![]() Wing thickness was not large enough to house the gear and, in addition, the high position of the wing would have resulted in long, heavy landing-gear struts. Further, the shoulder position of the wing allowed adequate ground clearance for the engine nacelles.ĭesign of the landing gear posed a problem that led to a novel solution not seen before on a production airplane. Location of the wing near the top of the fuselage allowed the bomb load to be carried in the fuselage, beneath the wing and near the center of gravity, and to be released through doors in the bottom of the fuselage without interference from the structure of' the wing center section. All control surfaces were hydraulically boosted. Single-slotted flaps located at the trailing edge provided high lift for landing, and conventional ailerons were used for lateral control. The configuration of the aircraft is characterized by (1) a thin, high-aspect-ratio sweptback wing mounted in the shoulder position near the top of the fuselage, (2) six jet engines mounted in pods beneath the wing, and (3) an unusual bicycle-type landing gear.ĭesign of the wing featured an average thickness ratio of about 12 percent, an aspect ratio of 9.42, and a sweepback angle of 35°. A tail chute was used to slow down the aircraft during landings. With a maximum gross weight of about 204,000 pounds, it used rocket assist on takeoff. The crew consisted of a pilot, copilot, and bombardier. The B-47 was 107 feet long, 28 feet high at the tail, and had a wing span of 116 feet. Outrigger wheels added lateral stability and retracted into the two-engine pod cowling. The design incorporated a revolutionary bicycle-type, retractable main landing gear with single, two-wheel struts on the forward and aft fuselage. The wings were attached high on the fuselage and swept 35. The B-47 was the first pure jet strategic bomber whose many unique features included six jet engines a two-engine, pylon-mounted pod under each wing near the fuselage and a single-engine pod further outboard. The aircraft was used for various types of special operations, however, for at least another 10 years. As a key element in the Strategic Air Command, the B-47 served in operational squadrons until withdrawn from service in 1966. A total of 2041 of these aircraft were manufactured, more than any other United States bomber built under peacetime conditions. The Stratojet was far ahead of any contemporary bomber in its performance and operational capability. ![]() In concept, the Boeing B-47 was as revolutionary as the North American B-45 was conventional.
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