Consolidated B-24 Liberator (Early)

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Specifications Wingspan: 37 3/8" Fuselage Length: 22 3/16" Recommended Engines 2 - Cox/Estes .049 Black Widow Recommended Propellers 2 - 5-3 Three-bladed

Early B-24 History

In 1938 Consolidated Aircraft Corporation was formed by three men: Reuben Fleet, president, Isaac Laddon, chief engineer, and David Davis, an innovative wing designer. They proposed a design for a new bomber to be built using the 1935 requirements and designated this new plane Model 32.

In March, 1939, the Army approved a contract for one prototype given the designation XB-24. In a extraordinary engineering feat, nine months after the contract was awarded, the XB-24 flew for the first time. From the onset the Davis wing proved itself remarkable. The B-24 was faster, had a longer range, and a greater carrying capacity than the B-17. The new B-24 had two Bombay doors, a lesson learned from the single door of the B-17. It also had a tail gunner position built into the fuselage.

When war broke out in Europe in September, 1939, France was the first to order the B-24 under the designation LB30, but France fell to Germany before the first of the new aircraft could be delivered. The British took delivery of the French-ordered planes and gave it the designation of Liberator I.

Upon seeing the completed aircraft in combat trim, Reuben Fleet decided he didn’t like the short nose section and ordered Laddon to extend the nose three feet for aesthetic purposes. This change would later be one of the most important changes as the Liberator evolved. The next variation was the Liberator II which was to be the first Liberator to see combat with U.S. insignia.

After the attack on Pearl Harbor in December, 1941, the United States was short on aircraft and had no operational Liberators. Seventy-five Liberators destined for the British Royal Air Force were pulled from inventory and given to the U. S. Army under the designation LB-30. Six weeks later these Liberators were in action in Java, Alaska and the Panama Canal. They were still in their RAF night trim with blackened undersides; the only change was the U.S. emblem was painted over the RAF roundel.

Once the U.S. production effort got involved, large numbers of Liberators began to roll off the assembly line at San Diego. Eventually Liberators were being built in Fort Worth, Texas (Consolidated), Tulsa, Oklahoma (Douglas), Dallas, Texas (North American), and Willow Run, Michigan (Ford). The plant at Willow Run was designed to complete production of one Liberator every 100 minutes and eventually produced half of all the Liberators.

As enemy fighters explored the frontal attack as the weakest point of the bomber, more armament was needed in front areas to protect the aircraft. This identified need led to a nose turret that distinguished the later Liberator from the earlier models. The early Liberator fought on every front during World War II.