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The B-17 "The Ruptured Duck" vs. Me-262's


Gigant

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A few years ago I met the radio operator of this plane, and he explained to me that it was an airbase-creation of a Boeing manufactured front spliced onto a Vega manufactured rear, which gave the ship a definite permanent upward pitch, since Boeing's manufacturing techniques resulted in an overall lighter airframe then Vega's.

 

So they named it "The Ruptured Duck".

 

He told me about the deadly air attack by a group of Me-262's, and I think I found the record of it:

 

https://search.yahoo.com/yhs/search;_ylt=AwrEwNayQyNb58oAFgUPxQt.;_ylc=X1MDMjExNDcwMDU1OQRfcgMyBGZyA3locy1hdmFzdC1icndzcjAwMQRncHJpZAMzZ3kzQ0pBa1NBeXFMX2N2TVpnQm5BBG5fcnNsdAMwBG5fc3VnZwMwBG9yaWdpbgNzZWFyY2gueWFob28uY29tBHBvcwMwBHBxc3RyAwRwcXN0cmwDMARxc3RybAMzNwRxdWVyeQNCb2VpbmclMjBCLTE3JTIwTWFudWZhY3R1cmVyJTIwcGxhbnRzBHRfc3RtcAMxNTI5MDM3Nzk0?p=Boeing+B-17+Manufacturer+plants&fr2=sb-top&hspart=avast&hsimp=yhs-brwsr001&type=osf01s1

 

He told me about the experience of the emergency landing described near the end of page 2 of the linked document.

The plane's hydraulics were shot out, so with no brakes they crashed right through some buildings and stuff surrounding the airfield!

 

I found the description of the Me's to be particularly interesting.

 

If I read the '262's description correctly, It looks like they could see no rivet pattern whatsoever:

 

"It had swept back wings with a jet engine mounted on each wing. Its skin was so smooth that it looked like it had been sandpapered."

 

"There wasn't a rivet to be seen."

Edited by Gigant
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Thanks!

 

My "better-half" downloaded and printed it for me.   ;)

 

My friend personally told me that when Galland finished forming up his elite Kommando Nowotny '262 fighter/interceptor group, they caught our intelligence "experts" totally off-guard and their group in a single pass literally took out one half of a complete B-17 bomber formation.

 

Kommando Nowotny:

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kommando_Nowotny

Edited by Gigant
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Anecdotes are always interesting and entertaining, but as a rule totally unreliable as sources of information.

(I note, for example, the narrator got the caliber of the cannons wrong.) Otoh, they speak much of the impact events had on the narrator.

Edited by Hardcore
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Anecdotes are always interesting and entertaining, but as a rule totally unreliable as sources of information.

(I note, for example, the narrator got the caliber of the cannons wrong.) Otoh, they speak much of the impact events had on the narrator.

 

Yes, that is why I wish to thank the retired USAAF radio operator I met, who knowing my enthusiasm for this subject, who due  his disabilities at the time, was taken by a friend to the public library branch in Baton Rouge, Louisiana (where I was fond of doing my research at that time) to sit with me and tell me about it, dressed only on his in VA facility-friendly jump-suit.

 

The fact that he could tell me how an ETO B-17 got the same "handle" as the starring B-25 from the "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo" long before I recently found the on-line excerpt leaves no doubt in my mind regarding its' authenticity.

 

You see, here where I live, we have basically  colony of WWII military retirees, as well as an excellent VA retirement home here, where I belong to a group of friends from our church visit bed-ridden patients we know there as well.

 

Therefore, I understand that I have advantages here that most members of this world-wide website do not, and frankly I enjoy not having to feel like I have to prove anything to share with those of same or similar interests here.

Edited by Gigant
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Wondrous and anecdotal stories I like.

Makes it MORE personable. :thumbsup:

Thank you very much for sharing it ..

 

:popcorn:

 

Your welcome...

 

There are some "experts" out there who tend to want to under-rate or minimize the true threat that the '262 "Sturmvogel" was to the USAAF daylight bombing campaign, because they did too much reading from "armchair experts" who wrote books instead of actually knowing someone being on the "business end" of that weapons system.

 

Unfortunately, their nonsense has influenced some of our fellow scale model enthusiasts to not comprehend why companies like Tamiya and Trumpeter are very proud of their examples.

 

No rivets, eh? How does this compare to the Trumpy kits? Mine is buried somewhere in the stash. :rolleyes: :whistle:

 

Well, it is obvious that Galland wanted his birds extremely smooth for the extra speed to catch the bomber formation "off-guard", so it is likely that he had them take time to fill in and polish them, leaving no "dirty dimples" like some of our lesser-maintained PTO aircraft.

Edited by Gigant
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