Jan 172010
The oddest of the B-36 variants to fly was the nuclear reactor equipped NB-36H. As part of the effort to develop a nuclear powered aircraft, a single B-36 was heavily modified… an all-new lead-lined cockpit was added up front and a reactor further aft. The plexiglass “blisters” at the rear were removed, and the holes used to exhaust cooling air. The reactor itself did not power anything; all power came from the aircrafts conventional engines. The goal was simply to see what effect the nuclear radiation would have on the aircraft, and whether or not the crew and machinery could take it.
Photo from the Jay Miller collection.
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