The Boeing B-29 Superfortress arrived in Marietta as blueprints, federal money, trainloads of steel, and an industrial assignment bordering on the absurd. Build one of the most advanced airplanes on Earth in a Georgia town with little experience in aircraft manufacturing.
Marietta accepted the job.
Between 1943 and 1945, thousands of employees at the Bell Aircraft plant assembled B-29 bombers for the U.S. Army Air Forces. The enormous factory beside the airfield altered Marietta’s economy, population, and future. The site later became Air Force Plant 6, home of Lockheed Georgia and present day Lockheed Martin operations. Nearly every major chapter in Marietta’s aviation history begins with the same polished aluminum giant.
What Was the B-29 Superfortress?
Boeing designed the B-29 as a replacement for the B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator. Its first flight took place on September 21, 1942, while the United States was rapidly expanding its ability to strike targets across the vast distances of the Pacific…