Wabash Cannonball

[der nicht singende Barde]

B-17F-80-BO #42-29947 Wabash Cannonball of the 303rd BG, Molesworth, September 1944. Originally flew with the 322nd BS / 91st BG as LG●U. After 58 missions it was declared war-weary and stripped of armament. On 27th July 1943 it was sent to the 303rd BG as the Headquarters utility aircraft. After Tugboat Annie crashed, from September 1944 Wabash Cannonball overtook Annie’s tasks, including help during formation assembly. When the aircraft served with the 303rd BG it did not have any special scheme. It was painted in a standard camouflage of Olive Drab / Neutral Grey with red-outlined white Triangle/C on the vertical tail and starboard wing upper surface. The aircraft had an individual letter L in the place of the previous user’s fuselage codes which had been painted over. The original nose art and scoreboard (58 small orange bombs and 9 swastikas) remained. In June 1945 it returned to the USA. On 16th July 1945 it was scrapped in Oklahoma City, OK.