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Aviation buff and enthusiast!
Military aircraft is the bomb!
Submitted on
January 26, 2010
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Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress
Designs & Interfaces
Technical Drawings
The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engine heavy bomber aircraft developed for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC), introduced in the 1930s. Competing against Douglas and Martin for a contract to build 200 bombers, the Boeing entry outperformed both competitors and more than met the Air Corps' expectations. Although Boeing lost the contract due to the prototype's crash, the Air Corps was so impressed with Boeing's design that they ordered 13 B-17s. The B-17 Flying Fortress went on to eventually evolve through numerous design advancements.
The B-17 was primarily employed by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) in the daylight precision strategic bombing campaign of World War II against German industrial, civilian, and military targets. The United States Eighth Air Force based in England and the Fifteenth Air Force based in Italy complemented the RAF Bomber Command's nighttime area bombing in Operation Pointblank, to help secure air superiority over the cities, factories and battlefields of Western Europe in preparation for Operation Overlord.[4] The B-17 also participated, to a lesser extent, in the War in the Pacific, where it conducted raids against Japanese shipping and airfields.
From its pre-war inception, the USAAC (later USAAF) touted the aircraft as a strategic weapon; it was a potent, high-flying, long-ranging bomber capable of unleashing great destruction, able to defend itself, and having the ability to return home despite extensive battle damage. It quickly took on mythic proportions.[5][6][7] Stories and photos of B-17s surviving battle damage widely circulated, increasing its iconic status.[8] Despite an inferior range and bombload compared to the more numerous B-24 Liberator,[9] a survey of Eighth Air Force crews showed a much higher rate of satisfaction in the B-17.[10] With a service ceiling greater than any of its Allied contemporaries, the B-17 established itself as a superb weapons system, dropping more bombs than any other U.S. aircraft in World War II. Of the 1.5 million tonnes of bombs dropped on Germany by U.S. aircraft, 640,000 were dropped from B-17s.
Design and development
Model 299 NX13372
Nose turret with gun fitted to the prototype.
On 8 August 1934, the U.S. Army Air Corps (USAAC) tendered a proposal for a multi-engined bomber to replace the Martin B-10. Requirements were that it would carry a "useful bombload" at an altitude of 10,000 ft (3 km) for ten hours with a top speed of at least 200 mph (320 km/h).[12][13] They also desired, but did not require, a range of 2,000 mi (3200 km) and a speed of 250 mph (400 km/h). The Air Corps were looking for a bomber capable of reinforcing the air forces in Hawaii, Panama, and Alaska.[14] The competition would be decided by a "fly-off" at Wright Field in Dayton, Ohio. Boeing competed with the Douglas DB-1 and Martin Model 146 for the Air Corps contract.
The prototype B-17, designated Model 299, was designed by a team of engineers led by E. Gifford Emery and Edward Curtis Wells and built at Boeing's own expense.[13] It combined features of the experimental Boeing XB-15 bomber with the Boeing 247 transport airplane.[12] The B-17 was armed with bombs (up to 4,800 lb/2,200 kg on two racks in the bomb bay behind the cockpit) and five 0.30 in (7.62 mm) machine guns, and was powered by Pratt & Whitney R-1690 radial engines each producing 750 hp (600 kW) at 7,000 ft (2,100 m).[13] The first flight of the Model 299 was on 28 July 1935, with Boeing chief test-pilot Leslie Tower at the controls.[1][15] Richard Williams, a reporter for the Seattle Times coined the name "Flying Fortress" when the Model 299 was rolled out, bristling with multiple machine gun installations.[16] Boeing was quick to see the value of the name and had it trademarked for use. On 20 August, the prototype flew from Seattle to Wright Field in nine hours and three minutes at an average speed of 235 mph (378 km/h), much faster than the competition.[13]
At the fly-off, the four-engine Boeing design displayed superior performance over the twin-engine DB-1 and Model 146, and then-Major General Frank Maxwell Andrews of the GHQ Air Force believed that the long-range capabilities of four-engine large aircraft were more efficient than shorter-ranged twin-engined airplanes. His opinions were shared by the Air Corps procurement officers and, even before the competition was finished, they suggested buying 65 B-17s.[17]
Crashed Model 299
Development continued on the Boeing Model 299, and on 30 October 1935, the Army Air Corps test-pilot, Major Ployer Peter Hill and Boeing employee Les Tower, took the Model 299 on a second evaluation flight. The crew forgot to disengage the airplane's "gust lock," a device that held the bomber's movable control surfaces in place while the plane was parked on the ground, and having taken off, the aircraft entered a steep climb, stalled, nosed over and crashed, killing Hill and Tower (other observers survived with injuries).[18][19] The crashed Model 299 could not finish the evaluation, and while the Air Corps was still enthusiastic about the aircraft's potential, Army officials were daunted by the much greater expense per aircraft.[20][21] "The loss was not total, however, since the fuselage aft of the wing was intact, and the Wright Field Armament section was able to use it in subsequent gun mount development work, but Boeing's hopes for a substantial bomber contract were dashed."[22] Army Chief of Staff Malin Craig cancelled the order for 65 YB-17s, and ordered 133 of the twin-engine Douglas B-18 Bolo instead.[13][17]
Boeing Y1B-17 in flight.
Regardless, the USAAC had been impressed by the prototype's performance and, on 17 January 1936, the Air Corps ordered, through a legal loophole,[23] 13 YB-17s (after November 1936 designated Y1B-17 to denote its special F-1 funding) for service testing. The YB-17 incorporated a number of significant changes from the Model 299, including more powerful Wright R-1820-39 Cyclone engines replacing the original Pratt & Whitneys. 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"),[24] the term "XB-17" was retroactively applied to the airframe and has entered the lexicon to describe the first Flying Fortress.
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, and used for operational development and flight test.[12] One suggestion adopted was the use of a checklist, to avoid accidents such as the Model 299's.[23][25] In one of their first missions, three B-17s, directed by lead navigator Lieutenant Curtis LeMay, were sent by General Andrews to "intercept" the Italian ocean liner Rex 610 mi (980 km) off the Atlantic coast and take photographs. The successful mission was widely publicized.[26][27] The 13th Y1B-17 was delivered to the Material Division at Wright Field, Ohio, to be used for flight testing.[28]
A 14th Y1B-17 (37-369), originally constructed for ground testing of the airframe's strength, was upgraded and fitted with exhaust-driven turbochargers. Scheduled to fly in 1937, it encountered problems with the turbochargers and its first flight was delayed until 29 April 1938.[29] Modifications cost Boeing US$100,000 and took until spring 1939 to complete, but resulted in an increased service ceiling and maximum speed.[30] The aircraft was delivered to the Army on 31 January 1939 and was redesignated B-17A to signify the first operational variant.[31]
B-17Bs at March Field, California, prior to attack on Pearl Harbor.
In late 1937, the Air Corps ordered 10 more aircraft, designated B-17B and, soon after, another 29, none of which could be funded until mid-1939.[30] Improved with larger flaps, rudder and Plexiglas nose, the B-17Bs were delivered in five small batches between July 1939 and March 1940. They equipped two bombardment groups, one on each U.S. coast.[32][33]
Prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor, fewer than 200 B-17s were in service with the Army,[23] A total of 155 B-17s of all variants had been delivered between 11 January 1937 and 30 November 1941 but production quickly accelerated with the B-17 eventually setting the record for achieving the highest production rate for large aircraft.[34] The aircraft went on to serve in every World War II combat zone, and by the time production ended in May 1945, 12,731 aircraft had been built by Boeing, Douglas and Vega (a subsidiary of Lockheed).[35]
[edit] Operational history
Large formation of B-17Fs of the 92nd Bomb Group over Europe.
The B-17 began operations in World War II with the RAF in 1941, USAAF Eighth Air Force and Fifteenth Air Force units in 1942, and was primarily involved in the daylight precision strategic bombing campaign against German industrial targets. Operation Pointblank guided attacks in preparation for a ground assault.[4]
During World War II, the B-17 equipped 32 overseas combat groups, inventory peaking in August 1944 at 4,574 USAAF aircraft worldwide,[36] and dropped 640,036 tons (580,631 tonnes) of bombs on European targets (compared to 452,508 tons (410,509 tonnes) dropped by the Liberator and 463,544 tons (420,520 tonnes) dropped by all other U.S. aircraft). Approximately 4,750, or one third, of B-17s built were lost in combat.[9]
[edit] The RAF
RAF Fortress B.I AN529
ex-B-17C BO AAF S/N 40-2065
soc: 8 November 1941 North Africa.
The Royal Air Force (RAF) entered World War II with no heavy bomber of its own and while by 1941, the Short Stirling and Handley Page Halifax had become its primary bombers, in early 1940, the RAF entered into an agreement with the U.S. Army Air Corps to be provided with 20 B-17Cs, which were given the service name Fortress I. Their first operation was against Wilhelmshaven on 8 July 1941.[32][37][38] At the time, the Air Corps considered high-altitude flight to be 20,000 ft (6 km) but, to avoid being intercepted by fighter aircraft, the RAF bombed the naval barracks from 30,000 ft (9 km).[39] They were unable to hit their targets and temperatures were so low that the machine guns froze up.[40] On 24 July, they tried another target, Brest in France, but again missed completely.
By September, after the RAF had lost eight B-17Cs in combat or to accidents, Bomber Command had abandoned daylight bombing raids due to the Fortress I's poor performance. The remaining aircraft were transferred to different commands for deployment to various duties including coastal defence.[40] The experience had showed both the RAF and USAAF that the B-17C was not ready for combat, and that improved defenses, larger bomb loads and more accurate bombing methods were required, which would be incorporated in later versions. Moreover, even with these improvements, it was the USAAF and not the RAF that was willing to remain faithful to using the B-17 as a "day" bomber.[39]
Bomber Command transferred its remaining Fortress I aircraft to Coastal Command for use as very long range patrol aircraft. These were later augmented in August 1942 by 19 Fortress Mk II and 45 Fortress Mk IIA (B-17F and B-17E, respectively, the USAAF offered the B-17F before offering the B-17E, thus the apparently reversed designations).[41] A Fortress from No. 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.[42]
No. 223 Squadron, as part of 100 Group operated a small number of Fortresses in support of the bombing offensive for jamming German radar.[43]
Four women pilots leaving their ship, "Pistol Packin' Mama", at the four-engine school at Lockbourne AAF, Ohio, during WASP training to ferry B-17 Flying Fortresses. L to R are Frances Green, Marget (Peg) Kirchner, Ann Waldner and Blanche Osborn. (U.S. Air Force photo)
[edit] The USAAF
The Air Corps (renamed United States Army Air Forces or USAAF in 1941), utilizing the B-17 and other bombers, bombed from high altitudes using the then-secret Norden Bombsight, which was an optical electro-mechanical gyro-stabilized computer. During daylight bombing missions and sorties, the device was able to determine, from variables input by the bombardier, the point in space at which the bomber's ordnance type should be released to hit the target. The bombardier essentially took over flight control of the aircraft during the bomb run, maintaining a level altitude during the final moments.[44]
The USAAF began building up its air forces in Europe using B-17Es soon after entering the war. The first Eighth Air Force units arrived in High Wycombe, England on 12 May 1942, to form the 97th Bomb Group.[12] On 17 August 1942, 18 B-17Es of the 97th, including Yankee Doodle, flown by Major Paul Tibbets and Brigadier General Ira Eaker, were escorted by RAF Spitfires on the first USAAF raid over Europe, against railroad marshalling yards at Rouen-Sotteville in France.[12][45] The operation was a success, with only minor damage to two aircraft.
[edit] Combined offensive
Boeing B-17F radar bombing through clouds: Bremen, Germany, on 13 November 1943.
The two different strategies of the American and British Bomber commands were organized at the Casablanca Conference in January 1943. The resulting Operation Pointblank described a "Combined Bomber Offensive" that would weaken the Wehrmacht and establish air superiority in preparation of a ground offensive.[4]
Operation Pointblank opened with attacks on targets in Western Europe. General Ira C. Eaker and the Eighth Air Force placed highest priority on attacks on the German aircraft industry, especially fighter assembly plants, engine factories and ball-bearing manufacturers.[4]
On 17 April 1943, an attack on the Focke-Wulf plant at Bremen by 115 Fortresses met with little success. 16 aircraft were shot down, and 48 others were damaged.[46] The attacks did succeed, however, in diverting about half the Luftwaffe's fighter force to anti-bomber operations.
B-17F formation over Schweinfurt, Germany, 17 August 1943.
Since the airfield bombings were not appreciably reducing German fighter strength, additional B-17 groups were formed, Eaker ordered major missions deeper into Germany against important industrial targets. The 8th Air Force then targeted the ball-bearing factories in Schweinfurt, hoping to cripple the war effort there. The first raid on 17 August 1943 did not result in critical damage to the factories, with the 230 attacking B-17s being intercepted by an estimated 300 Luftwaffe fighters. 36 aircraft were shot down 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.[47]
A second attempt on 14 October 1943 would later come to be known as "Black Thursday".[48] Of the 291 attacking Fortresses, 59 were shot down over Germany, one ditched in the English Channel, five crashed in England, and 12 more were scrapped due to battle damage or crash-landings, a total loss of 77 B-17s. 122 bombers were damaged to some degree and needed repairs before their next flight. Out of 2,900 men in the crews, about 650 men did not return, although some survived as POWs. Five were killed and 43 wounded in the damaged aircraft that made it home, and 594 were listed as Missing in Action. Only 33 bombers landed without damage. The resulting losses were a result of concentrated attacks by over 300 German fighters.[49]
B-17G of the 384th Bomb Group on the bomb run.
These losses of air crews could not be sustained, and the USAAF, recognizing the vulnerability of heavy bombers against interceptors, 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 Eighth Air Force alone lost 176 bombers in October 1943.[50] The Eighth Air Force was to suffer similar casualties on 11 January 1944 on missions to Oschersleben, Halberstadt and Brunswick. Doolittle had ordered the mission to be cancelled as the weather deteriorated, but the lead units had already entered hostile air space and continued with the mission. Most of the escorts turned back or missed the rendezvous, as a result 60 B-17s were destroyed[51][52] A third raid on Schweinfurt on 24 February 1944 highlighted what came to be known as "Big Week". With P-51 Mustang and P-47 Thunderbolt fighters (equipped with improved drop tanks to extend their range) escorting the American heavies all the way to and from the targets, only 11 of 231 B-17s were lost.[53] The escort fighters reduced the loss rate to below seven percent, with only 247 B-17s lost in 3500 sorties while taking part in the Big Week raids.[54]
By September 1944, 27 of the 40 bomb groups of the Eighth Air Force and six of the 21 groups of the Fifteenth Air Force utilized B-17s. Losses to flak continued to take a high toll of heavy bombers through 1944, but by 27 April 1945, (two 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. The Combined Bomber Offensive was effectively complete.[55]
[edit] Pacific Theater
Only five B-17 groups operated in the Southwest Pacific theater, and all converted to other types in 1943.
B-17C AAF S/N 40-2074 at Hickam Field. As Capt Raymond T. Swenson landed on 7 December 1941, gunfire set alight the flare storage box amidships, burning the plane in two. One crewman was killed by Zero attack. Photo by Tai Sing Loo. Loo's straw helmet is visible in the foreground.[56]
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, were flown into Pearl Harbor from Hamilton Field, California, arriving during the Japanese attack. Leonard "Smitty" Smith Humiston, co-pilot on First Lieutenant Robert H. Richards' B-17C, AAF S/N 40-2049, reported that he thought the U.S. Navy was giving the flight a 21 gun salute to celebrate the arrival of the bombers, after which he realized that Pearl Harbor was under attack. The Fortress came under fire from Japanese fighter aircraft, though the crew was unharmed with the exception of one who suffered an abrasion on his hand. Enemy activity forced an abort from Hickam Field to Bellows Field, where the aircraft overran the runway and into a ditch where it was then strafed. Although initially deemed repairable, 40-2049 (11th BG / 38th RS) suffered more than 200 bullet holes and never flew again. Ten of the 12 Fortresses survived the attack.[57]
Typhoon McGoon II of the 11th BG / 98th BS, taken in January 1943 in New Caledonia. Note the antennas mounted above the nose Plexiglas used for radar tracking of surface vessels.
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. 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. Brereton planned B-17 raids on Japanese air fields in Formosa, in accordance with Rainbow 5 war plan directives, but this was overruled by General Douglas MacArthur. A series of disputed discussions and decisions, followed by several confusing and false reports of air attacks, delayed the authorization of the sortie. By the time that the B-17s and escorting Curtiss P-40 fighters were about to get airborne, they were destroyed by Japanese bombers of the 11th Air Fleet. The FEAF lost fully half its aircraft during the first strike, and was all but destroyed over the next few days.
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. Nonetheless, this deed made him a celebrated war hero. Kelly's B-17C AAF S/N 40-2045 (19th BG / 30th BS) crashed about 6 mi (10 km) from Clark Field after he held the burning Fortress steady long enough for the surviving crew to bail out. Kelly was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.[58] Noted Japanese ace Saburo Sakai is credited with this kill, and in the process, gained respect for the ability of the Fortress to absorb punishment.[59]
B-17D captured by Japanese army, with marks of Hinomaru.
B-17s were used in early battles of the Pacific with little success, notably the Battle of Coral Sea and Battle of Midway. While there, the Fifth Air Force B-17s were tasked with disrupting the Japanese sea lanes. Air Corps doctrine dictated bombing runs from high altitude, but it was soon discovered that only one percent of their bombs hit targets. However, B-17s were operating at heights too great for most A6M Zero fighters to reach, and the B-17's heavy gun armament was easily more than a match for lightly protected Japanese planes.
On March 2, 1943, six B-17s of the 64th Squadron attacked a major Japanese troop convoy from 10,000 ft (3 km) during the early stages of the Battle of the Bismarck Sea, off New Guinea, using skip bombing to sink three merchant ships including the Kyokusei Maru. A B-17 was shot down by a New Britain-based A6M Zero, whose pilot then machine-gunned some of the B-17 crew members as they descended in parachutes and attacked others in the water after they landed.[60] Later, 13 B-17s bombed the convoy from medium altitude, causing the ships to disperse and prolonging the journey. The convoy was subsequently all but destroyed by a combination of low level strafing runs by Royal Australian Air Force Beaufighters, and skip bombing by USAAF B-25 Mitchells at 100 ft (30 m), while B-17s claimed five hits from higher altitudes.[61]
A peak of 168 B-17 bombers were in the Pacific theater in September 1942, with all groups converting to other types by mid-1943.
[edit] Bomber defense
Part of a USAAF stream of over 1,000 B-17s.
Formation flying through dense flak over Merseburg, Germany.
Before the advent of long-range fighter escorts, B-17s had only their .50 in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns to rely on for defense during the bombing runs over Europe. As the war intensified, Boeing used feedback from aircrews to improve each new variant with increased armament and armor.[62] The number of defensive guns increased from four 0.50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns and one 0.30 in (7.62 mm) nose machine gun in the B-17C, to 13 0.50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns in the B-17G. But because the bombers could not maneuver when attacked by fighters, and during their final bomb run they needed to be flown straight and level, individual aircraft struggled to fend off a direct attack.
A 1943 survey by the Air Corps found that over half the bombers shot down by the Germans had left the protection of the main formation.[63] To address this problem, the United States developed the bomb-group formation, which evolved into the staggered combat box formation where all the B-17s could safely cover any others in their formation with their machine guns, making a formation of the bombers a dangerous target to engage by enemy fighters.[46][64] Luftwaffe "Jagdflieger" (fighter pilots) likened attacking a B-17 combat box formation to encountering a fliegendes Stachelschwein, or "flying porcupine". However, the use of this rigid formation meant that individual aircraft could not engage in evasive manoeuvres: they had to always fly in a straight line, which made them vulnerable to the German flak. Additionally, German fighter aircraft later used the tactic of high-speed strafing passes rather than engaging with individual aircraft to inflict maximum damage with minimum risk.
As a result, the B-17s' loss rate was up to 25% on some early missions (60 of 291 B-17s were lost in combat on the second Raid on Schweinfurt[65]), and it was not until the advent of effective long-range fighter escorts (particularly the P-51 Mustang) resulting in the degradation of the Luftwaffe as an effective interceptor force between February and June 1944, that the B-17 became strategically potent.
The B-17 was noted for its ability to absorb battle damage, still reach its target and bring its crew home safely. Wally Hoffman, a B-17 pilot with the Eighth Air Force during World War II, said, "The plane can be cut and slashed almost to pieces by enemy fire and bring its crew home."[66] Martin Caidin reported one instance in which a B-17 suffered a midair collision with a Focke-Wulf Fw 190, losing an engine and suffering serious damage to both the starboard horizontal stabilizer and the vertical stabilizer, and being knocked out of formation by the impact. The airplane was reported as shot down by observers, but it survived and brought its crew home without injury.[67] Its toughness more than compensated for its shorter range and lighter bomb load when compared to the Consolidated B-24 Liberator or the British Avro Lancaster heavy bombers. Stories abound of B-17s returning to base with tails having been destroyed, with only a single engine functioning or even with large portions of wings having been damaged by flak.[68] This durability, together with the large operational numbers in the Eighth Air Force and the fame achieved by the "Memphis Belle", made the B-17 a significant bomber aircraft of the war.
The B-17 design went through eight major changes over the course of its production, culminating in the B-17G, differing from its immediate predecessor by the addition of a chin turret with two .50 in (12.7 mm) caliber M2 Browning machine guns under the nose. This eliminated the B-17's main defensive weakness in head-on attacks.
[edit] The Luftwaffe
A severely damaged B-17 continues to fly after an attacking Bf 109 fighter collided with the aircraft.
After examining wrecked B-17s and B-24s, Luftwaffe officers discovered that on average it took around 20 hits with 20 mm (0.79 in) shells fired from the rear to bring them down. 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 20 mm (0.79 in) rounds at a bomber. Early versions of the Fw 190, one of the best German interceptor fighters, were equipped with two 20 mm (0.79 in) MG FF cannons, which carried only 500 rounds, and later with the better Mauser MG 151/20 cannons, which had a longer effective range than the MG FF weapon. The German fighters found that when attacking from the front, where fewer defensive guns were pointed, it only took four or five hits to bring a bomber down.[69] To address the Fw 190's shortcomings, the number of cannons fitted was doubled to four with a corresponding increase in the amount of ammunition carried, and in 1944, a further upgrade to Rheinmetall-Borsig's 30 mm (1.2 in) MK 108 cannons was made, which could bring a bomber down in just a few hits.
The adoption by the Luftwaffe in mid-August 1943, as a "stand-off" style of offense, of the Werfer-Granate 21 (Wfr. Gr. 21) rocket mortar, with one strut-mounted tubular launcher fixed under each wing panel on the Luftwaffe's single engined fighters, and two under each wing panel on a few Bf 110 daylight Zerstörer aircraft, had the promise of being a major weapon. However, due to the ballistic drop of the fired rocket, even with the usual strut mounting of the launcher fixing it in about a 15° upward orientation, and the low numbers of fighters fitted with the weapons, the Wfr.Gr. 21 never had a major effect on the combat box formations of Fortresses. Also, the attempts of the Luftwaffe to fit heavy-calibre Bordkanone-series 37, 50 and even 75 mm (2.95 in) cannon on twin engined aircraft such as the special Ju 88P fighters, and even on one model of the Me 410 Hornisse, as anti-bomber weapons did not have much effect on the American strategic bomber offensive. The Me 262 had moderate success against the B-17 late in the war. With its usual nose-mounted armament of four MK 108 cannons, and with some examples later equipped with the R4M rocket, fired from underwing racks, it could fire from outside the range of the bombers' .50 in (12.7 mm) defensive guns and bring an aircraft down with one hit.[70]
Captured B-17F-27-BO in Luftwaffe colors, the USAAF-named "Wulf Hound", 41-24585, of the 360th BS/303rd BG, missing in action 16 October 1942.Operation by Kampfgeschwader 200. This was the first Block 27 airframe, with strengthened landing gear.
During World War II, after crash-landing or being forced down, approximately 40 B-17s were captured and refurbished by the Luftwaffe with about a dozen put back into the air. Given German markings and codenamed "Dornier Do 200",[71] the captured B-17s were used for clandestine spy and reconnaissance missions by the Luftwaffe, most often used by the Luftwaffe unit known as Kampfgeschwader 200.[71] One of the B-17s of KG200, bearing Luftwaffe markings A3+FB, was interned by Spain when it landed at Valencia airport, 27 June 1944, and remained there for the rest of the war. Some B-17s kept their Allied markings and were used in attempts to infiltrate B-17 formations and report on their position and altitude. The practice was initially successful, but the 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.[12] Still other B-17s were used to determine the airplane's vulnerabilities and to train German interceptor pilots in tactics.[72] Few surviving aircraft were found by the Allies following the war.
[edit] Postwar history
[edit] U.S. Air Force
Following World War II, the B-17 was declared obsolete and the Army Air Forces retired most of its fleet. Flight crews ferried the bombers back across the Atlantic to the United States, where the majority were sold for scrap and melted down. Following its establishment as an independent service in 1947, the United States Air Force had B-17 Flying Fortresses (called F-9s: for Fotorecon, at first, later RB-17s) in service with the Strategic Air Command (SAC) from 1946 through 1951. The USAF Air Rescue Service of the Military Air Transport Service (MATS) also operated SB-17s as so-called "Dumbo" air-sea rescue aircraft during the late 1940s and early to mid-1950s.
By the late 1950s, the last B-17s in operational USAF service were QB-17 target drones, DB-17P drone controllers (first used in 1946 during Operation Crossroads), and a few VB-17 executive transport aircraft. The last operational mission flown by a USAF Fortress was conducted on 6 August 1959, when DB-17P 44-83684 directed QB-17G 44-83717 out of Holloman Air Force Base, New Mexico as a target for a Falcon air-to-air missile fired from an F-101 Voodoo. A retirement ceremony was held several days later at Holloman, after which 44-83684 was retired to the Military Aircraft Storage and Disposition Center (MASDC) at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. Perhaps the most famous B-17, the Memphis Belle, is being fastidiously restored to its wartime appearance by the National Museum of the United States Air Force.[73]
[edit] U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard
During the last year of the war and shortly thereafter, the United States Navy acquired 48 ex-USAAF B-17s for patrol and air-sea rescue work. At first, these planes operated under their original USAAF designations, but on July 31, 1945 they were assigned the naval aircraft designation PB-1, a designation which had originally been used in 1925 for an experimental flying boat. Since most of the Fortresses involved were actually built by Douglas or Lockheed and not by Boeing, a more logical designation would have been P4D-1W or P3V-1G respectively.
Under a program known as Cadillac II, the U.S. Navy fitted the AN/APS-20 radar system onto the B-17G aircraft, giving it the designation PB-1W.
Twenty-four B-17Gs (including one B-17F that had been modified to G standards) were used by the Navy under the designation PB-1W. The W stood for antisubmarine warfare. A large radome for an AN/APS-20 search radar was fitted underneath the fuselage and additional internal fuel tanks were added for longer range. These planes were painted dark blue, a standard Navy paint scheme which had been adopted in late 1944. Most of these planes were Douglas-built aircraft, flown directly from the Long Beach factory to the Naval Aircraft Modification Unit at NAS Johnsville/NAS Warminster, Pennsylvania during the summer of 1945, where the APS-20 search radar was fitted. However, the war ended before any PB-1Ws could be deployed and the defensive armament was subsequently deleted.
The first few PB-1Ws went to Patrol Bomber Squadron 101 (VPB-101) in April 1946. The PB-1W eventually evolved into an early warning aircraft by virtue of its APS-20 search radar. By 1947, PB-1Ws had been deployed to units operating with both the Atlantic and Pacific fleets. VPB-101 on the East Coast was redesignated Air Test and Evaluation Squadron FOUR (VX-4) and assigned to NAS Quonset Point, Rhode Island. VX-4 later became Airborne Early Warning Squadron TWO (VW-2) in 1952 and transferred to NAS Patuxent River, Maryland. VW-2's primary mission was early warning, with secondary missions of antisubmarine warfare and hurricane reconnaissance. Airborne Early Warning Squadron ONE (VW-1) was established in 1952 with four PB-1Ws at NAS Barbers Point, Hawaii. with elements drawn from Fleet Composite Squadron ELEVEN (VC-11) at NAS Miramar and Patrol Squadron 51 (VP-51) at NAS North Island in San Diego, California. VW-1's mission set was similar to that of VW-2.
PB-1Ws continued in USN service until 1955, gradually being phased out in favor of the Lockheed WV-2 (known in the USAF as the EC-121), a military version of the Lockheed 1049 Constellation commercial airliner. PB-1Ws were retired to the Naval Aircraft Storage Center at NAS Litchfield Park, Arizona and were stricken from inventory in mid-1956. Many were sold as surplus and ended up on the civil aircraft register and 13 were sold as scrap.
Two ex-USAAF B-17s were obtained by the Navy under the designation XPB-1 for various development programs. The first was transferred to the Navy in June 1945, and the second was transferred in August 1946. The second plane was used by the Cornell Aeronautical Laboratory in a jet engine test program and was stricken in 1955.
In May 1947, six additional B-17Gs of unknown serial numbers were transferred to the Navy and assigned BuNos 83993 to 83998. They were stored at NAS Corpus Christi, Texas until August 31, 1947, when they were stricken after no apparent use.
Two additional PB-1s were transferred to the Navy in 1950, these planes coming from the Air Force, which had modified two EB-17Gs to PB-1W configuration for test programs. After the completion of these tests, these planes were transferred to the Navy.
U.S. Coast Guard PB-1G stationed at Kodiak, Alaska.
Seventeen ex-USAAF Vega-built B-17Gs were used by the U.S. Coast Guard under the designation PB-1G. In July 1945, 18 B-17s were set aside by the USAAF for transfer to the Coast Guard via the Navy. These aircraft were initially assigned Navy Bureau Numbers and the first PB-1Gs were delivered to the Coast Guard beginning in July 1946. Only fifteen PB-1Gs were actually transferred to the Coast Guard. The USCG obtained one more aircraft directly from the USAF in 1947.
Coast Guard PB-1Gs were stationed throughout the hemisphere, 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. They were used primarily for air-sea rescue, but were also used for iceberg patrol duties and for photo mapping. Air-sea rescue PB-1Gs usually carried a droppable lifeboat underneath the fuselage and were painted in yellow and black air-rescue markings. The chin turret was often replaced by a radome. In postwar years, Coast Guard PB-1Gs would often carry the national insignia on their vertical tails rather than on the fuselage, a practice that continues on U.S. Coast Guard fixed-wing aircraft to this day. The Coast Guard PB-1Gs served throughout the 1950s, the last example not being withdrawn from service until October 14, 1959. This airplane was sold as surplus, operated as an air tanker for many years, and is now on display in Arizona.[74]
[edit] Other uses
About a dozen B-17s are still operable of some 50 airframes known to survive. Many of these surviving examples are surplus or training aircraft, which stayed in the U.S. during World War II. However, there are a few exceptions.
Several B-17s, along with other World War II bombers, were converted into airliners or corporate aircraft. Other B-17s saw service, either as aerial spray aircraft against fire ant infestations in the southeastern United States, or as converted aerial tankers used for fighting forest fires in the western United States.[75]
[edit] Variants/design stages
Main article: B-17 Flying Fortress variants
Production numbers Variant Produced First flight
Model 299 1 28 July 1935[1]
YB-17 13 2 December 1936[76]
YB-17A 1 29 April 1938.[29]
B-17B 39 27 June 1939[44]
B-17C 38 21 July 1940[77]
B-17D 42 3 February 1941[78]
B-17E 512 5 September 1941[79]
B-17F 3,405 30 May 1942[80]
Grand total 12,731
The B-17 went through several alterations in each of its design stages and variants. Of the 13 YB-17s ordered for service testing, 12 were used by the 2nd Bomb Group of Langley Field, Virginia to develop heavy bombing techniques, and the 13th was used for flight testing at the Material Division at Wright Field, Ohio.[28] Experiments on this aircraft led to the use of a turbo-supercharger, which would become standard on the B-17 line. A 14th plane, the Y1B-17A, originally destined for ground testing only, was upgraded with the turbocharger. When this aircraft had finished testing, it was re-designated the B-17A, and in April 1938 was the first aircraft to enter service under the B-17 designation.[28][30]
Blister turret of Model 299, not adopted for production
As the production line developed, Boeing engineers continued to improve upon the basic design. To enhance performance at slower speeds, the B-17B was altered to include larger rudder and flaps.[44] The B-17C changed from gun blisters to flush, oval-shaped windows.[77] Most significantly, with the B-17E version, the fuselage was extended by 10 ft (3.0 m), a much larger vertical fin and rudder were incorporated into the original design, a gunner's position in the tail and an improved nose were added. The engines were upgraded to more powerful versions several times, and similarly, the gun stations were altered on numerous occasions to enhance their effectiveness.[79]
B-17G nose detail
By the time the definitive B-17G appeared, the number of guns had been increased from seven to 13, the designs of the gun stations were finalized, and other adjustments were complete. The B-17G was the final version of the B-17, incorporating all changes made to its predecessor, the B-17F, and in total 8,680 were built, the last one on 9 April 1945.[81] Many B-17Gs were converted for other missions such as cargo hauling, engine testing and reconnaissance.[82] Initially designated SB-17G, a number of B-17Gs were also converted for search-and-rescue duties, later to be redesignated B-17H.[83]
Two versions of the B-17 were flown under different designations. These were the XB-38 and the YB-40. The XB-38 was an engine test-bed for Allison V-1710 liquid-cooled engines, should the Wright engines normally used on the B-17 become unavailable. The YB-40 was a heavily armed modification of the standard B-17 used before the P-51 Mustang, an effective long-range fighter, became available to act as escort. Additional armament included a power turret in the radio room, a chin turret (which went on to become standard with the B-17G) and twin .50 in (13 mm) guns in the waist positions. The ammunition load was over 11,000 rounds, making the YB-40 well over 10,000 lb (4,500 kg) heavier than a fully loaded B-17F. Unfortunately, the YB-40s with their numerous heavy modifications had trouble keeping up with empty bombers, and so, together with the advent of the P-51 Mustang, the project was abandoned and finally phased out in July 1943.[84][85]
assigned to the 2nd ERS as a Search and Rescue aircraft.
Late in World War II, in Operation Aphrodite, at least 25 B-17s were fitted with radio controls, loaded with 20,000 lb (9,100 kg) of high-explosives, dubbed "BQ-7 Aphrodite missiles". Attacks on the V-site bunkers were also initiated by the Americans using radio controlled bombers packed with 25,000 lb (11,000 kg). of Torpex and TNT. Called Aphrodite drones, Operation CASTOR was begun on June 23, 1944, using the 388th Bombardment Group at Knettishall. An airfield in a sparsely populated area of Norfolk was chosen at RAF Fersfield (near Winfarthing). The drone was usually a B-17 Fortress with a B-34 Ventura being used to control the aircraft and crash it onto its target."[86] "The first four drones were sent to Mimoyecques, Siracourt, Watten and Wizernes on August 4, causing little damage. On the 6th, two more B-17s were crashed on the Watten site with little success. The project came to a sudden end with the unexplained mid-air explosion over the Blyth estuary of a B-24 Liberator, 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. Blast damage was caused over a radius of 5 miles (8.0 km). British authorities were anxious that no similar accidents should again occur.[86] Because few (if any) BQ-7s hit their target, the Aphrodite project was scrapped in early 1945.[87][88] During and after World War II, a number of weapons were tested and used operationally on B-17s. Some of these weapons included "razons" (radio-guided) glide bombs, and Republic-Ford JB-2s, also nicknamed "Thunderbugs" (American reverse-engineered models of the German V-1 Buzz Bomb). A much-used traveling airborne shot of a V-1/JB-2 launch in World War II documentaries was filmed from a USAF A-26 of the Air Proving Grounds, Eglin Air Force Base, launched from Santa Rosa Island, Florida. In the late 1950s, the last B-17s in United States Air Force service were QB-17 drones and DB-17P drone controllers, plus a few polished VB-17 squadron "hacks" (a 1953 request by the Wright Air Development Center to redesignate the QB-17s to Q-7 was turned down by Air Research & Development Command). The last operational mission flown by a USAF Fortress was conducted on 6 August 1959, when DB-17P 44-83684 directed QB-17G 44-83717 out of Holloman Air Force Base as a target for a Falcon air-to-air missile fired from an F-101 Voodoo fighter. A retirement ceremony was held several days later at Holloman, after which 44-83684 was retired to the Military Aircraft Storage and Disposition Center (MASDC) at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base.
[edit] Operators
Military operators of the B-17
Civil operators of the B-17
Main article: List of B-17 Flying Fortress operators
The B-17 was a versatile aircraft, serving in dozens of USAAF units in theaters of combat throughout World War II, and in non-bomber roles for the RAF. Its main use was in Europe, where its shorter range and smaller bombload relative to other aircraft available did not hamper it as much as in the Pacific Theater. Peak USAAF inventory (in August 1944) was 4,574 worldwide.[36]
* Argentina
* Bolivia
* Brazil
* Canada
* Colombia
* Denmark
* Dominican Republic
* France
* Germany
* Iran
* Israel
* Japan
* Mexico
* Nicaragua
* Peru
* Portugal
* South Africa
* Soviet Union
* Sweden
* United Kingdom
* United States
[edit] Survivors
Main article: Boeing B-17 survivors
There are a total of 53 surviving airframes worldwide :
* 15 active flying
* 9 on static display
* 2 currently undergoing restoration to fly
* 3 currently undergoing restoration for display
* 5 in storage
* 19 partial airframes/hulks
[edit] The Fortress as a symbol
The B-17's capacity to repel enemy attacks and still inflict heavy damage to the German war machine and production centers is imaginatively rendered in this caricature.
Over Germany, B-17 Flying Fortresses from the 398th Bombardment Group fly a bombing run to Neumünster, Germany, on 13 April 1945.
The B-17 Flying Fortress has become, for many reasons, an icon of American power and a symbol of its Air Force. It achieved a lasting fame in the general public, which has eluded most other bomber aircraft.[8]
During the 1930s, the USAAC, as articulated by then-Major General Frank Maxwell Andrews and the Air Corps Tactical School, touted the bomber as a strategic weapon.[91] General Henry H. Arnold, Chief of the Air Corps, recommended the development of bigger aircraft with better performance and the Tactical School agreed completely.[92] The B-17 was exactly what the Air Corps was looking for; it was a high-flying, long-ranging potent bomber capable of defending itself.
When the Model 299 was rolled out on 28 July 1935, bristling with multiple machine gun installations, Richard Williams, a reporter for the Seattle Times coined the name "Flying Fortress" with his comment "Why, it's a flying fortress!".[9] Boeing was quick to see the value of the name and had it trademarked for use.
After the initial B-17s were delivered to the Air Corps 2nd Bombardment Group, they were used on promotional flights emphasizing its great range and navigational precision. In January 1938, group commander Colonel Robert Olds flew a YB-17 from the east to west coast, setting a transcontinental record of 13 hours 27 minutes. He also broke the west-to-east coast record on the return trip, averaging 245 mph (394 km/h) in 11 hours 1 minute.[93] Six bombers of the 2nd Bombardment group took off from Langley Field on 15 February 1938 as part of a good will flight to Buenos Aires, Argentina. Covering 12,000 miles (19,000 km) they returned on 27 February.[76] In a well publicized mission on May 12 of the same year, three B-17s, "intercepted" and took photographs of the Italian ocean liner SS Rex 610 miles (980 km) off the Atlantic coast.[94]
B-17G-80BO 43-38172 8th AF 398th BG 601st BS damaged on a bombing mission over Cologne, Germany on 15 October 1944. Pilot 1st Lt. Lawrence De Lancey brought the wounded Fortress back to Nuthampstead, UK, where the photo was taken. Notice the upwards effect of the anti-aircraft shell; the bombardier S/Sgt. George E. Abbott was killed.
The Flying Fortress found a place in the public psyche as well. In 1943, Consolidated Aircraft commissioned a poll to see to what degree the public is familiar with the names of the Liberator and the Flying Fortress. Of 2,500 men in cities where Consolidated ads had been run in newspapers, only 73% had heard of the B-24 Liberator, while 90% knew of the B-17.[8]
Hollywood featured the airplane in its movies, such as Twelve O'Clock High, with Gregory Peck.[95] This film was made with the full cooperation of the United States Air Force and made use of actual combat footage. In 1964, the movie was made into a television show of the same name, and ran for three years. The B-17 also appeared in the 1938 movie Test Pilot with Clark Gable and Spencer Tracy, with Clark Gable in Command Decision in 1948, in Tora! Tora! Tora! in 1970, and in Memphis Belle with Eric Stoltz, Billy Zane and Harry Connick, Jr. in 1990.
During the war, the largest offensive bombing force, the Eighth Air Force, was run by officers who openly preferred the B-17. Lieutenant General Jimmy Doolittle wrote about his preference for equipping the Eighth with B-17s, citing the logistical advantage in keeping fielded forces down to a minimum number of aircraft types with their unique servicing and spares. For this reason, he wanted B-17 bombers and P-51 fighters for the Eighth. His views were supported by Eighth Air Force statisticians, whose studies purportedly showed that Fortresses had utility and survivability much greater than that of the B-24.[8]
Loved by its crews for bringing them home despite extensive battle damage, its durability, especially in belly-landings and ditchings, quickly took on mythical proportions.[5][6][7] Stories and photos of B-17s surviving battle damage widely circulated, boosting its iconic status.[8] Despite an inferior performance and bombload compared to the more numerous B-24 Liberator,[9] a survey of Eighth Air Force crews showed a much higher rate of satisfaction in the B-17.[10]
The most famous B-17, the Memphis Belle, toured the U.S. with its crew to reinforce national morale (and to sell War Bonds), and starred in a USAAF documentary, Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress.[96]
After the war ended, most B-17s were scrapped, but the U.S. Air Force did keep some B-17s for VIP transports and drone directors. The United States Navy and U.S. Coast Guard obtained thirty B-17s beginning in 1945 for over-water patrols as PB-1Gs, an air rescue aircraft similar to USAF B-17Hs, and PB-1Ws, a patrol aircraft with early warning radar installations aboard. The war ended before any PB-1Ws were operational and defensive armament was subsequently deleted. The Coast Guard retired the last PB-1G, BuNo 77254, in October 1959, making it the last U.S. military Flying Fortress in operation.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the surviving Fortresses had to earn their keep, as operation of a four-engine aircraft was costly, and the Warbirds preservation movement had not yet begun. The preservation of the remaining Fortresses gained steam when firebomber B-17s began to come on the market in the 1970s.
[edit] Notable B-17s
B-17G Shoo Shoo Baby
* Aluminum Overcast
* Fuddy Duddy
* Memphis Belle
* My Gal Sal
* Nine-O-Nine
* Old 666
* Sally B
* Sentimental Journey
* Shoo Shoo Baby
* Texas Raiders
* The Swoose
* Yankee Doodle (aircraft)
* Piccadilly Lilly
* Venus Ramey (aircraft)
* Swamp Ghost
* Days Pay
* Big Red
[edit] Noted B-17 pilots and crew members
Maynard H. Smith receiving Medal of Honor from War Secretary, Henry L. Stimson.
Forrest L. Vosler receiving Medal of Honor from President Roosevelt.
L-R, Nancy Love, pilot and Betty (Huyler) Gillies, co-pilot, the first women to fly the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bomber.
Nuthampstead, England. Aircraft mechanics with the 398th Bombardment Group change a B-17 Flying Fortress engine. During the group's stay in England from May 1944 to April 1945, the 398th flew 195 missions and lost 292 men and 70 B-17 aircraft in combat.
[edit] Medal of Honor awards
Many B-17 crew members received military honors and 17 received the Medal of Honor, the highest military decoration awarded by the United States:[97]
* Brig Gen Frederick Castle[98]
* 2nd Lt Robert Femoyer[99]
* 1st Lt Donald Gott (awarded posthumously)[100]
* 2nd Lt David Kingsley[101]
* 1st Lt William R. Lawley, Jr.[102]
* Sgt Archibald Mathies (awarded posthumously)[103]
* 1st Lt Jack W. Mathis (the first airman in the European theater to be awarded the Medal of Honor) (posthumous)[104]
* 2nd Lt William E. Metzger, Jr. (awarded posthumously)[100]
* 1st Lt Edward Michael[105]
* 1st Lt John C. Morgan[106]
* Capt Harl Pease (awarded posthumously)[107]
* 2nd Lt Joseph Sarnoski (awarded posthumously)[108]
* S/Sgt Maynard H. Smith[109]
* 1st Lt Walter E. Truemper (awarded posthumously)[103]
* S/Sgt Forrest L. Vosler[110]
* Brig Gen Kenneth Walker[111]
* Maj Jay Zeamer, Jr.[112]
[edit] Other military achievements or events
* Allison C. Brooks (19172006): Was awarded numerous military decorations, and was ultimately promoted to the rank of Major General and served in active duty until 1971.
* Captain Werner G. Goering: American-born nephew of the Nazi Commander of the Luftwaffe in World War II, Hermann Göring.[113]
* Immanuel J. Klette (19181988): Second-generation German-American whose 91 combat missions were the most flown by any Eighth Air Force pilot in World War II.[114]
* Colin Kelly (19151941): Pilot of the first U.S. B-17 lost in action.[115]
* Col Frank Kurtz (19111996): The USAAF's most decorated pilot of World War II; Commander of the 463rd Bombardment Group (Heavy), 15th Air Force, Celone Field, Foggia, Italy; Clark Field Philippines attack survivor; Olympic bronze medalist in diving (1932), 19441945; father of actress Swoosie Kurtz.
* Gen Curtis LeMay (19061990): Became head of the Strategic Air Command and head of the USAF.
* Lt Col Nancy Love (19141976) and Betty (Huyler) Gillies (19081998): The first women to be certified to fly the B-17, in 1943.[116]
* Col Robert K. Morgan (19182004): Pilot of Memphis Belle.
* Lt Col Robert Rosenthal (19172007): Commanded the only surviving B-17, "Rosie's Riveters", of a US 8th Air Force raid by the 100th Bomb Group on Münster in 1943, earned sixteen medals for gallantry (including one each from Britain and France), and led the raid on Berlin on February 3, 1945 that is likely to have ended the life of Roland Freisler, the Third Reich's infamous "hanging judge".
* Brig Gen Paul Tibbets (19152007): Flew with the 97th Bombardment Group (Heavy) with both the 8th Air Force in England and the 12th Air Force in North Africa; later pilot of the B-29 Enola Gay dropping the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan.
* Robert Webb (19222002): One of the youngest bomber pilots in the U.S. Army Air Forces, received the Distinguished Flying Cross with seven Oak Leaf Clusters.
* 1st Lt Eugene Emond (19211998): Lead Pilot for Man O War II Horsepower Limited received the Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal with 3 Oak Leaf Clusters, American Theater Ribbon and Victory Ribbon. Was part of D-Day and witnessed one of the first German jets when a ME-262 flew through his formation over Germany: one of the youngest bomber pilots in the U.S. Army Air Forces .
* 1st Lt Emil "Mickey" Cohen (19242008): Nicknamed "The Kid". Flew with the 447th Bombardment Group, 709th squadron, out of Rattlesden, England. Piloted the Barbara Jane and two missions on The Blue Hen Chick. Was the youngest B-17 pilot in the 8th Air Force and may have been the youngest bomber pilot in the U.S. Army Air Forces.
[edit] Civilian achievements or events
* Martin Caidin (19271997): Author of Cyborg, the story that formed the basis of The Six Million Dollar Man wrote the saga of the last transatlantic formation flight of B-17s ever made, Everything But the Flak.
* Clark Gable (19011960): Academy Award-winning film actor, five missions as waist gunner with several groups from May to September 1943, including the B-17 Eight Ball of the 359th Bomb Squadron (351st Bomb Group).
* Tom Landry (19242000): American football player and coach, flew 30 missions over Europe in 194445 as a B-17 pilot with the 493rd Bomb Group, surviving a crash landing in Czechoslovakia. (His older brother Robert died in a B-17 crash)[117]
Clark Gable with 8th AF B-17F with pre-Cheyenne tail position, in Britain, 1943
* Norman Lear: Radio operator, with the 463rd Bombardment Group (Heavy), 15th Air Force, Celone Field, Foggia, Italy; television producer of American sitcoms Sanford and Son, Maude and All in the Family, among others.
* Gene Roddenberry (19211991): Creator of Star Trek; flew B-17s for the 394th Bomb Squadron, 5th Bomb Group (H), in the Pacific theater.[118]
* Robert Rosenthal (19172007): Assistant to the U.S. prosecutor at the Nuremberg Trials, where he interrogated Hermann Göring, pilot with the 100th Bomb Group.
* Brigadier General Robert Lee Scott, Jr. (19082006): Best known for his autobiography God is My Co-Pilot, about his exploits in World War II with the Flying Tigers and the United States Army Air Forces in China and Burma.
* James Stewart (19081997): Academy Award-winning film actor, instructed in B-17s before flying 20 combat missions in B-24s with the 8th Air Force, England; retired from Air Force Reserve as a Brigadier General.[119]
* Bert Stiles (19201944): 91st Bomb Group co-pilot from March to October 1944, short-story author, killed in action flying a P-51 on a second tour.
* Smokey Yunick (19232001): Award-winning motorsports car designer and premier NASCAR crew chief flew 50 missions as a B-17 pilot with the 97th Bombardment Group (Heavy) of the 15th Air Force, out of Amendola Airfield, Foggia, Italy.[120]
[edit] Specifications (B-17G)
3-view projection of a B-17G, with inset detail showing the "Cheyenne tail" and some major differences with other B-17 variants.
Data from The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft[29]
General characteristics
* Crew: 10: Pilot, co-pilot, navigator, bombardier/nose gunner, flight engineer-top turret gunner, radio operator, waist gunners (2), ball turret gunner, tail gunner[121]
* Length: 74 ft 4 in (22.66 m)
* Wingspan: 103 ft 9 in (31.62 m)
* Height: 19 ft 1 in (5.82 m)
* Wing area: 1,420 ft² (131.92 m²)
* Airfoil: NACA 0018 / NACA 0010
* Aspect ratio: 7.57
* Empty weight: 36,135 lb (16,391 kg)
* Loaded weight: 54,000 lb (24,495 kg)
* Max takeoff weight: 65,500 lb (29710 kg)
* Powerplant: 4× Wright R-1820-97 "Cyclone" turbosupercharged radial engines, 1,200 hp (895 kW) each
* Maximum speed: 287 mph (249 kn, 462 km/h)
* Cruise speed: 182 mph (158 kn, 293 km/h)
* Range: 2,000 mi (1,738 nmi, 3,219 km) with 2,722 kg (6,000 lb) bombload
* Service ceiling: 35,600 ft (10,850 m)
* Rate of climb: 900 ft/min (4.6 m/s)
* Wing loading: 38.0 lb/ft² (185.7 kg/m²)
* Power/mass: 0.089 hp/lb (150 W/kg)
* Guns: 13 × .50 in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns in 4 turrets in dorsal, ventral, nose and tail, 2 in waist positions, 2 beside cockpit and 1 in the lower dorsal position
* Bombs:
o Short range missions (<400 mi): 8,000 lb (3,600 kg)
o Long range missions (≈800 mi): 4,500 lb (2,000 kg)
o Overload : 17,600 lb (7,800 kg)
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Featured By Owner
4 days ago
New member
Student Artist
is that the B-17G or just the normal?
Featured By Owner
3 days ago
Professional Interface Designer
Featured By Owner
Nov 18, 2014
this is the 1st plane I ever flew in and it was AWESOME!!
p.s. one thing DON"T sit on a bolt right before touch down!!!
Featured By Owner
Apr 29, 2013
Now if this drawing had the markings of the
Piccadilly Lily
(Colonel Gallagher's B-17) from the TV series "Twelve O'Clock High", then my life would be complete.
Featured By Owner
Jul 19, 2012
I love the Flying Fortress!!!
Featured By Owner
May 15, 2012
Student General Artist
Featured By Owner
Mar 6, 2012
Student Digital Artist
a wonderful way to tell the enemy to f#ck off lol
wait a minute, there was a FACTORY THERE !?!?!?!?!?!
Featured By Owner
Nov 9, 2011
Like I said: BOMBS AWAY!!! XD
Featured By Owner
Jul 31, 2011
you know a lot bout these planes
Featured By Owner
Jul 13, 2011
Hobbyist Traditional Artist
HELL YEAH!!! Try taking out that son of a b*tch with a Messerschmidt! I love that one, my great grandfather on my mother's side was the waist gunner of one of them bad boys ^^
Featured By Owner
Mar 23, 2011
Professional General Artist
Check out my plane pics. B17's rule! Ihelp build planes for the Army & Airforce. Look up www.DynamicAviation.com
Featured By Owner
Jul 17, 2010
b-17 is my most favorite airplane
Featured By Owner
Jan 26, 2010
copypasting wikipedia texts is evil. write something short and smart yourself or don't post any comment, please.
Featured By Owner
Jan 26, 2010
Professional Interface Designer
it take me forever to do it my self
Featured By Owner
Jan 29, 2010
then don't write anything or post only a link to wikipedia, please
Featured By Owner
Jan 26, 2010
And the first post says . . .
Love the B-17, even more than the B-29 and B-52 put together.
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Dec. 12, 2012 11:30 a.m.
Once upon a time there was a beautiful little boy who lived in a beautiful castle. He rarely enjoyed his life because he never was allowed out of the house. Because he was the son of the king, he was not permitted to talk, or have any associations with the commoners in the city. This was the reason for the little boy�s lonely and unhappy childhood.<>>
Now, the king had just hired, that very day, a new cook and with him came his wife and son, Noah. The little boy, whose name was Jack, watched with envy as the new family moved into the worker�s cottage connected to the castle by means of an underground tunnel. Jack felt such longing as he watched Noah scamper, excitedly caring their belongings into their new home. Jack wanted so badly to not only talk with Noah but play and run and have fun with him. Unfortunately he was well too aware of the consequence if the son of a king interacted with someone �beneath� him. He had been told that the commoner would be brought to the king for punishment, which then meant he would be sent away to a sort of prison, never to return to his family. Thinking these thoughts, Jack couldn�t risk the chance.<>>
As time passed Jack became lonelier and lonelier; which had a significant effect on his health. His sadness and depression led to a loss of appetite and energy. Rumors around the castle were that jack was dying of a lonely heart. Upon hearing this dreadful news, Noah felt like he should help. Recently he had discovered the tunnel leading to the castle. So, one evening he followed the tunnel as far as it went, leading him straight to jacks wing of the castle. As he quietly, crept to the massive door, hoping that it led him to the beautiful boy, his heart was pounding so loudly he was sure the sound was echoing through the whole castle. Slowly he opened the door and walked carefully to the bed. Jack was sleeping, but when Noah touched his leg, he awoke startled. Introductions were made and easily within minutes they were fast friends. <>>
Night after night Noah made the secret visits, with both of them fully aware of what could happen if they were discovered. They were so successful in their deception that years went by and no one ever knew the truth. Both boys grew up healthy and strong and both left the castle at the age of 18 to pursue their own lives. They said good bye through teary eyes knowing they would never see each other again.<>>
As time passed the beautiful boy, now a handsome prince was forced to take over for his father as king of his nation. Jack married and had a son whom he named Noah. When Noah, Jack�s son, turned five they had a birthday dinner for him in which the castle�s cook prepared a huge feast. While the cook was placing the food on the table, jack noticed it was not the same old cook that had always been in his father�s employment, but a much younger one. Along his side was a small boy with bright eyes and full of energy. When the two young boy�s eyes met, jack immediately knew what pain and loneliness laid ahead for them. So that night as he put young Noah to bed he showed him the secret tunnel and told him that the tunnel could lead him to a wonderful and long lasting friendship. He then walked away leaving young Noah standing by the entrance to the tunnel.<>>
Of course, temptation was great and young Noah walked quickly through the entrance. As he walked he heard a noise from further down the tunnel. As the sound grew closer Noah noticed the bright eyes of the cook�s son staring at him. <>>
Noah asked, �What brings you here and how did you know about this tunnel?�<>>
The bright-eyed boy said, �My father sent me and told me I would find a wonderful and long lasting friendship.�<>>
With his mouth dropped in shock Noah asked, �What is your name?�<>>
The bright-eyed boy said, �Jack!�<>>
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Repo: The Genetic Opera
Genre: DVD, Movies, New Movies
Cast: Alexa Vega, Paul Sorvino, Anthony Head, Sarah Brightman, Paris Hilton, Bill Moseley, Nivek Ogre, Terrance Zdunich, Sarah Power
Director: Darren Lynn Bousman
Rated: R
Review By:
Tom Herrmann
Suny Purchase '11
"When life gives you lemons, you clone those lemons and make super-lemons." -Clone High
Repo: The Genetic Opera
Review By: Tom Herrmann
Repo! The Genetic Opera
Movie Grade: C
DVD Features Grade: C
Overall Grade: C
This was a strange one. I couldn't decide throughout the entire movie if I liked it or not. Repo! The Genetic Opera was made in an attempt to combine the styles of Rocky Horror Picture Show and Blade Runner. To answer the question on everyone's mind, no I'm not making that up.
Repo! takes place in the grim future where people can buy organs from corporations and have surgeries as fashion statements, and the repossession of organs has been legalized. At the center of this entire organ dealing is the evil corporation GeneCo. GeneCo separates itself from the futuristic corporations like Cyberdyne that we all know and fear by"¦ well they don't really. They pull the same old "corporations are bad" allegory with the non-stop advertisements, and the seemingly endless power they have. But if there is one thing that Repo! isn't, its generic. If there is one thing Repo! is on the other hand, it's poorly written, but I'll get to that later.
The plot revolves around the relationship of Shilo Wallace's (Alexa Vega) and her father Nathan (Anthony Stewart Head), and their connection with Rotti Largo (Paul Sorvino) who runs GeneCo and wants to find someone to leave his company to before he dies. As the film progresses they begin to tie in these three characters and introduce Rotti's children Luigi Largo (Bill Moseley), Pavi Largo (Nivek Ogre), and Amanda Sweet (Paris Hilton), and Shilo's godmother Blind Mag (Sarah Brightman). There is also a character just called Graverobber (Terrance Zdunich), but he just catches the audience and some characters up on background information, and doesn't really affect the story.
Repo! could possibly be the campiest thing I have seen since Adam West as Batman. The way everything is portrayed is so obviously straying from reality. This made Repo! somewhat bearable in the weaker parts of the movie.
To be honest I wanted to shut it off somewhere around half way through. As original as it is, that doesn't make up for the fact that the movie is overly ridiculous. Having a horror opera is difficult but it can be done with poise. Just look at Sweeney Todd. That was a gruesome film, that isn't what made it popular though. It was well received because it was well written and didn't try and use it's bizarreness to compensate for a lack of talent. There were some good singers and actors, like Sorvino, Brightman, and Vega who all belted out their share of amazing notes. No one else seemed to be on their level though.
Also the cast was very random. They had Giles from Buffy the Vampire Slayer with Head, the girl from the Spy Kids movies with Vega, and Paris Hilton. The cast seems more like one from a bad season of the Serial Life. Sorry, I've gotten
The special features don't do much to help this one out either. Just a little bit about the behind the scenes. The only thing I felt satisfied hearing the features was that they were going for a Rocky Horror, Blade Runner feel because that was my guess form the beginning. The Legal Assassin feature did give some background on how they came up with the Repo-Man look which was somewhat interesting.
Even with all of that said I have a strange feeling that this will without a doubt become a cult classic. People hated Rocky Horror Picture Show when it was first released and that has one of the largest cult followings I have ever heard of. Over time I think I will end up liking this weird take on a rock opera. Even with all of its shortcomings and the fact that it seems like it was directed by those goth kids on South Park, I just can't stop thinking that this will be the next Rocky Horror.
Movie Grade: C
DVD Features Grade: C
Overall Grade: C


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Troy N. DiggsMarch 1998 |
February 15, 1998
I had a lot I wanted to write about this month. My first draft of this column talked about Monica Lewinsky and her...uhh..... charm. Then, I wanted to write about the argument I got into with a friend of mine last night, which has got me so depressed I'm playing Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On" over and over again. Finally, I wanted to write about "Titanic", because damn it, what gay guy doesn't like Leonardo DiCaprio? (BTW, go to your local video store, rent "Total Eclipse", and tell me that he's not gay.)
Instead, I wanted to talk about gay pride. Yesterday, I was at work, and a guy came in with his partner, which is OK. They've been in the store before. The problem is that this guy always comes in wearing a cap with every conceivable gay pin, button, sticker, and attachment on it. He was a one-man pride march.
I have no problems with pride; hell, I'm involved in it myself. On a cosmetic level, that means rainbow stickers on the truck, a rainbow necklace as soon as I can figure out where I put it or when I get back to Meristem in Memphis, and a rainbow keychain. That's no problem.
However... this is an area where the KKK have adopted a stretch of highway not more than 20 miles south of here (for those familiar with the area, it's in the middle of Marked Tree going down US 63). To me, it's OK to be proud, as long as those who don't quite agree with the lifestyle think that the rainbow means you like different colors.
Simply put, if you're somewhere where it's not acceptable, then don't broadcast it! The best situation is that you'll get unfairly stereotyped as a "fag". At worst, you might get the living shit kicked out of you. The people out there that can hurt you are generally those that have the IQ of Bob Saget. No, wait, that's an insult to them. The point is, if you can be proud and fool the assholes, go for it. If you make it blatantly obvious, you might as well be wearing a T-shirt saying "I'm gay" on the front and a target on the back.
I've seen the T's advertised and displayed with "2QT2BSTR8" and other miscellaneous lines, and I'd love to be able to wear them when I go to class and such, but I can't. Hell, I get nervous going into the G/L section at Hastings because Jonesboro may not be a really small town, but I'd rather not take any chances.
That doesn't mean living in fear all your life, nor does it mean being so paranoid that you can't be yourself. That also doesn't mean it's a bad thing to be out and proud. It means taking a little caution when it's appropriate. If you really really want, and you live in a place/go to places where you can get away with it, then by all means, be fucking proud. We deserve it. But, if you don't, and this is really just a little common sense, don't push it. After all, I'd rather you be safe and alive to read next month's column than become a bad statistic.


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Bhavani Lorraine Nelson
Bhavani Lorraine Nelson leads workshops in meditation and mindfulness, stress reduction, and her primary work, the power of the voice. Bhavani is a Kripalu Yoga teacher and has practiced and led meditation for more than 40 years. Affiliated with Kripalu since 1988, she has taught in the United States, Canada, Japan, and Iceland. She has several albums of singing, chanting, and sounding experiences in addition to her series of instructional CDs on meditation, Meditation Made Possible. Bhavani honors Thomas Ashley-Farrand (Namadeva Acharya) and Russill Paul as her mantra mentors. bhavanilorrainenelson.com
Upcoming Programs
Dates | Program |
May 10–15, 2015 | Meditation Made Possible |
July 17–19, 2015 | Introduction to Meditation |
September 11–13, 2015 | Introduction to Meditation |


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First day? Welcome!
True or False: You're ready to achieve your higher education and career goals? That's what we thought. And that's what we're here for. From college to career-we've got you covered. So get going! Your future's waiting.
Office of Admissions, Suite 1.204, Ashbel Smith Building
301 University Blvd.
Galveston, TX 77555-1317
United States
Phone: 409-772-6958
Fax: 409-747-2909


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She's Country Tour with Heidi Newfield and Bridgette Tatum
Heidi Newfield has made a name for herself as a solo act with songs like 'Johnny and June,' after having left the group, Trick Pony. Bridgette Tatum is an amazing artist in her own right, most known for the songs that she has written. The most common one being Jason Aldean's 'She's Country.' Well, these two singer/songwriters are taking that song and going on tour. The She's Country Tour, sponsored by Pendleton Whiskey kicks off November 2nd in Little Rock, Arkansas. Dates and more after the jump.
Heidi Newfield had this to say about the tour and Brigette,
"I have partnered up with a few good friends, Pendleton Whisky, and my crazy talented girl, Miss Bridgette Tatum. Together we're throwing a party in your town. We want every one of our club tour shows to be overflowing with people who are rowdy, whiskey drinking, country music lovin', not scared to have a damn good time kind of people. We want to show you that SHE'S COUNTRY and 'SHE' can rock the house as hard as any dude out there!"
The tour website can be accessed here and you can find a list of the dates and venues these ladies will be playing at. It also says there will be special guests on the tour. The special guests have no yet been announced but keep checking back to the tour website for more information.
She's Country Tour dates: (More dates will be added soon)
Nov 2 Revolution Music Room – Little Rock, AR
Nov 3 Glass Cactus – Dallas, TX
Nov 4 Mo's Place – Katy, TX
Nov 5 Floores Country Store – Heiotes, TX
Nov 6 Midnight Rodeo – Austin, TX
Nov 9 TBD – Nashville, TN
Nov 10 Denim & Diamonds – Wichita, KS
Nov 11 Krazee Kafe – Des Moines, IA
Nov 12 Denim & Diamonds – Kansas City, MO
Nov 16 Newby's – Memphis, TN
Nov 17 State Theatre – Starkville, MS
Nov 18 Mavericks – Jacksonville, FL
This is sure to be a great tour and one that you don't want to miss if you can make it out.
Jessica Z
Latest posts by Jessica Z (see all)
- Video: Kristen Kelly premieres video for "My Ex Old Man" - August 14, 2012
- Video: Suzi Oravec "Let Our Love Burn" - August 2, 2012
- Suzi Oravec's "Let Our Love Burn" Airs on The Real World: St. Thomas - August 1, 2012


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Track topics range from the core Java platform, to in-depth explorations of Java and security, Java and the cloud, internet of things, and other mission-critical Java topics.
Java continues moving forward to the future. Experts from Oracle and Java communities worldwide are planning unique, valuable, practical, and hands-on content to share with attendees at JavaOne 2014. Track topics this year range from the stronger-than-ever core Java platform, to in-depth and timely explorations of Java and security, Java and the cloud, and other mission-critical Java topics. Tracks will also focus on the tools and techniques that help create outstanding user experiences that can be delivered through a variety of channels, including personal devices, smart cards, embedded environments, and intelligent equipment. To learn more about the content that will be delivered at this year's JavaOne 2014, take a look at the track information below.
View Clients and UI sessions
Java is the #1 development platform, and its strength and continued growth depend on the relentless pursuit of innovation and performance at the very core of the Java family of technologies. The Core Java Platform track covers material fundamental to all uses and variants of the Java platform, including the latest developments in Java Virtual Machines, the evolution of the Java programming language, and deep technical explanations of new library features.
View Core Java Platform sessions
The Internet of Things (IoT) is a vision gaining greater momentum for making the world with which we engage smarter and more interactive. Whether it's for intelligent homes, autonomous manufacturing, or smart cities, edge computing is bringing forward embedded devices, machine-to-machine (M2M) technologies, intelligent systems, smartcards, and other secure endpoints that are becoming pervasive manifestations of technology in everyday life. Contributing to this momentum making the IoT vision a reality are advances in the Java platform that are driving and supporting expanded application capabilities. Java technologies provide an ideal platform for applications in emerging edge environments such as robotics, smartcards, secure elements, metering devices, home gateways, telehealth devices, industrial automation, and vehicles. This track is devoted to discussing Java technology as the ultimate platform for embedded and M2M environments, as well as covering device usages of Java technologies including Oracle Java SE Embedded, Oracle Java ME Embedded, and Java Card.
View Internet of Things sessions
New application development languages are emerging rapidly. With continuing improvements in the JDK, support for dynamically typed languages on the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) offers developers newfound productivity. This track covers some of the most popular dynamic languages that can utilize and harness the full power of the JVM, including Groovy, JavaScript, JRuby, Kotlin, and Scala.
View JVM Languages sessions
The Java platform is the most relevant and ubiquitous application platform ever. Java is on billions of devices, desktops, and servers and is expanding rapidly into new application areas including embedded and edge devices. As a result of its success, Java is an attractive exploitation target for attackers. Defending and protecting Java communities from attack requires broad community and industry participation. This track addresses topics ranging from security tools and coding techniques to innovative products, and includes participation from recognized security leaders discussing policies and best practices. While the value of offensive security techniques is recognized, the focus of this track is primarily on defensive measures.
View Java and Security sessions
Writing good clean code more quickly underpins the essence of a developer's productivity. New-age developer tools continue to push the boundaries in this space. In this track, developers will learn about tools that are enhancing Java application development productivity and about emerging programming techniques that continue to evolve how sophisticated Java-based applications ecosystems should be architected, written, and optimized. Topics cover a broad range of technical areas, including the following:
Hear from industry experts on how to leverage the rich features available in Java Platform, Enterprise Edition (Java EE), the cutting-edge additions to Java EE 7, and what is being considered for Java EE 8. Learn how to develop secure, scalable services using WebSockets, JSON, and JAX-RS 2.0 that can be consumed by both native mobile and single-page browser applications. Enterprise developers will benefit from the latest-and-greatest updates and best practices for persistence, security, CDI, transactions, Java Message Service (JMS) 2.0, Concurrency Utilities for Java EE, batch APIs, and more. This track also includes sessions on Java EE areas of interest such as performance, testing, and application design.
View Server-Side Java sessions
The evolution of service-related Java standards has been underway for more than a decade, and in many ways the emergence of cloud computing was almost inevitable. Whether you call your current service-oriented development "cloud" or not, this track is chock-full of the latest and greatest vision, techniques, and practices related to web services, public and private cloud deployment, platform as a service, software as a service, multitenancy, and related topics such as elasticity and dynamic scaling, DevOps, security practices, and other management aspects.
View Java in the Cloud sessions
Great software developers should constantly improve the way they execute their craft. This track is all about reinforcing well-known agile technical practices and sharing emerging techniques and ways of working. Topics include test-driven development (TDD), behavior-driven development (BDD), domain-driven design (DDD), DevOps, continuous delivery, and many other ways of achieving high levels of technical excellence. Sessions also touch on extreme programming, Scrum, Kanban, and other Lean software development methodologies. With its focus on development practices and craftsmanship, this track provides education and inspiration to developers of all experience levels.
View Agile Development sessions


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Sorry to inform you, before the "fight" has even started.
1. Retired Representative "Gabby" Giffords.
2.Her husband, space shuttle pilot Mark Kelley.
Gabby won her election known as a gun totin'-2nd Amendment supportin' democrat.
As we all know, she was shot by a mentally disturbed JaredLaughner.
In the head. She survived! YAY! She still said nothing against extended mags. YAY!
She is anAmerican ICON.
"Because of Sandy Hook" she has come out in favor of "reasonable" gun laws (yet to be written).
Her husband, an American HERO (all astronauts, are "heros" in case you didn't know) never said much in opposition to mags, or guns in the aftermath of his wife's shooting.
"Because of Sandy Hook" he has joined her in fighting for "reasonable" gun laws.
The closest thing we had to an ICON OR HERO, was Chuck Heston.
He's gone.
We're DOOMED.
Unless our side "goes public" with real people that John and Jane Q. Sheeple can relate to by the hundreds, we have already lost.
You can hope thatNRA, GOA and the rest can lobby, finagle, and pressure "law signers" to act "sensibly," but the fact is, the public will fall into lock step behind HEROIC AND ICONIC symbols of "reason".
I guarantee it.


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Nike Hockey Training: The Program Review
If you want a comprehensive hockey training program but don't know where to start, Nike put a program together in conjunction with Gary Roberts and Matt Nichol. It's thorough and easy to follow. I'll share my thoughts on it in greater detail below.
Here is a link to download the PDF.
The entire workout is on Youtube, as well.
About the Program:
Created by big league veteran Gary Roberts and pro trainer Matt Nichol, The Program gives you the tools to crush anyone who stands in your way. It focuses on building a solid foundation of speed, strength, agility and quickness, and adds explosiveness to your game. Your coaches and teammates will take notice, and you'll earn that extra time on the ice
Program Structure
Weeks 1-4 – Speed and Power
This is the beginning of your journey. Here we take the momentum you have from finishing off last season, and push it to another level in the gym. You'll have two days of Active Recovery every week, and that's your chance to get out of the gym and play any sport you want.
Week 5 – Active Recovery
This is an Active Recovery week. It's not a week off. Customize your workout schedule by playing sports or doing other workouts you enjoy. Take your bike, rollerblade, or go for a sustained run. Get out there every day of the week. Try to break a sweat.
Weeks 6-9 – Explosiveness
You will be feeling stronger and quicker. And it's time to push even harder. We've added field exercises to a more intense gym workout. Weeks 6-9 are where we work on the explosiveness and quickness you'll need when you're back on the ice. These are the most intense weeks.
Week 10 – Active Recovery
Once again, this is a recovery week. It's not a week off. There are plenty of other exercises outside of your normal schedule that will really enhance your performance. Try quick reaction games like soccer or basketball which balance lateral movement and power.Keep pushing.
Weeks 11-12 – Training Camp
The drills you'll find here will complement your Training Camp on-ice workouts you're already getting. You can work out any two days of the week, but try to keep 48 hours between The Program workouts. If you've come this far, your coaches and teammates will definitely notice.
- The PDF is very thorough (as mentioned), and very hockey specific. Hip mobility is a focus, as is stability through the core and shoulders.
- This is one of my favorite core exercises, and it should be a staple of any sports-related program. It challenges the core, shoulders, and hips, and it doesn't put your spine into flexion like sit ups and crunches do.
- The recovery weeks are important – improvements are made during your rest time. Overtraining is as bad as under training, and for long-term, sustainable changes to be made, the body has to be given enough time to recover and repair.
- This program is obviously general, but slight modifications can tailor it to most people. What I like is that the essentials are covered, it provides proper progressions, and the directions are clear, consistent, and easy to follow.
A lot of the exercises are on Youtube at the Nike Hockey account, so if you are struggling with form, watching the exercise performed properly should help.
If you are interested in getting stronger, losing fat, learning to eat better, or simply want to get in better shape, drop me a line here:
=====> AngusCertified Coaching <=====


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Say goodbye to airport parking fees and turn your next ordinary trip into a pleasurable journey with our Stay & Go parking package.
Book your hotel stay at the La Quinta Inn & Suites Orange County Santa Ana using our Stay & Go Airport Parking package and we will pick you up from the John Wayne/Orange County Airport (SNA) and drop you off with our free shuttle service. But that's not all. Enjoy a Free Bright Side Breakfast® and park here up to 7 days for free!
Additional parking fees will apply after the 7th day ($5 per day).
Hotel stay required. Contact the hotel for shuttle schedule.
This offer is only available at the:
La Quinta Inn & Suites Orange County Santa Ana
2721 Hotel Terrace
Santa Ana, CA 92705
Phone: 1-714-540-1111
Reserve this Package today!
*Hotel stay is required. Stay & Go Package services available only to hotel guests that book using the "STAYGO" promotion code. One vehicle per room per package. Maximum length of time a vehicle may remain on the premises is determined by the hotel. Parking for additional days is subject to additional fees. Offer based on availability and subject to blackout dates. Taxes and other fees are not included in the package price. Offer may not be used in conjunction with any other offer, discounted rates, coupons, or during special events. Offer only valid at this hotel and can be discontinued without notice.


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A "tower defense" game with online ratings and hours of exciting gameplay.
Mix crystals and force waves, use obstacles and mines! Pass 40 levels in Campaign and defeat Mech Lord or play in Battle mode.
Download This Free Game 4 Android here:
Talk about it on our Facebook page. |
FileSonic apk file: 15.83MB |


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The Olympic Peninsula is a wellspring of hiking possibilities. Whether you're doing a short day hike in one of the local State parks or heading into the Olympics, there are numerous places to venture.
Trail users are reminded to carry their own 10 essentials: extra clothing, area map, extra food and water, compass, flashlight, knife, matches, sunglasses, fire starter/candle and first aid kit.
Pets are allowed in the Olympic National Forest but are not allowed in Olympic National Park. Vehicles parked at most Olympic National Forest trailheads must display a Northwest Forest Pass, available at the headquarter's office in West Olympia, the Hood Canal Ranger Station in Quilcene, and local vendors and ranger stations Passes and maps are available on the ranger district website.
Hikers are reminded to stay on the trails. Cutting switchbacks saves only seconds, while destroyed vegetation takes years to recover. Pack out your garbage and put those campfires out. Watch for special fire restrictions as summer progresses.
For those of you who would like to cut your own Christmas Trees during December, the Olympic National Forest sells tree permits valid between November and December.
You can also check for Recreation Businesses in PT
Helpful Resources
Port Townsend - Port Townsend Walking and Bicycling Map (PDF) and the Street & Trail Map (PDF).
Olympic National Forest - Short, medium and long hiking trails.
Olympic National Park - Day hikes and overnight hikes. Hurricane Ridge, 1.5 hours from downtown Port Townsend. Downhill skiing (managed by Hurricane Ridge Winter Sport Club),
snowshoeing, small children's Snowplay Area, hiking and cross country
skiing are available. Call 360-452-8552 for updated information. All vehicles
driving to the Ridge must have chains and should check road conditions
before going. Check for Current Conditions.
Cool Trails - Olympic Peninsula hiking and skiing trails.
Fort Worden - Over 12 miles of beach and forest trails. The park is about 1.5 miles from downtown PT.
Fort Flagler - 10 miles of trails throughout the park. On Marrowstone Island.
Fort Townsend - 6.5 miles of wooded trails. The park is about 4 miles from downtown PT.
Larry Scott Memorial Trail - The trail has now been completed past the new Cape George trail-head to Edwards Rd. A volunteer-constructed trail has also been completed past Edwards Rd. to Douglas Way, then across Discovery Rd. (just north of the golf course) and on to 4-Corners near Hwy 20. This is the beginning of the Olympic Discovery Trail which when completed, will stretch from Port Townsend to Neah Bay! It is maintained by Jefferson Trails Coalition Adopt-A-Trail volunteers. Map of trail here >>
Olympic Discovery Trail - Clallam and Jefferson County trail system, part of the 1200 mile Pacific Northwest Trail (PNT)
Olympic Peninsula Explorers Volkssport Club - organization of individuals devoted to the promotion of health and fitness with weekend and seasonal walking events.
Recreation Passes of the Northwest
You'll need a NW Forest Pass to recreate at any of the Olympic Peninsula area trailheads. Which pass you need depends on how long you'll be staying or how often you'll making trips, but you can figure that out here. These work in Washington and Oregon. The Washington and Oregon Recreation Pass is the full deal for all places, including USDA Forest Service, National Park, Bureau of Land Management, Corp of Engineer and WA & OR State Parks. Daily passes are between $2 and $10. All passes are available to purchase online or at local stores like Sport Townsend.