B-24 Liberator Units of the CBI
By Chris Banyai-Riepl
Author: Edward M. Young
Publisher: Osprey Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-84908-341-6
Binding: Softcover
Pages: 96
While the B-17 and B-29 tend to be the most well-known bombers of the USAAF during World War Two, it was the B-24 that was the real mainstay of the US strategic forces, especially in the Asian theatre. This latest book from Osprey examines the B-24 Liberator in the China-Burma-India (CBI) Theatre, where the range and payload of the B-24 was particularly well suited. The Tenth and Fourteenth Air Forces each had one B-24 group, the 7th and the 308th respectively, with the 7th BG operating out of India and the 308th BG flying out of China.
The book covers these Liberator units in the usual Osprey manner, with a well-written text that is filled with interesting anecdotes that quickly puts the reader in the CBI Theatre with the B-24s. Operations in the CBI Theatre were tough, with long distances and no navigation aids. The 308th had the additional difficulty in that it had to fly all the fuel and bombs from India for each of their missions. Despite the challenges, morale remained high, and many of the aircraft as a result sported some impressive nose art.
As usual, complementing the text are the photographs and color profile illustrations. The photos show many of the aircraft and their crews, as well as the environment they operated from. The color illustrations really highlight the artwork worn by these planes, and the last couple of pages of color artwork are montages of nose art.
Overall, this is a great book on one of the lesser-known operational theatres of the B-24 Liberator. My thanks to Osprey Publishing for the review copy.