The B-17 was introduced in 1936 and was made through 1945. 12,500 were made for the Army Air Corps. They saw action in every theater of the war. They made the difference in winning the war in Europe.
Armed with heavy machine guns all around the plane earned the nickname "Flying Fortress." The plane below, named All-American had a German fighter collide with it in mid-air after a bombing raid over Germany. Heavily damaged, the All-American still made it back to a base in England.
The B-17 bombers rolled off assembly lines during the war and due to a shortage of combat pilots, women of the army air corps flew them from the U.S. over to England to keep the supply of planes up to the task of pulverizing Germany. Note the name of the plane they flew to England, "Pistol Packin Moma."
This picture is part of a strike on Germany with 1000 B-17 bombers in the same flight.
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