Show I 1 uncle sams sam s bombers I 1 the history of the U S army bombing planes begins with the aa de haviland finished just too late in 1818 1918 to see action in the first world war it was powered by a single horsepower liberty 12 engine americas america s outstanding contribution to world war aviation and had a speed of 0 about miles an hour it c carried a crew ot of two and a bomb 10 load ad of pounds its range was about miles while it bad a ceiling of more than feet the crude bombsights bomb sights of the day made bombing at even a few thousand leet feet pretty much of a hit and miss affair the first all american twin bomber was the glenn martin bomber designed by the U S army air corps engineers for night bombardment over the western front during world war I 1 it had bomb bays which were opened to release its pay load of 1040 pounds the glenn martin weighed more than five tons this weight is less than that of a modern single engine fighter plane and less than one fourth the weight of the B 17 7 and B 24 of today A startling development in army was monoplane known as atlantic LB 2 ahead of I 1 its time and an adaptation for military use of the famous fokker VII transport the LB 2 saw service with the army air corps between 1826 1920 and 1931 it was capable of carrying a bomb load of 2000 pounds with the the advent of the B aa the army air c corps went back to th the biplane design the B SA bad a speed ot of miles per hour and a range of the modern modem army bomber came of age with the martin B 10 which attained a speed of more than miles per hour and had a ran range ge of in excess of 1000 miles in july 1934 a flight of ten martin B 10 bombers flew from washington D C to fairbanks alaska and return a total distance of which was covered in 51 hours Q and so 30 minutes flying time |