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Consolidated B-24 Liberator
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===British Commonwealth nomenclature and sub-variants=== [[File:B 24 in raf service 23 03 05.jpg|thumb|Color photograph of an RAF B.Mk.II]] ;[[Consolidated Liberator I|Liberator C Mk.I]]: YB-24/LB-30A RAF direct purchase aircraft. (Total: 9) Unsuitable for combat, rebuilt as transports and used by [[BOAC]] between the UK and Canada, including transferring aircrew ferrying Lend-Lease aircraft. ;Liberator B Mk.I: B-24A/LB-30B, RAF direct purchase aircraft. (Total: 20) Unsuitable for combat, some rebuilt for other roles. ;Liberator GR Mk.I: Mk.I rebuilt as General Reconnaissance for anti-submarine patrol. Fitted with belly pannier with an additional four fixed forward firing {{cvt|20|mm|3}} Hispano cannon and [[ASV radar]] which included two underwing [[Yagi–Uda antenna]]s and four large antenna "stickleback" masts above the rear fuselage. ;Liberator B Mk.II: LB-30. First combat-ready Liberator. Modifications included a three-foot nose extension as well as a deeper aft fuselage and wider tailplane and self-sealing fuel tanks and armor. Built to British specifications with British equipment and Boulton Paul turrets, so there was no B-24 equivalent but similar to the B-24C. The top turret was further back on the fuselage compared to any US variant, and in line with the trailing edge of the wing. Except for the first aircraft (completed as a pattern but lost in a test flight), the rest were completed without armament, which the British fitted in the UK. With the American entry into the war, the USAAF requisitioned about 75, which it operated under Consolidated's LB-30 designation, but 23 were returned in 1943. (Total production: 165) ;Liberator C Mk.II: Mk.II transport. Some B Mk.IIs were rebuilt as transports, including one as the personal transport of British [[Prime Minister]] [[Winston Churchill]], which was named '[[Commando (aircraft)|Commando]]', which was later extensively rebuilt to C Mk.IX standard, with a single fin. ;Liberator B Mk.III: B-24D with one nose {{cvt|.303|in|2}} Browning machine gun, two in each waist position, and four in a [[Boulton Paul Aircraft|Boulton Paul]] tail turret similar to that used on the [[Handley Page Halifax]]. The Martin dorsal turret was retained. (Total: 156) :*'''Liberator B Mk IIIA''': Mk.III with American equipment and weapons. ;Liberator GR Mk.III: Mk.III General Reconnaissance for [[RAF Coastal Command]] for anti-submarine role with [[radar]] (with [[Yagi–Uda antenna]]) and [[Leigh Light]]. :*'''Liberator GR Mk IIIA''': GR.III with American equipment and weapons. [[File:American Aircraft in Royal Air Force Service 1939-1945- Consolidated Model 32 Liberator. CH18035.jpg|thumb|[[RAF Coastal Command]] [[AI Mk. IV radar#ASV emerges|ASV Mk.II]]-equipped Liberator GR.III of [[No. 120 Squadron RAF]]]] ;Liberator B Mk.IV: Unused designation reserved for B-24E. ;Liberator B Mk.V: B-24D bomber with more fuel but less armor, armed as per Mk.III. ;Liberator GR Mk.V: General Reconnaissance Mk.V for [[RAF Coastal Command]] for anti-submarine role with [[radar]] (some mounted under the nose) and [[Leigh Light]]. Some fitted with eight zero-length rocket launchers, four on each wing, with others being fitted with stub-wings either side of the lower forward fuselage to hold eight [[RP-3]] rails. ;Liberator B Mk.VI: B-24H bomber with nose turret, and Boulton Paul tail turret and retaining the rest of their armament. ;Liberator GR Mk.VI: B-24G/H/J RAF Coastal Command anti-submarine patrol. Some had top turret removed in service, and early examples had Yagi–Uda antenna on older greenhouse nose. ;Liberator C Mk.VI/C Mk.VIT: Mk.VI converted as a cargo aircraft. ;Liberator C Mk.VII: RAF C-87 transport. ;Liberator B Mk.VIII: RAF B-24J bomber. ;Liberator GR Mk.VIII: Mk.VIII for RAF Coastal Command anti-submarine patrol. Some had top turret removed in service, and belly turret replaced with semi-recessed radar dome. ;Liberator C Mk.VIII: Mk.VIII converted as a cargo aircraft. ;Liberator C Mk.IX: RAF RY-3/C-87C transport with a single fin replacing the twin fins on most Liberator versions. Late in the war RAF Liberator aircraft modified in England for use in South East Asia had the suffix "Snake" stenciled below the serial number to give them priority delivery through the Mediterranean and the Middle East.<ref>Robertson 1998</ref>
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