Bell B-29B Superfortress
The stripped-down Superfortress — only the tail guns left, and an 'Eagle' radar wing under the belly · First built 1945 · In service 1945
With Japanese fighter opposition over Japan judged minimal by late 1944, and XXI Bomber Command under Curtis LeMay reasoned that a lighter, faster bomber would do better against flak. In the B-29B all defensive armament except the tail position was removed — along with most of the remote sighting equipment — which raised the top speed from 575 to 586 km/h. The tail kept its guns and an AN/APG-15 fire-control radar.
The B-29B was also fitted with the AN/APQ-7 "Eagle" bombing-through-overcast radar, whose long antenna sat in a small aerofoil-shaped wing slung under the fuselage between the main landing gear. All 311 were built by Bell at its Marietta plant near Atlanta.
Most B-29Bs went to the 315th Bombardment Wing at Northwest Field, Guam, whose groups flew their first mission against Japan on 26 June 1945, relying on the Eagle radar for bombing through cloud and darkness. After the war some B-29Bs were converted into tankers and test aircraft; one, 44-84053, is displayed at the Museum of Aviation at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia.
