From: Eric Weir
On Jun 28, 2013, at 3:21 PM, mike wilson <[email protected]> wrote:
Still looking for info on the polka-dot B17?..
Yeah, I've seen quite a few photos of B17s, but never one like that.
There must have been a reason.
I found an article in Wikipedia that said they were used to assemble the
formations before the bombers would fly off to Germany. The paint scheme
made it easy for the bombers to find it up in the sky.
From what I gather, the weather in England was frequently overcast. When
the bombers took off they had to climb above the clouds alone. Once they
were above the clouds, the assembly ship provided an easily identifiable
visual reference for assembling the bomber group.
Once the formation was complete the group leader would take over to lead
the mission and the polka-dot plane would return to base.
Apparently they used older aircraft that were no longer able to be flown
on bombing missions over Germany.
If you use Google Image search for "formation assembly ship", this site
is in the top row:
http://www.ww2aircraft.net/forum/aircraft-pictures/what-story-about-b-17-a-19761.html
Scroll down to posting #15.
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