May 11, 2022 Topic: B-52 Bomber
Will the B-52 Bomber Really Fly for 100 Years? New Upgrades Have the Answer
The aircraft is now seventy-years-old and may fly into the coming decades due to a series of recent and upcoming upgrades.
by Kris Osborn
Is it possible that the Vietnam-era B-52 bomber flies for 100 years? The aircraft is now seventy-years-old and may fly into the coming decades due to a series of recent and upcoming upgrades.
Air Force weapons developers recognized that the B-52 airframes themselves were viable, despite the aircraft’s age. Thus, engineers have been working for years to reinforce the structure of the airframe and integrate a wide range of modern upgrades. These include a new CONECT radio system capable of using digital networking to share real-time intelligence data in flight, keeping pilots aware of fast-emerging new targeting information.
Even more recently, the B-52 has been in the process of being prepared to fire air-launched hypersonic weapons, cruise missiles, and even yet-to-exist weapons. The most recent development has been efforts to replace its legacy engine with a new, more fuel-efficient commercial engine designed to reduce fuel burn and maintenance requirements.
https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/will-b-52-bomber-really-fly-100-years-new-upgrades-have-answer-202356
