18 Convair NB-36H Crusader, The concept of a nuclear-powe…

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The concept of a nuclear-powered airplane dates back to the late 1940s. In 1951, the Air Force began work on a propulsion unit with General Dynamics and Pratt & Whitney working on the engine and Convair and Lockheed designing the airframe, which was known as the WS-125A. The WS-125a would be a high-altitude subsonic bomber but would have a supersonic cruise capability. Testing of the effects of nuclear reactor radiation on instruments, equipment, and the airframe began in 1953 and a B-36H (serial number 51-5712) was redesigned to accommodate the reactor in the aft bomb bay. The 35,000-pound reactor did not power the aircraft. Several precautionary measures were taken to reduce exposure to radiation including a four-ton lead and rubber crew compartment and a four-ton lead disc installed in the middle of the aircraft. The aircraft ended up with a gross weight of 357,000 lbs (162,305 kg), compared to the 168,487 lbs (76,425 kg) empty weight of a B-36H. A nuclear-powered B-36H, which was temporarily designated X-6, was ordered in 1951. Designated the XB-36H, the plane flew for the first time in September 1955. The B-36H 51-5712 entered USAF service in June 1952 and was damaged at Carswell AFB on 1 September 1952 by a tornado and extensively damaged. By early 1953, the aircraft was reassigned to Project MX-1589 as the Nuclear Test Aircraft (NTA). In the autumn of 1956, the aircraft was re-designated again as the NB-36H and made 47 flights in total. On every flight, the NB-36H was accompanied by a C-97 transport carrying a platoon of armed Marines ready to parachute down and surround the test aircraft if it crashed. The Air Force cancelled the WS-125A nuclear aircraft program and the order for the single X-6. The plane was scrapped in late 1957, with the radioactive parts being buried.