Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress Units of the Mediterranean Theater of Operations Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress Units of the Mediterranean Theater of Operations The Mediterranean Theater of Operations (MTO) was the second-largest user of the B-17 Flying Fortress during World War II. There were a total of six combat groups (twenty-four squadrons) equipped with the bomber assigned to the Theater. Initially equipped with the B-17F Fortress, two bombardment groups (97th and 301st) were flown from airfields in England to Algiers and Oran in Algeria in November 1942 after the Operation Torch landings. They were assigned to the 5th Bombardment Wing, XII Bomber Command, Twelfth Air Force. The initial two combat groups were
Military history of the United Kingdom during World War II fastest fighter became one of the central themes of World War II. The RAF underwent rapid expansion following the outbreak of war against Germany in 1939. This included the training in Canada of half of British and Commonwealth aircrews, some 167,000 men in all. The RAF also integrated Polish and other airmen who had escaped from Hitler's Europe. The combined bomber offensive was born out of the need to strike back at Germany during the years when the United Kingdom had no forces on the continent of Europe. Initially the bomber forces available for attacks were small, and the rules