As there were hundreds of fighter planes carving the skies of World War II,
there were also hundreds of bombers, which are combat aircraft designed to take out ground and
naval targets with bombs, rockets, torpedoes, and other weaponry. Generally, heavy bombers
were designed for long-range strategic bombing, while medium and light bombers were designed for
strategic and tactical bombing at shorter ranges. Dive bombers and torpedo bombers
were tactical aircraft too, and many planes flew the line between bomber and fighter,
receiving modifications which allowed them to engage in air-to-air combat as well as drop
bombs on ground and naval targets. We listed our top ten fighter planes in a counterpart video,
though in this video, we'll be outlining our top ten bombers of the Second World War,
from five fighting nations. We'll also be revealing what we believe was the all
round best bomber of the Second World War at the end of the video, so stick around!
Mitsubishi's G4M medium bomber was Imperial Japan's principle land-based bomber throughout
the war, and it absolutely menaced the Allies in the early days of the Pacific War, when Japanese
Zeroes afforded them air superiority. The G4M had an excellent range due to its structural
lightness, though this also meant the craft had minimal armour, and its crew and fuel tank were
vulnerable. Once the Allies caught wind of this, they could put the G4M up in flames with a few
well-placed shots, but these flaws were ironed out in the G4M2 and G4M3 variants. The GM42 is
recognised as one of the better variants of this craft, and this particular model could carry one
massive torpedo, one massive bomb, or twelve small 130-pound or 60-kilo bombs, making it a versatile
bomber indeed. Later in the war, some G4Ms were even outfitted to carry Ohka human-guided kamikaze
craft towards their final destinations. More than 2,400 G4Ms were made throughout the war.
Junkers' Ju 87 or Stuka was an iconic German dive bomber, distinguished by its telltale
gull wings and fixed landing gear. Stukas were instrumental in early blitzkriegs, as,
due to being low-altitude dive bombers, they were incredibly accurate, and the Germans still
had Western Europe on its back foot. The Stuka was, in reality, very vulnerable to fighters,
and the Allies were able to counter it once they cut through German fighter escorts and
gained air superiority. After getting torn apart in the Battle of Britain, the Stuka
was withdrawn from Britain, deployed instead in North Africa and in the Mediterranean theatres,
where it undertook anti-shipping operations; Stukas also had a huge impact in the early
days of the Eastern Front as ground support, anti-tank, and anti-shipping aircraft. The Stuka,
in all its variants, could carry a variety of bombs, though it was also equipped with
wing cannons and machine guns, including a flexible canopy-mounted machine gun, which was
operated by the craft's single gunner. Some 6,000 Stukas were manufactured between 1935 and 1945.
Heinkel Flugzeugwerke's He 111 medium bomber was another distinct German aircraft,
recognisable by its glass nose and graceful form, and, like the Stuka, it was an effective bomber
until its weaknesses -- primarily a weak defensive armament -- were exposed in the Battle of Britain,
during which it was the backbone of the Luftwaffe's bomber force. The He 111 could take a
bit of a beating, however, and its armaments were improved, with later models boasting a machine
gun on the nose, two on the belly, two on the sides, and one in a dorsal position. All in all,
it was a versatile craft, capable of delivering all sorts of payloads, and it was employed in
mosts theatres of the war. The He 111 did become obsolete in 1944, however, and its production
ceased in September that year, with more than 6,500 manufactured between 1935 and then.
Ilyushin's Il-2 Shturmovik attack bomber is a Soviet classic, and it was absolutely crucial
on the Eastern Front, where it provided the Red Army with close support. The Shturmovik bore two
forward-firing cannons, two wing machine guns, and a machine gun on the rear of the canopy,
which was operated by the gunner, though it could also obliterate ground targets with its
underwing fragmentation rockets, of which it could carry eight. The Shturmovik was heavily
armoured against ground fire, though it was slow and therefore vulnerable to enemy fighters,
requiring a fighter escort itself. Stalin himself prioritised the productive on the Shturmovik
throughout the war, leading to an insane 36,183 being produced between 1941 and 1945.
The United States boasts some sick aircraft, but the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress has to be
the sickest of all. It wasn't called a "flying fortress" for no reason; this four-engined heavy
bomber could take some serious damage and dish out just as much, employing thirteen .50 calibre
machine guns in various positions, including on the tail, and carrying up to a 6,000 pound
or 2,700-kilo payload. The Flying Fortress was instrumental to the USAAF's daylight strategic
bombing campaign, laying waste to German industrial and military targets in occupied
Europe. These were big, expensive aircraft, costing around 240,000 USD back in 1945,
which is around 2.7 million nowadays, yet more than 12,700 were manufactured between 1936 and
1945. Easily the most famous B-17 in existence is the Memphis Belle, to whom we dedicated a video.
Now, we're dealing with America here, so everything's gotta be supersized,
including the B-17 Flying Fortress, which was basically pushed out of the sky by the
B-29 Superfortress, a four-engine heavy bomber designed for high-altitude bombing
and low-altitude night-time firebombing. It was the largest bomber to fly in World War II,
though it only did so in December 1943, and it wasn't until June 1944 that Superfortresses
were used to bomb Japan from air bases in China, showing off the aircraft's exceptional 4,100-mile
or 6,600-kilometer range. This flight did have its logistical problems though,
so the US military captured the Mariana Islands, putting the infamous B-29 Enola Gay in easy range
of its target, Hiroshima, upon which it dropped an atomic bomb. If you thought the B17 was expensive,
hold onto your seat. The Superfortress prototype cost almost 4 billion USD,
while each of the 3,970 craft manufactured after that cost around 640,000 USD. 'Merica.
Nothing screams "liberty" like Consolidated Aircraft's B-24 Liberator,
an American heavy bomber which saw heavy use in the war, forming the backbone of the USAAF
strategic bomber offensive in the European theatre, alongside the B-17. This aircraft,
however, had a superior range to the B-17, making it an all-round more versatile bomber,
and it proved useful in operations in the Pacific, which included bombing Japan,
as well as in the Battle of the Atlantic, in which Liberators undertook anti-submarine operations,
sinking unsuspecting subs when they surfaced for air. More than 18,000 Liberators were
made between 1940 and 1945, with Ford Motor Company manufacturing more than 8,600 of them.
The Avro Lancaster became Britain's primary heavy bomber after the strategic bombing offensive over
Europe, in which the aircraft was a merciless nocturnal predator, targetting German population
centres and blowing civilians limb from limb. With an elongated, unobstructed bomb bay, the Lancaster
could carry the largest of the RAF's bombs, taking all manner of payload up to the 22,000-pound
or 10,000-kilo "Grand Slam earthquake bomb," the largest carried by any bomber in the war.
The Lancaster had exceptional range, and it was well defended, boasting ten Browning .303 calibre
machine guns in four power-operated turrets, armour plating, and bullet-proof glass. Lancasters
were produced in Canada and Australia as well, with a total of 7,377 made between 1941 and 1947.
The De Havilland D.H. 98 Mosquito was a British multi-role combat aircraft, though it
was initially conceived as an unarmed fast bomber, and it's just awesome, so it's worthy of our list.
Across all its different versions, the Mosquito could be utilised as a fighter-bomber, a day or
night fighter, a nocturnal ground attack intruder -- almost like the insect after which it was named
-- a light bomber, a recon craft, a transport craft, and for much more. The B Mark XVI, one of
the bomber variants, could carry a 4,000-pound or 1,800-kilo "Blockbuster bomb" or "Cookie" in its
internal bomb bay, and only certain variants of the craft wielded defensive armaments,
such as machine guns and rockets, as guns and turrets compromised the Mosquitos streamlining,
detracting from its speed and maneuverability, which were what gave the craft its edge.
Now, we finished our best fighter plane list with ketamine-ET's flying saucer,
so it's only right we finish this one with a model aircraft gone wrong. The Miles M.39B
Libellula honestly looks like someone drank sixteen pints, threw out the instruction manual,
and built the damn plane anyway. It hurts my eyes just looking at it, I'm glad only one of
these flying shoe anvils was ever made. Rest easy knowing this abomination was disassembled. I like
to think that, instead of recycling the parts, they threw them into the fires of Mount Doom.
Jokes aside, it's a little difficult to decide which of these bombers was the very best, as
light, medium, and heavy bombers filled different roles, and bombers in general were designed to
decimate ground targets rather than each other, but we're going with Stuker dive bomber. It was
a durable, reliable little craft which rained precision hell upon its targets, and its
contribution to early Blitzkrieg victories, German propaganda, and Allied fear cannot be understated.
But what do you think? Was the Stuka more an instrument of propaganda and
fear rather than an effective aircraft? Did we include any bombers in our top
ten that you wouldn't include in your top ten? If so which bombers would you
include in your list? Please share your thoughts down in the comments.