michaelmaltby
Colonel
More than anything, the B-24 Liberator reflects the sheer productivity of American industry in WW2. By the end, Ford was rolling one an hour off the Willow Run line.
Most-built American heavy bomber of WW2. More modern than the B-17.
Yet when I see photos of B-24's collapsing under fire it makes me sick. When I see photos of wrecked B-17's limping home to England missing tail pieces and wing sections it makes me very respectful of Boeing engineering, .
I want to love the Lib. My uncle Arthur flew Lib's all over the world in Ferry Command out of Dorval, Quebec, after 1941. But they were pigs to fly in formation - their fuel efficient Davis Wing and slab-sided design being no friend of struggling box-formation flying pilots. And when they failed, they folded up like a cheap suit.
More modern than the B-17, yes; more manufacturable (perhaps), but was the B-24 really the right design for the ETO daylight campaigns?
MM
Most-built American heavy bomber of WW2. More modern than the B-17.
Yet when I see photos of B-24's collapsing under fire it makes me sick. When I see photos of wrecked B-17's limping home to England missing tail pieces and wing sections it makes me very respectful of Boeing engineering, .
I want to love the Lib. My uncle Arthur flew Lib's all over the world in Ferry Command out of Dorval, Quebec, after 1941. But they were pigs to fly in formation - their fuel efficient Davis Wing and slab-sided design being no friend of struggling box-formation flying pilots. And when they failed, they folded up like a cheap suit.
More modern than the B-17, yes; more manufacturable (perhaps), but was the B-24 really the right design for the ETO daylight campaigns?
MM