Douglas A-26 Invader

Douglas A-26 Invader
Role	Attack aircraftandmedium bomber
National origin	USA
Manufacturer	Douglas
First flight	1942
Introduction	1943
Status	Out of service
Primary user	USA
Produced	Out of production
Number built	2450 examples

TheDouglas A-26 Invaderis a twin-enginedattack aircraft.It was used by theUnited States Army Air Force.It was also used inFranceandUK.The 'Invader' was used inWorld War II,theKorean War,and theVietnam Warby theUnited States.TheFrenchused it in theAlgeria War.After1948itsrolein the US was changed from an attack aircraft to abomberaircraft. The letter 'A' (for attack) in its name was changed to a 'B' (for bomber). It became theB-26 Invader.This caused some confusion because the Air Force already had theMartin B-26 Marauder,which was a different aircraft. Some A-26 Invaders were used during the 1950s by theUnited States Forest Serviceto fightforest fires.In this role the plane was used to put out wildfires from the air by dropping firstborate,then later water and other retardants.