Consolidated B-24 (PB4Y1) Liberator (Late)

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Specifications Wingspan: 27 3/8" Fuselage Length: 22 3/8" Recommended Engines 2 - Cox/Estes .049 Black Widows Recommended Propellers 2 - 5-3 Three-bladed

Late B-24/PB4Y1

If asked to describe the statistics of the B-24 Liberator in one word, “most” is the word that comes to mind.

The Consolidated Aircraft B-24 Liberator was to become America’s single most mass-produced aircraft of WWII – 18,188 were built. Orders for an additional 5,000 of the “N” models were cancelled when it became apparent they would not be needed.

The B-24 Liberator flew more combat missions, in more theaters of action, and carried more men into combat than any other aircraft in WWII.

The B-24 Liberator flew for all the US Military branches – the only aircraft to do so. It was also used by most of the Allied forces.
To add to the marvels of the B-24 Liberator, the contract to design and build the B-24 was issued to Consolidated Aircraft in March 1939 – and nine months later the prototype was flight-tested. Its construction technique was eventually so precisely engineered as to allow for the completion of production of 1 bomber every 100 minutes at Willow Run, Michigan.

Generally superior in speed and carrying capacity to the highly vaulted B-17 Flying Fortress, the B-24 Liberator became the workhorse for the Army Air Corps.

When the ships carrying American supplies and troops were being blockaded by German u-boats, the B-24 Liberator became the undisputed best anti-submarine aircraft in the war and one of the main reasons for the decline of the u-boat as a power in the North Atlantic.

When the Allied forces needed to stop not just to the fuel supply but the fuel source of the German military, it flew the famous August 1943 Ploesti mission. This mission saw 189 B-24s dispatched; 159 made it to the target; 53 were shot down; six Congressional Medals of Honor were awarded as a result of this one mission. No other mission garnered such honors.

The Liberator joined the U.S. Navy in 1942 after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Until that time, only the U.S. Army Air Force was allowed to have heavy bombers. The Navy’s only patrol bomber was a PBY Catalina, a twin-engine aircraft that had good range, but was slow and had little bomb-load capacity.

On the drawing board were plans for a new patrol bomber called the Ranger, to be built by Boeing at their plant in Renton, Washington; however, Boeing needed the plant at Renton to produce the new B-29 bomber. The War Department agreed to a trade. Boeing got the plant at Renton to build the B-29 and the Navy got permission to use heavy bombers. The Navy received the B-24D (and all later variations of the B-24), under the designation of PB4Y1. The increased range of the PB4Y1 earned it immediate favor with the Navy.

The PB4Y1 served both the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps with great distinction. VMD254, a U.S. Marine Corps Reconnaissance Squadron, laid claim to having the first American bomber over Truk Island. Truk Island was considered “Berlin of the Pacific”, referring to its formidable defenses. U. S. Navy Commander Bruce Van Voorhis earned the Congressional Medal of Honor while flying a PB4Y1. The Liberator was the only aircraft to have crew members in more than one branch of service receive the Congressional Medal of Honor.

Whenever and wherever the need for a long-range bomber was identified, the B-24 Liberator was adapted for service. It served the Allied militaries in the deserts of North Africa, the frozen tundra of the Aleutian Islands and was the primary bomber for the United States in the Pacific.