Boeing B-29 Superfortress

The B-29 Superfortress is a four-engine propeller-driven heavy bomber designed by Boeing that was flown primarily by the United States toward the end of World War II and during the Korean War. It was one of the largest aircraft to have seen service during World War II and a very advanced bomber for its time, with features such as a pressurized cabin, an electronic fire-control system, and remote-controlled machine-gun turrets. The name "Superfortress" was derived from that of its well-known predecessor, the B-17 Flying Fortress. Although designed as a high-altitude strategic bomber, and initially used in this role against the Empire of Japan, these attacks proved to be disappointing; as a result the B-29 became the primary aircraft used in the American firebombing campaign, and was used extensively in low-altitude night-time incendiary bombing missions. One of the B-29's final roles during World War II was carrying out the atomic bomb attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Unlike many other World War II-era bombers, the B-29 remained in service long after the war ended, with a few even being employed as flying television transmitters for the Stratovision company. The B-29 served in various roles throughout the 1950s. The Royal Air Force flew the B-29 and used the name Washington for the type, replacing them in 1953 with the Canberra jet bomber, and the Soviet Union produced an unlicensed reverse-engineered copy as the Tupolev Tu-4. The B-29 was the progenitor of a series of Boeing-built bombers, transports, tankers, reconnaissance aircraft and trainers including the B-50 Superfortress (the first aircraft to fly around the world non-stop) which was essentially a re-engined B-29. The type was finally retired in the early 1960s, with 3,970 aircraft in all built. While dozens of B-29s have survived through today as static displays, only one, Fifi, remains on active flying status.

A transport derived from the B-29 was the C-97, first flown in 1944, followed by its commercial airliner variant, the Boeing Model 377 Stratocruiser in 1947. This bomber-to-airliner derivation was similar to the B-17/Model 307 evolution. The tanker variant of the B-29 was introduced in 1948 as the KB-29, followed by the Model 377-derivative KC-97 introduced in 1950. A heavily modified line of outsized-cargo variants of the B-29-derived Stratocruiser is the Guppy / Mini Guppy / Super Guppy which remain in service today with operators such as NASA.

Design and development

Boeing began work on pressurized long-range bombers in 1938, when, in response to a United States Army Air Corps request, it produced a design study for the Model 334, a pressurized derivative of the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress with nosewheel undercarriage. Although the Air Corps did not have money to pursue the design, Boeing continued development with its own funds as a private venture,^[9] so that when, in December 1939, the Air Corps issued a formal specification for a so-called "superbomber", capable of delivering 20,000 lb (9,100 kg) of bombs to a target 2,667 mi (4,290 km) away and capable of flying at a speed of 400 mph (640 km/h), they formed a starting point for Boeing's response.^[10]

Boeing submitted its Model 345 on 11 May 1940,^[11] in competition with designs from Consolidated Aircraft (the Model 33, later to become the B-32),^[12] Lockheed (the Lockheed XB-30),^[13] and Douglas (the Douglas XB-31).^[14] Douglas and Lockheed soon abandoned work on their projects, but Boeing received an order for two flying prototypes, given the designation XB-29, and an airframe for static testing on 24 August 1940, with the order being revised to add a third flying aircraft on 14 December. Consolidated continued to work on its Model 33 as it was seen by the Air Corps as a backup in case of problems with Boeing's design.^[15] An initial production order for 14 service test aircraft and 250 production bombers was placed in May 1941,^[16] this being increased to 500 aircraft in January 1942.^[11] The B-29 featured a fuselage design with circular cross-section for strength. The need for pressurization in the cockpit area also led to the B-29 having the only "stepless" cockpit design, without a separate windscreen for the pilot, on an American combat aircraft of World War II.

Manufacturing the B-29 was a complex task. It involved four main-assembly factories: a pair of Boeing operated plants at Renton, Washington, and Wichita, Kansas, a Bell plant at Marietta, Georgia ("Bell-Atlanta"), and a Martin plant at Omaha, Nebraska ("Martin-Omaha").^[11][17] Thousands of subcontractors were involved in the project.^[18] The first prototype made its maiden flight from Boeing Field, Seattle on 21 September 1942.^[17] Because of the aircraft's highly advanced design, challenging requirements, and immense pressure for production, development was deeply troubled. The second prototype, which, unlike the unarmed first, was fitted with a Sperry defensive armament system using remote-controlled gun turrets sighted by periscopes,^[19] first flew on 30 December 1942, this flight being terminated due to a serious engine fire. On 18 February 1943, the second prototype experienced an engine fire and crashed.^[20] Changes to the production craft came so often and so fast that in early 1944, B-29s flew from the production lines directly to modification depots for extensive rebuilds to incorporate the latest changes. The U.S. Air Force–operated modification depots struggled to cope with the scale of work required, with a lack of hangars capable of housing the B-29 combined with freezing cold weather further delaying the modification, such that at the end of 1943, although almost 100 aircraft had been delivered, only 15 percent were airworthy.^[21][22] This prompted an intervention by General Hap Arnold to resolve the problem, with production personnel being sent from the factories to the modification centers to speed modification of sufficient aircraft to equip the first Bomb Groups in what became known as the "Battle of Kansas". This resulted in 150 aircraft being modified in the six weeks between 10 March and 15 April 1944.^[23][24]

The most common cause of maintenance headaches and catastrophic failures were the engines.^[23] Although the Wright R-3350 Duplex Cyclone radial engines later became a trustworthy workhorse in large piston-engined aircraft, early models were beset with dangerous reliability problems. This problem was not fully cured until the aircraft was fitted with the more powerful Pratt & Whitney R-4360 "Wasp Major" in the B-29D/B-50 program, which arrived too late for World War II. Interim measures included cuffs placed on propeller blades to divert a greater flow of cooling air into the intakes, which had baffles installed to direct a stream of air onto the exhaust valves. Oil flow to the valves was also increased, asbestos baffles installed around rubber push rod fittings to prevent oil loss, thorough pre-flight inspections made to detect unseated valves, and frequent replacement of the uppermost five cylinders (every 25 hours of engine time) and the entire engines (every 75 hours).^{[N 2][23]}

Pilots, including the present day pilots of the Commemorative Air Force’s Fifi, the last remaining flying B-29, describe flight after takeoff as being an urgent struggle for airspeed (generally, flight after takeoff should consist of striving for altitude). Radial engines need airflow to keep them cool, and failure to get up to speed as soon as possible could result in an engine failure and risk of fire. One useful technique was to check the magnetos while already on takeoff roll rather than during a conventional static engine-runup before takeoff.^[25]

In wartime, the B-29 was capable of flight at altitudes up to 31,850 feet (9,710 m),^[7] at speeds of up to 350 mph (560 km/h) (true airspeed). This was its best defense, because Japanese fighters could barely reach that altitude, and few could catch the B-29 even if they did attain that altitude. Only the heaviest of anti-aircraft weapons could reach it, and since the Axis forces did not have proximity fuzes, hitting or damaging the aircraft from the ground in combat proved difficult.^{[citation needed]}

The B-29's revolutionary Central Fire Control system included four remotely controlled turrets armed with two .50 Browning M2 machine guns each.^{[N 3]} All weapons were aimed electronically from five sighting stations located in the nose and tail positions and three Perspex blisters in the central fuselage.^{[N 4]} Five General Electric analog computers (one dedicated to each sight) increased the weapons' accuracy by compensating for factors such as airspeed, lead, gravity, temperature and humidity. The computers also allowed a single gunner to operate two or more turrets (including tail guns) simultaneously. The gunner in the upper position acted as fire control officer, managing the distribution of turrets among the other gunners during combat.^{[26][27][28][29]}

In early 1945, with a change of role from high-altitude day bomber to low-altitude night bomber, LeMay reportedly ordered the removal of most of the defensive armament and remote-controlled sighting equipment from his B-29s so that they could carry greater fuel and bomb loads.^{[citation needed]}As a consequence of this requirement, Bell Marietta (BM) produced a series of 311 B-29Bs that had turrets and sighting equipment removed, except for the tail position, which initially had the two .50 cal Browning machine guns and single M2 cannon with the APG-15 radar fitted as standard. This armament was quickly changed to three .50 caliber Brownings. This version also had an improved APQ-7 "Eagle" bombing-through-overcast radar fitted in an airfoil shaped radome under the fuselage. Most of these aircraft were assigned to the 315th Bomb Wing, Northwest Field, Guam.^[30]

The crew enjoyed, for the first time in a bomber, full-pressurization comfort. This first-ever cabin pressure system for an Allied production bomber was developed for the B-29 by Garrett AiResearch. ^{[N 5]} The nose and the cockpit were pressurized, but the designers were faced with deciding whether to have bomb bays that were not pressurized, between fore and aft pressurized sections, or a fully pressurized fuselage with the need to de-pressurize to drop their loads. The decision was taken to have a long tunnel over the two bomb bays so that crews could crawl back and forth between the fore and aft sections, with both areas and the tunnel pressurized. The bomb bays were not pressurized.^[31]

• 

  Interior photo of the rear pressurized cabin of the B-29 Superfortress, June 1944

• 

  The view of the cockpit from the rear, illustrating the visibility achieved by the array of windows

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  The flight engineer's panel is where the engines and systems are controlled.

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  The navigator's station, set up to portray a mission over Japan.

• 

  A B-29 crew illustrating the jobs it has to perform.

Operational history

World War II

The initial plan, implemented at the direction of President Franklin D. Roosevelt as a promise to China and called Operation Matterhorn, was to use B-29s to attack Japan from four forward bases in southern China, with five main bases in India, and to attack other targets in the region from China and India as needed.^[32] The Chengdu region was eventually chosen over the Guilin region to avoid having to raise, equip, and train 50 Chinese divisions to protect the advanced bases from Japanese ground attack.^[33] The XX Bomber Command, initially intended to be two combat wings of four groups each, was reduced to a single wing of four groups because of the lack of availability of aircraft, automatically limiting the effectiveness of any attacks from China.

This was an extremely costly scheme, as there was no overland connection available between India and China, and all supplies had to be flown over the Himalayas, either by transport aircraft or by the B-29s themselves, with some aircraft being stripped of armor and guns and used to deliver fuel. B-29s started to arrive in India in early April 1944. The first B-29 flight to airfields in China (over the Himalayas, or "The Hump") took place on 24 April 1944. The first B-29 combat mission was flown on 5 June 1944, with 77 out of 98 B-29s launched from India bombing the railroad shops in Bangkok and Thailand. Five B-29s were lost during the mission, none to hostile fire.^[32][34]

Forward base in China

On 5 June 1944, B-29s raided Bangkok, in what is reported as a test before being deployed against the Japanese home islands. Sources do not report from where they launched, and vary as to the numbers involved—77, 98, and 114 being claimed. Targets were Bangkok's Memorial Bridge and a major power plant. Bombs fell over two kilometres away, damaged no civilian structures, but downed some tram lines and destroyed both a Japanese military hospital and the Japanese secret police headquarters.^[35] On 15 June 1944, 68 B-29s took off from bases around Chengdu 47 of which reached and bombed the Imperial Iron and Steel Works at Yahata Japan. This was the first attack on Japanese islands since the Doolittle raid in April 1942.^[36] The first B-29 combat losses occurred during this raid, with one B-29 destroyed on the ground by Japanese fighters after an emergency landing in China,^[37] one lost to anti-aircraft fire over Yawata, and another, the Stockett's Rocket (after Capt. Marvin M. Stockett, Aircraft Commander) B-29-1-BW 42-6261,^{[N 6]} disappeared after takeoff from Chakulia, India, over the Himalayas (12 KIA, 11 crew and one passenger)(Source: 20th Bomb Group Assn.)^{[citation needed]} This raid, which did little damage to the target, with only one bomb striking the target factory complex,^[38] nearly exhausted fuel stocks at the Chengdu B-29 bases, resulting in a slow-down of operations until the fuel stockpiles could be replenished.^[39] Starting in July, the raids against Japan from Chinese airfields continued at relatively low intensity. Japan was bombed on: 7 July 1944 (14 B-29s), 29 July (70+), 10 August (24), 20 August (61), 8 September (90), 26 September (83), 25 October (59), 12 November (29), 21 November (61), 19 December (36) and for the last time on 6 January 1945 (49).

The tactic of using aircraft to ram American B-29s was first recorded on raid of 20 August 1944 on the steel factories at Yawata. Sergeant Shigeo Nobe of the 4th Sentai intentionally flew his Kawasaki Ki-45 into a B-29; debris from the explosion following this attack severely damaged another B-29, which also went down. Lost were Colonel Robert Clinksale's B-29-10-BW 42-6334 Gertrude C and Captain Ornell Stauffer's B-29-15-BW 42-6368 Calamity Sue, both from the 486th BG.^[40] Several B-29s were destroyed in this way over the ensuing months. Although the term "Kamikaze" is often used to refer to the pilots conducting these attacks, the word was not used by the Japanese military.^[41]

B-29s were withdrawn from airfields in China by the end of January 1945. Throughout this prior period, B-29 raids were also launched from China and India against many other targets throughout Southeast Asia, including a series of raids on Singapore and Thailand. On 2 November 1944, 55 B-29s raided Bangkok's Bang Sue marshalling yards in the largest raid of the war. Seven RTAF Nakajima Ki-43 Hayabusas from Foong Bin (Air Group) 16 and 14 IJAAF Ki-43s attempted intercept. RTAF Flt Lt Therdsak Worrasap attacked a B-29, damaging it, but was shot down by return fire. One B-29 was lost, possibly the one damaged by Flt Lt Therdsak. ^{[N 7]} On 14 April 1945, a second B-29 raid on Bangkok destroyed two key power plants, and was the last major attack conducted against Thai targets.^[35] The B-29 effort was gradually shifted to the new bases in the Mariana Islands in the Central Pacific, with the last B-29 combat mission from India flown on 29 March 1945.

New Mariana Islands air bases

In addition to the logistical problems associated with operations from China, the B-29 could only reach a limited part of Japan while flying from Chinese bases. The solution to this problem was to capture the Mariana Islands, which would bring targets such as Tokyo, about 1,500 mi (2,400 km) north of the Marianas within range of B-29 attacks. It was therefore agreed in December 1943 to seize the Marianas.^[42]

Saipan was invaded by US forces on 15 June 1944, and despite a Japanese naval counterattack which led to the Battle of the Philippine Sea and heavy fighting on land, was secured by 9 July.^[43] Operations followed against Guam and Tinian, with all three islands secured by August.^[44]

Work began at once to construct air bases suitable for the B-29, work beginning even before the end of ground fighting.^[43] In all, five major air fields were built, with two on the flat island of Tinian, one on Saipan, and two on Guam. Each was large enough to eventually accommodate a bomb wing consisting of four bomb groups, giving a total of 180 B-29s per airfield.^[34] These bases, which could be supplied by ship, and unlike the bases in China, were not vulnerable to attacks by Japanese ground forces, became the launch sites for the large B-29 raids against Japan in the final year of the war. The first B-29 arrived on Saipan on 12 October 1944, and the first combat mission was launched from there on 28 October 1944, with 14 B-29s attacking the Truk atoll. The first mission against Japan from bases in the Marianas was flown on 24 November 1944, with 111 B-29s sent to attack Tokyo. From that point, raids intensified, launched regularly until the end of the war. These attacks succeeded in devastating almost all large Japanese cities (with the exception of Kyoto and several others), and they gravely damaged Japan's war industries. Although less publicly appreciated, the mining of Japanese ports and shipping routes (Operation Starvation) carried out by B-29s from April 1945 significantly affected Japan's ability to support its population and move its troops.

The atomic bombs

Perhaps the most famous B-29 is the Enola Gay, which dropped the atomic bomb "Little Boy" on Hiroshima on 6 August 1945, and is presently preserved and on display at the Smithsonian's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. Bockscar, another B-29, dropped "Fat Man" on Nagasaki three days later, and is preserved and on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force. These two actions, along with the Soviet invasion of Manchuria on 9 August 1945, brought about the Japanese surrender, and the official end of World War II. Both aircraft were handpicked for modification from the assembly line at the Omaha plant that was to become Offutt Air Force Base.

Following the surrender of Japan, V-J Day, B-29s were used for other purposes. A number supplied POWs with food and other necessities by dropping barrels of rations on Japanese POW camps. In September 1945, a long-distance flight was undertaken for public relations purposes: generals Barney M. Giles, Curtis LeMay and Emmett O'Donnell, Jr. piloted three specially modified B-29s from Chitose Air Base in Hokkaidō to Chicago Municipal Airport, continuing to Washington, D.C., the farthest nonstop distance to that date flown by U.S. Army Air Forces aircraft and the first-ever nonstop flight from Japan to the U.S.^{[N 8][45]} Two months later, Colonel Clarence S. Irvine commanded another modified B-29, Pacusan Dreamboat, in a world-record-breaking long-distance flight from Guam to Washington, D.C., traveling 7,916 miles (12,740 km) in 35 hours,^[46] with a gross takeoff weight of 155,000 pounds (70,000 kg).^[47][48]

B-29s in Europe and Australia

Although considered for other theaters, and briefly evaluated in England, the B-29 was exclusively used in World War II in the Pacific Theatre. The use of YB-29-BW 41-36393, the so-named Hobo Queen, one of the service test aircraft flown around several British airfields in early 1944, was thought to be as a "disinformation" program intended to deceive the Germans into believing that the B-29 would be deployed to Europe.^[24]

Postwar, several RAF Bomber Command squadrons were equipped with B-29s loaned from USAF stocks. The aircraft were known as the Washington B.1 in RAF service, and remained in service from March 1950 until the last bombers were returned in early 1954, having been replaced by deliveries of the English Electric Canberra bombers. Three Washingtons modified for ELINT duties and a standard bomber version used for support by No. 192 Squadron RAF were decommissioned in 1958 being replaced by de Havilland Comet aircraft.

Two British Washington B.1 aircraft were transferred to the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) in 1952 and flown to Australia. They were attached to the Aircraft Research and Development Unit and used in trials conducted on behalf of the British Ministry of Supply. Both aircraft were placed in storage in 1956 and were sold for scrap the next year.^[49]

Soviet copying of the B-29

During 1944 and 1945 five B-29s made emergency landings in Soviet territory after bombing raids on Japanese Manchuria and Japan. In accordance with Soviet neutrality in the Pacific War, the bombers were interned and kept by the Soviets, despite American requests for their return and were, instead, used by the Soviets as a pattern for the Tupolev Tu-4.^[50]

On 31 July 1944 Ramp Tramp (serial number 42-6256), of the 462nd (Very Heavy) Bomb Group was diverted to Vladivostok, Russia after an engine failed and the propeller could not be feathered.^{[N 9]} This B-29 was part of a 100 aircraft raid against the Japanese Showa steel mill in Anshan, Manchuria.^[50] On 20 August 1944, Cait Paomat (42-93829), flying from Chengdu, was damaged by anti-aircraft gunfire during a raid on the Yawata Iron Works. Due to the damage sustained, the crew elected to divert to the Soviet Union. The aircraft crashed in the foothills of Sikhote Alin Range east of Khabarovsk after the crew bailed out.

On 11 November 1944, during a night raid on Omura on Kyushu Japan, the General H.H. Arnold Special (42-6365) was damaged and forced to divert to Vladivostok in the Soviet Union. The crew was interned.^[51] On 21 November 1944, Ding Hao (42-6358) was damaged during a raid on an aircraft factory at Omura, Japan, and was also forced to divert to Vladivostok.

The interned crews of these four B-29s were allowed to escape into American-occupied Iran in January 1945 but none of the B-29s were returned after Stalin ordered the Tupolev OKB to examine and copy the B-29, and produce a design ready for quantity production as soon as possible.^{[51][N 10]}

Because aluminum in the USSR was supplied in different gauges to those available in the US (metric vs imperial),^[50] the entire aircraft had to be extensively re-engineered. In addition, Tupolev substituted his own favored airfoil sections for those used by Boeing, with the Soviets themselves already having their own Wright R-1820-derived 18 cylinder radial engine, the Shvetsov ASh-73 of comparable power and displacement to the B-29's Duplex Cyclone radials available to power their B-29 clone aircraft. In 1947, the Soviets debuted both the Tupolev Tu-4 (NATO ASCC code named Bull), and the Tupolev Tu-70 transport variant. The Soviets used tail-gunner positions similar to the B-29 in many later bombers and transports.^{[52][N 11]}

Between wars

While the end of World War II caused production of the B-29 to be phased out, with the last example completed by Boeing's Renton factory on 28 May 1946, and with many aircraft sent for storage and ultimately scrapping as surplus to requirements, the remaining B-29s formed the combat equipment of Strategic Air Command when it formed on 21 March 1946.^[53] In particular, the "Silverplate" modified aircraft of the 509th Composite Group remained the only aircraft capable of delivering the atomic bomb, and so the unit was involved in the Operation Crossroads series of tests, with B-29 Dave's Dream dropping a "Fat Man"-type bomb in Test Able on 1 July 1946.^[53]

The B-29s were outfitted with filtered air sampling scoops and monitored debris from above ground nuclear weapons testing by the United States and the USSR. The aircraft were also used for long-range weather reconnaissance (WB-29) and for signals intelligence gathering and photographic reconnaissance (RB-29).

Korean War and postwar service

The B-29 was used in 1950–53 in the Korean War. At first, the bomber was used in normal strategic day-bombing missions, though North Korea's few strategic targets and industries were quickly reduced to rubble. More importantly, in 1950 numbers of Soviet MiG-15 "Fagot" jet fighters appeared over Korea (an aircraft specifically designed to shoot down the B-29), and after the loss of 28 aircraft, future B-29 raids were restricted to night-only missions, largely in a supply-interdiction role. Over the course of the war, B-29s flew 20,000 sorties and dropped 200,000 tonnes (180,000 tons) of bombs. B-29 gunners were credited with shooting down 27 enemy aircraft.^[54]

The B-29 was notable for dropping the large "Razon" and "Tarzon" radio-controlled bomb in Korea, mostly for demolishing major bridges, like the ones across the Yalu River, and for attacks on dams. The aircraft also was used for numerous leaflet drops in North Korea, such as those for Operation Moolah.^[55]

A Superfortress of the 91st Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron flew the last B-29 mission of the war on 27 July 1953. Over the three years 16 B-29 and reconnaissance variants were lost to North Korean fighters, four to anti-aircraft fire and 14 to other operational causes.^[56]

The B-29 was soon made obsolete by the development of the jet engined fighter aircraft. With the arrival of the mammoth Convair B-36, the B-29 was reclassified as a medium bomber by the Air Force. However, the later B-50 Superfortress variant (which was initially designated B-29D) was good enough to handle auxiliary roles such as air-sea rescue, electronic intelligence gathering, air-to-air refueling, and weather reconnaissance. The B-50D was replaced in its primary role during the early 1950s by the Boeing B-47 Stratojet, which in turn was replaced by the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress. The final active-duty variants were phased out in the mid-1960s. A total of 3,970 B-29s were built.

Variants

Unlike many other aircraft designed to play a similar role, the variants of the B-29 were all essentially the same. The developments made between the first prototype XB-29 and any of the three versions flown in combat were all minuscule, excluding the Silverplate models built for the Manhattan Project. The biggest differences were between variants modified for non-bomber missions. In addition to acting as cargo carriers, rescue aircraft, weather ships and trainers; some were used for odd purposes such as flying relay television transmitters under the name of Stratovision.

An example of a later variant of the B-29, the B-50 Superfortress (which was powered by four 3,500 hp (2,600 kW) Pratt & Whitney R-4360-35 Wasp Major engines), acted as the mothership for experimental parasite fighter aircraft, such as the McDonnell XF-85 Goblin and Republic F-84 Thunderjets as in flight lock on and offs. It was also used to develop the Airborne Early Warning program; it was the ancestor of various modern radar picket aircraft. A B-29 with the original Wright Duplex Cyclone powerplants was used to air-launch the famous Bell X-1 supersonic research rocket aircraft.

Some B-29s were modified to act as test beds for various new systems or special conditions, including fire-control systems, cold-weather operations, and various armament configurations. Several converted B-29s were used to experiment with aerial refueling and re-designated as KB-29s. Perhaps the most important tests were conducted by the XB-29G; it carried prototype jet engines in its bomb bay, and lowered them into the air stream to conduct measurements.

Operators

 Australia

• Royal Australian Air Force (two former RAF aircraft for trials)

 United Kingdom

• Royal Air Force (87 loaned from the USAF as the Washington B.1)

 United States

• United States Army Air Forces
• United States Air Force
• United States Navy (four former USAF aircraft designated as P2B patrol bombers)

 Soviet Union

• Soviet Air Forces (three captured USAAF)

Survivors

Twenty-two B-29s are preserved at various museums worldwide, including one flying example; "FiFi" which belongs to the Commemorative Air Force, along with four complete airframes either in storage or under restoration, eight partial airframes in storage or under restoration, and four known wreck sites.^[57] Only two of the 22 museum aircraft are outside the United States, one is in the American Air Museum at the Imperial War Museum Duxford in the United Kingdom, the other at the KAI Aerospace Museum in Sachon, South Korea. One is the B-29 "Sweet Eloise" at Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Georgia which flew 27 successful bombing missions mainly over Japan during the Second World War, and five POW relief missions. There is a restored B-29, "Jack's Hack," located as part of the 58th Bomb Wing Memorial the New England Air Museum in Windsor Locks, CT. Then there is "Sentimental Journey". A war weary, yet beautifully restored 330th Bomb Group aircraft in the Pima Air Museum, in Tucson, AZ.^[58] Finally, The Enola Gay (nose number 82) the B-29 that dropped the first atomic bomb, was fully restored and placed on display at the Smithsonian's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Air & Space Museum near Washington Dulles International Airport in 2003. Similarly, the weapons delivery aircraft for the Nagasaki raid deploying the Fat Man, the Bockscar (nose number 77) is restored and on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio.

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  Boeing B-29 Superfortress displayed at March Field Air Museum in 2007.

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  Boeing B-29 Superfortress displayed at New England Air Museum.

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  B-29 FiFi at Balboa Peninsula, Newport Beach, California, November 2010

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  Bockscar at the NMUSAF in Dayton, OH in 2011

Accidents and incidents

Notable B-29 accidents and incidents include the 1948 Waycross B-29 crash, which resulted in the United States v. Reynolds lawsuit regarding State Secrets Privilege, the 1948 Lake Mead Boeing B-29 crash and the 1953 "Tip Tow" crash. Another well-known crash took place in 1946 near Clingmans Dome on the border of North Carolina and Tennessee.

Specifications (B-29)

Data from Quest for Performance^[59]

General characteristics

• Crew: 11 (Pilot(A/C), Co-pilot(P), Bombardier(B), Flight Engineer(FE), Navigator(N), Radio Operator(RO), Radar Observer(Rad Ob), Right Gunner(RG), Left Gunner(LG) Central Fire Control(CFC), Tail Gunner(TG))
• Length: 99 ft 0 in (30.18 m)
• Wingspan: 141 ft 3 in (43.06 m)
• Height: 27 ft 9 in (8.45 m)
• Wing area: 1,736 sq ft (161.3 m²)
• Aspect ratio: 11.50
• Empty weight: 74,500 lb (33,800 kg)
• Loaded weight: 120,000 lb (54,000 kg)
• Max. takeoff weight: 133,500 lb (60,560 kg) ; 135,000 lb plus combat load
• Powerplant: 4 × Wright R-3350-23 and 23A Duplex Cyclone turbosupercharged radial engines, 2,200 hp (1,640 kW) each
• Zero-lift drag coefficient: 0.0241
• Drag area: 41.16 ft² (3.82 m²)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 357 mph (310 knots, 574 km/h)
• Cruise speed: 220 mph (190 knots, 350 km/h)
• Stall speed: 105 mph (91 knots, 170 km/h)
• Combat range: 3,250 mi (2,820 nmi, 5,230 km)
• Ferry range: 5,600 mi(4,900 nmi, 9,000 km, ^[60]

See also

• Air warfare of World War II

• Silverplate – the atom bomb-dedicated B-29 version
• Boeing B-29 Superfortress variants
• Bockscar
• Enola Gay
• FIFI
• Kee Bird
• Straight Flush
• AN/APQ-13
• United States v. Reynolds
• ASM-A-1 Tarzon

Related development

• Boeing KB-29
• Boeing XB-39 Superfortress
• Boeing XB-44 Superfortress
• Boeing B-50 Superfortress
• Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter
• Boeing 377
• Tupolev Tu-4

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

• Avro Lancaster
• Amerika Bomber
• Consolidated B-32 Dominator
• Douglas XB-31
• Heinkel He 277
• Junkers Ju 390
• Lockheed XB-30
• Messerschmitt Me 264
• Victory Bomber

Related lists

• List of aircraft of World War II
• List of bomber aircraft
• List of military aircraft of the United States

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to B-29 Superfortress.

• B-29 Combat Crew Manual
• "Meet the B-29", Popular Science, August 1944—the first large and detailed public article printed on the B-29 in the USA
• National Museum B-29 Superfortress Official Fact Sheet Retrieved: 11 August 2007.
• 330th BG, 330th, 20th AF, 314th BW, 330th Bomb Group official history and first-hand accounts
• 315th BW at Guam, 20th AF, photographs, history, first-hand accounts, reunion information
• B-29 "DOC" Restoration Project, the restoration of Doc
• Bombers Over Japan, development, photos, and history
• Pelican's Perch #56:Superfortress!, Article wrote by John Deakin, one of the pilots who regularly fly the world's only remaining flyable B-29
• WarbirdsRegistry.org B-29/B-50, Listing of surviving B-29s
• Annotated bibliography on the B-29 from the Alsos Digital Library
• "Great Engines and Great Planes", 1947 – 130 page book about the rapid design, testing, and production of the B-29 powerplant by Chrysler Corporation in World War II
• T-Square-54: The Last B-29 website, by Tom Mathewson
• B-29 Flight Procedure and Combat Crew Functioning - 1944 US Army Air Forces Training Film on YouTube
• B-29 & B-50 production batches and serial numbers
• Washington Times

v t e Boeing military aircraft Fighters/attack aircraft: PW-9/FB F2B F3B F4B XF6B P-29/XF7B XF8B P-12 P-26 F-15 F-22 AV-8B F-15SE F/A-18E/F EA-18G Bombers YB-9 XB-15 B-17 Y1B-20 B-29 XB-38 XB-39 YB-40 XB-44 B-47 B-50 B-52 B-54 XB-55 XB-56 XB-59 B-1 Piston-engined transports C-73 C-75 C-97 C-98 Jet transports C-135 C-137 CC-137 YC-14 C-17 C-22 VC-25A C-32 C-40 Tanker-transports KB-29 KB-50 KC-97 KC-135 KC-137 KC-10 KC-46 KC-767 Trainers PT-13 PT-17 PT-18 PT-27 XAT-15 T-43 T-45 Patrol and surveillance XPB XPBB XP3B P-8 EC-135 EC-18 E-3 E-4 E-6 E-8 E-10 E-767 737 AEW&C Reconnaissance NC-135 OC-135B RC-135 WC-135 Drones/UAVs MQ-18 X-50 ScanEagle Bird of Prey Experimental/prototypes X-20 X-32 X-36 X-37 X-40 X-45/Phantom Ray X-50 X-51 X-53 YAL-1 Phantom Eye

v t e Boeing model numbers Aircraft 1 2 3 4 5 6 6D 6E 7 8 10 15 16 21 40 42 50 53 54 55 58 63 64 66 67 68 69 72 74 75 77 80 81 83 89 93 95 96 99 100 101 102 200 202 203 204 205 214 215 218 221 222 223 226 227 234 235 236 246 247 248 251 256 264 266 267 273 280 281 294 299 300 306 307 314 316 344 345 367 367-80 377 400 450 451 464 466 474 479 701 953 707 717 (i) 717 (ii) 720 727 733 737 739 747 757 767 777 787 2707 Turbine engines 502 520 550 Vessels 929 Other Boeing Customer Codes

v t e North American Aviation and North American Aviation division of Rockwell International aircraft Manufacturer "Charge Number" NA-15 NA-16 NA-17 NA-18 NA-19 NA-20 NA-21 NA-22 NA-23 NA-24 NA-25 NA-26 NA-27 NA-28 NA-29 NA-30 NA-31 NA-32 NA-33 NA-34 NA-35 NA-36 NA-37 NA-38 NA-39 NA-40 NA-41 NA-42 NA-43 NA-44 NA-45 NA-46 NA-47 NA-48 NA-49 NA-50 NA-51 NA-52 NA-53 NA-54 NA-55 NA-56 NA-57 NA-58 NA-59 NA-60 NA-61 NA-62 NA-63 NA-64 NA-65 NA-66 NA-67 NA-68 NA-69 NA-70 NA-71 NA-72 NA-73 NA-74 NA-75 NA-76 NA-77 NA-78 NA-79 NA-80 NA-81 NA-82 NA-83 NA-84 NA-85 NA-86 NA-87 NA-88 NA-89 NA-90 NA-91 NA-92 NA-93 NA-94 NA-95 NA-96 NA-97 NA-98 NA-99 NA-100 NA-101 NA-102 NA-103 NA-104 NA-105 NA-106 NA-107 NA-108 NA-109 NA-110 NA-111 NA-112 NA-113 NA-114 NA-115 NA-116 NA-117 NA-118 NA-119 NA-120 NA-121 NA-122 NA-123 NA-124 NA-125 NA-126 NA-127 NA-128 NA-129 NA-130 NA-131 NA-132 NA-133 NA-134 NA-135 NA-136 NA-137 NA-138 NA-139 NA-140 NA-141 NA-142 NA-143 NA-144 NA-145 NA-146 NA-147 NA-148 NA-149 NA-150 NA-151 NA-152 NA-153 NA-154 NA-155 NA-156 NA-157 NA-158 NA-159 NA-160 NA-161 NA-162 NA-163 NA-164 NA-165 NA-166 NA-167 NA-168 NA-169 NA-170 NA-171 NA-172 NA-173 NA-174 NA-175 NA-176 NA-177 NA-178 NA-179 NA-180 NA-181 NA-182 NA-183 NA-184 NA-185 NA-186 NA-187 NA-188 NA-189 NA-190 NA-191 NA-192 NA-193 NA-194 NA-195 NA-196 NA-197 NA-198 NA-199 NA-200 NA-201 NA-202 NA-203 NA-204 NA-205 NA-206 NA-207 NA-208 NA-209 NA-210 NA-211 NA-212 NA-213 NA-214 NA-215 NA-216 NA-217 NA-218 NA-219 NA-220 NA-221 NA-222 NA-223 NA-224 NA-225 NA-226 NA-227 NA-228 NA-229 NA-230 NA-231 NA-232 NA-233 NA-234 NA-235 NA-236 NA-237 NA-238 NA-239 NA-240 NA-241 NA-242 NA-243 NA-244 NA-245 NA-246 NA-247 NA-248 NA-249 NA-250 NA-251 NA-252 NA-253 NA-254 NA-255 NA-256 NA-257 NA-258 NA-259 NA-260 NA-261 NA-262 NA-263 NA-264 NA-265 NA-266 NA-267 NA-268 NA-269 NA-270 NA-271 NA-272 NA-273 NA-274 NA-275 NA-276 NA-277 NA-278 NA-279 NA-280 NA-281 NA-282 NA-283 NA-284 NA-285 NA-286 NA-287 NA-288 NA-289 NA-290 NA-291 NA-292 NA-293 NA-294 NA-295 NA-296 NA-297 NA-298 NA-299 NA-300 NA-301 NA-302 NA-303 NA-304 NA-305 NA-306 NA-307 NA-308 NA-309 NA-310 NA-311 NA-312 NA-313 NA-314 NA-315 NA-316 NA-317 NA-318 NA-319 NA-320 NA-321 NA-322 NA-323 NA-324 NA-325 NA-326 NA-327 NA-328 NA-329 NA-330 NA-331 NA-332 NA-333 NA-334 NA-335 NA-336 NA-337 NA-338 NA-339 NA-340 NA-341 NA-342 NA-343 NA-344 NA-345 NA-346 NA-347 NA-348 NA-349 NA-350 NA-351 NA-352 NA-353 NA-354 NA-355 NA-356 NA-357 NA-358 NA-359 NA-360 NA-361 NA-362 NA-363 NA-364 NA-365 NA-366 NA-367 NA-368 NA-369 NA-370 NA-371 NA-372 NA-373 NA-374 NA-375 NA-376 NA-377 NA-378 NA-379 NA-380 NA-381 NA-382 NA-383 NA-384 NA-385 NA-386 NA-387 NA-388 NA-389 NA-390 NA-391 NA-392 NA-393 NA-394 NA-395 NA-396 NA-397 NA-398 NA-399 NA-400 NA-401 NA-402 NA-403 NA-404 NA-405 NA-406 NA-407 NA-420 NA-430 NA-431 D481 NA-704 By role Fighters P-51 P-64 F-82 F-86/F-86D YF-93 F-100 F-107 XF-108 FJ-1 FJ-2/3 FJ-4 F-1 XFV-12 Bombers XB-21 B-25 XB-28 B-45 B-64 XB-70 B-1 Attack A-27 A-36 AJ XA2J A3J A-2 A-5 Observation O-47 L-17 OV-10 Trainers NA-16 NA-35 BT-9 Y1BT-10 BT-14 BC-1 BC-2 AT-6 T-6 NJ-1 SNJ XSN2J T2J T3J T-28 T-39 T-2 Ranger 2000 Transports NAC-60 Experimental X-10 X-15 X-30 X-31 HiMAT Missiles SM-64 GAM-77 AGM-28 MQM-42 AGM-53 Spacecraft DC-3 Space Shuttle By name Apache Bronco Buckeye Fury Harvard HiMAT Hound Dog Invader Lancer Mitchell Mustang Navaho Navion Ranger Rapier Redhead Roadrunner Sabre Sabre Dog Sabreliner Savage Super Sabre Super Savage Texan Tornado Torito Trojan Twin Mustang Valkyrie Vigilante Yale See also: Aero Commander

v t e B-29 Superfortress family Bombers B-29 KB-29 XB-39 XB-44 B-50 KB-50 B-54 Tu-4 Tu-80 Tu-85 Tankers/Transports C-97 KC-97 Pregnant Guppy Super Guppy Mini Guppy Tu-75 Airliners Boeing 377 Tu-70

v t e USAAS/USAAC/USAAF/USAF bomber designations 1924–1962 Bomber B-1 B-2 B-3 B-4 B-5 B-6 B-7 B-8 B-9 B-10 B-11 B-12 B-13 B-14 B-15 B-16 B-17 B-18 B-19 B-20 B-21 B-22 B-23 B-24 B-25 B-26 B-27 B-28 B-29 B-30 B-31 B-32 B-33 B-34 B-35 B-36 B-37 B-38 B-39 B-40 B-41 B-42 B-43 B-44 B-45 B-46 B-47 B-48 B-49 B-50 B-51 B-52 B-53 B-54 B-55 B-56 B-57 B-58 B-59 B-60 B-61 B-62 B-63 B-64 B-65 B-66 B-67 B-68 RB-69 B-70 Light bomber LB-1 LB-2 LB-3 LB-4 LB-5 LB-6 LB-7 LB-8 LB-9 LB-10 LB-11 LB-12 LB-13 LB-14 Heavy bomber HB-1 HB-2 HB-3 Long-range bomber BLR-1 BLR-2 BLR-3 See also: B-20 (redesignation of A-20 in 1948) B-26 (redesignation of A-26 in 1948) SR-71 (designation in bomber sequence) Post-1962 list

v t e USAAC/USAAF reconnaissance aircraft F-1 F-2 F-3 F-4 F-5 F-6 F-7 F-8 F-9 F-10 F-11 F-12 F-13 F-14 F-15 R-16

v t e USN/USMC patrol aircraft designations 1923–1962 Patrol Boeing XPB PB P2B P3B Douglas PD P2D P3D Grumman PF Hall PH P2H General Aviation PJ Keystone PK Martin PM P2M P3M P4M P5M P6M P7M Naval Aircraft Factory PN P2N P3N1 P4N Lockheed PO Sikorsky PS P2S Lockheed PV P2V P3V Consolidated PY P2Y P3Y P4Y-1 P4Y-2 P5Y P6Y Patrol Bomber Boeing PBB PB2B North American PBJ Martin PBM PB2M Naval Aircraft Factory PBN Lockheed PBO Sikorsky PBS Canadian Vickers PBV Consolidated PBY PB2Y PB3Y PB4Y-1 PB4Y-2 Patrol Torpedo Bomber Hall PTBH 1 Not assigned

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