Air Power

BOEING B-47E "STRATOJET"

The Boeing B-47, the world's first swept-wing bomber, made its initial flight on Dec. 17, 1947 and quantity deliveries began in 1951. When production ended in 1957, more than 1,200 Stratojets were serving with the Strategic Air Command at USAF bases throughout the world. By the late 1960s, the B-47 was obsolete and was removed from operational service.

The B-47 normally carried a crew of three--pilot, copilot (who operated the tail turret by remote control), and an observer who also served as navigator, bombardier and radar operator. In the RB-47 reconnaissance version, the navigator also operated the camera equipment.

The B-47E pictured was used at Wright-Patterson AFB from 1967-69 as a test-bed aircraft. It was the first USAF aircraft to incorporate a "fly-by-wire" primary flight control system in which the pilot's command controls are transmitted to the control surfaces by electrical wires rather than by cables and mechanical linkages.

SPECIFICATIONS
Span: 116 ft.
Length: 107 ft. 1 in.
Height: 28 ft.
Weight: 226,000 lbs. max.
Armament: Two M-24 20mm cannons in tail turret plus bombs--nuclear of 10,000 lbs. of conventional bombs
Engines: six General Electric J47s of 7,200 lbs. thrust ea.
Cost: $1,888,000

PERFORMANCE
Maximum speed: 610 mph.
Cruising speed: 560 mph.
Range: 3,500 miles
Service Ceiling: 39,300 ft.