Most of the photos on this site were extracted from reference images (high-resolution tiffs, 20 to 200 megabytes in size) from the Library of Congress research archive. (To query the database click here.) Many were digitized by LOC contractors using a Sinar studio back. They are adjusted by your webmaster for contrast and color in Photoshop before being downsized and turned into the jpegs you see here.

Fitting the tail of a C-87 transport plane to the wing center section in the fuselage mating fixture at the Consolidated Aircraft plant, Fort Worth, Texas. October 1942. View full size. 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by Howard Hollem.
The C-87 Transport was a variant of the B-24 Liberator bomber. On the C-87 the bomb bay and rear fuselage are replaced by a passenger compartment. A loading door is cut into the rear fuselage.
It's a Liberator bomber, not a C-87 transport
[The ID is correct. It's a C-87. You can tell by the #1 mounts, which have FUSELAGE MATING FIXTURE painted on them. The bombers used #2 mounts, with BOMB BAY MATING FIXTURE painted on them - Dave]
Today's Top 5