Aero Vintage Books

Very, very interesting. Here's the record card:

First time I've seen a Laredo plane(s) with large two-digit codes on the nose; here's her sister, '868, at Laredo:

Every one I've seen until now had the small three-digit codes. #17 in the background, 44-6044, was at Laredo too per Osborne:

44-6044 Del Tulsa 15/4/44; Ft Myers 27/4/44; 2118 BU Buckingham 2/6/44; 2126 BU Laredo 1/2/45; RFC Walnut Ridge 12/10/45.

Do you have a link to the auction?

I have him making me a digital copy

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Boeing-B-17G-F ... SwmKJakvxG

See if he can zoom in on the serial under the wing of #10 - the serial on the tail ends in 77 which for Laredo would be either 42-39877 or 42-102877 (probably the latter?). I have this shot of '2877 as Laredo #230 from the accident report:

Doesn't look like a 10 was stripped off the nose, but...

Just received the Digit copy

Aircraft 12: 42-102867

Aircraft 10: 42-102877 (numbers under wing is a long serial)

Aircraft 17: 44-6044

Aircraft 20: 44-6051

Aircraft 14: 42-102878

Cool! Record card for '877:


And '878:


I'm detecting a pattern here. Maybe these two-digit codes were for Buckingham rather than Laredo? Looks like all of them went there first.