B-58A HUSTLER MODEL

The Convair B-58 Hustler was the first operational jet bomber capable of Mach 2 supersonic flight and was developed for the United States Air Force Strategic Air Command in the late 1950s.

The B-58 program started in February 1949. The B-58 design was the first ""true"" USAF supersonic bomber program. Its design was based on a delta wing with a leading-edge sweep of 60 degrees with four General Electric J79-GE-1 turbojet loading. It has a crew of three, the pilot, bombardier, navigator and defensive systems operator. The B-58 carries a single nuclear weapon in a streamlined MB-1C pod under the fuselage. The B-58 has a crew of three and has a maximum speed of Mach 2.1

The B-58 is extremely expensive and was reported that each B-58As costs much more than its weight in gold. It is a complex aircraft requiring considerable maintenance, requiring specialized equipment.

On January 16, 1970, the last B-58s in operational service retired and was replaced by the FB-111A. A total of 116 B-58s were produced; 30 trial aircraft and 86 production B-58A models. A number of B-58s were used for special trials of various kinds and several variants such as the B-58B and B-58C were proposed by Convair, but were never built.