Six Turning Four Burning - Convair B-36 "Peacemaker" (HD)
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- Опубликовано: 2 ноя 2016
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The Convair B-36 "Peacemaker" was a strategic bomber built by Convair and operated solely by the United States Air Force (USAF) from 1949 to 1959. The B-36 was the largest mass-produced piston engine aircraft ever made. It had the longest wingspan of any combat aircraft ever built, at 230 ft (70.1 m). The B-36 was the first bomber capable of delivering any of the nuclear weapons in the U.S. arsenal from inside its four bomb bays 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 the world's first manned bomber capable of intercontinental flight without refueling.
Entering service in 1948, the B-36 was the primary nuclear weapons delivery vehicle of the Strategic Air Command (SAC) until it was replaced by the jet-powered Boeing B-52 Stratofortress from 1955. All but five examples were scrapped in the 1950's.
The B-36 set the standard for range and payload for subsequent U.S. intercontinental bombers.
This clip is from the Paramount Movie (1955) "Strategic Air Command" starring Jimmy Stewart and June Allyson.
This movie and a ww2 classic called 12 O'clock HIgh plus the countless aircraft models I bilt as an early teen in the early 1950s are what fueled my dream of flying in the USAF. I talked my mom to take my younger bro to an airshow inDayton Ohio in the early 1950s and in the flyby there was one of these monsters. It flew low and the whole ground shook.Late 50s I was a very young 2nd LT newly arrived at Westover AFB in Mass.assigned to B 52s as a navigator. One day a rumor passed thru the whole base that a flt of B36s was scheduled to land early that eve, refuel and leave for parts unknown. Every non working person on the base tore ass to get to the flight line to watch them land.We could hear themfrom miles away.I thought my assigned B 52 was giant but those things were monsters.When the news when they were to leave circulated the flt line was jammed with troops waving an cheering those things off the runway.Gen'l Stewart was a hero to me, and whenever this movie was somewhere being shown I saw it.I flew in B52s for 12 years, a fantastic machine and the men I flew with were giants
You weren't any slouch yourself, Rick. Nav on a Buff is nothing to sneeze at. Back in 69, I was with the 3902nd at Offutt doing the war plan software (computer programs) that generated the flight plans you guys pulled out of the safes on your aircraft when/if you got the order to go to war! Remember: A suck for SAC is a blow for peace, bro!
First, thank you for your service! Second, I could listen to you tell stories for hours. I've been a military aviation fan since I was a kid but life took me in a different direction. So, folks like you are my heroes.
Took my kids to an airshow some years back, when they were really little. There were a B-17G and a B-24 there; six hundred clams got you a ride aboard one of 'em. We happened to walk past one of the monsters as the pilot was throttling up to taxi. Propwash blew the girls right off their feet into the grass. They thought it was awesome. :) Also got buzzed by a B-2 as we were leaving the airport.
Rick, it's because of people like you who truly love aviation that the Air Force is what it is today!
The B-36 was not a world war 2 aircraft, it went into service in August of 1946.. WW2 ended in September 1945.
This is literally the best looking movie ive seen and its from 1955 . I wish more plane movies from ww2 and later are made that have similar quality as this
USAF B-36 motto: _"Six turning and four burning."_
B-36 aircrews' unanimous motto: _"Two turning, two burning, two joking, two smoking, and two unaccounted for."_
Hahaha sounds like the cav 😂👍
The R4360 was a rather over complicated engine.
The antonov cargo carrier 225, someone wrote a funny joke in there about 6 burning and 2 turning. The 2 turning were the fans above the 2 pilots lol
My dad was a mechanic at Davis Mounthan AFB during the late fifties and he would take off the sensitive equipment from these beauties. Of course we were allowed to go with him on base and we got to play in the massive bomb bays and on the wings. Good times.
Funny thing is, though it did have some issues, the Peacemaker was actually one of the safest bombers of that era. The B-47 Stratojet (also featured in this film) by comparison was deadly. It had like 20 fatal crashes. Fortunately, the much safer B-52 came along a few years later.
The B-36 always gives me chills. What an incredible aircraft....
Magnesium Overcast
All that magnesium came from Gulf of Mexico sea water. Dow chemical invented the process of extracting magnesium from sea water. The mag cells of the Freeport Texas plant.
Jimmy Stewart, as a USAF pilot, was actually a qualified B-36 Pilot. His time in the Air Force and Air Force Reserve also saw him qualifying as a pilot on the B-17, B-24, B-47, and Boeing B-52 Stratofortress. Not many know that he even flew a mission, in the AF Reserve, on a B-52 in Vietnam during Operation Arc Light.
At the start of WW-II my Dad was an aviation engineer and test pilor for Convair Aviation in San Diego, California (manufacturer of the aircraft shown in this clip). The US Army Air Corps picked Dad up as a flight instructor for the B-25, B-26 and later-on the B-29. In 1944 the USAAC plugged him into the left-seat of a B-29 and sent him to the South Pacific. After the close-of WW-II, my family (Mom, Dad and Sister) relocated from Dallas, Texas to Burbank, California where my Dad went to work for a guy named Kelly Johnson at Lockheed Aircraft Company (Skunk Works). In 1951 this new fangled arrangement called the United States Air Force Strategic Air command called my Dad back from Lockheed and trained him on this new Boeing Bomber called the Stratojet (B-47). When this movie came out around 1956, our neighbors at Ramstein Air Base encouraged my parents to go and see the movie. Mom reported that my Dad said: "no thanks - I'm living that movie". As an addendum, My Dad LOVED ( as in, would marry it if he could) the B-47.
So glad I found this....My dad was a mechanic on the B36....first video I've ever seen of one....I really appreciate the detailed shots....wish dad was still here to share it with him...
At the age of about 7 to 9 in about 1955-57, here in New Orleans, I saw one of these beasts pass over the city at moderately high altitude. It's altitude was such that I could make out that it was a B-36, rumbleng through the sky. Back in those days, all of the young boys built model airplanes & tanks. The B-36 was one of my models. Seems like about the day before yesterday. Richard :)
The B-36 had to be that large. In addition to carrying enough fuel to fly nearly once around the equator nonstop, it was designed to carry the first aircraft deliverable hydrogen bomb, the 10 megaton Mark 17. That hot potato was literally the size and weight of a fully loaded Greyhound bus. It was just shy of 25 feet (8m) long and weighed in at a frame bending 21 tons (19.1 Mt). As large as it was, when the bomb was dropped, the plane shot up several hundred feet in just a couple of seconds. Incidentally, the Mark 17 holds the twin distinction of being not only the first deliverable thermonuclear bomb, but the first one dropped on an American city. Just before lunchtime on Wednesday, May 22nd, 1957, a B-36 on approach to Kirtland AFB near Albuquerque accidentally dropped a Mark 17 right through the closed bomb bay doors and into a vacant field near the base perimeter. There was no nuclear detonation, but the weapon's chemical high explosives detonated on impact, gouging out a plutonium contaminated crater and killing a cow grazing nearby.
Holy Cow! That incident could have resulted in a Global catastrophe! Imagine the devastating impact that there might have been on the world’s climate, if that cow had farted in fright when the bomb landed nearby..... 😉 ✌️😎
Actually, it was designed to drop conventional bombs in Europe if Great Britain fell to the Germans, meaning a trip over the Atlantic, drop, and fly back across without refueling. Fortunately that was not needed, and if not for the development of nuclear weapons it might have been scrapped altogether.
@@rnreajr9184 There's a very interesting 'Alternate History' novel called 'The Big One' which postulates that the UK accepted Germany's terms and took no further part in the war after 1940. As a result, US technology is driven far quicker and the B36 used to end the war in 1947 by dropping 200 Mk3 30kt weapons on German cities (12 on Berlin alone).
@@NannyWhip An interesting scenario, and not that far fetched if Churchill hadn't become PM. It was mainly through his force of will that Britain stayed in the fight in those dark days of 1940 - 41. The US had to prepare for the possibility of not having England available for bomber basing, and the B-36 was the answer.
@@rnreajr9184
When the B36 was designed in 1941 it was thought that the United States might be alone to fight both Germany and Japan. Was designed to unload 10k lbs on Tokyo too.
Really amazing footage. If only Hollywood had kept this standard.
As an aviation buff and visitor to the USAF museum, you can imagine my surprise when I saw this movie appear on television in high def! Always wondered what these Cold War Titans looked like in flight. The footage could not be better!
Hard to when they got to cheat with real aircraft back then.
The air to air was done by Paul Mantz
@@SaturnCanuck I "know" Mantz from "It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World" and "Flight of the Phoenix", but did he fly a jet in "SAC"?
@@hlcepeda Paul Mantz didn't fly any jets for SAC, but the air to air shots you're seeing here were taken from a civil registered B-25 outfitted as a camera plane.
My grandmother helped build that plane and she was very proud of it.
Nice! My grandfather was a navigator during the early years of his career.
Thank you. We are proud of her as a Wonderful Citizen.
My grandma raised 14 children without pride but with love. Eight of her children died in WW2. None of our people were proud of the so called "WW2 achievements" for all those gear was built to kill people. This stuff was and still is, built to lose! Not to win as you think.
Thanks for her service this aircraft is indeed beautiful piece of engineering
Very proud indeed. My grandfather was on the original design team for the SR-71 Blackbird. He talks about it all the time. Has pictures of it on the wall, him in a few of them with the prototype
Я искренне восхищён работой инженеров, которые рассчитывали этот самолёт, используя только арифмометры и логарифмические линейки, без всяких ЭВМ
This bomber was amazing. Its top speed and service ceiling were roughly equal to our best WW2 fighter, the P-51 Mustang. Its rate of climb was more than twice that of WW2 bombers also.
Best takeoff scene in a movie EVER. Amazing camera work from the B-25 flying right alongside the B-36 down the runway, too!
Willysmb44 : Totally agree with your comment. Instead of the usual crackhead music- acoustical manure- audio overlay- we actually get to hear and feel those thundering radials. I jacked the sound and enjoyed the ride!! If you have not seen or heard the following with some serious audio, it may be your kind of candy-"Aircraft Carrier Flight Deck.Controlled Chaos" and "The Right Stuff: NF-104" But I believe the B-36 here takes the prize, audio and video.
Jimmy Stewart piloted over 30 bombing missions during the war.. 20 of them in B-24 Liberators, one of which barely made it back to the base with its belly blown up, and 11 more missions in B-17s.
This movie was really his idea. And the USAF, being a relatively new service, was all too willing to provide any necessary assistance. The movie was filmed at Carswell AFB, Fort Worth TX
My great Grandpa actually flew with him in the war
I thought that was Carswell.
One day, when I was a young boy, back in the 1950's. My friends and I were playing baseball at a park near our homes, when I heard a very strange loud sound coming toward us. I couldn't see it at first because of the trees around the park. But then, over the trees came a very low flying B-36 that few right over us. It was loud and an awesome sight. Boy, I said to myself, some day I'm going to fly one of those planes. Well, things didn't work out for me that way. Due to events that were beyond my control, I couldn't even get to service my country like my dad did. But, I will never forget that time of a day long gone and the promise that I wish I could have kept.
Thanks for posting.
JN
Joe Nicks mm
What a great memory.
I was 6 yrs old in 1950.Our house was .5 miles from the end of the runway at what was then Brookley Airforce base.The first time I saw one land I could hear it coming from a long way away. it was awesome.
used to live down range of Cleveland/Hopkins AP....i hard the the biggest roaring beast coming in for a landing(mind you i had seen airforce 1 and many other biggies fly over before), this thing was so big it looked like it was going 30mph, it was about 500ft above my house......Antonov 225 coming to pick up a ball bearing shipment.
I grew up in Shreveport, LA, very near Barksdale AFB, and the B-36s used to fly very low over our house - they weren't based there (Carswell AFB was home), but they flew over all the time. To a 6-8 year old kid, those wings looked like they stretched from horizon to horizon. When the B-52s flew over, they were impressive, but not like the 36s...
Extremely expensive all that fuel and taking the horn section everywhere.
And a string section plenty of room for a big band as well
LOL
Listen buddy, this was the 50s - everybody smoked, men wore hats, and all war machines were as large and shiny as possible. Like the Fallout universe before the bomb dropped.
actually fuel usage was on a budget, this is why they didnt use a full jet aircraft since 50s jets werent efficient, as soon as that budget rose they immediately opted for the jets and build the 52s instad
AKA fuel drinkers
All designed with slide rules! Works of art!
All done before people started carrying around their brain in their hand, the so called "smart" phone.
Smart phones are now needed to compensate for dumb people.
The B-36 was always a jaw dropping airplane. this movie and my uncle is what influenced me to join the USAF. I was jet crewchief. To all of you guys that served in all branches, thank you for your service and may God Blees you all!
I just wish it had the original single wheel per wing landing tires, the four wheel trucks were a later change.. those singles were over twelve feet in diameter.
god "blees" you too
Rickey Mitchell this things inspires me that why iwanna become a pilot of a F15 On the USAF
My father was stationed at Fairchild air base in the early 50's. Every time one of those took off it was a thrilling for me. I joined the Air Force, but became a fighter jet crew chief. It was great.
thank yoU Sir!
Brigadier General James Stewart was the real deal. Of the greatest generation. On this Memorial Day....We owe them all a great debt of gratitude. Thank you for your service, Dad.
The story is he enlisted right away…was denied due to his weight...the Movie Studio breathed a sigh of relief thinking they kept their movie star.....but this great American gained the weight and got admitted into the Airforce...idk if the story is true but either way, he is the real deal true blue best of the best...love that man!
They did an amazing job on the remastering of this. Looks great and colors are nice and deep.
"One in the hangar", that's Harry Morgan, between him and Stewart, two distinctive voices!
Flight engineer had to be a multi-tasker extraordinaire. Managing SIX recips, FOUR jets, independent fuel systems, hydraulics, electrics, backups....good Lord!!
The six R-4360, 28 cyl. and the four J-47 jet engines used the same 115/145 octane fuel that was dyed purple.
And if that wasn't enough, the final version, the B-36J, had TWO flight engineers.
@@mjw1955 I think by then they'd ditched nearly all the guns (aside from the tail), the accompanying gunners, and a lot of other heavy items in an effort to fly further and higher. Apparently the crews were confident of being able to deliver the 15 megaton Mk17 on target but fatalistic about the B36's ability to outrun the blast. In tests, B36s were badly damaged when flown at estimated escape distances from real life thermonuclear explosions of even less power.
Donald Dahl really? Radial piston engines using jet fuel?? Jet fuel is basically kerosene. I know, I’m in the AF as a fuels craftsman 🤨 can you burn kerosene in a wasp major radial gas engine? 🤔
@@johnstafford2402 The J47 engine is listed as being able to run on fuels described in MIL-F-5572 which include the 115/145 spec listed as the fuel for the wasp major radial. It looks more like they ran the jets on Avgas which is understandable since it is primarily a piston engined aircraft.
The B-52 was developed and put into service while this bird was still flying, and the B-52 is still operational. Amazing.
The caption "inspiring music" was awesome.
If I could find "Bombers High" on the web, I'd get a copy, but it seems that the only place I can find it is the opening credits to "Strategic Air Command"
I remember, when I was about 5, hearing the unmistakable drone of those monsters flying around so high they were barely visible, but still audible. My Dad spoke of them, described them to me with great pride. He worked on them. In those days American's were actually PROUD to be Americans. We were thrilled by our might. We were a United nation. We've lost so, so much.
Funny how you use the word drone to describe the sound they made. In many of the clips online, that's exactly what they sound like: "DROOOOOONE" and then a roaring blast from the props and jets as it goes overhead.
The Cold War took a lot out of us, and we definitely got our hands dirty and took more than a few body blows.
Shoulda seen the other guy, though.
Amen, Doc. In this day and age our government grows sick with power, and our politicians make a circus of our federal and state governments. I'm ashamed to grow up in a divided nation populated by spineless snowflakes my own age or older that don't know how to act like men or put up a fight. I hugely respect my parents and older generations for the country and values they stood for. But, I do consider myself lucky in that I have the opportunity as apart of the younger generation (I just turned 18) that I can be apart of the change and shape the future for when I have kids, one day.
But what you say is amazing, to be able to have seen these incredible B-36s in person. As for me, living near Nellis I get to see F-35s, (although they probably aren't as cool).
Anyways god bless our country and I hope once more we can united, stand tall and strong as proud Americans
True
I don't know how many times I have watched this scene (or the full movie), but it never gets old. Another, very brief, but beautifully filmed scene, later in the movie, was "Dutch" (Jimmy Stewart) seated at his desk in the OPS office, learning that we was going to be assigned his own crew. I believe his line was, "Now you're talkin'." It is hard not to think that you are really looking at Colonel, or perhaps Brigadier General by then, James M. Stewart, rather than Lieutenant Colonel Dutch Holland.
In an interview, many years later, Mr. Stewart was asked which he considered more important, his career in film, or his service in the military. Without hesitation, he answer, "My time in the military, by far."
I wish I could go back to the America I knew growing up as a kid. This movie represents those times.
I was a ECM crew member of a RB-36 flying out of Travis AFB from 1953 to 1956. Fond memories of long flights like 36 hrs and 45 minutes non stop to Guam from Travis.
My wife was born at Carswell A.F.B. outside of Ft Worth, Texas in 1953. At the time her Father was an electrician/gunner on B-36s. Now, at 90 years old, her Father still sorta glows when he talks about his time in B-36s. I can relate as I flew 5.5 years on navy multi-engine reconnaissance aircraft. I never saw a B-36 in the air; but have seen one on the deck. Linda told me when they flew over base housing things would fall off the wall from the noise and vibrations!
I currently work at the plant this aircraft was built at, you can see it in the background during the takeoff scene. It's amazing how that area of Fort Worth has changed since then, and then how much it has not. There is a church in the background just as it took off, and that church is still there and in use!
montylc2001 First Baptist Church, White Settlement Road?
I still have goosebumps after watching this video 20 minutes ago !! I used to live near castle airforce base in atwater ca. the airplane museum was free to the public . I would go there at least once a month. they have a lot of old warplanes, then I saw the news and read that a B36 was being shipped disassembled by train , trucks and other means . I forget how long it took to assemble it but I was there when the public was allowed entry . I didn't realize how huge it was and I thought the B52 was huge !
The funny thing is those 6 engines combined have less thrust than 1 new GE engine on the 777
Frank Butcher veryyyyyyyy inefficient
MrVortem different times, bros
Technology is wonderful isn't it?
True but 6x 28cyl radials sound way cooler dont ya think?
@@SUPRAMIKE18 Most definitely.
At least Hollywood didn't have to pretend about having a real pilot. 👍Jimmy Stewart.
And he was an amazing pilot from everything that I have read
Full bomber tour in WW2 out of England
In 1955 he was a colonel in the reserve and was current as a pilot on the B-36 and B-47.
@@DavidBromage Didn't he finally retire from the reserves as a Brigadier General? And Reagan bumped him up to Major General in '85?
Andrew Taylor Close! While campaigning for Reagan, Ronald mistakenly introduced him as Major General James Stewart. Years later, Reagan found out Stewart was a Brigadier and asked James why he never corrected him, and JS replied, “Wa’ll I never corrected you because it sounded so good!”
Unless you were able to see these planes in person- you will NEVER understand how these machines could affect you. I saw them during their actual use- the sound and majesty was unlike ANYTHING you could imagine!
Rarely do we get to see aircraft films with this much polish. These are some of the best in flights ever! There was nothing like seeing one of these pass a couple of thousand feet over, and the sound - a deep throbbing like no other aircraft.
No 3D visuals, no digital effects, no AI actors, no gimbals to stabilize the footage, no electronic music.. just pure craftsmanship, ingenuity and raw know-how at work. These were the days there was genuine talent in Hollywood and great movies were made. Now.. its all up.. in smoke.
Android
Amen
Just like the engines from the B-36
Sturmgeschutze omg
@@neoney the man ain't wrong.
But it did have cheesy models, lame firecracker explosive effects and grainy optical layering of views out windows that were frequently shaky, distorted and off-scale. I'll take AVID digital layering any day.
One flew over my house about 500 feet. I was six and didn’t sleep for two nights. Thanks
As a former C-124 mechanic, I am amazed they could keep six engines and 4 jets running very long. We had enough trouble with only four R-4360s.
no doubt! More moving parts = more probability for failures!! But, where there is a will there is a way
I've seen that movie 50 years ago, but I still love that beautiful plane.
two turning, two burning, two smoking, two choking, and two more unaccounted for.
@MOONLIGHT SHADOW Sounds funny, till you have it happen to you. This plane's engine (un)reliability is anything but a joke.
@@lafeelabriel Yeah, didn't they have problems with carburetors freezing up at altitude and up in Alaska where they often flew?
Hoorayyyyy
Imagine that thing with 6 pw 4000s lol
Despite its engine problems, the B-36 had enough of them that its safety record was decent. By the standards of the 1950's, anyway.
Best view of a takeoff ever! All the engine detail and staying close to the aircraft is just amazing aviation art in my opinion!
My dad got his first engineering job working on the rear firing defenses on this plane. Which were discarded in the main production version. "Two turning, two burning, two smoking, two choking, and two more unaccounted for".
Amen, brother. We were stationed at Limestone (later Loring) AFB up in northern Maine, at the SAC base there, in 1952. My dad confided in me what junk the B-36 way - beneficiary of a political decision by Secretary of the Air Force Stuart Symington (aka 'Slimy Tongue') to give the contract to Convair. Continuous problems with those pusher engines, and others.
I am particularly resentful about this because of the decision to abandon further R&D on the Northrop B-49 'Flying Wing'. Washington even ordered every one of the B-49s to be cut up and scrapped.
You can see the Flying Wings in stock footage featured in George Pal's 'War of the Worlds'. While there were many development problems with the aircraft it sure did point the way to the future (B-2 Spirit), unlike that dog's breakfast design from Convair.
@@bakhirun The B-49 was hard to fly and was unreliable because of the control problems. When they got the B-2 flying they had computers, which could handle all the hundreds of flight controller corrections needed to fly "A Wing" but as a kid I loved seeing films about the B-49 and thought that it was the neatest plane ever!
boneob I’ve actually read that the YB-49 (as well as its prop-driven predecessor, the YB-35) weren’t nearly as difficult to control as is commonly believed, Jack Northrop’s “flaperon” control system worked surprisingly well in an era of cables and pulleys. Apparently, the main issues with the “Wings” were that they had fairly poor yaw stability, not enough to make them dangerous to fly, but enough that they couldn’t maintain a straight enough line to do a “proper” bombing run. Along with that, while the YB-35 had a range that could easily match the B-36, when it was converted into the all-jet YB-49 its effective range was cut almost in half. Lastly, while both the YB-35 and YB-49 could carry a similar payload to the B-36, because the YB’s had their bomb bays in their wings the dimensions were all wrong to fit the GIGANTIC 1st-generation nuclear and hydrogen bombs, so the YB’s couldn’t be used as part of America’s nuclear deterrent. Also, there was apparently a lot of thinly-veiled corporate sabotage involved, and the design was just too “radical” to garner much support from the guys in charge of the Air Force’s budget.
TL;DR: The YB-49 and the YB-35 really were flyable, but they had a number of legitimate issues to deal with compared to more conventional designs, and it looked like getting those issues fixed would take a lot longer and be more expensive to deal with than just cancelling it and going for the more conventional B-36.
@@willrogers3793 You may be right Will. Here is a video of the YB-49 and the explanation of how these flew early in the program geared for the public (probably the one I saw at the movies):
ruclips.net/video/MkhziQF0AiI/видео.html
The "pilot" was an actor I recognized from many westerns back when I was growing up in the 50's. I personally thought the YB-49 was on par with a flying saucer of sci fi fame (I loved it as a kid). It had, and still does, the "coolness factor" unlike the B-47 or even the B-36, though my Dad flew the B-47 and the sound/size of the B-36 filled the sky... Later in life I was riding my motorcycle out in west Texas when I saw my first B-2 flying and it was making a turn which gave me a great view of it...memories of my childhood awe came back and I enjoyed the heck out of them!
@@boneob ki
I flew in a lot of aircraft in the 60s, including the B-52 a couple of times. I think I actually heard that music. I had the opportunity to meet General Stewart while in Vietnam (68-69) What a great guy he was. I'll always remember that as a top memory while in the military, just above crashing in an F-5. Flying in the B-36 would have been more than I could take.
When this video started, I couldn't believe it was shot in 1955. HD for sure.
The film was actually shot in 1954 and released in 1955.
Nice to see old footage like that in HD! 👍
As a boy, in the 50’s, I would often see B-36’s high overhead. Flying so high it was barely a speck, the contrails and the rumble from its six piston engines were a giveaway.
This was filmed at Carswell Airforce Base, when they take off you can see Lake Worth at the north end of the runway.
The consolidated plant on the right, the “Bomber plant” they called it when I was a kid.
As a kid I had a huge model of the B-36 bomber. It was one of the first models I built. At that time I was in the hospital for a very long time and I built a lot of models there. Later I gave almost all of them away and the B-36 was also included. I could be angry about that today because I can't find a B-36 kit anymore. I collect airplane models and have a lot of limited ones. Most of the time I would like a model of the B-36. This is the best, most beautiful and most impressive airplane that has ever been built and my greatest wish would be to see the bomber live
Seriously, though. They never capture this kind of military realism in Hollywood anymore. And it's still a beautiful and relevant scene!
Going through those checklists brings back some memories!
They have one of these behemoths at the National USAF museum at Wright-Patt AFB, Dayton, Ohio. Used to go there all the time. Loved it!
There are others at the Castle Air Musem in Atwater, CA as well as SAC hq at Offutt AFB Omaha NB
@@mjw1955 I have seen the one in Omaha. It's a monster!!
@@angelotig The main reason you don't see a cockpit of a military aircraft in movies theses days is they're classified environments. Glass cockpit instruments have an abundance of information the various airforces/navies would rather not be made public.
Also at PIMA Air Museum in Tucson. Amazing to see in person.
To all the guys who responded.Many Thanks. I thoroughly every day of the 12 years I was SAC. I saw places I never would have seen had I not been a very gung ho kid, I flew on a spectacular aircraft with great and honorable men and towards the end with a few women, great and honorable also.Civilians who may never had done active servive I thank and salute them today for the work they did and do today.Don't forget them. One sunny AM at Arlington I stood ten feet tall when then Pres Eisenhower shook my hand and that of others in an honor guard at the funeral of an AF general.We were not suppossed to say other than thank you Sir,if addressed,but I said thank you General for your book.Crusade in Furope, and he smiled that famous IKE grin and said "Thank You Captain, for reading it and for your service......Any of you who travel any where near Abilene ,Kansas, please stop at the Eisenhower Library and salute him at his grave
I have stopped at the Ike Museum in Abilene a couple of times. But I haven't gotten through the whole thing yet. I linger too long reading everything that I can! I'll stop there again if my travels take me that way.
I lived in Arlington in the early ‘70s, before GSW had been swallowed up by DFW. There was one B-36 remaining there in dilapidated condition. I don’t recall whether it was ever rescued.
I was stationed at Carswell AFB from 1989 - 1991, where the film was made. A B-36 was on display next to the active runway if I remember correctly.
@@Slithey7433 there's a YT video somewhere, the plane was almost completely restored and then the Air Force took it to their boneyard in Arizona. The City of Fort Worth could not raise enough funds to place it indoors so the Air Force took it back.
@@BrianReeves2, the acft wasn't scrapped. It's at the Pima Air and Space Museum. Side number is 22827.
"Strategic Air Command" o "Acorazados del aire" una película de 1955. Excelente !!
Some of the best aviation footage of all time.
I was lucky to see a b36 peacemaker at the USAF museum in Dayton Ohio back in 1997, amazing how big this airplane is, they were used a lot back during the cold war in 1950s eventually being replaced by b52s, great airplane
I learned that Jimmy Stewart was actually a real Air Force officer (pilot) as well as an actor, what a legend
Flew B-24 Liberators, I think, during WW II.
@@ronaldrobertson2332 Jimmy Stewart served as a Brigadier General in the United States Air Force Reserve.
@@ronaldrobertson2332 Yes, he did fly B-24 Liberators during WW2. I think he flew over 21missions before the war ended.
And Harry Morgan ran a Field Hospital in South Korea.
@@davidsmith4416 he also flew an Arc-Light mission in 65.
In the late 40's and early 50's I lived several miles off the end of a Sac Base. B-36's were stationed there and plenty of noise as they warmed up on the runway. Then a wing would take off one after another. What a Roar! We later moved to another Sac Base in El Paso - replaced the B-36's with B-52's. I saw a three wing takeoff in painted colors - normally all silver - but wartime black cameo indicated the Bay of Pigs was about to start. They flew back never being used. Martin
Sometimes I still can't grasp just how little we understood about military aviation and the extreme efforts we as a nation undertook to learn and understand it better. In short it was an extremely exciting but Dangerous time. So many unique aircraft such as the B-52 the T-38, F-102/6 Delta's, The This, The Phanthom Etc. All came into being. And set the standard for today's aviation and technology.
A little trivia. A surplus B-36 jet pod was used by the New York Central Railroad to modify an existing Budd Rail Diesel Car (RDC), #M-497, for a stunt to show an ultra-high speed passenger train test in 1966. The test was conducted on the NYC Lake Shore line west of Toledo, OH (which was dead straight for over 20 miles) on July 26, 1966 and reached a top speed of 183.68 mph, a record for an American railroad passenger train that still stands. After the test the M-497 was restored to conventional use and retired by Conrail in 1977. The jet engines were re-purposed in snow blower service, but tended to blow ballast all over the place.
As a child I remember one of these flying high above Chicago. That was sometime before 1950. What a sight!
Was Stationed there from 2000 to 2004 with the US Navy doing maintenance and as Aircrew on the new C-40A Clipper (Plank Owner). Lived in the old Officer housing on General Arnold, just off the old golf course, before they tore them down My Step Mom was across the runway at the old Consolidated Plant (Air Force Plant #4) as a Rosie the Riveter in WWII working the empennage of the Consolidated B-24 Liberator. She finished up her career with Consolidated working on their B-36 Peacemaker program from the 2 prototypes to the early production before she laid down her rivet gun and hung up her coveralls to head back to the East Texas Family dairy farm. The history of this area was exciting to this WW II/Military history buff.
I'v watch this many times and it never gets old.
What a beauty! My grandfather was a navigator on one back when he was a lieutenant. Such a shame there's so few of them preserved nowadays.
Worth noting that by this time (1955) Stewart was not only qualified on the B-36 thanks to his Air Force Reserve training, but had been a full bird Colonel for ten years.
General Stewart was the real deal. There was nothing phony at all about his service record. None of Hollywood's current crop of "stars" could carry Stewart's massive jockstrap.
Met General Stewart at an airport when I had a long layover while I was in the Marine Corps turned out we were on the same flight to LA X. He was a very nice man loved talking with him and told me my money was no good and never let me pay for anything. He respected all military personal regardless of branch of servive and was one of the most humble men I I have ever met in my life. RIP General Stewart
"One on the ramp, one in the hanger".... 🤣😂 (omg, hilarious!)
When I was a kid, I could hear these flying over. There were also B-29's that would fly over. Each aircraft had its own droning sound which was very distinguishable one from the other. The B-36 had its own sound and I could readily distinguish which on I was hearing. I developed a love for them both but primarily the B-36. It was a monster!
Beast!!
I was lucky enough to have lived near Carswell AFB during the 50s and watched these lumbering giants fly overhead as close as 1,000-feet. It was an amazing sight, as was the B-52 and B-58 in the 60s.
How long were these planes in service and did they participate in any wars?
How noisy were they? 6 pusher reciprocating and 4 turbine poweplants! This had to be a noisy vibrating take off and overall ride. Quite the Intercontinental Strategic Bomber.
@@byronharano2391 I grew up about 50 miles north of Carlswell AFB in the fifties and the B-36s were flying low altitude training all over the area. The sound was awesome and unusual. There wasn't a kid in the playground who couldn't identify a B-36 by the sound of the engines without even having to look up.
Although I didn't see these fly, I lived about 5 miles from SAFB in Illinois. We were right under the flight line from the 60s until around 2010 and enjoyed everyday bit of it. Saw all kinds of great aircraft from small jets, tankers, and even the space shuttle flying piggyback right over our farm house. Some of them flew over low enough to see the lugnuts on the landing gear. Great times
I was raised in Ft. Worth and remember seeing these babies fly over the house.
Incredible aircraft, hats off to the designers. Nothing made since then gets even close to the B-36's massive 86,000 pound payload. Yeah, it wasn't a jet, but still a hellaciously good plane.
I’m glad there are subtitles or I would have never understood them.
The line "All sharp tools" in reference to the select combat crew sounds a lot like "All shop tools".
Good to see Potter from MASH again , classic military Voice.
"Strategic Air Command" (SAC), LOVE That old movie classic !! B-36 was almost hard to comprehend for it's time. Huge aircraft, with a lot of power management issues for the crew. Great video !
What a crazy looking plane, 6 piston engines and 4 jet engines, I love that thing its a beast.
Beautiful clear footage of this classic aircraft. It became obsolete pretty quickly but I think that it was a marvel in its day.
I remember a B-36 flying over my house on final approach to Miami International Airport (we were 2.5 miles east of 27R) in the somewhere around 1956/7. No wonder 12 of us in our neighborhood ultimately flew Military Aviation in Viet Nam era...we got quite the inspiration, daily, from all the Prop Liners in and out of MIA! Thanks for this video.
Former F-4C crew chief here..... was stationed in England
I loved this movie :)
The Air Force was the best move of my young life
i was a 5 year old living just east of MIA back then, and I saw the occasional B-36 on low final, too. Scared the feces out of me!
Jim Fowler I was in grade school the time that plane was landing at Miami International Airport. We heard gigantic sound..jets and pistons louder and louder..we ran out of our class beyond the breezeway..the entire school out of control astonished, astounded. The teachers lost total control. It was a Star Wars Moment! It overflew us so low I could see the rivets on the cowlings. It’s size was unbelievable! I was in grade 7. One never forgets.
General Jimmy always one of my favorite actors and military man!!
Yes sir a real American Jimmy Stewart
Those must have been the days! I was born in 74' and served in the Marines,but watching films from that era and the style of actors unfortunately are looooong gone. Those fine actors will never be back.the music and just the kindness and the way folks talked back in those days are so needed in this day n time,but I doubt it'll ever return.. enough of the sad stuff,I really like a lot of Jimmy Stewart movies an I hope someone, someday can re-create that day n time!
The B-36 was my hubby's greatest love and he new the whole thing like the back of his hand. He loved talking about it and explaining the workings of it to anyone in shouting range. I understand that the whole crew was able to pilot it as sometimes they may .have been in the air for 3 months .
As a 7-9 year old child, I lived a few miles north of downtown Tampa. I kept hearing, on occasion, a certain "low pitched droning sound" that would pass overhead. I soon learned that the very distinguishable noise came from a military aircraft that possessed more engines (as was apparent from.my earth-bound vantage point) than I could imagine! Having learned that the plane was called a "B-36," I still remember proudly announcing such to any childhood friends playing in my yard - and my dragging them into a clearing for a proper viewing of the resulting, large, silver plane as it flew overhead.
I was too young to connect the fact that the reason I was witnessing so many "fly-overs" was that the planes were headed to a landing at MacDill AFB (a base just south of downtown Tampa). Later in life I spent my USAF service time at all SAC bases (one of which was a U-2 base - the same being years prior to the Power's incident).
Tornado is the only bomber i ever saw.
Robert Owen I’ve only ever seen a Lancaster. Sadly missed the chance for a Vulcan.
Never knew Macdill Had B-36s, I knew they had 3 B-52s on standby though.
Interesting. In my very early teens, I lived in Oakland, Ca., right under the landing path of numerous Vietnam bound fighter/bombers, A4's, F4's, etc. They would land at Alameda Naval Air Station, and from there, I assume they wound up on various aircraft carriers. I had no clue of Vietnam at that age. I'll always remember that the F4's had a distinctive approach sound apart from other aircraft.
Lived on Coquina Key on the west side of T. Bay from '59-'63. Vividly remember jets coming in from Gulf and our duck and cover drills at elementary school. Multiple plane formations would nearly rattle us off the playground equipment.
When this movie came out it premiered at Graumans Chinese Theater in Hollywood. The Air Force set up the fuselage over 90 feet in the parking lot next to the building. They let anybody walk through from cockpit to tail. I went through when I was 5 years old. It was great.
Wow! Awesome.
@James Kirk Hollywood still loves the military at the end of the day because it makes good fodder for films. Look at glorified ads like Battleship. You don't think they'd have towed the Missouri in to the middle of Hollywood if they could've?
russwelday u
I can see this plane everyday when I drive past the Air and Space museum in Tucson. Amazing plane and the fact that the B-52 replaced it and its still in service.
Jimmy Stewart and Harry Morgan are two gems that you can't find today in Hollywood.
Amazing...could have been filmed last week...Jimmy Stewart one of my all time fave actors and real B-47 pilot to boot...what more could you want,also he served with distinction in Air Force in WW"
Back in the late 60s, we lived in White Settlement, a suburb of Fort Worth, TX. We were in the flight path for what was then Carswell Air Force base where the B-36s were based. When one of them would take off under full power the venetian blinds in the house would flutter trying to take off as well.
You probably seen the planes in the movie then. From all I can tell the movie was filmed there partially.
Fabulous footage of an iconic aircraft...
You can see this airplane, and even climb into the cockpit twice a year at Castle Air Museum at Atwater, California. This thing is mind boggling. I gotta check out the whole movie.
B-36 is as big as it is beautiful.... for such a large aircraft to fly like she did, is truly majestic.
I was a USAF Brat...my Dad was a Line Chief....I got to go INSIDE a B-36 at Age 4!
What a monster of a machine!
In 67, Chanute AFB had one of the 36's as a static display. Two classmates and I enjoyed exploring the inside of this beast.
I took a drive though the closed and dilapidated AFB two years ago, they had a couple of old fighters on display outside still, I didnt see the B36
That B-36, which is actually an RB-36H, has been at the Castle Air Museum in California since 1994.
i WAS ABOUT 13 AND ON MY PAPER ROUTE one afternoon. I heard a very loud sound, and in Grass Valley, California, the sight of any plane other than a Piper Cup was a sight to behold. I looked up and saw (wow) maybe a dozen B 36 aircraft. I do not know where they were going, and I was simply thrilled. Even later when I worked the flight deck of an aircarft carrier have I heard or seen a better example of our air force.
I spoke with an old-timer who was a rear compartment crew member on the B-36, he said the bomber was the most insanely loud aircraft ever to be aboard
Col. Potter & George Bailey make quite the team.
Det. Gannon, long before he was Col. Potter. :)
Yep, tru dat. A bit before my time.
The big difference is that General Stewart actually was a bomber pilot who completed 25 missions over Germany, and was still an Air Force Reserve officer when this was filmed.Once of the few military decisions that Reagan made that I agree with completely was giving Jimmy Stewart his star.
How the hell did I not know that little factoid?? 12 O'Clock High is one of my favorite movies and 8th AF efforts in Europe have always been a subject if interest. Thanks.
gcc geo another little factoid that you may or may not know, Jimmy Stewart was qualified to fly this very aircraft among many others.
'inspiring music'
the quality is REMARKABLE!
Convair b36 peacemaker one hell of an airplane, amazing size and range, i saw one at usaf museum in dayton ohio
it was outside by woodman drive till they brought inside i grew up close by that was back in the 60s
Thanks for submitting this. You gave me a very pleasant memory for a Sunday afternoon. Strategic Air Command was the first movie I ever saw. I watched it with my father and brother about 45 years ago in a now long closed down cinema in Terenure, Dublin, called The classic. I'd pay anything to see it again on the big screen. Could you imagine this in 3D, surround sound and high definition, Awesome.
That is a good suggestion, sir. Bringing these classics back to modern 5 story tall screens, with great sound, would be incredible.
The B36 was an amazing achievement!
The B-36 is an amazing plane!
thx for putting a HD version on! I absolutely love this movie. building a model B36 with this birds markings...5734. things as big as my kitchen table!my dad heard(and felt) these flying over the UK in the early fifties.
Thats no Airplane, its a Piece of Art like the Pieta, nothing more to say.
It;s more like a moving "Place" than a plane! Beautiful and awesome!!
Muito bonito.
Colonel Potter was in the Air Force? Such an awesome aircraft. Thank God they didn't scrap all of them back in the 60s.
SMaze17 I saw one on the tarmac at Kelly in 1993
@@leondillon8723 Yeah he played the part of the flight engineer.
There is one at the SAC museum in Nebraska.
leon dillon Take another look at MSgt. Bible.
@@americanfreedomlogistics9984 how weren't they retired