B18A

B18A

▄Ju 88 A-4

B18A

▄Ju 88 A-4

Sweden

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
2.0	2.7	2.3

Class:

Bomber

Dive bomber

Research:7 900

Purchase:10 000

Show in game

This page is about the Swedish bomber B18A. For other versions, see B18 (Family). For the American bomber of similar designation, see B-18A.

Description

The B18A is a rank II Swedish bomber with a battle rating of 2.0 (AB), 2.7 (RB), and 2.3 (SB). It was introduced in Update 1.95 "Northern Wind".

Sweden had been using the Ju 86K (export version of the German Ju 86) or the B3C bomber as their main bomber. In 1938 a requirement was put forth to Swedish aircraft manufactures for a fast reconnaissance aircraft with a crew of three. SAAB was awarded the contract for the project and began to build the SAAB 18 alongside the smaller SAAB B17 bomber. At this point the B17 had the facilities priorities in construction, however, the B18 was modified from being just a reconnaissance aircraft to also being a medium bomber. The mid-project changes caused a significant delay in the production of the aircraft which didn’t roll out for duty until mid-1944.

Initially, the B18A aircraft was deemed underpowered with the two Pratt & Whitney R-1830 Twin Wasp radial engines, but would later be replaced by license-built Daimler-Benze DB 605 liquid-cooled engines. Later the B18B variant was modified to operate as a dive bomber/ground attack variant which could be outfitted with three 120 kg bombs or 12 m/51 rockets which could utilize both the internal bomb bay and hardpoints on under the wings. A single defensive positions utilised two 13.2 mm Akan m/39 machine guns which had limited coverage the rear dorsal position of the aircraft. The pilot was in control of a single 13.2 mm m/39A machine gun.

The B18A was a multi-role aircraft which filled a need for the Swedish air forces, which continued on until 1959. This bomber can operate in two roles, either as a medium-altitude bomber working on destroying vehicles and anti-aircraft artillery targets or to bomb enemy bases. Flying at a higher altitude will help to avoid a majority of the fighter aircraft which tend to stay at the lower altitudes. The B18A can also be pressed into service in the lower altitudes and even on the deck. When outfitted with rockets, the B18A can dive-bomb ground targets to include tanks, bunkers, anti-aircraft artillery and naval ships.

General info

Flight performance

Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 4,000 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	445	430	9100	31.2	32.2	2.1	2.1	530
Upgraded	487	465		28.9	30.0	8.6	5.0

Details

Features
Combat flaps	Take-off flaps	Landing flaps	Air brakes	Arrestor gear
✓	✓	✓	✓	X

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
735	320	490	440	290	~7	~3

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 370	< 350	< 400	> 320

Survivability and armour

Protective components found in the B18A.

• 10 mm steel - cockpit floor under pilot's seat
• 10 mm steel - pilot's seatback
• 10 mm steel - rear gunner protective plate
• 10 mm steel - cockpit floor under gunner's seat
• 10 mm steel - aft protective plate

Armaments

Offensive armament

The B18A is armed with:

• 1 x 13.2 mm Akan m/39A machine gun, nose-mounted (300 rpg)

Suspended armament

The B18A can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• 18 x 50 kg sb m/42 bombs (900 kg total)
• 3 x 250 kg mb m/40 bombs (750 kg total)
• 3 x 250 kg mb m/40 bombs + 8 x 50 kg sb m/42 bombs (1,150 kg total)
• 2 x 500 kg mb m/41 bombs (1,000 kg total)
• 2 x 500 kg mb m/41 bombs + 8 x 50 kg sb m/42 bombs (1,400 kg total)

Defensive armament

The B18A is defended by:

• 1 x 13.2 mm Akan m/39 machine gun, dorsal turret (300 rpg)
• 1 x 13.2 mm Akan m/39 machine gun, ventral turret (300 rpg)

Usage in battles

Describe the tactics of playing in the aircraft, the features of using aircraft in a team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but instead, give the reader food for thought. Examine the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Controllable	Controllable Not auto controlled	Controllable Not auto controlled	Controllable Not auto controlled	Separate	Not controllable 1 gear	Not controllable

Modules

Tier	Flight performance		Survivability	Weaponry
I	Fuselage repair	Radiator		Offensive 13 mm		m/40
II		Compressor	Airframe		Turret 13 mm
III	Wings repair	Engine		New 13 mm MGs		m/41
IV		Engine injection	Cover		New 13 mm MGs (turret)

Pros and cons

Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in the bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".

Pros:

Cons:

History

Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the aircraft in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• encyclopedia page on the aircraft;
• other literature.

Swedish Aeroplane Company Ltd. (SAAB)
	Pre-SAAB: SA / ASJA
SA 'Jaktfalken'	J6B
SAAB 17	B17A · B17B · S17BS
SAAB 18	B18A · B18B · T18B · T18B (57)
SAAB 21	J21A-1 · J21A-2 · A21A-3 · J21RA · A21RB
SAAB 29 'Tunnan'	J29A · A29B · J29D · J29F
SAAB 32 'Lansen'	J32B · A32A · A32A Röd Adam
SAAB 35 'Draken'	J35A · J35D
SAAB 37 'Viggen'	JA37C · JA37D · AJ37 · AJS37
SAAB 39 'Gripen'	JAS39A · JAS39C
SAAB 105	SK60B · SAAB-105G
License Production	B3C (Ju 86K)
Export	SAAB-105OE · J35XS · ▄JAS39C · ◔JAS39EBS HU C

Sweden bombers
B3	B3C
B17	B17A · B17B · S17BS
SAAB 18	B18A · B18B · T18B · T18B (57)
T 2	T 2
Finland	▄Ar 196 A-5 · ▄Ju 88 A-4