During the War, the 303rd flew 364 missions, more than any other Eighth Air Force B-17 group, and one group Fort, “Hell’s Angels”, was the first to complete 25 missions, while another, “Knock Out Dropper”, was the first to complete 50 and 75 missions. Only one other group delivered more bomb tonnage than the 303rd. However, the group lost 165 planes, more than five times its authorized strength of 30 B-17s.[1]
The Hells Angels originated on March 17, 1948 in Fontana, California, when several small motorcycle clubs agreed to merge.[7] Otto Friedli, a World War II veteran, is credited with starting the club after breaking from the Pissed Off Bastardsmotorcycle club over a feud with a rival gang.[8]
The name was first suggested by an associate of the founders named Arvid Olsen, who had served in the “Hell’s Angels” squadron of the Flying Tigers in China during World War II.[10] It is at least clear that the name was inspired by the tradition from World Wars I and II whereby the Americans gave their squadrons fierce, death-defying titles; an example of this lies in one of the three P-40 squadrons of Flying Tigers fielded in Burma and China, which was dubbed “Hell’s Angels”.[11]