An Interesting Mod Idea?

[afspret]

Found this rather interesting pic of a field mod to a B-17 on the 384th BG website.  It identifies the a/c as 42-31425 coded SU*S and nicknamed West End.  On interesting note is that it appears the modified turret is non-trainable and the back appears to be opened, although there could be panels at the back that were removable for maintenance.  According to the Joe Baugher website 42-31425 was a B-17G-15BO and was assigned to the 20th BS/20th BG and was shot down over Austria on24 Feb 1944.

[ikar]

That is an odd conversion.  It looks like the rear of the mount, don't know if you can call it a turret anymore, is elongated.  This could be to accomidate the length of the weapons and kept open to allow all that brass to escape   That many guns in such a small space would fill it up quickly otherwise, eventually jamming the weapons.  It makes you wonder hwo aimed the weapons, someone in the nose, or up in the flight deck.

[skyhawk174]

Ok where the heck would you keep all the ammo? By the bombardier's feet?

[afspret]

Would the crew even have a full time bombardier and maybe just a togglier?  I know its kinda hard to tell from the pic, but it doesn't look like there's a mount for the bomb sight.  Oh, I found additional picks on the same website, but in a different folder, the second which shows the back of the mount was open.

[afspret]

Got some updated info on the a/c; its actual serial number is 42-31435 and it was assigned to the 544th BS of the 384th BG, which matches up with info in the Joe Baugher site.  The nose turret mod was the idea of an armaments officer and the a/c was written off on 6 July 1944 after crashing landing at RAF Manston, due to flak damage, sustained on its apparent first and only operational sortie with this mod.  

 

Another thing I found interesting is the being that the a/c is an early model G with the unstaggered waist positions, it has the Cheyenne tail turret.  From the pic its clear the Cheyenne turret was installed prior to the modification made to the nose turret because here the a/c has the standard nose turret.     

[imatt88]

Really cool mod

[dnl42]

They learned they didn't need bomb sights on all the aircraft, just lead bombardiers.

 

This aircraft would have been in front of the formation, as I assume this was a local response to the mass head-on fighter attacks 

[Army_Air_Force]

I recall the guns were triggered by the pilot to counter head on attacks. I think the conversion was shown in one of Roger A. Freeman's 'Mighty Eighth' books.