South King News

Boeing, known for its production of B-17 Flying Fortress and B-29 Superfortress bombers during World War II, also operated a training school for flight engineers and mechanics at Boeing Field. The Museum of Flight’s Collections Department is working on a project to digitize materials from this school, thanks to a grant from 4Culture, King County’s cultural funding agency.

Museum Collections Intern Arabella Matthews has been focusing on an eight-volume history of the Superfortress School. This history was produced by the Army Air Forces Western Technical Training Command between January 1944 and October 1945. The school trained thousands in maintaining and operating the B-29 Superfortress. According to a World War II-era book published by Boeing, the school began operations five months before delivering the first aircraft to the US Army Air Forces.

The digitization project includes handbooks, manuals, and other items used by students at the school. It covers both B-17 mechanics training as a Flying Fortress School until 1944 and later B-29-related production and training.

During wartime, the facility featured barracks, classrooms, hangars, a theater, simulation aids, and full-size aircraft for training purposes. Today only one building remains: “Hangar 1,” which houses Boeing Flight Test's fleet of chase planes.

Once digitized, these items will be accessible through The Museum of Flight's digital collections site. They offer insights into maintaining these famous bombers as well as Seattle's wartime experience.

The secretive nature of the B-29 project means that accounts of wartime Seattle may not mention this school's presence or activities. "We're thrilled to be able to make these important and one-of-a-kind items about the history of our South Seattle community more accessible to our researchers and neighbors."