For you airplane guys

[jdadoug]

I got to do something recently that would have been on my bucket list if I had one.............. I got to sit in the pilots seat of a B-36 Bomber
Went up to the Air Museum in Ashland, Neb. just outside of Mahoney State Park. Big museum!!!!! Its got a SR71, B-52, B-47, B-36, B-25, B-17, F-111
F-105, T-33, XF-85 and a whole lot more that I cant even remember right off hand without looking back at my pictures.......
I gotta say, it was a proud moment to just sit there in that thing! (I love planes) jdadoug

[sequoiaguy21]

Nice! - if you ever get a chance to get to Dayton, OH, the U.S. Air Force Museum is a must see too. They have quite a selection of planes, spacecraft and ICBMs.

[B47]

Originally Posted by jdadoug

I got to do something recently that would have been on my bucket list if I had one.............. I got to sit in the pilots seat of a B-36 Bomber
Went up to the Air Museum in Ashland, Neb. just outside of Mahoney State Park. Big museum!!!!! Its got a SR71, B-52, B-47, B-36, B-25, B-17, F-111
F-105, T-33, XF-85 and a whole lot more that I cant even remember right off hand without looking back at my pictures.......
I gotta say, it was a proud moment to just sit there in that thing! (I love planes) jdadoug

Many many things about the B36 - built right here at the Convair plant adjacent to the former Carswell AFB. Orginally equipped with 6 of the largest reciprocating engines ever built - the R 4360. Later 4 J47 jet engines were added, 2 on each outboard section on each wing.

A man could walk/crawl in each wing to service each reciprocating engine inflight.

The last bomber built that was not equipped with an Inflight Refueling System, it could still remain airborne for many hours - somewhere close to 44-48 hours.

It was equipped with 2 kitchens and several bunks.

Goggle and learn many more interesting things about it.

It was called the "Peacemaker" for good reason and helped keep the Cold War from heating up.

[jdadoug]

Here is one for the record books.......... Its a B-58 Hustler, quite the airplane in its day! jdadoug

[B47]

Originally Posted by jdadoug

Here is one for the record books.......... Its a B-58 Hustler, quite the airplane in its day! jdadoug

Oh yeah - also built here at the same plant the B36. Set many speed records and was the only bomber equipped with afterburners.

Each of the 3 crew members were in separate compartments and separated inflight.

I never worked on them, but heard they were a maintenance nightmare.

Goggle for more information.

[jdadoug]

B-47, this was one of the later ones with the jet pods, I also got to lay down on the "trolley car" that linked the fore and aft pressurized ends of the plane. Right beside this plane was the XF-85 Goblin that would have been the only armorment the 36 had.
Yeah, I read up on the plane, probably one of my all time favorite planes behind the Mustang! jdadoug

[B47]

Originally Posted by jdadoug

B-47, this was one of the later ones with the jet pods, I also got to lay down on the "trolley car" that linked the fore and aft pressurized ends of the plane. Right beside this plane was the XF-85 Goblin that would have been the only armorment the 36 had.
Yeah, I read up on the plane, probably one of my all time favorite planes behind the Mustang! jdadoug

I think most of them were retrofitted with the J47 engines which you may not have noticed, but they were the same model and design that the numbers 2 and 3 and 4 and 5 engines that the B47 had. I heard that Convair brought the pod (also called cowling) design from Boeing and the J 47 engine from General Electric, the manufacturer.

The B36 did have several offensive and defensive guns that were later removed in an effort to lighten the airplane up because the airplane could fly higher that any plane the Russians had and they were not needed.

The - 85 was never found to be feasible and never went further.

[jdadoug]

You are right about the 85, I've seen and read about the nightmare it was to hook back up. Seems like there may have been at least one person killed in the process. This 36 still had the cradle inside for the Goblin. I get the Air and Space magazine and read it cover to cover. There was quite the story on the F7u Cutlass (Chance Vought) I had never seen one, sounded like it was not welcomed on many Navy decks!!
I go to U Tube once and a while and listen to the Radial's start up........ yeah the R- 4360 rocks! What music! Wish I had one, and the know how to start and maintain it. It would be great to go to the shows and let er sing........jdadoug.

[B47]

Originally Posted by jdadoug

You are right about the 85, I've seen and read about the nightmare it was to hook back up. Seems like there may have been at least one person killed in the process. This 36 still had the cradle inside for the Goblin. I get the Air and Space magazine and read it cover to cover. There was quite the story on the F7u Cutlass (Chance Vought) I had never seen one, sounded like it was not welcomed on many Navy decks!!
I go to U Tube once and a while and listen to the Radial's start up........ yeah the R- 4360 rocks! What music! Wish I had one, and the know how to start and maintain it. It would be great to go to the shows and let er sing........jdadoug.

I never tinkered with any planes other than the big ones - bombers, tankers, transports etc so I don't know much about the fighters.

The R 4360 was an engineering marvel in its own right. I heard that the guy who invented the carburetor for it later went insane - true or not, I don't know.

If you had a 4360 to play with, you better have a lot of money for that 145 octane fuel it consumes in great quanties.

Try searching for KC 97 on U Tube and you can probably find more 4360's start ups.

[Broadway Joe]

The B-50 was a B-29 with R4360's, in place of the R3350"s

[B47]

Originally Posted by joenic53

The B-50 was a B-29 with R4360's, in place of the R3350"s

Yes Sir - you are correct. Wasn't the B-50 also a prototype tanker also?

They were just about all gone when I joined up.

[mjones12]

Originally Posted by jdadoug

B-47, this was one of the later ones with the jet pods, I also got to lay down on the "trolley car" that linked the fore and aft pressurized ends of the plane. Right beside this plane was the XF-85 Goblin that would have been the only armorment the 36 had.
Yeah, I read up on the plane, probably one of my all time favorite planes behind the Mustang! jdadoug

Regarding the P51 Mustang....got a ride in one that had been equipped with a jump seat behind the pilot. Amazing. Tower permitted him to do a hot pass down the runway at about 10 feet. Very cool.

[jdadoug]

I was at a airshow in Salina Ks. years ago when Bob Hover was still flying a lot. That yellow mustang he had was great and he knew how to fly it. He also did a show with a twin engine plane that I cant remember right now and really put it through the paces, great guy! jdadoug

[B47]

Originally Posted by jdadoug

I was at a airshow in Salina Ks. years ago when Bob Hover was still flying a lot. That yellow mustang he had was great and he knew how to fly it. He also did a show with a twin engine plane that I cant remember right now and really put it through the paces, great guy! jdadoug

I met him once in the 1980's and shook his hand at an air show we were monitoring .

I doubt he would shake any FAA inspector hand in the 1990's - that was when the FAA revoked his medical certificate, effectively grounding him from flying in the U.S.

[bspickler]

One of the planes (among many) that Hoover made famous was the Aerocommander. When I was flying in Dayton (early '70s) there were a lot of them around the air field and Hoover was quite a hero.
File:HooverShrike.JPG - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Bill
Denver, CO

[jdadoug]

Bill, I believe that was the twin I was talking about. I remember him cutting the engines and doing quite a few maneuvers and ending with landing on one gear for quite a ways.....jdadoug

[RenoRock]

We had seen Hoover at the Reno Air Races about 10 years ago - it was during the "lost medical years". He had a CFI "safety pilot" in the plane with him, although I'm not sure that the CFI would have been of any good during the maneuvers that Bob was able to perform. I think he called the twin engine cutoff with a loop something like "energy conservation".

Stopped engine aerobatics - YouTube

[LKicklight]

Did you happen to see any of the F-101B VooDoo's that were in service during the 60's. Darn good airplane as we flew the B model out of Charleston AFB, SC., 444th Fighter Interceptor Squadron

[Iggy]

Originally Posted by jdadoug

I got to do something recently that would have been on my bucket list if I had one.............. I got to sit in the pilots seat of a B-36 Bomber
Went up to the Air Museum in Ashland, Neb. just outside of Mahoney State Park. Big museum!!!!! Its got a SR71, B-52, B-47, B-36, B-25, B-17, F-111
F-105, T-33, XF-85 and a whole lot more that I cant even remember right off hand without looking back at my pictures.......
I gotta say, it was a proud moment to just sit there in that thing! (I love planes) jdadoug

Being you love aircraft take a look at this link.
It is a B-17G and if you click on the location inside the plane it is a real 360 degree view of the location. This is a restore3d B-17G
B-17G 'Nine-O-Nine': Over, under, around and through

[jdadoug]

As a matter of fact there was a 101B, another great plane!