The Boeing B-29 was possibly the most influential aircraft of World War II. It was the first weapon system with a price tag of over $1 billion dollars. Evidence suggests that Germany was well aware of the B-29’s capabilities, as plans for the aircraft had fallen into the hands of Axis agents. In the minds of the German military, the threat offered by this aircraft necessitated the development of a jet aircraft as they anticipated encountering this bomber.

Entire industries had to be developed, as the B-29 was the most technologically advanced aircraft in the world. The B-29 had a form of computerized gun turrets. (Primitive by today’s standards, it was considered state of the art in the 1940s.) The system was devastating and was destined to become the second highest scoring allied type of the Korean War (1950-53).

When the specifications were issued for a “hemispherical” bomber, the aircraft industry had no idea exactly what would be demanded of the airplane. The development of the B-29 was long and costly since plans were continually revised as the military’s specifications evolved. As an example, the wing of the airplane was designed and engineered and ready for construction when the call came through to rework the wings so as to slow the landing speed. The high cost of this aircraft was the direct result of this type of research and development. When the first B-29 flew, in September 1942, the price of that single aircraft was more than the cost of the entire Atlantic Fleet. There were cries to cut the program because of its expense. However, more visionary heads prevailed and the B-29 went into production.

The B-29s early operational career was plagued with problems because early flight crews were trained in B-17s and then sent into combat in B-29s. More B-29s were lost to flying accidents than were shot down over Japan. As an example, Flight Engineers had to learn how to the manage 2200 horsepower engines of the B29s as opposed to the 1200 horsepower engines they were trained on. One of the problems encountered was the high volume of fuel consumed by these larger engines. Many of the aircraft were ditched after running out of fuel.

Because of the B-29s flew at such high altitudes, it was the first aircraft to identify and encounter the effects of the Jet Stream; the Jet Stream impacted the ground speed of the aircraft which in turn greatly affected bombing accuracy. In early 1945 General Curtis LeMay was brought to the Pacific from Europe to address and alleviate the problem. His solution was to change from high altitude bombing to low altitude bombing. This solution brought the B-29 into is own: the B-29 provided the devastation hoped for by the military leadership of the United States. The B-29s greatest claim to fame was the dropping of the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki that ended the war.

It must also be noted that during WW2 the Soviet Union interred several B-29s that landed in Russia due to battle damage when they were unable to return to their bases in China. The Soviet Union at the time was not at war with Japan. In one of the great engineering feats of all time the Soviet Union was able to replicate the B-29 rivet for rivet thus saving years of research and development. Given the designation Tupolev TU-4, it was such an exact copy as to have the same inherent problems of the B-29.

The TU-4 was one of the most influential aircraft in Soviet aviation. The Soviets continued to develop and upgrade the airframe culminating with the final variant being the TU-95 Bear Bomber. In the 1960s the TU-95 Bear Bomber was the only Soviet aircraft capable of reaching the United States with nuclear weapons.

In the skies over Korea the day of the daylight bomber was over. The Soviets unleashed their new jet fighter, the Mig15, which was designed for the destruction of manned bombers. This forced the B-29 into night operations where it became even more devasatating. Before the day of the air to air missle and without night interceptor capabiities the Migs could not stop the B-29s. It was the first bomber of the newly formed U.S. Strategic Air Command, and it gave a good account of itself in Korea.

In the 1950s the British Royal Air Force acquired some of the B-29s under the name Boeing Washingtons. With the advent of the Boeing B-47 Stratojet, the B-29 was retired in the mid-1950s.