Consolidated Liberator I
Consolidated Liberator I was the service name of the first Consolidated B-24 Liberator 4-engined bombers to see use with the Royal Air Force (RAF).
Service history
In August 1939, the USAAC ordered 38 examples of the Consolidated B-24A. From this order, 20 aircraft (serial numbers 40-2349 to 40-2368) were released for direct purchase by the RAF where it was given the service name Liberator B.I (from "Bomber Mark 1").
The twenty Liberator B.I were delivered to the RAF starting in mid 1941 and were given serial numbers AM910 to AM929.[1] After a period of testing at the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment (A&AEE) at RAF Boscombe Down, England, it was found to be unsuitable for combat over Europe. Among the deficiencies cited were the lack of self-sealing fuel tanks, poor defensive armament and general lack of combat readiness.
The long range and heavy bomb load however, made the Liberator a natural choice for RAF Coastal Command (CC) for use in long-range maritime patrols against the U-boat menace. A total of 12 aircraft were sent to Scottish Aviation in Prestwick, Scotland for extensive conversion to meet the anti submarine role and they were redesignated Liberator GR I. The conversion included addition of Air to Surface Vessel radar (ASV) and a pack of four forward firing 20 mm Hispano cannon under the forward bomb bay. Some aircraft were further modified with a pair of stub wings on the fuselage under each wing which carried eight 3 inch (76mm) "60 pound" rockets along with the installation of a Leigh light under the right wing.
The entire series of Liberator GR Is were assigned to 15 Group Coastal Command with the reforming of No. 120 Squadron RAF in June 1941[2] and continuing until December 1943. During this time, they accounted for five U-boats confirmed sunk and four damaged.
With the end of the war, the Liberators in Coastal Command were replaced by a purpose-designed Long Range Maritime Patrol aircraft, the Avro Shackleton.
Aircraft
The aircraft were:
-
- AM910 M
- AM911 Unmodified crew trainer
- AM913 Z
- AM914 Unmodified crew trainer
- AM916 L
- AM917 F
- AM919 P
- AM921 B
- AM922 Unmodified crew trainer
- AM923 W
- AM924 D
- AM925 X
- AM926 F
- AM928 A
- AM929 H
Three Liberators were initially converted to Liberator C.I (for "cargo") freighters: (AM915, AM918, AM920) and used on the Transatlantic for returning ferry pilots to Canada as well as priority shipments to England. When the Liberator GR.Is were retired from No. 120 Squadron, being replaced with later marks, the remaining aircraft were converted to Liberator C.Is.
- AM910 (ex 40-2349) s/n 1. Delivered March 1941, was initially assigned to test the Liberator B I for the RAF during July/August 1941 at Boscombe Down. Aircraft was used for initial Liberator GR I AXV radar and 20 mm cannon installations.
- Converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron in 5 September 1941 and given the Squadron Code/aircraft code OH M.
- March 1942, transferred out of 120 Sq.
- 13 April 1942, crashed on landing at Nutts Corner, the nose section lying in Lincolnshire until the late 1960s.
- AM911 (ex 40-2350) s/n 2. Delivered March 1941, converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron on 19 June 1941 and assigned unmodified as a pilot/crew instructional trainer. Named: St. Just
- April 1941, test and pilot checkout St. Hubert Que. Canada (Pilot: Capt.Cripps).
- 21 October 1941, returned to Scottish Aviation for transport modifications - passengers and mail only - no cargo door installed and redesignated as Liberator C I.
- 26 October 1941, reassigned to No 1425 (Transport) Flight - absorbed by 511 (Transport) Squadron when Flight was created.
- 23 May 1943, engine caught fire on takeoff, undercarriage collapsed at RAF Gibraltar - aircraft was SOC.
- AM912 (ex 40-2351) s/n 3, delivered April 1941.
- AM913 (ex 40-2352) s/n 4, delivered April 1941. After a period of time at an Operational Training Unit (OTU), it was converted to Liberator GR I standard and assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron and was assigned Squadron Code: OH aircraft Z.
- January 1943, assigned to 511 Squadron.
- 29 January 1943, crashed on approach to RAF Talbenny from a flight from Africa with 11 killed and eight injured. Crash was due to loss No. 3 engine following on from earlier loss of No. 4 engine. Among the killed passengers was Brigadier Vivian Dykes. - (Pilot: Kenneth C.R. Maskell)
- AM914 (ex 40-2353) s/n 5, delivered April 1941. After a period of time at an Operational Training Unit (OTU), it was converted to a Liberator GR I and assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron assigned unmodified, as pilot/crew instructional trainer.
- October 1941, returned to Scottish Aviation for transport modifications - passengers and mail only - no cargo door installed and redesignated Liberator C I.
- 28 June 1942 reassigned to No 1425 (Transport) Flight - Absorbed by RAF 511 Sq[3] (transport) when Flight was created.
- 1946, SOC Canada: .
- AM915 (ex 40-2354) s/n 6, delivered April 1941. Was converted to Liberator C I and assigned to the RAF Ferry Command.
- 1 September 1941, flew into Achinoan Hill near Goat Campbeltown, Argyll,[4] Scotland, ten crew and passengers killed (Pilot Captain Kenneth Dardanelles Garden [5] BOAC).
- AM916 (ex 40-2355) s/n 7, delivered April 1941. Converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron and assigned Squadron Code: OH aircraft L.
- 3 May 1941, test flight Floyd Bennet Field New York (Pilot: Capt. E.R.B. White).
- 9 May 1941, delivery flight Gander (Pilot: Capt. ERB White).
- 10 May 1941, delivery flight: Prestwick, Scotland (Pilot: Capt. E.R.B. White).
- 5 April 1942, escorted Convoy Skipper.
- June - July 1942, detached to Middle East (with 120/P AM919).
- 5 April 1942, participated in Operation Myrmiden, where it was engaged in combat with three Ju 88s for over 1/2 hour (Pilot: F/O Procter).
- 19 August 1946, sold,
- 1952, salvaged: Baledo Bridge.
- AM917 (ex 40-2356) s/n 8. Delivered April 1941. Converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron and assigned Squadron Code: OH aircraft F.
- 16 August 42, attacked and damaged U-89 (Pilot: S/L Terry Bullock) (U-Boat Captain Dietrich Lohmann).
- 19 August 1942, attacked and damaged U-653 while escorting convoy SL 118 - (note: U-653 was seriously damaged, losing one man in the crash dive and had to limp back to base, reaching Brest, France on 30 August 1942) (Pilot: S/L Terry Bullock) (U-Boat Captain Willi Pröhl).
- 20 September 1943, attacked but inflicted no damage against U-386 southwest of Iceland, in position 57° 40'N, 29° 48'W.
- 12 March 1947, SOC.
- AM918 (ex 40-2357) s/n 9, delivered May 1941. Was converted to Liberator C I and was assigned to the RAF Ferry Command. Assigned to BOAC with registration G-AGDR.
- May 1941 delivered to England by Ferry Command (Pilot: W/C John Francis).
- 24–25 January 1942, AM918 with civil registry G-AGDR flew nonstop from Hurn to Cairo. However, on its return trip, it was shot down in error by a Spitfire over the English Channel near Plymouth, England on 15 February 1943 (BOAC Captain: R.H. Page)(passengers: four crew: five killed).[6]
- AM919 (ex 40-2358) s/n 10, delivered May 1941. Converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron, and was assigned Squadron Code: OH aircraft P.
- June - July 1942, detached to Middle East (with 120/L AM916).
- 20 May 1943, attacked and sank U-258[7] while escorting convoy SC 130. U-258 was sunk in the North Atlantic, in position 55°18'N, 27° 49'W, by depth charges - all hands lost (Pilot J.R.E. Proctor) (U-Boat Captain Oblt. Wilhelm von Mässenhausen).
- 18 June 1943, undercarriage collapsed on landing at Reykjavík, Iceland: salvaged for spares.
- AM920 (ex 40-2359) s/n 11, delivered May 1941. Was converted to Liberator C I and was assigned to the RAF Ferry Command. Assigned to BOAC with registration G-AHYB.
- 10 February 1946, completed the British Overseas Airways Corporation's 2,000th transatlantic crossing.
- 23–24 July 1946, Doval - Gander - Rhennia - Heathrow (BOAC Pilot Capt. Gordon Bennett).
- To France as F-VNNP – assigned as the personal transport of Indochina's Emperor Bảo Đại.
- AM921 (ex 40-2360) s/n 12, delivered May 1941. Converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron and assigned Squadron Code: OH aircraft B.
- 8 December 1941, attacked and sank U-254 in the North Atlantic south-east of Cape Farewell, Greenland, in approximate position 55° 00'N, 40° 00'W (U-Boat Captain Hans Gilardone).
- 16 October 1942, attacked U-258 while escorting convoy SC 104. (Pilot, Pilot Officer N.E.M.Smith.) According to Wireless Operators log book, "U-boat crash dived before attack"
- 8 December 1942, attacked and sank U-611 in the North Atlantic south-east of Cape Farewell, in position 57° 25'N, 35° 19'W, while on convoy escort HX 217 (Pilot: S/L Terry Bullock) (U-Boat Captain Nikolaus von Jacobs).
- 9 January 1943, engine caught fire in air and crashed on landing at Reykjavík, Iceland.
- AM922 (ex 40-2361) s/n 13, delivered May 1941. Converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron, and assigned, unmodified, as pilot/crew instructional trainer.
- October 1941, returned to Scottish Aviation for transport modifications - passengers and mail only - no cargo door installed and redesignated Liberator C I.
- 7 January 1942, reassigned to No 1425 (Transport) Flight - Absorbed by RAF 511 Sq (transport) when Flight was created.
- 7 September 1944, placed in storage.
- June 1947, salvaged.
- AM923 (ex 40-2362) s/n 14, delivered May 1941. Converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron and assigned Squadron Code: OH aircraft W.
- 26–28 May 1941, delivery flight St. Hubert - Gander - Ayr (Pilot Capt White).
- 27 May 1941, searched for the battleship Bismarck during delivery flight (Pilot Capt White).
- December 1943, salvaged.
- AM924 (ex 40-2363) s/n 15, delivered May 1941. Converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron and assigned Squadron Code: OH aircraft D "Donald Duck."
- October 1941 attacked Fw 200 Condor
- 5 April 1942, attacked and fuel tank damaged by an Arado float plane while escorting Convoy Skipper near 43° 36'N, 02° 07'W (Pilot: P/O Secord).
- 11 January 1942, while on a sortie into the Bay of Biscay attacked the German blockade runner: Elsa Essberger and the U-373 (which was at the time alongside the German ship). The action took place near position 43° 55'N, 10° 15'W (Pilot: Peter Cundy).
- 28 May 1942, attacked and shot down by three Bf 109Es of 9/JG1 (flying out of Lister) south of the Lofoten Islands, north Norway (Pilot: S/L Rae Walton) (aircraft was shot down by Staffelkapitän Werner Gutowski).
- AM925 (ex 40-2364) s/n 16, delivered May 1941. Converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron, and was assigned Squadron Code: OH aircraft X.
- 6 February 1942, while escorting Convoy SC 118, forces U-262, U-267, U-438, U-456 and U-609 to break off attacks (Pilot: S/L Isted).
- 18 February 1942, crashed on takeoff: RAF Nutts Corner, Belfast Northern Ireland.
- AM926 (ex 40-2365) s/n 17, delivered May 1941. Converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron, and was assigned Squadron Code: OH aircraft F.
- AM927 (ex 40-2366) s/n 18, delivered 17 May 1941. Assigned to Albuquerque, New Mexico, for crew training at the Eagle Nest Flight Training Center, run by Transcontinental & Western Airlines (TWA).
- 24 July 1941, crashed on landing - brake failure/right landing gear and nose gear collapsed (TWA Pilot: Captain Frank Burcham)
- Salvaged and rebuilt by Consolidated in the fall 1941 to prototype XC-87 configuration - used by Consolidated to carry necessary parts between factories, as well as a corporate transport.
- 14 February 1945, AM927 had the "short" B-24A nose section removed and had a nose section from an RY-3 installed. At this time, the aircraft also had the PBY-type powerplants (firewall forward) installed, to make the items in the engine compartment interchangeable with aircraft still being produced. (Registered as NL24927, 1 April 1947).
- 10 November 1948, sold by Consolidated to the Continental Can Company. The aircraft was outfitted with sleeping berths and reclining chairs and was used to transport company executives from its home base in Morristown, New Jersey (Registered N1503).
- 14 April 1959, sold to Pemex, a Mexican petroleum company. They used the aircraft not only as an executive transport, but to haul drums of oil from place to place. (Registered as XC-CAY, November 1959).
- May 1968, sold to the Confederate Air Force, initially registered N12905, currently N24927.
- AM928 (ex 40-2367) s/n 19, delivered May 1941. Converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron, and was assigned Squadron Code: OH aircraft A.
- 27 May 1942, undershot landing and hit sand-dunes: Stornoway, United Kingdom.
- AM929 (ex 40-2368) s/n 20, delivered May 1941. Converted to Liberator GR I, assigned to 15 Group (CC)/120 Squadron and assigned Squadron Code: OH aircraft H.
- 12 October 1942, attacked and sunk U-597 while on convoy escort ONS 136, southwest of Iceland, in position 56° 50'N, 28° 05'W, by depth charges (Pilot: S/L Terry Bullock) (U-Boat Captain Eberhard Bopst).
- 15 October 1942, attacked U-615 and U-437 while escorting convoy SC 104.
- 5 November 1942, attacked and damaged U-132 while escorting convoy SC 107. (Pilot: S/L Terry Bullock) (U-Boat Captain Dietrich Lohmann).[8]
- 7 December 1942, while escorting Convoy HX 217, forced U-135, U-251, U-461 and U-439 to break off attacks (Pilot: S/L Terry Bullock).
- 24 June 1943, attacked and sunk U-200 while on convoy escort ONS 11, south-west of Iceland, in position 58° 15'N, 25° 25'W, by 2 depth charges (Pilot: A.W. Fraser) (U-Boat Captain Heinrich Schonder).
- 17 October 1943, attacked and sunk U-540 while on convoy escort ONS 206 (shared kill with BZ712 of 59 Sq. - aircraft(D)), east of Cape Farewell, Greenland, in position 58° 38'N, 31° 56'W (Pilot: B.W. Turnbull RZNAF) (U-Boat Captain: Lorenz Kasch).
- Converted to Liberator C I assigned to 231 Squadron, 49 Group.
- 9 April 1945, # 3 Engine caught fire flight 15 minutes after takeoff from Dorval Airport and crashed: St Simon De Bagot, Quebec (Pilot: G.I. Voorhees) (two killed, 13 injured).
Specifications (Liberator GR I)
- Crew=5
- Length main=63 ft 9 in
- Span main=110 ft
- Height main=18 ft 8 in
- Area main=1,048 ft²
- empty weight main=27,500 lb
- loaded weight main= 38,360 lb
- max takeoff weight main= 46,400 lb
- engine (prop)=Pratt & Whitney R-1830
- propellors Hamilton Standard
- number of props=4
- power main= 1,200 hp
- max speed main=273 mph at 15,500 ft (4,700 m)
- Range main= 3000 miles with 2,500 lb (1,100 kg) ordnance
- Ceiling main= 31,500 ft
- armament=
References
Notes
Bibliography
- Birdsall, Steve. B-24 Liberator In Action. Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Publications, 1975. ISBN 0-89747-020-6.
- Blue, Al. Pictorial History of the B24 Liberator Bomber. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1985. ISBN 0-68414-508-1.
- Franks, Norman. Search, Find and Kill. London: Grub Street, 1995. ISBN 1-898697-35-3.
- O'Leary, Michael. Consolidated B-24 Liberator: Production Line to Front Line. Botley, UK: Osprey Publishing, 2002. ISBN 1-84176-023-4.
- Pearcy, Arthur. Lend-Lease Aircraft in World War II: An Operational History. St. Paul, Minnesota: MBI Publishing Company LLC, 1996. ISBN 0-76030-259-6.
- RAF No 120 Sqdn. Records. London: Official Crown Documents, 1940-1946.
- Webmail re: B-24/PB4Y/Liberator I AM911, AM914 and AM922.
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