Article 3314 of rec.aviation.military:
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From: jfb@usgp1.ih.att.com (Joe Baugher)
Subject: Bomber Series--Consolidated B-24 Liberator (5 of ??)
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Summary: Liberator II for RAF
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Date: Tue, 11 Oct 1994 00:42:58 GMT
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The Liberator II was the designation assigned to a version of the 
Liberator ordered for the RAF in 1941 directly from the Consolidated 
production line rather than being diverted from USAAC production 
orders.  It was designed specifically for British requirements and had 
no direct USAAF counterpart.  165 were ordered under RAF serials 
AL503/AL667, but only 140 were actually built.  They served with three 
Coastal Command and two Bomber Command squadrons.  

The RAF Liberator II differed from the previous Liberator I (which was 
basically a B-24A) primarily in having a three foot-longer nose 
section, increasing the length from 63 feet 9 inches .  This stretched 
nose had been specified by Reuben Fleet very early in the Liberator's 
development when he described to the engineering team his gut feeling 
that the nose was too short.  Fleet's instinct was correct--not only 
did the longer nose make the Liberator more aesthetically appealing, 
it also added extra room which was to become more important as more 
and more equipment had to be added.  

The Liberator II was the first version of the Liberator to be equipped 
with power turrets.  The first installation was performed by the 
British in the field at English bases, when they installed two 
Boulton-Paul power turrets on a Liberator II.  Each turret was armed 
with four Browning-Colt 0.303-inch machine guns.  An E. Mk. II 
turret was installed in the tail and a A. Mk. IV turret was 
installed midway down the upper fuselage just aft of the wing.  The 
top turret had 600 rounds, whereas the tail turret had a 2200-round 
capacity which was later increased to 2500 rounds.  Only one of the 
Liberator IIs had its turret installed at San Diego--all the rest had 
their turrets added in England.  In addition to the power turrets, 
0.303-inch machine guns were mounted in pairs at each waist position.  
A single 0.303-inch machine gun was mounted in the nose and in the 
belly, bringing total armament to fourteen 0.303-inch machine guns.  

All fuel tanks were self-sealing.  Curtiss Electric propellers with 
long hubs replaced the Hamilton Standard propellers of other Liberator 
variants.  

The bombload was increased slightly, and gross weight was raised to 
64,250 pounds.  The maximum speed was reduced to 263 mph because of 
the additional drag added by the power turrets, but the service 
ceiling was raised from 21,200 feet to 24,000 feet.  The maximum crew 
was 

The first Liberator II (AL503) was to be delivered to the RAF on June 
2, 1941.  However, during its acceptance flight, it crashed into San 
Diego Bay, killing all aboard including Consolidated's chief test 
pilot William Wheatley.  The investigation into the cause of the crash 
resulted in a delay of two months before the first Liberator II could 
be delivered to the RAF.  Consequently, the RAF did not get its first 
Liberator IIs until August of 1941.

In January of 1942, the Liberator II entered service with RAF Bomber 
Command.  The Liberator II equipped Nos. 159 and 160 Squadrons, which 
became the first bomber units to operate this type of aircraft.  They 
operated initially in the Middle East theatre of operations, but were 
later transferred to the CBI theatre.  Liberator IIs later equipped No 
148 and 178 Squadrons of RAF Bomber Command.  

They also equipped Coastal Command's No. 120 Squadron, supplementing 
that units Liberator Is in November of 1941.  They remained for about 
a year until supplanted by later Liberator versions.  

Some of the Liberator IIs were delivered as unarmed transports under 
the designation LB-30.  Some were used as transports with No.  511 
Squadron, with the North Atlantic Return Ferry Service, and with BOAC.  
The BOAC operated their Liberators as part of the North Atlantic 
Return Ferry Service for RAF Ferry Command.  They brought RAF crews to 
Canada, where they picked up lend-lease aircraft for ferrying back to 
England.  Those Liberator IIs used by BOAC as freighters included 
AL507, AL512, AL514, AL516, AL522, AL524, AL528, AL529, AL541, AL547, 
AL552, AL557, AL571, AL592, AL603, and AL619, which were given the 
civilian serials G-AHYC, G-AGEL, G-AGJP, G-AHZP, G-AHYD, G-AGTJ, 
G-AGEM, G-AHYE, G-AGTI, G-AGKU, G-AHZR, G-AGZI, G-AGZH, G-AHYF, 
G-AHYG, and G-AGKT.  The BOAC flight crews wore their civilian 
uniforms and were covered by the rules of the Geneva Convention.  

All of the BOAC Liberators were returned to the RAF in January of 
1945.  Seven of them were converted in 1946 as commercial transports.  
These conversions include 

AL507 	G-AHYC 
AL514 	G-AGIP 
AL522 	G-AHYD 
AL529	G-AHYE 
AL592 	G-AHYF 
AL603 	G-AHYG 
AL627 	G-AHYJ 

At least four Liberator IIs ended up serving with Queensland and 
Northern Aerial Territories (QANTAS), the Australian flag airline, 
between June 1944 and November 1950.  These planes had originally been 
owned by BOAC.  The four ex-RAF Liberator IIs were G-AGKT (AL619), 
G-AGKU (AL517), G-AGTI (AL541) and G-AGTJ(AL524).  G-AGTI was 
re-registered in Australian service as VH-EAI in June of 1947.  

The most famous Liberator II was AL504, which was the personal 
transport of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.  All armament 
was removed, and the fuselage was modified to accommodate plush seats, 
berths, and an electric flight kitchen.  It bore the name *Commando*.  
In 1944, *Commando* was fitted with a single-fin and rudder.  

Retired Liberator IIs also flew in the Berlin Airlift of 1948.  G-AHDY 
(AL522), G-AHZP (AL516) and G-AHZR (AL552) operated by Scottish 
Aviation flew fuel and freight.  

A total of 139 Liberator IIs were delivered to the RAF, serial numbers 
being AL504/AL642.  Later, an ex-USAAF Liberator was handed over to 
the RAF as a replacement for the lost AL503.  It was assigned the 
serial FP685.  

Immediatedly after Pearl Harbor, the USAAF requisitioned 75 of the 
Liberator IIs from the RAF order.  For some reason, they were carried 
on USAAF rosters under the designation LB-30 (the original export 
designation for the Liberator) rather than as B-24, and they retained 
their RAF serial numbers.  Liberator IIs diverted to the USAAF 
included AL604/609, AL611/613, AL615, AL617, AL618, AL621/623, AL626, 
AL628, AL631/634, AL637, AL639/641.  I am not sure if this is a
complete list.  

Fifteen USAAF LB-30 bombers were deployed in Java in early 1942 to 
reinforce the B-17-equipped 19th Bombardment Group in a vain attempt 
to stem the Japanese advance.  These USAAF LB-30s were hastily 
re-equipped with a Martin power turret armed with two 0.50-inch 
machine guns in the dorsal position behind the wing instead of the 
four-gun Boulton-Paul turret of the RAF version.  The tail position 
was fitted with a pair of hand-held 0.50-inch machine guns mounted 
behind sliding doors.  Single hand-held 0.50-inch machine guns were 
installed in the nose, ventral tunnel, and each waist position.  The 
tunnel gun was located on the belly of the rear fuselage, and pointed 
in the aft direction.  It was fired downward through the rear entrance 
hatch.  Small scanning windows for the gun were located along the 
lower sides of the fuselage.  The Dark Earth and Dark Green over Black 
camouflage scheme of the RAF was retained, but the roundels were 
painted over with USAAF insignia.  

The Java-based LB-30s would be the first US-flown Liberators to see 
action.  One was lost in a crash in the USA before delivery, another 
ditched en route, and a third was delayed as a result of damage 
incurred in an accident in the USA.  Those Liberators which did reach 
the Java front participated in numerous attacks against Japanese 
targets in the Celebese, in Sumatra, and participated in raids against 
shipping during the Japanese invasion of Bali.  By late February, the 
position of Allied forces in Java had become untenable, and the surviving 
LB-30s had to be evacuated to Australia.  Two LB-30s survived in Australia 
until 1944 after having been converted to C-87 transport configuration.  

Another 17 LB-30s were equipped with Canadian-built radar and deployed  
to Latin America with the 6th Bombardment Group to provide defense for 
the Panama Canal.  Three LB-30s were sent to Alaska to join the 28th 
Composite Group.  These saw action against Japanese shipping during 
the Aleutian campaign.  

Those LB-30s that were not used as bombers were converted as 
transports and were assigned to the 7th Air Force in the Pacific and 
used to ferry men and supplies.  All of their armament was removed, 
and the transparent nose and tail positions were faired over.  Windows 
were cut into the sides of the fuselage, and a cargo door was 
installed in the rear fuselage where the waist positions used to be.  

At least four ex-USAAF LB-30s were operated by Consairways, the 
company-operated airline which had a USAAF contract for the return of 
ferry crews from the Pacific.  Known serials were AL531, AL568, AL594, 
and AL598.  

46 of the requisitioned LB-30s saw active service with the USAAF, 
either as bombers or as transports.  Of the remaining 29, six were 
lost in accidents during the first six weeks of their service, and 23 
were eventually returned to the RAF.  

Specification of Consolidated Liberator II:

Four Pratt & Whitney R-1830-33 (S3C4-G) Twin Wasp fourteen-cylinder
air-cooled radials rated at 1200 hp for takeoff and 1000  hp at
14,500 feet.
Performance:  Maximum speed 263 mph at 15,000 feet.  Service ceiling
24,000 feet. 
Weights: 46,250 pounds gross.
Dimensions: Wingspan 110 feet 0 inches, length 66 feet 4 inches, height
18 feet 0 inches, wing area 1048 square feet.
Total of fourteen 0.303-inch Colt-Browning machine guns, four in
dorsal turret behind the wing, four in tail turret, two in each waist
position, one in nose and one in the belly.

Sources:

    Famous Bombers of the Second World War, William Green, 
    Doubleday, 1959.

    British Military Aircraft Serials, 1912-1969, Bruce Robertson,
    Ian Allen, 1969.

    Liberator: America's Global Bomber, Alwyn T. Lloyd,
    Pictorial Histories Publishing Co, Inc, 1993.

    B-24 Liberator in Action, Larry Davis, Squadron/Signal Publications
    Inc, 1987.

    General Dynamics Aircraft and Their Predecsssors, John Wegg,
    Naval Institute Press, 1990.

    Consolidated B-24D-M Liberator IN USAAF-RAF-RAAF-MLD-IAF-CzechAF
    and CNAF Service, Ernest R. McDowell, Arco, 1970. 

    United States Military Aircraft Since 1909, Gordon Swanborough
    and Peter M. Bowers, Smithsonian, 1989.

    American Combat Planes, 3rd Enlarged Edition, Ray Wagner,
    Doubleday, 1982.

    Jane's American Fighting Aircraft of the 20th Century,  Michael
    J.H. Taylor, Mallard Press.


Joe Baugher			  **************************************
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