Just for fun and a bit of detective work

[Dan Johnson]

Saw this one on eBay and as with any unmarked anonymous B17 it intrigued me.

Is it safe to say this is a B17D? No turret showing. I think on the original photo that I can just make out the dome behind the cockpit. And I don't see any windows over the pilot's seats.

The 19 bomb symbols are interesting too. Would any of the shark fin 17s have made that many missions?

If nothing else I think it's a nice image

[varsity07840]

I don't think it's a D. The photo appears to be stateside given the way the backround of the photo and the way the sargeant is
dressed. The plugged cheek socket would mean it's no longer a combat aircraft so it's in all likelihood an E returned from the pacific with the turret removed. The only Ds to come back were several from Hawaii that had the Hawaiian Depot camoflage pattern, and the Swoose
which is obviously not the a/c in the photo. It has a standard factory OD/grey scheme. Lastly I don't see a third cockpit
window pane deleted when the E came along.

Duane

[Dan Johnson]

I figured it's a stateside bird. I went through "Fortress Against the Sun" to see about the C/D crowd and as you say very few returned to the US. I think he lists 4 that include "The Swoose". What threw me is what appears to be the lack of windows above the pilot seats.

In comparing it to both D models and E model noses I noticed that the ADF football is further back than on either version originally. Oh to have a time machine

[Dan Johnson]

I played with the original photo some more and I think I can now see the outline of the window over the co-pilot seat.

But I ended up with another question. Any idea what the round light colored object is on the cockpit ceiling?

[DryMartini]

It is a B-17E - The long pitot tubes give it away.
The B/C/D had shorter ones, further forward.

The object appears to be the cockpit dome light.
I'd have to look at the drawings to be sure, though.