AIR: B-58 Paint Question

Nope, not the camo again. I can't recall seeing any 58s with anti-atom flash white undersides. Am I missing something or did they not get that?

Reply to
Bill Banaszak
Loading thread data ...

Just about all B-52 wore the NMF/anti-radiation Gloss White as Nuclear bombers at the beginning of their careers. (I believe the X, Y and one or two of the prototypes were all-over NMF.) B-52Ds started getting camouflaged ca. Spring, 1966. (The first "Arc Light" bombing raids in

1965 against the Viet Cong in the South were carried out by NMF/GW B-52Fs that had their undersides painted Gloss Black.) The SIOP (Olive Green/Dark Green/Tan/Gloss White) Camouflage began showing up ca. 1970 or '71. (Unfortunately, my info on this is un reachable at the moment so you'll want to do some research to confirm...)
Reply to
Edwin Ross Quantrall

I've never seen any pics of the B-58 with the white undersides. Maybe 'cause it was so small an airframe & so fast. As pointed out about the B-52 (not sure why since it's about the B-58), B-47s used it & so did B-36s, but they were bigger airframes & slower.

Reply to
famvburg

I seem to remember seeing a photo (illustration) of a prototype with the white undersides... but the only ones I ever saw for real were natural metal overall. Maybe they were fast enough to be far enough from their own bombs that it wasn't necessary? Or maybe the paint just peeled all the time.

Don H.

Reply to
Don Harstad

I once came across a B-47 crew chief and asked him if any planes besides the recon ships ran around bare-metal and he said there were a few. By the time he figured out which ones those were they all turned out to be EW, PR or weather ships. I was stuck painting Hasegawa's kit white underneath. ;)

Bill Banaszak, MFE

Reply to
Bill Banaszak

Oops! I misread that "8" as a "2". Sorry...

Reply to
Edwin Ross Quantrall

Weren't the '58s supposed to attack the target either with standoff missiles or at low altitude? As their separation from the flash would be mostly horizontal, not vertical, the anti-flash paint would simply be useless weight? Kim M

Reply to
Royabulgaf

used it & so did B-36s, but they were bigger airframes & slower.<

The B-47s had two different reflective schemes, One with the entire underside white up about half way on the fuselage, swept up to the bottom of the horizontals. Nacelles and underside of wings and horizontals white. The second scheme used far less white, with only the bottom of the fuselage white, underside of tail and only part of the wing and nacelles white. Does anyone know why the two seperate schemes? They seem to have been in use during the same time period. Does anyone have access to the Tech Orders covering this?

As for the B-58, I don't believe any operational aircraft carried the anti flash white.

CB

Reply to
Jinxx1

I did a bit of research in a book on the B-58 at the local library; and, while there were plans to arm the plane with stand-off weapons, it's career was so short that it never progressed beyond free-fall bombs. (Mainly B 43s) And, yes, the aircraft would -- in theory anyway -- be far enough away by the time the nukes went off that painting it was thought unnecessary.

Reply to
Edwin Ross Quantrall

I recall a review of the Academy 1/144 B-58 in Scale Aviation Modeller International a while back where the scheme the reviewer used had the wing topside u/c fairings in white. What was that all about? I've never seen photo evidence of that either. Which , I'm the first to admit isn't the same as saying it wasn't ever done. Chek

Reply to
Chek

PolyTech Forum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.