I worked at the USAF depot where the B-52, B-1, E-3 and KC-135 were overhauled. The secret to aircraft like the B-52 and KC-135 having such longevity was the construction method. These aircraft were designed with slide rules plus 20 percent for structure components. Boeing also built the aircraft off a very thick ship-like lower keel. The B-52 and KC-135 will still be flying when the B-1, B-2 and KC-46 are parked at Davis-Monthan Air Force base. Back in the day Boeing really knew how to build very high quality aircraft.
@soonerlon It's a shame that you felt the need to add that final sentence. Without a doubt, Boeing has lost their way! Boeing needs engineers in their management positions. The bean counters just aren't getting the job done. They took down McDonnel-Douglas, and now they're taking down Boeing!
As a past USAF tech who worked on several different aircraft, including the B-52F, one of the features that let the B-52 outlast its "replacements" is that it is actually maintainable. One can get to the various parts to repair/replace instead of having to dismantle half the cockpit to replace one small part.
Very fitting this video is being published in the week of James Earl Jones' death as his first film role was as a B-52 bombardier in Dr Strangelove. And considering the production team were denied information about what a B-52 cockpit looked like, they built an uncannily accurate set.
Have an acquaintance who flew the B-52D for 25 years ('til his retirement). He is pushing 93 years of age today and while he has short term memory loss, his long-term memory is solid. The first time I met him, I asked him what it was like to fly the B-52. His reply? "Easy to drive, hard to park." We had a great conversation after that...from Operation Chrome Dome to Linebacker II in 'nam. A true hero to the Strategic Air Command's history.
I was a Marine grunt in the Vietnam War and witnessed several B-52 airstrikes. We never saw the planes and had no idea they were even up there until we saw the huge explosions in the distance, followed by the sound of the bombs falling and the subsequent detonations. We were also witness to the strikes at night when it seemed the whole countryside was lit up by blinding lights of the explosions.
Which also means the bomb aimers didn't have a clue about where their bombs were falling. Completely useless piece of junk proved by the fact that the US lost the war.
@@duster1968 I saw a similar B-52 strike up in the DMZ in July ‘67 on Operation Buffalo. It was a wall of explosions. From where I was located you could feel the ground vibrate from the explosions. In late November ‘67 we moved through an area that was east of Con Thien and south of the Trace where B-52s had made a strike. It was bomb crater after bomb crater. Just an incredible sight - nothing standing. Delta 1/3 Vietnam 66-67
"whole countryside was lit up" is euphemism for killing thousands of innocent women and children in an illegal war. At the bare minimum, let's not celebrate the horrendous Vietnam invasion.
Just imagine all this going down on civilian populations. And then they gave Kissenger the nobel prize for that, so disgusting. So many lives needlessly wasted.
I love the Star Trek meme that shows a B-52 with warp nacelles next to the Enterprise-D of the Star Trek: The Next Generation: "Captain's Log, Stardate 43125.8. In preparation for the decommissioning ceremony for the USS Enterprise NCC-1701D, we have the exceptional honor of being escorted by one of the newly re-engined Federation ships...the B-52X"
In the film Dr. Strangelove, they wanted to use one for filming, USAF said No. So using photos from magazines, the built an interior … the USAF wanted to know where they got the information from … books and magazines …
@@TommygunNG :: That is interesting. When I saw "Dr.Strangelove" for the third time I could see how difficult it was for the director to get the best relevant pictures of the flight of the bomber in the film, clearly fake, but the story worked - the visualization was telling a story, and that was an amazing story - the "fake plane" did not matter.
Now that would explain the corny B52 model flying across soviet terrain at a weird angle......very unrealistic scenes but EXCELENT and fun movie. RIP James Earl Jones.
I saw 689 at Duxford in 1987 when it was still kept outside. Holy cow that was a long time ago. Thanks for the video particularly answering why it is still flying.
That was my aircraft just before it was retired to Duxford. We sent it from Carswell AFB near Fort Worth, Texas in 1983 I think. If I'm not mistaken it was flown by Colonel Jim Nerger who made an impressive short field landing there. We saw the video back at Carswell. Colonel Nerger was a battle tested Vietnam veteran. He was the most highly respected bomber pilot at Carswell. The B-52D models only had about 15,000 hours on them. I recently worked on a much younger Boeing 757 with over 100,000 hours....and still going strong.
@@rael5469 I can confirm the landing (on the second go, mind you) was very impressive. I was 12 years old and watching from Hunts Road as it went directly overhead 500m short of the runway.
Not really the fuselage and wings are the same as when they were built. The wings were modified in the 1960's and they are finally in the process of getting new engines for the first time as well an updated cockpit, radar, comms and navigation for the first time in the J model upgrade designation.
I am a Vietnam Veteran stationed at U -Tapao Airfield, Thailand in 1968, as an aircraft mechanic on the B-52D model & KC-135A model. Proud to have done my small part in helping ground troops in South Vietnam.
I was stationed at Grand Forks during the early 70's, and when the '52's took off you could feel the vibration of those huge engines, even from across the base.
That's exactly it. If they were to make a new one what would it be? A multi-engine, supersized jumbo jet that carries a ton of bombs and drops them out the belly. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Honestly I think that's the kinda the case for most heavy military tech nowadays. Just think how long virtually all countries have used the same tank hulls, compared to how quickly the turnover rate was in WW2. Those designs are simply mature. The B52 won't be replaced by anything. At some point drones and ai will probably make the job it does unnescessary, but until then it's a good design.
@@tankerd1847 If it ain't broke AND YOU KNOW HOW IT *WILL* BREAK. I think people underestimate the value of knowledge of how and when things will break or develop problems in military equipment. But if you're trying to make plans, knowing how likely a specific piece of equipment is to be reliable and able to do the designated job has a lot of value. As does being able to repair it with what you can scrounge up at least to patch it up well enough to get to somewhere for proper repairs, instead of having to have all kinds of stuff transported to more forward locations.
I currently work at the Strategic Air Command and Aerospace Museum in Ashland, Nebraska, Home of B-52 52-8711, the first B-52 delivered to the Air Force.
I saw one of these planes about 40 tears ago while fishing the Youghiogheny River in western Pa. Heard it long before I saw it. Awesome sight. Always wondered why it was flying over Pittsburgh area so low. We are talking under a 1000 ft.
The Imperial War Museum at Duxford is special. The living flying exhibits are unique. The construction of the American Air Museum is a fitting tribute our shared sacrifice. During my 4 year service at RAF Mildenhall, I lived in a tiny village just 20 miles from Duxford...LOVED when the Spitfires would fly over my garden during the summer airshow!
Enjoyed a magical visit there in 1995, you could actually buy from the souvenir shop flight instruments scrapped from old fighters. Still looking forward to a return visit w my boys someday
Hardly... it will rather be: "August 19, 2276: in honor of the nation's 150000th gender discovery anniversary, the B-52LGBT performs a flyover of the capital of the US State of Wokeland welcoming Trans Flag Day..."!
very proud to have served as USAF ground crew on B52 in the mid 80s - so many stories, but my fave? me and dad brother sitting around drinking a few years ago - dad (ex-T37 pilot, one engine) griping about how loud the Tweet was, brother (ex-F15 engine specialist) tells him, "that's just one little engine, we had two big ones on the Eagle" - i looked over my glass at them & said, "you two are just adorable..."
Story that has many variations: B52 is cruising along and an F4 comes by to say hello. The F4 proceeds to do a loop over and around the B52. F4 pilot radios saying: Bet you can't do that. Buff comes on: Bet you can't do that. F4: What did you do? Buff: Shut off 2. 😁
LOL, with EIGHT jet engines in close proximity, each capable of over 10k pounds of thrust, I can imagine the racket they'd cause. You'd need a squadron or two of fighter jets to match the noise …WITH the afterburners on! 😅😉😁
@@gordonbergslien30 as i said, we were drinking - i must have heard something incorrectly thru the alcohol clogging my ears - thanks for pointing that out
My dad had hoped for a B52 after graduating flight school, but got the KC-135 (and later, KC-10). After having a chance to take a right-seat flight in a 52, he was VERY happy with the assignment he had gotten. Sure, tankers aren't as sexy, but they're a hell of a lot more comfortable to fly :) Mad props to those BUFF drivers, for sure!
Flew in the B-52 for five years as an EWO on B-52Gs out of Mather AFB, CA in the early 80s. She is very well informed. I’ll expand on the crew comforts. B-52G (I believe the H models, also) did not have a bunk. The toilet was a box with a hole and a plastic bag. You did your #2, and the bag was placed it in the wheel well. As for doing a #1, the aircraft had what is referred to as “torpedoes”. Cylinders with a flip lid. The only place on the aircraft you could stand straight up is on the ladder between decks. The AC was so bad in the B-52 that I literally had snow coming from the upper AC vent and at the same time so hot at my feet the shoe polish became soft. The navigator carried a thermometer and would often relay that the temperatures were either 110 degrees or at 40 degrees at his station. Needless to say it wasn’t always pleasant. But, I loved the mission and being a member of SAC.
The B-52 is the last of the great heavy bombers. A truly remarkable aircraft that its original designers would have never imagined would still be flying another 25 years from now.
My father got called up on xmas eve for Linebacker 2. It was going to be the first Christmas home since I was born. The crew he flew out with from Texas to Guam was shot down, his crew made it back in one piece. My Dad was also on Operation Chrome dome. He had 350 combat missions when he finally moved on to NSA.
Once a year, B-52s were dispersed to our local USAF base in Ventura County, CA. No one ever failed to notice the noise and smoke when they took off to return to their home base.
When I worked on them as a USAF crew chief, I knew then that these would be flying for many years to come. They were just so solidly built. But it's also the MANY hours of work that we did and do on them. If they were anything commercial they would've been retired by now as they wouldn't put in the work to do so. It's a very weird aircraft as well. There's nothing weirder in flight than watching a B-52 crabbing while landing. Between the B-52 and the KC-135 (which is the original American jet the 707) they'll still be flying for years more. Boeing back then was run by engineers, not like now when they're run by accountants and lawyers who know NOTHING about aeronautics. Most of the aircraft in your video I worked on. Certified on 16 and did basic work on others. including that nice f-15 and a-10 in the background.
One of my WW2-era uncles started in the Army Air Corp in India servicing machine guns among other things. He ended his career in the late 60s at the K.I. Sawyer Air Base servicing nuclear weapons for BUFFs. Or as I phrase it, when Michigan's U.P. was a recognized nuclear power.
Before the Air Force Museum was built, the B52 was kept outside. I remember standing under the wings, trying to stay dry during a very wet air show! Duxford is a great place to visit!
This old girl is half a century old She flies right up where the air is cold You bet it's gonna be tough if you're underneath a Buff And may god have mercy on your soul She sits there in the dark and all alone I just hope they never ring that phone 'Cause if they do she'll puke six or seven great big nukes In the back yard of someone else's home She hauls a hundred plus Mark 82s And when she flies I mind my Ps and Qs They've flown that big ass bongo from Minot to the Congo Routine for a B-52 She flew the Arc Lights over Vietnam She did it all for her Uncle Sam She heard them weep and wail up and down the Ho Chi trail About those bastards she don't give a damn They sent for her in 1991 She told herself "Now this is gonna be fun" They called it Desert Storm and she made it mighty warm For them SOBs beneath the desert sun Bin Laden and the Al Qaeda too Would find out what the mighty Buff can do She beat the Taliban all around Afghanistan Until their bloody ass was black and blue She's been around since Jesus was a boy No place in this world she can't destroy She's Johnny on the spot when everything gets hot I thank the folks at Boeing for this toy
I had a job that had me on the road constantly in the Central Valley back in the '70s when Castle AFB was still in operation. Occasionally I would park at the north end of the base perimeter and watch new B52 pilots try to get lined up with the runway threshold that was still a couple miles away. You could tell which ones had the knack and which ones didn't. A lot initiated the go around just after passing over where I was parked. I never saw one close up until I visited the Air Force Academy. The fuselage was way smaller than I expected, but the wingspan...yeah pretty impressive.
As bombers shift more and more to being missile trucks, and the next generation of them focuses more and more on stealth, there will still be a place for something that can circle around for a long time, very much visible on radar, and carrying enough explosives aboard to make your military installations resemble the -average Glasgow road- moon it'll have so many -potholes- craters. Stealth does trade some capacity to get the right shapes and sizes for maximum sneak points (B-2 and probably B-21 have about 2/3rds the bomb bay capacity), and of course, you might also be wanting stealth cruise missiles to be even more ninja. And yet sometimes all you really need is a really big hammer. A really big hammer that might also be firing some stealth cruise missiles as well as raining down some other very unwelcome presents....
Because the B-52 is such a HUGE radar target, MY JOB in the USAF was keeping the ECM systems running. Without ECM, No B-52 would make it to the target. Yet our planes in the early 80s at Barksdale AFB won exercises often and we were the crown jewel of SAC. At that time they were the G models. TurboJet engines that needed water injection to get a fully loaded plane off the ground, leaving a huge back cloud of smoke behind. But ECM could wipe out a radar site, or show the plane as being somewhere it was not, or give many false targets to the enemy.
Plus the B-52 is relatively very cheap to operate. I imagine even the B-21 will have a higher cost per hour of operation, especially after the B-52s get the new engines and all of those maintenance costs essentially disappear, and the fuel costs go way down (and less air refueling required). The BUFF can't go very far into contested airspace, but as a stand off platform and in areas with air superiority maintained, it's just a great truck.
Saw it in '88 as an Air Cadet during our summer camp at RAE Bedford, jaw dropping to say the least. Concord was there too - know which one I'd rather have been able to fly in, leg room on Concord was terrible.
I was a Cadet in Civil Air Patrol in the 60s Every year we'd have a two-week encampment/Air Force orientation encouraging us to join the US Air Force. As part of our activities, we got a tour of B-52 climbed up inside, and sat in the pilot and co-pilot seats. I had made it through the line to where I think I was the second person in line to sit in the pilot or copilot seat. As I was waiting for my turn an Air Force Master sergeant Was literally in a panic clawing his way through the cadets. I thought what was the issue the injection seats were armed and all the Cadet had to do was throw the wrong switch needless to say I didn't get to sit in the pilot seat. but I did get to fly a simulator. thanks to the good sergeant no Cadet was splattered against the hanger ceiling. My older brother was in the Air Force at the time stationed at Loring Air Force Base he worked on the Hound Dog missile, the precursor to the cruise missile on guidance system.
The reason for the losses at Christmas during Linebacker II was because the crews were ordered to turn at an angle which greatly reduced the effects of the aircrafts missile jammers. Before they flew these missions the crews warn that this would cause those losses but were told to do it anyway. Once the losses started to build they were told not to turn so tightly.
But to answer the title question: It has fixed wings and does not have the expensive & complicated maintenance requirements of both swing wings aircraft and the modern stealth aircraft.
Realistically, if the USAF wants a replacement, they need to drag out the original designs and - very lightly - update them. No changes without a damn good reason. Replacing the engines definitely counts as a damn good reason, by the way.
How weird is it that the B52 has now been operational for far longer than the time between its first flight and that of the Wright Brothers first powered flight? We went from Wright Flyer to B52 in about 50 years, the B52 has been around for about 70 years, and counting!
I saw one of these flying out of nowhere on a ship while I was in the Indian Ocean. It seemed pretty low altitude, perhaps giving us a friendly hello. It reminded me of seeing the Star Trek Enterprise by the F-104 pilot in an episode. I wondered how it stayed aloft, lol. I understand why its called the BUFF.
I remember both a B-52 and SR 71 landing outside my barracks window at Offutt AFB - Belluve NE. I worked nights almost the entire 3 years I was stationed there (1970-73) and when they landed you were no longer sleeping! Part of my job was to help maintain the classified coding equipment on Looking Glass a airborne command post that would take over in case the President and Joint Chiefs were out of commission due to a nuclear attack.
Y'know when I was a kid a Hickam, I remember the first time I saw the B52s flying overhead, it wasn't until I saw the F15s flying escort that it dawned on me at how BIG those bombers were! Later when I saw them on the ground did they really impressed me on their enormous size. The ONLY time I ever saw a bigger plane was the C5 Galaxy!!!
my neighbor who has since passed away, was a BUFF driver during the Cold War and the VN war. he told me his route covered northern canada to Alaska and back. he was a good friend. very touchingly he lived with his friend's VN war widow. the friend was F100 Super Saber pilot and when he died in VN, he took care of the widow. they had a platonic relationship. she took care of him and he took care of her
One thing we forget to mention is that the wing spars were built using the most powerful hydraulic presses available back in the 50s. I dont recall the exact numbers, but I recall the article I read said something in the region of 10 million lbs. I stand to be corrected. But still, an amazing aircraft.
Very good documentary and a truly great aircraft. The war museum in Seoul has a B-52 on display and i found it impressive when i visited during the years i worked in North Asia.
The two features that are keeping it in service are that it was built sturdy enough to carry a HUGE load and there is room to continually add electronics upgrades. While new technologies have made speed and stealth less effective for the B-1 and B-2, none of that matters for the Buff, which does not have them anyway, because it finds ways to side-step the dangers of those shortfalls with tactics and electronics and press on, and is less expensive than either. The B-52 is like the foot-soldier in a world of tanks. That museum plane started service the year I was born, put a chair under it for me to sit on display as I gray.
Spent my time in the USAF working on the ECM systems on the B-52G models. Turbojet Engines, unlike the much more powerful present day TurboFan Engines on the H models. With 8 Buffs and 8 Tankers all doing MITO (Minimum Interval Take Off), you were rudely awakened on the base and for a couple of miles away from it! The BUFF has the main wings already in a steep angle to get it off the ground... when it comes back empty it generates so much lift it flies "Nose Down" and often the front wheels would touch down first! Also, all four wheel pods can turn, so the plane can take off in high broadside winds, but seeing it going down the taxiway "crabbing", going crooked but straight down the taxiway was just Bizarre!
Hello from Iowa. I spent four years between Minot AFB and Andersen AFB servicing the EW systems on both G and H models. We did a full wing MITO at Andersen once, only we launched four KC-10's with the bomb wing instead of the 135's. I got forced cross-trained from 328x3 to 457x3C and reassigned to McConnell AFB in Kansas when I got rotated back to the CONUS.
I've been told the grandchildren of B-52 pilots are flying their grandfather's jets. Perhaps we'll have great grandchildren flying the jets. It's awesome.
"Why the B-52 is outliving newer bombers" Me: Because it's cheaper and it gets the job done. There will always be a place for a cost-effective bomb-truck until we develop teleporting bombs.
Last time I was at Duxford, the US part was closed so didn't get to see it. What is amazing though Hattie is seeing you climb in to the cockpit there and how "snug" it appears in such a large aircraft. A very well presented video and a great deal of knowledge is obviously in yours and your colleagues brains. How come you and you colleagues, especially my friend Graham, are not presenting docos like this on mainstream television?
You forgot the wood model made in the hotel room. Lemay didn't want a cockpit where the pilot and copilot sat behind the pilot. The side by side was a must by Lemay!
Love the B52. Seen 2 fly & some on static at RIAT & seen the example at Duxford. I am still surprised that it managed to land at Duxford considering the length of the runway & size of the aircraft
That was my aircraft when they retired it to Duxford. The pilot was Colonel Jim Nerger and he was the most respected bomber pilot at Carswell AFB, Fort Worth, Texas. We saw the video of it landing there. Here's the video. ruclips.net/video/sSIGd6COFb8/видео.html
Certainly an impressive part of the Duxford exhibition. I visited in the 2001-2003 period and took photos using actual film! I left with the impression that while an aircraft can look very big from the outside the reality on the interior is nothing less than claustaphobic. Thanks for the experience and see you next time I am in country!
@@FloweredUp-n4t I'd probably have to agree. In fact, I'm not actually much of a fan of "Rock Lobster;" the only song of theirs that I can actually say I like is "Love Shack," but, c'mon, who doesn't love "Love Shack"? 😏😄
11:46 That flying time is attributed to the amazing capabilities of the KC-135 Stratotanker from which I'm familiar with on the most INTIMATE levels..lol! Having served on her for 16 of the 25 years of my Active Duty Air Force life I can tell you that the BUFF holds a special place in the 135 HEART!! We're essentially brothers... The plane I served on was built in 1957 and I'm proud to have kept her flying during my tour of service!
8:40 I'm so glad that you mention "chrome dome". Before the ICBM, this is how nuclear war was prevented. B-52s taking off from Texas to patrol western Europe. Multiple jets airborne every minute of every hour. Brought to you by the United States and their taxpayers ... our condolences to Greenland for the accident. Really impressive video! Thumbs up, new sub.!
@@gregcarlson6012 I just saw a B52 take off from my house here in padre island. That’s why I came to RUclips. They are STILL taking off from the Texas coast. 😃
The fact that the B-52 may still be flying 100 years from it's first inception is beyond astounding. It was born into a world where the F-86 Sabre and MiG-15 ruled the sky. It has already lived to see the advent of 6th gen fighters, who knows what might be flying alongside it in 20 or 30 years time.
@@metalman3952 i believe it will see MiG15-17-19 again when WW3 goes up...well not literally the migs but the chinese copy as drones... i always believe when ww3 are at its last moments, these old jets of the 50s-60s will fly again as drones or maybe manned to do CAS...
The Russian Tu-95 (Bear) is still out there also. The Cold War never really ceased. I especially like the photos of Tu-95's being "escorted" near Alaska by F-22's or F-35's (same with the Bear and NATO fighters near Norway). It's like a time warp.
Great video and truly excellent presentation. Does she do full length aviation documentaries? What an amazing jet. What she said at the end hits hard - that the last generation of BUFF crews aren't even born yet!
When I was a kid, my dad had a cabin built on a golf course fairway in the White Mtns of AZ. I was 8 or 9. Every morning, a B-52 and two F-111's (wings extended) would come roaring past at about 500ft. I knew the exact time to run out on the fairway (screw the golfers!). In the late afternoon it was a mix of B-52s, F-111s & B-1s. Later I found out they were practicing low-level bombing at the Goldwater range in SW AZ.
Worth noting that B52s were part of the air campaign *before* air superiority was established over Iraq, not even total supremacy. The B52s fired the first shots of the gulf war when Operation Senior Surprise saw the longest bombing mission in the history of warfare saw seven B52s depart the mainland US and deploy cruise missiles before returning to their base, remaining airborne during the entire operation.
At 4 minutes 23 seconds into this video Hattie says that "on each wing we have four pods, each housing a pair of Pratt and Whitney J57 turbojet engines". That would be a total of sixteen engines, would it not? Doh!
Rolls Royce is owned by BMW since a long Time now. Actually these Engines in Fact are German BMW Engines. Despite the Fact that BMW is marketing them under the R R Brand.
@@moodogco You are correct, Rolls Royce aerospace now Rolls Royce holdings, and Rolls Royce automotive have been separate entities since the 1970's. And yes Rolls Royce Holdings/ aerospace is owned by the BA defense conglomerate.
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People flying the 1st b52: "wow I wonder what bombers they will have in 2050"
2050: grandkid flying the same airframe.
The last B-52 pilot may never be born.
Cos we might have perfected vat grown clones before then.
Great great* grandkid
there are a few intergeneration grandad / dad / son BUFF pilots out there.
B1B, B2 and B21...
@@mrrolandlawrenceand daughters…
It never gets old hearing stories of B-52 pilots who are grandkids of the first pilots that first flew them!
why?
I worked at the USAF depot where the B-52, B-1, E-3 and KC-135 were overhauled. The secret to aircraft like the B-52 and KC-135 having such longevity was the construction method. These aircraft were designed with slide rules plus 20 percent for structure components. Boeing also built the aircraft off a very thick ship-like lower keel. The B-52 and KC-135 will still be flying when the B-1, B-2 and KC-46 are parked at Davis-Monthan Air Force base. Back in the day Boeing really knew how to build very high quality aircraft.
@@soonerlon "back in the day." That is so laser-accurate and it breaks my heart.
@@soonerlon before the McDonnell Douglas merger.
@soonerlon It's a shame that you felt the need to add that final sentence. Without a doubt, Boeing has lost their way! Boeing needs engineers in their management positions. The bean counters just aren't getting the job done. They took down McDonnel-Douglas, and now they're taking down Boeing!
As a past USAF tech who worked on several different aircraft, including the B-52F, one of the features that let the B-52 outlast its "replacements" is that it is actually maintainable. One can get to the various parts to repair/replace instead of having to dismantle half the cockpit to replace one small part.
And maintained with parts from Davis Monthan…
You just have to love Grandpa Buff. Eventually the upgrades will include warp nacelles and photon torpedoes.
Team HLC🎉
I've seen several mockups of Buffs with warp nacelles - they look very plausible!
Buff / Franklin '24
Buff is forever
Where there is a video about Grandpa Buff, or the Kid, HLC fans will be there.
Very fitting this video is being published in the week of James Earl Jones' death as his first film role was as a B-52 bombardier in Dr Strangelove. And considering the production team were denied information about what a B-52 cockpit looked like, they built an uncannily accurate set.
Ahh youre right!!❤
Very few people believe me when I tell them that Dr Strangeloves was James Earl Jones first film role.
I bet if I ever get the chance to get inside a B52 I’d want to wear a cowboy hat
And that's good?!
@@CharlieMile I know where you're coming from....lol!
Have an acquaintance who flew the B-52D for 25 years ('til his retirement). He is pushing 93 years of age today and while he has short term memory loss, his long-term memory is solid. The first time I met him, I asked him what it was like to fly the B-52. His reply? "Easy to drive, hard to park." We had a great conversation after that...from Operation Chrome Dome to Linebacker II in 'nam. A true hero to the Strategic Air Command's history.
Old timers like that is why we need an oral history program. The stories they can tell are priceless and not found in textbooks.
I was a Marine grunt in the Vietnam War and witnessed several B-52 airstrikes. We never saw the planes and had no idea they were even up there until we saw the huge explosions in the distance, followed by the sound of the bombs falling and the subsequent detonations. We were also witness to the strikes at night when it seemed the whole countryside was lit up by blinding lights of the explosions.
Salutes, sir.
Which also means the bomb aimers didn't have a clue about where their bombs were falling. Completely useless piece of junk proved by the fact that the US lost the war.
@@duster1968 I saw a similar B-52 strike up in the DMZ in July ‘67 on Operation Buffalo. It was a wall of explosions. From where I was located you could feel the ground vibrate from the explosions. In late November ‘67 we moved through an area that was east of Con Thien and south of the Trace where B-52s had made a strike. It was bomb crater after bomb crater. Just an incredible sight - nothing standing. Delta 1/3 Vietnam 66-67
"whole countryside was lit up" is euphemism for killing thousands of innocent women and children in an illegal war. At the bare minimum, let's not celebrate the horrendous Vietnam invasion.
Just imagine all this going down on civilian populations. And then they gave Kissenger the nobel prize for that, so disgusting. So many lives needlessly wasted.
Don't fix what isn't broken...but you can upgrade it
Once it gets those new Rolls Royce engines👌🏻👌🏻
The J's are getting a HELL of a lot more than just new engines :)
@@Rights4Life .. Don’t think anyone said they weren’t..
Funny. I heard a different last word for the acronym BUFF 😂😂😂
"Big Ugly Fat Fella for its polite crews"🥸
The other is when you're on the ground and the handlers are parking more than one.
Well they got it 3/4 right
It ain’t fat!
@@stevenshea990 Fresh out of those when I was in the USAF... 😂
I love the Star Trek meme that shows a B-52 with warp nacelles next to the Enterprise-D of the Star Trek: The Next Generation:
"Captain's Log, Stardate 43125.8. In preparation for the decommissioning ceremony for the USS Enterprise NCC-1701D, we have the exceptional honor of being escorted by one of the newly re-engined Federation ships...the B-52X"
In the film Dr. Strangelove, they wanted to use one for filming, USAF said No. So using photos from magazines, the built an interior … the USAF wanted to know where they got the information from … books and magazines …
Yep. I’m an old military Intel man. 80% of intelligence gathered is open source - magazines, books, news broadcasts, word of mouth.
@@TommygunNG :: That is interesting. When I saw "Dr.Strangelove" for the third time I could see how difficult it was for the director to get the best relevant pictures of the flight of the bomber in the film, clearly fake, but the story worked - the visualization was telling a story, and that was an amazing story - the "fake plane" did not matter.
Now that would explain the corny B52 model flying across soviet terrain at a weird angle......very unrealistic scenes but EXCELENT and fun movie. RIP James Earl Jones.
One of the best movies ever
I love that they named it after such a great band.
😂
I saw 689 at Duxford in 1987 when it was still kept outside. Holy cow that was a long time ago.
Thanks for the video particularly answering why it is still flying.
That was my aircraft just before it was retired to Duxford. We sent it from Carswell AFB near Fort Worth, Texas in 1983 I think. If I'm not mistaken it was flown by Colonel Jim Nerger who made an impressive short field landing there. We saw the video back at Carswell. Colonel Nerger was a battle tested Vietnam veteran. He was the most highly respected bomber pilot at Carswell. The B-52D models only had about 15,000 hours on them. I recently worked on a much younger Boeing 757 with over 100,000 hours....and still going strong.
@@rael5469 Wow! That’s amazing. Cheers to you and thank you for replying.
@@rael5469 I can confirm the landing (on the second go, mind you) was very impressive. I was 12 years old and watching from Hunts Road as it went directly overhead 500m short of the runway.
@@sd3457 Nice.
@@sd3457 awesome! Thanks for sharing 😀
The B-52 is the aircraft equivalent of Trigger's broom. It's been flying for over 60 years but has had 4 new handles and 6 new heads! 😂
70 years
Not really as the airframe is still the same, can't replace that.
@@5heffPaul brilliant work Paul. *tips hat*
Not really the fuselage and wings are the same as when they were built.
The wings were modified in the 1960's and they are finally in the process of getting new engines for the first time as well an updated cockpit, radar, comms and navigation for the first time in the J model upgrade designation.
Hahaha great comment/ OFH reference
I am a Vietnam Veteran stationed at U -Tapao Airfield, Thailand in 1968, as an aircraft mechanic on the B-52D model & KC-135A model. Proud to have done my small part in helping ground troops in South Vietnam.
I was stationed at Grand Forks during the early 70's, and when the '52's took off you could feel the vibration of those huge engines, even from across the base.
I was firefighter there in late 70's. Amazing winters but they didn't stop operations.
Hard to improve on a overbuilt bomb truck. The re-engine program is going to add decades to it's operational life.
That's exactly it. If they were to make a new one what would it be? A multi-engine, supersized jumbo jet that carries a ton of bombs and drops them out the belly. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Honestly I think that's the kinda the case for most heavy military tech nowadays. Just think how long virtually all countries have used the same tank hulls, compared to how quickly the turnover rate was in WW2. Those designs are simply mature. The B52 won't be replaced by anything. At some point drones and ai will probably make the job it does unnescessary, but until then it's a good design.
@@tankerd1847 If it ain't broke AND YOU KNOW HOW IT *WILL* BREAK. I think people underestimate the value of knowledge of how and when things will break or develop problems in military equipment. But if you're trying to make plans, knowing how likely a specific piece of equipment is to be reliable and able to do the designated job has a lot of value. As does being able to repair it with what you can scrounge up at least to patch it up well enough to get to somewhere for proper repairs, instead of having to have all kinds of stuff transported to more forward locations.
I currently work at the Strategic Air Command and Aerospace Museum in Ashland, Nebraska, Home of B-52 52-8711, the first B-52 delivered to the Air Force.
That is an outstanding museum. I live in Omaha. Visited many times.
which i have seen as kid....when it it was still outdoors (along with the Vickers Valiant too)
@@FKHC2005 We have an Avro Vulcan on display at the museum, but as far as I know the Vickers Valiant was only deployed there at Offutt AFB
@@danielficke131 I meant Avro Vulcan
@@FKHC2005 that would be XM573, she is currently undergoing full static restoration
I saw one of these planes about 40 tears ago while fishing the Youghiogheny River in western Pa. Heard it long before I saw it. Awesome sight. Always wondered why it was flying over Pittsburgh area so low. We are talking under a 1000 ft.
The Imperial War Museum at Duxford is special. The living flying exhibits are unique. The construction of the American Air Museum is a fitting tribute our shared sacrifice. During my 4 year service at RAF Mildenhall, I lived in a tiny village just 20 miles from Duxford...LOVED when the Spitfires would fly over my garden during the summer airshow!
Enjoyed a magical visit there in 1995, you could actually buy from the souvenir shop flight instruments scrapped from old fighters. Still looking forward to a return visit w my boys someday
B36. Peacemaker?
July 4, 2276: in honor of the nation's 500-year anniversary, the B-52Ω performs a flyover of the capital of the US State of Mars.
Hardly... it will rather be: "August 19, 2276: in honor of the nation's 150000th gender discovery anniversary, the B-52LGBT performs a flyover of the capital of the US State of Wokeland welcoming Trans Flag Day..."!
@@jerromedrakejr9332 Right wing brainrot
very proud to have served as USAF ground crew on B52 in the mid 80s - so many stories, but my fave? me and dad brother sitting around drinking a few years ago - dad (ex-T37 pilot, one engine) griping about how loud the Tweet was, brother (ex-F15 engine specialist) tells him, "that's just one little engine, we had two big ones on the Eagle" - i looked over my glass at them & said, "you two are just adorable..."
Story that has many variations: B52 is cruising along and an F4 comes by to say hello. The F4 proceeds to do a loop over and around the B52. F4 pilot radios saying: Bet you can't do that. Buff comes on: Bet you can't do that. F4: What did you do? Buff: Shut off 2. 😁
LOL, with EIGHT jet engines in close proximity, each capable of over 10k pounds of thrust, I can imagine the racket they'd cause. You'd need a squadron or two of fighter jets to match the noise …WITH the afterburners on! 😅😉😁
@@TheGhostGuitars the barracks was 2 miles from the flightline, and we'd still get shaken out of bed during engine runs.
The Tweet has two engines.
@@gordonbergslien30 as i said, we were drinking - i must have heard something incorrectly thru the alcohol clogging my ears - thanks for pointing that out
My dad had hoped for a B52 after graduating flight school, but got the KC-135 (and later, KC-10). After having a chance to take a right-seat flight in a 52, he was VERY happy with the assignment he had gotten. Sure, tankers aren't as sexy, but they're a hell of a lot more comfortable to fly :)
Mad props to those BUFF drivers, for sure!
Flew in the B-52 for five years as an EWO on B-52Gs out of Mather AFB, CA in the early 80s. She is very well informed. I’ll expand on the crew comforts. B-52G (I believe the H models, also) did not have a bunk. The toilet was a box with a hole and a plastic bag. You did your #2, and the bag was placed it in the wheel well. As for doing a #1, the aircraft had what is referred to as “torpedoes”. Cylinders with a flip lid. The only place on the aircraft you could stand straight up is on the ladder between decks. The AC was so bad in the B-52 that I literally had snow coming from the upper AC vent and at the same time so hot at my feet the shoe polish became soft. The navigator carried a thermometer and would often relay that the temperatures were either 110 degrees or at 40 degrees at his station. Needless to say it wasn’t always pleasant. But, I loved the mission and being a member of SAC.
The B-52 is the last of the great heavy bombers. A truly remarkable aircraft that its original designers would have never imagined would still be flying another 25 years from now.
"I'm gonna get them doors open if it hairlips everybody in Bear Creek."
😂
*harelips
Grandapa buff will live forever
@@codyjames52 buff and Franklin 2024
Does Joe Hendry believe in the B52
@@WasatchGarandMan wrong patter, take it elsewhere
@@WasatchGarandMan👏👏
@@spud5400 BUFF and Franklin 2024
My father got called up on xmas eve for Linebacker 2. It was going to be the first Christmas home since I was born. The crew he flew out with from Texas to Guam was shot down, his crew made it back in one piece. My Dad was also on Operation Chrome dome. He had 350 combat missions when he finally moved on to NSA.
Once a year, B-52s were dispersed to our local USAF base in Ventura County, CA. No one ever failed to notice the noise and smoke when they took off to return to their home base.
When I worked on them as a USAF crew chief, I knew then that these would be flying for many years to come. They were just so solidly built. But it's also the MANY hours of work that we did and do on them. If they were anything commercial they would've been retired by now as they wouldn't put in the work to do so. It's a very weird aircraft as well. There's nothing weirder in flight than watching a B-52 crabbing while landing. Between the B-52 and the KC-135 (which is the original American jet the 707) they'll still be flying for years more. Boeing back then was run by engineers, not like now when they're run by accountants and lawyers who know NOTHING about aeronautics. Most of the aircraft in your video I worked on. Certified on 16 and did basic work on others. including that nice f-15 and a-10 in the background.
One of my WW2-era uncles started in the Army Air Corp in India servicing machine guns among other things. He ended his career in the late 60s at the K.I. Sawyer Air Base servicing nuclear weapons for BUFFs. Or as I phrase it, when Michigan's U.P. was a recognized nuclear power.
Before the Air Force Museum was built, the B52 was kept outside. I remember standing under the wings, trying to stay dry during a very wet air show! Duxford is a great place to visit!
This old girl is half a century old
She flies right up where the air is cold
You bet it's gonna be tough if you're underneath a Buff
And may god have mercy on your soul
She sits there in the dark and all alone
I just hope they never ring that phone
'Cause if they do she'll puke six or seven great big nukes
In the back yard of someone else's home
She hauls a hundred plus Mark 82s
And when she flies I mind my Ps and Qs
They've flown that big ass bongo from Minot to the Congo
Routine for a B-52
She flew the Arc Lights over Vietnam
She did it all for her Uncle Sam
She heard them weep and wail up and down the Ho Chi trail
About those bastards she don't give a damn
They sent for her in 1991
She told herself "Now this is gonna be fun"
They called it Desert Storm and she made it mighty warm
For them SOBs beneath the desert sun
Bin Laden and the Al Qaeda too
Would find out what the mighty Buff can do
She beat the Taliban all around Afghanistan
Until their bloody ass was black and blue
She's been around since Jesus was a boy
No place in this world she can't destroy
She's Johnny on the spot when everything gets hot
I thank the folks at Boeing for this toy
I had a job that had me on the road constantly in the Central Valley back in the '70s when Castle AFB was still in operation. Occasionally I would park at the north end of the base perimeter and watch new B52 pilots try to get lined up with the runway threshold that was still a couple miles away. You could tell which ones had the knack and which ones didn't. A lot initiated the go around just after passing over where I was parked. I never saw one close up until I visited the Air Force Academy. The fuselage was way smaller than I expected, but the wingspan...yeah pretty impressive.
brilliant informative video, many thanks to all those people involved in making it
I used to work on B-52’s when I was stationed at Barksdale AFB 06-12’ Maintenance Squadron.
My son currently stationed at Barksdale, wife and I planning to see him for the holidays this year.
My dad was a Radar Navigator aboard B-52s, and participated in Operation Desert Fox
@@miguelmederos8634 did he ever find out what the fox said?
@@WalterHartwellWhite-mk2vi certified dad joke
Mine was radar nav in the G model 1961-1968, including many Chrome Dome missions.
Nice video, This was when things were built properly and always over engineered.
Good Day. Excellent documentary. Well Done. Thank You.
amazing fact is the landing gears are steerable in line with the landing strip while in heavy crosswind
The first time I saw a pilot landing sideways all I could think of was the mess we were going to have to clean up from the crash.
As bombers shift more and more to being missile trucks, and the next generation of them focuses more and more on stealth, there will still be a place for something that can circle around for a long time, very much visible on radar, and carrying enough explosives aboard to make your military installations resemble the -average Glasgow road- moon it'll have so many -potholes- craters. Stealth does trade some capacity to get the right shapes and sizes for maximum sneak points (B-2 and probably B-21 have about 2/3rds the bomb bay capacity), and of course, you might also be wanting stealth cruise missiles to be even more ninja.
And yet sometimes all you really need is a really big hammer. A really big hammer that might also be firing some stealth cruise missiles as well as raining down some other very unwelcome presents....
Because the B-52 is such a HUGE radar target, MY JOB in the USAF was keeping the ECM systems running. Without ECM, No B-52 would make it to the target. Yet our planes in the early 80s at Barksdale AFB won exercises often and we were the crown jewel of SAC. At that time they were the G models. TurboJet engines that needed water injection to get a fully loaded plane off the ground, leaving a huge back cloud of smoke behind. But ECM could wipe out a radar site, or show the plane as being somewhere it was not, or give many false targets to the enemy.
Plus the B-52 is relatively very cheap to operate. I imagine even the B-21 will have a higher cost per hour of operation, especially after the B-52s get the new engines and all of those maintenance costs essentially disappear, and the fuel costs go way down (and less air refueling required). The BUFF can't go very far into contested airspace, but as a stand off platform and in areas with air superiority maintained, it's just a great truck.
February 1946, Hermann Goring was in prison, the big bombing legend was the Avro Lancaster, and Boeing started the design process of the B-52.
Saw it in '88 as an Air Cadet during our summer camp at RAE Bedford, jaw dropping to say the least. Concord was there too - know which one I'd rather have been able to fly in, leg room on Concord was terrible.
"She may be faster, BUT I can stretch better on the Buff." 😁
I was a Cadet in Civil Air Patrol in the 60s Every year we'd have a two-week encampment/Air Force orientation encouraging us to join the US Air Force. As part of our activities, we got a tour of B-52 climbed up inside, and sat in the pilot and co-pilot seats. I had made it through the line to where I think I was the second person in line to sit in the pilot or copilot seat. As I was waiting for my turn an Air Force Master sergeant Was literally in a panic clawing his way through the cadets. I thought what was the issue the injection seats were armed and all the Cadet had to do was throw the wrong switch needless to say I didn't get to sit in the pilot seat. but I did get to fly a simulator. thanks to the good sergeant no Cadet was splattered against the hanger ceiling.
My older brother was in the Air Force at the time stationed at Loring Air Force Base he worked on the Hound Dog missile, the precursor to the cruise missile on guidance system.
It's crazy to think that these airplanes are not just older than most modern warships, they're a LOT older than most modern warships.
The reason for the losses at Christmas during Linebacker II was because the crews were ordered to turn at an angle which greatly reduced the effects of the aircrafts missile jammers. Before they flew these missions the crews warn that this would cause those losses but were told to do it anyway. Once the losses started to build they were told not to turn so tightly.
Did the tight turns serve some kind of tactical purpose?
But to answer the title question: It has fixed wings and does not have the expensive & complicated maintenance requirements of both swing wings aircraft and the modern stealth aircraft.
Realistically, if the USAF wants a replacement, they need to drag out the original designs and - very lightly - update them. No changes without a damn good reason. Replacing the engines definitely counts as a damn good reason, by the way.
Cheaper to design a new one. All of the original tooling used to manufacture that model has long since been destroyed.
How weird is it that the B52 has now been operational for far longer than the time between its first flight and that of the Wright Brothers first powered flight? We went from Wright Flyer to B52 in about 50 years, the B52 has been around for about 70 years, and counting!
'By Dawn's Early Light' is a must see for a B-52 centred movie.
Great film on DVD, hope to watch it on Blu-ray one day.
Completely agree. It also has one hell of a great cast. If you can, check out the book it was based on, William Prochnau's "Trinity's Child".
@@MarcMcKenzie-qb6or I remember watching it on VHS. Any movie with James Earl Jones is guaranteed to be great.
really decent film that, apart from the "love interest"
I saw one of these flying out of nowhere on a ship while I was in the Indian Ocean. It seemed pretty low altitude, perhaps giving us a friendly hello. It reminded me of seeing the Star Trek Enterprise by the F-104 pilot in an episode. I wondered how it stayed aloft, lol. I understand why its called the BUFF.
I remember both a B-52 and SR 71 landing outside my barracks window at Offutt AFB - Belluve NE. I worked nights almost the entire 3 years I was stationed there (1970-73) and when they landed you were no longer sleeping! Part of my job was to help maintain the classified coding equipment on Looking Glass a airborne command post that would take over in case the President and Joint Chiefs were out of commission due to a nuclear attack.
Y'know when I was a kid a Hickam, I remember the first time I saw the B52s flying overhead, it wasn't until I saw the F15s flying escort that it dawned on me at how BIG those bombers were! Later when I saw them on the ground did they really impressed me on their enormous size.
The ONLY time I ever saw a bigger plane was the C5 Galaxy!!!
Anybody else notice the B-36 Peacemaker, at 3:40? Another cool ride.
my neighbor who has since passed away, was a BUFF driver during the Cold War and the VN war. he told me his route covered northern canada to Alaska and back. he was a good friend. very touchingly he lived with his friend's VN war widow. the friend was F100 Super Saber pilot and when he died in VN, he took care of the widow. they had a platonic relationship. she took care of him and he took care of her
One thing we forget to mention is that the wing spars were built using the most powerful hydraulic presses available back in the 50s. I dont recall the exact numbers, but I recall the article I read said something in the region of 10 million lbs. I stand to be corrected. But still, an amazing aircraft.
Very good documentary and a truly great aircraft. The war museum in Seoul has a B-52 on display and i found it impressive when i visited during the years i worked in North Asia.
The two features that are keeping it in service are that it was built sturdy enough to carry a HUGE load and there is room to continually add electronics upgrades. While new technologies have made speed and stealth less effective for the B-1 and B-2, none of that matters for the Buff, which does not have them anyway, because it finds ways to side-step the dangers of those shortfalls with tactics and electronics and press on, and is less expensive than either. The B-52 is like the foot-soldier in a world of tanks. That museum plane started service the year I was born, put a chair under it for me to sit on display as I gray.
Had no idea all the airframes were that old. Had assumed there had been some later models produced. Amazing.
This and the Tu-95 will always be around.
Did anyone catch the “You-eye-nals” 😂 8:05
@@AKUJU yeah she's British and that's how they pronounce it.
Worked on the Ds and Gs gun system (DFCS) 72-79 at Loring, UT and Griffiss. One of the best times of my life.
To bad Boeing forgot how to build good aircraft.
And the mechanics are on strike, but they forget to screw in all the bolts.
@@johnmcguigan7218 do not count Boeing out.
Excellent mini-doc! Your productions are top notch. Love this channel!
I really miss flying in these.
Spent my time in the USAF working on the ECM systems on the B-52G models. Turbojet Engines, unlike the much more powerful present day TurboFan Engines on the H models. With 8 Buffs and 8 Tankers all doing MITO (Minimum Interval Take Off), you were rudely awakened on the base and for a couple of miles away from it! The BUFF has the main wings already in a steep angle to get it off the ground... when it comes back empty it generates so much lift it flies "Nose Down" and often the front wheels would touch down first!
Also, all four wheel pods can turn, so the plane can take off in high broadside winds, but seeing it going down the taxiway "crabbing", going crooked but straight down the taxiway was just Bizarre!
Hello from Iowa. I spent four years between Minot AFB and Andersen AFB servicing the EW systems on both G and H models. We did a full wing MITO at Andersen once, only we launched four KC-10's with the bomb wing instead of the 135's. I got forced cross-trained from 328x3 to 457x3C and reassigned to McConnell AFB in Kansas when I got rotated back to the CONUS.
I've been told the grandchildren of B-52 pilots are flying their grandfather's jets. Perhaps we'll have great grandchildren flying the jets. It's awesome.
"Why the B-52 is outliving newer bombers"
Me: Because it's cheaper and it gets the job done. There will always be a place for a cost-effective bomb-truck until we develop teleporting bombs.
"... the last generation of B52 airmen may not yet be born". That is a striking end.
Last time I was at Duxford, the US part was closed so didn't get to see it. What is amazing though Hattie is seeing you climb in to the cockpit there and how "snug" it appears in such a large aircraft.
A very well presented video and a great deal of knowledge is obviously in yours and your colleagues brains. How come you and you colleagues, especially my friend Graham, are not presenting docos like this on mainstream television?
Grandpa Buff has seen more action than the kid and still going
Excellent video. Thank you.
You forgot the wood model made in the hotel room. Lemay didn't want a cockpit where the pilot and copilot sat behind the pilot. The side by side was a must by Lemay!
Lemay was right too.
@@John-or9ccUndauntedRaceCars yes
Wow I at least thought those still flying had been built since the 60s. Remarkable.
Love the B52. Seen 2 fly & some on static at RIAT & seen the example at Duxford. I am still surprised that it managed to land at Duxford considering the length of the runway & size of the aircraft
That was my aircraft when they retired it to Duxford. The pilot was Colonel Jim Nerger and he was the most respected bomber pilot at Carswell AFB, Fort Worth, Texas. We saw the video of it landing there. Here's the video. ruclips.net/video/sSIGd6COFb8/видео.html
Certainly an impressive part of the Duxford exhibition. I visited in the 2001-2003 period and took photos using actual film! I left with the impression that while an aircraft can look very big from the outside the reality on the interior is nothing less than claustaphobic. Thanks for the experience and see you next time I am in country!
The "B-52s," what other bomber could create such memorable songs as "Love Shack" and "Rock Lobster"? 😉😁😄
Good Stuff though is a seriously poor album.
@@FloweredUp-n4t I'd probably have to agree. In fact, I'm not actually much of a fan of "Rock Lobster;" the only song of theirs that I can actually say I like is "Love Shack," but, c'mon, who doesn't love "Love Shack"? 😏😄
This is the very thing we need today in Western Pacific area. Long range & endurance have never been valued more.
11:46 That flying time is attributed to the amazing capabilities of the KC-135 Stratotanker from which I'm familiar with on the most INTIMATE levels..lol! Having served on her for 16 of the 25 years of my Active Duty Air Force life I can tell you that the BUFF holds a special place in the 135 HEART!! We're essentially brothers... The plane I served on was built in 1957 and I'm proud to have kept her flying during my tour of service!
Excellent presentation!
8:40 I'm so glad that you mention "chrome dome". Before the ICBM, this is how nuclear war was prevented. B-52s taking off from Texas to patrol western Europe. Multiple jets airborne every minute of every hour. Brought to you by the United States and their taxpayers ... our condolences to Greenland for the accident.
Really impressive video! Thumbs up, new sub.!
@@gregcarlson6012 I just saw a B52 take off from my house here in padre island. That’s why I came to RUclips. They are STILL taking off from the Texas coast. 😃
tough to keep my attention for ten plus minutes...good video! Very informative!
Was stationed at GFAB back in the early 70's as a SAC firefighter. The cold war alert drills were something to see.
Go USAF aim high.
Very interesting video IWM
Thanks
Really enjoyed my visit to Duxford a few years ago.
Probably time for a re visit I think.
The fact that the B-52 may still be flying 100 years from it's first inception is beyond astounding. It was born into a world where the F-86 Sabre and MiG-15 ruled the sky. It has already lived to see the advent of 6th gen fighters, who knows what might be flying alongside it in 20 or 30 years time.
@@metalman3952 i believe it will see MiG15-17-19 again when WW3 goes up...well not literally the migs but the chinese copy as drones...
i always believe when ww3 are at its last moments, these old jets of the 50s-60s will fly again as drones or maybe manned to do CAS...
The Russian Tu-95 (Bear) is still out there also. The Cold War never really ceased. I especially like the photos of Tu-95's being "escorted" near Alaska by F-22's or F-35's (same with the Bear and NATO fighters near Norway). It's like a time warp.
Well written and presented doc. Excellent narration.
Another very informative and well presented video..... Thank you IWM... Roger.. Pembrokeshire
Great video and truly excellent presentation. Does she do full length aviation documentaries? What an amazing jet. What she said at the end hits hard - that the last generation of BUFF crews aren't even born yet!
Great video, Great job!!
When I was a kid, my dad had a cabin built on a golf course fairway in the White Mtns of AZ. I was 8 or 9. Every morning, a B-52 and two F-111's (wings extended) would come roaring past at about 500ft. I knew the exact time to run out on the fairway (screw the golfers!). In the late afternoon it was a mix of B-52s, F-111s & B-1s. Later I found out they were practicing low-level bombing at the Goldwater range in SW AZ.
Worth noting that B52s were part of the air campaign *before* air superiority was established over Iraq, not even total supremacy. The B52s fired the first shots of the gulf war when Operation Senior Surprise saw the longest bombing mission in the history of warfare saw seven B52s depart the mainland US and deploy cruise missiles before returning to their base, remaining airborne during the entire operation.
All the refurbishments, upgrades, repairs and overhauls...make it a real world 'Ship of Theseus' thought experiment
The audio was a bit weird in this one but otherwise great video
It has stood the test of time.
Miss those. Grew up near Griffiss AFB. Overflights daily
I saw them often when my parents were stationed at Fairchild AFB in the 80's and early 90's.
Nice! Well produced!
At 4 minutes 23 seconds into this video Hattie says that "on each wing we have four pods, each housing a pair of Pratt and Whitney J57 turbojet engines". That would be a total of sixteen engines, would it not? Doh!
Hah, good spot! This and “low level bombing” in Vietnam are some silly errors!
@@LoganMcNeil-z1p Yes! I was puzzled by that.
Brilliant film. Thank you for sharing.
Great video, yep the b52 which is getting fitted with british Rolls Royce jet engines
@@moodogco 💪
Rolls Royce is owned by BMW since a long Time now.
Actually these Engines in Fact are German BMW Engines.
Despite the Fact that BMW is marketing them under the R R Brand.
@@adiconsdaple2285 where did u get that from? I just looked it up & it's mostly owned by BAE
@@moodogco You are correct, Rolls Royce aerospace now Rolls Royce holdings, and Rolls Royce automotive have been separate entities since the 1970's.
And yes Rolls Royce Holdings/ aerospace is owned by the BA defense conglomerate.
@@adiconsdaple2285 🤦♂️ 🤦♂️ 🤦♂️ 🤦♂️
They were old when I worked on them in the early 80s.