391st BOMB GROUP: Aircraft information for serial number: 43-34148
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Aircraft information for serial number: 43-34148
Taxi Squadron Serial Code Name Source Taxi Sheets
148-D57343-34148T6-DOriginal website

Aircraft history for serial number: 43-34148 (kindly provided by Paul Clouting).
Built at the Glenn L Martin factory at Baltimore, Maryland as a B-26G-1-MA. Accepted by the Army Air Force on 15/5/44. Then flown by New Castle (2nd Ferry Group), Wilmington, Deleware (from 3/6/44), to the 3rd AF staging area at Hunter Field, Savannah, Georgia (from 3/6/44). Then went to Dow Field, Bangor, Maine (from 9/6/44), from where the aircraft was flown overseas to the UK via the Northern Ferry Route, departing the USA on 15/6/44. The aircraft record card then lists, GLUE 9AF A (Europe - 9th AF) from 14/6/44, and GLUE 9AF G (Europe - 9th AF) from 26/6/44. Ferried over from the USA by 2nd Lt. Lloyd M Clapham. Entered combat with the 391st BG / 573rd BS on 11/8/44. Suffered an engine failure and crashed on take off from Station 166, Matching Green, Essex on 1/9/44 for the mission to bomb coastal gun positions at Fort Questal, near Brest, France. The aircraft flown by 2nd Lt. Don G Love, had taxied out with a seven man crew and four 1,000lb bombs on board, and completed his pre-take off checks. At the start of the take-off run the nose came up exceedingly high, so much that the tail started dragging on the ground several times. No attempt was made to push the nose down to gain speed, and at 155 mph the aircraft was already entering a power stall. At the end of the runway, the pilot still thought that the aircraft would fly and pushed the throttles full forward, not realising that the aircraft was in a power stall. The aircraft was not in a flying attitude and kept mushing towards the ground, and the aircraft was on full power with the landing gear still down. The aircraft crash landed about 475 yards off from the end of the runway and suffered Cat.5 damage. None of the crew were injured. It was salvaged the same day by the 87th Air Service Squadron. The final entry on the aircraft record card lists, GLUE 9AF CON SAL NBD on 1/9/44. Note, the accident report website lists this aircraft as serving with the 572nd BS.

Incident listing for serial number: 43-34148
Mission Source_id Description Serial
156A00040Accident Report, 43-34148. 1 Sep 194443-34148

Picture listing for serial number: 43-34148
Picture Title Picture Category Serial
43-34148 crashBattle Damage43-34148