B-17E Nemesis of Aeroembolism

[OldBillB17F]

Does anyone know what serial number this bird had? She was a high-altitude test bed at Wright-Patt. Looking up B-17Es that were assigned to Wright-Patterson, the only one noted as being used as a test bed aircraft is 41-2407 (Per B-17 Fortress Master Log, by David Osborne).



Another note: This may not be a B-17E at all. Could be a B-17F (note paddle blade props) with a B-17E nose cone.

[Steve Birdsall]

I can't positively confirm that serial number, but it's a B-17E. I'd suppose that those props were fitted to enhance the aircraft's performance in its special role.

Here's a clip from an article by Dr. Jay B. Dean from the University of South Florida, author of the yet-to-be-published Your Body in Flight in World War II.



Looks like the nose art was changed at some stage to protect the innocent.

[05564]

That's a COOL story. Thanks for sharing it. What's the symbols above the windows, I can't make them out, and what did they stand for?

[JohnDell]

I would be curious to know what the mission symbols are too. This aircraft would make a good subject for a model. Are there any high resolution photos available?

[Steve Birdsall]

I guess the mission symbols would be little "Strato-gremlins".

The caption to this photo from Thomas Collison's book does not identify the aircraft but I don't have much doubt that it's Nemesis of Aeroembolism.



I've never seen an overall photo of this B-17 but I'd be surprised if there isn't one somewhere.

[OldBillB17F]

Steve,

Good stuff! Thanks for sharing!

[JohnDell]

Yes Steve, thank you very much! That does seem to answer the question.

[jaybdean]

Yes, this is a B-17E serial number 41-2407. She was known as "B-17E No. 13" from 1941-1943 at the Boeing Flight Test Laboratory because she was the 13th B-17E purchased by the USAAF in 1941. B-17E No. 13 was one of three B-17's used for pioneering high altitude flight to and above 35,000 feet by Boeing in collaboration with the Aero Medical Laboratory at Wright Field, Dayton, Ohio. These three specialized B-17s were known as "Fortress Research Laboratories" (the other two were B-17E No. 7, #41-2399, and B-17C No. 1, #40-2042). The photo shown from Jay B Dean's narrative below (Hey! That's me!) comes from the archives at the Mayo Clinic (Mayo Historical Unit). In the fall of 1943, Boeing transferred #41-2407 back to Wright Field to be used as a high altitude research and testing platform by the physiologists of the Aero Medical Lab for the remainder of the war. The little fellows painted on the nose are indeed "Strato-Gremlins" and a new one was added each time she flew past 40,000 feet; I found an old newspaper article that reported that fact (Incidentally, the highest a B-17 reached was in July 1945 when the "Shadow" reached 43,499 feet over Seattle). Notice that in the lower photo that there are only 2 Strato-Gremlins, whereas later there are 6 Strato-gremlins. The lower photo, I believe, was taken shortly after the plane arrived in Dayton from Seattle. My research suggests that she was named the Nemesis of Aeroembolism just prior to leaving for Wright Field (I have photos of her being handed over to Randy Lovelace, director of the Aero Med Lab, at Boeing Field, with the nose art. Earlier photos show a naked nose however). One Strato-Gremlin was added after a test flight for the prototype of pressure breathing oxygen mask that reached 42,900 feet on 1 Nov 1942. The pilot was Allen C. Reed (Boeing), Co-pilot was James Fraser (Boeing), and passenger was Dr. W. Randolph "Randy" Lovelace II (formerly Mayo Clinic, now Wright Field Aero Med Lab). They had hoped to reach 47,000 feet but the turbo supercharger blew limiting any further gain in altitude. They did remain above 40,000 ft for nearly 2 hours and felt fine the entire time. The oxygen masks worked (normal masks are good to about 33,000-35,000 ft; above that you need to pressurized the oxygen to raise its partial pressure enough to keep you functioning. Pressuring breathing was used up to 45,000 ft on some occasions by recon pilots). They had tested the pressurized masks at 47,000 feet several days earlier in Boeing's Strato-Chamber. The 2nd Strato-Gremlin was added after Randy Lovelace's static line parachute drop from 40,200 feet during June 1943, which nearly killed him when his 'chute popped open and 33 G's of deceleration knocked him unconscious and dislodged the gloves from one hand resulting in frostbite. The revised nose art was added shortly after Nemesis' arrival in Dayton. The staff of the medical caduceus is entwined around the body of a fair maiden in a swimsuit as she stands tip toe on the shield logo of the Materiel Command, Wright Field (a rotary engine bearing a pair of wings). The additional Strato-Gremlins are from various flights testing oxygen equipment and studies of decompression sickness (i.e., aeroembolism, the bends). The 2nd photo below was taken at Muroc Field (today known as Edwards AFB) in the Mohave Desert, April 1944. A research team composed of men from Wright Field Aero Med Lab, the Mayo Aero Medical Unit, and U. of Minnesota were there to measure the parachute opening shock at 7,000 up through 40,000 feet. They used 145 and 200 lbs hard rubber dummies and a 145 lbs St. Bernard dog named "Major" that they purchased for $3 from the Dayton dog pound. You can see Major in the photo with his oxygen mask and parachute on the ground next to him. You can also search online for a song entitled "the name of a plane is a curious thing" in which the Nemesis of Aeroembolism is mentioned. It's done by the current USAF Band. And, I do have photos of the entire plane, in color, taken at Muroc Field by one of the researchers March-April 1944. The big Strato-Gremlin shown below graces the entrance door towards the rear of the plane.
Oh, and the book is coming along. Unfortunately, my day job keeps getting in the way.

[Steve Birdsall]

Thanks Doctor Dean, that's one of the most interesting B-17 tales I've read in a long while and it answers a lot of old questions.

Here's 41-2407 at Davis-Monthan at the end of her career. I've inserted an enlargement of the data block to make it easier to read. I don't know when the paint was removed or why.



I'm sure I'm not alone in saying I'd very much like to see one of those color photos of the entire plane.

[aerovin2]

It is of interest in itself that an old B-17E was placed into storage post-war at Davis-Monthan. Osborne's data just shows it as a test aircraft and then assigned to RFC on April 10, 1945 at Davis-Monthan. I would question it being assigned to RFC at DM....that would be unusual as DM was not an RFC facility. Presumably, the "RFC" part came right off the record card but ?? The reference to Eglin Field is also curious, as is the paint removal. Answer one question and it allows a few more. Very interesting material. Perhaps someone has the B-17E record cards and can verify the post-Wright Field utilization.

[jaybdean]

Steve, neat photo of her mothballed! Did you get that from Boeing? It's interesting that she's sitting next to Bockscar (background), the B-29 that dropped the 2nd and final atomic bomb to end the war. Today, this B-29 resides in full splendor at the Museum of the USAF in Dayton, Ohio. The 2 color photos I'm attaching were scanned from slides taken by Mr. Bertil Lindquist (U. Minn.), one of the scientists who invented the Lindquist-Ryan tensiometer used by the Wright Field Aero Med Lab to measure parachute opening shock at high altitudes in 1943-1944. The Lindquist family contacted me a while ago and shared their photos with me. The pics were taken at Muroc Field during the high altitude parachute study, with the dog, Major, and the hard rubber parachute dummies. You can barely make out Major on the tarmac in front of the Nemesis in one of the photos as the men prod him into his jump jacket. The first slide (engines running) is composed to two scans pieced together so that I could get the entire serial number AND the nose of the ship in the same image.
Look for me at USF Health, Tampa, Dept of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology

Slide1.JPG

[jaybdean]

"How it Feels to Fly Seven Miles High, by Girl Reporter In Stratosphere".
Here's an old newspaper article written by a reporter who took a flight on the Nemesis of Aeroembolism in 1944 (The Bee, Danville, VA, March 2, 1944).--Jay

[jaybdean]

A 35 page report on B-17E 41-2407 can be downloaded at http://dspace.lrri.org:8080/xmlui/handle/123456789/1184
The report was prepared by Randy Lovelace, Dir. Aero Med Lab, March 1944, and has lots of interior photographs--Jay

LOVELACE RESPIRATORY RESEARCH INSTITUTE
High Altitude Flight Test of Flyers' Personal Equipment in Specially Engineered B17E
Title: High Altitude Flight Test of Flyers' Personal Equipment in Specially Engineered B17E Number 41-2407
Author: Lovelace II, W. Randolph
Abstract: This reports contains the data about the final laboratory performance tests of safety equipment developed at the Wright AFB. Items were tested under simulated flight conditions Items tested include: 3 different kinds of oxygen masks, electric heaters for oxygen masks, non-kinking mask and regulator tubing, tubing quick disconnects, oxygen regulators, oxygen indicators, oxygen recharging assembly for use at low temperatures, and a walk around oxygen cylinder with diluter demand regulator. Microfilm copy of original report available in the archive.
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/1184
Date: 1944-03-20

High ALtitude F ... rs' Personal Equipment.pdf 209.5Mb application/pdf View/Open

[Steve Birdsall]

Yes, that's a Boeing photo that I got when I was working on the B-29s - it probably came to me via Al Lloyd. I remember being curious about the mothballed B-17E in the foreground but never did follow up on it. Unfortunately the photo came without any information about either of the aircraft shown.

Thanks for all the additional information Jay, and particularly for sharing those color photos.

[jaybdean]

Steve...any chance how I can get permission to use that photo? I'm writing a book on the history of aviation physiology during WWII and I plan to have a chapter or major part of a chapter devoted to the Nemesis of Aeroembolism and other ships used as research platforms by the physiologists during the war. It would be a nice way to show how she ended up. Regarding the tie to Eglin Field and the removal of her paint...this is just a guess on my part, but I'm looking into it. It seems that Eglin Field was going to be used for research on the effects of severe cold on aircraft (and pilots?) towards the end of the war and I'm wondering if 41-2407 was shipped from Wright Field to Eglin Field initially to participate in these studies. It would have happened late in 1945. Eglin built a huge cold room/hangar for this research. Maybe they planned to use the B-17E too since she was one of just a few B17's who could routinely fly above 40,000 feet for any length of time (for cold exposure under in-flight conditions). Removing her paint would have reduced heat absorption too and made it colder inside I'm guessing. These are just hypotheses on my part, but I'm looking into it.
Hey, here's another photo. It's from the scrapbook of James Fraser, a Boeing Test Pilot who is said to have spent more time above 40,000 feet during the war than any other pilot. It's a shot he took of B-17E No. 13's contrail (41-2407) while in the stratosphere (or on her way there).--Jay