Martin B–26 Marauder at the Aircraft Engine Research Laboratory

The Aircraft Engine Research Laboratory’s first aircraft, a Martin B–26B Marauder, parked in front of the Flight Research Building in September 1943. The military loaned the B–26B to the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) to augment the lab’s studies of the Wright Aeronautical R–2800 engines. The military wanted to improve the engine cooling in order to increase the bomber’s performance. On March 17, 1943, the B–26B performed the very first research flight at the NACA’s new engine laboratory.

The B–26B received its “Widowmaker” nickname during the rushed effort to transition the new aircraft from design to production and into the sky. During World War II, however, the B–26B proved itself to be a capable war machine. The U.S. lost fewer Marauders than any other type of bomber employed in the war. The B–26B was originally utilized at low altitudes in the Pacific but had its most success at high altitudes over Europe.

The B–26B’s flight tests in Cleveland during 1943 mapped the R-2800 engine’s behavior at different altitudes and speeds. The researchers were then able to correlate engine performance in ground facilities to expected performance at different altitudes. They found that air speed, cowl flap position, angle of attack, propeller thrust, and propeller speed influenced inlet pressure recovery and exhaust distribution. The flight testing proceeded quickly, and the B–26B was transferred elsewhere in October 1943.