This gallery is a photo study of a B-17 flying Fortress I had the chance to walk through during a recent visit by the aircraft to Austin Texas.

The B17 always seemed to be a large bomber when viewed in pictures and movies, but walking inside of the aircraft it was incredibly small and cramped. Its Bomb bay seemed small and limited, despite being capable of carrying between 4500 and 8500 lbs depending on the length of the mission.

Its first flight was on July 28th 1935 and it was introduced into military service April of 1938. The aircraft was finally retired from any active service in 1968 from the Brazilian Air Force.

The crew consisted of 10 personnel a Pilot, co-pilot, bombardier/nose gunner, a top turret gunner, a radio operator, 2 waist gunner, a ball turret gunner and a tail gunner all crammed inside a 74ft aircraft

Its Maximum speed: 287 mph with a cruise speed of 182 mph. Remarkably for an unpressurised cabin it had a service ceiling of 35,600 feet.

This restored version of the Nine O Nine never saw combat, though her namesake did fly over 140 missions during WWII remarkably without a single casuality. For more information on the Nine O Nine consult

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nine-O-Nine
or the Colins Foundation at http://www.collingsfoundation.org/tour_b-17g_hist.htm