Was the B-29 more expensive than the Manhattan Project?
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Was the B-29 more expensive than the Manhattan Project?
The $3 billion cost of design and production (equivalent to $43 billion today), far exceeding the $1.9 billion cost of the Manhattan Project, made the B-29 program the most expensive of the war….Boeing B-29 Superfortress.
| B-29 Superfortress | |
|---|---|
| Developed into | Boeing 377 Stratocruiser Tupolev Tu-4 |
How much did the B-29 program cost?
His fears were real, for at $3 billion, the B-29 was the war’s most expensive program. It was also the most vital, for only the Superfortress could deliver the atom bombs created by the war’s second most costly program, the $2 billion Manhattan Project.
What did the Manhattan Project cost?
Robert Oppenheimer. Eventually, the Manhattan Project employed more than 130,000 people and cost nearly US$ 2 billion (equivalent to US$ 23 billion in 2007 dollars). Eventually, the Manhattan Project employed more than 130,000 people and cost nearly US$ 2 billion (equivalent to US$ 23 billion in 2007 dollars).
How much did the atomic bomb cost?
The Manhattan Project began modestly in 1939, but grew to employ more than 130,000 people and cost nearly US$2 billion (equivalent to about $23 billion in 2019).
What was the most expensive bomber in WW2?
In 1940, Boeing submitted an advanced design for a four-engine bomber with a pressurized fuselage, which the Air Corps chose for production as the B-29. The B-29 program would become the most expensive of the war, outpacing the development of the atomic bomb by more than a billion dollars.
How much did it cost to build the B 29 bomber?
The $3 billion cost of design and production (equivalent to $42 billion today)—far exceeding the $1.9 billion cost of the Manhattan Project—made the B-29 program the most expensive of the war. The B-29’s advanced design allowed it to remain in service in various roles throughout the 1950s.
Why did the B-29 bomber have a stepless cockpit?
The need for pressurization in the cockpit area also led to the B-29 being one of very few American combat aircraft of World War II to have a stepless cockpit design, without a separate windscreen for the pilots. Manufacturing the B-29 was a complex task.
What kind of computer did the B-29 make?
But the B-29 was the first production aircraft to use them to remotely aim and fire aircraft gun turrets. The system in the B-29 employed analog electromechanical computers that used small, electrically-driven mechanical switches, called relays, instead of levers and gears. These devices were significantly faster than strictly mechanical computers.