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To: yarddog
The Boeing 314 (aka “China Clipper”) was a flying boat. The Convair B-24 “Liberator” was a land based bomber. The only superficial recognition point was the four radial engines that powered them. Otherwise, both were as different as apples to oranges.

Churchill's personal plane was an LB-30 (export version) of the B-24 and was called Liberator II by the British. Eventually 87 LB-30s served in the RAF. Churchill's personal LB-30 was named “Commando”.

The Liberator II was the first version of the B-24 to feature the lengthened nose that would become standard on all later aircraft. This extension, which increased the length of the aircraft from 63ft 9in to 66ft 4in, was originally made for purely aesthetic reasons, but as the war developed, and the amount of equipment carried on aircraft increased, the extra space proved to be very valuable.

The Liberator II was powered by commercial Pratt & Whitney R-1830-S3C4-G engines. These engines lacked the turbosuperchargers used on USAAF B-24 aircraft. The P&W engines turned Curtiss Electric propellers (longer propeller hubs) than the more common, shorter hubs, of the Hamilton-Standard propellers found on the B-24.

In RAF service, the LB-30 carried 14 .303-inch machine guns: one in the nose, one in a tunnel hatch, two in each waist position, and four each in Boulton-Paul power operated tail and dorsal turrets.

41 posted on 07/09/2012 1:14:09 AM PDT by MasterGunner01 (11)
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To: MasterGunner01; yarddog
One of the great things about FR is the in-depth knowledge of folks who have a special interest in a subject -- and their willingness to share it when that subject arises. Thanks for the info on the B-24 variants!

IIRC, the B-24 and the China Clipper shared the same wing design (and its high placement, which, of course, was ideal for a flying boat)...

Otherwise, as you say, "apples to oranges"...

43 posted on 07/09/2012 9:22:58 AM PDT by TXnMA ("Allah": Satan's current alias...)
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