Boeing XB-38 Flying Fortress The XB-38 was destroyed and the project was canceled, in part because the V-1710 engines were needed for other projects such as the Lockheed P-38 Lightning, Bell P-39 Airacobra, Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, North American P-51A Mustang, and Bell P-63 Kingcobra fighters. Boeing XB-38 Flying Fortress The XB-38 Flying Fortress was a single example conversion of a production B-17E Flying Fortress, testing whether the Allison V-1710 V type engine could be substituted for the standard Wright R-1820 radial engine during early World War II. The XB-38 was the result of a modification project undertaken by Boeing and Vega (a subsidiary of
II Bomber Command II Bomber Command The II Bomber Command is an inactive United States Army Air Forces unit. It was last assigned to Second Air Force, based at Fort George Wright, Washington. It was inactivated on 6 October 1943. During World War II, the unit trained large numbers of B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator bombardment groups. It controlled operational training units (OTU) and replacement training units (RTU) primarily in the west and southwest of the United States until late 1943 when its operations were taken over by Headquarters, Second Air Force and the command was disbanded. It also performed antisubmarine patrols