On July 28, 1935, the B-17 Flying Fortress took its maiden flight in front of a crowd of reporters eager to see Boeing’s new bomber. Arguably the most famous heavy bomber of World War II, the B-17 was primarily employed in the daylight precision strategic bombing campaign of the conflict against German industrial and civilian targets. It was considered the first truly mass-produced large aircraft, eventually evolving through numerous design advancements, from B-17A to G.

The Flying Fortress was a potent, high-flying, long-ranging bomber capable of unleashing great destruction yet able to defend itself. During World War II, the B-17 equipped 32 overseas combat groups and dropped 640,036 long tons (650,195 tonnes) of bombs on European targets (compared to 452,508 tons (451,691 tonnes) dropped by the Liberator and 463,544 tons (420,520 tonnes) dropped by all other US aircraft).