XB-19 ...

[Mark Allen M]

Per request.

According to Wiki:

The purpose of the XB-19 project was to test the flight characteristics and design techniques associated with giant bombers. Douglas Aircraft Company strongly wanted to cancel the project, because it was extremely expensive. Despite advances in technology that made the XB-19 obsolete before it was even completed, the Army Air Corps felt that the prototype would be useful for testing. Its construction took so long that competition for the contracts to make the XB-35 and XB-36 occurred two months before its first flight.

The plane finally flew on June 27, 1941, more than three years after the construction contract was awarded. In 1943, the original Wright R-3350 engines were replaced with Allison V-3420-11 V engines. After completion of testing, the XB-19 served as a cargo carrier until it was scrapped in 1949.

The newly formed U.S. Air Force had begun plans to save the B-19 for eventual display, but in 1949 the Air Force did not yet have a program in place to save historic aircraft, and the Air Force Museum had not yet been constructed. As a result, the B-19 was scrapped, but two of its enormous main tires were saved. One was put on display at the Hill Aerospace Museum at Hill Air Force Base in Ogden, Utah and the other has been on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force in Dayton, Ohio, in the "Early Years" gallery for many years.




Douglas XB-19 add


Douglas XB-19 under construction (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19 under construction (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19 under construction (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19 tire (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19 1941 (US Air Force photo)


XB-19 at March Field Calif on the day of its first flight June 27 1941


Douglas XB-19 (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19 (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19 (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19 (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19 (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19 Hemisphere Defender cockpit


XB-19 November 1941 March Field California


XB-19 November 1941 March Field California


XB-19 wing inspection November 1941 March Field California


Douglas XB-19 in flight with camo finish (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19 in flight with camo finish (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19A (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19A (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19A (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19A (US Air Force photo)


Douglas XB-19A nose section in the scrap pile (US Air Force photo)

[The Inspector]

If it works, why mess with it? the corrugated flooring in the photos stayed exactly the same up through the last MD-11 as flooring in maintenance areas and was the flooring out the tailcone escape path on DC-9/MD-80's.
I never realized up until that closeup exterior of the tail gunners position that the airplane had an overrotation bumper tire installed.
There's movie footage on You tube of the airplane landing @ March after it's first flight and basketballing the nose wheel repeatedly after touch down boing--boing--boing

[Tiger Tim]

Here's some video of the beast.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmhevFScTXg

-Tim

[mike furline]

[Mark Allen M]

Source, NMUSAF

[The Inspector]

You maneuver your girlfriend or your buddy into standing next to the tire @ Hill "for size comparison", a shot in front of the corroded ALLISON engine from the Aleutians, and hope they aren't paying attention when you have them standby the nose of the atom bomb mockup next to where it's stenciled 'INERT' That is one whale of a tire!!!

[Rick65]

Was this the only plane that used the V-3420 for any extended time?
Is there any record on the reliability of the V-3420 compared with the R-3350 that it replaced?

[DoraNineFan]

Was this the only plane that used the V-3420 for any extended time?
Is there any record on the reliability of the V-3420 compared with the R-3350 that it replaced?

It was used in the following aircraft:
XB-19
XB-39
XB-58
P-75

And apparently one in the hydroplane racer "Scooter Too" from the 1950s that is now under restoration. Maybe they will get it running

[Rick65]

What interests me about the XB-19A is that it could have flown from 1944 to 49 as a transport plane.
A quick internet search shows several articles with the same brief words and not much informaqtion on how much/far the plane flew in that period and how reliable the engines (often quoted in "could have been great" discussions) actually were.
The other planes using the V-3420 didn't seem to have lives after the end of 1944 and for example the XP-58 may only have flown 25 times in total .

Does anyone know exactly what the XB-19A was doing between 44 and 49.

[The Inspector]

Was this the only plane that used the V-3420 for any extended time?
Is there any record on the reliability of the V-3420 compared with the R-3350 that it replaced?

It was used in the following aircraft:
XB-19
XB-39
XB-58
P-75

And apparently one in the hydroplane racer "Scooter Too" from the 1950s that is now under restoration. Maybe they will get it running

The XB-39 was actually the first B-29 prototype that was converted take the ALLISONS, later it was put back to a B-29 configuration as a Boeing mechanics training aide @ KBFI and became someones lawn furniture or pots and pans after the war.
SCOOTER TOO, U-10 was owned by Henry Kaiser and was stablemate to the U-8 HAWAII KAI III, also known as 'the Pink Lady' The young guy sitting in the cockpit is Jack Regas, the SCOOTERS driver. SCOOTER had a brief and unhappy racing career that usually found it filling up with the race course or towed back to the pits after breaking and filling up with the race course during the towback. It bounced around empty lots and farm yards in Eastern Washington before winding on a pole in Cour d'aLene in front of the old raceboat pits, it then moved to a restaurant on Seattles Lake Union marked as U-8(there's a joke here someplace).It was rescued by the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum a few years ago.
Jack went on to drive the 'KAI' (the real U-8)and was almot unbeatable in his heats, set the worlds prop driven boat speed record at jut a sqweak under 200 mph. He moved to the U-40 BARDAHL team when Kaiser quit racing and was almost killed @ the DIAMOND Cup in Cour da lene when the fiberglass engine cowling came off and hit him in the head.
Jack is still around and just as driven as he ever was, the Olympic Air Museum in Olympia WA. has a W-3420 on display. The boats were literally just plywood and spruce and a bucket of screws and the 'uniform' is exactly what the older guy is wearing, a Tee shirt, a pith material helmet and work boots, and a kapok lifejacket, iron men and wooden raceboats.

[hang the expense]

I was able to see this boat recently and man what a race boat.She is a little rough these days but you can still see the graceful lines of this hotrod on water.Oh and the 3420 powerplant was there too.

[DoraNineFan]

I was able to see this boat recently and man what a race boat.She is a little rough these days but you can still see the graceful lines of this hotrod on water.Oh and the 3420 powerplant was there too.

The restoration information indicates that they intend to make the boat operational. As much as I dislike how hydroplane racing consumed most of the V12 engine spares, it will be interesting to see and hear a V-3420 come to life.

[The Inspector]

The museums restorations are top to bottom built with safety and reliability in mind, they are just wrapping up restortation of the ATLAS VAN LINES/ Bill Muncey 'Blue Blaster' that unfortunately killed Bill in Acapulco in 1981 with a blow over and it was just about picked clean and every part either rebuilt or brand new reproduction work. The boats don't turn much over 2500 R.P.M., don't use nitrous or anything else to boost power output and, as much as possible use old raceboat engines (there are more than a few around about Seattle) They are for mostly mobile displays of 'how it sounded and looked', payoff rides for volunteers, and as a counterpoint to the 6500 pound all plastic missiles with helo engines and shreeking sounds that race today and putt around in the 90 to 110 or so M.P.H. region. You'd be amazed at how far away you can hear an ALLISON or MERLIN in a plywood tub on Lake Washington nor how sweet the sounds-

Want to go for a ride? You tube 'Miss Bardahl at Tri Cities' for about 15 minutes of hanging onto the vertical fin during an exhibition race, or 'Ernie Hoovers ride in WAHOO' from inside the cockpit. Just noticed the WAHOO had one heck of a miss in the engine, on an ALLISON that was usually a bad ignition lead so lots of forearm burns pulling plugs to see which one wan't getting the message from which distributor.

[Steve Nelson]

Looks like she's doing a "buzz job" at Wright Field. The road below is the one that runs past the entrance to the NMUSAF. I've driven that route countless times. The hill in the upper right corner is the location of the Wright Brothers Memorial..a beautiful park overlooking Huffman Prairie and Patterson Field in the distance. If the weather's nice, my wife and I like to have a picnic supper there after a day at the museum.

Judging by the markings she had while awaiting the ax at DM, the XB-19 apparently spent at least some time with the All Weather Flying Center. Although really just a footnote in aviation history, its a shame they couldn't at least have saved that nose section for display. But then, I'm amazed how many now-priceless aircraft were scrapped in the late 40s and 50s because they were considered just old junk.

SN

[Pogo]

.....But then, I'm amazed how many now-priceless aircraft were scrapped in the late 40s and 50s because they were considered just old junk.

Boy, you said a mouthful there for sure. And thanks Mark, for another freakin' glorious post!