"Uncle Sam's newest, biggest bomber- the B-36 is a long, slim Texas gal with a wiggle to her rear. She's a little on the skinny side, but she's beautiful." (The New York Daily News, 1948)

"This is the mammoth battleship of the air on which the United States would largely depend in carrying the war- and the atomic bomb- to Moscow in case its dictators, avid for world domination, start the world's third great conflict in the next few year." (New York Sun, 1948)

During the early, somber days of World War II (1941), The Army Air Corps urgently needed a capable intercontinental bomber that could bomb targets in Europe from bases in North America.

The colossal B-36 designed to meet that critical need is the subject of veteran aviation writer Dennis R. Jenkins' book, "Magnesium Overcast".

Describing the "Peacemaker," the author relates, "The story of the B-36 is unique in American history. The aircraft was an interesting blend of concepts proven during World War II combined with budding 1950s high tech systems."

Mr. Jenkins summarizes his focus: "The intent of this work is to cover the development and production of the aircraft itself, and therefore its operational use is mentioned only when it brings to light information relevant to its design and construction."

The elephantine B-36 had a brief ten-year operational life during which it was the "king of the skies" for only about four years. It's development came at a time when the Navy and Air Force contended for control of America's burgeoning nuclear arsenal. Because most of the military expenditures were earmarked for exorbitant atomic weapon systems, there was tremendous political pressure on the developers to quickly create the consummate Air Force stratagem.

But there were performance limitations with the available technology. For the aircraft to reach its extreme (10,000 miles) long range - the 250 mph B-36 must routinely remain airborne for two days! Only the B-36's ability to fly higher that most jet interceptors and the complete absence of hostile surface-to-air missile systems kept it operational during the cold war. By 1955, its modest cruising speed made it an increasingly exposed target.

Mr. Jenkins reveals, "The B-36, despite its seemingly conventional appearance, pushed 1950's state-of-the-art further than any other aircraft of its era. Its sheer size brought structural challenges, while its high-altitude capabilities brought engine cooling and other problems. Sophisticated gun and bombing systems presented development, maintenance, and operational headaches."

To meet the extreme requirements of its mission, several outlandish design features were incorporated.

Early B-36 crews required a pilot, copilot, radar-bombardier, navigator, flight engineer, two radiomen, and 8 gunner/spotters. The "Peacemaker" was equipped with bunks for the off-duty crewmen and a galley- complete with oven to prepare hot meals!

One of the most eccentric systems developed for the B-36 was General Electric's complex system of 8 retractable remote control dual 20mm gun turrets. When greater range was needed, these heavy systems were soon removed.

Because mid-air refueling had not been developed, the aircraft configuration would be huge, considering the massive fuel storage requirements. To carry the massive bomb load, generous space for three substantial bomb bays was needed.

Later, in an effort to wring more useful life out of the "Peacemaker", the Air Force explored several curious modifications.

A pod that contained two turbo-jet engines was added under each wing, to provide a much-needed boost in power.

With the original 110 in. tires, only three runways in the world were thick enough to withstand the tremendous touch down weight of the B-36. Eventually when an adequate braking system was designed, a more practical multi-wheel landing gear was installed. Convair then experimented with an odd-looking track landing gear system for the aircraft that was designed for use on unprepared landing strips.

To extend the B-36's range, "all defensive armament except the tail turret and its radar, ...most of the remaining crew comfort equipment (bunks, galley, sound deadening, carpet) and astrodome" were removed.

Now, the vulnerable B-36 had virtually no defensive capability. The Air Force experimented with various parasite fighter planes that would be launched from aboard the B-36 when needed. The most interesting was the perfunctory McDonnell XP-85 Goblin, which was uniquely designed for this mission.

As a performance upgrade until the B-52 heavy bomber came on line, the Air Force experimented with replacing the B-36's massive wings with swept-back replacements (YB-60).

The most freakish experiment featured adding a nuclear reactor to power the NB-36H. Greatly modified turbojet engines used a sealed system of air or steam heated by the reactor. Such an aircraft theoretically could stay airborne for years! Unfortunately, very heavy radiation shielding was imperative for crew protection.

Thankfully, the B-47 Stratojet and the B-52 heavy jet bomber became operational and finally put an end to the expensive "Frankenstein" experiments with the outmoded B-36.

Magnesium Overcast: The Story of the Convair B-36 is a high quality, glossy, format book with a "jackpot" of intriguing photographs (many in color), instructive drawings and tables. Many of the wonderful interior photographs, diagrams and engineering drawing were taken from U.S. Air Force technical manuals. The graphics alone make this one of the finest aircraft books I have ever seen. Mr. Jenkins had done a superior job of presenting all the modification programs in great detail with a clear, concise style. He has meticulously researched and presented the life cycle of the B-36 from conception through scrapping out.


About the Author

Dennis R. Jenkins is a consulting engineer in Florida who works on various aerospace projects, including over 20 years on NASA's space shuttle program.

Mr. Jenkins also authored "B-36 Photo Scrapbook". This book began as a collection of illustrations that were assembled for "Magnesium Overcast" but would not fit into the finished work. Since many of these are significant - or at least interesting - and most have never been published previously, it was decided to print the scrapbook as a companion volume to "Magnesium Overcast."

His latest book is "Experimental & Prototype U.S. Air Force Jet Fighters" (Specialty Press 2008). Mr. Jenkins also authored "Space Shuttle: The History of the National Space Transportation System: The First 100 Missions," in addition to more than 30 other works on aerospace history, several on the subject of the X-15 program.

A great long range bomber that served in SAC to perform as a bridge between the "prop" planes and the pure jet. This book is throughly
researched and easy to read. Many photos.