Saw the transition from mechanical computer gun laying system to the electro-mechanical system. Returned to Carswell AFB and was placed in charge of all 100 hour inspections of the B-36 armament System. Next sent to initial '71 level Armament Systems School at Lowry AFB. Initially assigned to Basic Electronics School, Lowry AFB followed by APG-32 Tail Gunners School and upon completion was assigned to the 42nd Bomb Squadron at Carswell AFB performing maintenance on the radar directed B-36 tail gun. JUST TO SEE IT GAVE YOU CHILLS AND NO WONDER IT WAS CALLED THE "PEACE MAKER". IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL SIGHT TO SEE THAT BEAUTIFUL MONSTER LOW ENOUGH TO BE ABLE TO COUNT THE RIVITS. THE REAL SIGHT WAS WHILE PLAYING GOLF, WE WATCHED THE 36 LAND. IN 19 I WAS STATIONED AT WHEELUS AFB, TRIPOLI LYBIA, WE HAD THE PLEASURE OF WATCHING THE B-36 TAKE OFF AND LAND. Production of the B-36 continued for almost seven years, the last example being delivered to Strategic Air Command on 14 August 1954, and the type was retired finally on 12 February 1959.ġ2-16 20mm machine-guns, 32600kg of bombsġ-20 21-40 41-60 61-80 81-100 101-120 121-140 141-160 On 23 July 1943 100 aircraft were ordered but it was more than four years before the first of the 22 unarmed crew-trainer B-36A models took off on its maiden flight, on 28 August 1947. In this form the aircraft was designated YB-36A and also differed from the first aircraft by introducing a raised cockpit roof. The aircraft was designed originally with twin fins and rudders, but by the time the XB-36 prototype was ready to be rolled out at Fort Worth, on 8 September 1945, single vertical tail surfaces had been substituted.įirst flown on 8 August 1946, the XB-36 had single 2.79m diameter main wheels, also a feature of the YB-36 second prototype on which they were replaced later by the four-wheeled bogies adopted for production aircraft. Selected from four competing designs, the Consolidated Model 36 featured a pressurised fuselage, and 70.10m span wings with a root thickness of 1.83m to permit in-flight access to the six pusher engines. An unrefuelled range of 16093km was a prime requirement, with a maximum speed of 386-483km/h and ceiling of 10670m. Between the main landing gear wells was the single bomb bay, which could accommodate a single gravity nuclear weapon or 10,000 pounds of conventional bombs (up to 22,000 pounds maximum in overload condition).Ībout Our B-47E, S/N 52-1412 : This B-47 was manufactured by Douglas Aircraft, Tulsa OK and delivered to the USAF on May 5, 1955.The first intercontinental bomber, the Convair B-36 originated from a specification issued on 11 April 1941 which called for an aircraft with ability to carry a maximum bombload of 32659kg and, of even greater importance in view of the state of affairs at that time, to deliver 4536kg of bombs on European targets from bases in the United States. The main landing gear was fitted in tandem, extending from the fuselage, with smaller wheels on outriggers extending from the wings. These were supplemented with provisions for solid-fuel rockets in the rear fuselage for accelerated takeoffs. Subsequently, Boeing developed a design with thin, laminar-flow wings swept back 35 degrees, with six turbojet engines mounted in twin and single pods beneath the wings. Boeing initiated several designs, with post-war examination of German aircraft data indicating the advantages of the swept-wing configuration. Army Air Force issued its first requirement for a jet bomber late in 1943. Speed and defensive electronics permitted the elimination of the large number of guns found in earlier bombers. This permitted a reduction in crew from 11 men in a B-50 (of roughly the same gross weight) to only three men, and the deletion of all gun armament except for a remotely controlled tail turret. Bill Gunston, a leading aviation writer, has observed that the B-47 was “design so advanced technically as to appear genuinely futuristic.” In addition to its high speed and sleek configuration, the B-47 was highly automated. It was in many respects a revolutionary aircraft. The Boeing B-47 Stratojet was the first swept-wing, jet-propelled bomber produced in large numbers.
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