List of Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress variants: Difference between revisions

Generally considered the definitive B-17 design, all changes made in the B-17F production run were incorporated into the final version. These included a [[Bendix Corporation|Bendix]] remotely operated chin turret, an innovation derived from the unsuccessful [[YB-40 Flying Fortress|YB-40]] escort version, bringing defensive armament to 13 .50&nbsp;caliber (half-inch or 12.7&nbsp;mm) machine guns, with the starboard "cheek" machine gun mount moved one "window station" rearwards – and the portside mount placed forward, just behind the bombardier's Plexiglas nose edge, as a result of the needed stowage space for the chin turret's starboard interior-mounted, upward-pivoting control yoke<ref>[http://www.lonesentry.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/controller-operation-chin-turret.jpg Graphic of usage and stowage positions for B-17G chin turret control yoke]</ref> when not in use. For late production blocks of the G-series, a revised tail gun position (referred to as the "Cheyenne" configuration after the modification center where it was introduced)<ref>[http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_B-17G.html B-17G Flying Fortress], History of War.org, accessed 2009-12-20.</ref> was devised, in which the guns were mounted in a new turret with reflector sight and much greater field of fire.<ref>[http://migrate.legendsintheirowntime.com/LiTOT/B17/B17_guns.html Cheyenne turret] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160822114358/http://migrate.legendsintheirowntime.com/LiTOT/B17/B17_guns.html |date=2016-08-22 }}</ref> Some 8,680 were built, and dozens were converted for several different uses: