Boeing B-52 Stratofortress

US Air Force, NASA

Overview

    Today, the B-52, also known as 'BUFF' (Big Ugly Fat Fellow) and the Strategic Air Command's 'Long Rifle', is considered rather obsolete, especially in the era of supersonic fighter aircraft and high-tech anti-aircraft systems. However, the B-52 was a prominent image of what was hoped to never happen- the dropping of nuclear weapons in the Cold War. The A model first flew in 1954, and since then, 744 B-52s have been built. First designed for the purpose of delivering nuclear warheads into the heart of the Soviet Union, the B-52's mission was drastically altered with B-52Ds and B-52Gs dropping massed conventional ordnance in Vietnam. RB-52Bs served as a long range reconnaissance tool. Once again in Desert Storm, B-52Gs delivered 40 percent of all the ordnance dropped by the Coalition. Some modified B-52s serve as launching platforms for many experimental aircraft and as data gathering tools for NASA. One interesting note to make is that the B-52's landing gear system can "rotate" so that the plane may be slanted but the landing gear is on par with the runway. The H model is currently the only Stratofortress in active service. Read more about it here. Photo thanks to Historic Wings and much of the technical info were borrowed from this website on the Boeing B-52 Stratofortress.

B-52B Stratofortress Specifications

Primary function: long range strategic heavy bomber
Manufacturer: Boeing Military Airplane Co.
Power plant: early models (eight Pratt & Whitney J57-P-1W/WA/WB turbojet engines), later models (eight Pratt & Whitney J57-P-29W or WA turbojet engines), final five (eight Pratt & Whitney J57-P-19 turbojet engines)
Thrust: early models (11,400 pounds with water injection each engine), later models (12,100 pounds with water injection each engine), final five (12,100 pounds with water injection each engine)
Length: 156.6 feet (47.7 meters)
Height: 48.8 feet (14.4 meters)
Wingspan: 185 feet (56.4 meters)
Speed: 630 mph (at 19,800 feet)
Range: 7,343 miles (11,860 ) (ferry range)
Ceiling: 47,300 feet (14,420.1 meters)
Maximum takeoff weight: 420,000 pounds (189,000 kilograms)
Armament: two rear M24A1 20mm cannons or four rear M3 0.5 in. machine guns and up to 43,000 pounds (19,350 kilograms) of mixed, mainly nuclear ordnance
Crew: five (pilot, copilot, bombardier, radar navigator, and tail gunner) 
Deployment date: June 1955
Unit cost: N/A

RB-52B Stratofortress Specifications

Primary function: long range strategic reconnaissance or long range strategic heavy bomber
Manufacturer: Boeing Military Airplane Co.
Power plant: early models (eight Pratt & Whitney J57-P-1W/WA/WB turbojet engines), later models (eight Pratt & Whitney J57-P-29W or WA turbojet engines), final five (eight Pratt & Whitney J57-P-19 turbojet engines)
Thrust: early models (11,400 pounds with water injection each engine), later models (12,100 pounds with water injection each engine), final five (12,100 pounds with water injection each engine)
Length: 156.6 feet (47.7 meters)
Height: 48.8 feet (14.4 meters)
Wingspan: 185 feet (56.4 meters)
Speed: 630 mph (at 19,800 feet)
Range: 7,343 miles (11,748.8 kilometers) (ferry range)
Ceiling: 47,300 feet (14,420.1 meters)
Maximum takeoff weight: 420,000 pounds (189,000 kilograms)
Armament: two rear M24A1 20mm cannons or four rear M3 0.5 in. machine guns and up to 43,000 pounds (19,350 kilograms) of mixed, mainly nuclear ordnance (a two-man pressurized capsule for reconnaissance work fitted in bomb bay in place of bombs) 
Crew: five (pilot, copilot, bombardier, radar navigator, and tail gunner) and an additional two recon pod operators 
Deployment date: June 1955
Unit cost: N/A

B-52D Stratofortress Specifications

Technical data currently not available at this time.

B-52G Stratofortress Specifications

Primary function: long range strategic heavy bomber
Manufacturer: Boeing Military Airplane Co.
Power plant: eight Pratt & Whitney J57-P-43WB turbojet engines
Thrust: 11,400 pounds (5,130 kilograms) each engine (with water injection)
Length: 157.6 feet (48 meters)
Height: 40.7 feet (12.4 meters)
Wingspan: 185 feet (56.4 meters)
Speed: 636 mph (at 20,800 feet)
Range: 7,976 miles (12,761.6 kilometers) (ferry range)
Ceiling: 47,000 feet (14,328.6 meters)
Maximum takeoff weight: 488,000 pounds (219,600 kilograms)
Armament: four rear M3 0.5 in. machine guns and up to 50,000 pounds (22,500 kilograms) of ordnance including nuclear weapons, conventional weapons, air launched cruise missiles, and mines
Crew: five (pilot, copilot, bombardier, radar navigator, and tail gunner) 
Deployment date: February 1959
Unit cost: N/A