Movies like Memphis Belle and series like the recent Masters of the Air both romanticized the Boeing B-17 bomber. This World War II aircraft spearheaded the American air offensive against Nazi Germany. Dubbed the Flying Fortress and bristling with machine guns it was designed to fly alone and unafraid into enemy territory and bring the fight to their homeland. The reality though was cruel. Lumbering four-engine bombers were no match for nimble single engine fighters. No matter how many guns were carried, an exposed quarter could always be found and exploited. This led to unacceptable aircraft losses and the near end of daylight bombing. If not for the timely arrival of the P-51 Mustang, with its own long range, the American air campaign would have failed.

Victory was eventually achieved, not by destroying the German’s aircraft industry from the air, but by trolling German fighter with bomber bait. The Germans had to rise to meet these invaders but were then confronted by American fighters. These fighters first wore down the defense, before overwhelming it with superior numbers and eventually better trained pilots.

Subsequent wars learned from the mistakes made over Europe. The successor to the B-17, the Boeing B-29 Superfortress fought well in Korea, but only flew with escorts. Fun fact, the B-29 cost more to build than the atom bomb it was built to carry. In Vietnam, during the Linebacker II Christmas bombings, the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress successfully overwhelmed the North Vietnamese air defenses. They flew at night to avoid the Migs and sporting only tail guns the moniker fortress seemed undeserved, except for a novel jamming system that successfully spoofed the SAMs, allowing the bombers to fly with few losses.

Boeing is still in the bomber business. The B-52 is still trucking bombs around the world and with refurbishments, will likely do so for some time to come. Boeing had no association with the B-52s successor, the B-1, nicknamed the Bone (B-one), until Boeing acquired its maker Rockwell. And Boeing was the prime subcontractor on Northrup’s B-2 Stealth Bomber. Today, Boeing has branched out from traditional bombers, with the P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft and the KC-46 Pegasus tanker. The militarization of commercial aircraft offers Boeing many growth possibilities for the future.