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Martin XB-27 (Model 182)

1939 WORLD WAR 2 X-PLANE

History

On the eve of World War II (1939-1945), ground-based air defense systems remained a formidable threat to aircraft. As a result, the major military players of this period continued to focus on acquiring high-altitude bomber types, platforms that could fly higher than ground defenses could reach and stay away from pesky interceptors trying to take bombers out of the sky. "Twins" - Twins Engine models - becoming the norm for midsize models, before the war ended in 1945, there was no shortage of Star Twins in the US.

At this point in history, the Glenn L. Martin Company ("Martin") is a storied company with a long history in the U.S. military, supplying all types of World War I (1914-1918) aircraft. period further. During the second half of the 1930s, the company was heavily involved in work on the new "twin", a comparable capable medium bomber that first flew on November 25, 1940, and was eventually launched by the USAAF in 1941. ) to commission the famous B-26 Marauder - a medium bomber that served in World War II and beyond.

The B-26 program resulted in two major developments: the "Type 182" (later to become the "XB-27") and the "Type 190" (proposed as the "Super Predator"). The Type 182, which is the focus of this article, was presented to the USAAC/USAAF authorities as a medium-range high-altitude bomber that retains much of the form and function that made the B-26 so successful. As expected, the design has been aerodynamically improved, with a glass nose section, stepped cockpit, and a single-wing spoiler. A modern tricycle landing gear will help with ground walking and related actions.

Each main aircraft will be mounted at shoulder height on the side of the fuselage and will carry nacelles mounted below, with each engine driving a multi-blade propeller in a "tractor"/"tractor" fashion. The main aircraft introduced had a swept leading edge and a straight trailing edge with a rounded tip.

The main working areas of the crew are the nose, tail, cockpit and midsection - seven crew members including two pilots (sitting side by side under the frame canopy), a bombardier and several dedicated machine gunners . The aircraft's intended high-altitude operation required pressurized crew quarters - the aircraft was designed to operate at altitudes in excess of 30,000 feet.

Structural dimensions include 60.8ft barrel length and 84ft wingspan. At a height of 20 feet, the loaded weight will reach approximately 33,000 pounds.

The bomber was designed with a wartime payload of up to 4,000 lbs and was carried primarily inside the bomb bay portion of the belly of the aircraft (in addition, external munitions could/should not be excluded according to other similar designs at the time). Standard armament includes 3 x .30 caliber Browning M1919 air-cooled (medium) machine guns and 1 x .50 caliber Browning M2 air-cooled (heavy) machine gun for point self-defense. One .30 caliber gun will be centered on the nose, the other in the dorsal position, and the tail gun in the aft belly position.

The remaining .50 calibers will be installed at the very end of the fuselage to help cover the bomber's most vulnerable areas.

The performance of the twin-engine bomber is based on 2 Pratt & Whitney R-2800-9 "Twin Wasps" air-cooled turbocharged radial piston engines, each delivering 2,000 hp and driving a four-bladed propeller unit. First commissioned in 1937, these engines were at the heart of many classic WWII-era designs: the Grumman F6F Hellcat Navy fighter, the Republic P-47 Thunder USAF fighter and the Vought F4U Corsair, just to name a few example.

Estimated performance specs include a top speed of 280 to 375 mph (sources vary), an operating range of up to 2,900 miles, and a service ceiling of up to 33,500 feet.

The bomber was developed around the USAAC specification of August 1939 (specification XC-214) - just a few weeks before World War II hit Europe (September 1, Germany invaded Poland). Martin competed directly with North America (maker of the famous B-25 "Mitchell" twin-engine medium bomber) for demand, but neither design proved to be an absolute success either way.

The North American NA-63 was actually ordered and flown as a prototype on the "XB-28" (described in detail elsewhere on this page), but the Martin 182 was only further developed on paper as the "XB-27" - it was nothing more than A relatively advanced design study.

This requirement was finally fulfilled by a range of other in-service aircraft that could not only meet the requirements of various mission types. Altered war requirements, namely Allied air superiority on the marches over Rome, Berlin and Tokyo, also played a role in the failure of such aircraft programs.