B-17s in film The War Lover

[Hunterfan]

You B-17 fans may find this of interest.

Pictures have appeared on EBay which I am pretty sure were taken at RAF Bovingdon , just outside London , in 1961, of B-17Gs that were flown to the UK to be filmed for The War Lover.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/US-AIR-FORCE ... SwFMdaXM1E

[seagull61785]

Could easily have been taken at RAF Bovingdon. Similar hangars and cruddy weather.

[Snake45]

Anyone else here ever read Everything But the Flak by Martin Caidin? It's the story of how these three B-17s were resurrected and flown to England, and it's absolutely hilarious. Definitely worth looking up.

[Kyleb]

Anyone else here ever read Everything But the Flak by Martin Caidin? It's the story of how these three B-17s were resurrected and flown to England, and it's absolutely hilarious. Definitely worth looking up.

Fun book. There are probably some portions of it that resemble the actual events...

[67N20]

Anyone else here ever read Everything But the Flak by Martin Caidin? It's the story of how these three B-17s were resurrected and flown to England, and it's absolutely hilarious. Definitely worth looking up.

Just checked EBay and Amazon. Cheapest hardback was $187, Cheapest paperback was $65+.

[PeteM]

I'll sell you my copy?

[Jerry O'Neill]

I've picked up copies whenever I have seen them.

[Snake45]

Anyone else here ever read Everything But the Flak by Martin Caidin? It's the story of how these three B-17s were resurrected and flown to England, and it's absolutely hilarious. Definitely worth looking up.

Just checked EBay and Amazon. Cheapest hardback was $187, Cheapest paperback was $65+.

Wow. I checked it out of the library and read it--several times--as a teenager.

I just read So I Bought an Air Force, by the guy who bought the Nicaraguan P-51s, and parts of it reminded me very much of Everything But the Flak. It's also a great story, well told, and quite funny in places.

[Snake45]

Anyone else here ever read Everything But the Flak by Martin Caidin? It's the story of how these three B-17s were resurrected and flown to England, and it's absolutely hilarious. Definitely worth looking up.

Just checked EBay and Amazon. Cheapest hardback was $187, Cheapest paperback was $65+.

Wow. I checked it out of the library and read it--several times--as a teenager.

I just read So I Bought an Air Force, by the guy who bought the Nicaraguan P-51s, and parts of it reminded me very much of Everything But the Flak. It's also a great story, well told, and quite funny in places.

[Firebird]

You B-17 fans may find this of interest.

Pictures have appeared on EBay which I am pretty sure were taken at RAF Bovingdon , just outside London , in 1961, of B-17Gs that were flown to the UK to be filmed for The War Lover.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/US-AIR-FORCE ... SwFMdaXM1E

Either Bovingdon, or Manston, as that is 'The Body', so either of the two PB-1W's (N5229V and N5232V) used in the filming, as both at times were painted up as 'The Body' during filming in the last 3 months of 1961, first at Bovingdon in Oct/Nov and then Manston in Dec. Both PB-1W's got scrapped at RAF Manston once filming of the over water shots used at the end of the film had been completed (incl the scene where a group of parachutists evacuated from one of the 'forts to portray the crew bailing out of the damaged 'fort, unfortunately resulting in the death of one of the parachutists when he drowned upon landing in the English Channel)

[seagull61785]

I'de say definitely not Manston. I was stationed at both of these airfields in the 60's. Bovingdon gets my vote.

Barry

[Jerry O'Neill]

FYI, Fuddy Duddy was the one B-17 to survive the film.

[Chris Brame]

Sold for £10.50 - now that that's done, might as well post the images before eBay erases them:



Is the second one the future Fuddy Duddy?

[phil65]

I don't think Fuddy Duddy had a gun nose when she first came back.

http://www.warbirdregistry.org/b17regis ... 563-2.html

Phil

[Firebird]

Is the second one the future Fuddy Duddy?

I don't believe there's any sure fire way of knowing, from what I recall the tail identities/nose art were swapped around between all 3 a/c during the filming as required, which can be seen by the overpaint under the end of the tail serials and around the nose art in most photo's, so it's almost impossible to work out which was which at any one time.

These are some rare colour shots of the aircraft taken at Bovy at some point during/after filming.