USA B-26B Marauder Bomber ICM-48320

Description

The U.S. B-26 twin-engine medium bomber, manufactured by the Glenn L. Martin Company, was designed and built in 1939 under U.S. Army Air Corps requirements for a new high-speed medium bomber. Initially, the project was called Model 179. Construction of the production aircraft began without the usual stage of a prototype or pre-series samples.

The first B-26 flew on November 25, 1940 and was adopted by the U.S. Air Force in February 1941. Structurally, the B-26 Marauder was a high-wing aircraft with a roomy fuselage and a crew of five (in later versions, up to seven). During its operation, the bomber’s design was constantly modified to improve its flight and combat characteristics. From 1943, the wing and keel area was increased; with these changes, the aircraft was produced until the end of its production.

The last modification of the B-26B Marauder (B-26B-55-MA) was produced until February 1944; these aircraft were active in U.S. bombing operations in Europe in the final stages of World War II. The B-26B Marauder aircraft is known as one of the most famous U.S. bombers of World War II.