The Bomber That Made The B-17 Look Small | Douglas XB-19

Поділитися
Вставка
  • Опубліковано 5 чер 2024
  • Go to ground.news/rex to stay fully informed on breaking news, compare coverage and avoid media bias. Sign up for free or subscribe for unlimited access if you support the mission.
    Today we're taking a look at the massive Douglas XB-19. This was the world's first intercontinental bomber, developed in the late 1930s. Though it never made it to series production, it provided invaluable data that was used in future projects for the B-29 and B-36 strategic bombers.
    Want to join the community? Visit our Discord - / discord
    Want to support the channel? I have a Patreon here - / rexshangar
    Sources:
    Douglas Aircraft (1941*), XB-19 Operations Manual.
    Francillon.R.J (1979), McDonnel Douglas Aircraft Since 1920: Volume I.
    Wolf.W (2021), Douglas XB-19: America's Giant World War II Intercontinental Bomber.
    Wings & Airpower (Various Articles)
    Flight Magazine (Various Articles)
    0:00 Intro
    06:06 Design Origins
    08:59 XBLR-2 Project
    13:37 XB-19 Construction Begins
    16:38 XB-19 Specification and Details
    24:13 XB-19's First Flight
    30:23 The "Flying Laboratory"
    34:17 Further Use At Wright Field
    35:54 The XB-19's Unjust Fate
  • Наука та технологія

КОМЕНТАРІ • 861

  • @RexsHangar
    @RexsHangar  Рік тому +106

    Go to ground.news/rex to stay fully informed on breaking news, compare coverage and avoid media bias. Sign up for free or subscribe for unlimited access if you support the mission.
    F.A.Q Section
    Q: Do you take aircraft requests?
    A: I have a list of aircraft I plan to cover, but feel free to add to it with suggestions:)
    Q: Why do you use imperial measurements for some videos, and metric for others?
    A: I do this based on country of manufacture. Imperial measurements for Britain and the U.S, metric for the rest of the world, but I include text in my videos that convert it for both.
    Q: Will you include video footage in your videos, or just photos?
    A: Video footage is very expensive to licence, if I can find footage in the public domain I will try to use it, but a lot of it is hoarded by licencing studies (British Pathe, Periscope films etc). In the future I may be able to afford clips :)
    Q: Why do you sometimes feature images/screenshots from flight simulators?
    A: Sometimes there are not a lot of photos available for certain aircraft, so I substitute this with digital images that are as accurate as possible.

    • @John.0z
      @John.0z Рік тому +8

      Thank you for the plans to the same scale - I have never appreciated the size of the XB-19 from the photos I have seen.

    • @ground_news
      @ground_news Рік тому +5

      Thank you for sharing! For anyone interested in seeing both sides of the story to stay fully informed, check out the link above and let us know if you have any questions.

    • @Sturminfantrist
      @Sturminfantrist Рік тому +4

      Thank you for covering the XB-19
      Do-19 (or Do-11 , heard or read that the Do-11 flew also with Reichsbahn/Railroad Comp. markings. )
      or the Ju-98 , Ju-290/390 , He-277 / He 274 the latter completed by the French after the war and used for tests
      Or the other Nations 4 engined Pe-8 or the Piaggio 108

    • @lawrenceallen8096
      @lawrenceallen8096 Рік тому +4

      Had England capitulated this intercontinental bomber would have been needed.

    • @WarblesOnALot
      @WarblesOnALot Рік тому

      @@lawrenceallen8096
      G'day,
      IF
      Your
      Grandmother had
      Have had
      Caterpillar Tracks...;
      THEN
      She would have
      Been a
      Sherman Tank...!
      The same
      Circular
      Pseudo-"Logic"
      Applies to your
      Statement.
      The
      Great
      Brutisch
      Empire was
      NEVER ever
      "Going to capitulate"
      To
      Germany and it's
      Army of
      HORSE-DRAWN
      Logistics, but
      NO
      Amphibious
      Landing-Craft with which to ferry their
      Horses & Wagons
      Over the
      Kanal to be
      Sunk while trying to
      Capture a
      Harbour in which to
      Disembark.
      Britain was
      Never
      Considering
      Quitting...
      EXCEPT
      Inside the
      Wishfool Thunkin's of
      Adolf and the
      Hitlerites,
      And the
      Halfwits who
      Swallowed
      German
      Propaganda.
      Besides.
      IF
      Britain had
      Followed the
      French
      And
      Surrendered...;
      The
      ONLY way for
      US Investors to retain their
      EuroPeon Assets
      Would have been to
      Pivot...
      Swinging around to
      supply
      War Materiel to the
      Wehrmacht...
      When it went to
      Attack the
      USSR.
      In 1942
      J.Edgar Hoover was
      STILL
      Arresting
      Communists, for
      "Premature
      Anti-Fascism".
      It took
      TIME
      To
      Recalibrate
      AmeriKa to
      Accept the concept that
      White EuroPeon Racist Christian Fascists were the
      Designated
      Enemy...;
      Whereas the
      Dreaded Russian
      Communists
      Were
      SUDDENLY
      NOW
      Comrades in Arms.
      The likes of
      Lindbergh &
      Henry Ford &
      J. Edgar Hoover
      WOULD
      HAVE
      Ensured that
      If the British Empire had
      Folded up like the French & Dutch
      Empires both did,
      Then
      Unkle Spam would have
      Bin-Fightin'
      COMMUNISTS, while helping their
      Aryan Eugenic
      Kith & Kindred, to
      "Defend and Rescue
      EuroPeon Kultur, from the
      Communist hordes of
      Slavic
      Untermenschen...!"
      Or,
      Words to that effect.
      Read some
      HISTORY
      Books.
      Just(ifiably ?) sayin',
      Such is life,
      Have a good one...
      Stay safe.
      ;-p
      Ciao !

  • @AZBroncomaniac
    @AZBroncomaniac Рік тому +1295

    My dad worked on the XB-19 at Douglas in Santa Monica. I have letters postmarked with the maiden flight and an award he received for inventing a tool to make adjusting the ball turrets a simple task.

    • @blatherskite9601
      @blatherskite9601 Рік тому +51

      How cool is that? Good on your Dad!

    • @chantelwalton6152
      @chantelwalton6152 Рік тому +2

      @@blatherskite9601 c zźż

    • @jonnymoka
      @jonnymoka Рік тому +30

      Thank you for your family’s support to the war:)

    • @benhudman7911
      @benhudman7911 Рік тому +22

      That’s a great memory that you shared. We have lost all of the people like your dad that took initiative for the good of the mission.

    • @anotherrandomguy6012
      @anotherrandomguy6012 Рік тому +9

      That's awesome man! Wish we could have seen Intercontinental bombers in some form during WW2!

  • @DavidSiebert
    @DavidSiebert Рік тому +599

    I love the breaking the runway story because the B-36 did the exact same thing. They even tried to put tracks on it. I will add that about 23 years ago I went to an airshow in Daytona Florida. They had an F-14 at the show and it broke through the runway, they tried to tow it out with a tug but that failed and they ended up using the engines to power it out of the hole. Sounds just like the B-19 :).

    • @anzaca1
      @anzaca1 Рік тому +14

      How? The F-14 isn't that heavy.

    • @applicationuser9764
      @applicationuser9764 Рік тому +6

      I never heard that about the tracks on the 36. Odd concept.

    • @AtheistOrphan
      @AtheistOrphan Рік тому +11

      F-14? But it’s only a 2-seat fighter.

    • @fguocokgyloeu4817
      @fguocokgyloeu4817 Рік тому +77

      F-14 is heavier than a B-17, obviously motjing compared to a B-36 but if the runway wasn't built to spec for WW2 heavy bombers combined with poor maintenance I believe it.

    • @dzhang4459
      @dzhang4459 Рік тому +26

      @@fguocokgyloeu4817 It was probably a sinkhole or a pothole rather than a weight issue.

  • @L.Pondera
    @L.Pondera Рік тому +307

    I wish stuff like this would be added to War Thunder, not because it's good for anything. Just because it's a great place to fly a behemoth and watch it explode. Such an important piece of history deserves to be kept alive in more than flight simulators.

    • @ZaHandle
      @ZaHandle Рік тому +60

      That’ll cost 5k and your mortgage in repair costs

    • @Zawmbbeh
      @Zawmbbeh Рік тому +12

      free kills? :0

    • @Aahmpower
      @Aahmpower Рік тому +8

      Bet it'll be 2.3

    • @Kaltrademarked
      @Kaltrademarked Рік тому +6

      That shit would fly worse than the Catalina 💀

    • @joshleming902
      @joshleming902 Рік тому +2

      Bruh war thunder is literally a flight sim

  • @lucaswallace7476
    @lucaswallace7476 Рік тому +242

    The aircraft that drove Douglas batshit insane.

    • @george2113
      @george2113 Рік тому +8

      A reference to bugout Doug?

    • @BiscuitDelivery
      @BiscuitDelivery Рік тому +33

      If I was forced to spend a fortune developing a test bed at a loss just so the government could then force me to hand those plans over to my greatest rival for free I'd go insane too.

  • @philvanderlaan5942
    @philvanderlaan5942 Рік тому +44

    Rex : That was a joke.
    Gibbs : You think ?

  • @MaxwellAerialPhotography
    @MaxwellAerialPhotography Рік тому +40

    You get a like just for that NCIS Gibbs reference.

  • @applicationuser9764
    @applicationuser9764 Рік тому +110

    And through the whole thing, nobody ever had the thought of using two tires per side instead of one huge one. Same with the prototype B-36. At least they figured it out.

    • @testy462
      @testy462 Рік тому +44

      Who wants to go with two boring regular tires when you have government funds to make super cool big ones lol.

    • @ronjon7942
      @ronjon7942 Рік тому +8

      @@testy462 laf. Plus it has that ‘Who Framed Roger Rabbit’ look.

    • @Colt45hatchback
      @Colt45hatchback Рік тому +2

      I was thinking the same thing, spread the load out

    • @flouisbailey
      @flouisbailey Рік тому +2

      @@Colt45hatchback
      At least they didn’t go with bicycle tires to save some weight. Put those extra tanks in the bomb bay who needs bombs on a bomber.

    • @marckyle5895
      @marckyle5895 Рік тому +1

      Just like in Amazing Stories 'The Mission'!

  • @drstevenrey
    @drstevenrey 9 місяців тому +5

    Did you know that this behemoth even made it into the story of a Bugs Bunny cartoon in 1948. It rotates around 'Gremlins' and begins with the B-19 parking with its massive wheel in top of Bug's hole. I know, it is not really relevant, but only really really popular objects ever made it into such cartoons. Hence, everybody knew about the B-19. Just fascinating.

  • @jpgabobo
    @jpgabobo Рік тому +189

    The "Drachinifel" of aviation channels. I learn something I never knew in each of your videos, and appreciate all the hard work you put into every one. Keep up the great work.

    • @SephirothRyu
      @SephirothRyu Рік тому +15

      A collab must be done. If rex is air and drach is ship, then maybe covering some lesser known specific airships?

    • @A_barrel
      @A_barrel Рік тому +17

      I would rather bestow that title to "Greg's airplanes and automobiles" nobody is more detailed than him

    • @dallesamllhals9161
      @dallesamllhals9161 Рік тому +1

      BIG words - are you flying HIGH?

    • @mudcrab3420
      @mudcrab3420 Рік тому

      Drachinifel is a very well meaning hack. Rex actually does a shit load of research and cross checking before he opens his mouth.

    • @kilianortmann9979
      @kilianortmann9979 Рік тому +9

      @@A_barrel I'd say Greg is in a separate bracket, Drach can be very detailed, but usually not quite as excessive as Greg.
      I think Rex and Drach compare quite well, we just need a Greg for ships.

  • @mpersad
    @mpersad Рік тому +218

    Yes please, Rex. A comparison of the construction history of the XB19, B29 and B36 would be very welcome. Really enjoyed this very thorough summary of such an interesting aircraft. Top work!

    • @GalbornNargalad
      @GalbornNargalad Рік тому +8

      I was hoping to find a comment like this. I very much hope he does a comparison.

    • @georgec8859
      @georgec8859 Рік тому +5

      XB-15 too...

    • @SueDoeNimh
      @SueDoeNimh Рік тому +7

      You have to have the B-50 in there. Government shenanigans at their finest.

    • @josephlannert969
      @josephlannert969 Рік тому +3

      Yes I concur with everything previously said

    • @fraz1joh
      @fraz1joh Рік тому +1

      Doo it doo it doo it 👍

  • @Caktusdud.
    @Caktusdud. Рік тому +11

    Omg, I saw the thumbnail and I was like WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!!!!
    I gotta watch this.

  • @paulds65
    @paulds65 Рік тому +53

    I visited the Museum of the Air Force a couple of months ago and did take a good look at this wheel. A real pity that the aircraft was not preserved. Fantastic video.

    • @rogersmith7396
      @rogersmith7396 Рік тому +4

      Sac Omaha has an original B 36 wheel. Huge.

    • @kilotango6726
      @kilotango6726 Рік тому

      Same it's ridiculous

    • @mpetersen6
      @mpetersen6 Рік тому +4

      Last time I went to the museum at Wright Patterson (2005) you could wander around underneath a lot of the larger aircraft. The main gear wheels on the XB-36 are huge.

    • @timbirch4999
      @timbirch4999 Місяць тому

      Where would you keep it?!! That thing was larger than Rhode Island!!!

  • @F0urSidedHexag0n
    @F0urSidedHexag0n Рік тому +29

    I feel like an air museum could have been built around this massive aircraft, like how the Cosmosphere in Kansas built their main lobby around an SR-71!

    • @JTA1961
      @JTA1961 Рік тому +1

      Could have...

    • @johnforsyth7987
      @johnforsyth7987 Рік тому +5

      When you enter the Kanas Cosmosphere. The SR-71 is the first thing you see. But the space museum in the basement is even better.

    • @MediumRareOpinions
      @MediumRareOpinions Рік тому +7

      Theres a hangar in Duxford which is entirely filled with a B52, you walk in and people ask "where's the big plane" and then you tell them to look up.

    • @F0urSidedHexag0n
      @F0urSidedHexag0n Рік тому

      @John Forsyth Omg, I know I've been there, and all of it is awesome. Want to go there again.

    • @AsbestosMuffins
      @AsbestosMuffins Рік тому +1

      the airforce museum has a b-31 and a few b52's and yet it was the xb-70 that they had to build a hanger around

  • @anlydaly5726
    @anlydaly5726 Рік тому +10

    Forget flying fortress, this behemoth was a flying hotel (with guns ... and bombs).

    • @merafirewing6591
      @merafirewing6591 Рік тому +6

      It might as well be called "The Sky Fortress" because of it's size.

  • @rockharvey5787
    @rockharvey5787 Рік тому +21

    It’s a shame the xb-19 didn’t make it to the USAF museum in Ohio. I have seen that wheel and it is truly massive.

    • @warriorgaming1604
      @warriorgaming1604 3 місяці тому +1

      If someone would make a replica even a wooden one it would be on display

  • @duneydan7993
    @duneydan7993 Рік тому +21

    A salvage company director, who was paid to scrap it and would gain money by selling the scraps, was more willing to preserve her than the the base commander who was just annoyed by her presence...
    I don't who that commander was but I hope he stubbed his pinky toe on his bed post every morning after that!

    • @JTA1961
      @JTA1961 Рік тому

      Athefumen

    • @Driver-ur9mf
      @Driver-ur9mf Рік тому +1

      Good call, unpleasant experience to be sure.

    • @duneydan7993
      @duneydan7993 Рік тому +2

      @@Driver-ur9mf i usually wish for people that their phone would only charge with the cable angled but this one was a bit too ancient.

  • @ivancho5854
    @ivancho5854 Рік тому +97

    Wow, the normal crew only had one engineer! That's unbelievable considering his duties must have included balancing the aircraft's fuel tanks to maintain the correct centre of gravity while not stressing the airframe. This would be without computers to assist him.
    In addition the hydraulic system which powered absolutely everything sounds like a nightmare waiting to happen, to say nothing of four (at least it wasn't six!) brand new engines.
    I also wonder what the Aircraft Commander's role encompassed?
    Great video. Thank you.

    • @dallesamllhals9161
      @dallesamllhals9161 Рік тому +15

      Ahh, back when ADHD was used usefully!

    • @WarblesOnALot
      @WarblesOnALot Рік тому +6

      G'day,
      It's probably bullshit, but the son of an old Aircraft Maintenance Engineer claimed that the
      Oscilloscope was invented for the purpose of
      Testing & visualising what was
      Actually occurring within the
      Ignition Harnesses
      Of those old
      Multi-Row
      Radial
      Aero-Engines.
      18 Cylinders, 36 Plugs,
      28 Cylinders, 56 Plugs...;
      So the
      Flight Engineers were
      Furnished with
      Oscilloscopes in order to be able to switch into the
      Left or Right Magneto's
      Harness on any of the
      Engines, to better attempt to diagnose
      Perceived
      Rough running in flight..
      I have the impression that it was the Lockheed Constellation, which old mate's father worked on ; but sometime during
      WW-2 the Yanks started fitting
      Oscilloscopes into the
      Flight Engineers' Stations,
      The better to monitor
      All that
      Sparkliness...(!).
      But the
      Thymes
      They be
      A'
      Changeling...
      These dayze, of course,
      As you alluded to,
      They'd have a
      Microchip
      Trained up to do
      All that...(!).
      And then when the
      Microchip dies,
      During a Voltage-Spike,
      The
      "Cure" would be to
      Swap out the entire
      Engine, and return it to the
      Manufacturer...
      Who holds the only remaining supply of
      That particular Flight-Certified
      Microchip,
      And the Powerplant Manufacturer's
      Type Certificate required, in order to sign-off on any
      Engine as being
      Fit to Fly,
      After
      Replacing any
      Component therewithin,
      At all
      Whatsoever...
      Because unless the weight
      Of the covering
      Paperwork and Permits
      Exceeds the total
      Takeoff-Weight of the
      Aeroplane concerned ; then it is generally not lawful to sit
      Inside such a machine and
      Attempt to
      Levitate
      With insufficient
      Paperwork.
      As a generalisation,
      Kinda
      Thing (!).
      Such is life,
      Have a good one...
      Stay safe.
      ;-p
      Ciao !

    • @michaelglinski3809
      @michaelglinski3809 Рік тому +4

      I seem to remember it was similar to a pilot. Instead of pilot/copilot, it was Aircraft Commander/pilot. It made more sense on the older big planes that needed a whole crew to simply fly the thing.
      Take the B-29, for example. The main throttles are controlled by the flight engineer, not the pilot. There literally needed to be constant communication between the pilot and engineer just to keep the bird in the air.

    • @dallesamllhals9161
      @dallesamllhals9161 Рік тому +1

      @@WarblesOnALot STOP! Boring me ;-)

    • @crazypetec-130fe7
      @crazypetec-130fe7 Рік тому +5

      I'm a retired C-130 flight engineer, most of my time on E models with no computer assistance. I think those duties sound reasonable for one well-trained aviator. Probably just enough going on to keep you awake through the flight. It might get hairy when things go wrong, though.

  • @michaelfrench3396
    @michaelfrench3396 Рік тому +106

    You know every time I watch one of your videos, and as a subscriber it is a pretty freak when occasion, I can't help but think how much better you are than a lot of the more well-known military equipment channels. Especially pertaining to aircraft. I tell everybody that I know who's interested in this type of thing about your channel because you put out a lot of great information. and as someone who's been filling his brain with information on aircraft since I used to have to go to the public library and dig through books and books and books to find the cool interesting experimental ones It's so cool to me that you still find things that I've never seen and you present them in such an interesting and understandable way. I think you are one of the top two aviation channels on UA-cam. The other one being the crazy Australian squarespace advertiser

    • @stacksmalacks8826
      @stacksmalacks8826 Рік тому +7

      You should try paper skies. One of the best aviation youtube channels

    • @magisterrleth3129
      @magisterrleth3129 Рік тому +9

      Rex's Hangar is the Drachinifel of aviation. Thorough information, good editing, and I'm American, so his accent is like smooth butter in my ear holes. 10/10 channel.

    • @stacksmalacks8826
      @stacksmalacks8826 Рік тому

      @@magisterrleth3129 I wouldnt go that far. Drach is quite well regarded within the naval enthusiast community. Rex is more like a hobby guy

    • @michaelfrench3396
      @michaelfrench3396 Рік тому +1

      @@stacksmalacks8826 I'm a subscriber. They're good as well.

    • @The_Modeling_Underdog
      @The_Modeling_Underdog Рік тому

      @@stacksmalacks8826 Agreed. Paper Skies is the Montemayor of Aviation. Doesn't post too often but when he does his content es excellent.

  • @vanyasecundus4684
    @vanyasecundus4684 Рік тому +15

    The marketing department: "It's great! It's flawless! It slices, dices, checks your tire pressure and does your taxes! It uplifts you emotionally in a firm yet supportive and empowering manner! Buy one today! Buy twelve! Tell your friends!"
    The product: halp i no work rite

  • @RapideWombaticus
    @RapideWombaticus Рік тому +16

    As an avid Aviation adorer, always anticipate amazing archival analysis about Airframes - from you lol
    Great Channel indeed!

  • @carloschristanio4709
    @carloschristanio4709 Рік тому +6

    Us citizen: i like being at peace, i hope nothing changes it
    Roosevelt: that is where you wrong, kiddo

  • @shannonkohl68
    @shannonkohl68 Рік тому +14

    So why did early designers of huge aircraft not understand the advantages of using multiple wheels in a carriage arrangement? It's something that was already done on trains, bulldozers, and tanks at a minimum.

    • @RapideWombaticus
      @RapideWombaticus Рік тому +5

      Good point! I was thinking this myself after seeing these massive tyres. They cottoned on eventually...

    • @MaxwellAerialPhotography
      @MaxwellAerialPhotography Рік тому +11

      They may not have been able to fit powerful enough gear hydraulics. You have to remember that wheels that size weigh as much as a motorcycle or small car.

    • @petesheppard1709
      @petesheppard1709 Рік тому +5

      I suppose it was one of those lessons that had to be learned the hard way. The original B-36 had single-tire mains as well.

    • @neiloflongbeck5705
      @neiloflongbeck5705 Рік тому +5

      There were technical difficulties that needed to be overcome in regards to landing, taxi-ing, braking and stowage. With a single wheel on each leg these issues are easier to comprehend but with a four wheel bogie do yo want it to have all 4 wheels touching down together, rear pair first or front pair first? Does the bogie have to pivot on the leg and if so, how do you control the pivoting over the bogie? There are a lot of questions like this that the engineers and designers were looking into in the post-war years.

    • @victorboucher675
      @victorboucher675 Рік тому +4

      Like they were so stupid with the Ford Model T cause no turbos?

  • @AtholAnderson
    @AtholAnderson Рік тому +32

    If there's information available, I'm sure all of us would love to see a video on the XBLR-3. I'm sure many (like myself) have never really thought about Sikorsky making fixed wing aircraft.

    • @musewolfman
      @musewolfman Рік тому +3

      The New England Air museum has one of Sikorsky's huge flying boats. It's properly impressive.

    • @tkiehn13
      @tkiehn13 Рік тому +3

      I believe Igor built the first 4 engine bomber during WWI when he was still in Russia. The Ilya Muromets.

    • @musewolfman
      @musewolfman Рік тому

      @@tkiehn13 that's a very good point. I think you're right.

  • @jimsvideos7201
    @jimsvideos7201 Рік тому +7

    The Douglas tail is eternally gorgeous.

    • @timbirch4999
      @timbirch4999 Місяць тому

      It does have sexy lines. Like the wings on the Vulcan bomber.

  • @benhuston310
    @benhuston310 Рік тому +2

    28:47 and 29:33: Me when I'm trying to control pitch in a flight simulator.

  • @paulflocken2730
    @paulflocken2730 Рік тому +7

    It is interesting that she "pulled a Warspite" in refusing to go into eternity without a fight.
    It is also brought into sharp relief just how criminally incompetent the Air Force was about letting the B-29 go into service with overheating problems despite having had the forewarning of not just the B-29's development but also the testing of the B-19.

    • @merafirewing6591
      @merafirewing6591 Рік тому +1

      The XB-19 would've been a better option.

    • @paulflocken2730
      @paulflocken2730 Рік тому +4

      @@merafirewing6591 Since the B-29 ended up finding its fulfilling role operating at night, at lower speed, and dramatically lower altitude, that is almost worth thinking about. But the B-19 was impractical for enough good reasons and the B-29 was superior in plenty of other ways.

    • @SephirothRyu
      @SephirothRyu Рік тому +4

      the Airspite.

    • @rogersmith7396
      @rogersmith7396 Рік тому +1

      Most WWII planes were defective in some way. Neither they nor their pilots were expected to last long and they needed to design and build them fast. The Russian T 34 tank was not built to last for more than 100 hours in use.

  • @datathunderstorm
    @datathunderstorm Рік тому +14

    This was absolutely lovely to watch! Never heard of this aircraft - but this has been very educational and entertaining indeed. Thank you Rex 😊👍🏾

  • @fonesrphunny7242
    @fonesrphunny7242 Рік тому +4

    12:52 ... both engines share a common crankcase but the crankshafts are separate, running into a common gearbox at the front.

    • @mpetersen6
      @mpetersen6 Рік тому

      Or in the version for the P-75 each crankshaft coupled to an extension shaft. Another version would have had gearboxes that turned the output 90° with another 90° gearbox in each wing. Proposed for aircraft with the engine buried in the fuselage and the props on the wings. The original McDonnell proposal that morphed into the XP-67 and the proposed North American Super Strafer

  • @neiloflongbeck5705
    @neiloflongbeck5705 Рік тому +10

    The Allison V-3420 wasn't a V-24 format engine but a W-24 format engine.

    • @John.0z
      @John.0z Рік тому +4

      It's even different to the "usual" W format (such as the Napier Lion). Being a twin design, like the similar but inverted DB605 used in the Heinkel He 177 Greif, there is no letter of the alphabet to adequately describe it. I suppose the DB605 would be called an "M" layout?
      The present day Audi/Bugatti "W" is different in other ways, and yet again, "W" is about the best that can be used to describe it.

  • @radiosnail
    @radiosnail Рік тому +6

    A very interesting video. THE Convair b36 cracked concrete when it was first built. They replaced the big single main wheels with two wheels instead.

    • @robertheinkel6225
      @robertheinkel6225 Рік тому +1

      Actually it was replaced with two of the modern four tire landing gear trucks.

  • @helplmchoking
    @helplmchoking 2 місяці тому +1

    The really crazy thing is, after how incredibly hard it was to create a bomber that was this big and could carry 8,000lbs of bombs, just 11 years after the first prototype was finished the B-52 made its first flight, far larger and able to carry nearly 2x the payload at far higher speeds. It's almost hard to understand just how fast aircraft developed in such a short timespan

  • @UD503J
    @UD503J 2 місяці тому +1

    I love that there was a time during the war and in the immediate post-war era where aircraft engineers, dealing with the weight of their aircraft, just said "make the wheels bigger!" and had single huge tires for the main gear. AFAIK the B-36 was the first one to get multiple wheel bogeys after a similar problem, itself having the largest landing gear tire ever, up to that point.

  • @markhailes6851
    @markhailes6851 Рік тому +2

    I "liked" this at the NICS joke. Nice one Rex.

  • @maxshep2829
    @maxshep2829 Рік тому +2

    Haha, i loved the NCIS Gibbs reference! ❤
    Dang, now i want one of these in 1/144

  • @Sssaaatttuuurrrnnn
    @Sssaaatttuuurrrnnn 11 місяців тому +2

    Yessss. Since the first few videos of yours I watched, I've waiting for you to make one about this plane. I love all the record-breaking, large, bumbling aircraft videos, especially of the inter-war designs when things were getting larger than they probably should have been.

  • @LeroyJGibbs
    @LeroyJGibbs Рік тому +2

    And what, exactly, is wrong with building a boat in my basement?!?! 😂😂😂

  • @oldschool8798
    @oldschool8798 Рік тому +4

    I have to question the reasoning of the base commander who decided this plane should be broken up. Not historic enough??? It was the largest airplane in the world!

    • @rogersmith7396
      @rogersmith7396 Рік тому

      The B 36 was going into production and the Flying wing.

  • @RamSkirata
    @RamSkirata Рік тому +1

    That was an INCREDIBLY GOOD piece of flying on that landing. Wow. He controlled the bounce so extremely well - in a completely untested aircraft nobody had ever landed befor. wow.

  • @marcusott2973
    @marcusott2973 Рік тому +5

    Much awaited, much appreciated excellent insights as usual from you.

  • @emjackson2289
    @emjackson2289 Рік тому +21

    Amazing to think the XB35 and XB36 were given prototype contracts in 1941 *before* Pearl Harbour.

    • @enolopanr9820
      @enolopanr9820 Рік тому +2

      Well we knew a war was gonna come our way eventually.

    • @wraithwyvern528
      @wraithwyvern528 Рік тому +2

      War was fashionable in the 40s

    • @JohnDoe-cf8ho
      @JohnDoe-cf8ho 9 місяців тому

      ​@@enolopanr9820especially since FDR was doing everything in his power to get us involved in it

    • @enolopanr9820
      @enolopanr9820 9 місяців тому

      @@JohnDoe-cf8ho think what you want but I don't think so. There was lots of money to be made giving guns to UK and USSR and any country wouldn't miss a chance like that. As for the story that America was antagonizing Japan, that was warranted because of imperial expansion into China with mass atrocities. War was unavoidable and it was good for the world, at least most of it, that US was involved.

    • @JohnDoe-cf8ho
      @JohnDoe-cf8ho 9 місяців тому

      @@enolopanr9820 first of all it wasn't a story, FDR did everything he could possibly do to get Japan to attack the US. As for the atrocities committed by Japan, they were child's play compared to what the CCP would commit. Every where I look, I do not see a single situation where the US involvement has played out to be a long term positive.

  • @BrucifyMe
    @BrucifyMe Рік тому +1

    Haven't checked in on this channel in a while. So glad to see you still going, and now I have lots of videos to catch up on.

  • @Flies2FLL
    @Flies2FLL Рік тому +2

    What's funny is that they designed an airplane with the wingspan of a 747-400 and the fuselage length of a 727-100 with the empty weight of a 727-200~
    Airplanes are generally designed around available engines, which is how this airplane took place.

  • @bittyjupiter3607
    @bittyjupiter3607 Рік тому

    I've been waiting for this video for a long time. I love the XB-19 and I hope that this video makes it a little less forgotten.

  • @Shady97342
    @Shady97342 Рік тому +2

    Thanks for the videos! I especially love the longer format ones. Formally suggesting the P-61 Black Widow!

  • @deaks25
    @deaks25 Рік тому +2

    A genuinely fascinating video on an aircraft that definitely deserves more recognition, even if it is just being the sleekest concrete breaker in history.

  • @NostalgiaRant
    @NostalgiaRant 10 місяців тому +1

    these videos are well made its a shame that most of his videos dont have very much views, very well made, good quality 10/10

  • @drnono8605
    @drnono8605 Рік тому +1

    A video on the construction would be a dream come true

  • @eivindlunde7772
    @eivindlunde7772 Рік тому

    I really enjoy these longer videos that go into more detail, so please keep them coming!

  • @Dr_Jebus
    @Dr_Jebus Рік тому +2

    Brilliant video. Didn't really know how much I loved crazily oversized planes until you started your channel, but I can't get enough now. I love the photo at 13:50 it just does a great job at showing the scale of the damn thing.

    • @ronjon7942
      @ronjon7942 Рік тому +2

      Oh snap, yeah! I love WWII production photos.

  • @petro3366
    @petro3366 Рік тому +4

    Always a happy day when Rex posts a video.

  • @MrHermit12
    @MrHermit12 Рік тому +8

    The government having to justify military spending. Boy those were the days.

  • @davydatwood3158
    @davydatwood3158 Рік тому +1

    "Lemme essplain." "No, is too much. Lemme sum up." :D

  • @Zeppflyer
    @Zeppflyer Рік тому +2

    Do a comparison of an interwar behemoth with the last two classic bombers? YES PLEASE! Please do a video about the 19, 29, and 36.

  • @merafirewing6591
    @merafirewing6591 Рік тому +4

    Yes! I've been waiting for this video for a long while. Thank you Rex. I look forward to seeing the XB-15 and other never were USAAC bombers that never left the drawing board or model stage get their own videos. And now you got me curious about the DC-4?

  • @stevenschiff808
    @stevenschiff808 Рік тому +1

    Excellent, a fun and interesting watch. Thank you.

  • @maryclarafjare
    @maryclarafjare Рік тому +1

    An excellent video, this was fascinating. How sad that it was scrapped. I had no idea that we'd ever had a massive plane like this, so early on. Amazing.

  • @williamlloyd3769
    @williamlloyd3769 Рік тому +11

    Had no idea Douglas XB-19 had been built at Santa Monica, Clover Air Field aka Santa Monica airport.
    PS - Too bad bomber no longer exists. Aircraft would have been great to see it at Museum of Flying at Santa Monica Airport. Museum is well worth a visit!

    • @MarshallLoveday
      @MarshallLoveday Рік тому +1

      Santa Monica Airport still exists, although it is supposed to be closed permanently around 2027, to be replaced by a huge park. The 'Clover Field' name isn't really used any more, but it was, through the 60's or so......
      I grew up in the 50's and 60's living in a house only a couple blocks south of the airport property.

    • @williamlloyd3769
      @williamlloyd3769 Рік тому

      @@MarshallLoveday - Thanks. Corrected

  • @TS-bj8my
    @TS-bj8my Рік тому +3

    I love history and especially military history. How this is the FIRST that I've heard of the XB-19 is really quite stunning! Thanks for info. I really appreciate the effort. I'm subscribed now:o)

  • @MBSLC
    @MBSLC Рік тому

    Excellent work on this! A thousand thanks for this entertaining and informative video!

  • @thomas15082
    @thomas15082 Рік тому +2

    Without XB-19 no C-124 Globemaster ii. I remember, as an adolescent, watching the tunnel for the flight engineer to the inboard engines of the C-124.

  • @elliotdryden7560
    @elliotdryden7560 Рік тому

    What an astoundingly well done production! I echo the other commenters when I say your channel is top-shelf in every way. I never knew about the V-1710x2 configuration engines being flown on this aircraft, either and have been into this subject matter my whole life. (57 years old and a Commercial Pilot since 1991)

  • @fiftycal1
    @fiftycal1 10 місяців тому

    My father was born in 1927. He enlisted in The USAAF in 1944 (as he was a minor - his mother signed his papers). He went through training as an aerial gunner/radio operator. He completed training in March of 45. (Some B-17s had a single 50 caliber for The Radio Operator.) Since he finished training so late - his orders to Europe were cancelled. Instead - he was ordered to Everett Field in Washington State to cross train in B-29s. He was there until the bombs were dropped on Hiroshima & Nagasaki.
    Dad was demobilized. They didn’t need him for Korea - SAC needed him however. He wound up being assigned to The Magnesium Overcast aka The B-36. Dad said the plane was so large - if Zip Codes had existed when the plane was around - the nose and tail would have had separate ones.
    One thing absolutely phenomenal about The B-36 was its endurance. Even without aerial refueling - the plane could stay airborne over a day.

  • @bobfry5267
    @bobfry5267 Рік тому +1

    This one aircraft alone could have closed the mid Atlantic U boat gap and saved many losses. A two day flight duration? Amazing. Should have had a cinema!

  • @marcelogeka
    @marcelogeka Рік тому +3

    Belleza de avión!! Me encantó. Poderoso, grande, súper práctico y moderno para su época

  • @salvagedb2470
    @salvagedb2470 4 дні тому

    " Trying to get a Boat out of the Cellar it was built in " , Rex rules for Dry wit n hit them ..but Keep going , We luv it..

  • @alexandermonro6768
    @alexandermonro6768 Рік тому +8

    Yes please Rex, I would be very interested in another video going into more detail about the construction of the XB19. Also, comparison with the B29 and B36 would be interesting too. I realise that this will be another epic length video, and it will take you some time to produce, but I'm happy to wait.
    Many thanks for all you do on this channel.

  • @mckinleyseaver5061
    @mckinleyseaver5061 Рік тому +3

    Can you please go deeper into the production of the XB-19?!

  • @cdfe3388
    @cdfe3388 Рік тому +2

    Please do that XB-19 deep dive!

  • @b.griffin317
    @b.griffin317 Рік тому +1

    Yes to the video comparing construction of various super-heavy bombers.

  • @swagnut9864
    @swagnut9864 Рік тому

    I'm brand new to this channel and I already know I'm going to love this content. You have yourself another subscriber my friend!

  • @garyhooper1820
    @garyhooper1820 Рік тому

    Absolutely stunning work on this video.

  • @charlesodonnell2993
    @charlesodonnell2993 Рік тому

    This is an amazing presentation! Thank you for enlightening me!

  • @flemmingaaberg4457
    @flemmingaaberg4457 Рік тому

    Best presentation of a sponsor's product I have seen in a long while - nicely done.

  • @wilsonrawlin8547
    @wilsonrawlin8547 Рік тому +1

    No matter what happened with it. This was an incredible plane for its time. The Engineers did an outstanding job no matter the problems getting it into the air. It was a masterpiece of aviation engineering.

  • @helenaconstantine
    @helenaconstantine Рік тому +2

    The star of the Bugs Bunny Gremlin cartoon

  • @Peter_Morris
    @Peter_Morris Рік тому +2

    Excellent video again, Rex. I’m surprised this aircraft was never included in some compilation of useful prototypes. Or maybe it was and I’ve just never seen it. But it’s contributions to large bombers is indeed impressive.

  • @blaggercoyote
    @blaggercoyote Рік тому +2

    Such a shame that it wasn`t preserved!!

  • @Seasonstobecheerful
    @Seasonstobecheerful Рік тому +1

    Fascinating and thoroughly entertaining stuff 👏 👍

  • @scimitaredgebooks
    @scimitaredgebooks Рік тому

    Amazing documentary, thank you!

  • @hughboyd2904
    @hughboyd2904 Рік тому

    Terrific video - well done! I learnt so much!

  • @PhantomLover007
    @PhantomLover007 Рік тому +1

    The B-19 has been mentioned in two Bugs Bunny cartoons. The first one in ‘Bugs gets the Boid’ with the buzzard where Bugs Bunny says “come in B19. Come in B19“ as he’s trying to direct the buzzard in for crash Landing.
    The second one is in ‘falling hare’ where bugs bunny is dealing with a gremlin and you can see aircraft that look like the B-19 and there is one mention of the aircraft if I am correct

  • @RailgunCat
    @RailgunCat Рік тому

    Great video! Subscribed!

  • @loddude5706
    @loddude5706 Рік тому +1

    28:40 - "Hey, it's even more fun if you hold your arms in the air like this . . ." : )

  • @guiltyofbias8818
    @guiltyofbias8818 Рік тому

    The XB-19 is one of my favorite planes, it just looks awesome

  • @baystgrp
    @baystgrp 4 місяці тому

    Absolutely first rate channel on every aspect of aircraft from various eras. I have seen planes discussed here I never knew existed. Truly an impressive. The B-19 was a behemoth, love the shot of the pilot on the maiden flight chewing on his cigar. He must have been fully aware of the amount of funding, effort, and hopes that were riding on the results of that first test flight.

  • @jonhg92
    @jonhg92 Рік тому +1

    jesus. that clip of it landing makes my hands sweaty

  • @AluVixapede
    @AluVixapede Рік тому +3

    I've never even heard of this before ... somehow, nice~

  • @WeekendWarrior92
    @WeekendWarrior92 Рік тому +1

    17:17 We, the people of subscriber base, demand hereby, a video over 2 hours in length.

  • @williamsmith7340
    @williamsmith7340 Рік тому

    Excellent video. You just got yourself another sub.

  • @forthwithtx5852
    @forthwithtx5852 Рік тому

    Really well done, Rex.

  • @pbyguy7059
    @pbyguy7059 Рік тому +3

    Man, I wish I was rolling out in Santa Monica :(

  • @JTA1961
    @JTA1961 Рік тому +1

    Being in Tucson Arizona & hearing aircraft ALL day & night (one now)... sound is important. Be nice to { hear } the sound of the various being described if possible.

  • @Nedski42YT
    @Nedski42YT Рік тому +6

    It's good to have the complex history of this aircraft in a relatively brief video. Even though I was aware of this airplane I never gave too much thought to it because most videos about it were way too short!
    I'd like to see more about the Boeing XB-15 and the Sikorsky LRB even though it didn't have a prototype built, or did it? 😉

    • @drewywgx924
      @drewywgx924 Рік тому

      I'm waiting on a Westland wyvern or Garrett stamp video

  • @b.thomas8926
    @b.thomas8926 Рік тому

    I never even heard of this aircraft. Thanks for the info!

  • @alcoholfree6381
    @alcoholfree6381 Рік тому

    My father was a WW2 Army trainer bombardier in a B-17 over Europe. His first mission was on D-Day and he was shot down on 12/24/1944 over Belgium on his 24th mission. They were bombing the Germans at The Battle of the Bulge! The B-17 sounds like a more practical plane; there were 12,731 built from 1936-45. Dad said that the plane was durable and could take a lot of punishment and still fly and fight. He said that the Luftwaffe was very depleted by the time he started flying. They were shot down by German 88 AA guns. Great documentary!

  • @AkX1353
    @AkX1353 Рік тому +2

    Rex, I haven't even finished this. Once again, you have surprised me. I didn't think this episode would interests me. But knowing you have surprised me in the past, I tried it. I think your channel just moved into my mental list of watch every episode and like immediately. My reasoning on liking immediately is that I can always go back and unlike. What I've found is once I place a channel in that particular category, I'm hooked .
    So, for what it's worked.
    Congratulations REX. JK

  • @gingerlacey738
    @gingerlacey738 Рік тому +12

    Thanks for a really interesting film,you have done a great thing for aviation history,sad it was scrapped but that’s the fate of most things when time and memory move on.This is that rarest of things on UA-cam ie the content is infinitely more substantial than the thumbnail,very well done.

    • @jeebusk
      @jeebusk 11 місяців тому

      Yes only a few channels seem to meet this condition, off the top of my head Drachinifel and KingsAndGenerals come to mind.

  • @Allan_aka_RocKITEman
    @Allan_aka_RocKITEman Рік тому

    Great video, Rex.

  • @boris8787
    @boris8787 Рік тому +1

    I love the mighty SPITFIRE as seen in the 1944 World War Two movie set in the town of Chillingbourne.