I think in AH max bomb loads are based on what a typical load out was in RL with full fuel tanks and max gun ammo. Most AH bombers could, but rarely did carry heavier loads in RL with reduced fuel over short ranges (i.e. Lanc with 22,000 lb Grand Slam). So if HTC increased the loadout for the B-24 it would likely be done for all the other bombers as well and we'd be back where we started relatively speaking.