Commissar
Banned
F2H-2 had a combat ceiling (500 fpm climb rate, 60% fuel remaining), internal fuel only, of 49,500 feet and a speed of around 440 knots. Max power for a B-36D at a weight of 248,000 pounds got 500 fpm at about 42,000 feet with a maximum speed at that altitude of just under 360 knots. At a combat weight of 15,640 pounds the F2H had a wing-loading of 53 pounds per square foot, the B-36D, 52 pounds per square foot. The MiG-15bis had an even lower wing loading and a better thrust to weight ratio than the F2H. It's not a significant difference and the roll rate is far more important here. You can pull all you want, but if the other guy is doing barrel rolls waiting for you to begin your turn, a theoretically tighter turn won't help.
The ceiling you listed is the old official one that was released to lull the Soviets into a false sense of security. The actual sustained cruise altitude was 47,720 feet for the B-36D and many operated at 50,000 feet.
See Convair B-36: A Comprehensive History of Americas Big Stick byMeyers K. Jacobsen.
Of course, that's really all quite irrelevant because turning and burning is not how you do a bomber intercept. Boom and zoom and high speed frontal or side passes are the way you train and fight. Relevant video
You do realize they had to make wide angle turns in that video to get those shots in and the difficulty they had demonstrating the tactics at even reduced speeds with no shooting or maneuvering by the B-29s?
They never did the interception trial the USN was pushing for, so I do believe you're mistaken on that. That's also of course dependent on:
1. Detection range
2. Distance of base to target and B-36
3. No standing CAP despite high altitude cruising capability of the F2H.
Because such a public trial would let the cat out of the bag and tell the Soviets they needed to build even higher performance aircraft. Also a B-36 coming over its target in the USSR has been climbing for hours and is at 50,000 feet or more with some at 52,870 feet. No fighter in the 50s could climb fast enough to get up there in time before the bomb load was dropped.
On top of that, the USSR had massive gaps in its Radar Coverage till well into the late 50s so the USSR wouldn't see the attack coming either.
Again I refer you to the book I put down.