John's B-36 Peacemaker Page

The Photos are Back!

There aren't a lot of B-36 sites on the web, so this is my attempt at changing that. I collected the materials here while I was working on the B-36 Restoration Team in Fort Worth, Texas.

The Plane That Kept The Peace For 10 Long Years

Design of the XB-36 prototype began at Consolidated Aircraft in San Diego proir to the construction of Air Force Plant 4 and the United States' entry into World War II. The project was transferred to the new plant in Fort Worth, Texas, in 1942 and continued after the war, even when other military aircraft work virtually came to a halt as the nation anticipated a long period of peace.

top view The B-36 was origninally conceived as the ultimated bomber for WWII. As Maj. Gen. Henry "Hap" Arnold described it, it would be the plane that could "fly the skin off any rivals." The new techonogy and formidable size of the project led to delays, however, and the B-36 instead became the first Cold War Bomber. The aircraft would play a crucial role in the early history of the policy fo "peace through strength"-nuclear deterrence-and would form the first leg of the strategic Triad including long-range bombers, nuclear missiles, and submarines.

The XB-36 flew for the first time in August 1946. The first production version of the B-36 took to the air approximately one year later.

The Peacemaker was the first true intercontinental bomber, with a maximum payload of 86,000 pounds and a maximum range of more than 6,800 miles, unrefueled. Flights of over 24 hours weren't unusual, and the B-36 set several world records. Modifications during its production life included the addition of four jet engines paired on pods under the wings.

Experimental testing included carriage of a full-size fighter and an operational nuclear reactor (on the NB-36H version). Variants of the aircraft included the jet-powered YB-60 prototype and the XC-99 cargo plane.

Production totaled 385 aircraft. The final aircraft - B-36J #52-2827A, now undergoing restoration at Lockheed Fort Worth Company - was delivered on August 11, 1954. The last B-36 was retired from active service on February 12, 1959.

The Restoration Project

TheAir Force approved the B-36 Restoration Project following an outpouring of community support in the summer of 1992, reversing plans to move the aircraft from the Fort Worth area to another state. The restoration is coordinated by the Fort Worth Aviation Heritage Association, but the B-36 "know-how" and the hands-on labor are supplied by an enthusiastic group of volunteers. Many are retired General Dynamics employees who helped design or build the B-36, while others are former Peacemaker crewmembers retired from the Air Force. Volunteers from other area companies, schools and orginizations have also joined the effort. For all of them, the project is truly a "labor of love" dedicated to preservation of this incredible airplane. The work is under way in a hanger at the Lockheed Fort Worth Company.

B-36 Facts and Stats

	Wingspan		230 feet
	Length			162 feet
	Wing Fuel		12,000 gallons
	Bomb Bay Volume		12,300 ft^3
	Engines			Six P&W R-4360s
				Four GE J47 turbojets
	Top Speed		411 MPH
	Weight			410,000 lbs.

B-36 in Perspective

by C. Roger Cripliver

It is hard for those who were not involved in the manufacture or upkeep of the B-36 to imagine just who BIG it really was. Hopefully, the facts which follow will help put this amazing aircraft into its proper perspective:

Wingspan of the B-36 - 230 feet - is greater that the length of the first powered flight made by Orville Wright's Flyer airplane on 17 December 1903.

The B-36 can carry a heavier load of bombs for a greater distance than any other airplane in existance. It has flown more than 10,000 miles, carrying 10,00 pounds of bombs halfway.

At high speeds, the B-36's ten engines (six reciprocating and four jets) develop the equivalent of 44,000 horsepower, roughly comparable to that of nine locomotives, or about as much horsepower as that generated by 400 average passenger cars.

The tremendous bomb load of the Convair B-36 is clearly indicated by the fact that a B-36 can haul 84,000 pounds of bombs - more than the gross weight of a fully loaded WWII B-24 Liberator bomber.

Volume of the B-36 bomb bay alone is 12,300 cubic feet, equivalent to the capacity of three railroad freight cars. The B-36 itself, with a volume of 18,000 cubic feet, has a volume greater than three average five-room houses.

An automobile could easily circle the globe 18 times with the 30,000-plus gallons of high octane gasoline carried in the wing tanks of the Convair B-36.

More than 30 miles of wiring are required in the Convair B-36 electrical system, equal to the amount needed to wire 280 five-room houses.

A 600-room hotel, or 120 five-room houses could be heated by the anti-icing equipment installed on the B-36 superbomber. In an hour the aiant plane's anti-icing equipment turns out 4,290,000 BTUs.

There are 68,000 different shop-made parts and 11,000 assemblies in a B-36 bomber, nout counting the thousands upon thousands of parts supplied in government furnished equipment.

Photo Gallery

I'm happy to report that the photos are back. Sorry I don't have any thumbnails of these, you'll have to go by the descriptions. If you have any B-36 drawings or photos, I would love to have a copy for this page.

The Great Beast in Flight

b36-1.jpg from Larry Westin. (b&w, 28kb)

b36-2.jpg (b&w, 73kb)

b36-rud.jpg B-36 in flight without a rudder! (b&w, 15kb)

The Restoration

b36nose.jpgNice shot of the nose of the B-36 after the restoration. (color, 112kb)

b36wing.jpg Me standing on top of the wing, inside the run station. The wing is about 20 feet above the floor. (color, 85kb)

b36tow2.jpg Our B-36 (sans outer wings) about to be towed 1/2 mile to the run station to begin the restoration effort. (color, 89kb)

bridge2.jpg My favorite. The restored forward fuselage being transported to Aliance Airport. (Don't worry, we made it!) (color, 69kb)

team.jpg The Restoration Team in front of the forward fuselage. (color, 70kb)