Convair B-36J Peacemaker "City of Ft. Worth"
In 1940, the United States feared that Great Britain would fall to Germany, which meant that there was a real possibility that America would be alone against the Axis powers. To be able to strike Germany from bases in either Canada or the continental US meant that the US Army Air Force would need an intercontinental bomber—even Boeing’s B-29 Superfortress, then on the drawing boards, would need bases in Iceland or the Azores to attack Germany, and the USAAF had to assume that those islands would be lost as well. Consolidated Aircraft won the contract against Boeing’s entry in October 1941, on the eve of the US’ entry into World War II.
The XB-36 project ran into numerous delays due to the war: work was halted so Consolidated could concentrate on producing the B-24 Liberator, restarted after the loss of the Philippines and Marianas (the XB-36 would be the only design that could strike Japan from Hawaii), and delayed again as the Allies took the offensive. By the time the first XB-36 Peacemaker flew in August 1946, the war was over.
Another problem Consolidated had run into was the aircraft’s sheer size. Nearly three times as large as the B-29, the XB-36’s wingspan was so large that it could not fit in any hangar then built; its tail was so tall that B-36s would have to be rolled out of the factory with its nose in the air. Everything about it was gigantic: its crew of 14 was divided by the bomb bays, and had bunks and a stove for its projected 40-hour missions. The wings were seven feet thick at their roots, to enable the crew to repair the engines in flight; the six engines themselves had no less than 336 spark plugs, and utilized a “pusher” design that kept steady airflow over the wing.
Because of its size, even six engines had difficulty getting the XB-36 into the air, and it was not an easy aircraft to fly once it got there. The prototypes had the largest tires ever fitted to an aircraft, which had so much ground pressure only three airfields in the entire United States could operate Peacemakers without destroying the runways. (This problem was rectified on production B-36s by using multiple wheels.) USAAF planners now had the world’s second largest aircraft at the time it was built (second only to the Hughes H-4 Spruce Goose), but no role for it to fulfill.
The Cold War was to rescue the B-36 from early retirement. Nuclear weapons were becoming more powerful, moving into the megaton yield, but these bombs also were getting bigger and heavier, outstripping the ability for even the B-29 to carry them—and in any case, the B-29 could not reach targets in the Soviet Union from the US. The B-36 could, without needing to resort to the then-experimental method of inflight refueling, and the huge wings that caused so much headaches for ground crew also allowed it to operate above 45,000 feet—which was far above any antiaircraft fire and, at the time, above the ceiling of any known fighter. Just in case a fighter should be able to reach the Peacemaker, a defensive armament of no less than 14 20mm cannons were added to the bomber; fuselage turrets would retract when not in use so as not to disrupt airflow.
After 21 B-36A pre-production aircraft were produced, the production B-36B (with a raised flight deck) began reaching units of the newly formed Strategic Air Command in 1948. With the B-29 being phased out or sent to Korea for combat operations, the B-36 became the backbone of SAC and its “long rifle”; even as the jet-powered B-47 Stratojet entered service, the B-47 still lacked the range of the Peacemaker and required forward bases to strike targets in the Communist bloc. A number of B-36s were converted to RB-36 reconnaissance bombers, which were used over Korea operationally and were involved in penetrating Soviet airspace well into the 1950s.
To deal with the Peacemaker’s indifferent top speed, four J47 turbojets were added beneath the wings in the early 1950s. This had a number of advantages: it decreased the B-36’s reaction time, gave it a better climb rate, lowered its stall speed, and took some of the load off the six propeller engines, which were prone to seizing up and catching fire. The noise produced by the “six turning and four burning” engines gave the B-36 the unofficial nickname “Earthshaker,” while its sheer size gave rise to the term “Aluminum Overcast.”
With delays to the B-52 project, the B-36’s lifespan was extended a few years by the Featherweight project in 1954, which stripped the aircraft of all armament but its tail guns. This did not help its top speed much, but increased its ceiling to 60,000 feet, far above any fighter of the time. It was only a temporary measure, however: the advent of long-range air-to-air missiles and surface-to-air missiles meant that the B-36 was becoming obsolete. Once the B-52 began to enter service, the Peacemaker was retired. The last left service in Feburary 1959—having never dropped a bomb in anger. For B-36 crews, no greater compliment could be paid. Today, of the 384 Peacemakers produced, only four remain in existence, along with the single prototype XC-99 transport version.
52-2827 was the last B-36 built, and entered service with the 92nd Bomb Wing at Fairchild AFB, Washington in 1954. It was transferred to the 95th BW at Biggs AFB, Texas in 1957, and retired in 1959, after a service life of only five years. It was then flown to Greater Southwest International Airport outside of Fort Worth, Texas, given the name "City of Fort Worth" after it was donated to the city...and would sit there for the next 33 years. The original plan was to build a museum around 52-2827, since it was the last B-36 and all the Peacemakers had been built at Convair in Fort Worth. The plans never came to fruition and the aircraft began to deteriorate. Finally, in 1992, it was taken apart and moved to Lockheed Martin's factory in Fort Worth; Convair had become General Dynamics, which in turn was acquired by Lockheed Martin. Though the company had the funding to restore 52-2827, it simply had nowhere to put the mammoth bomber. Finally, the USAF stepped in and moved the aircraft in pieces to a museum that did have the room--the Pima Air and Space Museum--in 2005.
After years of open storage, the "City of Fort Worth" has now been fully restored. It is painted silver rather than left bare metal to better preserve the aircraft, and carries the shield of the 95th BW; on the left side of the nose is a SAC shield and the "City of Fort Worth" nose art. It is by a fair margin the largest aircraft in Pima's collection.
I had only seen the B-36 at the NMUSAF in Dayton, which is inside and surrounded by other aircraft, so it's hard to appreciate just how huge the Peacemaker was. Seeing it in the open at Pima is a different story entirely. A friend of mine touring the museum with me had never seen a B-36 before, and he spent the better part of an hour just moving around the aircraft in awe. It's easy to see why.
Convair B-36J Peacemaker "City of Ft. Worth"
In 1940, the United States feared that Great Britain would fall to Germany, which meant that there was a real possibility that America would be alone against the Axis powers. To be able to strike Germany from bases in either Canada or the continental US meant that the US Army Air Force would need an intercontinental bomber—even Boeing’s B-29 Superfortress, then on the drawing boards, would need bases in Iceland or the Azores to attack Germany, and the USAAF had to assume that those islands would be lost as well. Consolidated Aircraft won the contract against Boeing’s entry in October 1941, on the eve of the US’ entry into World War II.
The XB-36 project ran into numerous delays due to the war: work was halted so Consolidated could concentrate on producing the B-24 Liberator, restarted after the loss of the Philippines and Marianas (the XB-36 would be the only design that could strike Japan from Hawaii), and delayed again as the Allies took the offensive. By the time the first XB-36 Peacemaker flew in August 1946, the war was over.
Another problem Consolidated had run into was the aircraft’s sheer size. Nearly three times as large as the B-29, the XB-36’s wingspan was so large that it could not fit in any hangar then built; its tail was so tall that B-36s would have to be rolled out of the factory with its nose in the air. Everything about it was gigantic: its crew of 14 was divided by the bomb bays, and had bunks and a stove for its projected 40-hour missions. The wings were seven feet thick at their roots, to enable the crew to repair the engines in flight; the six engines themselves had no less than 336 spark plugs, and utilized a “pusher” design that kept steady airflow over the wing.
Because of its size, even six engines had difficulty getting the XB-36 into the air, and it was not an easy aircraft to fly once it got there. The prototypes had the largest tires ever fitted to an aircraft, which had so much ground pressure only three airfields in the entire United States could operate Peacemakers without destroying the runways. (This problem was rectified on production B-36s by using multiple wheels.) USAAF planners now had the world’s second largest aircraft at the time it was built (second only to the Hughes H-4 Spruce Goose), but no role for it to fulfill.
The Cold War was to rescue the B-36 from early retirement. Nuclear weapons were becoming more powerful, moving into the megaton yield, but these bombs also were getting bigger and heavier, outstripping the ability for even the B-29 to carry them—and in any case, the B-29 could not reach targets in the Soviet Union from the US. The B-36 could, without needing to resort to the then-experimental method of inflight refueling, and the huge wings that caused so much headaches for ground crew also allowed it to operate above 45,000 feet—which was far above any antiaircraft fire and, at the time, above the ceiling of any known fighter. Just in case a fighter should be able to reach the Peacemaker, a defensive armament of no less than 14 20mm cannons were added to the bomber; fuselage turrets would retract when not in use so as not to disrupt airflow.
After 21 B-36A pre-production aircraft were produced, the production B-36B (with a raised flight deck) began reaching units of the newly formed Strategic Air Command in 1948. With the B-29 being phased out or sent to Korea for combat operations, the B-36 became the backbone of SAC and its “long rifle”; even as the jet-powered B-47 Stratojet entered service, the B-47 still lacked the range of the Peacemaker and required forward bases to strike targets in the Communist bloc. A number of B-36s were converted to RB-36 reconnaissance bombers, which were used over Korea operationally and were involved in penetrating Soviet airspace well into the 1950s.
To deal with the Peacemaker’s indifferent top speed, four J47 turbojets were added beneath the wings in the early 1950s. This had a number of advantages: it decreased the B-36’s reaction time, gave it a better climb rate, lowered its stall speed, and took some of the load off the six propeller engines, which were prone to seizing up and catching fire. The noise produced by the “six turning and four burning” engines gave the B-36 the unofficial nickname “Earthshaker,” while its sheer size gave rise to the term “Aluminum Overcast.”
With delays to the B-52 project, the B-36’s lifespan was extended a few years by the Featherweight project in 1954, which stripped the aircraft of all armament but its tail guns. This did not help its top speed much, but increased its ceiling to 60,000 feet, far above any fighter of the time. It was only a temporary measure, however: the advent of long-range air-to-air missiles and surface-to-air missiles meant that the B-36 was becoming obsolete. Once the B-52 began to enter service, the Peacemaker was retired. The last left service in Feburary 1959—having never dropped a bomb in anger. For B-36 crews, no greater compliment could be paid. Today, of the 384 Peacemakers produced, only four remain in existence, along with the single prototype XC-99 transport version.
52-2827 was the last B-36 built, and entered service with the 92nd Bomb Wing at Fairchild AFB, Washington in 1954. It was transferred to the 95th BW at Biggs AFB, Texas in 1957, and retired in 1959, after a service life of only five years. It was then flown to Greater Southwest International Airport outside of Fort Worth, Texas, given the name "City of Fort Worth" after it was donated to the city...and would sit there for the next 33 years. The original plan was to build a museum around 52-2827, since it was the last B-36 and all the Peacemakers had been built at Convair in Fort Worth. The plans never came to fruition and the aircraft began to deteriorate. Finally, in 1992, it was taken apart and moved to Lockheed Martin's factory in Fort Worth; Convair had become General Dynamics, which in turn was acquired by Lockheed Martin. Though the company had the funding to restore 52-2827, it simply had nowhere to put the mammoth bomber. Finally, the USAF stepped in and moved the aircraft in pieces to a museum that did have the room--the Pima Air and Space Museum--in 2005.
After years of open storage, the "City of Fort Worth" has now been fully restored. It is painted silver rather than left bare metal to better preserve the aircraft, and carries the shield of the 95th BW; on the left side of the nose is a SAC shield and the "City of Fort Worth" nose art. It is by a fair margin the largest aircraft in Pima's collection.
I had only seen the B-36 at the NMUSAF in Dayton, which is inside and surrounded by other aircraft, so it's hard to appreciate just how huge the Peacemaker was. Seeing it in the open at Pima is a different story entirely. A friend of mine touring the museum with me had never seen a B-36 before, and he spent the better part of an hour just moving around the aircraft in awe. It's easy to see why.