Air Force Upgrades Iconic B-52 Bomber

Scout Media — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 09:44:00 -0500

From Scout Media:

The Air Force is surging forward with a massive, fleet-wide modernization overhaul of the battle-tested, Vietnam-era B-52 bomber, an iconic airborne workhorse for the U.S. military dating back to the 1960s.

Engineers are now equipping all 76 of the Air Force B-52s with digital data-links, moving-map displays, next-generation avionics, new radios and an ability to both carry more weapons internally and integrate new, high-tech weapons as they emerge, service officials said.

The technical structure and durability of the B-52 airframes in the Air Force fleet are described as extremely robust and able to keep flying well into the 2040s and beyond – so the service is taking steps to ensure the platform stays viable by receiving the most current and effective avionics, weapons and technologies, Eric Single, Chief of the Global Strike Division, Acquisition, told Scout Warrior in an interview.

Read the full story: http://www.scout.com/military/warrior/story/1621667-air-force-upgrades-iconic-b-52-bomber

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Response by Capt Brandon Charters made Dec 11 at 2015 9:48 AM

Capt Brandon Charters — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 09:48:37 -0500

She's still getting the job done. Airpower!

Response by SP5 Mark Kuzinski made Dec 11 at 2015 9:59 AM

SP5 Mark Kuzinski — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 09:59:28 -0500

Awesome!

Response by 1SG Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 11 at 2015 10:22 AM

1SG Private RallyPoint Member — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 10:22:48 -0500

Basically we HAVE to keep flying the B-52 because we haven't made a serious purchase of strategic bombers since. The B-1 and -1B had significant technical issues that threatened to kill but did reduce the program. The B-2 cost a mint to build. Each. There were a myriad of X-bombers that never made it to production. It is great that the B-52 still can fly, but I worry about aircrews. That is a lot of hours on those air frames.

Response by SGT David T. made Dec 11 at 2015 11:13 AM

SGT David T. — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 11:13:50 -0500

I went to a class for acquisition and they were talking about the B-52 having a 100 year life cycle. This is pretty unique in terms of weapon systems platforms.

Response by SGT William Howell made Dec 11 at 2015 12:34 PM

SGT William Howell — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 12:34:15 -0500

Long live the BUFF and while we are at it the Warthog too!

Response by Lt Col Scott Shuttleworth made Dec 11 at 2015 1:49 PM

Lt Col Scott Shuttleworth — Fri, 11 Dec 2015 13:49:01 -0500

What we have to remember about the BUFF is that it still has extremely low flying hours for its age. It sat alert, not flying for years on end during the cold war...only to be rotated off alert and fly every so often as a trainer for certification of the aircrews. The reason the airframe is so robust is that is has no stress on the airframe from flying so much as do some of our more modern airframes. It is basically a simple airframe and in todays world a simple airframe that can still do what it does meeting and sometimes exceeding mission requirements at the fraction of cost of a new one plus ease of and relatively low cost of maintenance is a great decision. Sometimes less is more. I applaud the AF leadership on this. Long live the BUFF. Ugly but extremely effective!!!

Response by MSgt Marvin Kinderknecht made Mar 3 at 2016 10:24 AM

MSgt Marvin Kinderknecht — Thu, 03 Mar 2016 10:24:09 -0500

Beast bomber ever built. I hunted with a pilot who flew them. He said we carried enough nukes to sink half of Russia. That was in the late 60's

Response by SSG(P) Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 25 at 2017 1:06 PM

SSG(P) Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 13:06:37 -0400

I hope someone in R&D has read the Dale Brown "Megafortress" series of books, which is about a small USAF unit that mods B-52s and B-1s with ultra-high tech weaponry and avionics, and carries out clandestine air ops all over the world.

Response by LTC Stephen C. made Apr 25 at 2017 10:31 PM

LTC Stephen C. — Tue, 25 Apr 2017 22:31:36 -0400

LTC Private RallyPoint Member, in the discussion thread "A Flock Of Seagulls Downed A B-52 Bomber In Guam", you asked why there was such a big price tag on old and "paid for" bombers, and I suggested upgrades. Maybe these are the upgrades?

Response by SrA Ronald Moore made Nov 23 at 2019 1:13 PM

SrA Ronald Moore — Sat, 23 Nov 2019 13:13:40 -0500

Yes ,I remember those Larger Than Life, Instuments of Flight, Pay load awesomeness,Its like They can Fly for ever , been around then on the flight line ,A Salute To All The Leaders,Airman who Remember ,took care of them, flown in Them