High-Flying Fortress POWERFUL BOMBER

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 76, 25 October 1941, Page 2

High-Flying Fortress POWERFUL BOMBER

Oik* of the most publicised Anmr.' in aircraft is that usually called the “Flylug Fortress.” These Boeing f«>wreiigine bombers have ts-en reaching Great Britain from the Enited States in a steady stream for some month-, practically all of them la-ing Mown across the Atlantic. At 1 ,- ast "i l ** squadron of Fortresses was on netive service with the R A F. at the end «•* July; more and more squadrons nr* being formed as the big nutehines become available. According to the ‘‘Aeroplane,” the Fortress lias many virtue-, but the greatest of them all is an ability to fly unusually high. This rare merit has already won it. firnie in daylight operations against enemy strongholds notoriously dangerous to assail either by day or'by night. Huge Machine The Fortress I—the Boeing B 17 O in the Enited States—lias a wing *p ffn of I<»3 feet 9 inches, wbi<h is four feet more than that of the British .Stirling Windier and IS feet more than the W ellington. It is also seven feet long* r than the Wellington. The Stirling ha« a wing span of I*9 feet, a length of 'm feet 3 inches, and a height of feet 9 inches. The motors of the Fortress are four 1200 horsepower Wright Cyclones, tilted with full-feathering tliroe-b’.aded airscrews. At 20.000 feet it can leach a speed of 320 miles an hour. The successful application of the super-charger—the secret of the 1 or*.-res-’s great climbing powers—apinai* to lie. first in the disc.,very of.a metal callable of withstanding the tremendously high teiuiieraturea of the exhuu-t flames, and. secondly, by the use of a little ingenuity. The degree of supercharge Is controlled by a throttle in ihe exhaust system beyond the turbo ■jneehanism. An electric service provides power for the operation of everything hut the wheel brakes and supercharger, lb* . equipment includes two collapsible dinghies and Goodrich de-icers on the leading edges of the main plane, tailplane and tin. Certain alterations are made to the structure and armament after the Fortress arrives in Britain and before it goes into service with the It.A.F. For instance, the ..<0 Browning guns are ‘‘beefed up to gi\e a rate of fire of IKS) rounds a minute. Fortress Guns i Gun turrets in ll.e form of blister* which adorned the sides of the first ••l iving Fortr«ses” have been replaced by * gun positions la-hind detachable glass frames. These frames are secured 1 by two simple catches and their removal and replacement take but a seci ond or two. At great heights, the energies of the crew have to be conserved and the effort of taking out the frame* might use up far too much of the gunner’s reserves. Both side guns are opposite one another, but the fuselage lias width enough to allow the respective gunners to work their guns without I colliding in the process. ' Two more guns, mounted as a pair in a bulge in the bottom <’f the fuselage. guard the Fortress from attack , f rom the rear lielow. There ore three l other guns forward. Six of the gun* | are .50 Brownings; the other is a .30 I Browning—referred to by the crew as j -the pea-shooter.” not in derision, but j merely to distinguish it from its bigger brothers. Simplieation is the keynote on th* i pilot's instrument board. The iustruj meats are grouped according to their respective functions, and each group can he removed in a body by loosening four thumb screws. Robustness bei comes even more pronounced In the onI uine controls Tin* throttle levers, th* boost controls and the mixture con- ! mds all give the pilot something sul>I -tuntial to grasp. An automatic pilot ! : «i included among the 130-odd eon-;-ola, instruments and gauges in th* Ample Room In allocating the accommodation, th* designer showed thought for the crew. Thte i>ort and starboard gunner* ueed only stand at their i>osts when danger threatens. At other limes they may sit at their ease on comfortable chair*. The wireless operator, across the aisl*. also has a chair and u table. The two pilots have all the elbow-room they need to control tlieir multifarious gadgets. The navigator-euin-buiub-aimer has a spacious and well-equipped apartment in the nose in which to work out courses and draw a bead on the target. Incidentally, with the American bomb sight the navigator-cuni-boinD-aimer steers the Fortress by a system of remote control during the run up to the target. The bomb sight is as efficient as it was rated. The unluck Ust member of ihe crew is the sentinel, whose Job it is to stand with his head in the astro hatch throughout the flight and give a running commentary on happening* around him. From his lofty perch he can gaze out o'er wide skies, and those parts hidden from him can be watched by other members of the crew. In the raid on Brest ou July 24, these spotter* reported Messersebmitts “several thousand feet below and climbing hard/* But the Messerschraitts failed to get within shooting range of the Fortresses and turned to less elevated prey. The crew of the Fortress consists of from six to nine men, and their need of oxygen for long periods is catered for by an elaborate installation. Th* I main supply is under the control of th* captain or the second pilot, ami each point of supply has Us own pressure Before the crews go to full operational heights they are accustomed <o the conditions they will meet by spell* in u “pressure chamber*’ from which most of the air is slowly exhausted, Flying Qualities Lavish praise is showered ou the Fortresses by tlieir crews. The pilot* like their flying qualities and the gunners their armament. All like raiding by day rather tliau by night. “At nighs you see nothing but searchlights and llaJc; by day you can see half of Germany from the Fortress,” remarked one of the gunners. This service ceiling of the Fort res* is given us 36,000 feet. How much that lias been improved u|*on has not been disclosed, but research and experiment have gone on without remisFirst evidence of the bomber's superiority was given at Brest on July 24. Subsequently, further proof was offerj ed in attacks ou targets at Cologne and De Kooy on August 12. Above Cologne, i Luftwaffe fighters were seyn weaving intricate patterns with vapour trails as | they flew back and forth searching ia cold, humid regions for the elusive ; Fortresses several thousand feet high- . er, making a steady, unmolested jour* 1 ney to their objectives. If Ihe Germans are unable to accept I the Fortress’s challenge quickly, the Royal Air Force will soon In* able to : raid as deeply into Germany by day a* i it can now raid by night, only cbnids I will then thwart the high-flying b-unh- ! er—and it would lw? a big depression i that gave all the targets In Germany its misrjr protection.