Found Footage Of The Real Memphis Belle From World War II-Tugs At Your Heart

There She Is.

There are many World War II bombers and crews that got a lot of publicity and became famous during the war, but one of the most famed was the B-17 Flying Fortress by the name of Memphis Belle. Everyone who fought on the Allied side in that war is a hero in our book, of course, and we don’t mean to downplay anyone else’s’ role in it.

Memphis Belle was just publicized and has remained an icon for all these years.

The reason this plane is so well known is because it was one of the first B-17s to finish a full tour of duty which consisted of 25 combat missions without losing a crew member. That was quite rare at a time when bombers were shot down left an right.

Here’s a list of the crew of the Memphis Belle:

• Pilot: Captain Robert K. Morgan
• Co-pilot: Captain James A. Verinis
• Navigator: Captain Charles B. Leighton
• Bombardier: Captain Vincent B. Evans
• The First Engineer/Top Turret Gunner: Leviticus “Levy” Dillon
• The Second Engineer/Top Turret Gunner: Eugene Adkins
• The Third Engineer/Top Turret Gunner: Harold P. Loch
• Radio Operator: Robert Hanson
• Ball Turret Gunner: Cecil Scott
• Right Waist Gunner: E. Scott Miller
• Right Waist Gunner: Casmer A “Tony” Nastal
• Left Waist Gunner: Clarence E. “Bill” Winchell
• Tail Gunner: John P. Quinlan
• Crew Chief: Joe Giambrone

After completing their grueling missions, Memphis Belle and the crew were chosen to return to the United States to sell war bonds. Painted as heroes (which they were, see above), they flew around the states to inspire confidence in Americans that the war can, and will, be won.

We found a whole lot of footage of Memphis Belle during World War II and compiled it into a short clip below. Hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

It’s truly incredible that over 70 years later you can see such intimate footage of this crew and their plane.