B-17
From its pre-war inception, the USAAC (
later, the USAAF) touted the aircraft as a strategic weapon; it was a potent, high-flying, long-range bomber that was able to defend itself, and to return home despite extensive battle damage. Its reputation quickly took on mythic proportions,
[9][10] and widely circulated stories and photos of notable numbers and examples of B-17s surviving battle damage increased its iconic status.
[11] With a
service ceiling greater than any of its Allied contemporaries, the B-17 established itself as an effective weapons system, dropping more bombs than any other U.S. aircraft in World War II. Of the1.5 million
metric tons of bombs dropped on
Germany and its occupied territories by U.S. aircraft, 640,000 tonnes were dropped from B-17s.
[12]