<p>The Martin Marauder gained a reputation for tricky handling and forgave few of the mistakes its pilots made. Yet, the combination of power and mercurial performance that turned the B-26 into a 'Widow Maker' were the same qualities that made it an outstanding attack aircraft during the final years of the war.
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<p>During the last years of the 1930s the US Army Air Corps was singularly poorly equipped with medium bombers, dependence being laid almost exclusively upon the aged Douglas B-18 and Martin B-10, neither of which possessed the performance, bomb load or defensive armament comparable with modern aircraft in service in Europe. In January 1939 the AAC circulated among American manufacturers outline proposals for a new medium bomber, with emphasis given to high speed, long range and a bomb load of 2,000 lb (907 kg), it being tacitly accepted that achievement of these characteristics would likely result in high wing-loading, and therefore high landing speed and lengthy take-off run.
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<p>Prepared by Peyton M. Magruder and submitted to the Air Board by the Glenn L. Martin Company on 5 July 1939, the Martin 179 design was adjudged the best of all competing tenders and, despite the highest-ever wing-loading of an aircraft intended for the AAC, was ordered into production immediately after the design had been accepted, an expedient prompted by the worsening international situation. With a five-man crew, the Martin 179 was to be powered by two 1,380-kW (1,850-hp) Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Double Wasp radials in nacelles underslung from a shoulder-mounted wing of only moderate area. Two 0.3-in (7.62-mm) and two 0.5-in (12.7-mm) machine guns constituted the defensive armament, and the center portion of the beautifully streamlined, circular-section fuselage featured an unrestricted bay to accommodate the bomb load.
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<p>Designated B-26, 1,100 aircraft were ordered in September 1939 and the first aircraft (40-1361) was flown by William K. Ebel on 25 November 1940. There were no prototypes as such. The first 201 examples were powered by R-2800-5 engines and most were retained for experimental and training purposes, the latter proving to be a lengthy and somewhat hazardous procedure as a result of pilot unfamiliarity with the nosewheel type of landing gear and the high landing speed: at a gross weight of 32,000 lb (14,515 kg) and wing area of 602.0 sq ft (55.93 m<su>2</su>), the wing loading was 53.2 Ib/sq ft (260 kg/m<su>2</su>) and at a normal landing weight the touchdown speed was around 96 mph (154 km/h). The maximum bomb load of 5,800 lb (2,631 kg) far exceeded the original requirement and the top speed of 315 mph (507 km/h) was the highest of all B-26 variants.
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<p>First deliveries to the AAF started in 1941, and during the second half of that year production switched to the B-26A which, introducing provision for optional bomb bay fuel tanks, shackles for a 22-in (5.88-cm) torpedo under the fuselage and 0.5-in (12.7-mm) guns in place of the 0.3-in (7.62-mm) guns in nose and tail, had a maximum all-up weight of 32,200 lb (14,606 kg) . At the same time the electrical system was changed from 12 volt to 24 volt.
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<p>A total of 139 B-26As was built, and it was with this version that the 22nd Bomb Group (Medium) moved to Australia immediately after Pearl Harbor in December 1941; with extra fuel replacing part of the bomb load these aircraft flew attacks against targets in New Guinea the following April. In June that year torpedo-carrying B-26As went into action during the great Battle of Midway, as others of the 73rd and 77th Bomb Squadron attacked shipping in the Aleutians.
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<hi style=hdr1>Next in Line</hi>
<p>Production of the B-26A continued at the Baltimore, Maryland, factory until May 1942 when the first B-26Bs appeared. With a total of 1,883 built, the B-26B was the most-produced version. The B-26B-1 introduced increased armor protection, improved engine cowling shape (without propeller spinners), a ventral gun position and a twin 0.5-in (12.7-mm) tail gun position. These alterations increased the gross weight to 36,500 lb (16,556 kg) without any change in powerplant, but in the B-2, -3 and -4 production blocks the engines were the uprated 1,920-hp (1,432-kW) R-2800-41 or -43 version.
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<p>The B-26B-4 sub-variant introduced a lengthened nosewheel leg as an attempt to provide increased wing incidence on take-off, and single 0.5-in (12.7-mm) beam guns replaced the ventral gun. The B-5 featured slotted flaps to improve landing approach handling. A total of 641 B-1s, -2s, -3s, -4s and -5s was produced.
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<p>Nonetheless, the B-26 attracted harsh comment from the service. The B-10 (and subsequent versions) featured a wing span increased to 71 ft 0 in (21.64 m) to reduce the wing-loading, but this was accompanied by yet further weight increases (to a gross weight of 38,200 lb/17,328 kg) by the addition of four 0.5-in (12.7-mm) 'package' machine guns on the sides of the nose, and a Martin-Bell power-operated tail turret. Far from being significantly reduced, the wing loading at all-up weight had advanced to 58.05 Ib/sq ft (283.4 kg/m<su>2</su>) and the normal touchdown speed to 103 mph (166 km/h). As a means of limiting the critical speed and of improving lateral stability, the vertical tail was also increased in height and area.
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<p>The Baltimore plant produced 1,242 B-10s and their derivatives, and Martin went on to open a new facility at Omaha, Nebraska, late in 1942 where 1,235 B-26Cs (equivalent to the B-10 and subsequent blocks) were produced.
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<hi style=hdr1>Into Action Around the World</hi>
<p>War operations by the B-26 during the USA's first 11 months of war were confined to the Pacific theater but, in support of the campaign following the Torch landings, the 17th, 319th and 320th Bomb Groups (Medium), comprising the 34th, 37th, 95th, 432nd, 437th, 438th, 439th, 440th, 441st, 442nd, 443rd and 444th Squadrons, operated with the 12th Air Force in North Africa with B-26Bs and B-26Cs from December 1942, thereafter accompanying and supporting the Allied armies in Sicily, Italy, Sardinia, Corsica and southern France.
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<p>In northern Europe the B-26's early operations were disappointing. Following a partly successful baptism in an attack on the Velsen generating station on 14 May 1943 by the 8th Air Force's first B-26 group, the 322nd, a second attack by 10 aircraft led by Colonel Robert M. Stillman on the same target three days later resulted in the loss of the entire formation to flak, German fighters and collision. In recognition of the B-26's apparent vulnerability to ground fire, operations moved to medium and high altitudes. The Marauder's full potential was not realized, until, assigned to the newly formed 9th Air Force at the end of 1943, the aircraft assumed the role of medium-altitude strategic attack (albeit under fighter escort) against targets in preparation for the forthcoming invasion of Europe. By May 1944 the 9th Air Force operated eight B-26 groups, the 322nd, 323rd, 344th, 386th, 387th, 391st, 394th and 397th, comprising 28 squadrons.
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<p>Meanwhile, the B-26 had entered service with the Royal Air Force. In July 1942 the first Marauder Mk Is (equivalent to the 65-ft/19.81-m span B-26A) had reached Egypt and the following month No. 14 Squadron started disposing of its Bristol Blenheims in favor of the American aircraft. However, the RAF repeated the criticisms voiced elsewhere, and these were confirmed by trials with an aircraft in the United Kingdom, with the result that deliveries to the Middle East were stockpiled at Maintenance Units, and No. 14 Squadron for many months remained the only RAF Marauder-equipped squadron, persevering with their aircraft until September 1944.
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<p>The rapid expansion and deployment of the South African Air Force in North Africa resulted in the long-span Marauder Mk II (equivalent to the B-26C-30-MO) being issued to Nos 12, 21, 24, 25 and 30 Squadrons, SAAF. Nineteen short-span B-26Bs remained on RAF charge. In 1944, Marauder Mk IIIs (equivalent to the B-26F and B-26G) arrived in the Mediterranean theater and joined the SAAF as well as six squadrons of the newly reconstituted French air force. In all, a total of 525 Marauders was acquired by the UK on Lend-Lease.
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<p>Production of the B-26B ended at Baltimore in February 1944 with delivery of the last B-26B-55-MA. In addition, Martin produced 208 AT-23As for the USAAF, these being a target tug/trainer version of the B-26B without armor, guns or turret, but with a C-5 target winch. Omaha production ended in April 1944 with the B-26C-45-MO and 350 AT-23B target tug/trainers; 225 of the target tugs were delivered to the US Navy and US Marine Corps under the designation JM-1. The USAAF aircraft were redesignated TB-26s in 1944.
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<hi style=hdr1>Further Changes, Further Orders</hi>
<p>A single XB-26D was produced after modification of an early aircraft to test anti-icing systems, but the planned B-26E, with reduced weight and the dorsal turret moved forward to the navigator's compartment, was not built.
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<p>Two other production versions were built. Both featured the long-span wings, and the wing incidence was increased by 3.5 degrees: this was considered by most pilots to improve take-off and landing characteristics and certainly resulted in better approach handling, but sharply reduced the maximum speed to 277 mph (446 km/h). Production of the B-26F-1-MA started late in 1943, with the first deliveries to the USAAF being made the following February. Some 300 B-26Fs were completed, of which 200 were delivered to the Middle East under Lend-Lease as Marauder Mk IIIs (equivalent to the B-26F-2 and B-26F-6).
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<p>Numerous minor changes in equipment and fittings identified the B-26G, of which Martin produced 893, with 150 purchased by the UK also as Marauder Mk IIIs. Some 57 TB-26Gs were also produced in 1944, of which the last 15 went to the US Navy and US Marine Corps as the JM-2.
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<p>With the take-off and landing problems largely sorted out, a second RAF squadron, No. 39, started to receive Marauder Mk IIIs at Alghero, Italy, in February 1945, retaining them in the Middle East until September 1946.
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<p>The final B-26 was delivered on 30 March 1945 for a total of 5,157 Marauders completed. (One other aircraft, the XB-26H, 44-28221, was produced to test the four-wheel bicycle landing gear planned for the Boeing B-47 and Martin XB-48 bombers.)
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<p>Despite the problems stemming from the relatively advanced design philosophy, the B-26 had an impressive war record, including a total of 129,943 operational sorties flown in the European and Mediterranean theaters alone, during which B-26s dropped 169,382 tons of bombs; their crews claimed the destruction of 402 enemy aircraft, while the loss of 911 aircraft in combat represented an overall loss rate of less than one per cent. The USAAF's B-26 inventory peaked in March 1944 when 11 groups were operational (comprising 43 squadrons), and 1,931 B-26s were on charge in the ETO alone.
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<hi style=hdr1>The B-26 Described</hi>
<p>When first introduced to service the B-26 cost $261,000, and by 1944 this had dropped to $192,000 (compared with $142,000 for a B-25). It was a robust airplane whose semi-monocoque fuselage was constructed in three sections with four main longerons, transverse circular frames and longitudinal stringers; the center-section with bomb bay was constructed integrally with the wing section. The box-type wing structure, formed by two heavy main spars with heavy-gauge skin, was reinforced by spanwise members to provide torsional stiffness; the entire leading edge was hinged to the front spar to facilitate servicing. Only the rudder was fabric-covered. All units of the hydraulically-operated tricycle landing gear retracted rearwards, the nosewheel pivoting 90 degrees to lie flat in the fuselage nose.
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<p>The seven-man crew included two pilots, navigator, radio operator, front gunner/bombardier, turret and tail gunners. The 11 0.5-in (12.7-mm) machine guns (single nose gun, four in nose packs, two in the turret, two hand-held flexible beam guns and two in the extreme tail) were provided with a total of 3,950 rounds. The maximum bomb load of two 1,600-lb (726-kg) bombs and a single 2,000-lb (907-kg) torpedo was seldom carried, most sorties being flown with eight 500-lb (227-kg) or 16 250-lb (113-kg) bombs.
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<hi style=hdr1>Specification</hi>
<hi style=hdr2>Martin—B-26C Marauder</hi>
<list style=aflst>
<item><hi format=bold>Type:</hi> seven-seat medium bomber
<item><hi format=bold>Powerplant:</hi> two Pratt & Whitney R-2800-43 radial piston engines, each rated at 2,000 hp
<item><hi format=bold>Performance:</hi> maximum speed 282 mph at 15,000 ft; service ceiling 21,700 ft; range 1,150 miles
<item><hi format=bold>Weights:</hi> empty 24,000 lb; maximum take-off 38,200 lb
<item><hi format=bold>Dimensions:</hi> wing span 71 ft 0 in; length 58 ft 3 in; height 21 ft 6 in; wing area 658 sq ft
<item><hi format=bold>Armament:</hi> 12 0.5-in machine-guns, including four fixed in fuselage-side packs; up to 3,000 lb of bombs internally
