A Handful in Flight
Convair F-102 Delta Dagger interceptors were used to familiarize pilots with delta-wing handling characteristics before flying the TB-58A trainer. Never easy to fly, the B-58 was notorious for keeping its pilots and crews task-saturated in flight.
There was never a dull in-flight moment on a Hustler, but the crews came around to the massive machine and it became dangerous to cast aspersions on their Mach 2 birds.
Impressive Yes, But Costly Too
Intended to replace the Boeing B-47 Stratojet bomber, the Hustler cost about four times as much to operate as the B-47 and three times as much as the B-52 on an hourly basis.
Even during the hottest of Cold War days, the cost of the B-58 program was prohibitive and the accident rate (22.4% of the total number of B-58s produced) was unacceptably high.
SAC Bombast and Bombardment
SAC General Curtis LeMay was once quoted as having said, “The B-58 is a great airplane, if you’re going to war with Canada.” Nonetheless, SAC’s 43rd Bombardment Wing operated the B-58 from 1960 to 1970. In addition to operating the Hustler between 1961 and 1970, the SAC 305th Bombardment Wing also conducted Hustler combat crew training.
Finding Work to Do
Convair built a total of 116 Hustlers. 30 of these were early pre-production trials aircraft that were eventually reworked to make them operational B-58A bombers. Eight TB-58A dual-control trainers were built as well.
B-58s were used for a variety of test duties, including flying as chase aircraft for the XB-70 Valkyrie bomber program, radar testing for the Lockheed YF-12, and participating in Operation Bongo Mark 2– the study of repeated sonic booms on the citizenry of Oklahoma City.
Wouldn’t You Know It…
Right about the time that B-58 crews had resolved, or at least learned to live with, most of the Hustler’s idiosyncrasies, the aircraft were withdrawn from service. It was simply too risky to penetrate Soviet airspace at high altitude with the thin air suddenly thick with improved Soviet SAMs.
No Mission For The Hustler
Low altitude penetration became the name of the game- a game the B-58 was just not able to play. Withdrawn from service beginning in 1965 and completely by January of 1970, the B-58 was replaced by the new General Dynamics FB-111A, a less expensive, simpler to maintain, and superior low-level penetrator. The FB would experience its own issues, but that’s a story for another day.
Stellar Performer
The stock B-58A “Greased Lightning” still owns the record for the longest supersonic flight in history. This operational Hustler, after no special preparation other than a wash and wax job, flew from Tokyo to London in only 8 hours 35 minutes and 20 seconds.
The B-58 also won every prestigious aviation award of its day, including the Bendix, Harmon, Thompson, Bleriot, and Mackay trophies.
Obsolete Out of the Gate
The B-58 was operational with SAC for only ten years. Its specialized design and world events conspired to render it obsolete even before the last aircraft was delivered in 1961. But it was undeniably one impressive machine. Now enjoy as Brigadier General Jimmy Stewart puts the scare into the Reds as he describes the awesome B-58. The video was uploaded to YouTube by AV History Buff.
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