With nuclear weapons and jet engines now in play, bomber design shifted focus to intercontinental ranges and heavier payloads. B-29s continued to be used during the Korean War and were retired only with the arrival of the jet age. Two modified B-29s were used to drop the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, auguring bombers' important role in nuclear warfare. The Soviet Union, unable to build its own efficient long-range bomber, reversed-engineered B-29s that made emergency landings in Soviet territory, building over 800 of them. One mission saw as many as 300 B-29s drop almost 250,000 incendiary bombs on Tokyo. Flying from bases in India and China and on Pacific Islands, B-29 bombing runs destroyed entire cities. It was named the "Superfortress," an allusion to the B-17.ī-29s were used almost exclusively against Japan. It could fly as fast as 365 mph, as far as 5,000 miles, and as high as 31,800 feet. Crewed by 11 airmen, it had pressurized cabins, four remote-controlled turrets, and four 2,200-horsepower engines. The Boeing B-29 was the peak of WWII bomber technology. In all, 18,482 Liberators were built, making it the most-produced bomber in history. The B-24 had a number of variants for different missions, including a transport version capable of carrying a 10,000-pound payload up to 1,000 miles, or 6,000 pounds over 3,300 miles, helping close the Atlantic Gap. While the B-17 was preferred by the Americans in Europe, it was almost entirely replaced in the Pacific by the Liberator, which had a much greater range. Liberators served in all theaters of WWII and in all branches of the US military. Like the B-17, the B-24 first saw action with the British and was widely praised, earning the name "Liberator." With a crew of 11, the B-24 could carry 8,000 pounds of bombs, fly up to 28,000 feet, reach speeds up to 300 mph, and had a range of 3,000 miles. The company instead decided to submit its own design. The B-24 originated from a 1938 request from the USAAC to Consolidated Aircraft to build licensed copies of the B-17. More than 12,700 were built, and they served on all fronts in WWII, wreaking havoc on German and Japanese targets. In one raid on Schweinfurt in Germany, the US lost over 60 of 291 bombers and had 650 crew members killed or captured.īut B-17s were the workhorse of the US bomber fleet in Europe. This was especially the case for the Army Air Corps, which was responsible for daylight bombing raids over Europe. Despite its appearance, the B-17 was not capable of fighting off enemy fighters alone and suffered casualty rates as high as 20%. With a crew of 10, the bomber usually carried 4,000 pounds of bombs and had a service ceiling over 25,000 feet, with a maximum speed of 287 mph and a range over 2,000 miles.ī-17s made their combat debut with the British Royal Air Force in 1941 but soon saw action with US forces in Europe and the Pacific. A reporter from the Seattle Times, noting the 13 machine guns in turrets on the upper fuselage, belly, tail, and nose, described it as a "flying fortress." Boeing loved the term and immediately trademarked it. Within a year, Boeing flew its four-engine prototype, the B-17. The Corps wanted a plane capable of flying at 10,000 feet, at speeds of up 200 mph, with a range of 2,000 miles. The Boeing B-17 was built in response to a 1934 request by the US Army Air Corps (USAAC) for strategic bombers. For over 80 years, it has fielded some of the best bombers the world has ever seen. Their ability to flatten cities and cripple critical infrastructure and their role in the nuclear triad have cemented them as a must-have for any modern military. Before the first ballistic missiles arrived in 1944, there was only one way a military could deliver large amounts of ordnance to enemy territory: bombers.īombers have played an essential part of warfare since their introduction.
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