The Swoose

The Swoose
The Swoose in bare metal finish, 1944
General information
TypeBoeing B-17 Flying Fortress
ManufacturerBoeing Airplane Company
OwnersUSAF
Serial40-3097
History
In service25 April 1941 to February 1944
Preserved atUnder restoration at the National Museum of the United States Air Force

The Swoose is a Boeing B-17D-BO Flying Fortress, USAAF serial number 40-3097, that saw extensive use in the Southwest Pacific theatre of World War II and survived to become the oldest B-17 still intact. It is the only early "shark fin"-tailed B-17 known to exist, and the only surviving B-17 to have seen action in the 1941–42 Philippines Campaign, operating on the first day of the United States entry into the war.[1]

  1. ^ The "Swoose", rootsweb, 17 December 2003, retrieved 24 January 2010