Warbird Information Exchange

What was the normal takeoff distances at sea level, for an unloaded and a fully loaded B-17?

According to my Dad's old POH, takeoff distances are 'stated specifically on the seat back operating instructions and in AN 01-20EF-1 and AN 01-20EG-1'.
Now if we can find a seat back...

Steve G

My father used to talk about Allison and Morten flying one out of a 2500' strip back in the early '60s if that helps.

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Col Craig Duck
Life Member CAF
Life Member YAF
Life Member EAA

My Dad always told me that a '17 could be operated out of a 2500' strip, obviously lightly loaded. Don't know about ops at gross.

Steve G

I saw that in the Jablonski book! hehe

Are the turbochargers working? I rode with Chuckie out of Love Field one time with a full tank of gas and 10 souls aboard. We used the crosswind runway (6100ft) and with the turbos on 8 we jumped off the runway in well under 2000 feet. What a ride!


Z

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Zane Adams
There I was at 20,000 ft, upside down and out of ammunition.
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When I flew B-17's as airtankers,we flew out of a few 4000-4500 ft long strips in California.Hollister and Ramona were no fun.Hemet was a little better.All three were close to sea level,although the temp could easily be 100 degrees.Fox Field at Lancaster was higher elevation (around 2500 ft) and usually hot,but there was generally a brisk wind blowing pretty much down the runway.Dave Kelly was based at Fox with a DC-7 in the 70's.He told me that Fox had an elastic runway.When the wind was blowing 20 kts it was just the right length,but when the wind quit,the elastic runway snapped back 2000 ft.There was a lot of truth in that.

To answer the question,4000-5000 ft was enough for a B-17 tanker at 59,000-60,000 lbs,which was our loaded weight.Empty,we could get off the ground in around 2000 ft.We always set the turbos to "8" which gave us 46" hg.

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I have a little trouble reading that on my screen, but it looks like the shortest ground run for no wind take off at sea level at light wt is 1225,
3350 heavy. What's impressive is the landing ground run with no obstacle
at 1350. I've seen a lot of 172 jockey's that can't do that.

Steve G

The runway at 3V5, Ft. Collins. Co. ( not Loveland FNL) where Ray Middleton has his shop was 4000' by 48', and at 4900' elevation. Collins brought their B-17 and B-24 in there for a mini show. The 24 had a mechanical problem so was static. They did rides all day in and out in the 17. I was impressed, especially after they gave me a ride and I got to fly a low pass over the resevoir. I wonder who those pilots were, I remember them as perhaps in there 30s ?, definitley not old seasoned pilots, but good.

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Bill Greenwood
Spitfire N308WK

is this any better?

Thanks. That's for all the over 35 wixers.

I photographed a B-17 tanker at Boise Interagency Fire Center one evening between the summers of 1971 and 1973. The next day it went to northern California and had a forced landing where it was said it landed perpendicular to a rural road, hopped a ditch, the road, and cleared (barely) two telephone poles with the wingtips coming to a stop with minimum damage. The story went that an engine change was done and it was flown out (maybe after the poles were brought down). Marginal length of "runway" used in both cases. I used to have the local newspaper clipping, and the evening before photos, but the late Gene Frank bought the scrapbook from me in 1988.

Does anyone know the whole story?