B-36 Peacemakers in the UK

Completing sandiego89’s list, the only other UK bases to support B-36 deployments, albeit briefly, were Sculthorpe and Boscombe Down.

The “Operation UK” deployment to Lakenheath in Jan’51 involved a/c from both the 7th and the 11th Bomb Groups.

Regarding the Greenham Common B-36 – RB-36F 49-2720. This was assigned to the 72nd BW at Ramey AFB, PR. (In Oct’55 SAC redesignated all its RB-36 Reconnaissance Wings to Heavy Bombardment Wings when it changed the primary mission of the RB-36 from Reconnaissance to Bombing.) At the end of July’58 `720`was transferred out of SAC and assigned to the boneyard at Davis Monthan so the date of its visit can’t be September.

As far as I’m aware this was the only visit of a 72nd SRW/BW RB-36 to the UK even though another. 51-5744 was reported visiting St Mawgan during its B of B show in Sept’52. In fact, this was assigned to the 28thSRW at Rapid City/Ellsworth AFB and had flown in from Fairford where it was on a 6 week detachment as part as Project `Roundout`.

Some of the B-36’s which appear in that superb movie `Strategic Air Command` were also seen in the UK. Star of the B-36 segment, 11th BW 51-5734, was part of a combined 7/11BW Post Strike Exercise which saw 16 a/c land at Burtonwood in Oct’56. Also taking part was 11thBW 52-2216. 7thBW 51-5721 was one of the a/c inbound to Fairford on that foggy morning when 51-5719 ran out of fuel and crashed at Lacock. With the fuel situation dire 5721, along with 4 others, managed to divert into Brize after pilots had pleaded with their Command Post to get it opened up! Later, they repositioned to Fairford. According to one of the pilots I spoke to they were lucky to only lose one a/c!

…………Shame it’ll never be released on region 2.

Region 1 (USA) DVD’s can be played on many region 2 (Europe) players , some will automatically play multi-regions, others need setting up somewhere deep in the menu or some code bypass, google how to do it for your make/model of dvd player.

Thanks for the very interesting photos at Greenham Common.

I too remember these beasts coming up from the south west and passing over Bucks on the airway. Even though they were contrailing, you could hear them coming quite some time before they reached the overhead!

It’s the best era of aviation imo. It was the 1st film shot in Vistavision, surprised it wasn’t released for that historical fact alone. Shame it’ll never be released on region 2.

Back to B-36s in the UK. The ‘Wiltshire’ B-36 (B-36H 51-5719):

[ATTACH=CONFIG]256787[/ATTACH]

And a couple of bits in my collection, including Aileron trim tab balance weight, piece of aluminium alloy and a short length of tube with rubber hose & clamps attached:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]256788[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]256789[/ATTACH]

I recently bought the film on Blue Ray with its visual and sound improvements. I’m tempted to get a TV-DVD player audio upgrade just for the soundtrack

A mist impressive part of the film is the first takeoff. It’s a long one shot which follows the B-36 takeoff from Carswell. It was taken by Paul Mantz from his B-25 flying off the left wing.
Impressive piece of cinematography and airmanship.
It would be an easy shot today with a helicopter…if it could keep up and avoid wake vortices…but a B-25 staying in perfect formation…that’s great flying.

I seem to remember James Stewart wasn’t all that happy with it. I think it’s a great film – mind you, I like old films and haven’t seen much if anything made in the last decade or two. Love to have seen and heard a B-36…

#10/25: contrails over Harrow: standard radar target for SAC in UK, before Airways became jet-orientated, was The Gramophone Co., Hayes.

Strange because I’m sure Strategic Air Command was considered a great aviation film until very recently, so I’ve no idea why it’s being panned now. For a start it stars James Stewart, so that one thing means it has to be verging on perfection. And the scene where the Big Stick appears over the baseball stadium has to rank as one of the most memorable film scenes of all time!

IMHO of course.

More from “Strategic Air Command”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FJVxtTNjJk

Now available on Blu-ray, worth picking up – crap film, but excellent footage!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Strategic-Air-Command-Blu-ray/dp/B01JLWHP7I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1509831045&sr=8-1&keywords=strategic+air+command+blu-ray

As promised B-36 at Greenham Common
[ATTACH=CONFIG]256754[/ATTACH]
[ATTACH=CONFIG]256753[/ATTACH]

Thanks for the info! I’ve not heard of Pima running anything either, so I won’t hold my breath!

No, no one does do engine run ups. It would take a lot of fuel and oil…
Pima would be the best bet because unlike the ones in Dayton and Nebraska, it’s outdoors.

Back in the 70s when the a.c. was in Fort Worth a group had plans to fly it. Sounds naive today, but fuel prices and the USAF put the brakes on that plan.
However, they may have had the engines serviced or preserved. IIRC, after a restoration the aircraft was stored in pieces indoors, so they and associated systems might be in acceptable condition.

It would be great to hear one running. But they don’t seem to do that in America (unless someone knows different)

But if you read a detailed history of the type, you’ll see it came very close to cancellation many times or at least production would have been severely curtailed. It was not a popular aircraft, due not only to politics (“the revolt if the admirals” and the cancellation of the stillborn super carrier USS United States) but cost as well. Many in the govt and USAF had doubts about it.

In the end, Stalin saved the program with his broken promises concerning Eastern European countries after the war and most notably, the Berlin blockade. Not to mention the crash programme to develop atomic and hydrogen weapons.

Lock at the B-36 orders, the vast majority came after the Berlin crisis…which certainly tipped Stalin’s hand about his intentions and desires towards the west.

Likewise, conventional weapons were on the back burner until the Korean War, the U.S. defensive forces were certainly neglected in the post war drawdown until the Soviets developed atomic weapons and had their reverse engineered B-29s as a viable delivery system.

(We try here not to do conspiratorial political thoughts…but indulge me).
7/43: (60 B-29D, to be) B-50A and 100 B-36A ordered, with range ample for CONUS-Berlin/Tokyo….Moscow.
VJ Day: not cancelled.
12/45 200 more B-36A ordered.
4/46 B-47 funded into R&D. 6/46 (turboprop) B-52 funded into R&D.
US Big Bomb work, including on a Super, continues.

Stalin need not have been paranoid or worse to see an encirclement plot to defeat Mother Russia, fleshlessly, instead atomically, so he must gird atomically and seek a Cordon Sanitaire.

Mark12 – We lived at Hampton, Middx, around the same time and my father, who was in the ROC, assured me that they were.

I do have a couple of photos of what is believed to be the last B-36 to visit the UK at Greenham Common in September 58. They were taken by my dad, who was awaiting his national service call up, so was working as a drivers mate for a laundry company. His route included the USAF at Greenham. Have a couple of nice B-47 shots too. Am between PC’s and have some scanned copies on the old one, somewhere! Will try and dig them out over the weekend.

News report of the day (complete with stirring action music ) of the same visit to Lakenheath as Duggy’s pics above

Propstrike, per the quote you posted…

…all non-test B-36s had natural metal finish. Early examples sported red tails and wings for arctic flights which was soon deleated. Later, they had reflective white undersides. Thankfully, they were never camouflaged…and they avoided overall paint in the interest of weight savings.