COBI Building Set HC WW2 Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress (COBI-5750)

Building set of the famous American bomber Boeing B-17 from the 8th Army, 615th Bombardment Squadron. The assembled model has adjustable control surfaces, retractable landing gear, an opening bomb bay, rotating propellers, and rotating anti-aircraft turrets. It includes a pilot figure, a gunner figure, a set of bombs, and bricks with descriptions. The building set is made under the official license of The Boeing Company.

Recommended age: 10+
Number of bricks: 1210 pcs
Package weight: 1640 g
Scale: 1:48
Number of figures: 2 pcs
Box dimensions (package): 62 x 32 x 7.5 cm
Dimensions after assembly: 66 x 49 x 13 cm
Bricks can be combined with another well-known brand: Yes
Contains glowing bricks: No
Material: Plastic
Collection: World War II

Interesting facts:
» The aircraft first flew on July 28, 1935.
» During the first flight, it was decided that chief designer Edward C. Wells and Gifford Emery had created something exceptional, as the aircraft exceeded almost all expected parameters.
» Representatives of the American army were so impressed with the bomber's performance that they ordered 65 aircraft for the USAF even before the competition for a new bomber was evaluated.
» The first flight was also watched by Seattle Times reporter Richard Smith, who was so impressed by the size and armament of the bomber that he called it the Flying Fortress in his article. This designation was so apt that it made its way into many official records.
» Even the first versions had several imperfections, but from the E series, it was an exceptional machine that found little competition.
» The aircraft was already equipped with the super-secret NORDEN bomb sight, which the crew selected just before takeoff and had to return immediately upon landing.
» All security measures around the sight were actually unnecessary because in 1938 one of the designers, Herman Lang, handed over the documentation to the Germans.
» The inventor of the sight, Carl Norden, invented the principle of precise targeting to save civilian lives.
» Mrs. Norden never forgave her husband for creating this sight. For her, it was a war weapon like any other.
» The B-17 bomber demonstrated extraordinary resilience, returning from missions heavily damaged, torn, but still airworthy.
» Of the 1.5 million tons of bombs dropped on Nazi Germany, 640,000 tons were dropped from the B-17.
» Boeing produced 14 to 16 of them daily. No opponent on the Axis of Evil could match this production pace.
» A total of 12,731 units were produced.
» The price of one aircraft at that time was approximately $238,329.
» Today, there are about 6 units worldwide capable of flight operations.
» This particular aircraft from the 8th Air Force, 401st Bombardment Group, and 615th Bombardment Squadron was named Mary Alice by the crew after Captain John W. Henson's daughter. The bomber completed more than 28 missions.

Technical specifications of the original
Dimensions: wingspan 31.6 m, length 22.8 m, height 5.9 m
Empty weight: 16,400 kg, Maximum takeoff weight: 29,660 kg
Powerplant: 4 x Wright R-1820-97 radial engine, each with 895 kW
Maximum speed: 460 km/h
Climb rate: 4.6 m/s
Maximum flight altitude: 10,800 m
Range: 3,200 km
Armament: 12x M2 Browning machine gun caliber 12.7 mm + 3,600 kg of aerial bombs
Crew: 10