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Xb 52 cockpit12/19/2023 Work on the proposed bomber's design was to begin less than two years after sustained supersonic flight had been achieved. ARDC sought the best attainable quantitative data, challenging the industry to devise their own solutions to attain the stated goal. The genesis of the B-58 was the Generalized Bomber Study (GEBO II) issued in February 1949 by the Air Research and Development Command (ARDC) at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, for the development of a supersonic, long-range, manned bomber aircraft. The B-58 was succeeded in its role by the smaller, swing-wing FB-111A. These factors resulted in a relatively brief operational career of ten years. The B-58 also suffered from a high rate of accidental losses. The B-58 was substantially more expensive to operate than other bombers, such as the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress, and required more frequent aerial refueling. It was never used to deliver conventional bombs. The B-58 was designed to fly at high altitudes and supersonic speeds to avoid Soviet interceptors, but with the Soviet introduction of high-altitude surface-to-air missiles, the B-58 was forced to adopt a low-level penetration role that severely limited its range and strategic value. Designed to replace the subsonic Boeing B-47 Stratojet strategic bomber, the B-58 became notorious for its sonic boom heard on the ground by the public as it passed overhead in supersonic flight. It was considered difficult to fly, imposing a high workload upon its three-man crews. The B-58 entered service in March 1960, and flew for a decade with two SAC bomb wings - the 43rd Bombardment Wing and the 305th Bombardment Wing. Later, four external hardpoints were added, enabling it to carry up to five weapons. It had no bomb bay it carried a single nuclear weapon plus fuel in a combination bomb/fuel pod underneath the fuselage. The bomber was powered by four General Electric J79 engines in underwing pods. To achieve the high speeds desired, Convair chose a delta wing design used by contemporary interceptors such as the Convair F-102. The B-58 was developed during the 1950s for the United States Air Force (USAF) Strategic Air Command (SAC). The Convair B-58 Hustler, designed and produced by American aircraft manufacturer Convair, was the first operational bomber capable of Mach 2 flight.
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