Sounds just like the beginning of the movie “The Best Years of Our Lives” (1946), when Dana Andrews,USAAF Captain, bums a stateside ride on a B-17 to get home quicker. Great scenery from the bombardier’s bubble in the front of the bomber.
As he leaves, you see in the background rows of B-17s ready to be scrapped at the airport.
I’ll have to check the movie out