So I have recently found myself fascinated with the B-32 Dominator. However I can't find any info on what happened to them after ww2. I know a lot of the ones that were in the US were scrapped. Since it saw a lot of duty in the PTO, i was wondering if some were buried in trenches somewhere in Japan like a lot of B-29's were at the end of ww2. If that is the case, would it be possible to dig them or any other warbird for that matter back up? Hell, we rescued a warbird from a glacier so i assume anything is possible. It is just a shame because the B-32 was such a beautiful aircraft and yet, no one felt the need to preserve a single one. I realize that they didn't have a track record for being the safest aircraft but at the same time that were just as important as any other aircraft during ww2. Does anyone think that someone would ever feel the urge to refabricate one from scratch?
Extinct Warbirds: Consolidated B-32 Dominator, What happened to most of them?
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I doubt that anyone will "feel the urge" to build one from scratch. There is just not a demand for such a thing, especially in relation to the costs of doing so. It would just be too expensive.
evangilder
"Shooter"
If the were buried in trenches, it would most likely be the way they buried other aircraft. Open a trench, use a bulldozer to shove the planes in, and cover them up and compacting the aircraft and dirt covering them. If they could be found, they would most likely be in horrendous shape and not likely able to be restored without a lot of money. Building one from scratch would also be prohibitively expensive. Unfortunately, that aircraft is now but a memory to those who flew it.
syscom3
Pacific Historian
Not to mention it had no combat record that would be considered meritorious.
vikingBerserker
Lieutenant General
Last US Airman killed in the war flew on one and 3 were lost in combat.
All those that remained at the end of the war were returned to the US and either sold for scrap, destroyed as targets, or used at a mechanics school then in Crash Rescue training school. The only remains of an B-32 are 2 Sperry A-17A nose turrets (one privately held the other at the Smithsonian) and the slender end of a static test wing panel on pylons as a memorial to aviation pioneer John J Montgomery, located on Otay Mesa near San Diego.
I highly recommend Consolidated B-32 Dominator - The Ultimate Look: from Drawing Board to Scrapyard by William Wolf.
All those that remained at the end of the war were returned to the US and either sold for scrap, destroyed as targets, or used at a mechanics school then in Crash Rescue training school. The only remains of an B-32 are 2 Sperry A-17A nose turrets (one privately held the other at the Smithsonian) and the slender end of a static test wing panel on pylons as a memorial to aviation pioneer John J Montgomery, located on Otay Mesa near San Diego.
I highly recommend Consolidated B-32 Dominator - The Ultimate Look: from Drawing Board to Scrapyard by William Wolf.
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muscogeemike
Senior Airman
I, too, have always been enthralled by the Dominator. Does anyone remember a tabloid newspaper posting a "photo" of a B-32 on the moon?
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GregP
Major
They were all scrapped, even the one slated for display in the Air Force Museum.
GrauGeist
Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung
Out of curiousity, I wonder if there's any B-32s off shore of Okinawa...
Any returning B-32s that were damaged beyond repair would have been shoved into the water like the other island airstrips did with B-29s since they weren't hurting for spare parts and didn't need to cannibalize the damaged airframe.
Just a thought...
Any returning B-32s that were damaged beyond repair would have been shoved into the water like the other island airstrips did with B-29s since they weren't hurting for spare parts and didn't need to cannibalize the damaged airframe.
Just a thought...
I don't believe any actually made it to Japan (to land that is) and their combat career was very short. Still sad to see one wasn't preserved.
There are some very extreme (and amusing) threads on other forums regarding the survival of B-32s in locations from the ocean (in perfect condition, location unspecified) to the moon!
Sadly none that I have read can add any information on survivors beyond the bits described in vikingB's comment.
Sadly none that I have read can add any information on survivors beyond the bits described in vikingB's comment.
model299
Airman 1st Class
While there were a few visionaries back then who saw fit to try and preserve aircraft (And other artifacts of the war) the prevailing attitude was to just get rid of everything. "Why keep it around. The WAR IS OVER!! Get rid of it and move on!" There was absolutely no thought of preserving anything, for the most part.
My late MIL (Bless her soul.) was a good example of this. She told me that during the war, everyone was stuck with old cars (And various other consumer goods.) and couldn't wait to get new ones once they became available. When I bought the '55 Chevy 3/4 ton I'm working on, she was incredulous. "Why'd you buy that old peice of junk??? Why not just go buy yourself a nice new one?? C'mon, the war's over!"
That's a direct quote. To her, it was just an old junker that needed to be scrapped.
My late MIL (Bless her soul.) was a good example of this. She told me that during the war, everyone was stuck with old cars (And various other consumer goods.) and couldn't wait to get new ones once they became available. When I bought the '55 Chevy 3/4 ton I'm working on, she was incredulous. "Why'd you buy that old peice of junk??? Why not just go buy yourself a nice new one?? C'mon, the war's over!"
That's a direct quote. To her, it was just an old junker that needed to be scrapped.
