The 1948 blockade of Berlin by the Soviet Union set off a chilling Cold War frenzy in Washington. To counter any advantage of their new-found Communist enemy, Congress appropriated millions of dollars for peacetime militarization. The B-47 was high on the priority list of Cold War projects. These long-range bombers arrived on the scene as General Curtis E. LeMay was shaping the most formidable fighting force in history -- the Strategic Air Command (SAC).
