Boeing YB-40 Flying Fortress Boeing YB-40 Flying Fortress The Boeing YB-40 Flying Fortress was a modification for operational testing purposes of the B-17 Flying Fortress bomber aircraft, converted to act as a heavily armed gunship for other bombers during World War II. At the time of its development, long-range fighter aircraft such as the North American P-51 Mustang were just entering quantity production, and thus were not yet available to accompany bombers all the way from England to Germany and back. Work on the prototype, Project V-139, began in September 1942 by converting the second production B-17F-1-BO (serial number 41-24341) built. Conversion work was
76th Flying Training Wing (World War II) 76th Flying Training Wing (World War II) The 76th Flying Training Wing was a wing of the United States Army Air Forces. It was assigned to the Army Air Forces Flying Training Command, and was stationed from 1943-46 at Smyrna Army Airfield, Tennessee. There is no lineage between the United States Air Force 76th Maintenance Wing, established on 5 February 1942 as the 76th Observation Group at MacDill Field, Florida and this organization. The wing was a heavy bomber training wing of Eastern Flying Training Command. Its schools provided four-engine heavy bomber transition training for experienced pilots who were moving