The Hustler
The B-58 Hustler saw great success during its relatively short service career. It was the first supersonic bomber, the first bomber to reach Mach 2, the first aircraft made of stainless-steel honeycomb sandwich and the first aircraft to have stellar-inertial navigation. The B-58 also set more world speed records than any other type of combat aircraft.
In addition to the Hustler’s delta wing shape, distinctive features included a sophisticated inertial guidance navigation and bombing system, a slender “wasp-waist” fuselage and an extensive use of heat-resistant honeycomb sandwich skin panels in the wings and fuselage. Since the thin fuselage prevented the carrying of bombs internally, a droppable, two-component pod beneath the fuselage contained a nuclear weapon — along with extra fuel, reconnaissance equipment or other specialized gear. The B-58 crew consisted of a pilot, navigator/bombardier and defense systems operator.
B-58 Tail Gun
Convair built 116 B-58s: 30 test and pre-production aircraft and 86 for operational service. Hustlers flew in the Strategic Air Command between 1960 and 1970. Setting 19 world speed and altitude records, B-58s also won five different aviation trophies.
Noteworthy the Convair B-58 Hustler’s tail cone that enclosed the tail gun was composed of tapered, concentric aluminum rings nested within each other and spring-loaded against each other to form a flexible aerodynamic shell for the gun system.
General Electric T171
After looking at various options including rear-firing missiles and twin 30mm cannons, the General Electric T171 (first designation of the M61 Vulcan cannon) 20mm rotary cannon was selected in early 1954. According to Jay Miller’s book Convair B-58 Hustler: The World’s First Supersonic Bomber, the tail gun of the B-58 boasted many firsts for an aircraft defensive gun including the first fully automatic defensive gun fire control system for a production aircraft, the first aircraft gun unit to use a 3-axis inertially-stabilized platform to increase the gun’s accuracy, the first aircraft gun to use a self-contained environmental control unit for the gun and ammunition storage, first aircraft gun to use a solid state analog fire control computer for fire control and the first to use a hinged turret arrangement for maintenance work.
The forward muzzle velocity of the 20mm T171 cannon was lower than the forward velocity of the B-58 when it was flying at Mach 2. So relative to the ground, the cannon round would be moving backwards when leaving the muzzle!
Photo credit: U.S. Air Force
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