The Boeing B-47 Stratojet bomber first flew on 17 December 1947, It was America'sfirst swept-wing all jet bomber. Therewere over 2,000 B-47's produced, morethan any other Free World bomber sinceWWII. This B-47 Stratojet (Serial number50-0062) is a TB-47B, a training versionof the bomber aircraft. It was built by theBoeing Airplane Company at Wichita,Kansas and delivered to the US Air Forceon 7 February 1952.
This aircraft was first assigned to theStratgic Air Command's training wing atMcConnell Air Force Base, Kansas. InJanuary 1957, the aircraft was re-designedas a JTB-47B for the use as a flying testplatform. It was transferred to Eglin AirForce Base, Florida, where it remainedfor the rest of its service life. In April1967, the aircraft was dropped from the US Air Force inventory and wasallocated for museum use. The aircraft wastransported to The Mighty Eighth Air ForceHeritage Museum from Florence, S.C. in1998 and has since been refurbishedlargely by dedicated volunteers.
During the 1950s and early 1960s the B-47played a vital role as a mainstay of theUnited States nuclear deterrent forces. The B-47s and their crews stood on nuclearalert during the Cold War, prepared to strike the Soviet Union and its client stateswith only a few minutes warning. Stratojetseventually equipped twenty-eight ofStrategic Air Command's medium bombardmentwings and also flew vital strategic reconnaissance missions.
The swept-wing, multi-jet engine designof the Boeing B-47 Stratojet bomber provideda model for commercial jet airliners fromthe time of its introduction in the late1940s through the 1960s. Commercialaircraft such as the Boeing 707, the Boeing747 and the Douglas DC-8 owe theiraerodynamic profiles to this Cold Warbomber.
This particular aircraft is painted torepresent a B-47 assigned to the 303rdBomb Wing. It stands as a tribute to theWorld War II Eighth Air Force veteransof the 303rd Bomb Group stationed atMolesworth Base in England, whosegenerosity made the restoration of thisaircraft possible. The red triangle "C"depicted on the vertical fin did not appear on the original aircraft. This World War IIinsignia symbolizes the historic tiebetween World War II and post- World War II bomber units and aircraft.
TECHNICAL DATA
B-47 B
Length: 106.8 ft
Wing Span: 116 ft
Weight empty: 78,102 lbs
Crew: 3
Ceiling: 40,800 ft
Speed: 528 kn at 16,300 ft
Combat radius: 1704 mi
Combat weight: 122,650 lbs
Maximum bomb load: 25,000 lbs
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