Recent content by bse7entn

Chin turret.

It depends on the model. I'd have to look up to confirm but I think E and early F had a different Radio seat. There were armor plates on the flight deck seats but those weren't attached to the seat itself. There was a period where Radio seat had an armor plate as well.

Not sure what would have been stenciled after, but there should be another A in front: "A.A.F." Depending on model of B-17 this same seat was used for Radio Operator so you have at least three possibilities of installation.

Right, bomb hooks don't have an opening at the bottom. I can see there are rods to control opening/closing on the outer bolts of the hooks. The top rod in the third pic is broken a the bolt hole, but that doesn't give me a clear indication what this was for.

That does not look like it's from a B-17. Part number is also not correct for B-17. Should be in format x-xxxx or xx-xxxxx unless it's a vendor produced component, which you'd need to know the vendor to look up. But this looks like structure so that shouldn't apply.

Could you provide closeups and different angles of the ends?

Ah I'm remembering wrong then, thanks. Granted you couldn't exactly get a close view from the bridge.

Got to see one of those which attempted to land at NAS JAX a few years back. Fortunately everyone was ok except the bird who took a drink.

It's worth noting that not every B-17 carried a Norden. Lead aircraft did. Part of the C-1 Autopilot and Bomb Release systems, the tail section had two lights. I think one indicated aircraft was beginning its bomb run, the other indicated, "we dropped, everyone else drop."

Thanks for the overload of info. :)

Thank you. Some of that I have, some not. This is a puzzle and any pieces help.

I'm looking for information on H2X (AN/APS-15) RADAR systems. Specifically on the "Mickey" set installed on B-17s: Illustrated Parts Manual Operations/Procedures I have a copy of ROBIF but that's more of a general manual. Photos of the Mickey, interior fuselage views would be nice as well...

I think that's part of when the manual switch was used. I'm still researching and looking for information on Pathfinders and RADAR.

Q: What kind of device did he use to release the bombs? A: The Norden Bomb Sight had an option to automatically activate the bomb racks to release. Additionally there was a manual switch at the Bombardier's station. Q: In the aircraft, who said "bombs away " ? A: Bombardier as he was in front...

If this was in a field near an aerodrome it's possible the airframe did a gear up belly landing. In which case the ball turret, if it weren't ejected, would be the first to impact. If crew were able to eject the turret I imagine the impact from that drop would still be significant. Plus add 80...