The equipment represented the highest level of aviation industry at that time, but the service life of B-58 was not consistent with its development cost and performance. Strategic Air Command failed to keep this excellent bomber. This tragic phenomenon is mainly attributed to the use of many immature new technologies in the pursuit of supersonic flight, which leads to an alarming failure rate of aircraft. Of course, in addition to its own technicians, the service of ballistic missiles is also one of the reasons for the early retirement of aircraft.
origin
The development of the B-58 can be traced back to the end of World War II, that is, the year when the US Army Air Force broke away from the Army and became an independent US Air Force. 1947 In May, Major General Curtis Flamel, then director of the R&D Center of the General Staff of the Air Force (later commander of the Strategic Air Force Command), wrote to Lieutenant General Nathan F. Tweening, commander of the Air Force Equipment Command, asking the Equipment Department to start developing a medium-range jet bomber, and it is best that it can enter the first-line troops in the 1950s.
Li Mei's suggestion was adopted by the General Staff of the Air Force. The General Staff Department specially held a seminar to convene several American aviation giants to study the feasibility of developing a new aircraft. In the same year, in June+10, 5438, the Air Force held a tender meeting for medium-sized bombers with the design code XB-55. However, due to the shortage of funds, the development of XB-55 was cancelled in June 5438+June 0949+10/October 27. However, some senior air force officials have taken a very long-term view. They took a fancy to the unconventional bomber with delta wing layout commonly used by fighters. Moreover, they put forward a request that seemed almost absurd at that time: supersonic bomber, and the Air Force quickly put forward the GEBO I scheme. GEBO stands for General Bomber Research Program. In GEBO I, the Air Force only revealed one performance parameter: the maximum takeoff weight is about 68 tons. Conville Company has developed a series of delta-wing interceptors (such as XF-92), which makes them have strong strength in delta-wing aircraft, so they have been paid special attention by the Air Force, and began to develop supersonic bombers.
The positive effect of the cancellation of XB-55 is to alleviate the embarrassing situation of the shortage of air force funds. At this time, a number of officials jointly proposed to develop an intercontinental bomber more advanced than GEBO I, thus giving birth to the intercontinental bomber program code-named GEBO II. The technical requirements put forward in this plan are: the bomb payload is 5 tons, the operational radius is 2000-4000 kilometers, the operational ceiling is more than 10000 meters, and the take-off distance is less than 65000 meters.
1950 65438+ 10, after Conville participated in GEBO II, he proposed a parasitic scheme, that is, taking the B-36, the largest bomber at that time, as the mother machine and mounting a small delta wing bomber under its belly. The sub-aircraft has two members and is equipped with four turbojet engines. The fuselage is all made of composite materials. The empty weight of the sub-aircraft is about 8000 kg, and the launch weight is 45000 kg. Because of its fast flight speed and high ceiling, it should be difficult to be intercepted in combat. The Air Force was originally interested in this design, but the failure of GBR-36F and RF-84K made people have to be skeptical about this parasitic scheme. The cost of developing a sub-aircraft will be greater than that of developing a conventional bomber that can take off and land by itself, and because the B-36 and the sub-aircraft are assembled together, the volume will be extremely huge and it will be easily intercepted in the air.
In April of the same year, the GEBO II plan upgraded its objectives: the operational radius was 5600-7200 km, and the flight speed was 1.5 Mach. Four months later, Conville built a prototype delta wing bomber driven by five engines, three of which could fall off during the flight. The remarkable feature of this kind of aircraft is that a pod is installed under the belly. The pod is filled with fuel and nuclear bomb, and the engine is installed on the pod. The main engines of the aircraft are two semi-buried large turbojet engines. In combat, the B-36 will fly 3000 kilometers with it, and then the B-36 will return to the base, and the sub-aircraft will return at the speed of Mach 0.9 after completing the task.
At the same time, after the XB-55 was cancelled, Boeing began to develop a high-performance medium bomber, namely model 484-405B. In fact, compared with Conway's "bizarre" model, Boeing's design seems a bit conservative. The 484-405B model adopts a small aspect ratio upper wing with a sweepback angle of 47 degrees, and a bomb bay is transplanted on the B-47, using four Pu.
195165438+1On October 26th, the Air Force Equipment Command decided to develop these two types of aircraft at the same time, among which Conville Company was responsible for developing the long-range supersonic reconnaissance bomber, and the engineering development code was MX- 1626. On the same day, Conwell signed a contract with the military representative with the military code of AF33 (038)-2 126. In February of the same year, the design of Boeing Company was awarded the project of military code MX- 17 12, and the contract military code AF33(038)-2 1388. The prototype is tentatively scheduled to fly at the end of 1954.
In order to speed up the project progress, the Air Force indicated that it would award detailed development contracts for two projects in the middle of 1952, and then make a choice around February 1953. Soon, Conville released some design details of MX- 1626. 195 16438 In February, the Equipment Command ordered the modification of the MX- 1626 plan, and Conville cancelled the third engine of the original auxiliary engine. In order to achieve supersonic flight capability, the remaining two engines were changed into new engines with afterburner capability. The normal take-off weight of the aircraft is about 57 tons, and the crew has increased to three people, namely pilots, pilots and bombers and defense system operators.
1 952 February1,Conville's project code was changed to MX- 1964, while Boeing's project code was changed to MX- 1965. In June, Conville announced that the company had changed the engine layout of the new aircraft, that is, the engines were installed in the nacelle under the wing, and the number of engines was determined by the engine model.
1952 In the summer, the White Air Force Development Center announced that it would start selecting two projects ahead of schedule. General Huo Yite S. Vandenberg, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Air Force, is optimistic about Conwell's plan. 1952 On February 2nd, General Vandenberg officially announced that Conville's MX- 1964 plan won, and would give the American bomber the number B-55. The air force will purchase 244 B/RB-58s in the future.
1953, 12 In February, the Air Force paid for the development of the first phase of XB-58. On March 20th, the Air Force indicated that it could accept Conville's design scheme that the trailing edge of the wing was swept back at 60 degrees and swept forward at 10 degrees. Four J79 engines of ge were adopted, two of which were located under the wing and two were located on the upper surface of the wing. Three crew members were used, and the plane was equipped with a 30mm machine gun as a defensive weapon.
At this time, the wind tunnel tests conducted in NACA (National Aviation Advisory Committee, predecessor of NASA) and White Air Force Development Center made the US Air Force and Conwell decide to install four engines under the wing pod, similar to the B-47. The wind tunnel test shows that this layout can reduce the weight of the aircraft and facilitate engine maintenance.
1In August, 954, the final configuration of B-58 was selected. Four engines are installed in the nacelle of a single engine, and all the fuel is installed in the fuselage and nacelle. The auxiliary fuel tank is cancelled, and the tail area is increased to14.84m2.. The first batch of 30 aircraft will be manufactured for testing and evaluation, of which the first 18 will be used to equip Pratt & Whitney's J57 engine, and the rest 12 will use GE's J79-GE- 1 engine. In the Strategic Air Command, many people were dissatisfied with the B-58, and even pushed it out of the 5 1 bomber wing that was under construction. Many enthusiastic supporters of the B-58 also doubt whether the final configuration of the B-58 can meet the earliest operational requirements put forward by the Air Force, but at this time, the Air Force has paid 200 million US dollars for the B-58. No matter what the result, it is impossible not to produce B-58. 1In February 1955, the US Air Force signed a final production contract with Conwill, with the contract number AF33(600)-3284 1, and the US Army ordered 13 B-58 and 3 1 pods.
◇ fuselage structure and ejection seat
The fuselage of B-58 is semi-monocoque, with standard cabins, 1 to 5 cabins are unit cabins, and 6 to 19 cabins are fuel tanks. The fuel tank has two navigation system cabins (8 and 9), and there is a parachute and electronic equipment cabin behind the 19 cabin.
The crew includes a pilot, a navigator and a bomber, as well as a defense system operator, all of whom are sitting in the tandem cabin. Although these three cabins form a connected compression chamber, each cabin has an independent oxygen system. The pilot's windshield consists of six pieces of glass, and the pilot can observe the engine and part of the fuselage during the flight. The other two crew members were not so lucky, and only small windows were available for observation.
It is necessary to mention the special ejection seat used in the B-58. Originally, the plane used the ordinary ejection seat provided by the Strategic Air Force Command for fighters, but you should know that at the flight speed of Mach 2, the high-speed airflow at high altitude can easily turn the pilot into a meat pie, while at the altitude of 12000 meters, the atmospheric temperature is MINUS 55 degrees, and the pilot can't survive on this ordinary ejection seat.
Stanley Airlines, located in Denver, Colorado, provides a special ejection seat, that is, a capsule ejection seat, which adopts a new protection method similar to a foldable eggshell. The ejection seat of space capsule is equipped with a layer of "shell" on the ordinary ejection seat. Under normal flight conditions, the protective shell will be folded up, which will not hinder the pilot's operation. There is a special joystick under the pilot's knee. When ejecting, the actuating lever will automatically fold, forcing the pilot's thigh to fold and making the pilot curl up in the space capsule. In addition to some first-aid communication equipment, there is an oxygen tank in the seat and a valve above the seat for ventilation with the outside world when the seat lands.
When ejecting, after the pilot pulls down the ejection handle, the strap connected with the pilot's body will immediately fix the pilot's arm, and at the same time, the actuating lever will be put away. The pilot will immediately lift his knees and retract his thighs into the seat, and then the strap on the pilot's chest will hold the pilot, and then the original folded "eggshell" will be put down and sealed with the seat base. The oxygen cylinder at the bottom of the seat will start to supply oxygen and pressure, and these actions will be completed within 0.25 seconds. Then the ejection rocket ignites, the space capsule pops out of the cockpit, and then the parachute on the chair opens automatically. If it is unfortunate to land on the water, the airbag connected to the capsule will automatically inflate. Of course, if the seat is closed due to low cabin pressure or toxic gas leakage, the ejection rocket will not be ignited, because the pilot's seat shell has an observation window, and the pilot can control the aircraft through some simple operations through the joystick in the seat.
◇ Engine and fuel system
J79 is an axial flow engine with 17 compressor and three-stage turbine. By changing the nozzle area to control the thrust and fuel consumption rate, this way can also protect the engine and prevent it from overheating. The engine inlet is a compound shock wave type with an adjusting cone, and the front end of the inlet can automatically control the size of the pod inlet according to the engine working conditions, thus controlling the air flow.
The fuel system of B-58 is quite complicated. JP-4 aviation kerosene is stored in four integrated fuel tanks and pods in the belly, in which the fuselage can always store 465,438+072 gallons of fuel (65,438+0 gallons and 4.546 liters) and the pod can store 3,885 gallons of fuel. At the front of the wing, cabins 5 and 6 of the fuselage form the front main fuel tank, which can carry 3,202 gallons of JP-4 kerosene; at the rear of the wing, cabins 9 and 12 form the rear main fuel tank, which can carry 5,893 gallons of fuel; and cabins 6 to 8 in the middle of the fuselage form the third main fuel tank, which can carry 10 gallon of fuel. 12 and 19 fuel tanks constitute the fourth main fuel tank, which can carry 12 19 gallons of fuel. The fourth main fuel tank is a balance fuel tank, and the front and rear main fuel tanks realize fuselage balance by delivering fuel to this fuel tank.
In order to extend the voyage, the B-58 is also equipped with an aerial refueling system. The oil receiving port is located in front of the pilot's windshield1.125m. At the same time, there is an emergency oil drain near the left wing for releasing fuel in an emergency.
◇ Wing, control system and landing gear
B-58 adopts cantilever mid-wing, tailless triangle layout and swept back trapezoidal vertical tail. The wing has a honeycomb structure, which is made of aluminum alloy, glass fiber and adhesive. The honeycomb sandwich structure of B-58 accounts for 85% of the total surface area, which is 30% lighter than the riveted structure. The wing skin is made of aluminum alloy and the fuselage skin is made of composite materials, mainly graphite epoxy resin. In order to improve security,
The wing honeycomb structure of B-58 has played a great role in increasing the fuel quantity of B-58. Honeycomb structures are interconnected and fuel can flow between wings. However, there is a valve between the left and right wing fuel tanks to prevent the fuel from one wing fuel tank from flowing to the other during heavy overload maneuver, which will change the center of gravity of the aircraft. The plexiglass fiber under the surface of the wing skin is used to isolate the heat generated by the fierce friction between the wing skin and the air.
The swept trapezoidal vertical tail, truss structure and reinforcing ribs form an inner frame, the aluminum alloy skin rudder is connected with the vertical tail through the hinge point of 1 1, and the wing aileron is made of stainless steel and connected with the fuselage through copper alloy. The control surface of B-58 is rudder and two ailerons. The continuous overload protection device on the aircraft can prevent the aircraft from being overloaded due to improper pilot control in automatic flight mode. The flight control system of aircraft includes automatic deployment system, which has three working modes: take-off and landing, manual operation and automatic flight state. The automatic deployment system will lock the aileron at a certain angle in each working state.
The main landing gear of this aircraft is an 8-wheeled trolley structure with four wheels on the front and rear axles. In order to solve the problem that B-58 is prone to puncture when landing, Conville added a steel sheath between each pair of wheels to transfer heat in time, and it can also be used as an emergency tire in case of puncture. The main landing gear is connected with the fuselage through a large support frame and a U-shaped connector. Put the main landing gear away and put it into the wing skin. The landing gear retracting mechanism of this aircraft is quite complicated. When retracting the landing gear, the whole landing gear must be folded at the U-joint first, and then retracted into the landing gear compartment. However, this set of responsible equipment has never had any accidents during the take-off and landing phases.
The nose landing gear is a two-wheel structure. Because the pod is very close to the nose landing gear, the nose landing gear is also quite complicated, and it takes 10 second to retract and retract the landing gear. The deceleration parachute of B-58 is located in front of the tail gun cabin, with a diameter of 8.5 meters.
Defense system and electronic equipment
The tail gun of B-58 is a 20 mm barrel gun of T- 17 1E-3 6 of General Electric Company, with a maximum firing rate of 4000 rounds per minute. It is equipped with Emerson MD-7 radar to search for incoming enemy planes. MD-7 works in Ku band, and the radar will directly transmit the data to the computer behind the tail gun. The computer will choose whether to shoot automatically by collecting more data.
Airborne electronic equipment provides early warning and interference functions. B-58 is equipped with An /ALR- 12 radar warning receiver and Al /ALQ- 16 jamming generator, which can detect the parameters of the enemy radar signal from the received enemy radar signal and then transmit the false angle and distance information with the same parameters. The fairing of each main landing gear is equipped with AN/ALE- 16. B-58 is equipped with Ku-band search radar produced by Raytheon, and its working frequency is 16- 17GHZ.
The bombing system on board is mainly the An /ASQ-42 system of sperry Company, which consists of six subsystems, namely, An /APN- 1 13 Doppler radar located in the rear fuselage is used to measure the flight speed of the B-58 relative to the ground and the speed of the air outside the aircraft; The KS-39 astronomical observatory and long-range radio compass of Rothman Machinery Company located at the nose are used to determine the position of the aircraft; The navigation subsystem in the middle of the fuselage constantly tests the flight altitude and latitude and longitude position of the aircraft; The nose search radar and high-precision radio altimeter are used to measure the distance between the plane and the navigation point and indicate the signal generator that can drop the bomb; The fault detection system is used to detect the fault of the main navigation system and provide backup navigation signals when the fault occurs.
The main navigation system is mainly provided by Bendiks and Motorola, and its main components are Doppler radar and inertial navigation system. At the same time, the B-58 is also equipped with a voice early warning function, which can warn the pilot at the first time from engine fire to hydraulic system failure.
Pod cabin
The pod of B-58 is MB- 1C, which is a streamlined pod. It is welded by two auxiliary fuel tanks and equipped with a free-falling nuclear bomb with adjustable explosion equivalent. The pod is 22.86m long, with a maximum diameter of 1.5m and an empty weight of 1 134kg. It is fully loaded with fuel and standard W39Y655. The pod cabin is divided into multiple layers, in which the upper and lower parts are fuel cabins, the upper part of the middle part is bomb cabin, and the lower part is equipment cabin. There are four little wings at the tail of the pod, which are used to keep rolling stability during the free landing of the pod. The nuclear bomb in the cabin is detonated by a pressure fuse located in the cabin. Before dropping, the mission commander will set the explosion height of the nuclear bomb according to the mission instructions, and then the airborne air data computer will immediately convert the height into the air pressure in the target area. When dropping the pod, the fuel in the pod will automatically pour out.
The B-58 aircraft is equipped with AN/ASH- 15 bomb damage assessment system. After the pod is released, the system will continuously provide the coordinate data of the pod to the aircraft, and the storage system on the aircraft will store these data. When a nuclear bomb explodes, the light sensor on the ship will record the instantaneous light intensity generated by the explosion, and then calculate the explosion intensity, lethality and other data according to the final coordinate position of the pod.
However, MB- 1C did not serve in the US Army for a long time. Later, a new pod TCP was developed, which has the same shape as the original MB- 1C, but adopts the structure of two pods. The upper layer is the BLU 2/B- 1 bomb pod, with a total length of10.5m and a maximum diameter of 65,438. One of them is folded when it is connected to the lower floor. The bomb bay weighs 5430 kilograms. The lower floor is BLU 2/B-2 fuel tank, which is divided into two fuel tanks, with an empty weight of 860 kg and a full oil weight of 1 1800 kg. The upper pod cabin is half trapped in the lower fuel cabin, and the upper and lower floors are independently connected with the fuselage. After the separation of fuel tank and fuselage, although TCP is more advanced than MB- 1C, MB- 1C is still used for special missions because of its larger bomb bay.
Of course, the B-58 can also mount four MK.43 nuclear bombs on the hanging point between the fuselage and the main landing gear. MK.43 nuclear bomb weighs 1 ton, is more than 3.6 meters long, and has an explosion equivalent of 654.38+0 million tons.
MA- 1C pod was also developed by the us military in the later period. MA- 1C is an improved version of MB- 1C, and the LR8 1-BA- 1 liquid rocket engine of Bell Airlines is installed. The rocket engine is a mixture of JP-4 and atomized nitric acid, and the maximum range of the pod is 250km. The maximum flying height of pod is 30,000m and the maximum flying speed is Mach 4, but later MA- 1C was cancelled for technical reasons.
test-fly
1In July, 956, the first B-58A began to be assembled in the workshop of Conville Company. At this time, the nickname "thief" began to spread, but the nickname "thief" began to spread in the Air Force and Conway Company as early as 1952, so that the US Air Force later turned it into the official code name of the aircraft. Conville also stipulates that the monthly flying time of the B-58 should not exceed 40 hours in peacetime, and it can reach 105 hours in wartime.
The first YB/RB-58 being assembled is numbered 55-0660. It didn't go offline until the end of August. On September 4th, the same year, he slowly drove out of the gate of Conville factory under the traction of a trailer. At this time, there are many equipments in the machine, most of which are experimental equipments. Looking at this avant-garde bomber, many people present could not help feeling that the last bomber was born.
10 10 month 1 day, the first engine ignition test of this B-58 was carried out. On the 29th, 28 days later, the first ground taxi test was successfully conducted.
1956165438+1October 1 1, the exciting moment has arrived. There are many people outside Kaswell Air Force Base in Texas. On the runway of the base, the B-58 numbered 55-0660 dragged a long tail flame and roared out of the runway under the gaze of thousands of pairs of eyes. Please remember these three meritorious pilots, pilot B.A. Eriksson, system expert john D mcpherson, and flight test engineer Charles P. Harrison. For safety reasons, the plane didn't carry a pod. This test flight easily reached Mach 0.9. In the test flight of 65438+February 30th, the maximum flight speed of the aircraft reached Mach 65438 +0. 17, and the supersonic speed was successfully achieved.
Then began a test flight, the total test flight time lasted nearly 3000 flight hours. 1957 February 16, YB-58 and MB- 1 pods with numbers of 55-066 1 made their first flight. On June 29th, the first prototype carried an aerial MB- 1 for a test flight of more than Mach 2. At the altitude of 132 13m, the maximum flight speed reaches Mach 2.03. Then, the B-58 family set a new record for the descending speed and height of the pod again and again. On February 20th195718000m, a YB-58 successfully launched a pod at Mach 2.0, which met the design requirements.
Although the B-58 has set new world records again and again, the problem has also appeared like a volcanic eruption. First, when the aircraft accelerates or decelerates, the fuel in the fuel tank sloshes and splashes, causing the aircraft to fly unsteadily in the air; The unstable operation of the afterburner causes the aircraft to yaw at supersonic speed; Aircraft fatigue cracks caused by engine vibration and pilots' extreme fatigue in flight … all these have affected the subsequent test flight. Although it is normal for the new aircraft to have problems in the test flight, the problems of the B-58 seem to emerge one after another, which makes it "fortunate" to be the most disappointing aircraft in the history of human aviation.
In order to test the fatigue crack of the fuselage,1in March, 957, a B-58 fuselage without an engine was hung on the belly of the fuselage by a B-36F and sent to the structural testing laboratory of White Development Center at White Patterson Air Force Base. Engineers from Conville Company racked their brains to come up with this method. In order to mount the B-58, the B-36F had to sacrifice its internal propeller. The KGB of the former Soviet Union also reported back to the headquarters that the United States is carrying out a super bomber plan, which will be launched in the air by B-36. In addition to the KGB being cheated, after some photos taken at the airport were made public, many grass-roots officials of the US military thought that this was a new project for the Air Force to launch B-58 with B-36.
1957, the first YJ79-GE-5 engine was delivered to Conville company. The second-class test flight began in March 1959. Two YB-58A aircraft carried out 256 sorties at Edwards Air Force Base in California and Fort Worth proving ground in Conville, and the flight hours were 12 16. In the three years from 65438+B-58 to 1960, Conville lost seven B-58s.
After the second phase of the test flight, the Air Force announced on June 1 1 65439 that the US Air Force would purchase 290 B-58s, including 30 production and experimental ones, and the US Air Force would set up five B-58s bomber wings for this purpose. According to the time estimate, it will be 1960 160.
Serve.
The first officially produced B-58 (productionNo. 59-2428, No.3 1 B-58) left the production line in Conville in the spring of 1959, but there are still many problems in the test flight of the B-58. In July of the same year 14, the funding problem forced the Strategic Air Force to reduce the order quantity of B-58s to 65,438. The Pentagon is very dissatisfied with the progress of the B-58, because many performances of the B-58 have not met the original design requirements, and the maintenance and engine problems have not been well solved. According to optimistic estimates, the US military will pay more than $3 billion for the ordered 1 18 B-58s in the fiscal year of 196 1. That is to say, the most optimistic estimate is that the price of each B-58s has exceeded the gold value with the same weight as its fuselage.
The accident rates of 1959 and 1960 are so high that the Strategic Air Command refused to accept the aircraft, and although the B-58 had already left the factory, due to a series of reasons, such as insufficient funds, competition from other weapon systems and B-58' s own technology, it was delayed to deliver the aircraft to the combat troops. SAC originally planned to equip B-58 combat troops in June 1960, but in view of the current situation of this aircraft, I am afraid that the first B-58 bomber company will not be formed until the beginning of 196 1.
Then the site selection of the B-58 bomber wing officially began. After comparison, the Kaswell base and Bunker Hill base were chosen as the first two B-58 wings because of their maintenance sheds. After many discussions and comparisons, the third base was finally chosen as the Littlelock base in Arkansas. When these bases were expanded and renovated, KC- 135 tankers belonging to these bases began to be ordered.
1960 June 5438+1October, the US Air Force officially announced the 43rd bomber wing, which is the first bomber wing equipped with a B-58, and has jurisdiction over 63 bomber squadrons, 64 bomber squadrons and 65 bomber squadrons. The United team was temporarily stationed at Davis-Mohsen base, and two months later, it was officially transferred to caswell base. On August 1 day of the same year, the US Air Force officially announced that the B-58 was listed in the Air Force. Shortly after the announcement of the order, the B-58 numbered 59-2436 landed at the Caswell base in the summer sunshine and was officially delivered to the 43rd bomber wing.
The second wing equipped with B-58 is the 305th bomber wing, which is based at Bunker Hill Air Force Base and has 364 bomber squadrons, 365 bomber squadrons and 366 bomber squadrons. 196 1 year 1 year officially announced the serial number. In May of the same year 1 1, the first B-58A landed on the runway of Bunkhill base, and the 305th Wing announced its service in August of the following year.
The 43rd bomber wing, which was troubled by the technical problems of the B-58, was declared on combat readiness duty on 1962 after a long period of grounding and renovation.
However, just as the B-58 kept breaking the world record, SAC was told that the order quantity of the B-58 would be reduced, and the 30 B-58s originally ordered in the fiscal year of 1962 would be cancelled, and the resulting bomber vacancy would be filled by the delayed retirement of the B-47. There is a simple reason. B-58 is too expensive. The stand-alone price has risen to140,000 USD, which is three times that of B-52G. Moreover, the US military has started the B-70 project. The B-70 with more advanced performance and more reasonable price is the next generation bomber of the US military, and the B-58 will compete with the B-70 for limited funds.
The service time of B-58 is quite short, ranging from 1965 to 12. Robert McNamara, then US Secretary of Defense, announced that the B-58 had been put into active service in the US military. He believes that the high-altitude and high-speed performance of the B-58 can no longer effectively tear open the strict air defense network of the former Soviet Union. Immediately, the subsequent model FB- 1 1 1A of the aircraft went online. FB- 1 1 1A, the improvement of militia ballistic missiles and Polaris submarine-launched ballistic missiles, and the continuous upgrading of B-52 bombers were enough to meet the strategic bombing needs of the US Air Force at that time, and the expensive B-58 was about to retire. As for the Strategic Air Command, although the high fuel consumption rate of the B-58 leads to a very limited flight range, the B-58 made with such great efforts is impeccable in other performances. Therefore, SAC strongly urges the Ministry of National Defense to keep B-58 at least until 1974. But the decision of the US Department of Defense is hard to shake-1965.
Of course, the U.S. Department of Defense has unspeakable difficulties in retiring the B-58 early. Compared with B-52, B-58 not only has amazing development and manufacturing costs, but also has considerable operating costs. If a B-58 includes unit equipment and ground equipment, the total value can reach $33.5 million, while the B-52 only needs $9 million and the B-47 only needs $3 million to maintain two.
What's even more troublesome for the Pentagon is that Conway always makes 1 16 B-58s, of which 26 crashed. Of course, many of them are caused by the carelessness of some crew members, but in any case, in the impression of the top management of the US Air Force and Strategic Air Command, the B-58 is a good-looking but unreliable bomber, and replacement is inevitable.
1969 10 year1On October 27th, US Secretary of Defense Laird announced the closure of several air bases, including Bunker Hill Base. The closure of these bases also means the complete dissolution of the B-58 United originally stationed here.
The first B-58 that was sent to Davis Air Force Base, known as the airplane graveyard, was 59-2446, and the time was1969165438+1October 5. Then the transfer speed of B-58 gradually accelerated, and the 305 bomber wing1970 65438+1October 5.
By the end of 1970 1, B-58A and TB-58A were all transferred to the Davis base for storage except some of them were collected by the museum. After decades of wind and rain, more than 80 B-58s were all dismantled, and a generation of famous aircraft immediately entered the historical stage.
B-58b attack
Because of some shortcomings of the B-58A, Conwell suggested to the US Air Force to develop an improved model, namely the B-58B, which will be equipped with four GE J79-GE-9 engines, and the fuselage of the B-58B will be lengthened. In order to improve the maneuverability, the aircraft will also extend the flap system on the inner wing.
The biggest improvement of the B-58B is that it can use more types of weapons, and the belly pod of the B-58B will be bigger. In addition to being able to carry more fuel, the pod can of course carry conventional weapons. Moreover, Conwell also claimed that the newly developed large-scale air-launched missiles will also be equipped with B-58B. Once, an a 55-0668B-58A was converted into a B-58B, but it was later abandoned.
In addition to the B-58B, Conwell also demonstrated that the B-58C and the C-type company code B-J/58 have completely improved the A-type, with the fuselage lengthened 1.5m, the brand-new flap system and tail wing, and the brand-new Pratt & Whitney J58 engine. However, the US military believes that the aircraft is too dependent on the old technology, and Aberdeen R&D Center also pointed out that the aircraft was provided by Conville. 196 1, the new Kennedy administration finally decided to cut the project.
Of course, there are thieves D and E in Conville's plan, but these are internal figures of the company, and the US Air Force has not paid attention to this.