Search results
The Consolidated B-32 Dominator (Consolidated Model 34) was an American heavy strategic bomber built for United States Army Air Forces during World War II, which had the distinction of being the last Allied aircraft to be engaged in combat during World War II; that engagement also resulted in the last American to die in air combat in World War II.
7 lip 2013 · 1. XB-32-CO 41-141 on 28 February 1944. 2. XB-32-CO 41-141 in flight. 3. Large photo of Consolidated B-32-1-CF (S/N 42-108471), the first "production' (and 4th overall) aircraft built. Note the original B-29 style vertical stabilizer.
» B-32 Dominator XB-32 prototype bomber at rest, 28 Feb 1944; note twin tail of the original design, which would be changed for production aircraft B-32 Dominator bomber in flight, 1945
The B-32 had serious stability probems and this airframe was first flown with double tailfins, then with a borrowed B-29 tailfin and finally with the enormous definitive tailfin seen here which was six metres tall. Photo from: San Diego Air & Space Museum.
Though built to haul 20,000 pounds of bombs in expansive twin bomb bays, most late-war B-32 missions involved shooting high-altitude reconnaissance photos over the Empire of Japan. Courtesy National Archives.
The U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF) envisioned, even before the start of World War II, a replacement bomber for the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and the Consolidated B-24 Liberator with higher speed, longer range, more bomb load and more defensive armament.
Pair of B-32 bombers in flight. Published at 1169 × 915 px. Link to full-size photo: B-32 bombers in flight. Site statistics: Photos of World War II: over 26800. aircraft: 63 models. tanks: 59 models. vehicles: 59 models.
