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What’s inside
Word-built floor plans walk the B-17G, B-24H/J and Lancaster I/III compartment by compartment. You follow every hatch and every route a man took to his station, from the roughly ten-inch bomb bay catwalk to the climb over the Lancaster's main spar in the dark.
Every position, up close covers each man's duties, equipment, view, working space and conditions. That means the bombardier on the Norden sight, the navigator working bare-handed in the cold, the ball gunner folded into a turret about 44 inches across, and the Lancaster pilot flying with no co-pilot.
Guns and fields of fire compares the .50 and .303 Brownings, explains how belts and ammunition tracks fed each gun, and covers sights and blind spots. Tables set out every gun position on the B-17G, B-24J and Lancaster I.
Two missions, hour by hour follow a composite Eighth Air Force daylight raid from the 3 a.m. wake-up to debriefing, and a Bomber Command night operation through the eyes of all seven men. Both are clearly labeled as reconstructions drawn from documented practice.
Cold, oxygen and getting out covers heated suits, iced-up masks, flak suits and frostbite. It then goes through every exit, parachute and ditching drill in all three aircraft, and why escape was harder from some stations than others.
Honest about the evidence labels documented figures apart from qualitative judgments throughout. A full chapter tests the popular safest-to-deadliest rankings against the casualty data, and firsthand accounts come only from named, published sources.
280 pagesInstant download7-day guarantee
It’s for you if…
You know how fast a Fortress or a Lancaster flew, and now you want to know what it felt like to kneel in the tail or lie prone in the nose for hours.
You build models or walk through museum aircraft, and you want to understand what you are looking at: the catwalk, the spar, the ball turret door, the crawl to the tail.
A father, grandfather or great-uncle flew as a gunner, navigator or pilot, and you want to picture his seat and trace his records through missing aircrew reports, Operations Record Books and CWGC files.
About Inside the Steel
Inside the Steel is the YouTube channel behind this book. Its 31 videos explore WWII crews seat by seat, including what it was like to fight inside a B-17 ball turret and tail position and alone in a Lancaster's rear turret. This book takes that same close-up approach further, with the evidence checked and the limits of the sources stated plainly, including those of the channel's own rankings.
7-day guarantee
Take your time with the guide. If it hasn’t helped you within 7 days, email jol.business.projects@proton.me and we’ll refund you. No questions asked.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get the guide?
Right after payment the download page opens, and you also get an email with the link. Nothing is shipped, no waiting.
What format is it?
A 280-page PDF that reads well on a phone, tablet or computer. You can print it too.
Is the payment secure?
Yes. Payment is handled by Stripe, the system used by millions of online shops. We never see your card details.
What if I don’t like it?
You have 7 days to ask for a refund at jol.business.projects@proton.me.
Take every seat, from nose to tail
Read it straight through or go straight to one station, and come back to it every time you see one of these aircraft, build one or trace a crew.
