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
RAF Bomber Command aircrew of World War II and listed 2,198 airmen. A number of evading aircrew were captured due to the duplicity of French collaborators who betrayed them to the Gestapo. Air Commodore Ronald Ivelaw-Chapman a staff officer at No. 1 Group RAF was the highest-ranking officer of RAF Bomber Command to be taken prisoner in World War II while flying operationally, he was flying as second pilot aboard an Avro Lancaster of No. 576 Squadron RAF on the night 6–7 May 1944. The German Luftwaffe had responsibility for Allied aircrew taken prisoner in North West Europe and it is on record in numerous biographies that the