B-24D Liberator - US Navy PB4Y-1 from the Franklin Mint

Designed to meet a USAAC requirement for a heavy bomber with performance superior to that of the B-17, the B-24 was first flown on December 29th, 1939. Somewhat overshadowed by the popularity of the B-17, the B-24 was actually produced in larger numbers than any American aircraft during WWII with 18,431 aircraft eventually produced. The B-24 was a more modern design than the B-17 with a higher top speed and greater range with a similar bomb load and defensive armament eventually being deployed to all theaters of war: Africa, Europe, India, the Atlantic and the Pacific. The first model produced on a large scale between was the B-24D, featuring a "greenhouse" nose, two waist-gunners and a top-side turret. Found to be vulnerable to head-on attack, the design was modified leading to the B-24H and the B-24J models which included a nose turret and a ball turret that, unlike the B-17, could be retracted into the belly when not in use. The Liberator's distinctive slab-sided fuselage helped it earn the nickname "Flying Boxcar".