B24 or B17

german mauser k98k man · #1 (**permalink**) July 23rd, 2008, 08:01 PM

what do you all like better i am a fan both but the B24 had longer range and a hevier payload.

mikebatzel · #2 (**permalink**) July 23rd, 2008, 08:22 PM

I chose the B-17 because my great uncle was a tail gunner.

Skipper · #3 (**permalink**) July 23rd, 2008, 08:38 PM

The Liberator, because history will lean towards the Fortress.

GPRegt · #4 (**permalink**) July 23rd, 2008, 08:44 PM

Can't split them They each had their strengths, which were vital in the Allied programme.

Steve W.

Martin Bull · #5 (**permalink**) July 23rd, 2008, 09:14 PM

It seems unfair to the poor old B-24 ; it's a little like the Spitfire/Hurricane argument.

You just can't deny that the B-17 has a 'look' about it.....

Erich · #6 (**permalink**) July 23rd, 2008, 09:32 PM

both were needed and can be compared to death as witness on armyairforces.com where the vets of both a/c come out and slug it till there is no more..........no-one wins.

they did their job and did it well

skunk works · #7 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 12:21 AM

Different yet equal.

Tail Gunner in a 17 eh ?

german mauser k98k man · #8 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 12:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikebatzel

I chose the B-17 because my great uncle was a tail gunner.

Did he live trough the war? most tail gunners had a lifespan of 2-4 weeks.

Lippert · #9 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 01:09 AM

Really? I'd love to know where you got those figures, they could be useful to me.

ozjohn39 · #10 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 01:18 AM

LANCASTER!!!!!!!

OJ

Erich · #11 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 02:16 AM

sorry no bomber command a/c allowed ..........

Mike he was a tail gunner in what period of the war ? from summer of 44 till wars end it may have been the worst manned position on either the 17 or the 24 due to the tail end attacks by the LW

Hawkerace · #12 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 03:55 AM

I remember reading on the Poelisti (sp?) Oilfield raids and enjoyed the work of the Liberators. Probably gonna give my biased decision to them.

4th wilts · #13 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 08:32 AM

dear all,
it also depends on the losses of both a/c,which may make some difference.
i also like the b24,because it saved many ball tuuet gunners from being scraped along a runway,if the hydrolics were shot out.
it helped fill the black gap,in the atlantic,very often overlooked.
as mentioned before,it had more range than the b17,and carried more bombs,which afterall was its job.lee.

mikebatzel · #14 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 10:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by german mauser k98k man

Did he live trough the war? most tail gunners had a lifespan of 2-4 weeks.

Yes he did live through, though he died a few years before my birth.

This is what I posted in another thread about him. Post #155
Favourite Aircraft of WWII

Quote:

I never met got a chance to meet him. He died 3 years before my birth. I only know one story, the one where he should have been killed. I'm not sure when it happened but his best friend in the war came down with a terrible spout of food poisoning the day before an important bombing mission. My Great-Uncle Robert was not scheduled for any missions that day, so he told his friend (Mike was his name) to stay in bed and that he would take his mission for the day in the tail gunners spot. The following week Mike told him "you did me a favor by taking my flight, and now I am going to return the favor. I'll take your spot." When the Planes came back latter in the day his plane was not among them. According to my father, reports from the other pilots that day claimed no parachutes where seen from the crew.

Za Rodinu · #15 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 11:47 AM

B-24 wins by count of tails

RAM · #16 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 07:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Za Rodinu

B-24 wins by count of tails

That will give the equation:

1 x B-24 = 2 x B-17

Does that include the B-17G with the ventral turret...?

Will the B-24 outgun the B-17G in a confrontation?

regards
RAM

Liberator · #17 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 07:59 PM

Of course, it goes without saying really, the B-24 Liberator far out classed the lowly B-17

Slipdigit · #18 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 08:14 PM

Interesting read on the AAF forum on this very subject with good imput from several crew members.

B-24 versus B-17

JCFalkenbergIII · #19 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 08:23 PM

Both types served as they were meant to and both types ended up in the same place after the war.

ozjohn39 · #20 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 08:35 PM

JCF,

One of the MAJOR thrills of 3 trips to the USA was Davis-Monthan AFB and the PIMA Air and Space Museum. I presume this pic is an early one of that area?

OJ

JCFalkenbergIII · #21 (**permalink**) July 24th, 2008, 08:38 PM

Yep. I have been there a few times in my youth when I lived in AZ in the late 60s to 70's.