Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress No. 44-83690

Last updated
Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress
No. 44-83690
Grissom Air Museum B-17G "Flying Fortress" No. 44-83690 P9270540.jpg
The aircraft on display at Grissom Air Reserve Base in October 2010
General information
Type Boeing B-17G-95-DL Flying Fortress
Manufacturer Douglas Aircraft Company
Serial 44-83690
History
Manufactured1945
Preserved at Museum of Aviation, Robins Air Force Base, Georgia

Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress No.44-83690 is a B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bomber currently undergoing restoration at the Museum of Aviation near Robins Air Force Base in Georgia. It was built as a B-17G-95-DL by the Douglas Aircraft Company and delivered for use on May 9, 1945. It was flown to Grissom Air Force Base for display as a museum piece in 1961. [1] : 5  The plane was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993. [2] It was moved to the Museum of Aviation in August 2015. [3] [4]

Contents

The aircraft is a reasonably intact World War II aircraft type of which there are less than 50 surviving examples. It is also an example of an experimental aircraft that participated in military tests shortly after the war. [5]

History

Military use

The plane, a G-series Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress assigned serial number 44-83690, was delivered on May 9, 1945, to Patterson AFB (Ohio), 4100 Base Unit, and put into storage. On November 14, 1945, it was assigned to Air Material Command, 4168 Base Unit at South Plains Army Air Field in Lubbock, Texas. In June 1947, it was again transferred to Air Material Command, 4141 Base Unit, Pyote Field, Texas. [5]

In July 1950, it was fitted with special equipment and redesignated as a DB-17G (Director B-17G). The conversion was completed at Olmstead Air Force Base, Pennsylvania. Once converted, it was transferred to the 3200 Drone Squadron at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida. In February 1951, the plane was sent to Kwajalein, Enewetak (Marshall Islands) and assigned to the 3200 Proof Test Wing as participation in Operation Greenhouse, a series of nuclear tests for the Atomic Energy Commission. [5]

In May 1951, it was once more transferred, to Patrick Air Force Base in Florida, where it was assigned to the 3205 Drone Group, 3215 Drone Squadron. Enhanced in 1955, the craft was redesignated DB-17 to serve in the 3235th Drone Squadron, Missile Test Center, Patrick AFB from 1956 to 1959. As one of the last active B-17s, it was removed from the Air Force inventory in August 1960. [5]

Post-military use

No. 44-83690
B-17G "Flying Fortress" Undergoing Restoration (49870793868).jpg
The plane in February 2020, undergoing restoration
Nearest city Warner Robins, Georgia
Coordinates 32°35′24″N83°35′16″W / 32.59000°N 83.58778°W / 32.59000; -83.58778
NRHP reference No. 93000540 [2]
Added to NRHPJune 29, 1993

In 1961, the plane was flown to Grissom Air Force Base (then known as Bunker Hill Air Force Base) for permanent display. [5] The Heritage Museum Foundation, established in 1981 as part of the Air Force Museum Program, maintained the plane.[ citation needed ]

Photos taken in February 1992 and included as part of the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) submission for the aircraft show it on display at Grissom AFB painted with tail number 42-31255 and nose art depicting "Miss Liberty Belle" on the left side and the wording "Flak Magnet" on the right side. [6] [7] The nose art was added to the plane circa 1983. [8] The plane was added to the NRHP on June 29, 1993. [6]

In 2015, the aircraft was moved in pieces to the Museum of Aviation near Robins Air Force Base in Georgia and began a lengthy restoration effort. [9] [10] As of January 2020, the plane had been largely reassembled with restoration expected to be completed "in the next four years". [11] The $400,000 effort is being completely funded by donations. [11]

Description

B-17G-90-DL 44-83690 is a heavy bomber manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company in Long Beach, California. Douglas was one of two companies in addition to Boeing, designated to manufacture B-17s during World War II. General features of the B-17 include its mid-wing monoplane design, aluminum-clad exterior, four radial engines, massive wing structure, and heavy armament. [5]

Bibliography

As listed in the NRHP submission: [6] : 9:15 

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress</span> American WWII-era heavy bomber

The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is an American four-engined heavy bomber aircraft developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). A fast and high-flying bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theater of Operations and dropped more bombs than any other aircraft during World War II. It is the third-most produced bomber of all time, behind the American four-engined Consolidated B-24 Liberator and the German multirole, twin-engined Junkers Ju 88. It was also employed as a transport, antisubmarine aircraft, drone controller, and search-and-rescue aircraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boeing C-108 Flying Fortress</span>

The Boeing C-108 Flying Fortress was an American transport aircraft used during World War II. Four were converted from B-17 Flying Fortress heavy bombers.

<i>Liberty Belle</i> (aircraft) Moniker for several B-17 and B-24 WWII aircraft

Liberty Belle was a popular name for United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) aircraft during World War II; over two dozen known individual Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses and Consolidated B-24 Liberators used the name.

<i>Memphis Belle</i> (aircraft) Boeing B-17F bomber

|}

<i>The Pink Lady</i> (aircraft) American heavy bomber from World War II

The Pink Lady is the nickname of a B-17G Flying Fortress bomber, serial number 44-8846, which flew several missions for the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) over Nazi Germany near the end of World War II. The plane is now on static display in Cerny, Essonne, France.

<i>The Swoose</i> B-17D-BO Flying Fortress, oldest B-17 still intact

The Swoose is a Boeing B-17D-BO Flying Fortress, USAAF serial number 40-3097, that saw extensive use in the Southwest Pacific theatre of World War II and survived to become the oldest B-17 still intact. It is the only early "shark fin"-tailed B-17 known to exist, and the only surviving B-17 to have seen action in the 1941–42 Philippines Campaign, operating on the first day of the United States entry into the war.

<i>Piccadilly Lilly II</i> American heavy bomber built in 1945

Piccadilly Lilly II is a B-17 Flying Fortress currently on display at the Planes of Fame air museum in Chino, California. Built in 1945 as a B-17G and assigned serial number 44-83684, this plane was possibly the last aircraft assigned to the Eighth Air Force / 447th Bomb Group, but perhaps not delivered. It was the last active B-17 in the United States Air Force, and retired in 1959 after nine years as a DB-17P drone director. Following its military career, the plane appeared in various television shows and movies.

<i>Nine-O-Nine</i> Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress bomber

Nine-O-Nine was a Boeing B-17G-30-BO Flying Fortress heavy bomber, of the 323d Bombardment Squadron, 91st Bombardment Group, that completed 140 combat missions during World War II, believed to be the Eighth Air Force record for most missions without loss to the crews that flew her. A different B-17G, painted to mimic the Nine-O-Nine, crashed at Bradley International Airport in Windsor Locks, Connecticut, in October 2019.

<i>Sally B</i> Preserved 1945-built B-17 heavy bomber

Sally B is the name of an airworthy 1945-built Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress. At 79 years old, she is the only airworthy B-17 based in Europe, as well as one of three B-17s preserved in the United Kingdom. The aircraft is presently based at the Imperial War Museum Duxford, in eastern England. Sally B flies at airshows in the UK and across Europe as well as serving as an airborne memorial to the United States Army Air Forces airmen who lost their lives in the European theatre during World War II.

<i>Shoo Shoo Shoo Baby</i> Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress aircraft that flew 28 missions in WWII and is preserved and on display

Shoo Shoo Shoo Baby, originally Shoo Shoo Baby, is a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress in World War II, preserved and currently in storage at the National Museum of the United States Air Force, awaiting transfer to the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum. A B-17G-35-BO, serial number 42-32076, and manufactured by Boeing, it was named by her crew for a song of the same name made popular by The Andrews Sisters, the favorite song of its crew chief T/Sgt. Hank Cordes. Photographs of the bomber indicate that a third "Shoo" was added to the name at some point in May 1944 when the original aircraft commander completed his tour of duty and was replaced by another pilot.

<i>Sentimental Journey</i> (aircraft) B-17G Flying Fortress bomber

Sentimental Journey (44-83514) is the nickname of a B-17G Flying Fortress bomber. It is based at the Commemorative Air Force Museum in Mesa, Arizona, US. The aircraft is regularly flown to airshows throughout North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grissom Air Museum</span> Aviation museum in Peru, Indiana

The Grissom Air Museum is a military aviation museum at Grissom Air Reserve Base near Peru, Indiana with over twenty aircraft on display.

<i>Texas Raiders</i> American WWII aircraft

Texas Raiders was an American Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, a B-17G-95-DL built by Douglas Long Beach. In 1967, it was purchased by the Commemorative Air Force's Gulf Coast Wing "Texas Raiders" group, which maintained and flew the aircraft out of Conroe-North Houston Regional Airport in Conroe, Texas. The aircraft was destroyed on November 12, 2022, by a mid-air collision with a P-63 Kingcobra at an air show at Dallas Executive Airport, Texas, that killed all five occupants and the P-63 pilot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">B-17 Flying Fortress units of the United States Army Air Forces</span>

This is a list of United States Army Air Forces B-17 Flying Fortress units of the United States Army Air Forces, including variants and other historical information. Heavy bomber training organizations primarily under II Bomber Command in the United States and non-combat units are not included.

This is a partial list of accidents and incidents involving the Boeing-designed B-17 Flying Fortress. Combat losses are not included except for a very few cases denoted by singular circumstances. A few documented drone attrition cases are also included.

<i>Yankee Lady</i> Restored World War II-era aircraft

Yankee Lady is a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, previously owned by the Yankee Air Museum of Van Buren Township, Michigan. Originally delivered to the U.S military in 1945, the plane did not see combat action; it was used by the United States Coast Guard for over a decade. Purchased by the museum in 1986, it has since been restored to a World War II configuration and is flown for flight experience rides and airshow appearances. The aircraft was sold to an unknown party in June 2024.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">3205th Drone Group</span> Military unit

The 3205th Drone Group is a discontinued United States Air Force unit that operated obsolete aircraft during the 1950s as radio-controlled aerial targets for various tests. It was the primary post-World War II operator of surplus Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress aircraft, and also operated Lockheed F-80 Shooting Star and a few Boeing RB-47 Stratojet bombers that were converted into drone aircraft during the early years of the Cold War. It was last active with the Air Proving Ground Center, based at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, where it was discontinued on 1 February 1961.

References

  1. ↑ "Indiana State Historic Architectural and Archaeological Research Database (SHAARD)" (Searchable database). Department of Natural Resources, Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology. Retrieved 2016-05-01.Note: This includes Paul C. Diebold (May 1992). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: B-17G "Flying Fortress" No. 44-83690" (PDF). Retrieved 2016-05-01..
  2. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  3. ↑ "Airframe Dossier - Boeing DB-17P Fortress, s/n 44-83690 USAAF, c/n 32331". Aerial Visuals. AerialVisuals.ca. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
  4. ↑ Reynolds, Jacob (12 October 2016). "B-17 restoration project to take years and thousands of dollars". 13WMAZ. WMAZ-TV. Retrieved 19 March 2017.[ permanent dead link ]
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 B-17G "Flying Fortress" No. 44-83690; National Register of Historic Places Registration Form; Paul C. Diebold, Div. of Historic Preservation and Archaeology; United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service; Washington, D.C.; June 29, 1993
  6. 1 2 3 "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form". National Park Service. June 29, 1993. Retrieved November 14, 2022– via NPS.gov.
  7. ↑ Diebold, Paul (February 19, 1992). "(photo gallery)". Indiana Division of Historical Preservation and Archaeology. Retrieved November 14, 2022– via NPS.gov.
  8. ↑ ""Nose art" recreates Miss Liberty Belle". South Idaho Press . Burley, Idaho. AP. December 4, 1983. p. 13. Retrieved November 15, 2022– via newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ Crenshaw, Wayne (August 28, 2015). "B-17 fuselage arrives at museum". The Telegraph . Macon, Georgia. p. B1. Retrieved November 15, 2022– via newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ Crenshaw, Wayne (August 28, 2015). "B-17 (cont'd)". The Telegraph . Macon, Georgia. p. B5. Retrieved November 15, 2022– via newspapers.com.
  11. 1 2 Hammond, Sarah (January 30, 2020). "B-17 restoration project moves forward at Museum of Aviation". WMAZ-TV . Retrieved November 14, 2022.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.