Testors put out a B-57B years ago (probably the Italeri kit) in 1/72 .
Pete - as far as I can make out, we’re both right. EE designed & built a lot (most or all, I don’t know), but during their service life they were subsumed into the newer BAE according to the text at Thunder & Lightnings here: http://www.thunder-and-lightnings.co.uk/lightning/history.html
Go here:
http://www.b-57canberra.org/index.htm
and here:
http://www.airwarvietnam.com/raafno2.htm
and here:
http://jsc-aircraft-ops.jsc.nasa.gov/wb57/index.html
I have a good friend who works in NASA Air Ops and keeps me up to date on the old WB-57’s.
I’m a big Canberra fan myself. We have a couple on the U.S. warbird registry in flying condition, doing contract work for both military and civilian purposes. The two NASA WB-57F’s are so modified, with those huge turbofans, giant noses and tails, they only look like Canberras for the middle 20 feet of fuselage. These were four-engine birds originally, but I’m told they removed the little auxillary jets in the major refurbishment that took place when NASA’s U-2/ER-1’s were taken out of service and replaced by the B-57’s. Who would have ever have guessed that would happen?
They fly out of Ellington Field in Houston. Aside from the enormous tails that look nothing like their parents’, they have enormous radomes and the VERY long wings that were developed for the B-57D-model spy planes (these same wings broke off with frightening frequency) that came along just before or after the U-2 came on line in order to augment the high-altitude work of the Dragon Lady. The NASA birds’ crews have to wear the same full-pressure suit as an SR-71 crew and can fly almost as high as the ER-1’s, but carry a bigger scientific payload.
TOM
I can understand an aircraft taking off with full burner. A B-57 and B-66 at idle, the noise will penentrate ear protection and cause pain in the ears. Without ear protection, a person would not be able to take the pitch.
I know a man that worked on the B-57, B-66 and T-39. You have to get real close and talk loud for him to hear you. He has hearing damage from working on the '57 and '66.
Ouch… I don’t think I’d fancy hanging round the sound of those engines too long, somehow.
Speak louder man, I can’t hear you.[:)]