XB-36 Track Landing Gear

interesting~~~~~~and weird

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDCgMlomhvM

I figgered that belt'd fly off as soon as contact was made....

Actually much more ingenious than weird. The original B-36 landing gear as shown in the fourth image was ridiculous. That giant tire weighed way more than the tracked version and was such a point load that the gear was prone to sink right thru any but the thickest concrete of the day. The difference is illustrated in the third image where the aircraft is on grass and not sinking. The B-36 was actually designed before WWII but was completely impractical because there was no landing gear that could support it and no engines powerful enough to lift it. That changed after the war with the P&W R4360 engine of 4000+ HP and new tire technology. However the idea of one main gear wheel was from the '30s and soon the main gear had 4 wheels of smaller size. The airplane was a magnificent dinosaur and anyone who has ever heard one will not forget it. You can gave a taste of it in the Jimmy Stewart movie "Strategic Air Command".

My father told me that as a kid in Florida he heard them flying over the school, his mention of the noise being very memorable as well.

Charles

Beautiful airplane. I was in the Air Force at Randolf AFB in Texas In 1955-56 and they used to fly over the base. All you could see was the contrails when they went over but the vibration from them even at that altitube would make little ripples on the water in the base swimming pool. They also had a static one on display at Sheppard AFB in Texas when I went to Tech school there. They said it broke through the runway there when it landed. A staff sgt. I was stationed with at Randolf was stationed at Limestone AFB in Maine. THey were flying them there. They tested one for high altitude. Just to see how high it would go and it quit climbing at 93,000. (Classified then) Blew about all the oil seals out in the engines. THey were leaking like crazy when they landed. Several other stories I could tell about them but I'm not a good typest and it would take too long for me. Rex

As others have said, the sound of a B-36 was unforgettable. A low moan like an unending bass chord played on some organ in the heavens. As a kid in the 1950's I'd lay on my back and stare up into the sky trying to spot one. You'd never see one away up on high, but you'd know it was there in the stratosphere by that eerie, window rattling sound. I used to wonder what kind of supermen could tame such an unworldly beast, and dreamed of the day when I might become an aviator.

Here's a link to a B-36 website that has a short audio recording of one on take-off. Too bad it's so brief - an hour's worth would make for a nice white noise sleeping aid.

Goleta Air and Space Museum: B-36 Peacemaker

~TW~

My uncle was a tailgunner on the B36. Stationed down in Fort Worth in the 50's. Pretty interesting hearing his stories of flying in the plane that bridged the gap into the nuclear age.

If you ever get to the air-force museum in Dayton, they have a display of the single wheel and more stuff. When I lived in the area, I would spend hours going through the B-36 in the museum, fascinating airplane

I grew up in Sacramento. We lived near one of the approach paths to McClellan Field. Though McClellan was not a SAC base, B-36's flew in and out of there from time to time and I remember them well. Also, like others, I remember seeing them waaaay up high, sometimes with vapor trails. The XC-99, the one-off cargo version of the B-36 regularly flew in to McClellan so I saw a lot of it. I think it started with single big tire main landing gear like the B-36. Memorable aircraft for sure.
David