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By Forecast International /// The following is a snapshot of the B-52 program. For complete data and a forecast outlook, please view our Military Aircraft Forecast
.The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is a long-range, heavy strategic bomber capable of dropping or launching the widest
array of weapons in the U.S. inventory. The latest version of the aircraft, the B-52H, can carry as much as 70,000 pounds
of mixed ordnance and can be equipped with up to 20 air-launched cruise missiles.
For more than 50 years, the B-52 Stratofortress has been the backbone of the U.S. strategic bomber force.
Updated with modern technology, the B-52 will be capable of delivering the full complement of joint developed weapons
and will continue into the 21st century as an important element of U.S. defenses.
The B-52H is powered by eight Pratt & Whitney
TF33 turbofan engines, each delivering 17,000 pounds of thrust.
In September 2021, the Rolls-Royce F130 turbofan won the $2.6 billion Commercial Engine Replacement Program (CERP)
contract to re-engine the B-52 bomber fleet.
The F130 is a military derivative of the BR700 engine, which powers regional jets and corporate jets.
The Air Force plans to order 608 new engines for the fleet of 76 B-52H bombers.
The F130 engine is already flying on the C-37 transport and E-11 Battlefield Airborne Communications Node (BACN).
The B-52 is equipped with the AN/APQ-166 Strategic Radar system. The B-52 Strategic Radar Replacement (SR2) program
was supposed to replace the AN/APQ-166 (fielded in the 1960s), however, the SR2 program was terminated in FY 2013.
In 2019, Raytheon Technologies was selected to develop and produce an AESA radar for the B-52 Radar Modernization program.
Raytheon's B-52 radar will be based on AESA technologies from the AN/APG-79/-82 radar family.
All aircraft in the B-52 fleet will be upgraded with the new radar.
Some speculate that re-engined and radar upgraded B-52 aircraft will be redesignated as B-52J models.
In 2013, Lockheed Martin's Sniper Advanced Targeting Pod (ATP) achieved operational flight status on the B-52H.
The pod provides pilots with high-resolution imagery for precision targeting and non-traditional ISR missions.
Also, Northrop Grumman's AN/AAQ-28(V) LITENING targeting pod is operational on the B-52.
Apart from performing strategic bombing missions, the B-52 is also effective when used for ocean surveillance,
where the aircraft can assist the U.S. Navy in anti-ship and mine-laying operations.
In just two hours, two B-52s can monitor 140,000 square miles of ocean surface.
A total of 744 B-52s were built (of which 102 were B-52H models) with the last aircraft delivered in October 1962.
Only the B-52H variant is still in the Air Force inventory. The Air Force presently maintains 76 B-52Hs in its inventory.
Engineering analyses predict the B-52's life span to extend beyond the year 2040.
The Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider was planned to be the replacement platform for the B-52,
however, the Air Force later decided to retain the Stratofortress due to its versatility, better maintenance record
and its cruise-missile-launching capability. Instead the B-2 Spirit will be retired along with the B-1B Lancer.
The B-52 carries a wide range of weaponry, including AGM-86B Air Launched Cruise Missiles (ALCMs) (both internally and externally). Among other types of ordnance, the aircraft can carry AGM-86C/D CALCM, Mk 62 500-pound sea mines; 500-pound Mk 82 or 2,000-pound Mk 84 General Purpose Bombs as well as CBU-87/89/97, CBU-103/104/105 Wind-Corrected Munitions Dispensers (WCMD), and Paveway II Laser Guided Bombs. The B-52 also carries GBU-31/38 Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM), AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles (JASSM), and AGM-154 Joint Stand-Off Weapons (JSOW). Future weapons that may/will be fielded on the B-52, include the AGM-181 Long-Range Standoff (LRSO) Weapon (will replace the AGM-86B (ALCM)), AGM-158B JASSM-ER and the massive GBU-57 30,000-pound Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP).
The B-52 Stratofortress is a long-range, heavy bomber able to perform a variety of missions. The B-52 is capable of flying at high subsonic speeds at altitudes up to 50,000 feet. It can carry nuclear or precision guided conventional ordnance with worldwide precision navigation capability.
This data is available in Forecast International's U.S. Defense Budget Forecast, a comprehensive analytical database containing historical and forecast budget figures, year-to-year funding comparisons, congressional budget markups, program justification documents, and much more.
Sources Used: U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), Forecast International,
The Boeing Company, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon Technologies,
and Rolls-Royce.
Military Aircraft Forecast: |
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Complete and detailed information, including production forecast data, is provided in our Market Intelligence Service: Military Aircraft Forecast. |
Forecast International Budget Data: |
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With Forecast International's U.S. Defense Budget Forecast, you not only get the latest program news, the DoD funding, worldwide inventories and planned quantities, long range forecasts, but most important – an expert's rationale for all programs and the overall market. |
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