Fortress.

Bomb Load: Only the Lancaster carries a heavier bomb load than the B-17G.

Defense: Bristling with defensive guns, the Fortress can penetrate past all but the most skilled of fighter pilots.

Range: Even with fuel consumption set to its highest levels, the B-17G can reach any target on any map.

Weaknesses

Maneuverability: The Fort is a large and sluggish plane and isn't suited for the quick maneuvering that can be had in smaller, lighter planes.

Climb Rate: When loaded, particularly when overloaded, the Fort has a horrible climb rate, often requiring 30-45 minutes to get to 20,000 feet.

History

Arguably the most famous bomber of World War II, the B-17 started life as the Model 299, a self-funded project by Boeing to meet an Army requirement for a multi-engine bomber in 1934. While all the other entrants for the contract were twin-engine designs, the Boeing stood out as massive and complex. Bristling with gun positions, a reporter commented that it looked like a "flying fortress" and the epithet stuck.

As the result of a crash of the prototype, due to the pilot's failure to remove a locking pin from the elevator controls, the contract went to the Douglas company for their B-18 Bolo. However, Army Air Corps interest in the big Boeing was obvious and an order was placed for thirteen YB-17s for evaluation. This evaluation period saw the new plane set many endurance and time records, including a long-range interception of the Italian passenger liner Rex, proving the value of aircraft for coastal patrol.

The first variant to see combat was the B-17C, which was part of a shipment of 20 planes sent to Britain for training purposes. However, the RAF pressed the plane into immediate service and soon lost most of them to a variety of mishaps. In the meantime, the "D" model was equipping USAAF squadrons just in time to be caught up in the Japanese tide that was sweeping through the Pacific. Combat soon revealed several weaknesses in the Fortress' defenses, which were addressed in the "E" model.

The most striking difference was a new vertical stabilizer and tail section, which accommodated a gun position equipped with two .50 caliber machine guns to defend the previously vulnerable tail. The ventral bathtub gun position was replaced initially by a Bendix remotely operated gun turret, but this was soon upgraded to the superior Sperry ball turret in which the gunner actually crawled into the turret. The beam blister gun positions were eliminated in favor of a simpler window arrangement and a Bendix turret was installed in the dorsal position, immediately behind the cockpit. All told, the new "E" model sported ten .50 caliber machine guns for defense.

The "F" model was more of an incremental upgrade with most improvements having to do with increasing the performance, range and carrying capacity of the plane. The "F" model was the first to allow the carriage of a pair of 4000 lb. bombs for short-range missions, bringing the total short-range bomb load to 17,600 lbs. However, for most missions, the standard bomb load was 4000 lbs.

At about this time, the 8th Air Force was suffering heavy losses on unescorted missions deep into Germany. Lacking a proper fighter escort, a plan was devised to create a long-range escort out of the Fortress. Several B-17s were stripped of their bomb racks and were outfitted with additional defensive guns and gun positions. The most striking additions were a new turret under the plane's "chin" and another top turret in place of the radio operator's position.

The YB-40 was a good idea, but while they were able to stay in formation on the ingress portion of the mission, they were much heavier than the regular B-17s after they had dropped their bombs and thus got left behind as the formation raced for home. While the YB-40 proved a failure, the Bendix chin turret proved a great success and it was soon being fitted to production "F" models.

Along with other minor modifications, including the staggering of the waist gun positions so that the gunners wouldn't keep bumping into each other, the "G" model was introduced on the production lines. In addition to the chin turret, the plane's defensive capabilities were enhanced by adding more ammunition to each gun position and by improving the tail gun position with better sights.

While the Fortress was not technically as capable as the Consolidated B-24 Liberator, it had a feature that endeared itself to its crews - survivability. B-17s were known as the most rugged plane of World War II, capable of sustaining incredible damage and still bringing her men home. Although strategic bombing by itself didn't defeat Germany, the USAAF and RAF bombing missions caused Germany to waste vast quantities of resources defending their factories and cities from aerial attack. More importantly, it drew the Luftwaffe into the defensive battle where it was chewed to pieces by the vast quantity of fighters that the Allies could field.

Sources

Green, William; Famous Bombers of the Second World War, Second Series; Doubleday & Company, Garden City, New York; 1961.

Freeman, Roger, et. al,; The Great Book Of World War II Airplanes; Zokeisha Publishing, New York; 1984.

See Also

Fighter Ace Planes Inventory

The Boeing Aircraft Company

Aircraft Manufacturers During World War II