USAF B-36 Peacemaker in 1/72 scale

Introduction - Convair B-36 Peacemaker Strategic Bomber

The initial genesis for the design of what would become the B-36 Bomber traces back to the dark days of 1941 as it became clear that the United states would have to become directly involved in World War II. In those days, before Pearl Harbor, there was the very real prospect that Germany would defeat Great Britain and thus control all of Europe. In that event, the United States was going to need a bomber aircraft that could perform missions all the way across the Atlantic. The long range heavy bombers then in operation, or actively being developed, the B-17, the B-24, and ultimately the B-29 did not have that type of range. All would fall short.

In the event that Great Britain fell, the United States needed a bomber that could fly unrefueled, perform its bombing missions, and then return to the United States until such a time as America could gain a foothold in Europe. The roundtrip from the potential fields in New Foundland to Berlin was approximately 6,000 miles. But the US wanted bombers that could also take off from fields in the continental United states in the event they were required.

On April 11, 1941, eight months before Pearl Harbor, the American trans-oceanic ranged strategic bomber design competition started. It was seeking a 450 mph top speed, a 275 mph cruising speed, a service ceiling of 45,000 ft., and a maximum range of 12,000 miles at 25,000 ft. After significant industrial review, these initial requirements proved too demanding and on August 19, 1941 the specifications were reduced to a maximum range of 10,000 miles with a 10,000 lb bomb load, a cruising speed of 240+ mph, and a service ceiling of 40,000 ft, which was above the maximum effective altitude of all of Nazi Germany's typically deployed anti-aircraft Flak guns.

As the war progressed, and the tide of war turned in favor of the allies, production of vast numbers of B-17s, B-24s, and then B-29s took top priority in order to exceed attrition rates and continue the massive bombing campaigns against Germany and Japan. Just the same, the Army Air Corps kept pushing for a new long-ranged bomber to reach Japan from its bases in Hawaii.

So, the development of the B-36 resumed in earnest. The US Secretary of War decided to waive normal army procurement procedures, and in July 1943 ordered 100 B-36s before prototype aircraft were ever built or tested. The first aircraft delivery for this order was to be in August 1945, with the last being in October 1946. The first aircraft was unveiled by Convair on August 20, 1945, five days after Japan surrendered. With the immediate emphasis reduced, this aircraft did not fly for the first time until August 8, 1946.

She was a huge aircraft, as well she would have to be to meet the requirements.

She has six massive pusher piston engines mounted on a wing that spanned 230 feet. To this day this is the largest wingspan of any mass produced combat aircraft in history. The massive wing was seven and one-half feet thick and had a service pathway to the piston engines internally that allowed the engines to be worked on by the crew while in flight. The aircraft dwarfed the B-29 Super fortress which was the largest World War II bomber aircraft and which had delivered the nuclear bombs to Hiroshima and Nagasaki that ended World War II.

Initially, the cockpit was designed similar to the B-29, being flush to the cigar shaped fuselage.. Here is a picture of a B-29 compared to the initial B-36:


After World war II, relations with the USSR soured rapidly. Even though the US and her allies had worked together with the USSR to defeat Nazi Germany, the USSR itself developed into another brutal dictatorship that had visions itself of fomenting communist revolution throughout the world and ultimately controlling the world. Once the USSR developed nuclear weapons of its own, the need for the B-36 became paramount. Now, the massive weapons load, the tremendous range, and the relative high speed and high altitude of the B-36 became the natural tool to deter the Soviet Union.

The United States formed the US Air Force as a separate, independent service branch in 1947 and all B-36 bombers were immediately transferred to the USAF. Modifications were made to make the aircraft suitable for the new task of deterring the USSR. Her cockpit was redesigned and placed atop the fuselage. She got more powerful engines. In her new role of strategic deterrence, she became operational in 1949 and more orders were placed with production runs that would continue through 1954.

The confrontation between the US and her allies (The West) and the USSR and her allies (The East) was named the "Cold War," after the Berlin airlift of 1948, and particularly after the Soviet Union's first successful nuclear bomb detonation in 1949. The B-36 was the only American aircraft with the range and payload to carry all of the United States nuclear inventory from airfields on American soil to targets in the USSR. In order to carry the largest US nuclear weapons, the bomb bays had to be combined and the modification to allow this was called the "Grand Slam Installation."

Soon, B-36 bombers were available in numbers and operating from US air baises in the United States and from air bases of allies in Europe and the Western Pacific.


Despite its capabilities, the B-36 was designed in the era of piston engines driving propellers. In the late 1940s and throughout the 1950s, the jet age was ushered in. The "jet age" actually started towards the end of World War II when the Nazis introduced the first production jet fighter, the Me-262 twin engine fighter. But it began in earnest at the end of the 1940s and into the 1950s. In order to increase speed and range, the B-36 underwent a transformation that brought it into the jet age. In addition to its six massive piston engines, four jet engines were added. These were house outboard of the piston engines in a single nacelle on each wing which housed two of the jet engines.

Because of its unique nature with so many piston and jet engines, the crews of the B-36 often indicated that the had, "Six tuning and four burning."


Despite this, as time progressed in the 1950s, the B-36 was rapidly becoming obsolete. It was too slow and as time went on, was simply not capable of penetrating growing Soviet defenses with the high degree of success required for its nuclear delivery requirements. However, it's first jet rival, the Boeing B-47 Stratojet, which became fully operational in 1953, lacked the range to attack the Soviet homeland from North America without aerial refueling and could not carry the huge first-generation Mark 16 hydrogen bomb.

So, the B-36 served on, and General Curtis Lemay, the head of the US Air Force Strategic Air Command, kept the B-36 force, through intense training and development, an effective force to deliver nuclear weapons. During this time, the B-36 was the heart of the Strategic Air Command force. Its maximum payload was greater than any other bomber in the US inventory, including the newly developed B-52 which entered service in 1955.

Although the B-36 was slow and could not refuel in midair, she could fly missions to intercontinental targets and stay aloft for up to 40 hours at a time. In addition, through the mid and late 1950s, the B-36 maintained a phenomenal cruising altitude which made it possible for her to fly above the capabilities of most Soviet interceptors of the day, as well as their ground-based anti aircraft guns.

Nonetheless, the introduction of the B-52 in 1955 changed everything. This was clearly the aircraft that would replace the B-36. The B-52 was faster, it could fly as high and higher, and it could be refueled in mid-air giving it essentially unlimited range. Through the late 1950s the B-52 fleet grew, supplanting the B-36, and in 1959, the last B-36 strategic bomber aircraft were retired.

In addition, supersonic intercontinental bombers were being developed, including the Mach 2 B-58 hustler, which went into service in the 1960s, and the even faster, higher flying and very exotic B-70 Valkyrie, which was cancelled.

With the advent of Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs) beginning in the 1960s, aircraft like the B-36 were rendered completely, irrevocably obsolete. The newer, faster jet bombers served on due to America's desire to maintain a triad of nuclear deliver options, but the B-36 had seen its day.

Characteristics/Specifications:

Crew: 13
Length: 162 ft 1 in
Wingspan: 230 ft
Height: 46 ft 9 in
Wing area: 4,772 ft²
Empty weight: 166,165 lb
Loaded weight: 262,500 lb
Max. takeoff weight: 410,000 lb
Powerplant:
- 6 × Pratt & Whitney R-4360-53 "Wasp Major" radials, 3,800 hp each
- 4 × General Electric J47 turbojets, 5,200 lbf each
Performance:
Maximum speed: 435 mph
Cruise speed: 230 mph
Combat radius: 4,000 mi
Ferry range: 10,000 mi
Service ceiling: 43,600 ft
Armament:
Guns: 2 × 20 mm M24A1 auto cannons in a remotely operated tail turret
Bombs: 86,000 lb

Jimmy Stewart Military service (including the B-36)

I have had this model for some time but did not intend to build it for a couple of more years. However, over the Thanksgiving break this year, I once again watched the old movie, "Strategic Air Command," starring Jimmy Stewart. The movie features the B-36 heavily and I was moved to go ahead and move up the B-36 in my build queue. I am writing this part of my model review as a tribute to Jimmy Stewart.

Many people do not know it, but in addition to Jimmy Stewart being one of my favorite all time movie stars, he was also a great American patriot and military hero.

Though already a very successful movie star when World War II broke out, he was also a very successful aircraft racer. It was one of his hobbies and he was very good at it, winning numerous races, medals, and honors in the late 1930s.

But he came from a patriotic family, where his grandfathers and father had served in the US military. So when it became apparent to him that war was inevitable, he went down and enlisted in the US Army in March 1941, over eight months before Pearl Harbor. He did not ask for any favors though he had a college degree, was 33 years old and was very well known. No, Jimmy Stewart enlisted as a simple private.


When it was learned that he had significant flying experience, in addition to a college degree, he was transferred to the Army Air Corps. At 33 years of age, he was already six years older than the maximum age for new pilot recruits, but because the need was great, and because of his experience, this requirement was waived and he was inducted as a pilot. He was commissioned a Lt. in the USAAC in January 1942, one month after Pearl Harbor.

He wanted to go fight, but because of his age and notoriety, he remained state side, training others. In that role he was steadily promoted through Captain and to Major. But he continued to put in for combat duty, and finally, in 1943 it was granted.

He was transferred to England in command of the 703rd Bomber Squadron, flying B-24 Liberator bombers against Germany. while flying for the 703rd, he earned the Distinguished Flying Cross for his efforts

leading major bomber raids against the heavily defended 3rd Reich. He was promoted to the Operations Officer for the entire 453rd Bomber Group and continued flying combat missions.

In January 1944 he was promoted to Lt. Colonel and assigned to the 2nd Bomber Wing as the Executive Officer, the second in command of the entire bomber wing. While commanding, he continued to seek out and fly combat missions. He was very much liked by the flyers, who recognized in him an individual who did not have to serve, and who set aside his notoriety for the better good and put himself at risk just like the rest of them. During 1944, as a result of his actions while flying against the enemy, Jimmy Stewart earned a 2nd Distinguished Flying Cross and the Croix de Guerre from the French.


He also earned the Air Medal with three Oak Clusters during this time. In March 1945, he was promoted to a full colonel and in May 1945, he was given command of the entire 2nd Bomber wing in England of the US Army Air Corps. He was one of only a few people who rose from the rank of private to that of Colonel in four years time. In all, he successfully flew 20 combat missions against the Germans.

After the war, and returning home, he remained in the reserves. He became a US Air Force reservist when the US Air Force was created in 1947...but Jimmy Stewart, though back acting, was not done serving his country. Throughout the 1950s, as a Colonel, he served and became qualified to fly the B-36 Peacemaker. This was the largest US bomber ever created, and the heart and sole of America's first line defense and deterrence against the Soviet Union in throughout the 1950s. But Jimmy Stewart was an excellent pilot and had proven his capabilities as a decorated combat veteran.


When the new jet bombers began coming out, with the B-47 being the first, he became qualified in that aircraft as well. He flew those aircraft for the Strategic Air Command as well, and as a reservist he would have been among the first called up to combat in the event of war.


In July 1959, Jimmy Stewart was promoted to the rank of Brigadier General. He continued to serve, and continued to qualify. He became qualified to fly the B-52 Bomber, which became operational in 1955, and still serves as a part of the US Air Force bomber arsenal today.

In fact, Jimmy Stewart's last official military flight, was a combat mission in the B-52, where he flew as a US Air Force command observer in February 1966 over Vietnam on an Arclight mission against the

North Vietnamese. As was his nature, he sought no accolades or press for this action. Very few people knew about it until much later. He was, after all, a very successful, well known, and popular actor at the time. But this did not stop him from continuing to put his life on the line for his country.


Jimmy Stewart retired from the US Air Force as a General in 1968, after 27 years of service to his country.

I include his brief military history here because he flew the B-36 Peacemaker, and because he was a truly great American, in addition to being a wonderful and talented actor.

What's in the Box

Tamiya began building large, 1/350 scale model vessels back in the 1980s and has been doing so ever since. They make OUTSTANDING 1/350 scale model kits for naval vessels.

Monogram has historically been one of the better model builders in the United States.

They put out several versions of the aircraft in 1/72 scale, and this version, kit number 5707 is my favorite.

It is the largest 1/72 scale aircraft model ever made, and is a truly mammoth model. It comes with seven sprues (six molded in gray and one in clear plastic) with about 150 parts. The two fuselage halves are separate parts.

There are a number of nice features and details. The props can all be built to turn, the guns (in the nose and tail) can move, the bombay can be shown open with a significant conventional bomb load. One issue is that the long connecting tunnel between the nose cockpit area and the after section which includes the tail gunner and a rather large crew area, is missing. So if you want to be accurate you will have to scratch build that. I intend to show the bombay open with some nuclear weapons ands the long tunnel that traverses through it.

The parts have a decent amount of detail, including the cockpit area. There is very little flash (although the model I have was produced in the 1980s). I purchased couple of sets of aftermarket decals from Warbird. Number 72003 which gives the standard maintenance stencils and walkway stripes for the B-36 including all of the stripes and warning markings for the aircraft, and number 72032 which includes aircraft markings for the "Broken Arrow" aircraft (which I will not model), and the "City of Ft. worth" aircraft, which I intend to model.


These are excellent decals and each sheet has a MRP of $14.99. I found mine on ebay for $8.99 each.

Here is the model with its box, the parts, the decals and the instructions:.

- By Dec 31, 2015: Complete USAF B-36 Peacemekae in 1/72 Scale
- By Jan 10, 2016: Complete RN Merlin Helicopter in 1/72 Scale
- By Jan 20, 2016: Complete Complete RAF Typhoon in 1/72 Scale
- By Feb 14, 2016: Complete French Rafael M in 1/72 Scale
- By Apr 10, 2016: Complete USS Hornet, CV-8 in 1/350 Scale

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Oh wow, what a beautiful plane!

Equation said:

Oh wow, what a beautiful plane!

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It most certainly is/was, my friend.

They used to have one parked in Ft. Worth at the airport there for years and years. As a kid in the eraly 60s my Dad took us to see it. It was there for decades.

I think it has been moved to a museum now...but it was the "City of Ft. Worth" aircraft I intend to build.

This one:



The really neat thing is the tie-in to Jimmy Stewart.

In addition to him being a GREAT actor, and the one who starred in the movie "Strategic Air Command," where he was depicted flying these B-36 aircraft, he was actually a heroic US pilot in World War II who stayed in the service after.

He actually did fly the B-36. He retired from US Air Force National Guard service as a Brigadier General in 1968.

I am also building the aircraft as a tribute to him, and wrote a lot more detail about his history in the description above.

But it is one big model! Almost three feet wide and about 30 inches long! it will take up a LOT of real estate.

The Build - Cockpit, Radar, Navigator Stations, plans for tunnels and armament - December 7, 2015

I began this session by doing a little research on how the cockpit should appear, and then gathering all of the parts for the cockpit, and forward crew areas (navigator and radar operator stations).This also included the two forward 20mm cannons in their auto turret on the upper nose of the aircraft.

I then painted all of these parts to match the photos OI had seen...although most of the photos were from a B-36 being refurbished for a museum and some of the parts (like the head rests, straps, etc.) were not there.

It is interesting because with the B-36 the interior was still painted similar to the world War II bombers with a green painting for the interior, black instrumentation, with white dials, and with olive drab seats. I made the headrests black, and the straps a gray with aluminum colored clasps.

Once this was completed, it was time to paint the interior of the fuselage halves and then attach the two flight decks to the fuselage. There is also a view port on each side with instrumentation to do navigation by observing the stars or the heavens.


This is looking pretty good.