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B-26 Marauder at War

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Autore/i	Roger A. Freeman
Editore	Ian Allan Publishing	Luogo	London
Anno	1978	Pagine	192
Dimensioni	23x30 (cm)	Illustrazioni	ill. b/n n.t. - b/w ills.
Legatura	cart. edit. con sovracc. ill. colori - Hardcover with dustjacket	Conservazione	Usato ottime condizioni - used very good
Lingua	Inglese - English text	Peso	1200 (gr)
ISBN	071100823X	EAN-13	9780711008236

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The story of the B-26 Martin Marauder is one of the most extraordinary of any warplane. When introduced in 1940 it was the most advanced medium bomber in the world, embodying several 'firsts' in components and engineering techniques. But it required skilled handling which it did not receive from many of the hastily trained pilots and mechanics when America entered World War II. Mechanical failures added to the problems as the accident rate soared bringing the Marauder a reputation of being too dangerous to fly, plus derogatory names such as 'Widowmaker' and 'Martin Murderer'. Early combat operations were marked by one disaster after another, culminating in the May 1943 operation from England when a whole B-26 force raiding Holland was lost. The decision was taken to terminate production and the Marauder seemed about to be written off as a dismal failure. Then a change of tactics and the determination of Marauder crews in North Africa and England brought an extraordinary reversal of fortune. In a matter of months Marauders had the lowest loss rate per sortie of any Allied bombers operating over Europe and began to achieve a measure of bombing accuracy that placed them among the most efficient forces operating in the theatre. The durability of the type became legend and the most outstanding record of any individual Allied bomber was that of a Marauder which completed 202 operational sorties - in the course of which it was holed by bullets and shell fragments in over 900 places! There were over 1,000 B-26s in Europe by the end of 1944, making the type the most numerous of Allied medium bombers.
As in his previous books in this series, Roger Freeman produces several 'never before published' and little-known facts. He relates how the Germans obtained a Marauder before the type had flown its first operation against them, the creditable record of the lone group flying against the Japanese from Australia, the full story of the total loss mission to IJmuiden, the achievement of the North African units in turning from demise to success, and the irony of the surviving Marauders' eventual fate.
Many other facets of the Marauder story are revealed by the men who flew and maintained the bomber in service with American, British, French and South African units, while nearly another hundred veterans contributed to the author's research for this book. Illustrated by 250 photographs - the majority published for the first time - B-26 Marauder at War gives a fascinating insight into Marauders and Marauder men.