Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2007/10/17
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]While working with negatives from 1995, I discovered some photos of visiting WWII bombers that were in town in the Fall of 1995. They were a B-17, probably a G or H model, and a B-24. These airplanes had several points of interest for me. As shown in take-off, the thick wing airfoil of the B-17 allows a fairly steep climb angle, especially when compared to the B-24 which made use of a NACA laminar-flow airfoil designed to achieve higher speeds. Even with partial flaps on take-off, the B-24 climbs at a more conservative angle. The turrets on the B-24 are impressive. The nose turret lets the gunner feel that he is a part of the crew, whereas the retractable belly turret leaves the gunner on his own for much of the mission. I worked for many years with an engineer who, as a very young airman, flew missions over Europe in the B-24 belly turret. Taken twelve years ago, the quality of the in-flight images leave a lot to be desired, especially when compared to the images that Douglas recently posted from England. However, these old birds are disappearing, so I post them in remembrance of what they represented during WWII. http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/OldNick/Cigar+Box/B-17+Seen+in+1995.jpg.html http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/OldNick/Cigar+Box/B-24+Seen+in+1995.jpg.html http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/OldNick/Cigar+Box/B-24+Nose+Turret+1995.jpg.html http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/OldNick/Cigar+Box/B-24+Belly+Turret+1995.jpg.html Comments and critiques are welcomed and appreciated. Jim Nichols Tullahoma, TN USA