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From: CMP.WERNER@UTEXAS-20.ARPA
Newsgroups: net.aviation
Subject: B-36 and the Flying Wing (nostalgia)
Message-ID: <12777@sri-arpa.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 24-Aug-84 09:28:30 EDT
Article-I.D.: sri-arpa.12777
Posted: Fri Aug 24 09:28:30 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 30-Aug-84 01:38:02 EDT
Lines: 41

From:  Werner Uhrig  <CMP.WERNER@UTEXAS-20.ARPA>

At the local 'junk-movie-station' they played a boring movie tonite

	STRATEGIC AIR COMMAND (1955)  James Stewart, June Allyson.
	A baseball player is forced to give up his career to serve
	active duty with the U.S. Air Force.

However, it had some remarkable footage of a plane I don't remember
ever seeing before.  The B-36 bomber, used by SAC in the post-war
years.  This weird contraption had 6 prop-engines, 3 mounted on
each wing in push-position, plus 4 jet-engines, a pair of each
mounted close to the wing-tip extending FORWARD (!!!).  The jets
seemed to have been used only during certain maneuvers, like to
generate sufficient take-off power - still looked like it wouldn't
make it to get off the ground.

Does anyone know if any such planes are still in existence, in a museum,
or even in flyable condition?  The plane looks like a Russian conspiracy
designed to wipe out the US Air Force in one accident after the other.

Does anyone know any stories, references to books, mag-articles?

In the movie, our hero was promoted to then fly the "new" B-49",
"a plane with wings so smooth that the mechanics had to wear special
soft-soled shoes to walk on them".

I can't recommend to watch the movie, the cold-war 'Schmaltz' is
gut-wrecking, but video-taping and selectively watching the flying
action is wonderful.

Let me plug another of my favorite programs here.  PBS in it's series
has some wonderful classics.  In particular be on the look-out on one
titled 'The Flying Wing' - a sad story of how a revolutionary design
with great potential was destroyed in the 'back-rooms'.  The flying in the
documentary makes you want to run to the airport and take off.
BTW, that one I caught on tape (if someone is REALLY curious ....)

	" There is still hope.  Humans may grow wings one day ..."

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