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​B-17 Bomber Formation - 1943

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All the relative distances and positions of the bombers in this Virtual Tour reflect an accurate "box" formation that American bombers used to employ in 1942-43 for mutual protection from German fighters.   The Germans had found that the greatest weakness of the B-17 bomber formation was its front, so they developed tactics to attack the bombers head-on with a high combined closing speed.  Also, the faster they passed through, the harder it was for the bomber's gunners to hit them.  ​

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Some German pilots claimed they'd close their eyes when flying through a bomber formation head-on as it was rather intimidating to fly straight into a group of enemy planes at such speeds.  Later versions of the B-17 bomber had added machine guns in the 'chin' position, just under the nose Plexiglas to counteract these tactics and offer the bomber more protection.​​