**B-17 JETs now ship on 50pt UV printed cardstock which is featured in the main product image (black background). Original product photos are included in this listing for archival purposes.**
The B-17E marked a major evolutionary step in the B-17 lineage, entering service in 1941 with substantial combat-driven redesigns. Most notably, the B-17E introduced an entirely new tail section with a powered tail gun position to counter rear attacks, along with an enlarged vertical stabilizer, and improved defensive armament. Of the 12,731 B-17s built, only 512 were Es.
S/N 41-9210 was delivered to the U.S. Army Air Forces in 1941 and was used by Honeywell to develop the C-1 Autopilot and later in 1945 acquired by the University of Minnesota. After changing hands several times and being traded away in exchange for a Cessna 170 in 1952, the aircraft ended up in Bolivia in 1974. From 1974 to the late 80s it served as a freighter for Fri Reyes Aviation as CP-753. It crashed once, was rebuilt, and after sitting derelict for years, rescued by Don Whittington/World Jet Inc in 1989. At that time, it was restored on site in Bolivia for its ferry flight home to Ft. Lauderdale, FL, where it underwent a full airworthy restoration. In 1998 41-9210 was acquired by the Paul Allen/Flying Heritage Collection.
JETs Vol. 26-05 has been cut from the original fuselage tail cone removed from B-17E 41-9210 during its restoration and is offered in 7 variants: Raw Laser-etched, Raw Printed, Green, Painted, Riveted, Structured, and Color Printed.
The Green and Painted JETs feature original paint. The Structured JETs are thick, heavy, and layered and feature rivets and multiple pieces of fuselage skin. The Color Printed JETs are full-color printed with the card art design by Ryan Quickfall and have been lightly buffed. The Green and Painted tags have portions of original paint and primer.
A Super Tigre Set is available that includes a Color Printed JET + Structured JET + Air Drops AD401 Polished + Air Drops AD708.
A B-17 Combo is available that includes a Color Printed JET + Structured JET.
400 total tags were cut for this release.
PLEASE NOTE: Photos represent examples of each variant. Paint colors, rivet holes, and other features are different for every tag.
