Tortured B-17s - Pt. III

[Mark Nankivil]

and a few more from the Prairie Aviation Museum in Bloomington, IL photos.

Enjoy the Day! Mark

This one is interesting in that there are names on the engine cowlings. The right outboard says "Rosalie", the left inboard says "Kitten" and the left outboard says "Pyska's Pet".




This looks like a gear collapse after leaving the runway. There's a small tracked vehicle under the left wing between the engine nacelles.

[Second Air Force]

Naming engines is interesting. I recently read a story about the copilot of a B-24 naming each engine after one of four girlfriends. He named them based on how easy or hard they were to get started, just like his girlfriends!

Scott

[phil65]

Only mechanic's should name engines

Phil

[Second Air Force]

Phil,

Until I read the little story I just posted, I thought the mechanics DID name their engines. The logic behind his naming practice is beyond reproach, though!

Scott

[The Inspector]

Looks like #3 & #4 weren't making any revs judging by the unbent prop blades

[Mark Nankivil]

In the full rez scan, it looked to me as if the left main gear failed fully or got stripped off and the right gear either sank into the ground or only partially failed/retracted, hence the right side props were saved from ground contact.

Enjoy the Day! Mark

[gary1954]

Actually, the left main gear appears to be bent towards the bomb bay

[Django]

more great pics Mark. Thanks!

You might want to consider starting a single thread and just adding them in additional posts to keep it all in one place. I just found part 1 and 2. Maybe name it after the museum so it's easier for you and all of us patiently waiting for all the images you can scan!

[The Inspector]

Groundloop? If so, I'll bet that was exciting for all on hand!!

[CWBuff]

Wonderful stuff, Mark.

Apparently that first Fort lasted less than a month with its combat group. According to info on this page, it was assigned to the 487th BG on August 2nd, 1944 and was scrapped on the 31st of August.

Here's some info about the accident...

AAIR Search Result For Serial Number: 42-98020


On the same Fort, can you tell us what the markings between the serial number and 'L' are?


Thanks for posting these...


Fade to Black...

[Second Air Force]

Peter-Four-Oh,

Those numbers are sometimes referred to as modification numbers. On another website there was a long discussion about them, and most B-17s that have the numbers on the vertical also have the same numbers on the nose near the cheek windows. I forget the mechanics of the numbering system, but the idea is similar to the Mod numbers on early B-29s. They denote where the aircraft went through a Mod Center and it's individual number while there (if I recall). I had never noticed the small stencils until a year or so ago when I read about them, and now I see them on many period photos.

Scott

[Mark Nankivil]

Hi Steve -

Here's a close up of the vertical fin:



I also see it on the left front section of the fuselage, just aft and a bit lower than the cheek gun, just as you noted.

Thanks! Mark

[Second Air Force]

Okay,

I went to the other forum's archives and found the information pertaining to the small codes on the tail of 42-98020. Unfortunately, no real solid information is available, but the code is on the nose of the aircraft as well. Now look at our example:

You may have to put on the reading glasses, but just below the pitot tube is the P38 stencil, with the separate 38 just below it. This is the same situation that was noticed by other folks on quite a number of Forts, including some F models. Notice that the tail stencil seems to show an F rather than the P, but if you look closely at Mark's enlargement it appears that the paint flaked off of a P to make an F.
The codes on most of the other airplanes cited also had the P38 upper code with a different number below. Apparently, the P38 is a project number or mod center code? and the lower number is the ship number. Somebody must know.

The mystery deepens-------!
Scott

[tulsaboy]

Question on a similar subject- does anyone know how the B-24 mods were coded? Was it similar to the B-17 codes that are currently being discussed? With one B-24 I have studied, the Tulsamerican, you can see that at the factory it carried the block number "10". Upon arrival in Italy, after it was modified in Birmingham, Alabama, the block number had been changed to "11". Were there any other such changes?

kevin

[Second Air Force]

Kevin,

I wish the B-17 code thingy was as simple as a block number change, but no records have surfaced yet as to how to decode the puzzle. The block number change on Tulsamerican should be easier to dig out if one has access to the Mod Center records or B-24 Mod Change Tech Orders. The B-29 has it's own can of worms regarding the fuselage numbers on earlier airplanes that hasn't been completely ironed out, but Bob Mann has gone a long way with that one.

Sorry for hijacking again,
Scott