🔷 BUFF 2050

BUFF 2050

The B-52 Stratofortress is undergoing the most comprehensive upgrade in its history—with plans to keep it flying and fighting into the 2050s!

Given that the YB-52 first flew in 1952, this modernization will give the BUFF a 100-year flying legacy.

The service is embarking on a $48B modernization program: think new engines, new nacelles, new cockpits, new radios, a new radar, and much more. It’s not just about retrofitting the airframe, it's a radical overhaul designed to redefine the bomber’s role in modern warfare—there’s even a new aircrew composition.

• Commercial Engine Replacement Program (CERP): a $15B engine upgrade leveraging Rolls Royce F130, the military name for the commercial BR725 jet engines used in the Gulfstream G650. Yep, The BUFF will be flyin’ like a G6. The program includes new nacelles, new pilot cockpit displays, and somewhat related…a nose job that increases its max speed.  

• Radar: The BUFF is also getting a new radar—based on the AESA variants in the F/A-18 E/F Super Hornet and F-15EX! The new unit features a mix of components, is designated the APG-79v4, and has some unique requirements—like nuclear hardening and a downward-facing array. The first radar is now in the hands of the Air Force and doing integration work. First flight is soon…hopefully! In the meantime, the Air Force needs to clarify the name of the radar—the APG-79v4 designation is also being used for the legacy Hornet AESA radar program.

• Quad Crew Program: The 5-crew cockpit is getting refreshed, dropping the EWO, and will resemble a 4-person crew akin to the B-1 (pilot, co-pilot, offensive WSO, defensive WSO). Work is already underway by L3Harris for this project, known as the B-52 Quad Crew Program.

At the end of this (and more details we didn’t highlight), it will get a new name: the B-52J.

Beyond the Tech

A lot of rich history and culture are being brought into a test and modernization process that the BUFF community has largely not been involved with. This was the starting point for our interview; tech is cool, but it's people, ideas, and things—in that order.  

We discuss the crew’s evolving roles, the origins of the legendary “BUFF” nickname, the new “test orange” B-52, the mindset shift, and the tactical, operational, and strategic impacts this modernization program has—like the tanker bill required to fuel a superpower.

We kept it lively, so there’s also plenty of humor and history in our conversation, like James Earl Jones’ connection to the B-52’s legacy, aerial naval mining, and a never-been-told story of one of the first combat drops of the CBU-105 Sensor Fuzed Weapon…during Operation Iraqi Freedom…supporting a JTAC with Troops in Contact. Yep, you read that right.

We’re totally biased, but we think this may be the most condensed in-depth discussion of the BUFF you’ll find—tactics, test, tech, culture, history, and experiences directly from the professionals representing America's iconic bomber’s past, present, and future.

Check it out!

YouTube 

Apple 

Spotify

In That Number

1 per day

General Atomics stated they could produce Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCAs) at a rate of 1 per day—and could achieve production of 1 every other day without lifting a finger.

TRIVIA

On October 21, 1916, the US Army formed the first Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) unit. In what university was this unit established?

A) Norwich
B) MIT
C) Harvard
D) Texas A&M

On the Radar

The Army’s most challenging threat are Group 3 drones. These mid-sized drones occupy the middle ground with payload, endurance, and range and can be adapted to a variety of missions. Some examples of Group 3 drones include Iran’s Shahed 136 one-way attack drone and the MQ-35 V-BAT ISR drone. The Army, Navy, and Marine Corps are all-in fielding Group 3 drones—and defending against them.

• The Merge’s Take: Meanwhile, the Air Force has largely avoided the Group 3 drone segment, favoring cruise missiles and Group 5 drones for offense…and relying on the Army for defense. Some of the resistance is that it’s just not organized to operate or integrate them into its current force design. Keep an eye on this—it’ll need to change soon.

The NRO is quietly punching back at the Space Force and NGA. The 3 organizations have been in a bureaucratic food fight over space-based ISR roles and responsibilities for most of 2024.

• The Merge’s Take: The explosion of easily accessible space-based commercial capabilities has knocked down barriers to warfighter access to intel and threatened plenty of DC rice bowls in the process. Time will tell how this all pans out, but we hope they don’t lose sight of the purpose—ensuring the warfighter wins.

They Said It
“It should be clear to all of us that the days where we indiscriminately could buy an entire Army’s worth of inventory in a single program of record are gone. We can’t afford to invest in obsolescence.”

— Gen. Randy George, Chief of Staff of the Army

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Knowledge Bombs

• Beacon AI raised a $15m Series A round for its R2-D2 AI pilot assistance technology (investors include Sam Altman from OpenAI)

• France may collaborate with the UAE on developing the Rafale F5 fighter (2030 fielding)

• Leonardo unveiled an EW payload for drones designed for stand-in jamming

• Northrop Grumman released a video on its new Jackal jet-powered precision strike missile

• L3Harris protested SNC’s HADES Army spy plane contract win

• Airbus completed its first Lakota drone helicopter demo for the Marine Corps

• Eurosam test-fired its new 900-mile range ASTER 30 B1 naval air defense missile for the first time

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ANSWER
C. Harvard was the first university to form an ROTC unit, though Norwich is known as the "Birthplace of ROTC" due to its lineage of Citizen-Soldier ideals that influenced its creation.