| Hobby Master 1/144 Air Power Series HA9101 B-24D Liberator 514th Bomb Squadron, 376th Bomb Group 9th Air Force, "Lady Be Good" 1943 |
| The B-24 was the most produced American bomber in WWII. The demand was so great that Consolidated was unable to keep up so contracts were awarded to Douglas, Ford and North American. The D variant became the most numerous with 2,698. The design of the B-24 allowed it to carry the same payload as the Boeing B-17 and do it faster and further. Compared to the sleek look of the B-17 the B-24 looked awkward and B-17 crews referred to it as “the crate the B-17 was shipped in”. B-24D Liberator 41-24301 arrived in Libya on March 25, 1943 assigned to the 514th BS, 376th BG. The number 64 was painted on both sides of the nose along with the name “Lady Be Good” on the starboard side. On April 4, 1943 the “LBG” was the last of 25 B-24s to depart to bomb Naples harbor. On the way home they lost their ADF and never returned. In 1958 it was located 440 miles inland on the desert. In 1960 8 of the 9 crew members remains were found. Specifications for the Consolidated B-24D Liberator Number Produced – 2,698 Crew – 7 / 10 Dimensions Length – 66 ft 4 ins Wingspan – 110 ft Height – 17 ft 11 ins Wing Area – 1048 sq. ft Weight Empty – 32,605 lbs Gross Weight – 60,000 lbs Performance Engines – 4 x Pratt & Whitney R-1830-43 supercharged radials of 1,200 hp each (takeoff power) Maximum Speed – 303 mph Cruising Speed – 200 mph Service Ceiling – 32,000 ft. Range – 2,850 miles Armament 10 × .50 caliber (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns Bombs Short Range (400 mi) - 8,000 lb Long Range (800 mi) - 5,000 lb Very Long Range (1,200 mi) - 2,700 lb |