Which Boeing bomber was the company’s first jet-powered bomber?

The Boeing B-47 Stratojet was the company’s first jet-powered bomber.

The B-47 first flew in 1947 and entered United States Air Force service in 1951. Its swept wings and six pod-mounted turbojet engines gave it a distinctly modern appearance and helped establish design features later seen on many high-speed jet aircraft.

Boeing developed the bomber after World War II, when military planners wanted an aircraft capable of carrying nuclear weapons over long distances at high speed. The B-47’s bicycle-style landing gear and outrigger wheels were unusual features made necessary by its thin, swept-wing design.

The later B-52 Stratofortress became more famous and served for much longer, but it was not Boeing’s first jet bomber. The B-17 was a piston-engine aircraft, while the B-1 Lancer was developed decades afterward.