Convair B36B Peacemaker (oz13270)

 

Convair B36B Peacemaker (oz13270) by Giuseppe Ghisleri 2000 - plan thumbnail

About this Plan

Convair B36 Peacemaker. Radio control PSS scale glider. Wingspan 280 cm.

Direct submission to Outerzone.

Quote: "Hi Mary, One more, this time a dwg. More information is on the plan, where a few elements only are full scale, however the captions are in English. The plan was published in Modellismo and RCM&E a lot of years ago."

Note the 'original' drawing here is the CAD zip download (in dwg format). That's the file that Giuseppe sent us, and that is his design, his work. The PDF file you see here is really just a taster, a PDF file in this slot for Oz users who don't have a CAD viewer.

Update 4/10/2024: Added article, thanks to RFJ.

Quote: "Making the Peacemaker. Beppe Ghisleri looks back to the heaviest and largest aircraft ever flown - and to the dangerous life enjoyed by his own, slightly smaller version.

The B36 can trace its genesis to the early days of 1941, when the Army Air Corps (the US Air Force was not yet established) felt that it needed a truly intercontinental bomber - one that could bomb targets in Europe from bases in North America. At that time, it seemed that England, along with continental Europe, might fall to a German invasion.

To accomplish the task would require a bomber with a 450 mph top speed, a 275 mph cruising speed, a service ceiling of 45,000 feet, and a maximum range of 12,000 miles at 25,000 feet with 10,000 pounds of bombs.

While the fate of the B-36 programme vacillated with changing wartime priorities, the aircraft's development remained painfully slow. The first flight took place on the 8th of September 1945 - almost six years after the original contract had been signed - by which time war was over. At the time, it was the largest and heaviest aircraft ever flown, with a gross weight of 266,000 pounds, a take-off power of 18,000 bhp, a span of 230 ft, and a length of 163 ft.

From mid-1948, even though the B-36's performance exceeded early expectations, the aircraft's relatively slow speed continued to cause concern. Tests had shown that altitude was very important in protecting a bomber, and the B-36 excelled at flying high. Nevertheless, a burst of speed over a target, or while under attack, increased a bomber's chances of survival.

Thus Convair proposed equipping the B-36 with two pairs of turbojet engines, in pods underneath the outer wing panels. These engines could be used during take-off and for short bursts of speed at critical times, and would have only a minimal effect on range. Special aerodynamic covers were designed, to close off the air intakes when the engines were not in use.

The 1950s were also a time of great experimentation. The Air Force was constantly exploring new technologies and new concepts to improve its war-fighting capability, and the B-36 featured prominently in some of these experiments. Far example, the first jet fighters, introduced near the end of World War II, hadn't the range necessary to escort the long-range B-36 bombers. In search of a possible solution, the Army Air Force revived the parasite fighter idea of the early 1930s, and proposed that the long-range bombers carry their protective fighters right along with them.

McDonnell submitted a proposal for a small aircraft called the 'Goblin'. This was to be launched and recovered from a retractable trapeze mounted underneath its parent bomber. A few test flights were made, but the recovery operation proved to be much more difficult than expected. The Air Force reluctantly concluded that the Goblin was simply too difficult to handle, and would be far beyond the capabilities of the average squadron pilot.

It was reasoned that many of the difficulties were due to the Goblin's unique shape, largely dictated by the requirement that it fit entirely into the bomb bay. If that requirement was relaxed, a more conventional fighter configuration could be used, and so an RB-36F was modified to carry a modified F-84E. But by the time the emphasis on using the parasite plane for fighter escorts had waned, a new need had developed. Increasing Soviet air defences were making it more difficult for large strategic reconnaissance aircraft to penetrate Soviet airspace. A small reconnaissance airplane could be transported close to Soviet borders, be released to make its run, and would then return to the waiting carrier aircraft. It is said that the system made several flights over the Soviet Union before the U-2 came on stream.

During 1955, the jet-propelled B-52 started replacing the B-36. The last B-36 was phased out in 1958.

The model: If the site where you usually fly has moderate lift - and if you like PSS models - then a B-36 would be a good choice to build. Its aspect ratio is very high, at 11:1, and this value brings it very close to that of a sailplane. The aircraft is very clean, with no drag-producing appendices (provided that you build an early, pre-turbojet version).

The only deviation from true scale outline in this model falls in the dimension and shape of the engine nacelles. I reduced their cross-section at wing bottom; and anyway, it's difficult to shape something that blends into a wing section correctly when it is completely different in the airplane and the model.

I choose E205 for the wing section with a wash-out of two degrees. With this set-up, and with the CG positioned as indicated on the plan, you can flair your glide as long as you need for a slow landing, without fear of tip stall.

My model has had a scary youth, with a major accident on its first flight on the slope. It took almost a month to build it, it was August, and I was on vacation. The first flight was off the slope in September at Grone, my home slope. I might say that the PSS season doesn't really open at all, because at Grone the flight conditions are better suited for thermals models. Nevertheless during May, June and July I manage to fly PSS models.

The test flight was straightforward, with no problem at all. B-36 showed a good glide, and a fairly good efficiency. The first flight on the slope took place the following year, in June. All went well - till the moment when I decided to land it..."

Supplementary file notes

Article.

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Convair B36B Peacemaker (oz13270) by Giuseppe Ghisleri 2000 - model pic

Datafile:
  • (oz13270)
    Convair B36B Peacemaker
    by Giuseppe Ghisleri
    from QEFI
    October 2000 
    110in span
    Scale Glider R/C Multi Pusher Military Bomber
    clean :)
    formers unchecked
    got article :)
  • Submitted: 27/08/2021
    Filesize: 530KB
    Format: • PDFbitmap • CADfile
    Credit*: GiuseppeGhisleri
    Downloads: 1066

ScaleType:
  • Convair_B-36_Peacemaker | help
    see Wikipedia | search Outerzone
    ------------
    Test link:
    search RCLibrary 3views (opens in new window)


    ScaleType: This (oz13270) is a scale plan. Where possible we link scale plans to Wikipedia, using a text string called ScaleType.

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Convair B36B Peacemaker (oz13270) by Giuseppe Ghisleri 2000 - pic 003.jpg
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Convair B36B Peacemaker (oz13270) by Giuseppe Ghisleri 2000 - pic 004.jpg
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Convair B36B Peacemaker (oz13270) by Giuseppe Ghisleri 2000 - pic 005.jpg
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User comments

Very impressive! A glider this size in scale is a remarkable feat! Looks beautiful in the air.
Jan Novick - 29/08/2021
There are free CAD apps available which can handle the .dwg plans
https://librecad.org/
https://www.freecadweb.org/
https://inkscape.org/
Inkscape has a host of add-ons for anyone who wants to use laser cutting.
Daithi - 30/08/2021
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Download File(s):
  • Convair B36B Peacemaker (oz13270)
  • Plan File Filesize: 530KB Filename: Convair_B36B_Peacemaker_oz13270.pdf
  • Supplement Filesize: 1420KB Filename: Convair_B36B_Peacemaker_oz13270_article.pdf
  • CAD Zip Filesize: 584KB Filename: Convair_B36B_Peacemaker_oz13270_cad.zip
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Notes

* Credit field

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Scaling

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