Post by Diarist on Sept 28, 2015 21:15:12 GMT 1
The maiden flight of the Model 299 was on 28 July 1935 with Boeing chief test-pilot Leslie Tower at the controls. Richard Williams, a reporter for the Seattle Times, coined the name "Flying Fortress" when the Model 299 was rolled out bristling with multiple machine gun installations. The most unusual gun emplacement was the nose installation, which allowed the single machine gun to be fired toward almost any frontal angle that an approaching enemy fighter could take to attack the B-17.