Originally Posted by Bluesman

No, you don't.

It's going to be specialized bomb truck, not useful except in its narrowly-defined mission envelope, and that will limit its usefulness. Although us realists that have military time already know there will be situations in which expediency/emergency will drive what gets used where and, far more importantly, HOW.

Anything that can carry that much destruction will be shoehorned into a role that it was never meant for.

'Member back in the original post that this aircraft would not be pitted against decent air defense? Bet me. That is, if you let it become something it's not supposed to have become.

'Member how in your last post YOU proposed it for naval strike?

As sure as Gawd made li'l green apples, this big lug will end up yankin' and bankin' around flak and SAMs and through canyons and at night on that deep-strike interdiction mission that it wasn't built for and could only be partly adapted for...because that's the nature of war.

The reason cargo sits on the floor and bombs range along the spine is exactly that: COMBAT. No combat, no weight and balance issues during extreme manouvering. BUT, when the SAM break happens to that penetrating B-series aircraft, and Major Roger Rudder the Heavy Bombardment Warhorse Jockey throws it into 135 degrees of bank while stomping low-side rudder and firewalling the thrust levers...a new build dedicated bomber lives, and the Airbus lives up to its name. Or rather it DIES because of its name.

Bomb truck. Long legs, big belly, but not suited for nothin' else.

Originally Posted by highsea

It would be a substantial reengineering project, not just a different type of cargo.

Besides the weight/balance issues, there is the whole issue of the way the airframe is designed and built. A commercial airliner is a big pressurized tube. It expands and contracts under the cycle, and the movement is consistent throughout the airframe. It's a significant amount of movement that takes place, several inches in diameter depending on type.

So you can't just take the cargo spaces, which are pressurized compartments, and put bomb bay doors in them. You would need to have pressure bulkheads, floors, etc., and separate the crew spaces from the weapons spaces. This changes the characteristics of the airframe and how it handles the expansion/contraction from pressurization and depressurization cycles.

Or you have to operate below 12,000 ft. MSL all the time, or put the crew on oxygen.

To have a convertible role would be tough, since you can't realistically use a non-pressurized aircraft for a transport. Or at least, the areas that are used for weapons would not be easily converted for people.

So it could probably be done, but I think the "Cheap" part would be missing...