Martin B-26 Marauder

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_B-26_Marauder

Not to be confused with Douglas A-26 Invader.

The Martin B-26 Marauder was a World War II twin-engined medium bomber built by
the Glenn L. Martin Company from 1941 to 1945. First used in the Pacific Theater
in early 1942, it was also used in the Mediterranean Theater and in Western
Europe.

After entering service with the US Army, the aircraft received the reputation of
a "Widowmaker" due to the early models' high accident rate during takeoffs and
landings. The Marauder had to be flown at exact airspeeds, particularly on final
runway approach and when one engine was out. The 150 mph (241 km/h) speed on
short final runway approach was intimidating to pilots who were used to much
slower speeds, and whenever they slowed down to speeds below what the manual
stated, the aircraft would stall and crash.

The B-26 became a safer aircraft once crews were re-trained, and after
aerodynamics modifications (an increase of wingspan and wing angle-of-incidence
to give better takeoff performance, and a larger vertical stabilizer and
rudder). After aerodynamic and design changes, the aircraft distinguished itself
as "the chief bombardment weapon on the Western Front" according to a United
States Army Air Forces dispatch from 1946. The Marauder ended World War II with
the lowest loss rate of any USAAF bomber.

A total of 5,288 were produced between February 1941 and March 1945; 522 of
these were flown by the Royal Air Force and the South African Air Force. By the
time the United States Air Force was created as an independent service separate
from the Army in 1947, all Martin B-26s had been retired from US service. The
Douglas A-26 Invader then assumed the B-26 designation — before officially
returning to the earlier "A for Attack" designation in May 1966.


Role
Medium bomber

National origin
United States

Manufacturer
Glenn L. Martin Company

First flight
25 November 1940

Introduction
1941

Status
Retired

Primary users
United States Army Air Forces
Free French Air Force
Royal Air Force
South African Air Force

Produced
1941–1945

Number built
5,288[1] [Note 1]

Unit cost

$102,659.33/B-26A[2]


Developed into
XB-33 Super Marauder (Unbuilt)


In March 1939, the United States Army Air Corps issued Circular Proposal 39-640,
a specification for a twin-engined medium bomber with a maximum speed of 350 mph
(560 km/h), a range of 3,000 mi (4,800 km) and a bomb load of 2,000 lb (910 kg).
On 5 July 1939, the Glenn L. Martin Company submitted its design, produced by a
team led by Peyton M. Magruder, to meet the requirement, the Martin Model 179.
Martin's design was evaluated as superior to the other proposals and was awarded
a contract for 201 aircraft, to be designated B-26. The B-26 went from paper
concept to an operational bomber in approximately two years. Additional orders
for a further 930 B-26s followed in September 1940, still prior to the first
flight of the type.


The B-26 was a shoulder-winged monoplane of all-metal construction, fitted with
a tricycle landing gear. It had a streamlined, circular section fuselage housing
the crew, consisting of a bombardier in the nose, armed with a .30 in (7.62 mm)
machine gun, a pilot and co-pilot sitting side by side, with positions for the
radio operator and navigator behind the pilots. A gunner manned a dorsal turret
armed with two .50 in (12.7 mm) machine guns (the first powered dorsal turret to
be fitted to a US bomber), while an additional .30 in (7.62 mm) machine gun was
fitted in the tail.

Two bomb bays were fitted mid-fuselage, capable of carrying 5,800 lb (2,600 kg)
of bombs, although in practice such a bomb load reduced range too much, and the
aft bomb bay was usually fitted with additional fuel tanks instead of bombs. The
aircraft was powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp radial engines in
nacelles slung under the wing, driving four-bladed propellers. The engines were
manufactured at the Ford Dearborn Engine plant in Dearborn, Michigan, USA. The
wings were of low aspect ratio and relatively small in area for an aircraft of
its weight, giving the required high performance, but also resulting in a wing
loading of 53 lb/sq ft (259 kg/m²) for the initial versions, which at the time
was the highest of any aircraft accepted for service by the Army Air Corps.

Specifications (B-26G)

General characteristics
Crew: 7: (2 pilots, bombardier, navigator/radio operator, 3 gunners)
Length: 58 ft 3 in (17.8 m)
Wingspan: 71 ft 0 in (21.65 m)
Height: 21 ft 6 in (6.55 m)
Wing area: 658 ft2 (61.1 m2)
Empty weight: 24,000 lb (11,000 kg)
Loaded weight: 37,000 lb (17,000 kg)
Powerplant: 2 × Pratt & Whitney R-2800-43 radial engines, 2,000-2,200 hp (1,491
kW) each

Performance
Maximum speed: 287 mph (250 knots, 460 km/h) at 5,000 feet (1,500 m)
Cruise speed: 216 mph (188 knots, 358 km/h)
Landing speed: 114 mph (90 knots, 167 km/h))
Combat radius: 1,150 mi (999 nmi, 1,850 km)
Ferry range: 2,850 mi (2,480 nmi, 4,590 km)
Service ceiling: 21,000 ft (6,400 m)
Wing loading: 46.4 lb/ft² (228 kg/m²)
Power/mass: 0.10 hp/lb (170 W/kg)

Armament

Guns: 12 × .50 in (12.7 mm) Browning machine guns
Bombs: 4,000 pounds (1,800 kg)




*