How many Gunners are in a B-17?

There were 5 gunners in the back of the plane, all enlisted men who were non-commissioned officers (NCO’s) during their mission. During takeoff, they all sat in the radio room behind the bomb bay—the strongest part of the aircraft where the wings intersect with the fuselage.

How many crew does a B-17 have?

10
Armed with no less than 13 0.50-calibre machine guns, including two in a new “chin” turret for defense against head-on attack, the B-17G fairly bristled with machine guns. It was operated by a crew of 10, including the pilot, copilot, navigator-radioman, bombardier, and gunners.

Does b52 have tail gunner?

It did not involve a B-17 or a B-24 facing off against a Luftwaffe attack, or a B-29 defending itself in the Korean War—Turner was a tail gunner on an aircraft still flying but not usually associated with machine gun defense: the B-52. But B-52s featured defensive armament in the tail: A through G models had quad .

How many tail gunners died in WW2?

According to Yorkshire Air Museum, 20,000 rear gunners lost their lives during WWII.

What are helicopter gunners called?

door gunner
A door gunner is a crewman tasked with firing and maintaining manually directed armament aboard a military helicopter. The actual role will vary depending on the task given on a particular mission. For certain aircraft a door gunner would use a fully automatic Gatling gun placement.

What do aerial gunners do?

The Aerial Gunner is an example of a Specialty Duty Assignment. Aerial Gunners has many duties assigned to them. They are responsible for making sure all guns and defense related systems are operating properly by inspection, testing, repaired, and maintained before and after flight.

How many machine guns does a B-17G have?

Bombardier / Flexible Gunner, Chin Turret Gunner (B-17G) Flexible Gunners had one .50 Caliber Machine Gun. Chin, Top, Ball and Tail Turrets had two .50 Caliber Machine Guns.

What were the different variants of the B-17 bomber?

Design and variants. Two experimental versions of the B-17 were flown under different designations, the XB-38 Flying Fortress and the YB-40 Flying Fortress. The XB-38 was an engine test bed for Allison V-1710 liquid-cooled engines, should the Wright engines normally used on the B-17 become unavailable.

Why did the B-17 get a reputation for toughness?

It developed a reputation for toughness based upon stories and photos of badly damaged B-17s safely returning to base. The B-17 dropped more bombs than any other U.S. aircraft in World War II. Of approximately 1.5 million tons of bombs dropped on Nazi Germany and its occupied territories by U.S. aircraft, over 640,000 tons were dropped from B-17s.

What year did the B-17 Flying Fortress come out?

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress. From its introduction in 1938, the B-17 Flying Fortress evolved through numerous design advances, becoming the third-most produced bomber of all time, behind the four-engined B-24 and the multirole, twin-engined Ju 88.