Hold altitude.
Bring the airplane back into normal flight.
But normal control inputs might create abnormal loads in the damaged tail.
A sudden pull on the control column could deflect the elevator sharply.
That could place additional stress on the remaining fuselage connection.
A hard rudder input could do the same through yaw.
The pilots needed to keep the airplane stable without asking the tail to do more than necessary.
Gentle inputs.
Small corrections.
Avoid unnecessary maneuvering.
This sounds simple.
Try doing it in combat with enemy fighters nearby and an aircraft that feels different from anything you have flown before.
Every movement becomes a negotiation.
The pilot is no longer commanding the airplane normally.
He is persuading it.
The German Fighter Threat Had Not Disappeared
Damage does not create a ceasefire.
A crippled bomber is often more attractive to enemy fighters because it can no longer maneuver effectively or maintain formation.
All American's crew still needed their guns.
Other American aircraft in the area could offer some protection through formation and defensive fire.
But nobody could guarantee another fighter would not attack.
This created a terrible contradiction.
The safest response to enemy attack might require maneuver.
The safest response to structural damage required avoiding maneuver.
The crew needed to survive the enemy without breaking their own airplane.
This is where escort and formation support mattered.
Other bombers could help make attacks more dangerous for German fighters.
All American needed to remain near friendly aircraft when possible.
Yet its damaged condition could also make maintaining formation difficult.
The airplane was trapped between competing requirements.
Someone Outside the B-17 Could See the Damage Better Than Anyone Inside
Other aircrews looked across and saw the rear fuselage.
The famous photographs came from this perspective.
They show exactly why the incident became legendary.
The damage is not a small hole.
Not a missing panel.
Not a few bullet strikes.
A huge portion of structure appears absent.
A person seeing the photograph without knowing the outcome could reasonably predict the tail would separate within seconds.
The crew aboard did not need a photograph.
Reports told them enough.
The aircraft was barely holding together.
The mission had changed completely.
Bombing no longer mattered.
Formation position no longer mattered except for protection.
Combat efficiency no longer mattered.
There was only one objective.
Reach friendly ground without asking the airplane to do anything it could no longer survive.
The Four Engines Became One of Their Greatest Advantages
All American still possessed substantial power.
This was critical.
A severely damaged aircraft that also loses engines can be forced to descend.
Descent may increase airspeed.
Low altitude removes options.
Asymmetric power can create yaw that stresses the tail further.
A B-17 with multiple functioning engines can be managed more gently.
The pilots could use power adjustments to help control speed and attitude.
If necessary, differential engine power could assist with directional control, though using it aggressively could introduce more yaw.
Every engine therefore became part of the control strategy.
Not simply propulsion.
Four engines also allowed the crew to choose a slower, steadier return rather than accepting a steep descent immediately.
Time increased.
So did the chance of reaching home.
But Time Was Also Dangerous
The longer they remained airborne, the longer airflow pulled on the weakened tail.
Every vibration accumulated fatigue.
Every gust represented another load cycle.
The crew wanted to reach the base quickly.
They also could not simply push the throttles forward and race home.
Higher speed means larger aerodynamic forces.
Aerodynamic loads generally increase with the square of airspeed.
That means a modest increase in speed can produce a much larger increase in force on surfaces.
For an intact airplane, the structure is designed with safety margins.
For a nearly severed fuselage, nobody knows the remaining margin.
So the crew faced another contradiction.
Get home fast.
Do not fly fast.
The correct solution was not maximum speed.
It was the fastest speed the damaged aircraft could tolerate safely enough.
Determining that speed required judgment.
The Tail Gun Position Had Become a Dangerous Place to Occupy
The tail gunner sat inside the very section whose connection to the airplane had almost failed.
Every movement of his body changed weight distribution slightly.
More importantly, if the tail separated, he would be trapped inside it.
Crew procedures in a damaged bomber often required moving people away from compromised areas.
Yet weight distribution also matters in flight.
Moving crew members forward changes the center of gravity.
A forward center of gravity can increase stability in some respects but also changes control forces and trim requirements.
The crew had to think about where people should be.
This was not theoretical aircraft engineering in a classroom.