The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress began her life at the Boeing Aircraft
Corp back in 1946. She was the answer to the problem that General Curtis
LeMay of the USAF was looking for: A BIG bomber.
The B-52, in 1955 entered the service of the USAF and as of 2016 she is
still in service and on active duty. The B-52 had lived through the Cold
War, being on alert 24/7 in case the Russian Bear stepped out of line.
The B-52 saw service in the Vietnam War of which Operation Rolling
Thunder became one of the monumental programs in USAF history. The B-52
went on to service in the deserts of the Middle East in Operation Desert
Storm and later in Enduring Freedom and Afghanistan. Through all this,
the B-52 has stood for the many revisions, from A to H, that have been
done to her massive airframe and her cockpit, which is now an up to-date
glass cockpit. Of the 744 that were built 85 of the 'H' model still
remain in service. Her armament capacity is immense. 50 years of
service, and many battle scars later, still the B-52 remains the Queen
of the skies of War.