It is hard to appreciate the huge gamble that Boeing took with the Model 299 way back in the 1930s. Notably, it wasn't built with a cent of Army money and, whatsmore, the company was in difficult circumstances at the time, When an invitation was received from the Army on August 8, 1934, to submit a company-owned design in a fly-off bomber design competition to be held at Wright Field in August, 1935, Boeing decided to enter. Boeing had to determine that a four-engine design was acceptable under the rules, which specified a "multi-engine" design capable of carrying a 2000-lb. bomb load a desired distance of 2200 miles at a required top speed of 200 m.p.h. but a desired top speed of 250 m.p.h. A visit to Wright Field by Boeing President Claire Egtvedt brought official assurance that the term "multi-engine", then commonly applied to twin-engine designs, also included four engines. Using the extra power to carry the small load faster, Boeing plunged ahead with Model 299 and this is a model of the amazing result.

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