Flying Fortress - the Illustrated Biography of the B-17s and the Men Who Flew Them

The Boeing B - 17 was more than a plane - and its story, and that of its crews - is more than history. It is drama, romance, adventure, tragedy and folklore set against the panorama of the greatest war in history. To the men who flew in the B - 17, and particularly to those who feel they owe their lives to this majestic aircraft, it was more than a metal monster with four engines and a hundred - foot wing. The B - 17 was almost human - the Queen of the Bombers, the Big Bird, a Glory Wagon, affectionately named " Rosie's Riveters ", " Memphis Belle ", " Swoose ", " Suzy - Q ", " Hell's Angels " - names which during the bittersweet years of war became as celebrated as the men who fought in them.
( ... ) Flying Fortress traces the story of the development of the B - 17, how it nearly died in infancy, and how it grew to change the concept of war. The story is told in human terms relating how the Boeing Company gambled on a dream, how inter - service rivalries, political pressures, personality clashes, and the tragic death of test pilot Leslie Tower in the first prototype might have ended the whole project. The enormous contribution of the plane is best summarized by General Carl A. Spaatz who has said :