The B-58 is the world's first supersonic bomber and the first to reach Mach 2 as well. During its career the B-58 set 19 different speed, altitude, and payload world records, some of which still stand. The Hustler was very technologically advanced for its time and was the first to be built with a stellar inertial navigation system, the first to use stainless steel honeycomb construction, and the first to use encapsulated ejection seats. The B-58 suffered from an unfortunately high accident rate during the first years of its service and this combined with very high operating costs caused only 116 to be built and they were removed from service in 1970, after less than 10 years of operational service. This one is at the PIMA Aerospace Museum in Tuscon AZ.
Because the B-58 was designed to fly at twice the speed of sound, special consideration was given to supersonic aerodynamics when designing the aircraft. The 'Area Rule' governs the basic shape of the aircraft and states (very approximately) that the cross sectional area should remain constant. This is most obvious in the 'wasp waist' of most high performance aircraft fuselages where the wing is joined. On the B-58, the engine nacelles were factored in and explains why the inboard engines project far out in front of the wing leading edge. The fuselage mounted pods, which were designed to carry additional fuel and (nuclear) weapons, were also designed using the 'Area Rule
Wingspan 56 ft 10 in
Length 96 ft 9 in
Height 31 ft 9 in
Weight 160,000 lbs (loaded)
Maximum Speed 1,385 mph
Service Ceiling 60,000 ft
Range 4,100 miles
Engines 4 General Electric J79-GE-3B turbojets, 15,600 pounds thrus
Crew 3