B-29 Sighting Stations

[Testa_ross4]

Hi I am a newbie, would like to know how the fire control systems of the B-29 Superfortress work.

From the many pictures and models of the B-29, how did the side blister gunners aim their sighting stations when they were seated in rear facing stations, did they stand up while tracking and aiming at targets in combat situations?

How were they able to target enemy a/c sneaking up from below? They did not have as good a view as ball gunners did in the B-17. Could their computer sights look down?

Thanks in advance if anyone can reply, these questions have been on my mind for many years.

[Romantic Technofreak]

Hi and welcome,

IMHO, and not really knowing it, I cannot imagine that a gunner has to do his job standing up nor that the B-29 gunsights could NOT aim down.

Maybe this link helps:

http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=69780&sid=ed6859740d65b2d920d61b87d8c05863

If not, I recommend you to sighn up there and repeat your question.

Regards, RT

[Testa_ross4]

Thank You RT, really appreciate your help and kind reply. I will try and post there after some lurking.

However, if anyone could contribute further to my question, I would certainly love to hear more from any of you.

Thanks
TR

[GregP]

Hi,

The gunners in the B-29 had a remote control aiming system. That is, they had a blister window and aimed the sights at the point in the sky they wanted to hit, and the remote system aimed the remote turrets. The rear gunner had a pretty standard setup, but the dorsal and lower gunds were remotely aimed.

The upper guns could not shoot down so they could hit the aircraft or the propellers, and the lower guns could not shoot up so they could hit the aircraft or the propellers. There was also an interruptor gear so the dorsal guns could not shoot off the fin and rudder.

The enmtire intent was to reduce the size of the protrusions to lower the drag so the plane could be faster.

In the real world, it was a 365 mph airplane at very high altitude, and probably went down the shoot to the target at 3350 mph or so. Since the B-29s bombed from very high altitude, that made it VERY hard for Japanese aircraft to intercept the B-29 since they had to climb at lower speeds and then accelerate once at or above the altitude of the B-29.

There weren't many Japanese aircraft capable of catching a B-29 at high altitude and high speed. Those that could did not have a great closing velocity and were pretty good targets for the tail gunners. Even a plane with a top speed of 425 mph would only close at 75 or 80 mph at best, and that is an easy shot for a tail gunner.