B-32 Dominator, the other Very Heavy Bomber of WW2 

Greg is spoiling us

RU-vid does favor shorter production edited content that falls in the 12-20 minute mark, however many of us who come to your channel for your expertise specifically enjoy the in-depth and more comprehensive coverage that actually includes archival research that is difficult to find online and enjoy the longer format.

Many components and sub-assemblies for the Dominator (and Liberator, Catalina, etc.) were manufactured by Rohr Industries in Chula Vista, just south of San Diego. While clearing out an abandoned Rohr building a few years back, I found a B-32 pilot/copilot instrument panel which was earmarked for disposal. Being a longtime member of the International B-24 Club, I recognized what a rare item it was. I now have it mounted in my garage and am thinking of donating it to the San Diego Aerospace Museum. Keep up the outstanding work on these videos!

This the most intelligently done classic aircraft YT channel there is.

Fun fact. If you pee on a magnesium fire, it explodes. Knowing is half the battle!

The AC is probably to simplify the electronics. Fluorescent lights need AC, and by having AC, all you need is a ballasted transformer. Likewise for anything generating radio waves. Remember vacuum tube electronics back then, so the 26VAC can be fed into a simple transformer, to simply bump it up to the higher voltage for optimum operation of the electronics. Probably 400Hz, too, to keep the transformers small. Note, that the "inverter" was a DC motor coupled to an AC generator ("alternator" wasn't used as a term, back then). Old cars, before alternators (with internal semiconductor rectifiers), had "cut-offs", that disconnected the generator, when the engine speed, was at idle. Actually, we usually don't say either "generator", or "motor". We call them a "machine", because many can act as both.

Pretty amazingly- that company made the Liberator, the Dominator and the Peacemaker- all within a few short years. Then they made twin engine turboprop airliners that were extremely successful for decades.

Don't forget. Mark shared with us those secrete Lancasters were standing by if the B-29s if they couldn't drop the bombs!

This must be the most attention anyone has paid to the B-32 since the 1940s, well done, Greg.

I love the in-depth review of the various systems. I spent 20 years on the C-130 as a crew chief/maintainer and a flight engineer, and it was fascinating to learn what had changed in the systems and what hadn't. This is the kind of nuts 'n' bolts content that makes an old dinosaur of an FE happy.

The tail of the B-32 was a scaled-up version of the tail used by the PB4Y-2 Privateer, not coincidentally another Consolidated product.

"Lightly armed bombers operated mostly at night." Yes, Lancaster, I'm lookin' at you. 🤣

If you need fluorescent lighting, then I can see why you'd want AC, especially back then. To strike the initial arc inside the tube you need high voltage, 600 V or so, which the fluorescent ballast provides (in addition to current limiting). AC voltage is much easier to step up or down than DC; you just need a transformer with a different number of windings on each side. Doing the same with DC back in WWII usually took a mechanical motor generator pair where you'd, for example, run a 28 V DC motor to spin a 600 V DC generator.

The circuit shown at 54.32 the 3 phase adaptor is an inductor that has an equal number of turns of wire on an iron core to create 3 phase power. The capacitor stabilizes current demand , perhaps for the turrent motor.The gunner needs the motor to change direction as fast as his reflexes.The capacitor in parallel with the conductor creates what is called a resonant circuit which provides stable current when turned on and off.

I am not a historian. I was a kid in the 70's that spent most evenings making, painting and thinking about WWII planes. So the Rusky planes, the more obscure Jap planes, they were not as well known to me. There were few decent models. But until today, I thought I knew most every USAAF planes. I've never heard of the B32. It is great to get that thrill of finding something new again. Thanks for that alone.

"If you're down to one engine in a B-32, and that one is on fire, you're having a really bad day." 😅 Understatement of the century!

Now here's an interesting what if - how about if the US supplied the RAF with B-32s rather than B-29s after the war. Something a little smaller and less complex (and cheaper?) may have suited them. The picture of B-36 next to the B-29 is mind bending.

Very enjoyable. My dad always told me he was radar counter measures on the B32 Dominator. He also said that he was bumped from the recon flight of 8/28/1945 because his position was not necessary for the mission. He then saw his plane crash on take off, all 13 crew members were killed. He never liked to talk about this very much. Your video was very informative. Thanks

Greg, your longer format is much appreciated. It's not hard to find a short synopsis on youtube covering virtually any subject (we won't touch on the topic of accuracy here), but it's refreshing to be able to get into a detailed explanation of some of the slightly more esoteric topics. Cheers, mate. 👍

From what I understand 3 phase power is basically 3 waveforms overlaid, it decreases the "down time" where the current alternates... it keeps the power close to maximum and less "choppy"... its like having a 3 cylinder 2 stroke...

Greg is surpassing himself by going even deeper into detail in obscure propeller planes mechanics. Today: how does the electrical system work on the obscure and nearly forgotten B-32

The B-29 tail looks so much better.

AC power can be stepped up or down in voltage with a simple transformer, DC requires a lot more complicated circuitry to do that. The AC powered stuff probably required high voltage. For example, fluorescent lighting requires enough voltage to maintain an arc through the gas in the tube. 24V wouldn't cut it for that. I suspect that is why an AC circuit is necessary. EDIT: and regarding 3-phase, what's great about it, is with 3 wires set up for 3 phase you can deliver 3 times as much power as can be delivered over a single phase 2 wire setup using the same gauge wire. Because math is magical, 3 phase circuits don't require return wires.

Gotta love how Boeing got to cram all that technology and performance into the B-29 and then when it came to fire suppression they just write in the pilots manual " Just don't catch on fire, lol"

Perhaps famously, Joe Kennedy Jr died while piloting an operation Aphrodite type plane. In his case it was a converted Navy B-24. I love the long format. It starts on a topic and comfortably covers it until it's complete. What could be better than that?

Look at that tail! Thx Greg.

I appreciate the long-form stuff. as an electrician I found this very interesting.

Wow, the B-32. Now that's an airplane sorely under-discussed. After VE day my father was scheduled to be rotated into the Pacific along with the rest of the Eight Air Force. But thankfully VJ day happened and that never happened. That's as he always told it although I do not know how production of the bomber would have ramped up to accommodate it. Thanks for covering this aircraft.

3"55 My father worked on the B-29 turrets as a ground crew technician. In his later years he did clock repair as a hobby, which must have been a piece of cake after that. Any proper Star Wars fan will recognize the flat dome of the B-29 turret. Of course Lucas famously used a lot of WW2 imagery.

Apparently, Popular Mechanics has been full of crap for many many decades. Thanks for this excellent video about a plane I'd never heard of!

General Dynamics acquired Convair from Atlas in 1954 and the Convair division was not shut down till 1996, although the main business lines were sold a few years previously and the name was not used on aircraft since the '70s. The remaining Convair aircraft business producing the F-16 was finally sold to Lockheed; missiles were sold to Hughes, later acquired by Raytheon; and space systems went to Martin, later to merge with Lockheed.

" ... a treadmill for cars" ! An absolutely spot on explanation ! Thanks, as always.

Liked after "Greetings, this is Greg" as always. Your videos are the best!

Only channel where an hour long video is welcomed.

Flying review in the 1960s had an article which actually captioned it article as the Superfortress standbye (insurance policy)

With cable television being what it now is I don't know what I would do without RU-vid. Loads of this stuff especially this channel is on par or better than anything I've seen on history Channel or discovery wings. Except wings of the luftwaffe. That will always be my favorite series.

Almost every, single one of your videos I watch? I realize just how bloody little I knew/know about aircraft. And I have been a commercial pilot for 13 years. J/k. ☮

Probably the most complete video about the B-32.

My grandfather was trained to be a flight engineer for this aircraft. He was held back as an instructor for B-29s. Till his dying day, he regretted not flying combat missions. Truly a different generation, and breed.

Great job on an interesting airplane. The long format videos are fine as long as we aren't deluged with them; we don't want to miss anything. An interesting exercise is to take the performance numbers of a WW2 era propeller bomber, scale them to handy ranges, and multiply them all. These are all the "plusses" like range, cruise speed, bombload, etc. This gives you the ranking of performance. Then divide by the empty weight which represents the cost. Scale the numbers to a happy range around 100. All the bombers , including the B-32, have about the same value...except the B-29 which stands way out.

Thank you, Greg. I just wanted to say that I generally prefer reading over videos. Your videos are an exception for me due to the density of information presented. No fluff, no filler, no melodrama. I'm very happy to be a Patreon and to support your work on these videos.

I like the longer videos. I'd bet that RU-vid pushes shorter videos so they can put more pre-roll and post-roll ads in 5 twelve minute videos than they can get away with in a 60 minute video.

"Rampage of the Roaring 20s" gives more detail and context to that last aerial battle involving two B-32s. One of the B-32 Pilots ignored orders, and flew low over Hiroshima to survey the atomic bomb damage. Intelligence had specifically warned against approaching there, that it might be provocative. The aerial attack came over Tokyo not too long after.

Talk of the long, effective range of the retractable gun turrets makes me think of the "WWII US Bombers" RU-vid channel. Very historical coverage, firmly grounded in WWII era documents, frequently, formerly classified. I love Greg, but there is room for another great channel. We are spoiled!

Thank you! I was somehow completely unaware of the B-32 until I read Last to Die: A Defeated Empire, a Forgotten Mission, and the Last American Killed in World War II a couple years ago (which was an excellent book).

Greg, you're a goddamn national treasure. Keep doing what you're doing. Always better than anything on television.

I wish my littlest uncle was still around to comment on some of the gunsight theory. He was a belly turret gunner in a B24J. Kept his interest and understood things mechanical as he worked at Rockwell after the war. He'd have probably understand the compensating gunsight.

If the B-32 was the lower risk, less complex option, this was a game of leapfrog between Boeing and Consolidated. The B-24 was much more complex than Boeing’s B-17 of mid-1930s origin. With the B-29, Boeing was allowed by the USAAF to ride on the cutting edge. That didn't work out well with the Wright Cyclone R-3350 engines and their overheating problems. That engine didn't really get the bugs worked out until the early days of the Korean War.

Greetings .. I had to drop everything as soon as I saw the new episode..! Thanks so much ..!

Another spell binding video, thanks, Greg. This video sort of was book ended by family in the USAAF and USAF. My oldest uncle was crew chief on a Liberator, 35 missions, IIRC. Including one of the Ploeski raids. And a younger uncle flew B-29s over Korea. They were based in Japan, his service cut short by a dropped engine on takeoff, full of fuel and bombs. And, of course, a ditch across the end of the runway. Not quite stopped before the ditch, things lit off, probably another R3350 engine fire. Uncle Charlie did get all crew out of the plane before the armament cooked off, but damaged his back in the process. Which invalided him out of the service. It was fascinating to learn yet more about the Wright engine issues in the late WWII Very Heavy Bombers, to go with recent videos on the SuperFortress. Please keep doing videos Your way, as you regularly come up with far too much relevant info to cram into the advertising YT short segments. I'd most certainly watch a full hour and a half, or two hour show, when the content just demands it. We can pause any segment whenever life intervenes, and pick it up when we have time again. Your series proves there is a adult audience for hour and longer presentations of important historical airplanes and the context they were used in. So much of this information won't be available much longer unless diligent searchers like yourself consolidate it now. I'm hoping you keep being you.

A B36 went under me in 1964 Subic Bay Area - didn't think they were still in use then - I would have to be dragged/ kicking and screaming into a B36 - thankyouse ! 10 engines to catch fire - throw a prop - or jump of the wing !

I’ve been going to work at USAF Plant 4 (Fort Worth) for 18 years. It’s neat to see old photos of the Plant. I don’t recall in the historical photos sprinkled throughout the Plant, the B-32 featured. Things change a little, but some of the shots/locations are easily identified. Today, it is of course the main production line for F-35. Fun facts: the building is just over a mile long. It’s near twin in Tulsa is just a bit shorter (everything is bigger in Texas).

Thank you Mr Greg

I enjoy the longer videos.

Hey greg, always love the videos! Im a motor mechanic and one interesting bit of info I can glean on you is that ALL DC brushless motors use 3 phase AC. Rather than using brushes on a rotating commutator, brushless motors use the sine wave to energize and de-energize the magnetic coils in sequence. A drill motor does the same thing but it gets tricked by a speed control or VFD. It sends the power through 3 mosfets (basically a transistor) which opens and closes the signal to mimic an AC sine wave. In the case of the gyros im assuming that a brushed motor wasnt suitable since the carbon brushes erode which spreads conductive dust everywhere. All the DC motors i service are covered in both grease and carbon dust, and often time that dust flashes over which can burn the motor out.

All flown by men who were (for the most part) , not yet thirty. Absolutely mind-blowing.

the lights will be AC because you need to generate HV and the only way to do that pre semi conductors involved AC. not sure about the wastegate or radio stuff. radio is real black magic.

I'm here for the Greg b17 response video

My Grandfather was a reconnaissance photographer with 312 Bomb Group, and the A-20G I have him pictured posing next to the nose art was 386th Squadron, which went on to operate the B-32, and were involved in those post-surrender photo recon missions that became the last aerial battle of WW2. He was still with the 312th as late as July 1945, but I don't yet know for certain if he worked aboard the B-32. Seems likely. There were many of those recon missions.

Greg's videos are unique in all of RU-vid due to their depth, utter absence of pandering, and the BOLD ASSUMPTION that some people continue to have a long and cheerful attention span for subjects that interest them deeply. And this one truly hit *all the marks!*

56:05 I like the way you put that statement. I have no idea who or what brought it... but I liked it. Normally, I don't watch programs that are over 20 or 30 minutes long... but here I am... enjoying the heck out of your B-32 video. Something of a "missing link" in aviation history. Thank you! (p.s. I suspect a "Dark" culprit... 😊 )

Greg, Another excellent presentation, this on an aircraft I've always admired. As a kid in the ANG/USAF 1950 -1954 at WPAFB Powerplant Lab, recall discussing problems with the wartime CW R-3360. The B-32 engine installation was superior to the Boeing B-29 in that cooling air pressure drop was substantially less at the required mass flow and consequently the drag penalty of open cooling flaps was much reduced. The cooling problems of this engine, in both the B-29 and B-19 and its effect on performance and crew survival were technically inexcusable. Check out the Republic F-12 Rainbow or XP-72 for the way large radials should be integrated (or for that matter the FW-190). As for B-32 relics, I believe an outer wing panel done in stainless steel topped the Montgomery Memorial in San Diego. The Hustler's first flight was in November 1956

Thanks! I have seen many brief mentions of the B-32 [edit] over the years; not much more than teases! An in-depth review is timely and welcomed!! MORE THANKS for the additional information about Aphrodite and the end-of-war nuance. I only knew of Aphrodite as an attempt to attack U-boat sub pens by flying the drones into the gates, and that Joe Kennedy (JFK's older brother) was killed on an Aphrodite mission.

Until today, I had never heard of the B-32........thanks for this interesting chapter of aviation history. It sounds likes Greg is in good form and good health )

I know its way outside the wheelhouse for this channel, but Convair also went on to build the Atlas missile, the first American ICBM. While it had a very short career as a missile the Atlas went on to have a very long and successful career as a space launch vehicle including putting the first American into orbit and launching the first flyby of another planet.

Never even gave much thought to the B-32. Always forget about it and thr later B-36. Learned a lot about it today. Excellent video Greg.

An excellent presentation of the design of a little-known American combat aircraft. And how "Hobo Queen" brought back the body of the last American airman to die during WWII.

Done with your usual thoroughness and competence, Greg. Your videos are always worth listening to and watching, even for those of us who are non-pilots or aviators (or car geeks). Lots of fascinating tech stuff in this one, but the most striking thing for me is the photo near the end showing the B-29 and B-36 together. The B-36 (You can see one in person at the SAC museum in Ashland, NE.) is a genuinely gigantic aircraft, and I always marvel that something that large and heavy was able to fly at all, much less carry a payload. It does seem fairly obvious that RU-vid prefers videos of 15 minutes or less, and I watch a fair number of those, too, but even at my age (79), my attention span isn't limited to 15-minute chunks, so I can attend to longer presentations as well, and yours are worth the effort at the viewer end.

Always wanted to learn more about this aircraft, thank you!

Years ago I had a lengthy conversation with Col. Tony Svore, B-32 Commander of the 386th Squadron. He & his crew flew a Dominator direct from combat theater to Washington, D.C. at War’s end in order to deliver a photograph of the Surrender Signing. I mentioned that there are several written accounts of them delivering the actual Surrender Document, but he assured me that what they had was merely the photograph. Taxiing toward the apron, Col. Svore deliberately went past the turn in order to show off the Dominator’s ability to reverse its inboard propellors’ pitch, thus being able to back up the giant Bomber. He said ground crews began loading into tugs and other support equipment and raced toward the ‘overshot’ B-32, only to watch in amazement as it inched backward under it’s own power! Additional information in the reply below . . .

Thank you Greg. A stressful workday is easier to decompress from with a deep dive into another interesting old plane.

Would love to see an in depth discussion of bomber gunners, such a cool idea

Greg, I love your vids, I often go to sleep listening to them, and then rewatch them another day.

Many thx. There is almost nothing posted on this aircraft and it should not be forgotten.

Thanks Greg

I love how you present your research, saying in each case how much trust or faith you put in it. Other people should take notice.

Thanks, Greg. Your in-depth analysis and comparison (in this case) to the B-29 is interesting. Keep up the great work!

Yes good drop Greg! Was waiting on a comprehensive breakdown on the B-32 Dominator!

A very informative and interesting video on a little known bomber! As for the length, spend as much time as you think necessary! I am getting a bit tired of the nonsense rules and restrictions of RU-vid! Their silly censorship is getting more and more ridiculous!

What a legacy you are leaving the world with these videos... It would be fascinating to study what human civilization has lost because great engineering and research organizations fell afoul of business decisions. I'm thinking of the fade to nothing of Bell Labs, Xerox Parc, much of IBM, and, now, Convair engineering - clearly a powerhouse per your rundown here. Maybe we are watching the same with the death spiral of Musk as an engineering leader and also Alphabet moon shots. Thanks very much for the huge trove of information and insights.

Great stuff! I didn’t realize that the B-29s defensive guns were so effective.

The R3350 never did stop catching fire, although they got better. At least one Connie was lost that way...

This will be good. I’ve been intrigued by the B-32 since I was about 8 or 10 (fifties now) when a family friend who was a Lightning mechanic gave me an actual photograph of a Dominator in flight. I’ve no idea of the context of the photograph, but who knows, he may have took it, or a P-38 pilot gave it to him. He was in the Pacific theater. Evidently the mechanics often had to fly in the P-38 during checkouts; I remember him saying he had to lie prone, but I’m not sure if he was fore or aft of the pilot, and now that I think of it, I don’t recall any plexiglass other than the canopy. Maybe the reconnaissance version? Anyway, I tuck the photo in a random aircraft book of mine, and when it falls out, I always say I’m gonna research this aircraft in depth, so thank you, Greg. I can’t wait to view your work on it. The next time the pic drops, I’ll make a point of getting it to you, along w a collection of postcards of preWWI aircraft of Germany that ought to be seen by others. Looking at the great photo at 5:28 that shows off the dual tail, I’m positive my pic shows off a very tall, singular one - but that doesn’t seem unheard of for Consolidated.

Thanks for this video of this forgotten plane. It’s often described as obsolete on deployment so I’m glad you mention it was designed as such by army specs. I can imagine a number of engineers and pilots not too thrilled about this project.

I am disappointed that not a single one of these relics ended up in the Dayton Airforce museum, and all were scrapped. At least you can feast your eyes on a B-36 Peacemaker.

"Hey, remember when we didn't intercept that lone bomber and one of our cities disappeared? "

I am so excited to watch this! Thanks Greg!!

I can listen to your videos all day. Don't stop making these please. I love the detail and enjoy the fact these videos are long

Awesome video on the B-32 my friend. By the way old tube (electronic valve) systems uses high voltage low current electricity... yes, DC but... the only way to get it is via step-up transformers (115VAC to, lets say 600VAC or more) and transformers ONLY operates on AC or pulsating current. The transformers are internal components of the electronic equipment. After the transformer step-up stage diode type vacuum valves converts back this high voltage AC to high voltage DC filtered trough capacitors and filter-reactors for the rest of internal tubes to use. Of course vacuum tube filaments can operate on AC, but commonly low voltage AC. The internal transformer has a tap from a step-down section too for this reason.

Great work! I think they got a good handle on the R3350 issues when they started using direct fuel injection. Mixture distribution (specifically, the lack of it!) was the bane of all of these huge, multi-cylinder aircraft engines. Take an overall look at one of these induction systems sometime. It's an amazing thing that they got 50+ litre engines to reliably run! The carburetors they used were massive one or two venturi hunks of iron and bronze! My grandaddy (an engine maintainer during WWII) said that the R2600 carb on B-25s weighed well over a hundred pounds!

Also want to add, when you mentioned the 17aH battery, my mind immediately went to the APU (APP). I fly the CRJ and we have a 17aH battery in the nose simply used to start the APU. It’s an immensely small battery as you mentioned. Very cool how similar aircraft design is even 60 years later

Oh yeah, new Vid !

I think Popular Mechanics was making things up as they went

I think the overheating problem is largely because of the "forward exhaust" arrangement of the front row of cylinders, effectively preheating the cooling air. Ive also read that in those days wright would stand off the baffling from the cylinder barrels to avoid chafing, but reducing cooling efficiency.

Makes you wonder how much did the development of the B-32 was responsible for the deferred development of the B-36, as many of the B-36 'features', such as using magnesium skin on some of the fuselage compartments, possibly in anticipation of a aircraft aluminum shortage, appear to have been made under wartime development conditions.

Amazing essay. Love the long format vids

Greg, thanks for another excellent video with accurate, detailed information. As a professional corporate pilot for the last 33 years, I've flown several aircraft that still employ Current Limiters in their electrical systems (the King Air -200's, -300's, and -350's, as well as several business jets). Your description of them as "slow blow fuses" is spot on! (the common phrase used at Flight Safety, C.A.E., and SimCom during my many initial and recurrent training evolutions). Sidebar: Without exception, the electrical systems of all the aircraft (19) covered by my 5 type ratings were ALWAYS the most involved, complicated, and difficult to comprehend, understand, and master.

OK NOW DO THE B-45 TORNADO!

Suprised that you didn’t get into the speed charts and combat range this time. That said thank you for putting the time into these videos. I’m sure that they are very time consuming to make.

You picked one of my favorites, well done.