New Image Shows How B-52 Will Look After Engine, Radar Replacement

[Hamartia Antidote]

New Image Shows How B-52 Will Look After Engine, Radar Replacement | Air & Space Forces Magazine

A new image from Boeing shows how the B-52H will look after a series of modifications, rendered from a digital system prototyping model.

www.airandspaceforces.com

 

[cloud4000]

Looking forward to seeing the first aircraft to get the update. The updated cockpit is much needed with the inclusion of digital screens which should help reduce fatigue for the flight crew.

 

[SabzShaheen]

My favourite aircraft

 

[khansaheeb]

More like an old Buffalo, out of its prime but still dangerous :-

 

[nahtanbob]

 

[khansaheeb]

What use did that achieve in Vietnam and Afghanistan?

 

[Oldman1]

Too bad it couldn't be a B-52 with 4 engines. But its understandable with many changes to the wings and pylons to make that possible.

@gambit

Imagine if they did major modifications besides just avionics and engines.

 

[gambit]

What use did that achieve in Vietnam and Afghanistan?

Nothing. The jet is worthless. Pay no mind to it. Go back to your biplane.

 

[FuturePAF]

Too bad it couldn't be a B-52 with 4 engines. But its understandable with many changes to the wings and pylons to make that possible.

@gambit

Imagine if they did major modifications besides just avionics and engines.

The last two pictures are probably from a mil-fiction writer Dale Brown, and the “EB-52” from 1987.

Megafortress - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

Hope they let old B-52 crews go through the new design to get their inputs. There is always something designers can miss that only those that spend hours operating in the plane can point out.

 

[A.P. Richelieu]

What use did that achieve in Vietnam and Afghanistan?

What is the difference between Dien Bien Phu and Khe Sanh?

 

[Bratva]

RIP in advance to the pilots of B-52 if boeing going to update the bombers.

 

[khansaheeb]

Nothing. The jet is worthless. Pay no mind to it. Go back to your biplane.

You can send that to some third world country and frighten them , any other country forces would laugh their heads off.

 

[nahtanbob]

You can send that to some third world country and frighten them , any other country forces would laugh their heads off.

It is the difference between a tough 1 million man Iraqi army and droves of surrendering Iraqi soldiers

 

[Bilal9]

The last two pictures are probably from a mil-fiction writer Dale Brown, and the “EB-52” from 1987.

Megafortress - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

Hope they let old B-52 crews go through the new design to get their inputs. There is always something designers can miss that only those that spend hours operating in the plane can point out.

I always thought that the re-vamp would come with four larger engines in lieu of the eight double-podded TF-33's.

Like the reliable commercial engines such as PW2000's used on the C17 which the USAF has plenty of experience maintaining and that are/were used on medium sized passenger jets like B757's (military designation C-32 and used by the VP as "Air Force Two").

Two TF-33's in a pod in the B52 "H" variant have a combined thrust of 76+76 = 152 KiloNewtons. The PW2000's have a thrust of 170~190 KN. Which are ideal IMHO.

Eight engines are no cheaper and certainly more to stock parts/maintenance wise than four engines. Who knows why they chose eight again.

But transporting smaller engines on cargo jets en masse is probably easier as replacements.

 

[dbc]

You can send that to some third world country and frighten them , any other country forces would laugh their heads off.

sure if you are ignorant of modern air warfare. The B-52 isn't just a Vietnam era carpet bomber anymore. It can strike at stand off range with its massive payload of cruise or hypersonic missiles. It can also drop hundreds of smart stand off munitions , drones, autonomous MALD decoys and EMP missiles from a distance in relative safety.

so yeah laugh all you want but the payload carried by a squadron of B-52's can send a medium sized nation back to the stone age in a single sortie.