This is primarily for Blackwolf, but anyone else having is welcome to chime in.
What I’m looking for is photos of auxilliary fuel tanks installed in the B-25. I know they put one type in the bomb bay for extended range missions, and I think I remember reading about drop tanks on the wings (but am not sure).
Secondarily, I’m looking for photos of torpedos hung under B-26’s. If I remember correctly, this was only done once up here in Alaska during the Aleution campain and even then was only done on the first day of the Dutch Harbor attack. One B-26 even managed to fly out from COld Bay and found the Japanese carrier and managed score a direct hit on the carrier’s flight deck. This was done since the surplus navy torpedos that were used would not arm due to the B-26’s being unable to slow down enough for them to arm. If I remember correctly, the torpedo skipped across the deck and didn’t do much damage. The pilot flew back to Cold Bay, rearmed with bombs and flew back out to find the carrier, never to be heard from again.
Daniel,
That’s exactly the kind of stuff I’m looking for. I still go goose hunting out at Cold Bay every once in a while ($900 round trip ticket). The Aleutions are remarkable. The tundra is just like being on a different planet and the weather is unexplainable. Some of the most challenging flying I’ve ever done. The coolest thing is that there are still old remnants of the WWII bases, airfields and equipment around. One guy even dug up almost complete P-38’s and P-40’s out in an old pit where they were just buried after the war. Sad, but makes it a neat experience walking around the place. One almost can relate to what it felt like for the troops and airmen staioned there back then.
Hey-
The four B-26’s that left MIdway Island with the Avengers during the Battle of Midway were also armed with torpedoes. As far as I have been able to determine this and the Aleutian mission were the only times that this was tried. Only two of the four B-26’s that left Midway returned, and the were pretty badly damaged. I also have thought this would make a neat modelling subject, but I have not been able to find any photos of the Midway B-26’s. In fact, the pic above is the only one I have been able to find of a torpedo armed B-26.
The 4 B-26’s that carried torpedoes from Midway were with the 22nd Bomb Group.
There’s some pretty good reading about it on their website. Even some photos
but none with torpedoes. http://www.redraiders22bg.com
Here’s a shot of one of the jettisonable bomb-bay tanks used in the B-25:
It’s kind of misleading, as the ends of the tanks are angled outward towards the bottom. This image gives a better idea as to the look of the tank’s ends:
I know there were at least two different types of tanks used in the bomb bay, maybe a third, but I’m not sure which this one may be. As to drop tanks under the wings, I think I have seen photos of them but have yet to come across any in this current search.
Here’s a B-26A-1-MA (41-7462) carrying a torpedo:
Here’s a shot of three B-26Cs which have the torpedo racks installed:
And a closeup, although no real detail is visible…
Although these next three shots show an RAF Marauder of 14 Sqn with a different mount for the fish, I thought they might be of interest.
In case you’re still interested, I came across this shot of bomb-bay tanks for the B-25 which look to be of a different type that that shown in the other photo…
Martin B-26 on Flooded Runway A Martin B-26, loaded with torpedoes, sits on flooded runway at Longview on the island of Adak in Alaska during World War II. November 5, 1942
