Previous Next

Preserved 49 310 Boeing WB 50D Superfortress on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force 03

Preserved 49 310 Boeing WB 50D Superfortress on display at the National Museum of the United States Air Force 03

Boeing B-29 Superfortress

National origin:- United States
Role:- Strategic bomber, Heavy bomber
Manufacturer:- Boeing
Designer:- the Boeing Company
First flight:- 21st September 1942[1]
Introduction:- 8th May 1944
Produced:- 1943–1946[2]
Status:- Retired
Number built:- 3,970
Primary users:- United States Army Air Force; United States Air Force; Royal Air Force
Variants:- Boeing KB-29 Superfortress; XB-39 Superfortress; Boeing XB-44 Superfortress; Boeing B-50 Superfortress
Developed into:- Boeing 377 Stratocruiser; Tupolev Tu-4

The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is an American four-engined propeller-driven heavy bomber, designed by Boeing and flown primarily by the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Named in allusion to its predecessor, the B-17 Flying Fortress, the Superfortress was designed for high-altitude strategic bombing, but also excelled in low-altitude night incendiary bombing, and in dropping naval mines to blockade Japan. B-29s dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the only aircraft ever to drop nuclear weapons in combat.

One of the largest aircraft of World War II, the B-29 was designed with state-of-the-art technology, which included a pressurized cabin, dual-wheeled tricycle landing gear, and an analog computer-controlled fire-control system that allowed one gunner and a fire-control officer to direct four remote machine gun turrets. The $3 billion cost of design and production (equivalent to $45 billion today), far exceeding the $1.9 billion cost of the Manhattan Project, made the B-29 program the most expensive of the war. The B-29's advanced design allowed it to remain in service in various roles throughout the 1950s. The type was retired in the early 1960s, after 3,970 of them had been built. A few were also used as flying television transmitters by the Stratovision company. The Royal Air Force flew the B-29 as the Washington until 1954.

This webpage was updated 25th August 2022

-xxx-