Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Competing against Douglas and Martin for a contract to build 200 bombers, the Boeing entry (prototype Model 299/XB-17) outperformed both competitors and exceeded the air corps' performance specifications. Although Boeing lost the contract (to the Douglas B-18 Bolo) because the prototype crashed, the air corps ordered 13 more B-17s for further evaluation. From its introduction in 1938, the B-17 Flying Fortress evolved through numerous design advances, becoming the third-most produced bomber of all time,
38th Flying Training Wing (World War II) 38th Flying Training Wing (World War II) The 38th Flying Training Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the Western Flying Training Command, and was disbanded on 16 June 1946 at Williams Field, Arizona. There is no lineage between the United States Air Force 38th Combat Support Wing, established on 10 August 1948 at Itami Airfield, Japan, and this organization. The wing was a World War II Command and Control organization which supported Training Command Flight Schools in the southwestern United States, primarily in New Mexico. The wing controlled fight schools primarily instructing