42-29815 | American Air Museum

Nicknames: Miami Clipper
Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Production block number: B17F-75-na
Manufacturer: Boeing
Markings & paint scheme: Nose art painted by Tony Starcer On the Miami clipper there was originally a different crew, until they were sent home because of a three death mission. The nose art consisted of a bikini girl and ''Miami Clipper'' after the famous railroad train. On a later crew, a palm tree and distinctive orange circle were added behind the bikini girl. The plane was all olive green and in yellow are the tail codes and serial number. Major Burton flew 28 missions with the Miami Clipper. A.W. Burton, my great grandfather, went on to nuclear testing in 1946 for Operation Crossroads. He also trained a co-pilot who went down on his first mission on the ''Boston Bombshell." His new co-pilot earned the purple heart when he was hit with flak in the Adams apple. The great plane was scrapped in 1946. A.W. died in 2014.

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42-29815 Miami Clipper

media-26070.jpeg UPL 26070 42-29815 "Miami Clipper" & Crew

"Capt Albert W Burton and crew of the 322nd Bomb Sq., 91st Bomb Group, 8th Air Force, in front of a Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" 'Miami Clipper'. England, 10 April 1944."

Rear L-R: T/Sgt Matthew Fronko, T/Sgt W. Pridgen, S/Sgt Stanley John Cantrell, S/Sgt Ted Eicke, S/Sgt William Schofield, S/Sgt Walter Cyr.
Front L-R: Capt Albert W Burton, Lt Jim Buchanan, Lt August Ballay. Hutchinson & Cortright

Contact with Pridgen's son - his last name was spelled wrong.

Object Number - UPL 26070 - 42-29815 "Miami Clipper" & Crew "Capt Albert W Burton and crew of the 322nd Bomb Sq., 91st Bomb Group, 8th Air Force, in front of a Boeing B-17...

Delivered Denver 22/2/43; Gore 9/3/43; Duncan 31/3/43; Assigned 367BS/306BG [GY-N] Thurleigh 20/4/43 JACKIE ELLEN; transferred 322BS/91BG [LG-P] Bassingbourn 11/9/43; AFSC 7/4/44; Returned to the USA Amarillo 16/4/44; Reconstruction Finance Corporation (sold for scrap metal in USA) Walnut Ridge 9/1/46; MIAMI CLIPPER.

Connections

See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.

Units served with

The insignia of the 322nd Bomb Squadron, 91st Bomb Group.

322nd Bomb Squadron

Unit Hierarchy: Squadron
Air Force: Eighth Air Force
Type Category: Bombardment

Unofficial emblem of the 91st Bomb Group.

91st Bomb Group

Unit Hierarchy: Group
Air Force: Eighth Air Force
Type Category: Bombardment

People

Argentos, James 18108164 T/Sgt. 367th BS 306th BG Air Corps

James Argentos

Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
Nationality: American
Unit: 306th Bomb Group 367th Bomb Squadron
Service Numbers: 18108164
Highest Rank: Technical Sergeant (2nd Grade)

August Alex Ballay

Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
Nationality: American
Unit: 91st Bomb Group 322nd Bomb Squadron
Service Numbers: 18137500 / O-?
Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
Role/Job: Bombardier

James Buchanan

Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
Nationality: American
Unit: 91st Bomb Group 322nd Bomb Squadron
Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
Role/Job: Navigator

Albert Winter Burton

Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
Nationality: American
Unit: 91st Bomb Group 322nd Bomb Squadron
Service Numbers: 19073206 / O-741961
Highest Rank: Major
Role/Job: Pilot

Stanley John Cantrell

Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
Nationality: American
Unit: 91st Bomb Group 322nd Bomb Squadron
Highest Rank: Master Sergeant
Role/Job: Engineer

Places

Aerial photograph of Bassingbourn airfield looking east, Whaddon is at the top, the bomb dump is to the left of the main runway, which runs vertically; the control tower and technical site with four C-Type hangars is on the right, 23 August 1945. Photograph taken by No. 542 Squadron, sortie number RAF/106G/UK/692. English Heritage (RAF Photography).

Bassingbourn

Site type: Airfield

A bomber crew of the 306th Bomb Group wave to Picture Post Girls in front of a B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 41-24471) nicknamed "Four of a Kind" at Thurleigh in December 1942. Image stamped on reverse: '"Picture Post" [stamp], 'Passed for Publication 11 Dec 1942.' [stamp], '238038.' [Censor no.] Handwritten in censor's blue pencil on reverse: 'American Flying Fortress crew are introduced to the girls they will meet at Picture Post Xmas Party.'

Thurleigh

Site type: Airfield
Known as: Bedford

Revisions

Date25 Jul 2021 21:23:02

Contributoracbernstein1

ChangesChanges to unit associations

Sources

http://www.91stbombgroup.com/crewphotos/miamiclipper.html

Date25 Jul 2021 21:21:09

Contributoracbernstein1

ChangesChanges to markings

Sources

http://www.91stbombgroup.com/nose_artists/starcer.html

Date6 Nov 2020 13:17:06

Contributorphil marchese

ChangesChanges to description

Sources

FLYING FORTRESS 1936 1945; MARCHESE, et al, Nov 3-6, 2020.

Date8 Jul 2020 05:14:42

ContributorThreeB

ChangesChanges to production block number and markings

Sources

Direct family

Date1 Jun 2020 14:58:33

Contributorsonantcarp179

ChangesChanges to production block number, manufacturer, nicknames and markings

Sources

the Miami clipper is a b17f-75-na of the 91st bomb group.

Date27 Sep 2014 18:40:24

ContributorAAM

ChangesAAM ingest

Sources

Dave Osborne, B-17 Fortress Master Log

42-29815: Gallery (7 items)

A B-17 Flying Fortress (LG-P, serial number 42-29815) nicknamed "Miami Clipper" of the 91st Bomb Group lands at Bassingbourn, 1943. Image by William D "Bill" Pulliam, 91st Bomb Group. Written on slide casing: 'Miami Clipper landing, 1943.'

Object number: FRE 5660 - A B-17 Flying Fortress (LG-P, serial number 42...

A B-17 Flying Fortress (LG-P, serial number 42-29815) nicknamed "Miami Clipper" of the 91st Bomb Group lands at Bassingbourn, 1943. Image by William D "Bill" Pulliam, 91st Bomb Group. Written on slide casing: 'Miami Clipper landing, 1943.'

Object number: FRE 5674 - A B-17 Flying Fortress (LG-P, serial number 42...

Object number: UPL 17246 - Official USAAF caption : "ENGLAND - Boeing B-17...

Object number: UPL 26070 - 42-29815 "Miami Clipper" & Crew "Capt Albert W...

Object number: UPL 32984 - "Two Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses of the 91st...

Object number: UPL 45700 - B-17F-70 -BO 42-29815 of 306th BG with officers...

Object number: UPL 45701 - B-17F-70-BO, 42-29815, JACKIE ELLEN, with crew...