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Lockheed Martin® (Consolidated) B-24® Liberator®, 704th BS ‘Hay Ride’, 18″ Mahogany Model

$279.00

1 in stock (can be backordered)

Description

704th BS ‘Hay Ride’ B-24 Model

Fly with the 704th BS in ‘Hay Ride’ in this handcrafted B-24 model. Each piece is carved from wood and hand-painted to provide a piece you’ll love.

Radio call letter to X, the nose art to “Hay Ride”

The 704th Bombardment Squadron was activated on April 1, 1943 at Davis-Monthan Field in Arizona. It was a part of the 446th Bombardment Group and its initial cadre was drawn from the 39th Bombardment Group. The cadre then went to Orlando, Florida for training at the Army Air Forces School of Applied Tactics, where they practiced simulated combat missions at Montbrook Army Air Field. In June 1943, the unit was supposed to go to Alamogordo Army Air Field in New Mexico, but it was redirected to Lowry Field in Colorado for further training. The ground echelon of the 704th left Lowry Field on October 18, 1943 and headed to Camp Shanks in New York. They then sailed on the RMS Queen Mary on October 27, 1943 and arrived in Greenock, Scotland on November 2, 1943. The aircraft left Lowry Field on October 20, 1943 and were staged at Lincoln Army Air Field in Nebraska before being ferried to England via a southern route that went through Puerto Rico, Brazil, Senegal, and Morocco. The 704th was the first United States Army Air Forces group to complete the transatlantic journey from Brazil to Africa without needing to install additional fuel tanks in the bomb bay.

Once in England, the 704th was involved in long-range strategic bombardment of enemy targets in occupied Europe and Germany. They targeted transportation, industrial, and oil industry targets, as well as other targets as directed. The 704th also participated in tactical bombing in France in support of the Operation Overlord landings in Normandy and the subsequent breakout at St-Lo in July 1944. In July 1944, the unit switched from using B-24 Liberators to B-17 Flying Fortresses. They attacked enemy formations and armor during the Battle of the Bulge in January 1945 and continued to bomb strategic targets until the German surrender in May.

The 704th was largely demobilized in England in the summer of 1945, with a small cadre of personnel reconvening at Sioux Falls Army Air Field in South Dakota in July. They were preparing for transition training on B-29 Superfortresses, but the Japanese surrender resulted in the cancellation of the training and the unit’s final inactivation at the end of August.

Additional information

Weight 4 lbs
Dimensions 11 × 18 in

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