Convair B-36J-III Peacemaker w T-12 Cloudmaker by Uncle T

2,932 bricks

My take on the Convair B-36J-III Strategic bomber. This version with two T-12 Cloudmaker bombs.

It's an approximation, not a 1:1 replica.

Info from Wikipedia (somewhat edited).

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The Convair B-36 "Peacemaker" was a strategic bomber that was built by Convair and operated by the United States Air Force from 1949 to 1959. The B-36 is the largest mass-produced piston-engined aircraft ever built. It had the longest wingspan of any combat aircraft ever built, at 230 ft (70 m). The B-36 was the first bomber capable of delivering any of the nuclear weapons in the U.S. arsenal from an internal bomb bay without aircraft modifications. With a range of 10,000 mi (16,000 km) and a maximum payload of 87,200 lb (39,600 kg), the B-36 was capable of intercontinental flight without refuelling.

Entering service in 1948, the B-36 was the primary nuclear weapons delivery vehicle of Strategic Air Command (SAC) until it was replaced by the jet-powered Boeing B-52 Stratofortress beginning in 1955. All but four aircraft have been scrapped.

The propulsion system of the B-36 was unique, with six 28-cylinder Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major radial engines mounted in an unusual pusher configuration, rather than the conventional four-engine, tractor propeller layout of other heavy bombers.

Beginning with the B-36D, Convair added a pair of General Electric J47-19 jet engines suspended near the end of each wing; these were also retrofitted to all existing B-36Bs. Consequently, the B-36 was configured to have 10 engines: six radial propeller engines and four jet engines, leading to the B-36 slogan of "six turnin' and four burnin' ". The B-36 had more engines than any other mass-produced aircraft. The jet pods greatly improved takeoff performance and dash speed over the target. In normal cruising flight, the jet engines were shut down to conserve fuel.

The B-36 had anywhere from 22 crew to 9 crew depending on configuration, and this B-36J-III has a crew of 9: commander, pilot, two flight engineers, bomber, radar operator, navigator, radio operator, and tail gunner. The pressurized flight deck and crew compartment were linked to the rear compartment by pressurized tunnels through the bomb bay. In the B-36, movement through the tunnel was on a wheeled trolley, pulling on a rope. The rear compartment in earlier models featured six bunks and a dining galley and led to the tail turret, but these amenities were stripped from this late model J-III. I however kept two bunks just for fun.

The Convair B-36 was the only aircraft designed to carry the T-12 Cloudmaker, a gravity bomb weighing 43,600 lb (19,800 kg) and designed to produce an earthquake bomb effect.

The defensive armament originally consisted of six remote-controlled retractable gun turrets, and fixed tail and nose turrets. Each turret was fitted with two 20 mm cannon, for a total of 16. Gun turrets on bombers were already considered obsolete while the B-36 came into production, and the rapid development of Air-to-Air missiles became the final nail in the coffin.

In February 1954, the USAF awarded Convair a contract for a new "Featherweight" design program, which significantly reduced weight and crew size. The three configurations were:

Featherweight I removed defensive hardware, including the six gun turrets. Featherweight II removed the rear compartment crew comfort features, and all hardware accommodating the McDonnell XF-85 Goblin parasite fighter. Featherweight III incorporated both configurations I and II. This is the stripped down version I have built, with only the remote controlled, radar guided rear gun turret remaining. Since the "automatic cannons" in the game are far to big to fit I have used 2 x 4 machine guns. Once 1.6 is released I may upgrade them to explosive rounds.

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Alt controls to fly.

Commander's seat, front top left W/S: Variable throttle. S: Ground brakes. A/D: Ground steering/Yaw. Up/Down arrows: Pitch. Left/Right arrows: Roll. As always a bit sluggish as with all planes with big wig spans. X/Disable steering: Landing gear. Hold X/Invert steering: Bomb bay doors. B/Beacon: Booster jets. L/Headlights: Position lights K/Hazard Lights: Landing lights. Fire action 1/Num 1: Fore T-12 bomb. Fire action 2/Num 2: Aft T-12 bomb.

Radio operator's seat Fire action 1/Num 1: Emergency telegraph.

Rear gunner's station Alt + Arrow keys / Mouse: Control gun. Fire action 1/Num 1: Fire.

Bomber's sight and rear gun sight cameras are only visible from their respective seats.

Trolleys used for travelling between the two pressurised compartments Up/Down arrows: Move forwards/backwards. Careful not to drive out of the hatch.

Feel free to edit, but if you reupload publically in any way please acknowledge the original creation and creator.

Have fun!