[Geek44]

The pic with the engine falling off is a B-26 mate. A Martin Marauder. Called 'The Flying Prostitute' by its crews because it had 'no visible means of support'. Its wing was small for the aircraft making it harder to fly. It had high landing speeds and killed many trainees. The other quote surrounding this aircraft was 'One per day in the Bay' meaning that many crashed. It was a real hot-rod though with high performance and was so efficient, it had the lowest loss rate of any US bomber type.
The B-17 was able to sustain more damage than the B-24. In fact, the B-24 was considered quite fragile compared. It's great advantage was its range due to its highly advanced wing, narrow and deep. This aircraft was able to fly from England clear across Europe to land in Africa or Russia. Quite a feat for its time. Compare the wing plan of the B-24 to modern commercial aircraft.