Martin B-26 Marauder 1/72 Scale Model

American B-26B - This is a model of an Army high-speed medium bomber that operated against Axis forces in the Mediterranean in 1943. The B-26 entered combat service with the U.S. in early 1942, flying from northern Australia against the Japanese. Early in its career it earned the nickname of "Widow Maker" and other derogatory nicknames for the high accident rate suffered by pilots learning to fly it. In 1942 a Congressional committee began investigating the problem. The plane's wings were eventually enlarged, but the thing that really helped was better training for new pilots and the plane's ground crews. By the end of the war, the B-26 had a very successful combat record, with the lowest loss rate of any Allied bomber.

More Photos: Left, Right, Top, Front, Front Angle Left, Front Angle Right, Rear Angle Left, Rear Angle Right, Above Right, Above Left

Air War Over Italy, Andrew Brookes

American Aircraft of World War II, David Mondey

B-26 Marauder in Action, Steve Birdsall

B-26 Marauder Units of the Eighth and Ninth Air Forces, Jerry Scutts

Battle Over Bavaria: The B-26 Marauder Versus the German Jets - April 1945, Robert Forsyth

Blue Battlefields, Charles O'Mahony

Camouflage & Markings: Martin B-26 Marauder U.S.A.A.F. & 1st T.A.F., 1941-1945, Rogert Freeman

Fire in the Sky: The Air War in the South Pacific, Eric Bergerud

The Flying Prostitute, Lawrence Hunter

Martin B-26 Marauder, Frederick Johnsen

The Martin B-26 Marauder, Jack Havener

Marauder Man: World War II in the Crucial but Little Known B-26 Marauder Medium Bomber : A Memoir/History, Kenneth Brown

Miracle at Midway, Gordon Prange

Operation Dragoon: The Allied Invasion of the South of France, William Breuer