Aircraft pics

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JATO from a B-47?

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Here's what a JATO takeoff of a B-47 looked like.



JATO = Jet Assisted Take Off. The 47 would accelerate up to about 100 knots, fire the aft-mounted JATO system, and lift-off into a steep (for those days) initial climb. The JATO system expired at about 2000 feet altitude and the bomber continued under its own power. The JATO system helped the B-47 get off the ground at high gross weights or from short runways. I think the Boeing B-47 was the only operational USAF aircraft to use the JATO system. Now back to your regularly scheduled program.