Douglas B-26B Straffer

Mathll · July 8, 2026, 10:01am

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Hello everyone, and welcome to this new suggestion.

Today, I am presenting a new aircraft from the French Air Force dating back to the early Cold War era: the Douglas B-26B.

First, a quick explanation regarding the “B” designation. The aircraft I am discussing today is a version of the American Douglas A-26, developed during World War II. It was originally an attack aircraft, hence the “A” designation, but when the first versions were delivered to French forces, it was classified as a bomber because that was the role it was intended to fulfill; the name stuck for all subsequent variants.

In the early 1950s, the Indochina War was raging; French forces were bogged down in difficult terrain and lacked air support, as the Air Force was still recovering from World War II. To address the shortage of aircraft, the French High Command turned to the US Air Force, which supplied 113 Douglas A-26 Invaders starting in 1951. Redesignated as the B-26, these aircraft were distributed among three bomber groups: GB 1/19 Gascogne, GB 1/25 Tunisie, and GB 1/91 Bourgogne.

These squadrons flew a vast number of sorties during the war, providing essential air support that was highly valued by the infantry. During the Battle of Dien Bien Phu—arguably one of the most significant infantry battles of the post-World War II era—the B-26s made numerous passes but were unfortunately unable to save the French troops.

At the end of the war, the B-26Bs returned to France but were immediately redeployed to Algeria, which was then in the midst of its war of independence. They saw combat there once again, though under vastly different conditions, as anti-aircraft defenses were far less prevalent. A number of the aircraft underwent field modifications.

This aircraft can be introduced into the game in various versions; the B-26B was a modular aircraft that could be modified to suit the needs of the crew and the specific mission requirements. Notable configurations include aircraft equipped with six machine guns aligned horizontally in the nose, or eight machine guns arranged in two columns of four. However, the modifications do not stop there; while the standard aircraft featured two twin-gun defensive turrets, it was not uncommon to see them with only one turret, or even none at all, towards the end of their service life. (This makes for 6 different configurations that can be added to the game)

Fun fact: this aircraft was primarily used by the Air Force, though a Navy squadron also operated B-26Bs; this was because the Air Force had more aircraft than pilots, while Navy pilots did not always have locally available aircraft with similar capabilities.

Characteristics

Length : 15.47 m

Width : 21.35 m

Height : 5.56 m

Mass :

Empty : 10.365 tons
Full : 15.880 tons

The aircraft is powered by two Pratt & Whitney R-2800 engines, each delivering 2,000 hp, enabling it to reach a top speed of 570 km/h and a maximum range of 1,450 km. The crew consists of three people: a pilot, a co-pilot, and a gunner who operates the machine-gun turrets used to defend the aircraft.

Visually, the vehicles initially retained their exposed metal bodies, like the American versions, but with French markings, before being modified and painted black with a white roof, particularly in Algeria.

Weapons

The aircraft’s armament is virtually identical to that found on aircraft operated by the US military, comprising the following:

Offensive armament:

6 or 8 x 12.7mm machine guns in the nose
4 x 12.7mm machine guns in the wings

Defensive armament:

1 or 2 twin 12.7mm machine gun turrets (one dorsal and one ventral)

Secondary armament:

Internal bomb bay:
- 16 x AN-M30 100lb bombs
- 8 x AN-M57 250lb bombs
- 6 x AN-M64 500lb bombs
- 4 x AN-M65 1000lb bombs
- 6 x Napalm tanks (100kg)
- Cluster munitions
Under-wing:
- 4 x AN-M30 100lb bombs
- 4 x AN-M57 250lb bombs
- 4 x AN-M64 500lb bombs
- 14 x HVAR rockets
- 4 x Napalm tanks
- 2 x 2 12.7mm machine guns pods

This aircraft would be a particularly interesting addition to the French tree, providing a medium-sized ground-attack aircraft with a substantial and diverse armament capable of engaging all types of targets, thereby effectively completing out the tree.

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