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Cranston Fine Arts  Aviation Art World War Two Aircraft  Flying Fortress |
[UP] - Beaufighter - Flying Fortress - Fw190 - Halifax - He111 - Hurricane - Lancaster - Liberator - P-38 Lightning - Me109 - Me262 - Mosquito - Mustang - Spitfire - Thunderbolt - More Aircraft |
Flying Fortress In the mid-1930s engineers at Boeing suggested the possibility of designing a modern long-range monoplane bomber to the U.S. Army Air Corps. In 1934 the USAAC issued Circular 35-26 that outlined specifications for a new bomber that was to have a minimum payload of 2000 pounds, a cruising speed in excess of 200-MPH, and a range of at least 2000 miles. Boeing produced a prototype at its own expense, the model 299, which first flew in July of 1935. The 299 was a long-range bomber based largely on the Model 247 airliner. The Model 299 had several advanced features including an all-metal wing, an enclosed cockpit, retractable landing gear, a fully enclosed bomb bay with electrically operated doors, and cowled engines. With gun blisters glistening everywhere, a newsman covering the unveiling coined the term Flying Fortress to describe the new aircraft. After a few initial test flights the 299 flew off to Wright Field setting a speed record with an average speed of 232-mph. At Wright Field the 299 bettered its competition in almost all respects. However, an unfortunate crash of the prototype in October of 1935 resulted in the Army awarding its primary production contract to Douglas Aircraft for its DB-1 (B-18.) The Army did order 13 test models of the 299 in January 1936, and designated the new plane the Y1B-17. Early work on the B-17 was plagued by many difficulties, including the crash of the first Y1B-17 on its third flight, and nearly bankrupted the Company. Minor quantities of the B-17B, B-17C, and B-17D variants were built, and about 100 of these aircraft were in service at the time Pearl Harbor was attacked. In fact a number of unarmed B-17s flew into the War at the time of the Japanese attack. The German Blitzkrieg in Europe resulted in accelerated aircraft production in America. The B-17E was the first truly heavily armed variant and made its initial flight in September of 1941. B-17Es cost $298,000 each and more than 500 were delivered. The B-17F and B-17G were the truly mass-produced wartime versions of the Flying Fortress. More than 3,400 B-17Fs and more than 8,600 B-17Gs would be produced. The American daylight strategic bombing campaign against Germany was a major factor in the Allies winning the War in Europe. This campaign was largely flown by B-17 Flying Fortresses (12,677 built) and B-24 Liberators (18,188 built.) The B-17 bases were closer to London than those of the B-24, so B-17s received a disproportionate share of wartime publicity. The first mission in Europe with the B-17 was an Eighth Air Force flight of 12 B-17Es on August 12, 1942. Thousands more missions, with as many as 1000 aircraft on a single mission would follow over the next 2 ½ years, virtually decimating all German war making facilities and plants. The B-17 could take a lot of damage and keep on flying, and it was loved by the crews for bringing them home despite extensive battle damage. Following WW II, B-17s would see some action in Korea, and in the 1948 Israel War. There are only 14 flyable B-17s in operation today and a total of 43 complete airframes |
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Schweinfurt - The Second Mission by Robert Taylor. Briefing at 0500 hours on the morning of 14 October 1943 brought the crews of the 92nd Bomb Group news they did not want to hear: Its Schweinfurt again! The same message was being repeated in USAAF bomb group briefing rooms all over eastern England in the early hours of what was to become forever known as Black Thursday. Robert Taylors majestic painting shows Colonel Budd Peaslees B-17 Equipose, piloted by Kemp McLaughlin, leading the Fortresses of the 92nd Bomb Group en-route to the vital ball-bearing factories at Schweinfurt. |
Heaven Can Wait by Nicolas Trudgian. B-17 Fortresses of the Bloody Hundredth- the Eighth Air Forces 100th Bomb Group - return to Thorpe Abbotts following a raid on enemy oil refineries, September 11, 1944. Nicolas Trudgians moving tribute to the Bloody Hundredth shows the imaginatively named B-17, Heaven Can Wait, on final approach to Thorpe Abbotts after the intense battle on September 11, 1944. Skilfully piloted by Harry Hempy, the seriously damaged B-17G has struggled 500 miles home on two engines to make it back to England. They lost their tail gunner that fateful day. Below the descending bomber stream, an agricultural traction engine peacefully ploughs the wheat stubble in preparation for next year's vital crop, the farm workers oblivious to the unimaginable traumas so recently experienced by the crews of the returning B-17 Fortresses. Signed by four pilots and crew who flew with the 100th Bomb Group in Europe during World War II. Published in 1999 - Issue price was £120. |
Cat Among the Pigeons (FW190) by Ivan Berryman. It was in 1941 that the remarkable Focke-Wulfe FW190 first appeared in the skies of Europe, quickly establishing itself as a most formidable adversary. It proved to be the supreme weapon against all allied bomber forces. Here FW190A-8 of 1 Gruppe, Jagdgeschwader 1 is shown attacking a B17G of 381st Bomb Group during a critical defence of the Reich in 1944. |
Winter's Welcome by Robert Taylor. (GS) For those on the ground there were few sights more stirring than a B-17 Fortress on its final approach from a combat mission, and Robert Taylor's outstanding painting Winter's Welcome is no exception. This now legendary image conjures up those exhilarating final moments as an exhausted pilot and his crew bring their mighty warbird safely home to the welcoming winter countryside of East Anglia. It has been another tough and arduous mission and damage is clearly visible, but with engines throttled back, and wheels and flaps down, the tired captain coaxes his aircraft gently down the glide path towards touchdown. On the ground below a pair of startled pheasants take to the air as the mighty machine thunders overhead, and local farm workers gaze up in respect and wonder. |
Thunderheads Over Ridgewell by Robert Taylor. In the early days of the USAAF daylight bombing campaign, before the arrival of long-range fighter escorts, rarely was a mission flown without Luftwaffe interception and the ever-present barrage of anti-aircraft fire. The Eighth Air Force crews literally fought their way through swarms of enemy fighters and thick flak to hit their targets, then fought their way home again. Seldom a formation returned without losses and casualties, but inexorably the American bomb groups struck deeper and deeper into enemy territory. Bomber crews lucky enough to survive a complete tour were few and far between. They knew this when they arrived in England at the start of their tour, and the awesome task they faced banded the flyers together like brothers. They flew and fought for each other, their country and liberty with determination and a camaraderie that only those who went through the experience could fully appreciate. In his tribute to the USAAF bomber crews, Robert Taylor has selected the 381st Bomb Group to represent, and pay tribute to all those who flew the perilous daylight raids out of bases in England into the heavily defended skies above enemy occupied Europe. Roberts emotive painting shows 381st Bomb Group B-17 Fortresses returning to Ridgewell on a summer afternoon in 1944 during a period when the Group reached the peak of it effectiveness- for several months it was the top ranked outfit in the Eighth. Between June 1943 and the end of hostilities the 381st completed 297 combat missions, hit almost every important target in German hands and was credited with the destruction of 223 enemy aircraft. One aircraft, more than any other, came to symbolise the great bombing campaign of the USAAF in Europe during World War Two, and in his spectacular new painting Robert Taylor captures the magnificence of Boeings legendary B-17 Flying Fortress. In his inimitable style the artist brings to life an exact wartime scene, a battle-damaged aircraft making apparent the fearsome task tackled daily by those who flew the hazardous missions to occupied Europe during the greatest air war ever fought. |
Silent Fortress by Randall Scott. There are few scenes quite so evocative as the vision of a once mighty warbird resting silently in its watery grave, a tranquil underwater world so alien to the world that it was created to fly and fight in. Far removed from the hostile skies of Europe and the long hours of tension, cold and extreme danger endured by its crew, this potent warrior now lies peacefully, its guns silent and quiet forever in the shallow waters of the Mediterranean where it came to rest so many years ago. This is without doubt an extraordinary and moving tribute to those young airmen of the USAAF. |
US Bombadier by Chris Collingwood. A Bombadier from a B17 Flying Fortress. A tribute to all Bombadier from all Bomber Aircraft. |
Coming Home by Tim Fisher. The B-17 Flying Fortress 'Memphis Belle' returns from one of her 25 mission over France and Germany. Memphis Belle, a B-17F-10-BO, USAAF Serial No.41-24485, was supplied to the USAAF on July 15th 1942, and delivered to the 91st Bomb Group in September 1942 at Dow Field, Bangor, Maine. Memphis Belle deployed to Scotland at Prestwick on September 30th 1942 and went to RAF Kimbolton on October 1st, and then to her permanent base at Bassingbourn on October 14th.1942. Memphis Belle was the first United States Army Air Force heavy bomber to complete 25 combat missions with her crew intact. The aircraft and crew then returned to the United States to promote and sell war bonds. The Memphis Belle B-17 is undergoing extensive restoration at the National Museum of the United States Air Force at the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio. |
A Welcome Return by Anthony Saunders. The relieved but weary crew members of Ol Gappy of the 379th Bomb Group, as they nurse their battle scarred B-17G back to their base at Kimbolton. Close behind them, the remainder of the group, relieved to see familiar territory, makes its final approach after the grueling mission to Meresburg on 11 September 1944. |
Hikin' for Home by Ivan Berryman. B-17G 2107027 is depicted limping home to Bassingbourn with the starboard outer propeller feathered following a raid during the Summer of 1944. 'Hikin' for Home' served with the 322nd Bomb Sqn, 91st Bomb Group as part of the 8th Air Force. Escorting her home is Major George Preddy, the highest scoring P-51 pilot and sixth in the list of all-time top American Aces, seen here flying 413321 'Cripes a Mighty 3rd'. |
Red Tail Escort by Richard Taylor. With the words of his Group CO ringing in his ears, a pilot of the 332nd Fighter Group returns to protect a crippled American B17 bomber after downing two Me109s in quick succession. Agonisingly, two more enemy fighters were left to escape but the pilot knew that under the strict leadership of Colonel Benjamin O Davis, his mission, and that if the other all-black pilots of the 332nd, was solely to protect the bombers. That iron discipline was to earn this famous unit the respect and admiration of hundreds of bomber crews, and to create a legend. Despite lingering racial prejudice and some opposition within the Air Force, President Roosevelt had ordered the USAAF to form an all-black fighter pilot unit, its crews to be trained at Tuskegee in Alabama. To the surprise of their critics, the Tuskegee Airmen were to prove their detractors spectacularly wrong from the first day they went into action in Italy in May 1943. Flying first with the Twelfth Air Force, then the Fifteenth, the four squadrons of the 332nd completed over 15,000 combat sorties, destroyed over 250 Luftwaffe aircraft in the air and on the ground, 950 railway trucks and locomotives, and even sunk a destroyer by machine gun fire! The Group was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation, their pilots decorated with over 1000 medals for gallantry. But above all, with the spinners and tails of their P-51 Mustangs brightly painted red, the Red Tails as they were affectionately known, became the only US Fighter Group that never lost a bomber in their care. The Tuskegee Red Tail pilots of the 332nd Fighter Group are a more than welcome sight as they close in to escort home a damaged B17 Fortress of the 483rd Bomb Group. Seen high over the Italian Alps during the summer of 1944 this poignant scene conveys precisely the story of the legendary Red Tails. |
Last One Home by Ivan Berryman. A pair of P51D Mustangs of the 361st Fighter Group, 8th Air Force, escort a damaged B17G Flying Fortress of the 381st Bomb Group back to its home base of Ridgewell, England, during the Autumn of 1944. |
Fortress at Rest by Richard Taylor. The bomber crews of the US Eighth Air Force rightfully earned their place in the annals of aviation history through heroism and devotion to duty. Flying their first mission from England on Independence Day, 4th July 1942, using A-20 Havocs borrowed from the RAF, until their final full scale mission of the war on 25th April 1945, the bomber crews of the Eighth had become one of the most highly decorated military organisations of the war with 17 Medal of Honor recipients and 66 Distinguished Unit Citation awards. By the end of the war, the Mighty Eighth was the largest air unit ever assembled, and their heroic efforts had played a major role in the destruction of Hitler's Third Reich. But, with almost 6,000 heavy bombers lost, the cost of victory had come at an enormous price - only one in three airmen had survived the air battle over Europe. Here, a brief moment of reprieve for the bomber crews as deep overnight snow temporarily grounds the Mighty Eighth during the bitter winter of 1944. With the morning sunlight glinting across the snow-covered landscape, a B-17G Flying Fortress of the 398th Bomb Group stands quietly near the perimeter of RAF Nuthampstead, awaiting the thaw that will allow the flying to begin again. |
Birth of a Legend by Stan Stokes. Colin P. Kelly, Americas first hero of WW II, was born in Florida in 1915. He was accepted to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and following graduation Kelly married the former Marian Wick. Kelly received his primary flight instruction at Randolph Field in San Antonio, and after earning his wings he moved across town to Kelly Field for advanced pilot training. Unlike many would-be fighter pilots, Kelly was not disappointed with being assigned as a bomber pilot. Kelly received a letter of commendation from The Secretary of War when he crash landed a Northrop A-17A he was ferrying to Mitchel field in a vacant street in Brooklyn. In September of 1940 Kelly was promoted to Captain, and was assigned to the 42nd Bomb Squadron as commander of a B-17. Kelly trained in Hawaii, and was later made Operations Officer for the 14th Bomb Squadron. In September of 1941 Kelly and his crew flew from Hawaii to Clark Field in the Philippines. The B-17s were an important addition to the woefully inadequate and obsolete air forces which America had in the Philippines. The Japanese Imperial forces attacked the Philippines only hours following the attack on Pearl Harbor. Mitsubishi Zero fighters, flying to maximize their range, were able to accompany Japanese bombers from bases in Formosa. The initial attack on Clark Field damaged or destroyed many American aircraft. Kellys squadron had been moved south to another field and had escaped damage. On December 10, Kellys squadron was ordered to fly north to Clark Field where they would refuel and arm their aircraft for attacks on the Japanese invasion fleet. Kellys regular B-17D was out of service, so his crew was assigned a B-17C. At Clark Field three 600-pound armor piercing bombs were loaded on Kellys B-17 when an air raid hastened their departure. Kelly flew northward to the northern most tip of the island of Luzon. Kelly spotted a number of Japanese ships which were supporting an amphibious landing. The young Captain dropped his three bombs hoping to destroy the largest of the Japanese ships. One bomb struck the vessel, igniting a tremendous blaze. On returning to Clark Field, the B-17 was attacked by a number of Japanese fighters, including a Zero flown by Saburo Sakai. Sakai would become the highest scoring Japanese ace to survive the War with 64 victories. Amazed by the speed of the Flying Fortress, the Zeros needed full throttle to make passes at the B-17. Kellys B-17 was eventually hit and set afire. Captain Kelly ordered his crew to abandon ship. Kelly remained with the aircraft, and he did not survive the crash landing. With America desperate for any good news on the war front, and with Army brass in the Philippines anxious to claim some positive results, Colin Kellys exploits became exaggerated in many news accounts. By the time the story was publicized stateside, many believed he had dived his B-17 down the funnel of a Japanese battleship. While Kelly was indeed an American hero, the unfortunate gross exaggeration of his exploits, should not tarnish the fact that Kelly, like many that would follow him in the years ahead, had made the ultimate sacrifice for his country in the line of duty. |
Out of Fuel and Safely Home by Robert Taylor. Damaged by flak and enemy fighters, and almost out of fuel, after a gruelling eight hour mission the pilot of this B-17 Fortress makes a forced landing in the safety of an English cornfield. A pair of P-51 Mustangs have escorted the damaged aircraft back across the North Sea, and peel off as they see their charge safely back on friendly soil. |
Boeing B-17G 297976 D by G Henderson. 709th Bomber Squadron, 447th Bomber Group USAAF. |
Legend of Colin Kelly by Robert Taylor. December 10th 1941, Just three days after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, captain Colin Kellys 19th BG B-17C is heavily outnumbered by Zeros as it returns to Clark Field after completing a successful bombing attack. With his aircraft on fire. Kelly remained at the controls whilst his crew bailed out. Seconds later the B-17 exploded. Colin Kelly gave his life and was posthumously awarded the DFC. A legend was born. |
An Interesting Dog Fight by Stan Stokes. October 23, 1942 was a typical day for American troops at Esprito Santo, but for the crew of a B-17 Flying Fortress it would become a most memorable day. Early that morning the Japanese began shelling the field. Lt. Ed Loberg, a former farm boy from Wisconsin, was ordered to take his B-17 up for a reconnaissance mission to determine where the Japanese guns may be located. Not finding anything they returned to the field. The brakes failed on the B-17 upon landing, and they hit several parked Navy aircraft. Fortunately for Lobergs crew a 100 pound bomb dislodged in the crash did not explode. Later that day the crew boarded another B-17 and went hunting out to sea. Around mid-day the crew noticed a PBY being attacked by a Kawanishi H6K Mavis flying boat. Diving the B-17 straight down, the Mavis and the Flying Fortress soon entered a rain squall. The windows were black with clouds and rain, and the plane was buffeted by strong winds. Emerging from the squall at low altitude into blinding sunlight the B-17 emerged only fifty feet from their adversary. Immediately every gun on both aircraft began firing in a broadside exchange reminiscent of age old sailing ship battles. Thousands of bullets criss-crossed the narrow spread of air, and the Fortress shuddered from the impact. Tracer bullets from the B-17 pelted the Mavis like darts with many ricocheting off its armor. The Mavis made a tight turn, and Loberg turned inside him to avoid the mortal sting from the Mavis tail guns. In and out of rain squalls this interesting dogfight continued for 45 minutes. The Mavis kept very close to the wave tops to protect is vulnerable under belly. Several times during the fight the Mavis disappeared for three or four minutes into clouds, but each time as it reemerged Lobergs B-17 resumed the attack. Twice the B-17 passed over the H6K so close that the jagged bullet holes in the Mavis and the round glasses on its two pilots could be seen clearly. Finally, the Mavis began smoking, and the Japanese plane dropped into the sea and exploded in a large ball of flame. In the words of Ira Wolfert, a war correspondent, who was on the flight; During the duel, the Fort that I was on, with a bullet in one of its motors, and two holes as big as Derby hats in its wings, made tight turns with half-rolls and banks past vertical. That is, it frequently stood against the sea on one wing like a ballet dancer balancing on one point, and occasionally it went over even farther than that and started lifting its belly toward the sky in desperate effort to keep the Jap from turning inside it... Throughout the entire forty-four minutes, the plane, one of the oldest being used in the war, ran at top speed, shaking and rippling all over like a skirt in a gale, so many inches of mercury being blown into its motors by the superchargers that the pilot and co-pilot, in addition to their other worries, had to keep an eye on the cowlings to watch for cylinder heads popping up through them. Others on Lobergs crew that day were B. Thurston the co-pilot, R Spitzer the navigator, R. Mitchell the bombadier and E. Gustafson , E. Jung, G. Holbert , E. Smith, and P. Butterbaugh who manned the guns during this unusual dogfight. Both Mitchell and Spitzer were wounded during the battle. |
Berlin Bound by Anthony Saunders. In 1944 Berlin was probably the most defended city in the world. The Luftwaffe had kept what reserves it had for planes to defend Berlin. On March 6th, 1944, The USAAF were involved in the massive air raid on Berlin, 69 B17s were lost - but the Luftwaffe lost 160 planes. Whereas the US 8th Air Force could recover from these aircraft losses, the German Luftwaffe could not. By the end of the war, the 8th Air Force and the Royal Air Force had destroyed 70% of Berlin. |
Clash of Eagles by Anthony Saunders. P-51 Mustangs of the 20th Fighter Group, flying out of Kings Cliffe to engage Me109s from JG77 in a furiously contested dogfight. Below them a formation of B-17s from the 379th Bomb Group fly through the chaos, doggedly maintaining their course, as they head on to attack the huge synthetic oil refinery at Meresburg, southern Germany, on 11 September 1944. So vital was this refinery to the Nazi war machine that it became one of the most heavily defended targets in Germany, the air defences even surpassing those of Berlin. |
Guardian Angel by Anthony Saunders. Depicting Mustang aircraft escorting Flying Fortresses on a bombing raid over Germany. |
| Top Aces for : Flying Fortress | ||
| A list of all Aces from our database who are known to have flown this aircraft. A profile page is available by clicking the pilots name. | ||
| Name | Victories | Info |
| Charles Rankin Bond Jr | 9.25 | The signature of Charles Rankin Bond Jr features on some of our artwork - click here to see what is available. |
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