[Traben]

BM-335
- Strategic Bomber -




Games Featured In:
Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War


Operators:
Belkan Air Force


Overview:
Utilized during and possibly before the 1995 Belkan War, the BM-335 appears to be a long range strategic bomber type, featuring many design elements from similar and much older types such as the B-29, B-52 and Tu-95. The aircraft's apparent anachronistic look clearly shows the type's age and dates its introduction decades before. Additionally, the bomber is also equipped with rear facing machine guns for defense capabilities.

It is speculated that the BM-335 was retired after the Belkan War, due to the type's obvious age and dated performance.



SOURCE:
Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War (In Game Data)

ACCREDITATION:
Original Article By: Son of a Bandit

[JianDaoXiao]

BM-335 blueprints (nor finish yet)

[Heinkel]

The He-117 has nothing that looks like this craft. The cockpit is more like a short B-29

[Grastens 7]

I thought the picture of the Heinkel He 177 looked like the BM-335, mainly the fuselage and the upper tail. Would a B-36-sized bomber use only four engines, though? The B-36 had props, but it still used six pusher engines and, in later versions, four jet engines. Even with those, its sustainable top speed was only 230mph.

Early jets are also notoriously unreliable and short on range, even in the late 1940s. There is a large gap between the B-52 and B-36 in size; therefore I don't think that a B-36 scale jet would be the BM-335. However, this is from the country that used the airplane as a tactical weapon in 1905...

[Grastens 7]

There actually is an interesting twist in this story. According to the book The World's Worst Aircraft, written by Jim Winchester in 2005:

"In 1942, one of the He 177 prototypes was flown to the Letov factory at Prague, where its wings were removed and its bomb bay enlarged, allegedly to carry Germany's first atomic bomb."

So, it is very possible that a real-life BM-335 existed, but never saw service in WWII or post-war as jets caught on. Even the Junkers Ju 287 was obsolete by 1947.

If this was the case, then the BM-335 would be about 22m+ long. The tail gunner's position is also less prone to enemy fire than on conventional aircraft; studying pictures, the gunner is much safer and out of a conventional field of fire in his position, if it was unaltered from a 'Greif'.

Wing span looks about 36-37m.

[JakeHarlow]

These guys are pretty tenacious--they'll be shooting at you even after you've destroyed the craft. Best to stay out of range and fire from standoff vantage points. Especially on Ace and Expert. And, nice screenies on the aircraft. Good shots.

[Grastens 7]

Subtle spelling edits made.

I would suggest a re-write of certain sections of the article as well, but a Ribbon I am not.

[Apollo]

Would a B-36-sized bomber use only four engines, though?

Not in real life. Still, those engines are MASSIVE!

[Grastens 7]

It is possible (and likely inevitable) that range and power were both increased by newer engines retrofitted to the BM-335s, and it seems to borrow from the Lockheed C-5A in the sense that the engine intakes are rather large; therefore its bypass diameter would be quite high.

The He-177 variant that would have carried Germany's atomic bomb, the A-5, is not known to exist in any airframe past or present, but reports of the project are confirmed.

The article is almost devastatingly accurate in this respect.

[AceofAces]

It's officially based off of a WWII craft as one of the Ustians says "That bomber looks ancient" when one is shot down in Glacial Skies.

[Scarface tfs]

That was already mentioned in the artical.

[AceofAces]

No need to bite my head off, brat. >.<

[Traben]

Cool it, AoA. Now.

[Protostealth]

ACES AT WAR confirms that the aircraft's full name is "Bm-335 Lindwurm". Proof:

[Protostealth]

Bump for information's sake. Refer to my post above.

[Jason]

I like this plane, it has a charm : P

[Protostealth]

The Lindwurm was first designed in 1951, primarily as a nuclear bomber, says ACES AT WAR.