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| When in 1939 Consolidated Aircraft Corporation began design of a bomber aircraft intended to be superior to the Boeing B-17, the company could never have imagined that more than 18,000 of these aircraft would be built (as the B-24A to -M for the USAAF and Liberator I to IX for RAF Coastal Command and Bomber Command). The aim of the design team was to achieve better load/range performance than that of the B-17, the basis of the design being a wide-span narrow-chord cantilever wing, mounted high on a deep-section fuselage.
Construction was conventional all-metal, but there were several innovations in addition to the new wing. For the first time on a large aircraft a retractable tricycle-type landing gear was introduced. The bomb bay was deep enough for bombs to be stowed vertically and wide enough to comprise two bays separated by a catwalk providing communication between the flight deck and rear fuselage. Instead of conventional bomb doors, which can affect flight characteristics when open, the bomb bay was closed by roller-shutter-type doors.
The prototype XB-24 flew for the first time on 29 December 1939, by which time the USAAC had ordered seven YB-24 for service trials and others had been ordered by Great Britain and France. These had the same engines as the prototype, but introduced pneumatic de-icing boots for wing and tail unit leading edges. The first production B-24A were delivered in 1941 to the USAAF (and others to Britain 4s LB-30A transports for transatlantic ferry flights). During the period of their construction the original prototype was re-engined with turbocharged Pratt & Whitney R-1830-4I, at the same time having the oil coolers mounted on each side of the engine. This was responsible for the unusual elliptical cowlings which, together with the large twin oval endplate fins, made the Liberator easily identifiable.
Subsequent Liberators had increased armament and armour protection. The first major production version was the B-24D, powered by R-1830-43 engines, of which the majority of more than 2,700 built went to the USAAF as bombers. A number were subsequently taken over by the US Navy as PB4Y-1 anti-submarine aircraft. RAF Bomber Command and Coastal Command also received 382 as Liberator III/IIIA and V. The major production version of the Liberator was, however, the B-24J with R-1830-65 engines, making up more than one-third of the total production. These were supplied to the US, British, Canadian and other air forces.
Although the B-24 was deployed alongside the B-17 in Europe, and flew in Africa and the Middle East, its major contribution to America's wartime operations was in the Pacific, where it was first flown in action against the Japanese in January 1942. In Europe it is best remembered for bombing Rome on 19 July 1943 and for a low-level attack by 177 aircraft on the Ploesti oil refineries in Romania on 1 August 1943, a 4,345km round-trip mission from Benghazi in Libya, during which 57 of these eight-ten-crew aircraft were lost.
| CREW | 7-12 |
| ENGINE | 4 x P+W R-1830-43, 880kW |
| DIMENSIONS |
| Wingspan | 33.6 m | 110 ft 3 in |
| Length | 20.2 m | 66 ft 3 in |
| Height | 5.5 m | 18 ft 1 in |
| Wing area | 97.4 m2 | 1048.40 sq ft |
| PERFORMANCE |
| Max. speed | 487 km/h | 303 mph |
| Ceiling | 9750 m | 32000 ft |
| Range w/max.fuel | 4580 km | 2846 miles |
| ARMAMENT | 10 x 12.7mm machine-guns, 5800kg of bombs |
| paul scott, e-mail, 20.08.2009 14:58 An amazing bomber - the most produced one of WW2 - an amazing testimony from Mr Arnson and all on here with its brief history - with regards to the latter, I have seen excellent documentaries on the attack on the Ploesti oilfields. One of my favourite aircraft! reply | | ERLING L. ARNSON, e-mail, 02.11.2008 04:53 During WWII, I was in Italy in the 455th Bomb Group and a crew member on a B24, "Boomerang Betsy". Our mission on May 18, 1944, was the Ploesti Oil Fields, Romania. Approaching the target, we had the usual heavy flak on this our 3rd mission back to this target. The two outboard engines were disabled and the bombs let loose, and went right out thru the bomb bay doors. The doors ended up just swinging under the fuselage. The aircraft dropped altitude and fell on its left wing, losing 5000' feet elevation. The pilot and co-pilot were both fighting and wrestling the controls to get it to finally level-off.
With that, two ME-109s attacked us at 6 o'clock and fired their 20mm cannons, mainly hitting the tail gunner's safety glass, knocking him out of the turret. His face was covered with shattered glass.
After we were originally hit, we flew for 1 3 /4 hours, pulling full power on engines #2&3, but kept losing altitude. At about 1200', the pilot directed us to BAIL OUT. My position was left waist window gunner; I dropped out of the camera hatch, and pulled my ripcord. Everyone was able to get out safely. We were told later that our aircraft landed intact on auto pilot.
I think that the B24 was a terrific plane; it flew higher, faster, and carried a heavier bomb load than the B17. Our Boomerang Betsy did not fail us even under such dire circumstances. reply | | CASTLE22R, e-mail, 13.06.2008 16:22 I have studied ww2 aviation all my life,and the B-24 is my most favorate bomber of ww2 or any other to be honest.please excuse my spelling. reply | | Paul Billingham, e-mail, 28.05.2008 01:02 Ihave my father's complete case of B-24 manuals, all of which are in mint condition. Does anyone know if the Air and Space Museum has any sort of display on the B-24 or how these books could be donated? reply | |
| | ed marroy, e-mail, 06.05.2008 04:21 Capt. steiners crew flew vgrand on her last combat mission...lost both inboard engines over vienna...made it back to vis...vgrand was going to be salvage...it wasdecided to be used in service squadron....we flew it back to states after compleding our missions reply | | Ross Rainwater, e-mail, 26.04.2008 20:18 More B-24s were built than any other US aircraft in WWII, over 18,000. If memory serves, the only aircraft built in greater numbers in the entire war was the Soviet IL-2 Sturmovik, with over 36,000 built. reply | | Bill Manby, e-mail, 06.04.2008 22:09 You missed lut on th final b24..It was the B-24N. The last six off the Ford production line were theB-24N.If they had been in Service prior, more wousld have come back!
It' outstanding characteristic is the single tail, The fuselage is oe streamlined with a ball turret leeding the way, But inside it was great! the centr console began at the top of the cockpit pane and slope downward to the floor, The windshield was a 2 piece installation foring a 'v' in the center (part of the streamlinng), The pilots and copilots chairs were ergometrically designed for comfort. The most distinctive thing were the flight controls! The pilots arm rest at the front had a control stick almost like those that came with early VCR aircraft game controls. The left arm of the copilots arrm rest was similarly configured. The were calledd 'formation sticks'. The controle the attitue of the aircraft in climbs, and turns. The pilots control had an 'override' button that would transfer control from the copilots control at thepilots discretionl It still retained the spring loaded- center -off bat handle switches for prop control. It had trbo by-pass feature in the turbbos Yo could firewall the throttles at each take off without overloading the engines'this was enabled by an altitude sensing device fot the sea level of the airfield being used..
Two conclusions It wss afaster, easier to fly airplane. Two. I believe it was the FIRST fly-by-wire airplane, well ahead of someof the modern jet aircraft. Also, with tthe single tail it lookeed like the 'breadboard' model of the later produced B-32. From a distace they looked exactly. I can't attach a photograph here but I willshow front, side,airborne views if I had an e-mail address. Oh yes. Of the these 6 units 3 went to the Air Corps an Chanuter field, and 3 went to the Navy.
Bill Manby wmanby@satx.rr.com, 210-824-1503 reply | | David Foster, e-mail, 04.01.2008 16:39 Dear Mr. Peek,
My late uncle, Paul Davis, returned home from the 448th with two photos of Lt. Mains B-24 going down; one being a 10"x8" very clear print from the original negative. This large print is scanned in with high resolution here: www.flickr.com /photos /21734563@N04 /sets /72157603453115241 /detail / If you have the time would you be able to view the photo and comment on the postion of the two sections of the B-24 in regards to the tail section being much closer to the photographer than the main fuselage /wing section? In the photo the tail section appears to be about 1 /2 the span of the wings. Is the tail span roughly 1 /4 of the wing span of a B-24?
Sincerely
David Foster reply | | Joseph H. Peek, e-mail, 30.04.2007 08:55 This was another of the many U.S. Air Force aircraft that flew out of Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, AZ. It was the mainstay of the 303rd bomb wing based there during WWII when I was still in St. Peter and Paul Catholic elementary school. Quite a thrill to see and heara the old engines of that era very smoothly set in sync as the bird flew by our home. Later, I climbed into one of these birds and found out how really small they were. I would not have made it in those days I must say. I would have been too big in my adult frame. Cale me 404-325-4866 reply |
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