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Widow maker. This unflattering nickname was
earned by the Martin B-26 Marauder medium
bomber shortly after its introduction to the US
Army Air Force. Pilots, by then accustomed to
easy-to-handle and slow to clunky aircraft such as
the B-18 Bolo, had great difficulty coping with the
significantly higher takeoff and landing speeds, as
well as the need to maintain sufficient airspeed
at all times, including situations where one of the
engines blew out. And because the Pratt & Whitney
R2800 engines were by no means trouble-free,
tragedies were no exceptions during pilot training.
In reality, however, the B-26 Marauder was
a very advanced aircraft for its time, and its
qualities eventually became fully apparent. Of all
the American aircraft, it achieved the lowest ratio
of losses to combat operations. Compared to the
B-25, it was faster, which was the initial intention,
and could carry a larger bomb load. However, while
the Mitchell’s handling was virtually foolproof, the
Marauder required much more attention from the
pilots and a stricter adherence to the airspeeds
given in the manual. This was primarily due to the
higher wing area load, which was nevertheless
reduced in the following versions, making the last
Marauders easier to fly. In total, Marauder crews
flew more than 100,000 missions and dropped
over 150,000 tons of bombs on enemy targets. And
despite the unflattering nickname, Marauder losses
were the lowest of any type of bomber used by the
USAAF, at just under half a percent.
From the history of one bomb group
One of the bombing groups that was armed with
Marauders from the beginning was the 394th Bomb
Group (Mid). It was activated on March 5, 1943, and
during February and March 1944 its members and
equipment moved to England at Boreham Base.
As part of the 9th Air Force, the group attacked
targets in France, often V-1 sites. Other common
targets were marshalling yards or roads, especially
bridges.
During the D-day landings, crews of the 394th
BG bombed German positions at Cherbourg, hitting
several important communications, fuel depots,
and German positions. Then, during the fighting
in the St Lo area on July 25, their bombardment
of German positions helped make an important
breakthrough. The group received the Distinguished
Unit Cross for operations from August 7 to 9. During
this three-day period, they carried out a series of
five raids on heavily fortified and defended targets,
destroying an ammunition depot and four important
railway bridges.
By the end of August 1944, the move to the
Continent had taken place and the 394th BG
Marauders were appearing over Germany with
increasing frequency. During December 1944 to
January 1945, they also made their mark in the
fighting during the Battle of Bulge. Bombing the
roads, they made it difficult for the Germans to get
supplies and hit several ammunition depots. Less
traditional missions also included leaflet drops over
enemy territory towards the end of the war.
After the German surrender, the 394th BG
remained in Europe as part of the occupation
forces. In September 1945 it began training on the
A-26 Invader and in December was redesignated
the 394th Bomb Group (Light). Upon return to the US,
the group was inactivated on 31 March 1946.
A pro with a brush
Like every bombardment group, the 394th BG
also had someone in its ranks who could portray
various nosearts according to the wishes of the
crews. In this case, however, it was a true artist,
S/Sgt. Frank M. Spangler, Jr. The member of
the 585th Bomb Squadron was a professional
cartoonist, and so it was not surprising that there
was considerable interest in his services. Among
his works were paintings of Round Too (43-34571),
Sure Go For No Dough (43-34200), and also Miss
Manookie (42-96255) aircraft.
The choice of aircraft name and artwork was the
privilege of the main pilot to whom the aircraft was
assigned. While this did not mean that others could
not fly it, the main pilot used the aircraft most often.
In the case of Miss Manookie, this was Lt. Thomas
Craddock Howard, the co-pilot was David Hollice
Hughes and the theme was an “American Indian”
woman hunting with bow.
In mid-August 1945, Spangler began pilot training
on the L-4 Cub as part of a program conducted at
Venlo Holland Base. The program was designed to
prepare selected members of the U.S. Air Force who
were not pilots to obtain a civilian pilot’s license.
However, Frank Spangler did not follow the civilian
pilot route after the war, instead he returned to art
and become a respected cartoonist. Together with
his father, also a cartoonist and caricaturist, they
focused mainly on social and political issues.
Of his wartime creations rendered on the
metal surface of Marauders, Miss Manookie was
probably the most colorful. The aircraft survived its
60 combat missions. Adam Tooby’s boxart shows it
on one of these missions late in the war somewhere
over Germany ...
Illustration: Adam Tooby
Pretty hunting
Text: Richard Plos
BOXART STORY #2146
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