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Martin XB-48

1947 COLD WAR X-PLANE

Martin XB-48 History

World War II (1939-1945) saw the rise of turbojet technology, future applications in military aircraft. The Allies knew that the Germans were hard at work on jet-powered designs that could win the war. To keep up with the enemy, both the British and the Americans developed their own plans for jumbo jets.

In 1944, the US authorities' need for a medium-range jet bomber led to several notable wartime designs.

During this period, the Glen L. Martin Company, which had long been developing "large aircraft" for American Aviation Services, decided to try to meet the new requirements. This effort became his "XB-48" record, culminating in the realization of two prototypes for the entire investment.

The design largely followed the form of warfare closely related to the Martin, with the main difference being the engine, which consisted of turbojet technology.

Martin engineers opted for a tubular, streamlined fuselage with a glass nose section and a slightly raised flight deck at the tail. The main straight-wing aircraft were mounted in the middle of the sides of the fuselage and placed near the midship.

The rear wing consists of a vertical fin with a slight upward slope in the horizontal plane. A bicycle landing gear with an in-line two-leg arrangement was used, with underwing support from the smaller outboard support legs (the XB-48 was the first aircraft to have a "bicycle" landing gear arrangement). The aircraft has a crew of at least three, including two pilots and a bomber/navigator, and is powered by six General Electric J35 (Allison J35) turbojets, each producing 3,820 pounds of thrust. The jets will be mounted on wing main aircraft, three on each wing, with specially designed three-engine nacelles designed to direct airflow around the engines in flight.

From the outside, this arrangement gives the impression that three separate engine nacelles are installed, but this is not the case. The J35 engine became the first axial compressor engine to enter service with the U.S.

Army Air Force/Air Force, eventually powering the later Republic F-84 Thunderjet and Northrop F-89 Scorpion production lines.

Dimensions include a length of 26 meters, a wingspan of 33 meters and a height of 8 meters. The weapon is spearheaded by an internal charge of up to 20,000 pounds of conventional drop bearings.

Local defense will be provided by 2 x 12.7mm M7 machine guns (never installed) mounted on the stern turret.

The first flight was recorded on June 22, 1947, lasting less than an hour. The venture proved to be a short-lived success, as all the landing gear exploded on landing. However, the crew (two test pilots) were not injured and the aircraft suffered no catastrophic damage. When the U.S.

Air Force halted development work on the XB-48, the testing period became short. At that time, several years had passed since the World War, and a massive military retreat followed, abandoning many designs, such as the XB-48.

Things got worse for the Martin design when the Air Force turned to focus on the swept-wing Boeing B-47 "Stratojet" jet bomber, with the XB-48 essentially acting as insurance against a developmental setback for Boeing's program. The B-47 also flew for the first time in 1947 and finally entered service in 1951about 2,032 were produced thereafter.

As the B-47 proved to be safer, the XB-48 had little room to move forward.