The Lockheed XB-30 (company model L-249)Stringfellow and Bowers 1992, p. 31. was the design submitted by Lockheed after the request by the

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 ...

for a very heavy bomber, the same request that led to the

Boeing B-29 Superfortress The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is an American four-engined propeller-driven heavy bomber, designed by Boeing and flown primarily by the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Named in allusion to its predecessor, the B-17 Fl ...

, the

Douglas XB-31 The Douglas XB-31 (Douglas Model 332) was the design submitted by Douglas after the request by the United States Army Air Forces for a very heavy bomber aircraft, the same request that led to the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, Lockheed XB-30, and C ...

and

Consolidated B-32 Dominator The Consolidated B-32 Dominator (Consolidated Model 34) was an American heavy strategic bomber built for United States Army Air Forces during World War II, which had the distinction of being the last Allied aircraft to be engaged in combat duri ...

Design and development

Around 1938, General Henry H. "Hap" Arnold, the head of the

United States Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical r ...

, was growing alarmed at the possibility of war in Europe and in the Pacific. Hoping to be prepared for the long-term requirements of the Air Corps, Arnold created a special committee chaired by Brigadier General Walter G. Kilner; one of its members was

Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...

. After a tour of ''

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

'' bases, Lindbergh became convinced that

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

was far ahead of other European nations. In a 1939 report, the committee made a number of recommendations, including development of new long-range heavy bombers. When war broke out in Europe, Arnold requested design studies from several companies on a Very Long-Range bomber capable of traveling . Approval was granted on 2 December 1939. Based on the design of the Lockheed L-049 (subsequently adopted by the

as the C-69), the L-249 never progressed past the design stage, mainly because

Boeing The Boeing Company () is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, telecommunications equipment, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product ...

had a huge head start with its

, using the same

Wright R-3350 Duplex-Cyclone The Wright R-3350 Duplex-Cyclone is an American twin-row, supercharged, air-cooled, radial aircraft engine with 18 cylinders displacing nearly . Power ranged from 2,200 to over 3,700 hp (1,640 to 2,760 kW), depending on the model. ...

radials as the XB-30 was intended to use. Only a scale model was built. Retaining the wings and tail surfaces of the Model 49, the Model 249-58-01 was to have had a new fuselage with up to six gun turrets (one in the nose, two above and two below the fuselage, and one in the tail) housing ten .50-caliber guns—twinned up in each turret for the nose, dorsal, and ventral emplacements; and one 20-mm cannon for the tail defensive position. Ventral bomb bays were to accommodate eight bombs.

Specifications (as proposed)

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * Stringfellow, Curtis K., and Peter M. Bowers. ''Lockheed Constellation''. St. Paul, Minnesota: Motorbooks, 1992.

External links

USAF Museum — XB-30 Factsheet
{{USAF bomber aircraft B-030 Four-engined tractor aircraft Low-wing aircraft Cancelled military aircraft projects of the United States

XB-30 The Lockheed XB-30 (company model L-249)Stringfellow and Bowers 1992, p. 31. was the design submitted by Lockheed after the request by the United States Army Air Forces for a very heavy bomber, the same request that led to the Boeing B-29 Superfo ...

Four-engined piston aircraft Triple-tail aircraft

Design and development

Specifications (as proposed)

See also

References

External links