General info for B-25J-1

• Country USA
• Vehicle role Frontline Bomber / Medium Bomber
• Rank 2

• Battle rating in
  • arcade battles 3.7
  • realistic battles 4
  • simulator battles 3.7

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Wiki info about B-25J-1

Official War Thunder wiki

North American B-25J-1 Mitchell twin-engine medium bomber/ground-attack aircraft The B-25J (NA-108) was the most largely produced Mitchell variant. The first aircraft of this type left the factory floor in December 1943, and the variant drove the B-25C and B-25D completely out of production by March of the next year. B-25J bombers had two 1,700 hp Wright R-2600-29 fourteen-cylinder, double-row, radial air-cooled engines with Hamilton Standard Hydromatic 23E50 three-bladed automatic metal propellers. One feature of this variant was that it could be used both as a bomber and as a ground-attack aircraft. When used as a bomber, the B-25J-1's armament was: one fixed front machine gun (with 400 rounds) and one mobile machine gun (with 300 rounds) mounted on the navigator's cockpit in the forward fuselage; four front machine guns, with 400 rounds each, mounted in pairs on both sides of the lower fuselage section, near the pilot's cockpit; a Bendix A-9 upper turret housing twin machine guns, with 400 rounds each; a twin Bell M-7 rear mount, with 600 rounds each; and two machine guns, with 600 rounds each, in the fuselage blisters on the starboard and port sides. All gun emplacements had 12.7 mm Colt-Browning ANM2.5 machine guns. The total number of machine guns was 12. Thus, the B-25J was practically as good in its armament as heavy bombers like the B-17 or the B-24, except for coverage from below. To use the B-25J-1 as a ground-attack aircraft, the nose section with the navigator/bombardier's cockpit could be easily removed and replaced by a solid unglazed nose with a battery of eight 12.7 mm Colt-Browning ANM2.5 machine guns, with 400 rounds each. Thus the number of front machine guns was increased to 12, and the total number of guns to 18. The B-25J-1's maximum bomb capacity was 4,000 lb (1,815 kg). Starting with the 151st machine, one bomb rack, meant to suspend a 2,000 lb (908 kg) bomb, was removed from production B-25J-1 bombers, since it was almost never used in combat units and did nothing but take up a lot of space in the bomb bay. The aircraft usually carried three 1,000 lb (454 kg) or two 1,600 lb (726 kg) bombs. Different combinations of bombs of smaller sizes were also used. 10 kg parachute bombs were used, as well. The B-25J could carry a Mk.13 torpedo weighing 907 kg. In addition, removable bomb racks for bombs up to 250 kg could be mounted under the wing panels. When used as a bomber, the aircraft had a crew of six people: two pilots, a navigator/bombardier/gunner, a turret gunner/engineer, a radio operator/waist gunner, and a tail gunner. When used as a ground-attack aircraft, the crew consisted of five people, excluding the navigator/bombardier. Both pilot seats were equipped with an armored backrest. One armor plate was located behind the instrument panel, and the second was under the cockpit windshield. Two armor sheets were fixed outside to the sides. Armor protection was provided for all gunners.