The Baltimore Whore

The Martin B-26 Marauder was a built by the Glenn L. Martin Company (now Martin-Marietta). Due to the early models' small wings, the Marauder had to be flown by exact airspeeds, particularly on final approach and when one engine was out. The 150mph speed on short final was intimidating to pilots of the era. Until crews were re-trained and aerodynamic modifications were made (primarily an increase of wing span and a larger fin and rudder) it earned some very colorful nicknames;: "Widowmaker", "The Flying Coffin" and perhaps its best known "The Flying Prostitute" (so-named because it had "no visible means of support," referring to its small wings). The "Baltimore Whore" (a reference to where it was built) was another beauty.

The first B-26 was flown in November of 1940. Deliveries to the U.S. Army Air Corps began in February, 1941. The B-26 was a fast aircraft with better performance than the contemporary medium bombers but its relatively small wing area resulted in its unprecedented landing speed. The B-26s suffered hard landings and damaged landing gears, engine mounts, props and even fuselage damage. Improper weight distribution was a problem as well. The 'short coupled bomber was very particular about weight and balance. But a weak strut lock system was also to blame for the landing gear failures.

Another Bug-a-boo was the Curtiss electric prop. If it failed the prop would stick in its current pitch and the engine could over speed it for that setting. A blade disintegration could result.

The B-26 was not an aircraft for novices but due to the wartime need to train many pilots quickly, a number of relatively inexperienced pilots got into the cockpit and the accident rate increased accordingly.

By 1942, pilots in training believed that the Marauder could not be flown single-engine, especially during take-off,  but this was disproved by experienced pilots (One of whom was none other than Jimmy Doolittle). Regardless, the regularity of crashes by pilots training in Tampa at McDill Field (as much as one every other day for a while) led to the catchphrase, "One a day in Tampa Bay". Over a dozen B-26s ditched in Tampa Bay in less than a year and a half (this number does not reflect over land losses).

FLAK BAIT at the NASM

There was a pay-off however. The B-26 is said to have had the lowest combat loss rate of any U.S. aircraft used during the war.   In fact, the record of missions flown by a U.S. bomber is held by a B-26 named (ironically), FLAK BAIT!  The forward section of this aircraft currently resides in the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum.

Nevertheless, it remained a challenging aircraft to fly and continued to be unpopular with some pilots throughout its military career. By the end of World War II, it had flown more than 100,000 sorties and had been used by British, French and South African forces in addition to U.S. units. When B-26 production halted in 1945 over 5,200 had been built.

A wonderfully restored training film on the B-26 is available on Youtube at the link below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSIsoj1QPAc&feature=channel