cammerjeff
Staff Sergeant
Lockheed Vega in a striking paint scheme for an unsuccessful around the world attempt in 1933
source Civil Aviation – The Jive Bomber
source Civil Aviation – The Jive Bomber
The USA interwar planes (3 Viewers)
- Thread starter flypaper2222
- Start date
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I saw this aircraft in "Aircraft Illustrated" magazine in about 1971 and fell in love with it. It would really make a lovely model too
Thumpalumpacus
Lieutenant Colonel
Look at those feathers!
The Stannum Liberator
Airman 1st Class
Woah woah woah gentlemen, I'm seeing B-15's and B-18s, and all sorts of fighter planes, but we're forgetting the Largest Interwar plane from any country.
The Douglas B-19. The Hemisphere Defender.
The Douglas B-19. The Hemisphere Defender.
Thumpalumpacus
Lieutenant Colonel
Couldn't they at least airbrush out the warts?!
MiTasol
Captain
Looks like those warts are retractable from the way one sits higher than the other though if so I would have expected a flatter top like on the Blenheim.
The Stannum Liberator
Airman 1st Class
Those turrets? They're not warts!!! D:
The Stannum Liberator
Airman 1st Class
Nope, the two top turrets were not retractable. The back one is lower because its just a .50 cal machine gun and then the front is a 37 mm cannon and .30 cal machine gun. So the front bubble turret is just larger
Thumpalumpacus
Lieutenant Colonel
GrauGeist
Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung
The B-19 was a remarkable aircraft and it wasn't until the B-36 arrived that it was surpassed in size and range (barely).
Interestingly enough, *had* the B-19 entered production, it's range and internal bomb load capacity, which was more than the B-29, would have made it a primary candidate for the "silverplate" program.
Interestingly enough, *had* the B-19 entered production, it's range and internal bomb load capacity, which was more than the B-29, would have made it a primary candidate for the "silverplate" program.
Thumpalumpacus
Lieutenant Colonel
Speed of around 200 mph and service ceiling of 23,000 ft, would have made it "silver platter", I think, in 1945.
GrauGeist
Generalfeldmarschall zur Luftschiff Abteilung
Keep in mind that had it gone into production in 1941, it would have had upgrades as happened with other types during the war.
As it was, the B-19 had a higher (un pressurized) ceiling than the Lancaster in 1941 but as we all know, the advance in tech during the war was incredibly fast.
Thumpalumpacus
Lieutenant Colonel
Keep in mind as well that Silverplates were stripped of most defensive armament in order to perform the mission, both to lift and fly the bomb, and also to do the sharp turn to get the FooD. The B-19's thick wing will inhibit speed and that's not gonna be fixed without significant redesign. Now let's add turbosupercharging, more redesign there without much promise.
At a certain point, a design reaches its limits of modding. We see that in the P-40, the Me-109, the B-17, and so on. I doubt the B-19 could be modded to even do what a standard Lancaster could do -- much less a B-29, even less a Silverplate.
Plus the need for ceiling/range/speed would have required pressurization and in the 1940s "pressurization" meant a cylindrical fuselage, which obviously the B-29 had but the B-19 didn't.
The Stannum Liberator
Airman 1st Class
I have seen this claim many times in the past, however I think the origin of it is actually in a speculative two page art from page 67, 68, and 69 of X-Planes No:16
DOUGLAS XB-19 AMERICA'S GIANT WORLD WAR II INTERCONTINENTAL BOMBER. In actuality as the others have stated there is no way simply from the technical limitations of the amazing aircraft, but also there were Never plans to put the XB-19 into production by the time the first was actually being built in 1938.
Still absolutely my favorite plane of all time though!
SaparotRob
Unter Gemeine Geschwader Murmeltier XIII
I'm assuming you meant "silver splatter". If so, I hate you for thinking that up first.
SaparotRob
Unter Gemeine Geschwader Murmeltier XIII
Second only to the 299 (et al) in gorgeousity
