The Flying Fortress is one of the most famous airplanes ever built, but before the aircraft could form the backbone of the USAAF strategic bombing force and help win the war by crippling Germany’s war industry, the early B-17 had an issue to overcome
On July 28, 1935, a four-engine aircraft made its maiden flight from Boeing Field in southern Seattle. Emerging from the Boeing hangar, it was initially identified only as the Model 299. Seattle Times reporter Richard Smith later christened the heavily armed aircraft the “Flying Fortress,” a name Boeing soon adopted and trademarked. The U.S. Army Air Corps designated it the B-17.
Developed in response to the Army’s requirement for a large multiengine bomber, the prototype was financed entirely by Boeing and progressed from the drawing board to flight testing in under a year.
Only a small number of B-17s were operational when the United States entered World War II on December 7, 1941, but production soon expanded dramatically. The aircraft served in every combat theater, although it became especially associated with daylight strategic bombing missions against German industrial targets. Manufacturing concluded in May 1945, with a total of 12,726 aircraft produced.
The Flying Fortress ranks among the most famous aircraft ever built. However, before the B-17 could become the backbone of the USAAF’s strategic bombing campaign and contribute to victory by devastating Germany’s industrial capacity, an important problem had to be resolved.
Pete Feigal, a former professional military artist with 25 years of experience, explains on Quora that after approximately 400 early B-17s crashed during landing—incidents initially blamed on the pilots—Air Force psychiatric examiners investigated the problem, despite the aircraft appearing mechanically flawless.
They discovered that the controls for the wing flaps and landing gear were identical in appearance and positioned dangerously close together.
The landing gear and wing-flap switches were identical and positioned almost side by side—a design flaw discovered only after 400 crashes.
Because the controls were so close together, exhausted pilots approaching the runway sometimes moved the switch they believed operated the landing gear. Instead, they selected the wing flaps, slowing the aircraft’s descent and causing it to strike the ground.
The discovery introduced the term “Designer Error,” shifting responsibility away from the pilots. Air Force psychiatrists subsequently pioneered “Shape Coding,” redesigning cockpit controls in distinct shapes and sizes to prevent confusion. No similar accidents occurred after the changes.
Feigal concludes that the two controls are now positioned well apart. The flap lever is large and square, while the landing-gear control is shaped like a wheel.
Photo by US Department of Defense and Unknown
