1:32 B-17E Flying Fotress

Early Fortresses in the first months of the Pacific war

Version E was the first production form of the four-engine Boeing with a tall tail surface and fully fledged defensive armament, including twin dorsal and ventral turrets. It was precisely these machines that at the start of 1942 bore the burden of the withdrawal fighting in the Southwest Pacific, where American crews operated from improvised strips, often without spare parts and with minimal support. Losses were high and individual aircraft became bywords, because they survived raids that their sister machines did not come through.

The two subjects on the sheet

The first machine is the Fortress with the serial number 41-2489 and the name Suzy Q, which the description assigns to the 19th Bomb Group and the Java theater. It was one of the best-known bombers of the early Pacific campaign. The second subject is the aircraft with the number 41-2472 named Yankee Diddler, which in 1943 served with the 65th Squadron of the 43rd Bomb Group of the Fifth Air Force and operated from a New Guinea airfield designated by its distance from the port. The sheet contains the names on the nose, the serial numbers and the period national insignia. Both subjects represent the type still in its original guise with the early insignia, that is, before the later bars at the sides of the star were introduced, which is an important clue for dating the build.

Transferring the artwork

The elements are separated individually and applied with water onto a gloss surface. With the large-area national insignia on the wing, decal softener helps the film flow around the riveting. The set contains decals only.