B-29 Trainers

[the330thbg]

Great, Scott!

So now we have 'W' and 'K' to ponder on these darn B-29 trainers in Kansas!

I know I came across a website somewhere that indicatd what the three images stood for adjacent to the 'jug' with the 150 in it.

I know they were post-war designations.

As always, thanks for digging!!!!

[the330thbg]

Scott, in the above shot.., is that a 314th BW bird about 4/5ths up on the left hand side.., can you get a better view on your end?

Cheers!

[Second Air Force]

Great, Scott!

So now we have 'W' and 'K' to ponder on these darn B-29 trainers in Kansas!

I know I came across a website somewhere that indicatd what the three images stood for adjacent to the 'jug' with the 150 in it.

I know they were post-war designations.

As always, thanks for digging!!!!

330th,

The large "W" and number was the designator used at the Roswell CCTS. I found a ship assignment roster just today at the Archives.

The "K" hull numbers are still eluding my ability to fully research them, but they may be related to the Birmingham Mod Center. Bob Mann has spent many hours on this puzzle and I'd hoped to find the documentation this week. Unfortunately I still don't have a piece of paper that proves or disproves any of our theories. Someday.....

The small 125 and 150 symbols are pretty well confirmed to be an award to the 2AF crew chiefs (most likely at the CCTS fields) when their bird made that many flying hours in a month. The program appears to have been instituted in late '44 or early '45.

The airplane in that last photo is a 29th Bombardment Group airplane.

Scott

[the330thbg]

Just found a photo of a 330th aircrew in training with a B-29 with a 'B'-145 on her fuselage.., just where the Radioman would sit.., instead of the 'K' numbers I have seen before.

This is the first 'B' I have seen.

[Second Air Force]

We've seen the "B" on a few airplanes and there was also an "M" code on some very early aircraft. It appears the "M" was applied at the Marietta plant when they had a mod line set up parallel to the intial production line very early on. The "B" has given us more trouble. I initially thought it meant Birmingham or Bechtel (the mod center in Birmingham was run by Bechtel-McCone Corp) but that theory doesn't hold water. We're still going to peck away at the hull number mystery until we solve it. It is one of the most elusive mysteries of the B-29 program I've tried to solve. I finally found Old Man Mose's serial number after a decade of looking, so anything is possible!

Scott

[PCScipio42]

Where can someone get a report such as the one Air Lord posted below on "Old Man Mose". I am seeking a report like that on a plane that was in 769th squadron, 462nd bomb group. Plane was "Li'l Eightball", possibly serial # 42-63521, Triangle U 32. I have a picture of the front end of the plane but can't figure out how to post it here.