Toggle sidebar

OT: B-52 crashed at Edwards AFB

DawgsGoneWild

DawgsGoneWild

All-Conference
Sep 25, 2012
894
1,208
93
Crazy. My office is about 1/2 mile off the end of the runway for Barksdale AFB in Bossier. Those things are awesome to watch all day
 
thatsbaseball

thatsbaseball

All-American
May 29, 2007
18,073
6,904
113
mstateglfr

mstateglfr

All-American
Feb 24, 2008
16,437
6,246
113
Given the fleet's age, it is amazing these are still in use and plan to be used for decades to come.
Really impressive.
I wonder how many are a sort-of Ship of Theseus at this point.
 
  • Like
Reactions: GomJabbar and CochiseCowbell
R

RocketDawg

All-Conference
Oct 21, 2011
19,332
2,285
113
thatsbaseball said:
First of all I hope the crew is OK . Those planes are basically irreplaceable aren't they ?
Click to expand...
I don't know if the crew escaped or not. As far as I know, the B-52 doesn't have ejection seats/capability like fighters do. I also don't know how many were onboard, but AI says a standard crew is 5 individuals.
 
  • Sad
Reactions: MagnoliaHunter
Darryl Steight

Darryl Steight

All-American
Sep 30, 2022
4,163
6,973
113
Two of those exact Stratofortresses did the flyover for the USMNT match at Soldier Field last Saturday. It was an amazing sight. The wingspans are impressive and I can't imagine one going down. Praying for the crew and anyone involved in this crash.
 
  • Like
Reactions: patdog
POTUS

POTUS

Heisman
Sep 29, 2022
4,395
11,686
113
Wikipedia says they have ejection seats but the crew besides pilot and co-pilot have downward seats. Not sure if that would work if it’s low the ground.
 
BossDawg78

BossDawg78

All-Conference
Jan 25, 2015
3,873
1,107
113
TaleofTwoDogs said:
My father was a EWO on the 52 in the early 60's. We would watch them take off from a vantage point just yards from the end of the runway. Awesome sight and you leave wondering how that beast can fly.
Click to expand...

It's pretty mind blowing that they can get off the ground. With the size of those wings, I'm sure it produces enough lift to get a small ship off the ground. It's also neat to see one (or any gigantic plane) up close and look at all the intricate piping and wiring within the wheel wells and such. It's incredible to think of the engineers and designers who started with drawings on a piece of paper and ended with a war machine where everything from front to back works together.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Fritz!, dorndawg and Darryl Steight
DAWGSANDSAINTS

DAWGSANDSAINTS

All-Conference
Oct 10, 2022
3,191
2,908
113
Saw these back in the day at CAFB Open Houses. My Dad worked there and we would go every year.
Amazing how big those planes are.
 
BrunswickDawg

BrunswickDawg

Junior
Aug 22, 2012
323
252
63
TaleofTwoDogs said:
My father was a EWO on the 52 in the early 60's. We would watch them take off from a vantage point just yards from the end of the runway. Awesome sight and you leave wondering how that beast can fly.
Click to expand...
I grew up in the flight path for Dobbins AFB/Lockheed - GA when they were refitting the C-5's in the early 80's. Different kind of monster, but I always had the same thought about how could something that big fly.
 
Darryl Steight

Darryl Steight

All-American
Sep 30, 2022
4,163
6,973
113
BossDawg78 said:
It's pretty mind blowing that they can get off the ground. With the size of those wings, I'm sure it produces enough lift to get a small ship off the ground. It's also neat to see one (or any gigantic plane) up close and look at all the intricate piping and wiring within the wheel wells and such. It's incredible to think of the engineers and designers who started with drawings on a piece of paper and ended with a war machine where everything from front to back works together.
Click to expand...
The B-52 wingspan is 185'. So the width of that plane is basically from one goal line of a football field - past midfield - to the opposite 39 yard line.
 
  • Wow
  • Like
Reactions: patdog and OopsICroomedmypants
aTotal360

aTotal360

Heisman
Nov 12, 2009
22,189
15,463
113
Napoleon378 said:
They're incredible airframes that are easily upgradeable with modern weapons and tech. Much more cost effective to upgrade a good airframe than to design and build a brand new one like we have had to do with our fighters and smaller bombers
Click to expand...
I get it. However, at some point, there must be diminishing returns to using a 60-year-old frame.

And, yes, I get that this incident could have been caused by modern software.
 
  • Like
Reactions: She Mate Me
Napoleon378

Napoleon378

All-Conference
Nov 14, 2023
710
1,128
93
aTotal360 said:
I get it. However, at some point, there must be diminishing returns to using a 60-year-old frame.

And, yes, I get that this incident could have been caused by modern software.
Click to expand...
for sure. The other thing to note is the modern US military doesn't have a huge need for a large fleet of non-stealth heavy bombers anyway. So, we could go spend billions on R&D and produce a new slightly better version of the B52 but it's just not worth it. Our fleet of B1B's, B-2's, and future B21's will do the job.
 
  • Like
Reactions: patdog, aTotal360, Darryl Steight and 1 other person
She Mate Me

She Mate Me

Heisman
Dec 7, 2008
14,273
13,115
113
For anyone somewhat “in the know”, what kind of testing is done on these multi decade old airframes to determine age related stress/weakness??
 
Last edited:
R

RocketDawg

All-Conference
Oct 21, 2011
19,332
2,285
113
aTotal360 said:
I get it. However, at some point, there must be diminishing returns to using a 60-year-old frame.

And, yes, I get that this incident could have been caused by modern software.
Click to expand...
It's going to be interesting to see what the investigation turns up. They're estimating 6 months. But this plane had 8 brand new Rolls Royce engines, from what I read, upgraded radar, and other improvements. I suspect that maintenance will be a big part of the investigation. I also read that the test flight had been delayed in days past. Hopefully they merely weren't in a hurry to meet a schedule like NASA was with Challenger.

Aside - one of my most vivid memories was at Edwards when I was going to a test one morning just at sunrise. Heading toward me was the Atlantis (space shuttle Orbiter) being delivered from Palmdale atop the 747. It flew right over my car, at several thousand feet.
 
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: Napoleon378, MSUDOG24, aTotal360 and 2 others
The Peeper

The Peeper

Heisman
Feb 26, 2008
16,058
11,448
113
aTotal360 said:
I'm a little shocked they still use planes built in the 50s and 60s.
Click to expand...
I heard last night they aren't being phased out until 2050's so planning on getting 100ish years out of them (the original design) before replacement. They said most flying today were built in the 60's, mere youngsters compared to those 1950's built ones**
 
Last edited:
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: Fritz! and aTotal360
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom