Nobody even considered the bomber a possibility at the turn of the twentieth century. But by the start of World War II, the bomber was the strategic power projection by several nations. Countries, including the United States, the UK, the Soviet Union, and others, placed a premium on building bombers.
Even today, the stealth bomber is a feared adversary, as it can penetrate an enemy’s airspace undetected and carry out devastating raids. An example is the Israeli raids on Iran in October. The IAF knocked out Iran’s air defenses and destroyed a nuclear research facility without any losses.
The United States Army Air Corps, Air Force, Navy, and Marines have been fortunate to fly some of the best bombers in the world. However, other aircraft were not so great in other areas, leaving the crews and the missions lacking: many times, both.
5 Worst Bombers of the U.S. Military
However, for the most part, the pilots’ skills made up for some of the deficiencies of the following aircraft. In no particular order, here are the worst US bombers to ever fly.
Curtis SB2C Helldiver
The first aircraft listed here has the distinction of being a lesser aircraft than the one it replaced.
The Curtiss SB2C Helldiver was a dive bomber developed by Curtiss-Wright during World War II. As a carrier-based bomber with the United States Navy (USN) in Pacific theaters, it supplemented and replaced the Douglas SBD Dauntless.
It had poor handling characteristics. The airframe had many production delays. The Truman Committee (sort of a WWII DOGE investigating waste and fraud) published a scathing report on the aircraft. The Navy wouldn’t accept the aircraft until the manufacturer completed 880 modifications.
The Helldivers had poor handling characteristics under 100 mph. Landing on an aircraft carrier required a speed of 98 mph. Pilots and aircraft carrier commanders didn’t like it due to its size, weight, and reduced range compared to the SBD it replaced. But it replaced the Douglas Dauntless that sunk four Japanese carriers at Midway.
Douglas Devastator
Considered a very good torpedo bomber, the Devastator was introduced in 1937. But by the time the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in 1941, it was already woefully outdated. It carried either a torpedo or 1,000-pound bombs.
The Devastator had a three-person crew. An odd-looking greenhouse-type canopy covered the crew in the cockpit. To aim the bombs, the bombardier lay prone, sighting the target through a window behind the engine and dropping the munitions.
The powerplant was underpowered, generating only 900 horsepower. The top speed was only 206 mph; during a torpedo run, the speed was just 117 mph. The aircraft had only one forward-facing .30 caliber machine gun and a rear-facing flexible .30 caliber for air defense.
The Devastators were sitting ducks for Japanese anti-aircraft gunners or Japanese Zeros. At the Battle of Midway, the Navy launched 41 torpedo bombers, and only four returned. After Midway, the Navy pulled the remaining Devastators from its fleet and replaced them with TBF Avengers.
A U.S. Navy Douglas TBD-1 Devastator (BuNo 0322) of Torpedo Squadron Six (VT-6) pictured in flight, probably over Virginia (USA). Note the squadron insignia, a Great White Albatross, on the fuselage beneath the cockpit. Established as VT-8S in 1937, the squadron was redesignated VT-6 that same year. Accepting delivery of its first TBD-1 aircraft in 1938, the squadron operated from USS Enterprise (CV-6) until after the Battle of Midway in June 1942. The TBD-1 0322 ditched after stalling on takeoff from the Enterprise on 10 March 1939. The crew could be rescued uninjured.
Convair YB-60
The Convair YB-60 was developed shortly after World War II. The Air Force wanted proposal requests to military aircraft manufacturers for a new strategic military bomber built with turbojet engines to provide more speed than conventional propeller-powered aircraft.
The US Air Force wanted a heavy bomber capable of carrying atomic bombs across oceans. Convair proposed a jet-engine version of its piston-engine B-36, which was created by simply swapping out the engines. It proved to be more complicated than that. Although the two aircraft looked the same, the B-36 retained 72 percent of its parts and was renamed the YB-60.
The YB-60 was powered by eight Pratt & Whitney XJ57-P-3 turbojet engines that could generate 8,700 pounds of thrust each, mounted in pairs under the wings. The aircraft had a cruising speed of 435 mph and a range of 2,900 miles.
The bomber had five crew members (pilot, copilot, navigator, bombardier, tail gunner) fly missions. The YB-60 had a maximum ceiling of 52,000 ft. while carrying a bomb payload of up to 72,000 pounds.
The competition for the YB-60 was the B-52 Stratofortress, which lacked many factors, so the Air Force scrapped the project in 1953.
B-58 Hustler Bomber
The B-58 bomber had a catchy name; indeed, it had many things going for it, such as Delta wings, powerful engines, and excellent performance ratings. The aggressively swept wings were outfitted with four powerful engines that allowed the B-58 to fly at Mach 2 at high altitude with an operating range of 3,500 nautical miles.
However, the aircraft was a pain in the neck to fly. The Hustler relied on specialized systems and complex controls that caused unconventional take-offs, landings, far too frequent stalls, and spin characteristics.
Of the 116 B-58s built, 26 crashed.
B-58 Hustler. Image Credit: US Air Force.
B-24 Liberator
What?!? Nope, this isn’t blasphemy against the most produced WWII bomber. However, in comparing it to its contemporaries, it was left behind in the wake of the B-17 and the B-29.
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was designed to be faster, with a farther range and a larger bomb load than the B-17. And it was all of those things. But all of those factors came at a cost.
To reduce the weight of the aircraft, crew protection was reduced. It also had fewer machine guns for defense against fighters. The fuel tanks were not self-sealing at first and were prone to leaks. The slightest hit could erupt the wings in flames.
The wing structure was very weak, and a hit there could have folded up the wings, as several videos have attested. The B-24 could only fly as high as 23,500 feet, while the B-17s could fly much higher.
The doctrine to protect the air group at the time was for all of the bombers to fly in a very tight formation to keep German fighters from breaking up the formation, and where all of the guns could be brought to bear.
B-24 photographed from above, showing the Davis wing design.
The B-24 was bitch to fly, especially in terms of yaw control. The twin vertical stabilizers helped a little, but maintaining control still required almost constant rudder command by the pilot, which was exhausting on long missions. One pilot called the Liberator “the tub,” which wasn’t flattering.
The Army Air Force was planning to eliminate the B-24 if the war had lasted much longer, and the preference was for the B-17s. The Air Force kept using the B-17 (it was preferred) after the war. The B-24s were withdrawn and scrapped.
Conceived in 1938 by Consolidated Aircraft, a Lockheed Martin legacy company, the original B-24 prototype was designed to fly faster and carry a larger payload than the US Army Air Corps’s B-17 Flying Fortress. I
About the Author: Steve Balestrieri
Steve Balestrieri is a 19FortyFive National Security Columnist. He served as a US Army Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer. In addition to writing for 19FortyFive, he covers the NFL for PatsFans.com and is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). His work was regularly featured in many military publications.
