How the B-29 Went from Drawing Board to Combat in Under Four Years

Being assigned to a bomber crew in WWII was basically a death sentence

USAAF aircrew bail out of a heavily damaged Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress over Belgium during the strategic bombing campaign of 1944. Flying deep into occupied Europe, B-17 crews faced concentrated flak belts and increasingly aggressive Luftwaffe fighter opposition. When structural damage, fire, or loss of control made recovery impossible, crews relied on bailout procedures practiced endlessly in training. Escaping a crippled bomber at altitude was extremely dangerous, with men forced to clear spi