B52 BOMBER

The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is a long-range, subsonic, jet-powered, strategic bomber flown by the United States Air Force (USAF) since 1955. Beginning with the successful contract bid on 5 June 1946, the B-52 went through several designs, from a straight wing aircraft powered by six turboprop engines, to the final prototype, YB-52 (with 8 engines), which first flew on 15 April 1952 by "Tex" Johnston.[5] Built to carry nuclear weapons for Cold War-era deterrence missions, the B-52 Stratofortress replaced the Convair B-36. Although a veteran of a number of wars, the Stratofortress has dropped only conventional munitions in actual combat. With the longest unrefuelled range of any contemporary bomber, the B-52 carries up to 70,000 pounds of weapons.