At 11:47 a.m. May 29th, 1943, Captain James Hartwell climbed into the cockpit of his B7 at RAF Alenbury, watching the ground crew load the last belt of 50 caliber ammunition into the modified bomber number 19th gun position, 28 years old, 60 to combat missions, zero experience in what he was about to fly.

 The YB40 weighed £7,000 more than any flying fortress he’d ever touched. In the 5 months before May, the 8th Air Force had lost 193 B16s over Europe. Without long range fighter escorts, German interceptors massacred B. But formations on the return leg from targets deep in the Reich. Folkv 140s attacked from 11:00 high where be 37 nose guns couldn’t track fast enough.

Measurements 109s dove through formations picking off stragglers who fell behind. Crews called it the gauntlet. Half didn’t make 25 missions. The solution seemed obvious. If fighters couldn’t escort bombers all the way to Germany and back turn a bomber into a fighter. Army Air Force’s engineers stripped everything from a B7F that didn’t shoot. Bombs gone.

 Bombardier station converted to a twin 50 caliber chin turret. Second dorsal turret installed behind the radio room. Single waist guns replaced with twin mounts. Cheek guns added to the forward fuselage. Ammunition capacity tripled to 11,275 rounds. Additional armor. a plating welded to crew positions. 1650 caliber machine guns on one aircraft.

 They called it the YB40, the flying destroyer. Douglas aircraft in Tulsa. Completed 12 conversions by March. The 92nd Bombardment Group at Alenbury received them in early May. Colonel William Reed selected seven crews to fly the first combat test. Hartwell got aircraft 4 to 5738. His crew called it hedgehog.

 The weight made everything wrong. Standard B7Fs climbed to 20,000 ft in 25 minutes. The Y40 needed 48. The control yoke felt different, heavier. The aircraft commander who test flow and it at right field told Hartwell the center of gravity sat wrong with all that ammunition behind the bomb bay. But the guns Hardwell had never seen firepower like this on a bomber.

 The chintter at alone could shred a fog off before it closed too. Firing range, every approach vector covered. Every angle of attack met with overlapping fields of fire. The mission brief was simple. Escort the main formation to sand. Attack the submarine. Pence seven YBs positioned in the most vulnerable spots.

 Low squadron trail element anywhere German fighters love to hunt. Hartwell started the enk in at 1:25 p.m. All four right cyclones ran smooth. The control tower cleared them for takeoff. 150 hedgehog rolled down the runway with 168 other B7 south following. Target time for 100 p.m. If you want to see how H Heartwell’s Flying Destroyer performed against the Love Vafer, please hit that like button.

 Every like helps us share these forgotten innovations, and please subscribe. Back to Hartwell. The formation reached the French coast at 3:30. Flack burst dotted the sky over Ganzee. Radio chatter confirmed German fighters scrambling from airfields near Ren Hardwell’s flight. Engineer repo ritted fuel consumption tracking higher than briefed.

 The YB40 burned more gas, climbing to altitude. Sand air appeared through broken clouds. At 402 p.m., the main formation dropped their bombs and D turned four home. MTB B7Fs climbed faster, accelerated quicker. Hartwell pushed the throttles forward. Hedgehog started falling behind. The standard B7s pulled away. of 160 mph.

 Hartwell had the throat tools at maximum continuous power. Hedgehog managed 148. His flight engineer climbed down from the top turret. Technical Sergeant Paul Morrison, 31 years old, 200 hours maintaining B7. Before the YB40 conversion, he checked the engine instruments and shook his head. Number three cylinder head temperature, climbing into the red.

 The extra weight and drag made the cyclones work hard redder than they were designed for. Morrison throttled back number three engine before it overheated. Hedgehog slowed to 142 mph. The main formation was 3 mi ahead now 4 m hardwell C. Al see the other six Y40s struggling at the rear of their assigned groups. Every one of them falling behind.

 The radio operator called from the waist. Staff Sergeant Frank Delaney had spotted co and trails at 4 o high. German fighters climbing to intercept for 190s from Yag Gishwater to based at vans. Six aircraft maybe eight. They were hunting stragglers. Hartwell keyed the intercom. All gunners tracked targets. The chin turret. Gunner reported good visibility.

The ball turret rotated smoothly. Both waist gunners confirmed their twin mounts were loaded and tracking. The first fork. Vulf dove at 5:00. Range 1,200 yd. The tail gunner opened fire at 800. Tracer rounds walked toward the diving fighter. The German pilot broke left and climbed away without firing. The S EOD attack came from 11:00 high to fork wolves in trail formation.

 TheQing turret gunner tracked the lead aircraft and fired a 4C second and burst. 50 caliber rounds stitched across SCFW190s engine cowling. Black smoke poured from the fighter. It rolled inverted and dove toward the channel. Delaney confirmed the kill from the waist position. The second Wolf broke off the attack for 6 minutes.

 The YB40’s firepower worked exactly as designed. Three more German fighters approached. Three more attacks broke off early. The overlapping fields of fire from 16 guns created a wall of lead. No pilots wanted to penetrate, but Hedgehog was still slowing down. The main formation was 6 mi ahead now. Then seven.

 Hartwell could barely see the bomber street ream against the afternoon sky. Morrison reported fuel state. They burned 800 g more than brief during the climbing combat. At this power setting, they had 90 minutes to reach Elsenberry. The F oration would be on the ground in 70. Another pair of fogwolves appeared at 2:00. These pilots didn’t break off.

They’d figured out the Y40 couldn’t keep up, couldn’t run. The G man fighters circled us a distance, waiting for the bomber to fall farther behind, waiting for the right moment to attack from multiple vectors simultaneously. Hartwell pushed the throttles forward again, and three engine temperature climbed back into the red.

 Morrison watched the gauge and said nothing. The escort bomber with 16 guns had become the target. It was supposed to protect the ata CK came at 4:43 p.m. 33 fork walls from different vectors, high right, low left, dead ahead at 12:00 level. Hartwell couldn’t evade. The Y40 turned like a freight train with all that weight. He held course in altitude.

His gunners opened fire simultaneously. TheQing turret tracked the frontal attack. The top turret swung right. The ball turret rotated left. Both waist gunners fired through. H opposite windows. Spent brass cascaded into the fuselage. The aircraft shook from the combined recoil of eight guns firing at once. The lead fox’s canopy shattered.

The fighter rolled right and fell away, trailing smoke. The high attacker broke off early. The low attacker pressed his run and fired a twocon burst. 20 mm cannon rounds punched through hedgehog’s right wink. One hydraulic line severed. The waste gunner reported fluid sprang across the window.

 Delaney called out damage. Right landing gear hydraulic system failed. They’d have to manually crank the gear down for a landing if they made it back. Morrison checked the fuel again. 72 minutes to Alenbury at current power setting.