The flight engineer sat adjacent to the radio operator behind the pilots; he operated the upper gun turret (when fitted), located just behind the cockpit and in front of the wing. 51820. Approximately 18,500 B-24s were produced across a number of versions, including over 4,600 manufactured by Ford. These aircraft flew between the United Kingdom and Egypt (with an extensive detour around Spain over the Atlantic), and they were used in the evacuation of Java in the East Indies. The aircraft demonstrated unstable flight characteristics with all storage tanks filled, and proved very difficult to land fully loaded at airfields above 6,000ft (1,800m) MSL in elevation, such as those around Chengdu. [9] The C-87 also shared the Liberator's dangerous sensitivity to icing, particularly prevalent over Himalayan routes. Air Force Combat Units Of World War II. Primarily equipped with Boeing B-29 Superfortresses but there were two reconnaissance squadrons equipped with B-24s and F-7s that were stationed on the Northern Mariana Islands. It proved to be quite vulnerable to icing conditions, and was prone to fall into a spin with even small amounts of ice accumulated onto its Davis wing. The 36th Bombardment Squadron was the Eighth Air Force's only electronic warfare squadron using specially equipped B-24s to jam German VHF communications during large Eighth Air Force daylight raids. The Liberator II (referred to as the LB-30A by the USAAF[19]) were divided between Coastal Command, Bomber Command, and British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC). Did a B-24 Really Shoot Down a V-2 Rocket in 1944? All armament and armor were removed and in some cases the tail turret. The 44th destroyed both of its assigned targets, but lost 11 of its 37 bombers and their crews. Consolidated B-24 Liberator: The Loyal "Lumbering Lib" The waist gun hatches were provided with doors. 120 Squadron RAF of Coastal Command with its handful of worn and modified early model Liberators supplied the only air cover for convoys in the Atlantic Gap, the Liberator being the only airplane with sufficient range. The single fin did appear in production on the PB4Y Privateer derivative.[10][11][12]. This was the B-24's most costly mission. [13] Of the 177 B-24s that were dispatched on this operation, 54 were lost.[13]. Engaged in combat with B-24s during Aleutian Campaign (19421943). Its lower altitude made it more vulnerable to flak. The B-24 advanced the use of electronic warfare and equipped Search Bomber (SB), Low Altitude (LAB) and Radar Counter Measure (RCM) squadrons in addition to high-altitude bombing. The loss of this crew is described in Missing Air Crew Report (MACR) #15631 that lists the names of all 10 crewmembers and their fates. The aircraft were stripped of most armaments to allow for fuel for up to 26-hour return flights such as Jessore to Singapore.[23]. The Liberator originated from a United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) request in 1938 for Consolidated to produce the B-17 under license. 504-528-1944, Jenny Craig Institute for the Study of War and Democracy, Madlyn and Paul Hilliard Research Library. I believe by the war's end there were 1000 B-29 in the Pacific, 350+ combat losses for this period ranged about 10% depending on the raid (May 1945 saw 91 B-29s lost, the highest loss month of it's deployment). Up to four crew members could be located in the waist, operating waist guns, a retractable lower ball turret gun, and a tail gun turret matching the nose turret. "Misadventure at Mauritius.". The new design would be the first American heavy bomber in production to use tricycle landing gear the North American B-25 Mitchell medium bomber's predecessor, the NA-40 introduced this feature in January 1939 with the Consolidated Model 32 having long, thin wings with the efficient "Davis" high aspect ratio design (also used on the projected Model 31 twin-engined commercial flying boat)[17] promising to provide maximum fuel efficiency. "[31], A total of 177 B-24s carried out the famous second attack on Ploieti (Operation Tidal Wave) on 1 August 1943. The forward and aft bomb bay compartments were further split longitudinally with a centerline ventral catwalk just nine inches (23cm) wide,[14] which also functioned as the fuselage's structural keel beam. Number Produced: 2,698, Crew: 10 (Pilot, Co-Pilot, Bombardier, Navigator, Radio Operator, Flight Engineer, Ball Turret Gunner, Tail Gunner and two Waist Gunners) These two squadrons engaged in relief flights to Warsaw and Krakw in Poland to support the Polish Uprising against Nazi Occupation. The first Liberators in British service were ex-USAAF YB-24s converted to Liberator GR Is (USAAF designation: LB-30A). These type of doors created a minimum of aerodynamic drag to keep speed high over the target area; they also allowed the bomb bays to be opened while on the ground since the low ground clearance prevented the use of normal bomb bay doors. In Eighth Air force combat configuration, the aircraft carried 8,000 pounds (3,600kg) of bombs. [24][25], For 12 months, No. A heavily loaded B-24 was difficult to fly at speeds of less than 160mph (260km/h). Within weeks, the First Provisional Bombardment Group formed from the remnants of the Halverson and China detachments. [18], Early orders, placed before the XB-24 had flown, included 36 for the USAAC, 120 for the French Air Force and 164 for the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was used on penetration missions in RAF bomber streams at night in Luftwaffe markings. By mid-1943, the shorter-range B-17 was phased out. The name "Liberator" was originally given to it by the RAF, and subsequently adopted by the USAAF as the official name for the Model 24. Following incidents when flare guns were accidentally discharged inside the rear fuselage, some assembly (formation) ships had pyrotechnic guns fixed through the fuselage sides. When this mission was completed, it was recorded that 822,791 US gallons (3,114,264L) of 80 octane gasoline had been delivered to three different airfields in France and Belgium.[35]. Long-range anti-submarine Liberators played an instrumental role in closing the Mid-Atlantic gap in the Battle of the Atlantic. Many of the surviving Liberators originated in this Command. LB-30As were assigned to transatlantic flights by RAF Ferry Command, between Canada and Prestwick, Scotland. Being on long-distance patrols, they generally flew outside the range of enemy fighters. How many b24 lost in World War 2? - Answers Consolidated's engineers sketched out a rough version of a bomber using Davis' wing in late 1938. This was a major component of the USSTAF and took a major role in strategic bombing. The Liberators were later replaced by Avro Lancastrians. Wingspan: 110 feet B-24s were also used by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps for ASW, anti-ship patrol, and photographic reconnaissance in the Pacific Theater, and by the U.S. Coast Guard for patrol and SAR. Indigenous Fort Worth C-87 and AT-22 production began with the FY 1943 order for 80 serial-numbered airframes 43-30548 through 4330627. The B-24N was intended as a major production variant featuring a single tail. [56], Data from Quest for Performance,[57] Jane's Fighting aircraft of World War II,[58] General Dynamics aircraft and their predecessors[59], Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era, "B-24" redirects here. Changes included the removal of all armament, provision for passenger seating, a revised cabin oxygen and heating system. [43] The regiment concerned appears to have been the 890th Bomber Aviation Regiment at Baranovichi until 1944, and then Kazan. Only 218 C-109s were actually converted. B24 Liberator Information - RootsWeb 37 to Bremen, Germany. The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. However, whereas a combat-loaded B-24 could safely take off with room to spare from a 6,000ft (1,800m) runway, a loaded C-109 required every foot of such a runway to break ground, and crashes on takeoff were not uncommon. Both units reported to XXI Bomber Command Headquarters. Willow Run - B24 Liberator - Military History of the Upper Great Lakes The RAAF Liberators saw service in the South West Pacific theatre of World War II. The U.S. Army Air Corps awarded a contract for the prototype XB-24 in March 1939, with the requirement that one example should be ready before the end of the year. [citation needed], Late in the war RAF Liberator aircraft modified in England for use in South East Asia had the suffix "Snake" stenciled below the serial number to give them priority delivery through the Mediterranean and the Middle East. The Davis wing made the B-24 sensitive to weight distribution. YB-29 Superfortresses in flight 1000th B-29 delivery ceremony at Boeing Wichita plant in February 1945 And then, suddenly, the whole wing broke off. The 44th Bombardment Group was one of the first two heavy bombardment groups flying the B-24 with the 8th Air Force in the fall/winter air campaigns in the European Theater of Operations. The sanctions that were first imposed in 2014 after the annexation of Crimea have become even more stringent following the full scale invasion of Ukraine. [7] With these difficulties in mind it is little wonder the ATC India China Division was the only unit in the Command to be combat decorated during WWII, having been awarded a Distinguished Unit Citation. IX Bomber Command operated Liberators from airfields in Egypt; Libya and Tunisia during the Western Desert Campaign (19421943). Project A led to the development of the Boeing B-29 and Consolidated's own B-32 and B-36. BOAC also flew trans-Atlantic services and other various long-range air transportation routes. Six B-24s From Baker Box Downed | WW2 Research The most dangerous were the first and last five trips. 9 were killed in the crash except the Navigator, 2nd Lt Wallace F. Kaufman. Consequently, it was relatively easy for a poorly trained ground crew to load a C-87 with its center of gravity too far forward or aft, rendering the aircraft difficult to control due to inadequate or excessive longitudinal stability. The Rsselsheim massacre was a war crime that involved the lynching and killing of six American airmen by townspeople of Rsselsheim during World War II . During the whole war, 51% of aircrew were killed on operations, 12% were killed or wounded in non-operational accidents and 13% became prisoners of war or evaders. Fortunately, this problem was eased in the summer of 1944, when North American, Douglas and Consolidated Aircraft at Fort Worth stopped making B-24s, leaving only the Consolidated plant in San Diego and the Ford plant in Willow Run. ". He was captured by the Japanese and executed. They were equipped with signal lighting, provision for quantity discharge of pyrotechnics, and were painted with distinctive group-specific high-contrast patterns of stripes, checkers or polka dots to enable easy recognition by their flock of bombers. Failing to do this meant that the B-24 flew slightly nose high, and it used more fuel. The pilot and co-pilot sat alongside each other in a well-glazed cockpit. [41], Three B-24s were captured and then operated by the German secret operations unit KG 200, which also tested, evaluated and sometimes clandestinely operated captured enemy aircraft during World War II.[42]. Maximum Speed: 303 miles per hour The defensive armament of the B-24 varied from transport variants, which were usually unarmed, to bombers armed with up to ten .50 caliber (12.7mm) M2 Browning machine guns located in turrets and waist gun positions. In April 1939, the USAAC initially ordered seven YB-24 under CAC contract # 12464. Gift of James Sowell in Memory of 1st Lt. Billy Z. Sowell At 59,524 pounds (27,000kg)[dubious discuss] (29.76 short tons) maximum takeoff weight, it was one of the heaviest aircraft in the world; comparable with the British "heavies", with fully loaded weights of 30 short tons for (and nearly identical to) the Stirling, the 34 short ton Lancaster and the 27 short ton Halifax. "The Spitfire had . Heavy bomber training organizations primarily under II Bomber Command in the United States and non-combat units are not included. [15] The occasional need during a mission for crewmen to move from fore to aft within the B-24's fuselage over the narrow catwalk was a drawback shared with other bomber designs. Following the Japanese surrender, the RAAF's Liberators participated in flying former prisoners of war and other personnel back to Australia. The sole B-24 in Hawaii was destroyed by the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. Whilst over Koror, the B-24 was hit by anti-aircraft fire . Over the Cauldron of Ploesti: The American Air War in Romania This plane was shot down by German fighters on a raid to Kiel, Germany on 13 Jun 1943 where one-third of the bombers were lost. Milano: Mondadori. The relatively thick wing held the promise of increased tankage while delivering increased lift and speed, but it became unpleasant to fly when committed to heavier loadings as experienced at high altitude and in bad weather. The USAAF took delivery of its first B-24As in June 1941, although the B-24D was the first production model delivered in quantity in July 1942. Manufacturer: Consolidated-Vultee Aircraft Corporation; Ford Motor Company; North American Aviation; Douglas Aircraft Company Ferry Command's Atlantic Return Ferry Service flew civilian ferry pilots, who had delivered aircraft to the UK, back to North America. Cruising Speed: 175 miles per hour [13], The first B-24 loss over German territory occurred on 26 February 1943. Fifteen of the 15th AF's 21 bombardment groups flew B-24s. Developed as a strategic bomber in the 1930s, the rugged B-17 was used in every theater in World War II, and became legendary for its ability to sustain heavy damage in battle while maintaining self-sufficient firepower. The Liberators flew a shorter 3,077mi (4,952km) over-water route from Learmonth to an airfield northeast of Colombo, but they could make the flight in 17 hours with a 5,500 pounds (2,500kg) payload, whereas the Catalinas required 27 hours and had to carry so much auxiliary fuel that their payload was limited to only 1,000 pounds (450kg). Armament: Eleven .50 caliber machine guns. This meant climbing to about 500ft (150m) above cruise altitude, levelling off, achieving a cruise speed of 165170mph (266274km/h), then descending to assigned altitude. The turret proved unsatisfactory and was soon replaced by a tunnel gun, which was itself omitted. Although only 287 C-87 and eight U.S. Navy RY variants were produced, they were still important in the Army Air Forces' airlift operations early in the war when aircraft with high-altitude, long-range heavy hauling abilities were in short supply. The anti-aircraft shell hit the left wing from the bottom breaking it off, sending the plane spinning . Munson, Kenneth, "Bombers 1939-45, Patrol and Transport Aircraft", Macmillan Publishing Company, Inc., New York, Blandford Press Ltd., 1969, LCCN 77-92035, page 156. This wing was highly efficient allowing a relatively high airspeed and long range. The maximum take-off weight was slightly raised to 64,250 pounds, the maximum altitude lifted from 21,200 to 24,000 feet but the maximum speed was reduced to 263mph, largely as a result of increased drag.[9]. ", "Michigan History: Willow Run and the Arsenal of Democracy. In January 1939, the USAAC, under Specification C-212, formally invited Consolidated[7] to submit a design study for a bomber with longer range, higher speed and greater ceiling than the B-17. Some of the best known examples were the B17 Flying Fortress, B24, B25, B29 (all bombers), P47 and P51 . A total of 287 B-24D, B-24J, B-24L and B-24M aircraft were supplied to the RAAF, of which 33 were lost in action or accidents, with more than 200 Australians killed. Both BOAC and the RAF used converted Liberator IIs as unarmed long-range cargo carriers. Because of their special skills, they were called upon to fly fuel to General George Patton's army during the summer and early autumn of 1944 when it outran its fuel supply. The bomber had disintegrated. The RAF found, as did the US, that global war increased the need for air transports and early-type bombers and seaplanes were converted or completed as cargo carriers and transports. According to the Willow Run Reference Book published 1 February 1945, Ford broke ground on Willow Run on 18 April 1941, with the first plane coming off the line on 10 September 1942. Shame. The US Navys primary dive-bomber at the wars start, the Douglas SBD Dauntless earned its reputationand helped earn victoryat the 1942 Battle of Midway, sinking four Japanese carriers. From August 1943 until the end of the war in Europe, specially modified B-24Ds were used in classified missions. The B-25 bomber soldiered in every theater of war, excelling in multiple roles, chiefly as a ground-attack aircraft later in the war. Intercepted just short of the target, the B-24 came under attack from JG1's Messerschmitt Bf 109s. (Later versions were fitted with a powered twin-.50 caliber (12.7mm) M2 Browning machine gun nose turret.) The US policy at the time, despite neutrality, was that American requirements could be deferred while its Allies could immediately put US production into the war effort. Liberators were credited in full or in part with sinking 93 U-boats. Engines: Four Pratt & Whitney R-1830-43s (1,200 hp each) It lived in the shadow of its older and much bigger brother and strategic partner, the England-based Eighth Air Force. Douglas Aircraft in Tulsa, Oklahoma, built airframes appended -DT. How many B 17s were shot down over Germany in WWII? Consolidated incorporated innovative features such as a tricycle landing gear and Davis wing. The XB-24 was then re-designated XB-24Bthese changes became standard on all B-24s built starting with the B-24C model. [28] The B-24 was vital for missions of a radius less than 1,000mi (1,600km), in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters where U.S. Navy PB4Y-1s and USAAF SB-24s took a heavy toll of enemy submarines and surface combatants and shipping. These are the San Francisco Bay Area's 'hot spots' fueling the region's How many b-17 bombers were shot down during World War 2? Ukraine-Russia war latest: Russia scrambles fighter jets to Norwegian By the end of World War II, the technological breakthroughs of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress and other modern types had surpassed the bombers that served from the start of the war. Flown in all theaters and entering the fray before America did through Lend-Lease with Great Britain, Liberators flew faster, higher and farther than the older B-17, thanks to greater fuel capacity and an innovative low-drag wing design. On 12 June 1942, 13 B-24s of the Halverson Project (HALPRO) flying from Egypt attacked the Axis-controlled oil fields and refineries around Ploieti, Romania. The Secret War, by Brian Johnson, Pen And Sword Military Classics, 1978. Based in Alaska Territory. In the period between 7 November 1942 and 8 March 1943, the 44th Bomb Group lost 13 of its original 27 B-24s. The B-24D was the Liberator III in British service. However, a cleaned up version of the film has been analysed and it shows that the wing is struck from the below. [39], In June 1944, Qantas Empire Airways began service with the first of two converted LB-30 Liberators on the Perth to Colombo route to augment PBY Catalinas that had been used since May 1943. The C-87 was not always popular with the aircrews assigned to fly it. [48] By 1945, Ford made 70% of all B-24s in two nine-hour shifts. This unit then was formalized as the 376th Bombardment Group, Heavy, and along with the 98th BG formed the nucleus of the IX Bomber Command of the Ninth Air Force, operating from Africa until absorbed into the Twelfth Air Force briefly, and then the Fifteenth Air Force, operating from Italy. This article incorporates public domain material from the .mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:#d33}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:#d33}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#3a3;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}Air Force Historical Research Agency. Fewer are dying from the virus, more are testing positive - USA TODAY The Singing Cowboy Gene Autry served in the Air Transport Command (in the same squadron as Barry Goldwater), and described flying the C-109 over "The Hump" as "the thrill that lasts a lifetime".[38]. One outcome of the British and French purchasing commissions was a backlog of orders amounting to $680m, of which $400m was foreign orders, US official statistics indicating tooling, plant and expansion advanced the previously anticipated volume of US aircraft production by up to a year. Long-range naval patrol versions often carried a light defensive armament. The B-24 was built by a consortium of companies. The incident happened on August 26, 1944, two days after a Consolidated B-24 Liberator bomber of the United States Army Air Forces was shot down by heavy anti-aircraft fire over Hanover. Knoke reported: "The fire spread out along the right wing. The specification was written such that the Model 32 would automatically be the winning design. Transferred Liberators to Fifteenth Air Force in November 1943, becoming tactical air force in Mediterranean Theater of Operations (MTO) primarily supporting Fifth Army (XII Tactical Air Command) in Italy, also operating in Southern France and Germany supporting Seventh Army. [19] When France fell in 1940, their aircraft were re-directed to the RAF. [37] Many C-109s were lost in flying the Hump airlift to China. The PLAAF had two B-24Ms captured from the Chinese Nationalists during the Chinese Civil War and operated until 1952. The story has made the rounds in books and on websites, on Wikipedia and in U.S. Missile Defense Agency reports: the only V-2 ever shot down in flight was destroyed by a B-24 bomber. The B-24 Liberator was a powerful symbol of US industrial might, with more than 18,000 produced by the wars end. A consequence of the British orders went beyond requests for specific modifications: as the RAF accepted some designs while rejecting others, American production was to some extent re-directed along specific lines that accorded with British doctrine, the B-24's capacious bomb bay and ability to carry 8,000lb ordnance a case in point.[9]. B-24s were assigned to every combat Air Force; at peak inventory, the USAAF had 6,043 B-24 Liberators operating worldwide in September 1944. On 7 October 1944, Lt. Urban Drew of the 365th Fighter Group shot down two Me 262s that were taking off, while on the same day Lt. Col. Hubert Zemke, who had transferred to the Mustang equipped 479th Fighter Group, shot down what he thought was a Bf 109, only to have his gun camera film reveal that it may have been an Me 262. . Whereas the B-17 used 9-cylinder Wright R-1820 Cyclone engines, the Consolidated design used twin-row, 14-cylinder Pratt & Whitney R-1830 "Twin Wasp" radials of 1,000hp (750kW). Some were fitted with a belly pack containing fixed, forward-facing cannon. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models designated as various LB-30s, in the Land Bomber design category. The F4U Corsair entered combat in 1943, and gave Allied naval aviators a winning edge against their opponents. After it was discovered that these problems could be alleviated by flying with the forward storage tank empty, this practice became fairly routine, enhancing aircrew safety at the cost of some fuel-carrying capacity. Transferred B-24s to Twelfth Air Force in October 1943; reassigned to England to become tactical air force supporting American First Army (IX Tactical Air Command), Third Army (XIX Tactical Air Command), and Ninth Army (XXIX Tactical Air Command). Job, Macarthur. So vital was the need for long-range operations, that at first USAAF used the type as transports. The route was named Kangaroo Service and marked the first time that Qantas's now-famous Kangaroo logo was used; passengers received a certificate proclaiming them as members of The Order of the Longest Hop. The XC-87B also designated a resurrected crash victim B-24D (42-40355) fitted with low altitude power packages and a forward fuselage extension. The cargo versions, C-87 and C-109 tanker, further increased its overseas presence, especially in Asia in support of the XX Bomber Command air offensive against Japan. The fuselage fell in a flat spiral until it crashed. One major failure of the prototype was that it failed to meet the top speed requirements specified in the contract. Learn how and when to remove this template message, British and French purchasing commissions, South West Pacific theatre of World War II, Watch video of B-24 production and testing, List of Consolidated B-24 Liberator operators, Accidents and incidents involving the Consolidated B-24 Liberator, List of surviving Consolidated B-24 Liberators, Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption, "The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress vs. the Consolidated B-24 Liberator", "A Brief History of the 44th Bomb Group.