how many b17s were shot down during ww2

Mayday! When bombers crashed in Switzerland - SWI swissinfo.ch [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. [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. American bomber numbers continued to build in Europe and attacks (and losses) began to build up. Next worst were the P-39 at 245, the P-40 at 188, and the P-38 at 139. But he wasn't a fighter pilot. [14] The most distinct mount was in the nose, which allowed the single machine gun to be fired toward nearly all frontal angles. [95] The raid helped allay British doubts about the capabilities of American heavy bombers in operations over Europe. Blast damage was caused over a radius of 5 miles (8.0km). How many B-17 were shot down over Germany? Gift of Peggy Wallace, 2010.308.040. "Smithsonian Panel Backs Transfer of Famed B-17 Bomber.". [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. [100], A second attempt on Schweinfurt on 14 October 1943 later came to be known as "Black Thursday". Life and Death Aboard a B-17, 1944 - EyeWitness to History [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. 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. [142] Its toughness was compensation for its shorter range and lighter bomb load compared to the B-24 and British Avro Lancaster heavy bombers. The RAF entered World War II with no heavy bomber of its own in service; the biggest available were long-range medium bombers such as the Vickers Wellington, which could carry up to 4,500 pounds (2,000kg) of bombs. [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. [34][35] The 13th Y1B-17 was delivered to the Material Division at Wright Field, Ohio, to be used for flight testing. [91], The USAAF began building up its air forces in Europe using B-17Es soon after entering the war. [135] In order to more quickly form these formations, assembly ships, planes with distinctive paint schemes, were utilized to guide bombers into formation, saving assembly time. [92], The U.S. did not offer B-17s to the Soviet Union as part of its war materiel assistance program, but at least 73 aircraft were acquired by the Soviet Air Force. Posted on . Footage from Twelve O' Clock High was also used, along with three restored B-17s, in the 1962 film The War Lover. Eighty years ago, the Red Army managed to stop, contain, and ultimately defeat the largest German army on the Eastern Front. They also desired, but did not require, a range of 2,000mi (3,200km) and a speed of 250mph (400km/h). Date: American aircraft struck targets in Schweinfurt and Regensburg on August 17, 1943. . Wixley, Ken. [163] They were used primarily in the "Dumbo" air-sea rescue role, but were also used for iceberg patrol duties and for photo mapping. [123] The allied fighter pilots claimed 15 Zeros destroyed, while the B-17 crews claimed five more. Did any American B-17 crewman ever shoot down a German fighter plane while flying over Germany during World War II? Of the 12,731 B-17s built, about 4,735 were lost during the war. Launching Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortresses" and Consolidated B-24 "Liberators" from bases in England's eastern countryside, the Americans bombed their targets . Tora! On 2 March 1943, six B-17s of the 64th Squadron flying at 10,000ft (3,000m) attacked a major Japanese troop convoy off New Guinea, using skip bombing to sink Kyokusei Maru, which carried 1,200 army troops, and damage two other transports, Teiyo Maru and Nojima. How many b-17s were shot down during World war II? [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. In theory, in the words of British Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin,the bomber will always get through. The Americans believed the B-17, with the Norden bomb sight, could be that bomber. [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. [64][65][66] The final production blocks of the B-17F from Douglas' plants did, however, adopt the YB-40's "chin turret", giving them a much-improved forward defense capability. [33] The mission was successful and widely publicized. The B-17 finally had a fighter which could escort them in and out of Germany, and began to overwhelm German defenses and industry. A sobering statistic: Out of 1,419 Loaches built, 842 were destroyed in Vietnam, most shot down and many others succumbing to crashes resulting from low-level flying. 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. The B-17 saw early action in the Pacific War, where it conducted raids against Japanese shipping and airfields. The loss was not total but Boeing's hopes for a substantial bomber contract were dashed. ", "Giant Bomber Flies Four Miles Per Minute. Its main use was in Europe, where its shorter range and smaller bombload relative to other aircraft did not hamper it as much as in the Pacific Theater. London: Arakaki and Kuborn 1991, pp. [clarification needed] Stories circulated of B-17s returning to base with tails shredded, engines destroyed and large portions of their wings destroyed by flak. [160][170], B-17s were used by the CIA front companies Civil Air Transport, Air America and Intermountain Aviation for special missions. Later versions carried four or even six MG 151/20 cannon and twin 13mm machine guns. Frisbee, John L. "Valor: 'I Am the Captain of My Soul'". The Air Corps was looking for a bomber capable of reinforcing the air forces in Hawaii, Panama, and Alaska. Half of the group's B-17s were wiped out on 8 December 1941 when they were caught on the ground during refueling and rearming for a planned attack on Japanese airfields on Formosa. [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. More than 250 aircraft crashed or made emergency landings in Switzerland during the Second World War. How many B-17s were lost during the Second World War? [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. On landing, the aircraft overran the runway and ran into a ditch, where it was then strafed. It should have been a peaceful Sunday morning in Hawaii. 2. British authorities were anxious that no similar accidents should again occur, and the Aphrodite project was scrapped in early 1945. [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. 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. Tragically, the plane stalled and spun into the ground soon after takeoff, bursting into flames. The problem was there was no easy way to hit Germany, as a cross-channel invasion of Europe was still years away. There were 12,731 B-17s built between 1936 and 1945. The only prototype XB-38 to fly crashed on its ninth flight, and the type was abandoned. ", Frisbee, John L. "Valor: One Turning and One Burning. 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. [citation needed], Another early World War II Pacific engagement, on 10 December 1941, involved Colin Kelly, who reportedly crashed his B-17 into the Japanese battleship Haruna, which was later acknowledged as a near bomb miss on the heavy cruiser Ashigara. [99], Since the airfield bombings were not appreciably reducing German fighter strength, additional B-17 groups were formed, and Eaker ordered major missions deeper into Germany against important industrial targets. How many b17s were shot down? The B-17F also carried light gray flash letters "RD" and "I" on either side of the fuselage's Swiss national insignia. [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. Did the gunners aboard B-17 bombers in WWII manage to shoot down enemy All of these modifications made the YB-40 well over 10,000lb (4,500kg) heavier than a fully loaded B-17F. [152] According to these allegations, the practice was initially successful, but Army Air Force combat aircrews quickly developed and established standard procedures to first warn off, and then fire upon any "stranger" trying to join a group's formation. 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. This production rate was, however, surpassed by that of the, This is a commonly misreported error. ", "Why Use Colourful Camouflage in World War 2? In 1964, the latter film was made into a television show of the same name and ran for three years on ABC TV. Linn joined The National WWII Museum staff in 2014 andservedas a Curator until 2020. The Name All were Allison powered. Operational History. The B-17s attracted a number of Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighters, which were in turn attacked by the P-38 Lightning escorts. 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. That aircraft was the Boeing B-17, better known as the Flying Fortress. B-17 Flying Fortress - Top Facts About the WWII American Bomber [30] One suggestion adopted was the use of a preflight checklist to avoid accidents such as that which befell the Model 299. [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. Ten of the 12 Fortresses survived the attack. Major General Frank Maxwell Andrews of the GHQ Air Force believed that the capabilities of large four-engined aircraft exceeded those of shorter-ranged, twin-engined aircraft, and that the B-17 was better suited to new, emerging USAAC doctrine. This articleis part of an ongoing series commemorating the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II made possible by Bank of America. ", "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. [7] Attacks began in April 1943 on heavily fortified key industrial plants in Bremen and Recklinghausen. the B-17 Flying Fortress were equipped with lots of machine guns for self-defense against single-seat fighter aircraft. But because the bombers could not maneuver when attacked by fighters and needed to be flown straight and level during their final bomb run, individual aircraft struggled to fend off a direct attack. An overwhelming majority of them were women and children. [160] At first, these aircraft operated under their original USAAF designations, but on 31 July 1945 they were assigned the naval aircraft designation PB-1, a designation which had originally been used in 1925 for the Boeing Model 50 experimental flying boat. In years following World War I, the United States was heavily influenced by Italian air-power theorist Giulio Douhet who called for heavy investment in a force of bombers to fly over the front-lines, destroy an enemys infrastructure, and break their will to fight. The four-engine plane typically carried a crew of 10, several of whom. 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. ", Frisbee, John L. "Valor: A Tale of Two Texans.". ", Frisbee, John L. "Valor: The Quiet Hero.". The project came to a sudden end with the unexplained midair explosion over the Blyth estuary of a B-24, part of the United States Navy's contribution as "Project Anvil", en route for Heligoland piloted by Lieutenant Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., future U.S. president John F. Kennedy's elder brother. [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. [125][126] The remaining seven transports and three of the eight destroyers were then sunk by a combination of low level strafing runs by Royal Australian Air Force Beaufighters, and skip bombing by USAAF North American B-25 Mitchells at 100ft (30m), while B-17s claimed five hits from higher altitudes. How many B-17s were shot down during World War 2? - Answers How many B-17s were shot down during World War 2? Log in. Losses were relatively low - below the 5% threshold that was the. [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. There are very few films left in existence showing the Me 262 in action, especially shooting down allied bombers with P-51 escorts. [28][31][note 2] In one of their first missions, three B-17s, directed by lead navigator Lieutenant Curtis LeMay, were sent by General Andrews to "intercept" and photograph the Italian ocean liner Rex 610 miles (980km) off the Atlantic coast. How many B-17s were shot down during the Second World War? Forty-five planes survive in complete form [1] [a], including 38 in the United States. ", "German wonder weapons: degraded production and effectiveness. Frisbee, John L. "Valor: Courage and Conviction". 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. At the same time, the German nightfighting ability noticeably improved to counter the nighttime strikes, challenging the conventional faith in the cover of darkness. 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. 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. Brereton planned B-17 raids on Japanese airfields in Formosa, in accordance with Rainbow 5 war plan directives, but this was overruled by General Douglas MacArthur. [130], B-17s were still used in the Pacific later in the war, however, mainly in the combat search and rescue role. [133] Defensive armament increased from four 0.50in (12.7mm) machine guns and one 0.30in (7.62mm) nose machine gun in the B-17C, to thirteen 0.50in (12.7mm) machine guns in the B-17G. B-17's Shot Down During Raid - YouTube [75], Three damaged B-17s, one "D" and two "E" series, were rebuilt during 1942 to flying status by Japanese technicians and mechanics, using parts salvaged from abandoned B-17 wrecks in the Philippines and the Java East Indies. One of the two "E" Flying Fortresses was photographed late in the war by U. S. aerial recon. Four B-17s were shot down in these operations.[171]. Some of the German pilots had been flying in combat since 1936. They were brave. 223 Squadron, as part of 100 Group, operated a number of Fortresses equipped with an electronic warfare system known as "Airborne Cigar" (ABC). 0. A merica joined Britain's strategic air campaign designed to destroy Nazi Germany's industrial capacity soon after her entrance into World War Two. World War II: America's Heavy Hitter - Delaware The prototype B-17 Bomber was built at the company's own expense and was a fusion of the features of Boeing XB-15 and Boeing 247 Transport Aircraft. While the US had less than 200 at the start of the war, more than 12,000 B-17s were produced by the end and served in every theater. 7375, 15859. No traces of the 3 captured Flying Fortresses were ever found in Japan by Allied occupation forces. 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. How many b17 bombers were lost in ww2? 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. Of the surviving aircraft, 17 were so badly damaged that they were scrapped. During World War II approximately 40 B-17s were captured and refurbished by Germany after crash-landing or being forced down, with about a dozen put back into the air. Although the prototype was company-owned and never received a military serial (the B-17 designation itself did not appear officially until January 1936, nearly three months after the prototype crashed),[29] the term "XB-17" was retroactively applied to the NX13372's airframe and has entered the lexicon to describe the first Flying Fortress. Many B-17s survive today in museums, and there are some that still fly. The B-17's armament consisted of five .30 caliber (7.62 mm) machine guns, with a payload up to 4,800 lb (2,200 kg) of bombs on two racks in the bomb bay behind the cockpit. Study now. Nonetheless, this deed made him a celebrated war hero. Peak USAAF inventory (in August 1944) was 4,574 worldwide.[76]. [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. [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. [11] It combined features of the company's experimental XB-15 bomber and 247 transport. [97], The two different strategies of the American and British bomber commands were organized at the Casablanca Conference in January 1943. Frisbee, John L. "Valor: A Rather Special Award. The first bomber to hit Japan after Pearl Harbor, the B-25 Mitchell was found in every theater of the war and was a rugged, multipurpose bomber beloved by her aircrew for its survivability and ease to fly. How many B-17 Crews died? [158][159] Strategic Air Command (SAC), established in 1946, used reconnaissance B-17s (at first called F-9 [F for Fotorecon], later RB-17) until 1949. Although initially deemed repairable, 40-2049 (11th BG / 38th RS) received more than 200 bullet holes and never flew again. While models A through D of the B-17 were designed defensively, the large-tailed B-17E was the first model primarily focused on offensive warfare. [129] Surviving aircraft were reassigned to the 54th Troop Carrier Wing's special airdrop section and were used to drop supplies to ground forces operating in close contact with the enemy. Covering 12,000 miles (19,000km) they returned on 27 February, with seven aircraft setting off on a flight to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, three days later. [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. Gift of Peggy Wallace, 2010.308.041, B-17 Flying Fortresses of the 398th Bombardment Group, 8th Air Force, in-flight above cloud level in Europe, 1944-45. As the war intensified, Boeing used feedback from aircrews to improve each new variant with increased armament and armor. In 1942, when Eighth Air Force heavy bombers based in Britain first went operational in Europe, they mostly flew what were termed "milk runs" over France, accompanied by fighter escorts. As of November 2022, four aircraft remain airworthy, none flown in combat. ", 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. [69] Many B-17Gs were converted for other missions such as cargo hauling, engine testing, and reconnaissance. Copy. As many as half a million civilians remained in Stalingrad when the Germans approached in the late summer of 1942. Crashed Model 299. 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. Some SB-17s had their defensive guns removed, while others retained their guns to allow use close to combat areas. However, the use of this rigid formation meant that individual aircraft could not engage in evasive maneuvers: they had to fly constantly in a straight line, which made them vulnerable to German flak. [103] Additionally, 122 bombers were damaged and needed repairs before their next flights. List of surviving Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses - Wikipedia The bombardier essentially took over flight control of the aircraft during the bomb run, maintaining a level altitude during the final moments before release. 2012-03-07 01:27:07. [222], The Flying Fortress has also been featured in artistic works expressing the physical and psychological stress of the combat conditions and the high casualty rates that crews suffered. [citation needed] As a result, the B-17s' loss rate was up to 25% on some early missions. 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. In 1957 the surviving B-17s had been stripped of all weapons and painted black. How many Cobras were shot down in Vietnam? - 2023 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. For the video game, see. Still, the Air Corps ordered 13 more B-17s for further evaluation, then introduced it into service in 1938. 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.

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