And what country can preserve its liberties if their rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.
had a eye doctor when I was a kid that had pictures of him in WW2 in his office. he told me that it was God damn cold up in those planes. showed me his scar from taking his gloves off one time to do something and losing a bit of skin due to it sticking to the metal. really nice guy to a kid though. he told me everyone gets scared at times, but it what you do with it that matters. I think he served on B-17s during the war and talked about going to school after the war.
The Postmaster of the little Sierra town I grew up in was a B-24 tail gunner who flew 50 missions. After his last mission his plane crashed with only two crew members surviving. In his obituary he said "I just did what they told me, and it always worked out. I found myself doing things I would never have thought of myself." He was a quiet, unassuming and remarkable man.
That's an RAF B-24C - the twin fifties and his attire give the game away (B-24A and B models had a single fifty in an open position - Diamond Lil is one of these). The C model was the only version configured with twin Brownings in an open position. The D model introduced the first tail turret.
My Sweetie bought me a ride in Diamond Lil and we got to move around the ship in flight. That tail gun position was a sporty one - you were on your knees behind the gun and the tail bounced around like it wasn't even attached to the plane.
I have seen old leather and sheepskin gear they wore, some of it was electrically heated. Probably not heated to the extent my motorcycle gear is, but at least that was 'something' to help them out.
CW is trying to sneak one past us — he posted same pick back on 2 Dec 25.
I looked up the provenance of that picture then:
“The eyes on that gunner made me think he was English - a lot of the young English men of that period had that “look” - so I went looking.
That photo is of the tail gunner position of an RAF Liberator Mark II with No. 159 Squadron in Fayid, Egypt. This is a very early Liberator, especially made for the RAF. It has twin Browning M1919 guns modified to shoot British .303. The open tail gunner position was later replaced in the field with an electric turret.”
The Mark II was modified from the Mark I (essentially a YB-24 called LB-30A for export purposes)
Further notes The first Consolidated Model 32 prototypes,, called by the US YB-24, were delivered to the RAF under from the original Anglo-French contract for “Land Bombers” issued to Consolidated prior to the fall of France. The US export designation for these was LB-30A and the Brits called them Liberator Mark I.
The Liberator Mark II was specifically designed and configured for the RAF - there was no US equivalent “B-24.” The US nomenclature for it was LB-30 (no letter suffix). The Mark II changes included an 8 foot extension to the nose for better crew comfort and radar equipment, self-sealing gas tanks, and powered turrets on dorsal and ventral sides. Later they got powered tail turrets as well. Ultimately many of the Mark IIs were reconfigured as transports (including Winston Churchill’s personal transport), which the US designated as C-87.
30's?
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty damn sure, that's not a B-24. Maybe one Brit?
ReplyDeleteKnolli
I take it back, it is... ! Sorry!
DeleteKnolli
had a eye doctor when I was a kid that had pictures of him in WW2 in his office.
ReplyDeletehe told me that it was God damn cold up in those planes. showed me his scar from taking his gloves off one time to do something and losing a bit of skin due to it sticking to the metal. really nice guy to a kid though. he told me everyone gets scared at times, but it what you do with it that matters. I think he served on B-17s during the war and talked about going to school after the war.
And my childhood dentist flew a Spad in the war.
DeleteThe Postmaster of the little Sierra town I grew up in was a B-24 tail gunner who flew 50 missions. After his last mission his plane crashed with only two crew members surviving.
ReplyDeleteIn his obituary he said "I just did what they told me, and it always worked out. I found myself doing things I would never have thought of myself."
He was a quiet, unassuming and remarkable man.
That's an RAF B-24C - the twin fifties and his attire give the game away (B-24A and B models had a single fifty in an open position - Diamond Lil is one of these). The C model was the only version configured with twin Brownings in an open position. The D model introduced the first tail turret.
ReplyDeleteMy Sweetie bought me a ride in Diamond Lil and we got to move around the ship in flight. That tail gun position was a sporty one - you were on your knees behind the gun and the tail bounced around like it wasn't even attached to the plane.
I have seen old leather and sheepskin gear they wore, some of it was electrically heated. Probably not heated to the extent my motorcycle gear is, but at least that was 'something' to help them out.
ReplyDeleteNot to be confused with the “tail gunners” in modern society, if you know what I mean.
ReplyDeleteCW is trying to sneak one past us — he posted same pick back on 2 Dec 25.
ReplyDeleteI looked up the provenance of that picture then:
“The eyes on that gunner made me think he was English - a lot of the young English men of that period had that “look” - so I went looking.
That photo is of the tail gunner position of an RAF Liberator Mark II with No. 159 Squadron in Fayid, Egypt. This is a very early Liberator, especially made for the RAF. It has twin Browning M1919 guns modified to shoot British .303. The open tail gunner position was later replaced in the field with an electric turret.”
The Mark II was modified from the Mark I (essentially a YB-24 called LB-30A for export purposes)
Further notes
The first Consolidated Model 32 prototypes,, called by the US YB-24, were delivered to the RAF under from the original Anglo-French contract for “Land Bombers” issued to Consolidated prior to the fall of France. The US export designation for these was LB-30A and the Brits called them Liberator Mark I.
The Liberator Mark II was specifically designed and configured for the RAF - there was no US equivalent “B-24.” The US nomenclature for it was LB-30 (no letter suffix). The Mark II changes included an 8 foot extension to the nose for better crew comfort and radar equipment, self-sealing gas tanks, and powered turrets on dorsal and ventral sides. Later they got powered tail turrets as well. Ultimately many of the Mark IIs were reconfigured as transports (including Winston Churchill’s personal transport), which the US designated as C-87.