Nniiden Boeing B-52 Stratofortress on pitkän kantaman, ääntä hitaampi, suihkukäyttöinen strateginen pommikone. B-52: n suunnitteli ja rakensi Boeing, joka on jatkanut tuen ja päivitysten tarjoamista. Sitä on käyttänyt Yhdysvaltain ilmavoimat (USAF) 1950-luvulta lähtien. Pommikone kuljettaa jopa 70 000 kiloa (32 000 kg) aseita.
B-52B/RB-52B : The B-52B was the first version to enter service with the USAF on 29 June 1955 with the 93rd Bombardment Wing at Castle AFB in California. This version included minor changes to engines and avionics, enabling an extra 12,000 pounds of thrust to be produced using water injection. Temporary grounding of the aircraft after a crash in February 1956 and again the following July caused training delays, and at mid-year there were still no combat-ready B-52 crews.
Of the 50 B-52Bs built, 27 were capable of carrying a reconnaissance pod as RB-52Bs (the crew was increased to eight in these aircraft). The 300 pound (136 kg) pod contained radio receivers, a combination of K-36, K-38, and T-11 cameras, and two operators on downward-firing ejection seats. The pod required only four hours to install.
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