Thrashing away on three engines and a feathered prop, with flak damage to her wing and tail, this B-17F has survived another brutal mission over Germany...but just barely. The
Betty Boop/Pistol Packin’ Mama will make it through this day. The white line on the horizon is a bomber crew’s most prayed-for sight: the chalk cliffs of England. Now the P-47 escort, mixture leaned out & flying on fumes, can peel off and slide down toward their base.
Operating out of Framlingham, England on October 10, 1943,
Betty Boop/Pistol Packin’ Mama, of the 390th Bomb Group, 570th Bomb Squadron, was one of 133 B-17s dispatched for a daylight raid on Munster to target the railroad station and yard. Takeoff went smoothly and twelve P-47 fighter escorts arrived to provide top cover, until reaching the limit of the fighter's range. At that crucial juncture, the fighters turned for England and the bombers faced unrestrained German fighters while making their runs after a concentrated and violent attack.
The sky was blackened with flak and peppered with over 200 German fighters including Fw190s, JU-88s and Me109s, Me110s and Me210s. For the 390th, eight crews and aircraft, out of their departing nineteen, were lost. The mission was grueling; the losses were brutal.
Bill Phillips’
When Prayers are Answered is a visually stunning work of contemporary art from one of the most sought-after and collected aviation artists of our time. It's an exquisite piece of historic and patriotic art for your home or office.
Thrashing away on three engines and a feathered prop, with flak damage to her wing and tail, this B-17F has survived another brutal mission over Germany...but just barely. The Betty Boop/Pistol Packin’ Mama will make it through this day. The white line on the horizon is a bomber crew’s most prayed-for sight: the chalk cliffs of England. Now the P-47 escort, mixture leaned out & flying on fumes, can peel off and slide down toward their base.
