B-24 Liberator

The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was produced in greater numbers than any other American combat aircraft, and was used by most of the Allied air forces in World War II. Designed as a heavy bomber, it served with distinction not only in that role, but also as a maritime patrol bomber (known as the PB4Y in U.S. Navy service) and as a heavy transport (where it was designated C-87 or C-109).

Operational history

Initial deployment

Initial Liberator deployment in 1941 March was with British Overseas Airways Corporation on trans-Atlantic transport duties. Soon after, equipped with primitive but functional ASV Mark II radar, it entered active service with RAF Coastal Command where its long range made it indispensable for anti-submarine patrols in the Battle of the Atlantic.

Related Topics:
1941 - British Overseas Airways Corporation - Coastal Command - Battle of the Atlantic

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Later in 1941, the first Liberator IIs entered service. This model introduced the survivability features that were essential if the Liberator was to take up its design role as a bomber: self-sealing fuel tanks and powered defensive gun turrets. At the same time, Consolidated added a 2 ft 7 in (790 mm) plug in the forward fuselage to create more space for crew members and also (it is said) to make the airplane look better. Liberator IIs were split between RAF Coastal Command, RAF Bomber Command and British Overseas Airways Corporation. Two RAF squadrons deployed to the Middle East in 1942 became the first to use the Liberator as a bomber.

Related Topics:
Self-sealing fuel tank - RAF Bomber Command - 1942

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At the same time, the United States Army Air Force began to take delivery of its first B-24As. Like the British, they used them as transports to begin with. Continued development work by Consolidated produced a handful of transitional B-24Cs with turbocharged engines, instead of mechanically supercharged engines; the turbocharged engines led to the flattened oval nacelles that would distinguish all subsequent Liberator models).

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The first mass-produced model, the B-24D (or Liberator III in British service) was introduced in early 1943; it had turbocharged engines and increased fuel capacity. Three more 0.50 caliber (12.7 mm) M2 machine guns brought the defensive armament up to ten guns. At 59,524 lb (27,000 kg) maximum take-off weight, it was one of the heaviest aircraft in the world; only the British Lancaster and Halifax bombers were of comparable mass.

Related Topics:
1943 - M2 machine gun - Lancaster - Halifax

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America enters the war

American B-24s first entered combat in 1942 June with a raid launched from Egypt. 13 aircraft flew against the German-occupied Romanian oilfields of Ploesti. The attack was described as "unsuccessful" by the Army, but it alerted the defenders. When 177 B-24s attacked Ploesti again on 1942 August 1, 54 failed to return.

Related Topics:
American - Egypt - Ploesti - August 1

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Liberator production increased at an astonishing rate through 1942 and 1943: Consolidated had tripled the size of their plant at San Diego and built a big new plant outside Fort Worth, Texas. More production came from Douglas in Tulsa, Oklahoma. North American was building a plant at Dallas, Texas. None of these were minor operations, but they were dwarfed by the vast new greenfield factory built by Ford at Willow Run near Detroit, which began operation in 1942 August. This was easily the largest factory in the United States, and the largest anywhere outside the USSR.

Related Topics:
San Diego - Fort Worth, Texas - Douglas - Tulsa, Oklahoma - North American - Dallas, Texas - Greenfield - Ford - Willow Run - Detroit - USSR

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In 1942 April, the C-87 Liberator Express transport version of the Liberator entered production at Fort Worth. It had a large cargo door, no gun turrets, a floor in the bomb bay for freight, and side windows. As the year went by, Liberator squadrons deployed to all theaters: Africa, Europe, the Atlantic, India and the Pacific. In the Pacific, the B-24 was designated the standard heavy bomber to simplify logistics, replacing the shorter-range B-17, which had not distinguished itself against Japan.

Related Topics:
C-87 Liberator Express - Africa - Europe - India - Pacific

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In 1943, the model of Liberator considered by many the 'definitive' version was introduced. It was 10 inches (0.25 m) longer, had a powered gun turret in the nose to reduce vulnerability to head-on attack, and was fitted with an improved bomb sight, autopilot and fuel transfer system. North American made the B-24G at Dallas, while those from the Consolidated, Douglas, and Ford factories were designated the B-24H. All five plants switched over to the almost identical B-24J in 1943 August. The later B-24L and B-24M were made to reduce weight, and differed mainly in the kinds of defensive weaponry they carried.

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As the war went on, the complexity of servicing the B-24 grew greater and greater. Since B-24s were made by a number of different companies, repair depots had to keep a large stock of many kinds of parts to supply on B-24 variants. Fortunately, in the Summer of 1944, this problem was eased a bit, when three plants stopped making B-24s, leaving only the Consolidated plant in San Diego and the Ford plant in Willow Run.

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18,482 Liberators were completed before production ceased in 1945. In addition to the thousands (at the most, 6043) that saw service with the U.S. Army, the Royal Air Force flew about 2100 aircraft in 46 bomber groups and 41 squadrons, the Royal Canadian Air Force 1200 B-24Js, the U.S. Navy about 1000 PB4Y-1s (and almost 800 PB4Y-2 Privateers, which were derived from the Liberator), and the Royal Australian Air Force 287 B-24Js, B-24Ls, and B-24Ms. Two squadrons of the South African Air Force, deployed in the Mediterranean Theatre, flew B-24s.

Related Topics:
1945 - U.S. Army - Royal Air Force - Royal Canadian Air Force - U.S. Navy - PB4Y-2 Privateers - Royal Australian Air Force - South African Air Force

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