Product Information

The Martin XB-51 was an unusual ground-attack plane, and one of the most highly advanced aircraft at the time of its first flight in 1949 at Muroc Army Air Field. Two jet engines were carried in pods near the nose and a third was buried aft under the tail. The pilot could vary the thin wing's angle of incidence in the air, making takeoffs and landings easier.

The variable-incidence wing allowed a very long fuselage which carried two bomb bays, all fuel tanks, and the bicycle-style landing gear. Spoilers on each wing replaced conventional ailerons, allowing the use of full-span flaps for safer landings. The XB-51 was fast, maneuverable, and delightful to fly, but it lost an acquisition competition to the British-designed B-57 Canberra. The sister ship to the plane in the photo was destroyed in a crash on the dry lake bed in May 1952.