Douglas B-18 Bolo

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Developed from the DC-2 civil transport, the Douglas DB-1 was designed in 1934 as a replacement for the USAAC's standard bomber, the B-10. The DB-1 was the losing contender in the USAAC contest, which was won by the Boeing B-17. Despite this, the DB-1 entered production as the B-18, with most of the USAAC's bomber squadrons being equipped by B-18s or B-18A's in 1940. The majority of the 33 B-18A's stationed with the USAAC in Hawaii in 1941 were destroyed in the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. When the B-1 8 was replaced in first-line service by the B-17 in 1942, some 122 B-18s were equipped magnetic anomaly detection (MAD) equipment for deployment in the Caribbean on anti-submarine patrol. Some B-18s were used for transport duty, with a portion of these designated C-58s.

(For more information on this aircraft, visit Joe Baugher's Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft)
USAF archives on this aircraft, click here.
(updated September 2006)

Douglas B-18 Bolo

Type:		medium bomber and ASW aircraft
Crew:		6
Armament: 	three 0.30 inch machine guns
		up to 6,500 lbs. of bombs

Specifications:
	Length:        	57' 10" (17.63 m)
	Height:        	15' 2" (4.62 m)
	Wingspan:      	89' 6" (27.28 m)
	Wing area:	965 sq. ft (89.65 sq. m)
	Empty Weight:  	16,321 lb (7403 kg)
	Max Weight: 	27,673 lb (12,552 kg) max at takeoff

Propulsion:
	No. of Engines:	2
	Powerplant:    	Wright R-1820-53 Cyclone 9 radial
	Horsepower:	1000 hp

Performance:
	Range:		1200 miles (1931 km)
	Cruise Speed:   167 mph ( 269 km/h)
	Max Speed:      215 mph ( 346 km/h) at 10000 ft
	Ceiling:       	23,900 ft (7285 m)

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