Boeing B-29 Superfortress

The Boeing B-29 Superfortress was the largest and most costly gamble ever made by the United States during World War II, surpassing even the iconic Manhattan (atomic bomb) Project in both expense and ambition.

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This aircraft combined numerous revolutionary ideas never before seen in aviation, including: an enormous new airframe, completely different from any previous Boeing design; engines that underwent an extensive and expensive development process before they could be deemed remotely dependable; propellers that proved nearly as troublesome as the engines; an entirely new, larger-than-ever pressurization system; a high-lift, high-wing loading-wing design that offered impressive range but resulted in higher landing speeds and complex handling; an untested central fire control system; and many other experimental features.

The urgency of the war effort meant that this revolutionary new aircraft had to be constructed in a brand-new factory, mostly by inexperienced workers, many of whom had never even seen an airplane before.

This aircraft was designed to operate from remote airstrips in China and small Pacific islands, where assembling fuel, supplies, and maintenance would be a major challenge. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s commitment to having the aircraft operational from Chinese bases by April 1944 imposed a nearly unbearable deadline on the project.

If the Boeing B-29 Superfortress had failed, all the resources, intelligence, and efforts devoted to the creation of a nuclear weapon through the Manhattan Project would have been wasted, as it was the only aircraft capable of carrying and delivering the atomic bomb.

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Boeing B-29 Superfortress Specifications

Boeing, in collaboration with the USAAF, achieved a monumental feat by creating the first aircraft capable of realizing the aspirations of airpower advocates—an aircraft capable of securing victory by completely obliterating the enemy's homeland. The relentless B-29 strikes over Japan in the spring of 1945 marked the true emergence of airpower. That summer, the B-29 made the concept of ultimate airpower a reality by dropping the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

The B-29's journey toward becoming the ultimate airpower was a lengthy and challenging one, partially shaped by Boeing's work with the XB-15 and subsequent designs. Its official inception occurred on February 5, 1940, when the Air Corps issued a request for a 'Hemisphere Defense Weapon'—a super-bomber with a speed of 400 miles per hour, the capacity to carry one ton of bombs for 5,333 miles, and a maximum bomb load of 16,000 pounds.

Boeing's key leaders, including Claire Egtvedt, Phil Johnson, Wellwood Beale, George Schairer, Noah Showalter, and Edward Wells, were tasked with the project. An accomplished Army Air Forces Captain, Donald Putt, was assigned as the project officer.

Before the first flight of the prototype on September 21, 1942, more than 1,000 Boeing B-29 Superfortresses had been ordered, with the skilled Eddie Allen at the controls. This was accompanied by an extensive production effort and a vast training program, with B-29s beginning to roll off brand-new assembly lines first in Wichita, Kansas, and later in Marietta, Georgia.

Ironically, the Boeing B-29 Superfortresses were initially ineffective in their combat missions, as precision bombing from high altitudes over Japan proved far more challenging than in Europe. Operations from Chinese bases were difficult, and the results were disappointing. However, the capture of bases in the Marianas provided the B-29s with a fresh opportunity, and with the appointment of Major General Curtis E. LeMay to lead the operation, a change in tactics was made. LeMay ordered the B-29s to fly low, at night, and carry incendiary bombs. This strategy succeeded, and Japan's cities were left in flames.

When Japan refused to surrender, despite their dire circumstances on land, at sea, and in the air, two atomic bombs were dropped in order to prevent the need for a full-scale Allied invasion of the home islands. The B-29 gamble had proven successful, ultimately saving hundreds of thousands – potentially millions – of lives on both the American and Japanese sides, and leading to the end of World War II.

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