B-58 Hustler First Test Flight in Restored Color - 1956

on Monday afternoon 29 october 1956 the DeltaWing supersonic b-58 moved for the first time under its own power this occurred in a preliminary taxi maneuver which tested the braking characteristics turning radius and general overall ground handling characteristics of the b-58 to this date the airplane had undergone an Air Force Safety Board inspection ground vibration checks engine runs to full military power and numerous other checkouts all of which proved its readiness for the taxi test phase of operation the convair flight crew for this number one be 58 is pilot be a Erickson flight observer JD McCarran and observer CL Harrison Erickson who also flew the first be 36 and why be 60 his manager the flight department at conveyors Fort Worth division at approximately 1630 hours the b-58 with flight crew on board was pushed out of engine run station number two and told to the starting position for the first taxi maneuver taxi screens were attached to the Jets during this test to protect them against foreign object damage the starting point for this test was the east/west taxi strip at the north end of the runway the airplane was joined there by the ground support equipment and the fire trucks you canopies were closed at approximately 1700 hours engines were started and as darkness closed in the b-58 moved onto the runway and under when its first taxi maneuver this test proved that the b-58 ground handling characteristics were excellent the airplane was given the green light to proceed with taxi run one week later on 5 November 1956 the b-58 moved out of engine run station number two under its own power and made its second taxi run this was a low-speed run made from north to south at approximately 40 knots excessive break temperature which developed in the apt inboard duels of the left main gear during the return taxi cause the tire to blow after the airplane had come to a stop on the taxi strip as soon as the wheel had cooled ground crews came in to remove the tire and determine the cause of failure examination revealed that excessive temperature in the wheel was caused by a brake which didn't fully release the tire change was completed in approximately 20 minutes and the airplane was towed to the development hangar building for correction of the brake system discrepancy the first high speed taxi was made on Wednesday morning 7 November 1956 this run was made at a top speed of approximately 92 knots the nose of the airplane was lifted to takeoff attitude for a very short time then power was cut and the drag chute deployed there were no major discrepancies reported on this run the second high speed taxi was made after dark on 8 November 1956 the entire weight of the aircraft was lifted from the landing gear on this run which was made at 138 knots on 10 November 1956 the b-58 made its third high-speed taxi this run was made from north to south and reached a top speed of 148 knots you the only discrepancy encountered was a minor leak in the hydraulic system of the power control linkage package on Sunday afternoon 11 November 1956 while America celebrated Veterans Day the b-58 tacks it to the takeoff position for its first flight ground testing was now complete specifications have been met and the b-58 was ready for its first flight the weather for this occasion was perfect skies were clear the air was mild and there was a slight breeze from the south chase aircraft for this flight consisted of a conveyor why f-102a which was used for observation purposes and an F 94c which carried the aerial cameras at approximately fourteen thirty nine hours the chase planes released their brakes cut in their afterburners and took to the air after holding just long enough for the chase airplanes to move into position the b-58 released its brakes and began the takeoff roll afterburners were not used the b-58 was airborne at exactly 1441 hours after a ground roll of approximately 3,300 feet airspeed at takeoff was 160 knots the take-off was routine and the climb was steady special flight data from the b-58 was telemetered back to a ground recording system in the flight test department this information was monitored throughout the flight and recorded for future study information obtained here is supplemented by other flight data recorded on board the airplane future flights will be covered in a similar manner after takeoff the b-58 with landing gear extended climbed to an altitude of 10,000 feet the high landing gear is necessary so that the long fuselage can develop the ground angle required for takeoff and landing gear was retracted while the airplane was still at the 10,000 foot level operation was quick and smooth climb was then made to 20,000 feet where the airplane was felt out at a speed of 0.7 Mach at 15 19 hours exactly 38 minutes after takeoff the b-58 settled on the runway to successfully complete its first flight the drag chute was deployed immediately upon touchdown and the airplane was brought to a short stop for the minimum amount of brake the b-58 had come through its first flight with ease performance of engines and airplane have been routine the b-58 supersonic bomber nosed into the engine run station at approximately fifteen twenty four hours to conclude its first airborne excursion the mechanical reactions of this airplane to its maiden flight are recorded on tape but the reaction of the human element to the b-58 will be found on the faces of the crew of course this is only the beginning there will be many hours of grueling flight tests for the b-58 before it can be properly appraised as a weapon for the US Air Force but based on the first flight it is reasonable to predict that the convair supersonic b-58 will write a new chapter in America's mastery of the sky you

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Keywords: Convair B-58 Hustler

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Length: 17min 23sec (1043 seconds)

Published: Wed May 01 2013