B-17 QUESTION:...

Oh! OK, that make sense to me!, thank you very much Vermont, the De-Icing boots on world war II planes have always been an enigma for me, i know the systems of some modern jet planes, but in those planes (WW2 ones) the systems are unknown for me.... so once again...

Thank you very much!

My Best Regards
Hector Reymundo

I imagine belly in landings were quite common amongst combat aircraft during WW2..go ahead make a bely in scene if you want....should be good!

Back during WW2 leading edge deicing boots were operated by air pumped into them to expand and to make them flat again,they had vacuum air pressure.This was done by maybe an engine air compressor or one in airframe and a timer.

Newer boots are operated the same but there is mostly jet engine bleed air used to heat the metal behind the leading edge continuously in flight.Some private jets have the ability to leak out a slippery fluid called TKS through small fine holes in the leading edge like on a BAE Hawker 1000.

Well since i have been looking for crash landed B-17´s pics on the internet i found this web site http://home.st.net.au/~dunn/26aug42.htm the plane is a B-17 named "Daylight Limited" #41-2621 of the 19th Bombardment Group, crash landed at Mareeba on 26 August 1942. i downloaded the pics and now i am using them as a reference for my diorama. So, Vermont and Blackwolfscd i understand that this crash landed scene was kind of common? i mean landing gears used to break causind the plane to crash land and flak sometimes smashed against tires? so would be right if i use the same or a simmilar subject right? hey and one more thing, did the B-17 had hydraulic De-ice boots? or were just an electrical heated areas?? in the pic you can see the broken boot but i cant see any kind of liquid and do not seems to be an electrical cirquit or nothing like that, it seems just like a border cover... thank you very mucho!

Gear ripping out like that was fairly common, yes, as where blown tires.

As to the damage on the wing, it definitely ran into something, but it had to have been either a fairly large or a fairly solid & sturdy object. Or both.

Where'd you find these shots, Mandrake? Looks either to be Pacific Theater or Stateside in the summer.


Fade to Black...

I am guessing that those photos are from same ship,same day etc.

It appears that gear ripped off during maybe a bad landing..gear not locked down,blown tire?

Since the tires and part of the main gear were exposed,it is possible that the tire took a flak hit.I think the previous though.notice the tire seperate from the rim? and the very rocky area plane is sitting on belly in?

Hole in leading edge of wing doesn't look like flak,but more like it hit rocks during landing.but who knows.Area of wing appears to be just outboard landing light?

Thank you very much, i´m gonna try to be cheap on this one since is gonna be my first diorama ever, i´m gonna get the book that DAI JONES and WILDWILLIAM suggested me, i have been looking all over the net to find pics of damaged and crash landed B-17´s and i have found some real interesting ones, but however i have some questions that i am sure some one here may answer so please once more give me a hand....
In the pic below there´s what i guess is a main landin gear strut, but is this really possible? i mean why did it break? was this thing common? an also theres a pic of a damaged tire, was that a cause of the flak? was that situation common?? as you see i am trying to create a realistic diorama i have never seen a plane with a broken landing gear and neither a tire as damaged as that one. the way i see it that was the cause of this incident am i right???

Please once more give me a hand and thanks to all who are helping me with resourses such as those...







Thank you all!
My best regards
Hector Reymundo

This page has a few smallish shots of 'F' model interiors, and the entire site has alotta interesting stuff on B-17's (and other heavies) as well.

http://www.381st.org/aircraft-photos.html


Fade to Black...

Suggest you try to find a copy of "In the Cockpit" Edited by Anthony Robinson ISBN No 0-7481-0115-2 and published by Blackcat. Some internal shots and, of course,an anotated view of the cockpit. If you would like a photo copy of the cockpit contact me on daimargs@optusnet.com.au
TTFN Dai

Hector,
not sure how much $$ you are willing to invest in your 'research library', but htere is an OOP hardcover w/ illustrations by Rikyu Watanabe for the B-17. go to amazon.com, put his name in the search box, pick 'books' as the category.
there will be a list of 20 or so books he has illustrated. used copies of "B-17: Flying Fortress" are available for $25 and up. i have a copy ordered, but have not seen it yet. i HAVE seen a good deal of his other work, and am pretty sure i will not be disappointed.
you may also see copies of other planes of interest on the list. a few years back i picked up a used copy of the "Great Book of WWII Airplanes" as a gift for my buddy for around $40. unfortunately, the book now commands a much higher price. it contains 10 or 12 of his other works under one cover. most of the individual books are available at a much more reasonable price.
good luck,
ed.

Hi
Fsm did an article on Boeing a year or two ago. They had how to contact the boeing Archives for info. Try that. Also, I use the Squadron Signal Walkaround the Bi7 as a source for lots of those surface and internal details that can be seen.
Bruce

G'day Hector,
In one of my old books, Famous Bombers of World War Two by William Greene there are many good shots of B17s including internals. The book is now well out of print but your local library may be able to help.
TTFN Dai

Thank you very much Vermont, that was useful, i really appreciate it, Thanks!


My best regards
Hector Reymundo

heres some links..first one you can get tech orders on cdrom:

http://www.oldmanuals.com/deal.htm

http://www.303rdbga.com/photo.html

http://www.ratol.fi/~tmannine/b-17/b-17_ref.htm