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Posted: 10/24/2017 7:37:06 PM EDT
In the MIG 29 thread, Zakk_Wylde_470 brought up the B-52 Stratofortress, and I thought the BUFF needed her own thread.
I love that plane. Do you guys think we'll ever re-engine them? Will the Raider have anywhere close to the payload? It's shrouded in secrecy, think we'll get a good product? Should we have built more B1s or B2s if you could go back in time? Think the B1A would've been the play? We discuss fighters a lot, but I find bombers really interesting. |
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A6 Intruder. Not a "bomber" but a carrier Worthy bomb truck!!!
Bring back the Intruder! |
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I love the B-52. When I was a kid we had a slew of them here where I live. (RAFB)
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They're just so ridiculous. I love them too. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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I love the B-52. When I was a kid we had a slew of them here where I live. (RAFB) I love them too. ![]() |
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Amazing how long of a service life we've gotten out of the B-52. It's seen successive fighters come and go like the F-104, F-4 and F-14 but the Buff flies forever.
![]() Ditto with ships. Warships have a limited useful lifespan. Auxiliaries like tankers, repair ships, tug and tenders have a longer service life. |
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Probably off-topic but it was upsetting watching the news years ago seeing our B-52's chopped into pieces. A shame.
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Amazing how long of a service life we've gotten out of the B-52. It's seen successive fighters come and go like the F-104, F-4 and F-14 but the Buff flies forever. ![]() Ditto with ships. Warships have a limited useful lifespan. Auxiliaries like tankers, repair ships, tug and tenders have a longer service life. View Quote Like the AR15. Upgraded, but the design is true and it still works great and keeps getting better. There was a thread on here with some MUCH bigger aviation buffs (no pun intended) than I, awhile back. I'm fully sold on the re-engine. |
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Not sure if we'll ever re-engine them
Boeing is proposing it and Gen Rand who is in charge of Air Force Global Strike Command is all about modernizing the plane. They're a neat old jet to work on every day, each individual plane has it's own unique quirks to it. I was a Dedicated Crew Chief on B-52H 60-0017 from 2011-2015. I also crewed 61-0034 and the very last one built 61-0040 while deployed to Guam. Now I work Quality Assurance on them. Flying on them is beyond cool as well, did that white a few times. I'll post pics later when I'm off work. |
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Love the look, aviation is cool as shit but I don't know shit other than they look purty
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Put an octet of those little regional-jet engines on and bring back the Big Belly modification
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![]() Boeing B-52 Re-engine: The Right Choice for the Air Force |
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Always thought these were damn cool too... https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Martin_B-57A_USAF_52-1418.jpg/1200px-Martin_B-57A_USAF_52-1418.jpg View Quote ![]() I think the B1 is the finest-looking bomber yet flown. |
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Not sure if we'll ever re-engine them Boeing is proposing it and Gen Rand who is in charge of Air Force Global Strike Command is all about modernizing the plane. They're a neat old jet to work on every day, each individual plane has it's own unique quirks to it. I was a Dedicated Crew Chief on B-52H 60-0017 from 2011-2015. I also crewed 61-0034 and the very last one built 61-0040 while deployed to Guam. Now I work Quality Assurance on them. Flying on them is beyond cool as well, did that white a few times. I'll post pics later when I'm off work. View Quote For example (another plane, same sentiment) a AF C5 pilot told me it was the easiest plane to fly... ever. I never would have guessed a giant behemoth would be easy to fly, but he said it was. I thought that was really interesting. |
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Always liked the Canberra. ![]() I think the B1 is the finest-looking bomber yet flown. View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Always thought these were damn cool too... https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Martin_B-57A_USAF_52-1418.jpg/1200px-Martin_B-57A_USAF_52-1418.jpg ![]() I think the B1 is the finest-looking bomber yet flown. |
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You guys think the B1A should've been developed?
Or was the B52 improvements + B2 + existing B1Bs sufficient? |
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Always thought these were damn cool too... https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ef/Martin_B-57A_USAF_52-1418.jpg/1200px-Martin_B-57A_USAF_52-1418.jpg View Quote NASA still flys three of them! |
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That’s awesome.
There’s a recon RB-47 here in our local Hill Airforce Base museum painted in black. So sexy. |
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I always loved the F111...sort of a bomber. ![]() https://www.AR15.Com/media/mediaFiles/180161/f111_load-343144.JPG https://www.AR15.Com/media/mediaFiles/180161/4afb53a024d292c9f27170e415b3f49c--military-aircraft-military-jets-343145.JPG View Quote |
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THE BIG DICK OF DEMOCRACY https://cdn.airplane-pictures.net/images/uploaded-images/2016/8/31/772894.jpg http://www.air-and-space.com/lmtas/lmtas%209-03082%20m.jpg https://fas.org/nuke/guide/usa/bomber/b-36-1949.jpg https://fas.org/nuke/guide/usa/bomber/b-36-DFSC8408873_JPG.jpg ![]() View Quote |
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I've had pre-assault fires by the Bone. Looked like fucking 'nam flying in there after that...
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The B-25 J2.
Pulling the happy switch on 14 AN/M2 .50 BMGs at once had to be a really intense experience. ![]() |
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Not sure if we'll ever re-engine them Boeing is proposing it and Gen Rand who is in charge of Air Force Global Strike Command is all about modernizing the plane. They're a neat old jet to work on every day, each individual plane has it's own unique quirks to it. I was a Dedicated Crew Chief on B-52H 60-0017 from 2011-2015. I also crewed 61-0034 and the very last one built 61-0040 while deployed to Guam. Now I work Quality Assurance on them. Flying on them is beyond cool as well, did that white a few times. I'll post pics later when I'm off work. View Quote |
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@Beamy, do the first two numbers indicate the year it was built? 60- and 61-? View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Not sure if we'll ever re-engine them Boeing is proposing it and Gen Rand who is in charge of Air Force Global Strike Command is all about modernizing the plane. They're a neat old jet to work on every day, each individual plane has it's own unique quirks to it. I was a Dedicated Crew Chief on B-52H 60-0017 from 2011-2015. I also crewed 61-0034 and the very last one built 61-0040 while deployed to Guam. Now I work Quality Assurance on them. Flying on them is beyond cool as well, did that white a few times. I'll post pics later when I'm off work. they usually came off the line at Boeing Wichita a year later 61-0040 for example rolled off the line in June 1962 and was delivered to the USAF in October 1962 |
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year the USAF ordered them they usually came off the line at Boeing Wichita a year later 61-0040 for example rolled off the line in June 1962 and was delivered to the USAF in October 1962 View Quote View All Quotes View All Quotes Quoted:
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Not sure if we'll ever re-engine them Boeing is proposing it and Gen Rand who is in charge of Air Force Global Strike Command is all about modernizing the plane. They're a neat old jet to work on every day, each individual plane has it's own unique quirks to it. I was a Dedicated Crew Chief on B-52H 60-0017 from 2011-2015. I also crewed 61-0034 and the very last one built 61-0040 while deployed to Guam. Now I work Quality Assurance on them. Flying on them is beyond cool as well, did that white a few times. I'll post pics later when I'm off work. they usually came off the line at Boeing Wichita a year later 61-0040 for example rolled off the line in June 1962 and was delivered to the USAF in October 1962 |
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Would be more cost effective to build 747's that can shit ALCM's... https://i.imgur.com/3akNAeX.png View Quote granted the H model BUFF can only carry 20 ALCMs and the G model could only carry 12 as opposed to the 747 as pictured that could carry 72.....yes 72 ALCMs, that's a chub worthy amount of canned sunshine all in one airplane ![]() |
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Beamy , my brother was a crew chief and a ecm guy at Fairchild many years ago.
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Beamy, I'm not in the know enough to judge costs and such.
But for 60s aircraft, what are we replacing? Wings? Or is the design that hearty it's mostly mechanical? |
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Beamy, I'm not in the know enough to judge costs and such. But for 60s aircraft, what are we replacing? Wings? Or is the design that hearty it's mostly mechanical? View Quote the current engine, the Pratt & Witney TF-33 is a first generation low bypass turbofan engine. It produces up to 17,000lbs of thrust. While that sounds like a lot, one of the engines on a 747 produces 50,000+ lbs of thrust. While the TF-33 is weak by modern standards its pretty damn reliable from a mechanical standpoint, however the design is essentially state of the art 1957 because it was actually based off of the older J57 Turbojet engine which was designed in the late 1940s. The newest TF-33 rolled off the line at P&W in the early 1980s, while all of the TF-33s in the BUFF fleet are early 1960s vintage. They've all been overhauled and rebuilt countless times in the ensuing 50+ years but they're getting old and certain parts can be hard to come by at times. Two of the biggest hurdles to re-engining the aircraft is ground clearance on the outboard engine pods and the fact that the aircraft hydraulic system is designed to be driven by 6 of the 8 engines. Of the 8 engines on the aircraft 6 of them drive pumps that provide pressure to the six main hydraulic systems. Unless you want to till keep the 8 engine design you'll have to re-design the bulk of the aircraft's hydraulic system and take into account the ground clearance on the outboard engine pods when you utilize a larger engine if you go with four larger engines instead of eight smaller engines. There are definitely pros and cons to re-engining the aircraft. Modern engines are easier to maintain and service and use less fuel, yet the cost and the amount of redesigning necessary to update the aircraft's engines could be cost-prohibitive. |
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Re-engining is boned. The CFM56 engine has roughly the same thrust as the JT3D's. Air up the struts and the tires, stay off rough surfaces, go slow. http://www.vaq34.com/junk/b52_jt9d.jpg View Quote |
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