Air Force Plant 6, known during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
as the Bell Bomber Plant, is a government-owned, contractor-operated aerospace facility at
Dobbins Air Reserve Base
Dobbins Air Reserve Base or Dobbins ARB is a United States Air Force reserve air base located in Marietta, Georgia, a suburb about northwest of Atlanta. Originally known as Dobbins Air Force Base, it was named in honor of Captain Charles M. ...
in
Marietta, Georgia
Marietta is a city in and the county seat of Cobb County, Georgia, United States. At the 2020 census, the city had a population of 60,972. The 2019 estimate was 60,867, making it one of Atlanta's largest suburbs. Marietta is the fourth largest ...
, currently owned by the
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
and operated by
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company is a major unit of Lockheed Martin with headquarters at Air Force Plant 4 in Fort Worth, Texas.
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics is based in Marietta, Georgia and Palmdale, California. Palmdale is home to the Advan ...
. The plant, originally occupied by
Bell Aircraft
The Bell Aircraft Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer, a builder of several types of fighter aircraft for World War II but most famous for the Bell X-1, the first supersonic aircraft, and for the development and production of many ...
, began operation in April 1943 and was intended specifically to produce
B-29 Superfortresses under license from
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 ...
. During the course of the War, the factory produced 668 B-29s for 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 ...
, and at its peak had a work force of approximately 28,000. After the War the factory was mothballed, but with the United States's entrance into the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
, in January 1951 the plant was turned over to
Lockheed who began refurbishing B-29s. The plant remains in use today by Lockheed.
History
Two weeks after the
attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, j ...
,
Bell Aircraft
The Bell Aircraft Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer, a builder of several types of fighter aircraft for World War II but most famous for the Bell X-1, the first supersonic aircraft, and for the development and production of many ...
of
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...
was selected to produce B-29 Superfortresses under license from Boeing. Bell had been founded in 1935 by
Lawrence D. Bell, and at the time of the United States's entrance into the War, had a workforce of around 1,000. As the nation prepared to expand its military production, the Roosevelt Administration believed that it was important to situate aircraft plants inland, away from vulnerable coastal positions. Atlanta had a pre-existing airport –
Candler Field Candler may refer to: People
* Candler (surname)
Places
* Candler, Florida, an unincorporated town in Marion County
* Candler, Georgia, an unincorporated community
* Candler, North Carolina, an unincorporated town in Buncombe County
* Candler Count ...
– and extensive railroad network, and thus seemed a logical choice for a new factory. In September 1940 Roosevelt had appointed Marietta native
Lucius D. Clay
General Lucius Dubignon Clay (April 23, 1898 – April 16, 1978) was a senior officer of the United States Army who was known for his administration of occupied Germany after World War II. He served as the deputy to General of the Army Dwight D ...
head of a large airport construction programme, which included Marietta's Rickenbacker Field. After Bell was given the B-29 contract, Clay, along with
Cobb County
Cobb County is a county in the U.S. state of Georgia, located in the Atlanta metropolitan area in the north central portion of the state. As of 2020 Census, the population was 766,149. Its county seat and largest city is Marietta.
Along with ...
officials lobbied the Government to award the new plant to Marietta over other Atlanta suburbs. On 19 February 1942 the Government announced that Marietta would be the site of the new factory. That same day the Government announced it was taking control of Rickenbacker Field, which it would rename Marietta Army Airfield
![Marietta-aaf-b29s-1944](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2c/Marietta-aaf-b29s-1944.jpg)
Construction of the plant began on 30 March 1942. Located at the northwest corner of airstrip, the complex consisted of four main buildings:
* B-1 – main assembly
* B-2 – administration
* B-3 – hangar (armament assembly)
* B-4 – hangar (radio and radar assembly)
On 15 April 1943 the plant officially opened, and the first Bell B-29 was flown on 4 November 1943. During the War the plant had a succession of four general managers: Captain Harry E. Collins, Omer Woodson,
Carl Cover
Carl Anson Cover (26 April 1893 – 27 November 1944) was the chief test pilot and first to fly the Douglas Aircraft Company DC-1, DC-2, DC-3, DC-4, and the DC-5 airliners. Cover became Senior Vice President and general manager for Douglas Airc ...
, and
James V. Carmichael
James Vinson Carmichael (October 2, 1910 – November 28, 1972) was member of the Georgia General Assembly, an attorney, business executive, and candidate for Governor of Georgia.
Early life
Carmichael was born, in Cobb County, Georgia to parent ...
. At its peak in February 1945 the plant employed over 28,000 workers. Roughly 37 percent of the workforce was female, and 8 percent African American. During the War the factory was racially segregated. On 28 November 1944
Bob Hope
Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was a British-American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer and dancer. With a career that spanned nearly 80 years, Hope appeared in more than 70 short and feature films, with 5 ...
gave a performance at the plant. By the summer of 1945 Bell began to scale back production and by the fall only had a couple thousand employees. In 1946 the factory was fully closed, after having produced a total of 668 B-29s. After closing, building B-1 was used for storage, while building B-2 was occupied by the
Veterans' Administration
The United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is a Cabinet-level executive branch department of the federal government charged with providing life-long healthcare services to eligible military veterans at the 170 VA medical centers and ...
.
Two Marietta-built B-29s survive today: 44-84076, which is located at the
Strategic Air Command and Aerospace Museum
The Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum is a museum focusing on aircraft and nuclear missiles of the United States Air Force during the Cold War. It is located near Ashland, Nebraska, along Interstate 80 southwest of Omaha. The objective of t ...
in
Ashland, Nebraska
Ashland is a city in Saunders County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 2,453 at the 2010 census.
History
Ashland is located at the site of a low-water limestone ledge along the bottom of Salt Creek, an otherwise mud-bottomed stream ...
, and 44-84053, which is located at the
Museum of Aviation in
Warner Robins, Georgia
Warner Robins (typically ) is a city in the U.S. state of Georgia, located in Houston and Peach counties in the central part of the state. It is currently Georgia's eleventh-largest incorporated city, with an estimated population of 80,308 in th ...
.
In January 1951 the Government turned the plant over to Lockheed for the purpose of refurbishing B-29 to go into service in the Korean War. During the 1950s Lockheed also produced 394
B-47 Stratojets at the plant. Today the site is used for the fabrication and assembly of large aircraft.
[Shettle, M. L. (2005), Georgia's Army Airfields of World War II. ][The Bell Bomber Plant](_blank)
/ref>
/ref>
/ref>Lockheed-Martin Plant #6 History
/ref> Plant 6 provides repair, retrofit and overhaul of F-22A
The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is an American single-seat, twin-engine, all-weather stealth tactical fighter aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF). As the result of the USAF's Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) program, th ...
, C-130
The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally desig ...
and other Air Force aircraft currently in the inventory, as well as providing technical support.
Bibliography
* Bell Aircraft Corporation Motion Picture Division.
B-29s over Dixie
'.
Bell Aircraft Georgia Division (Marietta) Collection, 1942-1945
Kennesaw State University Archives.
* Holland, Jeffrey L. ''Under One Roof: The Story of Air Force Plant 6''. Dayton: Aernonautical Systems Center, 2006.
* Kirby, Kirby. ''The Bell Bomber Plant.'' Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2008.
See also
* Air Force Plant 42
United States Air Force Plant 42 is a classified aircraft manufacturing plant owned by the United States Air Force in the Antelope Valley, about from downtown Los Angeles. It is also used by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (N ...
, Palmdale, California
* Air Force Plant 4
Air Force Plant 4 is a government-owned, contractor-operated aerospace facility in Fort Worth, Texas, currently owned by the U.S. Air Force and operated by Lockheed Martin Aeronautics. It is home of the F-16 and F-35 fighter aircraft. Militar ...
, Fort Worth, Texas
* Dobbins Air Reserve Base
Dobbins Air Reserve Base or Dobbins ARB is a United States Air Force reserve air base located in Marietta, Georgia, a suburb about northwest of Atlanta. Originally known as Dobbins Air Force Base, it was named in honor of Captain Charles M. ...
References
{{Refend
Plants of the United States Air Force
Lockheed Martin-associated military facilities