I have actually seen this one more than once, and it is IMPRESSIVE! This image is the 25 foot high by 75 foot wide mural in the World War II Gallery of the National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC.
The B-17G, 42-38050, “Thunder Bird” of the 303rd Bomb Group, based at Molesworth, England, is seen at 11:45 AM, 15 August 1944, over Trier, Germany, on its return to base from a mission to Weisbaden. B-17Gs “Bonnie B”, “Special Delivery”, and “Marie”, are seen below as a Messerschmitt 109G and Focke Wulf FW 190 attack “Thunder Bird’s” element. Jeff Ethell’s research for the mural revealed the names and aircraft identities of all U.S. and many German participants in this battle in which the 303rd lost nine Fortresses in this attack by Luftwaffe fighters.
It was a hard fought war by the Greatest Generation. There was an elegance to the effort that was manifest by the aircraft that struggled for dominance that I don’t think that we will ever see again.
Just yesterday toured the Collins Foundation B-17. Hard to imagine the guts it took to go to war in that machine, or, for that matter, the guts to attack one.
A beautiful work of art that one can sit and look at for hours and still find new things. Very much the definition of a masterpiece.
And after touring one, it is amazing how small they really are. You think they are so huge but then you see that the men had to crawl around, over and under each other to move around. And to do this for the long trip to Berlin and back, under fire, at freezing altitudes, often times damaged and with injuries, is just amazing. And the -17 was considered large by their standards.
LL- That it was, and no we’ll hopefully never NEED that level again.
WSF- Agreed on both points!
Once in the WWII Gallery at NASM with Dad.
We were watching the footage from the documentary MEMPHIS BELLE.
Next to us was a little old man. He was wearing The Hat.
You know The Hat; worn, maybe stained, but always significant.
This particular The Hat had 2 rows of ribbons, aircrew wings, and a “ruptured duck” pin. I took off my hat and asked “When and where?”
“99th Heavy Bomber Group, Scotland.” He was a radio operator and gunner on B-24s.
We shook hands. I turned to find a dozen or more people had lined up to shake his hand in turn.
Giants once walked this Earth.
Stretch- That they did.
Someday when I have $400 that isn’t demanded elsewhere, I’ll go up for an hour in the B-17 that flies over my house regularly.
The Yankee Lady.
https://youtu.be/1rkfBZgPnQI
(This will be my fourth attempt to post this comment which won’t post yet continually tells me that it is a duplicate comment, only this time I’ve added all this other text to fool wordpress.)
Someday when I have $400 that isn’t demanded elsewhere, I’ll go up for an hour in the B-17 that flies over my house regularly.
The Yankee Lady.
https://youtu.be/1rkfBZgPnQI
and it worked.
Ed- You’ll enjoy it. And for some reason, your earlier comment ended up in the spam folder Ed… sorry…
What a picture! Having been inside “Aluminum Overcast” and “Sentimental Journey” (on the ground, $400 bucks was more than I could spend) at the local airport, getting my Studebaker’s picture taken in front of AO which was flying 3 Studebaker motors, I have an affinity for those aircraft.
I was also stationed in Wiesbaden while in the Army and my Great Uncles fought in half tracks during WWII to take the post where I was stationed.
That’s a powerful picture in my world.
Scroll down to missions #81 and #103.
http://www.447bg.com/42-97392.htm
That pilot would be my dad. Total combat missions–35.
Great painting and story