The B-17E was the first version of the Fortress to be produced in large numbers. It was originally designed to correct some of the deficiencies in the earlier Fortresses that had been brought to light as a result of combat reports coming in from Europe. The modifications which resulted in the B-17E were destined to turn an airplane which had been a relative failure into an outstanding success.

It is often written that the B-17E was the result of initial experience with the B-17C and D during the first months of combat in 1942 in the Pacific against the Japanese. Other sources report that the B-17E had its origin in the negative experience that the RAF had with the Fortress I (B-17C) over Europe in the summer of 1941. Neither view is correct, since the B-17E was first ordered on August 30, 1940, and the first prototype took to the air on its maiden flight on September 5, 1941.

The crews of early Fortresses (primarily B-17C and D) were well aware of the existence of a rather severe blind spot immediately to the rear, making it almost impossible to direct defensive firepower against an enemy fighter approaching from that direction. Early USAAC Fortress pilots had been forced to devise some rather ingenious maneuvering techniques to get around this problem--when attacked from the rear they would jink the aircraft back and forth, making it possible for the left and then the right waist gunners alternatively to get in fleeting shots at the attacker. However, in the tight formations that became de rigeur during missions over Germany during 1943-44, such maneuvering would have been downright dangerous.

In search of a better solution, the B-17E introduced a completely new rear fuselage with a manually-operated turret housing two 0.50-inch machine guns fitted in the extreme tail. In order to accommodate the tail gun, the fuselage of the B-17E was a full six feet longer than that of the D.

A Bendix electrically-powered turret containing two 0.50-inch machine guns was installed on the upper fuselage immediately behind the flight deck. This turret was usually operated by the flight engineer. The oval waist positions were replaced by rectangular apertures with removable windows. A single 0.50-inch machine gun could be mounted behind each of these windows.

A power-operated belly turret replaced the ventral "bathtub" housing of the B-17D. This turret was remotely-controlled by a system of mirror periscopic sights from a Plexiglas bubble below the waist hatches.

In order to achieve better stability during the bomb run, the span of the horizontal tailplane was increased, the vertical tail was greatly increased in area, and a long dorsal fin was fitted in front of the tail.

The first B-17E flew on September 5, 1941. It immediately superseded the B-17D on the production line, and as fast as they could leave the production line, they were issued to operational units.





The demands of American rearmament were such that far many more B-17s were required than which Boeing alone could supply, and the Army Air Forces encouraged the organization of a manufacturing pool in which Boeing, the Vega division of Lockheed, and Douglas would all participate in the building of the B-17E. The pool became rather irreverently known as "B.V.D", after the trade name for a popular line of underwear which had become a household name in America. Production of the B-17E at the main Boeing plant at Seattle was to be augmented by another Boeing plant at Wichita, Kansas. The Douglas plant at Santa Monica, California was to be joined in B-17E production by a new Douglas plant at Long Beach, California which had been built specifically for Fortress production. However, before the plan could reach fruition, the B-17F was ready for production, and the F was the first version to built jointly by all three companies. No B-17Es were actually built by either Lockheed or Douglas

The B-17E was first delivered to combat units of the 7th Bombardment Group in November of 1941. By November 30, 1941, 42 B-17Es had been delivered. Some B-17Es were actually at Pearl Harbor during the attack.


The increased weight and drag of the protruding turrets made the B-17E somewhat slower than the previous B-17D, although its ability to defend itself was greatly improved.

The periscope sight for the remotely-controlled dorsal turret proved difficult to use in practice, and starting with the 113th B-17E, the remotely-controlled turret was replaced by a Sperry ball turret, inside of which a gunner sat all curled up in the foetal position, swiveling the entire turret as he aimed the two guns. With his left eye peering through a sight, he controlled the movement of the guns by hand and foot pedals. There was precious little space inside the turret--ball turret gunners had to be very small men.

The gunner entered the ball turret via a door at its rear, which also served as an emergency exit in case of trouble. The gunner could enter the turret from inside the plane by having the turret rotated until the door opening faced the interior of the plane. However, since this required that the ball turret be positioned so that the guns were pointed downward, this meant that the turret could not be entered from inside the plane while it was on the ground. It was possible for the gunner to enter the turret from outside the plane while it was on the ground by having it rotated so that its door faced outside the plane. However, once he did this, he would have to stay inside the turret during the takeoff. Since the turret was only 15 inches off the ground, it would take a bold soul to ride inside the belly turret during take off or landing, and most ball turret gunners chose to enter the turret while the plane was in the air.

The B-17E normally carried a crew of ten--pilot, copilot, bombardier, navigator, flight engineer, radio operator, tail gunner, belly gunner, and two waist gunners. The nose gun was operated by either the navigator or the bombardier when they were not occupied by their primary duties, and the dorsal turret was normally operated by the flight engineer.

The temperature in the tail section when the side ports were open was quite frigid at high altitudes, especially in the wintertime. Plug-in points for electrically- heated flight suits were a must. Perhaps the coldest spot of all was the tail gunner's position, since a hurricane of drafts always seemed to converge on this spot.

The B-17E could be entered from three separate doors--a nose hatch located on the lower left, the main door located just in front of the right horizontal stabilizer, and the tail gunner's escape hatch situated just underneath the right elevator. Many movies depict the crew entering the Fortress via the nose hatch by swinging themselves upward into the plane. However, this mode of entrance was generally only for show, and was most often used only in Hollywood movies such as Twelve O'clock High. Since aircrew were almost always heavily encumbered with flight suits and parachutes, they generally opted for a less dramatic but less athletically-demanding entrance via the main door in the rear.

The last B-17E rolled off the production line at Boeing on May 28, 1942. A total of 512 were built before it was immediately superseded on the production line by the B-17F.
Serials of Boeing B-17E Fortress:
41-2393/2669 Boeing B-17E Fortress
c/n 2204/2480
2401 converted to XB-38-VE with Allison V-1710
liquid-cooled engines.
41-9011/9245 Boeing B-17E Fortress
c/n 2483/2717
Specification of Boeing B-17E Fortress:
Four Wright R-1820-65 Cyclone radials rated at 1200 hp for takeoff and 1000 hp at 25,000 feet. Performance: Maximum speed 318 mph at 25,000 feet. cruising speed 195-223 mph. Landing speed 70 mph Service ceiling 36,600 feet. Normal range 2000 miles with 4000 pounds of bombs. Maximum range 3300 miles. Initial climb rate 1430 feet per minute. An altitude of 5000 feet could be attained in 7 minutes. Dimensions: wingspan 103 feet 9 3/8 inches, length 73 feet 10 inches, height 19 feet 2 inches, wing area 1420 square feet. Weights: 32,350 pounds empty, 40,260 pounds gross, 53,000 pounds maximum. Fuel: Normal fuel load was 2490 US gallons, but extra fuel tanks could be installed which raised total fuel capacity to 3612 US gallons. Armament: Specified defensive armament was as follows: one 0.30-inch machine gun which could be mounted on any one of six ball-and-socket mounts in the extreme nose. One Sperry No. 645473E power turret in the dorsal position with two 0.50 Browning M2 machine guns with 500 rounds per gun. One Sperry No. 654849-J power turret in ventral position with two 0.50-inch Browning machine guns with 500 rounds per gun. One 0.50-inch Browning M2 machine gun is each of the two waist windows, 400 rounds per gun. Two 0.50-inch M2 Browning machine guns in the tail position, with 500 rounds per gun. Maximum bomb load was 26 100-pound bombs, or 16 300-pound bombs, or 12 500-pound bombs, or 8 1000-pound bombs, or 4 2000-pound bombs.
B-17 Flying Fortress serial number 41-9023 nicknamed Yankee Doodle being serviced.



An unidentified B-17E gets a good scrubbing from the civilian contract employees at Gura Air Depot, late 1942.

46th Troop Carrier Squadron B-17E with a full load of a disassembled 105mm howitzer along with tractor, 8-man fully equipped crew and 25 rounds of ammunition flown from Australia to Port Moresby in November 1942.

41-2407 was the 15th E-model built and spent its life testing one thing after another

B-17E 41-2405 getting bombed up



B-17E 41-2399

B-17E Starts Out On Patrol Of The Approaches To The Panama Canal.

B-17E 41-9055

B-17E 41-2656 sports the new and improved ball turret

B-17E 41-2567

B-17E Chief Seattle in flight, 1942.

B-17E at McDill AFB, near Tampa FL March 1942


B17E 412667 (Texas Tornado), with some RNZAF personnel looking on. Believed to be at RNZAF Station Whenuapa

B-17E 41-9112 of the 92nd BG rests between haystacks in the fall of 1942.
Became Reeds Dreamboat LINK --- http://axis-and-allies-paintworks.com/e107_plugins/forum/forum_viewtopic.php?id=13581

B-17E Flying Fortress at Hickam Field. 200 missions

B-17E Flying Fortress (serial number 41-2393) during a test flight with a remote controlled turret.

B-17E Flying Fortresess (serial number 41-9131) and (serial number 41-9141) fitted with ball turrets during a test flight.

B-17E unknown

B-17E 's in flight

B-17E Flying Fortresses of the 92nd Bomb Group fly in formation during a training exercise.

B-17E Flying Fortress (unknown) in flight.

B-17E Sally Aircraft Serial Number 41-2633, Was The Only Flying Fortress In New Guinea With Its Natural Aluminum Finish.

B-17E New Caledonia 20 Nov 43

B-17E Madame X

B-17E Yankee Doodle JR

B-17E Typhoon Mcgoon II

B-17E Spook

B-17E on the ramp Seattle

B-17E 5Th airforce in Australia





B17E, 412434 at RNZAF Station Ohakea.

B-17E Yankee Doodle

B-17E-13th Air Depot New Caledonia

Boeing B-17E Flying Fortress 41-9055 cn 2527 'Nippon Miss',

Boeing B-17E 41-2443

Boeing B-17E 41-9061 in flight.

Boeing B-17E Flying Fortress At Burtonwood Airdrome England. 16 March 1943.

Boeing B-17E Flying Fortress heavy bombers under construction at one of the Boeing plants, at Seattle, Washington, in 1942.

Boeing B-17E Flying Fortress bombers (numbers 41-2557 and 41-9182) in flight. 1943.

Boeing B-17E Fortress 16 July 42

Boeing B-17E Fortress 41-2534



Boeing B-17E Fortress 41-4191

Boeing B-17E Fortress 41-2601 'Ferry Command', dated June 1942


Boeing B-17E Fortress 41-2599

Boeing B-17E Fortress 41-2540 training flight, Tampa FL c March 1942

Boeing B-17E, serial number 41-9100 of the 379th Bomb Group, 525th Bomb Squadron

Boeing B-17E hack Yankee Doodle At The 91St Bomb Group At A Base In Bassingbourne, England On 9 April 1944.

Boeing B-17E Fortress 41-9055 'Nippon Miss'

Boeing B-17E Fortress 41-9045 'Stinky' July 25, 1942 getting an engine change in Iceland, en route to England.

Refueling a new Flying Fortress ready for operations over enemy -occupied Europe

Below in black and white and in colour Boeing B-17E Fortress 41-2105

In mid-1942, 45 B-17Es were turned over to the RAF as Fortress IIA. RAF serials were FK184/213, FL449/460, and FL462/464. The were called Fortress IIA because they were existing types transferred from the USAAF, whereas the Fortress IIs were allocated from new construction.

Probably because of its unhappy experience with the Fortress I, the RAF did not attempt to use their Fortress IIAs in the daylight high-altitude bombing role. Instead, they were turned over to Coastal Command for use in antisubmarine patrol work in the war in the Atlantic. The Fortress IIA entered service with No 220 Squadron on July 24, 1942. It is often reported that No 59 Squadron based at Thorney Island was the first to operate the Fortress IIA, but No 59 Squadron did not start operating the type until January 23, 1943. The third Coastal Command squadron to operate the Fortress IIA was No 206, which flew its first operational mission on September 19, 1942. Fortress IIAs also served with 251, 519 and 521 Squadrons

One Coastal Command Fortress IIA (FK185) was fitted with an experimental Bristol B.16 nose turret in place of the normal transparent fairing. This turret housed a 40-mm Vickers "S" gun which was remotely-controlled from a position just underneath the turret. The gun had a traverse of 30 degrees in azimuth and 40 degrees in elevation. It was intended for use against surfaced submarines. The modified IIA FK185 underwent firing trials but did not go into service. It was converted back to standard configuration and served with 251 Squadron

B-17E 41-2625 Fortress Mk. II FK197 Scottish Aviation Workshops Prestwick, Scotland

B-17E Flying Fortress, USAAF (Serial No. 41-9203), being delivered to the RAF as Fortress Mk. IIA, RAF (Serial No. FK209), during a stop at Dorval Airport, Quebec.

B-17E-BO #41-2513 Fortress Mk. II FK184

Boeing Fortress Mk.IIA, 220 Squadron RAF Coastal Command. 250lb depth charges are being hoisted into the bomb bay at Benbecula, May 1943.

Boeing Fortress Mark IIA, FK212 Vof No. 220 Squadron RAF based at Benbecula in the Outer Hebrides

RAF B-17E Flying Fortress (serial number FL463-C)used for meterological flights.

Boeing Fortress Mk.IIA, 220 Squadron RAF Coastal Command. 250lb depth charges are being hoisted into the bomb bay at Benbecula, May 1943

B-17E tail number FK186 'S' Coastal Command from the 220 Squadron of the Royal Air Force of Great Britain (No. 220 Squadron) RAF, based at Benbecula Air Base

The RCAF acquired six used B-17E and F aircraft from the United States in 1943. Stripped of all armament and armour, the aircraft were employed by the RCAF’s No. 168 Squadron on a trans-Atlantic mail service vital to the morale of overseas forces. The aircraft were progressively modified and improved for service in this transport role, and some aircraft were subsequently stripped of paint and appeared in a polished, bare metal finish. No. 168 Squadron delivered more than two million pounds of mail between December 1943 and March 1946.

Boeing B-17E Flying Fortress Mk. II, RCAF (Serial No. 9206) cockpit view, 9 Oct 1944.

Boeing Fortress mailplane RCAF 9203

Boeing Fortress IIA aircraft 9205 of No.168(HT) Squadron