My Grandfather flew a full tour on a B17G flying fortress. He was a belly bomber and a tail gunner. Pictures I have of him in his flight jacket and in front of his plane with his crew will always be cherished. It was a miracle that he flew that many missions and made it back home safely. It was definitely a different breed of men back then. Bravery doesn't even begin to describe it.
Dramatic video of real combat action. Really good stuff here, I really feel sorry and it's hard to watch the 17's that spin out of control with no parachutes. RIP to all the brave pilots who fought and died.
@CALZOLA What a lovely thing to say, Calzola. France had many heros. My dad flew in B-17s in the Pacific - he was at Clark Field on Dec 8 during the Japanese bombing - and I find it hard to watch the captured axis films shooting at or down these planes. My dad was very, very lucky. It really was an exceptional generation of men.
I'm assuming the dialogue between the crews in this video is real, and boy am I impressed. How cool and calm...or shall I say professional they all are. Thankyou, and bravo to some very brave men.
Chokes me up watching this. My grandfather was Captain Walter L Glass Jr He was with the 483rd Bomb Group 815th squadron. We have a picture of his plane that they took after a bombing run over Vienna. Flak tore it up so bad that there were more holes in the fuselage than there was solid sheet metal. He somehow flew it home on one engine. Ball turret gunner was killed in flight and the door wouldn't open and they landed without their gear down.... Truly was the greatest generation.
True heroes of that ERA... It takes a lot of courage and skills to do that... First fell in love with the B-17 when I watch Memphis Belle when I was a kid and some of the parts of this clip was used in the movie... Respect to the pilots and crew of the Flying Fortress!
@altooname I have that film on videocasette but, unfortunately it is currently in storage. But I believe you're correct. Relative of mine was a B-17 flight engineer/top turret gunner. He said that one of the saddest things in his entire life was watching a B-17 going down with no parachutes visible. God bless these men.
Pfff... pretty impressive video! Once been in a B17 on the ground. I could feel the tension when I was inside the fuselage... those fighters trying to kill you off... imagine that.
@jonnybottle In the early days of the 8thAF in the UK they did a few raids with the RAF to get used to the European weather and climatic conditions as well as to gain other invaluable experiences such as RAF procedure as well as being on the wrong side of flak, for example. Such missions helped to cement the belief that the US should stick to daylight "precision" raids.
God pity the poor waist gunners in the "fort." They were standing by open windows at 25,000 feet with -50 temps and a 200 knot windstream blowing right in their faces. It was also hard to hit the fast-moving fighters with the primitive gunsights the gunners had. It's a tribute to their skill and courage that German ace Adolf Galland compared attacking a B-17 formation to making love to a porcupine that had been set on fire.
@klevissh A b17 could take a lot of punishment from enemy fighters and flak,returning from missions full of holes and sometimes on one or two engines,it was because of this it was nicknamed the flying fortress and because it was so heavily armed,however germans pilots also came to realise this so would often target the cockpit in hopes of killing the pilots,which was probably why the b17 in this video just fell out of the sky,very effective.
magnificient ww2 air combat. these guys the airmen from both side must be brave, courages and full of guts to carry out of their duties. a salutation and respect must be given to them, the heroes and the fallens. i can't imagine some of us even scare to fly, (flight of course) and if there is an option, they will prefer to use other mode of transportation, but totally not a flight. i called it a flight phobia.
@altooname Keep in mind: We don't fight conventional enemies in conventional wars anymore. We can't compare soldiers of today with soldiers of WWII. It was a completely different time and a completely different style of war. Modern soldiers and veterans should still be respected, though.
My Barber was a waist gunner on a B-17 and is still cutting hair. He sent his card playing winnings home and had plenty of tough missions over Germany.
@Karel5656 one problem, they flew at 25,000 feet, the corsair was not even trialed by the USAAC, rejected by the navy and given to the usmc. Later marks were accepted by the USN, but by then the P-51 was being trialed with the merlin and the F-4U was slated for the Pacific. Vought also had production problems with the Corsair and would not have been able to produce aircraft in numbers like what North American could
@altooname James Stewart did even more raids as a pilot. A full tour of 30, I think. There is a typically modest clip of Stewart talking about it on here. BTW Gable was based at Grafton Underwood in England.
It is astonishing just how many B-17's were shot down over Germany and how many lives were lost with them. Flying in one in combat takes more balls than I have for sure.
I highly doubt the conversation was real, sounds like a dub. Pilots back then cussed like sailors and most of them didn't talk like that, more like a lot of screaming orders and praying especially in a B-17.
So sad to see B-17's plunging down of the sky, each B-17 had a number of crew and gunners, A big respect to those who died to defend and fight for their country. B-17's a quite Vulnerable (due to slow and heavy) and weak against Luftwaffe fighters, but B-17 is deadly and powerful when it comes to carrying such amounts of Bunker Piercing Bombs, Germans feared the B-17's when it comes to night bombing, that's why they want these bombers shot down.
Clark Gable made this for the AAF some crudeness but great stuff he wuz quite a guy! I think every schoolboy in the US should be MADE to watch this stuff
The F4U Corsair going 210 MPH at 15,000 feet with fuel tanks can go 1004 miles. Looking at maps of Europe, London is about 500 miles from Scweinfurt. According to those figures, and accounting for dropping fuel tanks for combat, B-17s could have been escorted for 400 miles into Germany, then go on without escorts for 200 miles, and be greeted by F4Us launched 2 hours after the bombers took off. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but F4Us would been excellant fighter escorts for B-17s.
@jonnybottle Surprisingly the B-17's shot down more enemy fighters than all the U.S.A.A.F. fighter aircraft in the E.T.O. and M.T.O. combined.This was far more common when they were mostly unescorted in 1943 rather than in 1944 or 1945. The B-17G could carry a much higher payload than the Mosquito.Common bomb payloads were from 4,500 to 8,000 pounds with an overload capacity of 17,600 pounds.The B-17 had a 10 man crew.My father Piloted B-17's in 1944 but his crew rarely contended with fighters.
couldn't a b17 stay in formation on three engines? i see a lot of footage of them dropping out with an engine smoking. is that because of the heavy bomb load?
@damaged01 That's why I believe they all got a "tainted" breakfast before going out, so that they wouldn't fall apart under the pressure of formation through flak & fighter attacks. What was in the scrambled eggs?
@altooname There was one time that Clark Gable felt bad for wearing a uniform and making training movies while the younger men flew missions. One day he snuck aboard one of the bombers and flew a bombing mission. When he got back he almost got a court martial for the stunt. He told them that he didn't want to be special because he was an actor, he just want to be one of the boy's and pull his own weight.
@altooname I guess it's worth noting that Sean Penn spent his own time and money do go down to New Orleans, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and search for his friend and other survivors. That was truly dangerous.
@brent07 I have never heard of any B-17 night bombing. that was the domain of the RAF (Lancaster, Halifax, Mosquito, Wellingotn etc. BTW the B-17 had 11 crew and only carried the same bomb load as the M2-man 408 mph Mosquito. But the armed heavy bomber was a matter of philosophy both the US and UK got wrong.
you often see in these videos,more b17s shot down than german fighters,how hard was it to shoot down a german fighter,and which turret would claim the most kills?
b-17 flying fortess was a bomber use to bomb places during ww2 it usally had poor speed but power guns usally german come and attack them b-17 was no match for some german 30mm cannons
Yeah, they were tellin' jokes because he was so famous and it got to him. Just normal American GI behavior. But when they saw him, they'd ask for his autograph. He always signed- if you were in uniform.Generals to buck privates.
Maybe you just had to be there. My father was. Were you? And that ain't no demo. Forget about Reality TV and discover what your ancestors before you and I went through. You need to find an old soul that existed before you were even born. If you don't know what that means, then you are already lost.
couldn't a b17 stay in formation on three engines? i see a lot of footage of them dropping out with an engine smoking. is that because of the heavy bomb load?
My Grandfather flew a full tour on a B17G flying fortress. He was a belly bomber and a tail gunner. Pictures I have of him in his flight jacket and in front of his plane with his crew will always be cherished. It was a miracle that he flew that many missions and made it back home safely. It was definitely a different breed of men back then. Bravery doesn't even begin to describe it.
From France: thanks to these heroes who set my country free 66 years ago. Courage and sacrifice.
Dramatic video of real combat action. Really good stuff here, I really feel sorry and it's hard to watch the 17's that spin out of control with no parachutes. RIP to all the brave pilots who fought and died.
These are REAL MEN!!! GOD BLESS
These guys truly were the greatest generation. They make me proud to be an American. My hats off to all the allied troops.
To all the boys who fought and died over Germany i bend my head and salute you.
Swede
Excellent video.
Respect to all those men!!!
Big respect too all our WW2 vets, those guys were the greatest generation. I couldn't imagine being in a bomber back then.
@CALZOLA
What a lovely thing to say, Calzola. France had many heros. My dad flew in B-17s in the Pacific - he was at Clark Field on Dec 8 during the Japanese bombing - and I find it hard to watch the captured axis films shooting at or down these planes. My dad was very, very lucky. It really was an exceptional generation of men.
:( So many young lives lost in those B17s.
RIP, lest we forget
I'm assuming the dialogue between the crews in this video is real, and boy am I impressed. How cool and calm...or shall I say professional they all are. Thankyou, and bravo to some very brave men.
so much respect. These boys get so much respect from me. one engine out and the whole plane goes down.
Great video...the flak & falling B-17s,etc. had me smiling & crying due to my late grandad flying one.
Chokes me up watching this. My grandfather was Captain Walter L Glass Jr He was with the 483rd Bomb Group 815th squadron. We have a picture of his plane that they took after a bombing run over Vienna. Flak tore it up so bad that there were more holes in the fuselage than there was solid sheet metal. He somehow flew it home on one engine. Ball turret gunner was killed in flight and the door wouldn't open and they landed without their gear down.... Truly was the greatest generation.
True heroes of that ERA... It takes a lot of courage and skills to do that...
First fell in love with the B-17 when I watch Memphis Belle when I was a kid and some of the parts of this clip was used in the movie...
Respect to the pilots and crew of the Flying Fortress!
absolutely incredible - talk about professional. 'Someone hit him on the button. He's not walking away from that.'
Cap doffed.
Give him my grattitude and thanks. The free world ows him one. I respect his courage.
Early in the war the allied fighters didn't have the range to make the trip
@altooname I have that film on videocasette but, unfortunately it is currently in storage. But I believe you're correct. Relative of mine was a B-17 flight engineer/top turret gunner. He said that one of the saddest things in his entire life was watching a B-17 going down with no parachutes visible. God bless these men.
wow great footage, thanks
Those planes in the sky must have been a sight to see
Pfff... pretty impressive video! Once been in a B17 on the ground. I could feel the tension when I was inside the fuselage... those fighters trying to kill you off... imagine that.
@jonnybottle In the early days of the 8thAF in the UK they did a few raids with the RAF to get used to the European weather and climatic conditions as well as to gain other invaluable experiences such as RAF procedure as well as being on the wrong side of flak, for example. Such missions helped to cement the belief that the US should stick to daylight "precision" raids.
complete hell. Can you just imagine, for a second, being one of those guys? Had to be an absolute hell.
God pity the poor waist gunners in the "fort." They were standing by open windows at 25,000 feet with -50 temps and a 200 knot windstream blowing right in their faces. It was also hard to hit the fast-moving fighters with the primitive gunsights the gunners had. It's a tribute to their skill and courage that German ace Adolf Galland compared attacking a B-17 formation to making love to a porcupine that had been set on fire.
YOU GOT THAT RIGHT!
I remember reading that too. TWENTY hits from a 20mm?? That's a bunch of reeeally big holes lol. These things really could take a beating.
Steel balls dudes. Respect
There is only one thing that I can say about this video: WOW!
@klevissh A b17 could take a lot of punishment from enemy fighters and flak,returning from missions full of holes and sometimes on one or two engines,it was because of this it was nicknamed the flying fortress and because it was so heavily armed,however germans pilots also came to realise this so would often target the cockpit in hopes of killing the pilots,which was probably why the b17 in this video just fell out of the sky,very effective.
very good video !
magnificient ww2 air combat. these guys the airmen from both side must be brave, courages and full of guts to carry out of their duties. a salutation and respect must be given to them, the heroes and the fallens. i can't imagine some of us even scare to fly, (flight of course) and if there is an option, they will prefer to use other mode of transportation, but totally not a flight. i called it a flight phobia.
Thanks!
@altooname Keep in mind: We don't fight conventional enemies in conventional wars anymore. We can't compare soldiers of today with soldiers of WWII. It was a completely different time and a completely different style of war.
Modern soldiers and veterans should still be respected, though.
Tell him he has my complete respect and grattitude.
My Barber was a waist gunner on a B-17 and is still cutting hair. He sent his card playing winnings home and had plenty of tough missions over Germany.
@Karel5656 one problem, they flew at 25,000 feet, the corsair was not even trialed by the USAAC, rejected by the navy and given to the usmc. Later marks were accepted by the USN, but by then the P-51 was being trialed with the merlin and the F-4U was slated for the Pacific. Vought also had production problems with the Corsair and would not have been able to produce aircraft in numbers like what North American could
Awesome video..very brave fighters
@altooname James Stewart did even more raids as a pilot. A full tour of 30, I think. There is a typically modest clip of Stewart talking about it on here. BTW Gable was based at Grafton Underwood in England.
It is astonishing just how many B-17's were shot down over Germany and how many lives were lost with them. Flying in one in combat takes more balls than I have for sure.
Yeah sometimes it is easy to forget in these films that these aren't actors...very sad indeed.
I have no clue...I've got a little more footage I may post later sometime. It hasn't gotten alot of views so I haven't posted more
I highly doubt the conversation was real, sounds like a dub. Pilots back then cussed like sailors and most of them didn't talk like that, more like a lot of screaming orders and praying especially in a B-17.
So sad to see B-17's plunging down of the sky, each B-17 had a number of crew and gunners, A big respect to those who died to defend and fight for their country. B-17's a quite Vulnerable (due to slow and heavy) and weak against Luftwaffe fighters, but B-17 is deadly and powerful when it comes to carrying such amounts of Bunker Piercing Bombs, Germans feared the B-17's when it comes to night bombing, that's why they want these bombers shot down.
actually he says, "Somebody got one of them on the button"...because the fighter explodes
Clark Gable made this for the AAF some crudeness but great stuff he wuz quite a guy! I think every schoolboy in the US should be MADE to watch this stuff
Pat Tillman. He was younger but he turned down a pro NFL contract to join the Rangers. Eventually killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan.
god bless these brave young men.of the american air force
@groundcontrol436385
i thank your father for his service to our country. he had an extremely dangerous job, hes a real hero
That's WAR.
The F4U Corsair going 210 MPH at 15,000 feet with fuel tanks can go 1004 miles. Looking at maps of Europe, London is about 500 miles from Scweinfurt. According to those figures, and accounting for dropping fuel tanks for combat, B-17s could have been escorted for 400 miles into Germany, then go on without escorts for 200 miles, and be greeted by F4Us launched 2 hours after the bombers took off. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but F4Us would been excellant fighter escorts for B-17s.
@DJInsight21 how true
@jonnybottle Surprisingly the B-17's shot down more enemy fighters than all the U.S.A.A.F. fighter aircraft in the E.T.O. and M.T.O. combined.This was far more common when they were mostly unescorted in 1943 rather than in 1944 or 1945.
The B-17G could carry a much higher payload than the Mosquito.Common bomb payloads were from 4,500 to 8,000 pounds with an overload capacity of 17,600 pounds.The B-17 had a 10 man crew.My father Piloted B-17's in 1944 but his crew rarely contended with fighters.
those crews was real men that fought it out..they didnt turn back from a fight...a true example of man power
couldn't a b17 stay in formation on three engines? i see a lot of footage of them dropping out with an engine smoking. is that because of the heavy bomb load?
@altooname Amen to that!
@damaged01 That's why I believe they all got a "tainted" breakfast before going out, so that they wouldn't fall apart under the pressure of formation through flak & fighter attacks. What was in the scrambled eggs?
Pity the sounds of the planes were of piper cubs in fine pitch!
Was it some sort of training film? Doesn't seem like something for the public.
yeesh! I wouldn't have wanted to be one of those guys attacking the bomber, that things got more guns than a porcupine has spines!
Incredible with so many guns bearing on fighters that the kill rate was low.?
Goodness
Now thats courage
@altooname There was one time that Clark Gable felt bad for wearing a uniform and making training movies while the younger men flew missions. One day he snuck aboard one of the bombers and flew a bombing mission. When he got back he almost got a court martial for the stunt. He told them that he didn't want to be special because he was an actor, he just want to be one of the boy's and pull his own weight.
@altooname
I guess it's worth noting that Sean Penn spent his own time and money do go down to New Orleans, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and search for his friend and other survivors. That was truly dangerous.
@brent07 I have never heard of any B-17 night bombing. that was the domain of the RAF (Lancaster, Halifax, Mosquito, Wellingotn etc. BTW the B-17 had 11 crew and only carried the same bomb load as the M2-man 408 mph Mosquito. But the armed heavy bomber was a matter of philosophy both the US and UK got wrong.
@altooname Jimmie Stewart did.
I would imagine they had two positions in case someone took some flack or a bullet and they could cover the loss more effectivly. It would make sense.
also to kill mostly a b-17 figters would use the 262 jet because it have tremendous firepower which uis no match for a b-17 alone
p-51's could go farther than the bombers, but they weren't around until later.
Right... we were talking about actors
@DJInsight21 94,565 US(B-17) airmen KIA, Lost or captured after bailing out.
was this from a movie or smth?
Most of it is
it is a bad thing that we dont see much plane fighting from the eastern front as the true fighting happened there
DAD...
Today they might sign up to fight for the "other" side who ever that might be
Hey just wondering: is this real?
I'm not trying to degrade the bravery of soldiers if it is, but the odd time it seems like it might not be real.
That's Clark Gable speaking...
you often see in these videos,more b17s shot down than german fighters,how hard was it to shoot down a german fighter,and which turret would claim the most kills?
Huh? About as real as you can possibly get.
most of them didn't get older then 25 during the WWII
b-17 flying fortess was a bomber use to bomb places during ww2 it usally had poor speed but power guns usally german come and attack them b-17 was no match for some german 30mm cannons
most of them didn't get older then 25 years old
Memphis Belle.
that would suck
Yeah, they were tellin' jokes because he was so famous and it got to him. Just normal American GI behavior. But when they saw him, they'd ask for his autograph. He always signed- if you were in uniform.Generals to buck privates.
mostly the poor pilot was hit and the b17 woulg go out of control
Maybe you just had to be there. My father was. Were you?
And that ain't no demo. Forget about Reality TV and discover what your ancestors before you and I went through.
You need to find an old soul that existed before you were even born. If you don't know what that means, then you are already lost.
you cant fly safer
From France :thanks to these heroes who set my country free 66 years ago. Courage and sacrifice.
couldn't a b17 stay in formation on three engines? i see a lot of footage of them dropping out with an engine smoking. is that because of the heavy bomb load?
Goodness