B-47 Stratojet

The B-47 Stratojet was the world's first swept wing bomber, the first to use a bicycle arrangement landing gear because of its thin wings, and the first plane built solely for the delivery of nuclear weapons. Boeing Aircraft Co., Douglas Aircraft Co., and Lockheed-Georgia Co. built the B-47 series, producing 1,260 bombers and 600 trainers and reconnaissance aircraft. The B-47 first flew on December 17, 1947, and the first B-47A was delivered to the USAF in 1951. The RB-47H was an electronic reconnaissance and countermeasures version of the B-47E, built in response to the need to counter enemy air defense systems; the first RB-47H entered service in August 1955 and the last was delivered in January 1957. This RB-47H, serial number 53-4296, differed somewhat in onboard equipment and carried six crewmembers. It served with the 55th Strategic Reconnaissance Wing at Forbes AFB, Kansas, and was the last operational B-47 in the USAF when it was flown to Davis Monthan AFB, Arizona, for storage. During the early days of Eglin Gulf Test Range, several B-47s were converted to target drones for the Bomarc Missile Program.

Florida · United States