SAAB B17 Duxford Battle of Britain Air Show 2024

Video from the channel PlanesTV about Duxford Battle of Britain Air Show 2024, linked on its Above Ten Thousand entry. Duration: 8:57. Language: English. Video type: Air show.

Display of the Saab B 17A from the Swedish Air Force Historic Flight at the Duxford Battle of Britain Air Show 2024. According to the commentator, it is the last flying example in the world, and this is only its second appearance at Duxford since the 2005 Flying Legends.

The aircraft takes off and performs a full aerobatic routine, with several passes and dives, up to the final pass and landing. The huge fairings on the landing gear legs, intended as dive brakes that in practice were barely used, can be seen clearly.

The B 17 was born out of the expansion of the Swedish Air Force in the mid-1930s. It was designed by ASJA, which later merged into Saab, and shows the influence of the American engineers who were supporting licensed production in Sweden of the Northrop 8A-1 and the NA-16. It was conceived for reconnaissance and army cooperation, with wheels, skis or floats, and was also developed as a dive bomber. The prototype flew in May 1940. 325 units were built, equipping six wings. The reconnaissance S 17BLs reached Wing F 3 at Malmslätt in February 1942, and the B 17A bomber reached Wing F 4 at Östersund in 1944. Despite Swedish neutrality, it had incidents with German anti-aircraft fire and with a Bf 109. It was withdrawn from front-line service around 1947-1948, although the last one was not decommissioned until late 1955. It also flew in Ethiopia until the 1970s. The example on display dates from 1943 and served with Wing F 7. It later became a target tug, passed to the Swedish Air Force Museum, and flew again in June 1997.