In October 1942, the Germans got their first real look at a B-17 bomber when they found one that had crashed. They took it to their Rechlin test center and studied it closely. This was a big deal, because they didn’t capture a fully intact B-17 until two months later.
The Luftwaffe’s opinions were mixed. Some were impressed, while others were dismissive.
Colonel Adolf Galland, one of Germany’s top fighter commanders, was struck by the plane’s power. He admitted:
"It’s fast and it has big guns."
The Germans quickly realized the B-17 was built for daylight bombing. They were surprised to see it carrying eleven heavy machine guns, using special ammunition they had never seen before. Later, they even recovered one of the Americans’ most advanced tools — the Norden bombsight, which allowed extremely precise targeting. Ironically, German spies had stolen its design before the war even started.
But not everyone in the Luftwaffe was equally impressed. Field Marshal Erhard Milch, a senior officer, warned that American bombers posed a real danger. He predicted that one day they would strike German cities from as high as 28,000 to 30,000 feet.
Others brushed off his concerns. Luftwaffe Chief of Staff Hans Jeschonnek confidently declared:
"We will shoot down four-engine bombers the same way we take out twin-engine ones."
The reality turned out very differently. Milch was right. Even though German fighters destroyed many bombers, the U.S. attacks kept growing stronger in 1943. American raids smashed German cities, and Milch later called 1943 “the year of clenched teeth.” By March, he warned again that Germany’s towns were in serious danger — and by then, everyone could see he was correct.
