B-24 Liberator - "Libra" - Tail Number 42-52508

I got back into building models in a big way.  One of the things that I discovered is that there are after market decals you can buy that will let you build a certain model.  As a result, I started to look for kits that had relevance to Michigan.

This isn't one of the first kits I built recently but it is one that didn't need to find after market decals.

In 1940, President Roosevelt realized that we would probably be at war sooner than later.  He also realized that the United States would have to greatly increase it's production capacity if it was going to win the war.  To that end, he reached out to various industrialists to see if they could start producing military equipment.

Henry Ford was one of the industrialists that Roosevelt looked to.   Since Ford had some experience building Tri-Motors, he was asked if he could produce B-24 bombers.  Ford visited the Consolidated factory in San Diego and determined that he could do it.

Construction was started at Willow Run in 1940 and production was started in 1941 but that was only for B-24 components.  In October 1941, Ford received permission produce complete bombers.  It would be another year before completed B-24s would leave the factory.  Ford had a number of issues producing the bombers but one of them was the Air Force itself.

After solving many of these problems, one bomber per hour would roll off the Willow Run line.

This particular model has a serial number of 42-52508 meaning that it was ordered by the Government in 1942.  It was transferred to 833rd Bombing Squadron in July of 1944.  The nose art was one of a series painted by a Corporal from Chicago.  The plane would serve through the end of the war.