The powerful Wright R-3350 engines experienced chronic overheating issues during testing, leading to the crash of the second prototype just north of Boeing Field on February 18, 1943. The initial XB-29 prototype first flew from Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington on September 21, 1942. The B-29's refined aerodynamics benefited from significant wind tunnel testing. It was the world's heaviest production airplane at the time of its introduction. The aircraft introduced several innovations for bomber types, including pressurized crew areas, remotely-controlled gun turrets, and dual bomb bays with alternating bomb release. The B-29 development program was an unprecedented industrial effort in the early 1940s. The design was further developed as the B-50, introduced in 1947. Specific B-29s were adapted as "motherships" for research aircraft in the late 1940s and 1950s, including Chuck Yeager's first supersonic flight in the Bell X-1. The aircraft was also used in other roles, such as maritime patrol, aerial refueling, weather reconnaissance, and search and rescue. The B-29 continued in frontline bomber service through the Korean War. Two modified B-29s dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan in August 1945, helping end the war in the Pacific. Its performance enabled long-range systematic bombing of Japan in 19.
It could carry more payload and fly faster and at higher altitudes than contemporary types such as the Boeing B-17, Consolidated B-24, or Avro Lancaster. The B-29 Superfortress was the most capable bomber of World War II. Buy Tickets Site Search Search Toggle search box
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