B-32 Dominator, the other Very Heavy Bomber of WW2
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- Опубликовано: 15 сен 2024
- The Consolidated B-32 existed in the shadow of the much more famous B-29. It's operational history was very short, but it's an interesting airplane and one that should be looked at.
I'm taking this opportunity to cover aircraft electrical systems and fire suppression as well as general information on the plane. I'll dive into the Sperry A17 turrets and Compensating gun sights as well, although I'm not super happy with my explanation of the later. I might revisit that in the future.
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Note, The Wellington went into battle with a turret before the Defiant. However these were fore aft turrets without the same large field of fire as a typical upper turret like that on the Defiant.
This must be the most attention anyone has paid to the B-32 since the 1940s, well done, Greg.
lol
Many components and sub-assemblies for the Dominator (and Liberator, Catalina, etc.) were manufactured by Rohr Industries in Chula Vista, just south of San Diego. While clearing out an abandoned Rohr building a few years back, I found a B-32 pilot/copilot instrument panel which was earmarked for disposal. Being a longtime member of the International B-24 Club, I recognized what a rare item it was. I now have it mounted in my garage and am thinking of donating it to the San Diego Aerospace Museum. Keep up the outstanding work on these videos!
Æ
ok
You should sell it to them, and if you do donate it make sure to get the proper paperwork for tax write off purposes.
The Smithsonian would be interested
Greg is spoiling us
He sure is. Are you going to fight it too?
greg done did it to ya
@@meaders2002 move really fast 70° movement also be on my knowledge of electrical stuff from the aircraft individual Carrie 20,000 pounds in a tournamentooooooo ha haoa grocery actively as they could win no purple no Marywe OK
I feel like im in flight school for b-32 bombers
@@robinjones4140 You may wish to get help for that drug overdose.
Pretty amazingly- that company made the Liberator, the Dominator and the Peacemaker- all within a few short years. Then they made twin engine turboprop airliners that were extremely successful for decades.
Perhaps so, but the B-32 was plagued with development problems.
The B-29 prototype first flew on 21 Sept. 1942; its first combat operation took place on 5 June 1944, about 20.5 months later. The B-32, in contrast, had its first prototype take to the air on 7 Sept. 1942, two weeks before the B-29. But its combat debut wasn't until 29 May 1945, some 32 months after its first flight, and a full year after the B-29 entered combat.
@@primmakinsofis614But that's most likely because the government was putting more resources into the B29, even though the B32 was supposedly the back up in case the B29 didn't come through doesn't mean there wasn't a point where they determined that the B29 was in fact going to make it and really put the coals to it dedicating more men and resources into it.
The theory that the B32 had more problems to overcome or was more trouble plagued during development using your formula is only true if all other things are equal, ie equal amount of man hours, resources and overall efforts being put into both of them, I'd guess they had a tremendous amount more effort going into the B29 considering that it had the far more advanced defensive guns and a pressurized fuselage and was operational earlier than the B32, they had to have been putting a tremendous amount more man hours and resources into it given how much more advanced it was and was still operational first between the two.
Lets keep in mind that there was a huge secret behind the scenes effort to make sure the B-29 was ready for the atomic action. That wasn't the case with the B-32. The B-29 was the most expensive wartime project of WW2 and by far.
@@GregsAirplanesandAutomobiles
As we all know Tibbets was definitely in on the reasons behind the modifications to the Silverplate B29's, but I wonder how they explained all that to the higher up's at the factory like the plant manager and the engineers behind those modifications, the workers would be fairly easy to pull the wool over their eyes but I wonder how they handled it with the higher up's there.
@Duke Craig you might be surprised that it's not as easy to pull the wool over the eyes of the mug punter ! The Hot Shots just don't know what the workers are up to - at party meetings ! Hoover's peccadilloes were common knowledge to party members -
I love the in-depth review of the various systems. I spent 20 years on the C-130 as a crew chief/maintainer and a flight engineer, and it was fascinating to learn what had changed in the systems and what hadn't. This is the kind of nuts 'n' bolts content that makes an old dinosaur of an FE happy.
That must have been a really fun plane as an FE.
@@GregsAirplanesandAutomobiles Yeah, fun job, and a great view out the office windows. :)
I want to float the idea that major defensive armament in bombers was a mistake, and that bombers need to either outrun enemy fighters like the Mosquito or be escorted by fighters, and that bombing beyond the range of either capability is generally a mistake unless the enemy has neglected deep air defense.
One big advantage of unarmed bombers is that when they are lost, no gunners or defensive guns are lost with them, so the loss is smaller.
This turret sighting technology might change the equation though, especially if it enabled B-29s to carry just one gunner.
@@alan6832 🎉 22:26 ap
2😅😢
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Do
@@alan6832 That was a popular concept in the mid 1930s. It went about as well as the turret armed fighter concept in practice. The trouble was that most of the time by the time they reached operational service they were generally outstripped, performance wise, by contemporary fighters.
The Mosquito was a unique case study in terms of bomber aircraft with several less than savory trade offs for it's performance.
The AC is probably to simplify the electronics. Fluorescent lights need AC, and by having AC, all you need is a ballasted transformer. Likewise for anything generating radio waves. Remember vacuum tube electronics back then, so the 26VAC can be fed into a simple transformer, to simply bump it up to the higher voltage for optimum operation of the electronics. Probably 400Hz, too, to keep the transformers small. Note, that the "inverter" was a DC motor coupled to an AC generator ("alternator" wasn't used as a term, back then).
Old cars, before alternators (with internal semiconductor rectifiers), had "cut-offs", that disconnected the generator, when the engine speed, was at idle. Actually, we usually don't say either "generator", or "motor". We call them a "machine", because many can act as both.
Very enjoyable. My dad always told me he was radar counter measures on the B32 Dominator. He also said that he was bumped from the recon flight of 8/28/1945 because his position was not necessary for the mission. He then saw his plane crash on take off, all 13 crew members were killed. He never liked to talk about this very much.
Your video was very informative. Thanks
The tail of the B-32 was a scaled-up version of the tail used by the PB4Y-2 Privateer, not coincidentally another Consolidated product.
Greg, your longer format is much appreciated. It's not hard to find a short synopsis on youtube covering virtually any subject (we won't touch on the topic of accuracy here), but it's refreshing to be able to get into a detailed explanation of some of the slightly more esoteric topics. Cheers, mate. 👍
I totally agreee.
Anotheraussiebloke (that would be me) agrees wholeheartedly. Thanks Greg.
I love the whole deal too - Greg your attention to detail staggering.
Detailed is his middle name…
RUclips does favor shorter production edited content that falls in the 12-20 minute mark, however many of us who come to your channel for your expertise specifically enjoy the in-depth and more comprehensive coverage that actually includes archival research that is difficult to find online and enjoy the longer format.
I have been constantly recommending Greg's channel to all I can - especially because of the intensity and extent and quality of information provided. To me, this is how actual designers, pilots, mechanics and engineers view things. It's simply true that there many underlying facts and reasons why things are the way they are, or were the way they were. Given the easy way this stuff can be provided and transmitted today, I'd think there would be more of this, except that people have limited attention to give to matters.
I am not a historian. I was a kid in the 70's that spent most evenings making, painting and thinking about WWII planes. So the Rusky planes, the more obscure Jap planes, they were not as well known to me. There were few decent models. But until today, I thought I knew most every USAAF planes. I've never heard of the B32. It is great to get that thrill of finding something new again. Thanks for that alone.
there always seems to be one more WW1-WW2 plane we've never seen or knew existed, and although I know eventually the well runs dry, it seems like it never will
@@BearfootBob yeah, you’re right. I’m a fan of Ed’s and Rex’s channels, and I simply don’t know where they find inspiration for their content. They both assure their audiences they’ll have years of subjects.
me neither!
Greg is surpassing himself by going even deeper into detail in obscure propeller planes mechanics. Today: how does the electrical system work on the obscure and nearly forgotten B-32
Don't forget. Mark shared with us those secrete Lancasters were standing by if the B-29s if they couldn't drop the bombs!
lol.
???
@@immikeurnot I think Greg is laughing because If I remember right, he debunked the idea that there really were sets of Lancaster ever really converted to handle nuclear bombs. I think maybe he claims and we know that they talked about this (don't count on this, my memory may be faulty), but it never got anywhere. The platform really was going to be B29 bombers. I'm pretty certain this never really got going.
If you need fluorescent lighting, then I can see why you'd want AC, especially back then. To strike the initial arc inside the tube you need high voltage, 600 V or so, which the fluorescent ballast provides (in addition to current limiting). AC voltage is much easier to step up or down than DC; you just need a transformer with a different number of windings on each side. Doing the same with DC back in WWII usually took a mechanical motor generator pair where you'd, for example, run a 28 V DC motor to spin a 600 V DC generator.
Carrying high amperage through DC required massive heavy cables as well.
Exactly. as the early inverters were just a dc motor spinning an alternator...
Thank you, Greg. I just wanted to say that I generally prefer reading over videos. Your videos are an exception for me due to the density of information presented. No fluff, no filler, no melodrama. I'm very happy to be a Patreon and to support your work on these videos.
Wow, the B-32. Now that's an airplane sorely under-discussed. After VE day my father was scheduled to be rotated into the Pacific along with the rest of the Eight Air Force. But thankfully VJ day happened and that never happened. That's as he always told it although I do not know how production of the bomber would have ramped up to accommodate it. Thanks for covering this aircraft.
From the AirForceHistoryIndex - an official record regarding 8th Air Force redeployment - "TRANSFERRED TO OKINAWA 16 JUL 45, THERE DERIVING PERSONNEL FROM INACTIVATED 20 BOMBER COMMAND. GEN JAMES H. DOOLITTLE ASSUMED COMMAND, 19 JUL 45. RECEIVED FIRST B-29 AIRCRAFT, 8 AUG 45. ASSIGNED WITH 20 AIR FORCE TO UNITED STATES ARMY STRATEGIC AIR FORCES. "
U.S. Army Air Forces (20 June 1941 - 17 September 1947) I always find it interesting that the Army had control of what ultimately became the “Air Force” after WW II, & now we have a Space Force that was pulled mostly out of the Air Force.
Greg does what he always does and a fine job at that. He doesn't cherry-pick his subjects and covers all he can, as best he can. A true perfectionist to accuracy. You can always bank on Greg and his knowledge. Pictures and interest are few and far between on the B-32. Companies make aircraft for money, not as nostalgia subjects. We here on Greg's website are creatures of nostalgia.
@@amerigo88 Thanks for the information.
"If you're down to one engine in a B-32, and that one is on fire, you're having a really bad day." 😅 Understatement of the century!
Fun fact.
If you pee on a magnesium fire, it explodes.
Knowing is half the battle!
Liked after "Greetings, this is Greg" as always. Your videos are the best!
From what I understand 3 phase power is basically 3 waveforms overlaid, it decreases the "down time" where the current alternates... it keeps the power close to maximum and less "choppy"... its like having a 3 cylinder 2 stroke...
Now here's an interesting what if - how about if the US supplied the RAF with B-32s rather than B-29s after the war. Something a little smaller and less complex (and cheaper?) may have suited them. The picture of B-36 next to the B-29 is mind bending.
Greg's videos are unique in all of RUclips due to their depth, utter absence of pandering, and the BOLD ASSUMPTION that some people continue to have a long and cheerful attention span for subjects that interest them deeply. And this one truly hit *all the marks!*
General Dynamics acquired Convair from Atlas in 1954 and the Convair division was not shut down till 1996, although the main business lines were sold a few years previously and the name was not used on aircraft since the '70s. The remaining Convair aircraft business producing the F-16 was finally sold to Lockheed; missiles were sold to Hughes, later acquired by Raytheon; and space systems went to Martin, later to merge with Lockheed.
Another spell binding video, thanks, Greg. This video sort of was book ended by family in the USAAF and USAF. My oldest uncle was crew chief on a Liberator, 35 missions, IIRC. Including one of the Ploeski raids. And a younger uncle flew B-29s over Korea. They were based in Japan, his service cut short by a dropped engine on takeoff, full of fuel and bombs. And, of course, a ditch across the end of the runway. Not quite stopped before the ditch, things lit off, probably another R3350 engine fire. Uncle Charlie did get all crew out of the plane before the armament cooked off, but damaged his back in the process. Which invalided him out of the service. It was fascinating to learn yet more about the Wright engine issues in the late WWII Very Heavy Bombers, to go with recent videos on the SuperFortress.
Please keep doing videos Your way, as you regularly come up with far too much relevant info to cram into the advertising YT short segments. I'd most certainly watch a full hour and a half, or two hour show, when the content just demands it. We can pause any segment whenever life intervenes, and pick it up when we have time again. Your series proves there is a adult audience for hour and longer presentations of important historical airplanes and the context they were used in. So much of this information won't be available much longer unless diligent searchers like yourself consolidate it now. I'm hoping you keep being you.
Thanks Bill. I'm not going to change my format.
@@GregsAirplanesandAutomobiles you better not! If you do I am going to find you and stare most menacingly at you...😶
🤣
Agree w Bill.
Perhaps famously, Joe Kennedy Jr died while piloting an operation Aphrodite type plane. In his case it was a converted Navy B-24.
I love the long format. It starts on a topic and comfortably covers it until it's complete. What could be better than that?
Greg, you're a goddamn national treasure. Keep doing what you're doing. Always better than anything on television.
Agreed. I canceled all my tv subscriptions a long time ago and pretty much view primarily on YT.
@@ronjon7942 RJ 7942 ..........and those corporate stooges wonder why people are not watching TV !!!!!
" ... a treadmill for cars" ! An absolutely spot on explanation ! Thanks, as always.
It's nice that he allows his cars to exercise when the weather is too bad for a walk.
The perfect length video for when I have
an hour to sit and really enjoy myself. Thanks Greg!
"Lightly armed bombers operated mostly at night." Yes, Lancaster, I'm lookin' at you. 🤣
This the most intelligently done classic aircraft YT channel there is.
Thank you.
AC power can be stepped up or down in voltage with a simple transformer, DC requires a lot more complicated circuitry to do that. The AC powered stuff probably required high voltage. For example, fluorescent lighting requires enough voltage to maintain an arc through the gas in the tube. 24V wouldn't cut it for that. I suspect that is why an AC circuit is necessary.
EDIT: and regarding 3-phase, what's great about it, is with 3 wires set up for 3 phase you can deliver 3 times as much power as can be delivered over a single phase 2 wire setup using the same gauge wire. Because math is magical, 3 phase circuits don't require return wires.
Never even gave much thought to the B-32. Always forget about it and thr later B-36.
Learned a lot about it today. Excellent video Greg.
Talk of the long, effective range of the retractable gun turrets makes me think of the "WWII US Bombers" RUclips channel. Very historical coverage, firmly grounded in WWII era documents, frequently, formerly classified. I love Greg, but there is room for another great channel.
We are spoiled!
Yeah, that guy is great!
Thank you! I was somehow completely unaware of the B-32 until I read Last to Die: A Defeated Empire, a Forgotten Mission, and the Last American Killed in World War II a couple years ago (which was an excellent book).
Yeah! - read it last year (or thereabouts) over the pandemic. That was certainly a great read!
The circuit shown at 54.32 the 3 phase adaptor is an inductor that has an equal number of turns of wire on an iron core to create 3 phase power. The capacitor stabilizes current demand , perhaps for the turrent motor.The gunner needs the motor to change direction as fast as his reflexes.The capacitor in parallel with the conductor creates what is called a resonant circuit which provides stable current when turned on and off.
Probably the most complete video about the B-32.
Thank you Greg. A stressful workday is easier to decompress from with a deep dive into another interesting old plane.
Hey greg, always love the videos! Im a motor mechanic and one interesting bit of info I can glean on you is that ALL DC brushless motors use 3 phase AC. Rather than using brushes on a rotating commutator, brushless motors use the sine wave to energize and de-energize the magnetic coils in sequence. A drill motor does the same thing but it gets tricked by a speed control or VFD. It sends the power through 3 mosfets (basically a transistor) which opens and closes the signal to mimic an AC sine wave. In the case of the gyros im assuming that a brushed motor wasnt suitable since the carbon brushes erode which spreads conductive dust everywhere. All the DC motors i service are covered in both grease and carbon dust, and often time that dust flashes over which can burn the motor out.
Thanks for that good post.
I love how you present your research, saying in each case how much trust or faith you put in it. Other people should take notice.
All of the solenoid data I needed in 1999. Thanks, Greg. Long story.
3"55 My father worked on the B-29 turrets as a ground crew technician. In his later years he did clock repair as a hobby, which must have been a piece of cake after that.
Any proper Star Wars fan will recognize the flat dome of the B-29 turret. Of course Lucas famously used a lot of WW2 imagery.
and actual WW2 stuff. Most famously an MG34 was used as a blaster in the original movie.
@@GregsAirplanesandAutomobiles I thought Han Solo's Mauser C-96 blaster pistol was the most famous.🙂
@@GregsAirplanesandAutomobiles huh, I didn’t know that.
@@donjones4719 I’m not making the connection between the 29’s turret top and a Star Wars weapon. The ground cannon?
@@ronjon7942 Guns on the outside of the rebel admiral's flagship, IIRC. But it's been a long time since I rewatched the movies. I just know they were there, external flat turrets aimed by gunners in a separate station.
Only channel where an hour long video is welcomed.
😳 Drach.... Nuff said.
I appreciate the long-form stuff. as an electrician I found this very interesting.
Greetings .. I had to drop everything as soon as I saw the new episode..! Thanks so much ..!
With cable television being what it now is I don't know what I would do without RUclips. Loads of this stuff especially this channel is on par or better than anything I've seen on history Channel or discovery wings. Except wings of the luftwaffe. That will always be my favorite series.
Does Discovery Wings even exist outside of archived content? And the History channel…sure, occasionally something worth watching, but I unsubscribed as it was too difficult to find any gems in all their garbage.
I don’t mean to offend you if you find value in those channels, my opinion is that Greg (and more than a few others) is on an entirely different plane than the legacy providers. This is museum quality content - scratch that, even museum channels just parrot similar info as to what’s on Wikipedia. Both are good, Wikipedia’s great, maybe it’s fair to label Greg’s work as similar to masters and doctoral thesis’s for an aviation historian.
@@ronjon7942 yeah I haven't paid for cable in years now, and that was my point. One guy by himself is producing better stuff than giant million dollar corporations with huge teams.
I first found out about the B-32 Dominator when I watched the Wings documentary about the B-29.
Great job on an interesting airplane.
The long format videos are fine as long as we aren't deluged with them; we don't want to miss anything.
An interesting exercise is to take the performance numbers of a WW2 era propeller bomber, scale them to handy ranges, and multiply them all. These are all the "plusses" like range, cruise speed, bombload, etc. This gives you the ranking of performance. Then divide by the empty weight which represents the cost. Scale the numbers to a happy range around 100. All the bombers , including the B-32, have about the same value...except the B-29 which stands way out.
Gotta love how Boeing got to cram all that technology and performance into the B-29 and then when it came to fire suppression they just write in the pilots manual " Just don't catch on fire, lol"
It is the most effective solution if we're honest
They kept that attitude thru to the B-52. Or actually worse, the Stratofortress didn't even get C02 or other fire suppression agent.
My Dad flew 35 missions with the 58th Bomb Wing, in the CBI and Tinian. Their B-29s had what he called “fire bottles” for each engine. When they had an engine fire, they would dive and attempt to blow the fire out. If that failed, the fire extinguishers were used.
Thanks! I have seen many brief mentions of the B-32 [edit] over the years; not much more than teases! An in-depth review is timely and welcomed!!
MORE THANKS for the additional information about Aphrodite and the end-of-war nuance. I only knew of Aphrodite as an attempt to attack U-boat sub pens by flying the drones into the gates, and that Joe Kennedy (JFK's older brother) was killed on an Aphrodite mission.
Kennedy was actually killed on the Navy's version of the missions which were code named Anvil instead of Aphrodite but were the same thing.
I believe they used either the Navy B24's or the single tail version called the Privateer or a combination of both as the one's stuffed with explosives but still used B17's as the control plane's.
@@dukecraig2402 Thanks! I had read of Kennedy's death in a book specifically related to Aphrodite. New information comes out over time, though.
@@petesheppard1709
Yea, same thing different name at the end of the day.
If you look around you can find a list of targets for Anvil and their outcome, I think Wikipedia has a page for like they do for Aphrodite.
@@dukecraig2402 👍
If you are interested in the B-36, catch the 1955 movie "Strategic Air Command" starring Jimmie Stewart. The plot is typical 1950's Hollywood, but lotsa great cinematography of the B-36.
Greg, Another excellent presentation, this on an aircraft I've always admired. As a kid in the ANG/USAF 1950 -1954 at WPAFB Powerplant Lab, recall discussing problems with the wartime CW R-3360.
The B-32 engine installation was superior to the Boeing B-29 in that cooling air pressure drop was substantially less at the required mass flow and consequently the drag penalty of open cooling flaps was much reduced. The cooling problems of this engine, in both the B-29 and B-19 and its effect on performance and crew survival were technically inexcusable. Check out the Republic F-12 Rainbow or XP-72 for the way large radials should be integrated (or for that matter the FW-190).
As for B-32 relics, I believe an outer wing panel done in stainless steel topped the Montgomery Memorial in San Diego. The Hustler's first flight was in November 1956
I wish my littlest uncle was still around to comment on some of the gunsight theory. He was a belly turret gunner in a B24J. Kept his interest and understood things mechanical as he worked at Rockwell after the war. He'd have probably understand the compensating gunsight.
Almost every, single one of your videos I watch?
I realize just how bloody little I knew/know about aircraft.
And I have been a commercial pilot for 13 years.
J/k.
☮
I can listen to your videos all day. Don't stop making these please. I love the detail and enjoy the fact these videos are long
Always wanted to learn more about this aircraft, thank you!
My grandfather was trained to be a flight engineer for this aircraft. He was held back as an instructor for B-29s. Till his dying day, he regretted not flying combat missions. Truly a different generation, and breed.
"Rampage of the Roaring 20s" gives more detail and context to that last aerial battle involving two B-32s. One of the B-32 Pilots ignored orders, and flew low over Hiroshima to survey the atomic bomb damage. Intelligence had specifically warned against approaching there, that it might be provocative. The aerial attack came over Tokyo not too long after.
If the B-32 was the lower risk, less complex option, this was a game of leapfrog between Boeing and Consolidated. The B-24 was much more complex than Boeing’s B-17 of mid-1930s origin. With the B-29, Boeing was allowed by the USAAF to ride on the cutting edge. That didn't work out well with the Wright Cyclone R-3350 engines and their overheating problems. That engine didn't really get the bugs worked out until the early days of the Korean War.
_If the B-32 was the lower risk, less complex option_
It didn't start that way. But Consolidated had a lot of trouble with the cabin pressurization and the remote-controlled turrets, eventually dropping both of those, resulting in a bomber that was effectively a super-B-17 or super-B-24.
The B 32 used the same engines as the B 29.
This continued after WW2. LeMay actually preferred the low-risk Boeing B-50 over the B-36. Then the B-52 bested the B-60. And the B-58 should have been built in larger numbers as a B-47 replacement, but costs and then DoD and USAF politics led to its early retirement.
Thanks for this video of this forgotten plane. It’s often described as obsolete on deployment so I’m glad you mention it was designed as such by army specs. I can imagine a number of engineers and pilots not too thrilled about this project.
Apparently, Popular Mechanics has been full of crap for many many decades. Thanks for this excellent video about a plane I'd never heard of!
Done with your usual thoroughness and competence, Greg. Your videos are always worth listening to and watching, even for those of us who are non-pilots or aviators (or car geeks). Lots of fascinating tech stuff in this one, but the most striking thing for me is the photo near the end showing the B-29 and B-36 together. The B-36 (You can see one in person at the SAC museum in Ashland, NE.) is a genuinely gigantic aircraft, and I always marvel that something that large and heavy was able to fly at all, much less carry a payload. It does seem fairly obvious that RUclips prefers videos of 15 minutes or less, and I watch a fair number of those, too, but even at my age (79), my attention span isn't limited to 15-minute chunks, so I can attend to longer presentations as well, and yours are worth the effort at the viewer end.
Thanks Ray, I always appreciate your comments.
I like the longer videos.
I'd bet that RUclips pushes shorter videos so they can put more pre-roll and post-roll ads in 5 twelve minute videos than they can get away with in a 60 minute video.
My Grandfather was a reconnaissance photographer with 312 Bomb Group, and the A-20G I have him pictured posing next to the nose art was 386th Squadron, which went on to operate the B-32, and were involved in those post-surrender photo recon missions that became the last aerial battle of WW2. He was still with the 312th as late as July 1945, but I don't yet know for certain if he worked aboard the B-32. Seems likely. There were many of those recon missions.
Thanks, Greg. Your in-depth analysis and comparison (in this case) to the B-29 is interesting. Keep up the great work!
Until today, I had never heard of the B-32........thanks for this interesting chapter of aviation history. It sounds likes Greg is in good form and good health )
Thanks, and yes, I'm fully recovered.
Many thx. There is almost nothing posted on this aircraft and it should not be forgotten.
I’ve been going to work at USAF Plant 4 (Fort Worth) for 18 years. It’s neat to see old photos of the Plant. I don’t recall in the historical photos sprinkled throughout the Plant, the B-32 featured. Things change a little, but some of the shots/locations are easily identified. Today, it is of course the main production line for F-35. Fun facts: the building is just over a mile long. It’s near twin in Tulsa is just a bit shorter (everything is bigger in Texas).
56:05 I like the way you put that statement. I have no idea who or what brought it... but I liked it.
Normally, I don't watch programs that are over 20 or 30 minutes long... but here I am... enjoying the heck out of your B-32 video. Something of a "missing link" in aviation history.
Thank you!
(p.s. I suspect a "Dark" culprit... 😊 )
In depth details technical, operational, and historical, like no one else! Thanks, Greg.
the lights will be AC because you need to generate HV and the only way to do that pre semi conductors involved AC. not sure about the wastegate or radio stuff. radio is real black magic.
Radios needed several DC voltages, including 6V for tubes heating.
Using a transformer was the best way to step up or down voltages, at the time.
Thanks Greg. Best B32 video I've seen. The story of the aircraft that barely made it to the party are very interesting and oft overlooked or dismissed.
Excellent video that is jam packed with interesting data. Thanks for another of your informative videos.
You’ve done it again, Greg. Another comprehensive rundown that’s so precise that there’s not one wasted word. & again still better with every new edition
Also want to add, when you mentioned the 17aH battery, my mind immediately went to the APU (APP). I fly the CRJ and we have a 17aH battery in the nose simply used to start the APU. It’s an immensely small battery as you mentioned. Very cool how similar aircraft design is even 60 years later
All flown by men who were (for the most part) , not yet thirty. Absolutely mind-blowing.
I am so excited to watch this! Thanks Greg!!
The B-29 tail looks so much better.
When I have a discussion about the German He-177 I always hear about how 'bad' the design was because the engines caught fire so much (Something which was eventually resolved in later variants). I usually retort with the issues of the B-29 having lots of engine fire issues initially as well. As expected, most of those who knock the He-177 are totally unaware that the B-29 had the same issue at first. My dad was a waist gunner in B-29s in Korea (later went to the A/B-26). He said it was his job to start and stop the APU in the B-29 and used to say that he was usually sick from the fumes by the time they took off unless the pilot let him use the oxygen mask while it was running. Apparently sometimes they would not allow it, possibly due to fire dangers. I remember my dad explaining to me how the B-29 turrets worked with the amplidynes and servos. He said the gun computers were in a lead lined vault in the floor between the gunners.
The huge difference is that the B-29 was the most technologically advanced aircraft of WW2, or at least in the top 3. Whereas the He-177 was an entirely unsuccessful mish-mash of requirements that created an unremarkable, troublesome aircraft.
PArtially correct. The He-177 as originally created was just as advanced or at least just as demanding as the B-29 in technical complexity. Actually even more so with the coupled engines and evaporative cooling. The trouble all really started when the RLM and Hitler made them change the design to enable it to be a dive bomber... not something any heavy bomber should be able to do. This compromised the entire design and caused much of the original technology to be scrapped. Even so, by the -a5 the aircraft was operating reasonably well but by then the Luftwaffe had no fuel. The only real issue that caused all the fires was oil foaming causing poor lubrication in the engines. This issue was resolved by the -a5.
@@CAL1MBO
You picked one of my favorites, well done.
Very interesting, as always. I’ve linked your presentations many times when other folks needed clarification on aircraft and aircraft systems.
Thanks for the closing summary of the fate of Convair. My late father-in-law was a structural engineer who worked at Convair in the 1950s. Some of the structure in the B-58 is his work.
Greg, thanks for another excellent video with accurate, detailed information. As a professional corporate pilot for the last 33 years, I've flown several aircraft that still employ Current Limiters in their electrical systems (the King Air -200's, -300's, and -350's, as well as several business jets). Your description of them as "slow blow fuses" is spot on! (the common phrase used at Flight Safety, C.A.E., and SimCom during my many initial and recurrent training evolutions). Sidebar: Without exception, the electrical systems of all the aircraft (19) covered by my 5 type ratings were ALWAYS the most involved, complicated, and difficult to comprehend, understand, and master.
Great stuff! I didn’t realize that the B-29s defensive guns were so effective.
Yes good drop Greg! Was waiting on a comprehensive breakdown on the B-32 Dominator!
Why would you people care ?
@@ricktaylor3748 Who the fuck are 'you people'? What are you trying to insinuate here?
@@ricktaylor3748 Why would white people care about ending slavery?
A very informative and interesting video on a little known bomber!
As for the length, spend as much time as you think necessary!
I am getting a bit tired of the nonsense rules and restrictions of RUclips!
Their silly censorship is getting more and more ridiculous!
Amen! There is soon to be a dust-up, a Rumble if you will, between those of us that value freedom of speech and those willing to kneel to some jumped up jerks in Silicon Valley high on huffing their own farts.😑👍🏻
Flying review in the 1960s had an article which actually captioned it article as the Superfortress standbye (insurance policy)
I don't want you to go to short form videos. I'm all in for one or two hours. No worries.
I love the 1 hr shows, I can put something on and just sit back and listen while I work. Thanks for your efforts.
Would love to see an in depth discussion of bomber gunners, such a cool idea
Probably the upper turret gunner on a B-17 was the best gunner job to get, because you get to ride up front with the pilots for a lot of the mission, and you get a good opportunity to get a shot in on a lot of front, back, and beam attacks. Worst position of course is ventral turret. Followed by waist gunner with those open windows.
@@sergeipohkerova7211 I recommend the book "Combat Crew" by John Comer. Comer volunteered to be an aerial gunner (a decision he regretted as he served during the dark days before long range fighter escorts were available). He initially failed the depth perception test but was accepted as a flight engineer as the top turret of the B-17 was equipped with a Sperry Computing Sight that automatically computed the correct lead. As flight engineer, he had the task of dealing with all the issues (failed systems, wounded crew, rescuing an unconscious tail gunner whose oxygen had failed) that didn't directly involve flying the plane. It makes for a great read, as he was more aware of everything going on than the pilot or copilot were.
@@sergeipohkerova7211 ball gunners on B17 and B24 incurred lowest combat casualtie.
Amazing essay. Love the long format vids
I know its way outside the wheelhouse for this channel, but Convair also went on to build the Atlas missile, the first American ICBM. While it had a very short career as a missile the Atlas went on to have a very long and successful career as a space launch vehicle including putting the first American into orbit and launching the first flyby of another planet.
An excellent presentation of the design of a little-known American combat aircraft. And how "Hobo Queen" brought back the body of the last American airman to die during WWII.
Great video, as always. Thanks, Greg!
I think I've said it before, but I like the long videos. We watch Greg's channel due to high-quality content because Greg does amazing research. Let the kids enjoy their brief and shallow videos. I'll stay a loyal Patreon member BECAUSE of the long videos.
Great work! I think they got a good handle on the R3350 issues when they started using direct fuel injection. Mixture distribution (specifically, the lack of it!) was the bane of all of these huge, multi-cylinder aircraft engines. Take an overall look at one of these induction systems sometime. It's an amazing thing that they got 50+ litre engines to reliably run! The carburetors they used were massive one or two venturi hunks of iron and bronze! My grandaddy (an engine maintainer during WWII) said that the R2600 carb on B-25s weighed well over a hundred pounds!
Another excellent and informative video! Thank you Greg for all the effort and dedication you put into these!
Most interesting subject that I knew next to nothing about.
Thanks for your presentation
Is it possible that the Japanese pilots fought on because they didn't believe they had surrendered and were honoring their code? Utterly fascinating, Greg. All of it. Never worry about the length of your content. We feel as you do. It takes time to get to the bottom of all this and we appreciate your hard work.
If you don't know you say you don't know. That's what is great about Greg
Always enjoy Greg's videos. I've always had an interest in the B-32 because my dad briefly trained on it. He had completed pilot training on the B-24 but instead of shipping to Europe, the brass sent him to B-32 school at Fort Worth. This turned out to be only ground school. The class saw the airplane but never flew it before the brass changed their minds and decided it would be faster to cross-train B-29 crews for what was already decided to be limited action for the plane. He went on to B-29 school, where he was when the war ended. As to the 3350 engines, dad called them the "Curtiss Bonfires". The early engines were carborated, which lead to fires. Once Curtiss went to fuel-injections, the fires were greatly reduced.
Look at that tail! Thx Greg.
She has a big ol' caboose! 😍
ooooh It's a Greg video! I absentmindedly clicked this thinking it was just another 10-20 minute video that just skims the surface of an obscure WWII plane like so many YT videos do, perfect to watch while eating. A Greg video deserves more attention however, imma download it and listen to it as a podcast during the 35 minutes it takes me to cycle to work. Thanks mister Greg!
We love the longer content Greg! I usually watch your videos multiple times, and love the immersion in the subject matter. 👍
What a wonderful video! Enjoyed every minute, thank you so much!