T

HE time-worn proverb that

necessity mothers invention is

nowhere more axiomatic than in the

present global conflict. It is well known

that in wartime the vital demand for

science to discover and produce is

increased a hundred-fold, for existence

of a nation may hang upon the creative

genius of its scientists. During the past

five years martial pressure has fostered

aeronautical evolution and accomplished

what might have taken fifty or sixty

years in peacetime.

With America on the sidelines

watching the beginnings of war on

September 3, 1939, the British Royal Air

Force and the Nazi Luftwaffe hurled

superb fighting aircraft into combat.

That the French did not arm themselves

with warplanes of appreciable quality

proved the deciding factor in the

crushing defeat of June, 1940.

Meanwhile, a small British air arm

was crushing hordes of Luftwaffe planes

over the British Isles ― and America

saw the importance of quality, the

impotence of quantity alone. Almost at

once engineers and designers 3,000

miles from Dunkerque altered

construction of front-line fighters

through refabrication of hundreds of

planes. Production lines were readied for

conversion to the manufacture of more

powerful warbirds. Performance

improving devices were evolved as a

result of lessons learned from the aerial

duels over Europe.

Then war struck at the United States

on December 7th; 1941, before complete

production of the new weapons could

have any noticeable effect upon the

enemy. Bugs had to be ironed out of

new experimental aircraft. Conversion

of existing plants and building of others

would take valuable time. American

forces fell back against an enemy

hopelessly superior in quality and

quantity. Our lend-lease fighters, the

Buffaloes, Hawks and Mohawks, were

all falling easy prey to enemy guns. The

old Boeing B-17B and B-17C Flying

Fortresses proved inferior to standards

of European warfare, and were

condemned by the British after many of

the giant craft were destroyed by Nazi

fighters. But as we fought with our

backs to the wall, then slowly withdrew

from our island possessions, heavy

casualties were inflicted on the Axis

hordes. Important information was

absorbed from our first actual aerial

conflicts with the enemy and rushed

back to the States.

Before long, the prime failing of our

fighting machines ― insufficient

firepower ― was remedied. The old

Grumman F4F-3 Wildcats with four .50-

cal machine guns had joined with

rugged Curtiss P-40s to stop the onrush

of the Nipponese armies. Boeing B-17C

Fortresses were improved sufficiently in

the B-17D versions to go out against Jap

interceptors. American warplanes soon

had as much as a two to one armament

advantage over Japanese machines and

were on an equal footing with the deadly

German warplane.

That we have come a long way is

obvious when one compares the present

force of the Republic Thunderbolt's

eight 50-cal. wing guns to the old .30-

cal guns of the Curtiss P-36 Mohawks.

Or consider the whiplash of the

Lockheed Lightning with its five guns

and cannon located in the nose of

America' s most versatile fighter.

Similarly, the 200- pound bomb load of

the early Grumman Wildcat has given

way to the 5,200-pound load of

Lockheed P-38J Lightnings.

Firepower has also become important

in the aerial defense tactics of our day-

raiding bombers, as evidenced by latest

armament specifications. A day

bombardment machine must battle its

way through swarms of German

interceptors studded with rocket

projectiles, machine guns and cannon ―

by no means a choice assignment even

for the most powerfully armed aerial

dreadnaught, The Boeing B-17G5

Fortress and Convair B-24K Liberator

medium-heavy bombers are fine

examples of powerfully defended

aircraft. Not only do they reach and

destroy their .intended objectives, but

usually eliminate large numbers of

opposing fighters. These two airplanes

have good speed for their size, but

unless a heavy bomber can advance its

maximum speed substantially under

combat conditions, as can the mighty

Boeing B-29 Superfortress and

Consolidated-Vultee B-32 superbomber,

speed does not become a defensive

tactic to evade the enemy. The B-17G5

and B-24K must rely upon their own

defensive fire-power.

Five years of bitterly fought air war

have taught us the necessity for

aeronautical improvement in many other

aspects as well. Boeing Fortresses

above 40,000 feet demand every

possible protection for crew and ship

against the extreme cold. De-icers must

function perfectly every second while

the giant bomber is in or above the eight

mile level; sixty-seven degrees below

zero will freeze an entire wing in a

matter of seconds. Gun and engine oils

had to be adapted to operate under

abnormal conditions; the average oil

becomes a sticky, soggy mass at the

extreme altitudes where the Fortress

fights. Shock-absorbing rubber

underwent constant experimentation. At

40,000 feet and above, rubber will snap

like a brittle piece of straw. The metal

skin on a plane actually shrinks away

from its coating of paint in the

incredible atmosphere. Control systems,

instruments, oxygen feed lines, fuel

cells, hydraulic controls, high altitude

suits for the crew ― all these had to be

still further developed and improved.

The combat successes of the Liberator

above 36,000 feet and the Fortress at

above 40,000 feet again testify to the

perseverance and ingenuity of our aerial

scientists and engineers.

Perhaps the finest example of what

five years of air war has taught us is

seen in the mightiest aerial weapon of

all, the B-29.

As the pinnacle of contemporary air

progress, this gargantuan flying machine

deserves our closer scrutiny. Operating

under command of the 20th Air Force

Headquarters in the Pentagon Building

in Washington, D. C., the

Superfortresses are the ultimate in

bomber design for World War II.

As evidence of the ability of the

Superfort's fire system, the B-29 turrets

usually accommodate only two .50-cal.

machine guns instead of the full

emplacement for four weapons. More

ammunition may be carried in this

manner and service model B-29s are

armed with a 20-mm tail cannon plus

the twin machine guns for increased

range of rear defensive weapons. Total

armament of the Superfort is ten .50-cal.

guns and one 20-mm cannon.

Comfort was a major factor in

designing crew positions. Long raids

carried out by Liberators showed that no

man is capable of staying wide awake

for long periods, Ability of the

Superfortresses to cruise for great

lengths of time at high speeds meant the

crew must have sleeping quarters and

food. The pressurization and turret

equipment for the Superfortress is the

most efficient yet installed on any

combat machine. The B-29 is equipped

with all necessary pressurized heating

equipment to maintain 8,000 foot

comfort to the peak of its ceiling.

The success of the laminar flow

wing in the Mustang, and the Davis

airfoil of the Liberator has contributed

to design of the Boeing 117 wing

structure, which presents a minimum

of drag in fight. An increase of

nineteen percent for wing area when

landing is provided by giant flaps

which slide out in sections from the

inner rear of the 142-foot wing.

American flying boats have proved

to be the most efficient in the world.

No transport or passenger flying boat

has come near to equaling the

magnificent record of the forty-two

and a half ton Boeing 314A trans-

Atlantic and trans-Pacific clipper.

Vought's Excalibur and the civil

version of the Convair Coronado will

prove to be the smaller four engine

transports for Yank airlines.

The three mightiest aircraft ever

devised for the nation's airlines are

already under flight and mockup

testing. Martin's stupendous seventy-

four-ton JRM-1 Mars has proved so

efficient under cargo-carrying

conditions that design alterations have

been made and the ship will be ready

for use following the cessation of

hostilities. Passenger types of this

aircraft will carry as many as 150

passengers on 5,000-mile non-stop

hops. If not for the wartime

development of giant cargo flying

boats, these aircraft would not have

existed for perhaps another ten years.

The last five years of aeronautical

progress have made them possible.

Douglas already has its post-war

DC-7 in the mockup stage. Known as

the world' s largest transport plane, the

giant aircraft was made possible

through lessons and experience gained

in the servicing and fabrication of its

smaller counterpart, the Douglas DC-

6, evolved from the old DC-4 which

was sold to Japan in 1939. This is the

first indication of the true super-

airliner of the future.

Perhaps the greatest and most

efficient airliner ever released to the

public for future use is the

Consolidated-Vultee super six-engined

transport. It now has an official but

secret designation in the USAAF, will

carry over 400 passengers for

peacetime duty at high altitudes while

maintaining a high cruising speed.

Powered by six thundering engines of

restricted power rating, the Convair

model has a gigantic wingspread of

300 feet. In volume, the airliner will

surpass anything yet devised by any

nation.

Thus it is that a scant five years in

which planes have devastated a world

at war have, at the same time, brought

the essential flying tools for world

reconstruction.

This article was originally published in

the November, 1944, issue of Air

News magazine, vol 7, no 5, pp 26-27.

The original was printed on 9½ by

12¾ inch paper. The images have been

reduced to fit on A-size paper.

Photos credited to Boeing, Rudy

Arnold, Chance Vought, Lockheed,

Douglas, TWA.