The Boeing B-17 was also called the Flying Fortress. It is a four-engine heavy bomber aircraft primarily employed by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) during World War II. Developed by Boeing, a total of 12,731 aircraft were produced by Boeing, Douglas and Lockheed from 1936 until 1945. A majority (over 8,000) of these aircraft were lost in either combat operations or training accidents. The remaining combat and production models were stored and later scrapped in the vast scrap drives of the late 1940s, many going to aircraft boneyards like Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, the largest of its kind within the United States' borders.

After retirement from active military service, these aircraft were converted during the 1960s to the late 1980s; they became bulk cargo transport, aerial sprayer, and water tanker aircraft. Currently, only 46 intact B-17s are known to exist as of August 2013.

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