B-52 Stratofortress

Chris707 · November 19, 2004, 04:36:15 PM

Here's a Buff with a bit of a twist:

The story behind this - an intermediate design between Boeing's original XB-52 studies (which looked a *lot* like B-50s with 4-6 turboprops) and the later swept-wing pure jet.

Contrast that with:

When you think about, the Bear and Buff are actually sort of distant cousins - the XB-52 had its beginning as a (greatly) scaled up turboprop Superfortress, while the Bear evolved out of the Tu-4 through the Tu-80 and Tu-85, which had more than a passing familiarity to the early Boeing plans...

You could maybe make a stab at a 464 by mating a B-52 fuse with some Bear wings...hmm it's not like I don't have any other half-built Boeing bombers sitting around...

Chris

Gary · November 20, 2004, 05:43:08 PM

Cool, I didn't know that one. I just assumed the 52 was a scaled up B-47 cause the pics of the prototype had a similar fighter type canopy over tandem seating.

http://www.boeing.com/defense-space/milita...ges/p-12139.jpg

Captain Canada · November 20, 2004, 07:22:57 PM

Neat, really neat !

Now you've got me thinking big....like a Canadair B-47 variant, powered by four Iroqouis engines !

Andrew Gorman · November 20, 2004, 08:09:39 PM

Turboprops rule OK! I am (slowly, very slowly) working on a Boeing XB-55, based on a stretched Revell box scale B-47. I had a hard time figuring out the defensive armament from the spotty web resources available and the book "US Bombers", but I'm getting there. Nacelles are done, fuselage done, wings stretched and re-angled, but not attached,so the main things left are the pylons and 24-count 'em-24 propeller blades! At 1/114 scale I should be able to do the windscreen with white glue.
Andrew

elmayerle · November 20, 2004, 10:27:19 PM

QuoteCool, I didn't know that one. I just assumed the 52 was a scaled up B-47 cause the pics of the prototype had a similar fighter type canopy over tandem seating.

http://www.boeing.com/defense-space/milita...ges/p-12139.jpg

Nope, IAPR, Volume 8, coverd the early evolution of the B-52 and it clearly came from an enlarged B-29/B-50 design, the very original version of which had six T34 turboprops. The USAF encouraged further work because this wasn't much of an improvement, if any, over the B-36 (side thought: a B-36 derivative similar to the second YB-60, but with four turboprops, perhaps T57's T54's (T54 was equivalent to the T40, but used T56 power sections instead of T38 power sections)).

Gekko_1 · February 08, 2007, 05:57:57 PM

Hi guys,

I've just been looking over my Dragon 1/200 scale B-52G and have decided to build it while I await some aftermarket stuff for my Tamiya He162 (which I've decided to build in Finish markings) and a Hasegawa Grace which will be 'real world'.

So; what possibilities are there for a 'what if' B-52G?

I've decided to build it 'wheels up' to speed things up a bit. As its the 'Desert Storm Nose Art' kit it could be built with either cruise missiles or 500lb Mk117 bombs.

Richard.

Son of Damian · February 08, 2007, 06:10:06 PM

If you want to do a really odd one you could do a B-52 of a Republic of China AF, say Chiang Kai-shek never went after the communists in the north instead consolidating control over the south and taiwan. With a divided China being a major front in the cold war, the relative closeness to the USSR's republics in centeral asia, and the vastness of the region. B-52s are sort of a given.

Sentinel Chicken · February 08, 2007, 06:24:46 PM

If you think that at one time the USAF offered the RAAF B-47s, suppose that the B-47 offer was taken and then the RAAF replace those B-47s with B-52Gs for the sea control role- similar to what the Loring/Andersen-based BUFFs did, armed with Harpoon missiles.

You could do a martime schemed RAAF B-52G with a mixed external load of Harpoons, Tomahawks, and sea mines like the CAPTOR or Quickstrike.

Andrew Gorman · February 08, 2007, 09:02:18 PM

Cross a B-52 with an AWACS Nimrod?
http://www.spyflight.co.uk/Nim%20aew.htm
In 1/200 it wouldn't take that much putty. As the RAF was retiring their Seattles, this was a way to utilize some soon to be surplus airframes...
Or scrap the jet engines and add turboprops- four or six turboprops with contra-rotating propellers!
Andrew

dragon · February 08, 2007, 09:48:47 PM

I have always thought that the B-52 would look real interesting in a Desert camo. Imagine one of those in a scheme similar to that of the first spanish F-18s the Spanish received from the US? B)

philp · February 08, 2007, 10:26:34 PM

some Buff ideas here.
http://www.dataviewbooks.com/what-if.html

GTX · February 10, 2007, 10:51:48 AM

Richard,

How about a B-52 converted into a ASW/Maritime Patrol bird (a bit like the Tu-142 was from the Tu-95) - say a MAD boom replacing the tail turret, sonobouy launch tubes? As for operators - India, RAAF (of course a Fanta Can B-52 would be cool too).

Regards,

Greg

Radish · February 10, 2007, 04:03:50 PM

Well, some ideas......

Estonian
Latvian...Red Swastikas on the white roundel
Bangladesh
and finally...
Saudi Arabia

Son of Damian · February 10, 2007, 08:15:24 PM

I remember some one posted a group of profiles a few months back that included some BUFFs. IIRC there was an Indian and a civilian version.

GTX · February 10, 2007, 09:46:35 PM

Richard,

Glad you like the ASW/Maritime Patrol idea. You could also arm it to the teeth with Harpoon missiles/torpedoes like this:

You could also have Canada as apotential operator - Boeing tried to interest them (they also had similar plans for the RAAF) with a ASW version of the 707. It's probably not too much of a strectch to do a backstory with a P-52 variant also being offered to both.

Regards,

Greg