Hell's Belles.
The first 8th AF B-17 to complete 25 missions was of course…. ‘Hell’s Angels’
So why does the credit lie with her considerably more famous sister ship the ‘Memphis Belle’?
The answer is bureaucratic in nature - the aircraft’s moniker was not seen as wholesome enough by many promoting a righteous struggle, and despite ‘Hell’s Angels’ having achieved the feat first, and without her crew flying a spare for several of the 25 sorties, the honour fell to her well-known counterpart who matched the achievement that month.
‘Hell’s Angels’ would go on to complete a remarkable 48 missions without any incidences of a crewman being injured.
Truly she had a guardian watching over her somewhere!
