Boeing B-52 Stratofortress
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is a long-range strategic bomber flown by the United States Air Force (USAF) since 1954. It replaced the Convair B-36 and the Boeing B-47. Although built for the role of Cold War-era nuclear deterrent, its conventional capabilities take priority. The aircraft has an extremely long range, carries a heavy weapons load and is economical in operation compared to the rest of the USAF strategic bomber fleet.
Mission
Air Combat Command's B-52 is a long-range heavy bomber that can perform a variety of missions. It is capable of flying at high subsonic speeds at altitudes up to 50,000 feet (15 km) and can carry a variety of weapons, including nuclear or conventional precision-guided munition. It was designed to carry just two enormous thermonuclear weapons to any point in the USSR.
Background
The USAF Strategic Air Command had B-52 Stratofortresses in service from 1955 through 1991, when the aircraft were assigned to the Air Combat Command.
For more than 50 years, the B-52 Stratofortress has been the backbone of the manned strategic bomber force for the United States. The B-52 is capable of dropping or launching a wide array of weapons in the U.S. inventory, including free-fall (gravity bombs), cluster bombs, and precision guided ordnance such as Joint Direct Attack Munitions. When updated with the latest technology, the B-52 will be capable of delivering the full complement of joint developed weapons; allowing it to continue well into the 21st century as an important element of U.S. military capabilities.
Two prototypes were built, designated XB-52 and YB-52. Both aircraft were almost identical, but the YB-52 incorporated enough changes to warrant a different designation. The most notable difference between the prototypes and the B-52A was that the X and Y aircraft used a tandem cockpit for the pilot and co-pilot, very similar to that of the B-47. The cockpit for the B-52A was completely redesigned due to the insistence of General Curtis LeMay, Commander of the Strategic Air Command, who was opposed to the tandem seating arrangement. Although the XB-52 was the first prototype to be completed and rolled out, the YB-52 was the first to fly - on April 15 1952 - due to damage on the XB-52's wing trailing edges caused by a hydraulic system failure. The XB-52 eventually flew for the first time on October 2 1952. Unfortunately, both aircraft were scrapped in the mid-1960s, though the YB-52 was available for viewing in the USAF Museum from the late '50s.
The B-52A first flew in August 1954 and the B model entered service in 1955. A total of 744 B-52s were built with the last, a B-52H, delivered in October 1962. Only the H model is still in the Air Force inventory and is assigned to Air Combat Command and the Air Force Reserves. The oldest B-52 still flying is a B-52B that was built in 1955, though it also has the fewest flight hours of any surviving B-52. It was operated by NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center and was used for drop tests of various research aircraft until its retirement on December 17, 2004. On July 30, 2001, Dryden received a B-52H that is expected to fully replace the older B-model aircraft by the end of 2004.
The first of 102 of the B-52H model was delivered to Strategic Air Command in May 1961. The H model can carry up to 20 air launched cruise missiles. In addition, it can carry the conventional cruise missile that was used in several missions during the 1990s, starting with Operation Desert Storm and culminating with Operation Allied Force in the spring of 1999.
The threat of B-52 attacks partially motivated the Soviet Union to back down from its threat to deploy nuclear-armed missiles to Cuba in the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis.
For duty in Vietnam, the B-52D received the "Big Belly" modification which squeezed 84 500-pound conventional bombs or 42 750-pound bombs into the bomb bay, as well as 24 750-pound bombs on each of the underwing pylons.
Alert Duty
A portion of the B-52 force was kept fuelled, crewed, and loaded with nuclear weapons for take off on a few minutes' notice. The plan was to remove the aircraft from their bases, which would have been destroyed by incoming enemy missile warheads.
In the necessity of high-altitude bombing attacks over the Soviet Union B-52s carried ADM-20 Quail decoys, which emulated the B-52s flight characteristics, flying through enemy territory emitting B-52-like electronic signals. However, in the late 1950s and 1960s, Soviet high-altitude air defenses improved. To counter this, B-52 crews were trained to launch their unmanned Hound Dog (missile) and later the supersonic AGM-69 Short Range Attack Missile and then fly "below the radar" attacks at nearly tree top level.
B-52s also performed airborne alert duty under the code-name "Chrome Dome" where bombers would loiter near points outside of the Soviet Union. During this program a deadly collision between a B-52 and a KC-135 over Palomares, Spain in 1966 occurred. Four megaton-range nuclear bombs were lost (all four were later recovered). After this crash, thousands of tons of contaminated radioactive soil had to be sent back to the USA. The USAF decided this was too expensive to risk again, and it ended the airborne alert program.
The 1973 Arab attack on Israel, and the subsequent threat of a Soviet invasion of Israel, brought the B-52s to their highest state of ground alert (see below).
In the late 1960s and 1970s, the B-52s' mission profile changed. As Soviet air defenses improved, high-altitude free-fall bomb penetration missions would have proved nearly suicidal. The bombers were modified to launch "defense suppression" missiles designed to create safe corridors in which the bombers could pass to attack their targets with free-fall bombs. AGM-28 Hound Dog supersonic cruise missiles were originally designed for this purpose until effectively replaced by the supersonic Short-Range Attack Missile. Both missiles carried nuclear warheads.
With the advent of the AGM-86 cruise missile, B-52s could perform a "stand-off" role of launching cruise missiles at their targets while the bombers could safely avoid Soviet defenses. These pilotless AGM-86s would have flown to their own targets at treetop level and high subsonic speeds. The Soviet Union's attempts to defend against cruise missiles were extremely expensive and helped bring about that government's demise.
In 1991 President George H.W. Bush ended an era when he took the B-52s off "alert" duty.
Combat Record
B-52s were used extensively in the Vietnam War. The North Vietnamese Army (NVA) were terrified of B-52 attacks; survivors described the experience as akin to an earthquake. The B-52s' devastating firepower made it the most feared weapon used against the Ho Chi Minh Trail. B-52s dropped bombs on suspected enemy arms caches and hideouts, often inflicting huge losses on the Communist forces.
In the Battle of Khe Sanh, North Vietnam's plan to turn the Marine stronghold into another Dien Bien Phu was thwarted by round-the-clock B-52 strikes which destroyed whole NVA units.
Source for the following: Michel L. Marshall III, "The Eleven Days of Christmas: America's Last Vietnam Battle", Encounter Books, San Francisco, 2002.
The zenith of B-52 attacks in Vietnam was Operation Linebacker II, which consisted of waves of B-52s (mostly D models, but some G's with less jamming equipment and a smaller bomb load) bombing Hanoi. This was called "The Eleven-Day War." The objective was to force North Vietnam back to the Paris Peace Talks, which up to that point they had refused to do. In Linebacker II, fifteen B-52s were shot down, and in all, seventeen were destroyed in combat during the war.
After Vietnam
The Yom Kippur War in October 1973 saw the Soviet Union threaten to intervene on behalf of Egypt and Syria. To stop the Soviets, President Richard M. Nixon called on the military to raise its alert level to DEFCON 3. Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird ordered the B-52s to an immediate war footing. Fully armed and fueled B-52s waited for the "Go" signal, sitting at the hold lines of their runways. The Soviet Union eventually did not become directly involved in the war.
In 1982, the last B-52Ds were retired. The remaining G and H models were used for nuclear standby ("alert") duty (see above) as part of the United States' nuclear triad. This triad was the combination of nuclear-armed land-based missiles, submarine-based missiles, and manned bombers.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, the B-52Gs were destroyed as per the terms of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START). Today, only the H models remain in service.
The B-52 contributed to the U.S. success in Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, providing the ability to loiter high over the battlefield and provide Close Air Support (CAS) through the use of precision guided munitions. B-52's also played a key role in the second Gulf War in 2003 (Operation Iraqi Freedom), where they provided close air support and bombing.
The Air Force intends to keep the B-52 in service until around 2050, an unprecedented length of service for a combat aircraft model (the venerable DC-3, now 70 years old, is still in regular revenue service in civilian hands). This is especially remarkable considering that the last plane was built in 1962; the Air Force fully expects to be flying 90-year-old airframes. Periodically, B-52s are rebuilt at the USAF's maintenance depots such as Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma. Therefore, despite their chronological age, their actual service age is quite young.
Boeing has suggested re-engining of the B-52H fleet with the Rolls-Royce RB211 534E-4. This would involve replacing the eight Pratt & Whitney TF33s (total thrust 8 x 17,000 lb or 30.574 kN) with four RB211s (total thrust 4 x 37,400 lb or 33.191 kN). The RR engines will increase the range/payload of the fleet and reduce fuel consumption. However the cost of the project would be significant. Procurement would cost approximately $2.56 billion ($36 million × 71 aircraft). A General Accounting Office study of the proposal concluded that Boeing's estimated savings of $4.7 billion would not be realized. They found that it would cost the Air Force $1.3 billion over keeping the existing engines. [1]
Another recently approved upgrade for the B-52 is the B-52 SOJ (Stand Off Jammer) program which will allow it to assume an airborne communications/jamming role. Approximately a quarter of the fleet will be converted to take on this mission, with the Air Force seeking funding to convert the entire fleet. The B-52 SOJ will retain all of its bomber functions and capabilities, however after dropping its weapons load it will continue to loiter over the combat area providing electronic warfare cover for follow on strikes. The additional equipment will be carried in 30 ft external pods under the wings. [2]
The USAF continues to employ the B-52 because it remains an effective and the most economical heavy bomber in US service, particularly for the type of conflicts conducted since the end of the Cold War against nations with limited anti-air capabilities. The stealth and speed of the B-1 Lancer and B-2 Spirit have only been useful until enemy air defences were destroyed, a task that has been swiftly achieved in recent conflicts. The B-52 boasts the highest mission capable rate of the three types of heavy bombers operated by the USAF. Whereas the B-1 averages a 57% ready rate [3] and the B-2 achieved a 26% in 1997 [4], the B-52 averages an 80% combat ready rate.
Features
In a conventional conflict, the B-52 can perform strategic attack, air interdiction, offensive counter-air and maritime operations. During Operation Desert Storm, B-52s delivered 40% of all the weapons dropped by coalition forces.
All B-52s are equipped with an electro-optical viewing system that uses platinum silicide forward-looking infrared and high resolution low-light-level television sensors to augment targeting, battle assessment, and flight safety, thus further improving its combat ability and low-level flight capability.
Pilots wear night vision goggles (NVGs) to enhance their vision during night operations. These goggles provide greater safety during night operations by increasing the pilot's ability to visually clear terrain, avoid enemy radar and see other aircraft in a covert/lights-out environment.
In addition to its twin-tandem main wheels, B-52s have two small retractable "bogie wheels" near the outboard ends of the wings which are used during takeoff and when the aircraft is being taxied or is parked. These prevent the wing-tips, which droop when the wing fuel tanks are filled, from brushing the ground.
Starting in 1989, on-going modifications incorporate the Global Positioning System, heavy stores adapter beams for carrying 2,000 pound (900 kg) munitions, and a full array of advanced weapons currently under development.
The B-52 has an unrefuelled combat range in excess of 8,800 statute miles (14,000 km). The use of aerial refuelling from KC-135 or KC-10 tankers gives the B-52 a range limited only by crew endurance, or in the extreme, required maintenance.
The B-52 has an air-refuelling receptacle above the cockpit hidden behind slip-way doors. Fuel can be transferred to the B-52's tanks at a maximum rate of 6400 pounds (1000 gallons) per minute.
The crosswind crab system of a B-52 provides a means of turning all four main gear to align with the runway while the aircraft is flown in a wings-level attitude compensating for drift. This system uses the steering actuators on the front main gear and a similar set on the rear main gear. The landing gear can be preset and turned up to 20° left or right of center during the approach. The maximum of 20° crab will accommodate landings in crosswinds up to and including 43 knots blowing 90° to the runway at a landing weight of 270,000 pounds.
The aircraft is highly effective when used for ocean surveillance, and can assist the U.S. Navy in anti-ship and mine-laying operations. Two B-52s, in two hours, can monitor 140,000 square miles (364,000 km²) of ocean surface. If on land, this area is about as large as a circle centered at New York City and covered as far as Washington, DC, Syracuse and Boston (radius, equalling 212 statute miles or 340 km).
The aircraft's flexibility was evident in Operation Desert Storm and again during Operation Allied Force. B-52s struck wide-area troop concentrations, fixed installations and bunkers, and ruined the morale of Iraq's Republican Guard. The Persian Gulf War involved the longest strike mission in the history of aerial warfare when B-52s took off from Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, launched conventional air launched cruise missiles and returned to Barksdale—a 35 hour, non-stop combat mission. During Operation Allied Force, B-52s opened the conflict with conventional cruise missile attacks and then transitioned to delivering general purpose bombs and cluster bomb units on Serbian army positions and staging areas.
General characteristics
- Contractor: Boeing Military Airplane Co.
- Speed: 650 mph, 1000 km/h (Mach 0.86)
- Range: unrefuelled 8,800 statute miles (14,200 km), refuelled unlimited (subject to crew limitations).
- Armament: Approximately 70,000 lb (31,500 kg) mixed ordnance—bombs, land mines and missiles. (Modified to carry air-launched cruise missiles, AGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship and AGM-142 Have Nap missiles.)
- The nuclear weapons capacity has previously included B28, B43, B53, B61, and B83 free-fall nuclear bombs, or various combinations of twelve AGM-129 Advanced Cruise Missiles (ACMS), 20 AGM-86A Air-Launched Cruise Missiles (ALCM) and eight bombs.
- The B-52A through F carried a tail-mounted armament of four .50 calibre (12.7-mm) machine guns with the gunner sitting in the tail, the B-52G retained the quad .50 calibre guns but the gunner moved up front with the rest of the crew and controlled the guns via remote. The B-52H replaced the quad .50's with a single 20-mm M61A1 Vulcan which offered much greater defensive firepower. In the mid-1990s, the tail gun was removed from all of the B-52H aircraft to reduce weight and because a gun is ineffective against fighter aircraft launching guided missiles.
- The G- and H-models are distinguishable from previous models by their shorter (by eight feet) vertical tailplane. This configuration had previously been tested on a B-52A.
- The H-model is distinguishable from all previous variants by having visually different engine pods. The B-52H uses TF33-3 turbofan engines, which provided 20% greater range, 70% more thrust and are considerably quieter than the J57 engine which had been used on all previous variants.
- The B-52 is the only known bomber to have shot down jet-powered fighter aircraft after Korea; one unit of the type shot down two MiG-17 fighter planes during the Vietnam War.
- Accommodations: five (Pilot, Co-Pilot, Navigator, Radar Navigator (AKA Bombardier) & Electronic Warfare Officer) with all sitting in ejection seats
- Unit Cost: $74 million
- Date Deployed: February 1955
- Inventory: Active Force, 85; ANG, 0; Reserve, 9
Production
- XB-52 - The first B-52 prototype. 1 built
- YB-52 - The second prototype. 1 built
- B-52A - The first production model. 3 built
- NB-52A - 1 aircraft rebuilt to carry the X-15 research aircraft.
- B-52B - 50
- NB-52B - 1 aircraft rebuilt to carry the X-15 research aircraft.
- RB-52B - 27 B-52Bs converted into reconnaissance aircraft. Two 20 mm Cannons replaced by four .50 calibre machine guns in the tail. The original designation was XR-16.
- B-52C - 35
- B-52D - 170
- B-52E - 100
- B-52F - 89
- B-52G - 193
- B-52H - 102
- Total produced - 744
Specifications (B-52H)
Data from Quest for Performance[1]
General characteristics
- Crew: 5 (Pilot, Copilot, Radar Navigator (Bombardier), Navigator and Electronic Warfare Officer). Originally the B-52 had a crew of 6, with a Gunner sitting in the tail in all models up to the G. In the B-52 G/H, the Gunner position was moved to the front cockpit, with the gun remotely controlled.
- Airfoil: NACA 63A219.3 mod root, NACA 65A209.5 tip
- Zero-lift drag coefficient: 0.0119 (estimated)
- Drag area: 47.60 ft² (4.42 m²)
- Aspect ratio: 8.56
Performance
- Thrust/weight: 0.51
- Lift-to-drag ratio: 21.5 (estimated)
Armament
- Guns: All models up to the H had a pod of four .50-caliber guns which could be loaded with armor-piercing/incendiary ammunition. The H model had one 6-barrel 20-mm Vulcan gatling cannon. Now, the tail guns have been removed on all operating B-52s.
- Ordnance: up to 60,000 lb (27,200 kg) bombs, missiles, and mines, in various configurations
3D red cyan glasses are recommended to view this image correctly.USAF Stations
The B-52 is stationed at two USAF bases
Trivia
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- Among its crew, the B-52 is affectionately known as the "BUFF", an acronym for "Big Ugly Fat Fucker" (or "Fellow" in some circles where profanity is not used)
- The B-52 carries a total fuel load of about 300,000 pounds (roughly 50,000 US gallons).
- B-52 flies unlike other aircraft. Shortly after take-off, as it gains speed, the nose dips and it climbs in an initial nose-low attitude, a consequence of high camber of its wing in the full flaps configuration. This looks strange to most people, who are used to seeing aircraft take off nose-high.
- An aircraft of this massive size, power and weight necessitates hydraulically-boosted control surfaces. However, B-29 Superfortress pilots, who were used to using brute force from the human body to actuate the control surfaces, would be transferred to the B-52, which had hydraulic controls. Therefore, strong springs are used to help imitate the control feel of the older aircraft. As a result the the B-52 is a physically demanding aircraft to fly.
- Each B-52 has a name. Usually the maintenance crew chief has the privilege of naming her (aircraft, like ships, are regarded as female). Some of the more interesting names are "The Need for Speed", "Heavy Metal II", "Conceived for Liberty", "Death from Above", and "Night Stalker". One is even named "Memphis Belle IV," in honor of the original Memphis Belle, a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress.
- Each B-52 has small wingtip landing gears which do not touch the ground except when the aircraft is fully loaded with fuel and weapons.
- The B-52's skin looks wrinkled when the aircraft is on the ground. In flight, the wrinkles disappear as the wing loading causes the wings and airframe to flex to in-flight configurations.
- The B-52 was built for war, not for comfort. The crew compartment (cockpit) is quite cramped. There is a bunk on H models, but not on previous ones. B-52 crews joke that Boeing put the cockpit in as an afterthought.
- The only toilet facilities on board are a urinal on the lower deck, just forward of the crew compartment pressurization door, and a potty (lined with a plastic garbage bag) on the upper deck. The potty has a privacy curtain. Female crew members use an adaptor for the urinal.
- The B-52 has a very small oven which can warm food for the crew. The only drinking water is carried in coolers. There is no sink or shower.
- The B-52's landing gear has to be turned at an angle ("crabbed" in aeronautical terms) when landing in a crosswind. The gear is made to point down the runway while the nose of the plane points into the wind. Pilots call this "crosswind crab". This is made possible by a complex, but highly reliable, hydraulic system. The ability to crab enables the B-52 to land in conditions which would force other aircraft to go somewhere else.
- A hairstyle known as the "B-52", because of its resemblance to the nose cone of this aircraft, was popular in the 1950s, 60s and 70s. The musical band The B-52's were named after the B-52 hairstyle members of the band wear.
- There is a cocktail named for the B-52, the B-52 shooter.
- The B-52 bomber gained notoriety after Stanley Kubrick's Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb Cold War black comedy movie. The cockpit of the plane is one of only four movie settings. The Air Force refused to allow Stanley Kubrick permission to photograph the cockpit interior; he developed his B-52 cockpit by extrapolating from photos of a B-52 interior published in a British flying magazine, based on a walking tour of the cockpit of a B-29 Superfortress bomber. His guess was so accurate that his production company was later investigated by the Department of Defense.
- The NASA B-52B Mothership, NASA tail number 008, was retired from active service with NASA on 17 December, 2004, after almost 50 years flying service. This was the B-52 famous for dropping such aerospace research vehicles as the X-15, X-24, HiMAT, Lifting Body vehicles, X-43, and others. It was the oldest active B-52 at the time, having first flown on June 11, 1955, and entering service with NASA in 1959. It was the last B-52B in service of any type other than the H model. It also had the lowest total air time of any operational B-52.
- The B-52's longevity is marked by the fact that it is conceivable that a grandfather, father, and son could have all served as B-52 crew.
- The ejection seats for the lower-deck crewmembers, the Navigator and Radar Navigator, eject downwards from the bottom of the plane. Because of this, these crewmembers cannot eject below 200 feet above the ground. A Navigator and Radar Navigator from Fairchild AFB both survived a downward ejection at approximately 200 feet above ground level in a training accident near Kayenta, Arizona on the evening of October 20, 1984. The upper-deck crewmembers (Pilot, Copilot, and Electronic Warfare Officer) have seats which can eject them upwards. Therefore, their seats work at any altitude, as long as the airspeed is at least 90 knots, which is necessary to inflate the parachutes, as the upwards ejection seats are blast-propelled, not rocket-propelled, and are not 0-0 certified as are more modern ACES-II ejection seats.
- During a training mission on January 24, 1963, a B-52C out of Westover Air Force Base in Massachusetts experienced trouble and crashed into the side of Elephant Mountain near Greenville, Maine. Of the 9 men aboard, only 2 of them survived the crash. The wreckage of the crash is still on the side of the mountain to this day. The navigator, Capt. Gerald J. Adler struck the snow covered ground about 2,000 feet from the wreckage at a force estimated at 16 times the force of gravity when his parachute did not deploy upon ejection. His skull was fractured and three ribs were broken. The impact bent his ejection seat enough that he could not get his survival kit out. He survived the night by wrapping himself up in his parachute but both feet were frostbitten. The other survivor, pilot Lt. Col. Dante E. Bulli broke his ankle when he landed in a tree 30 feet above the ground. He survived the night, with temperatures reaching 28 degrees below zero, by tucking the sleeping bag from his survival kit into the snow.[2]
- In the early 1980s Boeing submitted an unsolicited proposal for a "Super B-52," more appropriately known as the B-52I. It would have offered upgraded engines, improved electronics and avionics and vastly improved ergonomics for the crew. The plan was considered but dropped in favor of the B-1B that was then being considered to replace the then-20+ year old B-52G/H fleet. Boeing submitted another unsolicited proposal in 1997 to replace the B-52's 8 engines with 4 engines and update cockpit avionics. Since the original proposal never got off the drawing board, this one, which has received tentative Air Force approval due to the cost savings involved, is also referred to as the B-52I model.
- On the night of December 27, 1972, North Vietnamese pilot and future cosmonaut Pham Tuan became the first person ever to shoot down a US B-52 bomber, during the Vietnam War. The bomber had been circling the Hanoi sky during the US campaign called Operation Linebacker II.
- As part of the 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty between the United States and Russia, 365 B-52Gs were flown to the Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona. The bombers were stripped of all usable parts, then chopped into five pieces by a 13,000-pound steel blade dropped from a crane. The modern-day guillotine crashed down four times on each plane, severing the wings and leaving the fuselage in three pieces. The ruined B-52s remained in place for three months in order for orbiting Russian satellites to confirm the bombers had been destroyed, after which they were sold for scrap at 12 cents a pound.
- There is a story told by many B-52 pilots that sums up the aircraft: "The B-52, with its familiar wrinkled fuselage sides, has enough metal to make 10,000 garbage cans. The wiring in the Stratofortress is equivalent to five miles of baling wire. Its engines are as powerful as eight locomotives. And that's the way it flies, like eight locomotives, pulling ten thousand garbage cans with five miles of baling wire!"
- The B-52 on static display outside Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, has a patch on the cockpit; the damage was caused by an impact with an American Bald Eagle during landing.
- It is predicted that the B-52 will last until at least 2040, at which time the USAF has programmed a phase-out cycle.[3]
- The Military Channel named the B-52 as their top bomber due to service length and payload.
- During the early morning of January 17, 1991 the first day of operation Desert Storm a B-52G (aircraft 0248) was fired upon by an F-4G Wild Weasel. The B-52's tail gunner locked his tail gun radar on the Wild Weasel mistaking it for an Iraqi MIG. The Wild Weasel immediately detected the B-52 tail gun radar and misidentified the radar signature as that of an Iraqi Anti-Aircraft Artillery (AAA) site. The F-4G Wild Weasel crew fired a single AGM-88 HARM anti-radiation missile and watched in horror as it headed not towards the non-existent Iraqi AAA site, but to one of the B-52 bombers it was tasked with protecting. Luckily the missile failed to hit the plane, but instead detonated directly behind the bomber. The resulting shrapnel and missile debris caused an excessive amount of damage to the tail section of the B-52G. It ripped off everything aft of the vertical stabilizer. This included much of the tail gun system, the aft Electronic Warfare suite, and the drag chute. The B-52G was able to return safely to the island of Diego Garcia. It was later fully repaired at Anderson Air Force Base on Guam where it was renamed "IN HARM's WAY". The tail gunner position was subsequently eliminated from the entire B-52 fleet.
References
- ^ Loftin, LK, Jr. "Quest for performance: The evolution of modern aircraft. NASA SP-468". Retrieved 2006-04-22.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ The B-52 Crash on Elephant Mountain Greenville, Maine
- ^ B-52 Service Life
- Michel L. Marshall III,"The Eleven Days of Christmas: America's Last Vietnam Battle", Encounter Books, San Francisco, 2002.
External links
- http://www.fas.org/nuke/guide/usa/bomber/b-52_hist.htm -- detailed historical overview
- http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/systems/b-52.htm Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) B-52 Stratofortress
- http://www.af.mil/factsheets/factsheet.asp?fsID=83 -- B-52 Stratofortress Fact Sheet
- USAF B-52 mission flights from Fairford to Iraq (2003) monitored by the Frequency Monitor Centre
- NASA Dryden B-52 fact sheet
Related content
Related development
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
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