Mission Accomplished

The Bureau of Motion Pictures at the U.S. Office of War Information produced a 10-minute film about the B-17 Flying Fortress in 1942, with the dramatic narration typical of the department’s products during the war. This excerpt opens with footage that appears to have been shot from the ball turret, and watching the airplane’s vertical stabilizer in the frame is mesmerizing. It’s also interesting to learn, as the 10 airmen board, how the crew is organized.