Marauder Mk.I Book Review

By Michael Benolkin

Review

Phil Listemann is an author and publisher from southwestern France that specializes in interesting historical RAF monographs. With this title, he has released the second title in the 'Allied Wings' series (the first covered the Spitfire Mk.XII). This title covers a little-described variant of Martin's B-26, the Marauder Mk.I. These were 71 aircraft that were provided to the RAF and operated by 14 Sqn in the Middle East.

The Marauder Mk.I was primarily used for maritime reconnaissance and torpedo attacks around the Mediterranean, and its speed and firepower made it a capable platform against the defending Luftwaffe.

What is interesting is that the author has followed a similar format to his series of RAF squadron histories. This title is broken down as follows:

• Seven pages outlining the development of the type
• One page listing the deliveries and attrition of the type
• One page providing the key performance specifications of the type
• 15 pages of operational history of the type in 14 Sqn
• One page outlining the sortie counts by date
• One page showing the basing of the squadron throughout the war
• Two pages of combat kills
• Three pages of operational losses
• Three pages of aircraft lost in accidents
• Twelve pages of operational dates for each aircraft by serial number
• Four pages of crews killed in service while operating the type.

The title is well illustrated with color profiles of representative aircraft from 14 Sqn, photos of numerous the pilots of Marauder Mk.I, as well as period photographs of squadron aircraft.

This monograph is to the point and clearly tied together by extensive research that has been collated by database views.

This title is highly recommended and I certainly hope to see many more in this format in the future!

My sincere thanks to Phil H. Listemann for the review sample.