The XB-38 Flying Fortress was a single example conversion of a production B-17E Flying Fortress, testing whether the

Allison V-1710 The Allison V-1710 aircraft engine designed and produced by the Allison Engine Company was the most common United States, US-developed V12 engine, V-12 Internal combustion engine cooling, liquid-cooled engine in service during World War II. Ve ...

V type engine could be substituted for the standard Wright R-1820 radial engine during early

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Design and development

The XB-38 was the result of a modification project undertaken by

Vega Vega is the brightest star in the northern constellation of Lyra. It has the Bayer designation α Lyrae, which is Latinised to Alpha Lyrae and abbreviated Alpha Lyr or α Lyr. This star is relatively close at only from the Sun, and ...

(a subsidiary of Lockheed) on a

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is an American four-engined heavy bomber aircraft developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). A fast and high-flying bomber, the B-17 dropped more bombs than any other aircraft during ...

to fit it with liquid-cooled

-89 V-12 engines. It was to be an improved B-17, and an alternative if the normally fitted air-cooled Wright R-1820

radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating engine, reciprocating type internal combustion engine, internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinder (engine), cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. ...

s became scarce. Completing the modifications took less than a year, and the XB-38 made its first flight on May 19, 1943. Only one was built, and it was modified from a regular production aircraft. The XB-38 delivered a higher top speed, but its ceiling was lower. After a few flights it was grounded due to exhaust gas leaks from the engine manifolds. Once this had been fixed, testing resumed until the ninth flight on June 16, 1943 when the inboard starboard engine caught fire and the crew bailed out. The XB-38 was destroyed and the project was canceled, in part because the V-1710 engines were in high demand for

Lockheed P-38 Lightning The Lockheed P-38 Lightning is an American single-seat, twin piston-engined fighter aircraft that was used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) by the Lockheed Corporation, the P-38 incorporated a distinc ...

Curtiss P-40 Warhawk The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk is an American single-engined, single-seat, all-metal fighter-bomber that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time and enabled a rapid entry ...

and North American P-51A Mustang fighters.

Operators

; *

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

Specifications (XB-38)

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * Francillon, René J. ''Lockheed Aircraft since 1913''. London:Putnam, 1982. . * Hess, William N. and Jim Winchester. ""Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress:Queen of the Skies". ''Wings Of Fame''. Volume 6. London:Aerospace Publishing, 1997. . ISSN 1361-2034. pp. 38–103. * Jones, Lloyd S. ''U.S. Bombers, B-1 1928 to B-1 1980s''. Fallbrook, CA: Aero Publishers, 1962, second edition 1974. .

External links

{{USAF bomber aircraft B-38 Flying Fortress Boeing B-38 Flying Fortress Four-engined tractor aircraft Low-wing aircraft B-38 Aircraft first flown in 1943 Four-engined piston aircraft Aircraft with retractable conventional landing gear

Design and development

Operators

Specifications (XB-38)

See also

References

External links