The 367th Bomb Squadron “Clay Pigeons” had adopted a small orphan girl, Maureen Giddings and nicknamed her “Sweet Pea” after whom AC #42-5130 was named. At the christening, she dipped her hand in paint and placed her handprint on the aircraft as a form of dedication.
This aircraft also had another distinction of being the first B-17F model to be fitted with a field modification .50 caliber gun mount in the nose designed by armorer James Green and welder Ben Marcilonis to solve the problem of bombers being attacked head on by German fighters. With sufficient firepower in the nose, the B-17 F models were vulnerable to direct frontal attacks which resulted in the high death rates of pilots and co-pilots.
This modification proved to be so successful that it was adopted not only by the 306th Bomb Group but the 8th Air Force as a whole and became part of modification features made to the B-17G models. The G Model began replacing the F Model in September 1943, and with its Bendix twin .50 caliber guns chin turret, it made the B-17 much more formidable against head-on attacks.
For their innovative work, Green and Marcilonis were awarded the Legion of Merit in April 1943. However, Green was in a German prison camp by that time having been shot down by flak on March 6 flying in the “Sweet Pea” serving as right waist gunner on a mission to bomb the U-Boat pens at Lorient, France.