B-52: Powerful, Deadly - Page 1

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Posted: 10/7/2011 6:30:01 AM EDT

http://www.history.com/videos/b-52-powerful-deadly?cmpid=PaidMedia_Outbrain_HIS_TOPICVID&utm_source=his&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=general#b-52-powerful-deadly

Posted: 10/7/2011 6:32:40 AM EDT

[#1]

Big ugly fat fellow?

ETA: Great video.

Posted: 10/7/2011 6:50:28 AM EDT

[#2]

One of the most ominous looking aircraft to ever fly and to keep flying for nearly 60 years is amazing.

Posted: 10/7/2011 6:55:26 AM EDT

[#3]

C'mon!! B-52 pic thread!!

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:05:19 AM EDT

[#4]

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:06:46 AM EDT

[#5]

Quoted:
http://www.visualjokes.com/pics/binarm.jpg

Out Fxxking standing

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:08:48 AM EDT

[#6]

"Goldie, how many times have I told you guys that I don't want no horsing around on the airplane?"

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:11:00 AM EDT

[#7]

Classic D-model, natural metal over Insignia White. Beautiful. Bonus points for four wing-mounted nukes.

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:12:22 AM EDT

[#8]

Incredible airplane. Loaded with a rotary SRAM launchers (think of it like a revolver cylinder loaded with nuclear missiles), the B52 would literally blast its way through Soviet airspace to deliver the goods.

I'll never forget being with my parents driving through AZ (IIRC) in the early '80, and we observed a section of two B52s flying at 500' and below. They crossed the highway right in front of us and it was an awesome sight.

While I was in college, got to talking to a fellow that was a former USAF crew chief for B52s. I asked him if he ever rode in one as the CC. He said the B52 had been upgraded so many times with new electronics there wasn't much room for the CCs if they wanted to hop along.

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:12:35 AM EDT

[#9]

A Lovely aircraft, but will probably need to be reengined or replaced soon.

Really theres no reason why we couldn't use a 777 derivitave as a bomb truck.

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:13:43 AM EDT

[#10]

Quoted:
Classic D-model, natural metal over Insignia White. Beautiful. Bonus points for four wing-mounted nukes.

http://www.ar15.com/media/viewFile.html?i=33644

Skybolt

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:14:47 AM EDT

[#11]

Quoted:
Classic D-model, natural metal over Insignia White. Beautiful. Bonus points for four wing-mounted nukes.

http://www.ar15.com/media/viewFile.html?i=33644

Skybolt

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:15:59 AM EDT

[#12]

Quoted:
One of the most ominous looking aircraft to ever fly and to keep flying for nearly 60 years is amazing.

http://www.aerospaceweb.org/aircraft/bomber/b52/b52_04.jpg

and may buff fly for another 60.

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:16:06 AM EDT

[#13]

Quoted:
Classic D-model, natural metal over Insignia White. Beautiful. Bonus points for four wing-mounted nukes.

http://www.ar15.com/media/viewFile.html?i=33644

Look at the way the wings flex under a load while in flight (contrast this with one sitting on the tarmac). What I find amazing is that the wing spars don't crack with all that flexing over time. The engineers at Boeing were at the top of their form.

Not bad for a strategic bomber designed over a weekend in a hotel room.

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:17:08 AM EDT

[#14]

Great timing for this post.... I just finished reading Flight of the Old Dog.

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:18:09 AM EDT

[#15]

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:20:16 AM EDT

[#16]

The old SAC B-52s are some of the best-looking planes to ever fly.

Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:20:44 AM EDT

[#17]

Quoted:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v70/ZakkWylde470/3d820df0.jpg

The old SAC B-52s are some of the best-looking planes to ever fly.

Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile

Hounddog

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:21:12 AM EDT

[#18]

Quoted:
A Lovely aircraft, but will probably need to be reengined or replaced soon.

Really theres no reason why we couldn't use a 777 derivitave as a bomb truck.

shut your whore mouth!

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:22:57 AM EDT

[#19]

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:23:17 AM EDT

[#20]

Quoted:

Quoted:

Classic D-model, natural metal over Insignia White. Beautiful. Bonus points for four wing-mounted nukes.

http://www.ar15.com/media/viewFile.html?i=33644

Skybolt

That's right. That makes this a B-52H. Good catch.

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:25:15 AM EDT

[#21]

I always loved the stratojet cockpit of the YB. Probably wouldn't have been as comfortable on long flights though.

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:27:03 AM EDT

[#22]

Quoted:

Quoted:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v70/ZakkWylde470/3d820df0.jpg

The old SAC B-52s are some of the best-looking planes to ever fly.

Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile

Hounddog Dodge Power Wagon Crew-Cab

FIFY

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:29:01 AM EDT

[#23]

Quoted:

I always loved the stratojet cockpit of the YB. Probably wouldn't have been as comfortable on long flights though.

http://galerie.valka.cz/data/943/medium/Boeing_YB-52_P12755_19520415_03.jpg

Very sexy. Curtis E. LeMay hated it. That was that.

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:33:10 AM EDT

[#24]

Too bad Dave-A isn't here to tell us about all of the B-52's shortcomings.

Posted: 10/7/2011 7:36:26 AM EDT

[#25]

Quoted:

Too bad Dave-A isn't here to tell us about all of the B-52's shortcomings.

I'm here. It's old. There's probably a reason the airlines aren't using airplanes built in the 50s anymore.

Posted: 10/7/2011 8:19:13 AM EDT

[#26]

Quoted:
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c83/goodnbuzzd/DSC00001-1.jpg
http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c83/goodnbuzzd/DSC00003.jpg

BUFF from Minot AFB, ND. I LOVE those planes, still kicking ass after 60 years!!

Posted: 10/7/2011 8:25:53 AM EDT

[#27]

I'll just leave this here!!!!!!

They used to fly over us out on Lake Huron coming from Wurtsmith AFB. in Oscoda, MI. Quite a sight and sound!

Posted: 10/7/2011 8:26:46 AM EDT

[#28]

Posted: 10/7/2011 8:31:23 AM EDT

[#29]

Potential operational lifespan of 90 years!!! Someday, a B52 pilot could say, "my great- great-grandfather used to fly this very aircraft."

Posted: 10/7/2011 8:33:54 AM EDT

[#30]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Too bad Dave-A isn't here to tell us about all of the B-52's shortcomings.

I'm here. It's old. There's probably a reason the airlines aren't using airplanes built in the 50s anymore.

I love this argument, "it's old". Do you have any idea how old our tanker fleet (KC-135) is? Do you know when the oldest of the B-52H models (the only model left in service) was built? C-130's? C-5's? T-38's?

Posted: 10/7/2011 8:34:24 AM EDT

[#31]

They used to fly out of KI Sawyer in the UP years ago.

I thought that the big plane was defying gravity, so slow on turns, I expected them to just fall out of the sky.

Posted: 10/7/2011 8:39:48 AM EDT

[#32]

B-52: Great airplane, or greatest airplane?

Quoted:

Potential operational lifespan of 90 years!!! Someday, a B52 pilot could say, "my great- great-grandfather used to fly this very aircraft."

There's one case of three generations of men on the same jet.

Posted: 10/7/2011 8:41:50 AM EDT

[#33]

Have you ever heard of fluoridation?

Posted: 10/7/2011 8:50:28 AM EDT

[#34]

It's an older video, and a tragedy, but it's still very impressive how manuverable they are, the turn before the crash it looks like he's banked about 60 degrees cutting a pretty tight turn.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E21byPXR1ek

Posted: 10/7/2011 8:50:53 AM EDT

[#35]

Sick

Posted: 10/7/2011 8:51:27 AM EDT

[#36]

Video of G models taking off and landing at Castle AFB in the early 1990s:

Posted: 10/7/2011 8:59:33 AM EDT

[#37]

Living near Barksdale AFB all my life, it's gotten to be old hat for me. My old house was in the traffic pattern so they were always flying overhead. Now I'm outside the pattern so I still see them nearly every day but they don't fly straight over my house.

Posted: 10/7/2011 9:06:07 AM EDT

[#38]

Quoted:
Have you ever heard of fluoridation?

Nuculer combat toe to toe with the russkies!

Posted: 10/7/2011 9:07:01 AM EDT

[#39]

Quoted:
A Lovely aircraft, but will probably need to be reengined or replaced soon.

Really theres no reason why we couldn't use a 777 derivitave as a bomb truck.

You're right, there's no reason, but there are thousands upon thousands of reasons that make that close enough to impossible. If you want to drop little bitty bombs out of vertical racks, I suppose something could be cobbled up. But if you want a big 'ol bomb bay with doors, a new fuselage is required. Plus everything else before the project was flying.

Quoted:
Too bad Dave-A isn't here to tell us about all of the B-52's shortcomings.

We have someone else for that role.

Posted: 10/7/2011 9:07:19 AM EDT

[#40]

Quoted:
Video of G models taking off and landing at Castle AFB in the early 1990s:

http://youtu.be/P76fEoUOjsU

I lived right under the approach to CAFB during this time.

Posted: 10/7/2011 9:11:00 AM EDT

[#41]

B52's are just a beautiful sight to behold, timeless, graceful and awesome!

Posted: 10/7/2011 9:12:36 AM EDT

[#42]

Quoted:

Have you ever heard of fluoridation?

You mean the international communist conspiracy to sap and impurify all of our precious bodily fluids?

Yes, I have.

Posted: 10/7/2011 9:13:11 AM EDT

[#43]

A dozen or so above Afg.lowering their payload would be good...

Posted: 10/7/2011 9:14:07 AM EDT

[#44]

Quoted:

Quoted:
A Lovely aircraft, but will probably need to be reengined or replaced soon.

Really theres no reason why we couldn't use a 777 derivitave as a bomb truck.

You're right, there's no reason, but there are thousands upon thousands of reasons that make that close enough to impossible. If you want to drop little bitty bombs out of vertical racks, I suppose something could be cobbled up. But if you want a big 'ol bomb bay with doors, a new fuselage is required. Plus everything else before the project was flying.

Jimmy Carter also had the dumb idea of making a bomb truck out of a 747. That would make every 747 a potential threat to our enemies, not a good idea.

Posted: 10/7/2011 9:19:21 AM EDT

[#45]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Classic D-model, natural metal over Insignia White. Beautiful. Bonus points for four wing-mounted nukes.

http://www.ar15.com/media/viewFile.html?i=33644

Not bad for a strategic bomber designed over a weekend in a hotel room.

"Quick, somebody run to the hobby shop for some balsa wood! And find me a girl who can type!"

Posted: 10/7/2011 9:22:14 AM EDT

[#46]

Quoted:

Quoted:
A Lovely aircraft, but will probably need to be reengined or replaced soon.

Really theres no reason why we couldn't use a 777 derivitave as a bomb truck.

You're right, there's no reason, but there are thousands upon thousands of reasons that make that close enough to impossible. If you want to drop little bitty bombs out of vertical racks, I suppose something could be cobbled up. But if you want a big 'ol bomb bay with doors, a new fuselage is required. Plus everything else before the project was flying.

Jimmy Carter also had the dumb idea of making a bomb truck out of a 747. That would make every 747 a potential threat to our enemies, not a good idea.

The usefulness of the B-52 means that the configuration has merit, and so maybe we should be looking at replacements with two engines. But, they aren't sexy enough, so the next strike bomber will look more like a relative of the F-111 or B-1 than a M=0.8 airliner. Part of that will be driven by low observable configurations.

But for hauling big loads in airplanes with lots of range, there is no substitute for low span loading. An updated B-52 would have two motors and wings with leading edge and trailing edge devices that look similar to those on the 727. [Maybe the 787, I need to go pull up some drawings to find out exactly what they're using (in addition to the trailing edge variable camber).]

Here's an old presentation dated 2005 with a pretty neat summary of the 787 configuration and subsystems:

http://www.dibley.eu.com/documents/B787SystemsandPerf-GeorgeBeyle-31mar09.pdf

I did some digging around and found descriptions of the high lift devices. They're very simple, especially the trailing edge flaps, I expect to reduce weight.

Posted: 10/7/2011 9:22:40 AM EDT

[#47]

MITO

Posted: 10/7/2011 9:24:49 AM EDT

[#48]

Long time buddy of mine was at Khe Sanh. During the long fight the Marines called in CAS from B-52s to whack the Gomers who were extending their trench lines too damn close to the perimeter.

The Buffs dropped hundreds of bombs right on top of the BGs, literally blowing the trenches away and pockmarking the landscape. They were "Arc Light" missions. IIRC, the bombers each carried something like 100 bombs. The AF guys were damn accurate for once. They didn't kill any Marines but they destroyed entire regiments of NVA troops. My bud said that after the strikes, the survivors would stumble out of their holes and wander around, completely out of it from the concussion. Easy rifle targets for the Grunts.

Best bomber ever.

Posted: 10/7/2011 9:26:10 AM EDT

[#49]

Quoted:
It's an older video, and a tragedy, but it's still very impressive how manuverable they are, the turn before the crash it looks like he's banked about 60 degrees cutting a pretty tight turn.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E21byPXR1ek

It's impressive if you don't know that the plane was not meant to be flown like that and that the pilot at the controls was a complete bag of shit.