B29 (No not wishing, just general question)

[Gaidin]

Does anyone know the number of missions the B29 flew prior to the end of WW2, and how does that number relate to the B24/17/26's numbers?

[Karnak]

I don't know the sortie totals, but I can give rough production totals off the top of my head.


B-17: over 12,000 built.
B-24: over 18,000 built.
B-29: over 3,000 built, some post war.

That should give you an idea of the likely sortie totals.

[Nemisis]

Well that depends on if you mean missions missions or just when one of them took off flew to another airbase and then flew back after droping someone off or somehting along those lines. If I have the numbers correct, then B29's opperating from china, or some other god-awfull place out in the east, had to have 3 supporting missions for one actuall drop bombs on the enemy's heads missions. The fule had to be flown in, the bombs had to be flown in, the ammo for the turrets had to be flown in, stuff like that. I know this because I saw a show about the B29 or something where there was a section about them, and to operate against Japan (not occupied islands and Jap controled territory) they had to have all the aformentioned stuff (gas, ord, etc.) flown over a mountian range and it took 3 trips to make one agains Japan. Also there was a problem with the engines catching fire do to the hot, humid climate. Or maby it was just hot or something like that. Well anyway they had a problem with engine fires.

[Gaidin]

I am referring to actual drop bombs on the enemy missions.  Numbers for all of them for comparison.

[AWwrgwy]

From http://39th.org/39th/hc/b29decisive-factor.htm:

Between June of 1944 and August 1945, B-29's flew a combined 380 bombing missions (26,611 bomb sorties) and dropped 167,448 tons of bombs and mines and lost 402 B-29's while shooting down 871 enemy aircraft as well as 565 probables and damaging 1,090.

From http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_B-29_combat.html:

The 58th Bombardment Wing carried out 72 missions from India and China. Amongst them was the longest B-29 mission of the war, a 3,900 mile round trip to attack the crucial oil refineries at Palembang, Sumatra.

And:

By the end of the war XXI Bomber Command had carried out 34,000 B-29 sorties, dropped 160,000 tons of bombs and devastated large parts of Japan, at the cost of 371 aircraft, but the Japanese had still not surrendered.

wrongway

[Nemisis]

Thank you wronway, you just saved me from a socialy akward moment where I knew all that crap about the whole 3 missions, and supporting missions, and engine fire stuff, but no IDEA about the number of missions or bombs droped.

[Gaidin]

TY for the info on the B29.  Does anyone have the numbers for the others?  Bombing sorties, pounds of ord dropped?

[MiloMorai]

All kinds of info here, http://afhra.maxwell.af.mil/aafsd/aafsd_list_of_tables.html

[Gaidin]

All kinds of info here, http://afhra.maxwell.af.mil/aafsd/aafsd_list_of_tables.html

comes back bad request.  no page.

[AWwrgwy]

B-17:

From http://www.zap16.com/mil%20fact/B-17%20Flying%20Fortress/Boeing%20B-17%20Flying%20Fortress.htm:

Total operational sorties: 294875
Total bombs dropped: 650000 tons
B-17's lost in action: 4483  (861 accidents)

This may be Europe only or 8th AF only.

Can't find a number for B-24s.  Lots and lots of groups all over flew B-24s.  Many for a variety of reasons other than strategic bombing.  B-24s flew cargo, maritime patrols, dropped commandos behind enemy lines amongst other random missions.


wrongway

[Gaidin]

Thanks for all the info.  Im doing a project on WW2 bombing and this info will help flesh out things.

[MiloMorai]

comes back bad request.  no page.

Works for me. Try again as sometimes there is problems connecting.

[CaptainFokker]

...and to operate against Japan (not occupied islands and Jap controled territory) they had to have all the aformentioned stuff (gas, ord, etc.) flown over a mountian range and it took 3 trips to make one agains Japan. Also there was a problem with the engines catching fire do to the hot, humid climate. Or maby it was just hot or something like that. Well anyway they had a problem with engine fires.

The mountain range you are referring to is the Himalayas. And after 1945 B-29 sorties were no longer flown from India/China as the allies had already "procured" island bases throughout the Central Pacific and the Marianas Islands - it was cheaper for the U.S. to ship in fuel/ordnance than it was to fly them into China/India.

The overheating issues were typically caused at take-off. This was due to the fact that the B-29 had radial engines, which require a great amount of airflow to keep cool. This is because the 18 cylinders in the radial engines were compactly arranged in front/rear rows - which would overheat and cause exhaust valves to unseat. All of these factors combined with unseated exhaust valves (which somewhat functioned as a blowtorch against the valvestems). Once these burned through, the engines would disintegrated. Also, the accessory housing were manufactured of a magnesium alloy that would burn through and catch fire due to the heat of the engines. Once this barrier was breached, engine fires were pretty much impossible to extinguish.

[Saxman]

The overheating and catching fire was a design problem of the Wright R-3350 used by the B-29 ITSELF. It had NOTHING to do with the fact that it was a radial engine, the number of cylinders, or the number of banks. The R-2800 used in the Corsair, Hellcat, P-47 and P-61 was ALSO an 18-cylinder staggered two-bank radial engine and didn't have these same problems.

[MiloMorai]

comes back bad request.  no page.

No problem with me. Sometimes the site is finicky, try again.