Production. B-17F heavy bombers. Two soldiers of the production lines at the Long Beach, California, plant of Douglas Aircraft Company. The woman in the foreground works inside of a B-17F heavy bomber nacelle; the woman in the background moves spot-welded wing sheets. Better known as the "Flying Fortress," the B-17F is a later model of the B-17, which distinguished itself in action in the South Pacific, over Germany and elsewhere. It is a long range, high altitude, heavy bomber with a crew of seven to nice men and with armament sufficient to defend itself on daylight missions