Pioneer

Evening gents

I was having fun the other day watching my eldest son playing his Play Station 2
He was playing a game called ‘Heroes of the Pacific’.
We had a great father to son conversation about the different types of aircraft and roles of the aircraft depicted in the game, which ranged from the likes of the Dauntless, Avenger, Wildcat, Warhawk, Corsair, Hellcat, Bearcat, Zero Sen, Shiden, Tony, Raiden, Betty, Mitchell, and the Marauder – and for some strange reason, I had some trouble explaining – the Messerschmitt Me-262 in the Pacific?

What got my attention though is when David (my son) began to carry out torpedo attacks against a Japanese aircraft carrier fleet!

Now I know that the USAAC specification, for what was to become the Martin B-26 Marauder stipulated the ability to carry and deliver torpedoes!

My question to the forum members is this:
‘During WWII was the B-26 Marauder ever used in any torpedo attack mission against any Axis shipping?
If so does anyone have details in the form of target, dates, and their success………etc?

Thanks in advance

Regards
Pioneer

Tarek Morgen

from wikipedia

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uh I might be wrong

TopHatter

Not quite as bizarre as it might seem. Nakajima Ki-201 Karyu and Nakajima J9Y



Although it should be noted that the Japanese twin-jet engine fighters and the Me-262 were similar only in general appearance for the most part.

Not only the Marauder but also the PBY Catalina were jury-rigged with torpedoes and sent off to attack the Japanese 'Midway Occupation Force'.

Despite the crews being already exhausted, attacking at night and with zero prior experience with dropping torpedoes, they still managed to put a fish into the oiler Akebono Maru,

Unfortunately though she was able to shrug off the damage and continue with the task force. (Wiki's entry says she was sunk )

As far as I know, neither the B-26 nor the PBY dropped torpedoes again.
Midway was very much an emergency situation and the island's air group bizarrely mismatched composition and improvised roles were clearly indicative of this.

TopHatter

The Midway Island air group was a real grab-bag, consisted of Marine fighters and divebombers, Navy torpedo planes and flying boats and Army Air Force heavy and medium bombers.


32 Consolidated PBY-5 and PBY-5A Catalina
6 Grumman TBF Avenger

20 Brewster F2A-3 Buffalo
7 Grumman F4F-3 Wildcat
11 Vought SB2U-3 Vindicator
16 Douglas SBD-2 Dauntless

19 Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress (augmented further, during the battle)
4 Martin B-26 Marauder

Note: The Dauntless and Wildcat aircraft were "carrier castoffs" that were not comparable to the Navy versions. The SBD "Dash Two" especially was inferior to the SBD-3 that the Navy flew.

Ironically though, the situation was reversed with the handful of Avengers, which were to become the hottest torpedo plane of the war, a far cry from the obsolete Devastator still being flown by the USN carriers at that time.

Stitch

The rumor is that a complete Me 262 was smuggled to Japan in '44 aboard a German U-boot, and reverse-engineered for use against US B-29's. Obviously, that never happened and, given the then-current state of Japanese technology, it was highly unlikely that the Japanese would've been able to produce an aircraft comparable to the Me 262, especially in the area of gas-turbine technology (the only country very far along in gas-turbine technology, ironically, was the US, with GE's extensive experience in producing high-temperature turbines).

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TopHatter

Starting all the way back in 1918, I've found out much to my surprise.

Although in terms of turbojet engine technology for aircraft, Great Britain and Germany were far ahead of the United States during the war..."helped", no doubt, by the prescient US attitude of "why bother?".

Pioneer

Thank you gentlemen for your response to my question!

Now I have to let my son David, who is nine (going on 20-years!!) that his game has some merit and some accuracy to it.
Who knows I may even have a crack at sinking a carrier with a torpedo toting Marauder!
Funny enough he just came in to tell me he had unlocked a Russian MiG-3 in the Pacific AO

Regards
Pioneer

Zad Fnark

I'll have to dig out my "In Action" book, but I believe RAF Marauders in the Med used torpedos.

ZF-

TopHatter

You're right, they did, apparently with good success as well.

And USAAF Marauders also made another torpedo attack against the IJN carrier Ryujo on the same day as the 4 Midway-based carriers.

I stand corrected

Knaur Amarsh

There comes a bittersweet day in every father's life sir, when he finally defeats his son at his favourite video-game

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When our perils are past, shall our gratitude sleep? - George Canning

Zad Fnark

I got great joy out of beating both my teenage sons in Madden 2009 while using the Detroit Lions.

ZF-

Rumrunner

Germany was decades ahead of everybody in aircraft technology in the prewar and war years. If they hadnt been such douchebags we'd all have personal jetpacks and hovering cars by now.

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You know JJ, Him could do it....

Albany Rifles

Black Cats - U.S. Navy fighting PBY Catalinas in the Pacific during WWII

Also, the Black Cat PBYs operated using torpedo attacks all through out the Souht and Southwest Pacific.

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Frederick the Great's horse was on seven campaigns, but at the end of it all he was still a horse.

TopHatter

Sure about that?
The only reference I've been able to find to PBY torpedo attacks was at Midway.

Edit: I've also found vague references to the Black Cats making attacks but nothing specific.

redco

If he likes the more exotic torpedo bomber types he could try using a Vickers Wellington
They were used with success in the night torpedo role in the MTO