Douglas A-26B Invader, ROCAF 34th Sqn, Taiwan, 1958

Product description

In 1941 Douglas Aircraft Company began work on their twin-engine medium-bomber A-26 Invader. By the end of production there were 2,452 aircraft produced for all variants. The A-26/B-26 was the only U.S. bomber to take part in three wars, WWII, Korea and Vietnam. The confusion with the use of the designation B-26 began when the Martin B-26 Marauder was retired and in 1948 the USAF dropped the “A” (Attack) designator so the Douglas A-26 Invader became the B-26 Invader. The A-26 made its first European appearance in late 1944.

The RoCAF 34th Squadron “Black Cats” was activated and equipped with B-26 Invaders whose prime purpose was low-altitude night reconnaissance over mainland China. These missions not only included photography but included dropping spies into China to collect sensitive data about China’s military. There 838 of these missions and the operation was considered a success despite the loss of 15 aircraft and 148 aircrew. B-26 # 844 originally was USAF A-26C 44-35444 and was one of the aircraft involved in these missions. The RoCAF 34th Squadron was disbanded in 1974.