Aero Vintage Books has introduced a powerful new online resource, the B-17 Production List, offering detailed histories of all 12,730 Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses produced, along with the sole Model 299 prototype. The database is the product of a collaboration between Aero Vintage’s Scott Thompson and UK-based aviation researcher Stewart Lanham.
The tool enables users to search by serial number, aircraft name, unit, station, civil registration number, or other keywords to retrieve complete service records. Each entry includes information on operational history, modifications, assignments, incidents, and the aircraft’s final disposition, often tracing its journey from acceptance into U.S. Army Air Forces service through to post-war outcomes such as scrapping or civilian conversion.
For example, entering the serial number from the obscure B-17 photo above reveals the history of B-17G “42-97121,” which served with the 92nd Bomb Group at Podington, Bedfordshire. The aircraft was damaged during an August 1944 mission to Peenemünde, forced to land in Sweden, later returned to U.S. custody, repatriated, and ultimately scrapped in 1946. Lanham compiled the data from thousands of published and unpublished sources, including primary archival materials, creating a reference exceeding 4,000 pages. While still a work in progress—particularly for portions of the B-17G production run—the database already represents one of the most comprehensive public compilations of Flying Fortress histories.
To support ongoing refinement, the site includes a forum where users can submit corrections and additional information. The creators acknowledge that errors are inevitable but stress that updates will be continuous. For historians, researchers, and aviation enthusiasts, the B-17 Production List is set to become an invaluable tool for tracing the life stories of individual Flying Fortresses from factory rollout to final fate.
Click HERE to use the tool.
Many thanks indeed to Scott A. Thompson for creating this tool… his book, Final Cut: The Post-War B-17 Flying Fortress and Survivors as well as other titles are the gold standard when it comes to the airframe history it describes!
