All American (aircraft) plane together or for an in-flight rescue of crew members from the isolated tail section. The Harold Adamson and Jimmy McHugh 1943 song “Comin' in on a Wing and a Prayer” was not written about "All American" as sometimes reported, but was about another 97th Bomb Group B-17, "Thunderbird." Navigator Harry C. Nuessle listed the "All American's" crew on its February 1, 1943 flight: All American (aircraft) The All American (full name All American III) was a World War II Boeing B-17F Flying Fortress bomber aircraft that was able to return safely to its base after having its rear fuselage
Military history of the United States during World War II American bomber crew losses were high. One such example was the Schweinfurt-Regensburg mission, which resulted in staggering losses of men and equipment. The introduction of the revered P-51 Mustang, which had enough fuel to make a round trip to Germany's heartland, helped to reduce losses later in the war. In mid-1942, the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) arrived in the UK and carried out a few raids across the English Channel. The USAAF Eighth Air Force's B-17 bombers were called the "Flying Fortresses" because of their heavy defensive armament of ten to twelve machine guns, and armor plating in