A group of four Martin B-26 Marauders on their way to New Guinea had been diverted to Midway during the build-up to the battle. They were led by Captain James Collins. Among them was the B-26 “Susie Q” (Bu. No. 40-1391), named after the pilot’s wife’s nickname. The pilot was First Lieutenant Jim Muri. He and his crew had no combat experience and no training in torpedo launching. Nevertheless, at 6:00 in the morning of June 4 they left Midway armed with a 2,000-pound torpedo to attack the Japanese carrier force, taking off right after the six Avengers.
They had just sighted the Japanese fleet and Muri was in the process of lighting a cigarette when the Zeros struck the formation. He immediately focused on following Collins, who was manoeuvring to avoid the fighters while finding a good angle of attack on the carriers. Finally they dived down to sea level and took aim. By then Muri had lost track of the other two B-26s, his attention fixed entirely on his leader. At about 800 yards Collins released his torpedo and banked right.
Muri’s co-pilot Lieutenant Pete Moore was ready to launch, and Muri shouted the order. Moore turned the release plug but there was no indication whether it had gone. Muri kept shouting “Is it away?” until Moore finally answered “How the hell do I know?” By now they were up close to the carrier, continuously hit by AA and fighter fire. In a desperate move Muri banked hard and flew straight down the length of the carrier deck. Their bombardier Lieutenant Russ Johnson grabbed the nose gun and strafed the carrier, killing two seamen and temporarily disabling an AA gun. As they pulled away they saw one of the other B-26s narrowly miss the carrier’s bridge before plunging into the sea.
The torpedo had in fact launched but missed its target, which turned out to be the Akagi. Clearing the deck they were again attacked by Zeros. Corporal Frank L. Mello Jr., the waist turret gunner, crawled to the cockpit to report that the plane was on fire. Moore left his seat, found and extinguished the fire, tended the wounded, and then manned the gun turret. Finally the Japanese fighters had to turn back, and Muri managed to find Collins’ equally battered B-26 still in the air.
Back at Midway, Muri landed with the left tyre shot off, all propeller blades damaged and more than 500 bullet holes in Susie Q. The three gunners were wounded but the entire crew survived. Two of the four B-26s were lost and no torpedo hits were scored. Susie Q was subsequently scrapped, but Muri was allowed to cut out her name from the fuselage.
This kit is from ESCI. To be meticulous it is the wrong variant — the rear gun placement is incorrect — but it is the closest available at the time.
