Did the B-24 Liberator have a ball turret?
The design was mainly deployed on the B-17 Flying Fortress and the B-24 Liberator, as well as the United States Navy’s Liberator, the PB4Y-1. Ball turrets appeared in the nose and tail as well as the nose of the final series B-24.
Could a ball turret gunner bail out?
The tail gunner, waist gunners, and ball turret gunner bailed out. The ball turret gunner first had to exit the ball turret and hook up his chute as he did not have room in the ball turret to wear it.
How many B 24s are left?
Of the 19,256 B-24, PB4Y, LB-30 and other model variants in the Liberator family produced, thirteen complete examples survive today, two of which are airworthy. Eight of the thirteen aircraft reside in the United States.
What was the life expectancy of a ball turret gunner?
The fighters who attacked him were armed with cannons firing explosive shells. “I later learned that the life expectancy of a ball turret gunner was just a mere 37 seconds.
Did the B 25 have a belly turret?
The B-25B, the first version to see widespread combat, had turrets mounting twin 0.50-inch (12.7-mm) machine guns in the upper fuselage and belly. Both turrets were powered; in addition, the belly turret was retractable and was fired remotely by a gunner inside the fuselage.
What engine was in the B-17?
Hornet radial engines
The B-17’s armament consisted of five .30 caliber (7.62 mm) machine guns, with a payload up to 4,800 lb (2,200 kg) of bombs on two racks in the bomb bay behind the cockpit. The aircraft was powered by four Pratt & Whitney R-1690 Hornet radial engines, each producing 750 hp (600 kW) at 7,000 ft (2,100 m).
How many B 17 Crews died?
Of the 3,885 crewmen aboard B-‐17 Flying Fortresses that went down, 2,114 (54.4 %) did not survive; 866 of the 1,228 on B-‐24 Liberators (71.3%) died; 190 of the 236 (80.0%) fighter pilots who went down perished.
Was the B-24 better than the B 17?
The B-24 had a shoulder-mounted high aspect ratio Davis wing. This wing was highly efficient allowing a relatively high airspeed and long range. Compared to the B-17 it had a 6-foot larger wingspan, but a lower wing area. This gave the B-24 a 35% higher wing loading.
Did the B 25 have a ball turret?
4 Answers. The production B-25B, B-25C, B-25D, and some B-25G models did have retractable remote control belly turrets. They were often removed in the field because they were ineffective and disliked by the crews.
Was the B-25 used in Europe?
The B-25 medium bomber was one of America’s most famous airplanes of World War II. It was the type used by Gen. The five bombardment groups that used the B-25 in the North African desert and the Mediterranean Theater of Operations (MTO) were the only US units to use the B-25 in Europe.
What kind of model kit is the B-24 Liberator?
Metallic Details MDR3205-1/32 B-24. Turbochargers (HobbyBoss) Scale Model kit . Metallic Details MDR3202-1/32 B-24. Wheel Bays (HobbyBoss) Scale Model kit
Where is the B-24 ball turret located in the Air Force Museum?
It was donated to the Museum by the Hobart Corp. of Troy, Ohio. This B-24 ball turret was located on the underside of the aircraft. It is essentially the same type as the one used in B-17s. An electro-hydraulic system moved the turret, and ammunition was stored in the turret above the .50-cal. Browning M2 machine guns.
Who was the ball turret gunner on the B-17?
In May 1943, enemy flak and fighters set ball turret gunner SSgt Maynard Smith’s B-17 afire over Brest, France. For more than an hour, Smith alternated between tending to a wounded crewman, battling flames, and firing the waist guns against enemy fighters.
Where was the ammunition stored in a B-24?
This B-24 ball turret was located on the underside of the aircraft. It is essentially the same type as the one used in B-17s. An electro-hydraulic system moved the turret, and ammunition was stored in the turret above the .50-cal. Browning M2 machine guns. Later models stored ammunition in drums inside the aircraft.