The B-29 Superfortress was the most technologically advanced bomber of World War II. By assuming some tremendous risks Boeing engineers achieved a tremendous leap in performance. The B-29 was the first ever pressurized bomber to enter mass production. It had a very advanced remote controlled
gun turrets. The Superfortress was powered by the new Wright R-3350 engines and 
Curtiss electric propellers.
The B-29’s superstructure was more modern than the B-17, and its heavy weight meant a high wing loading. This required larger flaps for takeoffs and landings.
The first combat operations for the Superfortress began with the raid on Bangkok on June 5th 1944. It turned out that the B-29 was the only long range bomber able to reach and bomb Japan and return safely. It was quickly learned that the B-29 was a real winner.
During wartime the B-29 Superfortress flew at altitudes of 40,000 feet at speeds of 350 mph. What was so great about that was the Japanese fighters could barely reach altitudes like that and once there had a real tough time catching the fast Superfortress. Hitting one with the heaviest of anti-aircraft weapons was next to impossible because at the time the Axis forces did not have proximity fuses.
The new bomber had a revolutionary central fire control system one of the first of its kind. There were four gunners that remote controlled the turrets one in the nose and three in the rear fuselage. The guns were controlled by 4 General Electric made analog computers. The central fire control gunner would allocate turrets to each of the other three gunners, avoiding confusion in the heat of battle.
Early in 1945 the role changed from a high altitude day bomber to a low altitude night bomber. The defensive armament was removed to carry greater fuel and bomb loads.
For the first time in history crews enjoyed a fully pressurized cabin in the bomber. A long tunnel spanned over the two bomb bays to the tail section allowing the crew to crawl back and forth. This leaving the bomb bays un-pressurized eliminating the need to depressurize them for bombing.
The most famous of the B-29’s in the well known "Enola Gay", which dropped the first atomic bomb used in wartime. The atomic bomb known as “Little Boy” was dropped on Hiroshima on August 6th 1945. Another B-29 called “Bockscar” dropped the second atomic bomb on Nagasaki three days later. It was these actions along with the Soviet invasion of Manchuria on August 9th of 1945 that cause the Japanese to surrender and the official end of World War II.
B-29 Superfortress Books, DVDs, Posters and you name it.
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US $185.85
