Although much maligned by some historians when being compared to the B-17 Flying Fortress, the B-24 Liberator would prove itself in all theaters of operation. Indeed Eighth Air Force statistics show that the B-24 was more durable than the B-17; B-17 operational losses being 15.2% compared to B-24 operational losses of 13.3%. Aircrews had a better chance of surviving the war as a B-24 crew member. The formation of the Liberator Production Pool in early 1941 began a rather bizarre and extremely complicated aircraft designation system in which the Army Air Corps identified Liberators on the basis of the primary manufacturing facility or sub-assembly manufacturer. This makes the Production and designation of the B-24 difficult to follow in this volume. It would do the reader well to study the introductory chart.

By Larry Davis