WW2 Bombers debate

Or an excuse to post nice pics. Doesn’t really matter.

The questions is, sentimentality aside, which is the nicest-looking?

For me, it’s got to be the B-17 Flying Fortress

with the B-25 Mitchell a runner-up.

My great-uncle was a Lancaster pilot and squadron leader, so it pains me to leave it and the Halifax out of the running, but really… there is just something so mighty-looking about the B-17.

B17 looks brutally purposeful. B24 is more elegant looking IMO. I prefer the B24 version with the single tail though.

But B29 best looking of the lot.

When people were truly owned by a set of bombers.

Wellesy

always been fond of the hampden….

IIRC they, optimisticly, gave the pilot a forward facing MG 😀

do love a Blenhen

with all the folly of a “day” bomber, imagine having to hold of the luftwaffe with a single vickers machine gun.

and for looking mean and purposeful the ju88

with the armed to the teeth look going to the invader

I like a B24 – had no idea they did a single tail version. Every day’s a school day! 🙂

B26 Marauder, once it got over its teething troubles (killing the crews!) it turned out to be one to survive in.

as aP above, this is the correct answer

Look at the curves on a nice Catalina

Heinkel 111

https://www.wonderlandmodels.com/products/airfix-172-heinkel-heiiih-6-motorhead/

Technically, not the bomber version. Needs the clear nose.

But here, have a cookie.

Wonderful images guys.

No need to bring politics into this. Lets just marvel at these majestic killing machines.

They represent everything good in the world.

death from the skies is blessed by god! … from a localish church

Not a bomber but another Mosquito.

The Tseste. Automatic 57mm anti tank gun for sinking U Boats.

+1 Mosquito

However, define ‘nice’ when we’re discussing weapons of war. This is ‘nice’ I think..

Hope to see the B-17 at Old Warden one day, they get so nice and close to you there.
Seen the Lancaster more times when there for airshows.

Speaking of Lancasters, a sight never to be seen again, sadly.

You never know, they might get Just Jane in the air one day.
I went to see them over East Kirkby if I been at the airfield you could have seen 3 at a time as they were taxing Just Jane as they flew over

The “B24 with a single tail-plane” is a PB4Y-2 Privateer.

I reckon they used the B24 as inspiration for the Mandolorian space ship. Still go for the Lanc, just for the noise.

Anyone seen a Mossie flying, apart from me? Airshow at Woodford in 1970 something. Bloody awesome, hair standing on end stuff & unforgettable.
B24? Yep, my Dad worked on them during the war when he was with Coastal Command.

Mosquito has been done so I’ll go with Arado 234

what’s that mental one the germans did when they’d run out of bits? Junkers 287 or something

I always thought the Halifax looked very muscular, but the twin tail ruins it. I think it would look a lot better with a single tailfin.

An I always liked the look of the Mitsubishi Betty, apart from the tailfin. I think a taller, slimmer tailfin would have made it look really good.

<br>By Bundesarchiv, Bild 146-1978-043-02 / CC-BY-SA 3.0, CC BY-SA 3.0 de, Link</p>”>Focke-Wulf Condor

confused about the betty – why US markings?

edit – wiki has the answer
https://j-aircraft.com/captured/capturedfrom/TAIC/TAICSG4M/mitsubishi_g4m2_betty.htm

confused about the betty – why US markings?

I assume it was captured (probably after the war) and test flown for evaluation purposes. All the combatant countries flew captured aircraft in order to evaluate their strengths and weaknesses.

All the combatant countries flew captured aircraft in order to evaluate their strengths and weaknesses.

The BBC Winkle Brown documentary was on again the other night – he did a ton of evaluating German planes at the end of the war including this

Loads of info here – https://acesflyinghighthesurvivors.wordpress.com/2019/05/15/the-survivors-arado-ar-234-blitz-germanys-jet-bomber/

This never made it to production, but was the development of Hitler’s requirement for the Me262 to be a bomber

I am inclined to agree with Mikkel that the He-111 could look pretty nice, but I couldn’t find any pictures that really reflected that.

Instead I will completely ignore the brief and post a picture of the Republic XF-12 Rainbow. It’s ever so slightly postwar (first flight 1946, though it was being designed during the war) and it was a reconnaissance aircraft, not a bomber, but look at it:

Anyone seen a Mossie flying, apart from me? Airshow at Woodford in 1970 something. Bloody awesome, hair standing on end stuff & unforgettable.

I saw several as I used to go to airshows with Dad back in the sixties. the only thing I really remember though is the Vulcan doing a low pass and then standing on its tail. Same for Lightnings.

The OP’s question was

The questions is, sentimentality aside, which is the nicest-looking?

Mosquito is nice, but clearly a lot of people have a different concept of “nice looking” to me. That Me262 is ugly as ****, leaving aside it’s not really a bomber, just an interceptor with a bomb rack. Lancaster and Stuka are not pleasing to the eye. Catalina is not a bomber.

If we’re being picky; your “B24 with a single tail-plane” is a long range ocean patrol aircraft. So just observation with a bomb rack…

These threads always throw up interesting stuff though

your “B24 with a single tail-plane” is a heavy bomber adapted as a long range ocean patrol aircraft bomber

FTFY

I think that without its turrets and armament the B-17 would look fairly sleek and nice, in an advanced inter-war sort of way. The B-29 looks pretty good too, because it’s so “clean” looking. Having looked at the bomber sections of Wikipedia’s list of WW2 aircraft I would say the Amiot 354 looks quite nice, from some angles at least.

Catalina is not a bomber

Yes it is, that’s what the ‘B’ in PBY5 stands for. It bombed with bombs, depth charges and rockets.

Catalina is another one that is awesome to see at Old Warden.

Catalina also handy for bombing in more recent times…. easy to reload too!!

Just to show off a bit, here’s a photo of me on top of the wing last week, refuelling at Duxford