Great Planes - Boeing B-52 Stratofortress

Tonight with wings take off with Discovery Channel in the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress First deployed in the early 1950s The B-52 was the Strategic Air Command's primary deterrent weapon Its range allowed for global deployment of nuclear arsenal bags Today the B-52 is flown in low-level bombing and electronic warfare Tonight it flies high on the winged Boeing B-52 Stratofortress When it entered service in 1955, the B-52 was the pinnacle of jet bomber design , but its Genesis dates back to a decision made by the Department of Defense 10 years earlier, when the nation was at war for much of World War II, the United States was committed to developing proven technology because this would allow the lines of production to produce the tools of war with the necessary urgency.

It improved the piston engine that powered all American aircraft that served in the fierce air battles of World War II, including the massive Boeing B-29, which had more speed range and payload than any other bomber still dependent on Piston engine technology, the B-29 was thought to be the ultimate in aviation, but in fact its high-tech stent soon became obsolete due to a new generation of aircraft on the water, it was a big surprise to the United States. learning that Germany and Britain had developed gas turbine jet engines that could soon power fighter jets at speeds much faster than the legendary superfortress.

In 1944, the US Army Air Force issued a requirement for a jet bomber fast enough to elude fighter aircraft. Contracts were issued for no fewer than five different designs, but it took another technological marvel of nuclear fission to bring the war to a quick and dramatic end. Although a B-29 was used to transport the weapon, only one plane dropped a bomb. and in seconds the city of Hiroshima would cease to exist if a plane could carry such a devastating payload. then perhaps large bomber fleets would no longer be necessary to win modern warfare. The terrible cost in lives that the United States had paid to establish Island B-29 bases in the Pacific had changed the parameters for the next generation of bombers during the early postwar years.

Wartime strategy focused on the ability to deliver the atomic bomb over very long distances, and the Air Force placed emphasis on long-range intercontinental aircraft, a role that the Convair B-36 peacekeeper adequately fulfilled for some time, the Giant B-36 was actually a World War II design that arrived too late for combat; it required no less than six huge piston engines to propel it at average speeds; However, later jet engines were installed in capsules under the wing to complement its power. In 1947, the jet bomber project began to bear fruit. In that year, five presentations were tested, although they were now classified as medium bombers.

B45 was the first of the Jets of the 1944 requirement and was the second most successful, this simple but effective engine design was actually adopted. By the Air Force and entering service in limited numbers, although primarily in the reconnaissance role, the BE 46 was established and offered as another four-engine jet bomber. Its clean lines made it one of the most elegant aircraft of the time and its performance as one of the first aircraft was quite acceptable, however, consolidated, it was strongly committed to the production of the B-36, not to the medium bomber project. Given high priority, the Martin-designed B48 was a cumbersome aircraft employing six jet engines in mid-wing clusters and the most impressive technology it offered was its bicycle.

Landing gear placed on the centerline of the aircraft and supported by two stabilizer wheels on each wing. This project did not tempt the Air Force and, like the be 46, the prototype was scrapped or jettisoned in an attempt to compete in the jet bomber program, it took its previous piston. -Flying wing with engine and equipped with eight turbojets. The wing had a brilliant design that offered excellent efficiency. It was years ahead of its time perhaps because it was so different that it never seemed to attract government approval. The technological understanding that Northrop had flying wings. It came to fruition 40 years later in the form of the B-2 stealth bomber.

Today, the B-2 Swing is a symbol of cutting-edge aviation design, but in 1947 the idea was considered too revolutionary, arguably the most impressive design offered to the air. The force came from Boeing, its B-47 stratojet design benefiting from the manufacturers' analysis of German data on swept wing technology to obtain the maximum efficiency these wings could provide. They were made extremely thin and flexible, so their six engines had to be suspended on pylons and distributed over each wing, this approach made maintenance of the engines easier. It also had aerodynamic benefits for the plane at high speed because the wing was very thin.

Boeing used the same fuselage-mounted bicycle landing gear as Martin's B48. The B-47 was adopted by the Air Force and literally hundreds were produced in the early 1950s. It was by any measure a very successful design, a classic case of having the right design at the right time, but it was also a ideal testbed for Boeing to gain experience in producing efficient swept-wing jet bombers. I'm Jim Larkins, Lieutenant Colonel of the United States Air Force Retired Wings, right now we're back on the wings on the Discovery Channel. One of the problems with the early jet engines was the relatively long time they took to reach full power, especially on takeoff.

To compensate for this, Boeing adopted several versions of detachable rocket boosters, which became known as jet-assisted takeoff. to Boeing's legendary piston-engine bombers the success of strategic pressure was to keep Boeing in good standing with the air force for years to come The medium bomber project gave Boeing an advantage in the new fight to develop a new long-range heavy bomber to replace the B-36 Peacemaker, an aircraft that was clearly at the end of its career in an attempt to keep the Peacemaker project alive. produced an all-jet swept-wing version with the model number xB 60; However, the modernization of an aircraft originally designed in World War II did not impress the air force, as already in 1946 Bowling had been commissioned to develop a replacement for the peacekeeper.

Hundreds of different concepts were explored, from aircraft with ultra-large piston engines to those using supercharged composite power plants and others with turboprop jet engines driving propellers, but nothing provided the dramatic increase in performance over the B-36 that the Air Force was searching when the efficiency of the B-47's swept wing became evident. Boeing proposed another all-jet design based loosely on its medium bomber, but much larger. This idea was refined in the Model 464 - 67 and was eventually accepted by the Air Force as the B-52. In October 1948 an order was placed for two prototypes, the x and y models, but due to minor problems with the ex model, the y b-52 was ready here first.

The B-52 is undergoing testing at Edwards Air Force Base. Its general form and its hunting. The canopy was similar to that of the B-47, but its size and performance were much larger. The B-52 also had many updated features, such as fully steerable landing gear that adjusted to face forward when landing, even when the plane moved to the side. This feature was top secret for several years, apart from the cockpit layout, which was changed to a conventional airliner layout, there was very little external difference between the prototypes and the B-52s that went into production, work began in earnest.

On the B-52A, now called the Stratofortress, only three B-52A models were built, but the beam up, which was identical to the 52A except for minor improvements, went into full production. Increasing range was always the primary goal for the benefit in refueled flight that had been perfected in the late 1940s by Boeing's flying boom men had solved many problems; However, in the early days of the B-52 project, in-flight refueling was complicated at best, the first tanker aircraft were powered by piston engines with a maximum speed little higher than the stall speed of jet bombers here the Wai model negotiates the delicate test of tanker refueling was obviously preferable and safer only with the arrival of the kc-135 Stratotanker but aerial refueling became relatively safe and practical Another method of increasing range was the adoption of extra-large external wing tanks like this example, which can hold 3,000 gallons and can be jettisoned in a combat situation in March 1954.

The B-52s were coming off the production line in Boeing and the

planes

then entered into an induction program or aircrew and

planes

. merged into a fighting machine within the elegant shape, the six-man crews learned the methods of the Stratofortress after the B-36, they found the Boeing bomber to be much narrower. Every available centimeter had been dedicated to fuel payload and electronics, where the peacekeeper had no less than six weapons positions, the B-52 only had one, the plane was confident in its performance and the new science of radar jamming for its self-defense the Strategic Air Command had to have the best bomber in the world the b-52 is a

great

plane because I like to fly It was fun to play flying, one of the most challenging things was refueling, you get a plane that big, you know, five hundred thousand pounds behind a tanker truck that weighs 350 thousand pounds and you have to transfer 120 thousand pounds of fuel, that's part of it. of things that could make it a

great

airplane if you can go and go and go.

I never got to fly it, but they used to fly 24-hour missions and the B-52s would just refuel, so I guess what makes a great piece of work is a great airplane. where all the crews have flown it for so many years, you know, my father was too old to fly. I'm one of the youngest people to fly it, but I'm probably 25 years older than flying it in its planes 10 years ago. name now back In the wings of the Discovery Channel, the Strategic Air Command demanded the same demands from its crews as its new B-52 bombers.

The crew members were trained into an elite corps of professionals who formed a team equal to the new and sophisticated aircraft that The Stratofortress flew for over ten years and its crew had the primary responsibility of transporting and delivering the bomb. thermal nuclear hydrogen, but if the bomb was to be carried as a deterrent, it had to be tested to demonstrate its potential during the 1950s. The hydrogen bombs were detonated in the remote Pacific region the last tests like many before them used B- 52 to deliver the deadly payload to these men loading the most destructive device ever conceived by the human mind is a matter of precision and routine a specialist transporting justice for the highly trained members of the Strategic Air Command Team each card has a yield of 100 megatons 100 times larger than the bombs dropped on Japan, unlike the weapons of World War II, the device carried in Bombay will be slowed in its launches from the B-52 by a parachute that will allow the bomber more time to leave the area before the catastrophic explosion for fear of a Soviet atomic attack.

The United States installed an elaborate series of early detection facilities during the Cold War years. Early warning systems were based primarily in the frozen north, the most likely route of a first strike radar. Observers constantly monitored scanners that probed the sky for the signal that could signal the start of World War III. . The Strategic Air Command had fleets of B-52s on operational standby in a constant state of alert ready to act as the last deterrent if needed when the red phone rang the procedure was automatic up to 100 Stratofortress could be sent in a few minutes the routine was honed through regular exercise the concept of an instant retaliatory strike through sacrifice was considered the nation's best defense during the Cold War For years, the business of nuclear deterrence was entrusted only to carefully selected officers.

All nuclear-armed B-52 pilots held at least the rank of major. They had the great responsibility of commanding planes that could change or even end thelife on Earth, but in the same way that airplanes replaced airplanes. piston engines, so the B-52 and its high-flying Soviet counterparts were replaced by a new efficient and very deadly technology that was born in Nazi Germany in the early 1960s. Surface-to-air missiles had been perfected by The United States and the Soviets had reached the point where it would be difficult to achieve a massive nuclear bombardment by aircraft, the emphasis had shifted to another form of delivery: intercontinental ballistic missiles, years of development had produced the Polaris and Minuteman missiles, among others. forms of rockets, which meant that manned flights over enemy airspace were no longer necessary to fight a full-scale nuclear war, but the fortresses on both sides of Sachs remained in service, they still had an important role that play in the dangerous game of nuclear brinkmanship, since the problem with ICBMs was that once launched, they could not be recalled, this was denied by politicians.

The traditional tactic of saber rattling and further increased the risk of international conflict. The B-52 used in conjunction with gun dog standoff bombs provided a flexible alternative. The B-52 could advance to the very edge of enemy airspace, indicating US readiness to attack, but still allowing time for last-minute negotiations, the B-52's effectiveness was further increased by the development of the quail decoy which confused enemy radar by mimicking the Stratofortress radio signal. Further development after the Hound produced the SRAM missile, small and capable of being carried in In larger numbers, the SRAM could be guided from inside the B-52 towards targets up to 100 miles away with precision. devastating.

In 1965, the B-52 was first used in Vietnam. It now carried conventional bombs instead of nuclear warheads, but was still a deadly weapon. The wing struts now carried 24 500-pound iron bombs. The internal bomb load raised the total payload of each aircraft to a total bomb load of 500 pounds. 108 During the course of the Stratofortress's involvement in Southeast Asia the B-52s dropped more than three million tons of bombs, although the use of high-flying bombers was controversial at the time, there is little doubt that the Stratofortress was Very effective when used for conventional bombing, many historians argue that the intense bombing of North Vietnam during linebacker operations pushed the enemy back to the negotiating table and eventually resulted in a ceasefire during other Vietnam operations.

More sophisticated bombs were dropped, some could be detonated later by personnel, other aircraft using infrared viewing equipment to coincide with an explosion with enemy activity. Standard 500- and 750-pound iron bombs like these were used on most B-52 raids to facilitate quick loading and changing. The internal load of bombs was contained in pre-arranged racks so that they could be installed in the shortest possible time. Initially based in Guam they prepare for the long 8 hour flight to their distant target, the crew in the main office and the lone rear gunner assume their positions as each aircraft prepares for takeoff.

Well the main role would be 52 in Vietnam, it was basically a tactical bombing raid. of enemy troop concentrations, but it really started, we used to cut roads in early '67, we did a lot of missions to intercept trucks and supplies, but mainly we were cutting roads to support them so that the tactical forces could carry out the attacks later and around Khe. Sanh, we were actually breaking up enemy troop train formations and we were very successful as they had to concentrate their forces. We were more successful with what the role would be of actually wielding massive air power, our defense posture provides the umbrella under which all competition flourishes in this capitalist society, so the B-52, because of its tremendous design, lasted a long time. time and because of the philosophy and sometimes the tendency to forget history that we seem to make in this country, it has also lasted a long time. had to do so during the long years of the Vietnam War knows that the art was drawn on more than a few B-52s, although the art was tamer than its World War II counterpart the missions performed or no less dangerous the B-52 crews had to face the enemy's fast, agile MiG anti-aircraft guns and, worst of all, deadly surface-to-air missiles.

Regardless, they had missions to perform and, like all soldiers, they flew regardless of opposition; after one raid, ground crews hastily repaired the bullet-riddled fuselages of the returning

stratofortress

. They were preparing them for the next mission, sometimes the hits were uncomfortably close despite the low fuel takeoff policy, the sheer weight of the bomb load put tremendous strain on the engines, which needed maintenance regularly and often the replacement mix was kept at bay and sometimes shot down from the rear. The gunners who at their lone outposts employed a four-gun array remotely controlled by radar with devastating firepower, the tail gunners' position was eliminated with a rival of the B-52 G and H models.

All B-52 G and H models are equipped with electric vehicles. Electronic visual systems that allow the pilot and other crew members to see what is in front of the aircraft even in darkness and fog through infrared television cameras and a monitor. This development came just in time, as the B-52's role has changed to that of a low-level tactical bomber. Today, a Stratofortress may have to fly blindly through atomic clouds with the B-52 protected by curtains. Radiation-proof, electric vehicles are the cruiser's only visual link to the outside world, but although the mission has changed, the red phones and flashing lights are still, the bell's seconds coin rings in the exercise or in the war bags, an impressive deterrent force comes into action, the first thing a general in charge of operations will do is abandon his land base for the security and mobility of an air command.

The moment the alert is given, the aircrews rush to their planes, which are always on standby for instant action, but the general is in the air and the B-52s are very close, just in the air security the sexual deterrent force can survive an attack and at the same time be on the way to give a response high speed takeoff is a prerequisite for survival in this exercise the prospect of a nuclear flash is foreseen and the curtains of radiation resistance are in place now the crew depends totally on the EDS and other electronic games they do not dare to look out of the cockpit flying low over the ground each pilot waits for his orders this time the b-52s are called back but everyone Those involved know they have the ability to enter enemy territory if necessary.

The exercise is over and the general is happy. After almost 40 years of service, the B-52 still performs its mission well, but the plane is clearly approaching the end of its life. its useful life. We went there to Arclight, which was six months straight and I did it. I did it five or six times, I don't remember, but the thing is, you live with these people, you live with them, you sleep with them, you eat with them, they become brothers, so you trust them with your life, she literally did it because If it's a neewollah he said break right or turn left you didn't ask why you just did it that means turn a plane left or right because there was a threat on the way he just did it you knew everything was coming at you saying I was on the plane with you and vice versa, you never doubted the other because they were experts in their position and that's what teamwork was all about.

She learned to respect the other guys in position and how well they positioned the B-52. She is getting older, it is necessary to follow it. in bomber and I think the b-1 is probably that type of aircraft, the next question evolves is whether we need to be two. I don't know, it's a very expensive plane. Almost as soon as the first B-52 rolled off the assembly line, the Strategic Air Command was looking for a replacement. First came the ill-fated xb-70, an advanced design that was considered obsolete by surface-to-air missile technology. More recently, the swing-wing B-1 bomber developed by Rockwell International, the B1, appeared. provided a combination of high wing-back speed and altitude and more economical low-level flight with wings forward;

However, the cost of deploying large numbers of Bs was not acceptable to the Carter Administration and the project was shelved during the 1970s in In the 1980s, the revamped B1 entered production, not in the high-altitude role but as a low level bomber. The Strategic Air Command has deployed approximately 100 b1 bees. The plane is expensive, but the b1 B matches the overall performance and value for money. While its predecessor, the B-52, so clearly got its money's worth after three decades of service during a period of unprecedented technological advances, the B-52 remains a weapon of incredible power and effectiveness, it will be very difficult to follow.