B-17 Bomber's Drift Meter Instrument, a Simple Clever Solution

The B-17 bombers B-5 Drift meter will be discussed. The drift meter is used to measure the bombers drift and ground speed. The drift meter was a simple and clever solution. Examples will be shown adopting the drift meter.

[@JeffBilkins]

The intent of this comment is to applaud the quality and detail of the videos published on this channel.

[@Chilly_Billy]

We all see what you did there! 😁

[@Whitpusmc]

Well said!

[@theflyingfool]

I heartily agree! The language used is refreshingly succinct and precise, so that no meaning is lost and no word is superfluous. The narrator is a model speaker that many could learn from. The detail ortrayed is interesting and very well explained. Kudos!

[@dukecraig2402]

I know, this channel has the absolute best information on US WW2 bombers especially the B17, he's dispelled many myths about them using credible sources instead of just repeating what's turned out to be rumors and myths that've built up over the years that people take for granted as being true, such as the Norden bombsight supposedly being inaccurate when in fact it was very accurate, and the defensive guns especially on the B29 being ineffective, and the true maximum internal bomb load of the B17 despite many videos and other sources especially one's concerning the Lancaster that the B17's maximum internal load was 4,000 lbs, I'd already found out previous to watching his video on it that it was actually 12,600 lbs but it's nice to see someone who's made a video that actually shows it in print from official sources and shows a diagram of all the different bomb stations in a B17 and how much each one is capable of holding. I especially like his video showing how the bomb release could be set via the "Intervalometer" to drop the bombs stacked in a rack at once or release them one at a time to spread them out along the bombers path, how painted B17's only weighed 75 lbs more than an unpainted one and were actually faster despite previous sources claiming they weighed up to 500 lbs more and that it cost them in speed. It's amazing how advanced the systems on these bombers were, from the in flight bomb arming system and release features to the lead computing gun sights in the top and belly turrets and especially the defensive guns system on the B29. The other day in the comments section of a video on the B29 there was some character who claimed that system on the B29 was so ineffective that the defensive guns were removed on them not long after they went into service (I'll lay odds he's a Lancaster fanboy, they love spreading misinformation around about US bombers and I've referred more than one to this channel although I doubt they ever checked it out, they hate the truth), I quickly corrected him with the fact that it was the special "Silverplate" atomic bomb delivery B29's that had the defensive guns removed as a weight saving measure for the sake of altitude and speed so they could escape the bombs blast, and with a kill to loss ratio of 11.9 to 1 which was higher than the P51's kill to loss ratio of 11.0 to 1 they certainly weren't removed because they were "ineffective and a waste of time and resources" as he claimed, I never did hear back from him.

[@jamesdewey3259]

@@theflyingfool 87

[@OtherWorldExplorers]

Good Lord I get the impression that you have enough spare parts in your garage to make a fully functioning B-17!!!

[@eaglescout1974]

I have learned so much from your videos. The research and production put into these videos is incredible. Keep up the good work.

[@WWIIUSBombers]

Glad you like them!

[@kenpreston7579]

I have a friend that is 96 yrs old. He was a navigator on B17. Shot down during 11th mission. Only crew member to survive. I'm very lucky to know this man and learn from him.

[@andrewbartczak5941]

I've been a military aircraft enthusiast since childhood. Never have I seen better descriptions of the specialized equipment used by our military. Thank you!

[@andreyplumer3990]

Great review! It's amazing how simple but yet powerful the tools were.

[@dennisfox8673]

As always great stuff. I love the detailed look and explanation you give on parts of the bomber that are generally glossed over.

[@Aviator27J]

Like a small version of the E6B! Cool. And also neat that they were made where I learned to fly, in Rochester, NY, home of Kodak.

[@alanlenning7747]

The Navy Martin SP-5B I navigated in 1966/67 had the B-5 Drift meter. It's been awhile since I used the B-5, so thanks for the refresher. I admit I didn't realize at the time I was using a B-17 nav tool.

[@bf945]

Very cool. Watching WWII B-17 movies, I always wondered how the Navigators could be so accurate in terms of checkpoints and turn points.

[@dukecraig2402]

I wonder how the fighter pilots especially in the Pacific where they had to fly over water for long periods compensated for wind drift when navigating.

[@johnsmith9161]

@@dukecraig2402 They had bombers to guide them on the long missions to Japan one P51 Pilot described how the bomber would wait for them to finish their mission then guide them back.He said on one occasion the bomber was being attacked when they went to form up on the return journey he said all the P51 pilots did all they could to save the bomber because if he did not make it back neither would they.

[@dukecraig2402]

@@johnsmith9161 No they didn't always have bombers guiding them, they flew plenty of fighter sweep missions without bombers.

[@SoloRenegade]

@@dukecraig2402 The same way VFR pilots without GPS navigate today, and by using some simple old school navigation tricks modern pilots seem to have forgotten.

[@scullystie4389]

I love how this dude seemingly has every subsystem from the B17 on demonstration carts in his house lol Absolutely love these videos, super informative yet succinct

[@curtmartinson5441]

Great information. I thought i knew alot about B17s but i learned something new . Thank you .keep up the good work!

[@P61guy61]

Finally! I saw one of these when I rode in the C-47 “That’s All Brother”. I looked through it in flight and guessed how it worked. Now I know a bit more.

[@davevandevenne8891]

This is turning into one of my favorite channels.

[@paoloviti6156]

Very interesting as I didn't realise the purpose and the importance of the drift meter that is after all a relatively simple device! Thanks for sharing this 👍 👍👍

[@theflyingfool]

That's a very interesting video of a fixed drift meter, which we can still use in planning cross country flights today. It forms part of a flight computer commonly called a "whizz wheel".

[@sparkey6746]

I've seen the drift meter before but never explained, thank you!

[@thesecretprotocolsofhirosh6780]

Brillliant exposition, look forward to more and related to B29!

[@MrLemonbaby]

As always the tech sophistication of this era delights me. Some time in the future you might consider design and teething problems of the '17. For example (as I've read) when it was known as the Type 299 the plane crashed because the pilot forgot to unlock the locks that keep the control surfaces from "wagging" in the wind when the aircraft is parked. Read that the newspapers had a hay-day claiming that the new plane was just too complex for humans to operate. Problem was solved by going through a check list before takeoff.

[@garygenerous8982]

I absolutely love these videos and hope you keep doing them. A lot of these items I have seen as part of a static display or in a simulation but most of the time there is very little information on how they were used. So please keep it up!

[@primmakinsofis614]

Another great video! Interesting stuff indeed.

[@katharinelong5472]

What a clever solution. It’s hard to imagine it would work well over water, though.

[@notmenotme614]

Or over cloud

[@redtobertshateshandles]

Nightime??😊

[@shakeydavesr]

Stuff like this, soooo cool. Keep it up.

[@rickcentore2801]

What an ingenious device, thanks for the excellent description!

[@Slaktrax]

What a wonderfully simple device and as usual explained in a helpful and detailed way to your usual standard, thanks 🙂 👍

[@dukecraig2402]

I'll bet finding out the wind drift with this device is how the bombardier new what the wind drift was for the wind drift setting on the Norden bombsight, the navigator would pass that information on to the bombardier I'll bet. I always wondered how the bombardier would know what the wind speed and direction was to set that value into the bombsight, I think that just got answered in this video.

[@c1ph3rpunk]

Wow, I’ve been and flown in a few 17’s and never knew this existed. Darn it, now I’ll have to go visit some again to see it. (checking EAA’s schedule)

[@McRocket]

Jeez! I had never heard of ANYTHING like this. Absolutely fascinating. Thank you!!! ☮

[@thatbme8736]

Learn something new everyday. Great video! I love the B-17 but don't recall ever hearing about this.

[@FernandoLXIX]

Very interesting device and excellent presentation 👍

[@Rkolb2798]

Brilliantly simple

[@jmfa57]

Very clever indeed! Thanks for another informative video!

[@tomkunkle318]

At 4:40 you mention that the pencil markings were erased with a damp cloth. Given the temperatures at combat altitudes, was a bit of alcohol provided for damping the cloth?

[@richardschaffer5588]

Alcohol was available on landing for ‘wetting the whistle!

[@KB4QAA]

TK: Breathing on the cloth or a bit of spit work just fine, or just use your thumb to rub it out. (old patrol plane navigator).

[@herberar]

I am amazed! Thank you!!!

[@skipmaag]

Thank you so much for your very informative videos !! We appreciate all of your efforts!!!

[@johnnicatra570]

Another on interesting video.Thank you.

[@mootpointjones8488]

Absolutely fascinating! Please continue with your excellent videos.

[@brucer81]

Very interesting. It’s the first video I have seen of the drift meter.

[@fightersweep]

Great video. I've always wondered how the drift meter worked, and now I know. I'll be binge watching your other videos now, and have another subscriber!

[@JGCR59]

a very interesting video, best explanation of a drift meter I have found sofar

[@flyingfortressrc1794]

Great video. I always wondered how those worked.

[@ogaugeclockwork4407]

Great content!

[@1joshjosh1]

These videos Kick Ass

[@johjoh978]

would a wet cloth freeze at that altitude?

[@randym1954tx]

Cool, well explained!

[@WWIIUSBombers]

Thanks!

[@Br1cht]

Brilliant

[@ypaulbrown]

Outstanding Video Sir...thank you so much.......

[@johnsmith9161]

Well Done keep it up.😀

[@NarbonneGauchoBoingo]

great video, had no idea they had those!

[@Arp1757]

Great!

[@petersardella4256]

Thanks! Always wonder how it worked.

[@gunsaway1]

That is clever!

[@Bigbacon]

You have everything! So lucky

[@WilliamHarbert69]

Great presentation.

[@davidburroughs2244]

Thanks, I had no idea what that was

[@RonLWilson]

interesting!

[@auxiliary4023]

I got lost within seconds but hung in there! 😂😂

[@ypaulbrown]

Thanks!

[@WWIIUSBombers]

Thank you so much for supporting my coffee fund!

[@ypaulbrown]

@@WWIIUSBombers sharing with my War Bird restoration friends.....cheers, you are doing a fantastic job.....Paul in Orlando,FL

[@imadrifter]

Awww yeaauuuhh, now we're talkin, boys. They should've named it B-17 Drifting Fortress

[@pbyguy7059]

Wow, that IS simple

[@briancavanagh7048]

When B17 bombers were flying in the box formation, would it be only the lead bomber in each box that would calculate drift?

[@SoloRenegade]

I suspect a good navigator didn't even bother using a pencil and simply adjusted the lines to match the path of the target feature and read off the protractor.

[@steves8236]

There's gotta be one of those Disney-produced animated training films on this gadget, right?

[@dukecraig2402]

Is this also how the bombardier would know what the wind speed and direction was for setting those values into the bombsight? Somehow after watching this I get the feeling the navigator would pass that information along to the bombardier so he'd know what they were, I've always wondered how he knew what they were and I'll bet I just found out.

[@KB4QAA]

DC: Yes, wind speed and direction are easily calculated with GS and Drift figures.

[@notmenotme614]

How would they calculate drift on a cloudy day? Especially before the introduction of H2X radar

[@briancavanagh7048]

Interesting point. The British, at night, didn’t do this, or did they? The British night bombing used radio signals, Gee-H, I believe. Did the US bombers ever use something similar to the British radio nav aids.

[@KB4QAA]

Not: The navigator would estimate it from 1. Weather forecasts 2. Previous aircraft reports 3. From other navigation sources like celestial, visual, radio 4. 'Best estimate"

[@jameswilsonf]

Who knew? I guess this info would be important to the bombardier as well.

[@johnt.kennedy3856]

What genius came up with this?

[@rikijett310]

All while taking machine gun, exploding cannon rounds, and flak fire. Sheesh!!!

[@peterswatton7400]

Not unlike calculating leeway in a ship or yacht.

[@richardschaffer5588]

Accuracy?

[@dukecraig2402]

Better than wetting your finger and sticking it out the window. I just wonder how fighter pilots, especially the one's who flew long periods over water like in the Pacific, compensated for wind drift.

[@erickent3557]

I suppose first step is getting the correct barometric pressures

[@dukecraig2402]

@@erickent3557 Barometric pressure didn't factor into the math for wind drift.

[@erickent3557]

@@dukecraig2402 But you definitely need accurate altimeter readings. Ah, yes, I'm focusing on the speed calculator, and not necessarily the angle calc.

[@50buttfish]

Never needed one skydiving; SPOT on target, get winds, lower & uppers. All done by a brain. Always on target.

[@laurenth7187]

While the nazis used radio guidance.

[@silverload3622]

No wonder why the Nordan bomb sight was Garbage

[@kenneth9874]

It did the job

[@Panzerkampf]

First!