We all know that the B52 strategic bomber is one of the most deterrent and longest range strategic bombers in the world today, and is one of the core forces of the US Trinity nuclear strike. It is the oldest strategic bomber in service in the world today, but there are still a certain number of them in service, and the U.S. military plans to retire from active service until after 2050, when the B52 bomber will serve as long as 95 years from its birth to its retirement from the stage of history, which will create the world’s longest record of strategic bomber service, and is also a major miracle in aviation history.
The development of the B52 strategic bomber began in 1948, first flew on April 15, 1952, and entered service with the U.S. Air Force in February 1955. In the decades after service, numerous models were derived, including the B-52A, B, C, D, E, F, G and H. Today, except for the B52H, which is still in service, all other models have been completely retired, and about 70 B52Hs remain in service. In fact, the B52 series bomber has stopped production in 1962, but it has not been retired, but after several upgrades, the B52H has modern strike capability, modern radar system, communication system, GPS and electronic system, etc., and also equipped with various missiles, so that it has the ability to strike targets in the defense zone.
In fact, with the continuous progress and development of science and technology in all countries, the B52 bomber has been difficult to adapt to the future needs of strategic strikes, and its slow flight speed makes it easy to be intercepted by fighter jets and shot down by anti-aircraft missiles, in the Vietnam War, 17 B52s were shot down by Northern surface-to-air missiles or fighter jets, in addition to some non-combat losses. And today, with more advanced anti-aircraft missile systems in various countries and more capable fighter aircraft, the B52’s survivability on the battlefield will yet be lower. However, it is a bomber that has not been replaced by the more advanced B1B “Gunship” and B2 “Ghost” strategic bombers.
Why the B52 has not been replaced after such a long service time, and its deterrent effect is not as good as the B1B “Gun Cavalry” and B2 “Ghost”, there are some advantages behind it. The B52 has a payload of more than 30 tons, and in the Vietnam War, it was the first time the world witnessed what carpet bombing was, with dozens of tons of ammunition falling from the sky and no grass growing anywhere on the ground. Its maximum range is over 16,200 kilometers, making it one of the longest-range bombers in the world today, and it flies farther than the largest in service, the TU-160 White Swan, which makes it easy to fly intercontinental strikes, and with aerial refueling, its range can be increased to 18,000 kilometers. Above that, it’s definitely the best in terms of range.
Compared to the B2 Ghost, which requires a constant temperature hangar and frequent stealth coating changes, the B52 is much easier to maintain, and according to relevant data, the cost of maintenance is less than a quarter of the B2. In addition to the above-mentioned features, the B52 is also the largest of the U.S. bombers in terms of size. So how big is it? For a visual comparison, we found a 1:1 image of a B52 strategic bomber P onto the deck of a Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.
We all know that the Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier is in service in addition to the “Ford” nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, the largest tonnage, the largest deck area, the most deterrent aircraft carrier, it relies on a large deck area, like a mobile airport at sea, can let the fighter planes to achieve landing, and can carry dozens of shipboard aircraft. So what would happen if you put a B52 bomber on it? Below is a picture of the B52 strategic bomber P to the deck of a Nimitz class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier.
It is easy to see from the pictures that the B52 is much larger compared to the ship’s fighters, putting it on the deck, the carrier can hardly take off and land the fighter, and its wingspan is wider than the front deck of the carrier. According to public data, the length of the B52 bomber is 48.5 meters and its wingspan is 56.4 meters, while the length of the hull of the Nimitz nuclear-powered carrier is 332.8 meters and its width is 76 meters, if calculated in this way, the deck of the Nimitz nuclear-powered carrier can barely fit six B52 strategic bombers. If it were for other aircraft, the deck of the Nimitz could accommodate more than 40 aircraft, which shows the difference between the size of the strategic bomber and the fighter plane.
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