The Most Dangerous WW2 Bomber

In the spring of 1945, at a forward airfield in Belgium, Allied ground crews worked feverishly to prepare the 449th Bombardment Squadron for a new mission.

Amongst all the B-26 Marauders, one stood out from the rest. Peppered with over 1,000 patches covering bullet holes, shrapnel, and anti-aircraft shells, this twin-engine bomber was better known around the 449th as Flak Bait.

This would be the 200th mission for the battle-worn B-26, and many wondered how it could still fly.

Leading the attack that day was Colonel John Samuel, the commanding officer of the 332nd Bombardment Group, who had hand-picked this aircraft as his leading flagship for the assault against Nazi targets in Germany.

As copilot, Captain Samuel's mission was clear: ensure the squadron's success and a triumphant return from the assault on German defenses, hoping the aircraft’s nickname wouldn’t finally catch up to it…
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[michaelkrell]

My father, Lieutenant Thomas J Krell, was a co-pilot of a B-26 322 Bomb Group 451st Bomb Squadron. He definitely flew with the Flak Bait on his 9 missions in service. On that ninth sortie, in September of 1944, his plane was hit by flack on a mission to Aachen Germany. He was severely injured by the flack but still helped the pilot belly land the plane in Belgium. He spent a great deal of time in the hospital trying to recover from his injuries. He carried bits of shrapnel in his leg for the rest of his life. He also suffered a "drop foot" which prevented him from ever flying again and caused him to have to wear a brace on his leg for the rest of his life. As with most veterans, he very rarely spoke of his experiences, but he was very proud of his contributions. He remains a part of the greatest generation and my personal hero.

[tomfarrell]

Flak-Bait's first pilot is my father, James J. Farrell. He named the plane and designed the nose art. Ground crew member Ted Simoniatis painted the nose art on Flak-Bait as well as Sit N Git. One mistake in the video claims Flak-Bait flew two missions on D-Day. In fact Flak-Bait flew three missions that day. The first piloted by my father, the second mission was H.C. Roger's crew and the third mission was the V. N. Liniger crew.

[drVoss]

My grandfather flew 43 combat missions in the European Theater of Operation as a pilot in the B-26 Marauder. It was an outstanding aircraft that could be difficult to fly. He called it: “…one Helluva piece of hardware.” He was a recipient of the Air Medal with four Oak Leaf Clusters, finishing the war and going home. I miss him dearly. Thank you for making this documentary about an unsung classic of the war!

[Edgy]

My father was the copilot of a B-26 on the day they got shot down. They were only on their 4th mission. He wound up as the last guy out of ‘Payoff’ the evening of 22 August 1943 near Beaumont Le Roger airdrome in occupied France. His tail gunner bailed out first, followed by a waist gunner and their top turret gunner/flight engineer. My father wound up bailing out through the the front bomb bay doors. He ultimately got out with the aid of the French Underground, during the course of months and months of evading the Germans. I commissioned a painting of the aircraft decades later. You can google ‘Pay Off’ and see the painting. With the aid of the 386th Med Bombardment Group unit historian, I was able to touch base with his tail gunner and a guy serving as a waist gunner who was on their right in formation. That was a date none of them ever failed to remember.

[TheBlackToedOne]

I used to be a docent at the National Air and Space Museum in DC. It's been about 5 yrs. but the last I saw, this plane Flak Bait was being restored at the Udvar-Hazy Center, part of the NASM right next to Dulles Airport. That museum also has the Enola Gay (the plane that dropped the bomb on Hiroshima), an SR-71 and the space shuttle Discovery on display. Even if you aren't a big airplane fan, the history and the variety of artifacts there is incredible.
FUN FACT: on the nose you will see the bombs showing the number of missions it flew but you will also see the occasional silouette of a duck. That meant it flew a "decoy" mission to draw the German's attention away from the real bombing mission that was being conducted at the same time against a different target.

[michaeldelaney]

Our next door neighbor was a B-26 pilot and loved the aircraft. THEY HAD THE LOWEST COMBAT LOSS RATE IN THE USAAF. They also rated very highly for combat effectiveness (i.e. hitting the target). The "one a day in Tampa Bay" legend came from the use of early models by "kick the tires and light the fires" type pilots. Early in the war, and sometimes after, pilots figured if you knew how to fly, then you knew how to fly anything. They didn't need foolishness like reading and following the aircraft manual. They "knew" they could feel if the aircraft was ready to fly. Classic examples of such pilots; Lindberg taught operational pilots flying P-38's how to greatly increase their range. He showed them that putting the mixture in "auto lean" (as directed in the manual) would do the trick. And, Richard Bong, America's top scoring Ace, at the end of WW II crashed and died testing a P-80 because he didn't turn on the aux. fuel pump for take-off (as directed by the manual). Our neighbor told me that once pilots took "the book" seriously, the B-26 was a great airplane. It just needed modern pilots for a modern aircraft (at the time).

[Scaliad]

My father, Joe Lankford, was a mechanic in the 322th. This was a good presentation of all he ever told me. The disastrous mission to Ijmuiden, Holland in May 1943 impacted his life terribly with the loss of so many friends and aircraft.

[dorklyasmr]

My great uncle was one of five Cherokee boys of my Great Grandmother who all fought in World War II at the same time. My uncle Edsel served on a Marauder and a few months before the end of the war they went on a propaganda leafletting mission over southern Germany and were shot down. Most of the crew survived the crash, but my uncle, who was the tail gunner, was killed. I often think about what it must have been like for my Grandma have to deal with all FIVE of her sons off fighting in the war.

[forbolden]

My Dad piloted Marauders over Germany and France. He loved the plane. It had the lowest loss rate of any American Bomber in WW2. He belly landed one, gear was all shot up. Came back on one engine another time. Hit by flak numerous times or shot up by fighters it always brought him home. Some of his stories were pretty wild.

[glennstubbs]

The lowest combat losses of any US aircraft during the war. That should be the legacy for this aircraft.

[evanswinford]

My father was a gunner/radio operator on a B26 with the 9th Army Air Corps. He was a late war replacement already in his thirties. He missed D Day but was in the Battle of the Bulge Raids. He fired at the ME 262, he never said he shot down any planes.

[xraydelta]

I knew a man who had flown B-26 during the second World War. Although difficult to fly, he was in the group that loved the aircraft, mostly for its speed.

[hawnyfox]

* Whilst I loved the tale about "Flak Bait" as a boy & built "Flak Bait" back in 1972

I wish more people knew about "Five By Fives" the amazing 387th B.26 Marauder that flew "188 Missions" & survived
She is the 2nd highest scoring B.26 Marauder of all time, mission wise, yet she's practically unknown

I used to regularly attend her 'derelict' base at Willingale, Essex, better known as Chipping Ongar home of the 387th

[cdjhyoung]

750 mission hours. To put this in perspective, the air frame of the B24 heavy bomber was designed for a flight life of 100 hours, or roughly 7-8 missions once it was ferry flown to England.

[larryjohnson]

I liked the plane and read all the books I could find. The biggest fix was the longer wing. After that, most pilots loved the plane because it was a hot rod. Thanks for putting pictures to some of the books I read.

[Aug_Bot]

My great grandpa was a bombardier and navigator for the b 26. They were the kicking mules. I loved the stories he would share.

[akzoc]

My father was a B-24 pilot. He told the following story. Once they spotted a B-26. They dived on it to gain airspeed, feathered the two outboard engines, and cruised past the B-26, waving, as if they were much faster than the B-26. Good fun.

[nohphd]

My father flew 56 missions in a B-26 over Europe. When he returned to the states in April 1945 he had such severe PTSD his own father had to nail the windows shut on his second floor bedroom. He died in the 1990s. I used to go to bomb group reunions with him.

[FoundingYouTuber-]

Out come the stories of uncles and others. Here's mine: My Uncle Charles was a 2nd LT co-pilot on the B-26, flying out of England to missions over France. As happened to a lot of the crews, his plane was brought down from flak. The Germans were quick to capture him and everyone else (all crew successfully parachuted out of the burning plane).

They put them on a train from Paris to a Germany POW camp for air corps officers. He then spent three years in the POW camp, and was liberated when American forces were plowing through Germany in 1945. He weighed 150 lbs before being captured. When liberated he weighed 98 lbs.

[graciehogue]

My grandfather was the radio operator in a B-26 marauder, in a company called “The Bridge Busters.” So thankful to find more and more history on these amazing aircrafts.