What is a B-17 Flying Fortress?
The B-17 Flying Fortress is an iconic aircraft in the history of American aviation, as well as being a well-known plane of the Second World War. These rugged aircraft performed extremely well in both the European and Pacific theaters, and they became so visually distinctive that the image of a B-17 flying overhead came to be very iconic for many people in the 1940s. In a simple illustration of the powerful role the Flying Fortress played in the Second World War, approximately one third of the bombs dropped on Germany came from the bellies of B-17 bombers. This aircraft was designed by the Boeing company in 1934, in response to a call for a new long-range bomber. Although the original B-17 prototype did not perform very well, the potential of the aircraft was obvious, and an order for a fleet was made. Over the course of the 1930s and 1940s, Boeing repeatedly modified the plane, responding to feedback from aircrews and pilots as they worked with the plane in combat situations. The last
