Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress The Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress is a 1944 documentary film which provides an account of the final mission of the crew of the "Memphis Belle", a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress. In May 1943 it became the first U.S. Army Air Forces heavy bomber to complete 25 missions over Europe and return to the United States. The dramatic 16 mm color film of actual battles was made by three cinematographers, including First Lieutenant Harold J. Tannenbaum. Tannenbaum, a veteran of World War I, was killed in action during the
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