We have a Vulcan at the Castle Air Museum in Atwater Ca. But alas all we have of the B-58 is the fuel tank. We do, however, also have an SR 71 and B-36 among dozens of other awesome, rare aircraft.
Seems like the Canadian Avro Arrow which was unceremoniously cancelled by-stealth in 1959 by the Chief Air Marshall (and publicly 'blamed' on PM Diefenbaker) with only 5 operating prototypes would have been an excellant leg-up model to compete with this plane & America's aerospace industry throughout the 60s, 70s and beyond.
The B-58 was the only plane fast enough to keep up with the XB-70 during it's high speed Mach 2 tests. Imagine that, a supersonic bomber chase plane that could keep up with an experimental supersonic x-plane bomber
This bird flew 11 short years after WWII ended. It would haul the same ~20,000lb bombload as a B-29, but nearly four times faster and at almost twice the altitude. An amazing airplane for the day.
@giwannabe13: Two main reasons: 1.) Extremely expensive to maintain and operate. 2.) The introduction of effective SAM's limited the Hustler's ability to penetrate hostile airspace at altitude, where it's Mach 2 speed was the advantage. Low altitude missions proved that drag prohibited speeds greater than ~.92Mach. It suddenly lost it's (extremely expensive) advantageous abilities. McNamara ordered it retired by 1970. It was replaced by the much-less expensive F-111.
@raynus1 yes the F111, a great aircraft for attacking Canada, not a fighter (although designed as one) supposed to be used by all service branches (USN/USMC said no freaking way) and he cancelled the Attack version of the SR-71, the Mach 3 B-70 Valkerie and the hustler, all aircraft that would have been almost impossible for the soviets to match or shoot down (even witht the SAM's).
This beauty is something out of "The Thunderbirds"Tv show.Sexiest plane ever built.It may have been high maintenance,but hey you don't take a Playboy model to Burger King.
Hey, how about at 4:13 there...Carswell Air Forcer Base, Fort Worth, Texas. Elevation 644 ft Mean Sea Level. Woo hoo!!!! Go Carswell. Those were the days.
I once read that although a beautiful aircraft that we all love, the B-58 was prone to compressor stalls at super-sonic speeds....and having one of those outboard engines stall at super-sonic caused the aircraft to go into a flat spin and tumble out of control. That was back in the days when auto-pilot stability augmentaion was in the early stages. Still, it's one of the most beautiful aircraft ever made.
bad thing is when the B58 had a flame out all you could do is punch out cuz the engines would Domino buy the time you got 1 restarted 4 would gone and with out power the b58 would base Ball
@GRAHAMAUS Good question? Never thought about it. Maybe something to do with high speed runs? I was lucky to see my one & only B-58 "Greased Lightning" at Chanute AFB during the winter of '80. Lovely looking airplane. Maintenance nightmare.
@GRAHAMAUS: Anyone have an explanation for why the inboard engines are on tall pylons but the outboard ones are not?
JM: It's gotta be because of wind tunnel testing. Why else? If it was possible, I'm sure they would make as many parts identical as possible for ease of production and ease of maintenance. So it has to be aerodynamics, how the shock-wave off of the nose propagates across the leading edge of the wing. Also, the inboard engines are underneath fuel tanks, outboards are not.
@GRAHAMAUS It could also be because of aircraft handling during take-off and landing. During cross-wind landings the wing tips can gyrate around quite a bit. Having the outboard engines higher off the ground would avoid scraping the runway.
This aircraft was a terrible fuel gobbler and was considered too difficult to support in a live mission. It was not considered realistic to have tankers able to support this aircraft's mission profile on a reactionary strike role in multiple places of the mission legs.
One of the most elegant aircraft ever built. Very few machines can rival this in beauty. Love the views without the pod. So clean. You've earned a subscriber with this one...
Agreed... Let's also not forget about our Brit friends with the Avro Vulcan and Handley-Page-Victor. The Victor always reminded me of a HUGE X-1 (especially with that glass nose).
The Vulan will always be one of my favourites - I saw it many times at the Toronto airshow and the beautiful, yet menacing lines are etched in my memory. I think there is only one flying example left...
There's never been a plane like the Vulcan. The Handley-Page-Victor for that matter. What I miss are the good old days of uncertainty that came with aircraft design and flight. Nowadays, designers KNOW an aircraft will fly before it ever does. Also, it's sad to see so many unmanned aircraft. It's not that I don't want pilots to be safe, it just seems like the adventure has gone. Right now, I'm counting on guys like Burt Rutan to bring forth the next generation of COOL airplanes.
I don't think you should put too much faith in the latest generation of designers; look at F35 - it's supposed to be a new generation F16, but look how fat & heavy it is becoming, not only that, but more expensive than Gripen.
We can only live in hope that designers will start to get back on the right track... But honestly I don't know much, which is why I will look up this Burt Raftan guy you told me about when I sober up next week :-)
We can only hope the F-35 is a lot better than they are telling us (ie, there's a whole lot of good stuff about this plane that they just can't tell us for security reasons). Rutan designed the Long-EZ, Spaceship 1...you really need to look at this on on youtube--cut and paste this: "Scaled Composites Model 348 WhiteKnightTwo" into the youtube browser. You'll see what I mean...
Trust me my friend, With wind tunnels and well established aerodynamic principles by this time, designers always knew a new plane would fly. It was a question of how well it met the specification laid down for it. As for UAV's, they have a fascination of their own. Also, I am sure that the relatives of 55,000 Bomber Command personnel lost in
W W 2 would have preferred the Lancasters etc to be crewless. "Coolness" is massively overrated.
There were LOTS of problems with aircraft of this era: engine reliability, materials failures, hi-temp hydraulic performance, the lack reliable fly-by-wire left many aircraft apt to unstable flight. Test pilot Robert Carndenas (YB-49) once told a B-2 test pilot not to stall the aircraft in test flight. The B-2 pilot told him the computers wouldn't let him stall. CAD has revolutionized aircraft reliability. Re: Cool factor...Would you rather have seen us send probes to the moon, or walk on it?
There is a difference in definition between fly-by-wire and computer- controlled deliberate instability which many modern fighters have. Since you ask about the moon landings. The eminently qualified Carl Sagan pointed out that nothing extra was achieved by sending men outside of the romantic aspects of exploration. Furthermore the last man on the moon (to date) was the first scientist - so Nasa got it wrong twice. Didn't the Russians acquire moonrock with unmanned probes? Does anyone care?
@vodkasvictim How could anyone NOT like the Vulcan? It's beautiful, period. The Hustler will always bee my favorite bomber, but damned if the Vulcan isn't a close second.
@MOJONIXION If I remember right, destruction of all B-58's was part of some disarmament in the 1960's Sad, but it show how much the Russians feared the mighty HUSTLER!!!
You're so right ! This has to be one of the most beautiful aircraft ever built - I have built several models and would love to have been able to see one fly....
beautiful airplane but it had no legs with tanker support. the only real role it would have had would have been attacking air defense sites on the soviet border. anything deeper had to done by the buff
I lived 3 miles from Little Rock AFB when these were brought in to replace the B-47 strategic bomber. They would come in low over Highway 67 with that giant under belly fuel pod. They were so low you could see the pilots white helmet. It was an amazing beatiful aircraft. They retired the 58 and replaced it with a C-130 Wing at LRAFB. SAC was an amazing organization.
sorry i meant P-2-V neptune not PV-2, oh did i leave out the Beach Stagger wing maybe the most beautiful of all aircraft its hard to say what about the F-104 or the F-111 how about the super decathlon yes and the Canadair CL 415 and 215 look dam sweet when that brushfire is headed your way and never leave out the P-38 or the P-51 or any aircraft Kermit Weeks would owen !
hay mr ariels36 you left out the B-47 as the most beautiful aircraft ever group then i left out the F-7 the F-4-U corsair and the PBY oh the PV-2 and well its wrong to leave out the F-87 and one should always remember the on mark A-26 invader !!! WHATS WRONG WITH YOU get it together...
But it has got a weakness: in case of Electromagnetic massive pulse (like in an atomic explosion) it would have been switched-off or at least have remained without electronics...
awsome plane. my grandpa (former b-17 pilot, got all 35 missions in ww2) was lucky enough to be a mechanic on one of these bad boys. would have been cool if they made the b-58C with the sr-71 engins. too bad funding was cut.
You have some of the BEST aviation videos on youtube I've ever seen. This is just one of them. Thanks for posting this. One of the most beautiful aircraft of all time.
We have a Vulcan at the Castle Air Museum in Atwater Ca. But alas all we have of the B-58 is the fuel tank. We do, however, also have an SR 71 and B-36 among dozens of other awesome, rare aircraft.
JTLaser1 3 months ago
I was born 20 years to late....
lucabrasi1337 4 months ago
This plane was the reason I join the Air Force !!!!!!!!!!
916edward 6 months ago
Seems like the Canadian Avro Arrow which was unceremoniously cancelled by-stealth in 1959 by the Chief Air Marshall (and publicly 'blamed' on PM Diefenbaker) with only 5 operating prototypes would have been an excellant leg-up model to compete with this plane & America's aerospace industry throughout the 60s, 70s and beyond.
starmanskye 1 year ago
ggggg
214metalero 1 year ago
The B-58 was the only plane fast enough to keep up with the XB-70 during it's high speed Mach 2 tests. Imagine that, a supersonic bomber chase plane that could keep up with an experimental supersonic x-plane bomber
RacerXGTO 1 year ago
Agreed...one has to wonder how many BUFF crews would be alive today had the B-70 replaced the B-52 for use over SE Asia.
raynus1 1 year ago
This bird flew 11 short years after WWII ended. It would haul the same ~20,000lb bombload as a B-29, but nearly four times faster and at almost twice the altitude. An amazing airplane for the day.
raynus1 1 year ago
Why'd they get rid of it?
giwannabe13 1 year ago
@giwannabe13: Two main reasons: 1.) Extremely expensive to maintain and operate. 2.) The introduction of effective SAM's limited the Hustler's ability to penetrate hostile airspace at altitude, where it's Mach 2 speed was the advantage. Low altitude missions proved that drag prohibited speeds greater than ~.92Mach. It suddenly lost it's (extremely expensive) advantageous abilities. McNamara ordered it retired by 1970. It was replaced by the much-less expensive F-111.
raynus1 1 year ago
@raynus1 Ahh, OK. So, Cost.
giwannabe13 1 year ago
@raynus1 Ahh, OK. Cost was the factor, sounds like.
giwannabe13 1 year ago
@raynus1 yes the F111, a great aircraft for attacking Canada, not a fighter (although designed as one) supposed to be used by all service branches (USN/USMC said no freaking way) and he cancelled the Attack version of the SR-71, the Mach 3 B-70 Valkerie and the hustler, all aircraft that would have been almost impossible for the soviets to match or shoot down (even witht the SAM's).
usmctanks1 1 year ago
@giwannabe13 It became obsolete with the introduction of ICBM's.
TomsFriendKake 3 months ago
This beauty is something out of "The Thunderbirds"Tv show.Sexiest plane ever built.It may have been high maintenance,but hey you don't take a Playboy model to Burger King.
laiosto 1 year ago 2
@laiosto Youll throw up if you eat at burger king hugh hefners brother finds girls in the gutter flying at 200 feet that pilot was a real hot dogger
spacepatrolman 1 year ago
it was a hustler for sure with a top speed of Mach 3.
RainbowManification 1 year ago
@RainbowManification: Mach 2.
raynus1 1 year ago
Hey, how about at 4:13 there...Carswell Air Forcer Base, Fort Worth, Texas. Elevation 644 ft Mean Sea Level. Woo hoo!!!! Go Carswell. Those were the days.
JetMechMA 1 year ago
I once read that although a beautiful aircraft that we all love, the B-58 was prone to compressor stalls at super-sonic speeds....and having one of those outboard engines stall at super-sonic caused the aircraft to go into a flat spin and tumble out of control. That was back in the days when auto-pilot stability augmentaion was in the early stages. Still, it's one of the most beautiful aircraft ever made.
JetMechMA 1 year ago
What a hotrod!
OzClawhammer 1 year ago
I think I'm in love.
KiloByte69 1 year ago
bad thing is when the B58 had a flame out all you could do is punch out cuz the engines would Domino buy the time you got 1 restarted 4 would gone and with out power the b58 would base Ball
seawolfu99 1 year ago
The sight, or the thought of this aircraft, had to terrify the Soviets.
jonesy97 1 year ago
B-58 was way ahead of it's time...wasnt used properly.
Greenhornet270 1 year ago
If I'm not mistaken it was the first to use 'honeycomb' metal' type materials for wing structure..
wrh61 1 year ago
Anyone have an explanation for why the inboard engines are on tall pylons but the outboard ones are not?
GRAHAMAUS 1 year ago
@GRAHAMAUS Good question? Never thought about it. Maybe something to do with high speed runs? I was lucky to see my one & only B-58 "Greased Lightning" at Chanute AFB during the winter of '80. Lovely looking airplane. Maintenance nightmare.
kolbpilot 1 year ago
@GRAHAMAUS: Anyone have an explanation for why the inboard engines are on tall pylons but the outboard ones are not?
JM: It's gotta be because of wind tunnel testing. Why else? If it was possible, I'm sure they would make as many parts identical as possible for ease of production and ease of maintenance. So it has to be aerodynamics, how the shock-wave off of the nose propagates across the leading edge of the wing. Also, the inboard engines are underneath fuel tanks, outboards are not.
JetMechMA 1 year ago
@GRAHAMAUS It could also be because of aircraft handling during take-off and landing. During cross-wind landings the wing tips can gyrate around quite a bit. Having the outboard engines higher off the ground would avoid scraping the runway.
JetMechMA 1 year ago
This aircraft was a terrible fuel gobbler and was considered too difficult to support in a live mission. It was not considered realistic to have tankers able to support this aircraft's mission profile on a reactionary strike role in multiple places of the mission legs.
sailordiver2007 2 years ago
One of the most elegant aircraft ever built. Very few machines can rival this in beauty. Love the views without the pod. So clean. You've earned a subscriber with this one...
TV843 2 years ago 2
Is a great looking plane. I also think the B-47 was good looking plane.
MOJONIXION 2 years ago 9
Agreed... Let's also not forget about our Brit friends with the Avro Vulcan and Handley-Page-Victor. The Victor always reminded me of a HUGE X-1 (especially with that glass nose).
TV843 2 years ago
The Vulan will always be one of my favourites - I saw it many times at the Toronto airshow and the beautiful, yet menacing lines are etched in my memory. I think there is only one flying example left...
airbus340driver 2 years ago
Yeah, I know a few years ago, the Brits did a resto on one of the Vulcans. They can't be cheap to fly!
TV843 2 years ago
@TV843
How glad this Brit is to hear you like our Vulcan.
If it makes you feel good, you should know I've always admired your F16; high performance at a lower price.
vodkasvictim 2 years ago 8
There's never been a plane like the Vulcan. The Handley-Page-Victor for that matter. What I miss are the good old days of uncertainty that came with aircraft design and flight. Nowadays, designers KNOW an aircraft will fly before it ever does. Also, it's sad to see so many unmanned aircraft. It's not that I don't want pilots to be safe, it just seems like the adventure has gone. Right now, I'm counting on guys like Burt Rutan to bring forth the next generation of COOL airplanes.
TV843 2 years ago
@TV843
I don't think you should put too much faith in the latest generation of designers; look at F35 - it's supposed to be a new generation F16, but look how fat & heavy it is becoming, not only that, but more expensive than Gripen.
We can only live in hope that designers will start to get back on the right track... But honestly I don't know much, which is why I will look up this Burt Raftan guy you told me about when I sober up next week :-)
vodkasvictim 2 years ago
We can only hope the F-35 is a lot better than they are telling us (ie, there's a whole lot of good stuff about this plane that they just can't tell us for security reasons). Rutan designed the Long-EZ, Spaceship 1...you really need to look at this on on youtube--cut and paste this: "Scaled Composites Model 348 WhiteKnightTwo" into the youtube browser. You'll see what I mean...
TV843 2 years ago
Trust me my friend, With wind tunnels and well established aerodynamic principles by this time, designers always knew a new plane would fly. It was a question of how well it met the specification laid down for it. As for UAV's, they have a fascination of their own. Also, I am sure that the relatives of 55,000 Bomber Command personnel lost in
W W 2 would have preferred the Lancasters etc to be crewless. "Coolness" is massively overrated.
spitfireJEJ 2 years ago
There were LOTS of problems with aircraft of this era: engine reliability, materials failures, hi-temp hydraulic performance, the lack reliable fly-by-wire left many aircraft apt to unstable flight. Test pilot Robert Carndenas (YB-49) once told a B-2 test pilot not to stall the aircraft in test flight. The B-2 pilot told him the computers wouldn't let him stall. CAD has revolutionized aircraft reliability. Re: Cool factor...Would you rather have seen us send probes to the moon, or walk on it?
TV843 2 years ago
There is a difference in definition between fly-by-wire and computer- controlled deliberate instability which many modern fighters have. Since you ask about the moon landings. The eminently qualified Carl Sagan pointed out that nothing extra was achieved by sending men outside of the romantic aspects of exploration. Furthermore the last man on the moon (to date) was the first scientist - so Nasa got it wrong twice. Didn't the Russians acquire moonrock with unmanned probes? Does anyone care?
spitfireJEJ 2 years ago
@vodkasvictim How could anyone NOT like the Vulcan? It's beautiful, period. The Hustler will always bee my favorite bomber, but damned if the Vulcan isn't a close second.
AmericanAviator 7 months ago
@AmericanAviator Agreed. I love the Hustler, but the Vulcan could out maneuvre contemporary fighters at altitude. Now that´s a bomber.
schr75 3 months ago
Comment removed
schr75 3 months ago
@vodkasvictim I have thought the Vulcan was a great ship when I saw It on a James Bond movie :Thunderball"
bosun3c 6 months ago
@vodkasvictim The Vulcan is cool, a beautiful plane.
BuickDoc 2 months ago
@MOJONIXION If I remember right, destruction of all B-58's was part of some disarmament in the 1960's Sad, but it show how much the Russians feared the mighty HUSTLER!!!
0289XYZ 1 year ago
B-58 had nothing in common with the Arrow...
otidari 11 months ago
@MOJONIXION amen
schr75 3 months ago
You're so right ! This has to be one of the most beautiful aircraft ever built - I have built several models and would love to have been able to see one fly....
airbus340driver 2 years ago 2
@TV843 ..I saw a 58 with the belly pod on the ground in Tucson at the Pima Air museum before they really got going strong..circa 1978
fernfeyes 2 years ago
Hey, that counts both of us! Cool! Pima's pretty amazing now.
TV843 2 years ago
My Dad was a USAF Maintenance "Line Chief"....he said the B-58 was a "Hangar Queen" ALWAYS something wrong...it's why it had such a short life
Greenhornet270 2 years ago
is that john denver's dad on the left with the glasses?
crotchboots 2 years ago
beautiful airplane but it had no legs with tanker support. the only real role it would have had would have been attacking air defense sites on the soviet border. anything deeper had to done by the buff
crotchboots 2 years ago
I lived 3 miles from Little Rock AFB when these were brought in to replace the B-47 strategic bomber. They would come in low over Highway 67 with that giant under belly fuel pod. They were so low you could see the pilots white helmet. It was an amazing beatiful aircraft. They retired the 58 and replaced it with a C-130 Wing at LRAFB. SAC was an amazing organization.
johnmason2354 2 years ago
Went 2.03Mach on 29/06/57.
Amazing bird.
raynus1 2 years ago 2
Comment removed
raynus1 2 years ago
sorry i meant P-2-V neptune not PV-2, oh did i leave out the Beach Stagger wing maybe the most beautiful of all aircraft its hard to say what about the F-104 or the F-111 how about the super decathlon yes and the Canadair CL 415 and 215 look dam sweet when that brushfire is headed your way and never leave out the P-38 or the P-51 or any aircraft Kermit Weeks would owen !
scoobinhound 2 years ago
hay mr ariels36 you left out the B-47 as the most beautiful aircraft ever group then i left out the F-7 the F-4-U corsair and the PBY oh the PV-2 and well its wrong to leave out the F-87 and one should always remember the on mark A-26 invader !!! WHATS WRONG WITH YOU get it together...
scoobinhound 2 years ago
There's one of these in the town I live in. Every once in a while, I go by it. It's a real beauty.
deezynar 2 years ago
luv delta wing aircraft wish we still had them in usa.
stargazer444 2 years ago
I think the B-58 and the Blackbird are the most beautiful airplanes ever...
ariels36 2 years ago 2
oh..and the Concorde too...
ariels36 2 years ago
And the B-17 too!!!
thezorba1 2 years ago
ohhh yesss!!
ariels36 2 years ago
Dont forget the Valkyrie! Never made production but man what a plane!
CenterionX 2 years ago
It was worth it's weight in gold!
rvargas68 2 years ago
its like a work of art.
mow1717 2 years ago
But it has got a weakness: in case of Electromagnetic massive pulse (like in an atomic explosion) it would have been switched-off or at least have remained without electronics...
anisocoro 2 years ago
awsome plane. my grandpa (former b-17 pilot, got all 35 missions in ww2) was lucky enough to be a mechanic on one of these bad boys. would have been cool if they made the b-58C with the sr-71 engins. too bad funding was cut.
Vociferous66 2 years ago
B-58C!!......that would have been to Aviation what Heavy Metal has been to music.....KING!!!
thezorba1 2 years ago
GREAT videos....air force brat 1947-1962....USAF Vietnam Veteran 1968-69...Ilved in Wichita saw them rolling out the new B-52G in 1961.
cajunhornet60 2 years ago
You have some of the BEST aviation videos on youtube I've ever seen. This is just one of them. Thanks for posting this. One of the most beautiful aircraft of all time.
jonesy97 3 years ago 2
One of the coolest SAC bombers of all time.
apollo204 3 years ago
great video-thank you for posting.
jacko352 3 years ago 2