During the Pacific War, Ed Vincent initiated the unusual take-off procedure of driving his B-29 bomber over the edge of the 80 foot cliff which terminated the Tinian Island runway at North Field. The drive-off afforded valuable extra air speed at level flight prior to climb out as the bombers were invariably overweight in bombs and fuel load.
The existence of the high altitude "jet stream" was a military surprise discovered by B-29 crews during the bombing of Japan in 1944-45. Winds encountered at the B-29's designed bombing altitude of 30,000 ft reached 300 mph, fully disrupting bombing accuracy and even causing negative ground speed under full throttle.
4000 lb bombs were so huge B-29's could only carry three of them. The planes dramatically jumped upward on their release and about a minute later felt the concussion wave of the bomb's horrific explosion three miles below. The bombing raid on the Kawasaki Aircraft Plant in June 1945 with 4000 lb bombs proved ineffective because the B-29 formation was forced to bomb by radar, missing the aircraft plant by 3000 ft!
Lessons of War: The Home Front Was Critical To Winning WWII. Written by Edgar L. Vincent, B-29 Aircraft Commander. "World War II veterans are happy to believe that the war was won on the battle front. I disagree"
Ralph C. Wilson was the aircraft commander of the Wilson Crew (Crew #4007) of the 40th Bomb Squadron, who flew the Superfortress “White Mistress,” The path to becoming a B-29 pilot was challenging especially when your instructor falls 4,000 feet out of the airplane. Read more about this fascinating account.
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